I Got Reincarnated as the Villain and Saved the World, but After the Ending I Was Betrayed and Exiled. I Just Wanted a Peaceful Life in the Frontier, but for Some Reason My Former Companions Started Chasing Me with Yandere Eyes… - 43

Chapter 43: Tia and Ceres

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“Even so, I had heard that among Solomon’s companions was the famed ‘Wisest Elena.’ The fact that she isn’t here is truly disappointing.”

“…Do you have some kind of grudge against Elena-san?”

Tia asked Baram, who was running his mouth as if to stall for time while keeping his guard up. He gave a smug smile in return.

“Grudge? Of course not. I’m simply interested in her, that’s all. The courage to fight us demons while being an elf who lives at the base of the World Tree!! And then, that short height, that slender body, and on top of it all, the same longevity as us demons… As a lifelong partner, she’s perfect!! Worthy to be my slave!!”

“Ugh, gross!!”

“Why don’t you just drop dead already…?”

Tia and Ceres shouted at the same time. 

Are all demons like this?

She thought, recalling her first encounter with Amon. Lowering her voice, Tia whispered to Ceres.

“I’ll act as the decoy. You go call Master and the others.”

“Are you serious? I’m stronger than you, you know. And besides, that guy is a flat-chest-loving pedophile bastard. Wouldn’t you be a bad match for him…?”

“That’s true, but you have a higher chance of actually reaching Master, don’t you? And also… The opposite of love is indifference. Let’s show him what a cute-type adventurer can do!!”

“What—!?”

Without waiting for Ceres’s reply, Tia slowly began walking toward Baram. Her movement didn’t look like she was approaching a fight at all, but more like she was casually walking up to talk to someone on the street.

“Baram-san, you called yourself a genius and the embodiment of wisdom, but you really don’t understand anything, do you?”

“What… What do you mean by that, human? Are you saying there’s something I don’t know!?”

Baram grew enraged at Tia’s shrugging gesture of exasperation, but she only grinned. Then she emphasized her cleavage and winked.

“You seem to like small things, but don’t you feel a gap moe when someone small like me has big breasts? Doesn’t that excite you, like seeing a little girl trying just a bit too hard?♡”

“Loli… With big breasts? True, an innocent-looking girl having a large chest could be… But no, the balance is off…”

“Hey, Spirit-san, you agree, don’t you? Then lend me your strength♡”

The moment Baram’s gaze froze on Tia’s open chest, her dagger flared with fire and slashed at him. He screamed as his right arm was severed.

“Gyaaaaah! A human!! To think you would dare deceive a genius like me!!”

“I meant to finish you off, but I guess it didn’t go that well… Still, you’re amazing, Spirit-san! Lend me even more strength!~♡”

Winked at and completely charmed by Tia, the spirit grew eager and attacked Baram. Fire, wind, and water relentlessly struck him. Tia’s charm enthralled not just humans, but even demons and spirits. She wasn’t only charming Baram—her smile and her bo… No, her graceful movements had captivated the surrounding spirits as well.

“Don’t make me laugh!! Do you think mere spirits can defeat a demon like me!!”

He unleashed a black beam, but Tia twisted her body at the last second to dodge. Losing her balance, she heard the snap of a finger behind her. Baram had teleported and was about to attack from her blind spot.

“You fatty!!”

“This demon is harder than I thought…”

Ceres had slammed him down with her mace as if swatting an insect.

“Ceres-san!? Why!?”

“Don’t worry. Rosario is already rushing to Phantom-sama. Since this is Phantom-sama we’re talking about, Rosario will be able to track his trace perfectly. Besides, it’s more efficient for the two of us to stall him together.”

“Rosario is… On her way to Master?”

“Tch, this woman… She’s aiming right for the vital points… She’s definitely a devious woman… Drop dead!!”

Tia tried to confirm what Ceres meant, but Ceres only smiled faintly and said nothing, continuing to mercilessly hammer her mace down on Baram.

“I hate to admit it, but seeing you bravely stand to protect someone you’re weak against while smiling defiantly before such a strong enemy… I saw in you the same strength as Phantom-sama and Henrietta-san. Forgive me for underestimating you until now. And… Please don’t tell him what’s about to happen.”

“Eh?”

When Baram teleported to escape, Ceres turned back and gave Tia a smile. Not the polite, surface-level smile she usually wore, but one filled with the warmth she reserved for those close to her—like Phantom or Elena.

“Indeed, excessive flesh is no good, far too savage!! Innocent maidens are the true beauty!!”

“I didn’t want to use this, but… Don’t underestimate the power of a saintess. O’ God, grant me your blessing to smite evil!!”

A divine light wrapped around Ceres, her frame growing larger as her vestments stretched with a creak. She had buffed herself beyond her limits, healing her screaming muscles instantly as they tore under the strain. The constant pain was excruciating, but as a saintess, Ceres didn’t let it show, only smiling calmly at Tia.

“According to Phantom-sama, I’m best suited to be as an ‘offensive healer’ or something along that line. Since you’re risking your life, I can’t hide behind modesty anymore. Leave the front line to me.”

“Yes, please. Spirit-san, that demon’s still going strong! I want to see something even cooler!~♡”

“Damn this woman… She crushed my hand to stop me from teleporting!? Uwoooo!?”

Caught off guard by her speed and strength, Baram had his remaining arm crushed by Ceres’s mace, and while he faltered, the spirits’ magic rained down on him.

“Just a little more, Spirit-san, you’re amazing!~♡”

“No way… For me to be defeated so easily…”

Overwhelmed by unceasing attacks, Baram’s body began to fade in despair.

“No way?! Even with your hand crushed, you can still teleport?!”

“Hahahaha! That obvious display of despair was just an act, of course! Behold! My cunning… Wha-?!”

Baram reappeared behind Tia, grinning in triumph as he readied his magic. But instantly, a mace struck his location as if Ceres had known he would appear there.

“Demons don’t need words or gestures to use magic. You were too showy. I figured it was an  act.”

“Gah!? How did you know where I would—”

As he groaned, clutching his head, Ceres silently raised her mace again.

“I understand the mindset of cowards who prey on the weak… I’ve gotten used to it on past journeys.”

“Wait, wait! Don’t you want information? I’ll tell you everything, anything, so—”

But his desperate plea was drowned out by the sound of the mace slamming down again. To her enemies, Ceres showed no mercy—thus her name, the “Worst Ceres.”

“…Tia-san, I was jealous of you. I resented you.”

“Eh?”

As she burned Baram’s corpse in divine flames, Ceres began to speak with regret, something uncharacteristic of her. 

“I kept thinking it was only by chance that you met Phantom-sama before me… That you were just lucky. I always believed if I had met him first, I would have been the one at his side.”

She bit her lip in frustration. Tia, seeing Ceres show such vulnerability for the first time, watched silently, waiting for her next words.

“But watching you fight that demon, I realized the strength of your heart and that strength… That kindness…It must have been what saved him.”

“Ceres-san…?”

Ceres, having burned Baram to ashes, turned to face Tia directly. Tia could see tears welling in her eyes.

“But I really did try so hard to find him. Using Rosario, searching desperately, traveling everywhere, talking to people… Traveling alone is painful. There’s no one to complain to, and there were dangerous times, too. But I wanted to see him again. I love him that much. He’s my first love… And when I finally reunited with him, I couldn’t hold my feelings back anymore. That’s why, even though I know he’s troubled by it, I still end up clinging to him.”

Ceres’s tears flowed as she gazed in the direction Phantom must be.

“I know. When Phantom-sama was exiled, he didn’t come to me. He went back to his family instead. Even though I was there, I wasn’t the one he trusted. So even if I had been the first to meet him, I probably couldn’t have healed his heart.”

She smiled self-deprecatingly. But Tia gently hugged her from behind.

“That’s not true. You just missed each other, that’s all. Because sometimes when Master talks about the past, he looks so genuinely happy. I think if you had met and talked properly, you would have understood each other.”

“Ugh… Uuh… thank you…”

Unable to hold back her tears any longer, Ceres sobbed openly. Tia now hugged her from the front, her ample chest enveloping Ceres’s face while she gently stroked her head. Her touch was so gentle, like she was cradling something so endearly precious in her hold.

Ceres’s sobs grew louder. She had almost no memory of her mother, had never had anyone to lean on. And so, for the first time, she let out everything she had bottled up.

“Isn’t it strange? A saint like me being swayed around by love like this?”

Who knew how long she cried. With her eyes red and swollen, Ceres smiled shyly.

“Eh? It’s not strange at all. Because before being a saint, you’re Ceres-san. Just a human being.”

“You… You sound just like him…”

Ceres’s eyes widened at Tia’s words.

“Eh?”

“No, nothing. Thank you. Um… May I ask something? Would you become my friend?”

“We’ve already eaten together, traveled together. Aren’t we already friends? Well, you can be a bit much sometimes, but I’ve never disliked how honest you are with your feelings.”

“What incredible warmth… It makes me want to call you Mama…”

Muttering this softly, Ceres finally faced her.

“Thank you, Tia.”

“Yes, you’re welcome. Ceres.”

They smiled at each other—genuine smiles, showing their true selves.

“By the way, Ceres, back to business. Let’s stop with the excessive skinship. Otherwise, Master will be put off BY US.”

“You’re right… But in exchange, let’s promise neither of us will sneak ahead. This time, I’ll swear it sincerely. Not by God, but by our friendship. Let’s even seal it with a little charm Phantom-sama once taught me.”

They hooked their pinkies together in a promise, laughing again. Just then, two figures arrived.

“You two okay? …Wait, why do you look so close all of a sudden?”

“I smell some yuri vibes here…”

Phantom and Amon looked bewildered at the sight of the two bonding so warmly.

★★

Meanwhile, at the Adventurers’ Guild near the royal capital, a message from Solomon to Phantom had just arrived.

『I’m sorry… Elena went missing in battle against the enemy…』

However, Phantom would only learn of this message some time later.

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