A few hours before Cosmic Zak and Liliran’s battle, at dawn—
I revealed the existence of resurrection magic for the first time since coming to this world.
Liliran looked surprised.
Resurrection magic was something even the famous Saintess couldn’t use.
Her shock was only natural.
But she calmed down far quicker than I expected.
Liliran was someone who had even been through war.
Though I didn’t know much about her, Aransel had told me she was regarded as a war hero.
She must have seen all sorts of Transporters over the years.
And she was especially familiar with how abnormally powerful the No-Names were.
“I see. So that’s how…”
She seemed to already have some suspicions.
“I found it strange when every presence in the forest disappeared except for Cosmic Zak’s, and then you suddenly reappeared.”
So she could detect presence that precisely—
That settled it. I really had to be cautious about using resurrection magic recklessly.
And even more, I became convinced—
Cosmic Zak needed to be eliminated.
Cosmic Zak still hadn’t figured out how Aransel and I had come back to life.
But if by any chance…
He were to stumble upon resurrection magic someday…
There’s no doubt he’d connect it to what happened recently.
And depending on his goals, he might target me, the wielder of resurrection magic.
To prevent that, the best solution was to remove him altogether.
“So, how exactly do you plan to revive me? Cosmic Zak will catch on to any sign.”
I had already come up with what was needed.
“Just the tip of your pinky finger. That’s all I ask.”
I asked her to cut off the tip of her pinky.
A completely ridiculous request.
Slice—
But without hesitation, Liliran severed part of her pinky finger using spatial magic.
Then she tossed it to me.
It was a tiny finger, just as small as her petite frame.
I hadn’t expected her to cut it off so willingly.
Even if it was just a finger joint, it was still part of her body.
The pain of amputation aside, there had to be a strong psychological resistance.
“When my life is on the line, what’s a pinky finger compared to that?”
Liliran saw right through my thoughts and smiled.
“What if I was lying about resurrection magic?”
“Doesn’t matter. Either way, I’m gambling with my life. So I might as well try anything.”
Her mindset was on a completely different level.
Was this what they called wisdom that comes with age?
“Or do you have a fetish for collecting fingers or something?”
“I most definitely do not have such a horrifying fetish.”
“Let’s hope it stays that way.”
I gripped her pinky finger tightly.
From the moment I used resurrection magic, I instinctively knew—
Even with just a pinky joint, I could bring someone back.
I assumed other Transporters felt the same.
Each Transporter had an innate sense of how far their abilities could go.
To them, a supernatural power was like an extension of their own body—
Just as they naturally used their limbs, they could naturally use their powers.
“I’m off. That guy doesn’t have much patience. I have to go before he does something worse.”
At dawn, the airship search party would move out.
So Liliran set off immediately.
She acted quickly, hoping to minimize harm to others because of her.
Once she vanished, only silence remained.
To perform resurrection magic, I had moved some distance away from Aransel’s sleeping house and the fairy village.
Then I quietly sat beside a piece of tree bark, biding my time.
By the time the blue colors of early morning began to settle in with the rising sun—
I began the process.
Holding my breath, I gripped the finger and activated the resurrection magic.
A pure white light spread through my palm.
Along with it, I felt a huge amount of the residual mana in my body drain away.
The transformation began at the tiny fingertip.
Bones sprouted, internal organs formed, and flesh began to grow.
Though the body was small, it was fully complete with everything inside.
A gentle swell rose on her pale skin and her chest took form.
Resurrection magic didn’t restore clothing.
So naturally, her bare form was revealed just as it was.
Liliran’s body gradually reached completion.
And at last, the wings of the fairy race emerged from her back.
“Ugh… huhh.”
Liliran slowly opened her eyes and her brows furrowed.
Her gaze landed on me.
She stared for a moment, then parted her lips.
“So I really did come back to life.”
With a dazed expression, she opened and closed her hand.
Even the left pinky finger that had been cut off had returned to normal.
Despite having just been resurrected, she was surprisingly composed.
Usually, people were in a confused daze right after resurrection.
But not her. She really was on a different level.
“Lady Liliran, what happened to Cosmic Zak?”
At my question, Liliran slowly curled her lips into a smile.
“He’s now lying at the bottom of the deep sea, screaming my name.”
The bottom of the deep sea.
In other words…instant death.
Serves him right for not living gracefully.
A fitting end for a Great Sinner.
Glad I met you; now let’s never meet again…even in the afterlife.
Liliran used her wings to cover her body as she gently floated into the air.
“Hmm, I should’ve left the pipe behind. A friend gave it to me… shame to lose something that good.”
All of her belongings were now resting in the deep sea.
Perhaps because of that, Liliran showed a hint of regret.
“Though I probably shouldn’t be saying this after having my life saved… thank you. I owe you one.”
“Yes, it’s a big debt. I hope you won’t forget it and that you’ll pay it back someday when I need you.”
Maybe because of my bold tone, Liliran smiled softly.
“Of course. That’s what we made a deal for, isn’t it?”
Thankfully, she didn’t take advantage of me or make unreasonable demands after I saved her.
“And I’d like to ask you to keep this a secret as well.”
“I will. It’s an ability that brings no good if word gets out.”
Glad she understood.
Even to Liliran, resurrection magic carried way too much risk.
“So, how’s the physical condition?”
Condition?
I stared at Liliran.
Did something not heal properly?
Her pale skin, long limbs, and slender body partially visible between her wings—
Everything seemed to be in place.
Then, noticing my gaze, Liliran flinched and cleared her throat awkwardly.
“Even an old woman like me gets embarrassed when stared at like that.”
“Ah—! I just thought maybe something hadn’t fully regenerated.”
“I wasn’t talking about my body, boy. I meant yours.”
…My body?
I was still in the fairy village, perfectly fine. What could be wrong?
“You resurrected me starting from just a pinky. Even if I’m small because I’m a fairy, that would’ve taken a huge amount of holy mana. You really don’t feel anything strange? Like pain in your heart, for instance?”
Heart problems.
A common symptom among holy mages.
Unlike regular mana, holy mana tends to circulate around the heart.
So frequent use can strain the heart and even cause illness.
However, this no longer applied to someone like Raphael, who possessed powerful healing abilities.
Even if her heart gets damaged, her body heals itself automatically.
But I wasn’t a holy mage of that caliber.
I might be talented, but I wasn’t at the level where my body healed itself just from healing magic.
That said, I didn’t feel any fatigue or pain from using it.
Just a little tired from not getting any sleep.
“Hm… maybe you just have a large mana reserve?”
“Or maybe I’m just overflowing with talent?”
“I don’t know what ‘overflowing with talent’ means exactly, but since you possess that kind of holy magic, you must be especially gifted when it comes to learning other holy spells too.”
Liriran said someone was officially a prodigy.
That’s me.
“Well then, I’d best get going to return the Essence of the Breathing Tree. It’s been too long since it was separated from the tree.”
“Yes, I should get some sleep too.”
“See you around, then.”
With that, Liriran flapped her wings and flew off.
She must’ve fought a fierce battle with the Cosmic Commander, but she looked surprisingly calm.
That just meant she was used to battles where her life was on the line.
Will I ever become like that too? Honestly, it’s a little terrifying.
I’ll just do my best to stay alive and take care of myself.
After Liriran left, I trudged back to the house assigned to me.
Like I told her, I was planning to lie down and rest for a bit.
“Haru.”
But there was one unexpected issue waiting for me.
When I walked into the house, Aransel was sitting on a chair by the entrance.
Judging by the look on her face, she hadn’t slept at all.
“Where were you?”
“Morning training.”
“Since last night until now?”
So she didn’t sleep after all.
She must’ve noticed me sneaking out and just pretended to be asleep.
We stared at each other in silence for a moment.
I don’t particularly trust Aransel.
To begin with, I’ve never really trusted anyone since coming to this world.
I just judge based on their character and what benefit I can get.
I won’t deny that I’m a bit of a mood-driven person too.
That’s how it was with Aransel.
I think we’ve built a decent relationship.
Even if things started off on the wrong foot, everything after that wasn’t so bad.
But that’s all.
Building a relationship of trust with her was a completely different matter.
Perhaps knowing that, Aransel didn’t press further and quietly stood up.
“I hurt my left hand so badly in the battle with that Cosmic guy that I couldn’t even hold my sword properly.”
So that’s why she kept clenching and unclenching her left hand.
I hesitated for just a brief moment.
It finally dawned on me why Aransel had brought that up.
When she opened her eyes, her injured left hand was already healed.
My healing magic could recover minor wounds.
But that was all it could do.
It wasn’t nearly strong enough to repair bones and muscles.
Aransel knew the limits of my abilities.
We had trained together long enough for her to be familiar with them.
Yet when she woke up, her left hand had completely healed.
Not just that….it must’ve been the same for all her other small wounds as well.
If Cosmic Zak had simply knocked us unconscious and left, the injuries should have remained.
It was only natural for Aransel to question this.
More than anything, it was the look Cosmic Zak gave us when we faced him again.
His reaction clearly said, “Why are you still alive?”
There was no way Aransel hadn’t noticed it.
And now today, without saying a word, I had gone outside.
In reality, there was nothing an ordinary holy mage could do alone out there, yet I had gone anyway.
It was only natural that doubt had started to grow.
“I just… whatever the reason, I wanted to say thank you.”
But even with all the clues, there was no way she could guess that I had resurrection magic.
Resurrection magic was considered legendary, even in this world.
“If there’s something you want to keep hidden, you don’t have to tell me. The fact that you still healed me despite that risk….this is just a thank-you for that.”
Aransel gave a faint smile and turned away.
“Thank you. You did well. Good night.”
Aransel returned to her room after saying that.
I stood silently by the entrance without moving.
Sunlight streamed in through the window beside the door.
Aransel hadn’t asked what I was hiding.
She simply wanted to say thank you, whatever it was.
She hated and resented Transporters.
But even so, she wanted to change. Not just her own life, but the lives of others too.
That was why she had waited here alone today.
In case something might have happened to me, she had waited.
And even then, she had been considerate enough not to confront me about what I was hiding.
The fact that she hadn’t come looking for me all through the night was proof of that.
While she had been quietly waiting, I had been tense on my own, trying to figure out her intentions.
My gaze drifted to the window.
The first button was fastened wrong.
Surely, I had started buttoning things wrong from the moment I arrived in this world.
And maybe it was a button I would never be able to fasten properly again for the rest of my life.
Even so, perhaps it was human nature to bitterly accept that truth… while still longing for the day we could finally undo the buttons and start over.
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