So, right now we’re in the middle of heading for Mr. Hero’s base. We rode a carriage up until partway, but you gotta cross the mountains to reach Ys, and no carriages would drive through the mountains. Mr. Rob worried about it, but since it’d take around half a year to circumvent the mountains, we decided to take the direct way.


    It’s not that we’re hurrying, but…no, we are hurrying, aren’t we? I wanna reach Mr. Hero’s base before the other troublemaker starts some shit, resulting in Wanted posters of me appearing all over the kingdom. Mr. Hero said the mansion is almost like an extraterritorial enve. It also sounded like it’s being protected by several of those intelligent tanks.


    Lady Indra, you’re incredible.


    ＊


    Then we encountered a bear during our mountain crossing. And on top of that a bear which was far bigger and more ferocious than the bears in hunting games!


    …I got scared, froze up, and couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t react to Mr. Rob’s yells for me to run away. I just stood there. While almost pissing my pants.


    Mr. Rob protected me, fighting despite having his shoulder gouged out. But, Mr. Rob was losing quite a lot of blood and was soon reeling. It looked like he’d get killed anytime soon.


    ――Even though there was no need for him to cover for the likes of me. I’m no brave. Mr. Rob doesn’t have any obligation to save me.


    “Mr. Rob!!”


    Finally, at longst, I readied the gun with my trembling hands and shot the bear. The bear copsed.


    …The water-gun-lookalike of Lady Indra was amazingly effective. I ran away while somehow dragging Mr. Rob along.


    “Sorry, Mr. Rob. I was scared…and couldn’t do anything…”


    “…In the end, I was the one to be rescued, though.”


    “That’s not true! I was about to get killed, then you covered for me, and then…”


    Mr. Rob’s face had gone beyond pale. It was white as a sheet now. In panic, I took out the emergency kit.


    …Ah, ites with proper instructions on how to apply the medical treatment. Moreover, she was so polite to use thenguage of the other world.


    “First take the painkiller and antibiotics. Then, wash out the wound with purified water. There’s also alcohol if you want to sterilize, so wash the wound with that.”


    I follow the written instructions to the dot. But…isn’t this quite bad? The flesh is entirely…


    I washed the wound while pushing my urge to puke back down.


    “If it’s a serious injury or one requiring surgery, drink the healing potion. As long as the bones are still left, the part will regenerate, but rehabilitation will be necessary. Or so it says… Mr. Rob, this wound is too heavy. Drink this.”


    “Eh!? But, this is something you received from Lady Indra, isn’t it?”


    “That doesn’t matter. You have to drink it since you’re injured. I’m uninjured, as you can see.”


    “What are you going to do about the future?!”


    “If something shows up again, I won’t be scared and paralyzed anymore. It caused you to get injured. I’ll properly throw the pepper bombs, and fire the gun. After all, it’s clear that they work.”


    Yep. I didn’t make up my mind. I simply hoped that no monsters would show up and thought I’d just need to run away otherwise. But now I have a concrete idea of what to do when something appears, so I’ll move forward. I don’t want to get the unrted Mr. Rob injured any further.


    …I’m sure this person will cover for me again, even if it means suffering like this.


    In the end, I had to somewhat force Mr. Rob to take the potion.


    “Whoa! …Nothing less of Lady Indra!”


    The wound healed up in a sh.


    “This is…a special-grade healing potion…! She gave away something so incredible so easily, huh? Thatdy is…!”


    Eh? Special-grade healing potion? Or rather, there existed a special grade for healing potions?


    ＊


    Although his injury healed up, Mr. Rob was still a bit unsteady on his feet. Since the kit also contained a blood-forming medicine, I handed it to him as well.


    “…Say, Mr. Rob, why did you protect me?” I tried asking him out of curiosity. “Mr. Rob, you have no obligations towards me. In the first ce, you became mypanion in a slightly forced manner, didn’t you? Especially as I’m going to quit being a brave, I don’t feel like it’s necessary for you to cover for me…”


    After bing bbergasted, Mr. Rob looked up to the sky.


    “…Now that you mention it, you got a point…but, how to put it…when you were invited by Sir 【Thunderp Whitefang】, received their food and cried out of nostalgia, I felt like staying at your side until you get used to this world.”


    Back then? Well, he’s right, I did be somewhat sentimental out of nostalgia, but…


    “Both of us were forced against our wills to go defeat the demon king. But, you are much more of a victim here. After being forcibly summoned over from a different world, you have no way back. Moreover, you have been basically told to go die. And yet, you have been trying to grow ustomed to this world, and I got touched when you shed tears over a nostalgic taste of food. I felt pity for you who is yearning for a homnd he will not be able to see ever again.” He turned his face in my direction and smiled. “That is why I decided that I would live with you. I do not have a ce to call home, so I n to make one from now on.”


    …


    “Okay, then I look forward to working with you, I guess?”


    “Yes, the pleasure is all mine.”


    Once I held out my hand, he grabbed it firmly.


    …Even aftering to another world, I still have no luck with women, but it looks like I managed to make a friend at least.