"It's... over already?" Rory murmured in a daze as she stared at the now-vanished red figure.
The scene of the Flame Dragon being reduced to ashes by fire played out clearly before her eyes, and it left her utterly astonished.
Though she had sensed the immense danger in the fireball Eriri created, she had never imagined it could annihilate the Flame Dragon in an instant.
"Of course. It was just a little lizard. Getting rid of it was no big deal," Eriri said casually.
Rory didn't know how to respond. The Flame Dragon she had struggled to even damage was nothing more than a "lizard" in Eriri's eyes.
Didn't that mean she wasn't even as strong as a lizard?
Eriri ignored Rory's spiraling thoughts and gently floated down to the ground, still holding her around the waist.
With the danger gone, the villagers who had been fleeing in all directions stopped or emerged from their hiding places.
Soon, the crowd spotted Eriri and Rory.
The moment they saw Rory's attire, their expressions shifted. Then, without hesitation, they ran toward the two.
As they got within a few meters, everyone halted, dropped to one knee, and folded their hands in front of their chests in a gesture of reverent prayer.
"Thank you, Clerics, for saving us!" a middle-aged man among them said with emotion in his voice.
Clearly, he had mistaken Eriri for a divine apostle as well.
Though the villagers hadn't witnessed Rory's earlier battle with the dragon, they had clearly seen Eriri destroy the Flame Dragon with a single strike.
This alone was enough for them to conclude that both Rory and Eriri were their saviors.
Many of them had also noticed Eriri's face—her beauty left them speechless—but not a single one dared to show even a hint of disrespect.
In this world, hierarchy was deeply entrenched, and the status of an apostle was so high that even kings were expected to treat them with great reverence.
"Did you all flee the village to escape the Flame Dragon?" Rory asked.
Looking at their simple clothing, the scattered wagons, and the piles of belongings strewn around, Rory quickly pieced together the situation.
"Yes. The Flame Dragon appeared, and we had no choice but to abandon our homes. But now that it's been slain by this esteemed lady, we can finally go back!"
No one wanted to live as refugees. They had only fled to survive, forced to leave their homes behind.
So at the mention of returning, a wave of excitement swept through the villagers.
All of this was being closely watched by Youji Itami and his team from their nearby jeeps. Right now, they were all feeling a deep sense of awe.
"Can humans really become that powerful...?" came a voice over Itami's shoulder radio, tinged with awe.
Another voice chimed in right after.
"To think a mighty Flame Dragon could be brought down so easily by two girls... This world is insane."
"Hey, that blonde girl's outfit—doesn't that look exactly like a high school uniform? Could she be from our world?" said a bold and confident female voice over the radio.
After that last voice, another gentle female voice followed through the radio.
"That might not be the case. It's possible this world has that kind of clothing too. I mean, the black-haired girl next to her is also wearing a gothic lolita outfit. And if someone like her existed in our world, the government would definitely know by now."
"Still, that blonde girl is really beautiful. I think I might be falling for her," came a slightly awkward, bashful voice.
"Give it a rest. If you actually said that to her face, I'm pretty sure you'd end up just like the Flame Dragon."
"I know, I know. I was just daydreaming a little, okay?"
"Well, don't. You've read those novels where people get sensed when they're thinking about someone, right?"
"Novels are just fiction! That stuff isn't real."
"Yeah? And yet everything happening right now is even crazier than a novel."
Hearing how the conversation was getting out of hand, Youji Itami quickly interrupted.
"Alright, that's enough. Let's keep our focus. What we need to determine now is whether they're friend or foe."
"Please don't be enemies... please don't be enemies..."
"Cut it out, Kurata. You're driving me nuts."
"But—"
"No buts. Captain Itami, are we going to make contact with them now?"
"Yes, that seems like the best option. Kuribayashi, Kurokawa, the two of you will go as representatives. Since you're both women, it might be a bit easier to approach them. Don't worry, we'll be right behind you."
"Oh, and take the translation guides. You haven't learned the local language yet, right?"
"Roger!"
But before the two could get out of the jeep, the children who had been sitting in the back due to the damaged wagons suddenly pushed open the rear door and rushed out, running straight toward Eriri and Rory.
As they ran, they shouted, "Clerics! Clerics!"
Seeing the kids take off, Itami and the others also got out of their jeeps and regrouped up front.
Out of the twelve soldiers in the team, only two were women.
One was a lively brunette, barely 150 centimeters tall—Kuribayashi Shino. She was skilled in hand-to-hand combat, at least compared to average humans.
The other was a tall woman with long purple hair, standing over forty centimeters taller than Kuribayashi. Her name was Mari Kurokawa, the squad's designated medic.
The two exchanged a glance and nodded, then decisively walked toward Eriri and Rory. Meanwhile, Itami and the others followed close behind, staying a few meters back to guard against any unexpected situations.
There was no way Kuribayashi and Kurokawa weren't nervous. After all, they were about to approach someone who had incinerated a Flame Dragon in one blow. If Eriri decided to attack, they wouldn't stand a chance. Not even the men behind them would.
Still, this was the duty of the Third Reconnaissance Team. No matter how dangerous it might be, it was their mission to investigate and understand the world they had entered.
What gave them a small measure of reassurance was the sight of the village children running freely toward the two girls. Clearly, they didn't see Eriri and Rory as dangerous, which suggested the girls weren't hostile killers.
Judging from the villagers' earlier kneeling and prayer gestures, it was clear that the two girls were likely members of a religious order—such people were generally not considered dangerous.
Before long, Kuribayashi and Kurokawa reached Eriri and Rory.
At the time, Rory was casually chatting with the children who had run up to her. Their conversation mostly revolved around Youji Itami and his group.
Though Rory knew about the existence of the "gate," and that it connected this world to another unfamiliar one, she had no idea what kind of world it was linked to this time, so she had no knowledge of Itami and his team's background.
Had Eriri not suddenly shown up, Rory might have followed the original story and taken a strong interest in Captain Itami, possibly even joining him on his journey.
But now, her curiosity about him was minimal—a far cry from her growing fascination with Eriri.
Rory didn't attempt to hide her conversation with the kids. Even when Kuribayashi and Kurokawa approached, she continued asking her questions without pause.
Unfortunately for the two soldiers, who barely understood a word of the local language, Rory's discussion might as well have been written in runes.
So they simply stood there awkwardly, unable to interrupt, yet too respectful to cut in. They at least knew that much about basic courtesy.
Luckily, Rory didn't have too many questions. Within half a minute of their arrival, she ended her conversation with the kids and sent them on their way.
Then, with a faint, unreadable smile, she hoisted her enormous axe-spear onto her shoulder and stepped forward to stand face-to-face with Kuribayashi and Kurokawa.
She deliberately left a space beside her, clearly intending for Eriri to step up and stand alongside her.
Despite Rory's sweet and youthful appearance, the image of her bearing a massive weapon gave her an undeniable air of intimidation. Kuribayashi and Kurokawa were feeling the pressure.
"So, you're soldiers from the other side of the 'gate'? Thank you for helping the villagers," Rory said warmly.
Of course, her words were lost on the two soldiers, who had no idea what she had just said. Kuribayashi awkwardly strung together the few words she had crammed at the last minute.
"He... hello," she said, nervously raising her hand in greeting.
Rory blinked in confusion before realizing the problem: their languages weren't the same.
Now it was her turn to be troubled. She instinctively turned to look at Eriri.
Eriri, catching her glance, gave a charming smile and stepped forward.
"What is it, Rory?" she asked knowingly.
"Our languages don't match, so talking to each other is a real issue. Do we have to wait for them to learn ours, or for us to learn theirs?" Rory said, sounding a bit exasperated.
"That's all?" Eriri replied in mock surprise.
"Hm?" Rory's eyes lit up. "Wait, you have a solution?"
"Of course. Making it so both sides can understand each other? That's easy," Eriri said casually.
Then she raised her right hand and snapped her fingers.
With a crisp snap of her fingers, a special field spread out around Eriri, forming a ten-meter radius zone with her at the center.
This could be called a translation field. Within this space, anyone inside would naturally be able to understand all the languages Eriri herself knew.
Since Eriri was already very familiar with the language of this world, Rory, Kuribayashi, and Kurokawa were now fully able to understand one another.
However, none of them had spoken yet, so they hadn't realized the language barrier had already been resolved.
Rory was the first to speak—but not to Kuribayashi and Kurokawa. She turned to Eriri.
"Eriri, so? Did it work? Is the language issue resolved?" she asked, sounding uncertain.
Before Eriri could answer, Kuribayashi suddenly shouted in surprise.
"Eh?! I can understand you now!"
She was clearly overwhelmed, and Kurokawa beside her shared the same stunned expression.
"This is so weird... You're clearly not speaking Japanese, but I can still understand you. This is amazing."
Rory quickly caught on as well, her expression shifting to one of awe.
"To think you could solve a language barrier so effortlessly... Just like how you dealt with the Flame Dragon. Eriri, you're starting to feel kind of... omnipotent," Rory said, full of admiration.
What she hadn't noticed yet was that a feeling of "worship" had begun to sprout in her heart toward Eriri. Though still faint, the more she saw Eriri's abilities, the stronger it would likely grow.
It might even reach the point where she abandoned her current god to follow Eriri instead.
"Only just now realizing? Maybe the longer you stick with me, the more surprising things you'll discover," Eriri replied with a teasing smile.
"Is that so? Then I'll be looking forward to it."
The two girls exchanged a warm smile, leaving Kuribayashi and Kurokawa feeling a bit awkward, as if they were third wheels just standing around.
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