Mel, who had attempted one final, hate-fueled attack against me, collapsed after being hit by Agnes' storm of fireballs.

As one of the final bosses in this investigation into the bandits, I wanted to confirm her death if possible, but unfortunately, my body was no longer listening to me.

Physically and mentally, I was in no state to move. My left leg, pierced earlier, hurt so much that it felt like it was about to tear off.

I was learning the true meaning of 'pain so bad it feels like it'll break.' I carefully avoided looking at my left calf, afraid that seeing the wound would only make the pain worse. After all, unlike Ethan, I didn’t have the nerve to cut off my own injured limb.

『Lilith has reached level 33!』

…Looks like I don't need to check the body after all.

Seeing the level-up message in my head likely meant that Agnes' last strike had finished Mel off.

Considering it hadn't been long since my last level-up, it was clear the experience I’d gained from definitively ending Mel had caused my level to rise again.

‘At least the boss fight is over for now….’

Now, we just had to deal with the ‘mobs’ still surrounding us.

Fortunately, while my leg was broken, I still had some mana left. From behind Ethan, who was holding off the bandits, I provided magical support.

“Haa, n-no one's getting past this point…”

-Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

“Grr…!!”

“Gahh!!”

The bandits, locked in combat with Ethan, fell to the ground after three Arcane Arrows struck them from behind.

Ethan must have realized by now that the battle on our side was over. It wasn’t just Ethan, though—the bandits he and Sally had been fighting must have noticed too.

“What the hell?! Where did that magic come from all of a sudden?!”

“Shit! Mel’s down! We’re screwed, dammit!”

“Damn it, run! How are we supposed to beat them without that crazy woman?!”

In their growing panic, the bandits dropped their weapons and fled. However, not all of them were foolish. Some took a cool look at the situation, noting that I wasn’t in the best shape either.

“No, you idiots! Look at that girl on the ground! Her leg’s all messed up! She’s already half-dead!!”

“The guy’s almost dead too! We just need to deal with that kid and—”

-Boom!

“Gaaah…!!!”

“…What?”

“Shit, she’s still fine! Who was the idiot who said that?!”

“Who cares! Let’s just get the hell out of here!”

But even those who were still trying to fight had no choice but to flee in terror when Agnes unleashed another devastating explosion, causing the rest of the bandits to scatter.

As much as I wanted to slaughter them all, we weren’t in great condition. That included Agnes, who had used the last of her mana to cast that explosion.

“…Phew.”

-Thud.

Agnes collapsed to the ground after confirming that all the enemies had vanished. It seemed that her firestorm had been her last bit of energy. If anyone had noticed how weakened we all were, we could have been in trouble, so I gave her a small compliment for handling the situation well.

“You did well, Miss Ness. If it weren’t for your magic just now, I would’ve had to fight off those bandits again with this body.”

“…Thanks.”

“And you too, Dan. You worked hard. With both me and Miss Ness focused on that woman, you ended up fighting alone the whole time.”

“…You did well too, Lilith. At least it’s over. We should rest a bit and check on the hero and the others….”

Ethan’s words trailed off awkwardly as he approached me after sheathing his swords. He must have noticed my leg injury, much like I had reacted when I saw his wounds before.

“L-Lilith?! What happened to your leg?!”

“It's Lilith here, not Lilith. Good thing no one else is around to hear you….”

“That's not the point right now! What happened to your leg?! What pierced through your calf and twisted it backward like—”

“Please, don’t describe it in detail. I’m already scared to look at it myself.”

“…Sigh.”

Ethan’s face twisted with emotion before he let out a deep sigh.

I could understand his feelings. Just a few days ago, I had gone through something similar when I saw Ethan’s arm nearly severed.

“You know how I felt when I saw your right arm missing the other day, right?”

“…Yeah.”

“If you do, then don’t get hurt next time. It hurts me too when you’re injured.”

“…But you’re the one who’s hurt now.”

“And it hurts, obviously. It’s not like I wanted to get injured either.”

“…Sorry.”

“Ah.”

Agnes lowered her head, seemingly troubled by my last remark. I hadn’t meant to make her feel guilty.

In any case, all three of us who had participated in the battle against Mel were effectively out of commission. Agnes had exhausted her mana, Ethan was beyond fatigued, and I had a broken leg.

At this point, even if we combined our strength, it was questionable whether we could muster the strength of one person. It would be best to stay put and rest until Gepmajo Segiquat’s battle was over.

“Let’s wait here until Bolt finishes their fight. The bandits have already retreated, so they won’t come back. Besides, we’re in no condition to fight anyone else right now.”

“…Alright.”

“Got it, Lilith.”

“Miss Ness, Dan, why don’t you both come closer to me for a moment?”

“…Huh?”

“……”

Though confused, Agnes crawled over to my side, while Ethan came and sat down on my other side.

I pulled both of them close, wrapping my arms around their waists, and laid us all down on the ground together.

-Thud.

“Wha—?!”

“…Lilith?”

“Let’s stay like this until the others finish their battle. I was a saint once, so being close like this should help you both recover faster.”

“…You should worry about yourself.”

“Lilith, you should be more concerned about your own condition.”

Listening to their concerns on either side of me, I relaxed and looked up at the night sky.

The hero’s party finished their fight with Hankerton and arrived at our location about an hour later.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

“Guhh…!! Gahh…!! Ugh, ack!!”

“P-please hold still, Miss Lilith! Don’t move your leg…!!”

“Gahhh! Agh! Aaaah!! Gyaaahhhh…!!”

My screams echoed through Bridget Village in the middle of the night.

If anyone was asleep, my voice would’ve woken them up immediately. I was aware of the disturbance I was causing, but I couldn’t stop the sounds coming out of my mouth.

I wasn’t being dragged off by bandits for torture or anything like that. The reason I was screaming was entirely because of this pink-haired saint.

“Guhh, ack, aaaah…!!!”

My leg had been pierced by a sharp tentacle, twisted backward by Say’s gust, and left untreated for an hour.

The more difficult the wound, the longer it took for Celestia’s holy power to heal it, which meant the pain I endured was equally extended.

“Gyaaahhh!! Aaaah!! Gyaaahhh!!!”

“M-Miss Lilith! P-please calm down! We’re almost done! Really, just a little more!!”

‘You said that five minutes ago, you damn hack of a saint!’

It took all my strength not to curse her out loud, which would’ve been blasphemy. Instead, I just kept screaming like I was Guan Yu playing a game of Go during surgery.

At least in the church, there would have been a priest specializing in anesthesia, so it wouldn’t hurt as much. But here? There was nothing like that.

Out in the open, with nothing but Celestia’s holy power burning the wound like fire, I couldn’t help but keep screaming my head off.

‘At least Ethan isn’t here to see this….’

For the record, Ethan had left with Gepmajo and Thomas as soon as my treatment began.

Considering where my injury was, I had to hike up my skirt and remove my stockings and garter belt. It wasn’t exactly a sight I wanted to show other men.

Of course, what they would have seen was less something to inspire lewd thoughts and more the image of me being held down by Seraphine, Natalie, and Luke while being tortured.

Honestly, it was a blessing that Ethan wasn’t around. If he saw my face right now, his feelings for me might have cooled off a bit.

“Hang in there a little longer, Miss Lilith! You just need to endure it!”

“Gyaaahhh!! Guhhh!! Gyaaahhh!!!”

“…Ugh, I-I can’t watch this anymore.”

And so, the only sounds that echoed through the temporary treatment center in Bridget Village were my screams.

I was finally freed from the pink-haired devil in sheep’s clothing about five minutes later.