Chapter 5 - "You May Lick It"
Warning: Slight depiction of blood.
Did you feel the circulation of magical power?
Imagine bringing it from your entire body into your palms... yes, like this.
Visualize the form of a blazing fire,
"Hah!"
And release it all at once!
"........."
——Silence. The silence was painful.
From a corner of the room, an uncontrollable chuckle, "Pfft," could be heard. It was the boy, Stylus, leaning against the wall. His considerate attempt to somehow gloss over the situation, unbecoming of an eight-year-old, made me feel utterly miserable.
That's not it, it wasn't supposed to be like this....
He broke his stance of watching over me and extended a hand toward me, who was drooping in midair. Unwillingly understanding what that hand meant, I settled my waist onto his palm.
My white, ankle-length dress spread out, and I was aware that I looked every bit the part of a fairy.
More importantly, what I should be concerned about was my own incompetence. I had tried various elements like water, earth, and wind, but fire was no good either. I could produce a single drop of water, I could raise the earth by about a centimeter, and I could blow a gentle breeze, but for fire, not even smoke rose. What did that mean?
"This is definitely strange."
"Is it strange?"
"I'm the Fairy of Salvation, you know? I'm supposed to be omnipotent. That was the setting, so why can't I use magic?"
"Even if you say that. Don't fairies refrain from using magic in their own habitats?"
"My life consists only of flying, sleeping, and having heartwarming conversations with animals.... Humans rarely attack us, after all."
"That is precisely why you get caught by a young master like me."
He placed me on his shoulder from his palm.
Lately, it really feels like I've been completely tamed.
"Do you want to use magic? Like that Elenoa?"
"Yeah, I want to go 'hyah-ha' with that immense magical power. Everyone has desires like that, right?"
"I can't say I don't understand, but as someone currently close to being a cheat character, I wouldn't recommend it."
There are things one can only say because they are strong.
The boy glanced at me, who was pouting, and left the study with me still on his shoulder.
Come to think of it, this was the first time I had been out in the hallway without being in my cage.
——Could I escape?
Perhaps sensing that thought, the boy casually stated, "I assume you understand, but since there is a Barrier, you cannot escape from this house."
"So, where are we going?"
"To the laboratory. The one underground."
"Why?"
Why did he look so happy? It was actually frightening.
"I thought you wanted to be experimented on by me."
"Huh?"
"What?"
"Why would I become your guinea pig?"
"If I recall correctly, the Fairy of Salvation was captured by the Demon Lord, subjected to cruel, cold-blooded, and atrocious experiments repeatedly, and thereby obtained immense magical power, right? So there's also an ulterior motive of revenge against the Demon Lord, or so goes the common setting.... I don't know about cases where the fairy is female, but I believe it is basically the same."
"Ahhh, that's right, ugh, that's the worst."
That was from the game. The feud between the fairy and the Demon Lord was revealed in detail if one entered a certain route. I had heard rumors that such a relationship had unexpectedly gained popularity among some gentlemen and ladies. In both the rose and yuri aspects, it had fallen victim to doujinshi.
"In the 'original work,' I believe the fairy gets captured later on, but since we have already met, the timeline is shifted. Shall we try it?"
"I'll ask just to be sure... do what?"
"Experiment."
"Rejected."
"Eh, why? Let's do it. It's fun. It's addictive."
"Are you a child?"
"I am a child."
Rather than worrying about the premises, escaping from this guy was the priority. I couldn't bear to be experimented on like this.
I had been cautiously watching for a chance to fly away, but the moment I stood up to move my wings, he grabbed me firmly, as if he had anticipated it.
The momentum of the boy, Stylus, as he hurried down the stairs, was unstoppable by anyone.
"Let—me—go!"
"No—way."
This is why humans are hopeless!
Yet, somewhere in the back of my mind, a part of me remained carefree.
For all his talk, Stylus-san was kind to me. He had silently watched over my magic practice, even though he had initially said I shouldn't do it.
＊
'Did you really think I would go through with it?'
He said it with a deadpan expression that made me want to punch him in the gut. I showed through my attitude that I would never forgive him, but watching his experimental proceedings up close made it impossible to maintain that stance.
The moment a single drop of a familiar purple liquid fell into the petri dish, it sizzled and dissolved. The petri dish itself. Was there any fairy who wouldn't feel terror toward the boy who calmly processed the situation, saying, 'I forgot to apply reinforcement magic to the equipment'?
'A slight failure. I apologize for showing you such an unsightly scene.'
That was not the problem.
'I usually keep others out of the laboratory... you seemed nervous.'
Even if he gave a shy laugh, saying "Ehehe," it wasn't cute.
A young finger pointed at the mixture of the petri dish and the purple liquid. It ignited. I stared only at the scene of them burning, and my own spirit nearly burned out as well.
Next,
'Please do not inhale this smoke. Your lungs might rot.'
When he said it as if it were nothing, I reached my limit in various ways.
To prevent his attention from turning toward me, the 'experimental subject,' I did my best to remain a doll sitting on his shoulder with my knees drawn up. This is why humans are...
Approximately three weeks into my life as a kidnapping victim, without being experimented on.
I stopped using the cage except when sleeping. Although I had to avoid being found by his younger sister, I could now fly anywhere in the house.
And I was hungry. As I lay listlessly on the desk in the study, the door opened and the boy entered.
He was in a bad mood, and his eyes were cold as he looked at me.
"Can you, by any chance, use telepathy or something?"
"I can, but only with other fairies."
What was this all of a sudden?
He seemed to be thinking about something, maintaining his unpleasant aura. Resting his chin on his hand and gazing downward to the left was a habit of 'Louis Stylus.'
——Looking at him like this, he was beautiful.
Among the capture targets, I thought he stood out as particularly beautiful. I didn't know much about Stylus-san's previous life, but was his mental age that of an adult? His gestures and atmosphere were those of a grown-up. The way he variously deduced things in his head was like that of a ruler.
My mind, not functioning due to hunger, sent my thoughts in a straightforward direction. I was so absorbed that I didn't notice him coming closer.
"Well, let's ask about the telepathy later. Let's go."
In front of me, who remained motionless while staring at the boy's face, he extended his palm as usual. I stared at it intently, then looked into his eyes again, appealing that I did not want to move.
"Is something wrong?"
"I'm hungry."
"Ah, it has been three weeks, after all."
He looked exasperated, as if to say, 'I told you so.'
The boy withdrew his hand and stared at me, who was rolling on the desk. He stroked my scattered hair with his fingertips, and I watched him. I was so hungry I felt nauseous.
"Listen, Elenoa. I have no intention of releasing you. I will not make you an experimental subject, nor do I intend to kill you. I just want to keep you here."
I said nothing and urged him to continue.
"There is no point in being stubborn, is there? If you dislike remaining in pain, tell me what you can eat."
It was a command. I began to feel that it didn't matter whether the boy's words were lies or truth.
Because I couldn't resist. If things continued like this, I would surely die.
Fairies dislike humans because they dislike painful things—because humans do painful things to fairies. Enduring this painful hunger arbitrarily here felt somehow wrong.
"If you lie, I'll run away," I prefaced, and he dutifully replied, "Yes, I will not lie."
"...I eat natural things that contain a lot of magical power."
"Like trees?"
"Like flowers, or leaves."
"I see."
Those were things difficult to prepare in the middle of a city. Things from deep in the mountains were exquisite, but nature in lands invaded by humans was mostly withered, and eating it would not fill one's stomach.
"So, fairies eat magical power?"
"Probably."
Yes, I think so. Instead of needing nutrients like humans, we ingest magical power. Thinking of it that way made sense.
"In that case, perhaps 'this' might work as well."
Muttering softly, the boy took a fountain pen from the pen holder on the desk. Then, he pressed the pen tip against the tip of his index finger and punctured—pierced the skin.
"...What are you doing?"
"An experiment."
Ignoring me, who was speechless while lying down, the boy watched as blood seeped from his fingertip and formed into a droplet.
I also watched the boy's eccentric behavior, stared intently, and realized that the blood was red, smelled of iron, looked still soft, fresh, and very, very, very—delicious.
"It scares me when you stare so intently, but do you want it that much?"
I want it. I want it.
Swaying, unsteadily.
My will made my body stand up, albeit unsteadily, and grab his clothes.
I didn't care that he looked happy to see me in such a shameful state.
It was the finest magical power, emitting a rich aroma. I wanted it so badly I couldn't stand it, yet when he brought it closer saying, "You may lick it," I couldn't honestly put my mouth to it due to my pride.
In my previous life, I was human. Licking human blood, such common sense... such unreality, I could not allow it. I wanted to cry at the reality that my entire body was craving another person's blood, and if I went any further, I could never turn back.
He saw through my hesitation.
"What are you hesitating for? You are no longer human."
——He snorted through his nose, as if mocking me.
Hearing that, the restraint within me snapped. I decided to forget the human inside me.
I grabbed the boy's fingertip with both hands and touched my lips to the droplet of blood.
The moment I did, a sweet temptation spread through my mouth. I found myself craving more and more.
My head grew hazy.
My brain felt like it was melting into mush.
Even after licking it clean to the end, the lingering aftertaste of iron made me reluctant to stop, and I pressed against the skin to make more overflow. At that very moment, I came to my senses. I remembered that this was a human wound. Looking up at him shyly, he smiled gently and said, "It's still fine," so I could no longer stop.
"...Mmh, mmh."
——Ah, it's delicious.
Only the boy could tell that my eyes had become ecstatic and lewd.
The change arrived abruptly.
I felt as if my body was heating up from the core, and I instinctively released his finger.
"Are you done?"
"No, something, is wrong."
"...?"
"My body, is hot..."
What should I do? This was the first time.
It felt as if all the fluids in my body had reversed. I was boiling. I thought this heat should have manifested externally by now, but strangely, my skin remained at its usual temperature.
I tried to scream, but I didn't even have the leisure to do so.
My consciousness flew away for just an instant. When I opened my eyes a few seconds later, there was the boy, looking 'up' at me in surprise.