"This time is different. Mainly because I heard from Himmel that grabbing hands at a time like this seems pretty useful? When Heiter got sick last time, he did the same thing, right?", As he spoke, recalling the past, he smiled and held the bowl to her lips, "Heiter wasn't too happy about it, but it worked pretty well… hmm, at least he didn't protest as dramatically as you."
"That's because… your hands are too cold… how do you even make them that cold?"
"Well~ compared to that, hurry up and drink the medicine first, okay?"
"After this," Frieren took a small sip of the medicine, frowning at the bitterness, staring at him and muttering softly, "You need to explain everything clearly to me…"
"What?"
"I just feel like… you're hiding something from me!"
"Okay, okay, drink the medicine first. Here, be good," Before handing it to her, he even blew on it a little. Seeing that, Frieren let out a faint breath and showed a dissatisfied look, "Are you… treating me like a child?"
"It's a bit hot, so…"
"Before, I never saw you being this gentle," With so many years of friendship, Frieren had every reason to suspect this guy must have done something that wronged her.
He unexpectedly shrugged honestly, "Because I'm worried you'll get mad later~"
"What?"
"Let's talk about it after you're better."
For now, he had no intention of telling her about turning her into stone before, so when facing Frieren's steady gaze, he just spoke vaguely and continued feeding her the medicine.
.
.
.
After quite a while, once she finished the whole bowl and took a sip of water, Frieren lay back down.
Ash, whose hands had warmed up from holding the bowl, once again grabbed the hand inside Frieren's blanket. The half-dazed elf girl couldn't help but glance at him suspiciously, "What are you… trying to do now?"
"I just want you to feel at ease. When people are sick, they usually feel uneasy."
"Being held by you… actually makes me feel… even more uneasy…", Frieren pressed her lips together, breathing lightly, staring at him weakly.
"Don't say that. We've known each other for so many years. If you don't trust others, at least trust me, right?"
"Then hurry up and tell me… what exactly you did. I definitely… won't get mad…"
"Come on, don't think so much when you're sick. I'll definitely tell you once you're better~"
One of his hands held the still-soft little hand of this elderly elf girl who, even now, remained youthful. With the other, he smiled and gently touched her slightly messy silver hair from sleep.
Frieren turned her head away in resistance. She wanted to dodge, but couldn't escape. She couldn't even pull her hand back and could only make a weak complaint:
"How many times have I said… don't treat me… like a child… don't touch my head…"
"I heard that for many children, when an adult gently pats their head, it gives them a sense of security and care. This kind of physical contact can pass on warmth, support, and protection, making the child feel valued and loved," Compared to the girl's protest, Ash, unable to think of a story to lull her to sleep, suddenly spoke with complete confidence and started explaining on the spot.
"Especially when a child feels uneasy, anxious, or needs comfort, this kind of close physical contact can make them feel safe and comfortable. So personally, I think patting your head should be even more effective than holding hands. It's just that before, Himmel always said it like that, and I wanted to respect local traditions. So doing both at once, do you feel double the security and comfort? Well~ you might feel a little shy, but you…"
"..."
His nonstop explaining and talking left Frieren truly speechless. In her weak exhaustion, she felt both annoyed and a little amused, but at the same time, unexpectedly, it really did make her feel at ease, 'Being called a child by this guy is really unpleasant… but, well… just for now, fine. I will settle accounts with him after I get better.'
Frieren closed her eyes with a faint breath, feeling that indescribable sense of security and the hard-to-explain embarrassment, temporarily giving up on pushing him away.
But for the sake of her pride, she secretly decided that later she would definitely "get revenge."
.
.
.
In the blink of an eye, it was the next day. After sleeping for a whole day and night, her cold and fever symptoms had basically disappeared.
Only, she couldn't remember clearly what happened yesterday. And the problems that followed filled her with doubt, leaving her no time to care about what had happened.
According to Ash, Himmel and the others had rushed to the magic city impatiently and gone into a nearby dungeon, temporarily losing contact.
Even in the following days, they still hadn't been seen. And, even when they came back, their expressions were very strange. When she asked about what happened during her illness, they all hesitated and refused to explain properly.
It was like something had happened during that time. But no matter how she thought about it, Frieren couldn't figure out what they would need to deliberately hide from her, until... 80 years later, as if history was repeating itself, something similar happened to Fern.
———
[Present]
After all these years, Frieren still didn't know why the whole party had hidden it from her.
Until, she saw Ash reach out and lift Fern up in his arms.
"L-Lord Ash… you… what are you?", Fern weakly opened her eyes. Even her originally rosy cheeks seemed redder than before.
She wanted to say something more, but Ash gently stopped her, "It's okay, Fern. Close your eyes and rest for a bit. It'll be over soon."
"Why does this conversation sound strangely familiar?", Frieren touched her chin, thinking hard, trying to recall the past.
Fern didn't quite understand what he was planning to do either, but based on her trust in him, she closed her eyes without any defense, just like Frieren once had. And then—
Under everyone's stunned gazes, the sickly Fern, along with the blanket wrapped around her, turned to stone, becoming a statue directly in Ash's hands.
"W-Wait a second?", For a moment, Frieren made an exaggerated expression, covering her aching head, forcing the corners of her mouth as she tried to calm down and ask, "Ash, even though I think it's unlikely, back then… you wouldn't have… done the same thing to me, right?"
"Well… if you look at it positively… sometimes when something you think is impossible happens, isn't that a different kind of surprise?"
"..."
Ash awkwardly looked away, and Frieren very clearly did not feel any "joy." Surprise, yes, quite a lot.
Her thoughts were racing so hard that her mind almost shut down. She just stared blankly at the stone girl in his arms.
After quite a while, she finally looked at Ash suspiciously and muttered, "Forget everything else for now. Tell me first, back when there was no flight magic, how exactly did you transport me to the magic city?"
"Well… um, like this?"
He tried to reenact history, using magic to make the statue float, then pushing the floating statue forward with one hand.
When he turned back, the statue drifted away, forcing him to hurry after it and catch it again.
That strange movement, a bit like dribbling a ball forward and running back, suddenly gave Frieren a very vivid mental image.
Now she finally understood why, when she used to ask about what happened during her illness, everyone showed that awkward, hesitant expression.
And why Ash back then had said he was worried she'd get angry, so he was being extra gentle first, looking guilty, yet refused to explain no matter what.
She pressed her lips together and asked, "Back then… did you actually carry sealed me around like a ball? And only unseal me at the very end without telling the truth, making me think I just arrived at the magic city in a hazy state?"
"Ahem! Compared to that kind of unimportant detail, just tell me, wasn't your pain reduced and your illness treated right away?"
"That's true. It's true, but still!", Even Frieren felt this treatment was a bit strange and wanted to scold him for something.
But not good with words, she didn't quite know how to criticize such an overly strange method.
After all, it was indeed effective. It just didn't really consider how the person being transported like a ball would feel.
Like when a car is full and someone gets stuffed into the trunk for convenience. Sure, they reach the destination smoothly, but… it's hard to describe how the person stuffed into the trunk would feel.
Although being sealed might be slightly better than that. At least you wouldn't feel the bumps. In terms of comfort, it was much better. But treatment-wise, it felt a bit like knocking someone out and throwing them in the trunk.
After so many years, Frieren more or less understood that saying those things to Ash usually didn't have much effect.
Compared to worrying about other people's feelings, he cared more about methods that worked.
She had said similar things for years with little change. So lowering her gaze with a slightly annoyed look, she sighed, "You have to reflect properly. Then apologize to Fern... and to me."
"Why?"
"Not everything is fine just because it gets solved. The process is also very important!"
"I understand what you're saying, but…"
"What? Are you planning to leave some last words?", As if displeased, Frieren crossed her arms.
"I just want to ask, if you had to choose, would you prefer being turned to stone and pushed to the magic city, or being sick for days, suffering while searching and not even knowing which medicine works?"
"That's not the right question, is it? I don't like being sick, but I also don't like suddenly being turned to stone and transported like cargo."
"Is that so?"
"Do you get it now?"
"No, I just feel a bit complicated being lectured about this by you."
'The one who should have been the dullest has grown enough to say this to me?'
'No… although I don't know why, in certain strange areas, Frieren has always had her own odd persistence even a thousand years ago.'
'So even elves are still girls at heart? Even though at the beginning she didn't care about her underwear being seen, later she improved a bit in that area after I said something?', Ash's thoughts spiraled before he finally shook his head and sighed.
"Why are you sighing at me? Isn't that kind of rude?"
"Don't misunderstand. I just feel complicated that even someone like you doesn't get it."
"HEY! That's even ruder!", Frieren glared back unhappily.
While the two argued, Ubel just watched with great interest from the side, feeling like she had gained a new understanding of both of them.
She even had the feeling...
"These guys are way more interesting than normal people~", Even though the atmosphere was a bit off, Ubel just kept nodding with a smile, clearly enjoying the drama.
Ash ignored her for now and also ignored Frieren's stare. After silently looking at the girl in his arms for a long time, he said, "About what you said, I'll reflect on it later. But, since she's already turned to stone, how about we deliver her to the magic city first?"
"What do you mean 'since she's already turned to stone'? Don't you think that sounds weird? It's like saying since a crime has already started, you might as well keep going?"
"Then should I undo it?"
"No, since you've already sealed her, and it wasn't me who did it, and I'm not the one who'll get scolded in the end, we might as well continue."
"You really are my best friend."
Ash looked at Frieren as if wanting to say something for quite a while, before finally squeezing out that slightly subtle remark.
"Of course. We're best friends," Frieren showed no resistance to that at all and even smiled as she patted his shoulder.
But at that moment, Ubel suddenly raised her hand, "Let me interrupt for a second."
"What is it?"
"How far is it from here to the magic city?"
"How far?", Ash lowered his head, thought for a moment, calculated based on an average human flight magic speed and consumption, and casually said, "Half a day?"
"I can only last a bit over half an hour at most. If I rest multiple times, who knows how long it would take," Ubel calculated briefly and spread her hands helplessly.
"Frieren, you carry her."
"Are you joking? Even I can't fly for half a day. Flight magic consumes a lot," Frieren couldn't help wanting to roll her eyes.
"Alright, I'll do it."
He felt like that strange posture from the snowstorm long ago was about to happen again. But… Ash glanced at the overly grand presence of the stone girl in his arms, then at the dead-fish-eyed girl whose figure was still curvy but more modest in comparison, and nodded unconsciously.
"It shouldn't look too weird."
"I don't know what you mean by 'too weird,' but don't you think your gaze is a bit rude?"
Despite her odd personality, Ubel was still a girl and especially sensitive to that kind of look. She covered her chest and glared at him fiercely.
Ash, however, looked calm and unconcerned, "Don't worry about it. Hurry up and get on."
"You really want me to?"
"I wouldn't mind leaving you behind."
"Fine~ I'm getting on!"
After hesitating for a moment, seeing his somewhat reluctant expression, Ubel's rebellious streak kicked in. She jumped onto his back and wrapped her arms around his neck.
That oddly intimate action made Frieren look surprised.
"When did your relationship get that good?"
"I'm more curious why you think this counts as having a good relationship," Ash wanted to complain, while Ubel cheerfully urged, "Let's go already!"
He and Frieren exchanged a glance. For now, they gave up saying anything more and silently flew up.
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