Maria defeated her 70th monster.
Since it was a good number, they decided to take a break.
It was already their third break today.
Staying in the dungeon for too long made it difficult to breathe, so they took a break outside in the shade of a tree near the entrance.
It was already evening, with summer approaching and longer days, but it was time for dinner.
"I'll try to hold out a little longer," I thought to myself.
During the first and second breaks, Maria insisted on feeding me snacks she had made herself multiple times.
Biscuits that made my mouth feel completely dry and teas with a peculiar smell and taste like condensed cinnamon, reminiscent of traditional Chinese medicine.
There was also meat with a strange texture that I had never eaten before.
After trying it, I thought, "This is strange," but I couldn't spit it out, so I swallowed it all.
I sat on a tree stump, feeling the pleasant summer breeze all over my body as it began to get dark.
"Why isn't it working?! Do I need to add more? I already added 100 times the normal amount. Ah...I ended up adding it all..." Maria muttered to herself as she prepared the tea.
"What's wrong? What do you mean by 100 times?" I asked.
Maria turned around and gave me a smile like a flower. "Oh, it's nothing, Amachi-san. Please enjoy and quench your thirst," she said, pouring a drink from a tumbler into an expensive-looking teacup.
"No, thank you. I think I'm not a big fan of it," I said.
"Amachi-san!" Maria exclaimed suddenly, surprising me.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"Don't say something so sad. I prepared it for you with all my heart..." Maria gradually lowered her voice and looked up at me with a sad expression.
"Oh," I thought. "She's so lovely. I may find her a bit difficult to deal with, but she's definitely a beauty."
"It's okay. I appreciate the thought, but I think I'm fine," I said.
Maria brushed her hair aside from her face and looked at me with a pained expression.
"Shall we drink?"
"Is that alright?"
"I have no intention of disregarding your feelings."
Oh well, there's nothing to be done. Maria's feelings are ambiguous, after all...
As a member of the party, it's necessary to attend to these finer points carefully.
"Well then, thank you."
I took the tea cup that was smoothly offered to me and chugged down the brown liquid that looked like oolong tea.
After a while, an intense drowsiness struck me, causing me to lose consciousness.
According to Dr. Freud, dreams are said to be the manifestation of repressed desires from the subconscious mind.
Daydreams...
I was having a dream...
"Mama..."
What I was pursuing was my mother.
Maternal instinct.
In that one word, the universe spreads out. A vast truth beyond the boundaries of imagination opens up.
Maternal instinct that gently embraces all things.
Those who have reached the wisdom of maternal instinct are said to have the power to see everything.
Well, that's just a theory, though.
I was seeking my mother. I had arrived at maternal instinct by seeking it out.
I had become someone who couldn't help but crave Maria's affection.
Like a winged insect being sucked into a carnivorous plant, I wanted to rub my cheek against Maria.
Flat-chested... that's a derogatory term. Let me rephrase it. A chest that's just a little bit modest. A chest that's modest and restrained.
I buried my face in that modest chest as if being sucked in...
As the leader of the thigh faction, I never thought I would be interested in breasts, but... I felt happy.
My thoughts were scattered and incoherent.
I felt the bubbliness. My head was in chaos.
.
.
.
/From Komachi's Perspective/
I was concerned about the movements of my master and Maria-senpai, so I followed them. A sensational scene was unfolding right before my eyes.
"Babuu~"
A man engrossed in baby play. I was about to lose my mind upon seeing him finally break.
"Oh my, what a big baby you are!"
Maria-senpai was patting the young man's head.
My brain felt like it was about to explode. It was like I was watching a nightmare unfold.
What on earth happened here?
"His brain must have been destroyed..."
I recognized the man who was cradled on Maria-senpai's lap. He had a pacifier in his mouth.
"Babubabu"
"Oh my, what a good boy you are~"
"Babu"
Amachi-senpai, lying on his back, was delighted like a child when Maria-senpai patted his head.
Maria-senpai hugged the now baby-like Amachi-senpai and continued to pat his head while her nose bled.
"Ha... ha... finally, I can't take it anymore. It worked. Just a little bit. This is a secret. I'll take it to my grave. I'll accept the punishment for my sin. So..."
Maria-senpai, breathing heavily and determined, was about to approach his lips.
"Wait a minute!!"
I intervened involuntarily.
"Ho-ho-mu...san?"
"What are you doing!? What are you doing?"
"Well, that is..."
Maria became suspicious and wiped away her nosebleed while not letting go of the oversized baby in her arms.
"Senpai! What's wrong!? Your brain has been destroyed!"
I forcibly pulled Amachi-senpai away.
And there it was.
"Babuu~"
There was a man whose brain had been destroyed.
"..."
I couldn't believe my eyes.
I almost fainted.
"Your eyes, like the dark and murky Dob River, have become clear and beautiful like a pristine stream."
I glared at Maria-senpai.
"What have you done!? Maria-senpai! Did you poison him!?"
"I-I don't know. I just gave him a little something to make him feel better..."
Maria-senpai... no, Maria hid her luggage behind her back, sweating profusely.
"Senpai! Wake up!"
The man who was enjoying baby play like "babu~" hugged me.
Hmm... it's strange, but I don't mind.
Although he smelled a bit sweaty, I felt very safe in his big, square hands and thick chest. Even though he's a baby now, I felt his manliness.
"Hmm... he's cute?"
I felt a strange sense of comfort enveloping me.
I hugged Senpai and said, "Don't worry, Senpai. There are no scary people around anymore. Let's go home together. I don't know where you live, so come to my room today. I'll take care of you until you're back to your senses. Good boy, good boy."
I hugged the big baby and declared it.
"Babubabu~"
"Wait! What are you doing with such vulgar things?"
Maria-senpai grabbed Amachi-senpai's shoulder and tried to pull him away.
She's really strong.
"You're the one who should talk! You!"
I resisted and forcibly pulled Amachi-senpai's head to keep him from being taken away.
"Stop it! Please, don't take my baby away."
Amachi-senpai's body creaked like in a tug of war.
I put all my strength into not letting go of his neck.
"He's my baby. Let go of him, Maria-senpai!"
"No! I don't want to! I will take care of him!"
"I will gladly take care of him! I can't let Senpai be handed over to such a suspicious person. I'll take him in!"
As the tug of war continued like this, there was a dull sound that should not have been made.
Crack!
"Ba...bu...u"
Amachi-senpai, who was roughly handled by me and Maria-senpai, was foaming at the mouth and had lost consciousness.
he lay there with a pale and lifeless face, not responding to us.
Maria-senpai and I carefully laid Amachi-senpai down on the ground, fearing the worst.
"Senpai...are you okay?" I asked, but there was no response. he looked like a corpse.
"Amachi-san, please be careful..." Maria-senpai said, her face turning pale.
We looked at each other in silence.
"Because of Maria-senpai, Senpai died," I said.
"Why did this happen, Amachi-san?" Maria-senpai asked.
We were both at a loss for words and tears started to well up in our eyes.
Suddenly, a chilly breeze blew in the early summer air.
Amachi-senpai's eyes, which had been foaming and rolled back, started to twitch like she was having a seizure.
She convulsed like a broken doll, and we could only watch in horror and hold our breath.But after a few seconds, she raised her upper body, and we both let out a sigh of relief.
"Amachi-san, thank goodness," I said.
"I knew you were still alive, Senpai," Maria-senpai added.
We were both relieved that she was alive.
Amachi-senpai slowly opened her mouth and said, "Everyone...I'm awake now."
"Amachi-san, what's going on?" Maria-senpai asked, staring at her in confusion.
"The atmosphere changed, senpai"
The atmosphere had become strange. There was a handsome man with a refreshing smile. His dark, muddy eyes were gone, replaced with transparent ones. Even his usual messy hair had been styled neatly, giving him a different look.
"I have awakened," Senpai said, his voice no longer the sarcastic, mocking tone he usually had. Instead, it had become a deep, dandy-like tone.
"Thank you for awakening me. I must express my gratitude. I have remembered what I must do. Oh? The wind is quite loud."
Senpai muttered something meaningless while gazing into the empty space above.
He was like a different person. Had his brain been destroyed, his personality altered?
"Amachi-san has become a strange person."
"Senpai has gone mad..."
"Swept away by the flow of time, always rushing through. I must go! Farewell!" Senpai declared, singing an unfamiliar tune while dashing past us with a gallant look on his face, disappearing before our eyes.