While attempting to stand up, I ended up nearly falling over, yet a tree managed to keep me upright, though it was taking a lot out of me not to just plop onto the ground; despite my situation, I could vividly feel my legs shaking as weakness constantly consumed my body. Although I wanted to, I wasn't going to be able to chase after Yuki and Lazuli, not when I had a gaping hole in my chest where my heart was supposed to be.
'F-Fuck, t-this w-won't work.' Thought Alexander anxiously as he searched for Yuki and Lazuli, struggling to stand.
"Alex! What are you doing!? You need to lie down!" Yelled Talis urgently as she flew towards Alexander, grabbed his hand, and pulled him down, nearly managing to force him to the ground.
"T-Talis. I-I need… Y-Your help." Asked Alexander weakly as he glanced at Talis while breathing erratically.
"Yeah, you need to lie down!" Remarked Talis with a frown as she eyed Alexander while doing her best to pull him toward the ground without hurting him, which was proving rather challenging for her.
"T-Talis, s-stop; I-I need you t-to bring, Y-Yuki a-and L-Lazuli. P-Please." Stated Alexander softly as he looked at Talis, who looked at him with widened eyes, completely confused about his request.
"What? Bring Yuki and Lazuli? No, why would I do that? I need to get you to lie down." Said Talis with a shake of her head as she loudly chirped before bitting Alexander's shirt while flying downwards.
Grunting in pain, I reached down and grabbed Talis by her neck before bringing her up to eye level and staring into those stubborn eyes of hers.
"Talis. P-Please just l-listen to me. I-If nothing i-is done, L-Lazuli, w-will l-lose her life." Remarked Alexander lightly as he eyed Talis while transferring his raw emotions to her, causing her to aggressively chirp as she called him a plethora of profanities.
"Tch, fine! I-I'll do it!" Said Talis in annoyance as she looked at Alexander, who faintly smiled before releasing her, prompting her to flap her wings while flying towards the sound of constant guttural roars.
Watching Talis fly towards Yuki and Lazuli, I took this moment to try and heal as much as possible, though it wasn't like I could actively do anything to speed up the process; the most I could do was try not to worsen my already terrible situation. To be honest, I was a little surprised I was even still alive, let alone being able to move, albeit barely; I suppose I've never really pushed my endurance to its limit since if I were ever injured this badly, I'd just use [Rebirth], though still, to survive with a gaping hole in my chest, granted I was pretty much as defenseless as a baby, it was a more than impressive in my opinion. This goes to show how powerful my [Rebirth] skill truly is, and if this wasn't enough, it was only level three, which means it has a lot of room for growth.
'Maybe, b-by the time it reaches, l-level 10; t-this injury will be healed i-in mere m-moments.' Mused Alexander softly as he glanced at his gaping hole, which was slowly healing.
While I was thinking about the future if I happened to survive this, out of the corner of my way, I saw Lazuli, who was missing both arms, suddenly emerge from the dense forest with Talis leading the way, only for Yuki's enormous figure to follow soon after as she toppled everything in her path; however, she didn't look like the Yuki I know.
Now that I was given a better view of Yuki's monstrous appearance, I couldn't help but sigh; I now had a better understanding of why she was so frightened of herself. However, that didn't change how I felt about Yuki; I still loved her all the same, but I probably just wasn't going to like her for the next few hours.
With Lazuli and Talis passing right by me, I grunted once more as I pushed myself off the tree, standing in front of Yuki's path as she came charging right for me; if this were a true monster, I wouldn't have done something so stupid, though unlike those monstrous, Yuki had a soul which would make all the difference. After all, despite standing right in front of her, she was still staring fixedly at Lazuli, which meant she wasn't a loss cause; whether she could be reasoned with was another story.
'F-Fuck, w-well, h-here g-goes nothing.' Thought Alexander as he raised his arms to his sides.
"YUKI!" Yelled Alexander firmly, his loud voice managing to snap Yuki's attention to himself as she violently roared at him before coming to an immediate halt.
Internally sighing in relief at Yuki stopping herself before completely toppling me, which probably would've sealed my fate in hindsight, but I can worry about my stupidity later. However, before I could try to speak with Yuki, I suddenly felt my neck tightly constrict as I was lifted into the air by her massive hand, which prompted Talis to yell in concern while Lazuli morphed her leg into some futuristic-looking cannon, though I stopped her before she could.
"S-Stop, L-Lazuli!!" Said Alexander sternly as he waved his legs around and eyed Lazuli, who silently gazed at him before lowering her leg.
Unfortunately for me, my action of waving my leg around prompted Yuki to snap it in half as my foot was now facing toward my crotch, causing me to bite my lip as I grunted in pain.
'You've d-dealt w-with worse; t-this is nothing!' Thought Alexander as he hardened his gaze and looked at Yuki, who was looking at him in pure rage and hatred.
"Y-Yuki, y-you're l-looking q-quite beautiful right now." Remarked Alexander lightly with a smile as he outstretched his hand and rubbed Yuki's cheek, causing a faint blush to adorn her face while she broke his hand.
"T-That's n-not nice Y-Yuki, my l-lovely l-little Oni i-isn't that m-mean." Added Alexander softly with a smile as he ignored his broken hand and rubbed Yuki's cheek while her blush slightly deepened.
"Alex, what are you doing?" Asked Talis in confusion as she eyed Alexander while perched upon a tree, her voice angering Yuki.
"Shh, b-be q-quiet!" Stated Alexander aggressively as he eyed Talis while Yuki's hold around his neck tightened.
Shushing Talis, I looked back at the growling Yuki and continued to whisper sweet nothings to her, hoping she'd revert to normal, which never ended up happening, but over time, she did calm down.
"Aren't y-you s-such an a-adorable a-and c-cute, Oni, Y-Yuki; your b-beauty is p-practically limitless." Remarked Alexander softly as he sat on Yuki's lap while kissing her cheek, keeping her calm with her only occasionally roaring.
Getting Yuki to calm down was easier than I anticipated, but then again, unlike monsters, she had a soul besides It's not like I was just some random stranger; I was her lover. I doubt anyone else would have such an easy time getting her calm down, not like I exactly had an easy time either; she broke my leg and hand, and neither feels pleasant.
Several more minutes passed, with me conveying my love through both words and my raw emotions, which helped significantly before Yuki finally started to revert to her usual self as her entire body slowly shrunk, causing her to no longer look like a monster, prompting everyone to sigh in relief.
Yuki was, thankfully, fast asleep, which prompted me to do the same as I rested my head against her voluptuous breasts; although Talis advised me not to, after everything I had gone through, I was pretty confident I was going to survive this, so I ignored her words and went to sleep.
'T-Tomorrow i-is going to s-suck.' Thought Alexander as he drifted to sleep amidst his pain-filled body while ignoring his problems for tomorrow.
___
___
It was early in the morning, and I was fixing Lazuli using the stuff Soom had given me before he left while she instructed me.
"Insert into my hole." Said Lazuli blandly while glancing at Alexander, whose face twitched before doing as she said.
'Oh, that could mean a plethora of things.' Mused Alexander as he inserted the small rocks into the small hole inside Lazuli's torso.
Once I did as she said, I dusted my hands off before closing her chest, causing me to glance at her breast before biting my lip and gently groping it.
'Huh, it feels just like a real breast.' Mused Alexander in slight surprise as he raised an eyebrow, only to retract his hand before leaving Lazuli alone.
Exiting the carriage while Lazuli repaired herself with those rocks, I looked at everyone, only to rub my head as I realized I had a lot to deal with. I'd already burnt any trace of my blood; that was the first thing I had done when I awoke; following that, I had to calm Chloe down since, apparently, she had seen my broken limbs, though thankfully, by then, my gaping hole had already healed.
Now that I've finished helping Lazuli, I still need to comfort Michelle, who froze yesterday at the sight of my wound; unfortunately, I just didn't have the time to talk with her yesterday since there were more pressing matters. As for Yuki, well, when she woke up, the first thing she did was run away; and I can already imagine it's going to be a headache to deal with.