My Desertion Would Be Faster Than Heros' Obsession-Chapter 60

“Huff... my arm...”

“Y-Your arm?”

Yuri finally noticed the state of my sleeve near my arm, melted and clinging to my skin.

“What the hell?!”

Altair, who had come closer to assess the situation, seemed to realize what had happened. His voice was sharp with urgency.

“The acid must’ve gotten on her! Do some first aid, now!”

“Water! We need water!”

Yuri, snapping back to her senses, quickly opened her canteen and poured water over my arm.

The burning sensation intensified, and I broke into louder sobs. At this point, I didn’t care about anything else.

“Salvia, calm down, calm down,” Ishina said, pulling me into his arms and gently patting my back with practiced ease.

“Hic... It hurts, hic... so much.”

“Yeah, I know. It hurts.”

While Ishina comforted me, Yuri and Altair worked efficiently to dress the wound.

I couldn’t see much, as my vision was blurred with tears. Ishina’s steady pats only made me feel more overwhelmed, and I began crying harder.

Just as it felt like the tears wouldn’t stop, I heard Aquila’s voice.

“...Why—why is she hurt?”

He must’ve come back down when the others were taking too long to return. At that moment, his presence felt like the greatest relief.

“I-I’m cold... hic...”

“You’re cold?”

Aquila wrapped his arms around me as he asked, while Yuri, still pouring water over my arm, questioned, “Not hot? You’re cold?”

“I-I’m cold... hic... so cold...”

“...Okay, okay...”

I couldn’t stop crying. It was ridiculous, but the combination of the pain, exhaustion, and sheer emotional release after everything was too much. I cried like a child, letting everything spill out, even as I felt an odd sense of relief.

The battle was over. I had stopped Altair’s death as written in the original novel, and the march had finally ended.

Yet I couldn’t stop the flood of tears.

“Calm down, calm down,” Ishina’s soothing voice reached me again, but I could only look up at them through tear-filled eyes.

Memories swirled in my mind:

The lonely days in the orphanage, where I had always felt out of place.

The life of the original Salvia, who had been distant and isolated, never truly fitting in.

The early days of my conscription, when I struggled to adapt to the Border Defense Army and desperately wanted to desert.

But now...

Now, I wasn’t alone. Around me were comrades who genuinely cared about me, mentors who offered guidance, and even Altair and Yuri, who hovered nearby with worry.

‘This world may be a hellish apocalypse... but somehow, I like this moment.’

Compared to my past, this present—no matter how harsh—felt better.

The memory of sacrificing my name to regain the knowledge of the novel still weighed on me. It had been a shock, and I wondered if I would ever truly come to terms with losing that part of myself.

But for the first time, I saw a sliver of hope, a possibility of moving forward from that heavy burden.

“Ugh, look at these bruises,” Yuri muttered in a disgusted tone as she tore away the damaged fabric near my arm.

She had found the deep bruise on my right shoulder, a result of countless hours practicing with my rifle.

“This isn’t another injury, is it?”

“No, that’s from the rifle,” I said, my voice trembling but clear enough.

As Yuri and Altair continued tending to my wounds, I turned to Ishina, who had stayed by my side, and said with a tear-choked voice, “I-I don’t want to go back.”

“Yeah, yeah. I know,” he replied gently.

Living with a desire to survive was natural, but this moment made my determination even stronger.

I wouldn’t die like the original Salvia. I wouldn’t lose the relationships I’d built or return to the emptiness I left behind.

By giving up my name, I had destroyed the last connection to my previous world. The only choice left was to move forward.

“Compared to before conscription... sniff... this is better. This is better... so I’m not going back.”

“You’re not going back,” Ishina said softly, his voice full of quiet reassurance.

Even as my body grew weaker from the strain, my mind burned with resolve.

I won’t die.

In this insane apocalypse, I will hold on to what’s mine. No one will take it from me.

***

On the path back to the company base.

Yuri, walking to the left of Winter, glanced at him as they followed behind Aquila, who was carrying Salvia on his back.

“Hey.”

“...Huh? What?” Winter’s reply was awkward, almost startled, as if he had been lost in thought. Watching him, Yuri sighed internally again.

She couldn’t stop thinking about Salvia crying earlier. It was her first march, and she had struggled through it, only to end up killing a monster that had suddenly appeared. On top of that, she’d been injured—enough to make anyone cry.

Aquila and Ishina had comforted Salvia with an ease that suggested this wasn’t their first time.

But during that chaotic moment, when Yuri had been fumbling through first aid, she had caught a glimpse of Winter’s face.

‘...He froze.’

While everyone else was busy treating Salvia or trying to soothe her, Winter had stood stiffly a short distance away, unmoving.

His expression had been one of clear shock. He seemed entirely out of his depth, unsure how to react to Salvia’s tears.

“Hey, didn’t think this would happen, did you?” Yuri said, glaring at him.

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“I told you! She’s not as strong as you think!”

Winter responded in an uncharacteristically awkward voice, “...Yeah, you did.”

The tone of his voice was so unfamiliar that it caught Yuri off guard.

“Why is she so weak?”

“...What?”

Even Aquila, walking to Winter’s left, turned to him with a confused expression.

“It’s because you overestimated her too much. Given the situation, it’s completely normal for her to cry—”

Aquila began to defend Salvia, who had saved his life, but Winter’s use of the word "weak" didn’t seem to mean what Aquila thought it did.

“Yes... she’s weak...”

Winter sounded almost as if he were talking to himself, his voice distant and contemplative.

“But she’s also strong.”

“What?”

“She’s fragile, yet stronger than anything.”

As if he had stumbled upon some profound realization, Winter alternated between murmuring “weak” and “strong,” his blue eyes fixed on Salvia’s retreating back.

Watching this, Aquila and Yuri exchanged awkward glances.

‘Yuri, doesn’t he seem... off?’

‘Yeah.’

‘It’s not just our imagination, right?’

‘Most delusions turn out to be true.’

‘So, it’s definite.’

Aquila let out a long sigh and looked up at the sky. The sun had risen, its brightness starkly out of place in the chaos of the morning.

‘Great. My comrade is now at risk of transferring... into an emotional crisis.’

Aquila silently prayed that Winter wasn’t feeling that kind of emotion.

***

“Salvia.”

“Huh...?”

Half-asleep, I opened my eyes at the sound of someone calling my name.

After the hellish march, the entire platoon had collapsed into rest, with only those on guard duty remaining awake.

As for me, I had been excused from duty because of my injuries. I had received proper treatment from the company medic, and while the wounds seemed to be healing fine, exhaustion from both the march and my earlier crying fit had left me bedridden.

“Altair?”

When I finally managed to focus, I saw Altair standing at the entrance of the barracks.

Yuri, who had just woken up and was rubbing her eyes, gestured for him to come inside. Altair closed the door behind him and stepped in.

“How’s your arm?”

“Oh, it’s fine. They said it should heal completely in a few days.”

“Good. That’s a relief.”

He nodded, then awkwardly looked away before turning back to me.

“Hey... thanks for saving my life.”

“Oh...”

“If it weren’t for you, I’d be dead.”

“That’s true. You owe her big time,” Yuri chimed in, grinning as she sat up.

“Well... anyway...”

Altair scratched the back of his head, clearly uncomfortable. But under Yuri’s expectant gaze, he eventually gave in and spoke again.

“If you ever need help with anything, just ask.”

“...What?”

“We’ll do whatever we can to help you.”

Yuri nodded in agreement, her expression sincere.

Their words made my face light up.

‘I can practically hear the sound of climbing onto the winning team!’

Sure, Altair and Yuri had always looked out for me, but after saving Altair’s life, it seemed he was genuinely moved.

With only Sergeant Gagne and Zarath above them in rank, I could now push boundaries without anyone daring to reprimand me.

‘And Winter will probably treat me well too, since I saved his comrade.’

Even after Winter becomes an officer in charge of this unit, my position in this platoon will be secure!

As I beamed at the thought, Altair, just before leaving the barracks, turned back with one last comment.

“Oh, and...”

“Yes?”

“If Winter starts acting strange...”

“...What?”

“Let me know immediately.”

With that cryptic remark, Altair left.

‘What does that even mean?’

I turned to Yuri with a questioning look, but she coughed awkwardly and stood up.

“Yuri?”

“Hey, Altair! Wait up!”

And with that, she left too, leaving me alone and thoroughly confused.

“What the hell is going on?”

Could it be? Was this the moment when the romance fantasy cliché finally kicked in, and Winter—original novel male lead number two—fell for me?

But I...

‘I’m not falling for it, you bastards.’

How many times has this crazy world tricked me already? No way. Not happening.

***

“Alright, buddy. It’s time for some honest self-reflection.”

Altair, sitting to Winter’s left, spoke firmly.

“Yeah, let’s have a heart-to-heart and sort this out,” Yuri added, sitting on Winter’s right.

But Altair immediately recoiled at Yuri’s suggestion.

“What? You want me to hold hands with this gloomy guy?!”

“...Then how about we hold hands together?”

In the end, for the sake of their “honest conversation,” Altair and Yuri reluctantly clasped hands with Winter sandwiched between them.

It was clear something was off. Yuri’s expression was uneasy, and Winter seemed briefly confused, but they decided to proceed with the discussion anyway.