Riches and Bitches: I have a gate to an isekai and leveling-up system!-Chapter 253: Taking responsibility for what I started

"Fay…"

'Fay, Fay, Fay, FAY!'

Freed from the prison of aura so deep, thin, and hard to notice, I only had one thought in mind.

In this one moment, only one thing mattered. And before I could even regain control of my senses properly, I squeezed with my arms at Fay's body, paying no mind to the state we were in.

"FAY!"

The warmth of her body, the slight movement of her chest as she breathed peacefully, her presence I could sense through our bond…

All of those things formed a refuge for me to hide from the overwhelming experience of Fay's aura seemingly trying to fry my brain.

Whatever it was that cracked the shell of that dark world open, I couldn't care less. But by creating this crack of whatever held me in the prison of that minute aura, it also allowed me…

No.

It didn't allow me to do anything. But the moment when I strained my perception to its very limits only to be slammed like a hammer when the normal, world's aura intruded upon the prison I was holed up in…

Back in that moment, I managed to perceive the aura that this prison of mine was choke-full off. And by mere comparison, the world's aura… It grew so intense, that just perceiving it felt like pouring burning oil upon my flesh, mind, and soul alike.

"FAY!"

Squeezing myself even closer to my girl, I paid absolutely no mind to the painful experience of getting myself used to the normal aura.

"You are back…" Fay's soft whisper filled my ears, turning into the sweetest melody I could ask for.

I took in a deep breath, nearly instantly getting myself high on Fay's delicate fragrance.

"I'm sorry for worrying you."

Just like back in that prison of darkness, I lost myself in the void where time might exist but certainly mattered not. And only when another round of extremely condensed aura suddenly surged towards us…

'It would be bad if it got any closer when I'm that sensitive,' I thought, casually filling my own, dark aura with intent and sending it off to block the path of the incoming aura projectile.

The very moment I returned to my senses, my bond with Fay opened up and reached its maximum capacity as our feelings, worries, and desires rushed to fill the other.

With our bond in its current state, any kind of pain I would go through would instantly transmit over to Fay's mind. And it was something I was determined not to allow to happen.

"Right, we are still in the middle of a battle, aren't we?" I muttered with all the reluctance my mind could produce.

Going back to the menial tasks of concluding the battle and bringing my strategy to fruition all seemed so insignificant at this moment. After all the realizations I had back in that prison of darkness…

"I really wish I could just put everything aside and enjoy my time with you, I really do," I muttered before pressing my teeth together to the point my jaws started to hurt. "But…"

"Shush," Fay quickly cut all of my chatter and excuses. Yet, instead of lecturing me over what should be my priority, scolding me for taking the risk of rebirth right in the middle of the battle or anything like that…

She simply pressed her forehead against my chest and turned completely silent.

I felt every last bit of emotion coursing through her soul, just like she could feel all the things going on in my own mind.

I could feel her near-endless worry that even my return couldn't really soothe. She could feel the insane degree of loneliness that once was an integral part of my life and persona and that I was reminded of back in that prison of this extremely hard to notice, dark aura.

I could feel this, and she could feel that.

There was no need for either of us to utter even a single word.

Fay's hand snuck around my back and started to gently pat it as if to reassure me she wasn't going anywhere.

My hands tightened around Fay's waist, keeping her in place while giving her the chance to confirm I was all good and healthy.

"Dear, it's time."

After only god knows how long, Fay finally pried her mouth open and whispered.

She then relaxed her hold over my body and took a step back, only to climb up on her toes and reach with her lips for my mouth.

And a quick peck on my lips later, she took another step back, slowly, reluctantly, letting go of my body.

The sensation that followed… was extremely peculiar. It felt as if our very existence suddenly separated, on a level different than our bond. As if…

Fay's domain collapsed the moment our bodies were no longer in contact. And as her hair started to once again acknowledge the authority of gravity of this world and fall down… I managed to steal a glimpse at what should be, in every physical way, impossible.

The aura that surrounded us, the aura that allowed Fay to dance in the air as if gravity didn't exist and give her shapes much greater than her flesh and bones… It was as dark as the aura within my prison while remaining as bright as only Fay's divine aura could be.

At the same time, the aura that came as a result of my union with Fay retained both the dark qualities of my own aura and the brightness of Fay's divine powers.

'Just looking at it makes it nauseating…' I thought, averting my eyes and letting the phenomena phase out before it could seriously mess up my perception.

The sight of something dark yet shiny went beyond what my brain could process.

"I'm a little bit tired, so can you go and deal with it yourself?" Fay requested, somehow still maintaining the thick presence of her own aura in spite of her domain collapsing.

"No worries." I reached out and caressed Fay's face while giving her an encouraging smile. "I will go take care of everything, so just wait and rest for now."

To bring my fingers away from the softness of Fay's cheek felt like tearing my soul out of my body.

But the mess that came to be as a result of my plans and actions had to be resolved. And the responsibility of seeing things through fell squarely on my own shoulders.

"Come back soon and don't loiter," Fay gave me a cheeky smile as she muttered before slowly, gracefully bending down to her knees only to sit down on her heels. "As great as it feels to once again be connected with you, the side effects of our bond…"

An intense hue of red covered Fay's cheek right as she averted her eyes, too embarrassed to look me in the eye.

'For how wild she is during intimate times, she really gets shy when talking about sex, isn't she?' I thought, feeling as if my soul was about to melt inside of me.

"Hey!" Fay sharply raised her eyes and gave me a scolding look.

Right. Every thought that passed through my head would be made loud and clear for her too!

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," I laughed out a little, "you are just too damn adorable!"

With those parting words on my lips, I forced myself to turn around and walk a few steps, emerging from the blob of Fay's aura so thick, that it shielded her from anyone's prying eyes. And after a quick glance at the battlefield in front, I locked my eyes on the duo that rather than turning tail, actually went ahead and decided to resist our advance.

Looking down at their shocked and terrified yet determined faces, I couldn't help but sigh out.

"I guess you have no idea what happened," I spoke out loud while trying my best to keep my voice, at the very least, neutral. "Nevertheless, thanks," I added, hoping to shift their attention to the topic I had in mind.

"If it wasn't for your help, it would take me much longer to find my way out of this damned hole!" I laughed, recognizing the area brimming within one of the two men as not only the one that cracked my prison of darkness open but also the one that shot out in our direction before.

"Even if it wasn't your purpose, you helped me out a bit," I admitted while locking my eyes on the man whose aura I've recognized.

Quite noticeably, out of the two of them, he was clearly stronger… And yet, his clothes were nowhere near the level of the only one man who stood back and remained at that powerful man's side.

"Intentional or not, you helped me out. So, as long as you surrender and behave, I will guarantee your safety," I proclaimed while pretending not to notice the shocked and angry looks of the celestials and divines of the unit I was a part of.

Then, noticing the look of confusion on those two men's faces, I smiled at my own thoughts.

"Or would you rather go back to the piece of shit who sent you all to this forest to die?"

"He wouldn't…" the better-dressed and weaker of the two took a step forth, accelerated by my direct confirmation of what he had to be vaguely aware of.

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"He wouldn't send you off to die for no reason?" I tried to guess what the man wanted to say before he bit his tongue. "Oh, but he had a reason, alright?" I pointed out before allowing a wicked smile to appear on my lips.

"If my understanding is correct, the only reason why your leader rushed your entire army to the forest," I turned silent for a second just to build up the tension, "was to spite Etaria, the golden princess, who I believe to be the supreme commander of all the human armies."