The Boy Who Died Protecting the Party Is Resurrected 10 Years Later and Is Doted On – The Companion He Thought Was a Boy Had Become an Overprotective Big Sister - Episode 3: The Boy, Sandwiched Between Older Sisters

Episode 3: The Boy, Sandwiched Between Older Sisters

Phil had been taken out from the place called “Sanctuary of Eternity”. It was where he had been kept until now. He was being rocked in a carriage heading toward the town, while being held tightly by Raika.

“Come on now, you shouldn’t do rough things to Phil when he just got better, right~?”

Raika was firmly sandwiching the dazed Phil between her chest and both arms. While doing so, she scolded Beruda who was sitting across from her.

“S-sorry. Um, he was… smaller than I thought… I couldn’t hold back…”

“Phil is just like he was in the past. So you have to be gentle with him, okay~?”

Beruda had grown in many ways. Her passionate hug was far too stimulating for an eleven-year-old boy.

Phil had just been resurrected and wasn’t in perfect condition. He completely overheated and fainted.

“U-um. Why am I on your lap—?”

“Well, the Phil in my memory was about the same size and eye level. So I get how that kind of thing happens~”

Saying that, Raika gently hugged Phil. What she was doing wasn’t much different from Beruda. But since she wasn’t aware of it, nothing could be done.

“U-uuh…!”

Phil’s head was stuck between two large chests. He froze up with teary eyes.

“I felt like you were bigger though. Especially when you were scolding me, it felt like having an older brother close in age…”

“Phil was the most reliable, you know~. More like a mom than a leader~!”

“W-what kind of eyes were you looking at Phil with…!”

Meanwhile, the two were enjoying reminiscing.

“Of course, he’s a comrade~. Phil was an important party member aiming to become an adventurer together—”

Raika began to tremble slightly as she spoke.

“A friend… Even though I said I’d protect you… I was always the one being protected…”

Tears streamed down her cheeks.

“Raika…?”

Phil turned to look behind him and called out in a worried voice.

“He was so small… still just a child… and yet against that monster… alone…!”

“…Yeah, that’s right.”

“I’m sorry… I’m sorry, Phil!! You must’ve been so scared, waaahhhh!!”

“……………”

To the crying Raika, Phil said this:

“…Crying doesn’t suit you, Raika. Thanks to everyone, I was able to come back to life like this. So don’t cry anymore.”

“Phil…!”

It was the first time he had seen Raika cry like this.

“And besides… I don’t really remember what happened when I died. So I’m not sure…”

“You don’t need to remember… It’ll definitely be a painful memory for you too.”

Beruda spoke while clenching her hands together tightly.

“Was it really that terrible?”

“…The adventurers who found you alone in the labyrinth stopped us. They said… it was better not to look.”

Beruda tried to remain calm. But her trembling hands showed she couldn’t.

“…Do you still want to hear more?”

“Yeah. Tell me. …Because it’s about me.”

Phil nodded. He thought he needed to understand what happened ten years ago.

—Though truthfully, he was more curious about how his life ended.

“Please, Beruda. I want to know.”

Stared at with Phil’s honest eyes, Beruda took a deep breath and continued. She seemingly had made up her mind.

“At that time… Menou was with us too.”

“Huh…?”

“She said it was her fault for pushing you too hard… and she was the first one to check on you.”

“I-I see… Even though she had just recovered…”

At the mention of his sister’s name, Phil’s freshly resurrected heart beat rapidly.

“After that it was awful. She screamed and cried… went wild… said she’d kill the one who did that to her big brother…”

Phil couldn’t imagine Menou losing control like that. Since her sister hardly ever got angry. 

“I… couldn’t move. It felt like those words were directed at me…”

“……………”

“Well, Menou is kind like you… she never actually blamed us, not even once…”

“I see…”

Hearing how his sister reacted to his death was quite painful for Phil.

“I’m… such a fool. Because I was weak, I even made my sister… Menou unhappy. —I guess I’m not fit to be a big brother…”

At that moment, muttering so casually—

“T-that’s not true! Phil… Phil protected us!!”

“Ugh!”

Phil was sitting on Raika’s lap. He was suddenly hugged with full force and crushed between her big chest and arms.

“Ugh, c-can’t… breathe…”

“It’s my fault!! Waaahhh!!”

And so, he was made to feel even more powerless.

“…Raika and I also… after Menou, went to check on you. Because… we thought that was the right thing to do as comrades…”

Meanwhile, Beruda was unaware of what was going on in front of her. She continued speaking with her head lowered.

“But still, we couldn’t tell it was you right away…! Everything was… all a mess! The clothes and belongings were definitely Phil’s, but those too were soaked in red…!”

Apparently, she was still trapped by the memories of the past. Seeing Beruda so shaken, which he hadn’t expected, Phil said reflexively:

“I-if it’s too hard, you don’t have to talk anymore!”

“I’m sorry… Phil… Phil…!”

“You don’t have to say my name twice, it’s okay… yeah…”

Sandwiched between the emotionally unstable Beruda and Raika, Phil realized that because of his death, everything had become an irreversible mess.