女神归来的夏天

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~~~(POV: Cera Adamo)~~~

~~~(Location: The Kingdom of Nu'bor, The Continent of Alforza)~~~

~~~(Time: 7:23 PM)~~~

It hasn't taken us very long to get here, and the jungle's edge is in view. This is the first time I've seen a jungle. Most on Earth were destroyed by pollution and fire. Machines were created to help keep oxygen levels normal.

But the Earth was slowly dying anyway. Trees, forests, and jungles are integral to an ecosystem. Without them, everything dies.

So seeing a fabled jungle for the first time in my life is exciting. We've still got a couple of hours left until night comes. And that'll give us enough time to get deeper into the jungle and find a good place to rest for the night.

"Look at that tree cover... It's called a canopy, right?"

Sally is just as interested as I am, and the jungle trees are tall and create a sort of umbrella over the grounds below. The sand has come to an end. What's below us now is grass, dirt, and mud.

I've slowed down so we don't fly deep into the jungle but calmly fly above it. There were some interesting facts about the Earth's jungles in old history books. Things I knew I'd never see, but now it turns out I was wrong.

"I do believe it's called a canopy. Some jungles and rainforests are complex environments. I don't know about this one, but I'm looking forward to finding out."

What I learned about jungles, rainforests, and other factors is limited. Since most of that material was outdated on Earth. After the ruination of most of the environment, anything regarding how it looked or functioned was discarded.

Which I believed to be foolish. However, it's not like anything in those books and digital documents knew about fixing the damage we did. Ultimately, it was more like a history lesson than a biology lesson.

"We'll find higher ground and set up camp before we start to explore some of the jungle floors. I have no idea what kind of hostile creatures are down there. I'm actually excited to find out."

Sally agrees with me, and I eventually find a cliff edge overlooking a large part of the forest. We set up a camp and get a fire going. We're in the shade of some trees, and the cool grass is a nice change from the hot sand.

While distracted by the sights, I fail to notice Sally wander off. The only indication that I have is her scream later.

I rush to find her, only to be completely dumbfounded.

"Isn't it the most adorable thing you've ever seen!!?"

In Sally's arms is a little spotted cat, one that's barely got its eyes open. It's dark with a grey underbelly. It lets out a long yawn and a tiny mew before cuddling back into Sally's arms. But this concerns me the more I think about it.

If a small kitten is here, barely with its eyes open. That means a mother is close by. And I don't want to deal with it. Killing the mother of the kitten would mean raising it becomes my responsibility.

I move over to them, take the kitten out of Sally's hands, and hold the adorable little fluffball myself.

"We can't keep it. I hope you know that."

Instant devastation is plastered all over Sally's features.

"Why not!?"

As much as she wants to, she should know we can't keep the kitten either.

"It already has a Mother, Sally. If we take it, we'll be tracked down. And I'll be forced to kill the Mother, and that means I have to take care of the thing. Put it back where you found it. The Mother will be back for it."

The disappointment on her face is immeasurable, and I do feel a little bad for making her do something. But this is the right thing to do, and I'm not in the mood to raise a kitten.

As I hand the kitten back to Sally, it curls up in her arms and starts to purr like crazy. Eyes closed and enjoying being held like that. Sally tries hard to stay strong and walks back into the jungle and places the kitten where she found it.

That takes care of that issue, and now she comes back in a much worse mood than when she left. She's actually ignoring me now, and I don't mind. If I have to be a bad guy for a few hours that's fine.

We sit in silence around the campfire, and she pokes at it with a stick.

"I could've taken care of it..."

The words are barely audible, and I just let out a long sigh. I have no doubts she could take care of it, but that would mean she has to deliberately kill the Mother. And I don't think she's thinking about that. Not giving it true consideration.

"If you're willing to kill the Mother of that kitten and raise it, then fine. But I'll not kill it for you. This is something you'll have to do."

That is not something she wants to hear.

"No need to be so blunt about it. But you're right. I hate it, but you are. I can't kill that kitten's Mother and then raise it. That's just fucking cruel."

I'm glad she agrees, but it doesn't improve her mood at all. Wanting a cute animal and raising one are different things. It's hard and takes time. They need constant care and attention.

I don't think that's something either of us can give at this moment in our lives. The same can be said for children, and that's a go thing to know. Sally and I will start a family at one point, but that's several years from now.

​ "Hey. Don't be so down about it. It's a good thing that you did. Sure, it sucks, but that was the best thing you could've done for that kitten."

I move over and sit next to her, and she's not upset with me near. I wrap my arm around her, and she leans into me.

"I know... It's hard to let go of something that cute, though..."

Her voice has a funny tone to it. Like she knows it sucks, but she's also happy she did what she did. I'm sure we'll meet other cute things in our time in the jungle, along with very ugly things.

~~~(POV: Saliandra Orvello)~~~

~~~(Location: The Jungles of Nu'bor, The Kingdom of Nu'bor, The Continent of Alforza)~~~

~~~(Time: 10:15 PM)~~~

Cera and I look to the night sky as we relax on a thick tree branch. The camp is below us, and Cera has me wrapped in his arms. We get to look at the night sky all the time, but this is special to me. Being here with Cera means more than he knows.

"Back on Earth, we couldn't see the stars... Did I ever tell you that?"

I think he mentioned it once or twice, but he never explained why.

"You've told me, but never why..."

From what I've learned about the world Cera has come from, it's not like Gaia.

"Pollution was so bad, the only lights you'd see are from satellites... They're objects that float around Earth..."

It sounds like a depressing world...

"There is something that I also want to discuss with you... Something really important... And it might change things between us..."

That took a turn I wasn't expecting. I remain in Cera's arms and stay the way I am. In truth, nothing will change the way I feel about Cera. He's not done anything that I'd hate. But if he's talking like this, that means it's serious to him.

"You know that nothing you say will ever make me change how I feel about you or my want to be with you. You can tell me anything. We're in a place where sharing with each other is a safe thing."

He takes a deep breath and lets out a nervous sigh. This is big to him, and I'll be listening.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/N: Below this line, I'll be keeping Cera's player information. That way, I won't have to place it into the story above anymore. It takes about 180 words up.

[Slayer (Zern) Lvl.230][Tier-4]

[Exp: 42/100%]

[Title: The Son of Arch-Angel Michael (Hidden)]

[Stats] [Strength - 7095][Endurance - 7045][Dexterity - 7215][Speed - 8240][Focus - 19,660]

[Mana aura control: 6/100%]

[Health: 76,560,000,000/76,560,000,000] [Mana: 216,600,000,000/216,600,000,000]

[Stat Points: 370] [Armor rating: 500]

[Inventory] [Dice of Wayland (Divine)] [The Witness (Legendary Sword)] [Fenrir's Whistle (Divine)] [Camping gear] [Fishing poles 2x] [Festival Garbs 2x] [4x EXP Boosts] [Princess Saliandra's Panties (Black Lace)] [Desert Warrior Nomad Set (Rare)]

[Passive Perks]

[Inheritor of the Sword] [Son of Heaven] [Slayer of Evil] [Holy Willow Trees Savior] [Finder of Legends] [The Divine who has Legend] [Destined for Greatness] [Dungeon Diver] [An Overachiever]

[Active Skills]

[Heavens light Lvl.74 325/7400] [Protected by Heaven Lvl.74 225/7400] [Slash Lvl.92 4600/21000] [Parry Lvl.68 85/6800] [Double Strike N/A] [Kingslayer N/A] [Raging Machine N/A] [Winged Glory] [Angelic Flight] [Divine Pressure Exertion] [Divinity Pulse] [Controlled Fun]