The Protagonist's Party is Too Diligent-Chapter 338

...

Actually, that wouldn’t be so bad.

I don’t know how long I’ve been like this, but I’ve suffered long enough.

If I could end it here, maybe that’d be better.

Back when I didn’t believe in anything, the idea of death scared me—because it meant the end of everything. But now? I know souls exist even after death. So maybe dying as a griffon wouldn’t be so bad after all.

“Mia!”

The black-haired girl shouted the name and sprinted forward.

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“Spitus Glacia!”

The girl holding the staff swung it forward and shouted something in an unfamiliar language.

A blue light burst from her staff, and ice began forming in front of me.

See? A real mage.

I braced for pain—but what appeared before me wasn’t a spear or a blade of ice.

It was a staircase.

Stretching all the way up to the second floor above.

The black-haired girl began to run.

She charged up the stairs of ice, feet pounding upward.

“Mia!”

“I know!”

They moved in perfect sync.

Maybe one of them had studied the building’s layout? Going straight for the enemy commander was smart.

Nice. They’re doing great.

Shoot that lunatic old man in the face with your gun.

And if you can, blow off a limb or two of that bastard knight who used to beat me.

...That thought only lasted a second.

My head was forced forward again.

I looked down at the girls who were likely her teammates.

It wasn’t my choice.

“...Don’t be afraid.”

The silver-haired girl stepped forward. She held a thin rapier in her hand. Did that mean she was skilled in swordsmanship?

But on closer look, her hands were trembling slightly.

Even a wounded, weakened griffon was still a griffon. No one could stand calmly in front of a creature so much larger than themselves.

“I know.”

Another girl stepped forward, also holding a sword. This one had golden hair.

Silver and gold.

They looked elegant—probably noble daughters or something. Assuming this world had nobles or royalty. Well, I had heard something about an emperor, so probably.

“If we get scared after sending big sis ahead, that’d be pathetic.”

The one who said that had blue hair and wore a bright expression. Probably the most fearless of them all.

So the girl who ran ahead was her sister? Didn’t look like it, but maybe.

Gunshots rang from above. A voice shouted.

It was a man’s voice—shaky with fear.

That kid must already be infamous.

Good. Serves them right.

Alright, guess I should do my best too.

Not to kill these kids, though.

They stepped forward, one ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) at a time.

I focused everything I had.

Please—don’t let my claws kill these kids.

Don’t let my beak shred their futures.

Let me resist, with everything I’ve got.

*

My legs gave out—not because of them.

They did their best. They swung swords at me, they cast magic.

Honestly, I was even a little awestruck seeing real magic. Not the kind that had been used to torture and control me, but actual spells in battle.

And seeing sword strikes that sent out waves of force—it made me wonder if this world’s physics were just fundamentally different.

But sadly...

Even when I got hurt, it didn’t hurt anymore.

It was only now that I realized—my body had already reached its limit. No surprise, considering how long they’d left my wounds to fester without ever healing them.

I was already in so much pain that more didn’t even register.

That’s why I collapsed—it was just my body giving out.

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The once-beautiful feathers that had grown so majestically were ragged. My proud wings were tattered, patches of bare skin showing through.

The only parts they hadn’t touched were my beak and claws, which meant those kids had been hurt by me.

Apparently healing magic had limits too—because the silver-haired girl was bleeding.

And just like that, the battle ended.

While I’d been under the magic’s control, I could at least stand. But now, I had no strength left at all.

I collapsed to my knees and lowered my head.

The kids were talking about something, but I couldn’t even process their words anymore.

I wanted it to be over.

Why had I ended up in this world? Why had I been put through this?

Should I cling to what little consciousness I had left... or just let go?

Footsteps echoed.

That metallic sound—reflexively, my head snapped up.

I knew that sound too well. Greaves.

Every time I heard that sound, it meant I was about to be kicked.

But what I saw wasn’t the knight.

It was the girl at the front—the one whose hair was now more tangled than before, her clothes torn.

But not a single wound on her.

The girl who had charged up the ice stairs.

Her name was “Sylvia,” apparently.

Her armor was dented and broken, but she stood tall on her own two feet.

And in her hand, raised high—

Was a shattered gem.

The one the high-ranking priest had worn around his neck to control me.

So that’s why.

That’s why they can’t control me anymore.

“You’re safe now.”

She said gently as she walked toward me.

“This artifact is destroyed. It won’t bind you any longer.”

I raised my head just a little higher.

Was it her voice that cleared my vision? For the first time in a while, everything looked sharper.

She lifted the gem even higher, almost as if to make sure I could see.

Relief.

Just the thought that it couldn’t control me anymore—that it couldn’t force me to hurt anyone—filled me with peace.

And to top it off, it was shattered before it ever did anything useful. That battle just now had been the only thing I could call “combat” in this whole experience—and it ended before I even did anything.

Sylvia met my gaze for a while, then tucked the gem into her pocket.

She looked at me for a long moment, then cautiously stepped closer.

Her hesitant hand touched me.

A sharp jolt of pain followed. It started small—but quickly became unbearable. Apparently, my injuries were far worse than they looked. I barely even noticed the new wounds I got during the fight.

She must’ve touched an infected wound. As soon as she did, a sound escaped my throat from the pain.

Startled, she took a step back and looked up at me.

“...”

Then, after hesitating—

“Come with us,” she said quietly.

She slowly stepped backward, never taking her eyes off me.

...It almost made me laugh.

Did she really think I could understand her? Were griffons in this world known for understanding human speech?

Then again, those bastards who locked me up acted like I could understand them too.

I didn’t listen to them, of course—but this girl was different.

She was the one who freed me.

And this body was on the verge of collapse anyway. Listening to a human’s voice one last time didn’t sound so bad.

I stood up.

Every joint screamed in protest, but I didn’t care.

Sylvia only turned her back to me once she saw I was standing.

She walked toward the slightly open door—the one they had come through.