Unexpected place and unexpected cure!

<"Wake up!">

(Slap!)

"AAH!"

("Mom!")

(Slap!)

"OW!"

("Get up...!")

(Slap!)

"OUCH!"

What happened?! Where am I?! Why does my face hurt?!

<"Stop, he finally seems to have woken up.">

"Huh...? Echidna?!"

("Mom!")

("Wake up...!")

("Clink, clank")

OK, what the hell is going on here? The last thing I remember was going to sleep peacefully trying to lower the fever from that damned cold and.... Wait... Why do I feel a sense of déjà vu...?

<"Welcome back, partner. It took you a long time to wake up.">

"Am I home...? No, wait! I want an explanation of what is going on here!"

<"What's happening? It's exactly as you see around you.">

"......"

Given Echidna's answer, I finally became aware of my surroundings, discovering a shocking truth....

"Is this a forest?!"

That's right, dear reader, we found ourselves in the middle of a forest... Yep, this clarifies nothing, so let's say hello to everyone and continue! (Escapism)

(Slap!)

NO!!

I need, I need to understand what is going on here, and there is only one person (goddess) who must know!

Huh...? Why not ask Silver, Goldie, or Brownie?

Well, the answer is simple: I highly doubt they know what is happening or the reason why and how we all ended up in a forest in the middle of who knows where. So, asking Echidna is the most logical thing!

"And that's why you must answer, Echidna! How did we get to this?! And... Why am I in pajamas?!"

<"Although I can't read your mind, I have at least a general idea of your train of thought. So, I won't ask why kind of thought process you had to arrive at those questions; I will just recount the events of how we got here.">

I'm going to take a brief pause here because Echidna's explanation was more... well... complex... So I'll be frank! I barely understood everything she said, so I'll summarize it in the following points to save time!

Did you want to hear the full explanation?

I don't recommend it. I mean, that long explanation was so complex that I feel like I listened to a scientist talk about things like Relativity, temporal paradoxes, quantum fluctuations, and a bunch of things I don't understand what they have to do with anything!

Or, rather, why the hell is Echidna versed in this kind of stuff?! She didn't even know how a phone worked before!!

Maybe she studied in secret?

You know... Actually... that's an excellent possibility...

But anyway, let's get back to the topic, because my brain can't keep up!

In summary, what happened was that when I slept, my fever, instead of going down, increased, and on top of that, I lost consciousness for a total of several days—yes, "SEVERAL" days—which meant taking me to a hospital was necessary in the end! Easy, right...?

Well, it wasn't! Why? You see, unexpectedly, there turned out to be a problem where I was unstably leaking aura everywhere, returning to the dangerous situation of being a bomb about to explode at any moment. And to make things worse, physically I seemed to be in such a delicate state that they couldn't even move me!

"... By chance... Doesn't that mean... that I was on the verge of dying...?"

<"That's right, although instead of dying, you were only going to cause a massive explosion, wiping out all life within a 10,000-meter radius, terraforming the surrounding area in the process.">

"......"

Alright... You don't need to say it, I already know... I... I WAS VERY LUCKY!

"I WAS REALLY LUCKY!!"

<"Why do you sound depressed...?">

"... You still don't get it, Echidna?"

<?>

"When something like this happens, it only means one thing..."

<".....">

That's right: if I received such a massive stroke of luck as to avoid such a dire outcome, it only means that...

"I'M GOING TO SUFFER!!"

... I'm sure I'm going to receive a massive stroke of misfortune one way or another!

Aren't you exaggerating?

Ahahahahaha, believe me, I wish I were exaggerating! But... the sad reality is that every time fortune smiles on me, shortly after, and as if it were a cosmic joke, I receive a terrible stroke of bad luck in return.

How bad can it be?

Well, imagine walking calmly and finding a winning lottery ticket that you picked up on the street, only for the wind to blow, snatching it from your hands just as you're about to cash it in. Immediately after, you are struck by lightning that burns it right in front of your eyes and, as a final touch, "conveniently," a detestable truck drives past you, splashing mud in your face....

Why did I give such a specific example?

Of course, it's because it actually happened to me!!

In that moment, I wondered why the hell all that happened since I didn't even need the money, until I later discovered it was a winning ticket for a reward lottery for an unlimited lifetime supply of the famous Choco Bomb!

CAN YOU UNDERSTAND HOW I FELT AFTER DISCOVERING THAT!!

("Mom! Flames!")

("!!")

<"Calm down!">

(Slap!)

"OW!"

<"You still can't control that damned technique, so don't activate it by getting lost in a memory!">

".... Yes, I'm sorry."

Ahem! Sorry about that... Well, getting back to the plot where I left off! It was then that, having no other option due to my condition, Echidna called for help, and everyone was able to stabilize me temporarily. However, this didn't solve anything long-term!

So, after much thought and experimentation, a cunning Echidna came up with a plan....

<"That's why an emotional resonance was attempted!">

(Frying Pan Clang!)

"Are you crazy?!"

....and after hearing the plan, I hit her.

Wasn't that excessive?

Of course not!!

A total resonance among everyone was already attempted before, and the result was that we almost lost our individual identities before it was completed!

That's why it was strictly forbidden!!

"So why did you do that?!"

<"Because it was the only way!!">

"?!"

<"Your consciousness was fading more and more, and at that rate, you risked sleeping forever!">

"......"

<"It was the only way to bring your consciousness back! Do you know how complicated it was to keep that wave of uncontrolled power stable?!">

"Ahm... I... I'm sorry..."

<"For starters, you don't even have an idea of how much I work daily!">

("Couple's quarrel in progress. We sincerely regret the inconvenience. Thank you very much for your understanding.")

"Ehm... Do you feel... better...?"

<"... This conversation will continue later in private.">

... Well, that was... awkward... Ahem! How about we get back to the topic to change the atmosphere (please) and understand how we got here!

And Echidna...?

Well, she's over there, calmer, eating some of the emergency ice cream for unexpected situations that I had stored in my dimensional storage pocket.

.... But well, although I say she ate "some," the reality is that she's already gone through 7 extra-large containers of ice cream.

Honestly, I'm worried the ice cream won't last long enough.

But getting back to the topic, the point is that while the total resonance was happening, it seems there was some kind of unknown "interference" that caused a destabilization that sent us to this place in a burst!

"Wait, what happened to the house and the others?!"

<"Nothing, actually, since only those of us who did the resonance were transported, and the explosion detonated here.">

"I-I see... Ugh, that's a relief."

<"Anyway, how long are you going to leave 'that' there?">

"What thing...?"

<"The corpse over there.">

"....."

"Chomp, chomp."

It was only when Echidna mentioned that, pointing at my neck while I felt the relief washing over me, that I realized....

"KKKKKKKYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!"

THAT A ZOMBIE WAS BITING ME!

<"Why are you screaming...?">

"WHY ARE YOU CALM?!"

<"Because that thing isn't even hurting you.">

"Suck~"

"Huh?!"

It was only after Echidna mentioned it that I realized she was indeed only sucking my neck without hurting me... And thinking about it more calmly, if I had really been attacked or harmed, Silver would have already cut her, Goldie would have hit her, and Brownie would have filled her with bullets in an instant... Haaaa... But that doesn't change the fact that it was terrifying.

"Chomp, chomp."

"....."

In fact, now that I look at her, she just looks like a cute (dead) girl who is sucking my shoulder with a delighted expression on her (decomposing) face, completely harmlessly!

"Well, she's cute, so it's okay if she continues."

<"..... You know, I shouldn't be the one to talk, but your values are quite twisted.">

"Hey! What does that mean?!"

<"In any case, it seems interesting.">

"Did you ignore me?!"

<"She seems to be absorbing the excess energy around you by sucking.">

"And what does that mean...?"

<"In short...">

As Echidna said that, I started feeling better and better, instantly realizing that...

<"She is curing you.">

THE COLD IS FINALLY GONE!!