The time they faced each other was only a few seconds, but to Subaru it felt like hours of silence.
Rem's eyes seemed to have lost all sense of reason, but then, after a sudden blink, her emotions returned.
"--Sis and Subaru?"
Subaru let out a sigh of relief at the surprised voice, and Ram, who had been stirring in his arms, opened her eyes wide,
"Yeah, Rem, I was worried about you. You shouldn't just get ahead of yourself."
"I'm sorry, Nee-sama. Rem was desperately trying to do something about it..."
"I've found a way to make this work without you having to push yourself so hard, Rem. If we can use Barusu here as a decoy, then everything will be great."
"Ah! I see! That's a good idea! Rem is moved to tears!"
The twins ran up to each other and took each other's hands. They communicated with unprecedented synchronicity, and Subaru slapped his chest as they gazed upon each other with expectant eyes.
"Well, leave it to me. I'll show you the best decoy of the century!"
"Wow, how wonderful! What a man worthy of Lady Emilia!"
The two of them cheered loudly, and Subaru responded with great pride.
The long loop of hardship has now come to an end. Having successfully grasped the ray of hope, Natsuki Subaru sets out on the path to glory.
※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※
"I mean, that would have been ideal."
Muttering this in a pathetic voice, Subaru slowly backed away, cutting off this development of fantasy.
Directly in front of me, Rem's eyes were fixed on me, and there was no trace of the emotion that had returned from her delusion; all that was there was a jet-black murderous intent.
He certainly doesn't seem to be in a mental state to hold a conversation.
Each bead of sweat felt as heavy as lead. The weight of the sweat on his eyelids threatened to block his vision, and Subaru tried to endure it by blinking one eye at a time.
Blinking both eyes at the same time, creating an opening to get hurt, is something I'm tired of after fighting a magical beast.
--The moment such an idea occurred to him, Subaru realized that he was treating Rem, who was right in front of him, as an enemy, and he chuckled. What on earth had he come all the way here to do?
"Remu-rin. This is your friend, Subaru-kun."
Subaru spoke up, acting cheerfully on purpose, in order to shift his sense of caution, which he had been unknowingly growing, and to refresh the silent situation.
Rem's response to Subaru's friendly appeal was,
"Don't give me that heated stare, you'll get burned."
It turns its head so sharply that it seems like it can make a sound, locking onto me.
Up until then, he had been casting glances at the surroundings as if he was glaring at them, but now he had his sights fixed completely on me.
The demonic aura emanating from Rem's current appearance was so incredible that it made one think so.
His familiar waiter's uniform was covered in blood, and the two-tone color of dark red and vivid red made him look even more gruesome because he had been covered in fresh blood on top of the dried blood he had been wearing. Perhaps due to the transformation into a demon, blue-green veins were visible on his pale skin peeking out from the torn sleeves, and the claws on his hands were as sharp as those of a demonic beast.
The iron ball that was slung from his right arm for self-defense was still close to him, and he was likely blessed with the opportunity to use it just as much as she was. The blood and various other objects that had stuck to it made it even more ferocious.
I can say that with certainty.
To a certain extent, he was able to keep his composure because he had prepared himself for Rem's condition, but if he were to suddenly encounter Rem in her current state on a dark street, he would definitely wet himself.
Despite being exposed to such madness, the white horn growing from her forehead - the only thing that remained beautiful and pure white was the white horn, as if it was unaware of the tragedy.
Though they were the most symbolic feature that made Rem an evil "demon," those horns alone gave Subaru an impression that was somehow terribly out of place.
However, the situation did not take into consideration Subaru's feelings.
Looking closer, the magical beasts that had fallen into the valley and scattered were still able to observe us from behind rocks and deep within the trees of the forest.
They were probably watching Subaru and his companions, and Rem's movements. If they decided they were easy to deal with, it was easy to imagine them joining the fray once again.
For Subaru, who is at the bottom of the power balance, participating in these battles is literally like a desperate situation. For that reason, it is no exaggeration to say that Rem's next action is his lifeline.
He took a breath, closed his eyes once, and looked back at Rem squarely in the eye.
Her eyes, those glaring at me, what sort of emotion are they fluctuating through? I put all my heart and soul into my gaze so as not to overlook even a single ounce of it.
and,
"Sister..."
His voice was hoarse and exhausted.
But it was a definite sound that vibrated Subaru's eardrums.
With trembling lips and a confused look on her face, Rem's eyes stare intently at Ram's profile. There is a righteous emotion there, and Subaru is amazed by it.
Even though she was in the midst of losing her sanity and giving in to her fighting instinct, her consciousness still firmly grasped the other half of her body, the figure of her beloved sister.
"You are truly a model siscon. I'm glad we were able to meet up. From now on..."
"Hanase"
At the same time that his words were interrupted, the iron ball came flying towards him like a strong wind.
It was almost a miracle that I was able to tilt my body to the right so quickly.
Fortunately, the laceration on his right calf slightly disrupted Subaru's balance as he tried to step forward.
The thorns of the passing iron ball grazed my left shoulder, and the excruciating pain of flesh being sliced away made my brain boil.
His throat trembled in pain, but he had no time to lose consciousness.
Step diagonally forward,
"It hurts!!"
Turning around from his bleeding shoulder, Subaru sidestepped, ducking under the chain of the iron ball that had gone too far. Immediately after, the sweeping chain struck the spot where Subaru had been, clearly imprinting the pattern of an iron snake into the earth.
It wasn't hard to imagine that if he had been slow to dodge, the flesh on Subaru's back would have exploded into the same shape.
Subaru shudders at the thought of the pain of his skin being torn apart, and looks at Rem clingingly.
However, her posture didn't change as she turned her gaze towards me. Her eyes were still blank and filled with hostility, and it was safe to say that she had lost her mind just by looking at her.
"I may have turned into a demon, but I guess it's set up so that I can't control it..."
Judging from her current behavior, Subaru had made that guess.
So the question is, what's the difference from last night? Rem should have been transformed into a demon last night as well, but it seems like she instantly regained her senses at that point.
Is it the amount of time that has passed, or is it the shocking, eye-opening sight that is the problem?
If seeing Subaru shield her and sustain serious injuries right in front of her had such an impact on her heart――
"Would you like to try getting hit by an iron ball? You'll be minced meat instantly..."
If the conditions were the same as last night, I'm sure he'd come to his senses.
Subaru has been reduced to mincemeat instead.
"The next best thing is... getting totally eaten by the dogs."
If he were to prostrate himself and throw himself at them, the creatures hiding on the rocks would surely welcome him and devour him, saying, "What kind of wild creature would not eat the food that's set before them!" It seemed like it might work, but there was no guarantee that Rem would let Subaru off the hook if he threw himself at them, and it was likely that this would result in an overwrite sale of the curse, which would completely defeat the purpose.
At worst, Rem will abandon him completely until the very end, leading to a predatory ending - the words "death to a dog" are in sight.
If you follow pessimistic thinking, you will end up with no options.
Ram, who seems to be able to understand the situation, is still far from consciousness, and they've been trying to shake her for a while now to see if she'll come back, but it looks like it will take some time before it has any effect.
And it didn't look like Rem in front of him, nor the Urgarm around him, would wait for that.
Subaru licked the sweat off his cheek, moistened his lips and slid them into his mouth.
If you can't think of anything to do, try exhausting all the possible scenarios when interacting with a crazy person.
In that case, that's the Subaru way to do it.
"Hey, Rem. You don't really know who I am, so listen to me, heartless person. It's treasure time, happily embarrassing to know who I am. Yes, if I recall, it was three days ago. I went to do the laundry in a strange mood, and in front of the laundry basket I was instructed to place, I got excited… wow!!"
She tried to make a comeback with a bond talk that appealed to emotions and memories, but the short-tempered Rem quickly interrupted.
The iron ball spun and flew towards him, snapping and smashing the trees in its path, scattering pieces of wood as it approached, but he narrowly avoided it with a forward roll. Then, while struggling not to drop the Ram, he gracefully dodged the chain attack with a hop, step, and jump.
「It's poor manners to go and kill someone in the middle of their conversation!? I want to see the faces of your family... Ah, there it is!」
"Give it back, Sister...!"
Subaru looked down at Ram in his arms and shouted, and Rem leaned forward and muttered. Or so you thought, but then she suddenly pulled back the iron ball she had thrown with a swing of her arm, and used the force of that swing to turn her body sharply,
"――!"
Rem's spin kick hit the torso of the witchbeast that was about to leap at it from behind - there was a roaring sound like an explosion, and even from afar it was clear that the inside of the sentient beast flying was completely mangled.
That's what happens when you try to reap the benefits.
The magic beasts that were about to launch a wave of attacks in response to the vanguard's approach stopped in their tracks when they saw the gruesome deaths.
That would be as foolish as lying on your back and exposing your stomach in front of a hunter.
A single horizontal blow smashed the stomachs and heads of the two beasts side by side together. Without paying any attention to the flying pieces of flesh, Rem took a step forward, using the momentum of the blow to crush the front legs of the cowering beast with her step, and then kicked up the beast's frozen nose with her other leg - with a light sound, the beast's cervical spine was twisted in an impossible direction and crushed.
Rem then dove right in front of the last one in the wave of attacks, grabbed it by the scruff of the throat when it got scared, and without doing anything, hurled it into the air with all her might.
The faint howl of the demonic beast, which had turned into a fastball, echoed with a trailing tail as it drew a parabola. It grew farther and farther away, then closer and closer, and finally it cut off abruptly with a sound like fruit slamming against the hard ground.
Massacre after massacre. Massacre for the sake of massacre. Massacre within massacre.
I can't think of any other thoughts about what was happening in front of me.
The difference in strength was so overwhelming it was like childish play.
As living creatures, they are of different ranks. Demons and demonic beasts may compete in terms of evil, but they can never compete in terms of absoluteness.
And yet, Subaru could never comprehend the sight of those beasts challenging a demon they could not defeat. Their limbs tremble in fear, they howl in agony before death, and they even feel grief and indignation at the abandoned corpses of their comrades - yet they absolutely do not try to run away from the fight.
Or perhaps this was the root cause why they were called "demon beasts" - created by the witches and harmful to humanity.
Witnessing that reckless shout - a scene that was, in a sense, an act of active suicide - Subaru's brows suddenly furrowed in a sudden doubt.
The sight of Rem pulverizing a horde of demonic beasts with overwhelming brutality.
From the outside, her incredible fighting power had been seen, but it seemed that she had not been able to fully demonstrate it in the two previous attacks against us.
Not to brag, but Subaru has a fair amount of confidence in his athletic ability.
In gymnastics, there are almost no tricks she cannot do, including backflips and somersaults, and she also holds a record for agility that is well above the national average.
However, when it came to comparing Subaru's physical abilities to those of the wild beasts, it was hard to imagine that he was superior in agility, explosiveness, or stamina. At best, he might be able to win a contest of strength, but remembering the experience of being temporarily pulled down by a powerful beast, it was hard to agree.
For Subaru, who in some ways had such a disappointing self-evaluation, the rampage by Rem unfolding before his very eyes was simply not within his realm of avoidance.
A blow that would turn the Witchbeast into minced meat if it couldn't dodge, and Subaru would naturally take it as well. And yet, the contradiction of having already managed to survive twice - thinking it over thoroughly, Subaru found once again that there was a thread too thin to cling to.
"Even if you've lost your mind, that means you're aware of Ram's existence."
He looked down at the girl breathing heavily in her arms as she slept, and gently brushed her bangs away from her forehead with his fingers.
Every flying iron ball was aimed at Subaru from the neck up, meaning instant death. However, looking at it from another perspective, it was a sign of their intention to not kill anyone other than Subaru.
Since Subaru was holding Ram, Rem's attack was handled with ease.
Therefore, the mercy shown to the witchbeasts was not matched by the ferocity of the attacks directed at Subaru.
Making this inference, Subaru involuntarily took a breath.
If that's a correct guess, we might be able to get through.
--It may be possible to get through this seemingly hopeless situation, albeit in a precarious way, like crossing a rickety bridge that is about to collapse.
"And for that reason--"
Look around.
The current positioning of the valley floor was Subaru in the center, Rem standing to the north with his back to the cliff, and the Ulgarms scattered to the east and west, surrounding them.
From the perspective of the beasts, both Subaru and Rem should be equal prey, but it appears that they are prioritizing Rem due to the level of danger they pose. Although Rem is also paying a certain amount of attention to Subaru, she is too busy dealing with the onslaught of monsters to launch an offensive.
However, if the number of monsters interfering with his actions decreased, it was not hard to imagine that Rem would turn her prey towards Subaru in order to recapture her sister.
With all that in mind, Subaru could only take one action.
Bracing himself, he spread his legs and took a breath as he stared at Rem.
-- Take the plunge, me. A man needs courage, a woman needs charm.
"So don't look so scared, laugh, Rem. --I want to die..."
The world stopped for the second time today, and a feast of screams erupted from the resulting black mist.
Even if I was prepared for the excruciating pain that could occur, it was unbearable, especially when it wasn't just one hand, but the left hand that appeared as well.
Perhaps he had gotten a taste for the completion of his right arm, because as Subaru opened his eyes wide and motionless, the sensation of the hand caressing his insides, slipping through his sternum, had transformed into the size of two palms.
One palm touched his heart, and the other palm gently touched his cheek as if with affection. - Fear rose up within him, and immediately afterwards pain assaulted every nerve.
Excruciating pain, excruciating pain, excruciating pain!
The world had been turned upside down, and at the same time, there was an excruciating discomfort, as if everything inside his stomach was being twisted and kneaded. He was no longer himself. It felt as if every part of him had been completely replaced, from head to toe. The insensitivity that prevented nerves from recognizing each other as nerves made his brain boil, and his consciousness gradually became cloudy. And yet the only thing that felt warm was the soft touch of the palm of his hand against his cheek, and from that point on he felt a sense of relief that seemed to melt his mind and body, but Subaru knew a sensation that would overcome this without relying on that.
"I'm back... I'm back."
My vision is blurred. My soul is worn out. I bring back no reality, no pain, no suffering.
No time passed. The scene before his eyes continued as usual, with the beast and Rem glaring back and forth, but the moment Subaru turned towards them, a major change occurred in the way they were facing each other.
The attention of Rem and the pack of Ulgarm was turned in their direction, as if something huge that could not be overlooked had appeared here.
Just as planned, the witch's presence surrounding Subaru had intensified even further.
--Rem roared.
He tries to take back his beloved sister from a hostile entity that still exudes the scent of a terrible witch.
--The Ulgarms all begin howling at once.
My instincts were drawn to the familiar scent as I rounded up the entire herd in the forest.
--Subaru roars again.
He narrowly avoided the claws of the attacking demonic beast and the iron ball that was being hurled at him, as if he was seeking to ignite his own life and soul.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
A melee begins.
Between demons, monsters, and ordinary people, Subaru was in a corner that was out of place and he had to think carefully about it, but he continued to dance in the center of the melee.
Subaru's actions are consistently simple.
Keeping a fair distance from where the fighting intensified, and doing everything in your power to avoid any sparks that might fall on you - that was all.
Also, right before her eyes, one of the demonic beasts was hit with an iron ball and quickly turned into a stain on the rock wall. However, undeterred by the death of their comrade, the three demonic beasts teamed up and attacked Rem, trying to inflict a serious wound on her. Their cleverness was in vain, as their leaps were intercepted with a shaking-off movement of the hands, and those that stopped moving were quickly slashed down and fell prey to the deadly weapon.
Glancing at this from the side, Subaru picked up Ram, who was about to fall, and leapt backwards. He narrowly escaped the incoming demonic beast and leapt into Rem's attack range.
But Rem, quick to notice our approach, intercepted us. She dodged the iron handle that was thrust out by coming to a sudden halt, then crouched down to get under the chain that came flying at her a moment later, and the iron ball that passed overhead caused a bright red flower to bloom on the head of the magic beast that was approaching from behind.
After making sure of that, he tosses away all shame and respectability and retreats in cockroach-like fashion, crawling along the ground. The demonic beast blocks Rem, who tries to chase after him, and he succeeds in retreating.
While keeping a certain distance, he praised his own judgement for saving his life with a sigh of relief.
"--Ha! I guess I can do it after all."
Desperately jumping to avoid being bitten by the dog, he pushed the chasing dog towards the maid girl, then crawled away like a cockroach, escaping the angry girl's tantrum.
If I were to put it simply into words, it would be enough to make me want to die, but I've decided that I'm doing it to avoid death, and in my mind I rather glorify the disgrace of it all.
For now, the plan Subaru had envisioned was going well. It wasn't going too badly, both in terms of buying time and reducing the total number of Ulgarm.
Glancing up, he senses the presence of a horde of magical beasts gathering towards him from multiple directions leading to the valley floor.
Subaru's body odor had spread far and wide throughout the forest, and it continued to stimulate the instincts of the Urgarms. What a sinful story.
So that's why I started to see life in it.
In this way, I found myself getting excited about something even though the situation hadn't really changed.
"--cormorant?"
Suddenly it happened.
A new flock of Ulgarm entered the valley, throwing themselves into a life-or-death battle with Rem. Watching this, Subaru shook his body lightly to prepare for evasion, but then a sensation similar to dizziness made him lose his balance.
His knees sagged and he nearly fell forward. He instantly turned to protect Ram, who he was holding, and fell to the ground on his injured left shoulder. He cried out a groan as if his throat was clogged with pain, but what dominated Subaru's consciousness even more was,
"This chill--"
I remember that extraordinary chill that chilled me to the core.
Even though he had put his life on the line, his body in motion, his soul burning as he took on the gamble, this was an interference that poured cold water on his passion.
Hearing this, Subaru once again regretted his own mistake.
The more they gathered like this, the greater the danger became. The being before him was so powerful that if he decided he wanted even a little power, resuming the suspended curse would have been the first thing he would have thought of.
Expand your field of vision.
One of the Urgarms present had activated the curse they had placed on Subaru, confiscating his mana. However, looking around, he could not see any demonic beasts that looked like that. Even before that, he couldn't even imagine what state a demonic beast under a curse would be in.
And since he was already too lazy to even move a finger, even if he managed to identify the source of the curse, it seemed unlikely that he would be able to stop the sorcery, even if they had to stab each other.
"...I guess it's all over."
Having come this far, has it all just been for nothing?
Subaru's consciousness began to fade as the cold grew stronger. He reached out his hands to somehow hold it in place, but no matter how hard he reached, it just scraped through the air in vain――
Suddenly, the chill disappeared and blood flowed to my palms.
--A thunderous sound echoed out at the same time Subaru returned to normal.
Pushing open his blurred vision, Subaru's eyes wandered, trying to find the source of the sound. Then, deep in the forest, he saw Rem stomping loudly on the ground, slamming an iron ball into a bed of rock. He also saw the corpse of a magical beast, which had exploded under the ball.
Realizing that his physical condition had improved significantly and that this was related to the situation, Subaru stood up.
The demonic beast that Rem had just crushed was the one that had been casting the curse on Subaru. With its life now snuffed, the curse had likely been halted.
What a frightening coincidence, I am amazed at my own bad luck.
"No way."
Rem was now at a great distance from where she had been standing a moment ago.
There was only one reason to ignore the other magical beasts scattered along the way and target just that one.
Shaking off everything, and even though she sustained lacerations from the claws while running through, Rem identified the one that had activated the curse and slayed it.
Subaru wasn't one to understand what that meant.
Even if he had lost his mind, even if he was in such a mental state that he didn't know who Subaru was.
Rem didn't mistake her beloved sister for someone else, and she hadn't forgotten why she'd rushed into the forest in the first place.
Then I think.
Subaru rubbed his eyelids, mindful of what he had to do.
Instead of using her in this deceptive way, he thought he should stick to his original purpose.
"The first ideal scenario. An exciting joint curse removal project with the maid sisters Ram and Rem."
Only if he could do that would Subaru believe he would have the ability to survive this cursed situation.
Therefore, he must bring Rem back to her senses. Subaru's business is not with the "demon", but with her, who is overly polite, jumps to conclusions, and causes nothing but trouble.
"--Horns."
Suddenly, the voice came from nearby, making Subaru's eardrums vibrate.
Looking down, Ram was in his arms, eyes slightly open, and even in her hazy state of consciousness, her lips were moving.
"Are you awake?"
"I thought now would be the best time..."
"Oh, you have a good hunch, Onee-sama. Did you say horns?"
Ram gave a small laugh, and Subaru replied with a smile that was half bluffing, half defiant.
"It's those horns that make Rem a demon... If I hit her with one powerful hit... she'll come back..."
"Are you sure?"
"I think so. I'm sure. I hope so."
"That's a bit vague, eh?! But I believed you."
Having declared this, Subaru looked at Rem.
The white horn growing from her forehead was about ten centimeters long. If you imagined a pack standing on her forehead, it would be roughly the same size.
--One shot there.
"Isn't that a bit far-fetched?"
"Use your wisdom and courage and do something about it."
"Actually, I can think of a way to achieve this if we muster our wisdom and courage."
Ram raised her eyebrows in surprise at Subaru's response.
Subaru gave her a wry smile, his lips twisting as if he found it difficult to speak.
"But you'll probably be angry."
"If that brings my sister back to her senses, Ram won't be angry."
"Really?"
"Really really."
"Swear to Roz?"
"...Choosing that place is reckless. Yes, I swear it to you, Roswaal-sama."
Since Ram spoke with such manly confidence, Subaru thought he would respect that opinion.
In front of me, Rem turned towards me with relaxed movements.
The core of its consciousness is still directed towards me, and it is spreading its vigilance network to the surrounding Ulgarm.
With Rem on alert in all directions, Subaru takes action to counter her.
it is,
"Ohhhh, essss!"
"--teeth?"
Twisting his body, he took a stance at his hips, and using the momentum to turn his whole body as he swung his armsーー he threw Ram, who he had been holding in his arms, towards Rem.
I guess he never thought he'd be thrown.
Ram's shocked face flew away from her as she flew through the air, and she was sucked towards Rem. Even Rem, in her demonic state, seemed stunned by this, but as soon as she realized it was her defenseless sister flying towards her, she instantly let go of the iron ball and stretched out her arms to secure her body.
With deft movements of her clawed fingers, Rem holds her sister in her bloody arms. For an instant, a calm color quickly appears on her face, which had been filled with murderous intent.
ーーSubaru's body was ejected so as not to be late in witnessing that moment.
At the same time that Ram's body was thrown forward, Subaru's body shot forward in the same direction. As Rem's gaze was fixed on Ram, who was moving upwards, he crouched and dashed through the blind spot, approaching.
Stepping forward, he unsheathed his sword from his waist with his right hand, and using that momentum he aimed for the horn above her head. The timing cut through the air, catching her completely off guard.
Even Rem couldn't even react to this clever plan――but,
"--Ah."
The tip of the blade was chipped when it was swung off, and the powerful step was a nervous one, and it narrowly missed catching the horn in a close call.
Subaru was shocked that this once in a lifetime opportunity had slipped out of his hands.
"I got scared! I was just one step away from having enough courage!!"
He swings and misses, and the momentum sends him spinning.
Just before he turned his back, he saw Rem's left hand out of the corner of his eye, ready to pierce. With just a straight thrust, a beautiful hole opened up in Subaru's torso.
Just as she bit her lip, thinking that she would never want to be hit by Rem's hand again,
The ground beneath his feet exploded, and the resulting mudslide blew Subaru's body far away.
"Ohhhh――!?"
Subaru's body was hit by shrapnel, his skin torn apart and bleeding in pain, and as he was blown away, he saw the reason for the devastation below him.
The explosion on the ground was caused by the puppy demon beast lying there to the south of Subaru's position. The thing that Subaru thought was out of sight since it fell into the valley was probably waiting for the moment Subaru and Rem would be in its line of fire.
Just when he thought he could eliminate them both at once, he deployed his magical powers like a surprise attack, and used a landslide to launch a spectacular interruption.
But the idea is,
「――――!!」
Rem roared and stomped forward into the exploding ground.
The force of the landslide that was about to occur was offset by the force of the blow, and the only effect was to shake her blue bangs a little violently.
Counteracting magical power with violence---it's not that simple, but it's a similar method of crushing magic.
Rem caught her sister and held her dearly, stepping to the side to escape the aftereffects of the magical power. --She had completely forgotten about Subaru, who was falling from above.
It is impossible to capture the world spinning vertically in a normal way.
However, his right hand was still firmly gripping the one-handed sword, and fortunately his fall had missed the rock wall and was now just on hard earth.
And, unaware of my presence, Rem was directly below me with her head exposed.
There is no more, no more after this, and no further than this is to be desired.
Swinging his sword, he readied his one-handed sword with both hands and prepared to charge with all his might.
It's a case of coincidence after coincidence after coincidence, and then it finally arrives.
Long live expediency. Miracles are the best. Even God's whims sometimes work.
--If that was the case, it would have been more impressive if it had worked during that flash earlier.
Bitter smile. There's no time. Right nearby, in a world that's slowly slowing down, there's Rem.
I see a horn. I swing my sword and turn the tip back, releasing the power I had been holding.
"Laugh, Rem. --Today I'm more demonic than a demon."
The blade was released straight, and the flash of the sword shot straight towards the white horn.
The high-pitched sound of steel being struck echoed sharply throughout the forest of magical beasts.
Immediately afterwards, Subaru let out an unsightly shriek as he failed to land