--The running earth dragon's head was blown off from its base, and the dragon carriage being pulled followed its mindless giant body as it collapsed, bouncing wildly off the road and overturning.
The overturned vehicle scraped the ground spectacularly, making a thunderous noise while raising smoke. The wood broke and the body of the fallen earth dragon got caught in the wheels, causing an unpleasant sound of flesh being torn apart and even blood smoke to splash everywhere, and the scene was transformed into a disaster in an instant.
The location was in the mountains, after passing through the Leafous Highway and entering a forest road, and arriving at the entrance to the Mathers territory.
After driving through some woodland and hills for about two hours we would reach our destination.
However, the dragon carriage was mercilessly destroyed along the way, and only the rattling sound of its spinning wheels echoed hollowly around the accident scene.
The earth dragon lay there, its flesh reduced to a lump, the vehicle reduced to wreckage, and the smoke that erupted was a mixture of earth and blood, giving off a strange stench.
At such a scene,
"...Uhh, ahhh..."
The boy who had been thrown out and had scrapes all over his body was groaning.
The boy's body fell slightly away from the collapsed carriage, into a corner of the grassland off the forest road. The area was lush with greenery and covered with ivy, which likely protected the boy's body from the impact as he fell. Despite being in the center of such devastation, it was only miraculous that the boy's injuries were only minor.
However, that doesn't mean the wound doesn't hurt when it's thrown defenselessly.
A few scrapes and bruises. Luckily there were no broken bones or wounds that caused excessive bleeding, but the pain was enough to bring the helpless child to the ground.
"Ahh, ughhh... ahh."
A black-haired boy tumbled out of the grass, groaning in pain and crying.
His face was stained with blood from his forehead, which had been scraped into the dirt, and tears and drool made it even worse. He wiped it roughly, spreading a reddish-brown color all over his face, and staining the muddy sleeves of his clothes.
The disgraceful state of an adult with elongated limbs was unbearable to look at, and combined with the horrific remains of the dragon carriage, it was a spectacle of great sadness to behold.
In such a sceneーー,
"――――"
One after another, figures in black clothes appeared, and a dozen or so people surrounded the boy and the dragon carriage.
The figure surveyed the headless earth dragon that had collapsed, and after confirming that the lump of flesh was indeed dead, it turned to look at Subaru, who was lying there crying.
The black-clad figures all had their hoods pulled up over their heads, making it impossible to discern their faces or even their gender. The shadows, who were not even sure if they were breathing, surrounded Subaru with swaying, gliding movements, looking down at him, whose only reaction was pain.
"--La"
The figure muttered a single word quietly.
One person blurts it out, and then someone else says the same thing, and the chain of words cascades on and on, until everyone around them whispers along.
A world devoid of the chirps of insects or any sign of living life, with only the sound of branches rustling in the wind and the murmuring whispers of black shadows - a distorted scene, as if the world was complete in itself.
and,
"--Ahh. Ah! Aaah, aaahh!"
Gradually, as the whispers grew louder, a change began to occur in Subaru, who had been groaning in pain.
His body writhing, his back bouncing, and his groaning were the same as before, as he was still enduring the pain. However, the quality of his pain was clearly different from before.
The pain was on a different level to the pain from scrapes and bruises, and his movements felt as if he was holding back something that was trying to spill out from inside him, causing him agony that was raging inside his body and threatening to sprout.
Anyone who saw it would have noticed that it was responding to the whispering of the dark shadows around them. Looking down at the suffering Subaru, the shadows still did not stop their curse. However, as if they had come to some kind of conclusion from Subaru's panting state, they continued whispering and reached out their hands to his body――
"---"
The iron ball came flying with a roar, blasting the head of the man who had tried to reach Subaru into pieces.
Blood and fragments of skulls splattered all around, raining down mercilessly on the suffering Subaru. The movement of the collapsing shadow was accompanied by the light clang of iron chains, and like a snake, it wriggled about the corpse of the shadow - rampaging towards the other people in black clothing.
"――――"
However, the men in black made quick decisions. They quickly lost consciousness after their comrade's sudden death, and silently scattered around to avoid the chains chasing them.
At that time, the men in black clothing pulled out blades shaped like crosses from their pockets. They had a dull shine and a blade on the tip, a nasty design, and the men in black clothing held one in each hand, keeping a watchful eye on their surroundings.
There were eleven of them. They were all positioned in a way that allowed them to cover each other's backs, eliminating blind spots and forming a formation that could withstand a surprise attack, which was worthy of praise.
However, this is limited to opponents that can be faced on the two-dimensional level.
"--Shh!"
In the air, her apron dress flutters as it kicks the trees.
Leaping at incredible speed, the girl's body was launched diagonally downwards, just slightly faster than the shadow's consciousness could detect the sound.
The butt of the handle of the weapon was swung down and struck the head of the man in black clothing from above. With a sharp sound, a hole was made in the top of his head, and the shadow, with blood and brain matter spilling out of it, collapsed.
Kicking the body, the girl jumped back, blocking the view of the black-clad figure nearby. However, the shadow that had been kicked by the corpse of its comrade did not hesitate. It charged forward, impaling the approaching corpse with a cross from the front, and then piercing the girl who was falling down along with the corpse of its comrade.
The shadow's body, along with the corpse it had pierced, was torn to pieces by the whirlwind of the spiked iron ball.
The girl threw the iron ball straight at it. At the same time that the chains stretched to their full length, her body tilted forward as if defeated by the weight of the iron ball - the thrown cross passed right where her head had been. There was a hard sound of the blade piercing the tree trunk, and the leaning girl gained initial speed without changing her posture, and leapt horizontally to the ground, causing an explosion in the earth.
"Ruuuuuh!"
The girl screamed, baring her fangs.
From its head, where blood-stained blue hair sways, sharp, pure white horns protrude and shine.
The black-clothed figure was caught in the middle of a leap when the girl flew towards him at high speed. The arm around her waist smashed the shadow's waist into pieces, and the momentum sent the poor girl, now partially paralyzed, slamming her into a tree behind her, spewing most of her internal organs out of her mouth and anus, snatching her life away.
The demon threw the black-clad corpse aside with a wave of his arm, then turned around, bringing the iron ball back to his hand.
The demon's adorable face was stained with blood, and his eyes were shining brightly as he glared at the men in black clothing. Then, he caught sight of the boy lying at the feet of the still silent shadow, and,
"I won't let Subaru do anything."
Declaring this in a voice overflowing with spirit, the girl - Rem - dragged her blood-dripping left leg and swung the iron ball overhead, roaring.
The injury was sustained when the dragon carriage overturned and she was unable to avoid some flying pieces of wood. If Rem had been alone, she might have been able to get through it unscathed, but that was not possible.
The moment the earth dragon's head was blown off, Rem immediately saw the dragon carriage tip over spectacularly.
Taking the situation seriously, she immediately focused on how to protect Subaru, who was sleeping on her lap, from the overturning dragon carriage.
Turning her head at dizzying speed and scanning her field of vision, she spotted a patch of grass and ivy out of the corner of her eye, and tossed Subaru there. The few milliseconds they had left to escape were snatched from her, and Rem was doomed to share the same fate as the wreckage of the dragon carriage.
The result was a laceration on his forehead and a piece of wood deeply embedded in his left thigh. His left shoulder had been dislocated and forced into place, and the intense pain of moving it sent numbness down his pale cheek.
But Rem stepped forward with steps that showed no sign of being affected by her injuries,
"Witch cultist..."
He glared at the group of people in black clothing and spat out those words in a voice filled with hatred.
The men in black still showed no reaction to Rem's call. They maintained their postures, as if they were still conscious or not, and remained motionless, pointing their crucifixes at the girl, who was baring her fangs.
The balance was broken in an instant.
Rem, who was circling the iron ball above her head, realised that things wouldn't get any better if things continued like this and took the initiative.
The iron ball, with its centrifugal force combined with its strength, is the end of steel, smashing all obstacles in its path. A single blow can take away not just bones, but life itself, taking everything with it, no matter where on the body it hits.
The chain stretched out to its fullest, the blow snapped trees, scattering pieces of wood and dirt as it approached the men in black clothing. However, the men in black avoided the blow by jumping or running low, unleashing a blow and leaping at the defenseless Rem.
Rem's swing left her in a big gap. She twisted her body as she pulled the iron ball away from her hand. However, the deadly blade reached her before the ball returned.
"--Rua!!"
The chin of the leader in black clothing was gouged out in large chunks by the toes of Rem's claws as she leapt up from below.
It wasn't as simple as saying he was kicked up; his lower jaw was literally scraped down from underneath him to his toes.
The shadow had lost its jaw, and its pink tongue was hanging loose. However, with no regard for its own fatal injury, it grabbed Rem in front of it, and tried to drive the cross it was swinging over her into her chest.
--Before that movement could be completed, the iron ball that Rem had pulled to its knees blew off the shadow's remaining upper jaw along with its skull.
An iron ball flew out, mixed with the flying brain matter. Rem caught it as it approached her face with her raised palm - the thorn pierced her left hand, and bright red blood stained her pale cheek. But she gripped it with all her might, instantly turned her body, and smashed the iron ball into the face of the man in black clothing next to her who was about to swing a cross.
That made a total of six people. The number of assassins had been reduced to half from the original twelve, and Rem was breathing heavily as she turned her eyes towards the remaining enemies, murderous in her eyes.
A sharp-tipped spear of rock came flying in front of his eyes. He tilted his head to avoid it at the last moment, but his hair and the side of his head were filed by the rock face, and he was dizzy from the pain and shock.
Her vision turned bright red, and the impact on her head robbed Rem of her ability to think clearly.
Suddenly, he felt something muddy under his feet. His instincts reacted to the chill that made his body sink, and he gained momentum by bending his legs slightly, then he jumped up diagonally on his right leg. He thought about jumping onto the branch of the large tree in front of him and getting into a position for a surprise attack like the first time, but...
"Shima――!"
He cursed his own thoughtlessness in jumping over an enemy that had the means to launch long-range attacks.
The branch where she was supposed to land was scorched by a scorching flame, and on the other side a fireball appeared, burning a hole through the great tree―― The sensation of her skin being roasted to a high temperature spread all over her front, and Rem quickly raised her bloodied left hand in front of her,
"Huma!!"
A thin film of water spread in front of Rem, and the moment it collided with the fireball, white steam shot up, and the death throes of the water being burned echoed through the forest.
However, although the fireball's intensity had been weakened somewhat, it was not so low-level that it could be dissipated with a quick chant.
"----!!"
There was a hole in the palm of her clenched left hand, and it was unclear whether she would be able to use it in future battles. Therefore, she raised her fist and, without hesitation, slammed it into the fireball with all its momentum, causing her fist to explode along with the flames.
"--Ugh!"
Caught in an explosion mid-air, Rem's body is sent flying, spinning and slamming into the trunk of a tree. As she falls into the pile of swaying roots, she lets out a groan as her left arm hurts and she looks up.
His left arm was charred from the wrist down, his pinky and ring fingers were charred, the skin up to his elbow was ugly and red, and he couldn't even feel any pain from his shoulder down.
Unless he was treated by a wizard as skilled as Ferris, his left arm would never move again.
Despite her serious injuries, Rem stood up and returned her consciousness to reality, forgetting her pain.
He stifled his cries of agony and roared instead, in order to excite himself and let the enemy know that his fighting spirit had not weakened, in order to distance their attention from Subaru, even if just a little.
However,
"――――"
The empty palm of the man in black clothing approached silently and slammed Rem's torso into the large tree behind her again with a strong impact.
Her internal organs were twisted and crushed, her sternum creaked, and the force of the blow caused a great deal of blood to spurt out of Rem's mouth.
The burning sensation of the vomited blood burned his throat, and his whole body sank in agony as it was squeezed. The palm of his hand was thrust out again, and he barely managed to avoid it trying to smash his skull. The trunk behind him was pierced by the palm, and the large tree was sent flying through the air with incredible ease.
The black-clad opponent cracked the ground with a single step, clearly different from the previous opponents. Rem avoided the attack with a sideways jump and rolled, spitting out the blood in her mouth and looking around for the iron ball she had dropped.
"----!!"
A rock spear grazed the side of his face, and his shaky body was hit from behind by a rock hammer. His spine creaked violently, and his small body was sent flying, bounding across the ground.
As she is thrown back, awaiting her is the unarmed figure that overwhelmed Rem earlier. In its hand, the shadow holds the iron ball that Rem had let go of, and raises it towards the bouncing girl.
"--Elhuma!"
The blood spat out by the chant froze, and the pureblood blade sliced through the middle of the arm of the man holding the iron ball. The pain caused the prey to fall from the black-clad man's hand. And,
"Grrrrr!"
Slamming her body against the ground to control her position, Rem leaps into the air and reaches out her right hand to grab the handle of the iron ball that the man in black had dropped. At the same time, she kicks the ball up, sending it flying behind the shadow, then wraps a chain around the shadow's thick neck and pulls it with the force of a vice.
A wet sound rang out as the chains pulled at flesh, and the black-clad neck was twisted and snapped, along with the shinbone. The face turned 180 degrees to face Rem, and the light went out from its eyes.
As the body sank, Rem relaxed slightly, knowing that she had killed a formidable enemy.
"----!!!"
The black-clad body that should have lost its strength moved, and a kick of incredible force swept across Rem's torso.
The kick hit Rem directly in the left side, completely destroying her left ribs, and breaking her left thigh, sending her slamming into the ground. And with that blow, the black-clad warrior was finally dead. His body lay face down, looking up at the sky, a spectacular corpse.
"Uhh, ahh..."
Groaning and spitting blood, Rem stood up while scolding her unresponsive left half of her body, including her arm.
He had eliminated what was probably the most skilled of the enemy group, but the price he paid was not cheap.
There were five people left. Since they hadn't joined the unarmed individual, none of them were good at close combat. That being the case, it should be possible to finish them off by getting close and twisting their necks one by one.
Could I do it with my current trembling body, covered in bruises, and with only the right side of my body moving?
Shaking her head, Rem suppresses her weakness and scolds herself for feeling discouraged.
It's not a question of whether you can do it, but that you have to do it.
So what if the left half of his body is dead? The right side still moves. If his right arm is no good, I can just stamp on him to death, and if his right leg is no good either, I'll just bite him to death.
If Subaru survives after killing everyone to the last person, Rem will have won.
It was already a large-scale battle, and on top of that, it was already within Mathers territory.
Although he wasn't aware of it, there was no way that his sister hadn't sensed his murderous feelings. Before long, she would find out where this place was.
At that point, it didn't matter whether his own life was saved or not. As long as he could protect Subaru's life, what hesitation would he have to waste it here?
Her lingering attachment creates a slight distortion in Rem's heart.
Rem glanced over at Subaru, who was supposed to have collapsed, to kill any last hesitation she might have. If she could at least catch a glimpse of him, then she didn't care what happened after that.
And yet――,
"--Subaru-kun?!"
not present.
Subaru, who should have been gasping in pain, agony, and fear, was nowhere to be seen.
Impatient, Rem's gaze darted around her.
She wondered if he had been caught up in the aftermath of the previous battle and been blown away somewhere. However, no matter how hard she searched, she could not find him.
And then, suddenly, Rem realized.
"One person is missing..."
There were only five people left in the black-clad group, but now there were only four left in any given moment.
The men in black clothing carrying crosses in both hands stood in front of them, blocking the animal trail, and began to move slowly as if to hide their comrades who were retreating from Rem's sight.
--To keep her away from her companions who had fled carrying Subaru.
"You... people..."
A trembling voice spills from trembling lips.
Her lips were pale from the profuse bleeding and stained with lipstick from the blood that was overflowing from her mouth. In that terrible war paint, Rem's lovely features were transformed into that of a demon.
"It's not enough to just take away Rem's reason to live..."
He bends his right arm which is gripping the iron ball, and bends one leg to gather explosive power.
The men in black outfits up ahead became tense, and at the moment they leapt towards us,
"Are you going to take away my reason to die here and now--!!"
Rem's roar explodes, and her body goes flying with a kick so strong it blows the earth away.
In front of her, in front of the diving Rem, fist-sized fireballs were deployed to blind the black-clothed men holding crosses, as they were being chanted from behind――However, there were so many of them that they obscured her entire field of vision.
"--------!!!"
A scream erupted, and immediately afterwards a chain of crimson flashes appeared throughout the forest at dawn.
The world was in agony as high heat raged, burning trees and turning the whole area into scorched earth.
--The remains of the white apron dress fluttered down onto the burnt plain, and in an instant it was burnt away.
※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※
--Swaying, throbbing, swaying, throbbing.
Subaru was drooling as he was swayed unresistingly on the shoulders of the man in black.
The wounds he'd received from falling from the dragon carriage were no longer of any real pain. It's not that he didn't feel them, but the pain was so intense it no longer mattered to him, dominating his consciousness, and he was so depressed that he no longer had the will to move.
At the scene of the dragon carriage overturning, men in black clothing surrounded Subaru and began whispering curses.
As he heard that whisper, Subaru's body felt as if it was about to be torn apart by an unknown sensation swelling up from within, and a turmoil in his head that could not be described as ringing in his ears.
Something black rampaged in my chest, in my stomach, inside my skull, in the center of my heart, as if trying to turn my existence into a mess.
It's scary to think what would have happened if that had continued on a little longer.
That kind of pain breaks your spirit. It warps your spirit. It changes your spirit. It makes you less of a person, that kind of thing.
If things had continued as they were, Natsuki Subaru would have――
"Hehehe, hehehe, hehehe..."
Suddenly, as if he had just remembered something, a manic laugh spilled from the corner of his lips along with drool.
As the self begins to return to consciousness that was dominated by the pain, the mind naturally reveals itself to be in a state of fragmentation on a different vector from the pain.
My body hurts all over, especially my head, it feels like it's splitting open.
Blue is not there. Blue is not by my side. I am being carried away by something black. What is the black thing, where has the blue gone? Where will I go from here?
The man in black clothes pushed his way through the forest and ran like a fighter, flying along the animal trail.
Although he had a slender build that didn't look particularly well-trained, the sight of him carrying a limp human on his back and running like the wind was simply surreal.
Gliding like a shadow moving in the sunlight, the man in black carrying Subaru ran through the mountains, following an unmarked animal trail as if he owned the place.
And so, we had been running for about ten minutes.
In the deep green darkness where the sunlight does not reach, a person dressed in black suddenly stops in his tracks. In front of him stands a towering cliff with a moss-covered rock surface. It is so high that you have to look up to see it, and it is not something that can be traversed without tools.
Standing before such a cliff, the man in black clothes looked around and pointed his foot towards a particularly conspicuous rock mass. Then, he placed his palm on the rock mass,
"――――"
Hearing the shadow speak softly, Subaru's body stiffened in tension.
The curse that had echoed in Subaru's mind at that moment was a reaction he had feared would be repeated again.
However, the single word that was muttered seemed to be different from the curse earlier, and its effect did not make Subaru's skull creak.
"――――"
The huge rock mass suddenly disappeared in front of the black-clothed man who muttered the curse.
Accepting it as if it were a dream or an illusion, as it melted into the air, the man in black picked up Subaru once more and stepped into the cavern that had appeared when the rock mass had disappeared.
In the chilly air of the cave, only the sound of shadowy footsteps slowly stomping on the ground reverberated steadily. After walking about ten meters into the cave, the light that had been coming from behind suddenly shut out. The entrance to the cave was probably blocked by a boulder again.
Inside the cave, the cold air pierced the skin, but the man in black showed no signs of panic, and his steps didn't falter.
And then, in front of the unhesitant shadow, the dim light was suddenly cleared away by a dim white glow. It was the glow of ragmite ore.
There were ores set at equal intervals along the walls of what appeared to be a passageway, and lights were lit up one after another, guiding the shadow's path as he walked.
We are led deeper and deeper into the cave, into darkness.
Is the goosebumps on his bleeding skin caused by the cold or is there some other factor?
Subaru, still being carried, was trembling slightly, hot tears spilling from the corners of his eyes, and he continued to laugh merrily.
Then I see the end of the dark, cold rock passage.
The glow of the ragmite ore was slightly stronger, and the place was well lit, creating a natural hall that was by far the largest of the caverns.
And there, Subaru came face to face with a mass of malice.
※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※
--He was a skinny man.
The man is surrounded by men in black attire and is himself dressed in a black priest's robe.
He was slightly taller than Subaru, with dark green bangs cut to a length that covered his eyes. His cheeks were sunken, and the only thing that seemed appropriate to describe his humanoid appearance was the bare minimum of flesh and skin pasted onto his bones;
However, that was of course the case if it weren't for those crazy, glaring eyes.
The man leaned forward, closely observing Subaru, who was tied to the wall and sitting there. With his head tilted at a 90 degree angle on his bent waist, and his bulging eyes staring indifference, the man's appearance was betrayed by an abnormality that was far removed from reality, and in fact the man's behaviour and words were clearly different from those of a normal person.
"Well then... this is certainly interesting."
After eyeing Subaru up and down for a while, the man nodded in approval to the other men around him.
The black-clothed figure bowed his chin in response to the man's affirmation, and seemed to wait in silence for the man to continue.
The man didn't react at all to the shadow's silent stance, and instead, as if deep in thought, clutched his left hand with his right hand - twisting his thumb into the wound on his wrist, and, ignoring the blood dripping from it, dug into his own flesh.
"Oh you… you're not being arrogant, are you?"
Turning round, still bent over, the man looked up at Subaru in that strange position. Into the mouth of the man who had asked the question he thrust his blood-stained thumb, from where he had dug the wound, and licked the taste of iron with his tongue, his eyes emitting a murky light as they trembled in ecstasy.
Subaru didn't reply when asked.
He simply stares blankly up at the man standing in front of him, with a half-hearted smile on his face that seems out of place.
Staring at her, the man removed his finger from his lips with a noise,
"Ah, is that so? My, my apologies. I haven't even said hello to you yet."
As if responding to Subaru's smile, the man gently parted his pale lips to the side, sneered ominously, and slowly and carefully bent his waist,
"I am the Witch Cult, Archbishop of Sin--"
Still bent over at the waist, she skillfully raised her head and looked straight at Subaru,
"In charge of 'Sloth', Petelgeuse Romanee-Conti... Death!"
Introducing himself, the man pointed at Subaru with both hands, and then - Petelgeuse - laughed loudly.
Kick, kick, kick