"Well, would you look at that, we actually have someone else here."
The first thing Kazuma did after reviving was exclaim.
Then he rushed to the corpse of a fish-man Keli had killed and picked up a harpoon.
Finding a weapon the first thing he opened his eyes had almost become Kazuma's instinct.
"But why isn't it a beautiful girl again?!"
The two chased the group of fish-men all the way to their location. Unsurprisingly, the fish-men's ultimate escape point was a stream.
One could even say this was their optimal chosen location from the start. If their actions were exposed, they could escape through this stream that directly connected to the sea, like a Trap Monster activating its field spell in Yu-Gi-Oh, or a Master Yi in League of Legends surrounded by low-health enemies. No one could stop them from escaping.
The change came too quickly. Keli had expected at least a bloody battle, but the enemy's retreat speed was simply too fast.
Keli wasn't sure if this stream led anywhere, but he had no time to hesitate.
Based on the gradually diminishing scent, at least a dozen more had escaped into the stream. If they reached the sea, everything Keli had done would become a mere warning.
Keli reached into his pocket, pulled out his phone, and quickly dialed the number from his memory.
"Beep beep!"
"Hello! Sir, what's wrong?"
"Immediately organize people to find a way to cut off the stream leading out of the resort, or intercept them downstream. Kazuma, you give him the location. Be quick."
Keli threw the phone to Kazuma, who fumbled to catch it.
"Hey! Then you…"
Kazuma fumbled to catch the phone in the darkness, but before he could ask, he saw Keli's figure leap into the stream.
Perhaps considering the success rate of rescue, the stream was not very deep. Keli's constantly pushing feet hit the riverbed, and a slight pain came from his nails, but he forced himself to open his eyes in the stimulating stream water and swam vigorously in the direction he had initially determined.
On the bank, Kazuma, after anxiously explaining the situation to the other party, breathed a sigh of relief.
"Understood, Sir, please rest assured. To prevent any suspicious individuals from infiltrating through the stream, we have installed steel gates at the stream's entry and exit points."
But then Kazuma still frowned.
No, if they really had steel gates, how did these fish-men get in? Would those fish-men let themselves run into a dead end? Or did they think they were safe once they hid in the water?
Information flashed rapidly through Kazuma's mind. He could be sure that there were definitely more than just those few moles in the resort, and even the person he was contacting might be one. But for now, he could only consider the optimal solution.
"On a bridge with flowers on it, send a car over immediately. If you don't find me, drive downstream along the stream."
Kazuma hurriedly hung up after the other party acknowledged, and at the same time, began to run back.
At the same time, due to a large number of people escaping from the restaurant, the entire resort began to fall into chaos. Lights were lit one by one, and the other staff members listened to their colleagues' frantic descriptions with disbelief and absurdity.
Looking at the lit-up resort, Kirito in the woods realized that he was right near the restaurant where the incident had occurred.
Seeing that none of the chat messages in his head were replies to him, he climbed up, somewhat troubled.
He wanted to find Asuna, to make sure she was alright, but he didn't know if she had run out of that restaurant after he died.
The events unfolding before his eyes were so insane that he touched his chest, wondering if this was a hallucination before his death, or if he had become something like a ghost, and like those supernatural stories, he would dissipate once he realized he was truly dead.
"Thump!"
As Kirito walked, he felt like he stepped on something. He looked down and saw a monster's corpse. He was startled and took two steps back, but soon another sensation filled his brain: appetite.
This monster emitted a delicious scent, but his senses told him it was like an empty crab shell, the delicacies inside already eaten by others.
That unprecedented feeling gave him another headache, but he still followed his instinct and picked up a curved scimitar from the fish-man's hand on the ground. He didn't know how it was made, but its size was a bit too large for him; it seemed that from its design, this thing was meant for monsters with equally long claws and arms.
Tightening his grip on the weapon, Kirito walked forward, but soon his nose caught a rich aroma.
The impact it had on him far surpassed any dish he had eaten in Totsuki Academy Resort, this culinary sanctuary. At the end of his gaze, a person draped in a black cloak stopped with a hint of regret.
"Was I discovered? To think they had a trick up their sleeve here. I originally wanted to try and directly capture that old ghost Nakiri.
But it's fine. Compared to the escape opportunity they created for me, I'd rather personally avenge them."
The person spoke loudly upon seeing Kirito, his tone somewhat flippant. Then he took off his hood, revealing earlobes with distinct non-human features.
Kirito had no idea what he was talking about, but he still cautiously raised his curved sword.
"That blade? I personally forged that for Centaur. Why, didn't they tell you? We just wanted to stop a war, but you humans are so relentless."
As he spoke, the person slowly approached Kirito.
If Keli or Kazuma had been present, they would have confirmed that this guy was the priest Ryouzan Etsuya spoke of, dressed in a strange black robe, with a handsome face that could be distinguished at a glance.
But Kirito knew nothing. Facing the priest who suddenly walked towards him, he nervously raised his curved sword.
"What are you talking about, you bastard?"
"At this point, are you still pretending not to know? Do you humans really want to wait until the stars align to be judged by us? Or have you humans become so arrogant that you can ignore ancient technologies, believing yourselves to have become a powerful species?"
However, the person completely ignored Kirito, and instead of walking slowly, he began to move quickly. And Kirito noticed that as the guy approached him, he was putting a strange object into his mouth and chewing it—it seemed to be a dried heart.
"Then come, even if I die, when the time of war comes, you will all be buried with us.
By the way, before I became a priest, I was also a main force in our university's karate club."
Kirito completely failed to understand what that guy was saying.
He felt incredibly wronged.
He really wanted to explain that the other party seemed to have misunderstood something, but it was too late. He could only raise his long sword to meet the enemy.
"Kirigaya Kazuto has died, waiting for respawn…"
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