c41-c60 · 053-ch53

Chapter 53: Help Isn't Coming, From Anyone Except Him POV: Negomin

ZUAAAAN!!

"Ga, hguu...!"

There was definitely a solid feeling. The sensation of the blade sinking deep and cutting through flesh. The sound of breath, blood, and flesh mixing together with a gopori sound sticks in my ears.

The dagger definitely cut through Chiffon's neck. But because my technique was incomplete, I couldn't follow through, and it stopped halfway.

The one who'd been cut was confirming the dagger thrust into his neck with trembling hands, while the one who hadn't been cut was frozen with a look of astonishment. The atmosphere dominating this place had changed now.

But I don't have time to confirm that. The moment I feel the sensation of a successful attack, I release my hand from the dagger and move at the same time. I erase my presence and any sound from in front of the two, and scoop up Sister Rose from behind me.

"《Magic Step》! 《Red Boost》...!"

I quickly cast obstacle-nullification and speed-enhancement magic, and escape from this place. The dagger remains stuck in that guy's neck, but at this point, there's nothing to be done.

Moisture-laden air hits my face. Highly viscous raindrops drip from the ceiling, soaking our surroundings indifferently with a shito-shito sound. I desperately ground my feet into the muddy path to avoid tripping as I run. My feet feel heavy, but my body is itching with heat from tension and excitement.

That was close...! It was a gamble, but I'm glad it succeeded...!

The biggest challenge of an attack utilizing magic resistance is indeed timing, but more than that, the act of pouring more magical power than expected into the weapon was the bottleneck. Magic resistance only occurs when you flow an amount of magical power exceeding the specified value, which means I have to consume that amount of magical power with each attack.

I can easily imagine that just attempting it two or three times would leave me completely drained of magical power. If I were told to do the same thing again, I don't think I could manage it.

"A... Nego, min..."

"I'm sorry, Sister Rose, but we need to hurry now...!"

Sister Rose's hand, gripping my sleeve, is trembling. For her sake too, we need to escape the dungeon as quickly as possible. Having lost my dagger, I have no other weapons in this situation, and if we get attacked by monsters, there's nothing I can do. I just have to keep moving forward.

...

How long did I run? The buff I cast wore off, and my running speed returned to normal. The surrounding tropical rainforest-like scenery remains unchanged, but we should be quite far from where we were attacked.

"Yeah, this place should be..."

I stop my feet and gently lower Sister Rose. Then, as I try to take out a spare Life Cord from my bag, for some reason, I can't seem to grab it.

"Ah... right"

After a pause, I realize my arm is numb. It can't be helped after carrying someone and running that much, but still, it's hard to grab... no, calm down, me.

There's too much noise in my brain. Proof that I can't think straight. Even if I try to calm down, the adrenaline that's been released because of the recent battle interferes, and my excitement won't subside. While wiping away sweat, I take a slow breath and gently pull out the Life Cord.

Alright, got it. Now all I need to do is activate it and escape quickly!

"Negomin, san"

"Sister Rose! It's alright, we can get out of the dungeon now"

"It's, different..."

Just as I'm about to untie the knot, Sister Rose tries to tell me something. Whipping her immobile body, she extends a trembling arm toward me as if squeezing out her life.

"This place, is no good...!"

Seeing Sister Rose's desperate expression and her completely pale hand, I'm led to look up. And I finally notice something that should have been in my field of vision all along.

"No way, why"

It's shaking. The shaking that occurs when the concentration of magical power is strong and fluctuates wildly. Faint waves of light drifting in the air. That phenomenon shouldn't occur on the 17th floor without special factors.

The magical power is disturbed.

My breath catches. My heartbeat keeps getting faster. The feeling that I've made some fatal mistake.

Why, even though we've come this far away. Don't tell me they were already here...? No, first I need to get away from here!

I desperately suppress the thoughts racing through my mind and take action anyway. I have to escape.

To get far away as quickly as possible, I make Sister Rose stand up.

That was the moment.

"Dan, gerous...!"

Sister Rose, trying to stand up powerlessly, pushes me strongly. Then, something flies from behind and pierces Sister Rose's shoulder. That was the spot where I was just a moment ago.

Like a flash of lightning, vivid red runs before my eyes. Because of the smell like scorched iron rust, I understand that it's human blood.

"Uguu...! Aah...!"

"Sister Rose!"

"That's a nice knife. But since you went to the trouble, I'll return it. Ah, I guess we should probably handle weapons like this too, instead of getting carried away with numbers or physical performance, shouldn't we?"

One man emerges from the gaps in the trees, approaching us with a relaxed stride.

"The Professor said. This magic is useless to ordinary people, but for a descendant of the Fool, it's more useful than you might think. The magic's name is, '<Load Value>'. It doesn't matter what the name is, but that person is particular about such things, isn't he?"

To that voice—like rolling sickly-sweet chocolate on the tongue, like fiddling with cheap toys in the palm—to that way of speaking, I shudder.

"Places where this magic is cast have their surrounding magical power disturbed. But it's not that the magic directly acts on the magical power. It might be more accurate to say that it imbues the target of the magic with the property of disturbing surrounding magical power. Like, not increasing humidity, but forcibly turning a person into a humidifier."

A person who by all rights shouldn't be there was standing before us, smiling carefree.

"Chiffon...!"

"No, that's amazing, honestly I underestimated you a bit. To think one of us would be taken down, I guess you really shouldn't underestimate explorers."

"..."

"But, no matter how far you run, it's useless. For you two who've been bathed in blood up close, that cord is nothing more than trash."

I hadn't sensed anyone following us. There was no sound like someone running at the same speed as me either.

But, as a fact, Chiffon is right here before my eyes.

...I have no choice but to resolve myself. It's alright, as far as I can see, there's only one of him. If that's the case, I can at least escape with Sister Rose one more time.

That's right, the reason those guys had room to spare back there was because of the environment and their prior preparations, but more importantly, because they had created the advantageous situation of 3 against 1.

That's what I thought.

"Ah, please don't worry. This time, I'll properly get serious. Having you move any further would be troublesome. So, come on out."

When Chiffon says that, from the shadows behind him, humans with the same face appear without a sound.

...

Even if it had been just one or two of them, how much better would it have been.

"Everyone's meeting for the first time, right? Should I have you introduce yourselves one by one? Nah, if we did that, the sun would set."

Walls... no, people. What was there was precisely a massive crowd. Not 10, not even 20.

Words wouldn't come out.

I had anticipated it. Humans with the same face, speech and behavior that showed no regard for life, detailed role-sharing for each individual. All of that suggested that there were multiple of them.

But, somewhere in my heart, I had thought this. That surely there were less than 10 of them. That it was within the range of common sense.

The scale is different. Trying to measure them with the ruler I know was my mistake. People who exist outside reason wield the unknown as if it were their natural right.

"Negomin, san... take this"

Sister Rose holds out a dagger to me. That was my dagger, the one Chiffon had thrown.

She must have pulled it out by force—Sister Rose's white clothing is becoming stained red from her shoulder.

"Sister Rose, yo, your blood...!"

"It's, alright, I can, heal it. But more importantly, right now..."

Her eyes aren't dead. Those wavering pupils are fixed strongly on Chiffon and the others.

I know, what needs to be done. I grasp that dagger with my cooled-down hand.

"Well then, shall we end this? For now, three people should be fine, right? Since two of us got taken out just now."

From the wall of people, three Chiffons walk out, heading toward us.

In response, I point the dagger toward them. But, the tip of that blade is shaking unsteadily.

I can do this, I can do this. It's alright, I'll definitely get through this, I can return home alive.

I arrange words in my head as if to drown out the unpleasant noise. Because if I don't, I'll realize it.

"Just a little, time, please. I too, will fight, together..."

Sister Rose is directing a weak light from her own hand at the wound on her shoulder. But, the wound visible through her torn clothing shows no sign of healing at all.

No good, don't think about it.

"Understood, Sister Rose. I'll buy us time with everything I've got."

...What meaning do those words have.

The three Chiffons are approaching, one step, then another. There's no time left. What would defeating them accomplish? Just the next ones would be silently thrown in. There's no end. The fact that we're standing here now is merely their caprice. That's right, we're already---

No, no, no, don't think!

---already checkmated.

The Chiffons who entered striking distance swing their fists down with momentum.

"You two, did well to hold on."

GAKIIIN!

Along with a gale strong enough to blow away rain clouds, a fierce metallic sound reverberates throughout the area. The impact of the fist I had imagined never comes. Instead, a familiar figure appears before my eyes.

In his hand, a deck brush. The arm peeking from his rolled-up sleeve is stained with sweat. A waist pouch packed full, with messy white-streaked hair.

And, blue work clothes just like that day.

"...Who are you"

"Who, just a cleaner"