Ch.315315. Retribution (4)

“-Huff-“

I barely manage to catch my breath after it’s been completely knocked out of me.

Fighting in a state where I’ve lost my composure takes a much greater physical toll than I expected.

With that thought, I smash the head of an automaton wrapped in brown energy that resembles the Emperor.

My breath mixes with a sweet, metallic scent. Perhaps blood as well.

Every muscle in my body screams in protest. My head feels like it’s about to split open.

The adrenaline coursing through my body makes time feel slower, but even that physiological response can’t mask the pain throughout my body that feels as terrible as if electrodes were being inserted into my brain.

[…Are you really okay?]

‘Even if I’m not, there’s nothing I can do about it.’

I’ve lost more stamina than expected thanks to the “setting” deliberately designed to get under my skin, but the difficulty of this series of battles that this guy prepared is quite high to begin with.

I can’t even remember the last time I was this exhausted during combat.

If I had to estimate, it would probably be when I was training before coming “here.”

Still, it’s not like there aren’t any positive aspects.

‘-Now for the last one.’

From what’s been prepared, I can see that there’s only one opponent left for me to face.

“Truly, you’re a more formidable opponent than I expected, Darwood Campbell.”

Just hearing what Mobius is saying makes it clear.

“You’ve worked hard to get this far.”

As those words flow through the broadcast into the stage, I spit out the phlegm that’s been building up and boiling in my throat.

The only automaton remaining must be the one mimicking Elnore. There hasn’t been one that copied the Grey Demon’s abilities among the enemies I’ve faced so far.

With that thought, I step toward the next stage.

Whatever happens, if I win this match, he must keep his promise to free Astrid. It wouldn’t be difficult to create a method to enforce such conditions.

So if I just win here—

“-“

Before I can complete that thought, my body freezes stiff at the scene revealed before my eyes.

It’s a place that remains in my memory.

“…This son of a bitch.”

I curse involuntarily as my eyes scan the surroundings.

[…What is this? I’ve never seen this place before?]

I hear Calivan Chrysanyx’s voice.

A building.

It could also be described as an abandoned factory.

As Calivan says, it’s a sight that residents of “this” world would never have seen before.

For me, it’s an all too familiar place.

It’s a place so deeply etched into the bottom of my soul that I could say it’s stuck to the back of my eyeballs, a place I could never forget even if I closed my eyes.

In other words.

It’s an exact replica of the place where my “first love” died.

“…”

My hands tremble uncontrollably.

I don’t know how he found out what this place is, or how he discovered that it holds such heavy meaning for me.

But at least his intention to use it maliciously to shake me is clear.

I know.

I know, but.

“…”

I grab my trembling left wrist with my other hand to steady it.

Meanwhile, Mobius’s voice rings out again, sounding almost mocking.

“The final test is simple.”

With those words, particles of light scatter in all directions, completing the configuration of the obstacle I must overcome inside the stage.

It’s exactly the same as before. The composition, the number of opponents I have to face.

It’s completely identical to the situation where I previously “failed.”

The only difference is that, unlike then, these are cutting-edge automatons fully equipped with the Demonic Spire’s technology.

If we’re just comparing conditions, it’s actually worse than before. I’m much more exhausted than I was then, and the combat power of my opponents is so transcendent that it would be disrespectful to even compare them to the enemies from back then.

“Break through there—”

The voice continues.

At the place I last reached before, there’s Mobius, who apparently came down from the control room at some point.

And standing next to him is.

“…”

Long black hair. Bright yellow eyes.

However, various parts of her body have been modified with mechanical devices, and there’s no focus in her eyes at all.

Although it’s a sight I’ve never seen before, I can immediately recognize it without any explanation.

That’s Astrid.

A corpse that should have been discarded after having its organs removed.

“-“

As my brain processes what that bastard must have done to her, a rage so intense that it turns my vision red courses through my entire body.

Regardless, Mobius continues speaking.

“—and reach here.”

He finishes his sentence with an expression on his face that clearly seems to be mocking me.

It’s an expression that seems to be sneering, asking if I could possibly reach there in my current condition.

And in that state, he casually places something like a key card on Astrid’s shoulder.

“This is the control key for the device storing Professor Astrid’s ‘body.’ If you reach here and defeat me, I’ll hand it over to you.”

“…”

My head is boiling.

“Just save the person you want to save, Darwood Campbell. Isn’t she the ‘family’ you’ve been so obsessed with?”

At the sound of his babbling voice.

I unconsciously step forward.

Of course, I know my condition is at its limit. Even with all kinds of skill buffs stacked on me, fighting now is clearly unreasonable.

But even so—

[…Hey.]

‘It’s fine.’

I cut off Calivan’s stern voice before it can continue.

The truth is it’s not fine, but now that I’ve waded in this far, I can’t back out.

[No. You can back out. You’re pushing yourself too hard right now.]

“…”

[I understand the situation. I understand your anger too. But aren’t you at your limit just standing right now?]

“…”

I hear such sentences swirling through my head, which is starting to lose its sense of reality like a ship that hasn’t dropped anchor.

With my consciousness beginning to fade, I take rough breaths while listening to those words.

He’s right. My stamina is completely drained from the successive fierce battles. Fighting against someone who has clearly prepared something in this state would be suicidal, even if I’ve prepared some tricks of my own.

Yeah.

I know that too.

[Why on earth are you—]

‘I need to prove it.’

And, amidst such consciousness.

That answer flows out without me even realizing it.

‘That I’m different from before.’

Upon hearing that answer, I can feel Calivan momentarily lose his words.

‘…If I run away here, I feel like I’ll never be able to escape it.’

There have been many things happening, but.

If I were to compress my behavioral mechanism into one thing, it would be that I never want to see the people around me die again.

But.

I don’t want to run away from someone who clings to that fact so persistently.

If I don’t change something here.

I feel like I’ll be dragged along, mortgaging all my remaining time on that fact.

With that thought, as I step forward.

“One thing first.”

At the same time as those words suddenly come from beside me.

My head is suddenly jerked backward with tremendous force.

“…”

It’s what’s called a forehead flick.

Flicking a finger against the forehead.

The number of people who could do this to me, enough to make my neck bend, is extremely limited, but.

Wait.

Haven’t I been hit like this once before?

I remember it happening during that night incident when I was fighting the demon sleeping inside Faynol Leiphec.

The person who did it then was definitely—

“As I said before, please stop trying to solve everything by yourself. At this point, I’m starting to think struggling alone is a habit of yours.”

—this person.

With that thought, I blink my eyes and look at Elnore, who is somehow standing next to me and grinning.

Rubbing my slightly swollen forehead, I say blankly.

“…Elnore?”

“Anyway, it’s not like you’ll wear away to nothing by borrowing a hand from people around you. You should fix that bad habit quickly.”

“…”

When did she get here, how did she get here, why is she here.

Such questions fill my head, but before I can voice them, Elnore continues.

“Well, I suppose there are reasons to be lenient this time.”

Brushing back her hair, she looks at the stage prepared before us.

“…This seems to be a place with a lot of meaning for you.”

“…”

“Confronting the past and breaking through… it’s romantic. Helpful for growth too. I understand why you’d want to do it alone.”

“…Elnore.”

“Ah, don’t worry. I have no intention of interfering with that. They say supporting from the outside is the virtue of the inner master, don’t they?”

“…”

With those words, those red eyes turned coldly.

That gaze flies and pierces Professor Mobius, who is looking this way with a frowning face.

“However.”

Then.

Her voice also grows chilly.

“When facing such a sinister character, we should at least create a fair stage, shouldn’t we?”

With those words.

Elnore placed her hand over her chest.

“Ah, come to think of it, this would be your first time seeing this.”

“What?”

“Before… was it around the school festival? Remember when I shut myself in the training room alone?”

Come to think of it.

During the school festival, she suddenly said she was going to train alone and shut herself away, becoming unreachable for several weeks.

That was when she forgave me despite having plenty of reasons to be angry with me, which made me wonder.

While continuing that thought.

“During that period, I realized I could do something interesting.”

Elnore tightly gripped the hand placed over her heart.

“For example, like this.”

Then.

Something beneath began to pulsate.

“-Like being able to do something ‘together’ with my roommate inside my body.”

The colors of the world began to drain away.

●