Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 8 - Chapter 6

Escaping the Dungeon

Wednesday, February 3rd

The hypnosis Yurika had used to put Koutarou to sleep was powerful, but it wasn’t powerful enough to last through two full-blown magical attacks. Because of that, Koutarou woke up when the avalanche hit him.

“Whoooaaaaa! What is going on?!”

Koutarou couldn’t remember anything past Yurika casting a spell on him, which only added to the confusion of waking up in the middle of an avalanche. Swept away by the snow, Koutarou was carried at least a hundred meters down the slope. Fortunately, with the defensive spells Yurika had cast on him, he was only disoriented and not hurt.

“I-It’s stopped...?”

Koutarou pulled himself out of the snow and tried to get his bearings.

Did the avalanche happen when Yurika was about to recast her spell?

With what he knew, that was the only sense Koutarou could make of what happened.

“That’s right! Where’s Yurika?!”

If he had been caught in the avalanche, Yurika should have been too. As Koutarou got up to look for Yurika, he finally got a good look at his surroundings. He was in the woods down the mountain a ways. As the avalanche crashed into the forest, it lost momentum and died down before getting out of control.

“There! Yurika!”

Between the trees and snow, Koutarou spotted two things. The first was Encyclopedia, the staff he’d given Yurika. The second was someone’s head sticking out of a snow bank. It looked like they’d been caught in the avalanche and whisked down the mountain like Koutarou was. He assumed that it was Yurika.

“Just wait! I’m coming to get you right now!”

Koutarou quickly began running. He picked up the staff on the way and ran over to what he thought was Yurika.

“Good thing this staff was here!”

Koutarou used the staff as a shovel and began digging to uncover the person in the snow. Responding to Koutarou’s will, the staff began assisting him magically. Thanks to that, he was able to dig out the buried person before long.

“This... This isn’t Yurika!”

Of course, the person he saved wasn’t Yurika. Instead, it was the person they had gone out to look for—Aika Maki. She was unconscious, so Koutarou picked her up.

“Aika-san?! Why are you here, Aika-san?! No, more importantly, Aika-san! Aika-san!”

Koutarou shook Maki’s body in an attempt to wake her up.

“Hngh...”

As he did, Maki grimaced and let out a pained groan. Seeing that reaction, Koutarou immediately stopped shaking her.

“What’s wrong, Aika-san― Ah...”

That was when Koutarou realized that his hand was covered in blood, but it wasn’t his. It was Maki’s.

“Aika-san, you’re injured...”

Perhaps it was from getting caught on something in the avalanche, but Maki had a large wound in her side. Blood was pouring from it, running down her body and forming a red pool on the snow. It was enough that it was immediately obvious her life was in danger if she didn’t get help.

“All right, I’ll contact Theia and the others and have them come as soon as possible.”

As he thought things through out loud, Koutarou decided to use the bracelet he had gotten from Clan to contact Theia and the others.

“Guuuaaaaaaaa!”

“What?!”

However, the moment before Koutarou’s finger touched the bracelet, a bestial roar echoed down the mountain. When he looked up the slope to see what it was, he saw a white demon by the cave entrance. Next to it was Yurika, encased in a column of ice.

“Kil! Vadra kil! Com ot! I no yu ar stil liv!”

“Isn’t that a demon?! And Yurika’s right next to it?!”

Koutarou hurriedly focused on his eyes. When he did, he could see a white aura overlapping Yurika inside the pillar of ice. It was her spiritual energy, which wouldn’t have been there if she were dead. At the very least, despite how bad things looked, she was still alive.

“Did that monster do that to Yurika?! If I hurry, I can still save her!”

Koutarou was about to take off to go rescue Yurika...

“Uuugh...”

But Maki’s groan made Koutarou hesitate.

Wh-Who do I save first?!

Koutarou looked back and forth between Maki and Yurika. He was torn.

“Sorry, Yurika! I’ll come save you as fast as possible! Just hang in there a little longer!”

At last, Koutarou decided he needed to start with Maki. Her aura was growing weaker faster than Yurika’s, and she was still actively bleeding. She was going to die at this rate, and Koutarou couldn’t just let that happen.

The girl known as Aika Maki was born in the slums of Folsaria, but Maki couldn’t even remember the name of which city. She was sold off as a slave by her own parents at such a young age that she wasn’t even aware of her surroundings.

But it might have been fortunate for everyone involved that Maki didn’t remember that much. If she did, the city would have been leveled as she became a powerful magician. Maki cursed her childhood, and she despised anyone and anything associated with it.

Just like on Earth, slaves on Folsaria were treated as subhuman by slave traders. It was nothing but endless days of violence and cruelty. Trusting anyone in that situation simply put you in a position to get stabbed in the back. Growing up in that hell was what had given Maki such a distaste for betrayal.

But betrayal and the cold were connected in Maki’s mind, and the freezing temperature brought back unpleasant memories. Memories of a dark, dismal day. Memories of her exhausted body refusing to move. Memories of a cold so bitter that it numbed everything but her aching heart. Memories of betrayal. It was the day she’d attempted to escape slavery, only to be sold out by her best friend. After taking a severe beating, she was thrown into the dungeon in midwinter and left to die. The cold Maki was feeling right now was very similar to what she’d felt back in that dungeon.

So in the end, I’ll die in the cold anyway...

Maki smiled wryly. Of course, her near-frozen face didn’t move a muscle. The bitter smile was only in her mind. The reason why Maki hadn’t died in the dungeon that day was because the previous Dark Navy had sensed Maki’s mana and bought her.

But everything makes sense like this. Back then, all I wished for was the power to take revenge on them...

Thanks to the previous Dark Navy, her wish had been fulfilled. She was raised as a magician and given the power to get her vengeance on the slave traders and her former best friend. But now, after all this time, she was feeling the same deadly cold creep over her body that she’d felt that day in the dungeon. Maki was convinced that was her fate. Back then, she had only wished for power and revenge. She hadn’t wished to live. She’d grown tired of this world full of cheating, betrayal, and abuse.

Oh...?

However, Maki realized something was different from that day in the dungeon. Since she had almost no sensation in her body, she wasn’t quite sure what it was at first.

What is... this...?

But as time passed, her senses gradually returned and she realized that what she was feeling was warmth. She then sensed the presence of someone nearby.

A corpse looter? Or did a beast come to eat me...?

Maki knew whatever it was, it wasn’t good. So she ignored the presence and focused on the warmth. If she was going to die, she at least wanted to go warm.

It’s... the same thing...

As she concentrated on it, however, Maki realized that the warmth and the presence she was feeling were the same thing. It wasn’t a looter or some beast. Something warm was by Maki’s side.

Are you lonely too...? Just like... me?

The presence was warm and comforting, but Maki could feel something cold at its core. And she knew what it was because she was the same. Maki tried to move her cold heart towards the coldness of the presence in front of her.

I just wish we could always stay like this...

By overlapping the two, she thought they both might warm up a little. But Maki knew she didn’t have much time left for that, and for that, she was truly sorry.

When Maki regained her consciousness, the first thing she heard was a man’s loud voice.

“Breathe, Aika-san! Don’t you die on me!”

Maki tried to smile.

It’s fine. I’ll be fine for a little longer, so don’t worry...

She had no idea if her face actually reflected the gesture or not. If she wasn’t breathing, she might not be able to properly smile either. Worried about that, Maki consciously took a breath.

“Ack, hack...”

The task was surprisingly difficult and sent her into a coughing fit.

“Aika-san! Damn it! Is the staff’s magic not enough?!”

“Ack, hack...”

For each time she coughed, Maki could feel herself getting weaker. Knowing that would make the owner of the voice sad, she still tried her best to breathe.

Somehow... it’s different from before...

In the past, the last time she was on the verge of death, she’d drawn breath out of spite. But now, Maki was breathing for a different reason.

“Hahh... Hahh... Hahh...”

“That’s right! Breathe, Aika-san!”

Something deep inside Maki’s mind was pushing her forward. Something her fading consciousness had reached out and held on to in its stupor.

I can’t do anything to betray or disappoint this person... If I did, we’d both be all alone...

Thanks to Maki’s rekindled will to live, oxygen began circulating throughout her body. Each breath dispelled the haziness clouding her mind, eventually bringing her back to herself.

“Wh-Where am I...?”

Maki felt as if she’d snapped out of a dream. Now completely awake, she was puzzled by the change in her surroundings. Maki’s last memories were of being swept away in the avalanche, but now she found herself in a dim, dusty lodge. She was lying on her back, staring up at the small, unshaded lightbulb hanging down from the ceiling.

“Aika-san?! You’re awake?!”

As she blinked repeatedly, someone leaned over her. It was enough to shield her sensitive eyes from the dazzling light overhead.

“Satomi... Koutarou?”

Maki recognized the man in front of her.

“That’s right, it’s me! Keep it together!”

Satomi Koutarou. He was a master of the sword and multiple kinds of magic, including necromancy. He was an opponent who had outsmarted Maki repeatedly in the past. Her mind tried to warn her of the danger, and the spells she had precast in order to face Koutarou activated one after another. To her, Koutarou was an enemy, pure and simple.

“How are you feeling?! Are you okay?!”

“No... It looks bad.”

Maki smiled at Koutarou as he desperately tried to check on her. It wasn’t an act, either; it was just a natural smile that had come from the bottom of her heart.

Why am I smiling at this man...?

If Maki had been able to move her arms, she probably would have been touching her face because she couldn’t understand her own actions. Despite that, her emotions were getting the better of her mind and body. She had a strong feeling telling her that it was fine.

“I can tell. There’s no saving me from a wound like this.”

Maki shook her head as she spoke. She understood the condition she was in. Despite her young age, she was a veteran warrior. She had survived many battles, but her experience told her that the wound she’d suffered this time was fatal and that she had only regained consciousness through sheer chance.

Ah, maybe that’s why...

It crossed Maki’s mind that she felt no hostility for Koutarou right now because she was on death’s doorstep.

“Aika-san, don’t say things like that!”

To Maki’s eyes, Koutarou was surrounded by a stable green light.

Ah, he really is worried...

The light she saw was the effect of one of her spells. It was proof that what he was thinking and saying was genuine.

Is this... all part of some artful trick of his?

Maki had prepared this spell in particular for her fight with Koutarou so she could see through his lies, yet the spell hadn’t reacted even once so far.

Or maybe I’ve gotten weaker... That’s probably it. I’m dying a disgrace in the end...

Whether or not Koutarou was lying and whether or not he’d managed to trick her in some way, Maki was getting herself worked up for no reason. She couldn’t help but find it funny.

“Aika-san...”

Maki smiled even though she knew she was about to die. After the harsh life she’d lived, she was ready to give up. But not Koutarou. Not here. Not now. He wasn’t going to give up on Maki.

This staff isn’t enough!

Koutarou tightly clenched his hands around the magical staff. He’d been trying to use it to save Maki, but the results weren’t looking good. The staff’s magic was indeed healing her, but Maki’s life force was fading faster than he could heal it. Koutarou could tell because he had the ability to see spiritual energy.

It’ll take too long to get her aboard Blue Knight! How can I save Aika-san?!

Theia’s spaceship was equipped with medical technology far more advanced than anything found on Earth, but not even advanced science could do anything for someone that not even magic could save.

“It’s fine, Satomi-kun. I believe this is my fate.”

Maki accepted her own death. Looking back at her life, this wasn’t a bad way to go. Just having someone care about her seemed like a good ending to it all.

My only regret is not knowing if he’s really worried about me or not...

And so Maki smiled, resigned to her fate.

“Fate?! As if I could accept this kind of fate!”

Koutarou, however, adamantly rejected that idea. He knew a girl who’d fought and overcome similar hardships, so he couldn’t accept Maki giving in. And he didn’t want Maki to accept it either. He continued to shout, raising his voice even more to try and convince her.

“I... I won’t accept this kind of fate! I will never―”

In the middle of his sentence, Koutarou suddenly remembered something.

“Wait, fate? That’s right! I still have that!”

It was a last resort, but he still had a small chance of saving Maki’s life.

“Clan! Clan!”

Koutarou hurriedly operated his bracelet and called out Clan’s name.

“What’s wrong? And at this hour, no less?”

Despite the hour, however, Clan responded immediately. Apparently she wasn’t asleep yet. Hearing her voice, Koutarou’s expression lit up.

“It’s an emergency! I need the sword!”

“Just wait a moment. In three minutes, I’ll finish this stage of my experiment. Then I’ll―”

“I can’t wait three minutes! I told you it’s an emergency!”

“Wait, wait! Just waiiit! Don’t be so unreasonable!”

Sensing what Koutarou was about to do from the tone of his voice, Clan began panicking. However, Koutarou ignored her objections and gave his order to the bracelet.

“Cradle! Give me my sword!”

“As you wish, my lord.”

“Kyaaaaaaah! I’m telling you to waiiit!”

Despite Clan’s protests, her small spaceship, the Cradle, initiated action. Koutarou’s sword was currently being experimented on in the Cradle’s laboratory, but upon receiving Koutarou’s order, the Cradle forcibly terminated the experiment and began to transfer the sword to him.

“Curse you, Veltlion! I won’t forget this!”

“Come, Signaltin!”

Completely ignoring Clan’s objections, Koutarou thrust his right arm forward. As he did, a black disk appeared a few centimeters in front of his palm. It was a space-time hole that connected the Cradle and Koutarou’s bracelet.

“Sa... Satomi-kun, what are you...?”

Maki stared on as this spectacle unfolded in front of her, completely dumbfounded. Since Maki herself had access to some spells that warped space, she functionally understood what the space-time hole was. She knew it connected two different places. However, she couldn’t sense any mana coming from it. Maki didn’t think it was possible to create a space-time hole without using magic, and her surprise at seeing such a thing for herself made her temporarily forget the pain she was in.

“Call sign confirmed. Coordinate axes fixed. Commencing transfer of Signaltin.”

Suddenly a sword appeared from out of the hole. As it did, Koutarou felt like he could hear an explosion and a woman screaming coming from the hole too, but he didn’t hesitate to grab his sword.

“Your Excellency, this ship, the Cradle, will pray for your fortune and glory in place of the nation of Forthorthe.”

“...Thank you.”

The moment Koutarou grabbed the handle, the sword began shining bright white. It flooded the room with mana.

White mana! Is this room 106’s power?! It’s like before... but the energy he’s controlling this time is far greater!

Despite dealing with magic on a daily basis, Maki was so surprised by the massive amount of mana that she couldn’t even let out a gasp of surprise.

“Let’s do this, Signaltin!”

Koutarou pulled the sword still in its sheath out of the space-time hole. He then closed his eyes and began concentrating as he held the sword before him in both hands. His right hand gripped the handle of the sword, and his left hand held the sheath.

Your Majesty Alaia, I’m sorry for using it for such a personal reason, but I will be borrowing the power of this sword...

Koutarou then opened his eyes and began moving his hands apart. Accompanied by a ringing noise, the glowing white blade slowly emerged from its sheath. Correspondingly, the pure white mana filling the room grew stronger and stronger. Once Koutarou fully drew the blade, he took a deep breath.

“Signaltin, if you really have the power to shape the future, then please cut a path for this girl’s future!”

The next moment, the sword unleashed a blinding glow almost like an explosion. The flash of light lit up the small lodge. Eventually that light turned into a glowing band of pure white connecting Koutarou and Maki.

A portion of the mana being emitted from Signaltin was converted into light and filled the lodge with its glow. The light was so bright that Koutarou and Maki could only see white and nothing else. However, the light didn’t harm them. Instead, it gently wrapped them in a warmth almost like a hug.

What...?

In that white world, Koutarou saw something. It was hard to tell if he was seeing it with his eyes or his mind, but there was a clear image in the white light.

A small girl?

It was a badly beaten young girl covered in wounds. She was lying motionless on a dungeon floor.

Just what am I seeing...?

Maki also started to see something in the white light. It was a young boy crying and embracing a half-knit sweater.

That girl was familiar to Koutarou, and that boy was familiar to Maki. At the same time, they both thought...

“Just wait! I’ll save you right now!”

“It’s okay. I’ll always be with you...”

They used different words, but the feelings they put into them were the same.

When Koutarou returned to his senses, the light had died down. The only thing illuminating the dusty lodge now was the lone unshaded lightbulb overhead. The blade of the sword had a dim glow, but it certainly wasn’t enough to light up the room.

How is Aika-san?!

Koutarou immediately recalled the situation and looked to Maki. His eyes were met with her pale skin. Just a moment ago there had been a large, profusely bleeding wound in her side, but now all Koutarou saw there was her pale skin.

“It worked... Th-Thank god...”

Koutarou let out a big sigh of relief and held up Signaltin’s sheath. Koutarou had no way of knowing if using the sword was enough to save Maki, so he was beyond relieved at this outcome.

Meanwhile, Maki was gradually regaining consciousness. Still dazed, she was blankly staring up at the ceiling.

I feel like something very important just...

Maki felt like something important had happened, but it was just a fleeting, unsubstantiated feeling. After a few seconds, it disappeared just like a dream. She returned to her senses upon hearing the sound of Koutarou returning his sword to its sheath.

“Ah... I...?”

In that moment, Maki remembered everything from her encounter with the demon to Koutarou desperately trying to save her afterwards. That helped her make sense of why she was now lying down in the lodge, and the next thing she did was check her wound.

“It’s gone?!”

Maki was overwhelmed with surprise when she touched her own side. The wound that should have been there had completely vanished. There was no sign of blood now. And since her wound had disappeared, so too had her pain. She no longer felt the cold that numbed her entire body either. It was almost like her injuries had been nothing but a dream. The only evidence she had otherwise was her torn clothing.

“I survived...?

Maki lifted her head and peeked at her exposed side. She could see her pale skin through the gaping hole in her outfit. Her wound really had disappeared.

“Looks like it.”

“S-Satomi-kun...?”

Sitting up, Maki was confused as to why there was a ski jacket draped over her shoulders. Koutarou had been worried she’d get cold in the outfit she was wearing and given her his jacket, and it wasn’t until she looked at that jacket now that she remembered Koutarou was even there. She’d been so taken aback by her miraculous recovery that she had temporarily forgotten everything else.

“Anyways, I’m glad you pulled through.”

“...You’re the one who saved me, aren’t you, Satomi-kun?”

Maki looked at what was lying next to Koutarou. There was Yurika’s new staff, Encyclopedia, and Koutarou’s sword, Signaltin. Those two new magical tools had saved Maki’s life, and they were quite clearly the cause of the increase in room 106’s mana.

However, Maki still had a lot of questions. How had Koutarou saved her with them? And how had he obtained them in the first place? As the magical girl Dark Navy of Darkness Rainbow, she wanted to get her hands on any information she could about these magic items.

“I guess you could say that.”

“Satomi-kun, are you a magician...?”

As Aika Maki, however, she simply wanted to know more about Koutarou.

“No.”

As Koutarou flatly denied being a magician, there was no change in the green light around Koutarou that Maki used to detect lies. It seemed even now, he was telling the truth. Dark Navy should have known better. There was a better way to go about this. A more calm and logical line of questioning she could have taken.

“That can’t be true! No matter how you look at it, what you did wasn’t normal!”

But right now, Maki was just Aika Maki and all she really wanted was to understand Koutarou. It was an emotional matter, and she approached it without any of Dark Navy’s normal calmness or rationality.

“I’m really not. The tools are what’s not normal. I’m just your everyday high school student.”

Koutarou was planning on being honest. He knew that there was no way he could hide the truth after saving Maki’s life in such a dramatic fashion. He knew this was coming the moment he decided to save her life, and he’d steeled himself for it.

“What do you mean?”

“Actually, something big happened recently. You know, when we were doing the play.”

On the day of the play, Clan had come after Theia and Koutarou, and that had been the start of it all.

So it really was during the play...

Koutarou’s story matched with what Maki had conjectured.

“There were some people that helped me resolve that incident, and among them were a few people that could use magic. I got this sword and staff from those people.”

As he spoke, Koutarou presented the staff to Maki. He smiled wryly and shrugged as she received it from him.

“So while I think that it’s probably magic, I don’t really get the details. I was told how to use it, but I don’t know how it works.”

“I see...”

Maki nodded and examined the staff in her hands.

As I thought, the enchantment is considerably old... It seems to be using the same ancient language of magic that controls the mana in room 106. But the staff was made quite recently... which means it must have been made by magicians with no direct relation to Folsaria.

The current practice in Folsaria used a reorganized, modern language for magic. However, Maki could tell the magic in the staff used something much older than that. That suggested it had been made by magicians who had branched off from Folsaria a very long time ago.

This staff essentially takes care of casting the spell entirely on its own, just like he said. Between that ability and the vast amount of spells it contains, it’s wasting the artifact-rank mana it has. So on it’s own, it’s not a big threat... but it’s quite troublesome the way Yurika used it.

That was Maki’s conclusion upon examining the staff. Thanks to that, Maki was able to see the total picture behind Yurika’s power-up. The power of her magic hadn’t increased outright, but she had evolved in a direction that made it very hard to fight her.

And the sword is the same as this staff. It does a lot on its own... So while the sword is powerful, Satomi-kun himself is just a normal human. Which means that was also true when we fought last time.

Maki finally started to really understand Koutarou, and because of that, she came to realize her own misunderstanding.

In the past, Maki had assumed that Koutarou was a dangerous magician. He was able to get through her barrier, he had a ghost companion, and he could use a powerful magic sword, so she assumed he had access to powerful magic. Either enhancement or alteration would have allowed him to get through a barrier and make a magic sword, and necromancy would have allowed him to control ghosts.

However, knowing what she did now, Maki was getting a different picture of the situation. First off, he had been able to slip through the barrier because he had a powerful sword that interfered with the magic of others. And the ghost had simply followed him of her own will. It was just such an unlikely scenario that Maki had written it off entirely at the time.

And here I was... worried about traps and schemes that don’t even exist. I never even truly saw the man in front of me...

Right now, Maki no longer feared Koutarou. It was a strange feeling. Despite seeing his overly powerful sword right in front of her and knowing that she wouldn’t stand a chance against him in a fight, Maki wasn’t afraid of Koutarou. At worst, she felt like it would probably hurt when she lost.

What is this feeling, I wonder...? Why do I feel so relieved? Even though he’s an opponent I have no chance of beating in my current state...

Maki was confused, but only on the surface of things. Deep inside her heart, she was calm. She was satisfied with the current situation.

“Achoo!”

Koutarou suddenly sneezed. As she was lost in thought, the abrupt noise caught Maki unawares and her eyes opened wide in surprise. But the moment she saw the silly face Koutarou was making, she began to laugh.

“Pffft! Ahahaha!”

“Don’t laugh. I’m in the middle of an important story.”

Seeing Maki laugh, Koutarou’s cheeks turned red with embarrassment.

“I-I’m sorry. It’s cold, isn’t it? Do you want this jacket back?”

Maki apologized, but she was still laughing happily. She put one hand over her mouth in an attempt to suppress her laughter, and touched the jacket on her shoulders with the other. Koutarou had ultimately sneezed because he lent Maki his jacket.

“I don’t need it. I’m not that cold.”

“Ah...”

In that moment, Maki could see the green light that enveloped Koutarou wavering. The spell Maki used to detect deception finally caught Koutarou in a lie.

Satomi-kun lied to me...

That surprised Maki far more than the sneeze had. Maki hated lies and deceit more than anything. She abhorred any form of scheming or trickery. Because of that, the moment she realized Koutarou was lying to her, her heart skipped a beat.

He really does lie... Of course he does... There’s no human who doesn’t...

Maki’s heart then began intensely throbbing. It was almost like it was burning. It was the first time she’d ever felt something like that.

“Satomi-kun, you’re a terrible liar.”

“I’m not lying. A true man wouldn’t lose out to the cold.”

“I think you sneezed because you did lose, though.”

Maki smiled, but this time it was much, much brighter than before.

“Ugh...”

“Actually, Satomi-kun, I hate people who lie.”

“I see. Then we’ll make good friends.”

“That’s true. Heehee...”

Maki slightly tilted her head as a tinge of mischief crept across her grin. Really, it was a smile no one had ever seen from her before.

“Heehee... Indeed, I think people who trick other with lies are the worst!”

But strangely, Maki was actually happy that Koutarou had lied to her. It was the first time that had ever happened.

This man’s lies aren’t scary at all!

Not even Maki knew why she felt that way, but that didn’t bother her right now.

“Definitely.”

“Heehee... Ahahaha!”

And so Maki dismissed the spells she had activated.

“...Satomi-kun, you liar! I hate you!”

“Huh?”

Maki no longer needed a spell to confirm if Koutarou was being honest or not.

After watching Maki laugh for a while, Koutarou eventually nodded with a satisfied expression.

“All right, you look like you’re okay.”

Koutarou had explained the immediate situation to Maki and now she seemed to be fully recovered, so Koutarou decided to move on to the next matter at hand.

“Aika-san, the staff, please.”

Koutarou reached his hand out towards Maki.

“Satomi-kun?”

When Maki looked up at him, Koutarou was already on his feet. His expression was serious and she sensed a strong will in his eyes.

“Please give me back the staff. I have to go save Yurika.”

“Save Yurika-san...? O-Oh right, that white demon!”

It wasn’t until after hearing Koutarou say something about saving Yurika that Maki finally remembered how this had all happened. She’d gone into the mountains to obtain a familiar, but things had gotten ugly and Yurika was frozen and trapped. Maki still had a score to settle.

“So you saw it too, Aika-san? In that case, this’ll be easy to explain. I have to beat that thing and save Yurika.”

As Koutarou said that, he looked out through the window of the lodge. The blizzard was still raging on outside and he couldn’t see a thing. However, somewhere in the direction he was staring, Yurika was out there waiting to be saved.

To think monsters like that exist on Earth too...

Koutarou strongly grasped Signaltin’s sheath. This wasn’t the first time Koutarou had encountered strange monsters, and based on his experience, Signaltin should be enough to deal with them.

“So please give me back the staff. I’ll probably need that too.”

Koutarou’s Signaltin was very powerful, but since he had used it to heal the fatally wounded Maki, its power had temporarily grown weaker. Encyclopedia would be the perfect tool to compensate for that. Koutarou was planning on fighting using both sword and sorcery.

Return the staff...?

Maki was a leader of Darkness Rainbow. Her best option right now would be putting some sort of curse on the staff before returning it to Koutarou. That way she could use it as a trap against Yurika later. However...

“Satomi-kun.”

Instead, Maki simply didn’t plan on giving the staff back.

“Since I’m better now, can I help too?”

Holding the staff in both hands, Maki smiled at Koutarou.

Maki’s suggestion was simple. Koutarou was an amateur when it came to magic, so it would be better to have one of them focus on using the sword and the other focus on the staff. It was a perfectly sound plan.

“So how about it?”

“Huh...”

As things were, Koutarou was inclined to say no. He was reluctant to drag a normal girl like Maki into a fight. But he understood what she was saying. He also didn’t think that he’d be able to pull off something as demanding as using a sword and a staff at the same time. Since they had two people and two weapons, it did seem much more reasonable to divide them accordingly.

“Since you’re struggling to make up your mind, Satomi-kun, I have some news that might convince you.”

“What’s that?”

“I have an A in PE. Yurika’s barely even passing.”

Seeing Maki boasting with pride, Koutarou nodded.

“All right, I’ll leave the staff to you, Aika-san”

“Really?!”

Maki’s expression lit up.

Honestly, Aika-san does look like she would be better with the staff than Yurika...

Maki was obviously in better shape than Yurika. Koutarou felt like Maki was more suited to be a magical girl than Yurika just based on that alone.

“In exchange, you have to promise to run away before things get really dangerous. If you do that, I can run away too without worrying if all hell breaks loose.”

The only thing Koutarou was worried about was that Maki might try to do too much and get in over her head. Since he’d just managed to save her from the brink of death, he wasn’t interested in seeing her in danger again. That’s why he wanted her to retreat before things got ugly.

“...Liar.”

“Huh?”

However, Maki didn’t agree. Instead, she stared at Koutarou quite suspiciously.

“Satomi-kun, you won’t run away even if things turn dangerous, will you?”

“That’s not true. I’d run with my tail between my legs,” Koutarou said, nervously shaking his head.

“That’s a lie. There’s no way you would run away without saving Yurika-san first.”

Maki was no longer using her spell to discern lies, but she still knew that Koutarou would never leave Yurika behind to save himself.

“Aika-san...”

There was nothing Koutarou could say. His real intentions were just as Maki had said.

“In that case, we’ll share the same fate.”

Maki appeared to be quite serious as she looked at Koutarou and firmly held the staff with both hands.

“Please steel yourself, Satomi-kun. I definitely won’t leave you on your own. In exchange―”

“Fine, I get it. I’ll protect you.”

In the end, Koutarou was the one who backed down. The best chance he had of saving Yurika was if he and Maki truly worked together. That’s what he himself believed.

“It’s almost like you’re proposing. Heehee...”

Maki smiled. She seemed awfully happy. Koutarou didn’t know the meaning behind it, but Maki’s smile in that moment reminded him of Yurika’s. Without realizing it, his attitude did a one-eighty.

“You idiot. Be more serious.”

“Yes, sir!”

Maki smiled at Koutarou and jokingly saluted. And just like that, the strange team of Koutarou and Maki was born.

The lodge that Koutarou had taken refuge in with Maki wasn’t all that far away from the cave. It had been built when power lines were being constructed in the area, but it was no longer in use. As such, Koutarou and Maki didn’t need to worry about running into anyone on their way back to the cave. The area was desolate. It was just the two of them making their way across the mountain as the snow and wind intensely raged on.

“By the way, Aika-san, what were you doing out here in the mountains? Yurika was really worried about you.”

“Ah, that’s because of that white demon.”

However, neither of them seemed particularly bothered by the weather. That was thanks to a spell that Maki had cast. They forged ahead, unfettered by the harsh winds, the steep slope, the darkness, and the ever dropping temperature.

“Did he capture you?”

“Oh, um... Well, something like that.”

“I see. That was really unlucky.”

“...Though to be more precise, I was the one that came to capture him.”

“What was that?”

“I said I would have been in danger if you and Yurika-san hadn’t come along. It seems like that demon is very violent and attacks people on sight.”

“I see. Then let’s be careful to reduce the danger.”

“Yes, let’s.”

The two of them carefully climbed the slope while staying alert and wary of what was in front of them. Since magic made it easier for them to brave the elements, they had more energy to focus on finding the demon and Yurika.

“Satomi-kun!”

“Uwah!”

After climbing for a while, Maki suddenly grabbed ahold of Koutarou and knocked him down into the snow.

“Wh-What?!”

“Shh! Don’t you see it? Over there!”

While whispering to Koutarou, Maki covered his mouth with her left hand and pointed with her right.

“Mmmhh!”

The white demon in question was just up the slope from them. Next to it was Yurika, still frozen. Maki had seen them first, and she’d taken action to keep the white demon from spotting them too.

“I’ll let go now.”

“Mm.”

Maki made sure Koutarou saw the demon for himself before removing her hand.

“Hahh... Thanks, Aika-san.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Yurika is...”

After crawling out from under Maki, the first thing Koutarou did was look to Yurika. Fortunately, Yurika’s spiritual energy wasn’t so weak that she appeared to be in immediate mortal danger. Koutarou relaxed his shoulders when he realized that.

“Phew, she seems to be okay...”

Koutarou had been worried all along that she might die while he was treating Maki, or that the demon would destroy her along with the pillar of ice. So now that he was here and could see that she was safe, Koutarou let out a heavy sigh of relief. His fighting spirit was lit anew upon discovering that he still had a chance to save her.

“So what do we do, Satomi-kun?”

“Hmm? What?”

“Don’t you think it’d be dangerous if we just charged straight in?”

As Maki spoke, she indicated their surroundings. They were in the path of what had been carried away by the avalanche, but they’d hit the edge of the woods. They’d been using the trees as cover, but from here on out, they’d be in the open if they continued forward.

“Yeah, he’d definitely try something.”

“I think it will be another avalanche.”

“I’d rather not go through that again...”

It was possible that the white demon might cause another avalanche if it spotted Koutarou and Maki climbing up, and they were right in the path of where the first one had fallen. That was part of the reason why Maki had stopped Koutarou in the first place.

“Should we go around and climb up?”

“Hmmmm...”

Considering Maki’s idea, Koutarou looked to his left and right. From what he could see, there were a lot more trees to either side. If they went around, they would be able to stay hidden as they made their way up the mountain.

“Let’s not.”

However, in the end, Koutarou gave up on the idea circling around. While it would lower their risk of being detected for now, they would still hit the edge of the forest eventually, putting them right back at square one.

“So what do we do? If we just twiddle our thumbs here, Yurika-san will be in danger.”

“That’s true, but can’t we lure him to us somehow?”

“Lure him?”

Maki’s eyes opened wide in surprise at hearing such a strategic idea from the normally simple Koutarou.

Normally simple Satomi-kun, huh?

At the same time, Maki gave up on her own idea and began laughing on the inside. She had only just today overcome her misunderstanding about Koutarou and started to learn a little bit about him. Despite that, she pretended like she knew everything, including declaring that an intellectual idea was unlike Koutarou. Maki was sorely amused at how quickly she was changing.

“Yeah, I feel like that would be better.”

During Koutarou’s time in Forthorthe, he had taken part in several large-scale battles. In those battles, the strategy of baiting an enemy was an old trick. It was something that had stayed fresh in his mind.

Right. If we lure him here, we can ambush him and we can get him away from Nijino Yurika. You put some real thought into this, Satomi-kun.

Maki understood where Koutarou was coming from and took a moment to reflect on his plan.

“We’re luring that demon out so we can save Yurika-san first, right?”

“Huh?”

This time, it was Koutarou’s turn to be surprised. Maki had brought up exactly what he was just about to ask her about.

“We’re not?”

“A-Ah, no... That’s what I wanted to do, but I wanted to run it by you first.”

When Koutarou explained himself to Maki, she clapped her hands together in a gesture of realization.

“I see. Since you don’t know how much time you can buy, you don’t know if you can save Yurika-san before the demon returns, right?”

“Y-Yeah.”

Maki once again pointed out exactly what Koutarou was about to say.

It happened again... Aika-san, can you read my mind?

Considering the timing of Maki’s remarks, Koutarou had to wonder. But not paying surprised Koutarou any mind, Maki began racking her brain.

What happens if we can’t save her?

Maki quickly gathered her thoughts together and was about to share them with Koutarou, but...

“If we don’t manage to save her, that demon will know what we’re trying to do and might target Yurika instead.”

Oh?

This time it was Koutarou who beat Maki to the punch. Hearing her own thoughts come out of his mouth almost word for word, her eyes opened wide in surprise.

Can Satomi-kun read my mind, perhaps?

Maki was curious about their seemingly overlapping minds.

“In that case, luring him over and taking him out first would be better.”

“That’s right. What do you think?”

“Heehee, what do you think? I just said defeating him would be better.”

“Oh, right, sorry.”

Koutarou and Maki agreed on luring the demon out and ambushing him. If they did it the other way around and tried to save Yurika first, even if they freed her, there was a high chance they’d still be forced to fight the demon. And if it was going to lead to a fight anyway, luring him out and ambushing him would be a more reliable strategy. That was the conclusion Koutarou and Maki came to.

“...I feel like this method of attack is more fitting of a villain. I don’t really like it.”

“Me neither.”

“Right. You’d rather face off with the demon than rely on petty tricks, wouldn’t you?”

“But if he stays that close to Yurika-san, we don’t have a choice.”

“I guess not...”

“We’re just civilians after all.”

“That’s true... Let’s not get in over our heads.”

They were both resistant to the idea of using an ambush, but they had to prioritize Yurika’s safety. In the end, they resolved themselves to resort to such an unfair attack.

Maki’s specialty mind manipulation magic was closely related to the magic that created illusions, so she was quite good at those as well. Instead of using Encyclopedia’s mana for them, she used her own. That way the spells would be more accurate and powerful.

“Good luck!”

Maki had created an illusion of Koutarou. It was so well done that Koutarou found himself cheering for his doppelganger as he watched it walk off. Reacting to Koutarou’s voice, the illusion turned around and waved its hand.

“Uwah?! It responded?! Creepy!”

The illusion Maki conjured was created with a certain degree of consciousness, however feeble. It was like an autonomous robot that could act by itself within reason. In this case, the illusion walked away on its own and would be acting as a decoy.

“Creepy? You’re always like that, you know.”

“I’m more manly. I’m not that weak looking either.”

“That’s not true. You’re just like that.”

The illusion had been created based on Maki’s perception of Koutarou. Because of that, there were some minor discrepancies. In Maki’s mind, for example, Koutarou was slightly slimmer and more handsome, so the illusion created from that didn’t quite live up to Koutarou’s ideal of manliness.

“Am I really...?”

“More importantly, let’s get ready. There’s a lot that needs to be done before Satomi-kun No. 2 lures the demon here.”

Maki didn’t want Koutarou to dwell too much on her creation, so she rushed him along on the plan. If he thought about it hard enough, he might realize that the illusion was based off of Maki’s ideal Koutarou, and Maki definitely didn’t want that.

“Sorry. So where should I hide?”

“Since No. 2 should be running past here, behind that tree should be fine.”

“Got it.”

Koutarou pulled his sword from its sheath and approached a tree by the mountain path. Since the illusion would be running down the path, this would let Koutarou jump out at the demon that should be following right after it.

“And I’ll cast some spells on you.”

“Please do. I’m not wearing my armor today.”

“Heehee, then please leave this to magical girl Maki.”

Full of confidence, Maki giggled and pointed the staff at Koutarou.

“Magic Armor. Shield. Elemental Protection...”

Maki incanted spell after spell, using the power of Encyclopedia whenever it would be more powerful than her own magic. Doing that let her optimize her spells while also conserving her mana.

This staff might be far more convenient than I thought...

Since Maki often fought on her own, she couldn’t really appreciate the true value of the staff until she used it for herself. There was no better tool than Encyclopedia in a situation like this where she was casting multiple spells on herself and an ally. Before long, Koutarou had been strengthened with the power of over ten different spells.

“The next spells will depend on how things go.”

“Got it. Aika-san, you should go hide too.”

“Okay.”

Having finished casting her spells, Maki headed towards a bush a little bit away from Koutarou. She would be supporting him from there.

“Ah, Satomi-san! It seems No. 2 was found by the demon. He’s heading this way under attack,” Maki warned Koutarou and jumped into the bush.

“So we really are going to have to fight...”

Koutarou had only seen the demon roar standing next to a frozen Yurika so far. Based on circumstantial evidence and Maki’s testimony, Koutarou believed the demon was violent. He’d expected that this would lead to a fight, but now that there was no going back, he was a little depressed.

“All right...”

But no matter how depressed he got, he couldn’t leave Yurika behind. Having steeled himself, Koutarou peeked out from behind the tree and looked up the path. There he saw the illusion of himself with the white demon in hot pursuit. Seeing that, Koutarou’s face turned pale.

“Aika-san, this is bad! He’s chasing after No. 2 in the air!”

The white demon was floating behind Koutarou No. 2 and repeatedly firing shards of ice at him. The illusion was dodging the attacks while running down the designated route, but there was one problem. The demon was flying far too high up in the air for Koutarou to be able to hit it with his sword.

“Hopping Carrot!”

Maki’s response was a new spell. Yellow light enveloped Koutarou’s legs. It was a spell that increased his jumping power.

“You should be able to reach him with that!”

“I’ll give it a shot!”

Koutarou and Maki’s conversation was kept brief. Since the demon was approaching, they didn’t have the time to leisurely chat. There would be no point in the ambush if they were discovered.

And not long after, No. 2 was upon them. While replicating the sound of running on snow, the illusion continued running down the path past them.

“Gaaaaa! Gruuuuuaaaaa!”

The white demon was right on its tail. He was completely fooled by the splendid illusion and was frantically trying to destroy it.

“Die! Dieeeee! Vadra! Dieeeee!”

While shouting, the demon shot shards of ice from the palms of his hands. Some of the ice shards passed right through the illusion.

“It dos no wok! Magi is no wokin! Vadra rely is a monser!”

If the demon had been calm, he might have been able to see through the illusion. However, he was clearly worked up about something.

“Now!”

It gave Koutarou the perfect opening. As the demon flew by, Koutarou kicked off the ground with all his might and jumped, swinging at the demon in the sky.

“Gaaaaaaaa!”

Koutarou’s swing connected just where he’d been aiming: the wings on the back of the white demon. The blow caused the demon to lose his balance in the air and he fell towards the ground.

“It was too shallow?!”

However, as Koutarou clicked his tongue, the demon flapped his large wings and made a soft landing. Koutarou’s sword had damaged the wings, but they were still usable.

The plan had been perfect. The demon’s back was wide open for Koutarou. It was the impromptu jumping that was the problem. Since Koutarou was under the effects of a spell he wasn’t used to, he misjudged how much force he needed to use to jump.

“Can I do it again?!”

Koutarou readied his sword again midair. His first attack had been too shallow, but the demon had landed with his back towards Koutarou. If Koutarou could land right, he would be in a position to make a second attack.

I’m not sure about the timing, but I have to try!

However, the demon didn’t stay where he was. He had already recovered from the shock of the ambush and looked prepared to defend or dodge now. It was questionable whether or not a second attack would work.

“Force Field!”

Two spells came flying towards Koutarou. One was a defensive spell that would block attacks. The other was a spell that could control Koutarou’s falling speed. However, oddly enough, the defensive spell didn’t protect him. Instead, it deployed like a wall next to him.

“Satomi-kun, use that―”

“This’ll help!”

Koutarou kicked off the magic wall and adjusted the direction he was falling in.

“―as footing!”

Koutarou had acted before Maki could even finish her sentence. But she was already making her next move too. She accelerated Koutarou’s speed after he adjusted his direction. That was thanks to the second spell she had cast using the staff that allowed her to control his speed while falling.

“Haaaaaaaa!”

Koutarou was now lined up for another swing as he fell, and he went for it with all of his might. In response to Koutarou’s will, the sword was enveloped by a sonic barrier. It was weaker than what the Blue Knight’s armor could create, but it still served to improve the range and power of the sword. When the blow connected, the sonic barrier enveloping the sword was unleashed as a shockwave that assaulted the demon.

“Guuuuu! So tha is wher yu ar, Vadra!”

However, the white demon wouldn’t go down that easily. The thick slabs of ice created in front of him served as a shield and had blocked Koutarou’s attack. The sword shattered the sheets of ice, but couldn’t reach the demon on the other side.

Signaltin’s power really has weakened! It didn’t do as much damage as I thought it would!

If Signaltin had been in peak condition, by the time the sword hit the demon, it would have negated some of its inner mana and caused major damage. That’s what had happened when Koutarou fought demons in Forthorthe. However, it wasn’t the case now. Despite having been attacked twice, the demon didn’t seem to have taken any real damage at all. The sword was in an even weaker state than expected.

“I kan tel, Vadra! Signaltin is weaken, is it no?!”

The white demon’s mouth warped into a twisted grin, and he moved to attack Koutarou with his massive arms.

“Kil! Is my chans to kil!”

The demon’s sharp, icy claws gleamed as he stretched out his arms.

“Satomi-kun, keep going like that!”

Though he’d already attacked, Koutarou’s body accelerated even more. It was like a powerful force was trying to slam him into the ground.

“I got it!”

Koutarou pitched his body forward as if he was trying to roll. Thanks to Maki increasing his speed, he sailed right by the demon and the demon’s claw caught nothing but air.

After rolling once when he landed, Koutarou kicked the snow and stood up. By that time, Maki was already casting a new spell on Koutarou.

“Flame Weapon!”

Maki used her own mana to cover Koutarou’s sword in fire, increasing its attack power. She also used Encyclopedia to cast a spell that let Koutarou see heat with his eyes. Suddenly Koutarou’s sword burst into flames and everything above a certain temperature began glowing red. Of course, the thing glowing the strongest was Koutarou’s sword.

Which means the next thing coming is...

Koutarou could tell what was coming, so he quickly shouted to Maki, “Aika-san, make good use of the fire at the end!”

“Quick Cast Darkness!”

Almost at the same time, Maki’s next spell cloaked the region around Koutarou, herself, and the demon in darkness. Suddenly unable to see anything, the demon froze up. However, the darkness didn’t make much of a difference to Koutarou who could see temperatures. He could still clearly make out his sword and the enemy’s position, and thanks to the reflecting heat, he could see the ground as well. It was the perfect setup.

Koutarou’s sword crashed into the white demon, but he felt a great deal of resistance. Once the demon could no longer see anything, he focused on protecting himself and covered his entire body with a wall of ice.

So that’s what he was up to!

Koutarou’s sword crushed the wall of ice, but still didn’t reach the demon. The only damage to the demon was that some of his fur was singed by the flames of the sword.

“Guoooooooo!”

He realized that as long as he stayed in the darkness, he would keep getting attacked, so the demon flapped his damaged wings and took to the skies to escape.

“Satomi-kun, was using the fire like that good enough?”

“Like what?”

“I tried copying Yurika-san.”

Maki indicated the area where the demon had flown.

“What’s that?”

“It’s a cloud. However...”

Maki had created a large cloud with magic. Since it was floating right above the darkness, the demon flew right into it before realizing it was even there.

“It’s a special cloud made out of highly volatile oil.”

Not a second later, the smoldering fur of the demon ignited the cloud and caused a large explosion.

As he looked up at the explosion, Koutarou was engrossed in a strange sensation of surprise.

Can Aika-san really read my mind...?

What surprised him wasn’t the explosion, but all of Maki’s actions during the fight. She had predicted what Koutarou wanted to do and used spell after spell to make it happen. When he wanted to pursue the demon, she had created footing for him. When he wanted to dodge the demon’s claws, she had given him the speed he needed to do so. And when he was lamenting that his sword lacked the power it needed, she had enchanted it with fire. And then there was the finishing touch—the explosion overhead.

This was on a completely different level than just being good at using magic. It was almost as if Maki knew what Koutarou was going to do and gave him just what he needed to succeed. Thanks to her, he hadn’t taken a single one of the demon’s attacks.

At the same time, Maki was equally surprised at Koutarou’s performance in battle.

Can Satomi-kun really read my mind...?

She was feeling the same way Koutarou did. He had done everything she wanted to do before she could.

By the time Maki realized it was possible to attack the demon while falling, Koutarou had already readied his sword. By the time she thought of using the spell that controlled his falling speed to avoid the demon’s claws, Koutarou had already pitched himself forward. And lastly, when she was infusing Koutarou’s sword with fire, he told her to make good use of the fire at the end. She then created the oil cloud, and the demon had jumped into it of his own free will.

The demon was caught up in the explosion before he even had a chance to put up a fight. Maki looked up at the sky, but she felt nothing for the demon or the explosion. Instead, what she felt was a strong sense of unparalleled freedom. She didn’t think she could feel this way even if she were soaring through the skies. The feeling of being able to do everything she wanted truly liberated her mind. She wanted to feel this way forever.

“Hey, Aika-san, are you―”

“Satomi-kun, are you―”

Koutarou and Maki were about to say the same thing, but they cut themselves off simultaneously.

There’s no way something that dreamlike is possible.

They both knew they were thinking the same thing.

After the explosion died down and the remaining smoke had been blown away by the wind, the demon still hovered overhead. The white demon, however, was no longer white. Its entire body had been scorched black. It was wounded, but still flapped its powerful wings and came down for a firm landing.

“Kil! Need to kil Vadra whil stil weak! If no kil, I be kiled! I be ruined!”

“Satomi-kun... Looks like he still wants to fight.”

Seeing that, Maki held the staff with both hands.

Vadra again... Just what is this demon so scared of?

That word the demon kept using bothered Maki, but she knew it wouldn’t tell her anything even if she asked. So she drove the question out of her head and focused on the fight ahead.

“It would’ve been easier if he just ran away...”

Koutarou could sense the demon’s bloodlust now as well. He was hoping that the demon would just retreat after the explosion, but it seemed to be dead set on killing Koutarou and Maki, leaving him no choice but to reluctantly ready Signaltin.

“Flame Weapon. Flame Protection. Elemental Shield.”

“Aika-san, you’re thinking of doing something cruel again, aren’t you?”

“Heehee, but you make a great accomplice, Satomi-san.”

“Then I’ll try to live up to your expectations.”

Koutarou’s sword was covered in flame once more and now there were two yellow lights protecting him. Seeing that, the demon bared its fangs and roared at Koutarou.

“Goooaaaaaaaa!”

“Here I go, Aika-san!”

“Quick Cast Acceleration.”

As Koutarou started running, Maki started her incantation. Following suit, the demon made a move too. Seeing Koutarou’s flaming sword, the demon decided to fight up close. He’d learned his lesson the hard way. If he tried to fly away again, things might end up just like last time.

“Here it comes!”

As Koutarou shouted, light enveloped his body and his running speed dramatically increased. Maki had cast a spell that increased his physical ability.

“Dieeeee!”

Even though the demon was moving in to attack, he wasn’t just using his claws. He created shards of ice and repeatedly fired them at Koutarou like a machine gun. He would use openings in the barrage to reach through and swipe at Koutarou.

“Hah!”

Koutarou slid under the shards of ice. As he got close, the demon reached down for an attack.

“Satomi-kun, jump!”

Koutarou channeled all his strength into his legs, and at the same time, the snow beneath his feet shifted upward. Normally, Snowtrap was a spell used to throw a target off balance, but Maki was using it as a catapult to send Koutarou flying. With that, Koutarou was able to spring right on top of the demon from a sliding position. Thanks to that, the demon’s claws missed.

“Guguguh! Yu fel fo it!”

However, the demon had already predicted that Koutarou would dodge, so he ignored Koutarou and made a move for Maki. He was going to kill the magician helping from the sidelines first.

“Yu wil die firs!”

The demon roared again, and Koutarou and Maki’s minds went into overdrive. They shouted to and over each other in a rapid succession of thoughts.

“Aika-san―”

“Quick Cast Force Field!”

“―some footing! And―”

A defensive spell appeared in front of Koutarou like a platform. He kicked off of it and changed his direction in the air.

“It’s okay! I―”

“Dieeeeeeee!”

But the demon was already right next to Maki. Koutarou would never be able to make it in time from his position. The demon flashed a twisted smile. Ready to enjoy the coming slaughter, he slashed his claws at Maki.

“Use that!”

“Already on it!”

In that instant, Koutarou appeared between Maki and the demon.

“Vadra?!”

The demon quickly changed his target and went to attack Koutarou instead. His claws whistled through the air as they came flying at Koutarou.

“What?!”

However, when the claws struck Koutarou, they passed right through him. It was almost as if he was a mirage.

“Well done, No. 2!”

Using that opening, Maki distanced herself from the demon. When she did, the Koutarou who was in front of the demon vanished. It was the slightly slimmer, more handsome Koutarou illusion Maki had created. The demon might have been able to see through it ordinarily, but that was an incredibly difficult thing to do in the heat of battle. The end result was that the demon was fooled and Maki was able to get away from him.

“Damit!”

But the demon didn’t miss a beat. He came right for Maki again. However, Maki cast a new spell to keep him at bay.

“Quick Cast Fire Wall!”

“Yu fol!”

A wall of flame appeared in front of the demon and blocked his way forward. The demon took a moment to cover its body in a thick layer of ice and then charged through without hesitation. The flames Maki had created didn’t have the power to burn the demon through the ice. They melted the ice, but the demon came through on the other side of the wall of flames mostly unscathed.

“Guhahaha! Tis tim yu wil die!”

The demon was convinced of Maki’s demise. There was no way her small body could withstand a powerful blow from the demon, and now Koutarou was on the other side of the wall of flame. She’d ended up separating herself from her backup. And with the illusion gone, there was nothing left to stand in the demon’s way. Maki’s death now seemed certain.

“Guaaa?!”

However...

“Even though it’s burning at a low temperature and you’ve cast defensive spells, you’d make your ally walk through fire? And what’s more, you even used yourself as bait...”

“Heehee. But you came through for me anyway.”

Before the demon’s claws could reach Maki, Koutarou’s sword pierced the demon’s back. It was all part of an elaborate trap. Maki had intentionally reduced the temperature of her wall of flame to let the demon pass through. The demon would then think that Maki was a sitting duck by herself since Koutarou had no way to get to her. He would then ignore Koutarou and focus on just her.

However, because the wall of flame was burning at a relatively low temperature and Koutarou was being protected by Flame Protection and Elemental Shield, he easily broke through the wall himself and scored a direct hit on the demon’s wide open back. Even Koutarou’s sword being infused with fire was part of the trap. If the demon had jumped over the flaming wall and attacked from above, Maki would have been in danger. Keeping Koutarou’s sword enhanced with fire was to make the demon cautious of more overhead traps, making him reluctant to fly. All in all, without using a single advanced spell, Koutarou and Maki’s perfect teamwork had created an inescapable trap.

“I-Imposib! Ho ar yu aliv?! I kiled you! I shold hav kiled yu!”

With Signaltin thrust into his back, the demon’s inner mana was negated and his body began to crumble.

“Curse yu, Vadraaaaa!”

Even though the sword was weakened, the demon couldn’t withstand a direct hit like that. In just a few seconds, the demon’s entire body was reduced to a white pile of dust.