The moment they parted ways after his bold words, Subaru's bravado fell apart.
I don't understand myself.
I spent my free time on self-analysis every day. Looking back at the results of those analyses, I knew what kind of small-minded person I was in this situation.
And yet, I can't understand why I'm running like this right now.
When did he become such a foolish man and become so stubborn?
It was completely and utterly unlike herself to lift her head and endure the pain that made her want to cry, in order not to make those sisters feel guilty.
With their backs turned to each other, Subaru could hear the distance between them growing from the sound of footsteps――and in that moment, Subaru's expression broke.
The pain was sharp and dull, both extremes, and it came to me incessantly. I grimaced, bared my teeth, stuck out my tongue,
"Ouch, it hurts. Ouch, Mom, Dad, Emilia-tan…!"
He called out the names of the three things he depended on the most in his life and took a quick sideways glance at his dangling right arm.
The pain has been resonating intermittently for a while now. Even though I can't put any strength into it, every time I shake I feel a numbness in my brain, as if electrodes were stuck into it. I'd like to think that it's probably a dislocation.
A blow to Rem's horn - the injury occurred after landing incorrectly. It was fortunate that the landing point was on the ground, and that he was able to fall on his right side in an instant, so it was only thanks to a combination of these two that he escaped with only this injury.
If he made a wrong move, it would have been no surprise if he had fallen on his head and been smashed to pieces.
Even though I was rotating vertically, I always fell head-first――I was very curious as to how my status rack was displayed.
"This phenomenon occurs when a person falls from a great height, always landing on their head. In honor of Murphy's Law, let's call this 'True Murphy's Law.'"
In other words, it was the yet-to-be-met Mr. Murphy's fault that the Subaru fell headfirst.
I feel like thinking silly things like, "Damn Murphy," takes my mind off the pain. And maybe it also makes me less scared of the obstacles in front of me.
Before his very eyes, standing in the way of the running Subaru, was a puppy-like demonic beast; it was too much trouble to count how many times they had encountered it.
This was far beyond a case of incorrigibility; it was a level of vindictiveness that made one wonder if she had some grudge against Subaru.
"It's about time for this to be the last time with you..."
As he ran, Subaru prepared himself for the mudslide the demonic beast would unleash.
If he got hit by that attack while defenseless this time, there was no way he'd end up with just a dislocated right shoulder. The least painful route would be a knockout and then a predatory end - he didn't want to imagine anything else.
I shook my head to clear away the unpleasant thoughts, simulating the movement of swerving to the side and stumbling across the animal trail. As the landslide began, I dashed down the side path without caring about what would happen next.
"Come on, if you're coming," he said, turning towards Urgarm once more in a half-desperate manner.
"Yay?"
I couldn't help but let out a silly voice that leaked air.
That was no surprise, as Subaru was greeted with a sight that made him doubt his eyes.
The puppy demonic beast growled softly and shrunk its small body even tighter. It seemed to flex its whole body's strength. Subaru narrowed his eyes, wondering what it was going to do.
"--!"
The hairball grows explosively.
The indoor dog, which was small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, transformed into a dog big enough to fit on the head of a large dog in the blink of an eye -- its mouth dropped open,
"It's a common pattern in manga and stuff, but where does that extra mass come from?"
The question was answered with a roar that shook the forest.
It bounced off the ground with enough force to support its rising body with its two hind legs. Then, Urgarm clasped the claws of its two free front paws together, showing off its claws that looked like they could carve down to bone with a single stroke.
It seemed to have become irritated that every fatal magical blow had been avoided, and as a final attack on Subaru, it had chosen to rip his throat out directly.
However,
"There's no reason for me to go along with that!"
If he remembered correctly, there was no way that the fangs of that puppy - that former puppy - could have reached Subaru's body. In other words, there was no reason for him to take the risk of trying to lift the curse.
If that happens, you should immediately change your route to avoid contact with him.
"--Ugh."
Subaru tried to swerve to the side and withdraw from the front line, but the shadow of a demonic beast, baring its fangs, caught up and ran alongside him, blocking his escape route.
He quickly turns his head in the opposite direction, but there are also multiple shadows there. And from behind him comes the ceaseless sound of countless footsteps stepping on the grass.
"You bastards, you're all smitten by my pheromones... dammit!"
His role as a decoy is perfect. For the first time since being summoned to another world, Subaru has found a calling that only he can fulfill. It is an honorary position that he would spit on and immediately give up.
Once you notice it, you'll be slowed down by the presence that surrounds you. It's likely that all of the Urgarm in the forest have gathered together like this.
It was heart-stopping to think that the goal of all those beasts was to crush Subaru's throat.
Oh my gosh, absolutely.
"You guys, choosing me over the beautiful sisters? Your taste is terrible."
I was shaking with fear and didn't even have time to pee.
With his escape route blocked, the hordes of monsters surrounding him silently forced Subaru to run straight ahead, which meant fighting the giant monster one-on-one.
In front of him, Urgarm's evil expression was contorted into something resembling a sinister smile.
A one-on-one fight that would result in a brutal attack was unavoidable, Subaru concluded resignedly.
—The moment he reached that conclusion, Subaru made the decision to play his trump card.
I put my hand in my pocket and felt around. I felt the sensation of stones. The texture of crushed candy. The unpleasant feeling of sticky fabric. And then,
"Now, all that's left is to believe in Puck...!"
He took it out, popped it into his mouth, and offered up a prayer with all his heart to the gray kitten.
He held the round thing rolling around in his mouth in place with his molars, opened his eyes wide and looked straight ahead.
There was almost no distance left between Subaru and the beast.
In less than ten seconds, our hands are within reach of each other.
That's when it happened.
"--Subaru-kun!!"
I heard it.
Just now, Subaru heard a voice calling his name.
That voice had a terribly sorrowful tone, filled with an inescapable sense of despair, and sounded as weak as if she were witnessing the end of the world; it was clear to him that she cared only for him to live or die - and, unbeknownst to him, he found himself feeling glad.
Even I think this is terrible. I'm a pervert. I'm a traitor.
It's not that he can't imagine how she must be feeling after calling out Subaru's name, but he still found it funny, which made him completely mad.
Realizing that this was an abnormal thought, he laughs, and then his smile fades away.
With his moving left hand, he readied the sword at his waist - the broken one-handed sword - at his hip.
The roar of a demonic beast comes from the front.
Not to be outdone, Subaru raised his voice in anger, as if to chase it away.
Their voices cracked and they let out horrible cries. But they were full of fighting spirit. They glared at each other and clashed soul to soul.
Just before they made contact, Subaru took a deep breath.
Imagine yourself in the exact center of your body.
Focus on the "gate" that connects the inside and outside between your chest and waist, in the area that resembles your tanden, and shout.
"--Shamak!!"
Immediately afterwards, a black cloud appeared, as if it had exploded, centred around Subaru.
With Subaru at its source in the middle, it engulfed all the magic beasts around him, plunging the forest battle into darkness.
※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※
--Within the black mist, a world of incomprehension spread out.
The shape, color, and smell of the world - none of this can be grasped while inside.
The soles of my feet - the only parts that touched the ground were the ones that transmitted a solid, firm sensation. Without them, I would surely have lost all sense of up or down in this darkness.
That I can't see anything. That I can't hear anything. That I can't understand anything.
That means the world is ending.
Understanding that the only thing he knew for sure was what was coming from the soles of his shoes, Subaru's brain was intently engaged in one thing.
That means remembering.
The contents of my mind had been completely taken away by the black mist, but somehow I had to get them back and put into action something that I had to do.
As his foot leaves the ground to move forward, he loses everything in an instant.
But when the other foot hits the ground instead, understanding returns. The truth is only in the sole of the shoe. However, it is no longer clear whether you are really moving forward.
In the midst of his lack of understanding, Subaru was clinging to the one thing he could sense, but his brain was rebelling against his desire for comfort and instead wanted him to fight.
We must recover what has been lost, or else it will be irretrievable.
Again, my foot leaves the ground and incomprehension arrives, then my other foot bites the ground and understanding returns. However, this time it feels somehow unreliable and loose.
Something, what, what, something is missing.
Remember, before the world of non-understanding, the world of understanding.
How did it come to this? Who did it and how did they do it?
For what purpose, for whom, and what should be done to overcome this? Were there any conditions prepared for this?
Remember, remember, remember.
Sparks begin to fly as the brain commands.
But I can't reach it. I just can't grab it. Just one more step, something's missing.
I took a step, but the next one didn't come. My feet stopped. I wondered why they had stopped, but I could tell that there was only weak energy stored in my legs.
For some reason, I hadn't expected that.
If that's the case, then the means must be ready. Remember, act.
If the outside of your body doesn't work, then ask inside. Even if you can't ask the outside, which is shrouded in ignorance, appeal to all of your internal organs, which are constantly acting unconsciously.
Fulfilling your role, the moving parts move, and once that is done, finally――
"----!!"
Suddenly, a burning sensation wells up inside my body.
An uncontrollable passion raged inside his body, and Subaru's throat let out an inarticulate, bestial roar. No, he thought it did. But he didn't know why.
I don't know. I don't know why, but my feet started moving.
My legs have the strength to move again. I move forward. I move my legs in the direction I think is forward.
Understanding, non-understanding, understanding, non-understanding, understanding, non-understanding, it comes and goes, disappears and comes back, disappears and comes back――and then,
※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※※ ※
The moment he broke through the black mist and jumped outside, Subaru received an incredible response.
The impact was so strong that it tore the sword that was clenched in one hand from his arm.
Subaru quickly spun his sight around and, seeing the result of that shock, bit back his shock.
Inside the black mist, the massive demonic beast's head was still stuck in - the one-handed sword Subaru was holding had been thrust deep into its torso.
The unexpected blow brought back a feeling in Subaru's hand that he had never felt before.
The sensation of taking a dull blade and plunging it into the body of a living animal had a greater psychological impact on Subaru than he had imagined.
Subaru had faced demonic beasts twice before, taking their lives as a result. Once was accidental, the second was intentional. However, this was the first time he had taken such a measure that the sensation was clearly left on his hands.
And this gave Subaru a feeling of discomfort that was completely out of place here.
The feeling that I was about to kill a warm creature.
The magical beasts, still living in a world of ignorance, are unaware of the death that awaits them.
Looking closer, the black cloud Subaru had rushed through covered an enormous area, and there was not a single trace of a demonic beast rushing out from it.
Unlike Subaru, this happened without any preparation whatsoever.
Once you have sunk into a world of incomprehension, how can you laugh at the cowardice of those who stop at the sight of your own insecurity?
Unsteady, Subaru slowly took off running, wanting to put some distance between them while he could.
His head felt heavy, his whole body tired. Puck had pointed this out too, it was the effect of Subaru's excessive mana debt caused by using magic when the gate was not fully opened.
The execution of the spell should have normally drained all the mana from his body, causing him to fall to the ground, unable to get up - but Subaru managed to break through that with his trump card.
"...I'll be grateful to you, you brats."
Subaru muttered softly as he spat out the last bit of fruit peel that remained in his mouth.
The fruit he spat out - it was the third time Subaru had tasted it.
Bocco fruit. A doping item that activates the mana in the body, restoring a small amount of strength to a depleted body.
He didn't know where he'd picked it up from, but it was among the useless things the children had given Subaru as he headed off to rescue Rem.
From the moment I confirmed its existence, this plan was vaguely in my mind.
The moment the magic was used, it might be possible to move if one bites the fruit.
It was a gamble that put his life on the line, but which way the scales tipped was proven by the fact that Subaru still had life left in this situation.
He headed in the direction where Ram had clearly stated that there was a barrier.
It was unclear how long Subaru's immature and mana-starved Shamak would last.
There was no way to buy any more time. Anyway, I had to close the barrier a little.
"--a?"
However, Subaru's plan was,
"Y-you..."
Suddenly, a claw strike grazed his right side, causing him to instantly stumble.
A sharp pain notifies him of the bleeding, and Subaru groans in pain and falls to his knees. However, the enemy who had done this will not allow Subaru to kneel.
Stretching out its thick arms and skillfully moving its blade-like claws, it picked up Subaru with ease,
"Dammit."
A mouth suddenly opens up in front of me, and bloody fangs and fishy breath reach my face.
Subaru laughed in awe at the giant demonic beast's delusion,
"You damn it!"
He forcefully pulled out the sword that had been stuck in the monster's torso and slammed it into its open mouth with all his might.
"----!!"
The fatal blow landed inside its mouth, causing the demonic beast to throw Subaru's body away.
Subaru, not letting go of his sword, smashed further into the inside of the monster's mouth with the blade, ripping it to shreds before throwing it to the ground and rolling, leaning forward.
"Ahh! What's the matter, o-okay?! Come on, damn it!"
"--!! --!!"
The demon beast shook its head and turned towards me in a frenzy.
Facing him, Subaru also shook his blood-stained body, and, holding his broken sword in front of him, let out an abusive, provocative voice.
Their blood boils and they can only see each other.
Subaru's plans had been thwarted time and time again, and he had already lost all composure. He couldn't move forward until he had gotten rid of the pest in front of him.
And the same was true for the other side. Unless he killed Subaru, he too would not be able to deal with the ugly emotions that had been building up inside him.
Both sides prepare for battle, and the moment the opportunity arises, the battle begins.
The confrontation between the two beasts, one on the verge of exploding,
"--Ulgoa."
It was interrupted forever by a direct hit from a fireball that rained down from the sky.
"Whoaaa?!"
Covering his face, Subaru's body was blown backwards, engulfed in the impact.
Suddenly, the ground in front of him exploded. The impact was accompanied by high heat, causing further burn damage to his entire body, which was already covered in wounds and in pain.
I'm in a terrible state, with cuts, bites, scrapes, bruises, burns and emotional scars.
"What on earth is going on..."
Shaking his head on the ground where he had been thrown, Subaru raised his head, groaning in pain.
Then, when I saw the scene before my eyes, I was astonished, and I don't know how many times I've seen this today.
The beast's massive body was bursting into flames before Subaru's very eyes.
With its black fur engulfed in flames, Ulgarm shook its whole body in plain pain. However, the more it struggled and screamed, the more the flames grew stronger, and eventually its giant body fell to the ground with a heavy thud.
Even so, he continued to writhe in pain for a while, but that gradually subsided, and in the end he was left lying just as a blackened lump of flesh.
The beast's unexpected end was not the only thing that surprised Subaru.
The fire bullets that had burned Ulgarm to death—they didn't rain down from the sky just once, but continued to come flying in one after another, being shot into the black mist.
Darkness spread, and it was impossible to see from the outside what power the flames had when they hit it.
But one can only imagine the outcome.
That unclean darkness contained a horde of demonic beasts still sunk in ignorance.
They would not even be able to sense the flames raining down on them, would not even realize that their bodies were being burned, and would die without even realizing that their life had been lost.
Subaru no longer knew whether that was mercy or cruelty.
I don't know, butーー,
"Well, well, that's some thought. The Shamak is normally used as a distraction, so to think they'd use it as a landmark instead."
All that was certain was that the person who had brought about this situation that was neither comic nor tragic had appeared, grinning from ear to ear.
His long indigo hair fluttering in the wind, his eyes a mix of blue and yellow, his tall, lanky body wrapped in familiar yet strange clothing, he leisurely descended into the forest of magical beasts.
The master of the mansion. The royal court magician. A useless man who was never there when it mattered most - Roswaal had arrived.
He brushed the hair off his feet as he landed, then shook his long hair down his back and looked down at Subaru,
"Ahh. This is a pretty terrible state."
"You're incredibly slow, Ros-chan. How many times do you think I've prepared myself for death?"
I think one hand probably wouldn't be enough.
Thinking back, Subaru found himself feeling a little down, but his sense of relief made him instinctively sit down on the spot.
"Even so, I'm surprised you knew it was me."
"Emilia-sama had given me plenty of warning in the village. She'd say, 'No matter how reckless or foolhardy it may be, if I'm cornered I'll definitely use magic, so don't overlook me when I'm flying in the sky.'"
"Bear girl... Emilia-tan found out right away."
It seems she was not strong enough to deceive Emilia so that she wouldn't find out.
Considering Roswaal's miraculous intervention, perhaps we should say that all was well in the end.
As Subaru reflected on the situation like that,
"Lord Roswaal--!"
Ram appeared, swaying through the bushes as she skirted the black mist. As she lent her shoulder to Rem, her calm demeanor instantly melted as she noticed Roswaal.
"I'm sorry for bothering you."
"Well, that's fine. Anyway, this happened on my territory. It's my duty to settle things. On the contrary, you did a good job."
Blushing at the words of appreciation, Ram nodded solemnly while clutching her chest.
Glancing at the exchange between the two, Subaru let out a deep sigh,
"--Subaru-kun!"
Suddenly, Rem jumped on me and embraced me, causing me to scream out, "Guh!"
Right in front of me, blue hair was swaying next to my face. This meant that I was being hugged from a very close distance. Normally, this would be a perk of the job and something to be happy about, but
"Rem, right now, various parts of my body...ah, my consciousness and so on."
He seemed to be unable to control his emotions, and the embrace was as strong as he could muster.
His injured body began to cry out in pain, and with his free left hand, Subaru frantically slapped Rem's back to show his pain.
but,
"I'm alive. I'm alive. Subaru, Subaru."
Overwhelmed with emotion, Rem doesn't notice Subaru's reaction.
Pressing his face against her chest, he felt warm drops slowly wetting his chest. A tingly sensation and a jumble of other emotions came over him, exceeding the processing power of Subaru's brain.
In short,
"This pattern again..."
As he spoke, Subaru was no longer able to support his own neck and so he dropped his head.
My consciousness fades away. My voice disappears. Finally,
"You should sleep now. When you wake up, I'll be grateful for all you've done for me. At the very least, I promise to eliminate those who threaten you."
The serious voice, no longer clownish, made my eardrums vibrate.
Feeling a certain sense of security from this, Subaru slowly let go of consciousness.
Just before I fell asleep, I felt the warmth of the thing embracing my body, savoring the things I had finally managed to pick up.
Subaru's consciousness sank into the well of unconsciousness