Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance

Volume 10, Chapter 2 - The Darkness Beckons Invitingly

Part 1

—This person is the Demon King\'s successor.

—We of the Snake have, for a very long time now, looked forward to the child of destiny.

In a dark prison, the young Kamito was surrounded heavily by a group of old men wearing faceless masks.

His arms and legs were completely immobile. Even trying to speak or shift his gaze was impossible.

...He realized he was in a dream.

A dream where one was aware of being in a dream—A lucid dream.

However, Kamito could not wake himself up.

It was as if someone had reached out and dragged him into an abyss of his consciousness.

—Once the plan comes to fruition, our tragic wish shall be realized.

—But it is still slightly too early for him to make contact with her.

—First, the heart of this child of destiny must be obliterated first.

The old men\'s words reverberated in the prison.

(Stop... it... Stop it immediately!)

Countless arms reached out from the darkness, obscuring Kamito\'s vision.

His view went dark. As soon as he opened his eyes again, Kamito found himself suspended in endless darkness.

His arms and legs were tightly entangled and restrained by darkness that felt like mud.

(...What the heck is this?)

It was not the first time for him to be having nightmares about his time at the Instructional School, but none of them were like this one.

—You are the child of darkness, our successor.

An astounding voice sounded within his mind.

(...Who... is it...?)

The voice did not belong to the old men. More alien in quality—an inhuman voice.

—We are the past reincarnations of the Demon King. Our past existences were identical to yours.

Amidst the pitch black mud, numerous skeletons surfaced.

(You are—Nepenthes Lore!?)

That was how the ominous black knight looked, the one whom Restia led around.

(...Saying that I am the same existence as you, what on earth is that about?)

This was a dream. The monster before his eyes was nothing but an illusion in Kamito\'s mind.

Even so, it was imperative to question the monster.

—Sleeping within you, the Demon King is about to awaken.

—You will likely fall to become an existence equal to ours, to become the most terrible Demon King in history.

(...Complete rubbish! I\'m neither going to become the Demon King nor will I become like you guys!)

Squeezing out a voice that could not be described as a voice, Kamito yelled as hard as he could.

Numerous Nepenthes Lores were restless in the darkness, laughing loudly as they disappeared.

At the same time, Kamito\'s consciousness sank into the pitch black mud.

—By the way, Kamito.

Just as he was about to lose consciousness, he heard her voice.

—when I have changed so much that I am myself no longer...

—Kill me.

(Res... tia...!)

Part 2

"Huff, huff, huff..."

Feeling an unpleasant feeling like he had fallen somewhere, Kamito woke up.

His heart was racing abnormally quickly. His body also felt quite heavy with sweat.

The sense of terror from falling into the darkness was still lingered vividly in his mind.

"...A nightmare? Those have been rare ever since I came to the Academy."

Kamito wiped the sweat off his brow and sighed.

Probably due to the series of intense battles, his nerves had become over excited.

At this moment.

"—Kamito, are you okay?"

He heard a cute voice coming from above.

"...!?"

Kamito frantically jumped up.

Turning around, he found a cute little rabbit.

Long lustrous silver-white hair. Clad over her milky-white skin was a tight-fitting, erotic, enameled outfit. Over her legs she was wearing fishnet tights with high heel boots. Behind her was a round fluffy tail.

Most striking of all was the pair of rabbit ears on top of her head.

The legendary sword spirit, who had vanquished the Demon King, was now gazing at Kamito with her mysterious violet eyes.

"Umm..."

Despite Kamito\'s ignorance in worldly matters, he still knew this much.

...This was commonly known as the bunny girl.

The question was why would his contracted spirit be dressed up in this manner—

"...Est, what on earth are you doing?"

"Yes. I am acting as Kamito\'s pillow."

Est nodded expressionlessly.

"Pillow?"

Dressed in her bunny girl outfit, Est was sitting formally in a kneeling position.

...Come to think of it, I was sleeping on the ground and yet my head didn\'t hurt at all.

"Est, were you providing me with a lap pillow?"

"Yes, Kamito. You seemed like you were having a nightmare."

Est must have been quite worried as she watched Kamito experiencing a nightmare. However, rather than wake up Kamito who was exhausted, she chose to give him a lap pillow instead.

"Thank you, Est."

As Kamito stroked her head, Est half-closed her eyes in enjoyment.

"...But why are you dressed as a bunny girl?"

"Even if it\'s you, Kamito, I feel embarrassed if someone touches my bare legs."

Est remained expressionless despite the blush on her face, answering in a whisper.

...I see. For some reason, this sword spirit was immensely ashamed of exposing her legs. Even though it was just her lap, letting Kamito rest upon them must have been quite embarrassing for her. Hence, instead of wearing her usual kneesocks she chose fishnet tights instead.

"...Then what about the rabbit ears?"

"Yes. A rare opportunity."

"...I see, a rare opportunity."

"Yes."

...Oh well, if she simply wore fishnet tights with nothing else, it would be rather troubling after all.

"Kamito, are you unhappy with this getup?"

The rabbit ears she wore on her head were swaying slightly apprehensively.

"No, umm... I-It\'s very cute!"

Kamito frantically followed up with a compliment.

"..."

The rabbit ears jumped in joy.

Although Est remained expressionless as always, it was much easier to read her emotions from the rabbit ears on her head.

(...Hmm, this is quite convenient. Wouldn\'t it be nice if she wore them all the time?)

Just as this joking thought crossed his mind—

"...Strange?"

Kamito suddenly realized.

...Muir was missing.

"Est, where did Muir go?"

"When I woke up, she was already gone."

"...?"

Kamito surveyed his surroundings.

The fire of the spirit crystal still provided lighting within the shrine.

Kamito could not have slept for too long a duration.

"Where did that girl go?"

She could not have left the shrine alone, right? Even for Muir, without a militarized spirit for her to command, wandering alone in this abandoned city was too dangerous.

—At this moment, Kamito\'s searching gaze stopped at a certain spot.

Beside where Kamito had been sleeping, for an instant, something flashed.

"This is..."

Approaching for a closer look, Kamito found a tiny red stone rolling there.

As the symbol of Team Inferno, it was a magic stone carved with an emblem of snakes and flames.

Magic stones had to be kept on one\'s person. Once separated from the body for a certain length of time, Leap magic would be forcibly triggered.

The placement of the stone implied that Muir had retired from the Blade Dance by her own volition.

"Muir..."

Muttering softly, Kamito picked up the magic stone.

Clearly he still had so much more to chat with her about—

"Kamito?"

"...Oh, it\'s nothing."

Nodding, Kamito placed the magic stone into his uniform pocket.

(...Muir, you\'re not some kind of Monster but a noble elementalist.)

At this moment, the sound of frantic footsteps came from outside.

"...What\'s going on?"

Kamito instantly readied his stance and looked towards the entrance.

However, as soon as he recognized the girl\'s figure in the darkness, he relaxed his guard.

"K-Kamito-san!"

Rinslet rushed into the shrine.

She was probably in the middle of purification when she made her way back, for her platinum-blonde hair was still wet.

\'Rinslet, what happened?"

"Her Highness the imperial princess is nearby... Hey, w-what are you two doing there?"

Rumble rumble rumble rumble rumble rumble rumble rumble...!

Rinslet\'s gaze was cast behind Kamito\'s back.

Obviously, that was where bunny girl Est was located.

"A-A misunderstanding... B-By the way, what happened actually?"

Kamito inquired hastily, prompting Rinslet to recall all of a sudden.

"Her Highness the imperial princess is currently engaged in battle nearby against the Knights of the Dragon Emperor."

"...Fianna? I got it, let\'s go immediately."

Kamito stood up, holding Est\'s hand.

"Est, I\'m sorry we have to do this so soon after recovering, but I\'m relying on you."

"Yes, I am your sword, your wish is my command."

The pair of rabbit ears quivered slightly.

Next, Est transformed into a massive sword shining with silver-white light.

Part 3

"Huff, huff... I hate this, such a hassle!"

As fireballs rained down upon the roads in the ruins, Fianna was panting as she ran away.

Hiding herself amongst the shadows in the collapsed wasteland, she kept diving into blind spots in the flying dragon spirit\'s overhead view.

"...!"

Suddenly, the nearby ground shook, forcing Fianna to stop running.

The wall in the ruins she was using to hide herself began to crumble, producing a cloud of dust and dirt.

"...W-What?"

Peering at the road from behind a stone pillar, she found a large earth dragon appearing out of the darkness.

Like the flying dragon elementalist in the sky, this was also one of Dracunia\'s dragon knights.

(A terrible situation...)

Fianna hid behind the stone pillar once more and bit her thumb.

Although an earth type tyrant dragon spirit was unable to fly, it possessed excellent sensing abilities.

It would most likely discover Fianna if she continued to hide like this. But as soon as she left the ruins she would be found by the flying dragon spirit from the air.

Unable to summon her contracted spirit, Fianna was currently a sitting duck.

(...I still have three of those blinding flash stones.)

It was quite inconceivable that the renowned Knights of the Dragon Emperor could be shaken off her trail using little tools like these.

(How could I allow myself to be eliminated in a place like this...)

Fianna reached her hand towards the sword hanging at her waist.

The demon sword of darkness that Claire had entrusted to her—The Vorpal Sword.

(...I promised her, I will hand this sword to Kamito.)

Walking carefully to avoid making a sound, Fianna cautiously bided her time for an escape opportunity.

Surprisingly, this opportunity arrived quite quickly.

The sound of wind tearing through the atmosphere apart was heard.

Instantly, the wings of the flying dragon spirit circling above were sliced apart!

The flying dragon spirit spun as it fell.

The tyrant dragon elementalist\'s attention was drawn to that direction.

(Now...!)

Fianna had no idea what was going on, but undoubtedly this was a rare opportunity.

She instantly jumped out from behind the stone pillar and ran along the road.

"You—!"

The tyrant dragon elementalist sensed Fianna\'s presence.

At the same time, Fianna tossed out two blindingly bright spirit crystals in one go.

An explosive flash instantly dyed the pitch black night into white.

"Guh...!"

Taking advantage of the opening, Fianna hid behind the pillar again.

Looking up, she found two knights engaged in an intense blade dance with sparks flying and scattering.

The clashing weapons rang out acutely. A girl familiar to Fianna was enveloped in strong winds as she engaged the single-winged flying dragon spirit in an aerial battle.

"...Ellis!"

The ponytail fluttering in the wind and that stern figure undeniably belonged to no one but her.

Wielding Ray Hawk in her hands, she intended to follow up the surprise attack just now with a ferocious offensive.

This was no coincidence. She must have arrived as reinforcements, knowing Fianna was near.

ROOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAR!

"...!?"

At this moment, an angry dragon\'s roars shook the land.

The tyrant dragon spirit on the ground had started to destroy the wall of the ruins where Fianna was hiding.

(...If this continues, these ruins will collapse!)

Fianna produced a magical glow from her palm and jumped out from behind the pillar.

Possessing night vision, the dragon spirit instantly spotted Fianna and charged with a great rumbling.

However, Fianna calmly chanted spirit magic—

"Those of small stature, go forth and dance in the moonlit night! —Fairy Flare!"

Fianna released numerous spheres of light towards the charging tyrant dragon spirit.

Being the only light source in the darkness would of course make one the perfect prey, but it was a completely different matter when numerous glowing objects were present.

Mixed amongst the irregularly dancing little spheres of light, Fianna\'s figure once again disappeared into a back alley.

"Huff, huff, huff..."

Weaving through the winding path, she reached a place surrounded by a gloomy and creepy forest.

Once here, even the flying dragon spirit would find it difficult to spot her from the air.

(...!?)

A sudden chilling sense of terror caused Fianna to halt in her steps.

Immediately, a massive object flew past, right before her.

Crash—A heavy shattering sound was heard.

As the stone tiled cracked open, a huge hole was opened up in the ground ahead.

"...!"

Fianna was instantly scared frozen.

The object that had opened up a hole in the ground—a massive wrecking ball connected to a chain.

"...Hey, your instincts are not bad. To be able to escape this Morningstar."

Clack—Accompanied by a heavy sound, the iron ball and chain were pulled back.

Fianna turned to find a girl standing on top of a collapsed stone wall.

A petite girl with her dark brown hair trimmed neat and short.

Wielding a massive wrecking ball in one hand, she looked down at Fianna.

She was dressed in a red uniform with white trimmings.

"The Sacred Spirit Knights..."

Fianna groaned with despair.

...Backed into a corner, only to find herself targeted by yet another team.

"Belonging to team Stahl Loewe of the Sacred Spirit Knights—Alda Reed."

The girl announced her name loudly and swung the chain nimbly.

"—Hand over the demon sword of darkness in your possession immediately."

The giant wrecking ball was launched again—!

(...!)

Just as Fianna closed her eyes, in that very instant—

Clang——!

A clear metallic sound rang out through the dark night.

"...Eh?"

A voice of surprise escaped from Fianna\'s lips.

"At least I made it."

Slowly, she opened her eyes.

Only to find him standing before her.

The young man wielding the Demon Slayer with dazzling brilliance.

"Kamito-kun!"

Fianna opened her dusk-colored eyes.

Part 4

"...Sorry for my delay."

Shielding the collapsed Fianna behind his back, Kamito turned around and said to her.

Due to his forced entrance, the arm he used to deflect the wrecking ball was now slightly numb.

"Kamito-kun... How did you know I was here?"

Surprised rather than relieved, Fianna asked with astonishment.

"Rinslet and Ellis told me. Also, I saw the flash from the spirit crystal."

Rushing to the battlefield, Kamito and Rinslet had separated to look for Fianna.

Seeing the intense burst of light, he tried to rush over here and succeeded in finding her as expected.

"...Kazehaya Kamito. The elementalist who defeated our second squad Stahl Wölfe huh."

The wrecking ball-wielding girl glared at Kamito with contempt.

"Are you a member of the Sacred Spirit Knights?"

"Alda Reed. Luminaris-sama\'s right hand."

The iron ball and chain rattled loudly.

"If you retreat instantly, I\'ll let you off for now. I\'m sorry but you\'re no match for me alone."

Kamito shrugged and declared.

Although his divine power had not recovered completely from the battle against Valaraukar, a single opponent was no problem at all. So long as he restricted Est\'s power, he should be able to blade dance for several minutes.

"I appreciate your goodwill, but the Sacred Spirit Knights never let prey get away from them!"

"...!"

Alda Reed yelled as she launched the wrecking ball at Kamito.

Kamito jumped and dodged. Like a dance, he leaped continuously in the forest.

The shining Terminus Est traced out a trail of light in the darkness.

Against the background of the night, the chain twisted and turned like a snake. In this forest with poor visibility, trying to read its changing trajectories would be challenging—Indeed, that would be the case for a typical elementalist.

(Compared to Claire\'s whip, these trajectories are way too crude.)

Jumping between the trees, Kamito instantly read the chain\'s path.

Dodging the endlessly swinging chain by a paper-thin margin, he engaged the girl on the wall in close quarters—

Only to see Alda Reed\'s lips twist slightly.

(—Oh no, I made a mistake!)

Kamito suddenly realized.

Her target was not Kamito—

"This is your weakness. Male elementalist."

The chain\'s trajectory changed dramatically in midair, making its way to behind Kamito, towards Fianna who was watching the blade dance from the ground.

"—Fianna!"

Fianna had not even noticed the incoming attack. There was simply no time to dodge—!

Kamito threw his sword towards the air, stepped on a tree to perform a somersault, instantly squeezing the most out of his leg muscles—jumping over.

The Instructional School\'s combat skill Thunderclap—making use of god-like speed, Kamito rushed before Fianna and blocked the wrecking ball\'s attack with his arms crossed.

"...Guh, ahh...!"

The impact made his body feel like it was about to fall apart. The sound of bone shattering rang out.

"Cough...!"

"—Kamito-kun!"

Fianna frantically embraced Kamito from behind as he collapsed on one knee.

Although he had enveloped his body in divine power beforehand, blocking an elemental waffe barehanded was too excessive.

(...That wrecking ball is completely materialized.)

The Blade Dance was not about mutual slaughtering without rules. Under normal conditions, elemental waffen were required to be kept in an astralized state, unable to cause physical damage to the body—

The thrown sword fell before Kamito after spinning several rounds in the air.

Spitting bloody froth, Kamito clutched the Demon Slayer with a trembling hand.

"...I misjudged you. To think the Holy Kingdom\'s knight would resort to such underhanded means."

"I am not so arrogant as to think I could defeat you in direct combat."

Playing with the Morningstar which had returned to her hand, the female knight spoke coldly.

"Besides, Luminaris-sama\'s instructions were to destroy the demon sword of darkness—"

"Demon sword...? What on earth is that about—Guh...!"

Kamito coughed blood again.

(...This is bad.)

Sweat appeared on his forehead. The impact just now probably damaged his internal organs.

"Kamito-kun, let me perform healing magic right now."

"Don\'t, it\'s unfortunate but the enemy won\'t give me time—"

"Of course!"

Alda Reed yelled as she threw the Morningstar.

Dodging was not possible. The target was not Kamito but Fianna.

"You...!"

Still about to move the Demon Slayer with one hand, Kamito swung it upwards in one breath.

The sword\'s edge deflected the heavy iron ball. If used at full strength, Est would probably have sliced the wrecking ball into halves. But currently, simply deflecting the attacks was already taking all of Kamito\'s strength.

"Hmph, how much longer can you last with one arm!?"

"Tsk...!"

Kamito clicked his tongue as he deflected the wrecking ball again.

...Indeed, he could not last long like this. Since the enemy\'s target was Fianna, he could not leave this spot.

"Fianna, hurry and summon Georgios—"

"I am unable to summon at this time."

Fianna shook her head at Kamito\'s call.

(...Well, that makes sense on further thought.)

The fact that she had not summoned her contracted spirit in a situation like this already indicated her inability to summon.

Did she exhaust her divine power or did the spirit suffer too much damage and had to recover?

In order to break out of the current situation, their only hope was waiting for reinforcements from Ellis and Rinslet who were fighting the dragon knight in the air—

(...They\'re in a desperate struggle too.)

The faint sounds of weapons clashing could be heard from afar.

The enemy was a member of the Knights of the Dragon Emperor, a regular competitor at the Blade Dance. Furthermore, they were fighting a flying dragon elementalist whose top specialty was aerial combat. Only through teamwork were the two girls barely able to keep up with the dragon knight.

From the way it looked, Kamito could not expect any reinforcements within short time.

—At this moment, the sound of trees falling could be heard from behind.

"...What now!?"

Turning back, Kamito found amidst the collapsed trees a massive ground dragon!

"A tyrant dragon spirit...!"

"You are the Knights of the Dragon Emperor\'s prey!"

Riding the viciously roaring dragon was a girl in a military uniform who looked down at him.

"Kazehaya Kamito. Deceiving Leonora-sama is a severe crime!"

"What are you talking about!?"

"Talking is useless, prepare to die!"

The ground dragon roared viciously and swung its massive front limbs.

Kamito hastily used his sword to block the attack, but—

(...W-What is with this monstrous strength!)

Tyrant dragon spirits were unable to fly, but instead possessed overwhelming strength.

Even someone like Kamito could hardly block its attack with one hand.

"...Take—This!"

Even so, Kamito released divine power in his legs and endured forcibly.

However, if this continued, Fianna would be crushed behind him—

"How foolish. To even dare try beating a combat-type tyrant dragon spirit in a contest of strength!"

"Guh... Oooh..."

With a frightening roar, the tyrant dragon spirit concentrated all its weight on its claws.

Kamito\'s feet sank deeply into the ground as he fell upon his knees.

(...Guh, if she wants a battle of strength—)

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Kamito infused the Demon Slayer with maximum divine power.

Releasing dazzling brilliance, the sword sliced through the tyrant dragon spirit\'s hard claws.

"What!?"

The female dragon knight faltered.

(Success—!)

Continuing the momentum from slicing the claws, Kamito chopped towards the tyrant dragon spirit\'s neck—

"...Kamito-kun!"

In that instant, Kamito was struck in the flank, sending his entire body tumbling to the side.

"Cough...!"

His vision began to spin. His body struck a stone wall.

"Fufu, how helpful of you to seal his movements."

"You... Bitch...!"

The massive wrecking ball pierced Kamito\'s abdomen deeply.

"...How shocking to think he managed to take on the Morningstar\'s attack."

"Kazehaya Kamito is my prey. Stop interfering!"

"Ara, the one who started making a move on other people\'s prey is clearly you."

Faced with the furious dragon knight, Alda Reed shrugged.

"Kamito-kun, pull yourself together, Kamito-kun...!"

...He could hear Fianna\'s cries. The voice was getting more and more distant and vague.

Color swiftly faded from his face. Many ribs were broken—

(...Damn it, my consciousness... is..."

Warm light enveloped Kamito\'s entire body.

Fianna was probably casting healing spirit magic. But its effects hardly amounted to a drop in the bucket. Kamito\'s body repelled holy spirit magic.

"Fianna... Hurry... Flee...!"

"I won\'t let you have your way—"

Alda sent Kamito flying with the wrecking ball again.

Sparks flickered. As his body was struck into the air, Kamito\'s consciousness suddenly dimmed.

(...D-Damn it... In this kind of place...)

Just as Kamito fainted, he reached out involuntarily.

—Hurry and awaken, Kamito.

He heard the voice of her whom he longed for.

Part 5

(...Eh?)

Resounding in his mind was a comforting voice—

(...Could it be Restia?)

Opening his eyes slightly, Kamito felt intense pain all over his body.

"...-kun, Kamito-kun...!"

Thrown on the ground, Kamito could hear Fianna\'s desperate cries.

Then did the voice Kamito heard just now belong to Fianna instead of Restia—?

(...No, that\'s not right. I couldn\'t possibly have recognized her voice wrongly.)

Kamito searched for signs of Restia in his view.

—Then he noticed for the first time.

A one-handed sword hanging by Fianna\'s waist.

(Could that be the Vorpal Sword!?)

There was a reason why it took him this long to notice.

The sword\'s body was blacker than night, seeming as if it melded into the darkness.

Although there were slight differences in its shape, it was without a doubt the demon sword of darkness Kamito once wielded in the past.

(...Why would Fianna be carrying Restia?)

Just as this question struck Kamito.

—Clang. A sudden intense pain.

This was not the result of external injuries. Instead, this was intense pain coming from inside as if his head was being torn apart.

Then—

—If you wish to obtain enough power to protect what is precious to you, Kamito, then go on and awaken.

Once again, he heard that voice.

Coming from inside his skull, her whispers—Rather it is a voice very similar to hers.

Bathump, bathump—Kamito felt his heart beating intensely. It was as if all the blood in his entire body was boiling.

—A great power lies dormant within you. I can release this power.

(...Wha...t... Who on earth, are you...?)

Bathump. Bathump. Bathump. Bathump. Bathump. Bathump.

His blood was boiling. All the muscles of his body began to convulse. His bones creaked noisily.

"Ah... Guh, ah, ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

"Kamito-kun, what\'s the matter—uwah!"

Kamito roared and suddenly knocked Fianna away from his side.

"Fian...na... Stay away from me, fur... ther...!"

"Kamito... -kun...?"

Bathump. Bathump. Bathump. Bathump. Bathump. Bathump.

As the heart beat drove his sanity mad, Kamito\'s consciousness was consumed by darkness.

—Very well, the time to awaken has arrived. Demon King Ren Ashbell.

Then, it awakened.

Part 6

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh—!"

Out from Kamito\'s throat came a roar like a beast\'s.

"What!?" "What is going on!?"

Kamito suddenly stood up, causing the two elementalists to widen their eyes.

Wielding the Demon Slayer, he stared at the tyrant dragon spirit ahead of him with a hollow gaze.

Instantly, the massive spirit stepped back as if fearful of Kamito despite its greater size.

"Impossible! That body should not be able to move—"

The female dragon knight yelled with an expression of disbelief.

However, her sentence which resembled a scream was not finished.

Instantly closing in, Kamito swung the Demon Slayer.

The tyrant dragon spirit\'s massive body was instantly sliced into two.

Its body cut into halves, the tyrant dragon spirit dissipated into the air.

"...Eh?"

The dragon knight who had been riding it fell to the ground, immobilized in shock.

She seemed like she had not understood what just happened.

"...No way... Right? With one hit, a tyrant dragon..."

Raising his great sword, Kamito ignored her and continued.

Dangling one broken arm, he advanced forward like a specter.

(...What is this power?)

The calm part of his mind puzzled.

Chopping apart the tyrant dragon spirit just now came undoubtedly out of his own will.

Driven by the impulse to destroy, he had swung the Demon Slayer.

(What on earth, am I... Guh...)

In opposition to his lingering shred of rationality, his boiling blood yearned for battle.

"...W-What... What on earth is going on!?"

Standing on the wall, Alda Reed could not help but waver, her voice trembling.

Clear signs of fear appeared on her face.

Kamito slowly turned towards her and leaped from the ground.

"Yee—"

Alda\'s face distorted out of fear—

"Y-You... Go and diiiiiiiiiiiiieee!"

She launched her elemental waffe, the Morningstar.

The iron chain flew haphazardly through the night sky.

However, its complicated motion looked as though it was standing still in Kamito\'s eyes.

Releasing divine power from his toes, he accelerated—Running on the wildly dancing chains themselves.

Alda\'s face was consumed with disbelief. As if she were saying how could this be possible—!

"Ah, ahhhhhhhhhhh!"

Entering a complete state of fearful panic, she swung the chain randomly.

But it was merely a futile struggle. Kamito ran as if his feet were attracted to the chain.

The Instructional School\'s special combat steps, the Demon Spider—a technique that allowed one to stick to a surface by wrapping the soles of the feet in divine power.

However, this was a technique intended for moving through narrow passages and was not supposed to work on a wildly dancing chain. Truly god-like in execution.

Kamito jumped and landed lightly on the wall where Alda was standing.

"Ah, ahhh... Ahhhhh..."

Alda Reed loosened her grip and dropped her elemental waffe, falling to her knees.

The tip of the sacred sword pointed to the girl as her mouth opened and closed.

—Indeed, the sword was thrust towards the enemy.

Her voice resounded in his mind nonstop.

Unable to resist the impulse, Kamito raised the sword with his trembling hand.

"O-Oh... Ohhhh, oh...!"

(...No, I can\'t...!)

Freezing his posture with the sword raised, Kamito stopped his movements.

The opponent had already dropped her weapon and stopped resisting. Swinging his sword at an opponent like that was not allowed. However—

—No need to hesitate. You are the Demon King.

—Commit atrocities as you desire, violate as you desire, destroy as you desire.

(...I am the... Demon... King...)

...Clang. Clang clang clang clang.

His head began to hurt again.

Every time her voice resounded in his mind, his rationality was gradually swallowed by the darkness.

"I... must... Ah, ahhh, ah... Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

Just as Kamito was about to swing down the Demon Slayer—

—Kamito!

The weight suddenly disappeared from his hands.

"...!?"

Losing balance, Kamito fell over forwards.

Poof—The one who caught him was a girl with silver-white hair.

Her petite body embraced his injured body tenderly.

Her fine hair bushed against his face.

"Es...t...?"

Kamito muttered hoarsely.

His sanity recovered just as it was about to be devoured by the darkness.

"It\'s okay now, Kamito?"

Est embraced Kamito\'s back lightly as she whispered.

Alda Reed of the Sacred Spirit Knights had completely lost all will to fight by this point.

Part 7

Enshrouded by the silence of endless darkness—

The darkness spirit girl could feel a slight pulsation.

(Kamito, are you there?)

—Indeed, he was by her side.

However, her words could not reach him.

The connection of the spirit contract had already been severed. Even if Kamito were to take up the demon sword that Restia had transformed into, it was already too late.

(Kamito, do not listen to my voice, I have already—)

But her voice could not be transmitted no matter what.

Thus her lamentations were devoured by darkness, disappearing into space.