Three Successes
With lips trembling so hard they refused to part, I finally managed to open them only after sorting through every thought racing through my head.
"That's right. Before I die, I want Nero to reconcile and join hands with the person she once saw as an enemy."
"Nero? Is that the cat's name?"
She showed more interest in the name than in my sudden declaration, and I felt oddly grateful for it.
"I gave it to her. After all, I'm her master."
"Ah, master...? Pfft. How funny. So you just abandoned your original master and ran off."
Judging by voice alone, it might have sounded like an ordinary conversation. The sweat pouring down my face could have been blamed on the scorching heat around us. But none of that was true.
I had already found the single possibility hidden inside her earlier words. Even as cold sweat streamed down my back from sheer tension, the surrounding heat kept the moment from feeling too awkward. I was still doubting whether this was the right choice, still terrified, but it was far too late to stop. There was no turning back now.
"If you're curious... I could tell you."
"No need. I'm not interested."
"..."
Step. Step... Step. Stop.
The sound of her footsteps ceased. She had closed the distance until the glowing dagger in her hand was close enough to pierce me the moment she chose to strike. Still, I positioned myself in front of Nero, shielding her with my body.
The woman smirked as if the sight amused her. Strangely, that only eased my fear. At least for now, her eyes were fixed solely on me.
"...Before the end, may I say one last thing?"
"Of course. Just make sure the scream is as loud as possible."
That request carried no trace of sarcasm. It was genuine. From the very first moment we met, I had been facing someone whose personality was utterly unhinged.
A long, shaky sigh escaped me.
"Hoo..."
I had already brushed against death several times today. This time would be the last. Whether I fell here or clawed my way through once more depended entirely on this single moment.
So I refused to give up.
"Now!!"
"...Huh?"
The instant I forced the shout from my throat, I hurled myself straight at the woman holding the blade to me.
Clang!
Her goal had been to keep me alive as long as possible so she could wring out screams of agony and use them to torment the Field Team Leader. Because of that, she dropped the dagger without hesitation.
Thud!
Instead, her trained body moved with terrifying speed. A solid elbow crashed into my temple, sending a violent jolt through my skull.
Her decision to kill me slowly had backfired in the face of my unexpected charge. This was the first success.
Thud...!
"...! What the hell are you—?!"
Through ringing ears and spinning vision, I dropped to my knees. Only then did she notice that Nero, who should have been behind me, had vanished. Realization flashed across her face and she spun around.
I had hidden Nero to give her time to turn invisible using what little power she had left—just like she had once slipped past surveillance cameras during her escape. While I played the part of a desperate shield, Nero had already reached the fallen Field Team Leader.
The woman could never have known that Nero once viewed the Field Team Leader as an enemy. She also could never have guessed that my oddly specific final words had instructed Nero to take the woman's hand and reconcile. She believed my ability only forced emotional connections. The idea of a second power had never crossed her mind.
Tok.
Nero's small paw touched the Field Team Leader's hand. The last traces of the woman's strength flowed into her. Nero immediately collapsed beside her, but it no longer mattered.
This was the second success.
Yet I knew it still wasn't enough to change the ending. I needed to show her something even more unexpected.
"..."
Still on my knees, I stared at the dagger she had dropped. It remained buried upright in the floor, glowing red-hot.
Chiiiii...
Gradually my double vision cleared. The blade came into focus.
This would be the third and final success. Only I could do it.
She had mocked me earlier for the emotions she had felt when I climbed to the rooftop to save the Field Team Leader. Everything I had done since then had been built on that single fact.
The reason she had felt short of breath. The reason she had hesitated to kill her target of revenge. All of it made sense. Anyone connected to me through my ability experienced not only my emotions but my five senses as well—happiness, sorrow, calm, pleasure... and pain.
"...Gulp."
What was I hesitating for?
Even now I could see the woman preparing to burn Nero alive with her flames.
Chiiiiiik...!
Fwoosh...!
"Kyaaah...!!"
I seized the burning hilt with both hands. The stench of scorched flesh rose instantly. Flames and smoke burst from my palms as agony unlike anything I had ever known exploded through me. The blow to my head was forgotten in an instant.
"Kuh... Uwaah..."
Still not enough.
From the special training with the Field Team Leader, I already knew the absolute quantity of pain would be transmitted equally. If she was used to suffering, if her mind was strong enough, even pain that felt like it would kill me would be useless to her.
What I could endure, she could endure too.
Then—
"...?! Hot...?"
Through the haze of agony, I forced the connection open once more. Startled by the sudden heat in her own palm, the flames she had been about to unleash wavered and scattered before they could reach Nero.
But my turn wasn't over.
"Wait...! No! Master!!"
Nero's wide eyes turned toward me. I hadn't been able to tell her what I planned to do next.
I'm sorry. But nothing had changed since the moment I met that female student today. Nero was family. If two of us had to die, then I alone would die to save the both of them. That was the only right choice.
Thud!!
Chiiiiiik...!!!
Fwoosh...!
When pain exceeds the human limit, even screams fail to form properly. My mouth tore open in a broken, choking sound that barely counted as a cry.
I drove the glowing dagger deep into my own stomach without hesitation. The sensation of my body bursting from the inside was joined by agony so vast it instantly crossed the connection.
The woman reacted at once.
But it still wasn't over.
"No...!! Master!!"
Thud...!
The flesh around the hilt had melted and fused to my hands. I couldn't let go even if I wanted to. Gritting my teeth until they cracked, I twisted the blade half a turn inside me.
"...Ah... ugh..."
The overwhelming flood of pain severed the connection between us. By then, however, she had already received the same torment. Her body gave out and she stumbled.
Nero's voice stretched into a long, distant wail. My vision darkened, then turned white—perhaps red. It didn't matter. I was finally moving away from the heat and the agony.
In that fading sight, I saw the Field Team Leader rise unsteadily and deliver a decisive strike to the red-haired woman who had left herself open. Only then did I allow my eyes to close.
The world fell silent.
That was the last success. The third one. The one that saved them both.