Chapter 9
Chapter 9
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: A Girl's Bonds and Sprint Never Stop☆ (5)
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Alvitt untied the hostages in the cargo hold, then calmed the trembling, panicked group.
“Th-thank you.”
“It was nothing. Please wait here while I go check the surrounding area.”
She barely acknowledged their thanks before turning to leave in a hurry.
*Senior…!*
Clara, who had been with her just moments ago, had set aside her bizarrely named bicycle, ‘Red Hare,’ and dashed off somewhere.
The delinquents’ hideout, which they’d reached after a long chase.
The moment they arrived, Clara had run off, saying she would find the students the dwarf from the shopping district had seen.
From what Alvitt had seen of Clara so far, her ability to improvise and make judgments based on the situation was outstanding. Not to mention, she was incredibly fast.
For someone considered weak, it was the perfect talent for survival.
*So I doubt she’ll get hurt in some foolish way, but…*
Still, she couldn’t help but worry.
It had only been a little over three days since they’d started living together.
Clara was a senior who cared for Alvitt without expecting anything in return.
A foolish senior whom she could no longer treat as a stranger.
That was why Alvitt had been about to head in the direction Clara had gone.
Lotha, who had been trying to stand up in a corner of the cargo hold, stumbled and fell with a thud.
“Kyaaah…!”
“Are you alright?”
“Y-yeah… I was just a little startled by the suddenness of it all, so my legs gave out. Thanks. And you, you’ve been using a ton of ether this whole time. Are you okay?”
“Oh, my skill barely uses any ether. I don’t know why, but it’s the type that just activates when I swing my sword.”
Lotha flinched in surprise at her words.
She mumbled, her small lips moving as if she wanted to ask something, but she ended up changing the subject.
“Anyway, thank you for saving me. I don’t know what school you’re from, but I’ll be sure to repay this debt. Could I ask for your name?”
“I’m Alvitt, from Central Prism Academy. And I didn’t do this alone…”
“Huh? Someone else came with you? To a dangerous place like this?”
“Yes, my senior. In fact, she’s the one who brought me here.”
“I see. Thank you both. My name is Lotha. I’m a first-year who attended… well, I dropped out of Public Vana Boarding School.”
*Droop…*
Remembering her situation, Lotha let her two cat ears hang low.
“…I’m envious that you have such a reliable senior at your school. I mean it.”
“…Yes.”
She always says the strangest things.
She’s somewhat unreliable, but sometimes, she’s an incredible help.
That strange senior.
*Oh, right. I have to go find her.*
Startled, Alvitt once again turned to leave the cargo hold to search for Clara.
“—Hey.”
“…?!”
“…?!”
Alvitt and Lotha stood at the exit of the cargo hold.
A delinquent was glaring at them with murderous eyes.
In the quiet darkness of the abandoned buildings, her eyes shone with a fierce light.
“Where do you think you’re going in such a hurry? After making such a mess of my territory… sending my subordinates flying… and now you’ve ruined my source of income? Dammit, I’m already in a foul mood because that lizard bastard took off as soon as he got what he wanted.”
She was a delinquent with a rough, fierce impression, like a scorpion emerging from the sand.
“And now the main culprit who ruined everything is… right in front of me. Makes me want to kill you.”
Her tone was like a growl.
Sharp teeth were visible in her twisted mouth.
Her school uniform was tattered where the emblem had been violently torn off.
Her greatsword was heavily nicked, which only made its killing intent feel stronger.
Red ether was already blazing and surging from the delinquent’s jagged greatsword. She was different from the riffraff they had faced until now.
Alvitt and Lotha couldn’t help but tense up.
“Is that…?!”
“Looks like she’s the leader.”
Because…
The ether surging from that greatsword…
Was displaying the second stage, [Vibrating Ether].
*Thump—*
*Thump—*
*Thump—*
Not yet fully realized.
Irregular and incomplete, but…
The ether from the rough greatsword was [Vibrating] like a heartbeat.
The leader of the delinquents.
The biker gang leader with her raw ether aimed her greatsword and declared.
“Give up any thought of leaving here alive.”
Her voice was laced with bloodlust.
She was serious.
*Dammit…*
Alvitt lamented inwardly.
She thought it would all be over once they freed the hostages and escaped.
She never expected to run into the leader here.
*Clara-senpai…!*
Clara, who was wandering around alone.
Lotha, standing silently beside her.
And the trembling hostages behind her back.
The responsibility for everyone’s safety weighed heavily on Alvitt’s heart.
At that moment, Lotha’s small hand gently pressed on Alvitt’s shoulder. And ether spread out from it.
Lotha’s ether, like her fluffy-looking cat ears, was warm and gentle as it enveloped Alvitt.
Alvitt’s eyes widened as she looked at Lotha.
“Lotha…?”
“[Ether Link]… It’s my skill.”
Lotha raised the standard-issue wand from Public Vana Boarding School that she carried in her pocket. It was small and light, but the golden beast pattern engraved on its surface spoke of their arrogance.
*Fwaaaah—!*
A faint ring of ether formed between Alvitt and Lotha.
Their senses were shared, and Alvitt’s proficiency with ether manipulation multiplied several times over.
It felt as if someone was right beside her, punching a calculator for her.
“…!”
Alvitt could feel it instinctively.
As long as this ring was maintained, she could use the stage of [Vibration] that she had only been incompletely aware of.
And indeed…
*Thump—*
*Thump—*
The ether from Alvitt’s sword began to [Vibrate].
“Wh-what is this…?”
“Through [Ether Link], I can take on the burden of your ether operation calculations. It makes your skills faster, too. The downside is that the skill’s ether cost for you jumps by more than ten times, but… you should be fine, right, Alvitt?”
“…!”
With her small frame, Lotha elegantly aimed her wand at the enemy before them.
“Ether operation calculations are my specialty, so I can support you with my [Basic Ether] attacks in between.”
She could only assist others.
She couldn't even explain the detailed principles of her own ability.
Even if she was called ‘incompetent’ in the world of mages, where one was expected to shine on their own.
“For this moment, we are ‘one’.”
“Yes…!”
Lotha didn’t back down.
And so.
Their fight began.
***
“Guhaaaack—!!!”
“Hiyah—☆”
*CRASH—!*
*CRASH—!*
*CRASH—!*
I grabbed the guy’s face and repeatedly slammed it into the floor. The hard skull of the guy, who had been grabbing my hands and resisting for a while, began to give way, the sensation of it crushing traveling up my arm.
*CRASH—!*
“Huooooock—!!”
“Hmm? Were you just trying to use [Wave Ether]—? Trying to use a level 50 skill in a main story area with a recommended level of 1—?”
This guy had the gall to play the part of a sinister mastermind while watching my juniors fight.
And he was the one who orchestrated the event that, in the game, would have left Alvitt with a permanent sense of guilt buried in a corner of her heart.
I grabbed the ‘Apostle’ by the scruff of his neck and slammed him into the floor with enough force to shatter him.
*CRAAAAASH—!!*
“No can do—☆”
To be honest, the fact that he tried to fight back was more annoying than his actions in a game that hadn’t even happened.
“Grrrrr…!”
“Ah—☆ I know, I know—☆ That cliché where a mid-to-late game boss suddenly pops up in the early story—☆”
The more his skull caved in,
the more he instinctively tried to assume his ‘Dragon’ form,
so I had made sure to break his horns before the fight even started.
Blood dripped from the remnants of the horn, its pale core exposed like a tree branch snapped in a typhoon. That’s why all he could do was glare at me endlessly with his vertical pupils.
With his head pinned by my hand, the guy was sprawled helplessly on the floor. His green blood trickled out, pooling in the crater I had made.
*CRASH—!*
I slammed his face down into it.
With a *splash—*, the green blood scattered in the shape of a crown.
A primal pleasure, like splashing around in a mud puddle.
“Wow—☆ This feels great—!! So much fun—☆”
It was a pure joy, like cracking thin ice on a winter day.
The perfect way to vent my frustration on cowards who live by sucking others’ ether.
“You…! How dare you… Ratatos… kr… ugh!! An Apostle!!! How dare you touch!!!”
“Yes, yes—☆ , <ratatoskr>, I know all about it—☆”
“You…!! How do you…! Guhaak!!! The Priest!! The Dragon… will… you!!”
“I know there’s an Apostle and a Priest☆ I’ll get to that part of the story when it’s time—☆”
*CRAAAAASH—!*
The guy desperately tried to spit out some foreshadowing-filled lines.
But since they were the type to crawl out of the woodwork when the time was right anyway, I just continued my fun while praying for my juniors’ success.
*Alvitt and Lotha have compatible personalities and skills. They’ll become fast friends.*
They would probably become good friends here, too.
With that thought, I slammed the guy’s head into the floor one more time.
*CRASH—!*
“Huuuck—!”
His eyes had rolled back, his horns long since broken.
Each slam was satisfying, and I could hear his breath catching with a gasp each time.
Perhaps because he was a kin of the ‘Dragon,’ the toughest boss?
Since I was beating him with pure physical force without any big techniques, he was lasting quite a while for a mid-boss.
*If I use a major technique, the sound will travel outside and distract the girls…*
Filled with concern, I kicked him upwards as if playing hacky sack.
*WHOOOOOSH—!!*
I felt something inside him snap, like a dry reed breaking inside a leather pouch, and heard the sound of it breaking.
*Oops, that might have been a little loud. But they’re busy fighting, so they probably didn’t hear it, right?*
Sensing my juniors’ awesome fight through their presence was moving.
*Crack—!*
*Drip…*
“Ugh… guh…!”
Something must have been badly broken, as blood was flowing from his nose and mouth. With his horns broken, he couldn’t transform into a dragon, and his incomplete healing kept him from even passing out.
“Ugh… eh… ugh… bweup…”
“Oh my—☆ He’s broken. Hmm—☆ Couldn’t even last five minutes at a girl’s tea party? We still have so much to talk about—☆ If you get tired and give up already…”
I kicked him upwards again before he could fall back to the ground—
*Fwoosh—*
—and as the ‘Dragon Apostle’ floated serenely in the air, I kicked him away.
“…what a shame—☆”
*BOOOM—!!*
With a sound like a drumbeat, the guy flew off, his body bent into a U-shape.
And when he reached the wall…
*Crash!*
*Crash!*
*Crash!*
*Crash!*
…he smashed right through it and flew far into the distance.
A makeshift tunnel punched through in the shape of his massive body.
Beyond it, the ‘Apostle’ lay collapsed like a water sack.
He was still alive.
I decided to grant one last mercy to the distant figure.
I stretched out both hands and took a deep breath.
*Haaaa—*
I steadied my breathing.
And brought my hands together.
*Pop—*
*Pop-pop—*
A heart made of red ether appeared.
One.
Two.
And then countless red hearts gathered.
I brought them all together in one place, making them resonate.
*Thump—*
*Thump—*
*Thump—*
A swarm of hearts, moving like a pulse.
[Vibrating Ether].
The second of the stages.
A way of understanding the world, specifically concerning ‘resonance.’
*Thump—*
*Thump—*
*Thump—*
The endlessly pulsating hearts
slowly condensed,
becoming a glowing red sphere.
Of my three secret techniques, this was the very first one I created.
[Red Flower Dazzling].
I threw it at him.
The red sphere flew in a straight line, gradually changing its form as it shot forward.
A blooming flower bud.
The resonance of countless hearts.
And what finally blossomed was—
—a light of destruction.
*Fwaaaaaah—!!*
“Ugh… ah…!!”
It was weaker than [The Pink Spiral].
And for that reason, it was a flower of death with a quiet, simple beauty.
The petals of the heart-flower flowed out from the condensed bud.
[Red Flower Dazzling] silently ate away at his body, making him disappear.
“…”
At last, silence returned.
I lightly stepped back upstairs.
“…!”
Beyond the window he had been watching from.
I saw Alvitt and Lotha, exhausted but smiling and shaking hands.
And the leader of the delinquents, tied up and unconscious.
***
*Clink—*
*Clink—*
“…”
The warmth at her back.
A glimpse of pink hair at the edge of her vision.
The darkness of night, chased away by the faintly brightening dawn.
This was the scene before Lotha’s eyes as she sat on the back of the bicycle, her back pressed against Clara’s.
*What a long day.*
There was so much to clean up.
They tied up all the delinquents who were passed out nearby.
Then Alvitt took the former hostages to the shopping district in the large truck and contacted each of their schools.
By the time all of that was over, the morning sun was beginning to rise.
“…”
“…”
With no school to return to, Lotha had decided to impose on Central Prism Academy for the time being.
But since Alvitt had volunteered to stay behind and protect the students,
the only way for Lotha to get to Central Prism Academy was to ride a bicycle with this pink-haired senior she barely knew.
*Alvitt doesn’t really know the way either, but for some reason, I just click with her.*
Perhaps it was because of the memory of fighting together.
“…”
“…”
An awkward silence continued.
A single question broke through it.
“Lotha~ what’s your dream—☆”
“…What?”
“Lotha is a wonderful girl—☆ Hehe, you must have a beautiful, wonderful dream, right—?”
Senior Clara.
Alvitt had told her about her, but this was truly out of the blue.
It was like she had a flower field of about 100,000 square kilometers in her head.
“…”
But perhaps because she had been up all night,
and her mind was fuzzy and honest,
Lotha found herself meekly answering the absurd question.
“To be able… to empathize with and use… all magic… all skills…”
“Wow—☆ What a wonderful dream—☆”
An affirmation without a hint of doubt.
First Alvitt, and now her. It seemed Central Prism Academy was full of people who were kind to a fault.
*Hah.*
*Honestly.*
*Does she even know what she’s agreeing to?*
*Probably just trying to break the ice without knowing a thing about magic—*
*Grumble, grumble.*
Lotha grumbled endlessly in her mind.
But she had to admit that the unhesitating kindness from Alvitt and Clara…
was something she had longed to receive from someone, just once, over the past four years.
It was that kind of feeling.
And so.
She couldn’t stop a single, silent tear from falling.
“…”
It’s a good thing I’m facing backward.
So this clueless senior can’t see me crying.
As Lotha thought this, she looked up at the sky.
In the direction the bicycle was heading.
Chased away by the bright dawn.
Beyond the faint darkness, a small morning star twinkled.
“…”
*“Lotha, you too… will make friends who support your dream.”*
For some reason.
It felt as if the star was blessing her to move forward on a new path.
Lotha closed her eyes, her heart at peace.
“…”
The wind that was slowly picking up and the sound of her pink-haired senior’s breathing.
Feeling the warmth from her back.
She advanced toward the morning sun.
*‘Central Prism Academy’… Maybe I should give it a try.*
That was the thought in Lotha’s mind
just before she dozed off.