A Canvas Dyed Red
The blood spread slowly. Against the green surface already mottled with the monster’s shredded flesh, bright red pigment bled outward in a grotesque painting. Watching it, the first thought that rose in Ellyse Bertman’s mind was She held on well until now. It was not some pessimistic or self-mocking reflection. Ellyse had not given up hope.
Everyone acknowledged Inspector Ellyna. Surely a woman like her would survive. That inhuman Ellyna Bastard would simply shrug off a hammer blow to the skull and rise again. She would leap to her feet to scold the suddenly berserk Thomas, shouting at him in that loud, teasing voice of hers. After all they had been through today—after all the monsters they had killed to survive, after all the giant beasts she had slain single-handedly—there was no way she would die now. …There was no way she would die to something as trivial as a hammer.
She repeated the mantra, desperately brainwashing herself. Yet no matter how fiercely she denied reality, the scene before her refused to change. Inspector Ellyna remained sprawled on the ground, red blood pooling beneath her. So much blood could come from a human body. Despite having walked through dozens of gruesome scenes, Ellyse realized the fact anew. And then she accepted it.
There was no shepherd left in this place. Ellyse Bertman acknowledged that no one remained to guide her steps. She had been abandoned. From now on she would have to find her own path to survival. She would have to stay alive, no matter what.
Yet the road ahead looked utterly hopeless.
“……Inspector? ……Inspector Ellyna? ……Why did Inspector Thomas…?”
Aidan stood frozen, bewildered by the sudden betrayal. He could only stare with trembling eyes at Thomas clutching the blood-smeared hammer and at the fallen Inspector Ellyna. He had been standing right beside her, yet he had done nothing—no counterattack, no defense. Fool.
“……Aha ha ha! I… I killed Ellyna? Ha ha! That Ellyna Bastard? Me?!”
Thomas let out a deranged howl of laughter, truly unhinged. He kept glancing between the hammer in his hand and Ellyna at his feet, cackling as though nothing in the world could be more delightful. Then his face suddenly twisted with arrogance. Whether he was remembering his gambling debts, the daughter held as collateral, or the direct superior who had constantly ridiculed him, it was impossible to tell. All that mattered was the rage that erupted from him.
“All because of you! Because of you!”
Crunch! Crunch! He stomped on the corpse at his feet—the closest and most suitable target for his fury. Yet the anger refused to subside.
“You said I had no thoughts?! That I had no brain?!”
Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! He trampled without mercy—back, head, legs, arms, waist—anything within reach. He simply wanted to. With an expression of pure ecstasy, Thomas ground beneath his heel a person he would never have dared challenge in ordinary times.
“Aha ha ha! Look who’s talking! You stupid bitch! That’s what you get for acting so high and mighty!”
Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! Crunch!
He kept stomping. The red blood pouring onto the floor swelled like water from a pump—slowly, steadily.
“…….”
Ellyna’s blood flowed on, eventually reaching Ellyse’s feet. Staring at the madman, she suddenly felt her head burning. Perhaps her chest was boiling over. Ellyse Bertman bit down hard on her lip and tightened her grip on the pistol.
Logically, she should aim for Slain, the enemy’s leader. But she could no longer stand the sight before her. With a metallic click, she trained the gun on the traitor Thomas Mardens. She did not know the exact reason for his betrayal, nor did she need to. Because of him, everything had been ruined. Ellyna was dead. His very existence was repulsive. It filled her with rage. So she turned the muzzle.
With bloodshot eyes fixed on the lunatic, Ellyse pulled the trigger.
Bang!
The bullet flew true, slicing through the air before embedding itself in its target.
Thud!
At the sound, Thomas froze mid-turn. Without warning, something enormous now stood directly in front of him.
“……”
Ellyse Bertman gazed in blank despair at the result of her final shot. The bullet had struck another creature. And only halfway at that.
Creak!
The monster’s white armor, as if molded from clay, writhed and spat out the half-buried bullet. The creature that had somehow appeared to shield Thomas in front of her laughed.
—…Grrrk-grrrk!
Pure white armor covered its entire body. It stood well over three meters tall. Unlike the other specimens, its face showed vivid, changing expressions. Horns rose from its head and a tail lashed behind it. It had transcended humanity entirely; it looked like a demon. The creature raised one hand and waved at her, as if in greeting.
That simple gesture filled Ellyse with crushing despair. It was intelligent.
“Isn’t it beautiful?” the scientist said with a radiant smile. Only then did she notice an identical entity standing beside him, gurgling softly as it kept guard. “Mix in a dozen or so wretched lives from the back alleys and something like this masterpiece emerges. Truly remarkable, isn’t it? A new horizon for the human race.”
What human race? No matter how she looked at it, the thing was a monster. Ellyse ground her teeth and glared at Slain Pavlov’s face.
Slain seemed delighted by her reaction. His smile brightened further. “Yes, praise me more! Tell me I am devoting myself to humanity! That I am writing a new chapter of history! That the police department would dare raid the laboratory of a genius making such groundbreaking discoveries!”
“……You madman.”
“Oh dear, such high praise. But how much did you actually know? I wondered why the entire Western District had been sealed. You suddenly appear in our lab, yet your reactions suggest you came knowing nothing at all.”
Muttering to himself, Slain stroked his lips while glancing back and forth between Aidan and Ellyse, as though weighing something.
At that, Inspector Aidan suddenly snapped back to his senses. His eyes flashed. “I’ll tell you everything! I surrender!”
At the absurd declaration, Ellyse whipped her head toward him and glared as if she would kill him on the spot. Had monsters not surrounded them, she would have charged over and struck him. As it was, she could only glare.
Yet Aidan seemed completely unmoved by the fierce gaze of a fellow officer standing at a distance. The monsters that might pounce at any moment terrified him far more than any angry look.
He swallowed hard, over and over, waiting only for Slain’s answer.
Slain Pavlov regarded Aidan with faint amusement, then smiled gently. “Sorry. One mouth is enough for speaking.”
“……Pardon?”
“I don’t know how the current operation is proceeding, but one hand is enough to manipulate events. Therefore, there is no need for you to surrender.”
“……Then why…?”
Aidan’s face went slack with confusion. He could not understand why Slain had looked at him with such apparent consideration.
With a perfectly clear expression, Slain pointed at each of them in turn. “The one with the cute face—I’ll cut off his head and turn it into a taxidermy piece. As for the young lady, she seems rather intelligent. Shall I extract her brain and make use of it?”
Either fate was horrific. Aidan’s face drained of color once more.
Ellyse Bertman, furious at his spinelessness, shouted, “Stop daydreaming and grab your sword, you idiot! If you want to live, get your head on straight and hold your weapon!”
At her words, Aidan clumsily but firmly seized his blade again. The gesture carried no real threat. Slain merely chuckled.
“……Puhahaha!”
Thomas, now thoroughly accustomed to the monster standing before him, trusted the creature and laughed loudly at his former comrades. He was drawing comfort from the moment. Look at those pathetic fools. How wise he had been to strike before Ellyna noticed. Betraying Slain the instant he saw him had been the greatest decision of his life. He no longer cared what happened next. He set his fear aside and simply savored the present.
I can do this.
If she pulled herself together, she could survive. Repeating the thought like a spell, Ellyse steadied her mind. She had not yet abandoned hope. Although two fighters had been lost from their side, the number of monsters had also decreased sharply. It was still possible. Aidan was unreliable, but she believed that if he regained his senses they could somehow manage.
…She had no choice but to believe it.
Ellyse Bertman discarded the empty pistol and took up the sword—her only remaining means of defense. Thin and short compared to the monsters, the blade had nevertheless carried her this far. She resolved to succeed. She leveled the weapon at the white demon-like monster standing before Thomas.
Kill that one first.
Once she dealt with it and Thomas, she could link up with the separated Aidan. They might be able to endure.
—…Grrrk-grrrk?
That was what she believed.