The throat quakes, and a roar echoes through the dark forest.

An explosion of inarticulate sounds, neither “ah” nor “oh,” just meaningless noise without purpose.

Even though it emanated from his own throat, Natsuki Subaru could not find reason or meaning in that act.

Red lights suddenly attacked from all directions.

As they approached, they began to take shape, revealing that a beast clad in pitch black, baring its fangs, was pouncing toward him.

There was no time to recognize the trembling of his legs, the fright of his heart, or the scream of his soul.

What filled Subaru’s mind at that moment was not the overwhelming emotion of the manifestation of ‘Death’ before him, but the concern for the girl lying just behind him.

He widened his stance, stretched out his hands, and positioned himself as a shield to prevent the claws and fangs of the beast from reaching her. It was not a conscious decision; his body just reacted on its own.

If his spirit had prompted the beast to back down easily, perhaps he would have been saved. However, the reality looming before him was merciless, and such sentiments were meaningless in the face of wild, beastly urges.

—It was ending, and just when he thought he could finally grasp the whole picture.

Once again, he lacked strength. Again, he couldn’t reach.

No matter how much his heart struggled against submission, pure physical powerlessness robbed Subaru of options. Was this situation destined to remain the same?

“――――――――ッ!!”

He roared as if to reject despair.

That alone, he thought, must not succumb to any light approaching before him, and with sheer force of will, he made a show of bravado, blustering like a mere prop—before the fangs bit into his throat.

—He witnessed the head of the beast burst like a fruit before his eyes.

The close-range assault splattered blood everywhere, and Subaru was drenched in the fresh blood from head to toe. Immediately after, the body, deprived of its head but still propelled by momentum, crashed into Subaru, knocking him backward. He tumbled, shaking his head in pain and discomfort from the blood.

What the hell just happened—

“Sorry to be late— I’m glad I made it in time!”

With a graceful flutter of her skirt and a playful pinch of her white apron dress with one hand, she held a wicked iron ball in the other as a girl with blue hair descended into the abyss.

She turned, took a gentle step forward, the sound of chains ringing as she approached,

“I thought we agreed to strictly focus on buying time?”

“I did my best! I bought so much time! I did it with the mindset that it was fine to defeat them! And the result is this, thank you so much!”

Subaru, literally prostrating himself in gratitude, faced Rem, who was ringing a high-pitched sound with the morning star’s chain.

Out of the corner of her eye, Rem leisurely regarded the front—observing a horde of beasts, looking savagely eager as they set their sights on new prey.

Those beasts that had been so aggressive toward just Subaru turned cautious at the sight of the petite girl joining him. They did not underestimate the fact that one of their own had been slaughtered in an instant.

It was something Subaru had already guessed from the earlier encounter; contrary to their fierce appearance, those beasts were quite clever and shrewd.

“Rem…”

He called out gently to the steadfast figure in front of him.

With a tone noticeably more serious, Rem did not turn around but released a sigh.

“I rushed over to follow your dreadful body odor and your ridiculously loud screams and found this state. You’re not in a good condition, are you?”

“Calling it a dreadful body odor is a bit much. And also, I have no awareness of what I was shouting earlier, but I’d love to hear about it in detail.”

“If Rem feels like it. And if they allow it, I could tell you everything in great detail.”

Pointing with the iron handle to the front, Rem seemed almost to provoke the creatures with the dangerous light in her eyes. While Subaru felt a chill of fear, the beasts her hostility was directed at looked anything but calm. Their previously indifferent gazes now expressed clear readiness for combat and the urge to pounce.

“Well, that seems impossible.”

“—Rem!”

Unable to hold it back, Subaru called Rem’s name at a scream-like pitch.

At the front of her, two beasts launched an assault, drawing nearer. Just as they were about to close the distance, they split left and right simultaneously.

If he had been in Subaru’s position, he might not have had any idea which way to focus and could have easily been torn apart by their poisonous fangs.

However,

“—Shh!”

The right arm holding the iron handle waved casually, as if swatting away a bug. The chain attached twirled along with the handle, carrying the iron ball right behind it.

What should have been a cumbersome weapon spun with astonishing speed, sweeping away everything on its path. It struck the body of one beast directly, sending it soaring in two, scattering bones and entrails, turning it into fertilizer for the forest unbeknownst to anyone.

Then, the counterpart of the one killed in an instant unleashed all of its anger, striking with sharp claws toward Rem’s exposed left side—just before that, her left fist crashed down onto the beast’s snout from above, sending it crashing into the ground. The force of her fist caved in its skull, killing it instantaneously.

It was a breathtaking display of skill. However, the gruesomeness was far from picturesque.

Words of praise were far from reaching Subaru, who could only watch with wide eyes, helpless to react to the slaughter taking place before him.

He thought he understood Rem’s destructive power. Yet, it became clear that he only thought so.

“Y-You’re so strong!!!”

“That word might not be appropriate for a lady, Subaru-kun.”

“With my limited vocabulary, this is all I can come up with to express the situation right now. Seriously, you’re amazing.”

Witnessing Rem’s incredible capabilities surpassing all expectations, Subaru leaped up and returned to his original position.

As he crawled back, he checked on the girl lying down. In that dire moment, even now in danger of losing her life, the girl continued to sleep, blissfully unaware.

“Well, how carefree and thickheaded. She’s definitely going to grow up to be a lively and resilient child!”

He admired her deep slumber, lifted the small body with his aching arm, adjusting his grip to avoid losing her light weight.

“Rem, are you able to wipe them out all by yourself?!”

“Numbers alone make it a losing battle, and we’re gradually losing.”

“I figured as much. Then…”

With the girl still in his arms, he moved beside Rem.

The movements of the remaining beasts had slowed after losing two from their ranks. They were huddling low, as if watching intently, their threatening gazes glinting, yet they found no opportunity to act. If they had attempted a swarm strategy based on numbers, Subaru and Rem would have been doomed.

However, they misjudged caution for cowardice, causing their best decision to turn against them.

Therefore, Subaru and Rem almost simultaneously locked eyes on the same point.

“There!”

At Subaru’s shout, Rem’s strike responded in kind.

The iron ball cut through the air, heralding slaughter. It hit its mark perfectly, exploding just before the cluster of beasts—a cloud of soil and dust erupted, and the downpour of earth obscured the view of the beasts for several seconds.

“Now!”

At Rem’s next shout, Subaru kicked into motion, as if propelled forward.

He aimed for a breakthrough at the point where the enclosed area had just cracked open—

As he dove into the gap, one beast snarled, jumping to intercept him again, but—

“—Woah, that noise gives me trauma!!”

The gentle sound of chains brushed past his ears as he ran.

As if recalling a previous moment of terror, a chill ran up Subaru’s back. Next to him, the iron ball exploded, blooming a vivid flower of blood in the night forest.

Leaving behind the fresh blood, he stepped onto unstable ground, diving into the depths of the forest, leaping over roots and brushing branches against his cheek as he shouted,

“Rem, I don’t know the way!”

“Straight ahead, right in front of you! Once we break through the barrier, it’s over! But until then, don’t lose your direction!”

Even though he was told to go straight, the front felt anything but certain.

He had not expected the darkness to so warp his sense of direction. Even attempting to move forward, he found his hands occupied by the weight of the girl.

Naturally, cautiously navigating around obstacles ahead, Subaru was forced to curl his body to minimize the impact on her.

He was running out of breath. Was he losing his way? Would he get caught? Were they surrounding him?

Anxiety clouded him as the nagging fear steadily drained his spirit.

The feeling in his left arm dulled, and the unceasing bleeding dripped from his shirt, pooling at his feet to create the illusion that it was leaving a trail for his pursuers.

He ran, he sprinted, and he continued to escape.

The same scenery passed by, and a sensation enveloped him that he hadn’t moved an inch. Despite knowing that’s not true, the feeling of impatience pushed out that notion.

As that sense of weakness burgeoned within him, and his knees threatened to give way—

—The sound of chains swirling behind him acted as a stimulant for Subaru.

With every ring, he gritted his teeth and stared ahead.

As he ran, it was thanks to Rem. She was eliminating external threats and continuously guarding his back so he could live through this shameful escape.

Now that he had exposed himself this much, he decided to throw caution to the wind and claw desperately for his survival.

“Damn it! My side hurts like hell!”

With a yelp, he lifted his spirits and pushed forward.

Forward, forward!!

Then suddenly, the darkness before Subaru parted.

His vision expanded, and at the unexpected sight, he squinted. In the distance, he saw artificial lights flickering.

“Rem! There’s light! People… We’re almost at the barrier!”

With the literal emergence of hope, Subaru turned his head back to share his jubilation.

However, what he saw made his eyes widen in shock.

Behind him, Rem, who had fought desperately to protect him, looked far too ravaged.

Her well-tailored maid outfit was torn in multiple places from claws and teeth. Numerous deep gashes marred her bare white skin, and her once-vibrant blue hair was disheveled, utterly drenched in blood to the point that her original color was indistinguishable.

“Rem—!”

“Keep running! …While Rem is still Rem!”

Subaru’s caring voice was cut off by her fierce command from behind.

He couldn’t accept it. Nevertheless, he binary headed toward the barrier, shaking off hesitation.

Every ounce of sentiment would have to wait; once he passed through the barrier—

“What the…?”

Despite determining to push forward, his resolve was instantly shattered by an unexpected sight.

Subaru’s gaze was fixated on a small crystal shining right next to the towering tree that governed the barrier. The small shadow crouched low, almost parallel to the ground.

As he got nearer, the outline became clearer, causing Subaru’s eyes to widen further.

It was an unmistakably small figure, one that could be easily cradled with both arms, with fur as soft as dandelion fluff—a size incomparable to larger beasts, that he knew too well.

—It was the puppy beast that had guided Subaru back to the village.

“Didn’t expect to see you again… But even I can brush aside a small thing like you!”

If it intended to serve as a barrier, it lacked the weight to stand against him.

If it thought to act as the final obstacle for this escape, then it had crossed into foolish territory.

That very thought of Subaru was about to be dashed,

“Impossible…”

As an overwhelming torrents of mud surged forward, engulfing the very image before him.

The realization of how foolish he had been hit him like a ton of bricks.

Time slowed, and Subaru understood this was a reprieve granted by the fleeting threat of death.

Amidst this swirling atmosphere, he belatedly remembered what Rem had said before entering the forest.

—Beasts are external enemies possessing magical power.

Not those who can use curses. No, she specified that they possessed magical power. This meant they could wield magic as well.

“Oooooooo—!!”

He lunged to the side, attempting to halt his forward momentum. However, it was pointless. His body tripped, losing balance, and the torrent was closing in on him. There was no way to dodge, and to be engulfed would mean an explosive feast of dirt and rock would shred him apart in an instant.

Everything seemed lost.

The moment that thought crossed his mind, Subaru braced himself to throw the girl out of his arms, but was instead blasted sideways, thrown through the trees.

“Ughhh!?”

He was struck around his right side, the impact threatening to rupture his insides. He was flung in an upside-down disarray, curling his body to protect the girl just before crashing against a thick trunk, feeling his breath caught as he fell to the ground.

“Gah! Ugh… It hurts!”

Gasping in pain, he lifted his face.

And then he caught sight of Rem being thrown high into the air, blasted by the mud flow.

Having received an exuberant welcome from the rubble, her small body danced gracefully like leaves. Spraying blood, that image starkly differed from the one before. It was clear she had sustained serious damage.

Down she fell, without being able to brace herself, landing heavily against the ground. The only fortune in this situation was that the earth churned up by the debris had softened her landing, sparing her head from total destruction.

Now, faced with this situation, even someone as dense as Subaru could grasp what had happened.

It had been Rem who had pushed him aside, sacrificing her time to dodge the torrent. And now she bore all of that impact for him.

Of course, there was no way his mere body could withstand such a force, and it was pointless if that made Rem the victim instead.

“Rem, you idiot! Why would you— I can’t—!”

Just as he was about to shout out why, Subaru’s spine froze.

Likely, she had felt the same ominous sensation. The beast that unleashed the mud, and the pack that was chasing close behind stopped dead in their tracks.

A foreboding sensation struck. A thick presence of ‘Death’ lingered heavily in the air.

—Slowly, Rem’s body, which had collapsed, began to rise.

Despite taking such a brutal assault, there was not a hint of injury to be seen on her as she stood. On the contrary, wounds that should have been there were closing rapidly in front of him, emitting astonishing healing power that vaporized blood into a red mist.

And then, Subaru saw it.

The look in her eyes as she scanned the surroundings, void of rationality.

Her face stained with fresh blood morphed into an ecstatic grin, and most frighteningly—white horns sprouted from her head, where her hairpin had come undone.

“Ahaha, ha ha ha—”

Her laughter rang, a cruel sound reminiscent of a child, a twisted echo of raw savagery.

Whirling around, Rem surged toward the horde. Before the lead beast could react, her heel crushed its neck. With a single blow, the beast was finished off—she then delivered a powerful kick to its body to deter any others from advancing. One after another, the remaining beasts that stood still were struck down by her morning star—her chain storing deadly potential in a mace form, each swing yielding fresh blood and corpses.

“Beasts, beasts, beasts—Witch!!”

What was most terrifying was Rem’s eyes, which had lost their reason, but her sanity remained intact.

She immersed herself in the surge of ferocity and yet did not lose her grasp on the circumstances. With overwhelming power, she unleased some grudge that had been smoldering within her.

Blood splattered, skulls were crushed, and intestines and brains were scattered throughout the forest.

Subaru knelt, forgetting his pain as he became captivated by the scene.

Right now, he lacked the courage to voice a sound. If he did, and was caught in Rem’s chaos, he felt he might actually be killed, even if that was nonsensical.

This may not have been a misunderstanding; Rem truly looked as if she had gone off the deep end.

She was—

“A demon.”

No matter how much blood she bathed in, those white horns remained unstained.

On the crown of her head, they shone brightly, proclaiming her existence.

Subaru was overwhelmed by the situation.

However, unlike Subaru, who was frozen, the beasts would not simply wait to be slaughtered. The paralyzed beasts gradually gathered around Rem, and little by little, they began to scratch and pierce her body with their claws and fangs.

The initial numbers of the pack were augmented by additional beasts that had joined mid-chase. The number they had slaughtered must have surpassed the initial group, and yet the red lights floating in the dark remained inexhaustible, constantly springing forth.

“No matter how powerful she is, there’s no way she can hold off against this endless swarm…”

As the situation fluctuated wildly, the base level of disadvantage for Subaru and Rem remained unchanged.

Subaru, who understood this objectively, cut off his stream of thought as he sensed the elevated presence of mana.

Mana was starting to concentrate again—over by the puppy’s location.

Mana in the atmosphere began to gather there in droves, distorting his vision. It felt as if he could sense the swirling mana. Rem turned to address the threat with her blade poised—the hand that had just carved through the beast’s vital organs—pointing toward the puppy. But—

—The pack saw their chance and pounced toward her back all at once.

“———!”

A flicker of unease washed over her, even in her volatile state. The situation was likely beyond anything she could comprehend.

Emotions returned to her eyes once devoid of reason, and for a moment, the blood-spattered smile cracked, revealing the face of a sorrowful girl.

—Oh, she can also make that expression, Subaru thought amid the whirlwind of feelings.

“—GAAAAAHHHH!!!!”

The excruciating pain from her crushed left arm forced a scream from Subaru’s throat.

In the next moment, he felt the fangs sink into his right leg, left side, and back simultaneously. His vision turned crimson. The pain became indistinguishable from pure agony. His ankle shattered. Flesh was ripped away from his side. Blood poured out. Gushing out. What a waste. Blood and flesh.

“Subaru-kun—!!”

He heard a voice that echoed like a scream.

As he tried to lift his face to where the voice came from, his body had lost the freedom to move. His balance faltered. The opposite ankle, too, fell apart, and the wounds harmonized perfectly. He collapsed to the ground, grimacing as fangs approached, threatening his throat. They were about to smash into him, sandwiched between the iron ball and the ground. Blood splattered. Was it his blood, or—?

His consciousness threatened to slip away. He couldn’t comprehend what would happen if he faded away.

Life was leaking from him. How stupid of him, he thought. If he let “do-over” become meaningless, how absurdly counterproductive that was.

It hurt, it was painful, it felt distant, nothing was visible, nothing was audible, life was eroding away.

From the gaping wound in his side, life dripped away like sand from an hourglass.

He was disappearing, it was ending—everything, I…

“Don’t die, don’t die, don’t die—!”

A voice tinged with tears.

A sob.

I—.

 

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