Time stops, is this how it feels?

At the entrance of the alley, like the men from earlier, a girl stands alone.

She was a beautiful girl.

With long silver hair reaching her waist tied up in one, her intelligent eyes pierce through and gaze at us. Her soft features contained both beauty and innocence, creating a precarious charm that hinted at nobility.

She stood about one hundred sixty centimeters tall. Dressed in a dark blue outfit devoid of extravagant decorations, its simplicity instead accentuated her presence. The only noticeable feature was the embroidery of a crest resembling a “bird close to a hawk” on her white coat. Even that grandeur seemed merely an accessory to the girl’s beauty.

“I cannot overlook any further misconduct. —That’s enough.”

Once again, words were woven from her mouth, sending a shiver of awe across my body.

Her voice, like silver bells, pleasantly struck my eardrums, and the words she spun held the power to resonate within others’ hearts.

Forgetting my own situation, Subaru was simply overwhelmed by her presence.

And the same went for the men.

Faced with her palpable hostility, the previously zealous expressions vanished.

The man with the knife paled and began to back away from the dead end.

“Wait, wait, wait! Please! I don’t know what’s going on, but let’s let this one go! Just spare us…”

“You’re very forthright, thank you. If you return what you stole from me now, you can still make amends.”

“I already apologized… Wait? Stole?”

“Please. That item is precious to me. I can let go of everything else, but that one is absolutely non-negotiable. —For now, I don’t intend to take your life.”

Her words, tinged with a plea, ended with a distinctly boiling anger.

The girl’s gaze was sharp, and the hand she extended grasped nothing.

However, everyone in that place could feel the beginnings of something difficult to articulate gathering there.

“W-wait! …Uh, I think we’re misunderstanding each other here?”

“…What is it?”

Pointing at Subaru, who was being kicked by the men,

“Uh, well, we’re not here to save this man, right?”

“…What a peculiar-looking person. Is this a case of infighting? I’m not impressed by a three-on-one… But to be asked if it concerns me, I can only say it’s unrelated.”

Thinking she was being sidestepped, her tone mixed with irritation.

Perhaps feeling anxious from her demeanor, the men hastily offered their explanations.

“W-wait! If this isn’t our goal, we’re separate from that! If it’s about theft, it’s probably that girl from earlier!”

“Y-yeah, that one! She kicked off from the wall and escaped across the rooftops!!”

“Go deeper! Beyond there! At that pace, she must have passed through at least three streets by now!”

With the men’s continuous excuses, the girl’s gaze intertwined with Subaru’s.

Confronted with the question of whether their words were true, Subaru inadvertently nodded, forbidden from lying.

Having witnessed this, the girl reluctantly nodded in understanding, “Hmm…”

“It doesn’t seem like a lie. Then, the thief is on the other side of the alley…? I need to hurry.”

Turning her back to us, the girl headed toward the alley’s exit.

The men visibly relaxed. Meanwhile, Subaru cursed his own foolishness for missing an incredible opportunity.

But—

“That said, this is not a situation I can overlook.”

As she turned back and pointed her palm at Subaru,

From that palm, projectiles were launched at the standing men.

The speed was major-league, and the trajectory was a classic beanball.

Three loud thuds rang out as the hard balls struck flesh, sending the men flying with pained yelps.

The ice chunks that hit the men landed with a high-pitched sound next to Subaru.

A fist-sized ice block—an object that disregarded the season and physical laws disappeared as it completed its role, dissipating into the air.

“—Magic.”

The word that escaped my lips was the most suitable term to explain the phenomenon I just witnessed.

There was no chant or anything, but the ice had been produced and launched from the girl’s palm.

Having witnessed it unfold right before me, I realized something.

“That’s less fantastical than I imagined… it’s disappointingly real.”

I had envisioned light scattering or energy bursting forth, but in reality, a clumsy block of ice had suddenly appeared and suddenly vanished. There was none of the emotional resonance I expected.

“You’ve really done it now.”

Putting Subaru’s thoughts aside, the damage to the men on the receiving end was severe.

Two men, wobbling feet, struggled to stand. One fell unconscious from a bad hit, but the other two were bloodied yet still upright. Another man besides the knife-wielding one gripped a rusted machete, ready for combat.

“Doesn’t matter if she’s a mage or what! We’re gonna beat you two to a pulp! Do you think you can win at two-on-one, huh?!”

The man holding the knife shouted angrily while pressing his bent nose with one hand.

In response to the taunt, the girl showed no sign of flinching.

“Well, you’re right. Two-on-one might be rough.”

“Then, would two-on-two be fair?”

Jumping in like a sequel to her, a high androgynous voice shook the alley’s atmosphere.

Surprised, Subaru’s gaze wandered. The same reaction was seen in the men. There was no sight of the person who had spoken, either at the entrance of the alley or within it.

Confused, Subaru was too bewildered, as the girl raised her left hand.

With her palm turned upward, atop her white fingertips lay “that.”

“If you look at me with so much hope, it’s embarrassing.”

As she said this, a shy grin washed over her face, revealing a little cat perched on her palm.

The cat’s fur was gray, its ears droopy—closest to a breed known as American Shorthair in Subaru’s world, except for the strangely long tail and its pink nose.

Seeing the odd cat, the knife-wielding man froze in horror and screamed.

“—A spirit user!”

“Good answer. If you retreat right now, I won’t pursue you. Make your decision quickly. I’m in a hurry.”

With a scornful click of his tongue at the girl’s words, the men hoisted their unconscious companion and began to exit the alley.

As they stepped over Subaru, glancing back at the girl, one said:

“Remember this, you brat! Next time you’re lurking around here, just you wait!”

“If you do anything to her, I’ll curse you for eternity! In that case, you’d be the one on the eternal end, though.”

That threat was likely all they had left of their pride, yet the girl’s retort was light but fierce.

The little cat was nonchalant, but the men’s faces turned paler than ever as they fled into the crowd, now completely silent.

Once they were out of sight, only the girl and Subaru remained in the alley.

“—Don’t move.”

Forgetting the pain in his body as he tried to rise, he thought only to express gratitude.

As Subaru pondered these thoughts, the girl spoke in a cold voice devoid of affection.

Her eyes held a deep tint of caution. Although she understood that Subaru was unrelated to the men, she didn’t deem his existence to be benevolent.

That aside, her indigo eyes, gazing at him, were entrancingly beautiful.

Unused to beautiful girls, Subaru couldn’t help but blush and look away.

Seeing his reaction, the girl, still wary, smirked defiantly.

“You turn away because you have something to hide. My eyes don’t deceive me.”

“Who knows? That was just a boyish reaction; there was absolutely nothing wicked about it.”

“Pack, shut up. —You have some idea of who stole my insignia, don’t you?”

Silencing the kitten, she posed the question to Subaru, wearing a rare smug grin. However,

“Sucks for you, but I have no clue.”

“What!?”

As her smug expression crumbled, a glimpse of her true feelings appeared.

The dignified demeanor she had just moments ago vanished, panic spreading across her face as she faced the little cat.

“What should I do? Could it really all be just a waste of time…?”

“That clock is steadily ticking away. You’d better hurry. The thief was incredibly swift, must have the blessing of the winds.”

“Why’re you acting like it’s none of your business, Pack?”

“You told me to stay out of it. Oh, and what about that girl?”

Returning to the focal point of the conversation, Subaru chuckled helplessly.

Realizing the girl’s presence and condition, Subaru puffed his chest and stood tall.

“I’m more than fine after your help; you’re in a hurry, right? You should get going.”

—If anything, I could even lend a hand. What would you like, milady?

I had planned to say this while tossing my hair back and flashing a grin.

But,

“Oh dear?”

“Aah, you really shouldn’t push yourself—oh, too late.”

His head felt heavy, his body swayed, and the hand he stretched out to support himself missed the wall, grasping at air.

Ultimately, he found himself planting a second kiss on the ground he had just been lying on.

No defensive move. He landed face-first, jolted into awareness by a sharp pain.

“—So, what now?”

“That’s none of my business. It’s not like you’re dying, so I’ll leave you be.”

Amidst the fading consciousness, Subaru barely heard the conversation of the two (one girl and one cat) drifting away.

This is definitely the fantasy world; they have some brutally realistic views on empathy.

Thoughts turned negative as he wondered if he would be left abandoned in this alley,

Or positively, at least he was alive after almost dying.

As he grappled with these two opposing conclusions, Subaru’s consciousness continued to drift further and further away—

“Really?”

“Really!”

Just as his consciousness snipped away, he caught a glimpse of the silver-haired girl blushing and looking back at him.

“—I absolutely, positively won’t help you!”

—Her angry face is incredibly cute, in this fantasy world.

With that thought lingering at the end, Subaru’s consciousness finally succumbed to the darkness.

 

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