6
A white flash lit up the clouds from above and below at about the same moment.
If there was anything capable of simultaneously observing those two battlefields separated by a thick layer of clouds, among many other things, it could only be an observer outside the world.
The battles that had developed in the efforts to clear the Pleiades Watchtower were finally reaching their climax.
The situation was…
“Whoooooooa!!!”
Subaru shouted as the sandy ground where it landed exploded, sending a cloud of dust into the air and a shock wave rampaging through the surroundings.
The destructive force assaulting them was enough to obliterate Subaru’s body in an instant. The only reason it had not happened was…
“E M M!!!”
…one of the three original magics that Subaru and Beatrice had developed together.
In a vague sense, it stopped the flow of time for Subaru’s and Beatrice’s bodies, preventing them from being influenced by anything external to themselves. A sort of perfect defense magic.
“—Agh…”
In Subaru’s arms, Meili groaned weakly, her eyes still closed.
It was a pained expression, but painful as it was, it was also proof of life. The damage flowing into Subaru from her seemed to be gradually easing as Beatrice’s healing magic took effect. It was probably still within the margin of error, but it should be a turn for the better. Probably.
“It’s difficult using healing magic and E M M at the same time, I suppose! If it weren’t for Betty, the three of us would have long since kicked the bucket! I demand hugs as a reward after this!”
“I’ll give you thousands of ’em! Just…”
Grateful for Beatrice, Subaru probed inside himself.
In terms of damage, there was nothing to do but grit his teeth and bear it. The problem was his mana reserves…despite not being any use except as an MP canister, Subaru’s tank could only hold the same amount as an average person—a little bit below average, even.
The multiple uses of E M M were draining those reserves, like water pouring out of a hole in a bucket. At this rate, they would have to stop either the healing or the E M M.
“But not healing Meili isn’t an option…!”
“Then it’s up to you to decide when we stop using E M M and how to handle what comes next!”
“Aye-aye, leave it to me. I’m counting on you to heal Meili while being a handy spirit ready to do whatever I ask the moment I say it!”
“That’s! A bad way! To put it!”
Exchanging glances, they severed E M M without any discord and leaped away to escape.
Behind them, the crimson scorpion and the swarm of demon beasts fought among each other while all chasing after Subaru.
Still not allowed to get too far from the tower, the most dangerous thing was that the crimson scorpion was aggressively targeting Subaru.
“—ghh! E M T!”
The light around its tail and in its compound eyes increased, and he could already sense a future where a white flash annihilated his head. Shouting as he visualized that imminent death, they activated their second original magic.
E M T solved E M M’s weakness of not being able to move. It was a counter spell that erased any type of magic head-on—in theory, there was nothing lathered with mana that E M T couldn’t negate. However…
“We had to use another trump card five seconds after canceling E M M!”
It was rather obvious to anyone who was paying attention that they were cornered, at a dead end, and in a pinch.
The third and final original magic crossed his mind, but it was incomplete.
If they messed up, all three of them might end up in an imaginary realm…
“I don’t believe in myself enough to go all in on the big stage…!”
Even if he could acknowledge that this Natsuki Subaru guy was kind of impressive, he couldn’t just accept that he was some superman who could get out of any situation.
All he had was being bad at giving up. He just stood back up after getting beaten down more often than most people. But that meant he had been beaten down more than most people.
“This isn’t the time to get cold feet. It’s a risky gamble, but…”
“—You’ll make it work with stubbornness and vanity? That does sound just like you.”
Just when Subaru was about to decide, there was no choice but to try.
A voice suddenly rang out from overhead, and a figure appeared between them and the onrushing death. It was so dazzling that Subaru had to squint.
It was dazzling in every sense of the word. The newcomer was gleaming with a rainbow aura.
“—Al Clauzeria.”
The next instant, a light erupted to blast away the furious flash charging down on them.
A destructive shock wave, blazing flames, and a thrust with all of his life imbued into it. Driven back by a dark light, swallowed up by a swelling wave, deflected by a swirling desert wind.
It was as if nature itself was being manipulated, and the source of it was the dignified figure who landed atop the sand and swung his long, slender knight’s sword…
“I hurried as fast as my legs would carry me. Things were looking dangerous here.”
Joining the fight in the desert, was, of course, Julius Juukulius.
In response to that grand appearance:
“Julius…” Subaru’s voice quivered. “You… My message was for you to help in the other dangerous places once you finished up!”
“Indeed, I received your message. That’s why I came. Apologies, but compared to the others, I judged this would be the most dangerous location.”
“Who asked you?! And what’s that scratch?! What about Reid?!”
“I suffered a complete and satisfying defeat. He fled with his victory.”
“Lame! If you’re gonna fight, then win! I’m only gonna say it once, but thanks. If you hadn’t come, we were gonna die!”
Julius sported a new white scar under his right eye and gave a dignified chuckle at that mix of gratitude and complaints. It was a pretentious reaction, but apparently he had finished his battle with Reid and gotten something out of it. As proof…
“Made up with your quasi-spirits?”
“More precisely, my sprouts have bloomed and become full spirits. And made up is not correct, either. It isn’t as though we had broken up.”
As Julius smiled, there were six bright lights all around him, his quasi-spirits—no, spirits. Managing to sign back on with six spirits after letting them go, he had to be quite the lady-killer.
“It took everything I had to persuade Beako. You’re just gobblin’ spirits up.”
“Unfortunately, I was the one who got gobbled.”
“That isn’t funny! And when did you learn to make jokes like that?!”
Subaru’s eyes widened at seeing Julius joke like that about what had happened to him.
From what he said, he had settled things with Reid. Reid’s body was the body of Roy, so it was natural to assume Julius had also settled things with that Gluttony sibling, too.
And since Julius didn’t mention any danger there, it was safe to assume he had managed to pacify Roy.
“Julius! You came at the perfect time! Let me borrow Qua!”
“—Understood.”
Julius immediately assented to Beatrice’s request. One look at Meili in Subaru’s arms was enough for him to immediately realize this was a race against time.
The blue Qua, a water spirit, leaped out from the six and poured healing mana into Meili alongside Beatrice’s gentle healing magic.
“It also seems there is a need to stall for time.”
“Yeah, as you can see. Shaula’s all red and pissed off now. Can you do it? You just lost to another red guy, right?”
“It would be an affront to a lady’s honor to call her a rebound.”
Julius raised his sword and faced Shaula head-on.
The crimson scorpion’s compound eyes didn’t react to the knight that had broken into the fight. Its malice was directed, as always, at Subaru, and everything else between him and it were simply obstacles.
That was its stance even when faced with Julius, who had raised himself to a new level as a Spirit Knight.
“Subaru, I shall take Ms. Shaula. As for the rest—”
“Manage things my own self somehow. Got it.”
“No, work together with lady Beatrice to accomplish it.”
“In moments like this, Beako makes up three-quarters of the calculation for my own strength.”
Honestly, that was already a fairly bold statement on his part. Considering Subaru’s role, it was probably closer to 90 or 95 percent.
But either way…
“Thanks for coming back…”
“I am pleased you have reassessed your own worth as well.”
With that brief exchange, they both focused on fulfilling their own roles.
Julius advanced, so that the demon beast’s attacks couldn’t reach the three of them, decreasing the damage they could receive by putting himself into the line of fire.
Meanwhile, Subaru focused on getting Meili as far from danger from demon beasts as he could while buying time for their win condition.
Or so he thought.
“—!”
A shocking sensation made Subaru’s head jerk up.
The reason was a sudden change inside the Pleiades Watchtower. It was…
“—Ram?”
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