Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 19 - Chapter 8

Advent

Sunday, September 19th

With Sariachal Castle falling, the battle with Darkness Rainbow was temporarily halted. Neither side wanted to go down with their enemies, and they both needed to rescue their collapsed allies. They thusly wordlessly agreed on a ceasefire so they could all flee with their lives.

Darkness Rainbow used an underground escape tunnel and came out at the foot of a small hill by the castle. Maya, Elexis, Orange, and Yellow were gathered there alongside the incapacitated Crimson, Green, and Blue. There were also plenty of soldiers who had escaped with them. Everyone who was still conscious found themselves staring up at Sariachal Castle where they’d just been fighting.

“El, things have gotten complicated.”

“You’re right. I had expected some trouble, but... well, this is completely unexpected.”

Purple was no longer herself, mentally or physically. She looked like a strange amalgamation of bodies, a man and woman jammed together. There were several arms and legs protruding from her torso and her head was sticking out unnaturally. Her figure was bizarre, but she now stood over twenty meters tall. Looking at her was like beholding some large, uncanny statue.

“Yellow-chan, what happened to Purple?”

“I think she opened the gates of hell too far. She was then probably devoured when the power flowed back into her.”

Raging in her bizarre new form, Purple was destroying everything around her with her newfound power. Sariachal had already been damaged beyond repair, and it was only a matter of time before the whole thing collapsed. It was like Purple was acting out the legends of the evil deity of chaos.

“Maya, is this a repeat of the Tayuma incident?”

“Probably. They’re drawing powers from different sources, but they both got too close to the chaos of malice.”

“Which means... the mission failed. Even if we win the war, Folsaria will be ruined.”

If Purple had the same kind of power Tayuma did, even if Darkness Rainbow were to defeat Rainbow Heart, they wouldn’t be able to obtain Folsaria. They had no way of stopping the rampaging Purple.

Tayuma had been able to repel even Blue Knight’s attacks, so even if Elexis called in a battleship to attack with its heaviest artillery, it probably wouldn’t do anything against Purple. Additionally, magical attacks had almost no effect on her now, so most of Darkness Rainbow’s arsenal was automatically rendered useless. It might have been possible to defeat Purple the same way Koutarou and the others had Tayuma, but that would be hard for them to pull off since they mostly only had their magic to rely on. Moreover, they barely had any mana left to fight with.

There was no longer anything Darkness Rainbow or Elexis could do. Continuing to fight any further was meaningless. Whether they lost or won their fight with Rainbow Heart didn’t matter now; Folsaria would be lost. Folsaria was small enough that, at the rate Purple was going, the entire country would likely be destroyed within a few days.

Elexis and the others had been aware that there was a risk in using the gates of hell, but they hadn’t expected it to go this poorly. It was a complete miscalculation on their part.

“Maya, let’s retreat.”

“What about the boy and the others?”

“If anything, I’m placing my bets on them. If they can win against Purple, Darkness Rainbow will eventually get a chance to rule Folsaria.”

“So we don’t stand a chance against Purple, but you think we do against that boy and his friends...? Heh, okay. Yellow, Orange, are you fine with that too?”

“I think it’s the appropriate call.”

“No objections here. I’m already tuckered out.”

In the end, Elexis and the rest of Darkness Rainbow chose to retreat. With things as they were, the ideal outcome for them would be Koutarou and his allies defeating Purple, which meant that Elexis and the others couldn’t stick around and continue their fight with them. It would only lessen their chances of defeating Purple. And so Elexis and Darkness Rainbow made the strategic decision to retreat.

“Then you do that.”

“Crimson and I will go save Purple.”

However, Crimson and Green—who had just been woken up by their subordinates—were against the plan. After being briefed on what was happening, they didn’t agree with Elexis’s call. Quite the opposite, they were planning on going to save Purple.

“Crimson-kun, what does that mean?”

“Exactly what I said, girly man. Green and I can still fight. If we want Rainbow and the others to win, then it’s best to work together for now. If we play our cards right, we might even get Purple back. What do you think? It’s a brilliant plan, isn’t it?”

After being unconscious for the last half of the battle, Crimson and Green still had some reserves left to fight on. Crimson’s idea was that she and Green would work together with Koutarou and his allies, and they would take Purple back once it was all over. It was the optimal outcome in terms of preserving Darkness Rainbow’s manpower and war potential.

“I see. I don’t think it’s a bad idea... but it’s dangerous.”

Crimson and Green could still fight, but it wasn’t like they were unharmed. Going up against Purple in their compromised conditions would indeed be dangerous.

“Oh, I know. But Purple is always taking care of us, and there are still subordinates who haven’t escaped yet either.”

“At this rate, we’re going to suffer heavy losses, so we should make an effort to reduce what we can.”

“By all means, do as you please.”

It was a policy within Darkness Rainbow not to get in anyone else’s way. So though this was dangerous, Elexis wouldn’t try to stop them.

Meanwhile, Koutarou and the others were trying to escape through the castle’s main gate. However, Purple was doggedly pursuing them, wreaking havoc as she went. The various walls and structures of the castle were in her way, so she was slowed down by having to destroy them as she went. But once they got outside, there would be fewer obstructions and she would likely pick up the pace. Koutarou was worried she’d catch them at this rate, and so he came to a stop when they reached the castle gate.

“Everyone, go on ahead! I’ll keep her busy here!”

It would be hard for them to defeat Purple the way they were now. In addition to Koutarou, only five of the girls were still in any condition to fight: Yurika, Maki, Clan, Kiriha, and Harumi. The remaining four were either unconscious or had used up all of their strength. If everyone were in top shape, they could probably make a stand, but that would be difficult with only half their usual force. Currently, the best course of action was for Koutarou to keep Purple busy while the others fled.

Besides, this is a mess I helped create... If anyone has to fight, it should be me...

Koutarou had been the one to send Grevanas’s magicians to Folsaria. And if it was the inequity of Folsarian society that had turned Purple into the monster she’d become, then Koutarou felt it was his duty to stand and fight. The girls shouldn’t have to, though. This wasn’t their fault.

Yurika and Maki, however, saw it differently.

“Satomi-san, Maki-chan and I will stay behind too! We want to help Purple-san!”

“Don’t be unreasonable! We can’t even properly fight her! How can you help her?!”

“Please, Satomi-kun! Purple was desperate for the sake of the man she loved! Her methods may have been wrong, but her feelings were real! It’s too cruel for her to be destroyed because of that!”

Yurika and Maki now understood why Purple had tried to defeat Rainbow Heart after observing her behavior and seeing her laboratory. She had sacrificed many people and committed unforgivable crimes, but they couldn’t just stay quiet and watch as Purple destroyed herself. Yurika and Maki felt for her, and they didn’t want to deny the love Purple still held within her.

“Looks like they win, Koutarou.”

“How gutsy of you to try and leave us behind.”

“Satomi-kun, we’re going too.”

The remaining three girls—Kiriha, Clan, and Harumi—agreed with Yurika and Maki. Anyone who could was still going to fight. They were going to try and save Purple.

“Why are you all coming too?! What about Theia and the others?! If we mess this up, everyone’s gonna die!”

If everyone fought, then there would be no one left to help their unconscious friends escape. That meant if they died, everyone else would too. Naturally, Koutarou objected.

“If that happens―”

“Koutarou, let me make one thing clear.”

Kiriha pressed a slender finger to Koutarou’s lips to silence him as he began to protest. She then smiled and continued.

“You have to accept that this is what we all want. How could we live knowing we left you here alone? Did it not cross your mind that you might make nine more Purples?”

They would live and die together—that was how all nine girls felt. None of them were willing to sacrifice anyone to save themselves. Purple who had lost her lover and Koutarou who had lost his mother both knew all too well how it felt to be left behind.

“What a stupid choice...”

Koutarou could no longer object. He knew what it felt like to lose someone precious, and he didn’t wish that on the girls. But still, he agonized over their decision. He was reluctant to bring them with him into a fight they had little chance of winning. As Koutarou was looking troubled, Yurika called out to him.

“Satomi-san, I think that’s what it means to love someone.”

“Yurika...”

“Or are we precious to you because of some calculated, logical reason?”

“...No, it’s probably because of a bunch of stupid choices.”

“Then let’s go together, Satomi-san. Besides, you’re the one who told me that I don’t have to be a hero.”

Yurika was confident that Koutarou would agree. That was reflected in her smile, shining bright with confidence and love.

Yurika and Maki’s plan for taking down Purple was to sever her connection to the gates of hell. Purple wasn’t causing all of this destruction on her own. Her negative emotions were being sent to the gates of hell, which converted them into power and sent them back. That inherently meant they were feeding off of each other, so if they could sever that connection, Purple should be cut off from the dark power, ultimately bringing her rampage to an end.

Unlike Tayuma who had obtained vast power in an attempt to transform into a god, Purple’s situation was somewhat different. She was still actively feeding off of the gate and hadn’t been completely sucked in yet. There was still potentially hope.

“I’m counting on you two!”

“Right! Please be careful too, Satomi-san!”

“Good luck, Satomi-kun! And everyone else, too!”

Leaving Yurika and Maki behind, Koutarou, Kiriha, Clan, and Harumi headed for Purple. In order to sever the connection, Yurika and Maki would need to cast a special spell. In other words, they would need to get much closer. Close enough that they would be in Purple’s massive attack range, so Koutarou and the others would be acting as decoys to distract her while Yurika and Maki went to work.

“Yurika, you’re better at dispelling than I am! I’ll support you!”

“Please and thank you! We’ll settle this with the biggest spell we can, a fourfold incantation!”

“So we only get one shot, huh? I’m on board!”

Purple’s mana was dense, and it was constantly being replenished by the gates of hell. In effect, her supply was inexhaustible. That’s why small-scale spells hardly had any effect on her. If they really wanted to sever the connection, they would need to go all out from the start. Yurika was going to cast the dispel, and Maki would amplify it. It would be the greatest spell they could manage right now.

“Things sure have gotten confusing...”

“You’re right. I never thought things would turn out like this back then.”

“Then let’s settle it this time! You got that, Layous Fatra Veltlion?”

“As you wish, my princess.”

Out of the four acting as decoys, Clan was the first to attack. With her large weapons, she had the longest range. The one she’d chosen to open with was a beam cannon that gave her almost no mobility, but very high attack power in return. It was the same firearm she’d used against Dextro’s giant in past Forthorthe.

“I’m sure everything is the same. I’m seeing this as a continuation of my brethren’s battle.”

“Ane-san, the enemy’s spiritual energy is increasing, ho! It looks like she’s about to attack, ho!”

“Karama, Korama, readjust the spiritual energy field. Optimize it to match Tayuma’s aura.”

“Pattern readjusted, ho! But this is a big gamble, ho! If hers turns out to be different, this won’t be pretty, ho!”

“Either way, it can’t be blocked by normal means. Now all we can do is pray for the protection of the goddess of creation, or perhaps it’s the goddess of dawn!”

With Koutarou and the others approaching, Purple was preparing to attack. Up until now, she’d been doing so indiscriminately, but she now she focused her negative energy bullets on Koutarou and the others. In response, Kiriha readjusted the haniwas’ barrier with their previous battle against Tayuma in mind. There was the risk that it would prove useless, but the normal barrier wouldn’t work against Purple anyway. It was better than doing nothing.

“Kurano-san is right. Since I have inherited Princess Alaia’s will, this is my battle as well. No, it’s everyone’s battle.”

Harumi tried her own approach in defending the group. The sword-shaped crest on her forehead and her long hair began glowing silver, and she recited an incantation in Ancient Forthorthian.

“Come, spirits of the mind! Gather, stack, enhance! Exhibit your great light! May it flutter like a mirage and project our likeness! Appear! Soul Light Mirage!”

Harumi incanted those words boldly, and soon copies of her and her allies appeared. They were illusions she’d conjured in hopes of reducing the risk of any one of them actually being attacked.

“She’s firing! Everyone get down!”

“Detecting incoming attack. GoL now focusing deploying the distortion field forward.”

The next moment, Purple unleashed her attack. She fired her dark powers like a beam that swept through the area around Koutarou and the others. Fortunately, thanks to Harumi’s illusions, no one was attacked directly. But even then, a portion of the dark energy grazed their barriers, which just barely managed to hold up.

“All right!”

Once Purple’s beam passed by, Koutarou used the power of his armor to take to the skies. Activating his emergency boosters, he sped towards Purple at a breakneck speed. In his hands were two swords, Signaltin in his right and Saguratin in his left. In order to pierce Purple’s defenses, he’d need both their strengths.

“It’s our turn nooow!”

Koutarou readied both his swords and thrust them straight out, flying at Purple like a meteor. Purple still hadn’t fully finished her beam attack, and even though she saw Koutarou coming, she couldn’t attack him. All she could do was bring up a barrier.

“Let’s go, everyone!”

Koutarou swung at Purple’s barrier. At the same time, Clan’s beam cannon, the haniwas’ lightning and flames, and Harumi’s spell all fired at Purple simultaneously. Like with Tayuma, Purple’s barrier blocked all kinds of energy, so attacking with various types together was the most effective means of overwhelming it.

“Superior Amplifier!”

“Greater Dispelling!”

Immediately after Koutarou and the others’ attacks clashed with Purple’s barrier, Maki and Yurika cast their magic. The magic circle Maki had created amplified Yurika’s spell, and the magical bullet they’d both poured all of their mana into smashed into Purple’s barrier.

Thanks to Koutarou and the others weakening it beforehand, Yurika and Maki’s spell managed to break through.

“It made it through?!”

“Please, keep going!”

Maki and Yurika pinned their hopes on their combined spell as it pierced Purple. Having scored a direct hit, the bullet unleashed its mana and covered the entirety of Purple’s body in an orange light. It was a spell of nullification meant to separate Purple from the gates of hell.

“Grrraaauuugh!”

Purple’s two heads let out horrid screams at the same time. While Yurika and Maki were trying to sever the connection, Purple enhanced her powers in an attempt to prevent just that. It created an intense tug-of-war through mana. Enveloped in the orange light, Purple’s body gradually began shrinking. Yurika and Maki’s spell had disrupted Purple’s flow of energy, making it impossible for her to maintain her current huge form.

“Gaaaaaaaaah!”

However, by the time she’d shrunk about 30 percent, the orange light faded. The dark powers that rallied to Purple’s screams finally consumed the spell. Her body then began quickly growing again and she was back to her original size in no time.

“She resisted it?!”

“Everyone, run away!”

Now back to her original size and power, Purple opened her mouth wide and fired another beam. Koutarou and the others were already retreating, so it would never reach them. But that wasn’t the real problem.

“Not good, Yurika! We couldn’t cut Purple off from the gates of hell!”

Maki ran up to Yurika with a stiff expression on her face as she plainly spelled out the situation. They hadn’t been able to sever the connection like they’d hoped, which was by far their biggest issue right now.

The spell they had just used was among the strongest they could muster, and it had only made it through Purple’s barrier because everyone else had attacked first. But in the end, it still wasn’t enough. Purple had resisted the dispel and overcome its effects. There wasn’t even a lingering sign they’d ever disrupted her at all.

And that was it. Neither Yurika nor Maki had a more powerful spell they could cast. Both technically and physically, Koutarou and the girls had given it their best shot. They’d all attacked at full strength, and it still hadn’t made a difference. There was no way they could win now. They didn’t have the strength to defeat Purple, let alone save her. They were stuck.

“Clan, can you blow her away with the Super Space-time Repulsion Shell?”

“I believe it’s possible... but we’ll need to retreat first.”

“I’m sure she won’t let us.”

“This sure is a problem...”

“Karama, Korama, if you change the aura pattern to match Purple, how much will your attack power increase?”

“Her aura is almost the same as Tayuma’s, so it’ll only be a slight change, ho!”

“Your guess was spot on from the beginning, Ane-san, ho! It’ll be about the same as it was before, ho!”

“Maki-san, what if we wake up everyone that’s fainted and have them help?”

“I’m sure we can rouse them, but I still don’t think we have enough mana to sever the connection.”

Koutarou and the others were trying to work out what they still might be able to do, but they were quickly hitting walls in all directions. Their best plan had already failed, leaving them with only inferior options.

“Yurika, what do we do?”

“In that case, let’s use our last resort.”

Yurika, however, still had something up her sleeve. There was only a slight chance of it working, but with little other recourse, she was willing to gamble on those odds.

“What do you mean?!”

“That’s―”

“Gaaaaaaaaah!”

But their enemy wasn’t about to hang back and let them regroup. Before Yurika could explain her last resort plan, Purple attacked. Using her dark power, she created a large amount of negative energy bullets and sent them flying at Koutarou and the others.

Yurika was her primary target. She had been the lynchpin in the previous attack, and most of all, she had everything that Purple had lost. She absolutely hated Yurika. As long as she was in front of her, Purple would want to kill her.

“Mind Connect!”

“All right, I’m counting on you, Crimson!”

“Just let whatever happens happen!”

That was when some unexpected reinforcements arrived. An odd trio jumped between the group and Purple, and combined their strengths to attack. One of them predicted Purple’s attack and warned the others, a second reinforced their weapon with powerful flames, and the third repeatedly fired a special gun to shoot down the incoming energy bullets.

“Nana-san?!”

“Crimson and Green too?! Why?!”

The reinforcements were Nana, Crimson, and Green. Yurika and Maki were unable to hide their surprise upon seeing them, not to mention seeing them work together.

“It just sort of happened! I ran into these two on my way here!”

Nana had followed Purple until Koutarou and the others got out of the castle, and then she’d made her exit via a different route. On her way back to regroup with everyone, she’d come across Crimson and Green.

“That doesn’t matter! If you have some plan, then hurry up and do it! Oh no, she’s coming! Crimson!”

“Inferno Fireeee!”

Purple continued her assault. The three were doing what they could to block the bullets, but they were being pushed back. Seeing that, Koutarou stepped forward to protect them.

“Satomi-san?!”

“Yurika, I’ll leave the rest to you! Just do what you think is best!”

Koutarou used the combined power of Signaltin and his armor to deflect the bullets. Like Green said, there was no time to talk. If there was something that could be done, they needed to do it.

“He’s right, Yurika-san! We’ll hold out here! You do what you need to!”

Harumi stepped forward a little to cover Koutarou and the other three girls. With Koutarou and Harumi joining in, it no longer seemed like they were in imminent danger. Sensing that, Yurika made up her mind.

“Maki-chan, Clan-san, Kiriha-san, please gather around!”

“What’s the plan?”

“The four of us will merge to recover our mana and sever the connection between Purple-san and the gates of hell.”

“I see. That is an option....”

Being a magician, Maki understood Yurika’s intentions right away. Yurika and Maki had used up the majority of their mana, but Clan and Kiriha who didn’t use magic should still have plenty within them. They didn’t have any talent for magic so it wouldn’t be all that much, but it should be more than enough to cast two or three spells. Yurika’s plan was to merge and make use of that.

There was also another meaning to the merge. By merging several people, their abilities overlapped and increased, making them more powerful together than they would have been alone. In other words, it was a plan that would benefit all of them and allow them to make the most of their powers.

However, there was a large risk involved. There was no guarantee that they would actually be able to use magic after merging. There was also a chance that they had bad compatibility and wouldn’t be able to merge at all, or even that their abilities might functionally cancel each other out. They might even turn into a monster similar to Purple. That was why Yurika hadn’t suggested it until now, but there was no more room for doubt. Yurika was planning on finishing things this way.

“...What do you mean?”

“There’s no time for discussion! If you need our power, then use it!”

“Thank you very much, Kiriha-san!”

“I don’t get it all. Kii, what are you talking about?”

“...You’ll understand soon enough, Onee-chan...”

“Wh-What...?”

Clan still didn’t understand, but every second was precious. Yurika gave up on explaining and began the incantation.

“Temporary Fusion! Modifier: Stabilize! Overdrive!”

An orange light began pouring out of Yurika’s staff as she held it overhead. The light enveloped Yurika, Maki, Clan, and Kiriha.

Please... Please let this save Purple-san! Let this save everyone! God, if you’re there, please lend us your power! We are so powerless on our own!

The orange light was like the embodiment of Yurika’s prayer. She wanted the fusion to succeed, she wanted to save Purple, she wanted to protect her friends, and she wanted to end the war. Yurika turned those powerful emotions into mana, which explosively increased the orange light’s glow. Soon enough, the figures of the four girls vanished into orange light. Those four orange lights then melded into one brilliantly glowing light.

“Grrraaaaagh!”

Noticing Yurika and the others turning into light, Purple let out a fierce howl like that of a mad dog or wolf. She also stopped her attack on Koutarou and the others. Her instincts told her that light was far more dangerous than anything else. And based on Purple’s actions, Koutarou and the others also realized what was going on. The four girls turning into light surprised all of them.

“Just what did she do?!”

“I see... Yurika-chan, you’re merging the four of you to enhance your mana!”

Koutarou didn’t understand what the light signified, but Nana knew what it meant at a glance. What happened next, however, blew Nana’s expectations out of the water.

“That light. I’ve seen it somewhere before... Where was it?”

“Green, isn’t that—?!”

“Yes. My forecasts are becoming a mess. It’s coming!”

The orange light grew stronger and brighter. Just as it threatened to outshine the sun, other colors started began mixing into it—blue, indigo, and green. The four colored lights then swirled like a grand quadruple helix and stretched upwards, growing thicker and glowing ever brighter.

Immediately after the four colored lights appeared, the unconscious Theia and Ruth both awoke. When they saw the curious glow filling the area, they stood up and looked around in shock.

“What is this? What is this light?”

“I don’t know... It seems like it’s coming from over by Master and the others.”

As they pondered what was going on, Sanae and Shizuka—who were lying down nearby—woke up too. The four girls then stood there staring at the mysterious light together.

“It’s a warm and kind light. I can’t feel any hostility in it.”

“It doesn’t look like the enemy did it. Bathed in this light, I can kind of feel my powers returning.”

“Now that you mention it, me too...”

Strangely enough, the wounds on their bodies also began healing and the exhaustion that had been weighing them down slowly lifted. Moreover, the spiritual energy and mana that they had used up were regenerating. Surely this wasn’t the enemy’s doing.

“But Your Highness, that makes it even stranger. We don’t have anyone with this kind of ability in our troupe...”

“You’re right. I’ve never seen this power before. Maybe it’s Nana?”

“No, I think it’s Yurika, Maki, Kiriha, and Glasses that are making this light. I can feel their presences in it.”

“So the four of them did something? We should go take a look. There seem to be enemies lurking still.”

“Yes, you’re right. Let’s go, men!”

If they just stayed where they were, they wouldn’t get any answers. And with enemies still in the area, they needed to help their friends. Motivated by those two things, Theia and the other three girls ran to meet up with Koutarou and the others.

When the light turned into four colors, Purple stopped howling began attacking. The mouths on both of her heads opened wide and spewed fire like they were dragons.

“Grrraaaaah, haaaaah!”

The flames weren’t red, but an ominous black. It was like her evil power was manifesting as fire.

“Gaaaaah?!”

However, after flying forward only a little, the flames vanished. The light flooding the area had erased them. They never even got close to Koutarou and Harumi. In effect, the light Yurika and the other girls were emitting was the opposite of the darkness that Purple was using.

Blue. Green. Orange. Indigo. The four lights became even brighter and began shaking the very earth itself. Immediately after that, the light they shared converged and took shape. It looked like a young girl about Koutarou’s age.

“Is that... Yurika and the others...?”

Seeing this girl, Koutarou was puzzled.

The girl that appeared should have been the merged form of Yurika, Kiriha, Maki, and Clan. Yurika had said so herself, so there was no doubt about that. Yet this girl looked completely different from any of the four girls who composed her. Moreover, the color of her hair was strange. It was a beautiful snowy white. And, maybe because of a trick of the eye, it seemed to be shining the four colors of the lights. The outfit she was wearing was something like a kimono or shrine maiden’s garb dyed the same four colors. It wasn’t all that dissimilar from what Kiriha wore.

But what stood out the most were the four orbs circling her. They were about as big as soccer balls or volleyballs and seemed to be made from a transparent material like glass, but each one was a different color. Just like the lights, there was an orange one, a green one, an indigo one, and a blue one. The moved through the air on their own, as if orbiting the girl.

She looks less like Yurika and the others... and more like that statue in the temple...

The girl looked familiar to Koutarou, but she reminded him of something he’d seen in the past—the statue that had held Signaltin in Forthorthe of old. Her aesthetic was different, but her face looked strikingly similar.

However, if someone were to ask Koutarou who she was, he would have readily said it was Yurika and the other girls. There was just something about her that made him feel that way, which puzzled him.

“I see... So that’s what this is...”

The girl, on the other hand, seemed to understand a great deal. Half of her questions were still unanswered, but apart from the finer details, she could deduce most of what she needed to know.

Why they ended up in room 106. Why they were united now. It was nothing special. No, it was all meant to be. All to create a single miracle that traversed endless time and immeasurable distance...

“The promised time is near... In order to protect free will, I will not brook interference...”

The girl lightly kicked off the ground and flew towards Purple, leaving a streaking trail of light behind her. Though it only shone four colors, it looked like a rainbow.

“Grrraaaaah, haaaaah!”

Noticing the glowing girl flying towards her, Purple let out a ferocious roar and bared all of her hostility. It was strange to see someone of Purple’s gigantic stature try to intimidate a small girl. But her instincts told her it was the right reaction. She knew this girl would be her ultimate enemy.

“Whirlpool of chaos, you’ve been too greedy.”

“Gaaaaaaaaah!”

Roaring out in irritation, Purple threw seven spears at the approaching girl. They were pillars of dark energy, made from blacking out the seven colors of the rainbow. They carried a darkness with them that would infect anything it hit.

“Just what meaning is there in a result you force?”

However, the girl had a worthy answer. She gracefully stretched her right hand forward and the four globes around her arranged themselves into a square. The rainbow of only four colors turned into a shield and negated the seven spears of darkness.

“Grrrgh... Graaaaah!”

With the spears not working, Purple swung her hands and feet around to try and smack the girl out the air. She’d resorted to physical attacks.

“I guess I have no choice...”

The girl was sad. She didn’t like fighting, so she had hoped that Purple would relent. But Purple was showing no sigs of backing down. And because she couldn’t just leave Puriple be, she had no choice but to fight here. That fact saddened her.

“Grrgrraaah!”

“...That’s one.”

The girl shot the green globe towards Purple. The next moment, the green glow disappeared from her hair and clothes. In contrast, the glow of the green globe grew stronger. It was as if she had transferred it to the globe. The green globe then struck a direct hit on the arm that Purple was swinging around. When it did, the green light within was released the arm vanished. But that wasn’t all. The other arms and legs started to vanish too.

“Gah... Gryaaah?!”

Having lost several limbs, Purple was assaulted by intense pain and let out a miserable scream. She also lost her balance and toppled over. With her massive size and incredible weight, the ground shook when she hit it. It also caused the green globe, which had fallen to the ground first, to bounce up. When the globe came into contact with the ground again, something surprising happened. The globe began emitting light again and turned into a human.

“Wh-What is—?!”

It had turned into Kiriha. She didn’t know what had happened, and simply stood there with a blank look of surprise on her face. She had no way of knowing, but the energy the girl in question had used to attack originated from her. Having used up that energy in the attack, it was no longer possible to maintain Kiriha in the transformation and she returned to her normal self.

We merged with Yurika’s spell and I became a part of something bigger... I was supposed to have understood something very important... but I can’t remember it. Just what did I learn there?!

Being separated from the girl left Kiriha puzzled. She was surprised at the suddenness of it, but she was also surprised that she was having trouble remembering anything from the fusion. She couldn’t help but feel an anxiousness bubble up within her. She felt like she was supposed to have realized something very important.

“Grryaaah!”

Though Kiriha was left in a stupor, the battle continued. Purple lifted herself up with her remaining limbs and spewed dark energy from her mouth that condensed into black flames to attack the girl.

“That’s two...”

In response, the girl launched the orange globe towards the fire. In a similar fashion to before, the orange glow from her hair and clothes vanished and the globe itself grew brighter as it directly clashed with the dark flames. But that didn’t stop the globe. Instead, it punched right through, erasing the fire as it flew straight towards Purple.

“Gyaaaaaah!”

Purple roared once more. The orange globe came into contact with the head currently spewing flames and erased it just like the green globe had her limbs earlier. And once it fulfilled its role, the orange globe fell to the ground and turned into a person as well.

“H-Huh?! That’s Purple...? R-Right!”

Clan appeared from the orange light. Just like Kiriha, she was confused. But seeing Purple writhing in pain, she realized what was going on.

“Our attack worked! I don’t know what we did though...”

Purple was in a terrible state. She had lost several limbs and was down a head. She’d taken serious damage, and her entire body was beginning to flicker like it was a mirage. It was becoming unstable.

“There she is!”

That was when the girl spotted a lone woman drifting within the massive body of negativity and dark energy. It was Purple’s real body, which had been absorbed into the gates of hell.

“Let’s go!”

The girl flew towards Purple’s real body. Having exhausted two colors already, the girl’s rainbow was now only blue and indigo. But in spite of that, there was not a hint of hesitation in her expression. The girl—the combined girls of room 106—had been determined to save Purple from the start.

“I will forge a path! The remaining me should follow it and save her!”

There, she fired the indigo orb at the monster. It turned into a human, into Maki, midair. She flew forward with her greatsword extended.

“I’ll leave the rest to you! Show them what you’ve got, Rainbow Yurikaaa!”

Maki was herself again, but she hadn’t lost the energy she’d gotten in the merged state. She focused all of that energy into her sword and drove it into the monster’s body.

Indigo light was released from the sword and reacted with the mana and spiritual energy making up the monster’s body, annihilating it. The heat energy created from the annihilation burned away the monster’s flesh, cutting a path to Purple.

“Thank you, Maki-chan! I’ll save her for sure!”

The girl left with only a blue light sounded like Yurika, and flew right for Purple without any hesitation. As she jumped into the hole Maki had cut open, the girl’s body began glowing blue and started transforming. By the time her voice could reach Purple, she was completely Yurika again.

“Purple-san, please open your eyes! Purple-san!”

However, it seemed Yurika’s voice was only reaching Purple’s ears and not her mind. She had closed herself off, rejecting anything and everything. The gates of hell were lending her their power to that end, shutting her away from Yurika.

“In that case, I’ll do it by force! Please, Angel Halo!”

Yurika raised the staff she had been fighting with above her head and shouted her incantation. She was going to sever Purple’s connection between the gates of hell and take her back.

“Divine Judgment! Modifier: High Concentration!”

Yurika cast a spell that unleashed holy light. It had no effect on humans, but it was a peerless power against evil. Yurika used that light to attack Purple and the remaining monster. The blue light that was protecting Yurika lent its strength to her attack, making her attack far more powerful than she’d expected. It burned away at the monster’s body, leaving only Purple behind.

“Purple-san, we’re getting out of here!”

Yurika picked up Purple’s body and turned around, intending to leave the same way she’d come. There was some unexpected interference, however. Not wanting to let Purple—its energy source—go, the body of the monster attacked.

“I-I won’t lose after getting this far!”

The monster’s body transformed and created whips that it aimed at Yurika. Yurika responded by embracing Purple to protect her and running through the torrent of lashes.

“Th-There’s the exit!”

Since the monster was only about twenty meters in size, Yurika reached the exit in short order.

“Kyaaaaaaaah!”

But the moment she did, she was caught by the monster’s gigantic hand. By sending Yurika running, the monster had put her right where it wanted. It only had to block off her exit, and capturing her was easy.

“O-Oh no, I have to do something!”

Yurika desperately struggled to try and break free from the monster’s hand, but it had closed around her so that she couldn’t move her arms or use magic. Thanks to the blue light protecting her, she wasn’t absorbed or crushed, but that wouldn’t last forever.

“I-I was almost there, too...”

“No, Yurika-chan, you’ve won.”

“Nana, aim for the wrist! That has the highest probability!”

“Got it!”

That was when the trio of unexpected reinforcements arrived to help Yurika: Nana, Crimson, and Green.

“Gaaaaah!”

Nana’s bullets wreathed in Crimson’s flames repeatedly struck the monster’s wrist. It wouldn’t have worked before, but now that Purple was separated from the monster, it was weaker. Nana focused her fire on a single point, and blew the monster’s hand right off its arm. It then unwittingly loosened its grip, letting Yurika and Purple go.

“Purple!”

Purple tumbled down, but Crimson caught her midair.

“I’ll leave the rest to you, Crimson-san!”

“You don’t have to tell me twice!”

Seeing Crimson retreat with Purple, Yurika regained her balance and faced off against the monster once more. It was now much weaker, but was still maintaining its body. Finishing it off would be Yurika’s last job.

“Good job, Yurika!”

“Satomi-san?!”

“We’re here too!”

That was when Koutarou and the others gathered around her. It wasn’t just those who had been fighting before, either. Even the previously unconscious girls had finally made it over. Yurika’s friends were all here.

“What should we do, Yurika?”

“All that’s left is to defeat that thing and close the gates of hell.”

“Okay, everyone! Give it one last push!”

“Yeah!”

Koutarou and the girls wore bright expressions. They still couldn’t let their guard down, but seeing each other all safe and sound made a big difference in morale. It affirmed their desire to win, and their desire to return home together. Contrary to the weakening monster, Koutarou and the girls were only getting stronger.

“Yurika, let’s focus mana into Signaltin.”

“Yes! I’ll put the rest of what I have into it!”

“Then I’ll do that for the glittering sword!”

“We’ll do that too, ho!”

Maki and Yurika poured mana into Signaltin while Sanae and the haniwas poured spiritual energy into Saguratin. They were planning on focusing their power into one point to defeat the monster for good.

“All right, we’re going to back up Koutarou! Make a path for him!”

“Yes, Your Highness!”

“I guess we have to as well... Give it your all, Uncle!”

“Got it.”

“Kii, you shoot! You’re better at it than me, right?”

“Okay, then please support me!”

Theia, Ruth, Shizuka, Clan, and Kiriha all got to work on opening up a path for Koutarou. Their attacks hit the monster’s limbs one after another, preventing it from attacking. It was a job splendidly cut out for the girls with high attack power and ranged weapons.

“Satomi-kun, let’s finish it with this.”

“Yeah, I could use a long nap.”

Harumi unleashed Signaltin’s mana and Koutarou sent his own spiritual energy charging into Saguratin. The two swords filled with the power of many shone brightly in silver and gold.

“...I’ll leave the rest to you, Satomi-san.”

“That’s not right. You’re in charge, aren’t you?”

“Right...”

She had done everything she could. She had no regrets about anything today. That’s why Yurika could speak confidently now with her head held high.

“Defeat that thing, Satomi-san!”

“Leave it to me, Yurika!”

After flashing a small smile at Yurika, Koutarou charged at the monster. Theia and the others were opening the way for him, so approaching it was easy.

“Say, Theia-chan...”

“What is it, Yurika?”

“Satomi-san said that we don’t need heroes, but...”

“Yeah...”

“Satomi-san is really my hero.”

“And what’s wrong with that?”

“Ahaha, you might be right...”

And so Koutarou valiantly swung his swords as the girls watched on and supported him. The attack filled with all of their desires splendidly cut the monster in two, and the dark energy and mana that composed its body dispersed.