GalaxyTL
We strengthened our guard at Ravi-san’s question, asking if we were running away. But Ravi-san herself wasn’t on guard at all, just standing there calmly. It was as if she wouldn’t do anything even if we ran past her.
“We’re running. From you guys, Ravi.”
When Licht responded while looking straight at Ravi-san, she gave a bitter smile.
“…Is that so? Then be careful. I still have a lot of allies up there.”
“You’re not going to stop us?”
At Licht’s question, Ravi-san chuckled. It felt like she had given up on everything.
“My job was to bring you here. Anything else isn’t my job. I’m not going to work for free.”
She shrugged her shoulders and said that jokingly, but her true feelings weren’t there. I don’t think I was the only one who felt that.
Silence fell, none of us moving a muscle. It was Licht who finally spoke up, as if steeling his resolve.
“…Ravi, I still want you to…”
“Get going already, you brats.”
But before he could finish, Ravi-san’s cold voice cut him off. Her eyes were fixed, and there was an intensity about her that wouldn’t allow for any backtalk. I unintentionally held my breath.
“Who was it who betrayed you?”
Her voice was trembling slightly.
“Who’s been kidnapping and selling innocent people all this time? Who hid that and made it seem like the country was the only one at fault?”
Ravi-san, as if a dam had broken, kept spewing out words, one after another.
“Everyone knows who burned your arm!!”
It was as if she was repenting.
“It was me! It was all me! I’m a serious criminal. Don’t…”
As if praying.
“Don’t offer me your help!! Go already! I don’t ever want to see your faces again…!”
She shouted.
It was a cry from the heart.
Ah… why didn’t I listen to her properly back then? Even if I had, she probably would have brushed me off.
But I couldn’t help but regret it.
The three of us couldn’t bring ourselves to leave… We were frozen, unable to move properly.
“…You’re betraying us, Ravi?”
But at the sound of that voice from behind, we gasped. Gordon’s voice, closer than I’d expected. I didn’t notice… how careless of me.
“I’m not betraying you. Not betraying you. That was the promise, wasn’t it…?”
Passing us as we stood there in shock, Ravi-san, who stood in front of Gordon, quietly said this. It’s as if she’s protecting us, with her back to us.
“Then what’s with this behavior?”
Gordon asked, his voice even lower. There’s a hint of fear mixed into his voice. If Shou-chan was here, maybe they could tell us their true intentions.
“We also promised to respect each other’s opinions. So honor that promise too, Gordon.”
Ravi-san signaled us to run with her hand behind her back. As I thought, as I thought, Ravi-san is—
“Please, let these children go. Gordon. This is a once-in-a-lifetime request.”
—On our side.
『 But there is one thing that humans and those of the Demon realm have in common, and that is—that even the most evil of people must have a shred of good conscience deep down. I believe that. 』
Leo-jii’s usual last words came to mind. That’s right, that really is true, Leo-jii. My nose tingled, and a single tear fell.
“…I can’t do that. Because the most important part of the promise was to not betray each other. You betrayed me. …Are you prepared for the consequences, Seravis?”
Seravis…? I was distracted by the unfamiliar name, but Licht and Ronny pulled my hands, and we ran up the stairs in a hurry.
“Don’t let Ravi’s… resolve be in vain!”
Licht, even though he probably wanted to stay more than anyone else, said this while looking straight ahead. Even Ronny was gritting his teeth. I could hear the metallic sound of saber and sword clashing below, but I resolved myself and continued on without looking back. Please, be safe, Ravi-san!
When we reached the top of the stairs, just as she’d said, there were many enemies waiting for us. This must have been their plan, to capture us here in one fell swoop. But we were formidable.
Licht cleared a path, using water and wind magic to repel many enemies. Ronny used his wooden sword to scatter the approaching enemies. And me… honestly, there’s nothing I can do now, so all I’m doing is avoiding attacks as much as possible and running so as not to be in the way.
“I can see the exit!”
Licht shouted, and we all confirmed the location of the exit. Just a little more.
It was at that moment.
“Ah… Uu!!”
“Meg!!”
Excruciating pain shot through my right leg. I don’t know what happened. I fell, sliding with the momentum of my running. I’m covered in mud. But I don’t care about that at all right now. This isn’t the time for that.
“My leg…”
I looked at my leg, trying to figure out the source of the pain, and saw a knife deeply embedded near my calf. No wonder it hurts! The one who threw this is…
“Let’s end this game of tag, brats.”
Gordon…! Eh, no way, what about Ravi-san? When I looked, there was blood all over Gordon’s saber.
“You bastard…! What about Ravi!? What did you do to Ravi!?”
“Who knows? Why don’t you come and see for yourself?”
Gordon responded with a nasty grin to the enraged Licht.
That blood… is it really Ravi-san’s…? I was so shocked that my mind couldn’t function. While I was in shock, the enemies we’d defeated started getting back up one after another. It seemed like they recovered quickly because we could only use weak attacks. We’d completely missed our chance to escape. With my leg like this, I can’t even walk properly.
“Looks like it hurts, huh?”
“Nn… AAAAAHHHH!!”
A moment of carelessness can be fatal. Gordon, who had come right in front of me, roughly pulled out the knife stuck in my leg. Thanks to that, my leg hurt even more, the bleeding wouldn’t stop.
“Meggg! Guh… AH…!!”
Licht rushed over to me in a panic. But that was a bad move. As they passed each other, using the knife he’d just pulled out from me—he stabbed Licht in the side.
“Ah, ah, ah… N-No! Licht!!”
Licht collapsed right in front of me. Blood slowly spread on the ground. I crawled towards Licht, ignoring the pain in my leg, and covered him. I need to stop the bleeding. Somehow turning him over onto his back, in a panic, I pressed on his stomach with both hands.
“I won’t… let you hurt them anymore…!”
Ronny stood between us and Gordon, his wooden sword at the ready. Ronny must be at his limit too.
What should I do if even Ronny gets hurt?
Licht’s bleeding won’t stop.
Am I… just going to let them do what they want…?
“Those with value as humans…”
“Eh…?”
In my confused state, those words Gordon muttered to himself stuck with me.
“Don’t worry, I won’t kill you. I should have done this from the beginning. …I need to give you wounds that you’ll never be able to escape from on your own again, don’t I!?”
Gordon threw the knife away and readied his saber. It looked like it was in slow motion as he raised it.
No, stop. Don’t hurt us.
Help me!!!!
“GIL-SAAAAAAAN!!”
The next moment.
—The space was… enveloped in darkness.