Volume 4, Chapter 37 – Kirinagi

“Shizuku-san!” “Shizuku-san!” “Shizuku-dono!”

Our three voices overlapped. However, Shizuku-san didn’t even twitch an eyebrow.

“Suikyou! What did you do to Shizuku-san!”

“Ho ho ho. I merely gave that girl my power and altered her very state of being.”

“State of being?”

“As I thought, you really are dim-witted. She is no longer human; that is all there is to it.”

“What!”

How could she do such a thing!

“Now, Shizuku. This is my command. You may kill anyone except for the Saint. Defeat them.”

The moment she heard the command, a dark, murky aura began to rise from Shizuku-san’s body. Then, countless pale blue flames appeared around her.

She began to fire them at Chris-san as if she were making it rain.

Chris-san dodged them with nimble movements, but she couldn’t avoid them all.

“Defense Wall!”

I created a Defense Wall between Shizuku-san and Chris-san to intercept the Foxfire.

“Fiene-sama, thank you.”

But Shizuku-san did not slacken her attack. She rained down Onibi from the left, right, and above, attempting to bypass the Defense Wall.

“Ah!”

Rеаⅾ оո KаtRеаⅾіnɡCαfе

Unable to dodge in time, Chris-san took a direct hit.

“Damn it! Barrier!”

I released the Barrier around myself and created a new one to protect Chris-san. Countless Foxfire surged toward the Barrier.

The area was enveloped in pale blue flames, and the cave walls, the water’s surface, and the altar were illuminated in an eerie light.

I could feel the hot wind reaching me, and my cheeks felt as if they were tingling and burning.

Enveloped in that dark aura, Shizuku-san stared expressionlessly at the spot where Chris-san was.

The instant the Foxfire vanished, Chris-san leaped from the Barrier, leveled her sword, and charged at Shizuku-san.

Perhaps because she had taken a hit, her movements were slightly sluggish, but she was still plenty fast. Chris-san unleashed a thrust with all her might.

It looked as though Shizuku-san was tracking Chris-san’s movements with her eyes.

Yet, she didn’t budge an inch. Shizuku-san shouldn’t have had any way to intercept the attack.

Why?

I gasped. Chris-san’s thrust caught Shizuku-san in the flank and pierced through.

…

…

…

No, it didn’t pierce through.

Looking closely, the dark aura rising from Shizuku-san was stopping the blade.

Rеаⅾ оո КαtRеaԁingСаfe

I see. For the current Shizuku-san, there was no need to dodge Chris-san’s sword. Just as Suikyou had no need to dodge Mashiro-chan’s Wind Blade.

“What…”

Chris-san seemed shaken by the fact that her full-power strike had been completely ineffective.

Shizuku-san took advantage of that hesitation and fired countless Foxfires at her from point-blank range.

“Gah… hah…”

Chris-san was blown back and collapsed. She hadn’t let go of her sword, but she seemed unable to move.

“”Chris-san!””

We rushed to her side.

“T-this is bad…”

Chris-san had burns all over her body; one look was enough to tell she was in a dangerous state.

“I-I’ll cast Healing Magic!”

I tried to cast Healing Magic, but Shizuku-san fired Foxfire at me. I intercepted them by deploying a Barrier.

“I’ll hold her off! Use this chance!”

I cast Healing Magic while maintaining the Barrier.

Even then, Shizuku-san continued to fire Foxfire at the Barrier, but my Barrier didn’t budge from attacks of this level.

Perhaps realizing that Foxfire couldn’t break my Barrier, Shizuku-san walked closer.

Rеaԁ oո ΚаtReаdіnɡСafе

She carelessly picked up the broken sword and coated it in that same black aura.

Then, she slashed at the Barrier with brute force.

CLANG!

My Barrier stopped the blow, but I felt it warp from the sheer power of the impact. With an expressionless face, Shizuku-san slashed at the Barrier again and again with the broken sword.

CLANG!

CLANG!

CLANG!

CLANG!

The distortion in my Barrier grew larger by the second.

“Ugh, at this rate…”

I stopped the Healing Magic and poured my mana into maintaining the Barrier.

“Shizuku-san! Don’t you recognize us?!”

Despite Lu-chan’s desperate pleas, Shizuku-san’s expression remained unchanged.

“Ho ho ho ho ho. It is useless. That girl’s will is already gone. She is now nothing more than a doll who obeys only my commands.”

“Damn it…”

Just as I thought there was nothing more I could do, I heard a man’s voice coming from nowhere.

『…O Saint…』

Rеaⅾ оn ΚαtRеαԁiոɡСаfе

“Eh?”

『…Return me… to my master…』

“Who’s there?”

I looked around, but all I saw was Shizuku-san expressionlessly slashing the Barrier, Lu-chan pleading with teary eyes, Chris-san lying there in pain, and Suikyou wearing a malicious, smirking grin.

There was no man anywhere.

『…O Saint…』

I felt a warm presence at my waist. A comforting, holy power was flowing into me.

Ah…! This is Kirinagi.

For some reason, I couldn’t put Shizuku-san’s Kirinagi—which we had reclaimed at the Itten Style dojo—into my Storage.

Since neither Chris-san nor Souji-san could carry it, I had been carrying it by hanging it from my waist.

“Kirinagi?”

I asked back, touching the sword.

『I beg of you!… My… master!』

Hearing that desperate voice, I drew Kirinagi from its sheath and threw it toward Shizuku-san.

Kirinagi spun through the air, tracing a gentle arc toward Shizuku-san, who was slashing at the Barrier just over a meter away from us.

The moment it reached Shizuku-san’s side, it emitted a blinding, intense light!