kscans

Chapter 105 - To the Rescue

"KYAAAAAAH?!"

Screams filled with terror erupted from all around. The howls of the people and the sound of things being crushed echoed, loud enough to overpower even the whistling wind.

In an instant, the peaceful town was stained white and red. Pure white snow was tainted by blood, and a chorus of wails and roars intertwined.

"GYAGAGAGAGAGAGA──!!"

A grating sound, the overlapping roars of many inhuman creatures.

I scowled at the noise as I deployed my [Arcane Gear] and called out to Erina-san and the others on the other side of the crushed car.

"Erina-san! Prepare to teleport!"

"Got it!"

Then, I turned my gaze to the car that had been stopped in front of us.

Inside, a family had probably been out for a weekend shopping trip. I sensed four mana signatures: two adults and two children.

Should I save them?

For a moment, I thought that, even though we were in no position to help.

That hesitation was shattered by a deafening crash.

The sound of metal being torn apart, of glass shattering. And mixed in with it, the sound of something soft being crushed.

My [Spirit Eye], with its superhuman dynamic vision that surpassed even the limits of an Awakened Person, did not miss that single moment. It would not let me miss it.

The moment the child, who had been pressing their forehead against the window and looking my way, was crushed underfoot.

"────"

"GYGYGYGY!!"

The winged lizard roared as if in laughter. Was the liquid leaking from the crushed car oil? Or was it...

As the thought crossed my mind, something inside me snapped.

"Mia-san, deploy your [Arcane Gear]."

"Y-yes!"

I said only that to her behind me and drew my sword.

My eyes had already met its vertical pupils. It was clear the enemy was ready to fight. In that case, it didn't matter if my reason for engaging it here was tainted by a few 'distractions.'

I would swat away the sparks that fell upon me. And in doing so, I would vent my own personal frustration.

"GAAAAAAAAAAA!!"

"Hmph...!"

The Cuelebre kicked off the wreckage of the crushed car and leaped towards me. In response, I, too, moved forward, swinging my sword.

With our combined speeds, the distance between us closed in an instant.

Considering its rank, its strength was comparable to, or slightly less than, Lefcourse or the Demon. I had more than a fighting chance.

No, I would overwhelm it.

"RAAAH!"

I met its snapping jaw by bringing down my two-handed sword.

Less a slash and more like a clubbing blow, the blade slammed into the Cuelebre's head. Sparks flew in the snow, and with a roar, the monster's head was smashed into the ground.

"Tch...!"

It's hard! The rock-like scales were many times harder than actual rock. Though its head was driven into the asphalt, only a few scales were cracked, and a little blood seeped out. Its skull wasn't even fractured.

"GY...?!"

As the Cuelebre tried to lift its head, I pressed down on it with my sword.

An opponent that doesn't die in one hit. The way to finish it was brutally simple.

I slid the blade I was pressing down sideways, peeling away scales along with a thin layer of flesh, exposing the blood-soaked skull.

Onto that exposed bone, I brought down my left iron fist. The impact drove the monster's head further into the ground, and after piercing the hard bone, I felt the sensation of crushing something soft and pulpy.

Disgusted by the feeling, I pulled my arm back. I flicked my fist diagonally downward to shake off the clinging matter that was turning to salt, and once again, I looked at the vehicle in front of us.

It was still crushed. From a crack in the broken chassis, a limp arm was visible.

My [Spirit Eye] could see even what lay beyond it.

"..."

"Kyo-chan! Senpai! I'm ready!"

Erina-san's voice echoed from across the wreckage and ice.

There was no time to wallow in sentiment. We had to prioritize our own safety right now.

"Let's go, Mia-san. Can you move?"

"Yes, no problem...!"

I glanced at her, her face pale as she clutched her staff, and began to move through the snow that had already piled up to my ankles.

The people in the other cars were fleeing in all directions. There were none nearby due to the fight with the Cuelebre, but I could see shadows running desperately in the blizzard beyond, and other shadows being caught by jaws and claws.

I suppressed the urge to head in their direction and tried to weave through the cars to join up with Erina-san and the others.

However, just as I caught sight of the two of them, a warning came.

"Reinforcements are here!"

"GYGYGYGY!!"

Four Cuelebres descended, screeching unpleasantly.

Due to their lack of skills and technique, they were far inferior to Lefcourse. However, their raw strength and speed were comparable to a C-Rank boss monster.

This is bad. Teleportation requires a 'charge-up' time. We have to weather this assault first...!

"You two retreat ahead of me!"

[Mana Conversion]

[Concept Interference]

I used the wind as a foothold to run up into the air.

As I passed one, I slid my sword into its open maw, slicing off its upper jaw. Next, I severed the wing of a second and slammed my fist into the snout of a third.

But the fourth one passed by me unharmed.

Damn it, it's going for the easier targets...!

Erina-san interrupted her teleportation and moved to intercept. Shoving Aira-san behind her, she drew her ninja sword with a blank expression.

A blade chasing from behind, and a blade waiting in front. The dragon, caught between the two──

With a sudden twist, its membrane seemed to glow for an instant, and it performed a turn that defied the laws of physics.

"Eh?"

"Huh?"

The Cuelebre wasn't heading for me or Erina-san, but for someone with no power to fight.

The collar of Aira-san's clothes was caught in the dragon's mouth.

It was the first time I had seen her [Arcane Gear]. How should I describe it? A 'gothic-style Sherlock Holmes outfit.' Including the knee-length shorts, it looked somewhat like a costume.

Clad in this attire, the silver-haired Aira-san was carried away with a stunned expression on her face.

"HAAAAAH?!"

"Damn it!"

"Paisen!"

A beat later, I chased after the screaming Aira-san, changing my direction as well. Kicking off the ground I was approaching, I forced a steep ascent, trying to close the distance.

However, in the blizzard, the monster's back grew farther and farther away.

My aerial combat skills are too low! I can manage in a straight line, but with any other maneuver, I can't even keep up...!

"?!"

Seeing a future where I was attacked from behind, I dodged to the right. A moment later, the one whose face I had crushed passed through the space I had just occupied.

Blood streaming from its nose, the Cuelebre turned towards me, spreading its wings as if to block my path.

From its open mouth, it fired spears of purple ice. About twelve of them.

Each one was just shy of the speed of sound, but I could parry them with a single sword strike enhanced with wind. The problem was that doing so would slow me down.

"Get out of my way!"

I charged forward again at the Cuelebre that was coming to ram me. Just before impact, I dodged with a barrel roll, slicing its long neck from below.

One strike wasn't enough to cut through the flesh and blood vessels. So, I spun again.

Without even waiting to confirm the feeling of flesh tearing and bone cracking, I kicked off the wind, attempting to re-accelerate.

But flying through the sky in this blizzard made me a conspicuous target, and more enemies were arriving one after another.

"Move it, you lizards!"

"──, ───!"

Ignoring the voices from the ground, I charged.

I attempted to break through the three that were approaching from the front.

"GYYYYY...!"

They let out a grating sound and fired a shotgun-like blast of ice spears. Knowing that intercepting them would cost me distance, I crossed my arms and dived in.

I deflected them with my gauntlets, helmet, and breastplate, forcefully closing the distance. The impact almost threw me off balance, but I managed to recover by stomping down hard.

As I passed the lead creature, I flashed my sword, sliding the blade into its open mouth and slicing off its upper jaw.

Next, as another Cuelebre tried to bite me from the side in an arc, I slashed its right eye with my sword, and used that opening to land a backhand strike on the dragon approaching from behind.

I couldn't just ignore them and move on. The monsters rolled their eyes and twisted their massive bodies in the air as if chasing their own tails.

Just after they blocked my path with their rock-like bodies, two mouths unleashed purple breaths at point-blank range.

Mixed with ice particles, it was probably poison. But that was nothing more than a smokescreen.

"I told you to get out of my way!"

I read their general positions with my mana and slammed my sword into one's neck. With a return stroke, I slashed at the other, hitting an oddly soft scale and slicing its head clean off.

But immediately after, I sensed another mana signature diving towards me from above and to my left. I instinctively raised my left arm.

"Guh...!"

My left arm caught the upper jaw of the mouth that tried to bite me, while my left knee held the lower jaw.

But I couldn't stop its momentum. The weight and acceleration of the light-truck-sized body sent me plummeting to the ground.

The moment I landed on my right foot, a tremendous impact and excruciating pain shot through me. The snow billowed up like smoke as I skidded backwards, blowing through a fence and finally stopping when my back hit something hard.

"Gh, ugh...!"

My consciousness flickered for a moment. As my grip on its jaw loosened, the Cuelebre immediately tried to sink its fangs into my head.

But a spear of stone struck its temple, diverting its trajectory and causing it to bite into the wall behind me instead.

Concrete fragments flew into the air. Without a moment's delay, I leaped back, drew my sword, and thrust it into the scales that had been cracked by the spear.

Piercing its skull and reaching its brain with the tip, I churned the contents with wind. The body twitched once, and as I pulled out my sword, white salt scattered and mixed with the snow.

"Hah, haaah...!"

The impact still lingered, and my legs felt unsteady. I placed a hand on a nearby wall to steady myself. A quick glance around revealed that I had crashed into the back of a convenience store.

As my swimming vision cleared, I gripped my sword again and looked up.

"Kyouta-kun!"

"Mia-san...!"

Mia-san came running through the gap in the broken fence. That stone spear must have been her magic.

"Thank you for the support..."

"Never mind that! My sister! My sister was taken...!"

"I know. We're going to rescue her. We have to chase after them, but...?"

I looked up at the sky, trying to confirm the direction Aira-san had been taken. And then I noticed something strange.

Screams were coming from all directions, but some of them were from the sky.

At first, they were dropping the humans they caught immediately, but according to my mana senses, some of the Cuelebres were continuing to fly somewhere. And they were all heading in the same direction.

They're taking people to one location? What's the selection criteria? What's their purpose? I didn't know.

I didn't know... but I saw a glimmer of hope.

"There's a high chance Aira-san is still alive...! Did they fly in that direction...?"

"I-I don't know. Erina-san said she was going to get help..."

"Help?"

I raised a questioning eyebrow at the words of the clearly confused Mia-san. Come to think of it, Erina-san was gone.

The SDF, or the police? Either way, reports must have already been pouring in from all over. I couldn't imagine there was any need for her to go and report it personally at this point.

But before I could figure out her intentions, the next monster arrived.

"Mia-san, get back. We need to drive off the enemy and chase after Aira-san."

"Right!"

Another Cuelebre was flying towards us.

It flew low, parallel to the ground, and its jaw opened. The moment I braced myself for an ice spear...

Someone appeared from the side and sent it flying with a jump kick to its scaly flank.

"What—"

For a moment, I was stunned by the rapid succession of unexpected events.

Amidst the swirling snow, I saw golden chains darting through the air.

They instantly bound the Cuelebre's wings and tail, immobilizing it. The monster struggled, of course, but the bound parts didn't budge.

Are those chains woven from high-purity mana, giving them unbelievable strength?

No, that wasn't it.

Those chains are binding time itself.

"GY, GAAAAA!"

A slender foot stomped on the face of the roaring Cuelebre. Then came the creaking sound of a bow being drawn.

A moment later, a thunderous roar echoed. Blood-tinged snow was thrown into the air, and the asphalt beneath it was shattered, sending gray fragments and even soil flying.

Even in this emergency, Mia-san and I could only stare at the scene in a daze.

Because the person who had accomplished this was just too unexpected.

"I heard the situation from Erina."

A calm voice. Skin so white and beautiful it rivaled the snow.

She wore light armor in shades of green and blue, with an outfit that boldly exposed her arms and legs. In her hands, she held a bow taller than herself, its limbs wrapped in something resembling crimson bandages.

Her blue waistcloth fluttered as she walked, an attire that seemed far too cold for the snowy landscape. Yet, there was no unsteadiness in her steps.

"We are going to rescue Aira. I require your cooperation."

Her eyes, usually as calm as a tranquil lake, now burned with fury. Standing there was Professor Arisugawa.