Chapter 118.5

Chapter 118.5

[Part 5/5]

The hummingbird took out a talisman from my pocket and handed it to Tamaki. He ordered her to seal the bear in my place.

"Eh!? Um...can you turn back, Bear-san?"

'Groooo...'

Tamaki asks with slightly copyright-infringing movements and lines, and the bear was swallowed by the talisman as it screamed. Thanks to that, it became considerably lighter. Finally, the dagger (tantō) that had been tearing through the wall came to a stop. A thud of impact jolted my body. I managed to withstand it, still holding the dagger (tantō) embedded in the wall.

"!? Tamaki!! Are you okay!?"

"Ugh, it might not be... okay...?"

Holding onto the dagger (tantō) embedded in the wall with one hand and grabbing Tamaki's arm with the other, I shouted to check on her, and her response was a genuinely pained weak sound.

Of course, I was injured too, but Tamaki was a girl. One arm had been pierced through the palm, and the other was severely burned. It must have been painful for her to grab my injured arm as well. When I looked down, our eyes met, and I saw Tamaki, tears in her eyes, grimacing in pain while looking at me. She tried to force a smile, as if to reassure me, but it was far from convincing.

(This is bad!!)

I couldn't hang on indefinitely, using the embedded dagger (tantō) as support. Moreover, the labyrinth was collapsing by the minute. And when I looked up, The exit was still over a hundred steps away, too far to reach.

"I'm preparing a rope now!! Just hold on...!! Damn, hurry up!!?"

Iruka barked as she stuck her head into the exit, informing us that rescue was on the way. Her voice showed a sense of urgency. Apparently, she hadn't anticipated this situation, as expected.

"This... voice, is it Iruka!?"

"Yeah, seems so. Hurry up and bring it...!!?"

Tamaki slightly eased her pained expression when she recognized the voice. As for me, I was in no condition to be calm. Supporting Tamaki, who wasn't heavy, but still one person hanging in mid-air was quite tough, especially with my current condition.

"I get it! But you better not drop her!! ...D*mn it. Hurry up!! Just a little longer!!"

Whether it was a servant or a human, someone by her side handed a rope to Iruka, who snatched it. She looked back at us and signaled to lower the rope, but right at that moment... something struck and sent her flying.

"Gah...!?"

"Iruka!!? Irukaaa!!?"

Iruka, who seemed to have been hit and thrown into the air, disappeared from view at the exit. Tamaki screamed in fear. A moment later, chaos erupted from the other side of the exit. Was this an ambush?

(Why now of all times!? Who the hell set this up!?)

At this worst possible moment, I already felt hatred toward whoever had launched this attack. As I held onto Tamaki, who had been blown away, I could only keep calling out Iruka's name.

"Calm down!! She's tough; this won't kill her!!"

"B-but...!!?"

"Miss, Tamaki, prepare yourself for a passive position. Your back may hurt."

"Huh...?"

From Tamaki's perspective, it probably happened in the blink of an eye. Soon after, my youkai-transformed arm enlarged. With this sudden increase in strength, I hurled Hotoya Tamaki.

"Tomobe—"

Tamaki's expression of disbelief vanished from sight in an instant. It was only natural since she had been thrown towards the exit. Using what little time I had left to partially youkai-transform, I made sure Tamaki escaped. For Yukine's sake, for my family's sake, and all the things I could do disappeared.

"Kkhhh...!?"

The youkai transformation wore off, and fatigue washed over my body. The shockwave from the throw caused the dagger (tantō) to come loose. Now, holding the Dagger (tantō) in one hand, I continued to fall.

"I don't intend to die... But!! What...!?"

'Σ(; ゚Д゚) It's freezing cold!!'

Knowing it was hopeless, I struggled anyway, grasping at any last chance. I stabbed the dagger (tantō) into the wall again, only to be repelled. Unbeknownst to me, the wall had turned into a metal-like shell. This...could it be!?

"...!!?"

I noticed it immediately and involuntarily held my breath.

'Don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away, don't run away,

DON'T RUN AWAY ( ゚∀。)'

It was a curse, insults, grudges, hatred, and malice that appeared as if someone had scribbled bloodstains all over the walls.

"'Mayoiga,' huh! Even in death, you're still so persistent...!!"

'ヽ(`ω ́)ノ Why do you keep making annoying sounds!?'

In response to our insults, 'Mayoiga' replied with an attack. Countless eyeballs opened on the walls, filled with curses, staring at us. At the same time, fangs protruded menacingly from all directions, growing more ominous as they fell towards the lower layers.

It reminded me of the mouth of the legendary gluttonous insect that the Kitahara family told tales of...

"Dammit...!!"

'ヽ(;▽;)ノI'm not tasty!!'

In the darkening view, I had lost all options, and all I could do was spit out some last words, and then...

"...You truly are a hopeless person. How bad are you at living?"

At the moment when I thought it was all over, accompanied by the sound of wings spreading, she embraced me from behind and whispered in a deeply sighing voice...