Chapter 51

It's a ceiling I don't know.

It seems he still had some leeway, since he was able to come up with such a promise.

The moment Assassin stabbed me in the throat, my vision changed and I found myself lying face up in the hallway. A beat later, an explosion rang out from somewhere. It seemed the substitute doll had functioned normally.

I stood up. Feeling dizzy, perhaps due to the effects of the teleportation, I shook my head and saw Hayama sitting on his butt beside me. He seemed surprised by my sudden appearance.

I look around but there is no sign of the media. Have they gotten separated?

"Hayama, what about the media?"

"M-Medea-san, you can go to that room... No, more importantly, Hikigaya, where are you from right now...?"

I followed Hayama's gaze and looked behind me to see a door.

"Why don't you come in?"

"Ms. Medea asked me to wait outside."

Hayama answered as he sat up. However, even though he had asked the question, the reason had already occurred to him before he could open his mouth.

While I was looking at various things related to magic from the Media side, I started to sense something that resembled magical power. The presence I sensed from behind the door was far more sinister than what I had sensed from the Media.

Now that I think about it, the media said it was a curse, not magic. I see, it's only natural that they would try to keep amateurs away from it. Well, it's possible that I'm just misunderstanding something.

"Media, come in."

"Oh, hey, is it okay?"

He gave a brief message through the door and turned the knob. Hayama tried to stop him but he didn't care. If it was really bad he would have been stopped by telepathic communication.

To begin with, we don't have a choice right now. If we stay outside, we'll just get killed by the Assassins.

With that in mind, I enter the room.

Fortunately, the presence of what could be called miasma did not suddenly begin to overflow.

The room is fairly spacious and gives the impression of being empty. Apart from the expensive-looking piano, there doesn't seem to be anything particularly noteworthy about the room itself.

Medea was crouching in the farthest corner of the room from the entrance, her face scowling as she held her hands over something at her feet.

This is probably the effect of the curse that Medea spoke of. Only the surrounding area looks strangely distorted, and it is impossible to tell what is underneath my feet.

"Medea, what are you doing?"

Hayama carelessly approaches the media and falls on his butt again in the middle of his lines.

"Y-yes... someone died...!"

Hayama's face was pale and his teeth were cracking as he muttered something.

I don't feel bad about it. I wouldn't have been much different without the hypnotic suggestions from the media. Maybe it's an amazing feat that I didn't scream. I'm sure.

I ignored Hayama and approached Medea. Lying at her feet was what looked like a human corpse.

A woman in a suit. Probably a foreigner. She has short hair but is beautiful. ...She looks a bit like Sagami, but that's probably just a coincidence.

It seemed as if he had stopped breathing, as his chest wasn't moving. His complexion was extremely poor, almost ashen. He didn't look like a living human at all.

And the most notable thing is that his left hand is missing. It is missing from the wrist down. It looks like it was cut off with a blade or something. By the way, he is not bleeding. Or rather, it seems to have already stopped bleeding.

I hesitated for a moment whether it was OK to speak to him, but I knew I wouldn't get anywhere if I continued like this, so I decided to ask.

"Is he dead?"

"No. It appears that he has sustained severe damage and is in a state of suspended animation."

"Can you resuscitate him?"

"I'm working on it now. Your injuries will heal quickly, but you are trapped in a curse that has frozen you in time, so it will take time to thaw that."

"Okay. Hurry up."

Even for Medea, it seems that lifting the curse will not be an easy task, and sweat is forming on her forehead. I hope she can get there in time before the Assassin tracks down the room, but I don't think we should get our hopes up.

I'd already used up my insurance. I didn't want to do anything too reckless, but I couldn't keep saying that. As I was looking around the room for something that could be used as a weapon, Hayama called out to me timidly.

"H-Hikigaya, please, explain to me. What the hell is going on?"

I'm a little hesitant, but... well, it would be a shame to come this far and still not know anything.

"...Do you remember what we talked about this afternoon?"

"Oh, yeah...is that, is that really true?"

"Unfortunately, that's true. I don't have time to go into detail, but for now, just remember that those black guys are the enemy, and if you carry on like this, you'll all be killed."

"...Who was that collapsed person? You said you would resuscitate him, but will waking him up save him?"

"I don't know."

"I don't know..."

"We're cornered right now. There are no cards in our hand that can turn this situation around. All we can do is hope for a card draw."

In Yu-Gi-Oh, you can attract the cards you want with the force of your will.

He thinks of such pointless things as a way to escape reality. It's a gamble with a terrible odds, but he has no other choice.

For the time being, I tried to block out thoughts of who that woman was and what would happen if I woke her up. Instead, I was trying to find a way to buy even a little bit of time when suddenly I felt someone's gaze on me. It was Hayama.

"...What is it?"

I couldn't help asking, seeing his eyes, which had been dominated by fear and dread until then.

Hayama asks, looking somewhat hesitant.

"Why are you so calm...?"

"They're letting the media cast that kind of spell on them."

When I answered as it was, Hayama blinked at me as if taken by surprise.

"...Is that so?"

"ah"

"I see... I see."

Hayama nodded repeatedly as if he understood something. …Eh, what is this guy? What did he understand by that?

"Hey, can you cast that magic on me too?"

"The media has their hands full right now. It's not possible right now."

"I see..."

If we could do that, we could count Hayama on our fighting force.

Amateurs are useless in battle not because they are weak, but because they panic. Rather, if they are let loose by someone with great power, they become a hindrance and the damage becomes even greater. On the other hand, even weak people can be useful if they don't panic.

In the current situation, however, it's a drop in the ocean either way... Still, it's better than nothing, which makes me cry.

"Hayama"

I took out the last flash grenade from my pocket and pulled the pin. Then I handed it to the stunned Hayama, who was holding it tightly.

A grenade is a weapon that does not explode just by pulling the pin. The pin is merely used to hold down a lever, and as long as the lever is not released, the grenade will not explode.

"Oh, hey...?"

"Okay Hayama, when I give the signal, throw this at the entrance over there with all your might."

"Are you telling me to fight...?"

"Just throw it. I'll do the rest. Just help me with one move."

In fact, I'm grateful for that alone. I guess this is the kind of situation where you'd want all the help you could get.

Hayama gulped, fixed his gaze on me, and spoke gravely.

"Is there anything I can do...?"

"We just have to do it."

The words that came out were neither affirmative nor negative, but I didn't sense any intention of rejection there.

I took that as consent and reached for something that could be used as a weapon.

"...It's astonishing how unchanged it is..."

I didn't understand the meaning of the mutter I heard from behind me.

Even if we say we are preparing for battle, there is only so much that can be accomplished.

Once that minimal preparation is complete, all that's left to do is to sharpen your senses and wait for the enemy to appear.

Fortunately, or unfortunately, it didn't take Assassin long to track down the room.

There was a bang as the inward-swinging door slid open slightly as Assassin tried and failed to kick it open.

In front of the door there were two extremely heavy vases, the same ones I had seen in the entrance hall, lined up, blocking the door from opening.

Of course, this was no way to prevent an intrusion, and another crash rang out. The hinges popped, and the door tilted inwards, along with the vase.

"Leaf: "Woohooooo!"

Before I could even say anything, Hayama threw a flash grenade with impeccable timing.

The fastball, which had apparently been scouted by the baseball team, slid right through the gap in the door. It was a stroke of sheer luck that it hit the white masked man who had just peeked out. The grenade bounded and exploded in mid-air.

The blinding flash subsided, and almost without pause the assassins resumed their actions. They were countered, as expected. But if they could buy themselves a few seconds with the move they'd already shown, that would be good. In the meantime, I was ready to throw.

Assassin stepped forward, turned his gaze to me and froze. Apparently, even the Servant found my current appearance quite strange.

"Oooooorrrrrrrr!!"

Hearing an auditory hallucination that sounded like muscle fibers being torn apart after being overworked beyond their limits, I threw the grand piano'' I had picked up with all my might.

It seems impossible to withstand this massive force, so the lead Assassin hastily jumps to the side to avoid it. However, there is no space to dodge near the entrance, and the grand piano blocks the entrance while crushing two of the Assassins behind it. This buys them some more time.

Even with Medea's physical strengthening, playing the piano was tough. She gave her trembling arms some energy and prepared for the Assassin that had entered.

Assassin took a defensive stance, quickly got up, and closed the distance in an instant. Please, just be a little shaken up.

He deflects the dagger that is thrust at him with his baton and aims for his leg and kicks him. In return, he steps on his ankle, but thanks to his boots, he doesn't take any damage.

The assassin swung his leg up, but lost his balance and fell backwards, but did not fall. Nevertheless, he took advantage of the slight gap in his distance and slammed the object he had been clutching in his left hand onto the floor.

Slap!

The cheap container of the 100-yen lighter shattered, and the gas contained within exploded. It was a small explosion that didn't even produce a light, but the loud popping sound made Assassin freeze for a moment.

Taking advantage of that opening, he tackled him. His shoulder pierced his stomach and headbutted his raised chin. Then he reached for the dagger the Assassin was holding.

Ugh

A dull sensation. A beat later, a sharp pain hits my upper arm.

He was stabbed in the left arm. But this was expected. Ignoring the pain, he broke the Assassin's arm and sent his thin body flying.

In terms of physical ability, I'm superior. If we grappled, I'd win for sure.

He pulls out the dagger that remains in his left arm and finishes off the fallen Assassin.

"-ka-ka-"

Suddenly, all strength left his body and he collapsed helplessly. He couldn't even utter a curse, let alone lift a finger.

I knew it was poisonous. Still, I thought I could snatch the dagger and swing it down, but my guess was wrong. It was something that could immobilize someone in an instant!

Thud

"--!"

A dull pain ran through my stomach as the assassin kicked me.

I should have put an end to it quickly. I thought this without any consideration for my own actions.

It seems there are individual differences among assassins. This guy seems to be the type who gets angry easily, as he kicked me repeatedly while I was unable to move.

After just a few seconds, he regained his composure and reached for the fallen dagger--

"Uaaaaahhhh!!"

A sudden roar.

With a bang, the Assassin was sent flying to the side.

"Haa...! Haa...!"

Her face was all crumpled with tears.

My legs were shaking with my legs turned inwards.

Still, he picked up the broken piano stool.

Hayama Hayato was there.

(What an idiot…!)

There's nothing this guy can do.

A futile struggle, nothing more.

Unlike me, this guy is completely unprotected and has no bodily strengthening or hypnotic suggestion protection.

Despite this, Hayama prepared himself to face the Assassin.

Hayama's teeth were chattering in fear, his hips were backing away, and his hands were shaking so much that he looked as if he was on the verge of dropping his weapon.

He looked extremely helpless, incredibly pathetic, and indescribably ugly.

His appearance is like that of a hero in a shounen manga, who has no power but faces off against a powerful enemy for the sake of something important...

--Ah, damn it.

This guy is really cool.

Scary scary scary scary scary!

The man dressed in black slowly got up and sprayed an immense amount of rage at me, making me tremble.

He regrets having suddenly jumped out, but there's no way he can back out now. How can Hikigaya fight against something like this!?

Step by step, the man dressed in all black approaches menacingly. Unable to bear the fear, I jump out of his way.

"Whaaaaaaaat?!"

There was no aim, just swinging the remains of the chair around randomly.

The attack hadn't even reached him in the first place, and the man in all black simply brushed away the chair that had come in front of him with one hand. Though it only looked like he'd touched it lightly, his upper body was swung around wildly, throwing him off balance.

"Ugh!?"

The knee of the man clad in all black sunk into his stomach.

"...Eh...!"

I dropped to my knees, vomiting up the sandwich I had eaten for lunch. With just one blow, I couldn't move.

The man in black grabbed me by my hair and then delivered a knee kick to my face.

"...cough, cough."

He rolled on the floor and writhed in pain. He vomited up bloody stomach juice and found a white fragment in the vomit. It seemed that his tooth had been broken.

The man dressed in black stepped on my head and put his weight on me.

It hurts, it hurts, it's breaking, it hurts, damn it, why does it hurt!

What is this?! Why did this happen to me?!

I was just searching for the missing Yukinoshita-san, and on the way I met Hikigaya, and yes, it was Hikigaya, and it was him that caused everything to go wrong!

With tears blurring his vision, he glared at Hikigaya, who still couldn't move, not even moving a muscle.

Damn it, don't go to sleep like that! You're stronger than me, aren't you!? Hurry up and help me!

I never liked that guy.

I just couldn't accept that he had suddenly appeared and was able to do things that I couldn't.

When I heard that he was being helped by magic, I thought that I wouldn't lose if we were in the same situation. However, I soon realized that this was not the case.

I just do it because I have no choice.

With that, he stood up to the man dressed in black.

I had heard that word before.

He's probably always the same person, so he could have fought without magic.

I find that incredibly enviable and hopelessly jealous.

Oh yeah, I was always jealous of him.

He's an amazing guy who remains calm at all times, for whom nothing is impossible, and can save anyone.

This man dressed in all black is trying to kill Hikigaya.

"Ha! What the hell! What the hell!!"

With a swelling rage that consumed the pain and fear, I bit into the black-clad creature's leg. I don't know how it managed to escape the crushing blow. And it doesn't really matter.

The man in black kicked my head violently, but he absolutely didn't let go.

Don't mess with me, you bastards! Do people like you have any right to kill Hikigaya, or us?!

Gasp!* A powerful blow hits my cheek and I'm pulled away. Damn it!

The man in black kicked me in the stomach again. I was sent flying and rolled around, coming to a halt next to Hikigaya. I couldn't move at all.

Crash!

When I turned my gaze to the sudden sound, I saw another man dressed in black breaking the window and coming in. He seemed to have come around from the front.

Furthermore, the piano is pushed away from the entrance and the enemy enters.

(It's over, dammit...!)

Resignation dominates the mind.

Before we could even think about anything, a man dressed in all black approached us, raising a dagger--

Crunch

With that watery sound, the black outfit collapsed. Perhaps it was an optical illusion, but it looked like the person in the black outfit had nothing above their neck.

"Thank you, Hayato-sama. Thanks to you, I made it in time."

Before I knew it, Medea was helping me up and supporting me.

A sense of agitation was palpably coming from among those dressed in black.

Before we knew it, a woman in a suit was standing between us and the people dressed in all black.

The back of the man in a suit murmured in an inorganic manner.

"I don't really understand the situation, but let's start by eliminating the most threatening enemies."