Chapter 168: Chaos Dives Deep and Silent 1
*
What should I do?
Erica wondered amidst the ever-increasing crowd of refugees.
To think those two would be this useless…
As they approached the second Barrier, the number of evacuating people naturally increased.
It had reached a point where even moving freely was difficult.
The very fact that they were managing this crowd without incident spoke volumes about the competence of the Margrave’s Knights.
They had likely trained regularly, anticipating situations just like this.
Should I say, as expected of the Demon Realm’s front line?
Or should I call it a blessing of the Margrave’s rule?
No, even so, these two are useless.
Erica glanced at Barbara and Elza, standing guard beside Luu.
Both of them looked somewhat dejected.
It was simple: with people packed this densely, these two were simply overkill.
Since merging onto the main street, the two had become completely unable to move.
Conversely, one could say it had become a situation where there was no need for them to force their way through.
The Margrave’s Knights were competent, and they must have prioritized securing the area around the second Barrier—the primary evacuation point—and the main street serving as the evacuation route with all their might.
There was no sign of Majin nearby, and overhearing the Knights standing by the roadside guiding the evacuees…
It seemed they were already pushing the Majin “outward” and entering the mopping-up phase.
It was unclear how many Majin had spawned within the Barrier, but considering the short time since the incident began, their efficiency could be called astounding.
“My Bride…”
As Erica was admiring the Margrave’s Knights, Barbara spoke up.
“I… I really am strong, you know?”
What is this person saying all of a sudden?
Though exasperated, Erica replied, “Yes, I know.”
She had deflected her Solntsaari Secret Technique.
There was absolutely no reason to doubt her strength.
Rather, it didn’t make sense. What is with this person? Seriously, what is she?
Noticing Elza looking over from beyond Barbara with something she wanted to say…
“You too, Elza-san,” Erica added.
Seeing Elza let out a satisfied huff, Erica almost sighed involuntarily.
I’m so worried about Shin, and yet these two…
“Ah, excuse me, coming through, excuse me~”
As Erica swallowed the complaint that almost escaped her lips, Shara emerged from the crowd before them.
“Whoops.”
Shara stumbled as she popped out of the crowd, losing her balance.
Lending her a hand, Erica asked.
“How was it?”
She had asked Shara, the user of Chant Magic and, in a sense, the most excessive combat power present, to go check on the situation up ahead.
“The Barrier entrance isn’t that large, so they’re currently organizing things to prevent accidents. It looks like it’ll still take some time before we can get inside. Right now, they’re apparently considering whether to create a temporary passage in the Barrier.”
Shara continued her report, fanning herself with her hand due to the sweat from navigating the crowd.
“Also, it seems the Margrave-sama has headed to the front lines, taking people from our Church with him. For some reason, the Pope-sama is with them too. That’s about all I could gather from the Knights.”
Thanking Shara for her report, Erica hesitated.
Should she ask?
The hesitation lasted only an instant before Erica steeled herself inwardly.
Honestly, she was a little scared to ask, but the situation wouldn’t allow for fear.
“By the way… has your friend, the ‘voice,’ said anything since then?”
Erica ventured the question.
“Nope, hasn’t said a thing.”
Contrary to Erica’s inner resolve, Shara’s incredibly lighthearted answer was even more frightening.
According to Shara—it was a “voice” that sometimes encouraged her when she was troubled.
The reason she had noticed the Majin attack before herself, before Shin, and even before Elza or Barbara.
Shara had said it was because the voice told her.
What exactly was its true nature?
Erica was a little too scared to ask.
All she thought was, Even if Shara is… that, we are still friends.
Her gaze towards Shara unconsciously softened.
“Well, usually it says some pretty silly things too, so I wish it would speak up more at times like this.”
Oblivious to Erica’s gaze, Shara tapped the side of her head.
The gesture was slightly unnerving.
“Did it… say anything about Shin?”
But there was something even more frightening.
“No, nothing about Shin-san.”
Shara answered apologetically.
“I see.”
Even as she replied, she naturally tried to search for Shin’s presence.
That sense she’d developed at some point, the one that somehow told her which direction Shin was in.
It wasn’t working at all.
Because she couldn’t see him, unpleasant thoughts crossed her mind.
She couldn’t imagine Shin dying, though she could easily imagine him almost dying.
But regardless, she was worried.
That was why Erica had asked Shara, hoping against hope.
“What? Is My Bride worried about her disciple?”
The overly casual tone almost made Erica frown.
“Elza is disappointed she can’t see her Senior Disciple getting beaten up somewhere out of sight.”
She nearly groaned at their words.
You two, on the other hand, aren’t worried enough. Erica lightly rubbed the bridge of her nose.
Seeing Erica like this, Luu, sandwiched between Barbara and Elza, sighed.
Shouldn’t Shin-kun be treated a little more kindly?
Precisely, my dear friend.
“It’s okay, My Bride, it’s okay. If that guy’s going to die, it’ll be in your arms, My Bride. I made sure to teach my disciple at least that much sense.”
“He would die in my arms!?”
She couldn’t help but ask back sharply.
Erica thought, If Shin dies in my arms, isn’t that the best possible outcome?
If she took her eyes off him, he seemed liable to die in some incomprehensible place for some incomprehensible reason.
If he were to die in her arms, she could just burn away any trivial reason.
If he died before her eyes, it would be easier to collect his bones.
She could cry after she’d gathered them all.
“Elza desires for her Senior Disciple to die in a manner where he’s plastered onto a church spire or something.”
Erica ignored Elza’s words.
“The Church doesn’t need an objet d’art like that.”
She also ignored Shara’s weary voice.
“What should I do? I’m starting to seriously feel sorry for Shin-kun.”
Erica nodded back in deep agreement with her friend’s words.
She failed to notice that said friend was thinking, Didn’t Eri-cchi also look like she thought ‘dying in my arms’ was okay?
“Ah, excuse me, we got sidetracked.”
Ignoring the fact that she herself had gone along with the tangent, Erica brought the conversation back on track.
“Shin entrusted Luu to me. First and foremost, I will ensure Luu’s safety. She is my dear friend, entrusted to me by Shin. I will definitely protect her.”
Haffuuun.
Luu made a strange noise. Was that a yawn?
“About that, do you think we’ll be able to get inside the second one?”
Shara raised a question.
“Are you saying there are still some?”
Erica asked back, then immediately corrected herself.
Her habit of jumping ahead was hard to break.
“The Margrave’s Knights believe there are still humans within this crowd who could turn into Majin, don’t they?”
“Well, they’ve seen it happen, so it’s only natural they’d think that, right?” Shara said. Though according to my senses, I don’t think there are any left.
But none of the Knights would likely believe that.
Erica ignored the look on Barbara and Elza’s faces, which seemed to say, ‘Is that a problem?’
They were probably just thinking, ‘If they appear, we just defeat them.’
“Worst case, we’re delayed here, is that it?”
“Unless there’s a compelling reason, there’s no need to take risks. The fact that they’re considering making an additional passage might also be an excuse to delay the refugees.”
I see, that’s plausible.
Erica thought.
It was relatively safe here.
If Majin were spawning inside the second Barrier, she would break through the Barrier to get to the Orphanage, but that wasn’t the current situation.
Waiting here until the situation changed was indeed a rational decision.
But Erica discarded that thought.
The problem was Shin.
Erica had planned to take Luu to the Orphanage, then ask Barbara and Elza to guard both the Orphanage and Luu.
She was prepared to pay any price.
Then she could go help Shin.
It was a cheap enough bargain.
But if they couldn’t even enter the second Barrier, that changed everything.
Even in this situation, she had no intention of abandoning Luu, whom Shin had entrusted to her, to go to Shin’s side.
Even with Barbara and Elza present, and even if she believed it impossible for Luu to be harmed by anyone who might somehow slip past them, Erica couldn’t choose that option.
Both for her own feelings, and above all, she couldn’t live with herself if Shin were disappointed in her.
Hmm.
Erica removed the hand resting on her chin.
“Forcibly breaking the Barrier is—”
“Don’t!”
Shara let out a scream.
“Never mind.”
Shara was relieved, and Barbara looked disappointed.
Erika decided she should be more careful with her words.
Setting aside Shara’s screaming, Shin’s master-sama was far too dangerous.
“Basically, if we get permission from someone Luu knows, then, apologies to everyone else, but we should be allowed through the second Barrier.”
Perhaps having grasped the answer, Shara looked at the surrounding crowd and tilted her head, wondering if such a thing was really possible.
“Let’s go to His Holiness the Pope, who is with the Margrave-sama.”
In other words, it meant they would turn back now and go all the way to where the Margrave was dealing with the front line.
“Can we really get through this crowd?”
A frank doubt—Isn’t that impossible?—was visible in Shara’s gaze.
Exposed to that gaze, Barbara and Elza tilted their heads.
“We’ll be fine.”
Erika nodded reassuringly.
She felt happy that not a single person objected to returning to a place where Majin might be.
“Let’s follow Shin’s style.”
Saying that, Erika pointed towards the sky.
“People can’t fly, you know?”
Shara pointed out with a straight face.
“The roofs, the roofs.”
Erika corrected Shara’s misunderstanding with a wry smile, ignoring Barbara’s comment from the side, “What, we’re not flying?”
“Ahh, so I’m finally joining the ranks of the Barbarians…”
“Goodbye, civilized society,” Shara muttered as she pushed through the crowd and immediately started scrambling up a wall.
Erika felt a sense of approval for Shara, who was quick to act as always.
Though, the sight of a Sister of the Church scrambling up a wall was quite surreal.
Confirming that the surrounding gazes were focused on Shara,
Erika took Luu’s hand and leaped onto the roof in one go.
“Erika-san!?”
A cry of protest came from Shara towards Erika, who had jumped onto the roof.
“Because I am a lady.”
Erika said, making an excuse as she hid her face from the gazes of the people looking up.
“Then what am I?”
No one answered Shara’s dumbfounded mutter.
And even more unfortunately, no one noticed that the male Guard who had accompanied them as the prince’s escort was talking with a Knight of Hecate to vouch for the identity of the Maiden of Light’s party.