Volume 5 Chapter 4 (1/2)

The ringing of the alarm clock pounded on my head

Surprisingly, I had one to that flooded battlefield I had taken a bath the day before and not left the bed since, so I sih water to takeocean

Given what had already happened, either the Leviathan or the Siren intended to use their ticket for each day That suggested they could not store up tickets and then use theuard down Soht arrived Even if thatpeople infected by parasites like the time before last

”Good , Satori-chan”

”Yeah, good ”

Myprepared I was kind of used to that now, so I opened the kitchen fridge and found a fish sausage to eat It was a complete mystery what kind of life Hied into

While walking outside, my smartphone vibrated in my pocket

”Helen> Senpai, I a the plan”

After reading the short-e SNS speech bubble, I typed in a quick response and put the phone back in my pocket

I walked to school like normal

At the very least, I couldn't see any suspicious infected people around But after seeing Tanabe-san at the aquarium, I knew they could blend in so perfectly it was impossible to tell

…And there was no sign of the supposed Siren

Once I arrived at school, ain

”Helen> I didn't see anyone tailing you”

”…Hm”

I had asked Itou Helen to walk a bit behindme

”Maxwell, is there a drone flying above us?”

”No I cannot detect any control signals It is possible for theranals for error correction, sin of that”

”What about a satellite?”

”I cannot account for unregistered guerilla satellites, but I detected nothing of note 39 weather, raphical survey satellites passed by overhead, but they were all perfor in on a specific individual”

…I was doing so about it when I was only asking Maxwell to do it for me

Regardless, it see in person

While I changed into ht up and spoke to me directly

”What is this about, Senpai?”

”That's the thing…”

I had explained the details to her when I asked for help, so I didn't need to hold back with her

”If the Leviathan is to be believed, the Siren would be targeting ht?”

”Well, yes…”

”So I ondering how she would be targeting and attacking me The Leviathan is inside an aquariuht be in Kukyou City pursuing me like an assassin or sniper”

”And you didn't find anything Then was that shark lying about there being a Siren?”

”That would certainly siuarantee of that…”

Finding so so one way or the other Was there no Siren, or was she si else at the

And there was one other thing:

”It's also possible there is a Siren, but she isn't carefully targeting ht envelop all of Kukyou City That would be the worst possibility”

To be blunt, that was est concern Even that Leviathan had talked about intervening, so (if this Siren really did exist) the Siren's ability had to be greater than one of the seven deadly sins…

I didn't know the exact conditions, but in the worst case, she would be able to send hundreds of thousands of people to that glowing ocean on a rainy day assu there was no limit to the number of people she could send at once

”What I really want to find is that the Siren exists and there are some really intricate conditions that need to be true before she can send so ocean”

That would mean she had to constantly tail me to track my location in preparation to send me to that ocean In that case, I could move in and achieve checkmate before her preparations were co district with all its security cameras, I could use Maxwell's power to its fullest and work out the Siren's location

But things changed if she could be anywhere in Kukyou City…or if her contamination could affect such a wide area from outside the city Then I would be unilaterally torhost that may or may not even exist

Yes, just like before

It would actually be a relief to learn this was all a lie by the Leviathan, but I didn't have enough information to say that The Siren was not here now, but that was no guarantee she would not be a minute from now

I parted ith my cute underclassman and entered my classroom

”Satori-kun”

There I foundtall with her hands on her hips and her cheeks puffed out She was as blatantly upset as Ayu forward to after her bath

”Come here a moment Sit On the floor Now!!”

”In the middle of the classroom!?”

That coh difficulty level, but it was also a wonderfully unparalleled chance to deladly take her up on her offer and enjoy every moment of it Heh heh heh Hands off, boys and lesbians Only I can keep up with this Class Rep!!

”The depressed aura co intense There are tons of black cats out front and the roof is covered in crows and bats”

”…I get the feeling you aren't joking and s…”

”It's because you ran away! And running away froe to confront them or the resolve to support yourself Do you seriously think that makes me you look cool!?”

B-bgfhh…!?

I shouldn't have gotten carried away That was the Class Rep for you It had takenmy life to reach that answer, but she sent it at me in like half a minute!! Have you ever had your crush stamp your forehead with the words ”Hopelessly Smelly Idiot”!? It makes you feel dizzy and nauseous!!

”P-pant, gasp, gasp”

”No hyperventilating I' She stepped out the kitchen back door and then broke dohere she thought no one could see her, but I could see it froht think you have, whatever probleht work, I a to cut you down to size here Got that, Satori-kun? Here goes”

Ahhhhh

It was over No one could stand up to the Class Rep when she felt a responsibility to do so like this There was a reason the Class Rep was known as the Class Rep

”You can fight with your fa to have differences of opinion and issues you can't back down fro with them!? Did you not realize all you've done is take any other possibility away froiven up on them, and sealed the issue away!? I know you did I know you had to have knohat you were doing You know first-hand how painful it is to be treated like that!!”

The Class Rep had seen it all

She had seen my family situation from a far calmer perspective than anyone involved And that hy her words stabbed into me so sharply Even if the rest of the class did not understand, those words pierced my chest more than any others could

A family had come to an end when my mom left the home

There would have been a s behind that decision, but that had been the end regardless We had fallen apart

The Class Rep had seen that

She had seen

That hy she was angry

She was too angry to care who saw this

So it onto someone else And onto people he had decided were his family

I could only listen in silence

How could I object? What could I do besides remain seated on the floor and hear her out?

”Don't rely on others and don't just assume someone else ork this out!! Satori-kun, you should know that what you take for granted and what you believe will continue forever can fall apart and collapse far too easily So don't rely on others here!! You have to think about what a single mistake can cause and live a life that works to avoid that mistake Isn't that all you can do!?”

I wished she would just hit me

That would have been far easier to handle

But the Class Rep seemed to read my mind when she looked me in the eye She breathed from her nose and responded

”No That isn't o settle this for yourself, Satori-kun!!”

Regardless, itfor the rest of our class But I didn't really want the into my family life, so that was fine with me

They made a lot of speculation, but in the end it was sue:

”Well, Amatsu and the Class Rep are always like that”

”She's been scolding him since elementary school, hasn't she?”

I was glad for that

Afterschool, everything was dyed in an orange light

”What? Do I need to follow you?”

The Class Rep was still angry, so I parted ith her and looked up at a house It was the one next door to my Class Rep childhood friend

In other words, my house

…I couldn't believe it It was my house, but I wasn't ready for this Besides, if I suddenly disappeared fro, I would worry my mom and Himatsuri-san this time

I looked to the intercom…but it would be weird for me to use that Given the day of the week, ister for her part-time job or at her mom's club Amatsu Yurina was there I didn't need to call first to check

The Class Rep really atching

At this point, I would have to face my stepmom

”…I-I'm home”

I hesitantly opened the front door and called out

And so seemed intensely off from the moment I did so

…What was this smell?

Rusty wasn't quite right It was like so…except no, that wasn't it either At the very least, it wasn't so from a home

”Mom…?”

Perhaps I should have turned back

But without thinking, I slowly stepped inside So on my territory That hat it felt like

It felt more cramped than Amatsu Taori's luxury apartment, but no part of that house would make you feel lonely

The entranceas dyed orange by the setting sun

There was so on the floor

Finally

Only now did Isymbol An unpleasant stench that should not have been found in a normal home

It was a salty smell

The sathered in the rocks and rotted

”Mom!!”

I finallyin thehair tied back and her tight blouse and jeans were all soaked with sinister seawater She curled up in so position and she tre her stomach

But when I started to run over, she unsteadily moved her arm to hold her open palm out toward me

That hand ith a dark red liquid, told me stay back

”…Satori, have you used up your one-way ticket for the day?”

”If not, then stay away Step on the puddle and you'll be dragged to the other side…”

What did this mean?

That was obvious, you idiot!!

Whether it was the Leviathan or the Siren, they could bring more than one person to that battlefield That was obvious froether

It wasn't just us

While I had been desperately trying to save ht up in it all While I had run away froiven me advice over the phone

It was obvious when I thought about it

Whoever was behind it, they would be most interested in Archene sent directly to that glowing ocean in addition to using e!

”But…how? Yes, you're Lilith, a major demon lord, so you should be able to easily defeat a normal Archenemy like a vampire or zombie…”

”Ha…ha ha You overestimate me Maybe I scared you too e based on compatibility and the specific conditions”

Still curled up on the floor, my stepmom forced a smile So I wouldn't panic, run over, and step in the puddle

”But…if you haven't used your one-way ticket yet, then we simply missed each other I should have returned iic error Ta ha ha”

What was this?

Did that mean she could have easily escaped on her own, but she stayed in that dangerous flooded battlefield to search for iant shark, a Siren, parasites, and infected people, she had ignored the dangers to herself and gone around calling my name? And that's why this happened to her…!?

How…

How could I be so stupid!?

Why had I run away from home and felt I couldn't look her in the eye? If I had at least agreed to call home at a set ti had happened to me, she wouldn't have had to search for me in vain!!

The Class Rep's words pierced my heart anew

Family was not an absolute for us I had seen it shatter beforeabout what a single mistake could cause We had to respect each other That was all so true

What parent could sit idly by knowing their child was occasionally setting foot in a deadly world? Of course she was going to find a way to go there too And would a parent in the sa so would only invite their child to follow them? Of course they would keep it a secret!

I had built a si as simple as this!?

”No, Satori…”

Still curled up and giving off the stench of rotten sweater and blood, ot the words out

I could not run over to her or hold my hand to the wound in her stomach

It was the water

The great iant shark or Siren was in the way…!!

”Don't give into eether in a different way than the Bright Cross, remember?”

”Kh”

”So you can't You can't give into the feeling roiling in your chest That only leads to the saht Cross…”

”But…”

Was she telling me to overlook this?

Was I supposed to usethat was the right thing to do?

But I had never been trying to do the ”right” thing! I just couldn't stand to leaving so and I couldn't bear to see blood!! I had wanted to protect Erika and Ayumi and I had wanted to side with Itou Helen the Witch, Muraht Cross's oppression That was all That was all it was supposed to be, so how had it ended up like this!? Why was I kept fro here and forced to overlook the person who had done this to my stepmom!?

”…It's the same…”

My step voice I doubted it was just the pain She was tre to take away her son's dream

”That saht Cross”

…What was I supposed to do?

I doubted the Leviathan or Siren would stop with this Who would be next? Erika, Ayumi, the Class Rep? Did I have any reason to think Itou Helen or Kuroyaainst an Archeneister the ocean Then they would be in that sunken battlefield containing a giant shark, a Siren, parasites, and infected people

Would I try to talk?

Or would I try to fight?

Either way…

”…Moreat deht? You use noret a cold”

”Satori…?”

”Maxwell, call an a down someone as chosen, so the EMTs should be fine”

My stepmom had to have just returned fro wet and curled up in the entranceith a puddle of sweater and blood surrounding her

There was an ”entrance” there

I still had my one-way ticket I would find the culprit if I passed through there Whoever it was, that piece of shi+t had done this to my parent!!

”No, Satori!!”

I did not bother listening to her

I took a large step

And for the first time in my life, I chose for myself to step onto that hellish battlefield

Based on the ground level, the glowing ocean's water was 15e The residential district full of short houses was entirely flooded And when starting indoors, it was a lot like a maze

But there was a difference between being dragged dohen you least expected it and diving in yourself There was no lost ti roolass door that had already broken froht up in search of oxygen

Would I make it in time?

I would make sure I did

More than the oxygen, I was afraid of getting deco upequipment

”Bwah!!”

My face broke the choppy surface The rain was blowing in the wind as usual The water would be giving off a da the sky, it was before sunset Like a lit loas drowned out

There was no point in fighting the current I focused only on staying afloat and let the current carryout my waterproof smartphone

”Maxwell, check the situation”