Iwaguchi-san popped out right beside me while James and Ama also entered the room together. James was duel wielding two big muskets which for some reason suits how he looks and Ama had a big staff in her hand which was pointed at the ends. Wow, that thing was so big that I am now just going to call it a javelin.
"We got here first though so we win," I said jokingly and everyone chuckled.
I dusted my pants and looked at the three nobles who were staring in shock at the noble breaking down into nothing. The look on their face told that they had a deep connection with the noble right before us. All of their faces were distorted and their fangs were seen properly. Their eyes were glowing bright red and the novices around them took a step back shivering out of fear. The amount of bloodlust they were releasing right now was really a lot and they were looking at us in utter rage. Their nails looked as they were ready to rip us apart.
"So…" I said looking around. "I do remember that there were ten nobles who attacked. We killed three and you killed one and there are three standing before us. Where are the other three?"
"They should be here soon but let’s get them out of here first," Natsumi-san said.
Ama rushed at the three nobles and stuck her javelin in the ground and spun around kicking them in their face throwing them out of the room. James then quickly closed the door and locked it before catching Ama in his arms.
"Thanks for that James~," she said teasingly and James looked away but I could see a slight smile form on his face.
"You do know that the noble outside was responsible for breaking through the silver gates, right? He can solidify his fist into metal," I said and they all blankly stared at me.
"Wait, y-"
Boom
With a loud sound, the door was burst open and James jumped out of the way with Ama in his arms. The gate almost crashed right in my face so I crouched down and kicked off the ground spinning and kicking it away. I got back on my feet and then…
"Ow, ow, ow," I held my feet in pain. "Note to self, never try doing that ever again. It only looks cool in anime."
I got back on my feet to see the three nobles fuming with anger. Now that we have taken care of the noble that could use fire, we have to worry about lightning, ice and iron fist though I don’t know if he can harden any other part of his body because if he can then it would be quite a problem for us.
"The red-haired uses hardened fist but I am not sure if he can do the same with his other body part," I quickly started telling others what I found. "The boy on his right can use ice and the girl on the left can use lightning."
"Good job kid," Natsumi-san said and bent down. "But first, let’s at least get them to a lot more comfortable place to fight."
I unsheathe my katana and Ai also took out her stake. All of us got into a fighting stance which was when…
"Don’t you dare break that door too," Natsumi-san said but looks like the person did not listen to her because…
Boom
Whoosh
Boom
A strong breeze of air blew and the door flew along with it all the way in the face of Iwaguchi-san. He ducked down dodging the door and it crashed into some samples kept there. The sound of glass breaking resounded in the room and I stared at the vampire samples which were kept outside. Good thing that they were not that worth of but it seemed to have pissed someone off.
"How dare you," a cold voice echoed in the room and our eyes fell on Ama whose expression started to distort. She looked at the nobles with bloodshot eyes. "It took us so long to gather all these samples and you just wasted them like that?!"
"Okay, whose idea was it to bring us all in this room?" I asked looking at them. "We are kind of trapped here and I don’t want to fight in a cramped room with vampire flesh in jars beside me."
"I thought Iwaguchi knew what he was doing for once," Natsumi-san said sighing and rubbing her forehead. "I have no idea why I thought that."
"What? I didn’t even know why you all wanted to come here so I randomly selected a place," Iwaguchi-san said trying to defend himself.
"You know, I feel bad for Iwaguchi-san here," Ai said and I nodded in agreement.
"Thank you."
"Quit messing around you asshole!"
We looked back at the vampires before us and the face of the red-haired noble was as red as his hair. We decided to stop messing around since we were still not out of danger at the moment. The nobles crouched down and were ready to charge at us.
"Everyone, take care of the nobles," Natsumi-san said crouching down and getting ready to attack. "I will clear away the novices."
"Kazuki and his team, take care of those there," James said taking command. "Amantha and Honozaya, with me."
"Roger," we said in unison.
I rushed at the three nobles before us with Ai and Akira following me as if it was their second nature. They all got ready to get to us but I had other plans for them.
"Do it Akira," I said and the next thing, we all appeared behind the three nobles. "Hello there."
As they were turning around, we attacked them. I thrust my katana in the chest of the noble with red hairs but quickly stopped my katana before it connects him and received a strong kick right in my stomach.
"Gah!"
I flew a good distance from them and landed right on my back. My doubt was correct, he could solidify other parts of his body. I only saw a glimpse but the brief light that shined in my eyes was enough to tell me that I would have snapped my katana blade had I not stopped. This is a bit problematic.
I got up only to meet with a hard punch across my face making my head jerk towards the side. Then another punch connected my jaw, and then another one, then another and another. I was being showered by the hits of really hard punches across my face. I could not completely process what was going on but my body started aching as it started taking my hits. Blood started tricking from my face and I heard the echoing sounds of the angry grunts of the vampire.
"Die you filthy little human!" he shouted and I felt an intense pain in my stomach making blood fill up in my mouth.
I screamed in pain and the hand got pulled out of my guts. I looked up seeing him jump aside as both Akira and Ai appeared right before me and I saw the surrounding around us change instantly. I could vaguely see the looks of worry and terror on Ai’s face and Akira’s eyes also frowned looking at me.
"Ka…un…Ka…un" Ai tried saying something to me shaking me but I could not hear it properly.
Akira held Ai’s hands and shook her saying something. Ai looked back at me and quickly slit her hand and started pouring her blood over my wounds. My vision was still fuzzy but I could feel the areas where I had a gaping hole being healed at a rapid pace. The pain started slowly fading away and my senses were coming back to me.
My eyes closed for a second and then opened up wide as I took a deep breath with my mouth opened. My vision came back and I looked at Ai with tears in her eyes and Akira’s face has turned back to the expressionless one. I looked at them and then back at me seeing the suit around my stomach being torn apart showing my skin underneath.
Ai quickly pulled me in a tight hug while my eyes were shot open and I was still staring at the things before me.
Oh right, I almost just died back there.
Just like that.
So even after all this.
After thinking I was strong enough.
I am still weak.
I was so naïve.
"Kazu-kun, are you alright?" Ai said cupping my face and making me face her. She was still crying and her eyes were filled with tears. "See this? This was what I was afraid of! I told you, didn’t I? You should have stayed back home! But you didn’t listen to me! You had to come out here and get hurt like this!"
"Ai-"
"I don’t want to hear another word out of your mouth right now!" she screamed at the top of her lungs almost bursting my eardrums but I did not care right now. I was still in a daze.
"Then do you suggest that we take Kazuki-sama away from the battlefield?" Akira voiced her opinion.
The sourc𝗲 of this content is frёeωebɳovel.com.
"Yes Akira, do it," Ai said to her.
"Ai-"
"Didn’t you listen to me?" she said in a cold voice looking back at me. "Not. Another. Word."
It looked like I did not have any say in this at all. I suddenly heard the sound of glass shattering and we all looked in that direction only to see the three nobles standing there looking at us like a predator looking at its prey. Obviously, they would have found us, they followed the scent of my blood which is spilled all over this floor.
"Don’t think you can escape us," the boy with blue hair said and icicles started forming in his hands. He aimed his hands at us and fired them.
Ai picked me up in her arms and dodged the icicles and Akira jumped the other way. I looked back at the katana and its sheath left there on the floor.
Ai landed on a desk and then kicked it making it stand vertically facing them and made me sit down behind it.
"Just stay here and don’t you dare move," Ai said to me and jumped out.
I started hearing the sounds of icicles hitting everywhere and lightning striking the ground along with the grunts of all five fightings there while I just blankly stared at the closed-hole in my body.
Looks like I am still weak.
I thought that I had killed those vampires before, I was getting strong enough but it did not feel like that at all just some minutes ago. I felt helpless, not able to do anything. I just took every single one of those hits without being able to do anything to protect me.
For some reason, it made me go into a mode of self-depreciation. I had no idea why but I felt just disgusted with myself. I thought I was getting stronger and just got beaten up so badly. What have I been doing all this time? Was everything I was doing for nothing?
This guy right now was not even as strong as the nobles I fought above but then why was I just helpless against it. No, for some reason, my mind went blank the moment I hit my back against the wall. My body got stunned for a moment there. I did not know what to do at that moment. I could have dodged it but I did not move my body fast enough.
Why?
Natsumi-san was a lot quicker than this so why did this happen?
My mind went in haywire and I could not think straight.
Schunk
Some icicles stabbed through the table I was sitting or more like hiding behind. It stuck out right beside my head. I looked at it and it somewhat brought me out of my thoughts.
Thud
I saw Ai fall right beside me with a shard of ice on her body and the noble jumped right over her and straddled her sitting on top of her. I looked as he moved his arm up in the air and a smile crept on his face. He brought it down it right in Ai’s shoulder.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhh!" she screamed in pain.
Her screams ringed in my ears and I looked at the scenes with widened eyes. Then, something started boiling up in me. I knew full well what it was, one of the seven deadly sins that make people make a lot of mistakes blinded in it and I let it take over me. The deadly sin was something that I felt after so long in a different situation.
Wrath.
I stood up and kicked off the ground appearing right before the noble punching him across his face breaking his jaw and making him fly across the room.
Really, what the hell was I doing?
There was no time to sit down like a duck and think just how weak I still am. I was weak and I will always be weak. But all that didn’t matter because I knew what I was fighting for. Why I had come all this way. The reason why I am here, in the middle of this battle.
All for our sake.
Both me and Ai.
"Akira!" I screamed and understanding what I meant, she appeared right beside me and handed me my katana.
Yes, it doesn’t matter if I am weak or not. I will still push forward and make it till the end.
For her sake.
For my sake.
For our sake.
I will destroy everything in my way.
"You just made the biggest mistake of your soon-to-end life," I said unsheathing my katana. "Don’t think I will die so easily."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------