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“…Damn, it… Hey, you still alive?”
“I’m, hanging…. And you—you’re all done?”
“Yeah, unfortunately…”

The area around us was already completely engulfed by the shadows. They had surrounded us completely as we stood back-to-back, barely managing to stay upright using our swords for support.

The sun had long since set, and the surrounding area was shrouded in darkness, making it difficult to make out the shadow figures.

I had no strength left to wield my sword effectively; I no longer had any viable means of attack.

As for Sol, his shield had shattered and was rendered useless after shielding me several times, and most of his armor was damaged and had fallen off. Both of us were battered and bruised; in this state, even escaping would be difficult.

“Oh, right… I heard that if we make it back alive, Iris will nurse us back to health dressed as a nurse.”
“…Hey, you should’ve told me that sooner.”

She’s not really into that kind of cosplay, you know. She’d probably look incredibly embarrassed—her face bright red, with tears in her eyes. For a split second, an image flashed through my mind of Iris taking care of me like that. Damn it, of course she’d look cute.

“Haha… I wonder. Didn’t that give you a little motivation?”
“Yeah, totally. I can’t just die… I’d haunt people with my regrets.”

That said, even if we cracked jokes to distract ourselves from the fear, the situation wasn’t getting any better. Would she manage to escape and survive? She’d probably cry her eyes out… Ah, damn it, all I could picture was her crying face. I wish I could’ve seen her smile more… Haha, why was I thinking like that about my own best friend? I’m as straight as an arrow.

Ah, but, come to think of it.

Looking back now that we were in this situation, it must have been when I first saw his avatar.

Back then… I was already captivated by this fictional girl named “Iris”…

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Damn, I don’t want to die—…

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“……?”

No matter how long we waited, the attack never came. These b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲s̲, they weren’t looking at us, instead… No way. A cold sweat trickled down my back. There was only one person who came to mind, the one they were most fixated on. The sound of footsteps crunching through the snow, coming haltingly from the direction of town.

—That idiot! Get the hell out of here!!

I couldn’t even scream that out anymore; with my body frozen in place, all I could do was watch as they swarmed toward her.

Stop it, please stop. The image of that tiny body being trampled before my eyes—and the agonizing guilt of having let it happen—was still seared into my mind. I didn’t want to just stand here and watch her… Iris… being tormented, humiliated, and torn apart. I hated that more than anything in the world!!

My feet, staggering as I chased after them, came to a sudden halt. It seemed Sol beside me was in the same state, staring blankly ahead.

The worst-case scenario I’d feared hadn’t come to pass. Not a single one of the shadow tentacles—nor any of the smaller ones surrounding her—had managed to touch her, to violate Iris. The shadows that had closed in crumbled away instantly, and the others hesitated to approach… no, were they afraid? They were watching from a distance.

Slowly, with a sense of composure, Iris brought her hands together. As she slowly parted them, a majestic staff—as if formed solely from pure, white light of unknown origin—appeared in her grasp. What on earth had happened? Her presence was on a completely different level than before. And yet, the smile on her face was unmistakably hers…

Iris thrust the staff she held into the ground. In that instant, everything around her was enveloped in a dazzling yet soft, mysterious light.

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Ah man… She’s just so… beautiful—…

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“Most of the townspeople have scattered, Young Mas… I mean, Mayor.”
“Good… I’m sorry I made you guys draw the short straw too.”

There were no soldiers in this town, which was as remote as they came. The only ones remaining here were members of the vigilante group formed by the town’s young volunteers—specifically, the wounded from previous battles who, due to mysterious symptoms caused by that monster’s attack, could no longer move properly. All of them, unwilling to become a burden to the evacuees, had volunteered to buy the townspeople time to flee or to serve as sacrificial pawns to divert the monster’s path.

“That’s nonsense. If that’s what you think, then shouldn’t you just run away yourself? You’re still young and have only recently taken over the position from your father, and your wife must be waiting for you, too.”
“Haha… I really do feel terrible about this toward my wife… but even though I’m still a young upstart, I’ve taken on the role of leader for everyone in this town… Just leaving everything to a bunch of traveling youths and saying ‘Bye, see you later’—well, that’s just… kind of… uncool, isn’t it?”

I pictured them in my mind’s eye, still fighting wherever my gaze fell. Those skilled fighters who had resolved so many of the town’s long-standing issues—if they hadn’t stepped in to protect the townspeople under attack, the damage would have been far more severe. That said, for these travelers, this was just some random town they had no connection to. Unless they were exceptionally kind-hearted, they’d probably run away if they sensed danger, and I didn’t intend to blame them for that. What worried me was that the girl traveling with them—the one my wife said she had lost track of—still hadn’t been found…

“…You guys haven’t found the girl yet either, have you? I hope she’s safe.”
“Yeah, just where could’ve she gon…!?”

Suddenly, with the force of an explosion, the town lit up as if dawn had broken.

“What the hell is that light!?”
“I-I don’t know. Is it some kind of magic…? ……Oh, wh-what?”
“What’s going on? What happened!?”
“My injuries… somehow, they’re all gone…”
“Wh—what…?”

Looking around, even those who had been resigned to their fate were now staring at their own bodies in bewilderment. Everyone who had been bathed in this light… So, did that mean this light was the result of a healing spell? But I’d never heard of a spell on such a massive scale that could be effective from that far away. It was as if…

Without anyone leading the way, people began to kneel and bow their heads toward the light. Some were even shedding tears as they offered their prayers.

It was as if one of those beings, now spoken of only in legends, had…

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“As long as I don’t give up…!”

My back felt so hot, as if it were about to burst. With a crackling sound, my light wings ramped up their power, their color shifting from gold to white as they glowed even more brilliantly.

“I’m sure… I’ll break through any darkness…!”

It wasn’t enough. I still had to give it my all. My whole body creaked to the limit, and I felt something being drawn toward my back. As if emerging from a cocoon, a new light was born on my back.

Ah, that’s right… These are my wings—the ones I use to protect what I want to protect.

“—Grant salvation from all wounds, all binds, all malice upon these lands… Open… Open, ‘O ‘Sanctuary’…!!”

Like dawn, the darkness of the night was torn asunder, and a dazzling white light filled the world. Between the six massive, symmetrical wings of light, four more smaller wings spread out with a flutter—a total of five pairs, ten wings in all. My body floated gently away from the ground and hovered a short distance above it. The shadows surrounding us retreated as if frightened, and the black mist that had been clinging to and tormenting the two of them simply dissipated, vanishing without a trace.

“What… this light? Is it purification?”
“Amazing… my wounds are gone in the blink of an eye. My stamina and mana too…”

Stunned, the two stood up, freed from all their wounds and the constraints binding them. Seeing them restored to perfect condition, I breathed a sigh of relief.

The area was far larger than the previous “Sanctuary,” with a diameter of about 200 meters. As long as they were within this range…

“…There’s no form of curse tolerated within my presence. Now,”

I offered a gentle smile to the two, who were staring up at me in astonishment.

“It won’t last long. Let’s see… about a minute, perhaps—Do your best, both of you!”
“…That’s enough time!!”
“Leave it to us!!”

The two sprang to their feet and readied their weapons. The timidity they’d shown moments ago was gone; standing back-to-back, they pointed their weapons at the “thing” and shouted.

““Release!!””

Instantly, lines of light traced intricate patterns from Rage’s arms and legs, enveloping his limbs in a glow resembling fairy wings. A ring nearly one meter in diameter floated above Sol’s head, emitting a dazzling light as it began to spin. The Einherjar, a high-ranking subspecies of the Human race, and the Celestia, a high-ranking subspecies of the Heavenfolk. The Unleashing of Racial Traits—a power granted only to reincarnated high-ranking races. Though it can only be used once every few days, it is a trump card that drastically boosts all abilities.

With a single swing of the white-light staff in my hand, their weapons began to glow with light the same color as my wings. The feathers swirling around them danced closely, as if to protect them.

“‘Luminate Edge,’ ‘Multi-Protection.’ This time for sure… I’ll protect the two of you…!”

Both were spells of the same type as those used in the previous battle, but having been imbued with my transformation, their potency had increased dramatically.

“It’ll take me a little while to get ready. I’ll leave the first move to you, Sol!”

Vitality began to flow through Rage’s sword once more; the mechanism sealed within the blade was unleashed, and countless slits began to open with a clatter.

“Roger that, I’ve got this…!!”

As Sol pulled his arm back to the limit and readied himself for a thrust, energy began to swirl at the tip of his sword.

The enemy’s tentacles attacked both of them all at once. A rain of shadow tentacles filled the sky. But—all of them were deflected by the feathers dancing around the two of them, accompanied by a dazzling light. Without even touching them, the tentacles veered off, futilely gouging the ground around them and merely kicking up the accumulated snow. Each of these feathers was a “Protection” spell, and with countless layers piled upon one another, even if a few were blown away, they could not be easily breached… No, I would not let them be breached.

Realizing this, the countless mouths surrounding us all turned toward us at once. The me of just a moment ago would surely have lost the will to fight… But now, I understood my surroundings very clearly. I could feel a presence pushing me forward. That presence had been waiting for this very moment… for the instant when our opponents would all converge on a single point in a straight line.

Behind me, as if crawling out of the darkness, a figure suddenly appeared.

“Nyahaha!! Is it my turn? I’ve been waiting for this!!”

Milly-san, who had been lying in wait, hidden by camouflage magic, must have released her form at some point. Flapping the large, bat-like wings characteristic of the Nosferatu—a high-ranking race of demons—she let out a loud laugh against the backdrop of a complex and massive magic circle, the incantation for which she must have already completed.

“‘Lightning Detonator’!! Here comes the fireworks!!”

—A deafening roar. The surging lightning dyed the white world purple, dodged around me, and instantly turned all the “Mouths” swarming around me into charcoal. Not only that, it raced past the two of them, swallowing every shadow in its path, and carved a straight line all the way to the creature.

“……You!? What are you doing here?!!”
“Nyaha! I didn’t want to get in your way by showing myself, so I’ve been preparing and waiting in the wings the whole time—just to get the best part: taking them all out in one fell swoop! Thanks for the grub!!”

In response to Sol’s astonished question, Milly-san, sporting a smug grin, replied playfully. However… upon closer inspection, the hand gripping her staff was covered in blood. It seemed she’d been biting her finger to hold back her pain—just how agonizing must it have been for her to simply wait for the right moment while watching the two of them get hurt right before her eyes? Even so, she’d been lying in wait, trusting that this moment would come.

“Stop that smug look—it’s infuriating!! Haah… Fine, you saved my hide!!”
“You owe me one, nya. I’ll make you pay it back someday—specifically with the most expensive dessert in town!”
“You, at a time like this… Well, whatever. That’s fine. Thanks to you, I can see that guy clearly… First off, I’m taking that cocky sword of his!!”

Sol’s sword traced intricate patterns in the air in front of him. In the blink of an eye, they formed a massive array of light that towered over his own height.

“I’ll force my way through! ‘Chain Bind Rampage!!’”

The ground at Sol’s feet exploded with a deafening roar. As Sol charged forward with his sword wrapped in a torrent of fighting spirit, having slipped through the formation, countless glowing chains erupted from behind him. A spiraling torrent unleashed from the tip of his sword swept away the shadows rushing to fill the void that had just been carved out, clashing directly with the creature’s sword-arm—and—

The white light dwelling within the sword exploded. The monster’s distorted sword, afforded no resistance whatsoever, dissolved into the air in an instant, leaving behind a high-pitched sound of shattering crystal before vanishing without a single fragment remaining. Now defenseless after losing its weapon, the chains that had been pursuing the creature tightened around it, binding and restraining it, completely immobilizing its movements. With no obstacles remaining on the path laid out in a straight line by those chains, the monster was left standing there, its form exposed in an awkward posture.

“The stage is set. I’ll let you have the finishing move… Go!!”
“Well then, the path is clear nya, I’ll leave the rest to you, Senpai!”
“…Yeah, I’ve got this. Here I go, ‘Dragon Eye Unleashed’…!!”

The slit in the center of Reiji’s sword hilt opened, revealing an eye-like crystal inside, and as the force field redeployed, “Arsley”—the sword Reiji wielded—began to reveal its true form. At the same time, red tentacles reached out toward his arm once more, draining Reiji’s stamina. However, in the very next instant, light danced about him, rapidly restoring his lost life force. No matter how much he expends, I’ll replenish it endlessly… I’m here now!

“…Go for it, Rage!!”

As I thrust out my clenched fist with all my might, every last bit of white light converged onto Rage’s sword. The force field surrounding “Arsley” shifted from red to white. The sword, having reached its critical point, rang out with a bell-like chime, as if crying out to unleash the destructive power it held within.

“Once more, blow the hell up!!”

With a lightning-fast lunge, Rage’s sword slashed through the enemy’s torso, slicing deep into the crystal at its core… The white light enveloping the blade burned the enemy from the inside out like the sun itself, causing it to explode.

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A dazzling, pure-white world so bright I could see nothing.

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As all the light subsided and the remnants of the white glow fluttered down like snow, the surroundings finally began to shroud themselves in the darkness of night as if they’d just remembered to do so. By then, “it” had vanished without a trace, completely and utterly obliterated—……

***

Note: Rage fell in love at first sight with a fictional girl named “Iris,” but before he even realized it, he discovered she was actually the protagonist and was instantly heartbroken—so this was not a BL story.