An unknown reaction from a junior.
Sensing the bewilderment and urgency it contained, Alkine ran through the rift faster than ever before.
And the further she went, the more regret piled up for not having followed from the start.
She hadn’t expected the inside of the rift to become this dangerous.
Even though she had always emphasized the dangers of rifts and the need to stay vigilant, the thought that she had caused this situation infuriated her.
‘What’s done is done. Stay calm.’
She was the only one who could handle this situation, so she couldn’t afford to falter.
With that thought, Alkine forcefully suppressed her emotions.
Yes, they would have managed well enough on their own. Even though the situation was severe, they were capable individuals who wouldn’t back down easily.
Her only focus now was to rejoin them as quickly as possible.
Her judgment was correct. In fact, the abnormalities within the rift were something the other student council members were capable of handling on their own.
However, what no one had anticipated was the lurking danger beyond that.
“Move! Get out of the way!! Don’t get close!!!”
“Aaargh! My arm!!”
What she first noticed upon finding the panicked group was a black monster in human form.
She realized it instantly upon seeing it.
It was a demon.
Even if she gave it her all, she wasn’t certain she could win… No, she was sure she would lose. Demons were on an entirely different level compared to mere monsters. With her current abilities, confronting it was the best she could do.
But… that didn’t mean she could stand by idly.
If she didn’t act now, the others fighting would be in even greater danger.
Half of them were barely holding their ground, while the other half had already fallen into a state of incapacity.
It seemed no one had died yet, perhaps thanks to the demon’s whim… but any further delay could lead to outcomes she couldn’t predict.
There was no need to think further.
Alkine lunged at the demon, aiming for an opening.
At the same time, she transformed her mana into the form of a greatsword, gripping it with both hands and swinging it.
Boom!!!
The demon, struck by her attack, flew backward and crashed into a massive boulder.
The boulder crumbled, burying the demon, but if such an impact were enough to end it, things wouldn’t have come to this point.
Alkine clicked her tongue involuntarily.
‘I swung to cleave it in half…’
Her attack hadn’t pierced the demon’s skin at all.
The cutting power of her mana sword couldn’t even leave a scratch. Its durability was astonishing to the point of disbelief.
A hopeless situation where she couldn’t inflict even a single wound on the demon.
However, she couldn’t show her despair, so she spoke calmly.
“You’ve held out well, everyone.”
“President!”
“Ah, President…!”
“We’re saved now…!”
Both those who could still fight and those who had fallen but remained conscious sighed in relief at her appearance.
But it was too soon to relax. The current situation was dire.
Alkine had to choose between two options.
Fight or flee.
But fighting and defeating something that didn’t even have a scratch from her mana sword was impossible.
On the other hand, escaping was difficult due to the number of injured.
Faced with a no-win choice, Alkine let out a small sigh of frustration.
Abandoning the injured and running was never an option for her.
And… if it was her choice, the outcome was already decided.
“Brief me, Grain.”
“Yes, President.”
She would fight.
It was the only thing she could do right now.
“Ki-ki-giik! Kii-gi-gi-iik~!!!”
Perhaps provoked by her earlier attack, the demon rose from the pile of boulders, emitting an even more grotesque sound.
In a situation where she didn’t know how the demon would act, Alkine prepared herself, fully on edge, while Grain quickly relayed information.
“It compresses the surrounding space itself to attack. There are warning signs, but they’re invisible, and it seems impossible to block. It’s difficult, but… you have to sense the disruption in the surrounding mana and dodge.”
“Understood. Anything else noteworthy?”
“I’m at my limit, and I think I’m about to pass out. Can I leave the rest to you?”
“Heh, I’ll live up to your expectations.”
At Alkine’s words, Grain gave a faint smile and closed her eyes.
Though she didn’t appear injured, she had likely exhausted herself by pushing her abilities to their limit.
Without her, they might have been annihilated much earlier.
…Shaking off negative thoughts, Alkiné gave orders to those around her.
“Those who are still able, take the injured and hide. I’ll handle this thing on my own.”
Attempting to escape with the wounded through the increasingly dangerous rift would only lead to greater peril.
For that reason, all she could do was tell them to hide.
However, her directive was essentially an admission that she intended to fight alone and resolve the situation herself, prompting worried looks from everyone.
“President…”
But no one could step forward to help.
As one by one they began to move away, the demon advanced until it stood right before Alkine.
Its six grotesque, blinking eyes fixed on her. Seeing it up close, she reaffirmed that despite its humanoid form, it was nothing more than a monster.
Still, she was grateful that its attention wasn’t on the ones retreating.
“At least you’re not a beast that hunts indiscriminately.”
“Kikikik—”
The exchange almost seemed conversational, though there was no real understanding between them.
“Kikikikiki—”
When the monster emitted another bizarre sound, Alkine felt an ominous sensation.
The mana enveloping her abruptly stopped flowing.
‘So this is what they meant by a disruption in mana.’
Even as that thought crossed her mind, her body had already moved to dodge.
Crunch—!
The space where she had been standing just moments ago warped and twisted.
Even though she had evaded it, the residual pressure made her skin crawl.
Judging that she couldn’t allow it any opportunity to attack, Alkine immediately charged to seize the offensive.
Boom!
Her powerful strike sent the demon flying.
Yet again, it sustained no injuries, but she didn’t stop.
Each time it got up, she attacked again, sending it flying once more.
Whenever she sensed the signs of its attack, she dodged and countered, repeatedly knocking it away in the opposite direction of the retreating group.
She continued this pattern for what felt like an eternity.
From an outside perspective, it might have seemed as though Alkine was overwhelming the demon.
But the reality was the opposite.
The demon was merely enduring her attacks without retaliation.
While it remained unscathed despite taking every hit, Alkine couldn’t afford to take even a single blow—it would be fatal.
The longer the battle dragged on, the clearer the outcome became, yet she couldn’t afford to give up.
If she retreated, the demon would undoubtedly hunt down the student council members in hiding.
With that thought driving her, Alkine maintained her relentless assault.
Once she judged that everyone had successfully hidden, she began using her full strength, employing her most powerful techniques against the demon.
Still, she failed to leave a single mark on it. There was nothing else she could do.
…How much time had passed?
Her attacks noticeably slowed. Her movements were far less forceful than before.
Her stamina had reached its limit.
Yet, she forced herself to take one more step forward.
She knew all too well what would happen if she fell here.
But no matter how much she willed it, her body wouldn’t take another step.
Helplessness. Exhaustion. Pressure.
Everything weighed down on Alkine.
Perhaps sensing this, the demon began approaching her leisurely.
Even as she saw the demon draw closer, Alkine couldn’t do anything.
So this is how it ends.
If she died here… her parents would be so devastated.
“…Help me.”
A wish escaped her lips, even though she knew there was no one who could help her.
The futility of it all made her feel even more hollow.
Then, she heard a familiar voice.
“Wow, seriously, if I’d been even a little later, this would’ve been a disaster.”
Before she knew it, someone had stepped in between her and the demon.
At first, she couldn’t recognize who it was due to her blurred vision, but as she gathered her senses, she realized it was the junior she had recruited for the student council.
It felt surreal that he had stepped into this situation, so much so that she thought she might be hallucinating.
“Sorry I’m late, President. But in my defense, you were too fast, so please forgive me.”
His casual demeanor, entirely inappropriate for such a dire situation, matched the junior she knew so well, making her realize this was indeed reality.
“Rudion! That thing is dangerous! Step back immediately!”
She used every ounce of her remaining strength to yell, but he seemed to have no intention of listening.
Instead, as if preparing for battle, he drew a short sword from his waist and aimed it at the demon.
“No… don’t.”
At that moment, she realized the demon’s attack was targeting her junior’s left arm.
“Rudion!”
The image of his arm being crushed flashed in her mind, and she urgently called out his name.
But it was too late for him to dodge in response to her warning. She braced herself for his scream to follow.
Clang!
“Kiiiiiiiiik!!!”
“…Hmm. Can’t see perfectly, but it’s manageable.”
The scene she feared didn’t come to pass.
Rather… the demon, which had until now been impervious to all attacks, let out a scream and began writhing in pain.
“You… what did you…”
“I’ll deal with this guy first and explain later. Please, rest for now.”
With that, he slowly began approaching the demon.
Alkine couldn’t make sense of the situation at all.
How did he know this danger existed?
If he knew, why did he follow her here?
And what had he done to the demon—something she couldn’t even scratch—that had caused it such pain?
She had no answers, but one thing was certain:
Right now, his back seemed incredibly reliable.
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