"……Hmph. Anyway, you're finished. Give up and come out already. Or are you going to leave that cat-beast to die and stay holed up there?"

It's annoying to obey, but there seems to be no other choice.

I don't think I'll just let myself be killed—though it would be simple if I were dead.

But apparently, I can't avoid leaving the barrier.

　

Still, I'm not going to be killed without a fight.

I don't know what kind of communication method he has, but I won't let him get away with just a single finger gesture. There must be a weakness somewhere.

The great spirit is more than ten meters away.

In contrast, Ferdinand is just over two meters away.

I'll close the distance immediately and immobilize him with magic before he can contact anyone.There's a difference in rank, and a difference in experience.

He should be able to do it.

I always keep an extra seal stone on hand to give to Flue, so once Ferdinand is neutralized, I can shatter it again and set up the barrier before the Great Spirit attacks.

...I should've just given the seal stone to Flue all along, but it's too late to worry about that now. In any case, it's not an item suited for surprise attacks.

"I'm going out. But make sure you guarantee Flue's safety."

"Yeah, I don't want any unnecessary killings either. You can rest easy on that. As long as you're the one who dies, that's fine. I have no intention of touching Refrea Ashbard or Jeanne Collet over there. Naturally, that changes if you attack us."

Whether he's lying or not, I have no choice but to believe him.

　

"Wait, Hikaru! There's no need to listen to something like that person! I'll take care of this! You know Hikaru, and you brought the Great Spirit here!"

"Reifrea. Furuu's being held hostage. ...Please endure."

It's honestly heartwarming that Reifrea is angry on my behalf.

In reality, she could probably cut down Ferdinand with a single strike.

But this guy must have known that perfectly well when he came here.

No... wait.

I see. Maybe that's why he's hiding something in his pocket—probably a barrier stone.

If that stone is shattered, Reifrea's attack will be nullified.

Even I could do the same if I set it up.

He must have anticipated that we might retaliate—after all, that would be the first thing he'd consider.

There's no way he'd be unprotected in that situation.

Ultimately, he could use the barrier stone right now, at this very moment. And all he'd need to do is wait calmly for me to come out. Since he's taken Grapefleur as a hostage, this won't turn into a prolonged standoff.

Refleia can't possibly leave to rescue Fleur.

As soon as he senses her movement, he'll contact his allies.

Fleur has no combat ability.

He won't be on guard in the middle of the city.

He's already a weak Lycan (Linkus) to begin with. With just a single knife, his life could be taken easily.

And that kind of thing... there's no way I could ever accept it.

Even if it means sacrificing my own life.

(—In the end, I couldn't apologize to Jeanne after all.)

By now, he's probably still asleep at the inn.

I'm sorry, Refleia, for dragging you into this.

If it hadn't been for the hostage situation, I could've chosen random teleportation and escaped. But this guy had even that planned for, which is why he took Grapeflour hostage.

— Yet, toward that malice, I strangely felt neither anger nor hatred.

I came to this world, touched by the malice of many through messages.

I always had a feeling that a day like this would come. That's why both I and Jeanne avoided the second-wave transmigrants.

I knew, if they truly wanted to, there'd be nothing we could do about it.

　

"Hah, hahahaha! Don't make such a desperate face, Hikaru Cross! Yeah... if you survive a fight with the Great Spirit, I'll spare your life. I don't intend to kill you myself, after all."

He bared his teeth in a grin, Ferdinand.

The Great Spirits are godlike beings. There's no way we, who merely borrow their power through 'contracts,' could ever hope to defeat them—their very source.

The Great Spirits are so powerful they can drain an entire city's energy.

How could one person possibly overcome such a being?

That's why he says such things—he knows the truth.

And yet... I have no choice but to gamble on it.

At this point, there's nothing else left.

Whether he keeps his promise or not is uncertain, but at the very least, I want to resist until the end.

The odds of survival are about one in ten thousand.

Still, I didn’t want to just sit there and be devoured without a fight.

I wanted at least to leave behind a mark of resistance.

A mark of defiance—against this world transfer, and against the gods themselves.

"Well then, come out already. If you don’t hurry up, I’ll really kill that cat-beast (Linkus)!"

At those words, I made my decision.

Refreia looked at me with concern.

"Hikaru, the Great Spirit will understand if we explain. If things get bad, I’ll stop them… I promise…!"

"Thank you, Refreia. I’ll be fine."

Even though she must be terrified of the Great Spirit, her determined resolve gave me strength.

I will survive.

Even if not for any other reason, I'll make sure to strike back—no matter who the opponent is.

I placed my hand on the sword at my waist and stepped out of the barrier.

The barrier made of spirit stones vanished the moment I stepped outside.

In the next instant—

"Huh... hehe…"

The Water Great Spirit, who should have been at least ten meters away, appeared right beside Ferdinand.

It wasn't so much a case of rapid movement as it was as if the spirit had simply reappeared there, almost naturally—perhaps that was exactly what had happened.

I instinctively drew my sword and began gathering magic power, but strangely, the Great Spirit's spiritual energy wasn't aimed at me.

I barely moved my right hand, just a slight gesture of pointing.

And with that, dense spiritual energy wrapped around Ferdinand.

"W-what?! H-hey! Your target should be him, right?! Why me?! Let go!"

It was an overwhelmingly powerful, pure water spirit energy, clearly visible.

Like a giant serpent, it wrapped around Ferdinand's body tenfold, twentyfold.

Both arms and legs were bound, leaving him no freedom even to break the barrier stone.

It happened in an instant.

I was stunned, completely losing the chance to attack the Great Spirit.

"Gh... g-guh... c-curse it... you've got the wrong target... Let go... Hurry, kill that one..."

"Ku-huh-huh-huh. Foolish. Foolish. So utterly foolish."

The Great Spirit laughed.

Who is the absolute strongest here right now? That was the mocking laughter meant to make it undeniably clear.

"Who... is... foolish...? Let go..."

"How bold of you to issue commands to me? Do you really think you can manipulate me by using my beloved as bait? Yes, he may be delicious, indeed. But listen well, outsider from another realm...

【Know your place】"

As if triggered by those words, the density of spirit energy clinging to Ferdinand suddenly exploded.

The water spirit calmly continued restraining Ferdinand.

Despite wielding such overwhelming spirit magic, its expression remained utterly unchanged.

The dense spirit energy swirling within the great spirit showed no sign of diminishing, not even by a single drop.Her form was none other than the embodiment of nature itself.

She was no different from a deity or the world itself taking on human shape.

"Savoring my 'beloved'... and you attempting to harm my people—those are entirely separate matters. All who dwell in this town are my children, after all."

Her voice, speaking as if to the onlookers around her, was quiet yet carried far, like the resonant toll of a bell.

It was unlike anything human.

A voice that the soul understood before the mind could grasp—absolute, superior in nature.

　

Ferdinand, captured and held, turned pale—already unable to speak.

Or perhaps, already no longer even...

"Hmph, heh heh. Even though I wouldn't want to taste such a delicacy as this, it'll do perfectly as an appetizer."

"Huh... could it be...?"

"Looks like you're planning to eat it...?"

Refleia explains with a slightly surprised expression, but I feel a complicated mix of emotions.

The one before me is a coward who took a hostage and tried to kill me—there's no room for sympathy.

Apparently, declaring he'd kill Grapeflour angered the Great Spirit, so he's completely reaping what he sowed.

Yet on the other hand, this guy is, at the very least, someone connected to his sister's boyfriend—though I'm not sure if they're actually together.

I wonder what kind of emotions Serika is feeling right now, watching this.

Is she crying, thinking, "This wasn't supposed to happen"?

Will she hate me even more now?

The thought of it makes my chest ache.

　

The Water Spirit gently presses her lips to Ferdinand's.

Somewhere, a quiet gasp can be heard.

I felt as though I had been sewn in place, unable to move.

From Ferdinand's body, which was already on the verge of losing consciousness, strength... vitality... was draining away,

as if being sucked up like water.

No... the opponent was a being that controlled water. Was it actually sucking up moisture itself?

Ferdinand's body rapidly withered, transforming before my eyes into a mummy-like form of bones and skin,

when suddenly, something strange happened.

Ferdinand's right hand began to glow, enveloping his body, and his form gradually restored itself—like a reverse playback—returning to its original, vibrant state.

Once everything was restored, whatever had been in his right hand shattered and fell loose.

"Ah... so that's it. The substitute ring."

A miraculous ring that could shoulder death once on his behalf.

But even so, when facing the Great Spirit—

"Hm... how extraordinary, truly admirable,"

it was nothing more than a slight postponement of an inevitable death.

"Huh... huh... huh... I see, I see. One who dares to claim descent from the Otherworld truly knows their craft. The chaotic power, though not yet fully harmonized with their body, gives it a remarkably refined, intricate flavor. ... Might just become addictive."

Having savored every last bit once more, the Great Spirit unleashed its dragon-like spiritual power and casually tossed aside what remained of Ferdinand.

Clang—like a piece of driftwood rolling along.

It was no sound a human would make when falling.

Even the faintest remnants of that physical form were swept away by the wind, turning to a fine, drifting dust and vanishing completely.

There was nothing left there—neither strength, nor life, nor even the body itself.

It was nothing more than an empty shell, utterly stripped of everything.

—It was dead.

It vanished from this world without leaving even a spirit stone behind.

All of it had happened within just a few minutes after I stepped out of the barrier.

And then, the great spirit's attention turned toward me.

Its eyes clearly pleaded: "Next, it's your turn."