High School Hack and Slash Chapter 115 Part 1
His Name
It was a trampling down play so simple that it allowed no resistance.
Trampling the opponents underfoot, mercilessly, without any sorts of emotion whatsoever.
As far as he was concerned, situations were something that was always changing, with him being on the receiving end of things.
It was a passive thing that was unilaterally imposed on him and forced upon him, whether he liked it or not.
Getting swept along with the flow without being able to resist, just cowering and hanging his head, simply enduring it until it passed.
For him, this was a natural matter of course that he did not even have thought about changing.
When such him stood on the side of the trampling, there was no perpetrator, so he was bewildered, unable to even tell left from right.
There was simply a weakling being trampled.
There was neither ill will nor even malice there, as they were simply being trampled down due to a simple reason of them『being a weakling』.
It was a simple reality with no room for good or evil, morality or logic.
Conflicts could only occur between people on the same level.
It couldn’t even amount to a fight.
Unless you stood on the same stage, you would never be able to push your own opinion through.
「Wa… Wait, please wait!」
「Move away.」
Words were understood, but holding a conversation was not possible.
The man who stood in front of Tatsuya was an existence that embodied『unreasonableness』 and『violence』.
He was an unstoppable, steadfast one.
He was not one that depended on the world, the society, or common sense, and received peace and protection.
He did compromise, but did not yield.
He was one that if necessary, would not shy away from confronting them and even fighting them.
「Please don’t kill him! This guy is… this guy is Shinnosuke!」
Like the group of raiders they had just encountered, he couldn’t care less about those he was unfamiliar with.
He did feel sympathy, thinking: how pitiful; but that was all there was to it.
However, the area boss that was lying on the ground right then and there was his classmate and comrade, even if he had undergone a bizarre transformation.
「Gugaaaah, Ta, Tatsuyaa…!」
「Shinnosuke!」
The squirming huge body, with one arm ripped off and legs crushed, was a grotesque one half fused with a machine.
Even so, the head alone was still that of a human, as if it were a joke.
「… I don’t know if he has been taken in by it or if he has transformed into it, but as he is, returning him to his original human form seems to be impossible.」
「… It looks like he’s not been eaten yet, but it looks like he’s been completely swallowed.」
A bitter-faced Otoha lined up next to Shizuka, who had ceased her expression.
If this one had not been taken directly from the dungeon into the raid domain, and had instead used Rashomon fifth『End Realm Gate』 that was equipped with a dedicated safety system, there was a possibility that it could be resurrected as a『human』.
In the first place, through pressing and solidifying the essence, it was supported so as not to be transformed.
「The retrieval is done. They are all, alive.」
The women, who were in unbecoming appearances and conditions, had been taken out of the battlefield.
Peperon and the fluffy group, who were carrying the crucial rescue targets who had traces of humiliation stickily sticking to them, were showing subtle expressions of disgust.
「—- So, what to do now? Do it in?」
Mai, tapping her shoulder with the staff in her hand, muttered without even making eye contact with anyone.
In all honesty, as an『enemy』, it was no big deal of an opponent.
They could end it as soon as they wished to.
「… Everyone, good work. You can go back to the base first. I’ll go and finish it.」
Otoha, carrying the『Dragon Scale Piercing Whale-Harpoon』 on her shoulder, took a step forward.
She was not such coldhearted of a woman who would force this role on her juniors.
However, no one moved to turn on their heels.
All the members who were here now, except for Tatsuya, had already decided their own stance.
It was exactly because they had drawn a non-compromisable line that they would not waver.
「Ouch, it hurts, it hurts… Tatsuya, h, help me.」
「I get it, I get it so, don’t talk anymore! Just why did you get yourself in such a mess, Shinnosuke?」
「I’m sorry, but I suppose I’ll have you move away from there. Tatsuya-kun.」
Tatsuya, who was standing in front of Touma to block him, directed a gaze as if he was looking at something unbelievable at Otoha.
「Wa, wait a minute, please… You heard what Shinnosuke said, right?」
「Yes, good for him, isn’t it? If he still has some consciousness, there’s probably a good chance he’ll be able to get back to normal.」
As Tatsuya’s breath was taken away, the tip of her harpoon was thrust in front of him.
「That’s why, do move away. I’m going to properly kill him, after all. It’s all fine if he’s immediately resurrected (respawn) as a human, but if he re-pops as a monster… We’ll have to quickly crush the other world (raid domain) and release him.」
Shinnosuke’s essence (data), which was linked to Rashomon, had been recorded.
If the transformed essence was still recognized as that of a『human』, he should be able to return as a『human』.
「But, please wait… that’s, but, such a thing is….」
「… Geha!」
A frog-like cry emanated from behind Tatsuya as he paced up to them with a wobbly and unreliable gait.
It spat out a blackened, oily vomit of blood.
The darkish bodily fluids flowing out of the monster dyed the surroundings as if it were splattered with paint.
If it was a living creature, it was an amount enough to cease its life activities.
「Gyahha! Gyahahaaaa!」
「Sh, Shinnosuke….」
The bloody monster laughed maniacally, and the scattered about darkish bodily fluids evaporated with a puff, turning into a smoke screen.
Pungent chemical-like irritant odor.
In the space enveloped in black smoke that obstructed their vision, Saki’s iai flashed.
Along with a high pitched sound of metal being cut off, the huge arm of the monster that had been cut off fluttered.
The monster’s scream turned into a roar, and the scattered bodily fluids dyed the smoke screen darker.
「Ah? Huh? Ah….」
Tatsuya, who had slumped to the ground right below it, looked up at Saki in a daze.
「Kill, kill, KILL… I’ll definitely, definitely kill you, Tatsuyaaa!」
「… Sh, Shinnosuke.」
「That’s why, Tatsuya… ve… me… okay… Gyahaha….」
The fading maniacal laughter disappeared beyond the smoke.
◇ ◇ ◇
Now then, now is the night time on the third day of the raid dive.
The sky is slightly bright, the same as usual, so my sense of time is turning crazy.
We’re taking a breather while soaking in the large open air bath, the specialty of the Demon Lord’s Castle.
Dinner was『Chicken stew with tomatoes』 prepared by Kurumi-senpai, but the members of the sortie team were not very excited about it, so she got angry and fuming.
It was delicious.
It’s just that, I’m curious about where they procured the chicken meat from.
I think they brought it in from outside, but I wonder if the number of those cluck-cluck hiss-ing guys is decreasing or something.
「Haau… Touma-kun, I won’t run away anymore, so let go of me~.」
「No can do.」
Mikan-senpai is flailing in struggle, but I continue washing her back without minding it.
The other Senpais soaking in the bathtub have also been washed in turn.
When I went to the workshop to look for the Senpais who didn’t come out for dinner either, I found them boisterously striving on their research, tottering about like zombies with only their eyes sparkling.
Securing the Senpais who seemed capable of proceeding to pull an all-nighter for the second day with ease, I forcefully carried them to the open air bath.
Some of the Senpais tried to run away or resist, but when I buried my face in their necks and sniffed them, they became flustered bashfully and listened to what I said.
The Senpais who are absentmindedly boiling with towels on their heads seem to be half-asleep, so if I lead them to their rooms later, I bet they would automatically go into sleep mode.
Done washing up Mikan-senpai, the last one, I once again soak in the bathtub, and breathe out a sigh of relief.
It seems that some Senpais are already nodding off and about to fall asleep.
Calling over a part of the hyper fuzzy cloud over the Demon Lord’s Castle, I have it serve as a fluffy air bed and put them down on it.
The material also has excellent water absorbency, so they won’t feel chilly after taking a bath either.
NEXT CHAPTER
RELEASE RATE
High School Hack and Slash
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Tftc