Tension ran calmly through him. He adjusted his position to better use the sword.
(If it's only me......)
If it was just him, he could manage this situation, but he was currently holding Meishen. His movements were hugely limited. They included his sword swings, his speed and Kei. Meishen, as a non-Military Artist, probably couldn't stand the situation.
"......"
Meishen held tightly to him. He continued swinging the sword to strike down the huge slabs descending on them. While he regretted that he could not use his right hand, soil and metal fence closed in on them. Soil particles hit their skin, and the veins weaving around the ground of the organic field struck their backs. He swung in the direction of the low echo he heard. The blade shattered the two metal fences, throwing off sparks at the contact. Layfon used that faint light of sparks to confirm their situation. He twisted to stand on one of the passing fences, using it to extend his area of movement and decidedly swing his sword.
(I might ruin it again.)
He was using the sword with his movements restricted. His cutting paths were absolutely horrible. He could only use external type Kei and shatter the obstacles with brute force, which wasn't very good on the sword blade.
(Please last.)
Praying like that, he continued to cut through the things falling on them. And like that, he concentrated on the crisis above them. As moonlight left them, Layfon used the sparks caused by his strike and the sound of falling obstacles to defend themselves. His tension was reaching its limit. He calculated the distance between them and the ground through the echo of metal striking the bottom.
But something unexpected happened.
"Ah."
"Wuah!"
Just a bit more.... As he thought of this, the ground beneath them shook. Other things that had fallen past Layfon had piled on top of one another to make a hill. The metal fence he was standing on crashed against a metal fence buried in the hill. He pushed against his foothold and flew sideways.
"Aaaaaaa."
To fall and then to rise, Meishen became more confused. Originally, she suppressed herself and hadn't made a noise, but now she struggled in Layfon's arm.
"Uh."
Pain cut a path between his eye and ear. Probably just some debris. He suppressed the impatience and anxiety rushing him up as he bore that hot pain. Finally, his feet touched the ground, and he used both hands to carry Meishen, running away from the hill to avoid the falling obstacles.
A rumble shook the ground, heading for Layfon from behind him. He jumped and touched the ground. That presence behind him was gone. He didn't sense anything falling on top of them. The sound of the city's moving multi-legs overwhelmed the sound of debris falling. Layfon kept moving forward without thinking. When he stopped, he put Meishen down.
"Ah...... Ah, Ah...... Huh?"
"It's all right. It's all right now."
He couldn't make out her face in the dark. The sudden descent had prevented her from saying anything. He covered her with his jacket and patted her trembling shoulder. He waited for her to calm down, then he stood up.
"I'll just go and check the situation."
"Ah.........!" she took his hand.
"......... Uh, so...... sorry."
As if the darkness had wiped away her voice, she let go of his hand.
(Aa, I see......)
She must have felt very scared since she couldn't see anything. Layfon abandoned the idea of checking his surroundings and sat down beside her.
"It's ok. Please go."
"It's alright to wait a bit. We can go together afterward."
It'd be good if she was confused as usual. That would be proof of her recovery.
"Speaking of which......... That really was surprising."
Layfon lifted his head and couldn't see anything. He had never thought such a place existed. He thought only the Mechanical Department and its exit would be beneath the city. The truth stared at him when he thought deeper about the issue. How could the underside of the city just be covering up the Mechanical Department? It must envelop a larger area than that.
(This place is close to the city's edge. There must be other mechanisms around to control the city's multi-legs.)
He glanced around. It was still dark everywhere. The sound of rumblings pressed around them. His guess of other mechanisms being close by was correct. He had moved around during the descent, so it wouldn't be surprising if he had moved slightly away from the mechanisms.
"........."
A weak touch on his shoulder. The sound of clothes brushing against clothes. It was Meishen's shoulder.
"Be patient a bit more. They'll definitely find us."
"Yes......"
He took her hand.
"Uh, uh.........Say something," she said.
"Eh?"
"About Grendan."
"Ah......I was in a place as dark as this a long, long time ago. It was outside the city, in a nest of filth monsters. I wasn't a Heaven's Blade successor yet, still quite a kid. I had undergone training without using my vision, so I wasn't worried in the fight. I just fought like I was in a dream."
Layfon and other people fought the larvae in the nest that the psychokinesists had found.
"The feeling during the fight was good, since I didn't have to think. I just needed to move according to my memories, but it was different after the fight."
The underground nest was made for the newly born larvae. Unable to sustain the intense fight, the exit had collapsed, sealing the Military Artists in there, including Layfon.
"I knew we'd be rescued because we had the flakes of the psychokinesists with us, but I felt uneasy in the dark. So I understand your feelings."
"Sorry......"
"Why are you apologizing?"
"Because...... You were going to find the exit."
"They'll find it quickly. There's someone who is better at this than I am."
"Yes, so......"
"So, I was scared back then."
"Huh?"
"I exhausted all my strength during the fight, but after everything had ended......"
He had nothing else to do. And he hated that feeling. The feeling of waiting for someone to do something.
"Layton......Layton!"
"......Uh? What?"
"......... Uh."
He understood when Meishen turned her head and he heard her hair brushing against the uniform he had covered her with.
(As I thought.........)
The feeling of spacing out didn't sit well with him because it led his thinking into the negative. In this place where light failed to reach, the smell of metal and the surrounding environment had stolen away their body warmth. The coldness of the place took away their strength. The same as the situation before. The feeling was similar to the cruel time when the orphanage was poor and they couldn't do anything about it. He felt he had to do something, but deeper thought revealed his impotence.
"Layton...... Are you ok? Aren't you cold?"
"Thanks. I'm all right," he replied shortly and wrapped his knees with his arms.
"What do you mean it's all right!" A heated voice cut through the coldness. Felli.
"Great. You found us."
The sudden violent voice scared Meishen, and she tightened her hold on Layfon. He gave a relieved and exhausted smile.
"Huh?" It was Meishen's voice, shocked. She took her hand away from his shoulder as if to confirm something.
"Of course." Anger shot through Felli's light reply. Layfon shrugged.
"The Captain and the others are coming. You stay there and don't move."
'Wait for sometime,' Felli had said. In her words were impatience and anxiety.
"Layton......?
But it was already too late. Meishen confirmed that sticky feeling on her hand. "Lay......ton."
She called his name repeatedly, her voice filled with tension and edginess. Layfon heard the sound of blood leaking rapidly in the gap in his heart. His conscio
usness felt far away.
"Layton!"
Darkness swallowed him.
Leerin woke up and looked at her watch. She sat up on the bed, doubtful of the time her watch showed and then realized she hadn't changed into her pajamas. The window blinds remained closed from before she went to school. She opened it and saw the night street. The sun hadn't risen yet. As she spaced out, she remembered what happened yesterday. She was eating fried bread with Synola in the park and had told her about her feelings. The reason behind the chat was to seek advice and to organize and objectively examine herself. She began to get flustered as bit by bit, she realized she already knew what she wanted from the very beginning.
"There's someone I want to see."
She had said that without reserve. That was what she wanted. Her worry came from her uncertainty of how he would think of her when he saw her.
But no matter how much you worry, you won't know the answer. Only the current Layfon in Zuellni can answer you. You gain nothing by worrying.
That was what Synola had told her.
"It is impossible to find what isn't in your heart," Synola said as she rolled up the bag of fried bread. The constant smile on her face had disappeared. Staring at the park, her eyes were surprisingly serious, but it was clear she wasn't looking at anything in particular.
"You'll only be wasting your effort seeking for that thing," she continued.
Leerin thought Synola had become someone else. She wasn't the strange senpai that Leerin had known. She had become a beautiful creature of something different.
"It's simple to give up what you can't have. Humans can even give up their lives easily. Humans have the habit of abandoning things. What is before you can, in one split second, become a beautiful memory. It's also simple to live by loving your memory. Leerin, it's all right if you want to do that." Her words were cold and harsh. "But we can give up anytime. You hate getting hurt, but that feeling of dislike and hate can happen anywhere. Even if one wishes not to die, one might die on the day of his wish. Even so, it's easy for anyone to give up. Why do you think so?"
Leerin had a bad feeling as she listened. She felt that she didn't want to hear more. But Synola showed no signs of stopping. "Leerin, you just don't want to get hurt. That's all."
"!"
She wanted to deny it, but nothing came to her. She couldn't even shout. Swallowing back the words that weren't words, Leerin exhaled.
"It's not wrong to be afraid of getting hurt. But it's true that what can't be hurt might not be beautiful. No matter how beautiful a thing is, it began at its birth as a dirty stone. Nothing will happen if that stone isn't cut. No one knew what it would become before it was cut. But I believe it'll become something much more beautiful than when it was still dirty."
Having said that, Synola left the park, leaving Leerin rooted on the spot. Leerin had then returned to the dormitory and went to bed without changing. Perhaps what she had needed then was sleep. Synola's words had given a direction to the thought in her heart.
Leerin was surprised the next day that she had slept from dusk till dawn, as if she could only sleep to accept that change. She slept a lot but did not feel tired from waking. Her body was surprisingly light.
"Let's go," she said to herself and closed the blinds. She took off her clothes in the dark and went for a shower. She washed away all that stuck to her and refreshed herself once more.
When he came to, he was on a hospital bed, looking at a nurse's face. The nurse quickly called the doctor over to check on him.
"The person who came into the hospital the most this year is you," the senior doctor said with a weary face.
"I suppose." Layfon's gaze turned to the drip connected to his arm.
The main injuries were on his forehead, right shoulder and back. He sustained many other smaller wounds, but those three wounds were the main reason behind his blood loss and loss of consciousness.
"The biggest problem is the back. The debris had cut into a part of your spine. You have to go through an operation, but......" he paused.
"Will there be any side effects?"
"No. Even if the operation failed, we could restore your spine with the restoration operation. As long as your brain and Kei vein aren't damaged, pretty much your entire body can heal if we transport you to a hospital with good equipment before death. That's the level modern medicine is capable of. It'd be easier to just get you a new spine," the doctor said frankly.
"Then......?
"If we change your spine, you'll need time to recover. Taking out the debris needs less recovery time...... but you can't participate in the next platoon match."
"Aaah...... I see."
"Aren't you shocked?"
"This is the second time."
The 17th platoon had lost their match before when Nina had fainted and they lost by default.
"But I feel bad because it's my fault."
"That wasn't your fault. It was just the situation."
The situation......It was caused by the wearing out of the part under the city, causing the ground to collapse......That kind of thing. A detailed investigation was still being carried out, but that would probably be the conclusion. The doctor and all senior students of the construction course were told of the investigation.
"Just take a good rest now. A patient's job is to recover," the doctor hung the stethoscope back on his neck and left the room.
Nina came in, brushing past the doctor's shoulder.
"Are you all right?"
Appropriate to the situation of entering a hospital, Nina held a bunch of flowers.
"Sorry, I can't participate in the next match."
"Stupid, don't worry about that," she put the flowers aside and sat on the chair closest to the bed. It had been three days from the night when Nina knew of the date for the camp to when Layfon fell and lost his consciousness. Felli had quickly found him and Meishen, and the team had rescued them.
"Didn't you say that before? Now it's real."
"I see."
But the purpose of the camp was to prepare for the match with the 1st platoon. It felt like the 17th platoon had finally revived, and this incident happened on the worst timing possible.
"We haven't given up the match."
"Huh?"
"The training you gave us won't be wasted. I've become stronger. I think it's a shame if we forfeit the match. I've talked with the others, they all say we can't forfeit now."
"Is that so, that's good."
"So I say, you just concentrate on recovering."
Layfon nodded at her encouragement.
"Mei...... Is Meishen all right?"
He felt cramps from the muscles wrapped in bandages, and in his head surfaced Meishen. He couldn't quite move his head when the doctor was checking up on him.
"She's all right. Didn't get hurt much, just a scratch."
"...... That's great," he said, truly relieved.
"I'm sorry. That was my fault," Nina lowered her head.
"Not at all. It wasn't senpai's fault."
"But......"
"Nobody could have predicted it," he joked.
"Well...... I guess." Unable to accept that fact, she glanced at the flowers. Layfon's gaze followed hers for a short moment, then returned to Nina. A question rose in him as she continued to look at the flowers.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Huh? What?"
"Uh...... Just a feeling."
"Nothing. You're mistaken."
"If so, that's good."
"What a strange guy," Nina smiled. Looking at her smile, he couldn't help but feel that she was worried about something.
"Speaking of that, what about you?"
"Huh?"
"Your face tells me you're thinking of something."
"No.... Nothing."
"Don't lie. You're hiding something."
She moved herself to the end of the bed and bent close to his face. Layfon had his arm attached to a drip so he couldn't evade her.
"Really?"
"Really."
Her face tensed up as it came closer to Layfon's. Her air weakened for a split second. It was just a split second but Layfon was sure of it. She saw him notice her change of expression, and she turned her gaze away from him as if she didn't care.
"You're too close," she said.
"Huh? Is that my fault?"
"Yes. That confusing face of yours."
Nina didn't move away.
"......But."
"But......? What?" Layfon asked.
"I feel a little bit lonely."
"Lonely?"
"Uh......Can you just pretend you didn't hear my last sentence?"
"Of course not."
She turned her face to him again. Under her imposing gaze, Layfon said "I lose."
"To think that I can't do anything even though I'm here......" he said.
"Stupid," she mumbled. "It's not what you can do but what you do......Isn't it a given in your situation?" Her gaze fled from him again. She blushed.
Felli arrived a short time after Nina had left.
"Are you stupid?"
"Wa, is that what you say the moment you step through the door?"
"It's not a problem."
She was obviously angry. Even so, she looked at Nina's flower vase and compared it to the flowers in her hand, then she placed the flowers in the flask in the washroom.
"If you had lost more blood, you'd have died."
"Sorry."
Felli glared at him. Layfon felt himself becoming small before her.
"Since it was you, couldn't you have done better?"
"That was my limit. I had to protect another person so I couldn't use my full strength. It was difficult to handle the remnants of Kei."
"So that's why you sustained severe injuries?"
"I'm far from being good."
"That's all?"
"Huh?"
Emotional Howl Page 5
