Chapter 57: Rescued
Being surrounded by a pack of monsters was indeed a fitting situation to call unlucky, but for Natsuki Subaru, who had intentionally created this situation, it could also be described as lucky.
He no longer wanted to count how many monsters there were, nor think about anything else. Now, there was only one thing to do: kill every monster that entered his field of vision.
After all, these monsters all looked about the same; if he didn't kill them all, how would he know which one had cursed him?
Even if he couldn't kill all the monsters, as long as Rem appeared, victory would belong to him.
But ideals are beautiful while reality is cruel.
The attacking beasts charged at Subaru one after another.
However, after swinging his longsword and defending through one round, Subaru sensed something was off.
Feeling how much stamina he had already used, he glanced at the corpses around him — there were only about ten — while his wounds were numerous and severe.
Clenching his teeth, Subaru kept alert while trying to find the source of the abnormality, but he found nothing.
Three monsters charging from the front ran off in different directions, which he could still handle if that was all.
But the monsters didn't attack all at once; they attacked in sequence. If he focused all his attention on the three monsters in front, new ones would silently come from behind or the sides.
He knew he shouldn't focus all his attention only on the monsters in front, but the threat they posed was very real.
This wasn't the first time such a situation had happened.
Compared to the attack patterns he could read at a glance last night, these monsters had more strategy and coordination.
It felt as if something was commanding them in battle.
Because of this, Subaru's spirit and stamina were being consumed rapidly.
After dealing with another three monsters, and then being ambushed by one, Subaru dropped to one knee.
Looking around at the monsters, although his stamina and energy had reached a dangerous level, none of the monsters attacked at that moment.
At that moment, Subaru clearly understood what a beast's battle strategy was: cooperate to surround the prey, inflict wounds, and slowly watch the prey lose all ability to resist while struggling.
Finally, they deliver the killing blow and share the prey.
Watching from outside, one might feel pity for the prey and respect the hunters' cooperation. But from the prey's perspective, it was utterly hopeless.
Subaru sighed and stood up once again.
Giving up and quietly waiting to die was absolutely impossible for him.
At this moment, he forgot about Rem, forgot his original plan to wait for her to find him. Standing straight, Subaru smiled.
They say a cornered rabbit will still bite, and even if Subaru was weak, he was a contestant who had experienced an inhuman war.
Clutching his sword tightly, a smile appeared on his face — despite being exhausted enough to want to fall asleep, despite the pain that made him want to roll on the ground.
But still, a smile.
"Ah, sorry. I don't want to break my promise. Even though dying would let me reload, that's still breaking the deal. Besides... trying to kill me and leaving only these few corpses is seriously underestimating me."
His quiet voice entered all the monsters' ears.
They didn't understand the words but all took a step back simultaneously.
"If you won't attack, then let me attack!"
With those words, Subaru charged toward one direction.
Normally, the monsters would keep their distance and maintain a surround, avoiding close combat with Subaru.
But this time, all the monsters charged after him in unison.
Surrounded from all sides, Subaru did not flinch.
His steps didn't stop.
Every swing of his longsword sent monster blood flying.
With one free hand, he grabbed a leaping monster and threw it forcefully toward another.
A monster leapt from behind and bit Subaru's shoulder. When their fierce eyes met, fear and death simultaneously arrived for the beast.
Corpses piled up rapidly, wounds increased, and stamina and energy were consumed fast. Had it been one minute? Thirty minutes? Subaru no longer knew how much time had passed. But he noticed the monsters' attacks had decreased.
After breaking the neck of a monster with a kick, Subaru, covered in blood, looked toward a small dog in the distance and smiled.
"Found you…"
Step by step, dragging the corpse of a monster, Subaru slowly approached the small dog. Drops of blood mixed with his own fell to the ground.
At that moment, the surrounding monsters all roared together.
Subaru stopped and released the corpse he was holding, watching monsters rush out from the distant forest.
He no longer had the strength to sigh.
He just let go of the monster and tightened his grip on his longsword, ready for the next wave of brutal fighting. But what happened next gave Subaru hope to live.
The monsters running toward him seemed less like reinforcements and more like they were fleeing for their lives.
Wiping away the blood obstructing his view, Subaru saw a blue-haired maid following behind.
Before Subaru could complain about Rem arriving too late, his expression stiffened.
He saw the madness in Rem's smile and the horn on her forehead.
The word "demon" popped into his mind.
Judging by her crazed appearance, she didn't look like someone he could communicate with; she looked like a berserk warrior who had forsaken all family ties.
Every strike from Rem easily killed a monster, while Subaru, after fighting for so long, had only killed about thirty monsters.
Moreover, Rem had entered the forest since last night and showed no signs of fatigue now.
She was practically an inhuman entity. The horn on her forehead also proved she was no longer human.
Watching Rem getting closer, Subaru wondered if she would also attack him.
Then, a voice entered his ears.
"You're really in a sorry state, Subaru. I'm a bit angry, my friend…"
Before the monsters in his view could react, they were killed by chunks of ice spikes.
Knowing who had come, Subaru could no longer hold on and smiled as he collapsed backward.
Lying on the ground, Subaru saw Puck entering his vision and noticed the displeasure in Puck's eyes.
Feeling a bit embarrassed, Subaru said,
"Good morning… Puck…"
"It's already afternoon, you know? It's no longer morning. Do you know why I'm angry, my friend?"
"Because I didn't pet your fur?"
"Don't play dumb! We're friends, right? Why didn't you ask me for help?"
"…You weren't up yet at that time…"
Puck and Subaru fell into silence.
Then Subaru saw Puck turn around and say,
"We'll talk about that later. Right now, we need to kill these filthy things. And we also need to help that maid regain consciousness."
"Don't hurt that foolish maid…"
"I know."