Struggling, vigan managed to single handedly hold a part of the rubble from crushing them. Seeing this, danzai and Ai decided to support him in holding off the rock but vigan wanted otherwise
"What are you two doing?... I'm holding it off so that you guys could escape"
"Stupid... I'm not sure about danzai yet but I'm an embodiment so I won't die from this"
"Danzai huh... Wait me?!"
"Hehe"
Danzai found it a bit offensive but decided to let it slide for now.
"You guys..."
"Go"
Vigan follows through a small hole leaving danzai and Ai to sort themselves out of the situation. Since they had been given physical training back at the academy,they could hold off the rock quite fine. But after about 2 hours they began to tire out
"Danzai... Go on ahead"
"No..."
"Idiot... Go while I have the strength"
"That won't make you survive... We have to find a way for both of us to survive"
Ai reasons it and agrees
"So what do we do?"
"Danzai... Use your sword to burst open a path for us"
Danzai reasons the possibility of him using his sword under this conditions and disagrees
"I can't... I'm not used to handling blades,if I don't hit it precisely, it might crumble on us..."
"Fine...do me a favor and pass my sword to my left hand"
"Okay...."
Danzai retrieves his sword from his left thigh and hands it over to him
"What now?"
"Hold off the rock with all your strength... I'm gonna break this rubble with one quick strike"
Ai completely let's go of the rock which danzai supported with his strength and focused on charging his next strike. To danzai,it was like resting a whole city on his arms which weren't used to heavy lifting. Despite that, danzai held on long enough for ai to break the rock above them
"Yes... Let's—"
As they were still savoring their victory, the floor beneath them gave way and they fell into unknown darkness that cover the place. As they fell midway through, Ai grabbed onto a part of the hole and grabbed danzai's hand ensuring their safety for the mean time.
"Danzai... Can you do something about this"
"No I'm not in a comfortable position to move my hands well"
Ai continued to hold on to danzai and to wall while it showed signs of crumbling. As he struggled to keep his grip firm,a rope lowered down to them and Vigan pokes his head into the hole
"Grab on..."
"Why did you come back"
"Why wouldn't I?...if I didn't come,you would have died"
"Yea right..."
Ai grabbed the rope and climbed up with danzai. When they climbed out of the hole, sky greeted them for their perseverance in the battle then inquired about the glass stone
"Where is the stone?"
"Never mind that... how did you get here?"
"What?... I came to save you and you complain"
"Not a complaint sensei, it's a question"
"Alright then... I was passing by and saw the temple in ruins then I saw this guy here who asked me to help"
"Thanks sensei... vigan..."
After resting for a while, they decided to leave the place with the glass stone in hand. As they proceeded out of the ruins, Vigan stopped in front of the gate to see them off but danzai objected
"Vigan come with us... "
"Can't do... I'm not supposed to interact freely with gods... Just go, we'll meet again someday"
"Hey danzai... let's go"
Danzai decided to say nothing more, feeling satisfied at vigan's good deeds. Since he got to the academy, he had been loved by people unlike his hometown where he was treated badly all through his growing stage except for aira who liked him nonetheless
Sky decided to escort them to their homes. After dropping danzai at his place, he walked home with Ai since their homes where close by.
"Sensei... Here's the glass stone before I forget"
"Oh thanks..."
Sky collects the stone from his hand
"By the way, your test is tomorrow..."
"Wha—"
That was the same expression danzai let out when he was told the news. While inside, they hadn't noticed that time had passed and remained shocked. After danzai ate and took his bath,he was about going to bed when light spoke up
"What... But I'm tired"
"Fine..."
"Oh right... But how do I give you a pat on the head when you're like this"
Danzai waited for a minute but nothing happened. After about five minutes, the dagger flowed in brilliant light that blurred danzai's vision for a second. When the lights died down, danzai saw a young girl of 13 years at most, with a black shiny hair that shined even in the darkness around. Danzai was left speechless as she stared at him in the face, waiting for her reward
"..."
"Oh sorry"
Danzai patted her on the head slowly and she smiles at him then hugs him.
"How did your master treat you?"
"I'm really not just used to treating people badly"
"What do you know"
"It's a question light,question..."
They continued to play around Until danzai realized it was getting quite dark and they needed to finish up the training and head inside.
"So what training am i to do now..."
"What should I do"
"Meditate..."