I Became the Academy's Pink Airhead - Chapter 25
We were running towards the wave of flames rising into the midnight sky.
Though still faintly visible beyond the horizon, the heat already felt was tickling our cheeks.
As soon as we left the train, countless monster howls that could only be heard inside dungeons were heard beyond the flames of the wilderness.
Kieeeek――!!
Kyaaaak――!!
Among the flickering flames in the distance, shadows of what must be thousands of chaos insects could be seen.
Their unpleasant appearance as if not fully evolved from larvae. The sight of countless large beetles spewing sticky mucus wriggling was eerie.
Dungeon insect-type monsters, chaos insects.
They were the ones you’d see to the point of nausea while exploring dungeons in the mobile game <Yggdrasil Gate>.
Chaos insects appeared changing their forms as they gradually evolved from the lowest level dungeons to the highest level dungeons. Excluding event dungeons, they were essentially the main enemies of <Yggdrasil Gate>.
‘Users complained it was just recycling general dungeon mob models but…’
Chaos insects are born in the darkness of dungeons in a ‘larval’ state about the size of a wild boar. Then they pass through the intermediate ‘sub-adult’ stage and when they become fully grown ‘adults’, they grow to the size of a decent 3-story building.
With each evolution, chaos insects’ characteristic was to become tens of times stronger rapidly. So even the intermediate ‘sub-adult’ stage was powerful enough to act as a gatekeeper in medium difficulty dungeons.
I glanced at Bell running beside me. She seemed to be calmly analyzing the situation while receiving the light of the gradually approaching flames.
‘As long as Bell, a 3rd stage ether ability user, is here, it should be fine even if a few sub-adults appear, but…’
The fate of this world had changed.
The dungeon gate erosion crisis happening now was a situation that appeared in the latter half of the main story.
If by chance a high-level dungeon boss ‘adult’ appears, or if there’s a ‘believer’ of <Ratatosk> with equivalent strength. Bell would have to focus all her attention there.
If that happens…
This could become an overwhelming place for my juniors who had barely reached the 2nd stage of ether manipulation.
‘Maybe… it was greedy of me to try to follow the main story I knew for certain to grow you, when I had already deviated from the original fate and changed.’
Even so… to confirm the changed fate.
I examined the size of the creatures flickering trapped in the curtain of flames.
Kieeeek――!!
Kyaaaak――!!
About the size of wild boars, moving by wriggling short legs attached to fat larva-like bodies.
The thousands of chaos insects gathered countless before our eyes now. They belonged to the ‘larval’ stage, the lowest level cannon fodder. Fortunately, there were no enemies that would be difficult for my juniors to handle at this point in time.
But in the current situation where they had burst out of the dungeon and were causing physical havoc everywhere, even their numbers were overwhelming violence.
A heavy roar is heard through the red flames.
Rumble―
Bang―
Village buildings glimpsed beyond the burning wilderness were collapsing under the attacks of the larval chaos insects.
Befitting an area close to the slums that had escaped central management, they were crudely built buildings. But they were the home of numerous dwarves, delinquent students, and some ordinary students.
Those who had been spending a night like any other until recently were now hurriedly fleeing from the chaos of flames and darkness sweeping in.
-Kyaaaak―?!
-Save me!!
-Uwaaaah!!
Ignoring those screams and wails, dozens of larval chaos insects that had luckily escaped the flames chased after them making grotesque sounds.
Tsutsutsut――!!
Shaaaak――!!
Bell took out a crimson dagger she had been keeping in her bosom and began running at the forefront. Alvit also tried to run along to save people.
But Bell turned back and shouted at Alvit:
“I’ll clean up here, so just watch!”
“What?! By yourself? There are dozens of chaos insects…”
“Yes~ This level of small fry is enough for me alone―! You’ll have to run around plenty anyway!! Don’t waste your strength, just stay still and watch!!”
“Senior Bell!!”
Leaving Alvit’s shout behind, Bell began leaping quickly with light steps befitting her small frame.
Tap tap tap tap tap―!
She wrapped herself in red ether and advanced by leaping distances of over a hundred meters. That appearance was like rapidly embroidering red thread on a huge black cloth with a sewing machine.
Red afterimages.
The red embroidery instantly engraved on the dark wilderness met the chaos insects running towards people. Seeing that sight, the larval chaos insects raised their fat larva-like bodies and roared.
Kieeeek――!!
Kyaaaak――!!
Bell blocked those chaos insects and leaped into the air, throwing her crimson dagger.
Swish――!!
With the sound of air splitting, a dagger throw attack launched instantly. The projected crimson dagger left afterimages made of red ether as it pierced through the slimy body of the foremost chaos insects.
Thud―
With a sound like a bag full of meat being pierced, one larval chaos insect with a hole in it twitched. And soon after, it let out a chilling final scream.
Kyaaaak――!!
The scream of the chaos insect writhing with a hole in it.
Thud thud thud thud thud―
Kieeeek――!!
Kyaaaak――!!
But the charge of dozens of larval chaos insects still running towards people didn’t stop. Rather, stimulated by that scream, they began to increase their speed.
Dozens of chaos insects approaching greedily, leaving trails of sticky body fluids. It was a disgusting sight like maggots gathering on food waste.
Bell looked at that from midair.
“…Ha.”
Floating in the air, Bell surveyed the path of those disgusting beings and smiled fiercely. What was contained in that smile wasn’t the bluff and concept she had shown so far.
Just… the eyes of a strong one sincerely despising the weak.
Before she knew it, all ten of her fingers had rings made of red ether.
Bell extended red threads from the rings on both hands and shouted:
“[Blind Stitch]―!”
With that shout, red threads extended from the fingers of the small girl floating in the air. Following hand gestures as if clawing through the air, dozens of meters of red threads tangled messily and danced.
From points to lines.
From lines to planes.
Cha-rurururuk―!
The ten strands of red threads created in the air instantly tangled and created geometric patterns. Complex red shapes splitting from ten into hundreds. They instantly trapped dozens of larval chaos insects.
A shape like a huge prison made of threads.
Bell clenched her fists in both hands in that state.
Swoosh―!
The crimson dagger she had thrown earlier rose up and landed at the starting point of the red threads.
Bell smiled with satisfaction.
“Ha…!”
It was time for sewing.
Tsutsutsutsutsut―!!
The dagger being shot.
The dagger moves like an arrow following the path of the red shapes surrounding a radius of dozens of meters. It sharply pierced through the bodies of dozens of chaos insects and advanced following the lines drawn in the air.
Thud―!
Thud―!
Thud―!
Thud―!
Thud―!
A moment in time.
Where the sewing passed, only death remains with the sound of meat bags bursting. The dozens of larval chaos insects were merely meat bags to be pierced by the sharp needle.
Swish―
Slash―
One by one, another one.
Death following death.
Where the embroidery of death passed, only pain beyond even screams remained.
Tap!
Bell, having finished the whole process, landed on the ground. And with one hand on her waist, she held out her palm with an indifferent gesture.
“…As expected, just small fry.”
Ching!
With those words, the crimson dagger that had finished the embroidery of death returned to Bell’s hand.
And the bodies of dozens of chaos insects that had been pierced by the sewing helplessly collapsed.
Rumble―
What came to the scene was silence.
Only the afterimages of flames flickering on the carapaces of dozens of larval chaos insect corpses that still retained warmth were moving.
We approached that quieted scene.
“…”
But.
I stopped for a moment and looked at the wall of flickering flames once.
“…”
Alvit muttered looking at Bell’s activity:
“…I knew she was strong, but that person really is strong.”
“She’d be revered if she just stayed still…”
“Seems like the type to ruin herself by trying to show off…”
“I wonder how much she wants to boast about herself to do that…”
Bell seemed to get angry hearing the three juniors’ biting criticism from afar and shouted:
“You guys over there! I can hear~ everything―!! Don’t underestimate this cute senior’s hearing―”
Swish―
There was a figure putting an arm around Bell’s neck in a friendly manner. She smiled showing crooked teeth reminiscent of a hyena.
“Huhu… Then did you hear me coming too?”
“What…?!”
Bell, who had completely stiffened at the sudden voice, turned her trembling eyes to look to the side.
What she saw was coat tails made of black leather.
And red hair disheveled in a flame-like shape.
The hand putting an arm around her shoulder was holding a sword like the spine of a beast.
Bell spoke in a thin voice as if screaming:
“Tra… [Trajectory]…!”
“Huhahaha…! I don’t know where you’re from, but you’ve had it rough! Wow… Even if we set such flashy flames to prevent anyone from coming this way, I didn’t know you’d escape through them!”
“Eek…?!”
“Mistake, mistake. Sorry, sorry. Huhahaha!!”
“Uuugh…!”
[Crimson Trajectory] patting Bell’s back like that.
“Sheesh! Why are you so scared! You fought well! Huh? Our righteous passionate girls’ group… <Scarlet Academy> doesn’t touch anyone unless they’re from the <United Student Council> or <Aesir Girls’ High School>, you know?”
Unfortunately, Bell belonged to both of those. But [Crimson Trajectory] seemed to have misunderstood seeing the red tracksuit Bell was wearing.
Bell was just completely frozen, unable to grasp the situation.
“…?!”
“We don’t just grab anyone and set them on fire!! Right, you bitches!!”
-Hahahahaha!!! That’s right, boss!!
-Hiya!! The flames are warm―!!
Hundreds of students surrounding the area.
The emblem engraved on their uniforms was a flame. They were all wearing masks made of black leather.
Thud thud thud thud thud―
Buildings barely remaining.
The wilderness where shadows flickered through the flames.
Students with the same smile as [Crimson Trajectory] were approaching from all those places.
“…!”
“…Oh no.”
“…Tsk.”
Alvit, Rota, and Kara were completely stiff and wary seeing them. But the hundreds of <Scarlet Academy> students surrounding them were looking at that appearance as if it was cute.
In that situation, [Crimson Trajectory] muttered softly:
“But… That tracksuit looked familiar… As I thought, it was there.”
She chuckled then looked straight at me and said:
“Long time no see. [Spiral]”
“…”
“But… Your eyes seem to have changed completely like trash… It’s not my imagination, right?”
Hearing those words.
The three juniors looked at me.
“…Senior?”
The flickering wall of flames.
The madness captivated by that intense heat.
[Crimson Trajectory] who chose to live in fighting and flames.
A fate encountered too early in the changed destiny.
I spoke to [Crimson Trajectory]… to Eir:
“…Long time no see―☆”