Chapter 48: Reina Kotozuka wants to overcome it.

Just when I thought things were going smoothly, a mixed-type entity suddenly appeared, forcing us to make major changes to the plan.

In the first place, a mixed-type isn’t an opponent that can be easily defeated.

We can take one down—if it’s just a single mixed-type.

But there’s no way we can handle them when they keep popping up like this.

That’s when it happened.

"Install— ‘Deep Curse’"

The skill of Mahiro Nishizono copied Deep Curse. Her arms and legs transformed into something like the beastly Deep Curse, and she charged at the mixed-type. She tore into its massive body with claws, and in the end, she even formed a beast’s head from her hand and crushed it with a bite.

A bizarre power. And at the same time… I thought it had to be stopped.

Even more than the power she copied from Sora Akegami afterward, that one was no good.

…No, maybe it was the way her hair color and eye color changed that was the most shocking part.

That girl is trying to use her power in a self-destructive way. That can’t be allowed. It was just like Sora Akegami back then.

So I tried to stop her—but then more mixed-types appeared. Multiple ones.

"Install— ‘Fourth Deep Curse Disaster: Fourth’"

And so, I couldn’t stop her.

…Originally, the one trying to stop her wasn’t me, but Hohana Shishiba and Kisa Kurokawa.

I’m not in a position to say anything like that. And yet, I still wanted to stop her.

Before deployment, when I saw that huge shadow, I still felt fear lingering in my heart.

The day I became a Curse Seeker. The monster that appeared then.

The existence that changed my everyday life.

Well, all I really lost was becoming a Curse Seeker, moving houses, and most of what I was carrying at the time. It’s not a big deal.

And yet… the faint discomfort from that time still hadn’t gone away.

I wanted to overcome it. I had been thinking about it all the way up to this deployment.

But that wasn’t the problem right now.

I can’t just leave that injured girl in front of me alone. Now I finally understand Nagisa Shinozaki’s feelings.

Mahiro Nishizono’s surrounding distorted outlines swelled up, transforming her into something like a massive mixed-type Deep Curse.

"Wait a second… is that even allowed?"

Sora Akegami’s voice went unanswered. Everyone was stunned into silence.

It was several meters tall. Its full form was hard to make out, but it resembled a large quadruped beast, with faces and limbs sprouting from various parts of its body—an warped, grotesque existence.

And yet, it began walking toward the mixed-type that had appeared. It would surely defeat our enemies.

But if we leave her alone, she’ll definitely be ruined. I was certain of that.

We were able to save Sora Akegami. So this time, we’ll save Mahiro Nishizono too.

The warped Deep Curse-like Mahiro Nishizono crushed the surrounding mixed-types with her massive body, twisting them apart.

Then she continued moving toward the center.

Each step shook the ground.

"...We’re stopping Mahiro."

At Sora Akegami’s words, we snapped back to our senses.

This isn’t the time to be stunned.

"Yeah, we’ll stop her. At this rate—"

"—She’ll end up like Akegami, right."

Following Nagisa Shinozaki’s words.

"Haha. You’re sharp, Reina."

"This time, you’re going to help too, right?"

"Of course!"

Akegami Sora’s Abaddon state—though a double-edged sword, its power remained undeniable despite the risks.

She and Nagisa Shinozaki needed to be allowed to move ahead.

And Hohana Shishiba also possessed firepower within this team capable of dealing with mixed-types. We couldn’t afford to exhaust her either.

So—

"More enemies will keep coming, so I’ll handle the vanguard."

I’ll support them. I’ll deal with the beast-like Deep Curses that spawn, and let them advance.

Everyone fell silent. Maybe because they were worried—but couldn’t object.

"I did the same thing during the Fifth incident. It’s not a problem."

"I was the one who helped you halfway through that time. So this time too, I’ll—"

"No, Hohana. You need to focus on taking down the mixed-type, right? So I’ll take over."

"Kurokawa Kisa… you—"

"Reina, teaming up with you is rare, huh?"

Kisa Kurokawa let out a light "hehe." Compared to before, she had become much more natural.

"...Sorry, both of you. We’re going ahead."

"Take care. Right now, Mahiro Nishizono is also part of our team. It’s your specialty, isn’t it? Helping your allies."

"...That’s a lot of pressure, but I’ll do it."

Nagisa Shinozaki smiled awkwardly at my encouragement.

"See you later, everyone!"

"We’ll definitely bring Nishizono back!"

"If you lot don’t come back alive, I won’t forgive you!"

A crawling, unpleasant sensation ran down my spine. More mixed-types were spawning again.

"Hey, Reina. Is this bad?"

"Probably. But it feels like it was this bad last time too."

"Really…?"

It seemed Nagisa Shinozaki and the others had already moved out.

"Soul Flame— ‘Explosive Dragon Strike’"

From Kisa Kurokawa’s gauntlet, blazing flames erupted violently. She clenched her fist and unleashed the fire straight into the Deep Curse.

"Magic Word— ‘Elemental Release: All Attributes’"

And then I followed up with my attack.

Water, ice, wind, fire, electricity—all were generated at once around us and unleashed in a coordinated barrage.

One of the three-headed, Cerberus-like Deep Curse took a direct hit from Kisa’s flames and exploded violently.

Then my attacks relentlessly followed, striking its entire body without pause.

It was gradually being worn down.

With both of our full power, we might be able to take down at least one mixed-type.

…But there was one problem.

"Ggh… there are too many enemies."

"Why are there so many mixed-types?!"

"W-wait, aren’t there two huge ones over there?"

Without us noticing, other Curse Seekers and Connectors had arrived, dragging more enemies with them.

We were trying to slowly retreat while taking out the Deep Curses harassing Nagisa Shinozaki’s group.

But we couldn’t abandon the girls who were struggling.

"...Kisa Kurokawa, can you go ahead first?"

"Reina, there’s no way you can help all those people alone. It’d be faster if we help them together first, then catch up with everyone."

"But then that means…"

It’s true that going alone would be difficult. But there’s no time for hesitation—

Just then, a single melody echoed across the battlefield.