Only I know that this world will end – 072 | Sousaku – 創作

Duty

"Nao-san, Karube-san. Just in time, I have a question."
"You want to ask something? "

Nao tilted her head slightly at Akira's words.

"Yeah, what have you been doing with the monster corpses? "

At Akira's words, both Nao and Karube looked at each other.

"Who knows…… I never really thought about it seriously. I just noticed they were gone, so I figured that's the way it was."

It was Karube who opened his mouth to say so.

"You didn't find that kind of thing strange? "
"I thought…… To begin with, it was strange when monsters suddenly appeared in our world."

Akira was strangely convinced that this was indeed the case.

(Well, to start with. We don't even know why, all of a sudden, there are monsters out there. I'm sure that something called the world inversion rate is involved with the monsters, but I don't even know what caused it to happen. I think it's understandable that when something that doesn't exist in reality, such as level and status, appears, we accept it as such.)

Monsters suddenly appeared out of nowhere and attacked people, while the corpses of monsters defeated by people's hands disappeared somehow without a trace.
If one thought of the world as such, one might not have to wonder why only monster corpses disappear.

(……Come to think of it, I've been taking weapons from goblins a lot so far, but those never vanished. Is it because I stole the equipment that the goblins had in their hands? …………No, more like the goblin died and the equipment was left behind because it was treated as a drop from the monster or something like that? )

After repeatedly asking himself the same question, Akira reached a tentative conclusion.
Akira felt a slight sense of certainty in this conclusion, which he thought must be due to his newly acquired "Sixth Sense."

(……For now, while I'm curious about the mystery of the disappearing monster corpse, I guess I can't worry about that at this point.)

Akira stopped thinking with a sigh and turned his attention to them.

"So, what's up with you two? "
"What do you mean? I came to check on you. Are you okay? "

So said Nao, responding to Akira's words.
Akira returned a small nod to Nao's question.

"What about you, Nao-san? Are you all right? "
"I just shoot magic from behind. You had beaten most of them before they got to me, so there was no problem."

Then Nao gave Akira a reassuring little smile.
At these words, Akira recalled the battle and spoke out.

"Speaking of which, what was that thing? "
"That thing? "
"The gun! Where in the world did that thing come from……?"
"Ah, this."

Nao said and looked down to her thighs.
There was a gun hanging there, stuck in a black holster, giving off a distinct presence.

"Don't worry. It's not loaded."

She must have noticed Akira's gaze.
Nao said this with a reassuring little smile.

"No, not that."

Then, as Akira addressed Nao's response.

"I gave her that gun a while back."

Karube then interrupted their conversation.

"When she acquired beginner-level magic, I gave her the gun I had with me because she said it would be easier to trigger the magic if she had a specific direction when releasing it."

――――Why did you give her a gun?

Karube, perhaps sensing Akira's thoughts, hurriedly added a few words.

"Please don't misunderstand. Even I was hesitant at first. Despite these circumstances, Nanase-san is still a civilian…… And even though it's unloaded, it's still a real gun."
"Then why? "
"That is…………"

Mumbling his words, Karube turned his attention to Nao.
Nao noticed the look and turned away, pouting her lips in embarrassment and muttering.

"…………It's not my character to wave a wand or a staff to invoke magic."

The answer was very simple.
It was too simple, yet also a plausible answer.
That was why Akira was unable to say anything about Nao's statement.

(……Well, sure. I knew it wasn't in character when Nao-san acquired the elementary magic itself in the first place.)

Muttering in his mind, Akira let out a sigh.

(But still, I can't say it's very much like Nao-san to use a gun……)

Most likely, this was the result of such thinking that if a stick or cane was used to point in the direction of the shot, then whatever tool was used would suffice.

Akira thought about this, then shifted his gaze to Karube and opened his mouth.

"Is this something you can give away? "
"Giving away government goods is, by its very nature, outrageous. It's just not possible, but…… Such is the situation. Nobody will complain."

――――No. Even if they did, are you sure you want to give it to her?
Akira thought about this but decided not to pursue the matter any further, saying, well, if that's what the person who gave it to her says, so be it.
There was no point in arguing any further about whether gun ownership was right or wrong here.

(……It would be a disaster if it were to go off and injure someone, so let's just be careful that Nao-san doesn't get a bullet somewhere along the way.)
Akira secretly wished that in his mind and called out to Karube to get his thoughts back on track.

"Well, if you say so, Karube-san…… So, what about you? Is everything all right? "

At these words, Karube gave a small cough to regain his composure, and his expression changed.

"Thanks to your help, I was safe and sound. If you had not come to us at that time, Ichijou-san, we surely would have been annihilated on the spot. On behalf of the surviving self-defense personnel and those who remain in this hospital, I would like to thank you for your assistance. Thank you very much."
"……Don't worry. I just did what I could do. But more importantly, what do you and the others intend to do from now on? "
"From now on?"

At these words, Karube turned his attention to the cleaning-up crew, as if to think for a moment.
Then he turned his gaze back to Akira and slowly began to speak.

"……Good question. After the current battle, there are fewer and fewer of us left to fight. Three days have passed since the monsters appeared, and the fatigue of the team members has reached its peak. Frankly, it would be in our best interest to withdraw once and get into a better position…… Many people have fled to this place when they found out we were here, as well as those who were originally hospitalized. If we leave now, those who remain here will most certainly die. If that is the case…… We have no choice but to stay here."

At these remarks, Akira's brow furrowed slightly as he pondered.
Indeed, if there was any way for them to survive, it would be to barricade themselves in.
But a siege would normally have been effective only if they were waiting for reinforcements.

"Are the other self-defense forces going to come to your aid? "
"……No. I am sure it will be impossible. We have been sending out requests for help for a long time, but none of the units have responded. Or rather, I don't think they can afford to send relief."

They did not know if there would be any help if they were holed up.
Even if they tried to escape from here, they would not be able to transport people from the hospital by helicopter because of the presence of monsters in the surrounding towns and the rockbirds that have claimed their territory in the sky.
If so, there were certainly only a few options they could choose to take. As Karube said, there seemed to be no other way but to take the option of a siege if one was to survive with those who remained here.

"I intend to tell this to all who remain here first. On top of that, I will attempt to stay alive to the end as long as I can with those who say they will stay here."

At these words, Akira stared at Karube for a moment, and then simply muttered a few words.

"――――Are you prepared to give your life for the sake of those who remain here?"
"That's also our duty. We, the Self-Defense Forces, exist to protect you, the people."

Karube responded with a smile on his face.