Only I know that this world will end – 087 | Sousaku – 創作

Discovery

Akira returned to retrieve the Minotaur's battle axe and the Orc's iron sword, and left the hospital with Nao.

The destination was set. It was the source of the Werewolf, which was invading this city.
However, he had yet to show up at this time of the day.
So this time, he decided to do the opposite and attack the Werewolf in the other city.

On the way there, Nao was terribly restless.
The slightest noise would startle her, and the roar of the monsters echoing in the darkness of the night would make her distraught. When the monsters actually appeared, Nao's face had lost its blood completely, so clearly visible even in the darkness of the night.
Each time, Akira would instantly kill the monsters, sometimes taking a break and waiting for Nao to calm down.
Then, for the umpteenth time, it was time for a break.
They were almost to the target city. Akira explained to Nao about the boss they were about to take on―― the werewolf.
To complete the scenario, she herself would need to take part in the battle.
So, he decided that it would be better for Nao herself to know about the boss.

"The boss we're about to face…… It is a werewolf, in appearance a bipedal wolf. His main means of attack is with his hands, but because of his high speed, continuous attacks are particularly difficult. I'll deal with him first, along the way, I will somehow stop his movement. There, Nao-san, you should use your magic to attack him. If I kill the boss after that, we should be able to accomplish the scenario without incident."
"Bipedal, wolf…… And I'm supposed to attack that? "

Nao gently massaged herself.
Perhaps she recalled being bitten by a Black Wolf or a Gray Wolf, which had caused her trauma.
Her skin was filled with goosebumps as if she was feeling fear.
Akira smiled at her, as if to reassure her, and then spoke gently to her.

"Just one time is enough. After that, you can back away from it. There are no monsters around the area where the boss is. The overpowering presence of the boss makes the small fry flee. So, Nao-san, once you use magic, just hide somewhere immediately and you'll be fine. In the meantime, I'll finish everything."
"Once…… So, all I have to do is use my magic just once? "

Then Nao patted the holster strapped to her thigh. There hung the pistol she had brought with her.
Nao tightly pressed her lips together and nodded as if she were ready to go.

"…………Understood. I'll give it a try."

Akira nodded in response to the short words she managed to squeeze.

Then, after taking a break, Akira and company started walking again.
On the way to the city of the Werewolf, Akira stopped at a home improvement store to get some cardboard and string. He would then make a simple sheath out of cardboard, place the iron sword in the sheath, and fasten it to his back. The appearance became awkward and homemade, but he couldn't afford to be concerned with looks at the moment.
Akira made sure that his sub-weapon was always ready to be retrieved, and he once again clutched the battle axe in his hand to make sure that it would not interfere with his fight against the werewolf.

And so, after all the preparations, Akira and Nao finally set foot into that city where the Werewolf ruled.

The city was home to many monsters such as Giant Bats and Big Spiders, which were not seen in Akira's city.
The level of those monsters generally exceeded 20.
In addition, there was no sign of human presence at all, as if the Werewolf that ruled this city had killed them all.

Akira, while advancing through the silent city, immediately swung his axe and iron sword at all the monsters that appeared in front of him, turning them into corpses in the blink of an eye.

At first, it was difficult to deal with giant bats and big spiders, which were the same size as a person, because he did not know how to fight them, but after a few times, he gradually caught the pattern and was able to kill the monsters efficiently.
He got lucky when he was dealing with big spiders.
This might be because he had dealt with a large number of Killer Bees in his life.
After slaying several big spiders with his battle axe, he was awarded the bronze trophy 『Insect Hater』.

(Another hostility and damage bonus? The trophy effect increases hostility by 20, and the damage bonus is 3%....... Same as usual.)

Staring at the screen that appeared in front of him, he pondered such a thought.
And so, he carefully made his way through the city, protecting Nao against the Big Spider cobwebs that littered the alleys and streets, and the giant bats that hung in packs in places such as power lines and in the shadows of houses.
Finally, Akira and company stepped into an area where there was no sign of monsters.

"…………"

The heavy pressure in the air caused Nao to grip the hem of Akira's shirt.
As he glanced over, Nao's face had completely lost its blood and turned white.
Her tightly knit lips trembled minutely, and her eyes wavered subtly. Each exhaled breath was short and quick. Her body, wobbling slightly, looked as if it would collapse at any moment.

"……Do you want to pull back for now? "

Nao slowly shook her head in response to the quiet question.

"It's fine. Come on, let's get this done."

She probably wanted to get out of here as soon as possible by defeating the boss.
Nao let out such words in a quiet voice.
Akira gazed at Nao and eventually took her hand, which was holding the hem of his shirt, as if to reassure her, and gently squeezed it in return.

"It's alright. It'll be fine."

Nao's eyes widened at these actions and words.
Then she exhaled deeply and her lips parted in a small smile.

"……Sorry. Thank you."

The pair took each other's hands and slowly made their way through the oppressive atmosphere.
And so it was when they walked into the commercial district, lined with multi-tenant buildings.
Akira and company found a bipedal wolf lurking in the shadows of one of the buildings.