Only I know that this world will end – 110 | Sousaku – 創作

Closing curtain

"……For the time being. Shall we take a break until just before dawn? Even if we move now, we'll still get to the hospital where Kashiwaba-san is in the morning."

Perhaps because Arthur was gone and the shop suddenly became quiet.
Or perhaps the whiskey he had been drinking earlier was starting to take effect now.
Without realizing it, Akira's thoughts began to slow down, like a haze had settled over his head, and he found himself yawning as sleepiness suddenly overcame him. Akira then turned to Nao and spoke.

"That's………… right."

Like Akira, Nao nodded while yawning. Apparently, Nao was also very sleepy, just like Akira.
Akira looked away from Nao and said to Ayaka.

"Sorry. Mind if I take a nap?”
"Go ahead, I don't mind……"

Ayaka said, looking away from Akira and Nao. Judging by the way she was acting, it seemed that Ayaka wasn't sleepy.

(Well, Hanayagi was asleep until just a while ago.)

While thinking this, Akira apologized to Ayaka and moved to a corner of the store, sitting down with his back against the wall.

"…………"

As Akira's consciousness began to fade, he heard Nao and Ayaka talking.
Apparently, Ayaka will be on watch while they sleep.

"Well then, I'll wake you up when it's time."

With that, the sound of Ayaka crunching the candy in her mouth echoed around the store.

(……I'll have to thank…… Hanayagi when I wake up.)

Akira thought about such things while dozing off and swaying his head.
In this way, Akira slowly let go of the consciousness that he had barely managed to hold on to.

◇ ◇ ◇

Akira woke up some time later.

"…………"

As soon as he woke up, he was hit by a sickening smell that made him want to vomit. Akira involuntarily frowned at the smell and yawned loudly to shake off the remaining sleepiness.

"……Nao-san?”

When he looked around the store, Akira finally realized that Nao was not there. Furthermore, Ayaka's figure is also not in the store. To make matters worse, the Iron Sword of the Pig-headed Demon that had been leaning against the wall was also gone, just like Nao and company.

"…………"

A sense of unease gradually spread through his heart.
There was something wrong, a hunch from his 『Sixth Sense』 told him.

"Nao-san?”

Once again, Akira called out toward the quiet shop.

――There was no response.

Could it be that she had gone to the toilet?
Akira, who had been thinking about this, finally realized it when he sat up to look for Nao.

"――――――Eh?”

Behind the bar counter, there were traces of bright red blood scattered around.
The sight of the pool of bright red blood on the floor and her figure lying on top of it.

"…………Nao, san?”

Nao had no head.
Furthermore, on the bloodstain where she had collapsed, the Iron Sword of the Pig-headed Demon that Akira had used was stuck deep into the floor through her back, as if it were a tombstone.
Perhaps, even if her head was cut off, she did not die immediately.
There were countless scratches on the floor where she had tried to escape from her bonds, and in addition, several of Nao's fingernails had been torn off.

"――――――"

Akira couldn't help but hold his breath at the sight.
Then, immediately after, he realized that thanks to the effect of the 『scenario』 and the 『Immortal Torch』 that Nao had acquired, even though her head had been cut off, she had not died immediately and was still alive for a while.

"――――Aaah!"

Without realizing it, his voice leaked out.
His eyes caught sight of Nao's head, which was lying at the end of the body pinned to the floor.
Her eyes, which had been open, no longer reflected light, and she was looking straight ahead at Akira. Perhaps due to the large amount of blood, her complexion had become so pale that it did not seem like she had any blood in her body.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!”

Screaming, Akira ran to Nao's side. He jumped over the bar counter, slipped on her blood, and crawled on the floor to get closer to her.

"Nao-san! Nao-san!!!”

With a desperate expression, he pulled out the iron sword and held the body and neck close to him. Her body was cold. A coldness that made one understand more than enough that the woman Nanase Nao was already dead.

"Why!? How did this happen?!”

Holding Nao in his arms, Akira let out a cry from the bottom of his heart.
Things didn't make sense.
What on earth is going on!?
Why is Nao dead the moment I wake up?!

"Return from Hell!! Why hasn't the Return from Hell been activated?!”

Akira spat out his words as if to vent his anger.
――Or rather, he knew the reason himself.
The Return from Hell that was triggered by Nao's death only occurred during that scenario.
Nao's scenario was already over.
In other words, no matter how many times she died in the future, she would never be able to go back to the past again.

"...!!”

Akira gritted his back teeth as hard as he could.
In this situation, where Nao suddenly died. In this situation, where it was clearly not a monster killing, but a clear case of murder.
Akira felt the flames of anger burning within his chest.

Slowly. He laid Nao down on the floor and stood up.

Anything, no matter how small. Akira searched around to see if there was anything that could lead him to the person who killed Nao.
However, even after searching everywhere, he couldn't find anything.
The only things left in the store were the food and water Arthur had left behind. There was nothing left that looked like a clue.

(……That means there is only one clue.)

Akira murmured to himself and turned his gaze to the iron sword that pierced Nao's body.
The Iron Sword of the Pig-headed Demon. It could only be handled by someone with a strength value of 60 or above. If your strength was low, you wouldn't be able to lift it.
Therefore, there was only one person left in the store who could handle such an item.

"………………Hanayagi?"

Akira slowly let out a word.
Then, as if urged on by the passion burning within his heart, Akira picked up the Hatchet of the Raging Bull that was leaning against the wall and ran out of the store.

(Where? Where? Where? Where?! )

Akira searched everywhere in the tenement building, screaming with anger.
However, he couldn't find anything. Then he ran out into the street and started searching around at random.
Inside private houses, in other multi-tenant buildings in the area, in supermarkets, convenience stores, and in cars parked on the street and left unattended.
He ran and ran and ran around.
After confirming that there was no sign of Hanayagi anywhere, Akira finally stopped.

"Damn it!!”

In a fit of anger, Akira kicked the vending machine nearby with all his strength.
The vending machine, which was kicked with unusual force, dented, blew off, and rolled on the asphalt pavement with a terrible noise.
Perhaps Hanayagi was already no longer in this town.
Given the circumstances, it was certain that a considerable amount of time had passed since Nao died.

"…………"

Akira sat down on the spot, powerless.
He had a good idea about who killed Nao. And while her reasons for killing Nao were unclear, given the circumstances, it was only she who could have done it.
And the fact that Ayaka wasn't here now also meant that it was the correct answer.

―――― However.

Even if he were to chase after that person and kill her in revenge, what would that achieve?
Nao was gone. Even if he killed her, she wouldn't come back.
In that case, then. This time, in order to prevent Nao from being killed, it would be better to use this experience to learn from.

"……Something like this. I won't accept something like this. There's no way I could just leave Nao-san dead like that."

Akira muttered this and then brandished the hatchet in his hand and pressed it against his own neck.

"I don't accept this kind of world."

Akira spoke as if he were throwing words away, and then swung the hatchet down with great force.
At the same time, a sharp pain like an electric current surged through his whole body, and in an instant, his consciousness was shut off in darkness.
Ichijou Akira did not have any skills that would have allowed him to avoid instant death.
Therefore, that action became the closing curtain for Ichijou Akira's twenty-ninth life.