Jujutsushi 278.1

BGM: Wuthering Waves 3.0 Ost(Opening)

Chapter 278: The Fortress of Repose

TL: Cnine

ED/PF:

R1: [1–2], R2 [3–4], R3 [5–6]

Part 1

「Asuna, how could you do such a thing…」

What escaped me wasn’t anger, but a faint, disbelieving whisper.

The urge to deny what I had just witnessed was far stronger than any fury I felt.

But I couldn’t look away from reality.

Asuna had pushed Himeno-san outside.

The door was closing.

The Goma were closing in.

She had thrown her classmate into that deadly place.

That act could only be called murder.

It was no different from shoving someone off a train platform at the very last moment.

「The Goma were after Himeno… If I hadn’t done it… someone had to… someone had to do it…」

「That’s absolute nonsense, you fool!」

Smack!

The sharp sound rang out as the Class Rep’s slap struck Asuna across the cheek.

With Asuna’s abilities, there was no way she couldn’t have dodged an amateur’s slap.

The fact that she didn’t meant only one thing.

Deep down, she knew she was guilty.

「Asuna, how could you… This is the second time. The second time you’ve tried to kill one of your own comrades! What’s wrong with you?!」

「Say whatever you like. I don’t regret it. Not what I did to Momokawa, not what I did to Himeno.

Staining my hands with their blood doesn’t bother me in the slightest.

They were never comrades. They were enemies, plotting to bring us down.」

「If you start punishing people just because you suspect them, there’ll be no one left to call a comrade.」

「Even if I’m called heartless, it’s still better than watching everyone be wiped out.」

「So you think this is protection? Acting on your own like tha———」

「Class Rep, that’s enough.」

「Don’t stop me, Yuuto-kun. What Asuna’s done is unforgivable.」

「I know. But that’s exactly why it has to be me who says it.」

That was right.

I couldn’t just leave everything to the Class Rep.

I didn’t want to believe it.

There had to be some mistake.

And yet, deep down, a part of me admitted that perhaps Asuna’s reasoning wasn’t entirely wrong.

Even so, it couldn’t be forgiven.

To stay silent would be just as much a sin.

「Asuna, you’ve committed a grave crime. You turned your hand against a comrade.

That’s something that can never be excused…

So please, stop trying to justify yourself.」

「Justify myself, is it? You’re right. No matter how I try to frame it, what I did can’t be called the act of a decent human being.

So what I’ll say now… this is simply how I truly feel.」

Tears shimmered at the corners of Asuna’s eyes.

But she didn’t cry out.

Even as her gaze glistened, she looked straight at me and spoke with quiet resolve.

「Souma… I’m glad it wasn’t you who went out there.

Even if I’m condemned for what I’ve done, that’s still better than losing you…」

「Stop! Please, don’t say another word!」

It was my fault.

In the end, everything happened because I was too weak.

Nakai and Nonomiya-san died in this morning’s attack because I couldn’t defeat Zagan.

We’d been chased to the brink like this because I couldn’t wipe out the Goma horde.

And in the end, I couldn’t save four of our comrades, forcing Asuna into the unforgivable act of casting Himeno-san out.

It was all because of my lack of strength.

I couldn’t slay Zagan.

I couldn’t stop the Goma army.

And when doubt fell upon Himeno, I failed to give my comrades even the slightest sense of security.

This was the result.

I did nothing.

I only watched comrades fall one after another, and I even let Asuna stain her hands.

If Himeno had truly been plotting to slaughter us all as an evil familiar, then there was no doubt I wouldn’t have been able to stop her.

That said, I couldn’t defend Asuna’s actions.

If Himeno was still our classmate, then Asuna had killed one of our own.

The sense of betrayal she must have felt was immense.

As a person, it was an unforgivable act.

「First things first, we must urgently find a way to save the five outside.」

「…You’re right. Talking about it here isn’t going to fix anything.」

We couldn’t give up now.

Himeno-san, Ueda, Yamada, Nakajima, and Yoshizaki-san.

The five trapped outside were still alive.

「Can you open this door, Takanashi-san?」

「Mm… not from this side. There has to be some device somewhere in the ruins that controls it. If we can find that…」

「Then we’ve no choice but to start searching for it.」

「Looks like we’ve no choice. Staying here won’t change a thing.」

It pained me to walk away, knowing our companions were stuck on the other side of this thick door.

The ruin’s perfectly soundproof barrier let not even the faintest sound through.

By now, they were surely hammering on it.

Crying out for help.

Or hurling curses at us.

Whatever anger they directed at me, I would accept it.

Even if they struck me, it didn’t matter.

I only prayed that we could face each other again.

「Hime-chan… Hime-chan…」

Futaba-san stood right beside me, placing her hand on the door as she stared at it, numbly calling her friend’s name.

I wasn’t sure how clearly she grasped everything that had happened.

But she must have understood at least this much.

Her cherished friend had been cast out into danger.

Hearing her call out for Himeno-san in that anxious, trembling voice was more than I could bear.

===

In the end, it took more than an entire day before we finally succeeded in opening the door.

Beyond it, the underground chamber was strewn with the corpses of countless Goma.

The only evidence of a brutal struggle.

Even Gogma bodies lay among them, showing just how fierce the battle had been.

But that was all we knew.

Our comrades were nowhere to be seen.

No bodies were left behind.

We had no way of knowing whether they were alive or dead.

If they had survived the Goma attack and set off to regroup with us, or to seek safety elsewhere, that would be the best outcome we could hope for.

But if they had fallen, their bodies would have been devoured.

There would be little chance of any remains being left behind.

Almost no way to confirm their fate.

We tried calling each of their phones, just in case.

None of the calls connected.

Right now, we had no way of knowing whether they were alive or dead.

If nothing else, being able to cling to that faint, fragile, and frankly convenient hope that they might still be alive was a small mercy.

I couldn’t accept, let alone come to terms with, losing so many comrades at once.

That tiny hope was the only thing keeping me steady.