With the natural agility of a Cursilng, Rin hoisted her younger sibling, Kariya, onto her back.
A fishy stench slowly crept upward, but I could not allow it to show on my face.
"Old woman, can you at least give Kariya a painkiller? It would be troublesome if the child went into shock while we were moving."
"You truly have mastered the art of putting me to work, Little Fox. What choice do I have?"
Despite her complaints, Ravenwood took some water and a pill from her bag and placed the medicine in Kariya’s mouth. A short while later, Kariya’s ragged breathing returned to normal.
Only after hearing the child breathe evenly did Rin’s tail droop, some of the tension finally leaving her body.
"I have administered emergency treatment. However, the symptoms will return if the child remains in this murky, filthy place for too long. Let us move quickly."
The situation reminded me of stories about surviving an apocalypse. The moment someone flung open an iron door, zombies would be waiting on the other side, and the survivors would advance while firing their guns in spectacular fashion.
‘Is this really so different……?’
In any case, I knew the layout of the waterway in detail, so I had to take the lead.
Sending Ravenwood ahead in her raven mask would have been awkward, while Rin was carrying her sibling on her back. Inevitably, the task fell to me.
‘Can we do this?’
The situation was different from before.
Our numbers might have increased, but in reality, we had gained one patient and one person carrying that patient.
Naturally, our pace would be slower. We would also have to protect them.
Just in case, I asked Ravenwood a question.
"Old woman, how many Hardening Agents and Firebombs can we use?"
"……There are roughly thirty of each in my bag. Even if every dose is small, a bag can only hold so much."
There had been no such numerical limit in the game.
Seeing it like this once again engraved the reality of my circumstances into my mind.
"Give me half of them for now. We should divide them between us."
"We will have to watch how many remain. We cannot produce Firebombs or Hardening Agents while moving, and we lack the materials to manufacture additional supplies immediately."
Clicking her tongue, Ravenwood opened the bag at her waist and handed me small vials containing Hardening Agents and Firebombs.
With this amount, I was not even certain that we could escape.
‘Even so…….’
We had to do it.
Nothing would change if we did not. I had no intention of rotting to death here either.
More importantly, my ability only truly shone when I encountered enemies governed by unreasonable laws.
It was difficult for it to produce any significant effect against ‘minor hordes’ like these.
"Ravenwood, I am opening the door. Clear a path through the creatures rushing toward us with the Hardening Agents and Firebombs. We will run immediately afterward, so control your pace carefully. Rin? The same goes for you. Abandon any thought of fighting back."
I explained the situation to the two behind me.
The creatures continued clawing and pounding against the rusted iron door, producing grotesque noises as they shrieked.
THUD, THUD. SCREEECH.
"……Little Fox, I am ready."
Ravenwood spoke while taking a vial from her bag.
Taking that as the signal, I threw open the loose bar securing the iron door.
《Hun, gry……!》
《It hurts. It hurts. It hurts, agh!!》
The moment the door opened, the sight of the test subjects attempting to surge into the Maintenance Quarters all at once was truly spectacular.
It reminded me of a scene from an old arcade game in which grotesque creatures climbed along the walls, made retching noises, and exploded.
"Move, Little Fox!!"
The Hardening Agent Ravenwood threw served as the fuse, producing a synergistic reaction with the Firebomb.
The area outside the iron door instantly descended into pandemonium. The bottles Ravenwood had thrown shattered and erupted into flames, filling the surroundings with the smell of oil.
"We are moving!"
"Kariya, your big sister will make sure you get better!"
Rin had wrapped her sibling, who was only slightly smaller than she was, inside a cloth sack and secured Kariya to her back. Using the supple movements unique to a Cursilng, she followed closely behind me as I ran.
The thick, acrid fire and smoke continued to sweep through the area.
"You damned bastards, how many friends did you invite? Anyone would think you were holding a feast!!"
The flames were not quite fierce enough to rival a crematorium, but the combination of the Hardening Agents and Firebombs was certainly powerful enough to wipe out test subjects in large numbers.
There was one thing we had overlooked.
Unlike when we entered, we had spent a considerable amount of time in one place.
Naturally, the sounds made by the test subjects had drawn countless others from throughout the surrounding area. Their numbers resembled a seething swarm of insects.
"Old woman! Did the University establish a breeding farm for test subjects or something? Why are there so many of them?!"
"How should I know!! Even I do not know everything merely because I attended the University!"
Ravenwood and I complained to each other as we fought off the surrounding test subjects and advanced along the waterway.
Paulo Rin could not fight at the moment. That was only natural when she was carrying Kariya on her back.
Our supply of Hardening Agents and Firebombs dwindled rapidly.
We tried to conserve them by knocking the creatures away with our swords, but whenever several approached together, we had no choice but to throw another set of bottles to repel them.
"Damn it, Little Fox! Do you not have some miraculous solution?!"
"Why are you asking me?!"
"How can you even ask that?! We are running dangerously low on supplies!!"
Ravenwood’s tools were being exhausted faster than expected.
She needed them to hold back the test subjects pursuing us from behind, but the rate of consumption was far greater than I had anticipated.
It was not as though she could manufacture more tools while running.
"At times like this……."
"Yes, we need a plan! What is it? Just tell me, Little Fox!"
"Run without looking back!!"
The greatest strategy passed down throughout human history.
The Thirty-Sixth Stratagem—flee.
I needed to preserve my remaining supplies for whenever the path ahead became blocked. We had no choice but to shake off the creatures behind us using our own legs.
However, since we were inside a waterway, the terrain remained difficult to traverse.
‘Huff, gasp……!!’
The damp underground air forcing its way deep into my lungs was far from pleasant.
The current of sewage obstructed every step I took. Between the stench of rotting flesh assaulting my nose and the acrid smoke obscuring my vision, even breathing became an ordeal.
"Mister, this way!"
Either I had slowed down, or Rin was simply faster.
She ran slightly ahead and urged me onward.
"Hold your position! If you are ambushed while running like that, there will be nothing I can do for you!"
Although I said that, the damp waterway and acrid smoke made me wonder whether Rin might actually be a better choice for the lead than I was.
Were the physical abilities of Cursilngs fundamentally different?
Like a proper human, I could barely keep up with Rin while breathing heavily. Meanwhile, she glided across the surface of the water and found the correct path even in the darkness.
Ravenwood, on the other hand, seemed unable to overcome her age. She followed with difficulty, ragged breaths sounding from behind her raven mask.
"Old woman, I am sorry about this!"
"Huff, damn you! You will not die peacefully, you wretched Executor!"
"What? Mister, you are an Executor?!"
"This is not the time for that conversation! Run!!"
Even while sprinting, I glanced behind me.
The sight was considerably different from what I had witnessed with the conductor.
《Why, why……!! Why did you kill? us…….》
《It hurts. So, hot. Aaaagh!!》
The test subjects shrieked as they crawled toward us on all fours, scaling the walls even while their bodies burned and their flesh melted away.
If what had happened the previous day resembled a contrived, third-rate horror film, this was a more traditional fear of the unknown.
That incident had possessed a clearly identifiable culprit.
These creatures, however, were life-forms born from the byproducts of experiments. I did not even know whether a culprit existed.
If someone asked which was more horrifying, the two were impossible to compare. However, the previous threat had at least been a situation that ‘I’ or ‘Ravenwood’ could confront.
There was no confronting this.
This was a genuine battle against overwhelming numbers.
"Urgh!"
Just as Ravenwood caught her foot and was about to fall, Rin, who had been running ahead, swiftly moved back and caught her.
"A-are you all right?!"
"Ah, damn it. My body is not what it used to be!"
The moment I heard them, my gaze instinctively turned behind us.
The creatures were still closing the distance, making hideous noises as they crawled like cockroaches across the walls, ceiling, and floor.
It was only a moment.
A brief interval lasting no more than a few seconds.
Yet that was enough for them.
"Damn it!"
I could not suppress the irritation rising inside me.
I was angry that Ravenwood had fallen.
I was angry as I watched Rin immediately run back to catch her.
And I was angry with myself for thinking about the game, even for a moment, while watching them.
‘Damn it, damn it, damn it!’
I could undoubtedly survive on my own.
There were other companions.
It would not be a problem if these two were gone. I could simply recruit other companions to fill the vacancies.
However, even if that was true.
‘What happens if I keep protecting only myself and cutting people loose, again and again?’
There was no guarantee that I would not repeat the same act while telling myself, It had to be done―every single time.
That was no reason to abandon them.
The two of them were undeniably living beings.
‘Then I have no choice but to do it.’
There was only one thing I could choose now.
I would save them and get them outside.
I knew perfectly well that it was foolish. Even through the smoke, I could tell that the number of creatures approaching from behind was absurd.
"Hraaaaaah!!"
There was no time to complain.
"Little Fox, you……!"
"M-Mister Executor?!"
"Run!!"
Had there truly been no method, I might have fled.
However, that would only have been a justification.
I threw the Hardening Agents and Firebombs I carried and used my longsword to strike aside a test subject that leaped toward me.
The other two regained their balance and resumed running.
"Keep moving! Head for the sluice gate! Stay on the left-hand path the entire way!"
I shouted as I sent the two of them ahead.
Naturally, I had no intention of sacrificing myself.
The method I had devised was simple. We would seal the iron gates throughout the waterway and escape by taking a circuitous route.
……It was a deranged plan that would have been impossible unless I had played the game dozens or hundreds of times and memorized the entire map.
After using the rest of the Hardening Agents and Firebombs to halt the test subjects’ advance, my companions and I began running again.
An old horror game suddenly came to mind.
‘That game also stopped its pursuer by closing gates throughout the waterway.’
The grotesque screams coming from behind us made the atmosphere positively exquisite.
I had never imagined that I would indirectly experience another game like this.
"W-we are almost there! Once we get past that place, the creatures behind us will not be able to follow!"
At Rin’s shout, an iron gate capable of sealing the waterway came into view in the distance.
Ravenwood and I both forced our legs onward, wringing out every last trace of our strength.
I wanted to say farewell to these damned test subjects for good.
"Old woman, brat! Keep going! Throw yourselves inside!!"
At my words, both of them hurled themselves into the sluice chamber.
I followed immediately behind them and swiftly grabbed the lever beside the gate.
But then.
‘What?’
How had I failed to consider something so obvious?
The immediate danger had left me no time to think about what should have been apparent from the beginning.
I had overlooked the fact that the lever controlling the sluice gate had rusted and could not be pulled properly.
The test subjects crawled toward us along the walls and ceiling.
There was no time left.
At that moment, something flew toward the lever.
‘Lubricant?’
The stiff lever that had refused to move finally released a screech and slid naturally into position.
The enormous iron gate dropped directly before us like a guillotine.
It was a matter of an instant.
Had it fallen even slightly later, the test subjects would have forced their bodies through the opening.
Instead, the descending gate cleanly severed the waists and necks of the creatures attempting to enter.
"Ahahahahaha! Damn it, I am glad I brought that!!"
Ravenwood laughed like a madwoman.
Given the circumstances, I could understand such laughter.
Screams and scratching noises continued intermittently beyond the closed sluice gate, but even those sounds soon faded.
"……Phew. We can finally catch our breath."
From here, it should have been safe to reorganize ourselves and rest before moving again.
Ravenwood, overcome with exhaustion, immediately collapsed onto the floor and struggled to regain her breath without even removing her mask.
Rin lowered Kariya from her back and attempted to check the child’s condition.
"Kariya, are you all right?"
"Hek, hwegh……."
Kariya still appeared to be in some pain, but the child’s breathing remained steady. Somehow, it seemed that everything would be all right.
Let us rest briefly before leaving.
The moment I sat down with that thought—
SSSSK―
DRIP, DRIP-DRIP. DRIP.
An unidentified sticky liquid suddenly began falling from the ceiling.
I quietly spoke to Ravenwood, who had been resting nearby.
"Old woman."
Swallowing dryly, I asked with great caution.
"Tell me that you can produce more Firebombs."
Of course. As if things would ever go that smoothly―the thought passed through my mind.