ASAHI NO NISHISEI - Rising Sun Goes West (2)

Farewell, Dearest Jakyu

Lily lost her mind and pulled out her left arm from Jindo's body without hearing Hiraide's warning. With her arm gone, which had been acting as a 'plug,' so to speak, blood gushed out from the hole in Jindo's stomach at once.

"SHIT... I can't stop the blood!"

Saikawa rushed to Jindo's side and desperately to stop the bleeding with his hands, but he could do nothing to stop the bleeding, and the pool of blood continued to expand.

"...AAH, AAAH, AAAAH!"

Lily was on the verge of insanity, tormented by the sight of her crush dying in front of her eyes and the reality that she was the one who had taken his life.

"It's okay... it's not your fault! Calm down!"

To calm the mentally unstable girl, Riyoshi held her trembling body in her arms. But Lily's left arm, stained blood red, would not allow her to turn away from reality.

"........."

Holding Lily, who seemed a bit calmer now that she has been told, Riyoshi saluted her boss, who is lying on the ground with a peaceful expression on his face. She was followed by Saikawa, who also saluted.

While they mourned their boss, Hiraide was being glared at by the four sorcerers. At their feet lay pieces of blades shattered by the five deadly bullets.

"...Y-you bastard!"

Hassamud, a sorcerer who called himself "If," Banard, and the others, gathered up the remnants of the Sword of Tyrfing, their voices trembled with anger. No matter how much magic they sent into the wreckage, the destroyed Holy Sword never shone again.

"...DAMMIT! THIS IS UNFORGIVABLE! I'LL KILL YOU RIGHT HERE!!"

Driven by rage and indignation, Hassamud uttered a gibberish that was unimaginable given his previously aloof demeanor. He raised his cane and attacked the unarmed Hiraide, who had only an out-of-bullet Colt Roman and his useless right hand.

"......Gh!"

Hiraide braced himself against the physical attack from the sorcerer, who had lost all sense of rationality. But just before Hassamud's fury was about to strike him, the earth suddenly shook, making their legs tremble. The cavern suddenly began to collapse.

"...W-what the!?"

"...Let's get out of here!"

Pebbles and dust were falling from the ceiling. Sensing the danger, Hassamud and his companions immediately jumped up on their staffs and flew in a straight line to the doorway through which Riyoshi and the others had passed to escape from the cavern that had begun to collapse. Hiraide could only follow them with his eyes. Then, just after the sorcerers left the cavern, a huge rock fell from the ceiling and blocked the doorway.

"Aah!?"

Hiraide screamed. There was no way to escape from the collapsing cavern. The five people gathered around Jindo, who was lying on the ground, including Riyoshi, Saikawa, Lily, Kirioka, and Eslugh, who had been left under the rock pedestal, could not hide their frustration at the sudden situation.

"...Why? Why did it suddenly collapse!?"

"Could it be... it was caused by Lily-san's laser beams? Five or six shots had gouged out the rock surface..."

To the panicked Riyoshi, Saikawa described the cause of the collapse of the cavern. But there is no time to worry about that now, they must think of a way to escape from this place as soon as possible.

"...Can't we all move that rock blocking the entrance!?"

"If there's any hope, it's that! Let's do it!"