Chapter 43

### Chapter 43: The Price of Loss (4)

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#7

"Really?"

"...Yes."

Elena put on a stern expression, even lifting the eye patch that covered one eye slightly.

"You cute junior. You know that lying to me won't work, right? I can predict everything, you know, predict everything."

"R-Really."

"Hmm..."

It's really true.

So, these young, inexperienced chicks were sharing affection with each other... She had said it was a story of youth, but she didn't think it would be this real. Those two had experienced something Elena herself hadn't yet. It was a strange and mysterious thing. For the record, Elena wasn't incapable; she just chose not to. At least, that's what she thought.

But if they were exes, it meant their relationship had already broken down. From what Elena knew, among her friends, relationships labeled with the word "ex" (？) never ended well.

They either tried to get back together, making everyone around them frustrated, or they became enemies worse than mortal foes, ruining their day if they ever ran into each other by chance...

"What... Do you still like him?"

In Miu's case, it seemed different.

A case where, even after breaking up, one couldn't forget their ex and continued to yearn for them. Elena thought it was a truly frustrating situation that they ended up in the same class.

Miu, who had been wiping her tears, nodded her head slightly.

"Yes. I love him."

"...Oh, I see. I'm sorry. You're in love too."

While Miu said it calmly, the words were so embarrassing that Elena felt a shiver run down her spine just hearing them.

Hearing the tangled love stories of juniors much younger than herself, Elena, who was not immune to such things, could only react with a mix of discomfort and awkwardness.

"But, junior, I understand your feelings, but there's really no solution. If you really love him, it might be best to just let him go. It's ideal to end it quickly, right?"

Elena said this coldly.

It was based on the facts. If Elio was left to run rampant, he would absorb all the malevolent energy in the building and then go on a rampage across the Frontier, looking for more prey.

Fortunately, it seemed he wasn't fully formed yet, so Elena could kill him without much difficulty.

As for Miu's request to subdue him, well, in Elio's current state, Elena might get hit and things could get really bad. Even if his power was weak, what he contained was dangerous.

"......I don't want that. Is there no other way? Maybe we can subdue him first and then look for a solution..."

"There isn't, I'm telling you."

"......"

Miu's eyes welled up with tears again.

It felt like a death sentence. Hearing those words from Elena, of all people, she couldn't argue or respond. She just bowed her head, her heart sinking.

How could she send Elio away without even having a proper conversation, especially after they had just reunited? From Miu's perspective, who still loved Elio, she wanted to restore him to his original self.

If Elio were to die here, Miu didn't even want to imagine what would happen to her in the future. It might be an exaggerated thought, but perhaps she would follow him...

Did Miu's desperate feelings show?

"...Well, if you really don't want to kill him."

Elena sighed deeply.

"I can try to knock him out a few times. Of course, he'll wake up the same, but maybe it's better to do as you say and look for a solution. I might have been a bit hasty. I have a tendency to uproot things as soon as I see them."

"......!"

A new hope bloomed in Miu's heart, which had been half-given up. Her face lit up, and she quickly bowed her head.

"T-Thank you... Senior Elena!"

"Don't thank me yet, brat. I might accidentally blow his head off. We'll see after we subdue him—"

At that moment.

Crack!

Elena's words were cut off.

Faster than words, Elio's black hair fluttered and he vanished from the spot. A small crater formed where Elena had been standing.

"You crazy bastard!"

As if inhaling all the smoke around him, Elio, who had stopped moving, suddenly began an unexpected action.

The window on the 14th floor that Elena had broken to enter.

The moonlit night street.

"Stop, you bastard—!"

Whoosh!

Amid the fierce wind.

Elio leaped into the scene.

#8

— Teleport! Is there a teleporter? I heard there's one in the 3rd District, Arcadia Class!

— Move them to stretchers as soon as they're secured!

— Be careful of the smoke! Inhaling it can be dangerous!

The faculty and emergency personnel called from the Frontier set up barricades around the Lunatic Hall and began rescue operations. It had been about 10 minutes since the incident began.

To prevent a chain reaction if the building collapsed, they installed strong protective magic around it. Those who could use holy power started to clear the smoke, which was filled with malevolent energy, from the outside.

The preservation of the facility was secondary. The priority was to rescue the lives of Frontier citizens who might be inside the building.

Whoosh—!

A powerful jet of water erupted from below, aiming at the middle of the building. The output was like a waterfall. It was a 6th-tier water (？) magic.

Due to the collapse inside the building, broken reagents caused small magical explosions, starting fires on the 7th and 9th floors, emitting thick, acrid smoke.

— Dangerous! Step back!

— Don't just stand there, move back quickly...!?

The area was chaotic and noisy.

Crowds gathered, murmuring about the unprecedented incident, knights running around to control them, and the rumbling of surging magical power from all directions—

Amid this chaos, a particularly piercing scream rose.

"Ah! Over there! He's falling!"

A woman pointed to the top of the building.

People's attention focused on something falling from outside the building's window.

It was a small figure, but its identity was easy to recognize.

It was undoubtedly a human silhouette.

— It's a person!

— What do we do? He'll die if he falls!

— I can't watch!

Whoosh!

It tore through the thick smoke and began to fall rapidly toward the ground.

The mages, who saw it, stopped their actions and immediately tried to cast a new spell.

— ...What? Another one is falling!

There was no need.

Whoosh—!

Another figure, emerging from the smoke, began to descend even faster than the one who had just fallen.

#9

'Suddenly acting out...!'

Whoosh—!

The deafening sound of air tearing through her ears. Falling from such a height to the ground was something Elena hadn't done in a long time.

The landscape below looked like a miniature.

The rooftops of buildings scattered between the streets came into view.

Following Elio, who was absorbing all the remaining smoke, Elena jumped out of the window and channeled magic into her feet.

— Bang!

She accelerated even faster.

Thanks to the timing of her jump, which wasn't much different from Elio's, Elena quickly caught up to him.

"You damn bastard, you're really going to die—!"

Elena shouted, cursing.

Her hair, which had been flying in the wind, got in her mouth, and she immediately clenched her fist and kicked the air powerfully with her back foot.

"Are you really trying to die—?! Even if you lack reason, isn't this too much—?!"

Bang!

She accelerated even more. Elena, who had caught up to Elio and was now falling parallel to him, quickly grabbed his waist.

The moment Elio recognized the presence of the hand pressing against his waist, he tried to turn his head, his eyes glowing brightly.

“...Gah—!”

"Take this, you bastard!"

Elena struck the back of Elio's neck with her other hand. Elio, who coughed up black blood, went limp.

Whoosh!

By the time they passed the middle of the building, the crowd on the ground was watching them with terrified eyes.

It would be a bit much to show them falling and turning into a bloody mess. Elena didn't want to die either. She had reacted instinctively when Elio suddenly jumped, but she had a plan.

Originally, Elena had jumped from the rooftop of a building about five stories high and broken through the 14th-floor window of this building.

While falling and taking the impact directly would be dangerous, Elena was far beyond ordinary human limits.

Even though she was retired, her skills hadn't diminished.

Her golden eyes, which reflected the moonlight, burst with a reflective glow. Explosive magical power surged through her entire body.

It quickly formed a solid armor around her, and Elena focused her mind on a single point, holding Elio tightly.

It was crucial that nothing be disrupted.

The only part to absorb the massive impact would be her legs.

No, she would absorb or completely nullify the impact, ensuring no damage reached the inside. Not even a scratch.

At this point, nothing in the world could leave any more scars on Elena's body.

Therefore.

Indestructible.

Adamantine.

'I'll be fine, but this guy will take some damage.'

In a way, it was for the best. If he was appropriately weakened, it might make subduing him easier.

Just before hitting the ground, Elena, who had been falling headfirst like a diver, turned half a circle, wrapping her arms around Elio's waist.

Whoosh!

They were passing the boundary between the 4th and 3rd floors.

"Ah—!"

"Ah—! Run!"

The onlookers screamed, and Elena and Elio, who had accelerated to the point of leaving afterimages, narrowly missed the floating magic that failed to activate—

—Boom!!

Suddenly.

A massive explosion shook the ground.

A huge semicircular wave of dust swept the area roughly.

Whoosh!

A fierce wind blew, and the magic circles of nearby mages failed with a faint pop, the shockwave was that intense.

Black smoke and gray smoke mixed, but they could never truly become one, like oil and water.

A faint silhouette emerged from the violently swirling gray and black mist.

"...Damn, I thought it would be worse."

A large crater formed on the well-paved road, at least 7 meters in diameter.

Thanks to the careful calculation of the impact and landing point to avoid civilian casualties, there were no additional injuries, fortunately.

"Junior, you damn brat. Are you alive?"

“...”

While his internal organs might be damaged, there didn't seem to be any obvious external injuries.

He seems to have survived. Elena sighed deeply and cracked her stiff neck a few times.

Sssss...

The reflective glow from the magical power enveloping her body faded, and her golden eyes returned to normal.

— Is that... Elena?

— ...What? Elena Cremore?

— It really is! Elena! The war hero!

As the smoke cleared and Elena's figure became visible, people began to recognize her and murmur, but that wasn't particularly important right now.

Elena looked down at Elio, who was hanging limply in her arms like a fish out of water.

'...Maybe I should reconsider the weakness of his mental strength.'

If he were in a forced awakening, it would be normal for him to try to destroy all living things in sight, but for some reason, when Elena arrived, there was no sign of him causing even minor harm to Miu.

It was surprising that he was still alive.

Considering that his triggers had been activated twice from the outside, it would be normal for his consciousness, soul, and everything else to be completely burned away.

Not only was he still alive and moving, but the reason for his sudden outburst must have been something else.

Elena didn't really want to imagine what kind of struggle he was going through internally. But he was doing his best, right? It was an unexpected case, and she no longer wanted to kill Elio...

'You're going to have a tough time, junior.'

Even if he miraculously survived, he would still face a harsh fate.

As a senior, how should she guide this junior, who might follow the same path?

Elena watched the people being carried out of the building and thought about it.

"First, where should I take him..."

Right then.

"—Elio!"

Miu, who had jumped from the second-floor window, ran toward Elena with a pale, almost lifeless expression.