「Eh……?」
Her sight wavered. She felt dull pain from her shoulder and elbow. She was toppling sideways when she realized.
(What’s, this……)
It felt tiresome to even make a voice. Her thought was also dull. For a moment, she wondered whether the vaporized anesthesia was also affecting her, however the extreme feeling of fatigue like she had just ran a marathon in full speed, and the sensation of chill spreading from her body core told her that wasn’t the case for sure.
「No, good……gotta, run……」
She didn’t understand what was going on. But, the children looked limp when she looked at them. As expected it wasn’t caused by anesthesia. If it was debility that had the same cause like Emily’s symptoms, she mustn’t allow herself to fall unconscious here.
Stand, stand up and run! Save the children!
She yelled so inside her heart while desperately putting strength into her limbs.
In her sight, Dobo- a flesh blob fell on the ground. As expected it seemed they had made too much commotion.
「T-this, isn’t, funny-」
She distanced herself from it with desperation. Wanting to at least protect the children, she clung on the sliding door and somehow closed it.
Right after that, the flesh blob leaped at her. She pointed the shotgun’s muzzle toward it. She pulled the trigger to fire magic power shockwave.
「……Eh?」
The shotgun stayed quiet. It only made clicking sound from pulling the trigger in vain, and then,
「Kyaah」
Emily was pushed down by the flesh blob. It expanded like slime while enveloping her. It made her panicked.
(Why-, the barrier……doesn’t activate!?)
Even the artifact that should be surrounding Emily with absolute barrier was silent.
While struggling frantically, Emily’s bright mind found the answer despite the dullness affecting her.
(Don’t tell me……this space itself……is absorbing energy……)
Buer’s words came back to her.
――Or perhaps, inside its body
It was exactly that. The predation was already starting the moment they were captured inside the barrier.
At the end of this imprisonment, every drop of energy――naturally, even the soul that was source of that energy would be absorbed bit by bit. That was none other than the authority of this “barrier void god”. The monsters in the end were nothing more than supporting ability to speed up that process.
That was why, the enemy’s mental affecting sorcery slipped through the artifact protecting her and affected her even for just a moment.
That was why, Emily got scratched when she fell from the bike. Originally the barrier should activate perfectly and brought her through a mere traffic accident unscathed, and yet the magic power contained within the artifact got interfered and absorbed continuously, making it unstable.
That was why, the worshippers were that anxious and scared. Even though they were magicians, they didn’t use any magic and relied on weapon. They noticed that the magic power inside them, and further their souls were getting devoured.
Buer didn’t realize was surely because of his vast magic power. Even though his energy was consumed more than usual, he only felt that as nothing more than rounding error.
And Emily was unable to sense magic power. She didn’t notice even when the magic power stored inside the artifact was getting absorbed. She spent the stored magic power without reservation in battle.
「At, this kind, of place……-」
Strength wouldn’t enter her body. The “treasure warehouse” itself also wouldn’t activate. Like drowning in sea, finally everything other than her face that she covered with one arm was swallowed……
She was being absorbed. Her sight was getting closed. Physically by the flesh blob, and then, even her consciousness was reaching the limit of staying up.
「No-, Kou, suke-!!」
What she could do by wringing out her last strength was only calling the name of her beloved, and then, reaching toward the sky with her hand――
「……a」
Paan The sky burst. The marble colored sky cracked like glass. Sunlight streamed in.
She could see a black silhouette at the center of it.
(Ahaha……as expected, Kousuke……save, e……very, one……)
There, Emily’s consciousness blacked out together with her sight.