TSFA l Part 2 CH 61

Part 2 Chapter 61

* * *

“W-why, why, WHY are you here?!!!”

The deafening roar made everyone clap their hands over their ears.

“Ugh! My eardrums almost burst!”
“This bastard lost his mind?!”

Bania and Ryan yelled back at once.

But Ratan’s vision went white.
Why was the pink-headed brat here all day? She had never come to a battlefield before! Did she have a death wish?!

“Why are you yelling like that!”

The tiny little Bania chirped angrily.

Ratan’s lips flapped before he managed to croak out:

—“N-no… I was just shocked… since you came here even though it’s dangerous….”

“What’s dangerous? You’re here.”

Absolute trust.

Except this time, that trust was useless.

Because the beasts wouldn’t obey him anymore.

Damn it, what do I do?

If the monsters attacked, he couldn’t stop them. Even if he ordered them not to, they’d think it was an act and ignore him.

Could the humans win? No way. Only two armies had arrived so far—the Imperial Knights and the Belzer forces. No matter how strong they were, it was still a numbers game. Within an hour, they’d all be slaughtered.

Sure, Bania wasn’t an ordinary human, but… could she handle hundreds of beasts at once? Probably not. She’d die too.

…And he didn’t like that idea at all.

Wait. What am I thinking?! Why don’t I want that?!

Ratan sucked in deep breaths, trying to calm himself.

Meanwhile, Ryan and Bania quickly lost interest and started chattering again.

Only Nike kept watching Ratan, sensing something off.

His instincts—sharpened by years of war—had rarely been wrong. Whenever he felt this kind of dread, disaster always followed.

And right now was no exception.

***

“Liner.”

Nike quietly called his aide. When the man approached, Nike whispered:

“Withdraw the Imperial Knights. Quickly. Have them wait at the outer defense line. When the other hunting units arrive, don’t let them enter. Hold position.”

The sudden order startled Liner.

But his commander had never given a meaningless command. There was no point asking why.

“…Understood.”

Moments later, Liner gathered the knights and pulled them out of the camp.

Ryan, puzzled by their sudden retreat, approached Nike.

“What’s going on? Why are you sending them away?”

The truth? In case things went bad, only Ryan’s instant-kill ability could hold the beasts back. The Belzer soldiers—ex-Cerberus mercenaries—knew his secret, but the Imperial Knights didn’t.

Still, Nike couldn’t explain all that now. He was acting purely on instinct.

“They’ll be back before the hunt starts. Don’t worry about it.”

“Eh…?”

Nike ignored him and turned to Bania.

“Come here.”

He leaned close, whispering:

“If something happens, I’ll rewind time two hours. Thirty minutes is too short. I won’t remember it, so you’ll need to explain the situation to me.”

“Huh? Oh—okay. But what kind of ‘something’?”

“Anything we didn’t expect.”

With that, Nike checked his ability.

Three seconds. .

“…Damn it.”

His instincts were usually right. And misfortune loved to pile up all at once.

***

“Don’t worry,” Bania once told him. “That Nullification state never lasts long. My dad usually used it when… disciplining us kids. If we got mad and tried to fight back… well, going up against him meant death.”

Those words, sadly, had come from experience.

And indeed, Nullification never lasted long. Only days ago it had ended in less than an hour.

So Nike thought grimly: Do we just hold out until it passes?

“…Why are you acting like that?”

Bania noticed his unease. Nike whispered back:

“…I’m Nullified.”

“Again?!” Bania gasped.

Then she leaned close, glancing at Ratan.

“But does it matter? As long as Ratan’s here, we’re safe from the monsters. As long as he doesn’t notice you’re weakened, it’s fine.”

Except… that was exactly the problem.

Something was wrong with Ratan.

Nike didn’t bother explaining. He just said:

“You should leave. I’ll take you to Liner.”

“…What? Now?”

“Something feels wrong. If nothing happens, I’ll fetch you back. Just wait outside.”

“…Okay.”

She nodded reluctantly, then turned to Ratan.

“Hey! Can’t you, like, sense when monsters are about to appear?”

Ratan swallowed hard and nodded.

—“Y-yes… sort of…”

“When?”

—“Th-thre…”

“Three days?”

—“Three… two… one…”

“…?!?!”

The ground shook.

Everyone froze as beasts of all sizes burst out of the earth.

“Whoa!”

Panic spread instantly—except for Ryan, who looked overjoyed.

“So you can see the future! You even had the knights retreat for my sake, didn’t you?!”

He raised a fist dramatically.

“Behold! The beautiful judgment of the god of death!”

.

…Nothing happened.

“Aw, shit!!!”

Ryan instantly darted behind Nike.

“Why isn’t it working?!”

“How would I know?! Ask your father!”

***

“Everyone calm down! Don’t panic! From this moment, I’m in command!”

Bania stepped boldly beside Ratan, chin lifted, and pointed at the beasts.

“Go, Ratan!”

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Ratan strode forward, facing the monsters. He roared.

—“GRRAAAAAH!”

The beasts froze in place.

Bania smirked proudly, while Ryan and his soldiers sighed in relief.

Only Nike stayed tense.

No… this is wrong. Beasts shouldn’t be emerging this early…

And then it happened.

The beasts suddenly split to the sides, opening a path.

From the gap stepped a small, ugly beast with a strangely long nose.

“Slaughter every human here!” it shouted.

Everyone gaped.

A sentient beast…!

“STOP!!!” Ratan bellowed. The horde faltered, caught between conflicting orders.

—“I’ll talk to him!”

Ratan quickly thought through his options.

That beast had swallowed his claw fragment months ago. The mark of a commander. Now, the horde would obey it over him.

Killing it wasn’t an option either—the backlash would revert him to human, unable to transform for at least a week.

There was… no answer.

—“M-my lady!”

He turned desperately to Bania.

—“Can you restrain them somehow?!”

“….”

Bania blinked.

Ryan and Nike had the same sinking thought.

We’re screwed.

We’re dead.

Bania raised her hand.

<Mirror Eye – Shackles of Binding>
<Mirror Eye – Shackles of Binding>

She kept trying. Nothing worked.

“…Why? I don’t want to hurt your friends. Can’t we talk it out…?” she said, trying to look pitiful.

—“They’re not my friends!!!”

Ratan snapped back, then faced the horde.

He knew it: they couldn’t win against such numbers.

Which meant… the perfect chance.

If even Bania couldn’t stop them, his escape was guaranteed.

So why was he hesitating? Why did he care?

—“Stop. My master is behind me.”

The sentient beast blinked, then smirked.

Its face said: Nice acting, huh?

Then it raised its voice.

“Attack!!!”

The horde charged.

Ratan swung his arms, blocking the path, smashing beasts aside.

But larger, stronger ones immediately clawed their way up to replace them.

“Damn it!”

Killing them only made more appear. It was pointless.

He glanced back.

The humans—calm, armed, ready for battle.

And Nike, already planning a strategy.

Yet even with him, they’d all die today.

The ground hadn’t fully weakened yet. Only a third of the beasts had surfaced. Stronger ones would come. The humans would be ripped apart.

And that was fine. They deserved it.

But…

“You’re the only one who became precious to me…”

He saw Nike grabbing Bania’s reins, clearly trying to spirit her away.

Escape? Impossible. She’d be caught, ripped to shreds.

The thought of it made Ratan’s gut twist.

No. He wouldn’t allow that.

His choice came quickly.

Ratan thrust out his massive arm toward her.

At the same time, Nike and Ryan reached for her too.

But before anyone could act—

Whoosh!

Bania vanished from sight.

“Kyaaah!”

Her scream rang out.

Ratan’s hand clutched her tight.

The beast who had snatched her was already sprinting out of the battlefield at a terrifying speed.

“BANIA!!!”

Ratan’s vision went white.