Fujiwara leapt into the air, as if invisible wings sprouted from her ribs. She soared over four meters high, gliding gracefully through the night. At the apex of her leap, she raised her axe, her body bending backward like a spring, poised to release all the pent-up force in the next moment.

The monster, sensing the threat from above, chewed through its mouthful of blood as it lifted its head to meet Fujiwara’s descending form. A faint blue arc shimmered along its long horn.

I widened my eyes in surprise.

The flying figure and the glowing horn were striking against the dim backdrop of the night, as if a blooming flower had blossomed in the darkness.

This moment stretched out in my mind, yet seemed to last but an instant. The axe and horn collided with a force that felt almost magnetic, freezing both figures in place.

The blue light seemed like a sensitive powder keg, ignited by the impact, forming a cylindrical cage that trapped Fujiwara within it.

A burst of light blinded me, and I instinctively closed my eyes as everything around me lost its form. A crackling sound filled the air, accompanied by a sharp tingling sensation that made every hair on my body stand on end.

A familiar word echoed in my mind.

Lightning.

A cage of blue electrical arcs.

“Fujiwara!” I screamed, panic rising in my chest. Though we had only known each other for a night, she was my companion. I couldn’t stay indifferent like I did to the gruesome piles of corpses.

I forced my eyes open, searching for that agile, powerful figure.

The world remained hazy. The dark that I had grown accustomed to now appeared pale, and countless light-like specks danced in the air. Through the gaps, I caught a glimpse of a massive silhouette.

I jumped from the railing, rolling forward as I hit the ground, scrambling to my feet and charging toward her.

The crossbow was useless against the monster, so I discarded it and drew a revolver from my waistband, the one with only six bullets remaining.

The lingering electric arcs were visible, like ripples in water, slowly fading. As I entered the current, the electric shock sent a cold chill through my spine.

I gripped the gun with both hands, ready to fire, but I hesitated. I didn’t want to risk hitting Fujiwara. Stepping forward, the scene became clearer. A charred human form had collapsed by the edge of the pool, hitting the rocks like a lifeless puppet.

The monster’s horn lost its blue arc, and it tried to jump out of the pool, aiming to trample Fujiwara, who lay motionless, uncertain of her fate.

I raised my gun and fired without aiming deliberately. At this distance, with such a large target, there was no real concern of missing.

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The deafening gunshot echoed through the courtyard, the powerful recoil unexpectedly strong, causing my wrist to ache. I gripped the gun tightly, nearly pulled off balance.

The monster was startled, its head turning just as the shot knocked it off course. Its legs wobbled slightly.

I hit it!

Though I hadn’t aimed for its head, I was surprised at the accuracy. I never knew I could shoot so well.

I’d never been this precise even during military training.

Perhaps it was luck, or something else unexplainable. I didn’t have time to think about it.

My heart raced, filled with both relief and worry, as I quickened my pace to reach Fujiwara.

Her appearance was grim. Her long hair had exploded in all directions, and her torn clothes exposed large patches of skin, but there was nothing alluring about it. The exposed flesh was charred, radiating heat and the scent of burning, enough to make me hesitate to even touch her.

I almost thought she had stopped breathing, but when I reached out tentatively, a barely audible groan reached my ears.

Thank god, she’s still alive.

Fujiwara’s body convulsed briefly, and then she turned over, opening her eyes to look at me. They seemed unfocused but not weak from the brink of death.

Incredibly, despite the severe injuries, she still had the strength to move.

Her gaze seemed to say something, but for now, I just wanted her to rest.

I shoved a stone into her mouth, grabbed the back of her shirt, and dragged her away, right hand repeatedly firing at the monster. With each shot, my hand jerked, the recoil lifting my arm.

I fired three times, each shot miraculously hitting the monster's head, even destroying one of its eyes. The sudden barrage of fire threw the monster off balance, and it leapt out of the pool, its limbs thrashing.

The recoil from my gun left my right hand weak, unable to pull the trigger again. I could only aim the empty weapon at it, trying to bluff.

The monster, seeming to hesitate, didn’t attack immediately. It just stared at us, its eyes and mouth showing a human-like caution and fury.

I continued to drag Fujiwara backward. On the surface, I appeared calm, but the two remaining bullets in the chamber brought no comfort.

What part of this huge creature could those last two bullets target to land a fatal blow?

I’d heard that the weight of the dead and unconscious is hard to bear, likely because they lose the ability to respond to external forces. Fujiwara wasn’t unconscious, and her body could still move, but the weight on me didn’t lessen much.

Dragging her on like this wouldn’t work. If the monster attacked, we’d both likely be done for.

The best way out of this was to kill the monster, but I still couldn’t figure out how to do that.

The monster was heavily wounded, blood flowing freely with no signs of healing, clearly weaker than before. Yet, it still possessed its ability to move and its electric power, putting it at an advantage.

Was I really left with no options?

I took a deep breath, releasing Fujiwara and locking eyes with the monster. My hand reached for the axe in her grip.

Though she seemed to lack strength, her hand gripped the axe like a vice. It took all my strength to loosen her fingers.

I couldn’t tell if this was a reflex or if Fujiwara truly didn’t want to let go.

Finally, I pried the axe free and held it in my left hand. I began to move carefully, avoiding agitating the monster, edging away from her side.

The monster’s body shifted to follow my movement.

Good. Now it was focused on me.

What should I do next?

I discarded all thoughts of morality, of acting out of haste or selfish desires. In the depth of this night, it was just me and this wounded beast.

Fujiwara’s attacks hadn’t been useless. The monster had weaknesses.

Its injuries, its rage, its movements—all of them left traces.

“Right, the head. It’s always the head.”

The electric-hurling horn, the torn neck, the blinded eye, the holes in its face—each injury was a sign of distress and fear.

It hadn’t shown any more signs of releasing its electric charge. That massive discharge earlier seemed like a desperate, last-ditch move.

Now, it was only posturing, much like I was.

I couldn’t give it any time to recover.

With that thought, I advanced toward it.