"No Kelllyyy…"
In that heated standoff, Sumire's shout cut through the tension, forcing everyone to look. Kelly, despite desperately trying to protect Kei, was being overwhelmed as more and more soldiers closed in around him. However, they could only look helpless.
seeing the situation they were in Kei questioned.
"If you're going to play the hero, at least make a proper plan, idiot… why the hell did you even come anyway?"
"…"
Kelly didn't even have time to answer. For every, one he cut down, two more took their place. Slowly but surely, minor injuries began to pile up across his body.
"CROW"
Kelly said as a large white skinned raven appeared before them as skeleton soldiers started overwhelming him.
"Crow, I'll leave it to you while I babysit the princess over here… sorry, Crow. I should've given you a proper name earlier."
Kelly said it with a sigh, regret lacing his words. Crow took to the air at once, diving into the fray and aiding Kelly as they cut down the advancing skeleton soldiers together.
At the same time, from the other end of the bridge, the magic circle that had been spawning the skeletons finally collapsed. One by one, the both the bridge paths fell away until only the circular arena remained. Kelly could feel death drawing closer with every passing second, and regret weighed heavily on his heart, his selfishness had dragged Crow down with him.
Even if he wanted to end the summoning, it was impossible. The magic binding them wasn't something that could be undone. It was a manifestation of a single vow from his world, as the saying goes…till death do us apart.
"Cawww."
Crow seemed to sense Kelly's thoughts and answered in his own way, diving once more and wreaking havoc upon the skeleton soldiers below.
Seeing his actions, Kelly just smiled, once again regret lacing his face.
"Drop that fucking smile and answer me… and don't you dare call me princess…"
From behind, Kei stood purely on willpower. She had never been ignored like this before, and even in a situation like this, her personality came through in full force. Irritation clear in her voice, she demanded an answer.
Kelly merely smirked and glanced back at her.
"Ohh… no plan, actually… Let's just say I saw a dream."
Kelly just replied casually with the smirk that Kei found infuriation.
"And, yeah… you're just too beautiful to let die. And isn't it poetic saving the damsel in distress."
At that, Kei looked genuinely flabbergasted and shot back,
"Seriously… you came because you had the hots for me and because you saw some fucking lewd dream or something…fuck you men are all the same you and your shitty ego."
Slowly but surely, the hope that had ignited within her began to return.
Kelly didn't bother refuting her anymore. He knew there was nothing left that could save them. Kei still believed they might survive, and that was exactly why he chose to burst that fragile hope.
"We're going to die, you know… let's just say I'm here to give you some company. Oh, Crow too by the way…so, be nice and say hi…"
The weight of that harsh truth crashed down on Kei, dragging her back into despair. But there was no time to dwell on it. No more soldiers were spawning now, yet the remaining ones continued to fall upon them as the platform steadily disintegrated.
With Crow and Kelly fighting together, they managed to fend off the remaining skeletons, and for a brief moment, peace settled over the arena. Even so, Crow was growing visibly tired, and there were still more skeletons than the two of them could handle. Kei didn't have the luxury to wallow in despair any longer.
Seeing her like this Kelly teased her again.
"Afraid princess…don't worry I will protect you but just for a minute after all this prince is running on fumes now"
Listening to this Kei came back to her senses.
'This jerk… he's so annoying. And yet, no matter how irritating he is… it really does look like we won't survive after all. I had so many plans. I finally got out of that hell. The last few days were so wonderful, finally free from him. I even had power, power to protect myself. I could be whatever I wanted to be. And now life just pulls the rug out from under my feet. Shitty life… Shitty luck…I didn't want to die. What was all that struggle for? Everything I went through, all the effort, all the pain I endured… it all feels like one big joke now…Heh…'
With a self-deprecating smile, Kei thought to herself and finally replied, her voice filled with defiance.
"Then let's at least make it worthwhile… shall we? At the very least, I won't die relying on your shitty protection, and I'm sure as hell not dying at the hands of those creepy skeletons. If this is the end, then at least I won't be helpless when I still have the strength to fight in me."
Kelly just smiled widely listening to that, at the same time crow came back to rest on his shoulder.
"Great job. Just rest now, I'll handle everything. It'll be over soon… I promise."
Crow looked at him in the eye, and Kelly felt as though it nodded in response. A second later, Crow vanished, dissolving back into his soul.