Chapter 97: Looking Up
Airi and Ayaka approached and looked down at the items on the floor. Turning to Elyssia and Takeshi who were standing up.
Airi pointed down at the four items.
"Were they under the bed?"
Elyssia nodded.
"Yes."
Takeshi: "These items are truly strange."
Ayaka smiled, she was still very nonchalant.
"How can they compare to Kuralak's hand."
Takeshi clicked his tongue.
"Don't mention that again; thinking back makes me scared."
Elyssia: "Then it seems we have many items already; now let's summarize what we have."
Ayaka handed Elyssia the book she had just found.
"You read it; it seems we need to seal the monster."
Elyssia read quickly once and closed the book.
Takeshi took Elyssia's book and read.
Airi seeing this began to speak:
"From what we just read, the one performing the seal seems to be the man chasing to kill us."
"That monster seems to have run outside."
"And we need to seal it, though I also thought: why not kill it?"
"But the trial providing these items means it must be a seal."
Ayaka: "Performing the seal seems quite difficult and also has risks."
Airi nodded.
"I know that, but what other way do we have?"
Elyssia: "Then let's just do it, hope for luck."
Suddenly Elyssia heard a strange sound, very steady, like someone was walking.
She turned and ran outside, making Airi, Takeshi, and Ayaka look on in bewilderment.
Ayaka: "Where are you going?"
Skidding to a stop, two eyes opened wide, pupils dilated and trembling in their sockets. Her body shook with fear, panic clearly shown through every facial feature.
Downstairs, the man already stood in the middle of the house and looked up, making eye contact with Elyssia. His hand was gripping the sword tightly, his mouth spread into a crazed smile, his mouth muttering:
"Monster... you arrived exactly when I was bored."
Ayaka, Airi, and Takeshi ran out right behind. All three skidded to a stop and looked toward the man.
This made the man even more excited; his voice spoke out loudly and crazily.
"Wonderful, I will chop you monsters into pieces."
Elyssia standing in front, voice trembling:
"E-Everyone... I-Is there time?"
The man broadened his shoulders, two legs spread wide, he twisted his hips. Right hand raised the sword and gathered momentum for a sword throw.
His expression immediately shifted, his teeth gritted together as if wanting to break his own jaw.
He growled out in rage, blue veins bulging all over his face and blood vessels appearing in his eyes, his whole face turning red:
"Die!"
The sword left his hand and was thrown very fast.
Airi immediately pulled Elyssia's shirt backward and shouted loudly:
"Back up!"
All four turned and fled into the room.
The man rushed forward; he did not run up the stairs. He ran near the wall and jumped high, grabbing the edge of the wall, then climbed up and jumped over the railing.
The door was slammed shut. The sword stabbed straight into the wall above.
THUD!
The man kicked the door hard in rage, he gritted his teeth and cursed:
"You monsters, get out here now!"
He jumped up and reached for the sword.
Broadening his shoulders and gathering momentum for a slash.
CRASH!!
Swinging the sword with great force at the door, but the blade bounced off and left a long, deep gouge on the wooden door. It seemed this door was thicker and sturdier than the others.
Inside, the four were joining forces. Eight arms tried to hold the door. Even though there was an iron bolt, they knew it would not stop the man.
Everyone exerted force pushing the door. Airi, voice urgent:
"What to do? We are trapped in here."
Takeshi: "Someone think of a way!"
Ayaka suddenly released her hands; she ran to the table next to the door and wanted to push it to block the door.
Exerting force and speaking while pushing, making her voice extremely hard to hear:
"Everyone, get out of the way!"
Airi, Takeshi, and Elyssia ducked and backed up a bit for Ayaka to push the table over.
After pushing, she thought of another way. Running to the bed and grabbing the blanket.
The pounding on the door now grew stronger, making one table and three people struggle to withstand it.
Ayaka held the large blanket and ran over.
"Guys, let's coordinate and throw the blanket over his head when he steps in."
Elyssia tried to speak:
"Do it now; we are about to fail to hold on."
The man outside continuously kicked the door and slashed at it, making the door show many clear slash marks.
Suddenly he ceased being angry, his face relaxed to a normal state, his gaze cold and more deathly than ice blocks.
He immediately stabbed the sword into the edge of the door, the blade stabbing deep inside.
Using strength, he pulled the sword from top to bottom, cutting through the two hinges of the door. The sound of metal colliding rang out coldly:
Clang... clang.
He slowly stood straight, gaze soulless. Slowly backing up to gather momentum.
His hip touched the railing, like a sign. He rushed forward and unleashed a kick with his right foot with very strong force.
BOOM!!
The door immediately was kicked tilted to the right. The only thing still holding the door from falling was the door bolt which had been kicked bent, but not yet broken.
He immediately charged straight in without caring about anything.
Taking advantage of the room's darkness, Takeshi from behind swung a wine bottle straight at the man's head.
SMASH!!
The blow was as hard as a hammer strike coming down. The bottle shattered like hailstones in a storm.
A violent pain and dizziness hit. Everything before his eyes turned into a blur. He staggered, feeling as if the whole world were spinning.
Blood flowed long, sticking to his hair. Sharp glass shards embedded into the wound. A bone-deep stinging pain. His head followed the force and bowed down.
Not giving the man a breath, Takeshi swung a second wine bottle into his face.
SMASH!!
The hard blow broke the glass bottle and glass shards bit straight into his face, bright red blood covering his entire face.
Ayaka right beside immediately threw the blanket soaring up and covered the man.
Airi on the other side swung her leg and kicked the man, flying past Ayaka and slamming into the bookshelf.
Elyssia grabbed the necessary items and ran outside first, the other three also followed immediately behind.
Takeshi, while running, kept turning back to look. His hand at some point had grabbed the man's sword and he was running.
"Did we hit him to death?"
Airi, voice urgent:
"Why worry? He's very strong."
The group quickly ran down the stairs with urgency and worry. Then immediately ran down to the basement.
Running down below, Airi immediately shouted out orders:
"To be sure, Takeshi and I will carry those wooden crates to block the man's way down."
"Elyssia and Ayaka, draw the sealing circle!"
The group immediately acted.
The large wooden crates, unknown what was inside, were very heavy, making Airi and Takeshi struggle to carry each one with heavy, difficult steps.
At the same time, Elyssia opened the book showing the seal's image. They also stayed a distance away from the stone block because they felt it wasn't safe.
Ayaka was bewildered.
"Then draw with what?"
Suddenly Takeshi, who was carrying the crates, called out; he found a piece of paper and held it out:
"Guys, I found this paper!"
Airi had just set a wooden crate down at the stairs. She and Takeshi had blocked the passage with three crates piled up; now they just needed more reinforcement.
She ran over urgently.
"Where?"
Takeshi handed it to Airi and said loudly:
"Everyone don't get near that stone block. Otherwise you'll be sealed. The paper says so."
Airi read the paper and muttered to herself:
"Do not get near the stone block, otherwise you will be sealed."
She seemed to realize something.
Elyssia now said to Ayaka:
"Bite your blood out to write, Ayaka; there is nothing else to write with."
Airi remembered all the clues; she opened her eyes wide in realization.
"Everyone, I understand now!"
"The reason that man was chasing to kill us is because this trial designed us to be the monsters."
Elyssia seemed to realize this information she hadn't told everyone, but was also surprised when Airi said it.
Airi continued:
"This stone block is the old seal to seal the monster, and the trial arranged for us to be the monsters. That's why there is this warning."
"Do not get near the stone block."
Takeshi also had to hold his head at the information he just heard.
"What the hell? That's allowed too?"
Having spoken, she as if realizing something, immediately turned and said loudly:
"Takeshi, quickly take these crates down. We forgot to find the monster."
Takeshi opened his eyes wide in realization.
"Oh no, I was too panicked so I forgot."
Airi: "Possibly it's on the ceiling."
Takeshi immediately ran over and carried down two wooden crates; he and Airi jumped over the wooden crate on the floor and ran upstairs. Takeshi still did not forget to bring the sword.
Upstairs, Airi and Takeshi alertly scanned once, eyes directed toward the room they had once run out of.
Takeshi: "Seems that guy is still unconscious."
Both looked up at the ceiling and tried to search.
They moved continuously to observe the ceiling. Several large beams made them have to change angles to see for sure.
Suddenly, Takeshi saw something blackish above. He immediately ran up the stairs and stood in the corner of the house looking up.
It was the monster with the boy's body lying on a large beam to hide.
Takeshi pointed up and said loudly:
"Airi, I found the kid; he's up there, come here quick."
Airi immediately ran up and also saw it.
"It's him, the child's body matches the description."
"How to get him down now?"
The monster above knew it was discovered, trying to hide itself.
But Takeshi yelled out:
"You want to hide? Get down here!"
Takeshi immediately ran into the first room. The man still lay unconscious and wrapped in the blanket.
He grabbed many empty wine bottles and ran outside. Then went to Airi and dropped them.
"Pelt him, Airi!"
Airi nodded. She pelted a wine bottle up and hit the beam directly, shattering it; the shards fell like a shimmering rain.
Takeshi pelted one bottle up but missed. He pelted another bottle up.
This time the bottle flew very close to the monster and slammed straight into the beam; glass shards splattered everywhere and struck the monster's leg, making it tremble.
Streaks of blood began to flow from its leg.
Airi pelted one more bottle, but it only slammed into the beam and shattered.