Chapter 35: During the Chase
On the road, Kazama Chiba was driving Hiratsuka Shizuka's red Aston Martin Vantage, weaving madly through sparse traffic.
The car keys he'd searched from Hiratsuka Shizuka's pocket.
"WAAAAHHH—!!!"
In the passenger seat, Kerberos gripped the ceiling handle with both paws, its normally small beady eyes now wide as saucers, filled with fear of speed and concern for its own life.
"Slow down! Slow down, Kazama! We're going to fly off! Really going to fly off!"
Kazama Chiba glanced at the rearview mirror. Not only did his foot not ease off the gas pedal—he pressed it even deeper.
"This car's suspension system is good. As long as we don't hit a tank, we basically won't die."
"Is this about dying or not?!"
Kerberos turned and shouted at him.
"And why do you even have driving skills?! You're only seventeen!"
Facing this questioning, Kazama Chiba just calmly glanced at it and indicated:
"What's so strange about that? I'm looking at a lion in the passenger seat wearing a seatbelt."
"..."
Kerberos was so angry its face puffed into a ball.
It looked down at that seatbelt strapped tightly across itself, indignantly slapping its thigh.
"You're making fun of me, right?! Absolutely making fun of me!"
While protesting, it turned back to look at Hiratsuka Shizuka still sleeping like a dead pig in the back seat.
"Besides, this pathetic fleeing appearance completely doesn't match the noble bearing of a Beast of the Seal! If those old comrades saw this, my lifetime reputation would be completely ruined!"
"Got it. I'll remember."
Kazama Chiba nodded with a solemn tone.
"Next time I'll try to find you a more dignified fleeing posture."
Jokes aside, once the car body straightened out a bit, Kerberos couldn't help asking the core question.
"Seriously, Kazama. Why are we running?"
"Though that Kaguya woman is terrifying, that thunder beast is still a Clow Card, right? With the two of us working together, can't we subdue one card? Just beat it back to its original form, right?"
"Working together?"
Kazama Chiba sounded like he'd heard the year's best joke.
"Don't include me when you're bragging."
"Right now I only have support cards. Though Wind can attack and defend, that's for dealing with small fries. Thunder is pure high-attack berserker. Look at my small frame—do I look like I can withstand tens of millions of volts? Going head-on would be suicide."
"Uh..."
Kerberos instantly lost its voice, but still didn't want to admit its incompetence.
It looked down at its own harmless fluffy paws, then thought about that terrifying lightning pillar in the private room earlier.
If it were at full power, this little lightning would be nothing. But current it was just a flying accessory.
"But..."
Kerberos was still somewhat unwilling.
"Thunder is clearly a Sun-attribute card under my jurisdiction. Logically it should listen to me. Why can Kaguya woman override authority to control it? Even give it kill orders to chase us?"
It scratched the fur on its head.
"Is it because I haven't recovered my true form? So it can't recognize my authority?"
"Or is that woman's magic level really high enough to ignore permissions?"
Most likely because you're a knockoff.
Kazama Chiba silently added mentally without saying it aloud.
"Stop thinking about useless things."
Just then, he glanced at the rearview mirror.
At the end of the red light trail left by the taillights, two small points of light were rapidly approaching.
Kazama Chiba eased slightly off the gas and pressed the window button.
"Whoosh—"
Night wind rushed in, blowing his hair into complete chaos.
Immediately after, "Illusion" and "Mirror," like two lost butterflies, drifted in along the airflow and landed precisely in his palm.
"Oh! They're back!"
Seeing the cards return, Kerberos's eyes lit up, its mood instantly improving considerably.
"Since they came back, that thunder beast must have been shaken off! That woman just discovered our golden cicada shell escape! Even if she wants to chase now, it's too late!"
Kazama Chiba didn't say anything too optimistic too early. He just kept his gaze locked on that small section of the rearview mirror.
Less than five hundred meters behind this sports car, an ominous, agitated blue electric light was frantically flickering.
"Hey."
Kazama Chiba asked in a grave tone.
"As Thunder card's former direct supervisor, give me the rundown—does that card have the speed to catch a sports car?"
"Huh?"
Kerberos paused, then waved its paw with complete confidence.
"How is that possible?"
"Though Thunder represents lightning's power, it's still a materialized magical beast, not The Flash from a DC set! Its speed is just a bit faster than ordinary beasts. Absolutely impossible to run this fast..."
"Oh."
Kazama Chiba blandly interrupted it.
"Then I guess what's chasing behind us now must be their son."
"Huh?"
Kerberos whipped around and couldn't help cursing.
"Holy shit?!"
Because right behind them, that giant wolf wrapped in blue plasma was sprinting wildly on the road.
Like a blue meteor, ignoring all physical resistance, closing the distance at a visibly terrifying speed.
Three hundred meters.
Two hundred meters.
They could even clearly see the high-voltage electric ball gathering in its mouth.
"How is this possible!"
Kerberos released a shriek completely out of place in this world's art style.
"This isn't scientific! I controlled Thunder card for so long and never knew it had this setting! What did that crazy woman Kaguya feed it? How can this thing run faster than a sports car?"
Before the human and beast could figure out this modification principle, in the rearview mirror, the thunder beast suddenly opened its bloody maw.
A dazzling ball of lightning instantly formed. The surrounding air was distorted by high temperature.
"Hold on!"
Kazama Chiba roared. The instant that lightning beam erupted, he yanked the steering wheel hard right while pulling the handbrake.
"SCREEECH—!!!"
Tires violently scraped against the ground, raising blue smoke.
The red car body traced a perfect drift arc on the road—even two wheels lifted off the ground.
"BOOM!"
That lethal lightning grazed past the car's rear, blasting into the roadside guardrail and exploding in flames.
The asphalt road instantly shattered, debris flying, leaving a scorched crater.
If they'd been half a second slower, this car and everyone inside would have become scrap metal.
"Holy crap! It's serious!"
Kerberos dove directly under the seat, leaving only its butt outside trembling.
"Can't stay here! Running straight will definitely kill us! Need cover! Find cover!"
"Don't need you to tell me."
Kazama Chiba regained control of the car.
That drift had sent him shooting off the main road onto a side road leading to the park.
Not far ahead was the side entrance to Kamimizu City Central Park.
There were trees, artificial hills, and the area's largest man-made lake.
"Hold tight."
Kazama Chiba floored the accelerator.
The Aston Martin smashed through the park entrance barrier and plunged headfirst into that pitch-black forest.