Chapter 39: The Dash Card
"Uh..."
Kerberos chewed on the candy and carefully considered that scenario, finally having to admit with a nod.
"You're right... the latter would be more convincing."
"Exactly."
"In a world where superpowers don't exist, the truth often sounds more ridiculous than lies. That's the best security measure."
Kazama pulled open the car door, preparing to wake up the teacher who was sleeping like a pig.
Just then, The Thunder card he'd stuffed in his pocket suddenly trembled without warning.
"Hm?"
Before he could react, a blinding white light erupted from the card's surface.
"MROW—!!!"
A sharp cry—like some kind of small feline—pierced the silence.
Within that sphere of light, a tiny shadow shot out from Kazama's palm like a blue bullet.
After landing, it didn't pause for even a moment. Without giving anyone time to react, its limbs kicked off the ground violently. The entire "cat" transformed into a blue afterimage almost impossible to track with the naked eye and darted into the nearby bushes with a whoosh.
"That's The Dash?!"
Kerberos, being the genuine encyclopedia, recognized this deserter immediately.
"I knew it! That big dumb Thunder beast couldn't possibly run that fast on its own! So this card was possessing it for dual-core acceleration!"
"The Dash?"
Kazama immediately understood.
No wonder that thunder beast had been able to run at such speeds.
No wonder it was clearly a mage-type but insisted on playing melee charger.
So this was the culprit causing trouble.
"Is that crazy woman Kaguya deliberately messing with me?"
Kazama felt his temples throbbing.
No wonder fighting that thunder beast card felt as difficult as scoring a world-class goal.
Did that woman have some kind of problem?
Constantly setting up these two-versus-one scenarios for him—was she treating him like some kind of punching bag?
"Chase it, Kazama! That's a speed-specialized card! If you let it get away, you'll never catch it!"
Kerberos frantically slapped Kazama's head.
"Tch."
Kazama didn't waste words. He raised his hand and threw out The Thunder card.
Since it runs fast, just use an area attack to blast it out.
Though he hadn't fully mastered it yet, he could at least make it spit out the magic it had just absorbed.
"CRACKLE—!"
Blue electrical arcs exploded in the grass, precisely striking the tiny figure sprinting through the underbrush.
"Mrow!"
The "cat" let out a pained cry. Black smoke rose from its body and its movements visibly stumbled.
But that was all.
Like it had god-mode enabled, it endured the lightning strike and scrambled—rolling and crawling—deeper into the forest. In the blink of an eye, it vanished without a trace.
"It actually escaped?!"
Kerberos stared at that direction in disbelief.
Kazama lowered his hand and looked at the swaying bushes without any intention of pursuing.
"It really is fast."
"Hey! Why aren't you chasing it?!" Kerberos stomped its feet in frustration (despite floating in midair).
"It's injured! Now's the perfect chance to seal it!"
"Chase my ass."
Kazama shot it an annoyed glare and dismissed the Sealing Staff. The red-and-black rod transformed back into keychain size and he stuffed it in his pocket.
"I'm not made of iron. I'm exhausted, and my magic's depleted. If I keep chasing, who knows who'll end up sealing whom."
As far as Kazama was concerned, tonight he'd not only raced through the city, but danced on the edge of death. Now he still had to play driver for this troublesome teacher.
As for that escaped card?
It had no attack power besides running fast anyway. Letting it run wild for a few days wouldn't hurt.
...
On a small path outside the park perimeter, Yuigahama Yui hummed an unfamiliar tune while hugging Sabre—whom she'd retrieved from behind a trash can—walking and grinning like an idiot.
Tonight's experience had been like a dreamlike adventure for her. Though the process was a bit horrifying, the ending was perfect—a hero rescuing a damsel in distress.
"Hey, Sabre, don't you think Kazama-kun is really cool? He just went 'whoosh' and blocked it, then that huge monster went 'boom' and disappeared! Even better than a movie!"
She buried her face in the dog's fur, feeling her cheeks burning hot.
Recalling that warm embrace and that voice—cold yet full of security—the girl's heart raced uncontrollably.
"So he's usually so low-key to protect us... What kind of hidden guardian trope is this? That's totally against the rules! What do I do? I won't be able to look at him normally anymore..."
Once a girl's imagination engine starts running, there's no stopping it.
At this moment in her mind, Kazama Chiba had automatically upgraded from "gloomy background character" to "dark knight bearing fate and loneliness alone in this cold world."
"Mrow?"
Just then, an extremely weak cry came from the roadside bushes.
Yui stopped and curiously leaned over.
In the shadows beyond the streetlight's reach, a strange little creature lay there.
It had cat-like ears, but its body was fluffy like a dumpling. It was currently curled into a trembling ball.
Even more heart-wrenching, its originally beautiful blue-and-white fur bore several obvious charred marks, like it had been burned.
"Ah! Poor thing..."
Kindhearted Yui's maternal instincts immediately overflowed.
Connecting it to the terrifying lightning storm in the park earlier, she instantly constructed a tragedy in her mind.
This innocent little stray cat must have been caught in that huge monster's attack or the lightning, barely escaped but was severely injured.
"It must have been caught in that monster's attack just now..."
Seeing the little thing's weakened state, the girl's instinct—called overflowing compassion—activated instantly.
"It looks a bit strange... but it's so cute."
Yui carefully extended her hand and picked up the unconscious little creature.
The little thing seemed to sense the warmth and instinctively burrowed into her embrace, releasing a weak purring sound.
"Does it hurt? It's okay, it doesn't hurt..."
She carefully placed the little cat into her jacket pocket and even used her handkerchief to make it a nest.
"Don't worry, big sister will take you home and definitely heal you."
Yui stood up and patted her pocket, her face showing that kind of gentle smile that could heal anything.