Taoreta's POV

  Ssh!

  I swung my sword at the monster. But, of course, it phased through, and I backed up to gain some space.

  When I did, David leaped in my pce and tried to thrust his sword at the monster. And—to no one’s surprise—the sword went through its body. David swung his bde vertically, but the monster dodged it.

  We had been doing this for what seemed like hours.

  My body felt stiff. My head was hurting. The cold was getting on my nerves. I couldn't think straight. I couldn't even think about the person I deeply cared for.

  No—that wasn't it. It wasn't like I 'couldn't' do it. It was simply because thinking in this weather was making my movements slow down.

  Because once you're aware of something, anything at all, your body will slow down if you're not focusing on one thing.

  Your reactions will be slow as well.

  At least, that's what I thought in a cold pce like this. I assumed it would be fine if the temperature was normal.

  But still, this is getting us nowhere!, I thought.

  You know what the irony was?

  I had already figured out how to counter this monster. But due to the weather, I couldn't even say anything to Kuma and David because if I let my guard down for even a second, the monster would take advantage and try to kill me.

  And the worst part of all this?

  I was sure Kuma and David were thinking the same thing.

  But without communication or even confirmation, we could not form a simple pn to counterattack it.

  Thinking back, I could've sworn that I was down for the count as well.

  But the moment I thought that it was over for me, my body started to feel lighter.

  Logic told me that this wasn't anything normal.

  Indeed.

  This wasn't anything that could be called normal.

  And, of course, I wanted to find out HOW I managed to get back up in the first pce.

  The 'How' was getting overthrown by the 'Will'. Meaning that the 'Will' to beat this monster was far stronger than the 'How' of how we managed to survive at all.

  And anyway, we could always ask questions ter.

  Because I was pnning on staying alive for that 'ter'.

  I slowly tightened my grip on my sword and wobbled a bit due to how my legs were practically losing their strength at this point.

  Even with this new mysterious magic that healed MOST of my wounds and froze bites, we were still wasting our time attacking it.

  I felt like we had wasted a good opportunity to counterattack properly.

  At the time, David and I were probably thinking: "I don't know what's going on, but we have to attack again."

  Once again, despite my thinking logically for the most part, when it came to protecting someone I truly cared for, my logical side went off the roof and killed itself.

  The funny thing was that I didn't personally mind dying despite my previous thought process from before.

  But I did want to live another day to find out the answers to those questions.

  Leap!

  I dashed towards the monster with all the might I had.

  The wind touched my cheeks as I narrowed my eyes and readied my bde to strike the monster in the cloud of smoke once more. I slowly brought my sword up as I analyzed the monster as a whole.

  Well, there was nothing to analyze at this point due to how much I knew about it entirely.

  Indeed.

  This monster dodged every time we struck at it for the third time. That meant that if I could swing three more times, then I could FINALLY put a dent in that beast.

  Leap! Leap!

  I heard two more people jumping from behind me. I didn't have to look back and see who it was since there were only two more people that were with me. It had to be David and Kuma jumping towards the monster as well.

  Good.

  That meant that despite not communicating, they knew what my pn was.

  Okay! This might work in our favor!

  Dash!

  Swing!

  In the blink of an eye, David nded and swung his stone sword vertically. I could see wind pressure as he swung at the cloud of smoke that was protecting the monster. Not to mention, the glowing effect it now had.

  With all his might, David swung with all of his remaining strength.

  Whoosh!

  But as was to be expected, David's bde went through the monster.

  Thump!

  David y face-first on the ground. His sword spun in the air for a moment before sticking the nding and stabbing the snowy floor.

  Shing!

  It seemed like David was down for the count this time...

  I wanted to check up on him and see if he was okay, but I could not focus on that despite it hurting me a little. David and I went way back alongside Riley and Kishi. Seeing him like this made me more determined to finish this thing off!

  Slide!

  Kuma slid towards the monster while bracing her bde. With her upper body twisting a bit, almost as if she was trying to hit a ball out of a baseball court, Kuma gritted her teeth as she gripped her weapon tightly.

  It didn't take long for Kuma to reach the monster and stop her right foot hard on the ground.

  STOMP!

  With the whole room shaking, Kuma started to bring her bde forward as a trail of light showed in her eyes while she moved her body. From this swing, I could tell that all of her power was within it and it could practically kill about a thousand creatures. All in one go, too.

  Swing!

  Whoosh!

  But to no one’s surprise, it phased out of the cloud of smoke as well.

  Slide!

  Kuma was now on the other side of the monster. She stomped her bde on the ground and used it as support. "Damn it all!" Kuma screamed while grinding her teeth at the monster.

  And who could bme her? The monster was way better than we had originally thought. We should have been more prepared and had a full and complete analysis of the monster. If only we could have analyzed it the first time around, then maybe, just maybe, we could have countered it a whole lot faster. If Yosei were here, this would have been a whole lot better for Kuma, if I'm being honest. Having newbies as your partners will slow you down.

  Yosei was right.

  We were dead weight. This was much clearer.

  This showed that despite our intense training, nothing in this world could beat these monsters. Not even supernaturals...

  But still.

  I refused to back down!

  Whoosh!

  I leaped one st time. I touched the snowy field to gain some more speed.

  Okay.

  I was near the monster.

  Good.

  That meant the pn in my head could work. All I needed now was to simply do the third hit and wait for it to dodge my attack.

  Dash!

  Five seconds until I was close enough to the creature.

  I slowly gripped my weapon and narrowed my eyes at the monster.

  Four seconds until I reached the monster.

  I brought up my sword midway and used my upper body as support for the weight of the attack.

  Three seconds until reaching the target...

  I gulped and readied my brain for this one shot I got.

  Two seconds until arrival...

  I inhaled so much air, you could say that I was a fish swimming underwater, trying to live its life in the wetness of the ocean.

  One second...

  I slightly brought my sword forward and got ready to attack...

  Zero...

  ..... It was time.

  As if everything went in slow motion, once I was a few inches away from the monster, I swung my sword at it with all my might. Just like Kuma and David, I was pnning on using my strength as well. But, I was doing it for another reason...

  My bde was going near the cloud of smoke where the monster was hiding. My heart was racing so fast that even seeing my bde near its glowing eyes made me a bit excited. Not in a good way, but out of desperation. I needed to pull this off! I had to!

  Whoosh!

  And as I expected, the monster dodged my attack.

  I slowly smiled at the monster and gripped my bde even tighter.

  "... There!"

  Stomp!

  I nded on the other side of the monster. The same side where Kuma was currently resting her body from exhaustion. I slowly looked behind my back as I could see the monster dodging out of the way from my attack from before.

  So that was how it was, huh?

  I inhaled some more and exhaled so hard that it was like I was vomiting my own soul out of my body.

  With all the air forming into a cold gas that everyone could see coming from my mouth, I used the remainder of my movement for this VERY moment.

  SWINGGG!!!!

  I swiftly adjusted my weight and used all of it to lift my right hand that was holding my sword horizontally at the monster.

  The bde glowed.

  It shone a burning light that could burn demonic beings such as this beast in front of me. The glow was following its target. The monster itself seemed surprised, based on that one glowing eye widening at the fact that the bde was following it. We weren't that far away since it thought it could attack right after.

  And that was its mistake.

  It was so accustomed to our obvious patterns due to the cold of this igloo that it figured that once the heat had run out of our bodies, it could kill us in one swoop.

  That was where it made its mistake.

  You should NEVER assume that you have the victory in your grip just because you have the advantage. And now it would pay the ultimate price!

  Game over, Monster! I won this match!

  Just a little further! A little further, and victory was mine!

  No one would suffer anymore! Kishi didn't need to scream out anymore! I had tried to pay attention to him, but that voice of his was hard to ignore.

  After all, he was someone whom I held dear!

  The bde was within reach! I could see it! I could see the monster failing and being defeated by this bde! I could do this! I could do this!!!!

  "Come on... COME OONNN!!!!!" I screamed as I used the rest of my body to add more weight to my strike.

  But for some reason... the bde lowered as the monster in the cloud of smoke was getting attacked by my strike.

  H-huh?, I thought.

  What happened? What was going on? Why was my sword falling?

  "Wha...?" I whispered in a very hazy voice.

  Huh.

  That was funny. If I didn't know any better, then I would think that my body was... shutting... down....

  ... Ah. I see...

  My vision was getting blurry as I could feel a smile creeping on my face. Not because I was happy or anything. But it was the fact that despite my best effort, no matter how hard I tried, no matter how much work I put into this pn of mine to work, if I didn't pn for the speed and power, not to mention how long until my body would cease to function properly, then all of it would be for nothing.

  "...You're so stupid... Taoreta..." I chuckled as I started to see whiteness in my vision.

  Stupid. You're such an idiot. Of course, your body will fail on you in this weather, you fool. Why didn't you take into account that you might fail your attack? Why didn't you pn for this as well?

  What? Is Kishi all you think about? Maybe if you were colder than this pce then you would have won this battle in a breeze...

  But...

  That thought alone...

  "Honestly... some supernatural... I am..." I whispered as I closed my eyes and waited for my death....

  Ah...

  In the midst of the darkness, I could see Kishi standing there... waiting for me on the other side...

  Kishi...

  Kishi...

  I slowly reached out my hand in the darkness...

  "Kishi... wait for me... Kishi..." I whispered in the dark.

  The girl Taoreta... had died in the mist of the cold...

  Then... it was pitch bck...

  .

  ..

  ...

  .....

  ........

  ".... Ah. So it chose death..." I heard a familiar yet cold tone.

  Swing!

  Spreee!!!!

  I widened my eyes at the noise of wet liquid.

  There, I saw someone holding onto my body like it was nothing. That someone who was holding me was no one other than the boy whom I cared deeply about. That boy... was no one else but the concept of death himself... Kishi.

  Land!

  Kishi swiftly made me sit on the cold floor next to Kuma and David, who seemed to be next to each other at this point in time.

  Kishi slowly stood up and faced the monster in the cloud—huh?!

  The monster....!

  The face... it was showing! But how?!

  How could it be showing?! It was damaged?! How was I alive?! What was going on here?!

  Stomp! Stomp!

  I heard two more sounds from each end of my side.

  I looked to my left and saw Jir with some new clothes that seemed to be keeping her safe from the cold, I assumed. Wait, then who was on my right?

  I looked to the right and—HUH?! I saw Riley in strange clothes as well! What was she doing in this pce?!

  Wait... what was happening right now?!

  "Jir. Riley. Thank you for helping Tao and the others while casting healing spells in the process." Kishi said while not looking behind him. Kishi then raised his weapon... a knife.

  "Now then. Let me do my part... I shall become the Grim Reaper for this beast!" Kishi cimed, while I could feel some intense power coming from him. This was familiar, very familiar. Just like back then.

  Just like back at the prison.

  A fsh of memory appeared of Kishi standing there with many dead bodies of the creatures with a small, broken knife in his hand.

  But it didn't take long before returning to reality and staring at the current Kishi in front of me.

  "...Kishi?" I whispered.

  This was all I could manage...

  Since I was at a loss for words...