"Uhmm…"
Anna suddenly raised her hand.
"Can we also take part in the battle? I and Rica. We may appear weak, but we are also capable of fighting."
"Huh? Are you serious? You are not the type to fight on the front lines, right?"
Angelina recalls Anna's previous aversion to front-line combat, but now...
"She is like a completely different person. Did she get a swap, or something?"
She shook her head.
"No, that's ridiculous.'
She chose not to think about it.
For a brief moment, Anna wonders why she shakes her head before responding.
"… Yes, but I also want to help. I do not want to become a burden."
"Me too."
Rica also added.
"You are not going to say you are going to fight, right?"
Angelina asked Beatrice.
"No, no, no. If I enter the battle, I will be nothing more than a burden. I am better at healing, so I should keep helping the medic."
Beatrice waved her hand rapidly.
"I see…"
She can protect one or two of them, whereas Anna is rarely passed up for combat because she can heal, buff, and debuff.
In other words, Anna has more cards to survive in this disaster in exchange for low damage, and she can be a valuable addition to the party.
However, if Beatrice is added, she is unsure if she can protect all three of them.
Fortunately, she is not as reckless as the other two youngsters.
Unbeknownst to her, the person who rejects her is not just Beatrice, as her body moves on its own to reject the idea.
It may be confusing for others to understand, but this is visible proof from Beatrice's perspective that the system status mechanism that prevents her from committing suicide is activated.
"Well, I can accept the two of you, but Rica, I also want you to follow my instructions."
"No problem."
Meanwhile, Alex felt compelled to jump for joy at the prospect of demonstrating his newfound power, but he kept his composure.
'I finally feel like a proper transmigrator protagonist.'
After their conversation is over, Alex goes outside to urinate.
Upon entering the guild building, he proceeds to the comfort room and "comforts" himself.
He exits the room after releasing all of his unwanted liquids.
He was about to leave the guild building when he noticed another guy enter.
He remembers asking this person where Angelina is earlier.
He was about to thank him again when he realized that everything had stopped.
His body stops, but his mind continues to see the man walking toward his position.
He had an unsettling feeling.
This is something he has never experienced before since he arrived in this world, but it is far more terrifying than dying multiple times in the trial chamber.
He wanted to speak, but his mouth would not open.
'What is going on?'
The man arrived in front of him.
Suddenly, the guy's appearance changes from that of a regular guard to that of a silver-haired girl wearing a lab coat.
"I have finally found you."
The girl's hand reaches for him—no, into his heart.
Everything appears to be moving at a glacial pace from his point of view, which has caused him to experience fear that he has never felt before in his life.
So much so that he wanted to take another piss.
He wished he could shout.
He wanted to scream, but couldn't.
'No, no, no, no, no…'
His mind could not process what was going on because fear enveloped his entire body.
He could not think straight anymore and eventually lost consciousness.
…
"Eh?"
He saw himself in the same position as before, as if nothing had happened.
"Is that a hallucination?"
Experiencing fatigue at this moment, he returned to the comfort room and cleansed his face.
As he looks in the mirror, he considers what transpired earlier.
He has no idea what that is, but at least it is not real.
"It is not real, right?"
…
"You are finally back. Here!"
"Woah!"
Angelina tosses leather armor at him.
"What is this for?"
"Do you really want to fight with no defense?"
"No. Thanks."
Looking around, he noticed that everyone was wearing the same design leather armor, with the exception of Beatrice, who was not going to fight, and Angelina, who was wearing a light metallic armor.
Despite feeling down about what happened earlier, his excitement returned as if nothing had happened to him.
This indicates that he was motivated to demonstrate his abilities even though there were not many people present.
To estimate, only more than a hundred people have left to slow the next monster wave.
They exit the tent and go outside the northern gate.
Beatrice prays for their safety as she watches them leave.
…
Northern Gate.
"Stay here. I will need to speak with others."
The three of them exchanged nods rather than words.
They are currently at the carriage station for the northern gate.
They sit on the seat, watching Angelina interact with other guards and adventurers.
Despite not understanding what they are saying, they can tell that everyone is very reliant on her, especially now that anyone could die in this monster wave.
While watching Angelina manage the front lines, Rica speaks up unexpectedly.
"Mast— Alex…"
"What is it?"
"Will you continue to attend Academy City after we have survived?"
Alex wanted to shout how inappropriate it is to talk like this because it is a huge red flag, but seeing her sorrowful expression, he couldn't, so he answered her.
"Yeah, that is what my parents wanted, so I might as well keep doing it for my own good."
"I see. However, I have a feeling that this is not the full story.
"Ah…"
He could not deny her.
After all, he wanted to see what this place really looked like.
When he tries to recall what the Academy City looks like, he experiences many unknown horrible feelings for some reason, which causes his thought to cut off and not continue.
It is as if it is his greatest fear.
No, Alex Hambell's greatest fear.
From what he recalls, he is a top fighter among his peers, so why is he afraid to attend Academy City?
This is exactly what he wanted to know.
He will look for the answer.
Anna, who is hearing the conversation, looks up at the sky.
She understands that Alex will continue his education after the summer, but she could not help but feel sad.
It will take some time for him to return to May City.
He can visit her or she can visit him, but she has become like Rica, and she fears she will die if she does not see him for a day.
However, she does not want to hurt him, so she will not commit suicide.
They all sigh at the same time.
"…"
"…"
"…"
They were surprised when they looked at each other.
There is a pause before they laugh together.
Many things happened just a few minutes before the monster wave hit, but the slow retreat begins now.