The flesh on her cheek was torn, exposing her teeth.
Her left earlobe was ripped, scattering bits of flesh.
Pieces of light green hair fluttered in the air.
A sharp pain pricked her nerves.
Si-ul thought it was fortunate that it ended with just this much.
If she hadn't bent space to deflect it, her head would've been torn off completely.
She reversed her grip on the sword and swung upward. Bending space, she accelerated the strike midway, sending a crescent moon-shaped slash.
But it didn't connect. The high-rank monster leaped away immediately, dodging the attack with an agility that did not match its enormous size, and raised its foreleg before bringing it down with immense force.
BANG──!!!
The ground shattered.
Bombarded by flying debris, Si-ul withdrew her swung sword and prepared for the next move.
She couldn't afford to fall behind, even for a moment. If she didn't want to end up flattened like gum on asphalt in the blink of an eye, she had to keep up.
'It's strong…'
Si-ul forced herself to maintain focus, fighting through the pain. Though her strength was divided due to protecting the Class A's students, she wasn't sure she could win even if she were to be at full power.
The monster before her was strong—among the strongest she had ever faced.
One of the qualifications for becoming a teacher at the academy is subjugating a high-rank monster.
It's a condition to prove one's prowess as a powerful Supernatural. As Class A's assistant homeroom teacher, Si-ul had a record of defeating a high-rank monster, as expected of an academy teacher.
However, just as there's a difference in strength among Supernaturals, there's also a variation in power among high-rank monsters.
Creatures rated above mid-rank monsters are all lumped together as high-rank, but among them the differences in power are significant.
'This one is far stronger than the high-rank monster I hunted back then. And it's not like I defeated that one by myself…'
Si-ul grimaced. How many people would dare to take on a high-rank monster one-on-one?
When a high-rank monster appears, unless you're an awakened one, you face it with teamwork, no questions asked. Though Si-ul had contributed the most in that past fight, she certainly hadn't defeated it alone.
'Ahhh! Senior! Please get here soon! I promise I'll behave better! Are you watching right now? You're not just standing by and not helping, right? You're not watching me struggle just because you think I should take down a high-rank monster on my own, right?! Not every teacher is like you, you know?!'
The monster's massive claws pierced through the bent space.
Si-ul swallowed hard as she faced the foreleg that stopped right in front of her nose.
Her teeth ached. With part of her cheek torn, her teeth were exposed to the air, and every gust of wind made her shiver.
If she hadn't experienced a similar injury before, she might have panicked slightly.
The high-rank monster's assault was relentless.
It relentlessly pursued her with incredible agility like a panther eyeing its prey.
Even though she repeatedly bent space to block its path, it sharply turned at each curve, never pausing for a moment.
"Phew…"
Her heart raced from the tension.
Anxiety subtly tightened around her legs.
She exhaled a hot breath.
Si-ul quickly scanned her surroundings.
This wasn't the time to wallow in despair.
She didn't know what situation her senior was currently facing. Her senior might still be fighting the masked girl. Or perhaps had even lost.
Although she couldn't imagine that person being defeated, she had to consider every possibility. Her life wasn't the only one on the line; the lives of the students were at stake as well.
'Other than my senior, the best hope is probably the second division that received the support request. They'll move swiftly, so they'll be here soon, but…'
Can she hold out until then?
If she could at least fight at full power, it'd be different, but it was uncertain how long she could last in her current state, as she bent space on a large scale to protect Class A's students.
■■■■■■■■■─────!!!!
The high-rank monster let out a savage roar.
It pawed at the ground with its foreleg, seemingly irritated by Si-ul's continued resistance.
Si-ul forced a bitter smile. She should have made her morning cocoa much stronger.
If she'd known it might be the last cocoa of her life, she definitely would have.
Don't think about winning. You can't win now. In that case, you need to buy time. Hold out as long as possible. Your face might be a bit torn, but your hands and feet are still fine.
The greatest threat was its agility.
So, if nothing else worked, she somehow needed to sever one of its legs to restrict its movements.
It was a gamble, but she could hold out much longer if she succeeded.
Resolving herself, Si-ul stepped forward with her right foot, spreading her legs wide and lowering her sword.
Perhaps sensing something unusual, the high-rank monster growled, drooling.
Spatial Distortion.
This ability, which could literally distort space, had a wide range of uses depending on how it was applied.
Si-ul launched herself forward as if pushing against the ground. It wasn't a straight line; she zigzagged, changing direction sharply to throw off the monster's line of sight.
And her speed didn't decrease.
In fact, she only grew faster.
Ignoring inertia, defying physics, she accelerated with every turn, hurtling toward the target like a bolt of lightning.
"Cut it down in one strike!"
She swung her sword diagonally upward.
The erratic movements dulled the high-rank monster's reflexes, but as Si-ul came close, it opened its torn maw and let out a fierce roar.
"Kuwaaaaaah—!!!"
At that moment, a blast erupted.
It wasn't from Si-ul's strike, nor was it the monster's attack.
It was as if a sun forged into a sword had fallen from the sky, slashing through with intense heat and a blazing red line.
A flash of light. For a moment, everything was bathed in crimson. The high-rank monster hesitated, as if bewildered. Si-ul, too, was affected; her eardrums seemed ruptured from the deafening noise, reducing external sounds to a muffled hum.
But she didn't stop her sword.
With this stroke of fortune, it would be foolish to waste the opportunity.
Slash.
Though the intense light kept her from opening her eyes, she remembered her target's position and swung her sword without issue.
She felt resistance in her grip. A heavy strike. While she hadn't fully severed it due to its hard scales, she managed to partially slice through one of its front legs.
"■■■■■■■■■■■■■—!!!!"
A howl of rage erupted from the high-rank monster.
Si-ul quickly threw herself to the side, just as a powerful gust of wind swept through the spot she'd been.
Bang! Bang-bang—!!!
The sound of destruction sent chills down her spine. After rolling a few times, Si-ul pushed herself off the ground.
Her vision, taken by the bright light, returned quickly.
With a glimmer of hope on her face, Si-ul glanced toward the direction the "sun" had come from.
Finally, backup had arrived! They came faster than expected! So she hadn't needed to risk her life on that gamble, after all?
But her hopeful expression soon turned to confusion.
"…A student?"
In the distance stood a boy in an Academy uniform, holding his sword mid-swing.
She could faintly see his face. It was definitely a student she recognized. As an outstanding student in A-Class, there was no way Si-ul, the class assistant, wouldn't know him.
"Eugene? What is he doing here…?"
No, more than that…
Was that attack… from Eugene?
She knew Eugene's ability was flame manipulation, so theoretically, it was possible, but the scale of that attack was entirely different from his usual output.
Frowning at the acrid smoke, she glanced around. No one else. Just as she thought, there was no backup.
The only thing in her view was the seared corpse of the monsters, still sizzling.
Most of the monsters were wiped out with that single attack.
Such firepower—it wasn't impossible to find, but it was certainly beyond the level of a first-year student…
If he could do that, it would have been nice if he'd done it sooner.
Her cheek and ear were torn, after all.
Grumbling, Si-ul readied her sword once more.
Unexpected as the support was, the fight wasn't over yet.
◈
"With the energy I have left, I can manage two… no, three more strikes. But…"
He had considered the theory long ago.
But he had never tried it before, as his Supernatural ability's power and control had been far too lacking to make it a reality.
Eugene, who had completed a technique he'd only ever conceptualized, felt a sharp, stinging pain that made him frown.
His hand was burned.
Fortunately, it wasn't a severe burn, just a first-degree burn where the surface layer of skin was scorched.
It had been a long time since Eugene had experienced the pain of "heat".
Supernaturals have a resistance to their own abilities.
It was only natural. A fire-wielding Supernatural like Eugene would burn himself every time he used his own flames if he didn't have such resistance.
The same was true for other Supernaturals.
Everyone had resistance to their own abilities, so they wouldn't be harmed by them unless they inflicted intentional self-injury.
"I lost control of compression and rotation at the last moment, which caused me to lose my grip."
Normally, failing to control his power wouldn't have resulted in burns, but the energy gathered in his sword at that moment had been too intense, overwhelming his resistance.
Eugene took a deep breath. Still, it was a decent result for something he'd used on the spot.
With a bit of practice, he'd be able to master it fully.
But this was a real battle, not a sparring match. There was no time to practice leisurely his control.
"Is your hand injured?"
Eugene was about to reheat his sword when Lucia's question made him pause, and after a moment's hesitation, he nodded.
"Yeah, but it's nothing serious."
"Nothing serious? Look, you have blisters."
"It's fine. It's not a major injury… but could you please step back? You might get caught in the fight if you stay too close."
But instead of retreating, Lucia moved closer to Eugene.
He extinguished the crimson flames he raised and turned to look at her. Lucia was staring intently at Eugene's burned hand.
"If you leave it like that, it'll get worse. No… if you use that technique again, it won't just get worse…"
"Don't worry. Supernaturals heal faster than normal people. It's not as absurdly fast as your super regeneration, but…"
Even if he ended up with severe burns, as long as his nerves weren't too damaged, he could still use his hand.
As long as he could hold his sword, he didn't care how disfigured his hand became or how much pain he had to endure.
"Let me see it."
"Huh?"
Lucia grabbed Eugene's hand.
Startled, Eugene tried to pull his hand away, but Lucia held it firmly.
"W-Wait… what are you doing?! Let go. My hand is still hot! The heat hasn't fully dissipated yet, so if you're not careful, you'll get burned!"
The heat in his hand was enough to burn him, despite his own resistance.
Even though he had extinguished the flames, the remaining heat didn't just disappear instantly.
In fact, Lucia's hand, which was holding his, began to redden.
"You're supposed to apply ointment or rinse a burn with water, but since we don't have any here… sorry, but bear with me for a moment."
Despite the heat being akin to touching hot iron, Lucia's expression remained calm.
She looked down at his hand and slowly brought her face closer.
She parted her pink lips and gently bit down on Eugene's fingers.
"…?!"
It didn't hurt—she wasn't using her teeth.
Eugene froze, stiffened by the sensation on his fingers.
Something soft ran along his fingers.
With her eyes closed, Lucia sucked on his fingers, carefully moving her tongue from his thumb to each of his fingers, tenderly licking them one by one.
She didn't stop there. She applied her saliva to the burned area on his hand. Like a cat lapping up water from a dish, she thoroughly coated his hand with her saliva.
"L-Lucia…?!"
"Sorry. It's uncomfortable, right? But it'll be better than leaving it untreated."
"Ah, no, it's just that…"
A white string connected Lucia's lips to the back of Eugene's hand.
She spread his palm open and meticulously licked all the way up to the joints of his fingers.
Lucia didn't seem to intend it, but the way she was acting somehow appeared provocative. At least, it did to a 17-year-old boy.
"Okay, this hand is done. Will you give me the other one?"
"Huh? Oh, mm…"
Almost hypnotized, Eugene extended his hand.
Lucia licked his other hand in the same way.
She sucked on his fingers like a lollipop, pursing her lips, and covered them with her tongue, smearing them with saliva.
What is this?
Why is the girl from my class sucking on my fingers?
Eugene was so flustered that his mind went blank.
Was it because this behavior was so out of place for the situation? The ticklish feeling made it hard for him to focus.
"Actually, this might not be very effective. But it should ease the symptoms a little. How do you feel? Is it a bit better?"
"…Yeah, it doesn't hurt anymore."
It wasn't a lie. It truly didn't hurt.
It felt as though something was blocking the pain from reaching his brain.
Yeah, this strange and complex feeling was just swallowing up the pain.
"Be careful. Burns are said to be the most horrible pain a person can feel. You handle fire, so you're more prone to getting burned. You need to be more careful than others. Understand?"
Lucia smiled playfully and raised her hand.
She curled her palm like she was going to bite it, making a threatening gesture.
"If you're careless and get burned again, I'll bite you like this. Rawr~"
Hehe, she chuckled, embarrassed by her own words.
Lucia blushed and awkwardly smiled.
Eugene nodded, creaking like a rusty hinge.
His face was much redder than Lucia's, like a ripe apple.