Chapter 53

“Don’t look at me with those eyes, aaaaaah!!!!!”

Ah, so I was human now, not a monster.

Curs, who seemed quite displeased with being called human, began to unleash monsters while letting out a monstrous scream.

‘Oh…’

Seeing a scene straight out of an anime in real life was quite a new experience.

The sight of monsters bursting out of a body wasn’t exactly pleasant.

Couldn’t they at least make the monster visuals a bit cleaner?

Squeak— Squeak—

Grrrrrrrr—

‘What is this, a monster zoo? They’re all gathered by type.’

From the monsters I saw in the underground laboratory to the miscellaneous monsters I occasionally saw in the hospital room.

The sight of all kinds of monsters gathered together made me involuntarily marvel.

If an ordinary human saw this, they’d probably faint on the spot.

‘Ah, right. Since I saw the original technique, maybe I should return the favor.’

It was my first time using it against such a large number, but I figured it might work somehow.

After all, with the Despair Circuit activated, I felt like I was worth 100 Curs.

‘Now, so…’

As I focused my mind on the shadow beneath my feet, the darkness that had taken my form began to change.

At first, it was something shapeless. Then, it transformed into the head of a wolf.

To be precise, it was more like the head of a wolf-like monster.

It didn’t have any self-awareness, but the sight of dozens of eyes rolling around was quite grotesque.

Kieeeek—!!!!!

Kyaaaah!?!!

“This is interesting.”

From the outside, it looked like a monster devouring another monster.

The sight of the monsters crumbling while dripping black despair was quite pitiful, but once they were on that side, there was no turning back.

You should have thought carefully before choosing sides.

‘By the way, eating monsters doesn’t fill me up.’

I could eat them, and they had taste, but I couldn’t feel any satiety.

Is it because I’m eating my own kind?

No, humans can feel full even after eating other humans.

…I guess it’s just the unique physiology of monsters.

“Garnet.”

“…”

“Aren’t you going to take revenge?”

I pointed at Curs, who seemed to have lost all will to fight, and spoke to Garnet.

She had a chance to face the one she could never touch before, yet she wasn’t moving.

Surely, her grudge wasn’t so trivial that she didn’t need to take revenge herself?

“You… sigh, never mind.”

“Should I handle it if you won’t?”

“…Do as you please.”

Garnet’s face looked like she had aged ten years.

Indeed, getting involved with someone like Curs would probably leave you mentally drained.

In that sense, I should handle it so she doesn’t have to get involved anymore—

“Ah.”

Kwaaaang—!!!!!!!!!!!!

—I was about to, but the red figure falling from above my head made it impossible.

Luckily, I dodged it, but the situation itself was far from pleasant…

At this point, stopping the Despair Circuit wasn’t an option.

If I stopped the Despair Circuit, I’d definitely get torn to pieces.

“Apocalypse… I knew you were here…!!”

“…”

A red hue similar to Garnet’s but different in tone.

And a level of hope energy that made me feel sorry for even comparing it to Garnet’s.

So, you’re one of the original protagonists. That level of hope energy is enough to make me nauseous just by looking at it.

“You might not know, but I came a long way to kill you…!”

“…”

Should I respond?

I was torn between staying silent like in the original or responding to Ruby.

It might be better to talk to shock her, but— who knows what she might do if I speak?

I sighed inwardly and took a subtle step back.

‘…What should I do?’

If anything, keeping the Despair Circuit running for too long was a mistake.

This place wasn’t far from the city, and I knew both Emerald and Ruby were in the city, yet I kept the Despair Circuit running like this…

It was practically like shouting, “Apocalypse is here, come and get me, magical girls!”

‘Should I run?’

“Don’t even think about running, Apocalypse! Or rather, you probably don’t even plan to run, do you? You need to devour the despair of magical girls!”

“…”

What did I even do wrong…

Ruby’s words stopped me in my tracks.

I couldn’t attack first.

If I attacked, I’d probably be treated just like the original Apocalypse, yeah.

“Wait, hold on! She’s on our side!”

“Huh?”

But even I had a savior.

Garnet stepping in front of Ruby looked so reliable that if the situation were different, I might have hugged her.

I guess I’ll forgive her for putting a hole in my stomach.

“What are you talking about? You’re a magical girl, can’t you feel the despair she’s carrying?”

“Did it ever occur to you that I might be saying this despite feeling it?”

The two similar colors began to growl and argue.

Uh, what should I do now?

I can’t choose one to attack, and standing still feels awkward too.

“Akari, are you okay?”

“…Yeah, sort of.”

“She… spoke…?”

Garnet spoke with a strange intensity, and when I answered in a small voice, Ruby’s eyes widened.

It was like seeing a T-Rex suddenly start talking in modern times.

Honestly, if I were Ruby, I’d probably react the same way.

“That thing above your head, can’t you do something about it? It’s causing misunderstandings.”

“…I can’t turn it off.”

Garnet’s scolding made my lips pout reflexively.

She doesn’t even understand the situation, yet she’s stepping in.

But since Garnet’s actions were all helpful, I couldn’t really complain.

‘By the way, when is this thing going to turn off?’

I glanced at the halo floating above my head and tried to gauge the situation.

Look, her face doesn’t look like she understands.

I subtly moved behind Garnet to hide, and Ruby gave me a look of disbelief.

“By the way, Akari, was it?”

“It’s not a fitting name, but she might not have become like this by choice.”

“…”

The conversation between someone who knew Apocalypse and someone who didn’t was starting to go off track.

Yeah, Ruby. Even the Doctor said it didn’t suit me.

In that sense, it wasn’t a name I chose, but I couldn’t explain it by saying, “I was going to say Apocalypse but twisted it to A—kari—.”

“Ah, right. Where’s the Doctor? Where is he?!”

“Ah.”

“…Is the Doctor here too?”

Ruby, sorry, but the Doctor Garnet is talking about isn’t the one you’re thinking of.

Anyway, the important thing now isn’t clearing up such trivial misunderstandings.

The fact that Curs disappeared while we— or rather, Ruby— were busy fighting is what’s important.

No, how many magical girls are here, and you let Curs escape?

“It seems the Doctor has escaped.”

“Sigh, we came to catch that guy, and now we’ve wasted time and let him get away… Hey, whose fault do you think this is?”

“…Why are you looking at me?”

Garnet glared at Ruby, and Ruby glared back.

Oh, so now it’s round two with the magical girls fighting?

It would’ve been great if I had popcorn, but all that’s left in this lab are monster remains and faint despair.

Well, it’s a bit funny to be attached to a situation that’s about to end.

“Akari!!”

“Emerald.”

If Ruby was here, it meant Emerald was coming too.

Despite the halo floating above my head, Emerald approached me without hesitation.

“Are you okay?! Are you hurt anywhere?!”

“Yeah, sort of… If anyone’s hurt, it’s probably them?”

“You…”

When Emerald looked at Garnet, Garnet subtly averted her gaze.

Why is she acting like she’s guilty? Did something happen?

I tilted my head, and the halo above me tilted slightly in sync.

Oh, so it moves with my head.

I moved my head around, fascinated by the halo moving in sync.

“Wait, what’s going on here? Emerald, did you know Apocalypse was here? Or were you two acquainted from the start?”

“I’ll, I’ll explain everything.”

“This isn’t something that can be resolved with an explanation!!”

If only the halo above my head would disappear.

This makes it look like Emerald is being brainwashed by Apocalypse, and Ruby is trying to stop her.

Originally, it should have been Emerald protecting a normal human who looks like Apocalypse, and Ruby getting angry at Emerald for it…

“Can’t you see that thing above her head?! Even if she can talk, Apocalypse is Apocalypse!”

“She’s not Apocalypse!!”

“…What?”

“Akari is not Apocalypse.”

At least one thing was comforting: my efforts weren’t in vain.

Even with the Despair Circuit running in real-time, seeing Emerald stand up for me was a new experience.

Yes! You’re doing great, Emerald! Keep pushing like that!

Here was a monster cheering for a magical girl.