He who Protects the Transforming Heroines from The Shadows - Chapter 13 - The Lightguide Princesses Crossing Paths

Chasing after Youka, Miya, Kouji who had run out of the school, Eito was running down the street with lifeless eyes.

“………”

Why am I running, sweating like this? That question suddenly crossed his mind as Eito headed toward the destination with a nearly blank, emotionless feeling.

“We should be close…”

After running for about five minutes, Eito noticed there were no more people around and muttered that to himself.

Then, after exiting a narrow alley, Eito arrived at an open area.

Before him, a large river flowed. And to his right was a bridge spanning across the river. Normally, there would be cars passing along that bridge, but perhaps due to the barrier, there wasn’t a single car in sight.

“…The riverbed, huh.”

He muttered “That’s not good” unintentionally. The visibility here was too open, and there were hardly any places to hide.

“Haaaahhhhhhhhhhh!”

As Eito was thinking this, a familiar voice rang out from somewhere.

Looking over, he saw Youka, transformed, swinging her fist on the riverbank, just below the embankment where Eito stood.

“Vuuuuhhh!”

Letting out a growl like a small dog was a giant tanuki. Apparently, this time’s Dark Thrall was a tanuki-type. Speaking of tanuki-types, there’s that certain cat-type robot who often gets mistaken for a tanuki, but well—with that appearance, it’s understandable.

If Youka is here, then naturally Miya and Kouji are as well. Miya, as usual, was sticking to rear-guard attacks, and Kouji was fighting on the front line alongside Youka. Right now, they were focused on the battle and probably hadn’t noticed Eito on the embankment, but there was no telling when they might.

“…What should I do?”

Eito backed away from the embankment and returned to the alley, thinking about where he could observe them without being noticed. This time, with the riverbed being such a wide-open place, there were barely any places to hide. He considered hiding in the grass, but the area seemed well-maintained, and none of the usual overgrown weeds found at riverbanks were present. There didn’t seem to be anywhere to hide under the bridge either, so what now? Even Eito, the self-appointed “hide-and-seek champion,” was troubled by this.

But in the meantime, the battle continued. Eito figured things should be fine since Kouji was there, but upon reflection, Kouji hadn’t fully recovered from his injuries in the fight against Feliet. He probably wasn’t at full strength.

Staying here and waiting was an option, but considering the Darkian from last time, Feliet, who suddenly attacked, he figured it would be better to stay close, able to act at any time.

“…Guess I’ve got no choice.”

Having thought of one idea, Eito pulled a pendulum with a black gemstone from the pocket of his school uniform.

♦

“Looks like it’s a rabbit-type this time…”

Prompted by Soleil’s signal, Satori murmurs as she arrives at the destination and lays eyes on the creature of darkness before her.

Long, distinctive ears and a round tail. Its body covered in white fur—there’s no mistaking it for anything but a rabbit.

Albeit, one many times larger than a normal rabbit.

“Pu-pu!”

The rabbit had been gnawing at the surrounding concrete, but upon noticing Satori, it let out that sound as if to threaten her.

“I mean, the cry is kinda cute, but still…”

Muttering her impression with a note of exasperation, Satori surveys the surroundings. As far as she can tell by sight, there are no signs of people nearby.

(Good. Looks like there’s no civilian damage…)

Confirming the absence of people, Satori lets out a quiet breath of relief. After all, the barrier hasn’t been deployed yet. There was a real possibility that civilians might have been hurt or still lingering nearby.

“Honestly, the government folks are really competent.”

The moment she mutters this—

“Pu!”

As if recognizing Satori as an enemy, the rabbit-like Dark Thrall lunges at her.

However, there’s no sign of panic on Satori’s face. Calm and composed, she raises her right hand—adorned with a bracelet—toward the sky.

“—O wind of light, become my strength.”

The gem embedded in the bracelet glows with a vivid green light. Wind begins to swirl around Satori.

“Pu!?”

The rabbit-type creature, attempting to pounce, is repelled by the wind and unable to get close.

As the wind swirling around Satori gradually settles, she emerges from its center—now dressed quite differently from moments before.

She now wears a pale emerald-green hood, and in her right hand is a splendidly ornate sword. With a slight grin peeking from beneath the hood, she declares her name.

“Lightguide Princess Akatsuki—here I come.”

With her enhanced physical abilities, Akatsuki charges toward the dark beast, cutting through the air like the wind.

♦

“………”

Amid the strong wind, Eito observed the battle between Youka, Miya, Kouji, and the tanuki-shaped Dark Thrall with his golden eyes.

So far, the three of them were holding their own without any real problems. It might sound odd to say “of course,” but they clearly had the upper hand.

Eito focused solely on observing the scene unfolding about 100 meters below. He had to be ready to jump in at any moment if things went south.

Having transformed into Spriggan, Eito stood at the very apex of the bridge’s arch.

After much deliberation over where to hide and observe, he had gone with the simple—perhaps stupid—idea that “if I’m way up high, I won’t be spotted.” Whether it was a careless assumption or just that idiots like high places, that’s where he ended up.

Naturally, in his regular body, climbing the arch would be impossible, so he’d used his enhanced physical abilities as Spriggan to scale it.

At the top of the arch, far removed from the ground, his black cloak fluttered in the wind. With his hands in the cloak’s pockets, Eito narrowed his eyes beneath the brim of his long-visored hat.

“…Wearing this stuff on a day like today is way too hot.”

Sweat streamed from his forehead as the urge to rip off the cloak, the crimson necktie, and the long-brimmed hat overwhelmed him.

But his supernatural powers as Spriggan were tied to this very outfit. If he took off the hat, he’d lose its perception-blocking effect. So removing his gear wasn’t an option.

“…I seriously need to come up with some countermeasures.”

Thinking ahead to the full arrival of summer, Eito pondered miserably. Should he just plaster his whole body with cooling gel pads? Would Soleil pay for them? Wait, does that bum even have a single yen to her name? His thoughts wandered to such irrelevant things—until a sudden bright light from below caught his attention.

“…Looks like it’s over.”

Even while distracted by nonsense, Eito had been watching carefully. He confirmed that Youka and Miya had released a purifying light, cleansing the Dark Thrall.

Using his enhanced vision, he scanned the aftermath. Kouji was tending to the human who had been turned into the Dark Thrall. Judging by Kouji’s movements, there didn’t seem to be any lingering injury—at least nothing like a cracked bone. He seemed his usual self.

Everything seemed to have wrapped up without issue this time. Eito thought about getting down and canceling his transformation—until his golden eyes caught something odd.

“…What the hell is that?”

It was a massive rabbit fleeing at full speed, being pursued by a mysterious figure in a green hood.

♦

Meanwhile, the battle between Akatsuki and the rabbit-type Dark Thrall was also nearing its end.

“Kyuu… kyuuu…”

The initial vigor had long vanished. Now, the rabbit-type Dark Thrall, battered and broken, stared at Akatsuki with frightened eyes. Perhaps it was just her imagination, but those eyes even looked moist.

“…Ugh, this is hard to deal with.”

Seeing it like that, Satori muttered under her breath.

To be honest, this Dark Thrall wasn’t strong at all, but throughout the fight, it had looked at Satori with those eyes as if pleading for mercy.

“But… sorry, this is the end.”

Satori focused her purification power into her sword. A wind imbued with purification swirled around the blade.

“Gale—”

Just as she was about to speak her finishing line and deliver the final blow, the Dark Thrall made an unexpected move.

“Kyuu!”

The giant rabbit-type Dark Thrall turned its back on Satori and fled at incredible speed.

“Eh—wha!?”

Completely unprepared for such a reaction, Satori let out a ridiculous yelp. The Dark Thrall escaped beyond the range of her finishing blow, and with her sword still raised, she shouted:

“H-hey! Stop right theeeere!”

And so began the bizarre game of tag between the Dark Thrall and the Lightguide Princess.

Using her physical prowess and her wind-based power, Satori pursued the Dark Thrall at a speed worthy of the wind itself.

“No one told me Dark Thralls could run away!”

Grumbling, Satori chased after it with all her might. This was the first time she had ever seen a Dark Thrall flee. She was truly shocked.

“And it’s ridiculously fast too!”

Indeed, the rabbit-type Dark Thrall was fleeing at an extraordinary speed, as if it sensed its life was in danger. So fast, in fact, that even Satori—who prided herself on her speed—had yet to catch up.

Despite going full throttle, she remained about twenty meters behind. At this rate, there was no telling when she’d catch up.

“Damn it…!”

But even so, Satori had no choice but to keep chasing the Dark Thrall.

♦

“What… is that?”

After finishing the purification of the human who had become a Dark Thrall, Youka and the others released their transformations and were about to return to school. But just before they could, Miya noticed something approaching.

“A rabbit…?”

Seeing the large creature heading toward them as well, Youka muttered that thought. But of course, rabbits aren’t supposed to be that big.

Then, Kouji’s expression sharpened as if he realized something. He readied the sword he had once put away and warned Youka and Miya.

“! You two, be careful! That’s probably a Dark Thrall!”
““Ehh!?””

The two cried out in surprise at Kouji’s words.

Looking closely at the rabbit-shaped Dark Thrall charging toward them, they could see that it was injured in several places. As if it had been fighting something and was now running away from it.

“!? A person…?”

Meanwhile, Akatsuki, who had been chasing the Dark Thrall, noticed the three a bit ahead of her. The Lightguide Princess’s barrier is deployed with her at its center, and moves as she moves—so far, it had kept people away, which is why she hadn’t encountered anyone along the chase.

So the presence of people here confused Akatsuki. That confusion caused her not to realize that the three were her fellow warriors, even though their outfits were distinctive.

“Sorry! Get out of here, now!!”

Akatsuki shouted loudly to the three. Meanwhile, the Dark Thrall, fleeing desperately from Akatsuki, was steadily getting closer to them.

“Kyu!”

Perhaps because it was in such a panic, the Dark Thrall didn’t seem to notice the three ahead. At this rate, a collision was inevitable.

“I won’t let you through!”

Kouji stood in front of the fast-approaching Dark Thrall. Seeing this, Youka and Miya exchanged glances and seemed to understand what they needed to do.

“Kounomiya-kun! We’ll help too!”
“I’ll back you up!”

Youka stood beside Kouji, ready to face the rabbit-shaped Dark Thrall. Miya stood behind them, holding her staff and watching for the right moment.

“Thank you, both of you!”

Kouji thanked them, recognizing that they understood what he was trying to do and had come to help.

But it was Akatsuki, who had been chasing the Dark Thrall, who felt confusion at the sight of their actions. Rather than fleeing, two were standing in front of the Dark Thrall and one was positioned behind. In a voice mixed with irritation and panic, Akatsuki shouted:

“What are you doing!? I told you to run!”

But Akatsuki’s warning came too late. The Dark Thrall collided with Youka and Kouji.

“Kyu!?”

Perhaps only after the crash did the Dark Thrall realize people were in its way. Letting out such a sound, it hit Youka and Kouji head-on, and they both let out pained cries at the impact.

“Guh…!?”

Especially Kouji, whose ribs had been fractured in the fight with Feliet, felt intense pain at the impact and grimaced. Still, he endured it with sheer willpower.

They couldn’t stop the speeding Dark Thrall completely, and both Youka and Kouji were pushed back, their shoes scraping lines into the ground. But its speed was clearly slower than before.

Seizing that opportunity, Miya in the rear launched a binding spell.

“Vines of Ice!”

As if responding to her voice, several icy vines rose from the ground and lashed out at the still-charging Dark Thrall.

“Kyu, Kyu!?”

The Dark Thrall let out a surprised cry, but it was too late. The vines wrapped around its body and restrained its movements.

The Dark Thrall came to a complete stop. Confirming that, Youka and Kouji leapt back to where Miya was, preparing for the next move.

“!? So you were comrades!”

Realizing the three were Lightguide Princesses and a Guardian, Akatsuki’s eyes widened beneath her hood. She never expected to find Lightguide comrades at the place the Dark Thrall had fled to.

But seeing the now-immobilized Dark Thrall, she recognized the moment as a chance.

“This might be a bit rough, but—!”

Saying that, Akatsuki kicked off the ground powerfully.

““Eh?””

Youka and Miya both looked up in surprise at the figure in a pale emerald-green hood soaring through the air. From her earlier warning, they knew someone had been chasing the giant rabbit, but they didn’t know that person was a Lightguide Princess.

Only Kouji, seemingly aware, looked seriously at Akatsuki.

Using her physical prowess as a Lightguide Princess, Akatsuki soared briefly in the air, gripping her sword with both hands and pointing its tip toward the Dark Thrall.

“O Wind! Dwell within my blade!”

Wind swirled around Akatsuki’s sword, cloaking the beautiful weapon in a gale. He then plunged the sword into the back of the immobilized Dark Thrall.

“Squall Fang!”

“Kyu-u-u-u-u-u-u-u!?”

With a final cry, the Dark Thrall that had troubled Akatsuki was engulfed in light and purified.

Its massive body turned into particles of light, and Akatsuki landed lightly on the ground. She gently supported the boy, no older than a junior high student, who emerged from the particles.

“He’s just a kid… geez, what kind of darkness was he carrying…”

Murmuring quietly, Akatsuki laid the boy down on the ground.

Turning around, she faced the three watching him, smiled, and gave words of thanks.

“Thank you. Thanks to you, I was able to purify him. Truly, thank you.”

Bowing deeply in thanks, Akatsuki made Youka and Miya fluster and wave their hands.

“N-no! I just body-slammed him!”
“I didn’t really do anything special…”

While the two fidgeted, Kouji calmly began to introduce himself.

“No need to be so modest, you two. Gratitude should be accepted honestly. —Guardian Rank 10, Guardian name: Knight. Pleased to meet you.”

Giving that advice, Kouji smiled his usual refreshing smile and extended his hand. It seemed he was asking for a handshake.

“How polite—I’m—ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!?”

Seeing Kouji’s face up close, Akatsuki let out a shriek. Kouji blinked in surprise, while Youka and Miya asked him worriedly:

“U-um, what’s wrong?”
“Did something strange happen…?”

Snapped out of it by their voices, Akatsuki quickly collected herself. Sge couldn’t let them grow suspicious of her.

(No way… that Kounomiya Kouji is a Guardian…!?)

And he’s ranked 10th. That means the one who fought Feliet must have been Kouji.

(No! Gotta pull myself together!)

She was shocked that the famous Kounomiya Kouji from their own school, Fuuraku High, was a Guardian—but that’s just how it is. Lightguide Princesses and Guardians exist all over the world. It’s not strange that Kouji is one too.

“S-sorry, I thought I saw a bug. I hate bugs.”

She gave a weak excuse even though she knew it was bad, laughing nervously. Trying to forcibly steer the conversation, she went to introduce herself.

“Let’s try again. My name’s—huh? Huuuuuuuuuuuh!?”

But again, her own shout interrupted.

By seeing their faces up close, she finally realized—

These were Fuuraku High’s most famous duo, Asamiya Youka and Tsukishita Miya.

(You kidding me!? These two are Lightguide Princesses too!?)

With another shout of disbelief, Youka and Miya looked increasingly worried, and Kouji’s expression grew suspicious.

This time, even Akatsuki couldn’t recover quickly.

She had never imagined that, aside from herself, Lightguide Princesses and Guardians would also attend her school. That’s three whole persons! Not only that—they were among the most well-known students at Fuuraku High. Anyone in her position would be shocked.

(…Come to think of it, Lightguide Princesses and Guardians are supposed to be enrolled in that school by rule…)

Akatsuki thought, regaining her composure. But it’s not mandatory—she herself was an exception, after all.

“—!?”

Then, regaining calm, Akatsuki sensed a gaze watching her.

She turned around and carefully scanned the area. It was just a hunch, but she felt the gaze came from the distant bridge. She focused on that spot, but with the barrier up, no people should be visible.

“…Was I imagining it?”

She was sure she felt it—but maybe it was a mistake.

“Umm… are you okay? You’ve been acting weird since earlier…”

By now, with how much she was screaming and stopping herself, Youka decided to ask Akatsuki—not really because she was worried, but more with a look that said “is this person okay in the head?”

She wasn’t the only one. Miya too. Only Kouji, perhaps out of politeness, didn’t wear that expression, though who knew what he thought inside.

(That’s… that’s the look people always give Eito…)

That realization shocked Akatsuki—no, Satori.

She always thought her gloomy friend, Kijou Eito, was the strange one. But she never thought she was an outlier herself.

So being looked at like that was deeply unsettling.

“I’m really sorry for all the weird behavior! Actually—!”

She frantically tried to come up with excuses for everything she’d done just now.

And in doing so, completely forgot about the strange gaze he had felt moments ago.

♦

“…That was close.”

Meanwhile, the mysterious observer Akatsuki had sensed—Spriggan—was now lying flat on top of a pitch-black, elastic, and mysterious object installed on the walkway of the bridge, pressing down his hat.

“Barely made it…”

Spriggan, who had been continuing their surveillance, witnessed the appearance of the rabbit-shaped Dark Thrall and the mysterious Lightguide Princess. But in a close call, his presence had nearly been noticed by this mysterious princess.

“She’s got damn good instincts…”

Using the dynamic vision available in his Spriggan form, Eito had barely managed to predict that the hooded Lightguide Princess was about to turn around, judging from her movements just before. So he let himself fall backward from the top of the arch, vanishing from sight just in time for when Akatsuki turned around.

Of course, had he fallen like that normally, he would’ve landed head-first and broken his skull. That’s why Eito used his Spriggan ability—creation of matter using the power of darkness—to conjure this mat-like object he was now lying on.

“…That’s the first time I’ve seen a Lightguide Princess other than those ones.”

From this distance, he couldn’t hear what they were talking about, but it was clear from her purifying the Dark Thrall that the hooded figure was without a doubt a Lightguide Princess.

Well, she was wearing a hood, so he couldn’t see her face at all.

“Wonder what kind of person she is…”

Judging from her behavior alone, she seemed pretty out there. Definitely one of the crazy ones. And since she’s a Lightguide Princess, she was probably some goody two-shoes too.

Thinking such things, Eito remained in his Spriggan form for a while, gazing up at the clear May sky.

—At that very moment, the Lightguide Princess Akatsuki, whom Eito had just mentally labeled a lunatic, was desperately trying to explain to the other three that she definitely was a normal person.