Volume 2 - CH 264

The surroundings are already a mess.

The original appearance of the place when we first saw it was completely gone.

However, there is only one part that has not been destroyed.

It was the two watchtowers and the castle tower.

I don’t know why they were not destroyed, but there were no cracks in the ground and no rocks flew into them.

Then a small child suddenly entered.

It was Alena.

Seeing the power of the spectre oni, Alena knew it would be dangerous to get within range of their attacks, so she went off on her own to rescue Hisui.

If she could rescue Hisui herself, then she wouldn’t have to fight in vain.

As far as she could see, Ouren and the others were outmatched.

She was concerned that if they dragged on too long, someone would get seriously injured.

Actually, she had spotted the spectre oni when she were hiding, but when she was about to apply the heavy weight, she saw Ouren, Houen, and Raiki get blown away.

Even if she had applied the heavy weight, it would be meaningless if there was no one to attack her.

Alena’s weapons would not be able to do enough damage, so she stopped applying her skills and changed her strategy to infiltration.

Fortunately, no other spectre oni had been found yet.

In addition, the spectre oni that she has found is preoccupied with the battle.

Now she could enter without being detected.

After confirming this, Alena quietly entered the drum tower.

The gate was heavy, but she used the gravity dome to lighten it and pushed it open.

It made a sound, but not as loud as the roar that echoed around them.

After getting inside, she quickly closed it and walked up the stairs.

Of course, there is no need to make footsteps at all, so she flies using levitation.

This way, she would not put her feet on the staircase.

The stairs were very cold.

Colder than the outside.

With a slight chill inside her body, she cautiously headed up the stairs.

Shimu had told her that the princess was here.

There might be some spectre oni waiting for her, but in that case, she would do everything in her power to make an escape by giving them heavy weight.

After seeing that high-powered attack, there was no way she could win in the conventional way.

Stall and escape. (Hit and run?)

This was the best Alena could do right now, she was aware, even though she was still young.

The Drum Tower is two floors high.

The gate built on the stone wall is actually a building with three floors, since there are stairs at the end of it.

When Alena reached the second floor, she explored it in a hurry.

There are no beautiful decorations like those in the castle of Zenki-village, just tatami mats and sliding doors.

There are four large rooms adjoining the corridor.

This seems very similar to the one Ran wrote about.

After exploring all the rooms, she went up the stairs she found along the way.

There was no one on the second floor.

Which means that Hisui is on the third floor.

After searching for a while, there was no sound at all.

She thought that there might be no guards, but she heard that there were ten enemies.

It would be better to assume that there was at least one.

Before climbing the stairs to the third floor, she peeked her head out of the corner of the room to take a look around.

Unlike the second floor, it was pitch-dark.

However, there is no sign of anyone.

But she could hear someone sobbing.

This voice sounded familiar.

(Hisui Onee-chan……!)

Convinced that Hisui is there, she almost jumps right out of her skin, but she manages to hold on and take a breath.

She must proceed on the assumption that there is a spectre in the room where she resides.

If she makes a loud noise here, they might head straight for her and get her.

She wanted to avoid that at all costs.

As long as she could find Hisui, all she had to do was hold her under heavy weight and run away.

She also needs to know the enemy’s position.

She must have secured an escape route.

In the worst case scenario, she would use the gravity dome to lighten Hisui, and make plans to escape by flying through the air.

It is a perfect vision.

After thinking that far, the vision finally came to her.

In the direction of the voice, there is a wooden screen like door, which is closed tightly.

Once it is quietly opened, it is impossible to take them by surprise.

However, Alena did not have the skills or strength to easily destroy the door.

After giving it some thought, she decided to open the door quietly and see what was going on inside.

If the opponent is alone, she can quickly subdue them.

No matter if she suddenly jumped out, or if she opened the door quietly, Alena stepped in to make sure that she would be able to see who came in.

She adjusted her breathing, and then it was time to do it.

She opened the door and checked inside.

There was the figure of Hisui and an old Oni.

The sound of the sliding door opening made her notice the beads she was holding, and she jarred and rolled them.

However, she seemed to notice something and immediately stopped her hand.

Alena was about to put a heavy weight on the old woman, but stopped herself.

The reason is.

Because Hisui was clinging to the old woman and crying.

If she were an enemy, she would never do such a thing.

Seeing the situation a little unusual, she stopped mid-thought.

At that moment, the old woman spoke to her.

“Who are you ……?”

“Alena. Hisui Onee-chan, I’m here to help you!”

Hearing Alena’s voice, Hisui twitched and turned her head.

She had been crying her face off, but when she saw Alena’s figure, she now began to cry aloud.

“Aleenaaaaa! Uwaaaaah!”

Approaching on all fours, Hisui jumped on Alena.

And then she started crying again.

Knowing that if she hugged her, she would crush her, Hisui grabbed only her clothes and held them tightly.

“It’s going to be all right. Ouren and everyone else are here to help.”

“Uuuuwaaaah……. Ug, Hicks…….”

Alena now looks at the old woman once more.

Even though Hisui was taken away so close to her, she hasn’t done anything about it.

It seemed that even if she took Hisui away like this, she would not even raise her voice.

She tilts her head at her.

“….. Please go…..”

“Eh?”

“An oni who is not even a spectre oni, was brought here. And that person wasn’t me ……”

“Obaa-chan, are you Oni?”

“……, I don’t know, ……. I am not really sure. ……”

The old woman says and starts jingling and rolling her prayer beads again.

She didn’t know why she kept praying, and she was a little skeptical about whether she would really let her go at this point.

“I am …… Hinata ……. I’m not a spectre oni yet, I’m still an oni. ……”

“…….”

Alena looked at Hisui.

She’s still crying and doesn’t seem to be able to walk on her own.

At this point, she’ll be found out if she goes out like this.

So, she sat down temporarily.

The old woman, Hinata, was not a spectre oni.

Besides, since Hisui had been stuck with her for a while, there should be little danger.

For now, she decided to stay here until Hisui calmed down.

She thought about using the gravity dome to escape, but the range of this skill is not very wide.

At best, it would cover this drum tower.

Once outside, she had to let them run by themselves.

“Well, why don’t you go ……?”

“It’s still dangerous outside. Hisui onee-chan doesn’t seem to be able to walk on her own yet, so I’ll let her stay with you until she calms down.”

“Uuuhm. This pace is safe from that idiot’s attack. But Alena-chan, was it? ……. Human beings can’t stay here for long. You should go right now.”

“I understand.”

She is a friendly and gentle oni.

Alena thought so and tried to ask a question.

Perhaps she could help Ouren and the other in some way.

But she was not sure what to ask.

As she was doing so, Hinata whispered to her.

“Oh, ……, White Snake-sama, ……. Please give these children your blessing …….”

“…… eh?”