3
At least he worked himself up thinking that, but after proceeding a short
distance past the door…
"—A second door. And it disappeared again."
Subaru watched as another iron door glowed and disappeared before his
eyes.
It happened right after Subaru touched it. It was hard to believe he had
just awakened to some new ability, so the only other explanation was they
were designed to do that, but…
"What's the point of a door in a dungeon that doesn't actually block
anything?"
Subaru was at a loss trying to explain the purpose of having a door like
that.
It wasn't dividing up rooms or anything, so there was little reason in
having a door that anyone could open. The obvious reason to have one was to
block anyone trying to get through, and yet…
"It doesn't feel like it because we haven't run into any yet, but maybe it's
something to stop demon beasts."
"Demon beasts… So like the barrier? I guess I could understand that,
but…"
"Maybe demon beasts just can't open it, but if a person touches it, the path
opens up… Still, that'd be a little loose on security when it comes to closing
the door behind you— If there's a third one, we should have someone other
than you touch it."
Anastasia's eyes narrowed as she hypothesized about the point of the
door. There was just too little to go on, though, so it was hard to come up
with a convincing explanation.
And what bothered Subaru more wasn't the mysterious doors.
" "
Ram, who was riding Patlash with Anastasia, had stopped talking. Part of
it was anxiety and unease probably, but the bigger issue was fatigue. Her
body was in bad shape to begin with, and the miasma in the labyrinth—
"My body's really heavy…"
Wiping away the sticky sweat in annoyance, Subaru slowly started
walking again, dragging his feet out of the sand.
Ram wasn't the only one being weakened by the miasma. Subaru and
Anastasia were feeling it, too. Their moods and their bodies were getting
heavier. Every cell in their bodies, the blood flowing through their veins, the
drumbeat of their hearts, it was all telling them to get out as soon as possible.
" "
If they kept moving forward, they could get out of the miasma. If they kept
moving forward, they could find everyone else.
Subaru believed that— By making himself believe that, he could keep his
legs from stopping.
Without that spurring him onward, the weight of the sand and sweat would
force him to start questioning himself.
Questioning whether this was really the correct path.
"This isn't the time to be whining."
His whole body was pleading with him as he ground down his molars.
He was the one who had picked this direction. He had no right to be the
first person to start complaining about it.
"It's a little difficult to walk, but that's all. It not so bad. I thought it would
be more outrageous than this, but at this rate, maybe the end isn't even that far
aw—"
"Barusu—shut up."
"Eh, ah. Yeah…"
He had tried to put on a brave face, but Ram's curt jab shut him down. It
had been a while since she had said something, but there was no trace of
consideration in it at all. Subaru shrugged as Ram seemed irritated.
"If you ask me, it's boring to just stay quiet."
"Do you think we're doing this for fun? Remember the point of all this."
"I mean, yeah, but…"
"Just shut up and walk."
It was a reasonable point. Her attitude left no room for maneuvering at
all.
But Subaru had a point, too. He thought that if the miasma was bringing
their moods down, then maybe it would be a bit easier if they distracted
themselves somewhat with conversation.
"But—"
"Natsuki, just leave it be."
He understood Ram's feelings, but Subaru was annoyed at her prickly
attitude. Sensing that, Anastasia shifted, blocking Ram from his gaze.
"I understand how you're feeling, but Ram's exhausted. Nothing good
ever comes from trying to talk to someone when your heart's worn down to
the nub, right?"
" "
"Right?"
It pissed him off, but there was some truth to what Anastasia/Foxidna was
saying, too.
He had gotten so anxious about moving forward and meeting up with
everyone else that he had been inconsiderate of Ram and Anastasia. The
same was true of them, but what good would come of arguing that?
—There's no point in saying it. It would just be a waste of time. It would
simply be better to not even look at each other.
"…Let's go…"
Noticing that he had stopped, Subaru started moving his legs again,
holding the lantern and lighting the labyrinth of sand.
Having failed to raise anyone's spirits, his legs moved forward just as
heavily as before—no, they were even heavier now.
Forward.
" "
Forward—