As Fuka-san and Philly-san glared at each other,
"Luna, if you stay here you'll get in Fuka's way. Take the Marquis and head to the guild."
Hart-san called out to me.
It seemed they had no intention of stopping Fuka-san from facing Philly-san alone.
Indeed, she now carried a dense aura so different from before that she almost seemed like another person.
With my body still exhausted, staying here would only be a burden. Leaving immediately was the right choice.
"Understood. Lord Forgas, can you stand?"
"Y-Yes. I'm fine. We're heading to the guild, correct? Could you explain the situation on the way?"
From their exchange, I inferred that Philly-san was involved in the Marquis's memory loss. Was this also her ability?
"…As you wish. Let's leave this place first."
Hart-san and the others had already started moving toward the north gate.
I supported the Marquis on my back while staying alert to our surroundings and headed for the guild.
◇◇◇
"Given your bravery in putting yourself at such a disadvantage, I'll grant you the first move. Come at me."
Philly said with complete confidence.
She seemed convinced she couldn't lose.
But that confidence only held if her opponent was Fuka-san from before—fighting while holding back to buy time and coordinating with party members.
Fuka-san's goal until now had been to stall until she could use [Future Sight] again.
Her [Future Sight] normally saw a few seconds ahead, but by taking risks, she could peer further—though the price was being unable to use it for a while afterward.
On the carriage ride back from Marant, Fuka-san had seen a future where Luna was killed by Philly. Until moments ago, her future sight had been unusable.
Now she could use it again.
The current Fuka-san was a different existence entirely from the one who had suppressed her power earlier to buy time.
Philly realized this sooner than expected.
Fuka-san closed the distance without any tricks.
"—!?"
Philly had been fully focused on Fuka-san's movements after the first strike.
Even with superhuman reflexes, she could barely track Fuka-san at full power.
She tried to block the incoming blade with her staff.
But against Fuka-san—who could see the future—defense and evasion were meaningless.
Fuka-san's sword bypassed the staff and reached Philly.
"Ugh…"
Philly collapsed with a fatal wound.
"…I know this is a fake. Hurry up and bring out the next one. I'll keep you company until you reach your limit."
Fuka said to the fallen Philly.
The body vanished, and an unharmed Philly reappeared a short distance away.
"…Die."
With clear irritation, Philly muttered. Countless attack spells of various attributes assaulted Fuka from all directions.
Fuka dodged them all with light, graceful movements.
In an instant she closed the gap and swung her sword.
This time Philly chose evasion—but Fuka-san, who had already foreseen where she would dodge, struck that exact spot.
It looked as though Philly had willingly stepped into the slash.
Philly—thinking she had dodged—died in shock from the sudden agony.
◇
When Philly vanished again, another unharmed version appeared nearby.
For the first time, panic showed on her face.
Philly's ability is [Recognition Alteration].
As the name implies, it rewrites the target's perception at will.
The two Fuka-san cut down earlier were fakes created by this ability.
She altered Fuka-san's perception, making her believe Philly was present.
The terrifying part is that for the victim, it feels completely real.
Philly casts attack magic while simultaneously rewriting perception so the target can't sense it.
Dodging such an attack should be impossible. Yet Fuka-san calculated backward from the future where she would be hit—and evaded.
(Even that gets dodged…!?)
Though she acted composed, Philly had used [Recognition Alteration] many times today. Her stamina was already severely depleted.
Facing an opponent whose attacks she couldn't land on, while every one of her own was perfectly evaded—this was utterly unreasonable.
The plan adjustment forced by the Marquis was complete. Philly's role in it was finished.
Erasing the Shinonome clan head was just a bonus.
"Regrettable, but this is where I withdraw. Still—I never expected another one like me or Orun Dula to be in this city. Completely my oversight. Next time I'll finish you for sure, Shinonome Fuka."
While watching the scene of Fuka relentlessly cutting her down, Philly muttered.
However—escaping Fuka-san was no easy task.
◇◇◇
While staying alert and moving slowly but steadily toward the guild, I roughly explained recent events to Marquis Forgas.
"—And you were one of the triggers of this incident. I can't explain exactly what you did, but…"
"…So I did this…"
The Marquis muttered while staring at the collapsed buildings.
I believe this chaos began when the Marquis showed Oliver-san the golden magic stone.
Oliver-san's abnormal behavior followed, and then Philly-san acted the way she did.
I cannot forgive the Marquis.
But there's no clear evidence he used the stone to drive Oliver-san mad, and I can't explain it.
Everyone else present at the time was no longer sane, and Philly-san certainly won't tell the truth.
Thus, we cannot charge the Marquis as the mastermind.
Moreover, publicly declaring him responsible in this chaotic situation could cause even greater disorder.
It's frustrating, but right now we need the lord—Marquis Forgas—to unite the military, guild, and explorers to resolve this crisis.
For that, I must get him to the guild safely.
His punishment will be decided later by those who remain.
◇
It took longer than usual, but the guild entrance finally came into view.
"Lord Forgas, my escort ends here. Please go on alone from this point. I cannot proceed further."
"Understood. Thank you for protecting me this far. —Luna, I promise to face my sins. But for now, let me prioritize my duty as lord."
"…Yes. Please do."
I had already explained my current situation to the Marquis.
He agreed without hesitation and walked alone into the guild headquarters.
(Now I should head to the south gate.)
The strength and number of invading monsters were likely highest at the east gate, followed by north, south, and west.
The east gate is handled by "Silver Rabbit of the Night Sky", and the north by "Copper Twilight". The next most difficult should be south.
As I started moving, several explorer parties emerged from the guild—likely heading to their assigned gates after receiving instructions.
They noticed me.
—Hey, that's Luna from the hero party.
—Why is one of the city destroyers here?
—Shouldn't we capture her?
They glared at me with loathing.
But it was understandable.
Thanks to Selma-san's earlier announcement, everyone now knew my comrades were causing destruction in the city.
"Hey! Luna from the hero party! Explain what the hell is going on!"
A man finally shouted his anger at me.
"…I'm sorry. I promise to explain later. Right now, please focus on dealing with the monsters. Our top priority is stopping the invasion."
"Don't fuck with us! This is all your fault, isn't it!? What kind of hero is that!? My daughter is terrified because of Oliver's rampage! If she can't recover, how will you take responsibility!?"
"…"
'…Humans really are emotional creatures. Blaming Luna here accomplishes nothing. If you care about your daughter, ignore her and kill one more monster instead, right?'
Sylph grumbled at the man's words.
'I understand. Everyone is confused by this sudden situation.'
"Hey, she might go berserk too! Let's restrain her now!"
At the man's words, I was surrounded by explorers.
At best, they were lower A-rank parties.
Even in my current state, I could neutralize them easily.
But I had no intention of resisting.
My family was involved in kidnapping and human trafficking. My party members were destroying the city.
Even if I wasn't directly involved, punishment would fall on me too.
I'd probably be imprisoned for a while.
At least I'd have Sylph and Titania to talk to—though whether they'd keep me company was another question.
(At least I wanted to see how this ends… but no helping it.)
Just as one explorer reached for my arm—
"—Stop right there!"
A woman's voice rang out from a short distance away.
Everyone surrounding me turned toward the voice.
"Eleonora-san…"
I looked too. There stood Eleonora-san—the guild staff member in charge of "Golden Dawnlight".
She usually had a gentle, smiling demeanor, but now her face was stern as she glared at them.
"A guild staff member? She's one of the main culprits in this incident. We can restrain her, right?"
"Have any of you personally witnessed her harming the city or its people? Did you see her cause the monster overflow?"
"W-Well…"
Overwhelmed by Eleonora-san's commanding tone, the man faltered.
"Your duty right now is to exterminate the monsters invading the city. Her punishment is not for you to decide. That's for the guild and military. Head to your assigned gates immediately!"
"Y-Yes ma'am!"
The explorers surrounding me—intimidated by Eleonora-san's overwhelming presence—followed her orders and moved toward their gates.
It really is true: gentle people are terrifying when angry…