Koyasu Tsubame was clearly struggling with all her might. It was nothing like the futile flailing of a drowning person, but more like something had seized her ankle and was dragging her down.
Yet there was nothing there.
Just as she was reeling in shock, Shinomiya Kaguya felt her feet sink, as if something had grabbed her.
She lowered her head in terror, but there was nothing on her feet.
Smack!
Fear surged into her heart. Instinctively, she tried to surface.
But what should have been an easy task had suddenly become incredibly difficult.
Meanwhile, the students on the shore only saw Shinomiya Kaguya, who had originally swum smoothly to the middle of the lake, suddenly thrashing wildly like someone drowning!
"Ah! Shinomiya is drowning too!"
"How could this happen? She was almost there..."
"Help! Can anyone save her?"
Everyone panicked.
After all, that was Shinomiya Kaguya!
If something happened to her here, not one of them would escape responsibility.
The students who knew how to swim finally could not sit still. One after another, they took off their shirts and prepared to enter the water.
But when they finally mustered the courage to reach the edge of the Swamp, they seemed to glimpse a massive shadow flashing past beneath the lake. Humanity's instinctive fear of the unknown easily stole away their courage, as if the thing before them were not a lake, but a terrifying monster opening its enormous maw and waiting for them to offer themselves as food...
Splash!
Just as they stood frozen in fear, two consecutive splashes reached their ears.
The sound drew the attention of the watching students. They saw that one of those who had entered the water was a girl with short black hair, wearing Pure Academy's black uniform. However, they could not make out the other person's appearance. They only saw a Blond Boy swimming desperately toward the two girls who had fallen into the water.
"Ah! It's Kashiwagi! Thank goodness, she's an excellent swimmer!"
"Kashiwagi's family runs a major shipbuilding company. She once took second place in a swimming competition. If it's her, she'll definitely be fine!"
"Come on, Kashiwagi!"
The students onshore found hope once again. Their attention was drawn to Kashiwagi Nagisa in the water, while the Blond Boy who had also jumped in was ignored instead.
For Kira Yoshikage, that was actually a good thing.
"What a pain."
Kira Yoshikage was swimming desperately toward the center of the lake, his expression calm but his mood far from pleasant.
He had not wanted to get involved, but the people who had fallen into the water were Pure Academy students, and one of them was the eldest daughter of the Shinomiya Family.
If these people drowned, it would cause a huge uproar throughout society.
By then, even Shuchiin Academy would be forced to suspend operations for rectification, and all the relevant people nearby would be held accountable. That would inevitably implicate Kira Yoshikage, who also attended Shuchiin Academy and had been watching from nearby.
The best possible outcome would be suspension from school. More importantly, the secret beneath the lake would be discovered, and his peaceful life would be over!
Reaching the middle of the lake was not difficult. Kira Yoshikage could see Shinomiya Kaguya, who was struggling desperately, as well as Koyasu Tsubame, who had stopped struggling, fallen unconscious, and was sinking toward the lakebed.
Saving the drowning girls was not difficult in itself, but they were not simply drowning.
Kira Yoshikage could clearly see what was wrapped around their legs: a Golden Tentacle.
The tentacle extended deep into the Swamp, reaching a gigantic shadow that covered the entire Swamp. Its end could not be seen.
A rich golden radiance emanated from the shadow deep beneath the Swamp. That was also why the students onshore were too frightened to enter the water—in the depths of this Swamp dwelled a "deity" secretly worshipped by someone.
"Killer Queen!"
Pink Panther suddenly lunged at a tentacle reaching toward Kira Yoshikage, while Kira Yoshikage pressed down his thumb at the same time.
Boom!
In a soundless explosion, the tentacle vanished without a trace, leaving nothing behind.
Killer Queen did not pause at all. It instantly plunged underwater and charged toward Koyasu Tsubame, who was about to sink to the bottom.
Boom!
The tentacle wrapped around the girl's ankle exploded again, turning into a wisp of black smoke that silently dispersed through the lake. At the same time, Kira Yoshikage had already carried Koyasu Tsubame above the surface. Killer Queen, which had originally been at the bottom of the Swamp, suddenly appeared before Shinomiya Kaguya, whose struggling had gradually weakened and whose consciousness had blurred after swallowing water.
Through her hazy vision, Shinomiya Kaguya could only vaguely make out a Blond Boy...
Roar!
After three tentacles were severed in succession, the thing within the Lakebed Shadow let out an enraged roar that ordinary people could not hear.
Amid the howl, the entire Swamp seemed to boil. Violent waves rolled across the surface, while hundreds, even thousands, of Golden Tentacles frantically attacked the three people in the water.
Boom!!!
Pink Panther blocked the attacks behind Kira Yoshikage, rapidly throwing punches with both hands in alternation.
Every collision between tentacle and fist ended with the tentacle's annihilation.
"H-help... Glug..."
Kira Yoshikage was about to leave when another terrified cry for help reached his ears.
He turned around and discovered Kashiwagi Nagisa swimming over in a panic. A tentacle was wrapped around her foot as well. This one, however, was black and radiated an ominous aura in every direction.
Kira Yoshikage glanced over coldly. Even from several meters away, Kashiwagi Nagisa could clearly make out the look of disdain on his face, as if he were saying:
"Could you stop throwing yourselves at me?"
Disdainful or not, he could not let anyone else die. Pink Panther punched down.
The tentacle exploded out of nowhere, leaving not even a trace behind.
The repeated destruction of the tentacles completely enraged the "deity" beneath the lake.
That's enough already!
Chapter 21: That's Enough Already, This Arrogant Guy Is Seriously Gross
The "deity" beneath the lake was utterly furious!
This ritual had originally been prepared for him, and those two humans were sacrifices prepared for him as well.
What was wrong with him accepting the sacrifices he was owed?
Yet this human had actually charged into his home, stolen his sacrifices, and killed so many of his underlings!
That alone would have been bad enough.
But what was even more outrageous was that, even after it had given up fighting him for the sacrifices and prepared to find a new one—
One each should have been fine, right?
Yet the other party still wanted to snatch them away!
He wanted them all, didn't he?
You're insatiably greedy! You have no honor!
In its fury, the "deity" rose to the surface without a care, personally charging toward the human who dared disrupt its sacrificial ritual!
The enormous shadow rapidly ascended and appeared before Kira Yoshikage almost in the blink of an eye.
A gigantic figure more than a hundred meters tall blocked Kira Yoshikage's view, nearly blotting out the sky and sun.
Compared with that enormous true form, the tentacles from before were utterly insignificant!
That was because, to this composite-like "deity," those tentacles were pitifully weak. They were merely servants it drove to receive offerings.
Now, it would personally give this human a little "divine" shock!
"Inefficient use of psychic power."
Kira Yoshikage glanced up at the enormous shadow overhead, his tone filled with disappointment.
He had thought the enemy was a tiger, but it turned out to be a wildcat.
Not only was it weak, it was stupid as well.
Normally, Killer Queen's range was insufficient for him to threaten its true body while saving people, so he had never planned to resolve everything in one move. But since it had taken the initiative to come to him, the situation was completely different...
Pink Panther calmly charged forward and "gently" stroked its head with a fist.
Bang!
The "deity," its entire body radiating golden light, was sent flying by a single punch. Its enormous body, nearly wider than the lake itself, shot straight into the sky, even blocking out the sunlight!
Crack!
Accompanied by a crisp shattering sound, the "golden body" covering its exterior shattered rapidly like glass.
As the "golden body" broke apart, dense black energy spread rapidly, nearly blotting out the sky.
The "deity's" originally sacred visage became ferocious and terrifying.
But that was its true appearance.
The so-called "deity" was nothing more than an Evil Spirit wrapped in a "golden body"!
Roar!
The Evil Spirit, its true appearance exposed, no longer held back at all. It roared and charged toward Kira Yoshikage.
But immediately afterward—
Boom!
In the soundless explosion, the Evil Spirit's body turned into black energy filling the sky and was completely annihilated.
There was nothing one explosion could not solve.
And if there was, then he would use another.
The "deity's" enormous body exploded with a thunderous roar, blooming into a brilliant firework in the sky.
With the "deity's" death, the spirits that had been forcibly dwelling within its body and serving under its command began fleeing in all directions. In the end, however, they could not escape the fate of being blown apart.
Killer Queen's range was short, but its speed was unparalleled!
Within only a few seconds, most of the spirits radiating black energy vanished in soundless explosions.
But when faced with the last spirit, trembling with fear and speckled with traces of golden light, Kira Yoshikage hesitated for a moment.
After thinking it over for a long while, Kira Yoshikage still chose not to attack. Carrying the two girls, he returned to shore—
He did not go toward the side where the crowd had gathered. Instead, he swam toward the opposite bank, where there was no one.
After checking their breathing, Kira Yoshikage immediately began performing first aid on Koyasu Tsubame, who had stopped breathing.
There was no time to drain the water from her lungs. He could only begin cardiopulmonary resuscitation and artificial respiration first.
Kira Yoshikage tilted Koyasu Tsubame's head back and raised her chin.
He opened her airway, pinched the girl's nose, and blew in two breaths.
Then he quickly pressed down on the girl's chest thirty times before giving her breaths again, repeating the cycle.
Crack!
Kira Yoshikage heard a cracking sound. He knew it was Koyasu Tsubame's rib.
But he paid it no mind.
Compared with her life, breaking two ribs was nothing.
"Hah—"
Finally, accompanied by a hurried breath, the girl's heart began beating again, and she suddenly spat out a large amount of water.
Kira Yoshikage continued administering first aid calmly until the girl's condition had completely stabilized, then turned to Shinomiya Kaguya beside her.
Kira Yoshikage pressed down twice on the girl's chest.
Crack!
Mm, another one had broken, but it was not a major problem.
The rib had not pierced her lung. She would not die.
With a calm expression, Kira Yoshikage continued rescuing her, barely dragging both girls back from the brink of death.