“I can’t die in a place like this...” Leyfa muttered, her fists clenched.
She was determined to take the throne at all costs. She would do it no matter what. It was her duty, her very raison d’être. Dying before then would mean she’d killed her mother for no reason—that her death was meaningless. So she couldn’t accept defeat here, and yet...
“Is... Is this as far as I go?” she asked hoarsely as she beheld the disaster before her.
Contrary to Leyfa’s hopes, the situation was only deteriorating. Mille was mortally wounded, Limuna had fled the dungeon, and the rest of her party already had one foot in the grave. Onz was grievously injured. Gilbert’s specialty holy arts were sealed and he could barely stay on his feet now. That left Miya, but she was on borrowed time. Her magical energy was spent after repeatedly casting her spirit magic, and she was nearly out of arrows. She was still avoiding the boss’s attacks thanks to Major Physical Boost, but she would never last against such an overwhelmingly powerful foe. Her head could go flying any second now.
Leyfa, meanwhile, was stuck on the sidelines. All she could do was watch, for everything below her right knee was gone and her left arm was bent at an unnatural angle. She’d lost enough blood that her body was slowly turning cold. There was so little life left in her that the enemy no longer considered her a target. It could finish her off whenever it pleased, so she’d been granted a temporary stay of execution. She’d be dead the instant the demon turned its attention to her again.
The princess had wanted to flee with Limuna. She’d never be able to conquer the dungeon or take the throne if she died here. As long as she survived, there was still a chance. Humans only got one shot at their dreams—that’s what Leyfa believed after watching her mother die. She didn’t believe in an afterlife. The concepts of heaven and reincarnation were just crutches for the living. People didn’t have souls. Death was the end. That was it. There was nothing beyond that.
Even if Leyfa ascended the throne now, there was no way for her mother to know her dream had been fulfilled. Nothing would change the fact she’d died resenting her daughter. That was why Leyfa was determined to take the crown not for her mother’s sake, but for her own. It was her only recourse.
I wanted to run too. I wanted to run away and keep living. But I couldn’t... I don’t have the legs to carry me, and I don’t have the energy anymore.
All but one of her party members were out of commission. Things were even worse now than when Limuna had first fled. Even if Leyfa had the means to make an escape, the demon wouldn’t let her get away.
“It’s not over yet! I’m just getting started!” Miya yelled in a throaty voice like she was cheering. Like she was summoning the very last of her energy.
She was clearly at her limit. She’d been fighting the demon solo for minutes now. In truth, it was unbelievable. A miracle, really, even considering her abilities. Miya was in the zone, overcoming personal wall after wall. She was performing exceptionally well under life-or-death circumstances. She’d certainly walk away from this fight a stronger hunter... That is, she would if she had the luxury of walking away from it at all. But this would be the end of her. She would die here. Her struggle was all for naught. Defeat was inevitable. Yet Miya was still fighting because Limuna had gone for help. That hope was the only thing keeping her afloat—but it was vain hope. She put too much faith in other people. Reality was far crueler than she imagined.
Leyfa didn’t believe for a minute that Limuna would actually return with aid. She was just a mercenary with no real stake in the party. She could abandon them without a shred of guilt. That’s what Leyfa would have done, so she was certain it was the choice Limuna had made. A mage named Courie had once told the princess, “There are lots of people out there with bad intentions, sure, but I think it’s easier to look for the good in them.” If asked, Leyfa would have said that commoners who saw the good in people were the most repulsive of all. How could they believe in people so innocently? She didn’t understand, she didn’t sympathize, and she didn’t agree. Those who believed in the good of others had never seen what people were truly capable of.
Like the woman who lived to curse her daughter with her greed. The nobles who used that twisted woman to incite a civil war they couldn’t win. The king who tried to make his mistress and their child disappear with money. The prime minister who tried to make them disappear by force. The queen who’d tried to shut away the poor child like a dirty secret. Her stepsisters who looked down on her while raising their hands against her. And the child herself...for killing her own mother in the name of ambition. No one was sacred. Human beings were just dirty, unsightly, malicious lumps of flesh. There was no good inside them. The world they populated was cruel beyond all salvation.
“We’re going to make it! We’re going to get out of this alive!” Miya shouted.
She let her pure, innocent wish fly with her lone remaining arrow. Arrows were an archer’s lifeline, yet she’d used her last one without hesitation. The demon easily dodged the powerful shot by taking two steps back...but that small retreat was a victory to Miya, who hadn’t yet lost hope. She threw down her bow and charged the enemy barehanded.