Translator: imperfectluck Editor: Kurisu

  It was possible to receive actual damage to their physical bodies in this dreamlike realm that wasn't a dream.

  Miyabi hadn't concretely understood what Seigo Harano meant earlier with those words.

  She finally truly understood what this meant for the first time when she saw Yuuko Hashimoto being seriously injured.

  This place was like a dream world, but it wasn't a dream.

  People could get injured, could feel pain, and could possibly even… die!

  Miyabi couldn't help but turn and take a final look as they left the area of battle.

  She saw that Seigo Harano and the ghost child Ya-chan were still resolutely battling against the remaining zombie girls.

  'I hope that they'll be alright.'

  She prayed so in her heart before retracting her gaze and following after Matsutani who was carrying Yuuko. They speedily left this area.

  After putting some distance between them and the battle, Matsutani put Yuuko down on the ground and pulled out the sharp arrow lodged within her body. He used a spell to stop the bleeding.

  "Try using your powers to do something for her!" he told Nomura and Miyabi.

  Nomura tried imagining and creating some magic healing medicine, but failed.

  Miyabi took a good glance at Yuuko's face which was now a ghastly pale white. Miyabi then slowly shut her eyes.

  She concentrated… then concentrated some more… to feel her own powers…


  Earlier, when Miyabi was asked how she became more powerful, she had actually lied. She didn't accomplish it "unknowingly" as she told everyone. Instead, she was able to feel a power within her as she concentrated.

  As long as she continued to sense and accept this power, she could become even stronger… She had such a feeling within her.

  However, Miyabi had been against becoming stronger. She felt that she would no longer be just an ordinary girl.

  She was someone who didn't want to become out of the ordinary. She only wanted to be an ordinary girl and have a peaceful life.

  Yet, she finally truly realized that this way of thinking was too selfish of her.

  If she wanted to safely return home, she would have to show a sufficient amount of strength first! This was no mystical and fun adventure, this was a real battle for survival!

  'I'm sorry, Hashimoto-san.

  'I'm sorry, everyone.

  'I won't avoid facing myself anymore.'

  Miyabi was apologetic and resolute as she fully concentrated on accepting the full potential within herself.

  Matsutani and Nomura saw the cat eared girl begin to glow white.

  Her skin became incredibly white, and red spiral-shaped seals appeared on her forehead. Her lips and fingernails became brilliantly red, while her cat ears became white instead of black, as well as longer and pointier. Miyabi's black cat tail also lengthened, then became white and much furrier. Her entire person now gave off a strong demonic aura.

  "This is… a Demon Fox?" Matsutani muttered to himself.

  After the white glow faded and the transformation stopped, Miyabi opened her eyes which were now glowing red.

  She then reached out and gently placed her palm on Yuuko's wound. A white glow enveloped her palm.

  "Mrgh…"

  Yuuko began moaning.

  Moments later, Miyabi retracted her hand.

  Yuuko's injury had completely vanished!

  "This… it's healed!?" Nomura was astonished.

  The author Yuuko slowly opened her eyes.

  "I… what happened?"

  "Hashimoto-san, do you still feel pain anywhere?" Miyabi asked her.

  "I don't… Ishihara-san?" Yuuko blinked several times rapidly in surprise at Miyabi's new appearance. "What happened to you… you changed in appearance again?"

  Miyabi smiled in response.

  Her smile was so alluringly beautiful that even the author Yuuko who was also female lost herself for a moment.

  "She changed from a cat girl into a fox girl… does this count as some kind of evolution?" Matsutani was watching this scene.

  "I think that it's more like a second transformation," Nomura added with his opinion.

  No matter what, it was a good thing that their companion became stronger.

  Yuuko was truly grateful after she learned that Miyabi transformed herself and saved her.

  "Where are Harano-san and Ya-chan?" Yuuko then noticed that there were two members of their team not present.

  "They're still fighting where we were. We need to quickly go back and join them again," Miyabi told her. "Hashimoto-san, are you still able to face the idea of fighting?"

  "I…" Yuuko paused for a moment. "I'm scared… but it's fine. Let's hurry and return!"

  Her hand was trembling at the prospect, but her expression was resolute.

  "…Nomura-san, please focus mostly on protecting Hashimoto-san," Miyabi told him.

  Nomura nodded and accepted.

  Then, without saying anything else, everyone immediately returned to where Seiji and Ya-chan were currently battling.

  *Clang!* Seiji received another direct attack that destroyed yet another one of his [Mana Barriers]. He forced himself to receive this attack in order to slay his opponent. Seiji then immediately retreated in order to dodge the other zombie girls' attacks.

  There were only a few zombie girls remaining.

  'I'll take care of these mobs and then retreat and meet up with everyone else.' Just as he was thinking so, a new group of zombie girls appeared!

  Three of the zombie girls in the new group were wearing helmets. The two walking in front were both wielding sickles with a ball and chain attached at the end. These were unique weapons called " kusarigamas 1 "!

  The helmeted zombie girl in the back was not only wearing a helmet, she even wore a majestic armor. Her weapon was a huge horse-slaying sword… no, the proper term was " odachi 2 "!

  Seiji instantly had an ominous premonition when he saw these three zombie girls.

  The next moment, the chained balls on both kusarigamas came flying at him!

  Seiji blocked one kusarigama with his longsword. However, he failed to dodge the second, which struck him in the shoulder!

  It hurt… but he was able to bear the pain.

  The other zombie girls took this opportunity to rush him as well! Seiji could only retreat.

  The odachi-wielding armored zombie girl speedily rushed towards Ya-chan who was still locked in combat with other zombie girls!

  "Ya-chan…"

  Seiji wanted to warn the ghost child, but the two kusarigama-wielding zombie girls started attacking him again.

  This time, they sent their sickle halves of the kusarigamas flying at him!

  Seiji speedily swung his sword and forcefully knocked away the two sickles, blocking the attack successfully.

  "…dodge!" He finally finished the warning that he had tried to say before.

  However, he was too late.

  *Shing!* One sweep of the odachi seemed just like a brilliantly shining crescent moon.

  The demon protecting Ya-chan was sliced in half!

  "Whoa! So scary!!"

  The ghost child rolled on the floor and barely managed to dodge this attack. It then used its hands and feet to speedily scamper away.

  The odachi-wielding zombie girl chased after Ya-chan.

  Seiji wanted to go and help out the ghost child, but he himself was currently under attack by numerous zombie girls as well.

  Just as the odachi-wielding zombie girl reached the ghost child again, a crossbow bolt landed on the masked part of her helmet!

  Miyabi had arrived.

  She ran over towards them while shooting at high speed with one magical crossbow in each hand!

  The odachi-wielding girl used her tremendous sword to block the bolts. She gave up on chasing Ya-chan and instead turned to rush at the person shooting at her!

  Matsutani who was running right behind Miyabi cast a sealing magic that successfully hit and stopped the odachi-wielding zombie girl's movements.

  However, the odachi-wielding zombie girl roared and instantly dispelled the sealing spell on herself! Not only that, her armor began glowing red, automatically blocking all the magical crossbow bolts!

  This zombie girl had a personal barrier magic!?

  "Hurry and dodge!" Matsutani shouted to Miyabi when he saw that the odachi-wielding zombie girl had a personal barrier magic and was approaching them at high speed.

  However, Miyabi didn't dodge or run away. Instead, she ran up to the odachi-wielding zombie girl!

  *Shing!*

  There was another crescent moon that appeared with one swing of the odachi's blade.

  The fox eared girl was sliced in two… No, that was only her afterimage!

  Miyabi flashed right next to the odachi-wielding zombie girl and performed a whirlwind kick that viciously landed a direct blow right on the odachi-wielding zombie girl's head!

  The beautiful fox girl jumped in midair, causing her white hair and white tail to flow in the wind… it was quite a beautiful scene which was etched itself deeply into Matsutani's, as well as the slightly farther away Nomura and Yuuko's, minds.

  *Boom!*

  The armored zombie girl collapsed on the ground with a deafening noise.

  The next moment, she backflipped and jumped back on to her feet again! She swept upwards with her odachi at an incredibly high speed!

  However, once again, she sliced through nothing but an afterimage.

  Miyabi had ducked and used a low horizontal kick that once again knocked the armored zombie girl onto the ground!

  The odachi-wielding zombie girl got back up again and used an upward slash followed by a diagonal slash!

  She still only hit afterimages.

  The fox-eared girl kicked the zombie girl into the ground for the third time in a row. It was clear that she had the solid advantage in melee combat even against such a powerful opponent!

  "Wow~ Cat onee-san is amazing!" the ghost child Ya-chan shouted out joyously.