Editing Apocalypse Witch:Volume1 Chapter3 (section)

===Part 10===

A loud splashing sound echoed from the lake filled with thick broken ice.

Karuta, Marika, and Aine were watching the source of the sound.

Karuta spoke while viewing the spreading ripples.

“How’s your arm, Aine?”

“Fine, Sacri-sama. This is not a problem. I have collected the severed arm, so it will automatically reattach once I return to your body. I will have to look after the Crystal Blossom at your chest during that time, though.”

“Come to think of it, our armor does recover from any damage when we have it withdraw,” said Marika. “Although it does seem like we’re breaking the law of conservation of mass when we do it.”

Then this was not a problem.

Only one Problem Solver remained: Anastasia Blast. But those Problem Solvers were all the strongest of some field. He definitely wanted to be in top form before attempting that final battle.

Also, Aine had lost her arm after shoving Marika out of the way on his orders. He would have felt bad if the damage was permanent.

Then a transmission from Student Council President Omotesandou Kyouka arrived via their Crystal Blossoms.

“Karuta-kuuun, Marika-chaaan? All the bangs and booms seem to have stopped, so has everything ended safely?”

“Yes, only Anastasia remains now.”

“Then I hate to ask this of you now, but can you help me out?”

“?”

“The previous avalanche completely buried the RV, so I’m kind of trapped inside. Now, it is large enough to have plenty of oxygen and I have enough of food and water to last a while, but being buried alive is not exactly great from a mental health perspective.”

Karuta and Marika exchanged a glance.

Then they looked around them again. The road and the forest had vanished below the white, so judging distance had become incredibly difficult. It felt like everything had been buried and the entire terrain had changed.

“Where did we park the RV?” he asked.

“I thought you would remember! Was there no landmark or anything!? And how many degrees below zero is it out here? I really don’t want to be stranded outside!!”

One-armed Aine did not seem to feel any pain as she slowly tilted her head.

The three of them turned their back on the lake – on the secret base someone had built – and got to work digging the Student Council President and the RV out of the pure white.

They had no more interest in the lake.

Or in what had sunk into its depths.

Utagai Karuta felt a strange smile rising within him when he found himself more worried about the doll’s missing arm than in the clump of mortar stuffed with what had once been the human being named Susannia Evans.

Was that because this instance of revenge had not required an actual death?

Or was he getting used to it, growing corrupted, and crossing the point of no return?

Not even he knew the answer to that question.