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https://www.40pbb.com/?p=771&lang=en
This is the second part of a trilogy.
I worked really hard on it (*’▽’).
However, I don’t have the energy to start the third one right now, so it might take a while before it’s ready.
(I might create it if I get a good enough response.)
Rina and Sophia came to rescue Karin.
However, what unfolded before their eyes was an unbearably tragic scene.
“Wh-why… how did this happen…?”
Sophia’s voice trembled.
I clenched my fists tightly as I gazed at Karin, still bound to the chair.
Karin, who had always been so lively, was now eerily silent, her expression devoid of any trace of life.
Beside her lay a large black object, glistening as it reflected the light, slick with blood.
I hesitantly reached out to it.
“Ah!?”
The moment my fingertips brushed against it, the black mass began to throb, pulsating as it swelled larger and larger.
It seemed to be a magical device that absorbed ether and grew in size.
“N-no way…!”
I gasped, my breath catching in my throat.
There was no way Karin would have betrayed her comrades.
Unable to extract any information from her, the interrogator must have forcibly made her swallow this device.
Her stomach swelled rapidly, the expanding magical object pushing her insides outward.
The device grew so large it could no longer pass through her throat, making it impossible for her to spit it out.
Eventually, her stomach burst, crushing her internal organs and tearing her body apart from the inside.
The mere thought of how much fear and pain she must have endured tightened my chest like a vice.
“…ni…”
A faint voice stirred deep within me.
“Ka-Karin…!?”
It wasn’t something I heard with my ears but a strange sensation, as though the voice resonated directly within my mind.
Karin’s will, still lingering in this place, was desperately trying to convey something to us.
“…ni…run…”
The words grew clearer, and my entire body froze in shock.
This was… This was Karin’s final warning to us, given at the cost of her life!
“Sophia, it’s dangerous here. We need to leave, now!”
“Leave? You expect me to abandon Karin!?”
Sophia’s tear-filled eyes glared at me, filled with anguish.
CLANG!!!
“Damn it, it’s a trap!!”
The only exit was now blocked by iron bars, leaving us with no way to escape.
“Y-you… you’re the one who killed Karin!!”
Sophia glared at the interrogator with piercing eyes, her fists clenched tightly as if ready to lunge at him at any moment. But the restraints binding her prevented any movement.
“Rebels like you have no right to live.”
The interrogator sneered coldly as he casually rolled a black sphere between his fingers.
“This is a magical device that absorbs the ether from within the body.”
“Ah… aah!!”
One of the interrogator’s subordinates forcefully pried my mouth open.
“You already know what happens when someone swallows this, don’t you?”
The interrogator smirked and slowly approached me, the black sphere gleaming ominously in his hand.
Before I could react, the sphere was shoved into my mouth.
“Pwah!!!” … Clink… Roll, roll, roll…
(The black sphere was spat out, hit the ground, and rolled away.)
I immediately spat out the black sphere and glared at the interrogator.
“Hmm, you’ve got some guts, it seems.”
The interrogator sneered as he picked up the black sphere from the floor and shoved it deep into my throat.
“Gah… aah…!!”
The black mass lodged in my throat, cutting off my breath.
My body convulsed uncontrollably, beyond my will.
“But you’ll be joining your comrade soon enough.”
With a cold smirk, the interrogator pressed the black sphere deeper into my throat with his fingers.
“Guh… ugh…!!”
It was as if he was enjoying the sight of my agony.
“Stop it!!”
Rina shouted in desperation.
“If you’re going to hurt her, then face me instead!!”
The interrogator chuckled darkly.
“Hah, how amusing.”
THUD!!
“Gah… guh… ugh…!”
I was struck hard in the stomach, and the impact forced the black sphere out of my mouth.
The interrogator picked it up and, with a cold sneer, brought it toward Sophia’s mouth.
“If I die here, you’ll regret it… I swear… ugh…!”
“Gulp!!”
(The sound of Sophia swallowing the black sphere.)
The mysterious magical device slid down Sophia’s throat.
“How about this? I’ll set you and Rina free.”
“What!?”
Sophia let out a gasp of surprise.
The interrogator smirked, clearly enjoying her reaction.
“It’s only a matter of time before you die anyway. I thought I might as well have some fun.”
With a look of amusement, the interrogator released both Sophia and me from our restraints.
“Take this!!”
Whoosh!!
(The sound of slicing through the air.)
“Whoa!?”
The interrogator staggered backward, caught off guard by Sophia’s sudden roundhouse kick.
“Rina!! Let’s go!!”
Sophia grabbed my hand firmly and dashed toward the exit.
“THROB!!!!”
(The sound of the magical device suddenly swelling inside her stomach.)
“Guh… gaaahhh!!”
A sinister sound echoed from Sophia’s stomach.
Her body trembled as she clutched her abdomen tightly with both hands, struggling to endure the pain.
“Heh, consider this payback for earlier,” the interrogator sneered.
THUD!!!
“Ahh!!”
Sophia was shoved by the interrogator and collapsed onto the floor.
“Go on, run away if you can. That is, if your body still moves.”
“Haa… haa… I will never… give up…!”
“Sophia!”
I desperately pressed against Sophia’s swelling abdomen, trying to keep it under control.
“Ugh… I won’t… lose… to something like this…!”
“Don’t move!! Don’t push yourself!!”
Sophia’s abdomen swelled unnaturally, pressed outward by the expanding magical device inside her.
The bulge rolled from right to left, shifting unpredictably, causing her body to jolt violently with each movement.
“Urrgh… gahhh!!”
(The sound of Sophia struggling and gagging as if to vomit.)
“It seems you had the same lunch as Karin,” the interrogator sneered, his voice dripping with malice.
He watched Sophia’s suffering with clear amusement, his cold gaze fixed on her trembling form.
“Ugh… this is… getting bad…!”
Sophia’s voice quivered, her strength faltering as her body neared its limit.
“Sophia, hold on! Don’t give up! I’ll figure something out… I promise!”
My voice shook as I desperately tried to encourage her, my heart sinking at the sight of her pain.