In the mountains.
In the wastelands.
At the castle walls.
Fushi fights the Nokkers all by himself.
But his exhaustion has reached its peak.
The three of them have died.
I'm sorry.
I wasn't up to the task.
But it isn't over yet.
I know.
I'm going to murder all the Nokkers.
Three Eternal Warriors
The ammunition's been loaded!
The trebuchet's on the move, too.
Fire!
No wonder...
It's Fushi-san!
Fushi-san's back!
We're in luck!
Fushi knew what his greatest enemy at the moment was.
It was unconsciousness.
The warnings often came in the form of blurry vision and bleeding.
He would immediately transform in order to recover.
But sometimes, it would happen again as quickly as five seconds later.
With repeated changes, he attempted to regain the powers
of those who had come to their deaths in many ways.
Kai.
Messar.
Hairo.
Fushi tried to make use of the trio's strengths on his own.
A crossbow can't shoot that fast.
How is he doing that?
Fire at Western Battlement Nine!
The powder box is going to catch fire!
Water!
Put it out!
Damn it!
It's collapsing!
Fushi doesn't realize what he's losing.
But he does notice when something isn't right.
Immediately, he switches to Hairo's body and assesses the situation.
That body was more stable than any other.
Because he could shut out pain,
it allowed him to remain conscious the longest,
meaning he could focus more on the Nokkers in front of him.
But there was a downside.
Because he didn't feel pain, he didn't notice injuries, either.
Or when, where, and how people were suffering.
It's their trebuchets again!
Our big guns can't reach them!
It allowed him to push his limits,
but because it wasn't well-suited for protecting himself and others,
he had to switch after some time.
This heavy armor was a good fit for Kai's well-built body.
Kai's weapon could precisely slice through the cores inside massive vessels.
Messar's body had nothing to speak of.
His heavy, draggy clothing couldn't have possibly been meant for fighting.
But there was a reason for that weight.
It became a new weapon.
What's this?
It's from Fushi-san!
That weapon, which could be loaded
with unlimited ammo thanks to his ability, proved incredibly useful.
But it didn't turn the battle in their favor.
The Nokkers, who had until then just barely been kept on the outside of the walls,
suddenly bared their fangs.
It came from far beyond Fushi's extremities.
Along with the intention of laughing at Fushi.
The Nokkers were one step ahead.
They had allowed their trebuchets to be destroyed
so that they could create a void in Fushi's sensory field.
Fushi had lost the boy and one of his game pieces.
And yet...
His game pieces revive.
How...
All three of you died.
Didn't we tell you?
We're immortal, too.
I don't have time to be dreaming.
I gotta wake up.
You aren't dreaming!
Listen up, Fushi.
You're coming with us all the way over there,
and we're stopping the freaking Nokkers' shells.
Fushi-san, as soon as you notice us dead, recreate us and cut us off immediately.
We'll come back to life.
Huh?
But that won't bring people back to life.
It brings us back to life, though.
We should head back.
If they start firing at Ellon and Fushura, send me there.
Please support the water swords, too.
If it isn't too much to ask.
Wait a second.
I don't get it.
Think of us as infinitely resurrectible game pieces.
You can treat us as roughly as you'd like.
That's why we're here.
What a relief.
Please work.
I'm going to be pissed if this doesn't work.
The battle's just beginning.
Right. They're firing shells at the city.
Be careful.
I know.
Are they dead?
Thank the Wise Man!
Good.
I made it.
I'm still flustered.
These are your new allies.
Allies.
I've been waiting for years.
I've been searching for years.
Deathless allies.
I wonder what kind of face I'm making right now.
Every Nokker in existence has gathered here.
Looks like they're serious now.
It's finally getting fun.
I feel them...
The three of them!
Fushi knew what he had to do.
First, he would track the trio's motions and assist them.
When they died, he would remake them in an appropriate place.
Kai would be sent near the enemy trebuchets or where a fire had taken hold.
Hairo, to places where a lot of pain had occurred.
Messar, to places overrun by the Nokkers.
The Nokkers coming from the sky were Fushi's weak spot.
He could capture most of them.
But...
Rine district.
Done sealing the windows.
Where are you?
Let's go that way.
What are you doing?!
Get inside immediately!
I'm looking for... I'm looking for a girl.
Quit bumbling and go!
The three immortals became shields of flesh.
They spent their own lives in exchange for those who were supposed to die.
And immediately, they were resurrected.
We're practically cheating.
The soldiers who saw it happen were all confused.
Let's go crush those shitballs, damn it!
The three game pieces that could be brought back endlessly were extremely powerful.
At the same time as he fought, Fushi also had to strengthen his defenses,
both inside the city and out.
I'm only spreading my roots out beyond Renril right now.
It's a sparse sieve.
Iron plates were set out all across the ground.
As for the shells being fired from beyond Fushi's senses...
It would be necessary to destroy the trebuchets firing them.
When am I ever going to reach the enemy?
By expanding the underground roots even further,
he could destroy them from below as always.
But it takes time to spread roots.
He had to work on defending Renril at the same time.
I see!
That ought to work.
Is that it?
Let's go, Hairo, Messar!
Right!
Is everyone all right?
Yeah. Not a scratch.
Thank goodness.
I can't sense you from the base, so I was worried.
We can't let our guard down yet.
I fear they'll attack again using the same tactic.
You're right. Let's get back.
How, though?
We'll have to walk all night to get back to Renril.
Oh, right...
I can't send you back since you aren't dead.
Is this loaded?
Huh? Yeah.
I'll be right back.
I'll call for a horse.
Dude!
That was too sudden! That brat!
I see.
It's just a brief moment of pain.
You know what to do, Fushi-san.
Wait, Kai!
Do me first.
Here. Right here.
Be sure to get it done in one shot.
Four days since the battle began.
Death.
And rebirth.
Over and over.
Send me to Ellon district.
Do the thing, yeah?
All right.
Death would sometimes be used as a means of traversing great distances.
This is terrible!
Would you mind burning it for me?
Bodies were done away with immediately to stop Nokkers from being born.
An accumulation of waste also meant that Fushi's senses would be dulled.
Processing waste was almost as important as protecting lives.
The garbage produced by the citizens was carried away by soldiers.
It's been a day since warnings have been sounded in this district.
How long will it be until the city is safe? Three days? A month?
Are the citizens waiting indoors able to bear it?
The Great Wise Man is providing them with meals.
At the very least, we can rest assured that they won't starve.
Princess!
Do you have a moment?
Three times.
That was a call.
Kahaku!
What's wrong?
He was being suspicious...
So we restrained him.
When we were retreating from Western Battlement Nine,
this man... Kahaku... said that his left arm was warning us not to go,
because the Nokkers would focus their attacks there.
We were there helping our men.
That's when...
The Nokkers attacked us right at Battlement Nine!
I've already apologized for that!
That doesn't make it any better!
There's nothing you can do to make it right now!
It's fine.
It's because I was weak.
Please don't shout.
Sorry. We woke you up.
What happened to her arm?
Kahaku did it!
He cut off Yuiss's arm!
It was my left arm!
An enemy Nokker had infected her!
That doesn't mean you can just lop it off like you did!
You should have protected her instead, then!
What...
Stop, Kamu.
It's because I let him take care of everything by himself.
I'm sorry.
Please don't apologize, Fushi.
This is my problem.
You're admitting it, then!
You're with the Nokkers!
Huh?
What are you talking about?!
I'm obviously not!
I'm not clever enough to do such a thing!
Kai-san, we're allies, right?
We are, aren't we?
Yes, of course.
Then please, untie me!
This is a waste of time!
It'll be okay.
I always believe things will turn out for the better.
But it would help if you'd stay put for now.
I get it.
Bon told you to do that, didn't he?
You're being fooled.
That man hasn't changed since he was in Uralis.
He's just trying to use Fushi to elevate his own status.
I do think that's bad.
Neither you nor Bon get it.
You don't know for what, or for whom, you're fighting.
God created us humans to be perfect.
That's what the scriptures say.
So what about Fushi?
Why is he different?
The answer is simple: it's because he's cursed.
By that black demon.
Black demon?
Hairo-san, Messar-san, and Kai-san...
The three of you have pledged loyalty to that demon.
What the hell?
A new kind of Nokker?
He's a looter.
Let's leave him be.
Messar, I have an urgent matter.
What are you doing?
You're supposed to stay inside!
The king is calling for you for some reason.
Why do you guys have to protect the people?
It's because that demon told you to fight, isn't it?
Isn't that where your suffering began?
I don't know.
You don't need to put up with this.
You can quit if it pains you, you know.
You're the only one in this world who can't escape the pain of living.
Isn't it unfair?
You're the only one with this curse!
You can pretend you don't hear the screaming.
You can shut your eyes to ugliness.
You don't need to speak platitudes.
Are you telling me not to feel anything?
I can't do that.
Messar!
Personally, I don't think your appeal is a bad one.
What is it that we're so desperate to protect?
If not lives, then what?
What I want to protect is his humanity.
It says, "March is doing great!"
Preview
Not even Fushi knows the secrets of resurrection.
In response to Kahaku's questioning, Bon opens his mouth with a heavy heart.
Everything to protect what must be protected.
As the battle reaches a critical state, danger approaches Princess Alme.
What You Want to Protect