Chapter 10: 10
---
Everything was fine, and the girl was safe.
If aftershocks affected the structure of the ruins, a secondary collapse could easily occur. Moving the concrete blocks and debris could also destabilize the delicate balance of the ruins.
Clearing the ruins caused by the earthquake was a very dangerous task, and Yuji had to be extremely careful.
"Huff, huff…"
Half an hour later, Yuji was panting, wiping the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand.
He was keenly aware of the limitations of his current physical body.
Yuji opened and closed his hands, shaking them to relieve the fatigue.
"Yuji-kun, why don't you take a break!"
Kasumigaoka Utaha could only judge what Yuji was doing by sound. She didn't know how much time had passed, but he had been clearing and moving concrete slabs non-stop. The sound of the blocks told her he must be exhausted by now.
What weighed most heavily on her was the helplessness and frustration of being unable to assist. If she could, she would never have chosen to just sit there and do nothing.
"It's okay. Just try not to talk much, and keep your mouth and nose covered. Everything will be fine soon. Give me another thirty minutes."
In the face of a major disaster, he felt powerless as a single person, and the rescue progress was painfully slow. But all he could do was persevere.
Bearing the pain and fatigue, Yuji continued to move the concrete blocks.
Creak…
"Damn it..."
"Are you okay?"
Hearing Yuji's exclamation from outside, Kasumigaoka Utaha asked with concern.
"I'm fine. Just slipped a bit, don't worry. We'll get you out soon."
His right foot had slipped on a tilted concrete slab. Fortunately, he wasn't carrying much and didn't fall on anything sharp — otherwise, he could have been seriously injured.
Forty minutes later, Yuji stared at the final and largest concrete block, estimating that Kasumigaoka's position was likely just behind it.
If it weren't for this block forming a triangular space with the room's corner, the girl would likely have been crushed.
"Kasumigaoka, I'm going to move the last slab. This is also the most dangerous step. You need to be prepared and protect your head with both hands. I can't guarantee that when I move this, it won't collapse or fall and hurt you..."
After a long wait, Kasumigaoka Utaha had completely calmed down.
Knowing she still had a chance to survive, and that someone was doing their best to rescue her, she found strength and refused to show any weakness that might worry Yuji.
"I understand, Yuji-kun. You can do it! No matter what happens, I'm grateful for your help."
Kasumigaoka curled up as tightly as she could in the corner, covering her head with her hands, ready to move as soon as the opportunity arose.
"Okay, I'm going to count to three..."
Yuji found a good position and gripped the slab with both hands.
"One…"
"Two…"
"Three…!"
Yuji gritted his teeth and used all his strength to push the slab away.
Rumble, rumble, rumble…
The heavy concrete blocks ground against the rubble with great noise, as small rocks rolled and scattered.
Bang…
The massive slab finally shifted and fell to the side.
The sunlight that broke through the darkness brought the warmth of hope.
She squinted her eyes. The blinding brightness made it hard to adjust to the outside light, but that light made her heart soar.
A silhouette blocked her view, and Kasumigaoka Utaha slowly adjusted her eyes to see the man who had saved her.
His dark blue clothes were covered in dust, his short black hair and face were grimy, but the outline of his face and his dark, clear eyes revealed his identity.
He wasn't exactly handsome, but his tall and upright figure was reassuring.
"Can you still stand?"
Yuji asked with concern.
For now, at least, Kasumigaoka was in good shape.
"Thank you. I… I think I can..."
Only after Yuji's question did she realize how awkward her current position was.
She tried to stand instinctively, without thinking much, but after barely a second on her feet, she gasped in pain.
"Ah…"
Her legs, numb from being stuck in the same position for too long, wouldn't cooperate, and she immediately lost balance.
She shut her eyes, bracing for pain — but instead, she was caught in a strong embrace.
"Good thing I caught you in time."
Yuji said.
If Kasumigaoka Utaha had fallen here, she could have gotten hurt again.
"Thank you… thank you..."
"Don't move..."
Yuji spoke firmly as she tried to pull away from his arms.
She froze.
"I'll help you get to the street. It's still dangerous here." Realizing she wouldn't recover quickly, Yuji decided to carry her out.
"Mm…"
Whether it was luck or misfortune, just as Yuji helped her up, he felt a tremor under his feet.
"Ahh, an earthquake..."
Kasumigaoka Utaha instinctively hugged Yuji tighter. She didn't care anymore about the physical closeness or how awkward it might seem.
Yuji did his best to keep his balance on the unstable rubble and carefully sped up his steps toward the nearby street.
"Okay, we're safe for now."
Once they stepped onto solid ground and the shaking stopped, Yuji let out a long breath of relief.
He was completely exhausted.
"Thank you, thank you so much. If it weren't for you, I—"
The girl's emotional words of gratitude reached his ears, sincere and heartfelt.
But Yuji...
"I..."
The girl had come into the world of Lonely Doomsday, and that brought responsibility. Yuji could only imagine what she'd gone through — both physically and mentally — under the crushing pressure of that collapsed building.
She had probably faced the cruelest possibility of death.
"No…" Kasumigaoka Utaha, realizing what Yuji was about to say, cut him off immediately. "This is the world's fault, not yours, Yuji-kun."
She hugged him even tighter.
She just didn't want Yuji to carry that psychological burden.
"It's the world's fault. So, Kasumigaoka… can you get down now?"
She froze for a moment — then realized her current position, her arms and legs wrapped tightly around Yuji's body, just like...
Suddenly, her face turned bright red, and she quickly tried to get down — but lost her balance.
Yuji caught her by the shoulder and pulled her back. They collided again.
"Be careful..."
"Mm…"
Her heart was pounding wildly, and she couldn't calm down for a long while.
---