[From here]

Down this corridor, out to the patio, and then through two more doors and they'd be in. He could see the map in his head and they were so close. Assuming nothing happened between here and the kitchen...there was a chance, and that made him all the more hopeful.

Perhaps, now, something could be accomplished and he would actually be able to protect the people he traveled with rather than hope he didn't get in the way.

"How long have you been here, then?" Long enough to think being hopeful was strange. But how long that took just depended on the person, really.

[From here.]

The door yielded almost too easily and opened at her second attempt with an audible crack. Tear instantly brought the fontech's beam into the interior, eyes and ears open for any aggressors. It wasn't until she was able to confirm their absence that the soldier finally shifted her attention to Mikado. "Alright," she started. "There should be some things here for your hand."

[from here]

Another door that closed and locked behind them. This time there were no other doors to draw the eye. Instead, the one thing Shiina had never wanted and never believed she would see was now in front of them. This time, she didn't hesitate to reach out and take Shou's arm.

"Sh-shou... it... it's really..." No, this was not happening. This couldn't be real and yet, there it was. She could even see it breathing where it lay on the pedestal. A mythological man-eating beast. They were all going to die.