Chapter 36

If I May Lay Down This Burden Today (若し今日この荷物を降ろして善いのなら,) is the 36th chapter of the Bungo Stray Dogs manga.

Summary
Atsushi and Akutagawa launch their attack on Fitzgerald, but the latter easily stops them thanks to his maximum-powered ability. With less than a minute left before Moby Dick crashes on Yokohama, Dazai continues convincing Kyōka, saying that he can arrange for her a path of killing for a living, though he chooses to lecture her on the concept of one's right to waver, as if running aimlessly like stray dogs covered in mud.

Atsushi and Akutagawa land continuous assaults on Fitzgerald, but the Guild leader knocks off Atsushi the deck, causing Akutagawa to retrieve him and have Atsushi use Rashōmon as a bridge to propel himself and knock down Fitzgerald. Atsushi and Akutagawa combine their powers, with Rashōmon clad on the weretiger, and attack Fitzgerald. The two reach their limits, but they notice Fitzgerald able to stand up after the attack. However, he collapses after having consumed all of his ability. As he falls from the airship, Fitzgerald promises Zelda to bring her happiness once he returns for her.

Atsushi panics that the terminal control is still with Fitzgerald, but Akutagawa stops him and informs him that he snatched it earlier from their battle. At the last second, Atsushi presses the button to stop the airship's descent. Afterwards, Akutagawa kicks Atsushi, but he tells the latter that he shall not fight him with their current exhausted states.

At that point, a smiling man remotely presses a button that enables Moby Dick to descend once again. Akutagawa swipes away the control from Atsushi, only to find the control unresponsive and infers that something must have happened. As they head to the airship's bridge, they contact Dazai and inform him of the situation, which Kyōka hears. Melville arrives and tells them that someone has invaded from the outside and seized all controls, rendering it impossible to stop the descent by themselves. Kyōka joins their conversation and tells them that forcibly hitting the airship with something large can crash it before landing on ground. As such, she decides to crash the unmanned aircraft she is detained in to Moby Dick. Relieved, Atsushi asks Melville to grab some parachutes, as well as for Kyōka to escape in time. Kyōka informs him that she cannot, since her ankle is currently shackled.

Accepting her fate, Kyōka decides to sacrifice her life to save others in order for her to pass the Agency's entrance exam and thereby become a formal member. As Atsushi tries to stop her, Melville spots the incoming aircraft, and Akutagawa grabs Atsushi out of the Moby Dick. Before crashing, Kyōka thanks Atsushi and apologizes to him. As they witness the crash and land on the nearest ground, Atsushi wonders why Kyōka would do such thing. Akutagawa remarks how she was truly foolish instead of heeding his instruction of living in the darkness that might not have claimed her life in the process.

Dazai then arrives, telling Atsushi that Kyōka had abided by the Agency's moral code, won against herself, and saved the city. Moreover, Fukuzawa arrives, as Dazai continues to explain that the President's ability, All Men are Equal, allows him to adjust his subordinates' ability to a controllable extent. As he explains that Atsushi can use his ability in a partial transformation state because he is a member of the Agency, Dazai reminds him how Kyōka became a member of the Agency shortly before the crash. In other words, Kyōka was able to activate Demon Snow and slashed her shackles to escape on time.

Atsushi rushes to Kyōka and embraces her tightly, with Dazai revealing how everything went as planned for Kyōka's entrance exam. Meanwhile, Akutagawa calls Dazai and plans to prove himself, but Dazai merely stops him from doing so. He commends his former apprentice for having grown stronger, after which Akutagawa faints. From a distance, the rest of the Agency greets them; the large-scale war among abilities that involved Yokohama therefore concludes.