Hidan no Aria - Volume 16 - Chapter 6

Volume 16: Gévaudan of the Star Fortress

Chapter 6: Love from the Stratosphere– Stratosphillia

[START]

S-C-A-T-T-E-R I-T!

–This is–

…Hysteria Mode…?

That’s what it is. No doubt.

It happened. It happened!

That’s it exactly.

That is– Hysteria Agonizante.

It was the form of「Death Hysteria Mode」 that manifested when Sherlock shot my Nii-san through the heart.

Drowning, then going into cardiac arrest, I would have died.

For humans, on the heart becomes non-responsive, brain death occurs mere minutes later.

At the moment of death, my own DNA played its own trump card.

Even if the body dies, the soul does not give up.

It will reject death. Hysteria Mode–!

「…!…」

I snapped to consciousness with 30 times the normal amount of neurotransmitters.

Nothing around me had changed, but I can move! If only for an instant.

But only for a brief moment.

Even if I used Ouka to smash and break the cage open, I wouldn’t be able to slip out.

Generally speaking, if the body dies, even in Hysteria mode, in that moment, all movement ceases.

But now is not the time to hesitate.

Therefore–

It is my body, after all.

My heart.

I’ll ask you–please work again. You have worked hard for me for 17 years, and you’ve had a break… but that is long enough!

–Using this new technique!

I didn’t know if I could, but I was able to.

At the instant of my death, I put the self-resuscitation technique that I had devised in that moment.

An underwater Ouka resuscitation–

–A fate reversal–!!

I struck my right chest and the left side of my back with my hands at the same time– Two subsonic blows combined to impart an impact shock of about Mach 2 to my heart.

–*Ring!*–!

This wasn’t as simple as a cardiac massage and defibrillation. The heart knocks against the ribs like a bouncy ball, violently restarting a heartbeat and forcing new coursing blood to pump through it.

With a *Thump-ity Thump!*, my heart restarted, the muscle pulsed, and my eyelids fluttered open under the waves.

My body hadn’t even taken any damage. This sudden reversal was an application of G-3’s『Organ Through』. Rather, it was the opposite. Striking below the breastbone, the shock is communicated to the heart through the costal cartilage.

I should destroy the metal cage with Ouka without another delay–

Cocking my arm, I brought it back to my shoulder.

But– it wasn’t necessary.

The cage was broken. No, the cage was already destroyed.

Lisa’s arm that had fallen through the bars as I died… with a creaking sound…

What the heck…!?

「–I, hate God…」

Whose… voice is that?

Lisa, is that you?

Underwater, the water distorted the voice, but it was Lisa’s.

But Sarah’s arrow killed you.

「You gave me this power, God…」

At that moment, Lisa’s arm had transformed into a white animalistic arm.

Swelling and stretching, she changed into some kind of beasts that I had never seen in any kind of story book.

Expanding inside the steel bars–*Snap!*

The welded joints popped.

While gazing upward, I picked up the Beretta and Durandal at my feet, fastened them at my waist, then grabbed a hold of the split bars.

Then clambering out of the cage, I vomited out the seawater I had taken in.

After a violent coughing spell–

I took a large breath.

I-I need a few minutes. To catch my breath. I had just died.

『–Launch in one minute–!』

Flustered, Everita continued her hysteric countdown.

She must intend to destroy both of us with the unstoppable launch of the V-2.

The rain began to downpour.

Amidst the roar of the large droplets hitting the sea, I strained through the monochrome scene…

In front of my eyes, stood Lisa where she shouldn’t have been.

「…Li, sa…」

She was already much larger than me–

「Master… Please leave Lisa…! I-I…!」

Lisa said, mid-transition between human and wolf–

「…The Beast… of Gévaudan…!」

In agony, she stared at the Moon that shone on the horizon through a rift in the clouds.

The transformation… steadily continued. Becoming a huge wolf.

It looked like something that I had seen before. At the Yokohama Landmark Tower. And the Tokyo SkyTree. It was just like Vlad and Hilda’s metamorphosis…!

Lisa’s was Vlad’s rival–what I had heard on the Acapulco Galleon immediately came back to mind.

「…The Warhawks… knew about Lisa’s inherited power. That must be why she has such a high rank in I.U. But… there was something they did not know. To trigger Lisa’s transformation, there are two keys… Of the two, the one that they did not know was…『Agonizante』…」

–The heavenly wolf, The Beast of Gévaudan–

Lisa had inherited the fabled legendary beast’s blood of her family that has assimilated the DNA of many strong persons.

This metamorphosis must mean that Gévaudan is related to Vlad and Patra.

Back with Vlad, his transformation was triggered by Beta-Endorphins, and Lisa must be the same– and it was likely triggered by the same near-death experience that I had experienced.

But– was it that GRENEDA had forced her into a dilemma to bring out her fighting ability?

REPORT THIS AD

If that is the case, they must have been doing to determine what the conditions to trigger her transformation into a mythical beast were.

「…The final thing required to change Lisa into the heavenly wolf is the full moon. The reflected sunlight with the infrared portion of the spectrum attenuated… striking the retina… is that last key…!」

Lisa hated being hurt; she hated the picture of the full moon in Bourtange, and every animal from the dog, black panther, and crow were strangely afraid of her–The Beast of Gévaudan. Lisa had told me about it at the festival.

Several prior incidents flashed through my mind, one after another, in Hysteria Mode Agonizante.

「–Th-thirty seconds!」

Everita called out in distress as Lisa’s height–no, her length grew to 5 metres.

「…Now Lisa can see it. The full moon. Before long, Lisa will lose all reason and kill and devour her allies… No one can control Lisa when she turns into The Beast of Gévaudan…!」

「Lisa…!」

「…I don’t want to do it. But if it’s for Master… I will surely exchange my life to displace this weapon above us. Now then, please run. Right now… there are only 10 seconds remaining…! Run far away from Lisa…!」

Transforming in a large golden wolf, Lisa–

The last vestiges of humanity in her eyes… spilled tears, and she spoke no more words.

A second later, the large golden wolf’s expression turned feral.

Exactly like a mythical beast.

『–10 seconds!』

But…

Run…?

…I can’t do that. Lisa.

I am your master. When I became your master, you set laid out a condition, didn’t you?

–『Please save Lisa from the things that would hurt her』you said.

So I will save you.

From GRENEDA’s clutches.

And not only that–

And also from the blood of The Beast of Gévaudan that torments you…!

Through my whole body–

No longer Agonizante, but Berserker and Regalamente began pulsing.

Something was being taken away, by GRENEDA and The Beast of Gévaudan.

You can’t take Lisa…!

At that moment–

『–Ignition! Full burn–!』

A wreath of flame began to swirl under the V-2 overhead–and jetted out!

And I– coincidentally with the transformed Lisa, looked up.

In that instant, an orange flame stretched down from the nozzle–

There was nowhere to run.

The water directly beneath the V-2 was no good. The weight of the V-2 was 12.5 tonnes. Until the mass has lifted off, everything 3 metres below the engine will be vaporised, burning through to the sand bar below.

But–

–*Bang!*

Drawing Durandal, I kicked off with Ouka–seeing the flame at the same time, Lisa made a decision based on animalistic instinct–

Kicking off the cage that appeared to serve the purpose of a thrust deflection plate, we flew away on opposite sides.

–Directly above, toward the V-2’s shell…

The kerosene and liquid oxygen combined to form a hybrid fuel, forming a scarlet flame that reach downward. In an instant, the water directly beneath vaporised in an explosion of steam.

Caught up in the shock, I was buffeted by the wind–

*Screech!* I used Durandal and Lisa dug her claws into the shell of the V-2.

Recalling Everita’s words at launch, GRENEDA might have known that incurring a deadly wound by trying to save me might be a key to trigger her transformation to 『The Beast of Gévaudan』.

Wanting to burn me to death and simultaneously trigger the transformation, but the flames were a moment too late.

As I hung from the sword the pierced the frozen surface of the V-2, I saw Lisa through the curtain of steam–

*Creak* *Cr-creak!*… Her claws grasping the steel plates firmly anchoring her large body in place.

Those emerald colour eyes–

The glared at me through the vapour.

Those eyes were no longer human.

They are the eyes of a mythical beast whose eyes see everything that moves as an enemy.

「…Lisa…!」

As we both clung to the V-2… *Rumble!* *R-rumble!*… the rocket rose slowly.

Ice peeled away from the surface, exposing the original chequered pattern once more. Smoke engulfed the entire body as a raging hellfire burned below…!

Lisa and I were alive, and we could see the members of GRENEDA panicking on the beach–

Sarah had drawn her bow, but Everita and the witches of Regiment Hex had pinned her down.

The V-2 rocket intended to bring about an end to DEEN was GRENDA’s pride and joy. It was fitted with a chemical warhead and piloted by Katze. There was no way that they were going to let it be shot down.

Looking down– I saw that we were leaving GRENEDA behind as the rocket rose.

The rocket reached an altitude equal to its own height and steadily continued accelerating.

However, due to the unexpected weight, its flight trajectory was already inclined. Toward the sea.

「–!」

*Boom!* , a destructive sound went up.

I instinctively flinched from the sound that came from a black part of the V-2’s body.

The V-2 began a gentle spin, as Lisa’s knife-like claws stretched around, attempting to turn me into mincemeat.

The arrow that was in her back was gone, and from the wound a thin red smoke wafted up. It looked just like the time I had shot Vlad. Lisa recovers rapidly from wounds and disease, and in order to support rapid regeneration– she must have a demon’s organ.

In her human form, it does not seem to be terribly effective, but her mythical beast form had accelerated its function.

Releasing while she tried to knock me off that that this was my last chance to jump down– I dug Durandal once more into a white part of the V-2’s exterior.

The surface of the V-2 was covered in black and white checks.

I clung to a white part, Lisa to a black–as we faced each other.

Pushing its way through the incessant downpour, the V-2 continued to accelerate with no sign of slowing.

So it’s like that too…!

I haven’t forgotten.

The time at I.U. that I rode on the exterior of an in-flight ICBM to follow Sherlock. Following Aria.

Like that time with Aria, Lisa cannot get off either. The situation is the same– but this time is much more difficult. In comparison, Aria saw me as an ally, and Lisa sees me as an enemy.

The V-2 launched amidst chaos–

From the start, we had deviated from the originally planned course. Katze must be panicking inside.

But this rocket is a ballistic missile. You can’t just stop it like a car. Now that the engine has been lit, there is no other option but to fly.

By feeling, right now– we just passed 100 kph. By eye, I’d call our altitude 80 metres. As tall as a skyscraper. There’s no jumping off. And we are only rising higher. Only higher. On this altered trajectory.

–*Roooar!*–

With a roar, Lisa swiped at me with her claws 2, 3 times.

Dodging each attack– each time Lisa struck the surface of the V-2 she impaired its performance.

This isn’t good. I have to dodge…!

Ripping through the air with turbulence, we continued upward toward the clouds–and I furrowed my eyebrows.

If she continued to strike the rocket body, she’d destroy it.

If we crash with the chemical warhead attached, it will all be over at once. For me, Lisa, and everyone, including Katze.

Lisa reared a clawed limb backward, aiming to smash the place where Katze had boarded the rocket–

「–Stop it, Lisa!」

I fired 3 shots with my Beretta to graze her claws. The claws are the tips of her fingers.

In humans and animals, there are a concentration of nerves at the tips of the fingers. If hurt, a sharp pain travels up the arm. That’s why when it comes to large animals, the accepted practice is to aim for the eyes, then the claws.

Lisa observed my line of fire and moved her forelimb deftly to avoid the 3 shots.

Then without killing any of the momentum, from the other side of the V-2–

Then in the next moment, she reached around the opposite side of the rocket to swipe at my back.

「–!」

Then using Durandal as a fulcrum, I make a Cleat Water Fall-fuelled back kick–

Unable to strike a woman in the face, I kicked her arm back at the shoulder.

Atop the gentling spinning V-2, Lisa has the balance of an animal–

In Hysteria Mode, an aerial dogfight out of film unfolded.

Amidst the violent air currents, even the smallest mistaken movement will result in a fall. This fight will demand the utmost concentration and efforts of Hysteria Mode.

–*Whoom!*–

There was a shock like breaking through the surface of water from below.

Absorbed in the fight, I noticed a moment later that we had risen to the level of the clouds.

Suddenly, we were surrounded by thick, black clouds– the pressure of the vapour struck Lisa and me, jolting us. *Ratatatata!* A loud rattling sound went up from several places on the V-2. Accompanied with a shrill creak, several pieces of the partially destroyed shell peeled of the body of the rocket like puzzle pieces.

Asbestos filler scattering, the bare internals of the rocket and liquid oxygen tank were exposed– I caught a brief look at a pipe running from a tank containing hydrogen peroxide or something that was burning with a small flame.

No good, I don’t want to fight here… rather than that…!

To lead Lisa around, I began scaling the side of the rocket– using hand and foot holds on the damaged exterior, I used the unbreakable legendary blade, Durandal, to stab into the rocket shell amid the howling wind– Climbing up slowly in a spiral pattern.

With a *Whoosh!*, we broke through into moonlight. The ridiculously heavy rain stopped, and the air that had been damp until now, suddenly dried. We were above the clouds.

We had just past 1 km in altitude. And the V-2 was still accelerating. Our speed was now 500 kph. Twice the speed of a shinkansen. Continuing on the slanted trajectory, we were headed toward the sea in the west. The eastern sky at daybreak was tinged with indigo, giving the illusion of being in outer space.

–*Roooar!*–

With a howling scream Lisa readied her claws–

Using my Beretta at long-range, and then a knee strike and side kick with Ouka and Clear Fall Water at close range, I redirected them.

To dismantle the it– the warhead at the tip of the V-2.

At the tip of the cone of the V-2 that looked like a star– the shell was being peeled away according to my plan. Using the claws Lisa aimed at me.

Our altitude… is much higher than the time with the ICBM from I.U.

We must have passed 800 kph. Breathing is becoming impossible,

Reaching this final state–

I can see it. The warhead.

With only a glimpse of it, my Hysteria Mode understood its construction.

The air temperature was falling, and a liquid that ran on my skin and Lisa’s hair began to freeze white. It began to run down toward the lower half of the structure, stretching out… clearly the source of the flame inside was not the fuel injector.

Due to the destruction that had been wrought, hybrid fuel was leaking and burning orange– no, a tail of golden light stretched out behind the V-2. The tail grew longer by the second.

…!

Looking down, a sea of clouds was far below. We were at a high altitude, looking over the clouds that covered the entire Netherlands. By eye, it looked like 9 km. We were already higher than Mt. Everest. We had already reached the troposphere– before long, if things continue, we’ll reach the stratosphere.

The V-2 is a weapon that climbs to 90 km and drops into enemy territory at Mach 2. It was the first object in all of human history to reach outer space. Despite being partially destroyed, it continued to accelerate and climb.

Before long, if I don’t do anything… we’ll truly reach outer space…!

–!–

I no longer heard Lisa roaring.

We were caught between heaven and earth– and the air had become so thing as to not carry sound very well.

Our speed was… 1,000 kph…!

The V-2 rocket was already faster than a speeding bullet–

On its surface… Lisa’s movements were sluggish. I was also unable to move. The two of us clung on with all our might.

The whole body of the rocket that had frozen over began to crackle and heat up.

At these high speeds, the friction between the rocket body and the air began to heat things up.

…No…more…!

The unburnt fuel the leaked from the tanks created a streaking tail of golden light that only grew longer.

It seemed we would really reach outer space–

–Before I knew it, we had levelled off.

Due to Lisa’s damage, the V-2 must have reached the apex of its trajectory at a lower sub-orbital altitude.

Amidst the sub-sonic gale, I–

Had already stabbed Durandal into the tip of the rocket.

Then, leaving it to vibrate, I let it destroy the dispersal mechanism for the chemical warhead. Afterwards, I thrust my flattened fingers with Ouka as I had done when I had fallen in my battle with Watson at the SkyTree. 2, then 3 times.

Recalling the bomb defusal in Hong Kong, I was resolved to disarm it–

In actuality–

The chemical warhead containing the cyanide concentrate loosened and slipped free of the V-2.

Fighting the wind pressure that pushed my neck downwards, I looked back–

The small glass containers of the chemical agent spread out like a line of grapes and fell into the trailing tail of fire, burning up.

Any residue would fall here, far from land– and through the torrential rains, into the sea.

It’s fortunate that water will neutralise the chemical agent.

To start with…

I had been able to halt GRENEDA’s attack. I was able to save DEEN.

As for saving myself– I could think of no possible way.

…Then…

I–

–spoke, although I didn’t know if I could be heard or not.

This powerless girl idolises me as her master–

Although now she had the form of a large mythical beast, it was Lisa who clung to the V-2.

「…It’s okay, Lisa. It will be alright…」

Lisa–her emerald coloured eyes glared back at me.

Her fighting instinct worn out; I edged my way closer across the surface of the V-2.

「Even I… can’t do anything.」

Beyond my voice… I spoke my heart.

At the brink of supersonic speed, my words fell far behind.

In order to disarm the warhead, I drew my Beretta, and the air friction caused flames to flare up around my left hand. Lisa bared a fang at me.

–*Shing!*–

Pain like several bladed objects stabbed into my left arm–

「No one will betray you anymore, Lisa. Now then… let my hand go.」

Lisa had bitten down…

And just as she was about to eat my left arm….

…

Just like that, she stopped.

This movement–transformed into a beast, her instincts didn’t realise that killing me would do nothing to save her.

But I want to believe.

That my heart reached Lisa–

Reached whatever humanity was left inside of her.

Lisa…

Before long, a smile reached my eyes, and Lisa stared back–

Then… my arm was released from her mouth.

Her actions were gentle, almost as if some of her humanity had returned.

「…Alright. You’re a good girl, Lisa. Now… let’s go back. To your home country.」

The sound of my gunshots faded, as I shot a rapid-fire series of bullets. I hit the fins of the V-2 to alter its level flightpath–rotating the control surface the alter its angle.

Because of the non-ideal fuel mixture, the golden tail stretching out behind the V-2 began to shorten, and we began to slow down, tipping toward the sea of clouds below.

Illuminated by moonlight because of the change in angle, Lisa’s concealed figure gradually became visible again.

A mythical beast, a large golden wolf–

She was beautiful.

「You’re beautiful, Lisa.」

As I muttered that– With a *Whoosh!*, we cut through the surface of the clouds.

As we descended, we crossed through a layer of water vapour like those depicted in illustrations of Heaven. With each second, the clouds thickened, obscuring the illumination of the moonlight–nearby, though, the sky was golden– turned that colour by the hybrid fuel still leaking from the V-2 and stretching out many times longer than the rocket itself.

REPORT THIS AD

Then the pattering sound of raindrops blended with the howl of wind–

We dropped into the torrential downpour below the clouds.

Our downward angle had already exceeded 30 degrees. Assisted by gravity, the V-2 began to accelerate once more in its dive.

–*Cl-lang!* *Cl-lang!* *Cl-lang!*–!

I shot the rudder control again with my Beretta. Then the V-2 turned and began flying east…

Through the downpour and darkness, no shoreline was in sight.

We were in the sky over the Atlantic.

The V-2 will not reach it. Land, that is.

There’s no way to avoid a splashdown crash.

As for where we should go… I was going to change course for GRENEDA’s secret hide-out, Dragon Harbour, but now I don’t know.

Even with m Hysteria Mode can’t see a way.

Like a golden shooting star, the V-2 began pointing down.

It also began to pick up speed. Approaching supersonic speeds again.

If the V-2 continues to fall… it will smash into pieces. Along with me, Lisa, and Katze.

As that occurred–

…Awooooo–…!

It was Lisa–the king of beasts, The Beast of Gévaudan!

Is the air even dense enough to carry the sound…?

She raised a cry. Twice. Then a third time.

Coincident with the roar, there was a popping sound. A black plated portion on the upper half of the V-2 separated from it– a capsule shaped object with a seat inside rushed into the air.

Seeming to have finally given up on the attack, Katze activated her emergency escape mechanism. Rather, I’m quite surprised that she hasn’t given up until now.

Looking through the hatch at Katze, she was seated in a position almost hugging her knees– she was frantically pulling back on the control stick.

Then with a *Whoopsh!*…!

A parachute unfurled from the capsule and into the air… whereupon Lisa grabbed my shoulder in her mouth.

Then pushing off from the V-2, she leapt from the V-2 toward the capsule Katze was piloting.

「…!」

Durandal did not come away from the V-2–

If the V-2 were likened to a living creature, Lisa has a habit of lunging for the viscera.

Holding me in her mouth, Lisa clung to the capsule with *Screech!* of her claws…! Then separating from the rocket, we tumbled into the sky.

「…!」

I looked into the capsule and Katze’s non-eyepatched eye widened in shock.

Then as our eyes met, I winked to her in greeting.

…*Flap!* *Flap!* *Flap!* …!

In the torrential rain, 3 swastika marked parachutes unfurled.

Then, the V-2 that was the source of our nightmarish experience fell away below us.

With a rush or air, a vapour cone formed around it. It appeared to have reaches supersonic speeds in its fall.

But gauging our relative velocities in that moment by eye–

Even with the parachute, we were falling at a dangerous rate. Because of Lisa’s and my extra weight, we weren’t slowing. In that case… I’m not certain about Lisa, but Katze and I will surely die from the impact of a splashdown.

This is gravity– with the entire earth as you enemy, even Hysteria Mode can’t fight against it.

Gritting my teeth, I fixed my eyes on the black surface of the water…

From below the surface…

–*Blub!* Blub!*…!

Something terribly large rose up.

It was like the time I had seen I.U., but this was smaller than that…

Oi…!

Oi! Oi!

Is this for real!

…A whale…!?

The largest animal in the world, a blue whale, was breaching–

Jumping up from the water’s surface. Coming up to meet us.

Then dodging the V-2 it surged its gargantuan body, farther and farther out of the water–*Whoosh!*–!

Still carrying me in her mouth, Lisa dropped from the capsule onto it.

Then– without a seeming second though, she arced through the air to land on the whale’s torso. Slipping down it exactly like a playground slide.

「–…!」

*Swish!*–!

It was still coated in seawater–

Then we began to fall downward with the whale at a slower rate as Lisa slid at angle. Past the fins, toward the tail, winding around across its body–

Still carried in the mouth, I hit the water, sending up a spray of foam.

…This…!

I had told Lisa about that in Bourtange… it

About the time and what had happened when I had fallen from the zeppelin airship with Katze.

I had fallen at a slant rather than straight down. Lisa must have remembered how I had managed to escape death from the fall. Then with animals nearby– she used the whale to accomplish a safe splashdown. In her role as『the king of beasts』.

That must mean–

Lisa regained some of her humanity. Because she was able to remember my story.

At the festival in Bourtange I had seen how to open the human heart of The Beast of Gévaudan… it was a bit embarrassing to recall, but I probably just proved in the sky a while ago.

「–Haa!」

Still in Lisa’s mouth, we popped back up from underneath the ocean… Then after being released, I dog-paddled over to Lisa, grabbed a hold of her fur, and pulled myself up on to her back.

Suddenly released from our combined weight, Katze’s capsule– was just able to fall without being destroyed. Seemingly have been designed for a water landing, it bobbed back up above the surface a short distance away amidst the waves stirred up by the whale.

The sky was heavily clouded, but there was practically no rain.

It appears that the clouds bearing the heavy rain have moved toward the west, carried by the winds.

With the wind blowing, Lisa dog-paddled over to Katze’s capsule with me still riding on her back.

Then looking into the bobbing capsule… *Grrrrr!* Lisa growled.

A cold sweat standing out on her body, I saw Katze through the window… she was shouting something.

Reading her lips, she said:『What the heck are you doing!?』

Sorry. Even I don’t know.

–Inspecting it, the hatch to the capsule was smashed and couldn’t be opened from the inside. Even so, it appeared to be airtight and no water was coming in. Since it was designed to fly at high altitude, it probably has its own oxygen system.

『…Y-you messed it up…』

Katze grumbles as she sat cross-legged in the capsule, looking up at us. However, it doesn’t appear that the capsule is equipped with any motive controls. Looking it over, there isn’t even an engine. It seems that the capsule can only drift.

We fortunately managed to survive our fall from the sky, but now… our problem was the loss of directions.

Even Lisa surveyed her surroundings, seeming to ponder which direction the shore lay.

But then…

「…?」

My Hysteria Mode picked up on something strange.

In the sky.

I don’t know where the Moon or Sun are, but underneath the clouds that dimly shone with light from those celestial bodies… fluttering… there were no trees but, something like leaves were dancing in the wind.

Not just 1, not 2. Innumerable numbers of them flew through the air.

Those aren’t leaves… butterflies…?

They were butterflies.

***************************
IMG_009
***************************

Underneath the clouds, a huge number of butterflies flew in a stunning line, carried by the strong wind.

These…

Are the migratory butterflies I had seen with Lisa in Bourtange.

This is the season they cross the English Channel from the Netherlands to the distant U.K.

That means– they are flying toward the U.K. And where they are flying from–is the Netherlands.

Now I knew it. Thanks to the butterflies. I had a general idea of directions…!

「Lisa. Over there. There is your home country.」

As soon as I pointed, Lisa set her front paws on Katze’s capsule like a paddleboard, and with her rear legs began to dog paddle. But the movement wasn’t very efficient.

We had a rough idea which way the shore was, but there is no land in sight… it is at least 10 km away. Using Lisa’s power alone, it would be difficult to reach at this speed. If she reverts back to her original form en route, things will become even more difficult.

If it’s not one thing, it’s another, and I furrowed my eyebrows in concentration–

…?

The tides shifted.

They began flowing unnaturally toward the shore… peeking into the capsule… Katze had her eyes shut and was making motions in the air with her hands

Even someone as ignorant of supernatural research as I understood.

Katze, The Witch of Cursed Water, was manipulating the water.

We had shown her the direction, and she was guiding the intact capsule to shore. Using the ocean currents to do so.

「–Lisa. You know where we are headed, right?『Dragon Harbour』. That’s where Katze probably wants to go.」

I said, stroking Lisa’s pointed ear.

「Your master will not run away.」

My friends are on the other side of the dark sea.

We both share the stigma of being branded a traitor and caught by enemies that were our friends.

「I’ll be back–I’ll save, Jeanne. If my maid helps me.」

Along with that famous line from a film–

I recited Butei Charter: Article 1 in my heart.

–Believe in your comrades and help them.

I will do that. I mean it this time.

Go For The Next!!!

[END]

AFTERWORD:

…*Ding!* *Dong!* *Ding!* *Dong!*…

With those bells! And this time of year! It’s time for Akamatsu Santa!

Right now, the 16th volume of the light novel and the 9th of the comic, and the 7th of Hidan no Aria AA are all for sale! What’s more, in the 7th volume of AA Kaname makes her debut… There is also an illustration of Kinzou/G-3 that is not included in the main series. This is a must-see!

I just checked, and the 2nd, 5th, 8th, 11th, Cast Off Table. and the 16th book from the series have all been published at Christmas for the last 6 years. Back in the 5th year of primary school, when asked『What do you want to be when you grow up?』, I should have written 『Santa Claus』if I wanted to be prophetic.

Looking back at all the books I have written in the last 6 years, when asked『What job do you want to have in the future?』, I wrote『Warrior』(What the heck, 6th year me!?), so I tried to be more macho back then. Maybe that was due to influence of『Dragon Quest』. I get the feeling that ‘job’ reminded the young me of ‘classes’ inside a game, so that’s why I did it.

Now then, speaking of games, I have wonderful news…!

Next year, Namco Bandai is planning to sell『Super Heroine Chronicle』

In this game, heroines from across all genres and RPGs are gathered to fight. But this game includes heroines from Hidan no Aria!

I had general oversight and ensured that the girls from the series moved well and were very cute. Of course, all the voice actresses’ voices were included!

Oh, it made me so happy!

It will come out for PlayStation and PlayStation Vita on February 6th, 2014. For more details, please check the official game website.

This year I worked hard dual-wielding guns in『Gunslinger Stratos』and trying to get my waifu in『Aikatsu』– I plan to have lots of fun at the arcade next year too!

…I-Is that alright? I only game『1 hour every day』because I have to work hard on y manuscripts.

Until next time that the tulips bloom in the Netherlands– I’ll see you again in the bookstore.

A certain day in December 2014, Akamatsu Chuugaku

ILLUS NOTE:

IMG_010

**I’m so glad that a lot of new characters made an appearance this time! It would make me very happy if you enjoyed them. See you in the next volume!