Strike the Blood - Volume 10 - Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE 

THE PREMONITION 

1 

“Hey, Kojou. Isn’t that girl…?” 

With Asagi Aiba calling his attention, Kojou muttered “Hmm?” and glanced over. 

It was the third week of December—the last day of school before winter break. 

Amid a restless, unfocused atmosphere, the boring afternoon classes had ended, and the students of Saikai Academy had begun leaving school in droves. 

A single girl was standing at the school gate, apparently trying to resist the human tide. 

She was an elementary schooler wearing a white, one-piece sailor suit uniform. 

The school-mandated beret she wore went very well with her brightly colored, catlike hair. An adorable girl with an adult-looking face, she very much evoked a temperamental kitten. 

When she caught sight of Kojou leaving school, her big eyes opened wide as she flashed a dazzling smile. Then, she waved without restraint as she broke into a little run toward Kojou and Asagi. 

“Mister Kojou!” 

“Yume? You were waiting for me?” 

Kojou stood still in surprise. 

Her name was Yume Eguchi. One week earlier, Kojou and the others had met her at a resort called Blue Elysium. Yume was being used for the power of Lilith that she possessed, whereupon they had ended up saving her. 

Ever since, Yume had become oddly attached to Kojou. The girl’s behavior led Asagi to be periodically wary of her—beyond what Kojou thought necessary. 

“I am sorry. Enrollment procedures were over quickly, so I had a little time on my hands… Am I being a bother?” Yume asked, mildly concerned as she pulled her beret down with one hand. 

“Nah, it’s not like you’re bothering me, but—” 

Kojou quickly shook his head, but a thin, cold sweat broke out over his brow. After all, leaving school was the only time of day when there was a large crowd by the school gates. Kojou being greeted there by an adorable elementary schooler was abnormal enough to make them really stand out. So, too, was the sight of Yume’s admiration for Kojou, which attracted attention with incredible force. 

That didn’t mean he could just shoo Yume away, so Kojou could only talk around it with vague language. 

Motoki Yaze, standing beside Kojou, ruffled Yume’s hair as he said, “That’s right, it ain’t your fault at all. It’s the result of Kojou’s everyday actions, y’see. Well, don’t worry ’bout it, li’l Yume.” 

Yume brushed off Yaze’s hand, her cheeks puffing up in visible dismay as she put her tilted hat back in order. 

“Please do not give me strange nicknames whenever you see fit. And do not touch me so casually. I find it unpleasant.” 

“Ghh…” 

You little brat, Yaze seemed to say with a spontaneous twist of his lips. 

As if to chide the girl, Asagi wedged herself between Yume and Kojou. “Enrollment procedures…? Ah, then your wearing that uniform must mean—” 

“Ah yes. It is the uniform for Tensou Academy.” 

Yume spoke with a hint of pride on her face. Yume had no doubt come directly to Saikai Academy with the thought of showing Kojou her new uniform straightaway. 

“Tensou Academy? Isn’t that a super expensive school for elites?” Kojou exhaled in visible admiration. 

Tensou Academy was a famous school located in Island West that offered elementary, middle, and high school education under one roof. There were rumors that the attending students included vampire nobility and upper-crust beast people. The others all had fine pedigrees and excellent grades. The entire campus was said to be a top-class ladies’ school. 

“So it would seem. But the Gigafloat Management Corporation and the Joint Demonic Research Institute both recommended it. Thanks to the older brother of that rude person over there, everyday living concerns have also been taken care of.” 

Yume bowed her head superficially to Yaze, who shouted in response, “You’re the rude one!” as he pointed at her. Kojou suspiciously turned to Yaze and stared at his friend’s face. 

“Oh, right. Your older brother works at DGI, doesn’t he?” he asked, shifting his attention to Asagi. 

She puffed out her chest in a little show of pride. “Yes. That’s why I told Motoki to have him make the recommendation. I figured Yume is a shoo-in for a Demon Mentorship Program scholarship.” 

Kazuma, Motoki Yaze’s older brother, was a genius who’d graduated from a major North American Union university with flying colors. In spite of being midway through his twenties, he’d been assigned a crucial role in the Gigafloat Management Corporation. Asagi was acquainted with Kazuma because Motoki was her childhood friend. 

Itogami Island, a Demon Sanctuary, was replete with government programs to support demons without families to care for them. The Joint Demonic Research Institute scholarship was one such program. As the World’s Mightiest Succubus, Yume, of course, met the qualifications. At the very least, she would surely be able to live a comfortable life so long as she remained on Itogami Island. 

Yaze murmured in a blunt tone, “Well, that’s fine, isn’t it? His motto is to use anything that’s worth using, after all. I’m sure he’ll roll out the red carpet for li’l Yume.” 

His expression seemed peeved somehow, like he really didn’t enjoy being indebted to his biological older brother. Yume had the same look on her face from being addressed by Yaze’s weird nickname. It wasn’t clear to Kojou if they were getting along or not. 

Kojou’s shoulders wearily fell as he looked down at Yume and said, “That so…? Anyway, I’m glad. Now you can stay on Itogami Island on the up-and-up, right?” 

“Yes. So please wait for me, okay?” 

Yume’s eyes glimmered as she looked up at Kojou. The directness and purity of her gaze somehow made Kojou feel overwhelmed. 

“Huh? Wait for…what?” 

“You promised, you know—that you would make me happy for the rest of my life. It is still some five years before I am old enough to marry, but…,” Yume murmured, touching her left hand’s ring finger and fidgeting with a blushing face. 

Asagi was listening to this from right beside them; the words made her face tense. 

“Wai…wait! You’re wrong! I mean, you’re not wrong, but that’s not what I meant when I said…” 

Kojou’s expression turned nervous. To save Yume, who had chosen her own death to seal the soul of Lilith, the Witch of the Night—akin to a curse on her—Kojou had said he would make her happy. But Yume seemed to have taken it in a somewhat different light than Kojou had intended… 

The girl was now lost in her own little world; the words with which Kojou tried to clear up the misunderstanding never reached her ears. Clenching a tiny fist in front of her chest, she stated in a strong tone: 

“I do not intend to remain a child forever, so… I will do my very best!” 

“You don’t need to do your best! Just act normal!” 

Kojou was desperately continuing to try to explain as other students leaving school—ones he didn’t even know—were giving him dirty looks as they passed. Feeling the prickling of their gazes upon his back and hearing their murmurs, Kojou’s pained stomach pleaded for mercy. 

On top of that, Asagi, who surely knew the situation perfectly well, glared at him with half-lidded eyes. “Kojou…does this mean you really do have a thing for little girls…?!” 

“How’d this turn into that?! Don’t go twisting it into something it’s not!” 

Kojou, his eyes unwittingly tearful, shouted at Asagi. Even as a look of relief came over Asagi’s face, she made no move to conceal the suspicious look in her eyes. Watching this, Yaze audibly cleared his throat and stepped between the two. 

“Now, now, this isn’t really the place to talk about it, so how ’bout we go somewhere we can settle down?” he proposed. 

“Ahh, well, I don’t mind, but is that fine for you, Yume? I mean, curfew, or something—” 

“Yes, it is all right. I will go anywhere if it is with Mister Kojou.” 

Speaking those words, Yume snuggled right into Kojou’s side. Watching that, Asagi exhibited an even graver expression. 

Yaze seemed excited as he drew his face close to Kojou’s and said, “Hey, Kojou…she said she’d go with you anywhere. It means anywhere’s good!” 

“Geez! Don’t go reading deep things into stuff on your own like that!” 

“No, I will go! I will do my very best!” 

“I said you don’t need to do that!” 

Looking up at the vast blue sky above him, Kojou muttered to himself, “Gimme a break.” 

At any rate, that is how winter vacation began for Kojou Akatsuki, the Fourth Primogenitor—the World’s Mightiest Vampire. 

2 

Itogami Island was an island of eternal summer floating smack-dab in the Pacific Ocean. Even in so-called winter, the temperatures breached 20 degrees Celsius, and the sun shining down on everyone was still intense. The trees lining the city streets were vibrant and full of leaves, sending thick shadows falling upon the sidewalks. 

It was behind the trunk of one such roadside tree that a suspicious figure was concealing her presence. 

This person wore a middle school uniform and carried a case for a bass guitar on her back. 

Her facial features were as shapely as a doll’s, and her physique looked delicate, but the effortless way she moved made her seem strong and supple as well. She was Yukina Himeragi, Sword Shaman of the Lion King Agency. 

“Oh, good grief… What does that person think he’s doing?” 

Poking only her head out through a gap in the branches, Yukina murmured to herself in visible dismay. 

The object of her gaze was Kojou Akatsuki on his way out of school. 

Pressed right against his flank was Yume Eguchi, dressed in a brand-new school uniform. Asagi Aiba was sticking right behind them as if to keep that girl in check. A short distance away, Motoki Yaze was watching the strained relationship among the three from a safe location. Furthermore, even completely unrelated people leaving school couldn’t help looking on in interest. 

Properly speaking, it was Yukina, Kojou’s observer, who ought to have been at his side. However, with all eyes upon him like this, it was difficult for her to wedge herself in. Thanks to that, Yukina could only watch in irritation. 

“Even if it is Yume, how can he act so lovey-dovey with a little kid—?!” 

Naturally, Yukina’s anger was directed at Kojou. Even when Yume blatantly tried to seduce him, all Yukina’s eyes could see was the Fourth Primogenitor being a doormat for an elementary school girl casually clinging to him. 

Yukina’s grip grew stronger without her realizing it, causing the poor roadside tree’s branches to audibly creak. 

Then, she heard a somewhat pitying voice from behind. 

“Well, I’m here wondering what you think you’re doing, Yukina.” 

The speaker was Nagisa Akatsuki, Kojou’s biological younger sister and Yukina’s classmate. Watching Yukina quietly tail Kojou, she made a pained smile mixed with a sigh. 

“You know, if you have something to say to Kojou and the rest of them, you can just walk up to them and say it.” 

“Y-yeah…but doing it at a time like this would be a little…” 

Yukina made a frail excuse in the face of Nagisa’s exceedingly sound advice. 

Of course, Yume wearing the elementary school uniform of a famous school attracted great attention—but so did Asagi’s extravagant, beautiful appearance. Furthermore, they were both making a show of fighting over Kojou. It was unthinkable that they wouldn’t stand out. If Yukina inserted herself into that, it would inevitably court even greater chaos. 

As the watcher of the Fourth Primogenitor, Yukina had to strenuously avoid such behavior. 

All the same, she thought it would be dangerous to simply abandon Kojou to Yume’s seductions. 

With amusement, Nagisa observed Yukina, who was stricken with the mental anguish over her current dilemma, and said, “Well, I’m fine with it, really. Plus, it’s fun watching you like this, Yukina.” 

“Er… Ah, I’m sorry. This is a little…” 

Yukina meekly lowered her head to Nagisa, who’d ended up tagging along with her surveillance. However, Nagisa shook her head with a carefree smile on her face. 

“It’s totally fine. More importantly, look! It seems as if Kojou and the others are going into Murakumo! I really like the chocolate they make with brown sugar over there. But we’ll be totally busted if we go into the same store, huh. Hey, instead of that, let’s at least buy something to drink at a corner store. What do you want, Yukina? A sports drink? Soda? Fruit juice?” 

“Er… Then, ah, some kind of iced tea—” 

“Okay, leave it to me!” 

Still keeping her body posture low, Nagisa broke into a run to the nearest convenience store. Yukina made a weak, strained smile as she watched Nagisa go. She’d intended to become more accustomed to Nagisa’s wordiness of late, but she still found herself suddenly overwhelmed. 

For their part, Kojou and the others entered the park-side café just as Nagisa had predicted. Yukina hid behind the park’s Y OU A RE H ERE sign and continued monitoring Kojou and the others when… 

“Ah… Excuse me, you over there—miss schoolgirl?” 

“Eh?” 

Yukina, suddenly hearing a voice from behind, immediately turned around. Standing there was a tall, middle-aged man in a casual-looking, worn-out shirt. 

His posture was rather good for his age, and his physique was honed with no hint of excess fat. However, his chin was covered with thin stubble, and an air of listlessness hovered all around him. The man was carefree, with no coercive presence whatsoever. 

But that very observation threw Yukina off. The distance between them didn’t even amount to three meters—close combat range, which was Yukina’s specialty. The man had stepped inside that space without Yukina sensing his presence. 

“Is this seat taken?” he asked, pointing at the flat bench next to the sign. He seemed to be asking out of consideration for Yukina before sitting down and taking a breather. 

“Ah, no. Help yourself.” 

With those words, Yukina offered the bench to the man. His lack of an aura threw her off, but she could sense no hostile intent from the man. If anything, Yukina’s sneaking around was the more suspicious action between them. 

“Thanks. Ahh, that’s a big help. It’s tough wanderin’ around in this crappy heat when you get to be my age…” 

The man settled down on the bench, flicking up the rim of the old-fashioned fedora hat he wore. Yukina felt an odd sense of déjà vu when she saw his now-exposed face. He should have been a simple passerby, but she didn’t think this was their first meeting. He greatly resembled someone Yukina knew. 

“So you’re not sitting down, miss schoolgirl?” he asked without any amount of tension—a complete contrast to Yukina’s bewilderment. 

“Correct,” said Yukina, nodding with a stiff expression. “I am all right. Please pay no heed.” 

“Hmm. Incidentally, that case…the one on your back. What’s in it?” 

The man casually rested his chin on a hand as he asked another question. Thanks to his casual manner of speech, Yukina couldn’t find the right moment to brush the question away. 

Yukina awkwardly shifted a hand to the gig bag on her back and said, “Th-this is a musical instrument. Er…what they call a bass guitar.” 

“Heh…bass, huh? Do you like music, miss schoolgirl? What genre?” 

The man bit on the topic with unexpected fervor. 

Yukina felt a cold sweat on her back. Naturally, it was not a bass guitar or the like in the case on her back. In truth, it was the Lion King Agency’s Schneewaltzer—a purging spear, dubbed Snowdrift Wolf. 

“E-er… I, ah, haven’t really kept up with musical trends of late…” 

That was all Yukina could manage to say as she tried to somehow conceal her inner nervousness. 

The man laughed in delight, smiling as he said, “Nice answer there. I suppose the youngins are into punk these days, huh?” 

Even as Yukina wondered what puncture had to do with music, she made an appropriate sound and nod of agreement. The man in the fedora hat nodded twice, crossing his arms in apparent satisfaction. 

“Ahh, good stuff,” he said. “I was really into music when I was your age, going to live concerts and all that. Don’t mind me. It just distracted me for a moment.” 

“Is that so? Have you…come to enjoy…punk?” 

Yukina asked a question to prevent the man from prying into the object in her case any further. Though she would have liked to flee without a moment to lose, she couldn’t leave that place until Nagisa returned from her trip to the convenience store. Until then, she had no choice but to somehow put up with the middle-aged man’s chummy ways. 

Whether he knew what Yukina was up to or not, the man fondly narrowed his eyes and said, “Ahh, I’m into those underground idols. Like, the Gristle Fairy Hoods or Aromatic Megaterium. Do you know them? Maybe you don’t.” 

“I—I am sorry.” 

Yukina apologized for no clear reason. Internally, she was seriously conflicted about whether these were really the names of idol groups. 

Taking advantage of the momentary lapse in Yukina’s thoughts, the man slipped in a question. 

“Incidentally, miss schoolgirl—what’s your relationship to Kojou Akatsuki?” 

“Eh?!” 

Yukina let out a little voice. Oh no, she thought, but it was too late. There was no longer any way to gloss things over. The man clearly knew she was monitoring Kojou. 

“Wh-why do you know Akatsuki-senpai’s name…?!” Yukina exclaimed, her voice going shrill. 

A leering smile came over the man, playing innocent as he said, “Well, I mean, you’ve been glaring at Kojou with an incredible look all this time, miss schoolgirl. I thought maybe it was envy…or rather, jealousy. Am I right?” 

“You are not!” 

Yukina glared at the man, confused as to why he’d go out of his way to “correct” himself like that. 

“I—I am simply observing Akatsuki-senpai. It is not j-jealousy or anything of the sort!” 

“Observing? Observing, you say. In other words, stalking the object of your unrequited love?” He chuckled to himself in apparent admiration. 

Yukina momentarily froze at his unexpected reaction before blurting out, “E-excuse me?!” 

“‘Observing,’ so nice. Ahh, the springtime of youth. Ack, it’s so innocent, so…bittersweeeet!” 

“H-how did the conversation come to this?! More importantly, who are you…?!” 

Yukina, her face red to her ears, pressed the man for answers. That was when she sensed someone standing right behind them. 

“G-Gajou?!” 

Nagisa was carrying PET bottles when she looked at the middle-aged man in the fedora hat—her eyes going wide. It was the sort of expression players made when encountering a super-rare monster in an online video game. 

“Ga…jou?” Yukina gasped at her friend’s murmur. She finally had confirmation on the man’s identity. 

“Oh, Nagisa! How you been?” 

The man in the fedora hat rose to his feet with a grandiose spread of his arms as he beamed at her, smiling. The sudden transformation left Yukina shocked that human beings were capable of such love-struck expressions. 

“You’re as adorable as ever! You’d think you’re some kind of goddess! Ahh, I saw you run off to the convenience store, so I thought I’d introduce myself to miss schoolgirl here while I was waiting around.” 

“Ah, so that’s it… Incidentally, what are you doing here, Gajou? When did you get back to Japan? What about work? Have you met Mimori yet? What’d you talk to Yukina about?” 

Nagisa casually parried the man’s exaggerated flattery like she was accustomed to it. For some reason, Nagisa’s rapid-fire questions made him proudly raise his chin as he answered: 

“I basically just arrived on Itogami Island. I went on a ruins excavation in the Caribbean, but a civil war suddenly broke out, y’see. Ha-ha, that was a pain. I went to see Mimori at work, but she said I was in the way and kicked me out, and since then, I’ve been talking to miss schoolgirl here about romance.” 

“Talking about romance?!” Nagisa stared at Yukina with a starry look in her eyes and said, “No fair.” 

Yukina desperately shook her head as she retorted, “W-we did not…!” 

“Ah, that’s right. I haven’t introduced myself yet, have I…? Oh?” 

Then the man, the architect of that false accusation, suddenly raised a hand for reasons only apparent to him. 

He was staring at a chair on the terrace of the park-side café. There, being seated after ordering, were Kojou and the others with him. Yukina was nervous about the group realizing she’d tailed them, but the man waved to them right out in the open and said: 

“Hey, Kojou. Over here!” 

“Geh, Dad…?! What are you doing here, you old geezer?!” 

Kojou, noticing the man’s presence, spat the insult as an involuntary reflex. 

Hearing Kojou’s words, Yukina was dumbfounded as she compared the faces of the pair. 

It was Kojou Akatsuki, none other than the target Yukina watched over, whom the middle-aged man in the fedora hat greatly resembled—not only in their faces but in their gestures and the listless air about them. 

“Y-you are…Akatsuki-senpai’s…father…?” Yukina’s voice conveyed some doubts. 

Now she could understand the reason for Nagisa’s surprise. They didn’t know why they were encountering such an individual at this time. 

Then, the man gazed at the petrified Yukina with apparent amusement as he made an impetuous smile, his intonation somehow seeming suspicious as he said: 

“Gajou Akatsuki. Kojou and Nagisa’s father. Nice to meet ya!” 

3 

“My, my, to think you’d lay a hand even on a little girl just because you can’t land a woman—” 

Lying on the living room sofa, Gajou Akatsuki shook his shoulders as he laughed. 

They were in the Akatsuki family’s own apartment. It had actually been a year and several months since Gajou had last returned. Thanks to that, the atmosphere in the room seemed to revolve around him alone. 

“I didn’t lay a hand on her! That’s just Yume misunderstanding a bunch of things!” Kojou insisted, making a sullen face like a sulking child. 

It hadn’t even been thirty minutes since Kojou and the others had encountered Gajou Akatsuki in the park. However, as soon as Kojou saw his father’s face, he decided to return home immediately. He was fearful of Gajou coming into contact with his friends. Even setting Yaze and Asagi aside, the real danger lay with Yume. If he carelessly let those two meet, there was no telling what ideas Gajou might put into her head. 

However, by the time Gajou raised his voice to Kojou and the others, he’d apparently already finished gathering all kinds of information, not only about his connection to Yume but all kinds of other blackmail material to tease Kojou, which accounted for the disheartened look that overcame Kojou. 

“…Misunderstanding, you say.” Gajou slurped on the delicious-looking soba noodles Nagisa had brought him and gave a suggestive smile. “Well, don’t worry about it. I mean, Mimori and I are over ten years apart. Even if they call you a criminal, just put up with it for a decade and it’s cool.” 

“Who’s a criminal…?! And you shut up—you’re making this more complicated!” 

Kojou’s lips twisted in annoyance at his father’s off-the-wall consolation. However, Gajou paid no heed to his son’s objections, shifting an amiable gaze toward Yukina. 

For some reason, Gajou seemed to have taken a liking to Yukina. He’d overruled her polite refusal, insisting she join them at their residence. 

“Incidentally, Himeragi, was it? Sorry for earlier. I said all sorts of rude things, like jealousy, stalking, and so on.” 

“N-not at all. I did not mind, so please.” 

Yukina looked a little tense as she shook her head at Gajou’s words. 

“What the hell were you saying to a girl you just met?” Kojou complained, clutching his head. 

Even so, Gajou displayed not even a single smidgen of remorse as he warmly patted Kojou’s shoulder and said, “I really am sorry. I didn’t think an idiot like this would have a girlfriend as cute as you.” 

“Eh?!” 

Yukina stiffened, unable to react to Gajou’s brazen remark. Kojou was just as frozen. Gajou, off on his own, seemed in high spirits. 

“I really have to say, though, what do you see in a guy like Kojou?” Gajou asked, narrowing his eyes. “A pretty girl like you should have any number of better choices to pick from—” 

“Hey, Himeragi’s not my girlfriend! Lay off with the stupid delusions, you old fart!” 

Kojou yelled right back at his father. Gajou continued sipping soba noodles, pretending not to hear a word. 

“D-delusions…” Yukina, hearing Kojou’s statement, narrowed the corners of her eyes in a grimace. 

However, Kojou did not notice the change in Yukina as he said, “Himeragi’s just my junior at school. She coincidentally lives next door to us. You didn’t know because you haven’t been back here!” 

“Hmm. Just your junior, huh…” 

A leering grin came over Gajou as he crossed his legs. He shooed away Kojou, glaring at him at point-blank range, like an annoyance as he said: 

“Incidentally, Himeragi, have you done it with Kojou yet?” 

“Eh?!” 

“Listen to what people are saying, dammit—!” 

Already on a short string, Kojou snapped and launched a mighty right hook straight at his father’s face. It was an attack largely bereft of restraint. With a solid hit, Gajou’s skull would shatter. 

However, Gajou evaded his son’s attack, launched with the raw strength of a vampire, with room to spare. 

“Whoa now… Scary, scary. That was a close one.” 

“You middle-aged perv—!” 

Even with his body heavily off-balance, Kojou launched a string of left jabs. Gajou’s movements made the powerful string of attacks flail fruitlessly in the air. 

In spite of that, Gajou’s lips curled up in a minor show of admiration. 

“Huh… I leave for a little while and your attacks get a lot sharper, don’t they? That’s my son for ya. Well, still got a long way to go, though.” 

“Wha—?!” 

Yukina had a delayed reaction, utterly shocked by Gajou’s unexpected dodges. At some point during the scuffle, Gajou had gotten ahold of the bottle of tabasco sauce, supposedly at the far corner of the table. Then, Gajou blindsided Kojou, giving his son a hearty face full of the bottle’s contents. The timing was so calculated that even his vampiric reaction speed could not fully evade the flying liquid. 

Kojou, taking tabasco straight to the eyes, could only writhe helplessly. 

“Guooooh… My eyes, my eyes…!” 

“S-senpai…?!” 

Yukina swiftly rose to her feet and rushed to Kojou, towel in hand. Taking deep interest, Gajou silently watched Yukina valiantly beginning to tend to Kojou. 

“Wait a—?! Kojou, Gajou, what do you think you’re doing?!” 

Nagisa, rushing over from the kitchen, gawked as she looked at the pathetic state of the room, with tabasco sauce scattered all over it. 

Kojou rubbed his inflamed eyes as he unsteadily sat up and yelled, “Shiiit… What the hell did you come over here for anyway?! Normally, you won’t come back even if we ask!!” 

“I said, I’m here to pick up Nagisa.” 

After stating that, Gajou plopped his hand onto his daughter’s head. It remained there as Nagisa looked up at her father, cheeks puffing up in an obvious sulk. 

“Sheesh, if you’re going to come, say so sooner. I have all kinds of plans, after all. Now I have to buy food to cover you, too.” 

“…Where do you plan on taking Nagisa?” 

Kojou, having somehow regained his vision, glared up at Gajou as he asked the question in a low voice. 

To date, Gajou had used Nagisa in his own work a number of times. Previously, Nagisa had been wrapped up in an incident for which Gajou was the underlying cause. 

Naturally, Nagisa’s hospitalization had diminished his high-handedness, but that didn’t mean Kojou could be careless. He had reasons to be wary of his father. 

However, Gajou gazed with exasperation at the naked antagonism on his own son’s face and said, “Hey, think of the season for a minute. It’s for homecoming.” 

“…Homecoming?” 

Kojou fell silent, feeling like Gajou’s unexpected words were somehow dodging the question. 

Certainly, the end of the old year and the start of the new was cause for celebration all over the world. On Itogami Island, far removed from the mainland, the homecoming rush had to have already begun in earnest. 

“It’ll be New Year’s soon. Your granny back in Tanzawa’s vocal about us going back once in a while. We couldn’t do it last year with Nagisa still in the hospital and all. The flight’s first thing tomorrow morning.” 

“What the hell…? That’s out of the blue. I’m not ready at all,” Kojou complained with a sour look on his face. 

Gajou’s mother—in other words, Kojou and Nagisa’s grandmother—was a resident of Kansai. She worked as a priestess in a little shrine deep in the Tanzawa Mountains. He wasn’t unhappy at the prospect of going to see her, but he couldn’t shake the impression that the visit was abrupt. However— 

“Huh? Who said you’re coming?” Gajou replied, casually brushing off his own son’s objections. “It’s just me and Nagisa going back. Mimori doesn’t exactly get along with Granny, you know.” 

“Just Nagisa?!” 

“Of course. What do you think a plane ticket to the mainland costs at this time of year? It’s not cheap to get a permit to leave Itogami Island, either.” 

“G-gnnn…” 

Gajou’s pragmatic explanation left Kojou at a loss of words to refute him. 

Flights in and out of the airport were restricted, and transit costs were high for flights from Itogami Island to the mainland—made all the worse by the busy season. On top of that, since it was a Demon Sanctuary, annoying paperwork was required to leave or enter Itogami Island, and the commission fees required served as an additional expense. Gajou’s point was entirely valid. 

“Besides, there’s a reason for bringing Nagisa back with me. I figured I’d have Granny give her a purification rite. It’s best to have her carefully look over Nagisa to see why she lost her spiritual powers, right?” 

“Y-yeah… Yeah, I suppose.” 

Kojou grudgingly accepted his father’s words. Though virtually unknown beyond Kojou, Gajou, and other family, Nagisa was once a powerful spiritualist—in the top five nationally. 

Nagisa lost her spiritual powers in a demon-instigated incident some four years earlier. Somehow, they’d managed to heal her wounds from the incident, and Nagisa had come out of the hospital safe and sound, but her powers had remained lost for reasons that were still unclear. Nagisa herself paid no attention to the fact she’d lost that ability, but on the other hand, she was afflicted by poor health from time to time for reasons unknown. Kojou, too, supported having a trustworthy spiritualist give Nagisa a look. 

In a tiny voice, Yukina whispered into Kojou’s ear, “Senpai, please wait. If you seriously want Nagisa checked, the Lion King Agency would be a better—” 

Her expression was unusually serious. Yukina, an exceedingly gifted spiritualist herself, knew the dangers of exorcism well. She was concerned that an amateur trying her hand might have negative effects on Nagisa. 

“Ahh, nah, I think it’s probably fine. I’m glad you’re concerned, but I told you before, right? Our granny’s an unregistered Attack Mage. She’s used to this kind of work.” 

“…Then that might mean all the more danger. I have an ill premonition. If I am not mistaken, what is possessing Nagisa might be senpai’s—” 

“Mm? Something with Kojou’s what?” Gajou butted into the conversation, forcing himself between Yukina’s words. 

“Um,” Yukina said, surprised into silence. 

Even so, Gajou insistently peered into Yukina’s face. “What, what? Won’t you let me in on it, too?” 

“E-er… No, I am sorry. It is nothing.” 

Kojou grabbed the back of Gajou’s neck to stop him from backing Yukina further into a corner. “Quit it already,” he snapped, to which Gajou clicked his tongue, his shoulders sinking in visible disappointment. 

“Well, no need to worry. Setting aside the strength of Grandma’s own Spirit Sight, it’s New Year’s. The apprentices will probably come to play, too. Maybe that baldy Tokimikado, maybe Pops Shidosawa…” 

“I-Instructor Tokimikado…?! And Chairman Shidosawa?” Yukina’s expression stiffened the moment she heard both names. 

“You know them?” Kojou asked in a dubious tone. 

Yukina hurriedly shook her head and said, “The former chief instructor of the Lion King Agency and the chairman of the Attack Mage Association. They are men far beyond my station for me to have met them, but—” 

“Huh… So those old guys are big shots, then?” Kojou murmured in admiration. 

Yukina could only nod in amazement. However, her unease over Nagisa’s exorcism had apparently been assuaged. With people of such competence close at hand, even Yukina could not summon any reason to object to the rite. 

Gajou gazed at the exchange between Kojou and Yukina, looking like something didn’t quite sit right with him. Then, with some object in mind, he suddenly leaned forward, staring straight into Yukina’s face. 

“Incidentally, Himeragi. I have something serious to discuss with you—” 

“Y-yes?” Overwhelmed by the serious look coming from Gajou, Yukina subconsciously straightened her posture. 

That instant, Gajou broke into a leering gaze and said, “I want to see the faces of my grandchildren sooner rather than later. Maybe a girl, if you can swing it—” 

“Pardon?” 

With Yukina frozen in place, unable to comprehend the meaning of the words, something came rushing over from right beside her with the force of a cannonball. Kojou had hurled a cushion at his father’s face full-on. Thud, went the cushion, connecting squarely, sending the wide-open Gajou reeling back. 

“…That’s dangerous, brat. Don’t raise a hand against your own father,” Gajou casually objected as he rubbed his reddened forehead. 

Kojou followed up with a leaping kick at his complacent father. 

“Shut up, you middle-aged lecher! I’ll kill you!” Kojou yelled. 

“It’s ten years too soon for you to pull that off.” 

Gajou calmly sidestepped his own son’s kick and proceeded to give Kojou’s ankle a very hard twist. Overcome with terrible pain, Kojou fell helplessly to the floor. 

“Ow, ow, ow, ow!” 

“Wait a…?! Kojou, Gajou, what are you doing?!” 

Noticing the sudden, violent exchange between the two men, Nagisa hurried to put a stop to it. 

“Th…this is senpai’s…father…” 

Yukina could only manage a frail murmur to herself, still half-frozen and overwhelmed by the spectacle. 

4 

The next day— 

In the early morning, Kojou Akatsuki, dressed in street clothes, let out a heavy yawn at Itogami Island’s central airport. 

The time was just before seven AM, the harshest time of day for a nocturnal vampire. 

Naturally, he’d gone all the way to the airport in that state to see Nagisa off, as she was heading for the mainland on an early morning flight, and to keep an eye on his untrustworthy father. 

The sun was peeking over the water’s horizon, shining dazzlingly upon the glass-covered airport lobby. Even at that hour, Itogami Island was hot. 

“Well, we’re headin’ off for a little while. Get along nice with Himeragi, ’kay?” 

“Oh, shut up and get going already.” 

Gajou, wearing a vibrant trench coat, spoke to his son in a half-frigid tone. Kojou glared sullenly back at his father in kind. 

The flight was scheduled to depart in less than an hour. Considering the troublesome customs inspections peculiar to Demon Sanctuaries, it was right about time to head over to the baggage inspection gate. 

Nagisa exchanged a warm and cordial good-bye with Yukina, who’d gone with Kojou to see them off. 

“Do watch out. It seems to be cold on the mainland, after all,” Yukina said, concerned. 

In her arms, Nagisa clutched a large number of souvenirs for her grandmother. Yukina owed the exhausted expression on her face to joining Nagisa from one airport shop to the next as she picked out those souvenirs. 

“Thanks,” said Nagisa with a cheery smile. “I’m more worried about you, Yukina. I hope Kojou doesn’t cause you too much trouble.” 

“Mm, I’ll be all right. Don’t worry, I’ll keep a close watch on senpai and make sure he doesn’t bother Aiba and Yume,” Yukina answered in a strong, determined tone. 

Kojou Akatsuki, the Fourth Primogenitor, was a vampire who became acquainted with unfamiliar girls, drinking their blood and risking his life for them the moment Yukina let him out of her sight. She had made a heartfelt pledge to redouble her observation efforts. 

However, seeing Yukina’s zeal only made Nagisa’s concern deepen. 

“…You know, Yukina. Have you heard the phrase Those who hunt for mummies become mummies themselves?” 

“Um, er, yes…?” 

Why is she saying that to me? thought Yukina, somewhat perplexed. Nagisa, watching Yukina’s oblivious reaction, sighed in apparent resignation. 

An announcement came over the airport lobby for passengers to proceed to baggage inspection. 

“Well, we’re off. See you soon! Don’t spoil Kojou too much, Yukina. And don’t either of you try to force any funny business!” 

“I—I will not spoil him!” 

“Like hell she will!” 

With flustered, spontaneous retorts, Kojou and Yukina saw Nagisa and Gajou off to the security gate. 

When the boisterous father and daughter were out of sight, the airport’s atmosphere suddenly seemed far quieter around them. 

“Sheesh. Sorry to drag you out for this so early in the morning, Himeragi,” Kojou said, listlessly stretching his back. 

Yukina shook her head with her usual overly serious look and replied, “Not at all, senpai. It is my duty to watch over you.” 

“Well, that might be the case, but it seems like my dad teased you pretty hard about stuff.” 

“I suppose so… No matter how you look at it, him making it seem like I am your girlfriend is a little, ah…” 

Yukina looked down a bit with a light flush to her cheeks, almost like she was blushing. But Kojou, for his part, clicked his tongue a little, deeply annoyed. 

“His jokes haven’t been funny since way back. This one’s way too stupid.” 

“A joke? …I see… Stupid, you say…” 

Light vanished from Yukina’s eyes as her expression became dark and cold. Kojou, not noticing the change in Yukina, smiled brightly. 

“Sorry that he put you through all that. When he gets back, I’ll drill into his thick skull that you’re not my girlfriend, so forgive him for this time, ’kay?” 

“Is that so? I understand very well now.” 

“Ah, what?” 

“I am sorry that my being only your junior rather than your girlfriend has caused you such annoyance.” 

“Ah, er. Himeragi…?” 

Yukina suddenly hastened her pace, leaving Kojou in her dust and making him catch up in a hurry. 

“By any chance, are you…angry?” 

“No, not at all.” 

Yukina stopped in place and shot Kojou a look that somehow seemed resentful. Of course, Kojou had no clue what had brought it on. Maybe she really hated how Gajou poured cold water on everything, he thought, almost like it was someone else’s problem. 

“Anyway, maybe I’m just imagining this, but it seems like everyone’s on edge today.” 

“I said I am not angry.” 

“No, not you, Himeragi. Look at those airport security guys.” 

“Eh…?” 

Hearing Kojou’s murmur, Yukina finally stopped walking altogether. 

Kojou had actually noticed a difference in the security right after arriving at the airport. Yukina had probably taken note of it, too. 

The number of airport staff watching the departure gate and the airport entrance was well above the norm. Their expressions and actions gave off an air of strict vigilance. 

“I…see. Perhaps that might be the cause…” 

Yukina pointed toward a large television placed in the airport’s waiting area. There was a grainy satellite image being displayed on the TV screen. The image was from overseas news footage with no Japanese text apparent. It was the scene of some overseas city he didn’t recognize; Kojou could see damaged buildings and people injured by bombs and shells. 

“What is that…? A war?” 

Standing beside Kojou, Yukina replied, “Yes,” nodding with a grave look. 

Having received a specialized education from the Lion King Agency, Yukina’s scholastics were already up to a high school graduate level. Apparently, she could easily read English at the degree used in a typical news broadcast. 

“It seems that a civil war has broken out in the Chaos Zone. Apparently, a military unit deployed near the Confederate States of America launched an armed uprising and is demanding its own autonomous region.” 

“The Chaos Zone…?” Kojou’s brows rose as he recognized the region’s name. “That’s the country of that Giada woman, right?” 

“Yes. It is the Dominion in Central America, ruled by the Third Primogenitor, the Chaos Bride.” 

“…Oh yeah? …I’m kinda surprised, somehow.” 

Kojou murmured to himself as he recalled the sight of the beautiful, emerald-haired, jade-eyed vampiress. 

Kojou had encountered Giada Kukulkin, one of the three publicly recognized primogenitors, only a month earlier. She oozed off-the-charts combat capability and exceptional charisma. 

“Surprised?” 

“Yeah. I mean, if there’s a revolt, doesn’t that mean her people are unhappy with her somehow? Or is she what you’d call, well, a tyrant?” Kojou said, tilting his head. “It didn’t look that way to me.” 

The Third Primogenitor whom Kojou had met came with overwhelming power and majesty befitting the title, but she didn’t seem like an unreasonable individual. If anything, she felt like a very humanlike vampiress, coming off as calculating but playful. The charming personality she’d displayed shouldn’t have been that far off the mark. 

“No, certainly the primogenitors rule the Dominions in name, but they do not directly govern their nations. There are elected legislatures and qualified bureaucrats, and besides, the First and Second Primogenitors have not appeared before their populaces in decades.” 

“Really?” 

Kojou felt even more mystified. But now that he thought of it, he didn’t know what the First or Second Primogenitors looked like. He didn’t even remember seeing photographs of them. 

“Among them, only the Chaos Bride is known to ordinarily prowl ab—er, travel around her Dominion, observing her people and speaking to them about their concerns, so she should enjoy zealous support from the population. Nor should law and order or the domestic economy be in a poor state. It seems all this places considerable stress on those tasked with watching her, but…,” Yukina politely explained, even letting her own private thoughts slip in midway. 

“I see,” said Kojou in agreement. Apparently, his first impression of Giada wasn’t that far off after all. That made the current state of the Chaos Zone all that more suspicious. 

“So why’s there a revolt, then?” 

“That is probably—,” Yukina began, but her words suddenly stopped when she seemed to notice something. Kojou, following her surprised gaze, blithely turned his head around. 

In that direction was a corridor leading from the arrival lobby to the airport’s central entrance. Furthermore, standing there was a silver-haired man wearing a demon registration bracelet on his left arm. He was handsome and young, his demeanor evoking a cold, edged weapon. He was also someone Kojou knew quite well—and was on his list of individuals he never wanted to meet again. 

“Huh?! You’re—” 

“Senpai, stand back!” 

Yukina advanced to the fore, as if to shield the shocked Kojou. She reached a hand toward the guitar case on her back, poised to draw her spear out at any moment. 

The silver-haired youth gazed at Kojou’s and Yukina’s reactions with a scornful sigh. 

“Oh, it’s you, Kojou Akatsuki. Just like you to be fondling a little girl’s butt.” 

He spoke in a challenging tone. Hearing this, Kojou and Yukina barked back at the same time. 

“I ain’t fondling her!” 

“He is not fondling me!” 

Seeing the two in perfect sync, the silver-haired youth exhaled and laughed indifferently. As he did so, Kojou glared at him with naked animosity. 

“You’re the vampire on Vattler’s ship, Kira’s partner—” 

“Tobias Jagan! Remember it already!” 

This time, it was the blond youth’s turn to make an angry retort. 

Tobias Jagan was an aristocrat born in the Warlord’s Empire in Western Europe. He was an Old Guard vampire, a direct descendant of the First Primogenitor, the Lost Warlord. 

He resided on Itogami Island as a confidant to Dimitrie Vattler, Duke of Ardeal and also Warlord’s Empire nobility, but his position was closer to an enemy of Kojou’s. Furthermore, for some reason, he acted like he hated Kojou for personal reasons. At any rate, he wasn’t a vampire to take lightly. 

Kojou, glaring at Jagan across Yukina’s shoulder, yelled, “What the hell are you doing here?!” 

Jagan snorted in visible scorn. “I am under no obligation to answer questions from you, fool.” 

“Oh yeah?!” 

Indignant, Kojou closed the distance with Jagan. Yukina hastily held the angry Kojou back. 

“Senpai, please calm down a little!” 

“…You’re in the arrival lobby… So you’re here waiting for someone?” Kojou asked. 

“Well, well…” went Jagan at Kojou’s unexpectedly calm observation. He wore an expression seemingly wary of Kojou’s sharp eyes. “Hmph. So even you possess intelligence equal to a kindergartener’s… Color me impressed.” 

“Well, don’t be!” 

Jagan’s tone, as if expressing heartfelt admiration, only irritated Kojou further. However, it seemed Jagan was not in any mood to humor Kojou. 

“Begone, pest.” 

Pushing past Kojou and Yukina, who were obstructing his path, Jagan walked straight down the corridor. But as if remembering something, he stopped, looked back, and opened his mouth with a grudging expression. With emotion and reason in conflict, reason seemed to have barely won out. 

“Listen up, Kojou Akatsuki. My business does not include unproductive combat with you. Nor is it of direct import with this island.” 

“Huh?” 

“So don’t bother worrying and carry on…until His Excellency returns at least!” 

With that one-sided statement, he ignored Kojou and Yukina and walked off, that time for good. 

“What’s with him?” Kojou muttered, shrugging his shoulders as he glared at the departing man’s back. “His Excellency means Vattler, right? What does he mean, until the guy’s back?” 

“I do not know… However, he spoke as if the Duke of Ardeal is not on Itogami Island…” 

Yukina closed her eyes and quietly sank into thought. Then, lifting her face as if remembering something, she ran outside the building. Kojou, having no idea what was going on, chased after her. 

She headed to an open space inside the airport with a view overlooking the sea. 

“Senpai, look there.” 

As Yukina spoke, she pointed to a pier in the harbor district. Built alongside the central airport, the giant international passenger ship terminal served with the airport as the entrance to Itogami Island, twin symbols for the man-made island’s eastern district. That very moment, numerous cruise ships were moored there. 

Even among such company, the Oceanus Grave II, the mega-yacht owned by Dimitrie Vattler, stood out. The privately owned vessel was an ocean liner of such stature that it rivaled a naval destroyer in size. 

However, at the moment, that majestic floating castle was nowhere to be seen. The utterly unmistakable sight of the huge ship had vanished from Itogami Harbor. 

The Oceanus Grave II had departed without either Kojou or Yukina realizing it. Where had it sailed off to and its owner, Vattler, with it…? 

“Vattler’s ship is…gone?” Kojou murmured, dumbfounded. 

The civil war in the Chaos Zone, Jagan’s mysterious behavior—that series of ill portents made Kojou, who would normally be glad for Vattler’s absence, all the more concerned. The timing seemed especially poor. 

That said, Kojou possessed no means of discerning Vattler’s true intent. 

“…” 

He and Yukina, standing beside him, held each other’s gaze, the two seemingly sharing a sigh. Apparently, Kojou and Yukina were fated to be led around by Vattler even when he was nowhere to be found. 

5 

In the end, Kojou and Yukina arrived back at their apartment building close to ten AM. They’d spent the excess time searching for Jagan at the airport to check on the whereabouts of the Oceanus Grave II, absent from its pier. 

However, in the end, they were unable to gain any leads on Vattler’s location. Even checking the Net—and with the Lion King Agency—had yielded no details. As a result, Kojou and Yukina had spent all that time for naught. 

And back in the present— 

Kojou was staring at Yukina, wielding a rugged combat knife in the Akatsuki residence kitchen, with a dubious look on his face. 

“I shall handle this. Senpai, please go on ahead—” 

With those words, Yukina violently swung down with the knife. 

The polished blade sank deeply into the mass of meat, severing it without a sound. 

“No way. I can’t leave this to you all by yourself, Himeragi!” Kojou earnestly attempted to stop her. 

Kojou’s right hand was gripping a sharp blade in its own right—a stainless steel, multipurpose chef’s knife. 

“Why can you not entrust this to me?!” 

For once, Yukina glared at Kojou with visible emotion on her face. Right beside her was a metallic-colored, two-handed pot, making a soft sound as it simmered over a gas-burner flame. 

“Well, what exactly do you plan to do with that mayonnaise in your hand?!” 

“Th-this is to add flavor!” 

Yukina, dressed in an apron, hid the mayonnaise in her hand behind her back as her shoulders shuddered a little. 

With a practiced hand, Kojou lightly peeled daikon radishes as he insisted, “No, that’s not right! This is meat we’re talking about!” 

“Mayonnaise has many nutritional benefits. After all, there are cases of stranded mountain climbers having survived hunger thanks to licking the mayonnaise they had on hand!” 

“That hypothetical situation’s got nothing to do with this!” 

Having tried and failed to desperately explain it away, Yukina grudgingly put the condiment down. Seeing this, Kojou audibly exhaled in relief. 

The time was 12:40 PM. They were preparing a slightly late lunch. 

With Nagisa absent for the time being, Kojou had meant to stock up on grub and convenience store bento boxes, but Yukina had voiced opposition to this. She claimed ready-made food was lacking in nutrition; apparently, with Nagisa gone, Yukina had taken on responsibility for Kojou’s dietary regimen herself. 

Of course, Kojou had little objection to home cooking per se, but— 

“That doesn’t mean you need to force yourself to help me, Himeragi. Lately, Nagisa’s been taking care of it, but I was cooking for myself a lot during middle school.” 

“No, I can cook, too. I received survival training from the Lion King Agency, after all.” She proudly added, “Leave it to me.” 

Apparently, that very training was the culprit behind her waving around a combat knife in place of a chef’s. 

“Oh, fine, then. Setting aside flavoring the meat, go ahead and set the sashimi, Himeragi.” 

“Understood. Well, then…” 

With one hand, Yukina received the plate Kojou offered her as she set the combat knife down. For a moment, Kojou doubted his own eyes when he saw what she had picked up in its place. 

“Wait a sec! Why are you picking up the mayo now…?!” 

“…Are you saying that ketchup would be better?” 

“This ain’t sunny-side up eggs, so cut both out! At least don’t put any on my por—” 

“Tee-hee, I am kidding. I am not so bereft of taste for that.” Seeing Kojou seriously nervous sent Yukina giggling with a teasing smile. 

“…Gimme a break.” Kojou weakly exhaled, drained of strength. As usual, he couldn’t put his finger on Yukina’s sense of humor. 

Yukina focused on earnestly setting the plates for a while, perhaps thinking she’d gone just a trifle too far. Kojou silently peeled the daikon radishes in the meantime. 

With calm returning to the kitchen, the only sounds were of boiling meat and the two performing their respective tasks. It was that serenity, with both in close, crowded quarters, that suddenly made each of them conscious of their situation. 

For some reason, Yukina’s tone was awkward as she commented, “Y-you know, it’s very quiet without Nagisa around.” 

Perhaps she was trying to ease the tension in her own way. However, thanks to her saying Nagisa isn’t here, that fact came into even sharper relief in both of their minds. Yes—Nagisa would not be returning home that day. They were alone with each other till nightfall. 

Stay frosty, Kojou told himself. 

There ought not to have been anything odd about being alone with Yukina; she was the watcher of the Fourth Primogenitor. It was her duty to be at his side like that. 

Kojou had no reason to be tense. The fact that he had Yukina on his mind more than usual was, in his opinion, Gajou’s fault for having run his mouth the day before about wanting to see the faces of his grandkids. 

“Geez, kids, my ass. That moron…” 

Kojou subconsciously murmured it to himself. Yukina shuddered, her body going rigid in apparent fright as she said: 

“K-kids…?” 

“Er, n-nope! I definitely didn’t say that! I meant…eggs! We’ve got some eggs left in the fridge, so I was thinking, best to use ’em up ASAP.” 

“I—I see.” Yukina’s smiling face was tense as she nodded. 

He seemed to have lowered her guard a bit, but the uncomfortable, awkward atmosphere still remained. The more he noticed the awkwardness, the more nervous he became. 

“Ah, sorry.” 

When Kojou went to take the same napkin Yukina was reaching for, his fingertips brushed her hand. Both Kojou and Yukina stopped moving with their hands remaining overlapped. 

“I—I am sorry!” 

“No, my bad.” 

Kojou and Yukina forced their frozen bodies to move, pulling their hands away. It was one brief moment, but it had felt unusually long. The silence that assailed them once more felt heavy. 

“H-how about we turn on the TV?” 

“L-let us do that.” 

Unable to endure the serenity, both spoke to that effect as they shifted to the living room. It just so happened that the first channel to be displayed was airing the same overseas news service they’d seen at the airport. 

“Civil war, huh…” 

Setting his eyes upon that cruel reality made Kojou finally feel like his head had cooled off. 

Even if the events were taking place in a far-off nation, it was a war involving a fellow vampire primogenitor. Kojou couldn’t manage to feel like it didn’t concern him. 

Apparently, the silver lining was that the civil war had yet to escalate into a fully-fledged armed conflict. There had yet to be reports of civilian fatalities. 

“Come to think of it, we were talking about this before, but why are they rebelling anyway?” 

Kojou continued watching the screen as he posed the question. Yukina had been on the verge of divulging the information back at the airport. 

“It is probably…a border dispute, but…” 

“…Border dispute?” 

“Yes. Besides the Chaos Zone, the continent of North America contains two large nations, the Confederate States of America and the North American Union. It is the CSA that directly borders the Chaos Zone, however.” 

“Ahh… Come to think of it, I think we had a geography lesson on that.” 

Kojou vaguely remembered the countries on a world map. The NAU was composed of everything from Alaska to the Great Lakes region, and the interior of the continent was covered by the CSA. From there, the southern part of North America and the Caribbean Sea were governed by the Chaos Zone—such were the three major countries comprising most of North America. 

“It is said that the border between the Chaos Zone and the CSA is a vast treasure trove of mineral wealth. Accordingly, there have been repeated disputes between the two nations over the border territories belonging to them. However, because it has the NAU at its back, the CSA cannot engage in large-scale hostilities.” 

“Meaning it’s bad if they got trapped in a pincer, huh?” 

Kojou understood the gist of Yukina’s explanation. The powerful NAU was lurking behind the CSA’s back. Depleting itself in a conflict with the Chaos Zone would only be to the CSA’s disadvantage. 

“Yes. Therefore, I believe the CSA has instigated rebellious elements within the Chaos Zone. No matter how great the Chaos Bride’s popularity, there are still beast-men supremacists chafing under the rule of vampires and ethnic minorities seeking autonomy.” 

“So the CSA next door is pulling the rebel army’s strings… Come to think of it, that makes a lot of sense.” 

Kojou made a heavy grimace as he nodded. With that reasoning, he, too, could understand why there was a revolt in the Chaos Zone ruled by the Third Primogenitor. Malcontents were bound to appear, no matter how benign the monarch. If an enemy nation approached such people—and provided weapons and financing—inciting a revolt was surely no difficult task. 

“I suppose so. But there is one thing that bothers me—” 

“What?” 

“No matter how much weaponry and financial support the CSA might provide, if the Third Primogenitor was serious, she ought to be able to wipe out an entire regional capital garrison single-handedly. Surely the soldiers of a Dominion are not ignorant about how terrifying a primogenitor is, and yet—” 

Yukina’s expression grew quiet and concerned. Her words made Kojou catch on to what she meant, too. 

“If they’ve started a revolt despite all that…that means…” 

“Yes. That they might have obtained some kind of trump card with which they can oppose even a primogenitor.” 

“O…kay…” 

Kojou suddenly remembered a man named Kristof Gardos. 

The remnants of the so-called Black Death Emperor Front had plotted to obtain the ancient weapons known as Nalakuvera in order to oppose the First Primogenitor who ruled the Warlord’s Empire. 

Gardos’s plan failed in the end, but the Nalakuvera’s combat capability had indeed been a menace. It was no mere boast that they were capable of opposing a primogenitor. Had Asagi Aiba not turned the tables, Itogami Island would surely have been destroyed by a mere handful of them. 

It wasn’t much of a stretch that a rebel army in the Chaos Zone plotting insurrection against a primogenitor like Gardos had weapons on par with the Nalakuvera for its own. That was likely what worried Yukina. But— 

“S-senpai, the pot!” 

As Kojou was indulging in such reverie, Yukina shouted from beside him. When he suddenly looked, the pot filled with meat simmering over a propane flame was starting to boil over. 

“Uh-oh…! …Yeowch, hot!” 

“Senpai?!” 

Kojou rushed over to the burner to weaken the flame, inadvertently touching the pot lid in the process. Yukina, seeing this, drew in her breath and said, “Are you all right?! If we do not cool that immediately—” 

“Ah…er, it’s probably all right. A little burn like this should heal in no time…” 

“That will not do. Even if you are a vampire, proper application of first aid will reduce the time it takes to heal, so—” 

She took the hesitant Kojou by the hand and dragged him over to the sink. Kojou, in unexpectedly close quarters with her, was stricken once again by the same tension as before. 

“Senpai? What is the matter?” Yukina asked, confused by Kojou’s stiffness. 

With her at very close range, he subconsciously looked away from her big eyes and said: 

“Er, I was just thinking, Himeragi, it’s a funny feeling standing here in the kitchen, just the two of us…” 

“J-just the two of us…” 

Realizing that she was, in fact, embracing Kojou from behind, Yukina’s face flushed a deep red. However, having proclaimed she was administering first aid, she could not thrust him aside partway. 

Before Kojou’s eyes, with black hair hanging over it, was the back of Yukina’s pale neck. 

The pleasant scent of Yukina’s hair pricked at Kojou’s nostrils. He felt the beat of her heart through his back. Even though she was nervous, Yukina made no move of resistance. Kojou swallowed, his throat feeling incredibly dry. And then— 

Ding-dong— 

“Wh-whoa?!” 

“Hyaa?!” 

At the sudden ring of the doorbell, Kojou and Yukina separated as if feeling an electric jolt. Simultaneously, the pair deeply exhaled, liberated from the tension. The beats of Kojou’s pounding heart were very noisy. As if to conceal his flushed cheeks, he glared in the direction of the entrance in visible consternation. 

“Who is it at a time like this?” 

“It seems to be a package delivery. Shall I go out?” 

“Nah, that’s fine. I’ll go.” 

When Yukina moved to take off her apron, Kojou stopped her and headed for the entrance. 

When he opened the front door, barely checking first, a male deliveryman was standing there in a uniform he didn’t recognize. At his feet rested a large suitcase with a packing slip plastered on it—the kind used for international shipping. 

“Package for delivery. Sign here to indicate receipt, please.” 

“Ah, right, right.” 

The description of the contents of the package on the packing slip the deliveryman tendered was in flowing, handwritten English. Kojou could only make out his own name and the apartment’s address. He imagined that Gajou must have been the one who had sent it. He couldn’t think of anyone else who’d send a suspicious international package like that. 

“Have a nice day—” 

When Kojou finished awkwardly signing, the deliveryman forcefully snatched the packing slip back and proceeded to depart. All that was left in front of the entrance was the giant parcel. 

It was a heavy metallic case. It seemed to be nearly a hundred kilograms in weight. Kojou had a little trouble carrying it one-handed, even with his vampiric arm strength. 

“What’s with this huge suitcase…? Errr……?!” 

Crouching next to the baggage, Kojou checked the packing slip one more time. Then, when Kojou made out the sender’s name, he raised a hoarse cry. 

“Geh…! Wait a sec! I don’t need this package. Rather, I’d like you to take it back…!” 

Kojou leaped out of the entrance barefoot, calling out to the deliveryman. However, the deliveryman was already nowhere to be seen in the apartment building corridor. He was long gone. 

“—Wait, he’s not here anymore! Shit!!” 

Kojou fell to his knees, drained of strength. It was Kojou’s mistake to have signed the form without having checked the sender. He ought to have rejected the package and insisted it be returned, whatever it took. 

“Senpai? Did something happen?” 

Yukina, noticing Kojou’s odd state, called out to him. Kojou, clutching his head in anguish, pointed at the suitcase and said: 

“This happened. Look, here.” 

“…Eh?! Dimitrie Vattler…the Duke of Ardeal is the sender?!” 

Yukina’s expression stiffened as she stared at the attached packing slip. The name of the individual written upon it was simply that unexpected. 

The sender of the suitcase was Dimitrie Vattler—the battle-maniac vampire native to the Warlord’s Empire. The very fact that he’d gone out of his way to send it to Kojou made him imagine that the content was nothing good. 

“And I went and signed for it. Aw, shit, I messed up…” 

“Th-that does make things difficult. Even if you were to return it, the Duke of Ardeal’s ship is not in port…,” Yukina murmured, bewildered. 

The giant cruise ship upon which Vattler lived had already left port—its whereabouts unknown. Considering that the package had been sent by international shipping, it was a safe bet that he was somewhere outside of Japan. 

“Well, we can’t just let it sit there without looking at it…can we?” Kojou’s expression contorted. He genuinely didn’t want to know what was in the package Vattler had sent him. 

However, Yukina nodded in resignation. 

“I suppose not. We cannot take countermeasures without checking to see what is inside. There is no guarantee that it is safe so long as it remains unopened.” 

“Yeah, you have a point…… Better not be a bomb that blows up the second you open it…” 

Kojou shifted an annoyed gaze to the suitcase. As if to console him, Yukina shook her head with an earnest expression. 

“I believe there is little need to be concerned about that. After all, senpai, even if your entire body is ripped to pieces, you should return to life immediately, and I can nullify any type of curse or spell with Snowdrift Wolf. Knowing this, I doubt the Duke of Ardeal would do something so futile.” 

“That makes logical sense, but he’ll do pretty much anything if it amuses him.” 

“Now that you mention it, you have a point…” 

Yukina, influenced by Kojou’s blunt statement, bit her lip, as if she feared that as well. 

“But waffling about won’t solve anything. Himeragi, please.” 

“Yes.” 

His resolve apparently hardened, Kojou stood up and carried the suitcase into the living room. In the meantime, Yukina opened up her favorite guitar case, pulling out the silver spear within. 

This was a Schneewaltzer, a secret weapon of the Lion King Agency—a purging spear able to rend any barrier and nullify demonic energy. Even if there was a magical trap cast upon the suitcase, so long as Yukina had the spear activated, damage to the surrounding area ought to be minimal at worst. Against physical attacks, she could only pray that Kojou’s Beast Vassals could manage somehow. 

Checking to see that Yukina’s preparations were complete, Kojou stretched a hand toward the suitcase. That was all it took to release the lock; perhaps it had reacted to Kojou’s demonic energy. Vattler really had intended for the case to be for Kojou, and Kojou alone. 

“Let’s do this. Three…two…one…!” Kojou counted “Zero” and simultaneously yanked open the case. 

That instant, thick, pure-white mist spewed out of the case. 

Naturally, he hadn’t expected that to happen. Yukina, too, was bewildered, unable to respond. 

“It’s cold… What the hell is this?! Dry ice?!” 

The room temperature plunged as the white mist enveloped them. However, he felt no danger. The scent and other stimuli were not particularly strange; it was just very cold. Any careless touch with a bare hand would get the frost that was dancing around inside the suitcase onto one’s flesh. It was without doubt that the temperature was lower than a freezer’s. 

Kojou, obstructed by the dense mist, could not tell what was inside the case. He kept his hand on the case’s handle, unable to do anything except wait for the mist to clear. And then— 

“Get back, senpai. There is a person inside—!” 

Yukina suddenly turned the tip of her spear toward the case. 

Kojou peered through a slender break in the cold mist to see the contents within. Amid the cloudy, freezing air, there was a human being stuffed into the case—one with a petite, beautiful figure. 

“A w-woman…?!” Kojou murmured, shocked. 

The stark-white mist filling the case cleared away, completely exposing the figure. She had delicate, light-brown skin and honey-colored hair as dazzling as the sun. Her limbs were supple, and her face looked quite young. She had tight hips and a surprisingly abundant swell to her breasts— 

Lying on her side inside the case was this young, foreign-born girl—a beautiful young woman wearing not even a single stitch of clothing. However, she did not move. She continued her cold sleep, almost as if she were dead. 

“H-how long are you going to continue looking?!” 

With Kojou fascinated by the girl, Yukina launched a palm strike at the side of his face. 

“Ghoh!” He reeled backward as he held the tip of his nose. Kojou couldn’t help but feel angry at Yukina’s excessive, irrational action. Yes, he was staring at a buck naked girl, but that couldn’t be avoided under the circumstances. It was an act of fate, no matter how you sliced it. 

“Well, you don’t have to put it like— Aaah…!” 

As Kojou raised his voice to object, fresh blood vigorously flowed out of his nose. 

Right in front of Kojou was the completely nude foreign girl lying on her side. Yukina glared sullenly at the sight of Kojou getting a nosebleed while looking down at the two of them. 

“Senpai…” 

“Y-you’re wrong. This is because you smacked me in the—” 

Kojou desperately made excuses as blood flowed from his nose. Yukina stared at Kojou with a cold gaze. 

“Indecent.” 

She said it like an afterthought in a voice bereft of emotion. Then, she sighed disparagingly. 

“Why meeeee?!” Kojou shouted on the spot. 

As the two stared at each other like that, the beautiful, foreign girl quietly continued to sleep.