Strike the Blood - Volume 14 - Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO 

INTO STRATUM ZERO 

1 

A crimson tank raced through the somber city. It was no bigger than the average automobile. It was a micro-robotic tank in a shape easily reminiscent of a land turtle. 

Constructed with anti-demon combat in an urban environment in mind, the robot tank had high maneuverability. It could traverse stairs and obstacles to a certain extent, even climbing sheer walls if the need arose. Its maximum burst of speed probably exceeded two hundred kilometers per hour. None would think one could chase a machine like that in a dense urban area. 

However, the driver of the robot tank refused to slow down. The crimson reinforced-plastic armor plating had countless nicks and scratches carved into it. Someone was chasing the robot tank as it continued to flee. 

“Warning—bogey at two o’clock. Range 1,800. Number: four.” 

Inside the robotic tank cockpit, warning sounds blared without pause. 

Heeding these warnings was a driver—a twelve-year-old girl—in a posture as if riding a motorcycle. She was a foreigner with fiery red hair. She wore a bodysuit, with DIDIER on the name tag sewn onto the chest. 

“Pursuers, hmm? They art swift, indeed.” 

Lydianne Didier clicked her tongue as she gazed at the information about her pursuers displayed on the screen. 

The tank’s internal leg motors were already overheated; output had begun falling. She would have loved to increase its speed to make a clean getaway, but that would be difficult given the circumstances. 

“Speed differential: minus 76.6 meters per second. Estimate seventeen seconds to contact.” 

The tank’s combat support AI issues fresh warnings. Lydianne’s cheeks puffed up like those of a sulking child as she lifted the safeties for all weapons. 

“Launch smoke grenades! Scatter stun mines!” 

“—Smoke grenades launched. Stun mines loaded. Commencing scatter.” 

The support AI repeated Lydianne’s commands as it fired the onboard weapon systems. 

The smoke grenades were a special model developed by Didier Heavy Industries’ Itogami Island lab to interfere with beast-people’s senses of scent as well as tracking via magic. The stun mines were powerful enough to knock the average demon out for at least half a day. No matter how skilled the pursuers, these surely weren’t obstacles that could be overcome with ease. And yet— 

In the next instant, the robot tank was assaulted by a blow from an unexpected direction. 

The blow came from straight overhead. It was as if a gigantic ax had been swung down at the robot tank. 

Shouldering an unexpected burden, one of the wheels lost its grip, sending the tank into a spin. The underbelly armor sprayed sparks in every direction as it scraped against asphalt. 

“Hizamaru—what was that just now?!” 

“Sniping via anti-materiel rifle. Damage is light. Analyzing bullet trajectory—shooter location determined.” 

“Machine guns, full volley!” 

“Roger. Auto-targeting. Machine guns opening fire.” 

The tank’s four onboard antipersonnel machine-gun ports belched flame. She didn’t think she could take out a sniper on top of a building by firing from the ground. It could at least disrupt the enemy’s sniping, though. 

At the same time, the robot tank regained its balance and attempted to flee once again. 

But a moment before that could happen, one of the pursuers emerged, charging out of the fog and leaping toward the rear of the robot tank. 

“A head-on attack?! He doth intend to climb aboard?!” 

“Machine guns have zero rounds remaining. Cannot maintain barrage.” 

“Turn! Rid us of him!” 

Lydianne made the robot tank spin powerfully, but the pursuer calmly remained latched onto it as he raised the sidearm he wielded. 

“Could it be possible…? Be they no mere humans? The Island Guard’s SSG, perhaps?!” 

Lydianne felt she had zeroed in on the true nature of her foe. The Sorcerous Suppression Group was rumored to be the mightiest of the Island Guard, a special unit under the direct command of the Board of Directors. However, the Gigafloat Management Corporation did not publicly acknowledge its existence. This was because the equipment of the Attack Mages assigned to the SSG was constructed with feedback from research on demons conducted on Itogami Island. Using the results of biological research on demons for military applications was a Demon Sanctuary’s greatest taboo. 

Wearing a pitch-black combat suit, the pursuer trained the barrel of his gun on the robot’s front legs. The six-barreled machine gun ferociously pumped bullets into them from point-blank range. 

“Hizamaru!” cried Lydianne at the top of her lungs. 

In the middle of turning, the tank lost its balance and crashed into a side wall on the edge of the street. 

“Sustained small-caliber Gatling gunfire at point-blank range. Front left leg heavily damaged. Fourth joint connection detached.” 

“Fire wire anchors! Use the monorail pontoon and abscond to the sea!” Lydianne instructed to her support AI. 

The armor of the tank she had dubbed Hizamaru was composed of special, ritually reinforced plastic. This armor, extremely impact resistant, could withstand direct hits from 20 mm cannon rounds and even anti-tank rockets, but it was surprisingly fragile against sustained attacks concentrated on a single point. The next time Hizamaru sustained a similar attack, it would surely be destroyed in its entirety. 

“Cannot employ wire anchors. Launch equipment has been destroyed. Rear legs and main generator unit heavily damaged. Switching life support to emergency generator.” 

The support AI sent up one damage report after another. Lydianne gawked at the several warning lights flashing around the cockpit. 

“Is this the end…?” 

Smiling ruefully, the red-haired girl extended a hand toward the self-destruct system. 

Lydianne was an elite child raised at Europe’s Didier Heavy Industries, a famous weapons-manufacturing enterprise. She had been dispatched to that Demon Sanctuary as a developer and test driver for that robot tank. Though dying on the field of battle was less than ideal, she had no regrets. Lydianne stubbornly refused to cease speaking in a traditionally formal manner, as if she were a samurai, because she revered the purity of their mindset—and their lack of fear of death. 

The one thing that ate at her mind was that she had not saved her friend. Lydianne had been pursued because she had failed to rescue that captive friend. 

The SSG Attack Mages were approaching, weapons in hand. Lydianne waited for them to get close enough before activating the self-destruct system. 

In the next moment, a flash of light dyed the robot tank’s main monitor white. 

“…?!” 

The color of the Attack Mages’ faces changed. 

Without the least bit of forewarning, the area became flooded with demonic energy so potent, it threatened to burn their skin to ash. 

The energy coalesced into a gigantic blade that mercilessly swept across the ground. 

Caught in the sudden blow, the Attack Mages surrounding Lydianne were sent flying. The surrounding buildings collapsed and there was a gaping fissure in the road. Truly, it looked like a natural disaster had swept through. Lydianne had no doubt that any normal human would have died instantly. 

“Oh. So they survived, did they?” 

As the Attack Mages recovered from the shock wave, they heard a somewhat admiring voice from behind them. 

The speaker was a small-statured boy. He had beautiful black hair and olive skin. His eyes were the color of gold. 

He exuded an enigmatic sort of dignity that fit poorly with his youthful face. His disposition seemed to be that of a ferocious lion cub. Seemingly awestruck, the Attack Mages went on the defensive. 

“Those combat suits, they have beast-man cells implanted into them, yes? If memory serves, the use of demonic biological tissue for military purposes is a violation of the Holy Grounds Treaty, is it not?” 

The youth walked unceremoniously forward as he spoke in an icy tone. 

“Why wouldst he…?” 

Inside the damaged robot tank, Lydianne was at a loss for words. 

Lydianne knew the youth’s name. Iblisveil Aziz—a second-generation vampire from the bloodline of Fallgazer, the Second Primogenitor, and a crown prince of the Fallen Dynasty. 

But before Lydianne could wonder Why wouldst he appear here of all places? the Attack Mages went on the move. 

“Vampire… An Old Guard. Be wary of Beast Vassals.” 

A man appearing to be the squad leader gave orders to his comrades. Even with wounds over their entire bodies, the Attack Mages’ movements did not waver in the slightest. All at once, they surrounded Iblisveil and trained their gun barrels on him. 

“I have a connection to the little girl in that tank. Though it would appear you have been quite rude to her, if you depart immediately, I shall allow you to leave, you common whelps.” 

Iblisveil laughed cheerily, choosing to completely ignore the tension levels rising all around him. 

Out of fear, the SSG squad leader shouted, “Second squad, permission to snipe at will. Fire—!” 

“Fools…” 

As soon as the bullets left the Attack Mages’ barrels, they lost all velocity, as if they were intercepted by an invisible wall. The demonic energy perpetually surrounding Iblisveil had become physical pressure, forcing the bullets back. 

“Wha…?!” 

The squad leader’s voice trembled with horror, conveying his hesitation to the other members of the squad. It was precisely because they were such skilled Attack Mages that they realized the true terror of the youthful opponent they had provoked. 

“Mince them, Qebehsenuef—” 

Iblisveil unleashed a cloud of demonic energy that materialized in the form of a bird of prey. It was a golden peregrine falcon with a wingspan of fourteen or fifteen meters. The wind kicked up by its enormous wings became a vortex of countless blades. 

“Damn you… Don’t tell me you’re Fallgazer’s direct descendant…” 

The squad leader stared at Iblisveil in sheer terror. His words never reached him, for the tornado kicked up by the golden Beast Vassal engulfed the SSG Attack Mages without sparing a single one. Even with the power to limit damage to the surrounding area, its might was still overwhelming. The shock wave and blades created from vast demonic energy shredded their combat suits and neutralized their weapons. 

Finally, the blast winds vanished, leaving Iblisveil the only one standing there unscathed. 

The prince of a foreign land was wearing an extravagant white outfit embroidered with gold. In contrast, his right and left hands were holding a convenience store shopping bag and a steaming cup of ramen respectively. 

“Goodness. You insignificant flecks of garbage made my ramen go cold.” 

Iblisveil made a small, ill-humored snort as he stared down at the contents of his ramen cup. He’d been on his way back to his hotel, carrying the cup of ramen he had bought at a nearby convenience store. 

Then, as he turned his eyes toward the half-wrecked robot tank, he sighed, only murmuring “Goodness.” 

2 

Nagisa Akatsuki was very busy after school. She had her class representative meeting, her club activities, her homework, cleaning, laundry, and also dinner to prepare. Her mother, only returning home on a whim every one-to-two weeks, always arrived with a large bundle of laundry in tow. Also, she needed to visit her father in the hospital once in a while. If her older brother Kojou was there, she’d have shamelessly put him to work as well, but he’d said he would be returning late that day. 

So by the time Nagisa had finished her own portion of the daily chores, it had somehow reached past six PM. She stole a few bites from dinner as she awaited Kojou’s return. 

It was not long before she heard the doorbell ring. 

“Yes, yes. Just a moment, please.” 

Nagisa, still dressed down in a T-shirt and shorts, headed to the entrance. 

Then, when she opened the door, her eyes bulged. Standing there was a girl wearing the uniform of a school she was not familiar with. She was tall and slender—and stylish enough that one might suspect she was a performer. Her long hair, worn in a ponytail, was a light chestnut-brown. Her beauty evoked the image of a cherry blossom in bloom. 

“Er, um… Eh? Ah, you’re Yukina’s upperclass—” 

Nagisa looked at the girl, her wariness plain. She’d encountered this a number of times before. Her name was Sayaka Kirasaka. Apparently, she was Yukina Himeragi’s upperclassmate from the school she attended before coming to Itogami Island. 

Nagisa was unable to trust her whatsoever at the moment, because her first impression had been so awful. Nagisa had witnessed Asagi get caught in the crossfire of an altercation between Sayaka and Kojou. That, combined with a lack of information, left Nagisa with the notion that although Sayaka was unusually beautiful, she was a dangerous woman who might start swinging sharp objects at any moment. 

However, that day, Sayaka seemed noticeably different. She appeared fragile, as if she might break into tears without warning, and she looked at Nagisa with eyes that seemed ready to overflow with them. It’s like she worried herself sick and came here holding onto her last straw for dear life, thought Nagisa. 

“Hello. Um… Is…Kojou Akatsuki here?” 

Sayaka inquired in an awkward voice. 

For some reason, Nagisa felt apologetic as she explained, “He hasn’t come home yet. He said he was visiting Yaze—a friend of his, at the hospital today.” 

“Is that so…? Then I suppose Yukina’s with him.” 

“Yes. I believe so…” 

Nagisa nodded without hesitation. Kojou and Yukina doing things together was nothing out of the ordinary. At first, she thought it was strange since they weren’t a couple or anything. But lately, it had become so commonplace that she’d stopped questioning it altogether. 

“Um… You’re Yukina’s classmate, aren’t you?” 

“Eh? Ah yes.” 

Nagisa, fairly overwhelmed by the force of Sayaka’s approach, nodded. Sayaka seemed to be brooding over something as she gave Nagisa a serious look and asked, “How has Yukina been lately? Has anything about her…changed?” 

“Eh? What do you mean, ‘changed’?” 

“Like…does she seem sluggish? Do her eyes seem watery? Has she had a fever…?” 

“Are you asking…if she has a cold, or something?” Nagisa prompted, perplexed, not understanding the point of Sayaka’s question. 

She thought Yukina’s condition seemed no different than usual. Since she’d spent the morning delivering food as volunteer work, Nagisa was the one who was sleepier than usual. But if she really thought about a difference in Yukina’s behavior— 

“Now that you mention it, Yukina didn’t seem to have much of an appetite. Last night, she didn’t eat very much, and today at noon she said she was a little nauseated, so all she had was some lemon squash juice.” Nagisa followed up in a joking tone, “She’s already so thin. What’ll happen to her if she goes on a diet?” 

However, upon listening to this, Sayaka’s reaction was dramatic. 

“I knew it…” 

Face pale, Sayaka wobbled, and something fell from her hand to her feet. Covering her shapely eyes with both hands, she fell to her knees in apparent anguish. 

“Kojou Akatsuki, you idiot… What have you done to my precious Yukina…?!” 

“Huh? What about Kojou…?” 

Sayaka’s reaction unnerved Nagisa. Something must have happened between the two of that was bad enough to seriously upset Sayaka. 

“Wait, please. What has my dear brother done to Yukina? Or rather, let’s not stand and talk here. Please come inside. Dinner’s just about ready, so we can eat while we wait for Kojou and Yukina to come home—” 

Nagisa tried to drag Sayaka—who was now having a panic attack in the fetal position—into the apartment. In the first place, having a conspicuous girl like Sayaka sitting in the entryway was an abnormal situation. If the neighbors saw something like that, who knew what rumors might spread? 

However, Sayaka raised her head with a hollow gaze and said, “Thank you, but I have to find Yukina quickly… Right now, her body is in an abnormal state…” 

“U-ummm…!” 

Sayaka wobbled to her feet, walking off with an unsteady gait. With anxiety rising in her chest, Nagisa watched Sayaka depart. 

When Sayaka eventually completely vanished from view, Nagisa noticed the case that had fallen to her feet. 

“What’s this? A…testing kit? Ummm… That means this is some kind of testing fluid, right?” 

Spurred on by a vague sense of unease, Nagisa plucked the case off the ground. 

Sayaka had probably dropped it. Inside the plastic case, as large as a thumb, was fluid along with a small paper strip. Having experienced a prolonged hospital life, just looking at it gave Nagisa a pretty good idea of how it was used. The testing fluid inside the kit reacted to a single drop of blood or saliva to detect some kind of change in the body—that sort of thing. 

For instance, viral infection, allergies, or perhaps, whether a woman was pregnant— 

“This test reads…positive…… Huh?” 

This time, it was Nagisa who gawked as she saw the explanation written on the case. 

3 

It was a canal under a raised highway bridge—there, Kojou Akatsuki watched the rain. 

The weather had changed right after Kojou and Yukina had fled from Yukari Endou. 

On Itogami Island, floating atop the Pacific Ocean, sudden showers in the evening were not a rare occurrence. However, the rain that day seemed to drag on for quite a while. The evening mist clouding the artificial isle skyline made for poor visibility. It went without saying that this was convenient for a couple of fugitives like them, but that thought gave way to gloom. 

“Senpai, are your wounds okay?” Yukina asked him meekly as she looked at him sitting limply. 

Kojou’s uniform was covered in blood. His four limbs each had grisly puncture wounds from the arrows bored into them, and his chest had been slashed horizontally; all wounds inflicted by Yukari Endou. He hadn’t been beaten so severely, nor so easily, since Paper Noise had wiped the floor with him on New Year’s. 

It was strength on par with—or greater than—the Three Saints of the Lion King Agency. If he deeply understood one thing about Yukari’s seemingly limitless might, it was that. No wonder Yukina was afraid of her. But— 

“They’re pretty much healed already. Thanks for buying a change of clothes for me.” 

Kojou made a show of putting strength into both his clenched hands. The wounds Yukari had inflicted on his entire body throbbed only with minor pain. One would expect nothing less from a vampire primogenitor’s completely broken regenerative ability. 

“It was nothing. After all, it was my master’s fault for being so reckless in the first place.” 

Yukina shook her head with a hardened expression. She probably felt responsible for involving Kojou. 

“I suppose,” came his noncommittal reply as he locked his hands behind his head, laughing casually. “But all things considered, I didn’t expect the real Professor Kitty to be so pretty. Plus, she was wearing that cloak thingy that looked super-stuffy. What was she trying to do, give the cat heatstroke?” 

“Really? That was your main concern?” 

Yukina’s expression finally softened a little bit. As she did, Kojou looked up at her. 

“Come to think of it, why’d she attack you in the first place, Himeragi? If she was just ‘testing her disciple’ or whatever, don’t you think that was a bit much?” 

“I believe Master meant to…drive me into a corner.” 

Yukina’s reply came with a fragile smile. The look on her face perplexed him. 

“Enough to make you get serious? Did she have a reason to go that far?” 

“Yes. Probably.” 

Yukina bit her lip and lowered her eyes. Remaining silent afterward was probably an indication she didn’t want to speak about it further. Apparently, she had some kind of circumstance she couldn’t tell Kojou about. 

“Well, fine. More importantly, Himeragi, aren’t you cold? If this rain keeps up, we could buy an umbrella at a convenience store on the way back, or—” 

He started to get up as he spoke, but then a light, barely audible impact connected with his back. Through his uniform, he felt faint warmth and soft elasticity. 

Yukina had crept close and embraced Kojou’s defenseless back with her entire body. There was no way for Kojou to hide his surprise. 

“H-Himeragi…?!” 

“Senpai… I don’t want to go home tonight.” 

“Huh?! Huhhh…?!” 

Unable to believe his ears, Yukina’s words made Kojou’s thought process screech to a halt. 

“Nah, this isn’t right. There are a lot of things not right with that phrasing! More to the point, um, you live alone, Himeragi, so what do you mean you don’t want to go home—?” 

“That room was provided by the Lion King Agency. I have no doubt it is being occupied by a pursuer from the Lion King Agency this very moment.” 

“Eh? Ah, so that’s what you meant by not wanting to go home…” 

Now that he understood her intent, Kojou recovered from his shock. He knew this was probably stating the obvious, but she really was anxious. Attacked by her master, Yukari Endou, and pursued by the Lion King Agency—which had practically raised her as family—there was no way she could be calm about the situation. 

“Um, but why is the Lion King Agency after you, Himeragi? I could understand them being after me, but it’s not like you did anything wrong. That fight earlier was legit self-defense.” 

“No. I understand why the Lion King Agency perceives me to be dangerous.” 

Removing her hands from Kojou’s back, Yukina hung her head. Turning around to face her, he knit his brows without another word. Over the last few days, Kojou had somehow picked up on the fact that something was off with her, but he didn’t think that was an issue necessitating the Lion King Agency’s pursuit. 

The reason they were after Yukina was probably hidden in the brief conversation between her and Yukari Endou. However, no matter how much Kojou thought about it, he couldn’t imagine what that reason might be. 

As if showing consideration for the perplexed Kojou, Yukina smiled charmingly and shook her head. “I am sorry to have spoken so selfishly. Senpai, please return home ahead of me. I’m sure Nagisa must be worried about you.” 

“Ahead of— What are you gonna do, Himeragi?” 

Kojou asked this because the expression on Yukina’s face gave him a bad feeling. She looked as if a great weight had just been taken off her shoulders. 

“I won’t be returning to that room. But worry not. I shall properly observe you, senpai. I shall watch you until the very end.” 

“Nah, I can’t relax after hearing that. I’m even more freaked out now, actually.” 

Rubbing the goose bumps breaking out on his upper arms, Kojou let out a deep sigh. Any way he sliced it, leaving Yukina alone in her current state, like she had her back to the wall, was too dangerous to consider. 

Besides, he wanted to avoid a situation similar to how Nagisa became involved in a Lion King Agency attack because Kojou and Yukina had gone home and left her alone. Perhaps, at the very least, it was best to remain away from home as much as possible until the circumstances had been cleared up. 

“Well, fine. There’s no school tomorrow, anyway. How about we change clothes somewhere and go do some karaoke?” 

“Karaoke…?” 

Yukina blinked wide-eyed at Kojou’s sudden proposal. There was no particular reason to do karaoke, but there weren’t many other places where a middle schooler could spend a long period of time after classes without arousing suspicion. Of those, a karaoke club was the first one that came to Kojou’s mind. 

“Come to think of it, I haven’t done karaoke with you before, huh, Himeragi? Actually, Himeragi, do you even know what karaoke is?” 

Once Yukina accepted that Kojou was being completely serious, she pursed her lips and glared at him. 

“Um…by any chance, are you making fun of me? Even I can sing.” 

“Huh? You can?” 

The evident surprise in Kojou’s reply only served to deepen Yukina’s frown. 

That said, it was pretty hard to imagine Yukina and other girls going through intensive training at High God Forest performing karaoke. Just what kinds of songs did people who walked around with spears and swords stuffed into instrument cases all the time sing anyway? 

“I’m not as familiar with the more popular songs… Oh, but I do remember the song Asagi sang.” 

When Yukina made the assertion with a hint of pride, she gasped and realized her verbal slip. The song “Asagi” sang—the popularity of which was spreading through the city like wildfire—was a fraud created by the Gigafloat Management Corporation. Kojou and Yukina were attempting to meet with her in order to prove that very thing. 

“I… I’m sorry… It was not my intention to…” 

Yukina backpedaled, trying to be considerate. 

“No need to apologize. The song didn’t do anything wrong.” 

Kojou gave her forehead a light flick. 

“Ow,” she muttered, putting a hand on her forehead, but somehow, she looked relieved as well. 

“Well, if we’re gonna hit up karaoke, how ’bout we grab some ramen or something, first? It’s no surprise that I’m hungry after all that, what with the blood loss and all.” 

“Ramen, you say? I see. If it’s noodles, I might be able to eat, too…” 

“I’m pretty sure there’s a shop with tasty ramen nearby. Asagi told me about it…” 

What was that place called, again? pondered Kojou as he searched his memories. Asagi, a glutton despite her looks, religiously frequented the pop restaurants in Itogami City. Kojou had met up with Asagi a number of times at one place among those she was particularly fond of. One of those instances was fairly recent. 

Fortuitously, the rain was easing up right around that moment. 

As he and Yukina headed in the direction of the commercial district, Kojou remembered the name. 

“Menya Itogami—that was it.” 

4 

The shop’s interior was enveloped by a strange atmosphere. 

The establishment called Menya Itogami was located in Island West on the first floor of a multi-tenant building near the train station. There were nine seats at the counter and four chairs to a table. The storefront gave off the image of perfectly average ramen establishment. The shop was relatively full, with a line going out the door. 

A party of two was sitting at the table farthest in back, facing each other. 

This pair was the cause of the bizarre atmosphere possessing the shop. 

Both were clearly foreigners. Neither the boy nor the girl looked any older than their early teens. 

The boy was dressed in a luxurious white tunic, with unmitigated dignity and nobility effortlessly oozing from his every word and gesture. His overflowing charisma suffused the air of what was very much a commoner’s ramen shop, turning the comfortable interior space oddly uncomfortable. 

And sitting in front of the boy was a small-statured girl with fiery red hair. 

She was wearing an outfit that resembled a school swimsuit fitting very snugly against her petite frame. Guests inside the shop stared at her, a borderline criminal air hovering around them. 

Suddenly, that very girl rose to her feet with excitement, calling out to Kojou as he stood before the ticket machine. 

“Sir Boyfriend! Sir Boyfriend, is it not?! You are Lady Empress’s Sir Boyfriend, yes?!” 

“Huh? What the hell?” 

Kojou, taking his ticket, raised his head, shuddering as everyone’s gazes suddenly converged upon him. 

The guests looked between Kojou and the girl as they started to murmur. 

The extraordinary reaction of those people made Kojou and Yukina exchange troubled looks. They hadn’t the faintest idea what was going on. Though Kojou felt like getting the hell out of there, he’d already bought their meal ticket, so he couldn’t bring himself to leave and waste it. 

Then, the girl stood before Kojou and excitedly pointed to the name box over her chest. 

“It is I, Lydianne Didier! Dost thou not remember me?” 

“Oh…! You’re that friend of Asagi’s…!” Kojou shouted as the realization struck him. 

She was the robot-tank driver that Asagi called Tanker. The reason it had taken Kojou so long to remember was that he had never actually seen her outside of the tank. 

The murmuring inside the shop grew in intensity the moment Kojou and the others uttered the word Empress, the buzzword for Asagi. At that point, there was hardly a single person on Itogami Island who did not know the name of Asagi Aiba, the Cyber Empress. Of course, all eyes were going to gather on a group including a “friend” and a “boyfriend” of hers. 

A cold sweat broke out on Kojou’s back as the urge to run out the door clawed at him a second time. 

Perhaps knowing nothing of Kojou’s sentiments, Lydianne dramatically pulled up the abdominal slit of her pilot suit as she said, “I hath failed, Sir Boyfriend. Because my power is insufficient, Lady Empress remaineth away from us… I shall atone for my sins accordingly and cut my stomach—” 

“Wait, WAIT! What the hell are you doing, exposing yourself in a place like this?!” 

When Lydianne tried to wield her chopsticks as if to plunge them into her stomach, Kojou grabbed her arms and held them behind her. 

By this point, the gazes gathered upon him were no longer at a warm and fuzzy level; now the guests inside the shop glared with open hatred. They looked as if they were watching a criminal act. Kojou supposed that if he saw a high school student holding a swimsuit-wearing little girl’s arms behind her back in a ramen shop, he’d give the guy a similar look. 

Someone who looked like the proprietor of Menya Itogami was approaching their group. We’re gonna be thrown out for sure, thought Kojou in sincere resignation when— 

“You two are making quite a fuss. Don’t you find it rude to the proprietor?” 

Silence fell over the shop, seemingly summoned by the echo of that voice. The murmuring guests swallowed their breath, and the proprietor halted just as he was about to open his mouth. The speaker was the robed boy. His eyes, shining gold, beheld Kojou. 

“Y-yeah. I guess so, sorry.” 

The one making a fuss is the chick with you, Kojou wanted to say, but he resisted the urge and bowed his head. The brief exchange completely changed the atmosphere inside the shop. 

At present, the boy in the luxurious clothing had complete command over that place. An atmosphere had been created that even the shop’s staff could not hope to dispel. The people had subconsciously yielded to his majesty, seemingly that of a born-and-bred noble. His commanding presence was such that even Kojou had to gawk. 

Pulled in by Lydianne, Kojou and Yukina ended up sitting at the same table as the boy. 

This meant they were being seated out of turn, but of course none of the guests voiced any complaint. Touch not the gods, suffer no curse—apparently. The people were tacitly acknowledging Kojou’s experience along those lines. 

The ramen the boy had ordered was brought over immediately afterward. 

Splitting the chopsticks with a practiced hand, the boy first took a sip of the soup. Then, he gently brought the noodles into his mouth. He seemed to be something of a master at eating the dish. 

“I see. In this land, the seafood is rather fresh, and the soup employs pork bones and vegetables. The sauce uses soy and sake…and chicken skin and red peppers? Hearty ramen made in-house. They also seem rather picky about the ingredients. Hmm, small wonder Asagi recommended this place.” 

“Y-yeah… Um, who are you anyway? One of Asagi’s gourmet buddies?” 

Kojou, a little creeped out by the rather detailed critique, stared at the boy as he posed the question. It was deep analytical ability that would put even most ramen critics to shame. He inferred from the earlier statements that the boy was an acquaintance of Asagi’s, but aside from their bizarre obsession with the beauty of food, he couldn’t think of anything connecting her and the foreign boy whatsoever. Kojou was mentally patting himself on the back for his deduction that the two were gourmet buddies, but… 

“Senpai, please be careful with your words. This person might well be—” 

Having maintained her silence up to that point, Yukina whispered as if scolding Kojou. Kojou stared at her with a questioning look and asked, “You know this guy, Himeragi?” 

“No,” said Yukina, shaking her head. “However, his power…is equal to or greater than the Duke of Ardeal’s…and yet, it seems different somehow…” 

“Oh my.” 

The boy’s chopsticks stopped, and he looked at Yukina with apparent interest. For one brief moment, something like a glint of bloodlust flickered in his eyes. It was then that Kojou finally realized what the boy was. 

He was a demon. A vampire. And for that matter, an Old Guard with enormous, off-the-charts power— 

“I had meant to conceal my aura, but alas. I would expect nothing less from a Sword Shaman of the Lion King Agency. She has good eyes.” 

“So you truly are—” 

“Know your place, Sword Shaman. I am speaking to the Fourth Primogenitor as Prince of the Fallen Dynasty. It is no place for a mere observer to intervene.” 

The prince’s cold words were offset by the blissful expression he wore as he enjoyed his ramen. 

His blunt murmur made Kojou’s expression freeze over. Naturally, even someone as ill versed about demonic affairs as Kojou knew of the Fallen Dynasty. A prince of the Second Primogenitor, Fallgazer, who governed a malevolent Dominion in the Middle East, meant he was son to the Second Primogenitor himself. 

“Your Excellency… Iblisveil…Aziz…,” Yukina murmured. 

The tone of dread in her voice wasn’t Kojou’s imagination. After all, there was only a tiny table between the prince directly descended from the Second Primogenitor and the Fourth. If their demonic energies were to clash, the whole of Itogami Island would likely be wiped off the map. At that moment, the shop had become the most dangerous place on the planet. Being surrounded by an army ammunition stockpile—on fire—might well have been safer. 

However, even under those conditions, Iblisveil calmly continued to eat. 

“Proprietor, seconds. With extra boiled scallions, and a pickled egg, if you please.” 

The prince of a foreign land brought out a jingling pouch as he conveyed his order. The proprietor awkwardly nodded and promptly began to cook. 

Gazing at that exchange with half-lidded eyes, Kojou asked, “Is this really a prince? Isn’t he acting a little too…folksy for that?” 

“H-he definitely is. But this sense of dignity is most certainly that of the royal class…,” Yukina answered, though she sounded unsure. 

“More like, what’s the prince of the Second Primogenitor doing eating in a ramen shop with Asagi’s friend anyway?” 

“Though I am reluctant in the matter, I happened to cross paths with this girl as she was about to be killed. I have taken her under my protection as a result. Well, on a whim,” Iblisveil replied while sipping the last of the soup from his bowl. 

“About to be killed?” 

The prince’s inauspicious words brought a grave look from Kojou. 

“Indeed,” said Lydianne in a shaky voice. Large tears were streaming down her cheeks. “’Twas the Gigafloat Management Corporation. As they dost have Lady Empress confined within Keystone Gate, I attempted to penetrate their defenses and contact her, but alas…” 

Lydianne gripped both hands together, as if desperately holding her regret in check. 

Kojou gently placed his own palms over her tiny fists. Lydianne lifted up her face in visible surprise. With a look of rare seriousness, Kojou gazed into the little girl’s eyes and made his request: 

“Tell me everything.” 

5 

Forty minutes later… 

Kojou and the others were standing in the entryway to an underground passage quite close to the center of Itogami Island. The passage headed downward to become a long tunnel. It was a drainage route to expel rain coursing under the artificial isle’s surface out to the sea. 

However, this was merely its intended function. In truth, the underground tunnel had another purpose. 

This was the supply intake route for the secret area placed in Keystone Gate—Stratum Zero. That was the original use of the rusted tunnel. 

“Keystone Gate’s Stratum Zero? And that’s where Asagi’s locked up?” 

Kojou peered into the eerie, unlit tunnel as he double-checked with Lydianne. 

“Indeed it is. I shalt issue directions until thou arriveth at Stratum Zero.” 

The girl’s voice was coursing from the speaker of Kojou’s smartphone. Lydianne herself was piloting the nearly wrecked crimson micro-robot tank. Hizamaru had been woefully stripped of combat potential, having lost one of its front legs and most of its weapons, but its onboard military computer and network capabilities were still intact. And Lydianne herself was apparently a genius hacker rivaling even Asagi. Having a girl like that support Kojou and Yukina’s infiltration was pretty reassuring. 

“That’s a big help…but we’re takin’ on the people who busted up your tank that much, huh…?” 

Kojou cast a mournful glance at Lydianne’s beat-up tank, an expression coming over him as if he could say no more. Even if it was compact, Hizamaru was a proper tank for anti-demon warfare—and a cutting-edge, experimental model at that. This meant whoever trashed it had more combat potential than a hyper-advanced tank. These were the kinds of people protecting Stratum Zero of Keystone Gate. 

“Are you gonna be okay after helping us like this? If you get attacked by the Island Guard—” 

Kojou looked up at the half-wrecked robot tank with visible concern. Currently, Hizamaru had no strength left to fight. Furthermore, without Hizamaru, Lydianne was just an elementary schooler. Pitted against the Island Guard, she probably wouldn’t even be able to flee. 

Can we really ask her to help if it’ll expose her to that much danger…? Such were Kojou’s gloomy thoughts when Iblisveil, gazing at him in mild exasperation, made a cold declaration: 

“Do not fret, Kojou Akatsuki. I shall look after the girl until this situation is dealth with.” 

“Huh…?” 

The unexpected offer from the prince of a foreign land left Kojou wide-eyed. It was a shock for the overbearing, arrogant vampire to say something out of apparent consideration for Kojou. 

“You’re seriously okay with that?” 

“Hmph. It would not be unwise for me to place you in my debt. In addition, my retainers should be arriving on Itogami Island any time now. Besides, I too hold some interest in the Gigafloat Management Corporation’s scheme.” 

“That so…?” 

The self-centeredness of Iblisveil’s statements actually put Kojou more at ease. 

“Well, thanks for that, but don’t go overboard, please?” 

“You’re one to talk… But so be it. I shall take those words to heart.” 

“Please and thank you.” 

Entrusting the foreign prince with Tanker, Kojou walked toward the dark underground passage. Following apace was Yukina. 

She was acting like accompanying him was the most natural thing in the world. Partially annoyed, Kojou looked up at her face and said, “Himeragi, you wait here, too. You’re not at 100 percent, right? I mean, your body—” 

“There is nothing wrong with my body,” she retorted, glaring. The sheer force of it overwhelmed Kojou for a moment. 

“Um, but—” 

“If I say I’m fine, then I’m fine! I’m your watcher, senpai, so of course I’ll accompany you. Or is it a problem for me to be with you when you meet Aiba?” 

“How’d you get that idea?!” exclaimed Kojou. “I’m just worried about you—” 

“Worried?” said Yukina, her temple twitching visibly. “In other words, you’re worried that I’ll slow you down?” 

“Uh… No, I mean, that’s not what I meant…” 

“Understood. That’s fine, then.” 

Lips twisted in a visible pout, Yukina averted her eyes from Kojou. 

So she does get it, thought Kojou, patting his chest in relief as he walked out into the underground passage once more. 

But right behind Kojou, he could hear the sound of light footsteps following him. 

“—Wait, you’re still following, aren’t you?!” 

“It is not that I am following behind you, senpai. You simply happen to be walking ahead of me. That is all.” 

“Are we back in elementary school?!” 

As Yukina made a stare that was sullen even for her, Kojou sighed in resignation. It was probably futile to argue with her any further. Whatever Kojou might say, Yukina would continue to follow. 

“I get it. It’s fine… Please continue accompanying me, Miss Himeragi.” 

“You should have said that from the beginning.” 

When she saw Kojou robotically bow his head, Yukina dipped her chin in apparent satisfaction. Laughing weakly at his own expense, Kojou shook his head and said, “Yeah, yeah. So, shall we?” 

“Yes.” 

The guitar case on Yukina’s back swayed as she walked with a spring in her step. 

As they traveled farther along the passageway and down a set of stairs, they found that it extended into a large, long, underground tunnel. Its diameter was four to five meters. A rail track for supplies was lying on the floor, and the walls and ceilings were covered in electrical and fiber-optic cables that looked like arteries. The sight made Kojou think less of a water runoff than the innards of a living creature. 

“Hey, Himeragi…whaddaya think about what Lydianne was saying earlier?” 

As he spoke those words, Kojou offered a hand to Yukina. Thanks to the cover story of being a water runoff, the interior of the tunnel was completely unlit. Yukina, possessing Spirit Sight, could see pretty well in the dark by human standards, but still not as well as the vampiric Kojou. Perhaps Yukina herself was tentatively aware of that, for she made no complaint as she readily accepted his hand. Kojou felt like Yukina’s cheeks had faintly reddened, but of course even a vampire’s sight could not confirm such a thing within the darkness. 

“You mean, about Itogami Island being an altar for the advent of Cain, the Sinful God?” Yukina replied in a sober, serious tone. 

Lydianne had stated that the existence of Cain, the Sinful God, was why Asagi had been incarcerated in Stratum Zero. Also, that Itogami Island was designed as a giant sorcerous device for the ritual to revive Cain, and that Asagi was the irreplaceable priestess medium for that ritual… 

“It is not very believable, and yet, it does allow several pieces to fall into place…” 

“Yeah…and wasn’t there a guy who called Asagi the Priestess of Cain?” 

“Yes, Meiga Itogami, the fugitive from the Prison Barrier…” 

Subconsciously, Yukina tightened her grip on Kojou’s hand. 

Meiga Itogami was a sorcerous, calculating criminal who had been incarcerated in the otherworldly Prison Barrier through Natsuki Minamiya’s power. Yukina had apparently encountered the man when Kojou was fighting the Third Primogenitor, Giada Kukulkin. Apparently, she’d somehow driven him off, but he’d heard it was a pretty gritty, hard-fought affair. 

“I don’t know much about him. Who is he?” 

Kojou asked Yukina, who seemed doubtful. 

She shook her head slightly and said: 

“I don’t know. It is just that he carries a black spear that greatly resembles my Snowdrift Wolf. He said the spear is a discontinued weapon of the Lion King Agency that annihilates demonic and ritual energy alike.” 

“A black spear that annihilates demonic and ritual energy? Hold on. Don’t tell me that weapon is—” 

Kojou’s feet came to an immediate stop. A weapon that struck and erased all supernatural abilities—Kojou was well aware of a group who used similar sorcerous objects. They, calling themselves the Cleansers, hadn’t desired the revival of Cain, the Sinful God, but— 

“Sir Boyfriend!” 

In his shaken state, Kojou noticed Lydianne’s voice coming from his chest. A map of the underground tunnel was displayed on the smartphone screen. Red dots were popping up all over the map. 

“What’s wrong, Lydianne? What are these dots?” 

“Warnings. Activation of defensive machines confirmed.” 

“Defensive machines…?! The hell? Weren’t you gonna deal with surveillance cameras and alarms?” 

“The underground tunnel likely has a completely autonomous defense system. Alas, even I cannot touch it—” 

“So that’s what it is…!” 

Kojou subconsciously clenched his teeth. If he couldn’t count on Lydianne’s hacking, that left only the option of breaking through by force. 

Some things were using the rail laid down in the underground tunnel to seemingly glide closer to Kojou and Yukina. They looked like metal cylinders, like wastebaskets with the backs turned toward them. 

They were smaller than Kojou had first thought. The diameter of one was eighteen centimeters at the most. They probably stood at a hundred and twenty centimeters or so. The way their eyelike lenses darted to and fro seemed comical, even adorable. 

However, the bellies of the wastebaskets had equipment attached that was not adorable in the slightest. Each was outfitted with an antipersonnel machine gun. 

And without bothering to confirm Kojou’s or Yukina’s identities, the horde of wastebaskets opened fire. 

“Senpai!” 

Yukina yanked Kojou by his shirt. “Agh!” Kojou exclaimed, arching back as a bullet grazed the tip of his nose. Kojou’s and Yukina’s bodies were practically entangled as they hid in the shadow of a pillar. Sparks scattered off the concrete as bullets peppered the other side without end. 

“They just started shooting outta nowhere?! They’re not defense machines, they’re killbots!” 

Kojou shouted his complaints into the smartphone he clenched in his hand. He knew it wasn’t Lydianne’s fault, but it was the only way he could maintain his sanity. 

“These art MAR-manufactured security pods, armed with anti-demon small-caliber machine guns and tear gas, for military use by rights. Sir Boyfriend, I wish you good fortune in battle.” 

“Good fortune in battle, my ass!” he shouted fervently at the irresponsible statement. 

Of course, if Kojou summoned a Beast Vassal of the Fourth Primogenitor, any number of security pods would no longer be a threat. Even if several hundred of them attacked him at once, he would be able to wipe the floor with them in an instant. 

However, if he summoned a Beast Vassal in such cramped quarters, he’d destroy the underground tunnel for sure. If he really messed up, Kojou and Yukina would be buried alive. And in the absolute worst-case scenario, there was a danger of wiping Keystone Gate itself off the map. The overpowered Beast Vassals of the Fourth Primogenitor were, for all intents and purposes, useless more often than not. 

“Hey…I’m just double-checking, but…there aren’t people riding in those things, right?” 

“I can say, with certainty, that there aren’t. But…why do you ask, Sir Boyfriend?” 

Perhaps alarm crept into Lydianne’s voice because she sensed the intent behind his words. Yukina gasped, glaring at Kojou within the darkness as she cautioned, “Senpai, please wait. What in the world are you—?” 

“Sorry, Himeragi. Hold this for me, would ya?” 

Kojou tossed the smartphone—with Lydianne still on the line—to Yukina. Then, he glared at the security pods, still firing at them, through gaps in the pillar. And as he did so, abnormally dense demonic energy was leaking out of Kojou’s entire body. Like mist, it wrapped around him all over, finally transforming into a pale lightning bolt. 

“Senpai…?!” 

Yukina’s eyes opened wide in fright. 

Kojou was not summoning a Beast Vassal; he was only drawing out the Beast Vassal’s demonic energy. He was controlling the power of the Fourth Primogenitor of his own will. This was a feat made possible because Kojou’s control rights over his Beast Vassals had been strengthened. 

Still, this was irrefutable proof that Kojou’s body slowly but surely was nearing that of a complete vampire. 

“Raaaaaaaagh—!!” 

With a roar, Kojou unleashed the demonic power. A pure-white beam illuminated the underground tunnel, making it as bright as day. The resulting shock wave scattering lightning indiscriminately, mowing down the horde of security pods. 

It was over in an instant. 

Dozens of military security pods had been blown away without a trace, after which nothing remained but darkness and tranquility. 

Yukina viewed the spectacle in stunned silence. 

“Had to ram ’em, but it worked out somehow…” 

Kojou’s breath was ragged, and he fell to one knee atop concrete that had been shattered by the impact. Thanks to his unconventional use of demonic power, every bone and muscle in his body screamed in agony. Even a small cough sent pain coursing through him like an electrical jolt. It was so rough that he could barely raise his voice. 

And with Kojou unable to move, Yukina looked down at him, her shoulders trembling. 

Her eyes were aflame with anger. 

“Why do you always have to…do such reckless things…?” 

“W-wait, Himeragi… Calm down! If you hit me right now, I’ll cry! Seriously! I’ll cry!” 

“…Haaah.” 

Glaring at the now teary-eyed Kojou, Yukina sighed, seemingly deflated. She then crouched down and gently stroked Kojou’s back as if she were comforting a weak puppy. 

However, as Kojou hung his head, it was during this brief moment of respite that he heard Lydianne’s voice delivering the coup de grâce. 

“Sir Boyfriend… I am deeply reluctant to say this, but what shall you do about the monetary compensation? Those security pods may look cheap, but each one costs roughly twenty million yen to manufacture. A rather considerable sum.” 

“Hold on… Repair costs are on me?! That was justifiable self-defense!” Kojou yelled, instantly forgetting the searing pain plaguing his body. Having to shoulder the cost of repair after being shot at without warning was just too unreasonable. 

“But, all things considered, we art trespassing, therefore…” 

When Lydianne calmly pointed out the detail he’d been neglecting in his argument, Kojou groaned, his words catching in his throat. 

“Shiiit… If I don’t find some kind of proof that Asagi’s being held captive, I’m a criminal?!” 

“I would strongly suggest that you make haste. ’Tis possible our intrusion hath been detected.” 

“Yeah, yeah, I get it!” 

Borrowing Yukina’s shoulder, Kojou wobbled as he rose to his feet. The pleasant scent of Yukina’s hair tickled Kojou’s nostrils, but he couldn’t afford to focus on that at the moment. According to the map displayed on the smartphone, they were nearing their destination: Stratum Zero. The distance was such that Kojou could reach it without difficulty, even with his stamina all but depleted. 

Fortunately, Lydianne had apparently disarmed all anti-intrusion measures aside from the security pods. Kojou and Yukina arrived at the endpoint of the underground tunnel less than five minutes later. 

“This is…Stratum Zero…?” 

Kojou came to a halt, bewildered as he surveyed the scene before him. 

All he could see was a big, empty room. 

The endpoint of the underground tunnel contained nothing whatsoever. More accurately, it was no more than an empty cavern. 

It was a cylindrical space with a diameter of ten meters or so, and a depth of about fifteen meters. 

This was the truth of the place called Stratum Zero. 

Towering before them was a vertical wall built of sturdy-looking metal. The exterior wall had no doors or seams or even handholds for climbing. It was a completely sterile room without a single speck of dust. 

It was a place that seemed to have no use whatsoever, save perhaps as a reservoir. 

And so, Kojou and Yukina arrived at the bottom of that giant, empty hole. 

At any rate, there could been no doubt that Kojou and Yukina had arrived at the right place. 

After all, someone had gotten there before them. In the center of the enormous, hollow cylinder, a young man wearing a black martial arts outfit had arrived to await the two of them. 

The young man was gripping a pitch-black spear. It was long and twisted, with tips on both ends. 

“So you’ve come at last, Fourth Primogenitor.” 

Slowly shifting his gaze toward Kojou, the young man spoke gently. 

Kojou knew the young man’s name. He’d met him only once, on Harrowing Festival Day when the Prison Barrier was broken. He was the last of the seven sorcerous criminals who had escaped that day. 

And he was the man with the “discontinued weapon” of the Lion King Agency… 

“Meiga…Itogami…!” 

Kojou’s voice echoed around the enormous cylinder. 

Displeased, Meiga Itogami grimaced as he listened to the reverberation. 

6 

“It is an honor to be in your presence once again, Fourth Primogenitor.” As Meiga closed the gap between himself and Kojou, he spoke with a courteous tone. “Truly, I had expected to meet with you sooner…but that is all well and good. Thanks to the delay in our reunion, my wounds have healed.” 

“Tch.” 

Kojou clicked his tongue as he distanced himself from Yukina and dropped into a fighting stance. Pain consumed his every thought, but he could not allow himself the luxury of acknowledging it. 

“You waiting for us means Asagi really is here, doesn’t it?” Kojou asked for confirmation. 

Meiga smiled slightly as he said, “If I said the Priestess of Cain is not here…would you believe me?” 

“Like hell I would! No way I’d just nod and trust the words of an escaped convict!” Kojou spat. 

The appearance of the sorcerous criminal Meiga was hard proof that this was no ordinary place. There was no way Kojou could turn back without being certain of Asagi’s whereabouts. 

“Hmm,” Meiga murmured as if he took offense to Kojou’s words. “I am a criminal, yes, but also I believe that you and I are more alike than you care to admit.” 

“Oh, shut up!” Kojou, remembering the newly wrecked security pods, unwittingly bared his fangs. “Meiga Itogami, where is Asagi?! I’ll make you answer by force if I have to!” 

Kojou gave Meiga a look that could kill. Meiga chuckled, as if demeaning him. 

“Fourth Primogenitor, there seems to be some sort of misunderstanding.” 

“Misunderstanding…?” 

A crease formed in Kojou’s brow. The devilish grin was plain on Meiga’s face as he met Kojou’s glare. 

“I am not interested in confronting you. Or rather, I do not feel threatened by you in the slightest. In fact, I’m feeling generous, so I’ll make you a deal. If you vacate the premises immediately, I’ll let you leave in one piece.” 

“How very kind.” Kojou said with a sigh. He didn’t want to fall for a cheap taunt, but if Meiga was on the side of people using Asagi, he’d have to fight the guy either way. 

“Now I’ve got a deal for you. If you release Asagi, I won’t tell Natsuki that you were here.” 

For a brief moment, hearing Natsuki Minamiya’s name wiped the smirk off Meiga’s lips. The pitch-black spear he wielded emitted a bizarre miasma. 

“That is unfortunate. I felt just a smidgen of kinship toward you, but now…I pity you; a pathetic young man deceived by the Lion King Agency, just as I once was—” 

“Senpai, I shall handle this—!” 

Yukina drew her silver spear. 

But before that, Kojou leaped—a feat made possible by drawing out his vampiric might to the maximum. Neither Yukina, despite being aware of his fatigue, nor Meiga, poised and on guard, could respond to his speed. 

“Let’s go, jailbird!” 

Kojou dashed straight for Meiga, intent on punching him square in the face. It was the simplest attack he could think of. Kojou was not a genuine vampire; he held no pride toward a vampire’s abilities. If Meiga’s spear could nullify demonic energy, he would opt for a physical attack instead. 

And as it happened, Meiga never saw it coming. Kojou’s mighty blow connected with Meiga’s chin, knocking him up into a somersault and blowing him away. 

“Eh?!” Yukina stood dumbfounded, staring as Meiga sailed into the far wall and collapsed. 

Kojou followed through with his punch before hunkering down on one knee, grimacing as pain washed over his entire body. 

Meiga remained facedown, motionless. Even a demon possessing a powerful, resilient body, to say nothing of a normal human, could not have withstood such an attack. At the very least, Meiga’s lower jaw had to have been smashed to pieces. 

“Ow, ow, ow… Damn it, I think I might have overdone it…a little?” 

He’s not dead, right? Kojou wondered, looking at Meiga with an expression of concern. 

However, only a moment later, Kojou heard a deep “Heh-heh” coming from the facedown Meiga. Driving a tip of his spear into the floor, Meiga slowly rose to his feet. 

“I see. Knowing that Fangzahn can nullify demonic energy, you led with a normal punch… Naturally, even I wasn’t expecting that. It would seem I underestimated you, Kojou Akatsuki.” 

Meiga moved his purportedly broken lower jaw and calmly smiled at him. He couldn’t have come out of that unscathed. And yet, he didn’t appear to be in any pain. 

“However, unfortunately for you, an undying body is not a privilege exclusive to you vampires.” 

Coursing from Meiga’s split lips was a dark liquid resembling decayed blood. He made no effort to wipe it off as he walked in Kojou’s direction. 

“What’s with this guy…?!” 

“An undead?! No, could he be…a jiangshi?!” 

Yukina murmured in a raspy voice. The oddly malevolent ring to it instilled a sense of disgust in Kojou for no particular reason. 

“Jiangshi?” 

“A demon given life using a human being’s corpse… An artificial vampire.” 

“Technically speaking, a poor excuse for a vampire,” Meiga corrected with a laugh at his own expense. “An incomplete bystander, able neither to live nor perish. But…that is why I am able to wield this weapon!” 

Meiga glanced at his own feet as he swung the jet-black spear downward. 

In only an instant, as Kojou stood defenseless, countless blades were thrust toward his body. 

Dark blades, practically paper-thin, jutted from Kojou’s own shadow. They were formed of a dark aurora that ate into the world itself. 

“Shit… This feeling! Is this the encroachment of Nod?!” 

The dark blades, able to nullify demonic energy, robbed Kojou of his vampiric power. The effect was the same as when the knights of the Cleansers had employed relics of The Cleansing. Meiga’s Fangzahn was a weapon that controlled the encroachment of Nod. 

“Snowdrift Wolf—!” 

Twirling her silver spear, Yukina bore down on Meiga. The Schneewaltzer, capable of piercing any barrier, was the sole weapon capable of resisting the encroachment of Nod. In fact, Yukina had saved Kojou with that power several times during the fight at Kannawa Lake. Even so… 

“It is futile. Have you forgotten? My Fangzahn nullifies both demonic and spiritual energy.” 

…Meiga swung his spear with a leisurely smile. The two spear wielders collided head-on, but it was Yukina who was blown back. With extraordinary speed impossible for any normal person, Meiga continued the barrage of slashes. Yukina fell off-balance as spears of darkness rained over her. 

“And with your spiritual energy sealed, you are nothing but an ordinary human. You could never defeat one such as I, who does not know death!” 

“Ugh…ngh…!” 

As she parried Meiga’s slashing attacks, Yukina’s stance wavered greatly due to Fangzahn nullifying her spiritual energy. At that moment, Yukina could employ neither her Spirit Sight nor ritual spells to augment her physical strength. She was a powerless little girl. 

Even so, Yukina’s counterattacks reached Meiga without fail, lacerating Meiga’s limbs and breaking several ribs on his left side. A normal person would surely have been put out of commission long before this point. 

Yet, the movements of Meiga, the jiangshi, did not change. Meanwhile, Yukina was nearing the limits of her endurance. 

Unable to withstand Meiga’s slicing attack, Yukina flopped onto her back. With still eyes, Meiga looked down at her, seeing that she was unable to move, her breaths catching in her throat. 

“And so, I shall kill the one Touka once saved. This ironic twist of fate suits me well.” 

Although Meiga’s offhand murmur had been meant for no one in particular, his words made Yukina’s breath catch in her throat. 

“Miss…Touka? Why do you know that name…?!” 

“Farewell, Priestess of the Divine Wolf…” 

Meiga brandished his pitch-black spear. The bladed tip was sinking toward Yukina’s chest, and in that instant— 

“Himeragi, run!” 

“Senpai?!” 

—Kojou rammed his shoulder into Meiga’s back, sending the man’s slender body flying. Meiga turned to sullenly glare at the wounded Kojou. 

Kojou must have yanked all the blades from his body himself. His body was in tatters, and his freshly bought parka was dyed deep crimson. His left arm dangled listlessly at his side. 

In spite of this, Kojou stood in front of Meiga to shield Yukina from him. 

Eyes coldly fixed upon the Fourth Primogenitor, Meiga slowly readied his spear in a stance known only to the Attack Mages of the Lion King Agency. 

“No, senpai! Run—” 

Before Yukina could finish, Meiga silently swung his spear. The movement was muted…surreal. Kojou, and even Yukina, had no time to react. 

“Hell-Eater Wolf—” 

A second too late, they heard Meiga’s voice. The black spear had impaled Kojou through the heart. The blood that exploded from Kojou’s wound painted Yukina’s face red. 

Yukina’s voice trembled. 

“Sen…pai…” 

Kojou’s body tumbled onto the metal floor. A scream erupted from Yukina’s mouth. 

As she tried to get up, Yukina’s hand touched the silver spear that had rolled onto the floor. 

The darkness enveloping the empty room was pierced by a pale, dazzling beam. 

“U…aaa…aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh—!!” 

The radiance pouring out of Yukina’s back traced a giant symbol in the air. 

Setting eyes upon it, Meiga’s expression stiffened for the first time. 

The encroachment of Nod unleashed by the black spear shattered into dust like thin panes of glass—and vanished. Fangzahn was unable to nullify Yukina’s overwhelming spiritual energy. 

“Absurd… This power—don’t tell me this is…?!” 

Meiga’s lips contorted into shock. Steam was shooting upward as his purportedly undying body was scorched. As the beam buried his field of vision, Meiga narrowed his eyes and trained his spear toward Yukina. 

“Now you’ve done it, Lion King Agency! Was this your true objective all along…?!” 

Dragging his wounded body along, the black-clothed man drew closer to Yukina. 

She had already lost consciousness. Drawing on spiritual energy beyond her limits had been more than her body could withstand. The light from her spiritual energy enveloped her, but in that moment, Meiga could kill her— No. 

He had to kill her. 

But as he raised his black spear, the voice of a supposedly dead teenage boy reached his ears. 

“I, Kojou Akatsuki, inheritor of the Kaleid Blood, release thee from thy bonds!” 

“What?!” 

Meiga’s eyes swayed with hatred. 

Kojou, presumably dead from being impaled through the heart, raised his right hand up with a devilish grin. 

The pure-white beam unleashed by Yukina was the cause. That radiance had destroyed the encroachment of Nod, restoring Kojou’s lost immortality and power. This was the power of the World’s Mightiest Vampire—the Fourth Primogenitor. 

“C’mon over, Beast Vassal Number Five, Regulus Aurum—!” 

There appeared a blinding pillar of light and a thunderous shock wave as Kojou’s lightning lion decimated the room known as Stratum Zero. The demonic power was overwhelming, making the very ground of the artificial island shudder. That golden radiance swallowed up Kojou’s field of vision, with the hollow space of Stratum Zero soon to follow—