Strike the Blood - Volume 15 - Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE 

EMPIRE OF THE DAWN 

1 

La Folia was taking Kojou and the others to Keystone Gate in a black limousine arranged in advance. This was the fifth artificial isle, placed at the center of Itogami Island. Not only was it the headquarters of the Gigafloat Management Corporation, the enormous structure also housed offices, large-scale commercial facilities, and even high-class hotels. The princess was bringing Kojou and Yukina to a corner close to the uppermost stratum, high-class lodging reserved for foreign VIPs. 

“So you have come, Kojou Akatsuki.” 

At the back of the suite, constructed with a frightening degree of extravagance, a man wearing an old-style coat was awaiting Kojou—a vampire with long black hair. 

“Velesh Aradahl…?” 

This reunion with a most unexpected individual made Kojou reflexively enter a fighting stance. He’d engaged this opponent in a spectacular duel a mere half a day prior. Awkward didn’t even cover it. 

“Wait, you’re healed already?” 

“…There is no need for concern. It is my kin of the Warlord’s Empire who fanned the flames of that duel, after all. I have no intention of acknowledging defeat, but I am not minded to blame you at this late hour.” 

With an expression just as strained as his own, Aradahl motioned Kojou to a chair. Yukina seemed on edge as she watched his and Kojou’s awkward conversation. La Folia was oddly amused for some reason. 

“You knew about the Legacy of Cain?” Kojou asked, putting a hand to his own temple. It was already plain why Aradahl had seen Glenda as a threat. It was not Glenda herself but the Legacy of Cain under her protection that he feared. By Vattler’s hand, the Legacy had been restored, making the menace to the Holy Ground Treaty Organization a reality. 

“I merely acted in accordance with the HGTO’s will. Naturally, even I did not know the true nature of the Legacy. To be blunt, Vattler knowing how to correctly employ the Dragon of the Swamp demonstrates just how badly both the HGTO and I miscalculated.” 

“Vattler, he’s been setting up a war with the primogenitors, hasn’t he?” 

“So it would seem.” 

Aradahl recrossed his legs in visible irritation. 

“The primogenitors cannot remain aloof if there is a global-scale war, after all. No doubt he intends to employ the Legacy of Cain as bait to draw them onto the battlefield. That is very much his manner of thinking.” 

“I’m not about to let things go the way that bastard wants,” Kojou declared, leaning forward. 

Aradahl exhaled with an icy expression. “If you wish to stop the war, destroy Itogami Island this instant. Surely your Beast Vassals can accomplish this.” 

“—That’s even worse, dammit! I’m saying I wanna protect the people living on Itogami Island! If it was your turf, you’d say the same thing!” 

“………” 

Aradahl opened his mouth for a rebuttal but sank into silence instead. For some reason, Kojou voicing the word turf brought out a gaze of deep interest. 

“—Chairman Aradahl. Do you recall the wager you made with me?” 

La Folia giggled as she asked. Aradahl grudgingly nodded. 

“Though I am tempted to say the conclusion of the duel being muddied voids the wager, I shall bow to your courage and sagacity. Come, Kojou Akatsuki. Princess, you also. This way.” 

Rising to his feet, Aradahl acted as the silver-haired princess’s escort, bringing her to an adjacent room. Kojou guardedly followed suit. There stood a small study for the use of guests. 

Sayaka, the princess’s bodyguard, and Yukina waited in front of the entrance to the room. 

A single chair had been placed at the center of the dimly lit room. It was an old, metal-constructed chair that seemed like a torture device from the Middle Ages. The armrests had metal manacles attached, and the back of the chair was cramped full of creepy magical symbols carved into it. 

“…What’s this?” Kojou grimaced. 

“It is a sorcerous device from our primogenitor,” Aradahl answered. “It is a gate through which one reaches the Garden of Whispers.” 

“It’s a gate? So if I use this, I’ll be able to speak to the HGTO’s High Council?” 

“Yes.” 

While Kojou stared in half disbelief, Aradahl maintained his calm explanation. 

“The High Council comprises twelve representatives, three from permanent member nations and nine from nonpermanent member nations. They debate and determine HGTO policy. If you can persuade a majority of councillors, you will surely be able to bring this war to an end.” 

“A majority of twelve… Meaning I have to get a minimum of seven on my side?” 

“That it does. But they have already decided to invade Itogami Island. Making them overturn that decision will not be a simple operation. No doubt each of the councillors surely has various thoughts on the matter.” 

Aradahl’s words caused Kojou’s face to contort in despair. Even Kojou, with a threadbare grasp of politics, knew that national decision-making was underpinned by the weighing of various pros and cons. Furthermore, this time, they’d gone as far as to put each nation’s militaries into motion. Just thinking of the time and expense required to dispatch a multinational armada made it easy for Kojou to envision how difficult persuading the Council would be. 

“Is there no other way the Council reaches its decisions, Chairman Aradahl?” 

La Folia offered him some water nonchalantly. Aradahl’s face grew more grudging still. 

“Veto.” 

“Veto?” 

“The High Council’s permanent members are the representatives of the three Dominions—in other words, the vampire primogenitors. These vampire primogenitors have been granted the right to veto matters before the Council.” 

“…So if any of the primogenitors are against something, the High Council’s decision gets thrown back in its face?” 

Kojou’s expression brightened. He thought his chances of getting a primogenitor to act on a whim were higher than being able to convince seven other nations’ representatives. 

“Do not expect things to be so convenient. Vampire primogenitors are beings with even more time on their hands than Vattler. I do not think they will give up on a golden opportunity for war so easily. If you can offer terms that genuinely please them, that would be another matter, but—” 

Speaking these words, Aradahl seemed to be prompting Kojou to sit in the chair. Hardening his resolve as he took a deep breath, Kojou sat upon the seat’s cold surface. The metallic manacles snapped on him of their own will, firmly locking Kojou’s wrists in place. The subsequent coursing of demonic energy caused the symbols on the back to begin to glow. 

“From this point on, you are the only one permitted to speak. This is all the aid I have to offer.” 

As she stated this, La Folia’s form began to grow white and hazy. Mist began to hover around Kojou. 

“Nah, this is plenty. I owe you one, La Folia.” 

As he called out to the princess, even Kojou’s own words felt distant. Yukina and Aradahl, supposedly there in the same room with him, had become virtually invisible. 

“Do remember one thing, Kojou. Remember who and what you are—” 

La Folia’s voice was like a whisper as it gradually vanished. 

When his vision cleared, Kojou was standing in an unfamiliar garden. 

2 

It was unclear how far the white marble passage extended. It seemed endless. A hedge of rosebushes surrounded him, and the branches of giant trees, whose names he knew not, formed what acted like a roof above his head. 

This twilight world, at the border between day and night, was enveloped by a golden-glowing mist. Kojou only knew of a single place that greatly resembled that chamber—Natsuki Minamiya’s Prison Barrier. This, too, was likely an artificial otherworld constructed through magic. 

This was the Garden of Whispers of which La Folia had spoken—the meeting place for the High Council of the Holy Ground Treaty Organization. 

“Welcome, Fourth Primogenitor.” 

He heard a voice from within the mist. 

He could not determine the speaker’s gender. The voice was hushed, like a whisper. 

Kojou suddenly realized he was standing before a huge, round table. 

The round table was set with twelve chairs. All the participants seated upon them were hiding their faces behind silver masks. These were the twelve councillors who governed the HGTO. 

“How long has it been since someone stepped into this garden unbidden—?” 

A voice came from behind Kojou. The hard expressions on the masked councillors put Kojou on edge. Not being able to see the other person’s face made them feel several times more intimidating. 

“Though we cannot give a warm reception, let us hear his words, in deference to the lords who have sent these missives.” 

“Missives?” 

Kojou looked back as he pursued the issue. One of the mask-wearing councillors lifted a triple-sealed scroll. 

“La Folia Rihavein of the kingdom of Aldegia, Iblisveil Aziz of the Fallen Dynasty, and Velesh Aradahl, chairman of the Imperial Assembly of the Warlord’s Empire—each of these people have vouched for your status.” 

“It would be best if you do not betray our expectations.” 

“…Got it. I’ll get to the point.” 

Internally thanking La Folia and company, Kojou got his ragged breathing in order. She and the others had made appeals to the HGTO in places unknown to Kojou. He certainly couldn’t betray their expectations. 

“I have only one demand. Hands off Itogami Island. Take back that junk about recognizing it as a large-scale destructive sorcerous device and pull back the multinational armada, right now.” 

“We reject your demand.” 

The director’s reply was swift. 

“The matter of Itogami Island’s destruction has already been settled. We will not overturn our decision.” 

“This might become a huge global war because of it, you know?!” Kojou yelled, voice ragged. 

Cold laughter trickled out from various parts of the round table. 

“Does thy own statement not demonstrate the danger of the sorcerous device called Itogami Island?” 

“If we eliminate Itogami Island, we erase the menace of The Cleansing. The Holy Ground Treaty non-signatory nations will have no further reason to oppose us.” 

“In other words, the swift destruction of Itogami Island will eliminate all obstacles in the way of world peace.” 

“Don’t take me for an idiot!” Kojou stamped his foot upon the marble floor. “Using The Cleansing, wrapping the Holy Ground Treaty non-signatory nations into this, all of it is Vattler’s doing. If you’re starting a war, you’re just playing into his hands, aren’t you?!” 

“We have issued an arrest warrant for Dimitrie Vattler.” 

A new voice coolly made the statement. “He is a vampire of the Warlord’s Empire—a Holy Ground Treaty signatory nation. Accordingly, the HGTO Military shall carry out his arrest, a most natural course of events.” 

“If you’re gonna attack Itogami Island come hell or high water, you’re making an enemy of me, too.” 

Kojou twisted his lips as he spoke. If Kojou joined hands with Vattler, who possessed the Legacy of Cain, the primogenitor-allied HGTO would not escape unscathed. Even if he couldn’t protect Itogami Island, he could surely inflict immense damage upon the multinational armada. 

Even so, the councillors were left unconvinced. 

“You are free to do as you please, Fourth Primogenitor.” 

“You are no threat to us.” 

“Are thy assertions at an end?” 

Then leave , they were all saying. 

“Looks like you’ve got no intention of changing your decision no matter what…” 

Kojou’s shoulders trembled in anger. He thought of simply summoning a Beast Vassal and blowing the entire garden apart. But that would likely be futile. This was a barrier constructed in an otherworld. Just like the Prison Barrier, Kojou wouldn’t be able to use his Beast Vassals there. 

So this is it , thought Kojou, biting his lip in despair. That instant… 

“…Do remember one thing, Kojou…” 

The silver-haired princess’s final words rose in the back of his mind. 

“Haaah…,” went the breath trickling out of Kojou’s throat. 

“So it’s come to this, ha-ha…,” he said, his voice changing decisively to laughter. Kojou shuddered as if his abdomen was spasming; the lungs from which he had exhaled were gasping for air. Kojou had burst into laughter. 

Through their masks, the councillors gazed dumbfounded at the sight of Kojou continuing to laugh. 

“So that’s it, La Folia… So that’s how it is… I didn’t need to ‘negotiate’ in the first place.” 

“You will refrain from unclear remarks, Fourth Primogenitor…!” 

One of the councillors spoke in a vivid display of irritation. 

“Yeah, sorry.” The corners of Kojou’s lips were still curled up through the apology. “Incidentally, I have a question… On this Garden of Whispers Council, it’s only the vampire primogenitors who are given veto rights?” 

“…That is a fact,” a masked councillor spoke gravely. 

“Based on the provisions in the Holy Ground Treaty, the vampire primogenitors have been granted the right of veto for debates concerning crucial matters.” 

“Well, then,” said Kojou, nodding with satisfaction. “That makes this simple. I’m exercising my veto on the attack against Itogami Island… as a vampire primogenitor .” 

“What…?” 

Murmurs arose. The air inside the garden shifted. He did not hear an instant rebuttal like those he had heard up to that moment. Kojou’s instantaneous idea had caught them by surprise. 

“…I see. So that is your card, Kojou Akatsuki.” 

One of the councillors seated at the round table broke into laughter that sounded almost like a hee-hee . Somehow, even while maintaining pronounced dignity, the laughing voice sounded…playful. 

Without warning, she removed her silver mask. Light-green, almost emerald, hair flowed down her shoulders. Her large eyes were like deep lakes of jade. She was a beautiful girl, lovely yet powerful, reminiscent of a wild leopard. 

“Giada… Right, you’re one of the standing members…!” Kojou exclaimed. 

This was the Third Primogenitor, she who ruled the Chaos Zone, a Dominion of Central America—Giada Kukulkin. One of the three primogenitors proper, she grinned at Kojou in amusement. 

“Certainly, the provisions of the Holy Ground Treaty stipulate that only the vampire primogenitors hold veto rights . Nowhere is it written that the primogenitors number only three. Accordingly, the matter is quite clear.” 

Giada giggled, her eyes narrowing. The murmurs within the garden grew larger still. 

“Then—” 

“But we cannot accept this, Kojou Akatsuki. You are yet unworthy of claiming the mantle of fourth primogenitor.” 

“I’m…not enough…?” 

Giada said to Kojou, “He who would call himself primogenitor must rule a Dominion of his own. However, you have no territory, do you?” she provoked. 

Kojou groaned, clenching both fists. Of course, Kojou, no more than a high schooler on paper, could not possibly have his own territory. That went without saying. Giada surely knew as much. So why? thought Kojou. What’s the reason for that expression? It’s like she’s testing me some— 

“Territory, huh…? I have a territory.” 

Concealing his doubts, Kojou opened his mouth. 

Giada raised an eyebrow. “And where is it?” 

“Whaddaya think I came here for? Itogami Island is my territory. ” 

“Hmmm.” 

Giada’s smile deepened. Kojou could not look away from her. 

“The Japanese government relinquished its territorial rights on Itogami Island as a member of the HGTO, right? Then there’s no one to complain about me taking it over.” 

“Even if ’twere so, what of the Legacy of Cain?” 

“If you see that as part of Itogami Island, then I’m taking it, too, of course. The Priestess of Cain is one of my people.” 

“Certainly, it is you who protected the Dragon of the Swamp, Guardian of the Legacy, from Aradahl. The logic is workable.” 

Giada’s eyes gently narrowed. The remaining eleven councillors listened to the exchange between her and Kojou without a word. This time, if Kojou showed a single opening, the councillors, Giada included, would no doubt remove him from the garden. Kojou appreciated anew just how much weight Giada’s words carried as a primogenitor. 

“However, you do not rule that island in actuality, do you?” 

That same Giada nonchalantly pointed that out. Kojou gasped, eyes widening. 

“In other words, if I kick Vattler out of Itogami Island, you’ll acknowledge me as a primogenitor?” 

“’Tis because Itogami Island is the altar for The Cleansing that we view it as dangerous. Should you defeat Vattler, he who has seized The Cleansing for himself, we shall have no reason to fear Itogami Island any longer.” 

There was venom in Giada’s grin as she spoke those words. 

Aradahl had said to “offer terms that please the primogenitors.” This meant a fight between Kojou, the Fourth Primogenitor, and Vattler, who’d obtained the power of The Cleansing. This truly was something primogenitors with too much time on their hands wanted to see. 

And Kojou was destined to fight Vattler either way. 

Vattler had made use of the Legacy of Cain, forced HGTO Military troops to withdraw, and was trying to start a war. As long as he remained, Itogami Island would never be at peace. 

“The menace of The Cleansing being eliminated without the depletion of our own troops is a benefit to the HGTO. I believe there is room to consider the Fourth Primogenitor’s request. What say you?” Giada posed the question to the eleven councillors. 

“…We assent to your terms.” 

Voices rose one after another from the round table. They had no reason to reject Giada’s proposal, either. 

“The HGTO Military has already begun combat maneuvers. It cannot leisurely wait for the Fourth Primogenitor to seize the right to rule Itogami Island.” 

“The multinational armada shall commence its attack on Itogami Island twelve hours hence. Only if effective rule is obtained over Itogami Island within that time shall we recognize the Fourth Primogenitor’s right of veto.” 

“So a grace period of twelve hours to send Vattler packing.” 

Kojou surveyed the masked councillors as he bared his small fangs. 

“Works for me.” 

3 

The Legacy of Cain was an artificial isle composed of over six hundred individual modules. 

The size of an individual module was exactly the same size as one of the gigafloats comprising Itogami Island. These were leisurely connected together, spreading out like a spiral as they surrounded Itogami Island proper. 

About 10 percent of the over six hundred individual modules contained walls with defensive capabilities and gun emplacements. Roughly 20 percent contained hangars for Nalakuvera and support facilities thereof. The remaining 70 percent was simply a city—a ruined city that had lost its inhabitants. It strongly resembled the interior of a giant spaceship from an old-fashioned movie. 

Asagi Aiba was leisurely observing the ruined city’s skyline from her cabin on the Oceanus Grave II . 

“Li’l miss, you have a message.” 

Via her beloved smartphone, Mogwai spoke with his usual sardonic tone. 

“From the HGTO? What do they want now ? Begging for their lives or something?” 

Asagi listlessly rose to her feet, posing the question to her partner AI. It was just before noon. By rights, it was right around when the HGTO Military ought to have been starting a full-scale attack. 

However, for some reason, Mogwai seemed to deliberately bring a grave look over his face. 

“Nahhh. The message sender calls himself the Fourth Primogenitor.” 

“Whaaat?” 

Asagi gazed at the badly sewn teddy bear on the screen with visible bewilderment. 

“Fourth Primogenitor…you mean Kojou? Why is he using this line?” 

“So what’s my man Kojou saying?” asked Motoki Yaze, who’d just had a leftover pizza slice in hand and licked his greasy fingers. He’d come to negotiate with Asagi, acting as the representative for the Gigafloat Management Corporation. 

Asagi’s brow furled as her eyes fell to the smartphone’s screen. 

“…It says ‘ Itogami Island and the artificial isle present in the sea around it have been recognized by the Holy Ground Treaty Organization as the territory of the Fourth Primogenitor. Hereafter, all those engaged in illegal occupation thereof are to lay down their arms, surrender, and immediately forfeit all territorial rights… ’ Huuuh?!” 

“‘ If these demands are not met, they shall be eliminated by force ,’ huh… This is a declaration of war. In other words, a final ultimatum.” 

Mogwai cackled. 

For her part, Asagi’s face was tinged bright red with anger. 

“Wh…wh…what is that idiot thinking?! What the hell does he think we started all of this for…?!” 

“Mmm… This changes the course of events, though,” Yaze said calmly, trying to soothe the indignant Asagi. 

As Yaze munched on more pizza, Asagi shot him a questioning glare. 

“What do you mean?” 

“If Kojou defeats you folks—or Dimitrie Vattler, rather, at the very least it avoids a war. Itogami Island won’t be destroyed, and the HGTO non-signatory nations won’t butt in, either. I don’t think these are bad terms, but—” 

“Then all of this will be meaningless!” 

Asagi violently slammed the table. She exhaled raggedly, like a mountain lion with her fur on end. Yaze’s eyes bulged at the sight of his childhood friend emotional like never before. 

Ignoring him, Asagi turned back to her smartphone. 

“Mogwai, this information, has Mr. Vattler—?” 

“Of course I have heard.” 

Asagi, hearing that invigorated voice from the hallway, muttered “Oh, crap” as she clutched her head. The door to the cabin opened wide, and a young, blond aristocrat emerged with a smile full of satisfaction. 

“The order of events is slightly off schedule, but if anything, this more convenient. After all, I thought it more difficult to make Kojou minded to fight. I shall give an attack from his side a warm welcome.” 

Vattler, acting like he couldn’t be more pleased, spoke with vigor in his voice. 

Though he had engaged in a variety of schemes to stir up a large war, Vattler’s motivation for his actions was very simple. He craved a battle with a powerful foe; that was all. 

That said, as events would have it, Vattler was also a person on the side of protecting Itogami Island. The odds of Kojou, standing in an identical position, directly confronting him were low. Through some unexpected development, it was Kojou launching an attack. Small wonder Vattler was pleased. 

“If you defeat Kojou, the chances of stopping the war go poof , though.” 

“I suppose they do…” 

When Yaze spread both arms and tossed out that line, Vattler nodded, amused. 

Asagi glared at the young blond aristocrat. “I have no intention of helping you fight Kojou.” 

“Of course, that’s not a problem. I have long awaited an enjoyable bloodbath with the Fourth Primogenitor. Using something crude such as The Cleansing would spoil all the fun.” 

“Oh, really now?” 

Speaking her words in a frigid tone, Asagi picked up her favorite laptop. 

Yaze looked up at Asagi with a visible twinge of unease. “…A-Asagi?” 

“I’m heading out. I’m going to convince Kojou to join our side. Got it?” 

“Do as you please. Kojou and I fighting the three Primogenitors shoulder to shoulder is a most attractive proposal. I eagerly await the results of your overture.” 

Vattler was as theatrical as ever. Asagi sourly let out her breath before leaving the cabin in silence. 

“Now then, what do you intend to do, Mr. New President Yaze?” Vattler asked with a grin. 

“You can ask me that all you like, but I’m just an observer.” Yaze shrugged. 

Yume and Lydianne were on standby outside the ship, on guard against the multinational fleet’s attack. Yuiri and Shio had been freed with Glenda, whose role had already come to an end. Yaze and Vattler were the only two people left in the cabin. It was meaningless to hide his status any longer. 

“I wonder. Is it not you who joined hands with the Chaos Bride, working with her behind the scenes?” 

Vattler’s blue eyes cruelly stared at Yaze, who smiled casually and shook his head. 

“You’re overestimating me. Like a proper observer, I’m gonna shut up and watch to the bitter end.” 

4 

When he opened his eyes, Kojou was in the study once more. 

The metal manacles were off his wrists; the magical symbols had lost their glow. The mist surrounding him lifted. Kojou waited for his dizziness to settle down before standing up from the uncomfortable chair resembling some kind of torture device. 

Aradahl was folding both arms in silence. In contrast, for some reason, La Folia was in a very good mood, smiling at Kojou. 

“—You negotiated splendidly, Kojou. This is why I have marked you as my future spouse.” 

“Don’t go marking without asking. Oh, um, the advice you gave me did help, though…” 

Apparently, the scene Kojou saw had been conveyed to the princess and the others while they’d been surrounded in mist. Kojou himself had felt the presence of La Folia and company near to him. Had he not, Kojou probably could have never moved forward with negotiations so calmly under those circumstances. The councillors he’d met at the Garden of Whispers were simply that overwhelming. 

It wasn’t just the three primogenitors; the other nine had considerable power of their own. Thinking back upon it, successfully negotiating with them as an equal seemed nigh miraculous. 

“All that remains is to seize control of the Legacy of Cain from the Duke of Ardeal. Tee-hee… Once Kojou becomes king of a nation in name and fact, my father can hardly object…” 

“You still haven’t forgotten that talk…?!” 

Kojou’s face twitched. 

He’d completely forgotten about it, but the first time Kojou had met La Folia, she’d pursued him for marriage. Her stated reason, and really, not a very good one, was that her doting father was likely to resist letting go of her at all. Of course, given that this was La Folia, chances were good that she was up to her usual pranks, but she was a frightening girl when she was serious. 

Aradahl, ignorant of those circumstances, turned a questioning look Kojou’s way. 

Heedless of Kojou and Aradahl being thrown askew, La Folia spoke behind her without turning her head. 

“Justina, send a message to the Bö?vildr . From this moment forward, my Aldegian Knights of the Second Coming shall assault the Oceanus Grave II in support of Kojou Akatsuki, Lord of an allied nation. Order all captains to prepare the knights and ready for combat with all available speed.” 

“As you command.” 

Kataya Justina, invisible due to magical camouflage, suddenly appeared as she replied. 

Nervously listening to this exchange was Sayaka, waiting just outside the study. 

“P-Princess…? Don’t tell me you intend to personally participate in combat…?!” 

“Such is my duty. I am a crown princess of Aldegia, blessed by the Spirits. I shall carry my royal name onto the battlefield.” 

After speaking this in a tone filled with majesty, La Folia spoke to herself, seemingly as an afterthought. 

“—Besides, it is far too entertaining to pass up, is it not?” 

“That’s the real reason, isn’t it…?!” Sayaka shouted in a shrill voice. “You mustn’t! Princess, as Shamanic War Dancer of the Lion King Agency, I have been ordered by the government of Japan to escort you. I absolutely cannot accept such dangerous action!” 

“But you see, Sayaka. The government of Japan has relinquished its territorial rights over Itogami Island. In other words, I am not presently in Japan, so you do not have any right to give me orders, do you?” 

“W…well…” 

La Folia’s airtight logic left Sayaka lacking any words for a rebuttal. The silver-haired princess posed another question to hammer the idea in further. 

“Besides that,” La Folia said, shifting her attention, “Yukina, as Kojou’s watcher, you intend to accompany him in battle against the Duke of Ardeal?” 

“Yes,” said the latter, as if the answer was obvious. Sayaka’s voice caught in her throat. To her, La Folia flashed a seductive smile. 

“In other words, by coming with me and continuing your escort mission on the battlefield, it is possible for you to give Yukina aid. Or will you refuse to accept my going into battle even still?” 

“B…by any chance, did you designate me to be your escort because you expected this to happen from the…?” 

“Tee-hee. You will protect me and keep me safe, won’t you, Sayaka?” 

“Haaah…” 

Being on the receiving end of La Folia’s innocent smile, Sayaka sighed at length and nodded. She was considered a blackhearted, scheming princess for her negotiation skills in the first place; there was no way Sayaka could dissuade her. La Folia won by a mile, just as Kojou had expected. 

Seeing that Sayaka was silent, the princess next called out to the female knight behind her. 

“Justina, give it to Yukina.” 

“Yes. Lady Sword Shaman, please take this.” 

Upon receiving her liege’s command, she reverentially tendered a case in front of Yukina. It was a military carry case about the size of a schoolbag. 

“Um…what is this?” The sudden gift from the female knight brought a perplexed look over Yukina. 

“If I may be so bold, it is something I provisioned on my own, arbitrary judgment. I originally prepared it for Her Highness the Royal Sister, but I thought it would be fairly inconvenient for her—please!” 

“Th…thank you very much. I shall take it…… I shall take it, so please stop kneeling!” 

Overwhelmed by the female knight’s prostrate earnestness, Yukina took the case. Justina bowed deeply to her. 

“Well then, Kojou—I am pleased to go fight alongside you once more.” Acting very much as the elegant princess she was, La Folia grasped the hem of her short skirt and beamed at him. “Let us meet again on the battlefield.” 

The princess proceeded to turn on her heels, heading out of the room with her knight in tow. Sayaka seemed at the end of her wits as she followed the pair. The three were headed to the airport. There awaited the armored airship Bö?vildr , pride of the kingdom of Aldegia. 

“—Kojou Akatsuki. You two, come here.” 

Kojou and Yukina were left behind and feeling out of place when Aradahl called out to them from back in the reception room. The black-haired vampire was staring at a military tablet device placed atop the table within. 

Displayed on its large screen was a map of an unfamiliar island spiraling out like a galaxy. 

“What is this?” 

“The entirety of the Legacy of Cain that envelops Itogami Island. The information comes from the Gigafloat Management Corporation. I had heard orbital satellites cannot be used due to the Priestess of Cain’s hacking, but it seems they also have someone skilled on their side.” 

“Hmmm…” 

Hearing Aradahl’s words of praise, Kojou found them a little surprising. Ever since Asagi had hijacked their press conference broadcast midway, not much had been heard from the Corporation, but they seemed to be getting the job done. 

Reflecting upon it calmly, given Itogami Island’s present situation, the fact that there wasn’t a large-scale panic arising was pretty incredible. Even considering that Itogami Island’s residents were accustomed to disasters, there was no doubt the Corporation was engaged in various countermeasures to cope. 

“Is this the Oceanus Grave II ’s current position?” Yukina inquired as she noticed a red dot displayed on the map. Dimitrie Vattler’s cruise ship was moving clockwise in a gap located in the artificial isle. 

It was about forty kilometers removed from Kojou and Yukina’s location on Itogami Island proper. Numerous gun emplacements and a horde of Nalakuvera protected the Oceanus Grave II . As befitting the headquarters of the Anti-HGTO Military, its defenses were stiff. But compared to evading Leviathan from the outside, the route from the inside was shorter and no doubt easier. 

“As we will leave support to the Aldegian armored airship, we will take our seaplane—the Strix —and charge in. We’re faster, after all.” 

“…You’re helping with this, too?” 

Kojou looked at Aradahl in surprise. In terms of common sense, he had no reason to cooperate with Kojou. To Aradahl, Vattler was comrade and kin, whereas Kojou was his opponent in a duel. Either way, it was crystal clear which one of them held a standpoint close to an enemy. 

However, Aradahl turned to Kojou with a sober, serious expression. 

“Vattler’s current actions are treason against the Warlord’s Empire. Is it not natural for the people of his Dominion to shoulder the burden of bringing him to justice?” 

“…Well, whatever your reasons, to be honest, it’s a big help having you lend a hand.” 

Kojou spoke his honest thoughts. Thanks to the emergence of an unexpected savior, a strategy for going after Vattler had been set. All that remained was to actually board the Legacy of Cain and drive Vattler out. 

Aradahl rang a bell to call for the butler. The lodging was so high-class that the rooms were served by a full-time butler and a staff of maids. 

After delivering rapid-fire instructions to them, Aradahl spoke to Kojou and Yukina in a very direct tone. 

“A room is being prepared for you. As soon as the flying boat is ready to launch, we will move to the airport by teleportation. You should finish your replenishment by then—” 

“…Replenishment?” 

Kojou and Yukina looked at each other’s perplexed faces. 

5 

“Perhaps he meant a meal is to be provided?” 

What’s this replenishment business? thought Kojou, tilting his head when Yukina made that little whisper into his ear. 

“Ah, gotcha,” went Kojou, nodding as he accepted her view. The maxim that one cannot fight on an empty stomach was a truth recognized in every nation on Earth. It wouldn’t be strange if Aradahl had been considerate enough to order a meal for them. 

“If so, I’m pretty grateful. Last thing I ate was ramen for lunch with Iblisveil at noon yesterday.” 

“I suppose so,” agreed Yukina, seeming happy. 

And in a hotel like this, the meals have to be something else , thought Kojou, secretly raising his hopes. However, when he entered the room, Kojou understood that those hopes had been so easily betrayed. 

“This way,” said the maid in an old-fashioned apron dress, indicating a most extravagant room to the pair. It had a vast, king-sized bed and countless pillows. The interior lighting gave the room a phantasmal feel, and the scent of large aromatic candles wafted in the air. There was a vast shower room with a glass wall over it. This was no atmosphere for eating. Any way he looked at it, this was a bedroom for a couple on a honeymoon. 

“A…Aradahl…!” 

Kojou thrust his hands onto the bed, groaning in a low voice. 

“However serious he might seem, he is a vampire nonetheless, I see…” 

For her part, Yukina’s shoulders sank in visible disappointment. Faced with a bedroom unsuited to meals, it sunk in that replenishment held a very different meaning to vampires. 

After all, it was not hunger that triggered vampiric impulses, but lust. Aradahl had meant Go and drink Yukina’s blood. 

That was what he’d provided the room for. The show of consideration was just like the sober, serious Aradahl, but the direction it took was completely awry. 

“Come to think of it, what did Justina give you anyway?” 

Kojou asked as he sat a corner of the bed. He realized that the silence within the room was making the atmosphere really strange. 

“I wonder? She said it was really for Kano, but…” 

Upon saying this, Yukina opened the case Justina had handed her. Within the case, which was around ten centimeters thick, was a Saikai Academy schoolgirl uniform and a fresh pair of underwear, all neatly folded. 

The bra-and-shorts pair mixed white lace and pastel stripes. They came off as pure, and at the same time, a very classy kind of cute. 

“This is…Kanase’s…” 

“Goodness! Just what are you thinking?!” 

Yukina shot Kojou a reproachful glare as she violently slammed the case lid shut. What’s she blaming me for? he thought, feeling like he’d been wronged somehow. 

“What is La Folia giving you a uniform for?” 

“I believe she is being considerate. My uniform is as it was when I fell into the sea, after all…as are my, um, underwear…” 

“Ah…come to think of it, you do smell like the sea a bit. Your skin’s a little sticky, too…” 

“I s-smell like the sea…and I’m sticky…” 

Yukina hung her head as if she’d been smacked, a crestfallen look coming over her. 

“Well, don’t worry about it, I went into the sea same as you did. Besides, it’s not like the scent bothers me or anything.” 

“Please stop sniffing me already!” 

Yukina sent a pillow flying straight at his face. He wasn’t even particularly close to Yukina. This is totally unfair , thought Kojou, his lips twisting. Either way, given the circumstances, the shower room Aradahl had provided would not go to waste. 

“Er, you’re not gonna change clothes?” 

“I will, but…it is somewhat difficult to change clothes after senpai has already seen my underwear, isn’t it…?” 

Yukina shot him a resentful glare, carry case still in hand. Oh, so that’s what this is about. Kojou was half beside himself. 

“It’s fine, Himeragi. I mean, the design suits you and all.” 

“Please, stop imagining me in them!” 

Yukina’s cheeks reddened as she slammed him with a pillow once more. Unable to resist the impact, Kojou tumbled onto the bed. Staying there, he sighed as he stopped moving. 

“Senpai?” 

“Ah, I’m all right. Just a bit of an empty stomach.” 

Kojou spoke in a frail voice. Due to expecting too much out of Aradahl, his sense of hunger was at a level that was no joke. Come to think of it, he’d gone close to an entire day with barely anything to eat. 

Even if he was an unaging, undying vampire, of course physical activity caused hunger. If anything, his having used excessive amounts of strength in the duel with Aradahl made him far more depleted than a normal human would be by then. 

“I do have emergency rations… Would you like some?” 

Yukina gingerly posed the question, as if unable to watch Kojou immobile due to hunger. Kojou opened his eyes wide, sitting up with considerable force. The echo of the words “emergency rations” felt like a glimmer of hope. 

“Can they be eaten, like, right now?” 

“Well, yes…” 

For some reason, a hesitant expression came over Yukina as she stretched a hand to her usual guitar case. From a compartment meant for music sheets and shielded cables, she took out a paper box wrapped with a ribbon. 

When she opened the box’s lid, a scent of baked butter and chocolate spread forth. 

There were cookies inside the box. The box’s interior was stuffed chock-full of chocolate cookies shaped like Kojou’s Beast Vassals. 

“Himeragi, these are…” 

“Emergency rations.” Yukina obstinately made the assertion in a flat voice. “Th-there was a little time at Ms. Minamiya’s residence while you were asleep, senpai, so…I told Miss Astarte that I wanted to make something, and it ended up like this… It has absolutely nothing to do with Valentine’s Day whatsoever…” 

“Ah…well, anything’s good. Thanks a bunch.” 

Kojou put his hands together and offered a quick “Thanks for the meal” before picking up one of Yukina’s cookies. The sugar content seemed to swirl and sink deeply into Kojou’s bloodstream. He was so moved that his entire body shook. 

For some reason, Kojou’s reaction made Yukina stop breathing, staring at him with a serious look. 

“H…how does it taste?” 

“It’s delicious.” 

“R-really?” 

“Yeah.” 

“I’m so glad.” 

Yukina patted her chest in a show of relief. Then she abruptly broke into a sunny smile. 

“Then, senpai. I am sorry, but could you leave the room for a little while? I wish to shower before changing into new clothes.” 

“Ah, okay. I suppose you would.” 

Shifting his eyes toward the glass-covered shower room, Kojou gave a strained smile as he nodded. If Yukina showered in a place like that with him around, awkward wouldn’t even remotely do it justice. For mutual peace of mind, it was clearly best for Kojou to leave the room for a little while. 

“Is it all right if I take the cookies with me?” 

“Yes. I prepared them for your sake, after all. Please have as many as you like. And I will enjoy getting a little payback.” 

“Payback, er, for the emergency rations…?” 

“Tee-hee… I am joking.” 

“Um, joking, about which part…? Himeragi?” 

Were these really emergency rations, or was this actually a Valentine’s Day present? Kojou was fiercely consternated about just how to take Yukina’s words. 

However, Yukina said nothing more in reply, forcefully driving Kojou out of the room. 

6 

About an hour passed after that until preparations to launch the flying boat were complete. 

The kingdom of Aldegia’s Bö?vildr had already gone ahead to begin approaching the Legacy of Cain. It was only a matter of time until the fighting began in earnest. 

The flying boat Kojou and Yukina were aboard departed from the airport on Itogami Island proper. Flying at low altitude, not even sixty meters off the ground, it headed toward the Oceanus Grave II . At that rate, it would not even be ten minutes until they came into contact with Vattler and company… provided they encountered no obstacles. 

“Have you recovered your energy, Kojou Akatsuki?” 

As Kojou sat in the flying boat’s cabin, Aradahl posed the question. The Strix was a large craft with a wingspan of over forty meters. The interior was more spacious than one would expect from an aircraft. 

“Well, I filled my stomach, at least.” 

Speaking this without any deep thought, Kojou realized his own verbal slip. Aradahl surely thought that Kojou had been drinking Yukina’s blood back in that room. 

“W-wait, wrong idea. Aradahl, you’re misunderstanding. My stomach’s full because of the cooki—” 

“The Sword Shaman is your Blood Concubine. There is nothing to be ashamed of.” 

“If you put it like that, it sounds even more like something we should be ashamed of!” 

Kojou desperately clung to any handhold in the face of Aradahl’s indifferent statement. During that time, Yukina’s face was blue as she checked her seatbelt over and over. She wasn’t good with airplanes. 

Suddenly, that same Yukina shifted her gaze outside the cabin window. 

“Senpai, there, Leviathan!” 

“Wha…?!” 

Kojou and Aradahl simultaneously rose to their feet. The Strix had only barely finished takeoff. It wasn’t more than ten kilometers from the airport. Asagi and company had placed Leviathan so close that it was right on the tip of Itogami Island’s nose. 

A gargantuan sea serpent was floating in the cramped confines of a gap in the spiraling gigafloats. A volley of several hundred black objects resembling seagulls launched from its back. 

Spurting white smoke, these turned about and bore down on the Strix all at once. Kojou paled when he recognized their true nature. 

“Living missiles, huh—!” 

“Tch… Dance, Ghoula—!” 

Aradahl summoned his own Beast Vassal to the flying boat’s fore—a horde of hundreds of darkness-colored short swords. These scattered all at once, intercepting Leviathan’s living missiles in midflight. It was a robust technique made possible only through Aradahl’s vast demonic energy and the special characteristics of his Intelligent Weapon Beast Vassal. 

“Damn that Yume; no questions asked, huh!” 

“One should not complain about that after issuing a declaration of war.” 

Aradahl calmly played the straight man to Kojou’s unintentionally voiced complaint. “I suppose you’re right,” said Kojou, sighing deeply. The war had already begun. 

“—C’mon over, Dabih Crystallus!” 

Kojou summoned a beautiful piscine dragon with silver crystal wings. Its horns, curved like that of a ram’s, released a glow, and this light seemed to captivate Leviathan as its motions froze in place. 

“I see… A Beast Vassal of Charm,” Aradahl murmured in apparent praise. 

As heir to Lilith, the Witch of the Night, Yume was controlling Leviathan using her succubus mind-control powers. However, it was not only succubi that possessed the Ability of mind control. The tenth Beast Vassal of the Fourth Primogenitor, Dabih Crystallus, possessed the very same mind-control capability. 

With that Beast Vassal’s power, Kojou overrode Yume’s mental control and sent Leviathan back to the bottom of the sea—the deep, distant sea, beyond where Yume’s control could reach. And then— 

“Himeragi, can you pick out Yume’s location?” 

Sensing Yume’s mental waves, Yukina pointed out the flying boat’s course and shouted, “Directly ahead, on a plateau in front of the Oceanus Gra —” 

But before she could even finish, they heard the captain shouting in anger from the cockpit. 

“Bogey straight ahead!” 

“Nn—?” 

When Aradahl entered the cockpit, his eyes grew graver still. A huge monster resembling a beetle was flying up from the ground to intercept the Strix . Spurting fire from nozzles within its armor, it flew with frightening speed. 

“Nalakuvera! Wait, they can fly?!” 

“Pests,” muttered Aradahl as he commanded his Beast Vassal to attack. Dark blades bore down on a Nalakuvera, ripping apart the thick armor covering its large frame until not even a trace remained. 

With its duty finished, Aradahl called the Beast Vassal back, firing it out against a second Nalakuvera. But— 

“Aradahl, don’t!” 

“What?!” 

Kojou could not stop him in time before short swords collided with the Nalakuvera. 

It was Aradahl’s Beast Vassal swords that bounced off. The Nalakuvera used chakram-style missiles, intercepting the dark short swords and altering their course. 

“They learned to counter my attack…?” 

Aradahl let out a low groan. The Nakakuvera, known as the Weapons of the Gods, were feared because of their knowledge of computer networks, self-repair, self-improvement, and self-evolution capabilities. Where a horde of Nalakuvera was concerned, the same attack never worked twice. 

Having slipped past Aradahl’s attack, the Nalakuvera fired a large-caliber laser. The scarlet beam sliced and rent the wing of the now lightly defended Strix . One of its four engines exploded, causing the fuselage of the flying boat to heavily tilt. 

The Nalakuvera circled around the Strix , unleashing its large-caliber laser anew. Flying toward it was a twin-headed dragon covered in quicksilver scales. 

“Al-Meissa Mercury!!” 

Kojou’s summoned Beast Vassal opened its enormous maws wide, swallowing up the Nalakuvera along with the space surrounding it. Because the damage was not to the unit itself, the Nalakuvera’s learning network did not activate, nor was there any longer a unit to repair. 

“Sorry there. I’m used to taking on guys like you—” 

Kojou let out a murmur, feeling a bit guilty as he watched the horde of Nalakuvera being eaten one after another. The third Beast Vassal of the Fourth Primogenitor consumed space itself, with bad effects on the surrounding area. It was one he avoided summoning if he could help it. 

However, the menace of the Nalakuvera might have receded, but that didn’t repair the flying boat’s damage. Having lost half of its wings, the Strix approached the ground at a speed of a “fall” rather than a “descent.” Since it was flying at low altitude to begin with, there was virtually zero altitude to give before they crashed. 

“Your Excellency, we cannot maintain altitude! We are crash-landing!” 

“All hands, brace for impact—!” 

The captain and Aradahl respectively shouted. The crew of the Strix desperately clung to anything they could within the unstable vessel. Kojou drew close to Yukina, immobile from fear, and embraced her. 

“Senpai! Ground Nalakuveras!” 

Her entire body was still rigid in fear as Yukina made that sharp warning. 

As the Strix continued to fall, ground-model Nalakuveras were lying in wait. The barrels of their large-caliber laser cannons glowed red from charged-up energy. They were aimed at the Strix with the intent of attacking the instant it hit the ground. 

“Damn that Asagi, she’s seriously trying to kill us, ain’t she…?!” 

The merciless attack coming in waves made something snap inside Kojou’s head. If the opponent was fair game, then Kojou had no duty to hold back, either. 

“Shit… C’mon over, Natra Cinereus! Sadalmelik Albus—!” 

Kojou summoned new Beast Vassals. Emerging to envelop the flying boat was an enormous shelled beast covered in dense, silver-colored mist. Transforming the crash-landing Strix , passengers and all, into such dense, silver mist, the impact of the crash was nullified. 

Simultaneously, an Undine emerged from the waterway, transforming her own body into a torrential deluge that swept the horde of Nalakuvera away. 

Without exception, the ones that sank into the water began to crumble away. The armor, which supposedly had self-repair capabilities, fell apart as if it were sand. It wasn’t that they couldn’t repair—quite the opposite. The Undine governing the power of restoration was restoring the Nalakuvera beyond the limits of any self-repair functionality, to a time when they were nothing more than raw materials yet to be assembled— 

“Ow… You okay there, Himeragi?” 

On his back after being hurled to the ground, Kojou posed the question to Yukina, still in his arms against his chest. Though they’d somehow managed to crash-land, the fuselage of the Strix was all a jumble. Kojou’s Beast Vassal could transform any kind of matter into mist, but that didn’t mean it would return to its original form. Thanks to the force of the impact making the mist scatter spectacularly, the difficulty of restoration increased further still. 

“Yes, somehow. It would seem the entire crew is also safe.” 

Yukina helped the hurting and tired Kojou rise to his feet. Fortunately, the crew members of the Strix were all basically unscathed. Of course, he didn’t even need to check whether Aradahl was all right. 

“…So this is the power of the Fourth Primogenitor. I thank you for having saved my subordinates,” the vampire said quietly. 

“It’s no big deal,” Kojou said with a shrug. As he did so, Aradahl tossed something down right before his eyes. It was a military-spec, shock-resistant tablet device—the same one that had displayed the map earlier. 

“I would say it is ten kilometers between here and Vattler’s ship. Go on ahead, Kojou Akatsuki.” 

“What are you gonna do, Aradahl?” 

The black-haired vampire made no reply, proceeding to lift his face with a deeply serious expression. At the end of Aradahl’s gaze stood a figure in a white coat, standing on an uninhabited building. 

He had a slender, small frame. He had soft, androgynous, handsome features. However, his eyes glowed crimson, and sharp fangs were poking out of his lips. He was Kira Lebedev, vampire of the Warlord’s Empire— 

“I shall engage him—” 

Aradahl murmured as demonic energy mist enveloped his entire body. 

As Kojou and Yukina stood rooted to the spot in astonishment, Kira smiled beautifully toward them. 

7 

Sayaka swiftly began to regret having accepted that La Folia go to the battlefield, for the attacks by the HGTO non-signatory alliance Military was far more severe than she had anticipated. 

“The Strix has been shot down. Sir Fourth Primogenitor and Lady Sword Shaman are both intact. The Duke of Severin has engaged Count Voltislava in combat.” 

“Four Floaty cruise missiles remaining. All port turrets, two starboard turrets are presently on cooldown.” 

“One hundred and forty seconds before spiritual reactor reaches operational limit—” 

On the bridge of the armored airship Bö?vildr , the operators’ dry voices sailed to and fro. Their demeanor was composed, but the information they reported all reflected a worsening state of battle. 

Within range of its guns, the Legacy of Cain had overwhelming combat capacity enabling it to challenge the HGTO Military in a head-on battle. However cutting edge it might be, a single armored airship could do nothing against such an opponent. 

“Now then, what shall we do, Princess? Those bug bastards seem to have taken quite a liking to this ship. I was always awful at collecting insects.” 

The captain, a middle-aged man with a dignified, weathered face making him look like some kind of pirate, questioned the princess with a jesting tone in his voice. 

In the airspace above the steel-colored artificial isle, the Bö?vildr was engaged in combat with a unit of nine flying Nalakuvera. What had begun as an evenly matched fight turned against them when the Bö?vildr ’s weapons came to have virtually no effect on the Nalakuvera. The ancient weapons’ evolutionary self-repair capability had already granted them resistance to the Bö?vildr ’s attacks. If they continued the one-sided battle, the sustained attacks would inevitably destroy their defenses at some point. 

“Princess…?” 

Finding it strange that the princess had not replied, the captain looked around the bridge. However, La Folia was nowhere to be seen within the cramped confines of the bridge. All that remained was an empty seat. The instant he’d taken his eyes off her and Sayaka, the princess had slipped out of the bridge on her own. 

“Teleportation chamber activated! Jump coordinates, current estimated location of Lilith!” 

One of the operators raised a suddenly tense voice. 

“Dammit all…” 

Covering his face in apparent resignation, the captain shook his head. It was probably forty to fifty kilometers from the Bö?vildr ’s current location to where Lilith was judged to be hiding. 

Moving by teleport over such a long distance was nigh impossible. The magical calculations required for teleportation increased astronomically depending upon the distance of the movement required. The only spellcaster who could pull off such a reckless act solo was probably the witch specializing in spatial-control magic—Natsuki Minamiya. 

However, if La Folia, blessed by the Spirits, employed the warship-class spiritual reactor with which the Bö?vildr was equipped, even the impossible became possible. One could overcome insufficiently precise math with enough magical energy to force space to remain stable. Of course, such a trip was one-way only. Furthermore, it was impossible to send her escorting knights after her, but La Folia was not one to heed such concerns. 

“Princess!” 

Racing out of the bridge, Sayaka rushed into the teleportation chamber in the aft of the ship. The chamber, with a spatial control engraved into its walls, was only wide enough to accommodate two people at the utmost. This was why it could not be used to send a unit of knights. 

Within the chamber, the silver-haired princess toyed with the control panel, as if all had gone as she had foreseen. 

“Princess La Folia! Don’t tell me you intend to go on the ground? Under these conditions?!” 

“Either way, at this rate, we cannot escape. We must smash the source controlling the Nalakuvera.” 

Even the sight of Sayaka coming after her did not change La Folia’s expression. If anything, it felt like she’d been waiting for Sayaka to do just that. 

“After we disembark, the Bö?vildr is to stand by at high altitude. You may devote the spiritual reactor’s output into deploying the Holy Protection Barrier.” 

“—Understood. But please do nothing rash, Princess. Your father’s going to kill me if anything happens to you.” 

Sayaka heard the captain’s thick voice through the interior communication system. 

“—Er, Captain!” 

“I shall take thy words to heart.” 

Stop her already , went Sayaka’s objection, but before it could reach the bridge, La Folia activated the teleporter. 

Sayaka and La Folia were assaulted by an incredible wavering in space that never happened with any normal teleport. A blue flash filled their vision. It was backlash from the long-range teleport. 

When they landed, there was a crater gouging the ground surrounding Sayaka and La Folia with a radius of four to five meters. Every standing structure within dozens of meters had been mowed down. Had it been any normal urban area, it would have been an unmitigated disaster. However, Sayaka and La Folia were unharmed thanks to a powerful magical bulwark, generated by the princess and the Bö?vildr ’s own spiritual reactor. 

“Sayaka—” 

Heedless of the end of such a reckless trek, La Folia called out to Sayaka in a composed voice. In her right hand, the princess gripped a spell gun ornamented with gold. 

“Yes.” 

Sayaka nodded slightly, drawing her sword from the instrument case on her back. This was Lustrous Scale, a prototype area-suppression weapon of the Lion King Agency. Sayaka pointed its tip toward a bridge visible in front of them. 

“…Well, well. Her Highness, Princess of Aldegia, is it?” 

The elevated bridge strongly resembled the monorail tracks running through Itogami City. Bathed in the rays of the afternoon sun, a beautiful blond girl stood atop it. She’d detected precursors of the teleport and had taken position to await Sayaka and La Folia. 

She was wearing a crimson bunny suit. The suit’s exterior had a metal exoskeleton on it that resembled bondage. Carrying a six-barreled anti-demon machine gun in each hand with ease, she pointed those gun barrels straight at La Folia. 

The girl in the augmented bunny suit bowed, her gestures no less elegant than La Folia’s own. 

“I am honored to set eyes upon you after so long. Taking the world for granted, walking onto a battlefield on your own without your knights as escorts… You really haven’t changed a bit. However, this is not the dance floor at a ball. I recommend that you run back before you get hurt and cry.” 

The girl in the augmented bunny suit bowed. Her gestures were no less elegant than La Folia’s own. 

“Er…um…” 

Sayaka could not conceal her bewilderment at the emergence of a thoroughly out-of-place enemy. However, judging from her voice, she seemed to be an acquaintance of La Folia’s. 

As if in search of a lifeline, Sayaka shifted her eyes to the side of La Folia’s face. 

“…Who is she?” 

“Who knows?” 

Speaking those words, La Folia made an adorable tilt of her wrist. You don’t know, either , thought Sayaka, shifting from somewhat to thoroughly lost. 

The blond beauty in the powered bunny suit widened her eyes in abject shock. 

“It’s Vika! VIKA! Victoria of the Duchy of Assente! We met at the ball in Chromis a year back!” 

“Ah…! Princess Victoria of Assente—so the rumors were true, you really did join the Duke of Ardeal’s harem as a hostage for a nonaggression treaty with the Warlord’s Empire.” 

Clap. La Folia’s hands lightly struck together as she innocently narrowed her eyes. And as if making a show of pity for the Oceanus Girls’ blond bombshell, she gave an exaggerated sigh. 

“I had heard that due to the Duke of Ardeal having no interest in human women, the girls in full bloom with him remain virgins, forced to play soldier night after night—but to think you would end up dressed like that .” 

“Sh-shut up! What’s wrong with being a virgin?! And I’m still nineteen, you know?! Would you stop talking as if I’m too old for marriage?!” Her voice was shrill, softening just a little to add, “There’s only a two-year gap between us anyway.” 

La Folia said nothing, letting out a “tee-hee” with a little grin, making the blond beauty scream in anger all the more. 

It was then that Sayaka, too, realized that La Folia was angering her opponent on purpose. Reunited with an acquaintance on the battlefield only to make her fly into a rage in the span of a second, she seemed to relish living up to her reputation as a blackhearted scheming princess. 

“Why are you going out of your way to provoke the opponent?!” 

“Provoke…? I am merely stating the truth.” 

When Sayaka, visibly exasperated, posed that question, La Folia blinked, as if finding it a completely unexpected thing to hear. 

A gaaaah sound rose from the blond beauty in the augmented bunny suit as she turned off the anti-demon machine gun’s safety. 

“And I thought I’d go out of my way to capture you unharmed…! Martha! Lana! Mithrina, Valeria!” 

“Yeah, yeah…” 

With resigned voices and strained smiles, girls dressed in augmented bunny suits came out of windows and rooftops of the surrounding buildings one after another. They wore blue and yellow, white and black—with the initial red one included, they numbered five in total. They had completely surrounded Sayaka and company. La Folia had provoked the first of them to drag the other girls out of their hiding places—probably. 

“P-Princess…” 

What are you trying to do? Sayaka implored to the side of La Folia’s face. As she did so, La Folia looked back at Sayaka with an odd degree of earnestness. 

“Sayaka.” 

“Y-yes.” 

“What do you really think of Kojou?” 

“I’m sorry…?” 

“I am asking if you like or dislike Kojou. I am asking if you desire to be in a relationship with him.” 

“Wh-what are you talking about—and at a time like this?! Look at the situation!!” Sayaka’s voice went shrill as she shouted back in anger. 

The five girls in augmented bunny suits had finished preparing various pieces of heavy weaponry to fire. In contrast, there was not a single piece of surrounding cover for Sayaka or La Folia to hide behind. No matter how you sliced it, it was not a situation for leisurely discussion of one’s love life. 

However, La Folia continued in a sober tone of voice. “I am asking because it is a time like this. See here, Sayaka. We are fighting this battle so that Kojou may become the king of his Dominion. He will be sovereign, meaning that his rule will be law. The law that dictates that a man may only take one wife shall no longer be any obstacle. And like every king, Kojou requires a harem.” 

“No, he does not!!” 

“He does. After all, he is a vampire primogenitor.” 

La Folia’s reply made Sayaka audibly gasp. 

A primogenitor’s wife. That’s what it meant to be such a vampire’s Blood Concubine—an unaging, undying pseudo-vampire. If both were male, one would likely call him a Blood Vassal instead. Such women swore eternal fealty to their primogenitor, fighting by his side as an army of immortals. That was what La Folia truly meant by harem . 

“A primogenitor’s Blood Concubine is more than a simple object of his love and affection. They are the soldiers that protect the Dominion. The duty to protect the Dominion’s territory and populace falls not solely on the primogenitor alone but to the elite Blood Vassals he has assembled. Do you have the resolve to be one among them—?” 

“It—it’s not like I actually thought about being K-Kojou Akatsuki’s…Vassal…” 

“Is that so…? Well, that is fine as well. If you fall in love with someone else, grow old with him, and die, like a normal person, that is one form of happiness.” 

“Ah, er… Me falling for someone other than Kojou Akatsuki is pretty hopeless, actually…” 

La Folia’s oddly world-wise words brought a nervous refutation from Sayaka. Even at that late juncture, Sayaka had been unable to leave her fundamental distrust of men behind. Kojou was the single exception. 

“Besides, if it means being together with Yukina… Anything’s good. Hell, harem, whatever.” 

“Well, let us leave it at that for the time being…” 

La Folia’s smile vanished as she looked up at the girls in augmented bunny suits. Due to the princess’s questions, they’d completely lost all opportunity to flee. At that point, the girls’ envelopment could not be breached. 

“Are you finished with your trivial chit-chat, La Folia Rihavein?” 

The blond beauty in the red suit flashed a smile of pure ferocity as she asked. The next moment, her machine guns roared and belched fire. Simultaneously, the other four began their attacks in a single volley. 

“Ritual stun rounds, fire—!” 

“Launch electromagnetic net!” 

“Firing.” 

“FIRE—!” 

“Urk…!” 

Sayaka’s face contorted as merciless attacks poured down from four directions. The weapons the Oceanus Girls employed were all using rounds for taking captives, but under such a barrage, they would not emerge from the nonlethal attacks unscathed. 

However, La Folia smiled as she gazed back at the incoming rounds. 

“Sayaka. Not the sword—the bow. ” 

“Ah…?” 

Perplexed, Sayaka looked at the long sword in her grip. Lustrous Scale, prototype area-suppression weapon of the Lion King Agency, was granted two modes—sword and bow. However you sliced it, in that situation, it was the “sword” slicing space apart to form an invincible shield that was the more useful. 

“…Children of the gods dwelling within me, guardians of the host, thou who bring victory in the time of the sword, ye who carry the departed!” 

As Sayaka was left befuddled, La Folia stepped forward in an attempt to shield her. The song of prayer she intoned echoed beautifully across the battlefield. As if responding to her voice, Sayaka and La Folia came to be surrounded by a blue glow of spiritual light reminiscent of a glacier. 

That glow obstructed each and every attack the Oceanus Girls had unleashed, bouncing the attacks right off it. 

“Holy defense barrier…!” 

“Warship-class defense barrier confirmed.” 

“The Svalinn System’s pseudo-holy shield…!” 

One after another, the girls in augmented bunny suits let shocked voices trickle from their lips. 

The Svalinn System, a secret ritual of the kingdom of Aldegia, was said to be the pinnacle of defensive magic. The bulwark created by divine essence supplied by a spiritual reactor was special, able to repel vampiric Beast Vassals and physical attacks simultaneously. All by herself, La Folia was deploying a barrier equal to that of a spiritual reactor equipped by a large-scale warship. 

“…I, Dancer of the Lion, Archer of the High God, beseech thee!” 

A chant escaped Sayaka’s lips. The silver long sword split forward and back, transforming into a recurve bow. 

At that point, she knew what the princess had meant by the bow rather than the sword. Now that the princess had deployed a defensive barrier, the duty she desired from Sayaka was not that of a shield, but that of a ritual spell gun turret to smite their foes. 

“Vika, retreat!” the girl in the blue augmented bunny suit called out to her blond beauty teammate. 

“Urk…!” 

Biting her lip in chagrin, the girl in the red bunny suit cast her machine guns aside, but before she could escape, Sayaka finished preparing for bombardment. 

“Most Brilliant Flaming Horse, Illustrious Kirin, He Who Governs Heavenly Thunder, pierce these evil spirits with thy wrath…!” 

The silver recurve bow fired a metallic ritual arrow. The whistling arrow infused with ritual energy executed a spell chant at super-high speed impossible for a human. A giant magic circle was drawn against the sky above. Pouring down from this was a storm of thunderbolts beyond counting, accompanied by high-density, debilitating miasma. 

Victory and defeat were decided in an instant. 

The cry of the girls in bunny suits echoed all across the ruined city. Lustrous Scale was an area-suppression weapon—an armament for neutralizing an entire battalion of demons. Even with the mobility provided by exoskeletons, they could not escape the ritual spell barrage. With high-density miasma and thunderbolts pouring right down upon them, all the Oceanus Girls tumbled helplessly to the ground. 

They probably wouldn’t be getting up for the next twelve hours, at least. Even if it was technically on the battlefield, Sayaka couldn’t shake the feeling that such conduct toward foreign princesses was somehow excessive. As if seeing right through Sayaka’s regrets, La Folia exhaled in a show of exasperation. 

“My, my. You really let them have it, Sayaka.” 

“And just whose fault is that?!” Sayaka retorted in a ragged tone of voice. 

During that momentary opening, something leaped out from the shadow of rubble from a ruin. It was a crimson Micro Robot Tank about the size of the average car. Crouching down upon its shell-like armor was a little girl wearing a beret. Wings woven from demonic energy spread from her back, and a black tail jutted out from the hem of her short skirt. Sayaka knew her well. 

“Yume Eguchi…! You’re fine with us not chasing her…?” Sayaka looked back and posed the question to La Folia. 

If Yume was the succubus controlling Leviathan, it was pretty much certain to Sayaka that it was the pilot of that red robot tank—Lydianne Didier—directing the Nalakuvera. If they could capture both, the Legacy of Cain’s defense net would crumble. 

However, with Sayaka ready to rush out after them, La Folia strongly held her put. 

“This is not over, Sayaka.” 

“Eh…?!” 

Sayaka’s movements came to a halt, dragged back by La Folia’s surprising strength. After a second’s delay, demonic energy emerged above their heads so vast that they could feel a physical shock wave from it. In the blink of an eye, the demonic energy coalesced into a single bird of prey. 

It was an enormous raptor made of incandescent fire—a vampire’s Beast Vassal. 

“Irrlicht!” 

Baring claws of fire, the bird of prey dove down. Its target was the Svalinn System’s bulwark that La Folia had deployed. 

The collision between enormous demonic energy and spiritual energy made the very air creak. 

The glowing-blue bulwark shattered, unable to withstand the pressure against it. La Folia’s barrier, boasting defenses equal to that of a capital ship, had been smashed apart by a vampiric Beast Vassal capable of destroying even battleships. 

“So even the Svalinn System could not withstand it…” 

Showing no sign of being unnerved, La Folia gently let a strained smile slip. 

A silver-haired vampire stood before the princess—Tobias Jagan of the Warlord’s Empire. The girls in the bunny suits were merely the opening act. He was no doubt Yume Eguchi’s real protector. 

“As expected of you, Count Jagan. However, do you not think it rather rude to intervene in a dispute between graceful young women?” 

“Don’t take this personally, La Folia Rihavein. It may seem underhanded to you, but victory is obtained through smashing with superior firepower. Such is war.” 

Even in the face of the princess’s reproachful words, Jagan’s expression did not budge. 

Sayaka put strength into the hands with which she gripped her recurve bow. Tobias Jagan was Vattler’s close confidant, a vampire known to be particularly militant even by the Warlord’s Empire standards. Defeating him single-handedly would probably take a vampire equal or superior to Vattler or Aradahl. Even with Sayaka and La Folia together, the odds of them being able to withstand his strength were very low. 

La Folia surely understood this. Even so, she did not lose her composure, neither in her actions nor her voice. Sayaka was slightly late in realizing why. 

There was someone gazing down at Jagan facing off against the two girls from far above. 

“I agree, Tobias Jagan—” 

“What…?!” 

The voice arrogantly echoing from the sky made Jagan gasp and look up. 

Illuminated by the midday sun, a single armored airship floated in the azure sky. It was smaller than the Bö?vildr , but the hull had a more offensive-oriented silhouette. 

The outer wall was colored a beautiful cobalt blue. The emblem drawn upon it was that of a golden eye—the emblem of Fallgazer, he who ruled the Fallen Empire, Dominion of the Middle East. 

“Then you cannot complain about my lending these two a hand—” 

With a golden mist of demonic energy hovering around him, a golden-eyed boy vampire descended. 

No one was surprised to see him. He was member of the HGTO, one of those who had vouched for Kojou Akatsuki’s identity and status—and a combat maniac no less than Vattler. To him, sitting back and watching while a war unfolded right before his eyes was simply unthinkable. 

“I am most honored to face you in battle. You have my thanks, Iblisveil Aziz!” 

Glaring at the prince descending onto the battlefield, Tobias Jagan bared his fangs. 

Sensing the vampires’ demonic energy colliding behind them, Sayaka and La Folia ran out in pursuit of Yume and Lydianne. 

8 

Kojou and Yukina continued running through the streets of the silver-colored ruins. To the vampirized Kojou, running ten kilometers’ distance was no great feat. The same went for Yukina, her physical capabilities enhanced via ritual spell. However, that was provided one knew the correct route. 

“Shit… We’re completely lost. It’s hard to know your way through this damn city!” 

Kojou spat venom as he cast aside the military-spec tablet Aradahl had handed them. It certainly was displaying the location of the Oceanus Grave II , but it was a map meant for an aircraft. It was virtually useless for examining the layout of city streets, rendering it mere dead weight. 

“I am sorry. Due to the earlier ritual spell bombardment’s aftereffects, I am unable to employ shikigami for searching…” 

Yukina’s breaths were lightly labored as she cast her eyes downward with a constrained expression. It had only been ten minutes prior when a ritual spell barrage had scattered thunderbolts onto the opposite side of a canal. Engulfed in the miasma that had descended with it, the reconnaissance shikigami Yukina had dispatched had been completely wiped out. 

“That really was an arrow from Sayaka’s bow, wasn’t it?” 

“Yes. I believe that Sayaka using Lustrous Scale means that she was fairly hard-pressed. And Yume’s mental wave has been interrupted as well—” 

“On this island, I can’t get a smartphone signal to get in touch with Kirasaka, either…” 

Kojou clicked his tongue as he glanced down at his phone displaying an out-of-range signal. 

“Anyway, we’d better look for where the Oceanus Grave II is. Must be good high ground for that somewhere—” 

Coming to a standstill, Kojou surveyed the area for a building that seemed reasonable to climb. 

It was a moment later that an oddly shaped vehicle rushed out together with a violent screech . It was by no means extravagantly huge, but it was a mass of steel and reinforced plastic plenty big enough to instill fear into any human being on foot who saw it. 

“Nuoah, Sir Boyfriend!” 

“Mister Kojou?!” 

The robot tank kicked up a grating, steel noise as it urgently came to a halt. 

Judging from the look on Yume’s face, the girls were right in the middle of fleeing. However, from Kojou’s point of view, encountering the girls was a godsend. Capturing the pair would neutralize Leviathan and the Nalakuvera then and there. 

“Himeragi, don’t let them get away—!” 

“Right!” 

Before Kojou even finished his words, Yukina ran out in the direction of the robot tank. 

Having Kojou, the Fourth Primogenitor, seen capturing a pair of primary schoolers posed various issues, but there were no such concerns if he left it to Yukina. However, as Yukina headed toward them, Yume apologetically brought both hands together. 

“I’m sorry, Miss Yukina…!” 

“Eh?!” 

Yukina’s face stiffened as the robot tank swiveled gun barrels in her direction. These were 7.62 mm anti-personnel machine guns embedded in both front legs. 

“?!” 

“Whoaaa!” 

Yukina instantly took cover behind a building as the machine guns roared and spat out plastic bullets meant for riot suppression. The plastic bullets violently collided with the walls of ruined buildings, turning into ricochets that assaulted Kojou from unexpected directions. 

“You trying to kill me?!” 

Kojou shouted in anger toward Yume and Lydianne as he evaded the bullets pouring down. Plastic or no, firing them with the same means as regular machine-gun rounds made them strong enough to break bones in a human body. In terms of efficient infliction of pain, the weapons were scarier to a vampire than regular guns. 

“ I am most sorry! However, we cannot alloweth ourselves to be captured as of yet—! ” Lydianne shouted over the speakers as she spun the tank around. 

They meant to make a run for it, and neither Kojou nor Yukina had any effective means of stopping them. Since it didn’t employ demonic energy, Yukina’s spear was powerless against it, and Kojou’s Beast Vassals were far too powerful to use against a pair of young schoolgirls. 

So do we just twiddle our thumbs and watch those two go…? Kojou was about to give up when rainbow-colored wings spread before the robot tank’s route of advance. 

Appearing from a ripple-like shift in the air was a small girl wearing an extravagant, thoroughly out-of-place dress and a homunculus girl wearing a maid outfit. 

“Astarte. Get them—” 

“Accepted. Execute, Rhododactylos.” 

Accepting Natsuki Minamiya’s command, Astarte summoned her Beast Vassal. 

The rainbow-colored wings protruding from her back gradually changed into enormous arms. Furthermore, it enveloped the entire body of Astarte, its host and master, changing into a completely humanoid form. This was the true face of Astarte: an experimental, artificial, symbiotic life-form—the world’s one and only homunculus within whom a Beast Vassal dwelled. 

“What the…?!” 

Physical attacks were ineffective against Astarte’s Beast Vassal, Rhododactylos. All the plastic bullets fired from the robot tank did was bounce futilely off the humanoid Beast Vassal’s surface. 

In contrast, both of the Beast Vassal’s arms pinned down the robot tank, bringing its movements to a halt. Astarte’s Beast Vassal ripped off the robot tank’s legs with ease equal to that of plucking legs from a boiled crab. 

Also, as Yume rode the tank’s back, silver-colored chains shot out of thin air to entwine around her entire body. Yume desperately flailed her limbs, about to somehow escape from the spell, but this only resulted in the chains entwining her tighter. The skirt of her one-piece uniform rose higher, exposing her white thighs and her tail. 

“A final request…! The storage…at least spareth the storage! The backup hath not been finished yet!” 

“Let me…let me go! Mister Kojou is going to see…!” 

Natsuki grandly ignored the two elementary schoolers’ tearful pleas. During that time, Astarte silently continued dismantling the robot tank. 

Oh, geez. Kojou scratched his head as he rose to his feet. “…So Natsuki came, too, huh?” 

Natsuki snorted briefly. 

“It is not as if I came to rescue you. I am merely apprehending these young girls at the behest of the succubus’s guardian. Incidentally, their primary school homeroom teacher is an acquaintance of mine, so I should be able to have her prepare special chastisement.” 

Yume’s and Lydianne’s faces changed color when the girls heard Natsuki’s remarks. The talk of having their homeroom teacher scold them seemed to have quite the effect. 

“P-please waiteth, Lady Sensei! Mercy! The mercy of a warrior—” 

“Nooooooo!” 

Natsuki opened a teleportation gate, and Astarte tossed the pair of elementary schoolers in. 

Consequently, this ensured Yume and Lydianne’s safety, at least for the time being. They’d launched a war against the Holy Ground Treaty Organization; if it stopped at a little chastisement, they were getting away lightly. 

And just like that, the menace of Leviathan and the Nalakuvera had vanished in a puff of smoke. The only enemies remaining within the Legacy of Cain were Vattler and the vampires under him. 

“…Natsuki, could you take me as far as Vattler’s ship?” 

In a sober tone, Kojou made a plea to Natsuki, her official duty already at an end. 

The small-statured witch looked back at Kojou and sank into thought. Natsuki’s formal status was that of a Federal Attack Mage under the Government of Japan. No doubt troublesome diplomatic constraints prevented her from opposing Vattler head-on. Her position was different than Yukina’s, who could use the excuse that she was merely observing Kojou. 

However, in the end, Natsuki sighed, resigning to compromise. 

“Well, that should be fine. This stupid ruckus he’s kicked up has been getting somewhat tiresome.” 

“Thanks.” 

An unwitting look of relief came over Kojou. That instant, Yukina’s expression hardened as she poised her silver spear. 

“Ms. Minamiya, I am sorry. Please go on ahead of us.” 

“…Himeragi?” 

When Kojou prompted, wondering what was up, he saw a crimson beam fly out from a corner of his vision. Flying without a sound was a bullet that struck Astarte’s Beast Vassal down from behind. 

However, as Kojou and the others turned to see, something was happening to the rainbow-colored Beast Vassal before their very eyes. The right arm of Rhododactylos, capable of reflecting demonic energy and nullifying physical attacks, split apart like a mosaic and vanished. 

“Astarte?!” 

“Warning. I cannot defend against this bullet—it is dangerous.” 

The homunculus girl stated it with a neutral expression. Kojou and Yukina gaped at her words. Further vermillion bullets poured down, seemingly clawing into Astarte’s Beast Vassal as they dismantled it. 

The power to rewrite the world itself, to erase the very existence of supernatural power—Kojou knew this attack. 

“These bullets… The Cleansing?!” 

Kojou looked up at the sight of a new robot tank on top of a building. A vibrant, turquoise-blue emblem had been painted onto the inorganic gray frame. 

From the open cockpit hatch, the upper body of a high school girl with an extravagant hairstyle popped out. 

“Asagi…!!” 

Kojou called out the girl’s name. 

Yes. The remaining enemies were not vampires alone. There was one other—the worst, and most powerful, foe of all. 

Surely she could truly master The Cleansing, the forbidden magic Cain had created to rewrite the very world. After all, she was the world’s one and only Priestess of Cain. 

“I shall restrain Aiba. Senpai, during that time, get to the Duke of Ardeal! Quickly!” 

The silver spear gave off a dazzling glow as Yukina glared at Asagi. 

Kojou’s back teeth clenched as he closed his eyes, as if in prayer. 

“Counting on you, Himeragi.” 

9 

Slipping through space that swayed like distilled dizziness, Kojou landed on the deck of the Oceanus Grave II . The expected interception attack from Vattler did not arrive. The surface of the ship was filled with nothing but a bizarre silence. 

“The anti-intruder barrier has been lifted… Do you intend this as an invitation, Master of Serpents?” Natsuki murmured as she surveyed the area. Kojou felt a faint stirring in his chest. The fact that they’d been permitted to teleport so easily to the supposed headquarters of the Anti-HGTO Military made it feel less like a trap than a genuinely defenseless ship. 

He could sense no sign of the Holy Ground Treaty Organization non-signatory nations’ representatives that should have been aboard the ship or their bodyguards. In their place was a strange scent hovering inside the ship that smelled like iron. 

“This scent… Don’t tell me…!” 

Kojou’s entire body shook violently. He covered his mouth, making a low groan as he resisted the urge to vomit. 

“…Akatsuki?” 

Kojou’s extraordinary reaction made Natsuki suspiciously narrow her eyebrows. However, neither she nor Astarte had yet noticed the strange scent coursing from within the ship, for they were not vampires— 

“Shit… Vattler…!” 

Kojou kicked down a nearby door and rushed inside the ship. 

The strange scent grew thicker still. It was the scent of human blood. 

He recognized the extravagant bar lounge in which he caught sight of people lying in a heap. Fresh blood was coursing from the people who lay around him, spread wide like shadows cast by the setting sun. 

“Representatives from HGTO non-signatory nations, I see. They are still alive, barely. But…” 

Having chased after Kojou, Natsuki grimaced as she raised a sour voice. Astarte immediately began administering first aid, but the casualties were simply too numerous. 

The fallen were affluent politicians and black-suited bodyguards. All lay with their respective throats torn, causing them to lose a great deal of blood. When Kojou searched in earnest, they numbered over a hundred. If he did a full search of the ship, he would probably find several times more. 

However, compared to the gravity of their wounds, very little blood had splashed onto the floor. This indicated that the one who had inflicted these wounds had consumed the vast majority of the blood that had flowed out of them. The tragedy had no doubt played out behind Asagi’s back. 

“What’s the meaning of this, Vattler…?!” Kojou snarled, violently pounding a fist against the ship’s inner wall. 

Opposed to the Holy Ground Treaty Organization, the non-signatory nation representatives were allies there at Vattler’s invitation. Vattler had personally attacked his own comrades in arms. Kojou didn’t think even a cruel fighting-obsessed man like Vattler would do something like that without a reason behind it. 

“Their reward for desertion before the enemy—” 

The reply came from a youthful vampire’s soft voice. 

“…?!” 

Kojou shifted his eyes in the direction of the voice. A blond, young aristocrat was standing right beside a piano at the back of the bar lounge. His pure-white suit was marred with blood spatter. 

“They’d grown weak in the knees at having earned the Fourth Primogenitor’s ire. They tried to run, so I passed judgment. Is it not a suitable end for cowards that would sully our sacred battle?” 

The ghastly aura rising from his entire body made Kojou back away without being aware of it. 

The mask of the annoying, sarcastic strategist had been cast aside. The true face of the aristocrat of the Warlord’s Empire had come to the fore. 

This cruelty and violence was Dimitrie Vattler’s true nature. So long as he remained undefeated, Itogami Island would never know peace. 

“Natsuki… Astarte… Hurry and get these people to a hospital.” 

“What?” 

“I’m sending this jerk packing—!” 

As Kojou thrust his right arm out, crimson mist surged out of it. This mist transformed into an incredible torrent of demonic energy, which then took the form of an enormous beast. Simultaneously, the shadow of an enormous, phantasmal beast floated in front of Vattler. The two simultaneously summoned Beast Vassals collided head-on inside the ship. 

“Regulus Aurum!” 

“Batsunanda!” 

Kojou had summoned a lightning lion that glowed brilliantly. Its lightning-imbued attack was blocked by a serpent Beast Vassal with countless swordlike scales. The resulting shock wave blasted the cruise ship’s upper deck away. But both Kojou and Vattler were unharmed. When Vattler flew through the enormous hole gouged into the ceiling on his way topside, Kojou instantly pursued. 

“Al-Nasl Minium! Cor-Tauri Succinum—!” 

The shock wave unleashed by the scarlet bicorn ripped the top deck apart, and from magma spat out by the minotaur came an enormous ax with which it attacked Vattler. 

“Manashi! Shakala—!” 

Vattler summoned two new Beast Vassals with which he parried Kojou’s attacks. However, Kojou’s attacks did not end there. Twisting Vattler’s counterattack down with pure force, his defenses were pulverized obstinately, cunningly, cruelly, savagely, coarsely, and mercilessly, one-sidedly pounding his attacks home. All at once, countless wounds were carved into Vattler’s suit, and fresh blood spurted from his torn skin. 

“I barely recognize you, Kojou… Aradahl honed you well.” 

What rose to the corners of Vattler’s blood-drenched cheeks was a smile of pure delight. 

Even while being peppered with Kojou’s attacks, Vattler was smiling. 

“Yes, Kojou! This is the power of the Beast Vassals of the Fourth Primogenitor, said to rival natural disasters! Show me, show me more!” 

“Shut the hell up!” 

Hit by a shock wave unleashed by the bicorn, Vattler’s body sailed into the sky. He was sent flying several hundred meters and touched down atop a ruin on the artificial isle. 

Kojou leaped in pursuit of him. 

Enveloped in Kojou and Vattler’s fighting, the once-beautiful Oceanus Grave II had changed into something that almost felt cruel to look at. The bridge and observation deck had vanished without a trace, and innumerable cracks ran across the hull, to the point Kojou found it mysterious that the ship remained afloat. Though concerned for the casualties still inside the ship, all he could do was pray that Natsuki and Astarte had safely rescued them. 

“So enjoyable, Kojou. Truly, this has brightened my mood…” 

Though wounded in intense combat, Vattler spread both arms wide in a theatrical gesture. His gaze was aimed not at Kojou but at the multinational armada floating far off at the water’s horizon. 

“I really would love to continue playing with you like this, but some very scary people are watching, you see. I suppose it is finally time for me to test my new power—” 

“What…?!” 

Kojou’s expression froze as he instinctively grasped that the air around Vattler had shifted. 

An icy chill ran up his spine. He did not know what Vattler was trying to do, but it was clearly something horrible. The Blood Memories of the Fourth Primogenitor bespoke its terror. 

A spiraling vortex of vermillion radiance enveloped the Beast Vassals that Vattler had summoned. 

This glow was formed of minute particles of light. Complex magical symbols were carved upon their interior sides. As their bodies absorbed the countless particles, Vattler’s Beast Vassals increased in power. The creatures and particles fused together in perfect harmony, finally transforming into a giant, dazzlingly glowing serpent, hundreds of meters long. From the sky far above, it gazed down upon Kojou—and roared. 

“This power! It’s…The Cleansing…?!” 

As the vermillion serpent spat out a dazzling beam of light, Kojou summoned a new Beast Vassal to block it. The bighorn sheep with a body of diamonds deployed a gemstone bulwark in front of Kojou. 

This was the Beast Vassal of Retribution, which could block any attack and repel its might back at the opponent— 

But the beam of light unleashed by Vattler’s Beast Vassal smashed and pulverized Kojou’s bulwark apart. 

“Gu…oa…!” 

Hit head-on by the full-force attack, Kojou was slammed into the ground. 

Blood erupted from his mouth as well as his freshly opened wounds. The supernatural power-erasing radiance of The Cleansing had robbed Kojou of the demonic energy within him. He could neither summon a new Beast Vassal nor even rise to his feet. His vision darkened as his consciousness wavered. 

“Farewell, Kojou…,” Vattler murmured in a tone tinged with what almost sounded like loneliness. 

With Kojou deprived of his bulwark, the red beam increased in vigor, pouring down upon him. The power of the Fourth Primogenitor, and Kojou’s very being, would be annihilated—but the moment he thought this… 

“Rosen Chevalier Plus, Boot Up—!” 

Leaping into the light was Yuiri Haba, dressed in a swimsuit and a parka. The silver long sword in her grip created a gash in space itself, interrupting the light of The Cleansing. 

“Glenda, please!” 

“Daaaaaaahhh!” 

Letting out a strange roar, a steel-colored dragon flew in, threading its ways through gaps between the ruined buildings. In the single second before the spatial severing vanished, the dragon picked up Kojou and Yuiri, proceeding to flee higher into the sky. 

“—Freikugel Plus, Full Burst!” 

Riding on the dragon’s back, silver-colored recurve bow poised, was Shio Hikawa. Simultaneously, Shio fired her three nocked ritual arrows in a single volley. Sailing off with a roar, the whistling arrows deployed three magic circles simultaneously, unleashing dazzling beams of light, thunder, and a smokescreen of dense mist all at once— 

Vattler’s Beast Vassal unleashed vermillion beams of light, erasing the magic circles. But by that time, the steel-colored dragon had already vanished from sight with Kojou in tow. 

“It would seem the amusement will run a little longer…” 

Releasing his Beast Vassal from its summons, the blond vampire strained a smile. He refrained from immediately pursuing the boy out of respect for the cleverness and courage of the girls who had rescued Kojou from peril. 

Besides… , Vattler thought, turning his eyes toward the water’s horizon once more. 

His opponents were not limited to the Fourth Primogenitor alone.