Strike the Blood - Volume 9 - Chapter Pr

INTRO 

A thick darkness spread beyond the acrylic glass window. 

The deep sea at night… 

The silence and the chill were enough to make breathing difficult, as the boat’s titanium alloy hull pressed upon one’s skin bit by bit. 

The floodlights illuminated only the remains of plankton, which resembled fallen snow. The survey submarine Isrus continued to descend toward the ocean floor, beyond the reach of sunlight. 

“What’s our depth?” 

The captain, dressed in a blue diving suit, spoke with a tone of annoyance. Assigned to a civilian submarine surveying company, he was a veteran boasting nearly a decade of experience beneath the waves. Normally, he had a buoyant personality with a never-ending stream of wisecracks, but this day, he was in a very bad mood. The aura he gave off could be called angry, even savage. 

The young helmsman, visibly cowed by his captain’s demeanor, replied in a businesslike tone, “We’ve exceeded four thousand meters. Twenty-five hundred meters until maximum depth.” 

“…Is that thing really down here?” 

The captain snorted, clearly unamused. 

Their company had been hired to survey the bottommost depths of the open sea east of Itogami Island, over nine thousand meters below sea level. At that point, the only submarines capable of submerging that deep could be counted on a single hand. It was, in a sense, ground that humankind was forbidden to tread. 

“What’s the basis for this rumor that we’ll find what’s left of some…biological weapon from the Age of the Gods around there? A legend with no basis in fact, right?” the captain asked. 

“Who’s to say? Maybe someone saved a merman from around these parts?” 

“…A merman?” 

“Ha-ha, I’m kidding. But the client is a corporation from the Demon Sanctuary this time around, so I figured it wouldn’t be that strange if someone knows somebody along those lines.” 

“You have a point. Besides, I’m glad someone’s hiring us, even if it’s for a stupid survey like this,” the captain spat, following it with a deep sigh. 

The Isrus’s job was to locate traces of a biological weapon constructed in ancient times. That totally absurd detail was the cause of the captain’s foul mood. 

In the first place, the survey submarine Isrus was built to survey animal and plant life at the bottom of the ocean and to chart the path of their evolution. Locating a curio that may or may not exist was clearly not its intended purpose. 

“I don’t think it’s anything worth spending that kind of money to look for it anyway. Rumor has it that the Nalakuvera, left behind by that Deva bunch, got smashed pretty easily by the Island Guard and all.” 

“You mean the ones the Black Death Emperor Front brought to Itogami Island? Well, others say it was actually the Fourth Primogenitor who wiped those out… If that’s the case, maybe we shouldn’t put the Nalakuvera down too much… Hmm?” 

The helmsman abruptly raised an eyebrow, seeming at a loss as he gazed into the search monitor. 

The captain looked at him with a dubious expression. “What is it?” 

“An irregularity in the terrain data… Can you tell what this is?” 

The monitor the helmsman pointed his finger toward displayed a CG representation of the ocean floor. A 3-D image was reproducing terrain data obtained from past surveys, and a pixelated wire-frame image was superimposed over it, updated by data from the Isrus’s sonar in real time. Normally, the two sets of data would be one and the same, but there was an odd disparity. 

At the bottom of the sea, there was a faint bulge over a span of several kilometers. 

“It doesn’t look like a sonar error from a thermocline. Has the ocean floor had any abnormal rises?” 

“No…there’s no sign of volcanic activity in this maritime area. More than that, this shape… It looks like some kind of creature, doesn’t it…?” 

“A creature?” 

Seeing the face of the navigator go pale, the captain glared at him. “That’s ridiculous,” he murmured. However, even in that span of time, the sonar analysis imaged on the monitor shifted in irregular ways from moment to moment. 

It certainly did resemble some kind of creature crawling along the ocean floor, like an alligator or a snake several kilometers in length—or perhaps a giant dragon. 

“Like hell it is… That’s too big to be a living thing… That’d make it…a real monster, straight out of myth, wouldn’t it…?!” 

The captain earnestly spoke those words for his own benefit. Suddenly, the helmsman beside him shrieked. In the next moment, the submarine was assailed by a ferocious torrent resembling the blast of an explosion. 

It was a brutal push deep in the sea, with all the water pressure of four thousand meters beneath the surface— 

The ragged vortex emerging from near the ocean’s floor raged about, toying with the Isrus like a tree leaf. The pressurized shell protecting the pilot house audibly groaned from the intense creaking. 

Even without checking, the origin of the vortex was clear. It was the monster. The giant monster, submerged down to the ocean floor, had slightly moved its body. That was all it took to send an incredible shock wave rippling through the surrounding area. 

“B…biological demonic energy pulse confirmed! It’s…it’s alive…!” 

The helmsman desperately clung to his seat as he shouted. 

It was a gargantuan, oceanic creature reaching several kilometers in length. Its very existence was absurd by any rational standard. Yet, the reality of it had arrived before their eyes, scattering overwhelming destruction and terror all about. 

“Turn…! Evasive maneuvers! Raise her up!” the captain shouted at the top of his lungs. 

However, with the hull of the Isrus battered about underwater, the crew had lost all sense of which way was up. They’d already cut the emergency ballasts, but it was unlikely to have much effect amid the raging whirlpool. 

The next moment, the Isrus stopped, almost as if it was sandwiched by some kind of giant object. 

With an unsettling vibration, the hull began to crack. The pressurized shell gave off a strange sound. 

“W-we’re past the pressure limit! She’s being crushed—” 

“At this depth…?!” 

The helmsman’s cry made the captain gasp. The Isrus still had plenty of room to spare before it reached its maximum depth; the pressurized shell was built with the safety of the crew in mind, able to comfortably withstand water pressure at a depth of ten thousand meters. And yet, some kind of immense force was crushing the Isrus. 

“C-captain!” 

“Don’t tell me…” 

The floodlights illuminating the exterior of the hull cracked, plunging the surrounding area into darkness. However, something rose into the final flickers—a row of countless teeth, each resembling a boulder… 

The submarine was caught in the maw of the titanic beast. 

“Don’t tell me…that thing’s going to eat us…?!” the captain murmured in shock. 

The words had barely left his lips when the pressurized shell shattered. There was not even time to feel the cold seawater as his mind plunged into the depths of darkness. 

’Twas the night of the new moon— 

The girls continued to run through the mazelike subterranean tunnels. 

One girl was very small in stature. She gave off a fairly mature impression for her age, but there was no hiding her childlike face. She was probably still in elementary school, eleven or twelve at most. 

She wore only a blue two-piece swimsuit with a loose parka. She wasn’t even wearing beach sandals; running barefoot must have been painful. 

“Can you still run?” 

The girl leading her by the hand was tall and some sixteen or seventeen years old. She had long, slender limbs and a refined face. Her long, light-brown hair was worn up in a ponytail. 

Her right hand was gripping a silver-colored long sword with a thick blade. They’d run a fair distance, but she showed no sign of being out of breath; perhaps she’d had some kind of special training. 

“Yes…but…” 

The little girl in the swimsuit gave a fainthearted reply as she came to a stop. 

A shutter made out of silver-colored metal bars obstructed their path. Overcoming the stout metal bars, built to prevent demon beasts from escaping, was beyond what the upper-body strength of two seemingly helpless girls could overcome. 

But the ponytailed girl smiled pleasantly as she gazed calmly at the solid shutter. 

“Don’t worry. I will get you out of here. It’s my job, after all,” she said, raising the silver long sword high. Without fanfare, she swung it down at the shutter blocking their advance. Her swordsmanship was elegant—like a dance. There appeared to be no strength put into it. 

That was all it took to completely sever multiple bars right before their eyes. 

The gap created in the shutter was not all that large, but it was enough for them to slip through. With a sway of her ponytail, she quietly lowered her sword. 

“Who…are you?” the elementary school student in the swimsuit asked with a look of surprise on her youthful face. 

The girl with the ponytail was passing through the gap in the shutter when she looked back, smiling somewhat proudly. 

“—Sayaka Kirasaka. A Shamanic War Dancer of the Lion King Agency.” 

“Shamanic War Dancer?” 

“I’m from a special agency for stopping large-scale sorcerous disasters and sorcerous terrorism… Well, it might be easier to say I’m a magical girl fighting for justice.” Sayaka puffed up her chest with a smug look as she spoke in a theatrical tone. 

The young girl gazed at Sayaka with a neutral expression, sighing in a way that somehow seemed indifferent. “Magical girl, she says… Haah…” 

“Wh-what?! Was that a sigh just now?!” 

“Er, more importantly, the guards have spotted us.” 

She pointed that out, acting as if it took a fool of an adult to treat her like a child. Sayaka groaned, getting down in the dumps for a moment before lifting her face, her spirits apparently rebounded. She turned toward the guards and poised her long, silver sword parallel to the ground. 

“I-it’s all right. Just move back a little.” 

Sayaka took a single step forward as the long sword in her hands changed forms. The silver edges split front and back, turning 180 degrees as they pulled apart to form a modern recurve bow. This was the true form of the Lion King Agency’s prototype transformable suppression weapon, Der Freischötz. 

Sayaka took an extendable dart out of the holster under her skirt, lengthening it into an arrow. 

“Lustrous Scale!” 

She drew the recurve bow’s drawstring and unleashed an arrow. 

This was no normal arrow, but a whistling arrow that made a great roar. It was a special cursed arrow that implemented a high-density spell chant beyond the capacity of a human’s lungs and larynx— Against normal human opponents, that explosive level of sound itself was menace enough. 

The shock wave released by the roar reverberated through the narrow tunnel, causing the ambushing guards to faint as if mowed down by a scythe. The cursed arrow sailed straight and true, punching through the door at the tunnel’s exit. 

“Incredible…” 

The girl in the bathing suit let out a voice of admiration at the might of the cursed arrow that had soared before her eyes. Her honest reaction made Sayaka look relieved somehow as she said: 

“Well, that’s to be expected. I told you, I’m a magical girl.” 

“Huh? But wasn’t that just a ritual spell? Though I do think it is quite incredible…” 

“Ughhh.” The cold tone of the elementary schooler’s reply made Sayaka curl her back and groan on the spot. Then the Lion King agent’s expression suddenly snapped back to seriousness. 

“Can you swim…?” 

Beyond the tunnel’s exit was a narrow waterway about ten meters wide. It was a canal for tourists that stretched throughout the man-made isle. Crossing it meant getting out of the facility. 

Fortunately, the canal’s current was gentle, so swimming across it was far from impossible. The danger was probably minimal compared to busting through the front gate of the facility. 

“I’m an excellent swimmer. I can go without stopping for about fifty meters,” the bathing suit–clad girl replied proudly. 

Sayaka nodded in visible relief. She took out a thin piece of metal. In her palm, it changed shape into a small bird—a shikigami, granted the breath of false life through a ritual spell. 

“I’m glad. So I’m sorry, but you go on ahead. Once you finish crossing the canal, this little one will guide you until you reach a safe place.” 

“…What about you?” 

“Don’t worry, I’ll catch up soon enough.” 

Sayaka returned her recurve bow to sword form and gave her a strong smile. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she took a photo out of her breast pocket. The photo looked like it’d had a rough time, like its owner had once ripped it apart, only to carefully piece it back together again with cellophane tape. 

“…But if you can’t link back up with me, go meet this man.” 

“Mr.…Kojou Akatsuki?” 

The elementary schooler accepted the photo from Sayaka, dubiously tilting her head. The photo showed a teenage boy in a high school uniform. The back side had a fairly detailed profile, information purportedly required for assassination. 

“Yeah. He’s an idiot, indecent, the type of pervert to put his hands on all kinds of girls at the drop of a hat—did I mention he’s an idiot?—but, w-well, you could say he does have number of good points…” 

“—Is he your lover?” The girl’s voice was somber in response to Sayaka’s apologetic explanation. 

That instant, Sayaka’s face turned beet-red as she forcefully shook her head. “L—?! Lov…?! N-no, it’s not like that yet…!” 

“…Yet?” 

“It…it’s not like that, he’s just an extra—rather, it’s the cute-like-an-angel girl that’s watching him who’ll probably be a big help to you, so—!” 

“Is that so…? Er, this may be none of my business, but I think you should try being honest about your own feelings once in a while…” 

“I said it’s not like that! A-anyway, hurry on now!” 

Sayaka, heavily flustered by the elementary schooler’s coolheaded advice, pushed her toward the canal. The girl in the swimsuit sighed without a word. After checking the water temperature with the tip of her toe, she seemed to harden her resolve, diving into the canal. 

Apparently, the kid’s claim—that she was an expert swimmer—was no mere boast. With a steady breaststroke, she made her way to the opposite side. 

“…Now, then.” 

For a time, Sayaka watched from behind as the girl left. Then, she raised her sword and shifted her gaze behind her. 

She heard someone’s footsteps from the canal Sayaka and the girl had traversed. It was no doubt someone trying to bring the girl back. However, she only sensed a single pursuer. The regular click of heels sounded oddly unhurried. 

“A Shamanic War Dancer of the Lion King Agency, lectured by an elementary schooler. A sorry sight, yes?” 

At last, the pursuer, with a faint giggle, was revealed. 

The figure turned out to be a young woman, probably the same age as Sayaka. 

Her hair was long and black, worn in an old style. The high school uniform she wore was also black. Even in the dark, it was clear that she was beautiful, but somehow, she gave off a cold impression; she had a look in her eye like she was sneering at the world. 

“That’s just her misunderstanding…! Wait, you heard that?!” 

Sayaka howled with blatant hostility. The black-haired girl looked back at her and broke into laughter. 

“I do not believe a trespasser has any right to complain about eavesdropping… Is that not so?” 

“I don’t think a criminal has any right to talk about trespassing, yes?” 

Sayaka pointed the tip of her sword at the girl as she spoke. 

The girl with black hair held no weapon. Even so, her eyebrows did not even twitch as she walked toward the sword-wielding Sayaka. Come at me anytime, her demeanor seemed to say, taunting Sayaka. 

“You have great timing. I was just thinking about asking you people what Kusuki-Elysée was doing confining a little girl like that anyway.” 

Sayaka kept her sword aimed at eye height as she quietly assessed the distance. 

One more step. The instant the black-haired girl started to stride forward, Sayaka’s attack would reach her—the attack of Lustrous Scale, which ripped space itself, shredding any defense— 

“The Lion King Agency’s Der Freischötz…the prototype suppression weapon, infused with a pseudo-spatial-severing ritual. Certainly, it is a powerful holy weapon, but—” 

The black-haired girl suddenly came to a halt, smiling elegantly. The next moment, the girl leaped off from the floor with the sound of a small tap, vanishing from sight. 

“Huh?!” 

It was the black-haired girl who had launched an attack first. In a split-second, she’d crept into Sayaka’s flank, launching an incredible knee strike that contrasted with her calm demeanor. 

Sayaka managed to barely block the attack with both hands. Naturally, she did not use her sword. Having allowed her opponent to get so close, the superior reach of her weapon had been completely nullified. 

“Type Six cannot attack from this range, can it?” 

The black-haired girl whispered into Sayaka’s ear. Sayaka gritted her teeth, saying nothing in reply. She couldn’t use Lustrous Scale’s ability with an enemy nestled up against her, for the rip in space was so powerful it would injure the caster, Sayaka herself. 

“Urk! In that case—!” 

Sayaka slipped through her opponent’s flurry of attacks and drew out several charms. They were thin metal plates for creating combat shikigami. However, before she could blow ritual energy into them, her opponent attacked Sayaka’s left hand with a karate chop. The blow made Sayaka’s wrist go numb, sending the charms fluttering as they danced in the air. 

“Shamanic War Dancers are used for curses and assassinations. You are at a disadvantage in simple close combat, are you not?” 

The girl was very talkative for someone launching a string of quick-hitting attacks. She gave off an air of someone testing a friendly opponent in mock combat, prompting for answers, rather than simply having fun. Sayaka felt like her combat abilities were being assessed. 

“—That’s not set in stone! Distort!” 

Sayaka parried the girl’s blows as she drew in ritual energy and released it. All at once, the charms danced away from Sayaka’s hand and changed into birds of prey. They were metal raptors with talons and beaks as sharp as knives. 

“Activating at a distance via a compressed chant… I see, to be expected…!” 

Under assault from the shikigami, the black-haired girl leaped backward. Naturally, even she couldn’t get close to Sayaka while facing six shikigami simultaneously. 

In that opening, Sayaka returned Lustrous Scale to its recurve bow form. 

She hated to admit it, but her opponent had the edge in melee combat. While the shikigami kept the black-haired girl busy, she’d use the shock wave of a cursed arrow to put her out of action. 

Even if she put up a magical defense, it’d take a Natsuki Minamiya–class witch or a vampire primogenitor to withstand a direct hit from Lustrous Scale. Surely, the black-haired girl, lacking a weapon in her hands, could not fend off Sayaka’s attack. 

This ends now—, thought Sayaka, drawing the bow. 

The next moment, the black-haired girl’s entire body released an ear-splitting cry. 

“—Flaming Thunder!” 

The shikigami attacking the girl were blown back like they’d been slammed with an invisible hammer. She’d used high-density ritual energy much like a bullet, shooting down the shikigami all at once. 

“Wha…?!” 

Sayaka instantly released her cursed arrow, but the black-haired girl had already whirled around Sayaka’s rear. Having lost its target, the cursed arrow exploded, collapsing the tunnel’s walls. 

The Shamanic War Dancer’s expression twisted in unease. The cursed arrow’s explosion was not the reason for her disquiet, though; it was the combat technique the black-haired girl had used to shoot the shikigami out of the air. Sayaka knew the true nature of that technique, hence her confusion. 

There was no mistaking that the black-haired girl had used the Eight Thundergods’ School—transforming amplified ritual energy into physical attack power. It was a ritual-style martial art for anti-demonic combat, developed to enable one to quell a demon with one’s bare hands. It was an extremely specialized ritual martial art. 

As far as Sayaka knew, only a precious few people were able to employ those techniques: Sword Shamans of the Lion King Agency. The Eight Thundergods’ School techniques were Sword Shaman techniques through and through. 

“That technique… Don’t tell me, it’s the same as Yukina’s…?!” 

Sayaka returned Lustrous Scale to its sword form and drove it horizontally toward her back. However, the black-haired girl was faster. With her back still turned, she pushed her body weight onto Sayaka. Normally, no attack existed that could strike an opponent with both bodies pressed together like that. But— 

“—Clapping Thunder!” 

The explosive impact unleashed at point-blank range sent Sayaka’s tall physique flying. 

The black-haired girl had transformed ritual energy into physical attack power to ram her at point-blank range. Sayaka, her internal organs heavily shaken, was unable to even scream as she tumbled across the ground. 

“…Why can…you use…Sword Shaman techniques…?!” 

Sayaka wrung her voice out in spite of labored breaths. 

The black-haired girl gave no reply, silently looking down at Sayaka, who was on her hands and knees. In the attacker’s hand was a silver long sword—Lustrous Scale. 

No one except Sayaka could employ its pseudo-spatial severing, but in this circumstance, such a thing was hardly necessary. The girl could slay Sayaka with a simple downward swing of the sword. 

“Are you a…Sword Shaman, too?” Sayaka asked in a broken voice. 

No, the girl’s body language said with a shake of her head. 

“I am the Sword Shaman’s shadow—a Priestess of the Six Blades,” she corrected in a casual manner. 

Before Sayaka could hear those words, her consciousness had faded away in the darkness.