BlazBlue:Spiral Shift - Hyokujin no Eiyu

STORY

Once upon a time, mankind was forced to fight against the “Black Beast”. With its overwhelming power, it seemed only a matter of time before humanity would be destroyed. In that moment, six warriors appeared.

They passed on the ancient power of Magic to mankind and the people combined it with their science to create a new power. With this they succeeded in perfecting the all-powerful system of Ars Magus. Armed with this new power, mankind, together with these six warriors started a counterattack against the Black Beast. After a long, fierce battle, the Black Beast was finally defeated.

This battle was later called the First War of Ars Magus. These six were revered as the "Six Heroes".

In order to exercise the authority of using Ars Magus during the war to control the massive quantity of Grimoires produced, a new organization with the name of Novus Orbis Librarium (or Librarium) was formed. The world was ruled by means of the Librarium, commonly shortend as NOL. Making use of their newfound power, humans would achieve rapid development in all fields. And then, the rebuild world has undergone a dramatic change from what it was before the Dark War.

Decades have passed since the start of the dictatorship of the Librarium. The world that has become Ars Magus-driven has given birth to a huge disparity in individual abilities. Dissatisfaction grew in all four corners of the world and in the end, the estranged attempted to break away from the Librarium as well. Because of “The Ikaruga Federation”, the Second War of Ars Magus has broken out. In this war, mankind has used Ars Magus against their fellow companions. It was my first war—.

Prologue

A single desk stood out in the darkroom.

The desk itself served as a light. There were no other lights in the room, instead the surroundings were filled with pitch-black darkness.

The bright blue light dimly illuminated several figures sitting in rows on both sides of the desk.

Five people on one side, five on the other.

They wore matching uniforms, and although their presence seemed obvious, their appearance was not clearly recognizable.

They didn't reveal their identities, but they got the necessary talking done. The lack of lighting at hand was convenient for a clandestine meeting like this one.

“...So, I take it you have no objection to our proposal?"

A low, solemn voice came from one side of the room to the opposite shore. A stack of papers lay between the man speaking and the man facing him.

The addressed man nodded his head in agreement and replied.

"Yes. We, “Sector Seven”, will do our utmost to cooperate with the independence of the Ikaruga Federation as per the above agreement.”

“I'm relieved to hear that. Now please sign..."

A hand covered with black gloves slid the intervening document towards the other man.

The man on the other side took it in his white-gloved hands and ran a pen across the bottom of it. When he was done, the document was turned around and now the white-gloved hand held out a stack of papers.

The black gloves received it and a name was listed with a pen next to the signature.

Another sheaf of papers with the same text was signed in the same way in a manner where one by one they passed it into each other's hands.

“Now, let's get into the main subject and details...”

The man who had referred to his people as Sector Seven looked over his shoulder to the rear. A new figure emerged from the depths of the darkness.

As he stepped closer, his appearance came into focus in the light that came from the desk.

A slender man, he seemed to be. He was wearing a black suit that was different from the uniforms of either of the men sitting across the glowing desk. In this dark room, he was wearing a black hat and underneath it, his green hair and the corners of his mouth smiling deeply could be seen.

The man in the black suit came to the edge of the desk, his hard leather boots echoing in his footsteps. He craned his neck to look at all the seated men.

"It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. From here on out, I'll explain everything."

The man smiled again as he bowed deeply as if he were a stage performer.

His tone of voice was polite and gentle, yet it sounded as if it was looking down on others.

It was just a baseless sensation that could be called an accusation, but although no one said it out loud, everyone felt uncomfortable.

Still, the seated men waited for the black-clothed man to speak. They didn’t have time to let the attitude of the explainer divert their important discussion.

Knowing this, the man in black began to speak in a relaxed manner.

“A research facility owned by Sector Seven, located in the Hierarchical City of Ibukido in the Ikaruga Federation, will soon be conducting an experiment. It is an experiment to activate a revolutionary weapon! To put it simply: ...if it is successful, it will be enough to counter the Novus Orbis Librarium.”

The black-gloved men lined up at the desk throbbed lowly at the stagnant tone of the man speaking softly.

One of them leaned slightly towards the desk and asked, looking up at the man in the black suit.

"So, with this weapon, we can beat the... Librarium?"

"Yeees, certainly"

The man in the suit's smile deepened. As he spread out his hands in an exposing manner, he continued leisurely.

“Sector Seven will not hesitate to help you do so. We have a common goal and a common enemy. On top of that, we have the strength to fight and... 'win'."

It was like a complaint of temptation.

There was a scent in the man's words that gave the illusion that the promised victory was there. Not a single person in the room noticed how poisonous that scent was.

Rather, the words of enchantment had already intoxicated those present, as if they were drinking the wine of an early victory.

“In this case…”

“We can’t let this get away…”

“Finally, the time has come.”

A number of voices murmured. The voices shook the darkness of the room.

The sound of the man in the suit clearing his throat in amusement disappeared as a matter of course.

The man in the hat spoke.

“We've waited long enough. Come on. ...Let's start a war. A war to win great freedom and peace. There will be a lot of sacrifices, a lot of suffering, but it is inevitable.”

Now, let the war begin.

“It's a necessary cornerstone for defeating the great evil and achieving freedom and peace!”

Now, let the war begin.

“Greater. For the sake of greater freedom and peace.”

The words were like ripples, letting a quiet exaltation permeate the dim light and darkness.

Everyone was convinced. Today, this moment was the beginning.

And it was, truly, "The Beginning”.

The beginning of a very long history.

In the darkness where no light could reach, the man was smiling inconspicuously.

Chapter 1: The Human of the Kisaragi Family / Distorted recognition

Part 1

Should it be called a wasteland or a ruin?

It was just a place that had fallen apart.

The dry land, with deep lacerations running through it, was cluttered with scattered debris. From the extent of the damage and the apparent robustness of the rubble, it was clear that there had been a structure of some size here.

But not anymore. At least not on the ground, which was cracked, unnaturally raised, and burnt in many places.

Everything that used to be here exploded and blew away in an accident four years ago. And... as at his feet, it turned into an atrocious group of rubble.

“...It's awful."

Looking at the area from the top of the largest rubble, he -Jin-Kisaragi- muttered bitterly.

He was a well-featured young man with silky blond hair and bright green eyes. His lifted eyes gave a sense of calmness and intelligence, but now there was a deep melancholy in them.

He had heard a lot about this place many times, mostly in his classes at the military academy he attended until last year.

This place is Ibukido.

Four years ago, a research facility located here was destroyed in an explosion of unknown cause. The accident, which engulfed a wide area, was so horrific that only one girl was recorded to have survived.

And with that accident, the civil war intensified.

The Ikaruga Civil War. It's a civil war that has been going on for four years and is still going on.

Sighing bitterly, Jin jumped quietly from the top of the rubble to the ground. A cloud of dust danced under his boots, and his blue jacket fluttered loudly.

He was wearing the uniform of a guard of the "Novus Orbis Librarium" to which he belongs. Jin is a member of the 4th Division of the Novus Orbis Librarium, commonly known as the Librarium.

Originally, he came to this land — to Ikaruga’s territory, including Ibukido, to fight in a war.

Of course, it was the Ikaruga Civil War. In spite of the warm-hearted measures taken to grant them special autonomy while still under the control of the Librarium, the rebellious Ikaruga Federation, which suddenly betrayed the Librarium and started a civil war, must be suppressed.

But before that, Jin left the battlefield and came to this place alone...

(I felt... like I was being called...)

To someone. Something. He didn't hear a clear voice or receive a physical message, but he couldn't help but feel that way.

He had to come here.

This place must mean something very important to him.

He thought there must be a reason why he felt this way and thought he would understand it when visiting it, but he was wrong.

“...At least it doesn't look like that they are the ones who called me."

Jin's mutterings were mixed in with the thirsty cloud of dust and washed away.

Jin's bright green eyes suddenly sharpened as he slid his gaze to follow the destination of the wind. The area around him was simply quiet, but he had already noticed that there were countless signs lurking within.

In the shadows of the rubble jutting out of the ground, in the shallow cliff-like terrain created by the cracking of the earth, and in the fissures running deep. Soldiers holding weapons lied dormant.

There were about thirty of them. Everyone was tense and paying attention to the direction of Jin, but for some reason or other, they didn't seem to be attacking even when Jin turned his back on them.

Jin wondered if they are soldiers of the Ikaruga Federation, but this is a long way from the battlefield. It was just a coincidence that he had stopped by here.

Does this mean that even such a sudden decision has been leaked to the outside world? If so, there is a possibility that a serious information leak has occurred.

With this in mind, Jin's nerves were on edge.

A heavy thud occurred, and the pile of rubble collapsed.

As if he had been hit by a bullet, Jin turned around and reached for the sword in its blue scabbard that he carried. He lowered himself and prepared to pull it out at any time.

Another piece of rubble fell out from under his gaze and a thick, red arm grew out from underneath it.

Then came the head, followed by a thick, broad, and strong body.

The thing that came out from under the rubble was like a puppet. If it had to be classified by gender, it would be a man, but the figure was a little too large to be human.

He was tall enough to look up at, with a stout body that would have been impossible for Jin's arms to carry, like a boulder.

His skin color was red, as was apparent from the log-like arms that were stretched out from the tight clothing and the head, which is the only part that felt human.

A huge man with red skin. His appearance was widely known within the Librarium. He was a cyborg soldier who belongs to an organization called Sector Seven, which has been active in resisting the Librarium for many years. Also known as…

"The Red Devil of Sector Seven, isn’t it?"

Jin, who put himself on guard, looked at the red-skinned man who appeared in front of him.

The man did not confirm or deny. He just stared at Jin and pushed up his sunglasses, which were small for the size of his face, with his fat thick fingers.

"You didn’t run nor hide, instead brazenly stood your place. Are you so confident in your skills or are you just a fool who doesn't know how to fight?"

"Answer the question."

The discourteous insult was unpleasant but unconcerned, Jin glared sharply at his opponent.

The giant man sighed and nodded with a slight movement as he stared back at the cold gaze.

“...You're right. It seems you know who you are dealing with. Are you a new recruit? If you run away, I will overlook it. Don't take your life for granted."

The red devil talked as if he cared, then abruptly cut off his words.

The sunglasses he wore were opaque, so it was hard to see what he was looking at underneath them, but his gaze was clearly focused on the sword Jin was holding.

“This is ...... no way."

The deep voice of the red devil threateningly darkened. This was enough for Jin to understand what the cyborg had sensed.

He knew. He knew what kind of sword Jin was holding.

It was in an unadorned ice-blue scabbard.

“A Nox Nyctores…”

Jin sniffed curtly at the low muttered words of the red devil.

Nox Nyctores (Arch-Enemy).

About a hundred years ago, there was a plague that threatened to destroy the entire human race. Its name was "The Black Beast".

The Nox Nyctores (Arch-Enemies) were legendary weapons that were developed to fight and exorcise the evil, and they succeeded in defeating it.

Jin's sword is one of them. It is the Nox Nyctores "Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa".

The monologue of the red devil was not a question. Therefore, Jin did not answer.

Instead of answering, the air around Jin cooled down. The presence of Yukianesa, which manipulates ice and cold air, quietly dominated the place.

“Let's hear your name. Recruit."

It was a modest movement, but the red devil readied himself for battle.

The edge of Jin's mouth lifted slightly.

"Jin=Kisaragi."

That one word sparked the fight.

They moved almost simultaneously. Jin, however, was clearly more nimble. He kicked the earth hard, stepped forward deeply and at the same time swung his sword swiftly.

The sword in the scabbard sharply tore the sky. The pale blue scabbard split the red demon's forehead with such force that it seemed as if the blade was right there, at least it should have done that, but sparks scattered about just before it did.

“What!?”

He may not have been able to catch up with Jin in terms of speed, but he probably knew what he was going to do. With the stiff arm he had lifted and the metal parts attached to it, the red devil had narrowly escaped Jin's blow.

Jin let out a frustrated voice and jumped back. However, his body was suddenly pulled forward strongly.

It was the red devil who pulled him. The discharge from the device on his arm caught Jin like a lump of iron attracted by a powerful magnet.

As soon as the red devil raised his arm, Jin, who was caught in the discharge, was easily lifted into the air. In a single breath, from that high position, he was slammed into the dry ground.

"Ugh..."

Jin moaned lowly as he was hit in the back without a shred of mercy.

A fist immediately followed, raining down like a rock, but he wasn't going to take it that quietly. Jin quickly rolled backward and pulled himself up.

The red devil's fist cracked the ground, grazing his fluttering blonde hair.

It was a tremendous force. If he had been hit properly, the bones of Jin's entire body would have been shattered.

Without a moment’s delay, Jin ducked under the red arm that looked like a big tree as it was brandished at him, then approached the red devil’s chest, this time he slashed up from a low position and struck with his scabbard.

A dull response. The tip of the scabbard stroke the jaw of the red devil. Then, the silver hilt chased after the red devil, who turned away. With a single strike of the handle against his temple, the red devil's head shook greatly.

However, he couldn’t push back the red devil’s legs even for one step.

With the momentum of his wavering body pulling back, the red devil tackled him with his strong body.

Jin jumped. He used the red devil's shoulder as a springboard to escape to the other side. A sense of pressure loomed on his back.

Reflexively, Jin swung his sword.

As he looked back, the blow luckily collided head-on with the red devil's fist.

The impact was numbing to Jin's arm.

It may have caused some damage to his opponent as well. The red devil's face twisted into a grim expression.

Jin rushed in and continued to attack. The red devil's power was immeasurable. That’s why Jin should not give him time to attack.

However, the red devil, despite being on the defensive, did not allow a decisive blow. Each time Jin's sword and the red devil's metal parts collided, a high-pitched metallic sound echoed loudly.

None of the soldiers who had surrounded them made any move. They couldn't move. If they got involved untactfully, they would die. That was the level of the battle that was unfolding in front of them.

In the midst of the repeated slashes, the red demon unexpectedly moved. However, it was not a counterattack. He was holding his other hand to his ear and muttering to himself as he took in the constant stream of attacks.

“The preparations? ...then now, please.”

That was what Jin heard him say.

As if to interrupt his low, grating soliloquy. He drove in a remarkable strike, and using the recoil from the hit, Jin leaped backward, then he put his gloved hands on the hilt of his Yukianesa.

“You have a lot of time on your hands. Who are you talking to?"

“That's none of your business.”

The red devil replied to Jin's blade-cold question without moving his expression in the slightest. He then puts his fingertips to his ear and turned his attention to it for a moment.

Jin aimed for that moment.

"Certainly not."

That was the end.

Declared Jin, as he tried to pull out his Nox Nyctores: “Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa”.

But before he could, he saw the red devil nodding lightly towards the empty space.

"Yeah, no problem. Just do it."

The words, which he could hear much more clearly than before, were obviously directed at someone else.

Jin gasped. It was a communication.

He pulled the handle and ran the scabbard over the blade, but the red devil was in the lead. Without a minute's hesitation, he raised his fist overhead and the red devil slammed it down at his feet.

The ground shattered and burst open with the cloud of dust that whirled up became a screen that momentarily obscured the figure of the red devil. As he was hit head-on by the blowing dust, Jin couldn't help but protect himself with both arms.

"Wait, red devil!"

He was going to run. He understood just that.

But when Jin swung his sword through the dust, the red-skinned giant was already gone.

Part 2

Through the large window, the orange sunlight of the dusk streamed into the room.

The walls were white, and painted with several gold symbols that looked like wings spread out. The floor was a deep blue, covered with a red carpet and intertwined with golden thread embroidery.　

The room was clean and tidy, without a speck of dust.

At the back of the room, Jin-Kisaragi was standing in front of a large desk.

This was a room in the Yabiko branch of the Novus Orbis Librarium.

The Yabiko branch was located in the territory of the Ikaruga Federation, which is currently in the midst of a civil war, but it still functions as a branch of the Librarium, and because of its security, it has become the general command center for the civil war zone.

Although it was originally a large branch, it was smaller in scale and had fewer guards than the headquarters of the Librarium. However, morale was high and above all, the branch was very well organized. On top of that, despite the chaos of the civil war, it was managed in a very rational manner.

Colonel Kagura=Mutski was in charge of this branch.

As for the Ikaruga Civil War, He was the commander-in-chief of the Librarium Guard Battalion, and like Jin, he was a member of the Duodecim. He was also the current head of the Mutsuki family, the first of the Duodecim families. Moreover, he was the man who sat in a chair at the back of the room in front of Jin’s eyes with his arms folded and a sullen look on his face

“Good grief... As soon as you came here, you did something this flashy.”

He shook his head in dismay and sighed loudly.

Black hair, deep purple eyes, a fearless face and a somewhat frivolous atmosphere. That was the impression of this man at first glance.

However, underneath the rough clothes he wore, the robustness of his body could be seen and his crossed arms were much tighter than they appeared. It was a body that had been built through actual battles, which could not have been acquired through training in a well-organized environment, much less by living as frivolously as he appeared.

Jin looked back at Kagura with an almost irreverent calmness as he stood between him and a large office desk with a red ornamental cloth hanging from it.

"I didn't mean to cause a scene. I was just stopping by and happened to run into the red devil."

“That's what problem is what I'm saying."

It was not Kagura, but a slender young man standing beside him, who replied to Jin's words with a stinging tone.

While Kagura's collar was wide open, this one had it tightly closed up to the topmost clasp, giving him a serious and sturdy look. His fine black hair, which suited his thin face, and his gray-black eyes, which were only mildly colored, created a neutral impression.

His name was Hibiki=Kohaku. He was often underestimated for his appearance due to his boyish voice, but over the past few years, he has been supporting, disciplining, and scolding Kagura, who tends to have a disorderly personal life together his skills have certainly gained recognition from those around him.

Hibiki's narrow eyebrows furrowed in discomfort as he continued to advise Jin.

"Lieutenant Kisaragi. Your actions have been nothing short of rash. We are in the middle of a civil war and you have been assigned to a war zone. One person's selfish act may cause an unexpected situation, and someone may lose their life because of it. I ask you to understand that very well."

"...I know that much."

"You don't understand!"

Hibiki’s words flamed Jin’s answer with a flat denial.

Jin looked at Hibiki, somewhat annoyed. Crossing his gaze, Kagura rose from his chair and walked over to the desk.

"Ah, don't get so worked up, Hibiki."

"But, Lord Kagura!"

"...Just for now."

Kagura waved his hand briefly at Hibiki, whose eye corners were lifted to ease the strength of his voice and then turned to Jin. Immediately after, Kagura's expression disappeared for a moment to which his fist struck Jin on the cheek.

There was no mercy in the dull sound.

Jin's head was shaken by the impact, but he kept frowning at the same angle without change. The edge of his lips was cut and something red oozed.

Hibiki looked slightly upset.

A tense silence descends in the room for a few seconds.

“I'll give you credit for not dodging."

As Kagura said grumbly, he walked back to his seat with a far from tense pace. He flumped into the chair deliberately and looked at Jin again.

"Tager, or better known as the Red Devil, has been pursued by the military authorities for quite some time now, but you just happened to show up during the capture mission. Because of that, the mission was ruined. Do you understand?"

Kagura said in a tone of voice that sounded more like a reminder than a condemnation.

Jin did not speak back, but instead raised his eyebrows slightly.

The countless people that he thought were surrounding him at that time seemed to be a unit of the Librarium organized for the capture of the red devil. It was certainly Jin's fault for wandering in unaware that this was the case.

Kagura smiled bitterly at Jin's expression. He had no intention of asking the blonde recruit in front of him for an apology or words of remorse here. He didn't believe there was any point to such things, and even without that, Jin's self-admonition would convey the meaning without words.

"Normally, this would be a court-martial, but this time I'll let you off with just one special punch. It seems like it was really just a coincidence."

However, Kagura continued as he erased his smile, placed his folded hands on the desk, then leaned forward. His strong-willed raised eyebrows were narrowed as if he was trying to look into Jin's inner heart through his purple gaze.

"This... wasn't like you. What's wrong?"

The relationship between Kagura and Jin is not a small one. Even before they were part of the Librarium as soldiers, their link through the Duodecim brought them together many times. For that reason, they were well aware of each other’s position, who were they as humans, and what sort of things their eyes have been exposed to.

Jin is a non-biological related son of the Kisaragi family, one of the Duodecim. He was taken in by the head of the family when he was very young.

Originally, the Kisaragi family did not place much importance on bloodline, and the more talented people were given important roles. Even so, it was unusual for someone like Jin to be recommended as the next head of the family despite being adopted. Just as there were many expectations for him, and allies by his side, he also has a lot of enemies and people who want to take advantage of him.

He was in such a dangerous position, but the fact that he left the discipline arbitrarily right after graduating from the military academy was a matter of concern that would affect the future of not only him but also the people around him.

Jin is well aware of that much, and Kagura also knew that.

“There's nothing in particular, to talk about.”

After a few seconds of silence, that was all Jin had to say in reply.

There was no way he could say that he felt something calling him. It was not only lacking in credibility, but also not a viable explanation.

Kagura would probably take him seriously, but he didn’t feel the need to dare to put it into words, because he couldn’t explain enough to deserve that seriousness.

Kagura gave a disgusted sigh and leaned heavily back in his chair, wondering to what extent he had foreseen.

“However, the guys in charge of the operation were amazed. Now they're all talking about you."

“I don't want to talk about it."

Jin interrupted Kagura, looking unhappy. Even if the red devil was interrupted by him, the fact remains that the operation was ruined. It was a complicated feeling to be evaluated on that basis.

“But who are these people?"

Feeling the need to change the subject, Jin suddenly looked behind Kagura.

It had been bothering him ever since he entered the room. At the back of the room, near the wall, away from the light coming in from the window, there were two unfamiliar figures. Both of them were completely covered by white capes and hoods, and even their personalities were hidden by white masks.

The mask with the single eyeball painted on it and the white uniform were known to most of the people belonging to the Librarium, along with their ominous two names.

Zeroth Squadron — “The Wings of Justice”... and the second rumored name was the Librarium’s "Garbage Disposal" squad.

It is a special unit that investigates and brings justice to traitors and dangerous people within the Librarium, but that's just the surface of the story. In reality, it is whispered that they are the ones who dispose of - in other words, assassinate - the rebels who rebel against the Librarium. Therefore, they are the "garbage disposal" squad.

"Oh.. As you can see, I've got two scary babysitters from headquarters. Good grief. I wonder what they are not pleased with regarding me, the example of irreproachable conduct..”

Looking back at the white outfit, which would raise the eyebrows of any guard who knew what it meant, Kagura shrugged his shoulders in an amused tone. Then, without a moment’s delay, sharp words from Hibiki flew.

“I would like you to look up the meaning of the word "irreproachable" right away.”

His manner was polite, but it didn't seem like something he would say to his immediate superior. When Jin glanced over at Hibiki, the boyish-looking second-in-command remained nonchalant and looked down at the documents at hand.

Kagura didn't seem to mind, and gave Jin a good-looking smile.

"Well, anyway. I'm glad you're here. I know you're leaving soon, but in the meantime, why don't you take it easy in Yabiko? I'll show you a good place to eat if you want."

Jin couldn't help but smile at the joking remark. Remembering the presence of Hibiki and the Zero Division standing silently behind him, he quickly pulled back and shook his head.

“I'll pass. I don't think you know the kind of store I prefer. Besides, Tsubaki will scold me if she finds out that I've been in and out of "irreproachable" stores.”

"Tsubaki... the daughter of the Yayoi family! She went to military school too, right? How is she doing?"

"Who knows. I haven't seen her since we graduated."

Kagura's delightful and lively question caused Jin to shake his head again.

Tsubaki Yayoi is the name of a girl born into the Yayoi family, anther one of the Duodecim families. For both Jin and Kagura, it was a name that they had known for over ten years.

"Yeah, right. Well, I guess so."

Kagura twisted his mouth bitterly and scratched his head.

It was as if the distant images of their childhood days were proof of the years they had spent together.

Regaining his composure, Kagura sat back down.

"Do you want a tour of our branch?"

"No need. I know where the quarters are."

Jin didn’t intend to rove around the branch, so he didn’t shake his head this time.

"I see. Then..."

Kagura took a short breath and stopped talking.

The necessary formalities had been completed and all the documents were in order, because Kagura had allowed it. He had let go of his formal attitude, but he couldn't just sit here and talk about private matters forever. This man in front of Jin is the commander-in-chief of the Librarium.

At least for the last time, Jin adjusted his posture formally.

“Excuse me, Colonel Mutsuki."

"Oh... Jin."

He raised his hand in response and then looked at Jin with a very serious face.

The purple eyes that turned straight seem to have strong resolve on something, and at the same time seemed to suffer from that something as well.

“Don't die so easily.”

It was an ill-omened farewell gift.

Jin turned his heel in silence, bowed once in front of the door, and walked out of Kagura's room.

Part 3

The long, red-carpeted corridor was empty and silent. 　 As he listened to the sound of his own footsteps, Jin stared blankly ahead.

Tomorrow is the battle. Even though he knew this, Jin's feelings did not tremble with elation or anxiety.

They were like the surface of a frozen lake that did not know the wind. The only thing he could do was to organize the necessary information in his mind.

He had received information about the war zone in advance and already read through it several times, but he should probably read through it again before he arrived. There was no way he would be able to live comfortably on a battlefield. He needed to rest up tonight and prepare for the harsh environment.

(Hm... I have nothing in particular to do. Let's get to the lodging house without delay.)

Jin was just going to do what he had to then would head to bed early. He didn't need to do anything else. He was going to the battlefield to fight, to win, to lose, or to die.

As he moved his legs steadily, some people appeared in front of Jin.

There were three of them. They were all wearing distinctive white costumes that concealed their true identities — the Wings of Justice.

Like the two in Kagura's office, they wore a long cape that covered their bodies, while their face was hidden by a deep hood and a one-eyed mask.

However, the first one was different.

She was wearing a white cape, which indicated that she belonged to the Zeroth Squadron, but her front was open, exposing the clothes she had put on underneath. There was no mask, and her bare face was exposed along with her long hair, which was tied up in two.

She was still young. She didn't look much older than Jin. However, it seems that her rank was higher than Jin's. It could be guessed from the design of the cape she wore, and most importantly, the way she proudly carried two subordinates while wearing her uniform.

Just before they passed each other, Jin moved to the end of the corridor himself, then stopped, made a slight salute, and let the woman from the Zeroth Squadron go ahead of him.

But just as she passed in front of Jin, the woman from the Zeroth Squadron stopped in her tracks.

A beat later, the two behind her also stopped.

The purpose was soon apparent. The woman in the lead looked back at Jin.

"Are you Lieutenant Jin Kisaragi?"

Along with her words, she caught Jin's gaze as if she was judging him.

It was not a pleasant look.

The woman who turned to him had a reasonably well-proportioned figure, and a seductive body that would excite any man, as could be seen from her clothing that clearly showed the unevenness of her body. The lips on her face expressed a gentle arc.

But her eyes were wrong.

Even though she had a soft expression, her eyes were cool and inorganic, as if they were glass beads inlaid with no flicker of emotion.

There was no emotion there, no emotion worthy of a smile. Jin felt as if he was being stared at by a doll.

“I heard the story. I heard that you defeated that red devil all by yourself.”

The woman stepped closer, watching Jin from head to toe with glass marble eyes.

He kept his mouth shut as he pulled his momentarily thrown gaze back to the front, Ignoring her. He didn't want to get into trouble by saying something he didn't want to.

However, it seemed that his intentions had leaked out from somewhere. Two members of the Zeroth Squadron, who were standing behind the woman, revealed their displeasure from beneath their masks.

"You, what's with your attitude!"

From the sound of his voice, he was a man underneath the mask. When the man stepped forward as if to grab her, the unmasked woman stopped him with her hand without even giving him a glance.

The woman's gaze slowly lowered, lighting a dull glow of interest in Jin's hand.

There was Jin's sword.

“Is that a Nox Nyctores?”

“That’s right.”

He didn't expect she would be able to guess at a glance without even having to pick it up.

Nox Nyctores are known to exist, but not many people know what they actually look like.

The unrest made Jin's mouth light up. Immediately after, he frowned at himself for reacting carelessly and clicked his tongue.

"Tch, you. Cut it or else..."

The masked men leaned forward again at the sound of his tongue.

But, interrupting the words of warning, a dull thud and crushing sound echoed low in the quiet hallway.

"Hey..."

"Colonel Lapislazuli...?"

The masked men were dismayed, even though their expressions were not visible. Against this backdrop, the woman called "Colonel Lapislazuli" smiled.

What she was looking at was a man-made dent right next to Jin's... face. The wall material was cracked and dented in a round shape, as if it had been struck with a tremendous force.

There, just a moment ago, was Jin's head.

Jin, who quickly swerved to the side was unharmed. This apparently amused her to no end. She chuckled and laughed.

“I'm impressed. You're just as good as they say you are. Good response."

As she said this, she reached out her hand casually. By the time Jin noticed the movement, it was too late and the woman's fingers caught Jin's chin.

Even though it looked like she was just resting her finger, somehow the force of her touch was even stronger than if he were to be forcefully grabbed with no chance for refusal.

He didn't have time to ask what she was going to do. Suddenly, a strong force pulled him closer, and the tip of the woman's tongue traced over Jin's mouth, tickling him away.

He noticed it immediately. It was his blood that she had licked off. The cut on the edge of his mouth from when Kagura had punched him earlier stung in discomfort.

While holding Jin's chin, the woman from the Zeroth Squadron whispered in a strangely seductive way.

"But this is the military. You'd better be careful how you talk and conduct yourself."

The voice was too disturbing for just a piece of mere advice. At the same time, she seemed to be enjoying it.

Jin vowed to ignore it this time. He kept his posture in the salute he had made and stared straight into the empty space.

Eventually, the woman's hand left Jin's chin. Gazing at Jin again, the woman shook her shoulders.

“Kukuku. You're an interesting man. I'm Meifang Lapislazuli, a colonel. It is reassuring to have a guard such as yourself joining the fight. At all costs, do your utmost for the sake of the Imperator.”

As she said this, her long hair fluttered silently, and the woman who called herself Meifang walked away. The destination must have been Kagura's office.

Looking at her white back as she walked away, Jin felt a hint of sympathy. It's a tough job to be a branch chief or commander-in-chief when you have to deal with people like that.

After watching out as the three shadows were sucked into the sunlight-melted corridor with a side glance. Jin turned around and left the place as quickly as he could.

After passing through the corridor, Jin arrived at the elevator hall of the Yabiko branch of the Novus Orbis Librarium.

Soft sunlight streamed in through the skylight on the high ceiling, filling the area with a clean beauty.

At the back of the atrium, a statue of a white goddess stood with a book open and a compassionate gaze on the world below. The polished pale floor was like a mirror even though many people came and went every day, and it seemed to glow faintly in the sunlight.

In the inner part of the circular hall, there stood statuses that imitated the goddess as one would expect. The goddess is a symbol of order. A world properly controlled by the right power. That is the philosophy of the Novus Orbis Librarium, and it is also a guideline that many guards, including Jin, are taught at the military academy.

The two elevators set up between the small statues of the goddess were Jin's way home.

A small figure who had been gazing at the stairwell wandered up to Jin, who headed straight for the door without a second glance.

"Lieutenant Jin Kisaragi, correct?"

It sounded like something he had heard just a moment ago.

But this time it was not a woman who approached him, but a man. He was probably a bit younger than Jin. A young boy you can call him.

There was the impression that he was from the same military academy as Jin. He wore the same blue uniform, and on his head he wore a blue beret, and looked up at Jin from underneath it.

It was someone Jin didn't know. Raising an eyebrow slightly, Jin cast a glance at the boy.

"Yeah, that’s right and who are you?"

“I'm so glad. I was told that you would come if I waited here, but you didn't show up at all, so I was afraid that I might have misunderstood.”

He let out a big breath and patted his chest exaggeratedly, then he hurriedly straightened his back and took a firm posture of salute.

"Nice to meet you, Lieutenant. I'm ──……──"

"Wait... what? What did you say...?"

Suddenly, the boy's words became inaudible, as if mixed with noise. Putting his hand to his ear to suppress the ringing in his ears, Jin frowned and asked.

The boy paused for a beat, then straightened up even more and answered.

"Yes, I am Corporal Honoka. I will be taking care of Lieutenant Kisaragi on the battlefield. Please make my acquaintance from now on!"

Despite his nervousness, Honoka said this with a smile on his face and a youthful, fresh tone of voice.

"Oh, yeah, ...right."

Jin just replied in an unhappy voice. His brow was naturally wrinkled.

The boy soldier, who called himself Honoka, was a valet, so to speak, provided by the Kisaragi family, the house where Jin grew up.

He repeatedly told them in advance that he didn't want any, but they apparently didn't take him up on that offer.

In the first place, it is customary for the people of the "Duodecim" - the aristocratic families with special power in the Librarium, including the Kisaragi family - to prepare a valet when they are appointed as officers.

For Jin, the Kisaragi family is the family that took him in as a child when he had nowhere else to go, and has taken care of him in every way. Even though he was being touted as the next head of the family, there was no way he could treat the family's arrangements with disrespect.

"Um, Lieutenant? If I may ask, are you unwell?"

Honoka peeked at Jin, who sank into silence and had a nervous look on his face.

Jin looked up with a gasp and shook his head lightly. It didn't matter to him whether he was a valet, a member of one of the Duodecim, his family background, or his upbringing, as long as he was on his way to war.

"No, it's nothing. I'm fine."

The tone of his voice was almost as if he was shouting at him, but he didn't care and walked to the elevator.

Honoka quickly followed and reached his arm out from under Jin's arm to press the switch for the elevator.

Soon, without a sound, the elevator arrived as if it were sliding into place. Jin got in, then Honoka, who was waiting for him, ran inside, where he operated the button.

Jin looked at him sideways. The way he followed him around was reminiscent of a puppy.

The boy probably didn't know much about the relationship between Jin and the Duodecim, nor did he know where he was going. That made him feel a little sorry for him.

(But I don't know anything about the war, either.)

Jin thought to himself as he watched the number of floors displayed on the elevator as it descended.

So far, Jin has only lived in the heavily guarded homes of the Duodecim families and the military academy, which is directly controlled and protected by the Librarium.

Growing up in a privileged family, he was used to situations where his life was threatened, but this was the first time he had actually been in a war zone.

Tomorrow, the landscape of Jin’s world would probably be completely altered.

But that still didn't shake Jin's heart. His place will change. That was all.

That's all there was to it.

Part 4

About a hundred years ago, humanity was on the verge of extinction.

A gigantic monster called the Black Beast, which may or may not even be a living thing, appeared and went around destroying cities, countries, lands, people and all life.

Mankind fought against the moving evil, "Black Beast" with many sacrifices, and eventually, the monster was defeated by six heroes.

However, the fallen monster left behind an evil souvenir for the world, seithr.

With the disappearance of the Black Beast, the black mist-like substance that erupted on the ground - the substance called "seithr" - spread to the world in large quantities, and has now become a natural part of the air.

Seithr has a profound effect on living things. It eats away at the body and causes the loss of logic and reason of this world. Wild animals that have been exposed to it for a long time become violent, deformed, and become what is called demons.

That's why humanity has built "Hierarchical Cities". In order to live away from the surface of the earth, where seithr accumulated. They built "Hierarchical Cities" by piling up several layers higher in places with high altitudes, such as mountainous areas.

However, seithr is not all bad. It is also the energy dust that fills the air with an inexhaustible supply.

Seithr has come to be used in a variety of technologies and power sources.

The flying ship that Jin is on right now, the "Ars Magus Vessel" also uses seithr in the air to propel it.

"Wooow, the scenery is finally starting to take shape.”

Honoka muttered in a relaxed voice, looking out the window surrounded by a dull golden frame.

Sitting in the front of the seat facing him, Jin, who had been thoroughly reading the materials about his new assignment, lifted his gaze for the first time in a long while at the sound of the boy's carefree voice.

The running view from the window had left the hierarchical city of Yabiko and had long crossed the wilderness, and before long it had passed over a deep green forest.

They were sailing at such a low altitude that the tips of the tall trees were about to scrape the bottom of the ship. The altitude of the ship, as if we were about to crash, made Jin feel a little uneasy.

“In any case, it would be unthinkable for a member of the Kisaragi family to be assigned to a place like this. I wonder why the big-wigs decided to do such a thing.”

As he stretched his neck to peer into the forest below, Honoka directed his words only at Jin.

“I don't know.”

Jin answered with only that, and returned his gaze to the document. 　 Noticing this, Honoka pulled his leaning body back and settled neatly into the seat.

“I know this may be unnecessary, but... were you okay with that Lieutenant Kisaragi?"

Jin thought that he would finally calm down, but he was still not satisfied with his answer. He seemed to be repeating himself until he answered, so Jin sighed lightly and looked up.

“I'm a guard of the Librarium. I obey orders. That's all."

“So you have no complaints?"

“No.”

In the first place, Jin entered the military academy in order to belong to the Novus Orbis Librarium which is both the government and the military. If he was dissatisfied with being assigned to the battlefield as a soldier, he was not doing himself any favors.

However, He didn't feel obligated to talk that much to Honoka. Jin ended the conversation with a few short words and went back to reading the documents silently.

However, the silence he had hoped for did not come.

"Ah!"

Suddenly, Honoka raised his voice. He wondered what was going on, and even though he was a little annoyed, Jin looked up again.

Honoka seemed to be preoccupied with looking out the window again. However, it wasn't the forest under the ship that he was focusing on.

"Look, Lieutenant. We're almost there."

The view outside the window, which Honoka was still gazing at without a sense of tension, but rather with a sense of enjoyment, wavered for a few seconds. The rainbow-colored light licked its way through the entire ship. It was as if they had walked into a soap bubble.

The scenery changed as they passed through the rainbow-colored light.

It used to be a dense forest with trees growing in every crevice, but now there was a clearing in the middle of it. Just a little while ago, it was invisible.

“Camouflage Ars Magus.”

In practice, it is an Ars Magus Art that makes people seem like that there nothing is there when there actually is.

Ars Magus was an Art developed during the same time when the Black Beast was running rampant, as were the Nox Nyctores Causality Weapon's. Although each person has different aptitudes, anyone can cause various phenomena by using a Grimoire. They can light fires, control the wind, create water, and make shapes out of clay. As a kind of pseudo-magic, it was widely used mainly within the Librarium.

The root of the problem was still the seithr. This area was very far away from the city and seithr was very thick. It is said that there were many demons that have been driven mad by seithr and were walking around.

In a place like this, it would not be difficult to maintain a large-scale camouflage Ars Magus.

“The reality in front of you is not always the truth, don’t you think so?”

Honoka muttered with a hint of amusement as he pulled his beret on his head and fixed it.

Jin only gave him a sideways glance, but didn't retort anything in particular.

A uniformed guard soon arrived and announced that they would be landing soon.

They could see that the altitude of the ship had dropped drastically. The ship landed in the forest as if it had been sucked in, and Jin and Honoka were freed from the long journey at low altitude.

Stepping down from the short steps that had been installed, they found the place to be much more cluttered than it had looked from above.

Surrounded by a crowded area of trees that looked more like a jungle than a forest, they found themselves in a bare space on the earth’s surface. Amidst the protruding rocks and sparse weeds, a number of tents were erected without a trace of neatness.

The tents themselves were provided by the Librarium, but they must have been collected from all over the place, so they were of varying sizes, ages, and degrees of dirtiness.

Around the tent, rugged-looking men and women in and out of Librarium uniforms came and went with weapons and materials in their hands.

It was a strange sight for Jin, who had grown up in a city for a long time, and in a well-managed environment at that. Of course, he knew from documents, books, and the news that these kinds of sites existed.

But he was reminded of how different it is to actually see something with your own eyes than to know about it indirectly.

The air was different. The heat was different.

The accumulated heat and the damp climate were uncomfortable and everything seemed to cling to his body. The smell of the trees and grass was so thick that it seemed to seep into his nerves.

Everything here contained so many things that stimulated the senses, such as temperature and smell, diminishing the reality that he was standing there.

The Ars Magus Vessel unloaded Jin, Honoka, and some of the supplies it had been carrying, and then quickly took off. It could not stay here for too long.

Honoka watched in amazement as the vehicle they had come in mercilessly drove away, his luggage clutched to his chest. He looked as if he had been left behind.

If he wouldn't have been a soldier of his own age, Jin would have been blatantly appalled, but he was a young soldier. So he felt a small amount of sympathy for the young soldier next to him.

“Let's go."

After calling out to him, Jin hung up his belongings and started walking. He was headed for the command tent at the far end of the base.

Honoka jumped up and chased in a hurry. He follows behind Jin as if he was trying to hide behind him.

"Aren’t we... being watched a lot?"

As he walked, clutching his bag tightly in both hands, Honoka looked around.

Jin replied shortly, keeping his gait steady and his eyes forward.

“That’s only natural.”

Word must have already reached the base that Jin would be assigned.

A male member of the Kisaragi family, one of the Duodecim families, is being sent from the headquarters of the Librarium. He had just recently graduated from the military academy, but he was given the rank of lieutenant.

As Jin and Honoka made their way through the clutter of tents to the back of the base, they were met with unreserved stares. Suspicious, quizzical, curious. It's hard to say they were all pleasant.

Jin was used to this. Ever since he was a child, he had been subjected to this kind of gaze.

But Honoka was probably not. Jin wondered if he should be concerned, but with a small movement, he looked over his shoulder, and surprisingly, Honoka seemed unconcerned.

"This is the... front line, isn't it? Moreover, it's the forward area of the front line. In addition, it is the only place where the Librarium side is currently outnumbered. It is said that this is the worst battleground in the world.”

Honoka regained his tone and opened his mouth without worrying about his surroundings and hiding his voice. Even though he was retracting his neck, Honoka didn’t seem to be aware that some of the gazes that were focused on the words of inferiority turned into an aggressive hue.

“I'm listening.”

Apparently, there was no need to worry about it. Jin walked on, inwardly admiring his unexpectedly thick nerves.

Honoka's voice followed him back.

“This is also part of the territory of the Ikaruga Federation, so the climate and familiarity with the land are better there, and the Ikaruga side has the advantage in terms of a geographical sense. On top of that, the visibility is so bad in the dense jungle that a small Ars Magus Vessel like the one we just saw can barely land here, and supplies can't be distributed. No matter how well-trained the soldiers of the Librarium are, they would have a hard time fighting.”

“...Looks like you've been studying hard."

"Mmm, yes. I've read the material many times."

He was half trying to be sarcastic, but Honoka seemed to take it as a compliment, and his voice bounced back.

Jin gently pressed his forehead so as not to be noticed. It wasn't the exhaustion of the trip that made him feel dizzy.

But indeed, as he said, he had read the documents carefully. What Honoka had said was the reality of this base itself, as Jin had also confirmed many times.

The worst battleground, forever forced to fight an uphill battle in the jungle.

In addition to the soldiers of the Librarium, many skilled mercenaries have also been deployed. This is why there were so many Beastkin and demi-humans with both human and beast-like characteristics in the base, which was rare among the soldiers of the Librarium.

“It's a tough place, but they say it's an important base, so they won't give it up easily."

Honoka said it like that were someone else's affairs.

Although he would be the one who will protect the base from today, it seems that he has not yet actually felt it.

But rather than that, Jin was distracted by something else he had said.

(Important? Here?)

His eyebrows naturally drew together.

It was clear from the documents that this was an important place, but he couldn't figure out why this place was so important.

Although it was located deep inside the Ikaruga Federation, there were no cities or war-related facilities nearby. Even if the Ikaruga Federation were to seize this forest, it would not pose a threat to the Librarium.

There should be more strategic places to focus on, whether it is offense or defense.

For some reason or other, he wasn’t satisfied. As Jin swallowed his frustration in the back of his throat, Honoka continued to talk.

“I wonder what an Ikaruga soldier looks like... I've never seen one in person, but I've heard rumors that they're incredibly strong. They're scary, aren't they?”

He peeked at Jin from behind.

Unintentionally, Jin sighed.

Honoka was a boy who talked a lot, despite his quiet demeanor, as he had sensed during the entire day's journey on the ship.

At first, he thought he was talking too much because of his nervousness and anxiety, but in the past few hours, Jin had changed his mind and thought that it was just his nature.

Jin didn't really hate talking to people. But he didn’t like the noise.

The thought of living with this boy in this land for a while filled his heart with a different kind of anxiety.

"It doesn't matter if they are scary or not. It's my mission to defeat the enemy here."

“That's true, but...”

Said Honoka said in a troubled tone, without realizing the meaning of Jin's sigh.

He was expecting him to start talking again, but he had just the excuse to shut up his talkative mouth. They had arrived at the biggest tent of all, the command center.

When Jin stopped, Honoka also stopped walking and talking.

Jin handed the papers announcing his assignment to the guard standing at the entrance of the tent, and one of them nimbly walked in. He waited for a moment, and then a thick man called out to him to enter.

The air inside the tent was stuffy and raw, and the smell of human sweat seeped into the air.

The air was raw and unpleasant, something you don't get in a hierarchical city where the temperature and climate are perfectly controlled. It was smelly and unsanitary.

In this atmosphere, the head of the base was sitting in a simple chair behind a desk with a map of the area spread out.

He was a man in his forties with a strong body. The muscles all over his body must have been trained to a certain degree, but he also had an equal amount of fat on top of that. Under his black mustache, his thick lips were twisted into a sarcastic grin.

From the high-handed glances he was giving to the people around him and the pompous manner in which he was slumped in his chair, Jin could see that he was the commander of this base and how he was behaving in it.

"I am Lieutenant Jin Kisaragi and I've been assigned here today."

Under the commander's coercive gaze, Jin straightened his back and said the greeting for his arrival that had been repeatedly drilled into him at the officer's school. Honoka followed as if in a hurry.

"Likewise, Corporal Honoka. I'm here as Lieutenant Kisaragi's valet."

"Oh. A valet."

The commander suddenly raised a thick eyebrow. He crossed his thick fingers on the desk.

“I've been told that Lieutenant Kisaragi is a new recruit fresh out of the military academy, but I didn't realize he was accompanied by a valet. ...Ah yeah, just as expected from the son of the Kisaragi family, one of the Duodecim.”

It was obviously sarcasm.

Honoka looked sideways at Jin, wondering if he had said something wrong.

It seemed deliberate. Jin sighed coldly inwardly. It was as if he had never heard of it before, but he had been informed in advance that Jin would be bringing a valet.

However, it was not necessary to think about how foolish it would be to argue here. Jin chose to remain silent.

The commander's eyes traveled back and forth over his entire body, as if he was assessing Jin, who had not moved a muscle.

“It seems that your rank is Lieutenant. I've heard that people from the Duodecim families are given the rank of lieutenant as soon as they graduate from the military academy, but I didn't know it was actually true. I'm sure you've got a lot to be "proud" of if you've been given a high rank and even a valet, and now you're assigned here. It’s probably “expected”. You've been sent all the way “on purpose” to the battlefield, where the casualties are extremely high..”

The commander's tongue slipped as he spoke, exaggerating his words in places. As he spoke, he flipped through the documents that Jin had just handed to the guards, looking at them as if he were not interested in them, and then tossed them on the desk.

"You'll be assigned to the ninth squad. The tents are numbered, so you'll have to find it yourself."

He waved his hand in the air as if to say go away.

It was clear that they were not welcome, and not just to the commander. The guards standing by the commander's side also glanced at Jin with a look of displeasure.

Indeed, it seemed to be a very uncomfortable base.

“Excuse me..."

He said this in a cold and simple voice, then turned around with lean movements. Just as he was about to head straight out of the tent, a voice called out to him from behind.

"──Welcome to Hell."

The hair on Jin’s neck stood up in horror at the eerie way the commander’s manner of speaking crawled up his feet. But although he stopped for a moment, Jin didn't look back and walked quickly out.

Part 5

Once outside, the smell of plants and soil that seemed to be coming from the dense forest put pressure on Jin. The heat that made Jin’s back sweat only made him feel uncomfortable, and even though it was almost time to call it an evening, the sun was still burning high above the ground, asserting its vicious presence.

While naturally raising his eyebrows, Jin made his way through the not-so-large encampment.

On the outskirts of the crowd of tents, somewhere between the encampment and the jungle, there was a khaki tent with the number nine written in large letters.

It seemed to be the tent for the ninth squadron they were assigned to.

No one bothered to offer to show him the way, so he walked into the tent he was looking for, passing the strange stares that were still pouring in.

He entered, and as soon as he did, Jin couldn't help but frown.

The first thing that struck him was the smell. The stench of earth, sweat, and blood.

The smell of the command center was also quite strong, but it was still much better than here and that alone made him keenly aware of the difference between the role of this place and the command center.

“Uu......"

When Jin heard a small groan, he looked over to see Honoka holding his mouth and nose. His face seemed to be pale. He was surprised that he hadn't jumped out of the tent and ran away.

Instead, the small boy soldier lets out a muffled grumble under his palm.

“We'll be sleeping... here, right?”

“That’s right.”

"A-are you serious?"

“ٍSerious or not. There are no other alternatives, or do you want to sleep in the middle of the jungle?”

“No. No!”

Honoka shook his head in panic.

Jin sent a single sigh at that.

The inside of the tent seemed to be more spacious than he had expected, probably because of the lack of useless things. There seemed to be two tents connected together inside, with a folding table and chairs in the front room and sleeping bags and simple bunk beds in the back room.

There were four soldiers inside.

All of them were wearing the uniforms of the Librarium in different ways, but from the atmosphere, he could tell that they were mercenaries hired for this war. At the very least, it was unlikely that they had attended the military academy from the primary level.

One of them was a woman. She and one other person had tanned skin, one had white skin and the last one was from the yellow race.

They were of different genders and skin colors, and they stared at Jin and Honoka with a quizzical look in their eyes.

They looked as if they wanted to say something, but Jin didn't feel the need to call out to them, so he turned away and walked to the back room.

There was a shelf near the bunk beds, and he could see that each of them had a bag that looked like their personal belongings pushed into it. He was going to put his luggage in the empty space there.

But before he could do so, a figure quickly stood in front of him.

“Wait."

With a sharp voice, Jin's path was blocked by the only female guard with brown skin.

Her slim, toned body was much smaller than Jin's, and she was probably on the smaller side of the average. She wore the uniform of the Librarium to keep herself light, and her shoulders and stomach were boldly exposed, revealing her dark, wild skin tone.

Her black hair was collected in particularly long and strong dreadlocks, and it was pulled up high in a unique way. The way she pulled it up made her eyes look even tighter than they already were.

Under her thick, strong-willed eyebrows, her mysterious indigo blue eyes reflected Jin's image without becoming overcast.

“Who said you could go in there without permission?”

Her piercing eyes were as big as a cat's. Jin looked back into her eyes with an indifferent expression.

“I've been assigned here. I have the right to use this tent."

"Assigned? Don't act like you're a full-fledged soldier already, even though you're a scion of the Duodecim."

The woman sniffed at Jin's nonchalant remark.

Jin raised his eyebrows slightly. The term "Duodecim" was handy because with just one word you can understand what she was complaining about.

The woman still glared at Jin with a sharp glint in her eye.

"I have no use for a new innocent well-bred recruit. Now get back to your mom and dad before you hurt yourself and get a scar on your beautiful face."

The woman lifted her peach-colored lips sarcastically.

Behind her, the other soldiers breathe mockingly, as if they were fed up. It's him who was being mocked. He can tell by their gazes and attitudes.

But this level of sarcasm and cynicism was adorable compared to what he had heard in the Kisaragi household so far. It wouldn't affect Jin now.

“You're not the one making the assignments, or do you think you're the captain here? If that's the case, then I can't just go home without a formal discharge order. If you have that authority, feel free to use it."

Jin's green eyes were cold, as he returned the blow without stuttering.

The woman's cheek flushed red, probably because of her anger at being scorned in front of her peers without knowing how to back up. She wagged her chubby lips and tried to find something to say to him.

But then another voice interrupted her.

"No, but I'm the captain."

Concomitantly with the voice, a dark shadow came from behind Jin. The shadow was so large that it completely swallowed Jin's shadow. Somewhat startled by its size, Jin looked back.

A large man with a rich mustache stood at the entrance of the tent.

It was a man with the most splendid physique.

His massive body looked as if it were clad in muscular armor and his broad shoulders would still be wider for the big man even if Jin and the brown-skinned woman stood side by side. His chest and belly were thick enough to hide Jin completely in the shadows, and his legs were as big as Jin’s torso.

Although not as inhuman as the red devil he encountered in the wilderness the other day, he was a man covered with flesh so well trained that Jin doubted a human skeleton could have any more muscles.

His head atop of his steel body was also big and squared, with short trimmed ash gray hair and a beard that surrounded his mouth, giving it an even tougher impression.

However, his bright green eyes, and the expression showing on his face, were taken in by his soft demeanor and his gentle amiability.

“Oh, that's a big guy...”

When Honoka blurted out an overly honest mutter, the big man gushed boldly, his thick chest rising and falling. Then, with a good-natured smile on his face, he held out his hand toward Jin.

"Captain Grimwood Huster, Captain of the Ninth Squad. She is my subordinate, Corporal Karenjina Parsett. Nice to meet you."

“My name is Lieutenant Jin Kisaragi. As of today, I have been assigned to this squad. I look forward to working with you."

Jin replied in a firm tone of voice.

Jin was momentarily lost in the proffered hand, but first he took a salute, then shook Captain Grimwood's hand as discreetly as possible.

Immediately, the captain squeezed Jin’s hand back with such strength that he felt as if he were trying to capture him.

Jin's shoulders jerked involuntarily.

Grimwood's smile remained cheerful and exuberant. After shaking hands firmly, he slapped Jin's back with his hand once, hard and with a bang.

“But I never thought that a member of the Kisaragi family would be assigned to a place like this. It seems that they 'like' you very much. What have you done to deserve this?"

He said jokingly and laughed gaily.

Looking up at the falling laughter, Jin did not move his expression and remained silent. But more than that, he was unsure of how to react when he dared to do so.

Grimwood's words were teasing, but there was a friendly "familiarity" about them. It was the first time he had been on this base.

Jin was used to sarcasm and irony, but he was not very good at this kind of thing. There were only a few times in his school days when he was not afraid to take a big step.

Without thinking, Jin looks at Karenjina and the others. The brown-skinned woman folded her arms in reluctance, while the other guards looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders.

They were unfazed. Grimwood must be this kind of person in general. He could smile and offer his hand to even the cockiest recruit who had just graduated from the academy.

Of course, Grimwood shook hands vigorously with Honoka, and also introduced the three guards who were smiling behind him.

It seems that the ninth squad was made up of seven members: Grimwood as captain, the three of them, Karenjina, and Jin and Honoka, who were assigned to the squad today.

“This tent is where we eat, get ready, and go to bed. As you can see, the back room is the bedroom. Pack your things there. Then go to-"

Grimwood then walked to the back of the tent to show them around, but his words were cut off before he could finish.

Suddenly, a siren wailed loudly.

Jin heard someone gasp and saw Karenjina look up like a guitar string that has popped. Grimwood let out a muffled moan and perspired his head, and after a single blink, his expression changed.

At that moment, something like a needle passed through the field.

It was not a thread of tension, but something far sharper and stronger. It was a kind of concentration and spirit that instantly tightens up what had been loose.

“Ninth squad, get ready! Time to work!"

Grimwood barked, his voice was thick and full of life.

“Yes, sir!"

As if in unison, Karenjina and the rest of the 9th squad took their weapons and ran out of the tent.

Jin followed, throwing away his personal belongings.

He must have been affected in no small way. Something like an electric shock ran through his body. He knew what was going on even without asking.

The sirens were repeating the same sound mechanically, signaling an emergency sortie and the approach of the enemy.

Chapter 2: Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa/ Laughing man

Part 1

In the midst of the gunfire, Jin hid behind the trees that filled the dense forest.

No matter which way he turned his head, whether he looked up or down, he could only see dense foliage, branches, trunks, and grass. The smell of earth was so thick that it was almost nauseating while there was no breeze to be felt at all.

It was terribly hard to hide his breath in this. The sweat on his forehead had never seemed so annoying.

After being prodded by the siren and shortly briefed on the enemy's formation, Jin ran into the forest under Grimwood's command.

He ran and stopped repeatedly, following the others, for what seemed like... over twenty minutes. There was a gunshot somewhere, and Jin knew that the battle had begun.

Grimwood immediately split the squad in two. The four soldiers, including Karenjina, went ahead. Grimwood, Jin, and Honoka stood by at this spot.

During the instructions, Karenjina kept her hands on the ground and listened intently. Eventually, she stood up and said…

“I can go.”

As if on cue, the advance team of the ninth squad dispersed into the forest.

Jin, who had been assigned to the waiting group, gripped the large pistol that had been provided to him, ready to attack at any time, and leaned his back against a thick tree trunk to focus on the sounds around him.

He didn't have time to get a detailed explanation of what kind of strategy the squad was going to take. The only thing he was told by the huge captain was that enemy soldiers were wandering into the area and that they should be defeated.

"...The enemy, do you think they'll come this way?"

At Jin's feet, Honoka, clutching his gun, which was also supplied to him, shrank in the shade of the overgrown grass, He peered hurriedly at the other side and then pulled his head back.

Taking one glance at it, Jin tilted his head shallowly.

“Who knows.”

He had meant to say, "Don't waste your breath," but it seemed that Honoka hadn't heard him anyways.

He peeked his head out once more, then quickly pulled it back and let out a long, yet very low sigh.

"Ah, I'm so nervous. I can't believe we're going to have a real fight as soon as we get here."

“That’s right.”

At first, he wanted to warn him about the private conversation, but all that escaped from Jin's mouth was a murmur of agreement.

Since they had come to a war zone, they were prepared to fight at any time, but they didn't expect it to start so suddenly.

It felt like reality was being thrown into their mouths one after another when they were not ready to swallow it. It was not a good feeling, by any means.

"Lieutenant Kisaragi."

"Ah!"

Honoka's voice hardened as he gasped for breath. Earlier, Jin had focused his consciousness sharply.

Grimwood raised his hand at face level as he disappeared into the jungle. Behind him were only Jin and Honoka.

His hand cleaved the sky. Forward.

Jin moved as if he were sliding. Immediately after that. A soldier with his muzzle pointed in the wrong direction came flying out of the forest ahead.

He was a soldier of the Ikaruga Federation.

Instantly judging the situation, Jin attacked the soldier who was about to turn around from behind. He grabbed the soldier's arm with his gun in his hand, twisted it, and threw him down on the ground. Without waiting for the soldier to breathe, he slammed the bottom of the gun into the base of the neck, causing the Ikaruga soldier to faint in a daze.

“Damn it, get out of here!"

"What the hell are they doing, where did they come from?!"

Panicked voices were heard from the front again and Ikaruga soldiers appeared one after another from behind the bushes. It was as if they were being chased by something.

When the four soldiers finally found Jin, they jumped out and hurriedly raised their guns. However, a large battle axe snatched all four of them in one fell swoop.

It was Grimwood who was swinging the big axe.

The battle axe, which was even taller than his large frame, had a large blade and took up a lot of space. But despite its apparent unsuitability for the dense jungle, Grimwood skillfully wielded it.

The long handle shot straight through the intervening vegetation and accurately struck an enemy soldier between the eyes at a distance.

An axe with a large blade can fell a tree as thick as Jin with a single swing.

Without letting his momentum get the better of him, he knocked down a poor enemy soldier who had jumped out of the bushes to the ground.

But it was the back of the axe that took the enemy soldier in one swipe, which saved Jin from getting the blood of the soldier blown up in front of him.

This was not for Jin's sake, but simply for the ease of fighting. In the forest, where footholds are poor, the scattering of flesh and blood is a hindrance.

"...It seems like he isn't just big muscled, huh?"

A few words of truthfulness spilled out of Jin's mouth.

Because of his rough appearance, he thought that he would be more of a rampaging fighter, but it seems that Grimwood was not that simple of a man.

Rather the opposite. While wielding his axe with gusto, he instantly judges from which direction the enemy soldiers are coming and prepares to intercept them.

And from the direction he had turned his attention, the enemy soldiers would indeed appear, as if they had escaped from somewhere.

(Escaped? No, wrong. We're being driven into a corner here.) Jin thought and before he even knew it, he prepared himself to follow Grimwood's sharp consciousness and steel up for the enemy soldiers.

The ones who were driving the enemy soldiers back are undoubtedly Karenjina and the others who were ahead of them. They spotted the enemy troops, disrupted them, and led them to the rear where Jin and Grimwood were.

It was Grimwood who commanded them and gave them detailed instructions. Occasionally, he would glance into the distance or raise his axe as a signal to Karenjina and the others.

While firing bullets from behind the bushes at the enemy soldiers who reappeared, Jin looked sideways at Grimwood.

He was a rugged man for whom the battlefield suited him well. However, his weapon was not his well built body or the axe he wielded with his strong arm, but his excellent leadership, flexible grasp of the battle situation, and precise instructions.

(This is like a hunt.)

Jin thought, and strongly convinced himself.

That's right. This was a hunt.

Unleashed hounds find their prey and drive them away, while their masters wait and kill them.

But in order to do that, you need a good commander who can give precise instructions to the troops, a good sense of direction that keeps you on track even in the forest, and the sense of smell of a beast that can find its prey.

Jin wondered if that's what Grimwood and his team were carrying as a whole squad.

Suddenly, Jin remembered. The ninth squad of this base is sometimes called the Hound Squad. This may have originated from their fighting style.

(But how is that even possible?)

When Grimwood gave him a look, Jin turned and pointed his gun at him. Three Ikaruga soldiers appeared ahead of him, and without a moment's hesitation, Jin shot the first one in the shoulder.

He closed the distance between them and kicked the first one in the side of the head, knocking him into a coma. Then, he immediately switched to his gun and hit the second one in the face with the bottom of the gun, followed by a knee to the stomach.

"Damn... it..."

The third person finally understood what was going on and raised the muzzle of his gun. Jin kicked him in the arm and elbowed him in the chest. After firing a few more bullets, the soldiers were all stretched out on the grassy ground.

“Not bad.”

Grimwood chuckled a little further away. Jin returned a cool glance.

That was Jin’s line, too. Before he knew it, there were three new soldiers lying at Grimwood's feet.

His skill was unquestionable. In addition, he had an excellent ability to command his men. He was not stupid.

Karenjina and the others under her seemed to be quite useful soldiers, as they were able to disperse the enemy soldiers and guide them to here.

So why is it that this frontline base is struggling to the point of being called the "worst" while having troops like them that can be called "excellent" without question? Jin wondered.

In fact, even now, the battle situation was clearly in their favor. Ikaruga’s soldiers have already lost all semblance of control and there was no such thing as a formation.

If Grimwood and his men were so inclined, they could toss around soldiers of this caliber and take over this jungle and push the front line to the stronghold beyond.

(So why don't we do that...?)

Either the other troops are blindingly incompetent or there is a secret about Ikaruga that Jin has yet to see.

Otherwise, there is a more different reason.

He was tracing the barrel of an unfamiliar gun with his gloved finger.

From his side of the line, he heard a strange rhythmic sound of gunfire. It sounded like a joke for a gunfight. Jin looked up to see what was going on, and Grimwood lowered his axe at almost the same time.

"It's about time. All right, let's get out of here."

"Wh-what?"

Grimwood's words, as he lowered his broad shoulders, caused Honoka to roll out of the bushes in dismay.

“By "retreat," you mean withdraw, right? Why is that? I've already gone through so much trouble today and now this~..."

It looked like they were going to win. Although they faltered and broke off, Honoka's words were clear.

Jin also looked at his large superior with a puzzled expression on his face.

Grimwood placed the blade of his axe down on the ground like a staff and leaned against it, his lips hanging up in a smile. It was a wry smile.

“This is our 'job'.”

“What's that supposed to mean?"

It was Jin who asked the question. He didn't know what Grimwood's smile meant, nor did he know what the words meant.

"We're also known as the Hound Squad. Have you heard of us?"

“Yes.”

"As the name suggests, we are 'hounds'. We find our prey, drive them away and then let our superiors (alternatively 'masters') 'hunt' them."

While Grimwood was talking, Karenjina and the others came back from the deep forest. They were much dirtier than when they had left, with small scratches here and there, but none of them seemed to have any life-threatening injuries.

After confirming that his men were safe, Grimwood nodded his head.

“Let's go back then. Job's done."

A rough voice was heard from the center of the allies, so that it might have been mistaken for his words.

“Go, go! Ikaruga’s soldiers are nothing to be afraid of, kick them all to the curb!"

It was the voice of that commander.

Through the trees, He could be seen charging straight into the enemy line with many of his men, making his presence known to the enemy in the dense jungle where visibility was poor for better or worse.

The soldiers surrounding him had a somewhat different atmosphere than Grimwood and the others. They were more unfamiliar with the battlefield, and smelled like the well-behaved and well-mannered guards of the Librarium headquarters that Jin had seen every day until a short while ago.

They charged into the enemy lines, which had already been thrown into chaos by Grimwood and the others, and began to "hunt" the remaining Ikaruga soldiers with loud gunfire.

"...So that's how it works."

As expected, Jin understood. He could feel his emotions cooling down.

In other words, this is a battlefield, but it is also a hunting ground.

The guards of the Librarium were originally born into respectable families and were treated with a certain amount of favor. They may be relatives of political executives or of aristocratic lineage. It was a hunting grounds for those who go into battle as guards in order to acquire the prey of victory.

The skirmishes never connect to a decisive victory because they are wreaked by "superiors" who don't know or understand war very well.

But as long as this is a hunting ground, it must continue to be a battlefield that is exposed to moderate danger.

So this is war. The "worst" front?

(Trash...)

(Is this what I came here for? I came here to be a dog that chases down its prey for the sake of "masters" who mistakenly thinks it is something special.)

The thought of the head of the Mutsuki family, who had taken on more responsibility than anyone else for this war and was probably still busy in his office or somewhere else, flashed through Jin’s mind.

Did he know about this reality? Did he send Jin away knowing this? If he did, what were his feelings about it?

But, at the end.

“...it doesn't really matter."

Jin muttered in a faint voice that no one could hear.

He didn’t care what kind of place this is or how many petty pretensions and agendas it's infested with. It didn’t matter who dies and who survives for it.

With that in mind, he shouldered his gun.

And then... came the moment.

Suddenly, there was an explosion in the forest.

“Wh-what happened!?”

Honoka shouted in a voice that was raised in surprise.

The area was shaken by the aftermath of the explosion and orange flames shot up in a corner of the forest.

Some kind of scream echoed through the jungle. It was not a human voice. This was a howl... the howl of a "Seithr Beast".

"There they go again, those idiots!"

Looking back at the roar, Grimwood's voice rang out in anger, but his anger was not directed at anyone here. It wasn’t known who it was directed at.

But more than that, Jin gasped at the unpleasant presence. When he sensed the unfolding of an unknown Ars Magus around the roar and flame, he rushed out at full speed.

“Hey, wait!”

Grimwood and the others wanted to stop him, but the voice of restraint was already out of Jin's consciousness.

He shook off the thin branches sticking out of the ground, roughly shoveled through the thick grass and headed straight for that presence.

It took a few dozen seconds. After passing through the ivy-covered and crooked trees, Jin shook off the bushes and jumped out of the way, only to see the soldiers looking up at him, speechless, and inching backwards.

It was the uniform of the Librarium.

Kicking the dirt again, Jin turned to meet their gaze.

"Gaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!"

The roar of that Seithr Beast came from right in front of him. The owner of the voice painted with destructive intent, which a human throat could not possibly emit, was a giant whose entire body was made of rock.

Its height was still less than two Grimwoods combined. The huge demonic beast, with its eyeless and noseless face, was looking around from side to side and rampaging, reaping trees and people at random.

There was no longer any distinction between friend and foe.

The Ars Magus that Jin had sensed earlier had probably been used to summon or manipulate this giant, however, it had already escaped the control of said Ars Magus and was no longer capable of making decisions on its own, but only of reaping and crushing those around it.

Someone was crushed by the rock fist that swung down. One of them, covered in spattered blood, screamed insanely and fled into the forest.

With that, everyone scattered and ran away, shouting something incomprehensible.

There was not a shred of 'order' or 'leadership' in it.

Some of them ran without thinking and collided with someone they didn't know and fell down, only to be crushed to death by the giant.

The sound of flesh crushing flesh was drowned out by the horrible screams and helpless gunfire.

“Jin, are you okay?”

Grimwood and the others caught up with him, scrambling through the bushes behind Jin.

But as soon as they realized what was going on, they both stood back.

“I've never seen a Seithr Beast like this before in this forest!”

Karenjina’s voice was strained and disconcerted. As Grimwood held his ax up to protect his men, his face twisted into a bitter, grim expression.

"This one... we are not going to be able to handle it with our current equipment. We'll have to retreat and join up with the main force."

It would certainly be difficult to take on this guy with bullets or an axe. Grimwood's judgment was spot on. With that in mind, Jin stepped forward, interrupting Grimwood's words.

“Hey, back off, Jin!"

Grimwood reached out to stall him, but the sliding Jin slipped through his fingers and stopped in front of the giant.

The rock giant was still surrounded by the hapless figures of soldiers who had failed to escape. Keeping them at the edge of his vision, Jin threw away the gun in his hand.

A clatter with a frivolous sound bounced off the dirt.

"Ji-!"

Grimwood's impatient voice was absorbed and faded from Jin's consciousness.

Standing quietly, Jin lowered the sword he had been carrying on his back. A blue scabbard with a green handle. He held it horizontally in front of him, looking straight at the giant and gripped both handle and scabbard firmly.

The air was cold.

The forest was so hot that if you just stood still, you would sweat instantly, but as if the scene had changed completely, cold air flowed in from somewhere and spread.

At the center of the coldness was Jin.

Or, more accurately, the sword he held.

The air grew even colder.

Still, even more.

It was as sharp and cold as the edge of a sharpened blade and it surrounded Jin and the rock giant.

—Kill

There was a whisper in Jin's mind.

It is like a voice but not really a voice actually, like a will that is not a will actually.

It was like a vibration, a tremor of something dark that was born and lit deep in his chest.

Gradually, it began to circulate through Jin's bloodstream. As he savored the sensation of it spreading, Jin glared coldly at the rock giant.

Seithr Beasts are beings that are made and affected through seithr and this giant was summoned by an Ars Magus that uses seithr as its medium.

Jin's neck muscles buzzed with the presence of the dense seithr swirling around inside his huge body.

—Kill, Kill...

—Kill, Kill, Kill, Kill, Kill, Kill, Kill.

——Kill it.

The moving boulder swung its misshapen arms high in the air. The faceless head looked down with an eyeless gaze at Jin, who remained motionless with his sword at the ready.

I thought I heard someone shouting.

I wonder who it was. Was it... the voice of my brother, who I had parted from in death on a distant childhood day?

No way. He's dead. He was murdered.

Then what are these voices? It was noisy. It resembled the moaning of a beast.

(Shut up! Be quiet! Stop interrupting me!)

Jin exhaled. It was an icy cold breath.

The wind roared overhead. The giant swung their arms down in unison.

He looked up at that.

“Activate, Yukianesa.”

The moment Jin whispered the words, everything froze.

In accordance with the words, the freezing began to take root. The ground that Jin stepped on, the grass that surrounded him. The tree beside him, the ivy running through it, and the rock giant who was about to swing his fist down at Jin.

After a beat, a cool sound like hitting ice was heard.

Immediately, the giant's body split into four pieces and fell to the ground. It was as if it had been slashed crosswise with a very sharp blade.

The blade was none other than the sword that Jin was carrying. However, no one present could see the moment when Jin pulled out his sword.

It was all over in a blink of an eye.

“What the hell was that...?"

Karenjina muttered in a stunned voice as she was dumbfounded

It was Honoka, who had retrieved the gun that Jin had thrown away.

“It’s a Nox Nyctores. Nox Nyctores Causality Weapon: Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa.”

Honoka's voice trembled with joy and his cheeks were pale with elation.

Beside him, Grimwood was staring desperately at the unbelievable reality.

"That's the Nox Nyctores... It really exists...?"

Karenjina’s agitation, Honoka's excitement, and Grimwood's astonishment did not reach Jin's ears.

The blond-haired recruit, who had slashed and discarded the giant in an instant, lowered his sword in its cold blue scabbard and quietly turned on his heel.

Before he knew it, the sky had taken on the color of dusk. In the distant sky, a small star twinkled dimly, as if it were a piece of scattered ice that stuck to the sky.

Part 2

The inside of the tent was filled with shadows. The result of the light from a lantern on the desk was kept to a minimum, and the subdued light directed in all directions cast black shadows all around the tent walls.

In the small light of the lamp, a man sitting on a chair laughed, and the shadows on the tent wall also laughed.

“More than anything, it went well.”

"Yes, sir. There was no problem in activating the Nox Nyctores. We've confirmed that it was activated successfully."

There were two men in the tent.

One was a middle-aged man with a broad belly on his belt, the commander of a battalion of the Novus Orbis Librarium which was camped in the jungle of the Ikaruga Federation.

The other was a slender young man, wearing a black suit, black hat, with green hair and a thin smile on his mouth.

“So. It was more than planned... or is it on schedule? That's Jin-Kisaragi for you."

It was the general commander who sat on the chair and talked pompously.

“But it's really powerful, this Nox Nyctores thing. To conquer and bury that many beasts. I'm looking forward to the day when it’s put to practice as a real weapon.”

“I couldn’t agree more. Thanks to you, the data collection is going well. Thank you very much for your cooperation.”

The words of a man in a black suit, which sounds exaggerated, seem to be comforting for the battalion commander. He was very pleased with the attitude of the other person, who was overly abasing himself.

With a scheming look on his face, the battalion commander smiled greedily.

The man in the suit looked at it from behind his hat and smiled.

Part 3

Jin, Grimwood and the others returned to the base just before the sun went down and the forest was enclosed in darkness.

Here and there in the base, generators powered by seithr were working with a low hum, providing minimal lighting to the tents and serving areas. The iron frames that held the dirty white light bulbs were quite rusty from exposure to the wind and rain and looked as if they had been here for years.

Jin and the others returned to their tents, receiving thanks and praise from the fleeting soldiers who had escaped with them, and even more gratitude and praise from their comrades who had heard their stories after that.

Feeling a little fed up with the different welcoming mood from when he arrived, Jin ducked into the dark and quiet tent and turned on the white light.

As he took off his gloves, which were stained with dirt and blood from the enemy soldiers, he thought he could finally take a break, but this time Jin was met with compliments from the soldiers of the 9th squad.

"That was amazing earlier, Lieutenant Kisaragi!"

As soon as he put down his gun, one of the soldiers ran up to him with a glow on his face and a hint of excitement, but then another one grabbed Jin's shoulder with a friendly smile, a far cry from the daytime.

"I've never seen such a powerful Ars Magus before ...I apologize for having been so rude."

"...No, You don’t need to worry about it. And besides, I was helped a lot by your leader a while ago. It's thanks to you all that I came back mostly unscathed from my first battle."

It was uncomfortable to suddenly be praised openly. The words came out as a way to gloss over the issue, but what Jin said was the undeniable truth.

Grimwood's troops were excellent. In a battlefield where you never know what tomorrow will bring, Jin thought he may have been lucky to be assigned here.

The two soldiers who spoke to him smiled tantalizingly and shook their heads.

“No, it's my pleasure. It's very encouraging to have someone like Lieutenant Kisaragi as the captain's adjutant."

“Adjutant?”

Jin couldn't help but ask back at the unexpected appearance of the word.

This made the soldiers roll their eyes rather puzzledly.

“After Captain Grimwood, the next highest in rank is you, Lieutenant Kisaragi. Wouldn't that be obvious?"

The other soldier, who had been fiddling with his gun a little off to the side as if something was bothering him, looked up and said.

“Now that you mention it, that’s right.”

Jin was less impressed and more convinced.

He hadn't paid much attention to their ranks because he wasn't interested in them, but as he recalled, Karenjina said she was a corporal. He didn’t remember asking the other three what their ranks were, but if they didn't say, it must mean that they were lower than Karenjina.

(So that's what it means.)

Jin looked at Karenjina, who was untying her equipment.

Perhaps she was also concerned about this, and soon their eyes collided. Karenjina frowned in a sullen manner and turned away.

“I'm going to wash my face.”

She spoke that over her shoulder, then quickly got out of the tent.

Grimwood arrived at the same time.

"Oh, the food's ready. Make sure you eat well after you get some rest."

As he spoke, he placed his favorite weapon, the large axe, in a corner of the tent. Jin walked up to it.

"Grimwood. There's something we need to talk about..."

The slight hush in his voice was to let him know that it was a confidential conversation. Grimwood immediately sensed this and looked at the back of the tent.

“Do you want to go inside?”

“No, preferably..."

He wanted to get rid of all eyes except for Grimwood. This time, the soldiers sensed his intentions and emptied the tent so that they could eat dinner. If this flexibility was also a tribute to his earlier achievements, then it was worth to defeat that rock giant.

The entrance to the tent that had been shoveled closed back up with a heavy thud and they waited for the outgoing soldiers to leave for a good minute.

In the meantime, Grimwood sank his strong body into a simple chair.

The tents assigned to each of the squads were too spacious for two people to occupy, no matter how big they were. A lonely ambiance hanged in the air.

“I told the commanding officer to gloss over the earlier matter.”

“Is that so? Thanks, that saves me some trouble.”

Jin replied briefly to Grimwood's words. The case in question was Yukianesa. As the name implied, a Nox Nyctores is a unique weapon. It was not a good idea for anyone to know that a new recruit was carrying one. Jin asked him to keep it under wraps and Grimwood said he understood and will assume responsibility for it.

But Jin's talk was a different topic.

There was no one in the vicinity of the tent. After looking around him once more, Jin placed a hidden object in front of Grimwood.

It was a stone block half the size of Jin's face. A yellowish-gray stone with fine black sand in it. Grimwood could see what it was at a glance.

“Is this a piece of the giant from earlier?”

“Yes.”

“How did you get this...?”

He looked down at the lump of stone lying on the table.

"This was created by a non-Librarium Ars Magus."

Ars Magus is a kind of artificially created form magic that uses seithr to create various phenomena. In order to activate it, you need to have an aptitude for it, as well as something called a "Grimoire".

It is also the Librarium that gathers and manages the countless number of Grimoires in one place. The number of Grimoires managed by the Librarium is enormous and for this reason, it is sometimes sarcastically referred to as thr "Library" by rival organizations such as Sector Seven.

In other words, most of the Ars Magus in the world are under the control of the Librarium.

The fact that other Ars Magus are being used in the civil war suggests the possibility that Ars Magus are being developed somewhere that is not under the control of the Librarium. There is a fear that the technology of Ars Magus owned by the Librarium may have been leaked, or one can imagine a more sinister scheme.

With all this in mind, Jin turned his sharp gaze to Grimwood.

"When you first heard the explosion, you said 'those idiots'. What did you mean by that?"

It wouldn't make any sense to try to trick this guy or probe him in a roundabout way. It would only put him on unnecessary alert. Determining that, Jin asked the question too directly and straightforwardly.

“...You are indeed the owner of a Nox Nyctores."

His mouth twisted into an indescribable shape that was both bitter and amusing, then Grimwood grabbed the stone block that Jin had placed infront of him.

Suddenly, he put a lot of strength into his hand and crushed the lump of stone as if it were a glass ball. He had a tremendous grip.

“It seems that Mr. Commander was not aware of the Nox Nyctores... am I right? Jin, 'who' is the one who sent you here?"

The way he shrugged his shoulders caught Jin's attention. It was as if he had found something he shouldn't have.

Jin scowled. If Grimwood knew 'who' sent him here, then would it be inconvenient for him?

"I'm the one asking the questions. Answer it."

He said as if he was thrusting words at him.

Instead of answering, Grimwood dropped his gaze. He opened his stone-crushing hand lightly and fragments of sand spilled from between his fingers onto the desk.

Grimwood did not answer. The silence clearly meant that there were some circumstances.

Should he have asked again? Just as Jin was about to open his mouth, the cloth at the entrance of the tent was pulled open.

“Grimwood. There's a transmission for you from Yabiko.”

The one who got inside was Karenjina, the petite woman with brown skin and dreadlocks. Grimwood immediately stood up.

"Yabiko. Okay."

Jin chased after him, his voice slightly hoarse, as he made his way out of the tent without hesitation.

“Wait, we're still talking!”

"Headquarters's on the line. Do not interfere."

Quickly turning around, Karenjina blocked Jin's path.

As he was leaving the tent, he thought he saw Grimwood looking at him for a moment, but in the end, the muscule packed captain left without saying a word.

The heavy cloth at the entrance came down, and now Jin was left alone in the tent with Karenjina.

Grimwood's heavy footsteps moved further away.

As he listened, Jin glared at Karenjina, who looked up at him as if she was looking down at something annoying.

Looking back at the cold ice green eyes undauntedly, Karenzina lifted the edge of her lips sarcastically.

"That Art you just used. Is that the 'Nox Nyctores'?"

She said, somewhat mockingly. Her hands rested on her smoothly curved hips, her eyes fixed on the pale scabbard in Jin's hand. She gave him a depreciating look.

"You've brought in some pretty extravagant stuff, but using a person from the Duodecim... It seems even a privileged family like the Kisaragi family can be used as 'guinea pigs'.”

"Guinea pigs? What are you talking about?"

He didn't know what Karenjina was talking about. When Jin frowned and clouded his voice with doubt, Karenjina raised her eyebrows up in mockery.

"Didn't you realize it yet? What a pity. You're just like those noblemen around here who flaunt their great power conceitedly."

“I don’t understand what you are getting at. What are you trying to say?"

There was a dark feeling of pent-up resentment in the way Karenjina spat out her words at him.

He well understood the fact that she was accusing him of being a member of a prestigious family and she made it clear that she felt ill will towards people of that kind. However, just because of that, it doesn’t mean Jin could just be convinced with her taking it out on him as an individual. That was a different matter.

“The lab animals are getting high and mighty is what I am saying. It's really annoying that they're forcing their 'nuisance' onto our troops."

Saying this as if spitting it out from the bottom of her heart, Karenjina glared at Jin without hiding her aggressive tone.

It was not even a matter of shunting. He was no different than being directly accused of being an abomination.

Jin was not so gentle as to try to keep a calm attitude after being told so much. He was going to let some of it slide, but it was frankly unpleasant for him to have to go on like this forever.

“You seem to be trying to irritate me, which is annoying. If you don't like me, that's fine. Don't talk to me."

"How can a recruit be so high and mighty? Are you saying that the Duodecim are more important than a bunch of rogue mercenaries? Or do you already feel like a superior?"

“I don't mean to, but I'm not going to play along with your paranoia either. Are you really that unhappy that you were forced out of your position as second-in-command? If you don't want to be despised as a mercenary, you should learn a little more about the military organization.”

"Wha-!?"

Karenjina raised her voice, her dark skin flushed with red. She took a big step forward and tried to grab Jin's chest, but just as she was about to do so, a different hand reached out from her side and pulled her away.

"Hey, hey, hey. You two need to calm down."

It was Honoka who half-heartedly and forcefully stepped in between Jin and Karenjina, who were staring at each other. Jin didn’t know where he’d been before and come to think of it, he couldn’t find him until now. As he pushed the chests of his two superiors apart until they were barely out of reach, Honoka looked from side to side and smiled wryly.

“You can't have a fight on base. We're all in the same squad after all, right?”

Honoka, while repeating the last bit many times over, tried desperately to persuade the immature adults to calm down. Jin had no choice but to put his unsettled emotions in check when that boy, who was probably much younger than him, said that.

Karenjina seemed to think the same way and with a bitter expression on her face, she reluctantly stepped aside.

“It's not like we were fighting."

She said this in an attempt to disguise her lack of decorum, her arms crossed as if she was holding her taut chest.

Sighing, Karenjina slipped past Honoka with a supple gesture, then headed for the place where Grimwood had been a moment ago. She stopped in front of a chair and looked down at the pile of sand and pebbles scattered on the table.

It was the remnants of the stone that Grimwood had crushed moments ago.

“...You were asking the Captain about this earlier if I recall correctly?"

Unclasping her crossed arms, Karenjina softly spoke up.

Her voice was quiet. She looked down at the small pile of sand with an indifferent gaze and dug her finger into it, taking a scoop in the palm of her hand.

"This is some experimental Ars Magus."

The sand spilled from Karenjina's hands and fell again onto the table. Jin's eyes blinked. It was just as he thought. Hearing the faint sound of his breathing, Karenjina turned around with a thin smile on her face.

“You're not so stupid after all."

She said that with a girlish softness, rather than the stiff, masculine voice of a soldier. This must have been the real tone of Karenjina's voice. It was a throbbing voice that suited her well.

"I don't know how they make Seithr Beasts, but the Librarium gives it to “them” as new weapons. To the stupid nobles, to specific."

Said Karenjina, who had stopped behaving in her stiff demeanor,as she crumbled the pile of sand with her fingers. With a cold glare, she flicked a small piece of the stone with her fingertips and rolled it around as if this object holds height to her.

"Those fools use it with glee. They think they're the chosen ones, without thinking about how dangerous what they've been given is."

The nobel people who were born and raised in this area come here on a regular basis to take advantage of the hunting grounds, to build up their military prowess. Without merit, there is no promotion. So if they were given special weapons for that purpose, who wouldn't use them on the battlefield? After all, they are coming to this base to earn merit. In the first place, those who truly want to participate in the war as soldiers and fight for the Librarium are the troops that will be sent to a more proper battlefield.

“Of course, there are times when the new weapon will produce unexpected results, but most of the time it doesn't. Sometimes it'll just kill lots of people and other times it's..."

"...taken by the enemy."

A murmur spontaneously escaped from Jin's mouth as he scooped up the muddled end of Karenjina's words.

Karenjina didn’t say anything, but her closed lips spoke affirmation.

Subconsciously, Jin clicked his tongue.

“Just as I expected, that giant was originally an Ars belonging to the Librarium, wasn’t it? But, It was used by the Ikaruga Federation...”

As a result, the rock giant summoned by the unofficial Ars Magus lost control and went berserk.

Perhaps one of the several bright red blotches on the ground at that time was the casters who had summoned the giant. Whatever the actual situation was, the fact of the matter lied in how more than a few people had died in vain thanks to that annoying "new weapon".

Karenjina brushed the sand off her fingertips and leaned over the table.

"The Library and Ikaruga guys are both the same. They don't give a damn about human life."

She must have encountered scenes like today's one many times. Probably the other soldiers of the 9th squad, and Grimwood as well.

"This is not a 'battlefield'. It's a 'testing ground' for those idiots."

There are enemies, there are allies and there are reasons to fight. There is no better place than the lively battlefield to test a large-scale new weapon such as new Ars Magus. It is also a good place to get data on the actual situation, to see how much damage the weapon will cause to the enemy and the allies.

(So this will continue to be the "worst" battlefield with no progress or retreat?)

It was a hunting ground for noblemen to earn achievements and a testing ground to measure the results of weapons development.

Therefore, no matter how hard you fight, the war situation will not move. There is no need to move it. In fact, it is "meaningless" if it is moved. Jin gripped the scabbard of Yukianesa in his hand tightly to the point it could break if it were a normal scabbard.

(Then why was I assigned here?) Jin asked himself.

At least it was not to change the situation at this base. They were not expected to be a force to be reckoned with in order to win the battle and push deeper into Ikaruga.

If that is the case.

(...Yukianesa.)

Finally, Jin understood what Karenjina meant by "guinea pig" earlier.

It is not Jin himself who was being sought after. It is Yukianesa, Jin's personal possession.

The purpose of this research was to find out how powerful the Nox Nyctores sword would be on the battlefield, and whether it would be able to withstand actual use as a weapon. Jin guessed the purpose was to investigate such things.

That's why Jin was sent to the "testing ground" instead of the "battlefield. That was probably, no, that was the reason.

Jin chewed on his lips in secret. He felt a lingering twinge of annoyance.

He hadn't originally intended to stand on the battlefield for anything. Jin hadn't become a soldier for the sake of the Librarium, nor for a sense of righteous indignation and definitely not for justice, but because the Kisaragi family, who raised him, demanded it.

So he had no intention of playing a leading role in dramatically changing the situation of the civil war. But he didn’t want to be made into a clown playing a farce. More importantly, he was uncomfortable with the idea that someone unknown would be using this sword.

“Anyway, I don't want to die 'cus I'm caught up in your aristocratic complacency. Just remember that."

Once again, with hostility and rejection in her voice and eyes, Karenjina said in a biting tone.

Jin remained silent, but stared back at the brown-skinned female mercenary with an unsettling look in his eyes. The information he was able to get out of her was useful, but that doesn't mean he was going to accept this attitude. In between Karenjina and Jin, who were once again creaking the air, Honoka dropped his shoulders and sighed like he was fed up.

"Now, now. Corporal Karenjina Parsett, I'll pretend that I didn't hear you say anything 'rebellious' against the Librarium, so why don't we make up now?”

Honoka may have meant to soothe the situation, but his comment was even more offensive to Karenjina. The word "rebellious" was particularly wrong.

Karenjina, who steeply lifted the corners of her eyes, glared at Honoka as if he was her enemy. But before she said anything, things were brought to a close by another voice.

"Just as he said. Leave it at that."

Karenjina raised her eyes at the calm, powerful, and deep voice. Grimwood had come back through the entrance of the tent. As soon as she saw Grimwood, Karenjina turned her head in an uncomfortable way and her tone faltered.

"I'm sorry, I... I was out of line."

She bowed lightly to Grimwood, not to Jin, with whom she had been arguing and walked quickly out of the tent.

“She’s not a bad girl, but she's a mercenary, She's got a lot on her plate. Don't be offended."

“I don't really care about ......."

Jin answered in a composed tone, without any excess facial expressions.

Yes, there was no need to worry about it. All he had to do is do the work that was required of him in the way that was required of him. That is all.

There was nothing anymore left for him to do in his life but this.

She bowed lightly to Grimwood, ignoring Jin and walked quickly out of the tent.

“She’s not a bad girl, but she's a mercenary, she's got a lot on her plate. Don't be offended."

“I don't really care about it."

Jin answered in a composed tone, without any facial expressions, without a hint of emotions.

Yes, there was no need to worry about it. All he had to do is do the work that was required of him in the way that was required of him. That is all. There was nothing anymore left for him to do in his life but this.

After becoming aware of what this base was, it was still the “worst” frontline base in the world.

Attacks from the Ikaruga Federation took place at morning and night. Sortie orders were issued as many times a day as needed.

Whenever that siren sounded, Jin took his weapon and went into the forest to engage the so-called "enemy soldiers". Then make up a winnable battlefield and retreat.

He had become accustomed to working as a "hound" through repetition.

As many battles as he had, Jin had shown his outstanding strength to the members of the 9th squad, and his strength had built a certain amount of trust between him and the members of the 9th squad.

But Karenjina was different.

On the battlefield and at the base, she did not acknowledge Jin. She never accepted him. She never looked at Jin the way she looked at her friends. Jin also didn't want to try to repair his frayed relationship with her. If she didn’t want to be acknowledge him, then that is fine. If she didn’t want to accept him, then that is also fine. In Jin's opinion, it had nothing to do with the fighting.

Karenjina and Jin mutually felt the same in that regard.

However, there was still something concealed in her heart. At the bottom of it something was obvious, but how could he trust someone who wouldn't show it to him?

The people around them became accustomed to the stinginess of their relationship before anyone else tried to mediate between them. Occasionally, there was an exchange of sarcasm, and there were also voices raised in frustration. However, They weren’t obsessed with trying to completely eliminate each other, and before they knew it, many days passed...

Before he knew it, Jin's life at the frontline base had lasted more than a month.

Chapter 3: Accumulated death / He is near

Part 1

Jin learned that after a month of living in the jungle, it is easy to lose track of what day of the month it is, what time it is, and other things that he used to unconsciously pay attention to.

The unpleasant heat and the suffocating smell. The occasional arrows of rain, the unrestrained splashing of mud. The food was poor and the beds were far from clean. It wasn't the most comfortable living environment, but even so, Jin was beginning to feel more comfortable in his new surroundings.

Then, one day. The 9th squad, including Jin, received a request from the Librarium and were ordered to sortie to a place far from the jungle that he just started to get used to.

The location was a certain research facility near the mountain area. The building looks like a large block with gray walls, blending in with the rocks and barren trees.

There were very few windows and on top, the ventilation system roared low like the sleep of a giant creature.

Undecorated lighting lined up at regular intervals in a seamless, perfect flat corridor with no visible horizon. The dimly lit white walls were all fitted with black doors of exactly the same design.

The inside of the laboratory, with an interior that seems to have been assembled inorganically, has been... cruelly destroyed.

There were large holes in the doors and walls and many cracks in the ceiling and floor. Lights were broken and shattered and pieces of glass were scattered everywhere.

Only a small quantity of lights were left. The few that remained barely gave off a faint glow that seemed to be about to fade, but it was not enough to light up this large laboratory at all, making the area be bathed in an eerie dimness.

It was awfully quiet.

It smelled terrible.

"This is horrible..."

Standing in the corridor where some torn and burnt papers were scattered with pieces of shattered furniture, Honoka said aloud in dismay.

It was a sight that could no longer be described as anything other than that.

There were countless corpses lying at Honoka's feet as he stood stock stil and all around inside the destroyed laboratory, which still bore the scars of an obvious battle that took place. The corner of the corridor where Jin was looking, as well as under the gaze of Karenjina, who walked around and looked into the nearest room were the same.

Soldiers in the uniform of the Librarium were lying on top of each other, creating a small red fountain on the floor.

Right next to them, laying down dead, was an old man wearing a white coat over another uniform. He must have been a staff member of this institute, or in other words, one of Sector Seven’s personnel.

This is the research facility of Sector Seven.

Sector Seven is a group of rebels who disagree with the methods of the Librarium and work to disrupt their current order. The mission that Jin and the others were called up for this time was to retrieve a certain "Nox Nyctores" that they had stolen from the Librarium.

But Jin and the others arrived two hours late.

For some reason, the 9th squad was not notified until the last minute. In addition, arrangements for an Ars Magus Vessel to travel nearby were also delayed.

But still, it was just two hours. The number of people at the scene were not that many to begin with, but there was still a battlefield that took place here. Why weren't there some reinforcements? Still, even if the conflict was over, they wanted to help with the aftermath. That’s what they decided to do and hurriedly made their way with the jeep to the place from were they were at moments ago.

“Looks like we're too late.”

Bending down, Jin let out a heavy breath when he saw that the fallen Librarium guard had no pulse.

“But what the hell is this all about? Did the mission fail?"

Karenjina shook her head in disbelief after looking into a room that seemed to be some kind of office and came out with an face full of anguish.

“I didn’t receive a confirmation about that yet.”

Answered Grimwood, who had entered a another room, came out into the hallway and shook his head in denial. It seems there weren't any in this room either. Survivors.

Whether they succeeded or failed in retrieving the Nox Nyctores or if the operation had produced any results in the past two hours, it would have been reported to the NOL. Outside the research facility, there were a number of vehicles that the guards of the Librarium must have used for transportation. All of them were equipped with communication facilities and the guards themselves were also equipped with communication devices.

But when Jin and the others had left the Ars Magus Vessel for the jeep about thirty minutes ago, they had not received any such information.

One possible explanation for why there has been no contact is that the operation was still ongoing in the depths of the facility. Then there is the possibility that there was no one left in the Librarium to contact...

(But that's unlikely, because the other party is Sector Seven.)

Jin's expression clouded in thought.

The basic philosophy of Sector Seven is the convenient development of seithr through pure science, rather than through Ars Magus. Because of this aspect, the people who belong to Sector Seven are mainly researchers with a wealth of scientific knowledge. Many of them are considerably rational, logical and pragmatic.

(...although I can't rule out the possibility if it makes the most 'sense'.)

If possible, that was a possibility he didn't want to consider.

Grimwood stepped over a lied-down corpse in a white coat and into the corridor leading to the back of the building.

"Let's check ahead. There might still be survivors."

As things were, there was no point in dwelling here dumbfoundedly counting the bodies, smeared in the smell of blood and rust. No one disagreed with Grimwood as he looked toward the end of the long corridor. Grimwood was in the lead, followed by the soldiers of the 9th squad and Karenjina, then Honoka, with Jin at the tail of the line.

Everyone's footsteps were careful as they walked, keeping a distance that would allow each of them to move around sufficiently.

They opened all the doors they saw along the way and checked them. Some of the rooms seemed unharmed, only slightly ransacked and not particularly destroyed. But in non were living people.

The hallway grew darker and darker as the lights became less and less useful. The air was cold with a metallic odor and the temperature seemed to drop even lower as they stepped into the darkness. While they continued on with their handheld lights, they found a staircase leading up and down at the far end.

As a test, someone peeked upstairs and shone a light on it. There was still a dead body lying on the stairs, with a red thread dripping down from the top to the bottom.

"Is anyone there?"

Jin raised his voice in a pitch, but the only answer was an empty echo.

Grimwood then looked at the stairs leading to the lower level. The light from a thrown light revealed a lift-like elevation device just ahead.

"So, what now? Up or down..."

Honoka asks softly about which way they were supposed to go, while peering cautiously into the lift.

Grimwood pondered for a few seconds, then looked at Karenjina. Karenjina squinted at the tip of Grimwood's light, and shook her head after a moment.

"I'm not sure about down below. But upstairs... there are probably no survivors."

"Okay. Down it is then. Everybody, get on the lift."

After making his decision, Grimwood's movements were swift. He quickly got into the lift while giving instructions, and Jin and the others followed him. One of the soldiers checked the lift's control panel and flipped a few switches. A yellow light came on in the control panel and the lift began to slide silently, descending diagonally downward.

A faint orange glow told them that there were walls and a ceiling, but it made it impossible to see where they were going. Still curious about what lay ahead, Karenjina grabbed the thin railing at chest height and stared at the destination of the lift, her voice irritated with frustration.

“What's even going on? It's just a mission to get one weapon back, right? Is the Nox Nyctores so great that it has to cause this much damage?"

"You don't know what a Nox Nyctores is, do you?"

The soldier who was operating the panel mischievously said to Karenjina, who choked on her words now and puckered her lips in frustration.

“...It’s an old, awesome weapon, right? You talk big game, but do YOU even know what that thing really is?"

Staring at him, Karenjina appealed to her colleague to explain. The soldier who had been making a joke of it immediately flinched and averted his gaze.

“It's a, um... an old weapon yes. I believe it was made a very long time ago..."

“See, you only know as much as I do."

Karenjina took a step forward as if to accuse him. The soldier moved back by that same amount.

Grimwood, who was watching the scene, shook his large shoulders and laughed briefly.

“Nox Nyctores are superweapons of extraordinary power that were created during wars long ago.”

Leaning his beloved great axe on his shoulder and placing his muscular arm on top of it, Grimwood answered his subordinate in a calm tone. He had a soft smile on his face, but his eyes were glaringly sharp.

"The Nox Nyctores were created about a hundred years ago during the Dark War. When a monster called the Black Beast was trying to destroy humanity, one of the Six Heroes developed them in order to defeat that monster.”

The Six Heroes. The name was well known to both Karenjina and the soldier who teased her.

They were the legendary heroes who defeated the Black Beast, the monster that caused the disaster that nearly destroyed the human race. As young children, they would encounter them in fairy tales. When they grow up a little, they become the subject of make-believe games. And when they are older, they meet them in biographies and history textbooks, in stage plays and in various other media. Time after time.

Everyone has admired them at one time.

Against the background of the faint driving sound of the lift sliding quietly down, the soldiers of the squad, intrigued by the term "Six Heroes," were drawn to Grimwood's story.

Jin watched from a short distance away, leaning against the railing.

“These weapons were all different in shape. Each of their uses and abilities also differed. There were 8 or 9 of them in total I believe... Anyhow, the Six Heroes used them to defeat the Black Beast. But after the end of the Dark War, the Nox Nyctores were lost. Only few people know where or what they even are now.”

“So," Grimwood continued, looking at Jin. He made a boyish face for a moment.

“It's a pretty miraculous coincidence that he's got one of those.”

Karenjina and the soldiers turned to Jin as they were drawn into the story. One of them was Honoka. The petite boy nodded his head repeatedly, looking deeply moved.

"That's right. That sword might have been used by one of the six heroes too!"

One of the soldiers muttered, to which Honoka nodded in agreement. Jin's shoulders slumped in disgust at such a reaction.

"I don't care how it was used in the old wars. I only use it because it's in my possession."

Jin said curtly and turned away from them.

But that was a bit of a lie. He doesn't use it because he has to. He has to use it, because he can't let go of it. This is a curse placed on Jin. All the while, it is also a testimony.

For what he did — to his brother.

“Sorry, my bad. Don't be mad, 'kay?”

“I am not particularly..."

Perhaps his voice was more prickly than he realized. The admiring soldier laughed and held up his hands in surrender. It must have been his bad habit again. It wasn’t that he was angry. It was not even something to be angry about. He was going to say that, but before he could finish the words, the lift came to a silent stop.

At the same time, the view around Jin and the others opened up. They had arrived at the bottom of the stairs.

It was a much larger space then the facility above.

It was surrounded by square walls, dimly lit by orange emergency lights on the walls and a few white bulbs left on the ceiling.

It was large enough to accommodate the five jeeps that they had driven here.

They might have been using this lifts to carry large items up and down on a regular basis. There were several large dollies lying on the wall, probably used for transportation.

The ceiling was high, probably higher than two stories of a normal building. They have been down here long enough to have wasted a lot of time talking, so they are anticipating rooms and facilities beyond the ceiling or there may just be a thick layer of ground separating them from the surface. Thouge at this point, it didn't matter what the underground structure was.

The yellow light on the lift's panel went out. The handrails slid down, creating a doorway.

Grimwood descended first to the end of it. Then Jin, Karenjina, and the rest.

No one spoke a word now.

Maybe he had imagined it somewhere in his head. At least, when Jin saw this scene, he was naturally convinced that it would be so.

The underground lift station was a pile of dead bodies.

There were a number of bodies lying around the room in a state of disarray. Most of them were wearing the uniform of the Librarium, as could be seen from their scattered clothes.

“What happened here...?"

Karenjina asked in a weak voice, not to anyone in particular. There was no one who could answer her words. Rather, everyone was thinking the same thing.

“Oh, look there. T-there is an interior..."

Honoka, who was cowering at the very back, his face pale, pointed ahead with a trembling hand. At the back of the square room, there was a rectangular opening that probably had a door in it, and another room seemed to be leading to it. The back of the room seemed to be even bigger than this one. They could see a few pale blue lights, probably emergency lights.

“Let's go.”

Grimwood announced lowly, still leading the way as he walked off. It was hopeless to look for survivors in this room. If the room ahead was a dead end, that would be their last hope in the basement.

Through the square entrance, Jin also stepped into the back room.

Then he let out a long, deep breath at the sight of despair spreading.

At the back was a semi-circular room. Its purpose was not clear, but various machines and devices were set up along the curving walls, and they were arranged in such a way that they observed the larger devices that took up most of the room.

The large device looked like a giant lid. Various cables, large and small, moored together, and at the end of the mooring was a circular mouth that seemed to open.

However, the mouth was tightly closed and half of it was buried by the rubble of the collapsed ceiling, so it was not in a condition to be opened and checked.

In this room, the most quantity of people were lying on the ground yet, as if to mock what they had seen so far as trivial.

The room was large. It was very spacious.

From the moment they entered that large room to the opposite end of the room, dozens of meters away, there were people lying everywhere.

None of them moved. There were so many of them that it didn't feel that they were corpses anymore, but instead they looked like a pile of discarded dolls.

Even more bizarrely, there were countless boxes strewn around the large device, which added to the eeriness of the scene. The boxes, neither blue nor black, were just large enough to hold a single person.

They were like coffins.

Some of them were twisted and cracked as if beasts had eaten through them, and a thick human-like fluid was flowing out from inside.

The moment he saw it, Jin's heart leapt.

"Ugh..."

A crushing moan was caught in his throat. Jin instantly lost his balance. It would look like dizziness from the outside, but it was different. He felt as if he had been swallowed by something, consuming his darkened consciousness and then...

he saw it.

A "Cauldron" that swirls the unworldly and submerges emptiness beyond the throbbing heat.

It's approaching from behind. It comes. It overflows, and it takes shape.

Black... a black beast. A black monster with sharp fangs, a thick neck, a giant jaw and all.

The creature dragged its indistinct body around, eating people at random, killing them as it went.

But the fangs do not tear flesh. The jaws do not crush bone.

All it had to do was slip by the living and occasionally let out a loud roar.

When touched by the black head, a black mist overflows from the human body. The human body collapses, losing all its strength, as if its life had been sucked out along with it.

The word associated with it would be predation. The black mass ran around the vast underground room like the winds of death, sucking and devouring the life of every human being in the room.

The head suddenly turned to look at Jin as if it had noticed something.

It looked more like an exaggerated version of a head, with only fangs and jaws. On top of its ferocious mouth, there was a glittering eye.

A red eye. Among the countless red streaks that run across the surface like blood vessels, the eyes that seem to have collected and hardened the most ominous reds in the world stared at Jin.

— Kill.

Someone's voice whispered to Jin.

— Kill it.

Yes. I have to kill it.

There is no other choice but to kill it.

(Who... is the monster?)

The higher the concentration of the seithr the more the urge swells inside Jin.

A murderous intent. It is a straightforward, pure, and single-minded murderous intent that is like nothing else.

(No, what I, what I... want to kill is...)

It's not a monster. What I want to kill is. What I want to kill with my own hands is...

A spark of lightning flashed behind his eyes, and Jin's vision instantly turned orange.

— It’s burning.

The whole area was ablaze.

This is a memory. Inside Jin, they were the pages of a burned and scorched memory that got torn to pieces and disordered.

In the flames, Jin was standing with his sword in his hand. In the hot, blazing flames, he was holding a cold, freezing Yukianesa.

Someone collapsed in front of him.

Who is the one who was down? It could have been someone, it could have been no one.

The boy was lying there helplessly. Bright red blood was pouring from his small back.

Red. Red. Everything. Red.

The rush of exuberance was so cold that he didn't feel any emotion when the burning church roared to life and collapsed, even when the hot wind blew against it.

The moon was laughing in the distance.

The bright red crescent moon was laughing joyfully.

No, it's not. It's a shadow. The shadow of a person. Laughing behind all.

A pair of pitch-black eyes stared at Jin.

The dark gloom kept staring at him, firmly, without a single motion.

Part 2

──in!!

The sound revived him.

The roaring sound of flames receded like a wave and in its place is now the dull drive of machinery along with the sound of human voices flooded Jin's consciousness.

“Jin!! Hey, Jin! Stay with me!"

"......ah... what is...?"

As if with a click of a switch, Jin's vision became clear and fixed.

The area was dimly lit and surrounded by achromatic colors such as black and gray. The small lights were pale, and the air was cold as metal. Before his eyes, stood a figure of a man with a large high stature. He grabbed Jin by both his shoulders with his large hands and shook him.

When Jin blinked a few times and looked up, Grimwood, the man who had been holding his shoulders, dropped his broad shoulders and breathed deeply.

“Don’t give me that. You suddenly stiffened and stopped moving in a panic. What in the hell happened to you?”

“...No, I was...”

As he tried to answer, Jin lost track of his words. He had no idea what had happened.

(A hallucination?)

He hasn't been snapped back for a while now, but he still had a numb feeling in the back of his head.

“I'm sorry, I'm fine. I just got dizzy all of a sudden..."

Holding his cheek and forehead with the palm of his hand as if to confirm that he was really here, Jin let out his voice along with his choked breath.

He suddenly felt a sharp gaze on him and turned around, and there was Karenjina, glaring at Jin with a face that was clearly in a bad mood. Her deep navy eyes collided with his gaze and Karenjina blatantly looked away.

(...She's like a jealous child.)

She likely didn't like the fact that Jin had worried Grimwood, but he didn't have the time to point it out and get himself in trouble. Letting out another sigh, he shook off the annoyance and looked around with eyes that finally reflected a sane reality. While Jin was in a daze, the soldiers had apparently gone to check on the equipment they had lined up. The three who had dispersed came running back to Grimwood.

“Captain, all the equipment's been destroyed. It's unlikely we'll be able to see the data inside."

“No luck here either. What is the cause of all this violence? Communications and recording facilities are also dead."

“I see..."

Grimwood's face twisted in bitterness. One of the last to return opened his mouth, his words and expression muddled, as if he was having trouble saying it.

“Err. There's one thing that's been bothering me...”

“What is it?”

“Aren’t the corpses in this room too "clean"? I didn't check all of them, but compared to the ones before we went down here, they are completely uninjured. It's as if only their souls have been pulled out... It's creepy."

With these words, he must have remembered some of the faces he'd seen while checking the equipment. The soldier shuddered and rubbed his arm vigorously. Without saying a word, Jin approached the nearest body. It was the one that had fallen right next to the entrance. It was lying with its arms outstretched in a desperate attempt to find a way out. When he turned the body over from its prone position, he saw that it had died with a miserable expression on its face, twitching with fear.

Honoka, who peeked in with Jin, let out a twitching scream and backed away to escape.

Indeed, there was no resemblance of any injuries. In fact, there was no reason for the corpse to have died, as if only the soul had been extracted.

(The soul... You don’t mean the hallucination I just had was-)

With a tingling headache, Jin remembered the head of the Black Beast that had popped out of the Cauldron earlier.

The monster that sucked up the souls of humans just by touching them. The black head that absorbed the human of that time was probably the seithr from the Cauldron. Jin wondered if that scene had actually happened here. If so, what the hell was that black head?

“Tsk…..”

As he thought about it, another sickening sensation crawled up his spine and he shook his head, trying to stop thinking about it. He didn't know what's going on with him, but he needed to get rid of any signs of strangeness. He was on a mission as one of the 9th squad.

Grimwood looked around again and placed the great axe he was carrying on the floor.

“...I heard that Kokonoe of Sector Seven was here, but... it seems that she escaped.”

The giant captain muttered while pondering something.

Honoka looked up quickly at his words.

"Does Kokonoe mean the Dr. Kokonoe? Isn't she the famous Grimalkin of Sector Seven?”

Jin had heard that name before. She is a scientist belonging to Sector Seven, and her genius mind is said to be unrivaled. She has the blood of a beastkin, and the ears and tail of a cat, which gives her a special appearance.

Grimwood looked down at Honoka and nodded.

“Yeah. I've heard that she was taking part in the Nox Nyctores research that was being conducted here. I was told to 'politely' take her in if I found her. ...... but there's no sign of her."

“If Kokonoe of Sector Seven was here, no wonder they deployed so many troops.”

Jin said quietly as he moved away from the corpse and looked at the large device at the back of the room.

You could say that Kokonoe was the brain of Sector Seven itself. If Kokonoe could be eliminated, it would be easy for the Librarium to overpower Sector Seven. That's how important she is and that's also why she is considered as so troublesome. With this in the picture, it could be seen that this was not just a usual laboratory.

If a person of Kokonoe's talent had been in and out of this place, she must have been doing some kind of special research. What it was, though, was something they had no way of knowing now.

“What do you think, Karenjina?"

Grimwood turned and asked Karenjina, who had been crouched down for some time and was just about to stand up.

Jin didn't understand the meaning of Grimwood's question. What is the "What" here? But despite Jin's small doubt, Karenjina's expression clouded over.

"...No. There are no survivors. Underground's wiped out."

She clearly said so.

How did she know? Jin was puzzled further. Grimwood not so. Why were they asking her? It was another group of soldiers who had been searching the room to check the equipment. Before Jin could ask that, Grimwood looked around at his men and said in a thick voice.

“That's it for the investigation. I'm going back upstairs. I'll contact headquarters."

“Oh, if so should I contact them? There are some things I haven't checked yet. If you want me to go back to the car and call them, I can do it by myself.”

Honoka put his hand on his chest and stepped forward, but Grimwood shook his head with a difficult look on his face.

“No. Let's all go back. I have a bad feeling about this place. We should get out of here as soon as possible-"

In the middle of his words, he suddenly heard a noise.

The sound, which was neither a rumble nor a thud, sounded like a creature crawling out from under something and for a moment everyone held their breaths and fell silent, then Grimwood turned and raised his axe that he just picked up from the ground earlier.

“Who's there?"

“Grimwood, t-that can't be!”

“I know."

Trying to calm Karenjina with his hand, who called out to him in panic, Grimwood stared at the area where the sound had come from in alarm. The sound came from the area where about five people were folded up and dead, slightly in front of a large device in the room.

There was no immediate reply. Honoka slowly retreated, and Jin prepared to move at any moment.

There was no sign of life. None. But...

The pile of corpses stirred, and one of the people underneath sluggishly got up.

“Wha…!?”

Karenjina choked out in astonishment at such absurdity.

"A Survivor?"

“No. Wrong.”

The soldier's words, shouted in an expectant but trembling voice, were dismissed with alarm by Jin.

“He's not alive anymore.”

It was a corpse. The corpse had suddenly risen and was heading straight towards them with the awkward movements of a puppet.

"W-WHAAAAA!! Lieutenant! Lieutenant!!"

Before they could fully comprehend the current situation, Honoka screamed and shouted. He shuddered exaggeratedly and pointed to a room with a lift in the back.

He could have guessed what was going on without looking, but he still looked back.

Just as expected. On the other side of the square entrance, countless corpses that were supposed to be lying in the room had all risen up and were heading towards them. Indeed, each corpse, one after another inside the room were starting to rise. It was not a number they could count on the spur of the moment.

"Wha-what should we do, Captain!?"

In dismay, one of the soldiers asked the obvious.

The first corpse that stood up was almost upon them. After slashing the body in half with a swinging axe, Grimwood turned around and shouted.

“Everybody, run!! Get to the lift!"

At that moment, as if he had been pushed back, Jin ran, knocking down the moving dead corpses that had been positioned between the room swith a single swing.

Part 3

With his scabbard, he hit the corpse that ran towards him at the side of its head and kicked the other one that came at him from the other direction with his leg that made them cracked like a whip. Several bodies were caught up and lost their balance when they were slashed together in one go with Jin’s Iai technique. After that, he stepped over the collapsed ridge of bodies and moved forward.

The underground space, which had been so quiet when they arrived that the only sound present was the driving force of the running machine, was now filled with a ghastly noise.

The corpses revived, or to say arose like they were waking from a slumber, now attacking Jin and the others without hesitation, as if they had no other choice.

At first glance, the bodies with few external injuries looked like living people. However, their faces were unmoving from the expression of fear and anguish they had shown when they died and their open eyes were as vacant as a cloudy glass ball.

"Shit! What in the hell are these things??"

"A trap from Kokonoe!?"

As the soldiers whined and cursed, they fired their guns at the ghouls, who were slowly closing in distance. The sound of wild gunfire blasted away the arms and heads of the corpses, but they continued to move without a care in the world.

Grimwood used his large axe to flick them all the way to the wall with every ounce of his strength.

“No, Kokonoe would never use these kinds of Art. Necromancy Ars Magus is the most detestable means on the battlefield. She is a genius far beyond the average, but she is apparently also a woman of common sense when it comes to such things!”

"Apparently," he said, but Grimwood said it as if he knew her personally. Jin wondered if they might have known each other, but now was not the time to mention it.

Jin reversed his grip on the ghouls arm and slammed it to the floor, crushing his head with his hard heel. A gunshot rang out right next to him. It was Honoka who fired the shot. He seemed to have completely gotten cold feet and turned terribly afraid, but his shooting skills were accurate. One by one, he carefully hit the moving corpses right between the eyes.

"Whoever did it, we are in big trouble, because of them now!!"

When Honoka shouted in a shameful, falsetto voice, to which Grimwood's mouth twisted up in a bitter, twisted smile.

“Sure we are.”

Then Grimwood swung his great axe again and blew off the tops of three corpses at once.

Karenjina shot an approaching corpse in the forehead with her short rifle and responded to a near one with a large knife she held in her other hand. She kicked away the corpse that had its throat quickly slit and immediately pointed the muzzle at the next one.

The corpse took several bullets to the face and fell down in a big heap. It jumped around for a while, but eventually got up and joined the fray with a distorted head as if nothing had happened.

Jin clicked his tongue at that.

“Necromancy, is it?”

Grimwood nodded.

It was possible to use magic or medicine to make the corpses move, but in that case they will attack on their own in a disorderly fashion. However, it was clear that the mass of corpses that filled the underground room was moving under the direction of someone.

They did not indiscriminately attack the dead bodies in front of them, nor did they move unevenly. They knew that the target is Jin and the rest of the 9th squad and they also knew that their path of retreat was the lift.

"Nonsense! You can't control all these bodies in here at the same time!"

While firing her gun, Karenjina’s voice rang with impatience.

Jin thrust the tip of his scabbard down on the dead man's head, who had grabbed his leg.

"It doesn't matter if it's possible or not. These guys can sustain a head injury and still get up and move with no trouble."

A corpse that can move by Arts or medicine acts according to its ego, albeit poorly. They think and move with their dead brains, so if they lose their heads, they lose their functions movement. However, a necromancer is someone that can manipulate a ghoul at will. A moving body is nothing more than a puppet for the practitioner. Even if the head is lost, the body will continue to move as long as the chain of connection with the practitioner is not broken.

"If it's a necromancer, then wouldn’t defeating the practitioner stop these guys from moving!”

To the right and the left. Grimwood asked in his crude voice as he swung his large axe and cleaved down any approaching corpses. Jin replies calmly.

"Yeah. They are controlling so many of them, they can't be that far away."

“Karenjina, find them!”

“Understood!”

When Grimwood gave his instructions, Karenjina responded quickly and took a few steps back, shoving her gun into the holster on her hip. She bent down on the spot and pressed her hands against the cold floor. Grimwood wedged himself in front of Karenjina. He used his great axe as a weapon and shield to protect Karenjina from the hands of the ghouls.

In the meantime, Karenjina took a long breath and closed her eyes to focus her attention.

A dull golden crest spread around her hands with a thin, high-pitched squeak that sounded like ringing in the ears.

“Wait, it's a Drive!”

Jin's voice jumped up uncharacteristically in surprise.

Drive.

It is a special kind of power that is inherent in the individual, fundamentally different from the kind of power that can be used to some extent through training and Arts, such as an Ars Magus.

The mechanism is not completely elucidated and there are those who can use it and those who cannot. It is more like a constitution than a talent. Its origin lies in the form the soul. Jin was also someone with a Drive, but it's not something that the usual person would carry with them. Infact it is very rare, so he didn't expect to encounter someone with Drive abilities in the 9th squad.

Behind Jin, who was unintentionally blinded by Karenjina's talent, Grimwood ran in and mowed down the ghouls.

One after another. There was no end to them.

“It's called "Seagull". Karenjina can sense the movements of her surroundings even though she can't actually see them, it's a power that has saved our lives many times before.”

Jin understood and was convinced at the same time. The questions that had been lingering in the corner of his mind were now resolved.

Why was the 9th squad able to disrupt the enemy lines and lead the enemy soldiers to their allies with such precision, as if they knew the enemys position? Why did Grimwood often ask Karenjina for her opinion on the situation, and why was she able to answer him without hesitation?

Karenjina was the too-good-to-be-true nose and ears of the 9th squadron, the Hounds.

But Karenjina, who had been concentrating on the crest that emerged with a faint light, distorted her expression as if in pain and finally stood up, holding both ears.

The crest disappears as it was sucked down to her feet.

"No, there's too much noise. I can't locate it!"

She must have dived into a very deep state of concentration, since they could see the greasy sweat on Karenjina's forehead. Grimwood impatiently frowned at Karenjina, who was breathing heavily, while keeping an eye on their surroundings and state of affairs.

Each of the ghouls was no great threat, but there were just too many of them. No matter how hard they tried to kill them, they kept coming as long as they had legs or hands. It was like a wave of ghouls.

"Oh, hey, there!"

Honoka, who was holding the gun with his hands crossed as if in prayer, shouted out in a most sorrowful voice.

Jin followed his gaze and looked up to see the path of the lift they had just come down. On top of it, bodies, probably from inside the facility, covered in wounds and blood, were descending towards them.

There was no doubt what their purpose was. The dead eyes, cloudy and empty, were all looking at the only seven people alive in this place.

"Damn it! I guess we should clear a path of retreat first."

Grimwood growled in abhorrence. The lift was already occupied by the bodies that had rushed in. It would be faster to run up the passageway than to retrieve it and use the device to move slowly forward.

“I'll make it happen. Follow me!"

Quickly, Grimwood regained his grip on his great axe and charged forward with a mighty yell from the pit of his stomach.

“Oooooooooooooohhhh!"

Grimwood swung his great axe from side to side as he ran with a much shocking force.

The large blade, swung with all its power, kept slashing, blowing and reaping corpses one after another as if it were reaping dead branches. Along with the sound of crushing flesh, there was the light sound of crunching bones.

Kicking away even the sound, Grimwood rushed forward and forcefully stepped into the lift corridor.

Exactly as the word "cut through" implies, a path was formed behind Grimwood. Karenjina and Honoka were ahead of him, followed by Jin, while the rest of the soldiers chased after the captain with their guns firing in a mess. But still the numbers were overwhelmingly violent. Grimwood's steps were gradually blocked and slowed.

A ghouls nails clawed relentlessly at his face and another corpse clutched at his big shoulders, trying to drag him down.

It was not just Grimwood, but also Karenjina and Honoka, who were following close behind, blocking their progress.

"Grimwood!"

Karenjina let out a thin scream right near Jin, who slashed down the ghoul in a wide arc.

Grimwood was pushing too hard for the ones in the back to catch up. A large number of ghouls interrupted the carelessly opened distance and quickly surrounded Grimwood with a thick wall of dead flesh.

On the other hand, more than a dozen corpses jumped at their side with such force that Honoka was knocked over by the momentum.

The head of the corpse that was about to bite his throat was chopped off by Jin with a single stroke. As the head flew off, the distance between him and Grimwood was no longer something that could be easily bridged.

"Captain!"

The soldiers shouted in unison.

It would be bad if he didn't join up. It was too dangerous for anyone to be isolated against this number.

But when he tried to run to him, the corpses formed a wall as if they were trying to keep him away from Grimwood. Punching and kicking down. There was no end to the shooting and slashing.

On the other side of the writhing corpses, Jin saw Grimwood still shouting and swinging his axe.

The axe that was swung down created shockwaves that were bigger than the eye could precive, blowing away a group of corpses.

“ِAbandon me! Run!”

That was Grimwood's decision.

Karenjina gave a horrified voice.

“I can't... I can't do that!”

“Go, Jin!”

“You cut it open, while I'm pulling most of the weight, maybe Jin can do it.”

Jin looked up at the top of the lift with a grim expression at Grimwood's words, entrusting him with a such heavy responsibility.

The number of corpses pouring in was small compared to the ones chasing them from underground, but it was not an easy task to get through. If they were separated by the narrow passageway, Honoka and Karenjna would be torn apart in a matter of seconds.

"Don't fucking joke with meeee!"

A swear word escaped from Jin's mouth unconsciously. If he was even able to run, he would have done it by now.

(Forcing a breakthrough is not a good idea. Then...)

Jin stabbed at his feet with Yukianesa. The impact blew up in a white color, instantly turning the surrounding corpses to ice.

Using it as a makeshift wall, Jin grabbed Karenjina’s arm as she was about to run to Grimwood.

"Hey. Use that Drive again."

“What? What are you talking about? I told you we'd never find the necromancer, so this is not the time at all!　Get out of the way and let me help Grimwood!!"

Karenjina twisted and tried to shake off Jin's hand. but Jin would have none of it. He holded her arm even thigher and pulled her to him.

"Calm down, you'll only add to the bait if you jump in. Instead, I'll hit the necromancer."

“Shut up! You don't get to tell me what to do! Let go of me! Grimwood's at..!”

Karenjina flailed about in a mess, trying to escape Jin's clutches. He could feel Karenzina's nerves screaming in fright under her skin. It was as if he could feel the vibrations. Fear gripped her as she writhed and flailed. The fear that she might lose Grimwood was driving her into delirium.

That's how important he, Grimwood was, to Karenjina. This thought crossed Jin’s mind, but-

Jin shouted in frustration.

"Shut up, you piece of shit!!!"

At the sound of Jin's angry voice, which came from up close and personal, Karenjina’s eyes blinked as she forbore to speak.

She was pressured by Jin's change in attitude.

It didn’t matter, it's rather convenient like that. There's no point in making any more noise. Jin shouted at Karenjina with a intensity fitting for their situation.

“Just use it! Who else can do it but you? You want Grimwood getting killed along with you, or what!?”

If Karenjina ran off, she wouldn't be able to help Grimwood. They would dietogether in a pile of corpses.

She must not be so stupid that she couldn’t understand that. Karenjina opened and closed her mouth a few times, as if lost for words in the blazing cold eyes of Jin that were fixated on her. Then, immediately her eyes sharpened and her lips got frim in determinaion.

She shook off Jin's arm. This time, Jin let go of her hand obediently.

Immediately, Karenjina put her hands on the floor and focused her attention. A dull golden light was created under her palms as they touched the floor.

"Cover Karenjina. Don't let the ghouls near her!"

“Ye-yes!”

Honoka replied as he jumped up and raised his gun along with the other soldiers.

The guns could not fire indefinitely, but the soldiers knew that if they didn't hold out, there was no way out.

Seeing them start firing wildly without caring about the remaining ammunition, Honoka, who was upset, started firing randomly.

After all, Grimwood's squadron was excellent.

Admiringly, Jin stood behind Karenjina with Yukianesa.

A crest spreads at Karenjina’s feet. Immediately, her expression became distorted. Even through her back, Jin could tell that the level of concentration was different from before.

They couldn’t hold out much longer. Neither Karenjina nor the soldiers who were trying to fight off the ghouls and Jin, too.

Even if there is an abundance of seithr in the world, converting it into Ars Magus involves a great deal of wear and tear. In addition, when it comes to dealing with Nox Nyctores, the wear and tear can be life itself.

Therefore, no matter how powerful it is, Yukianesa's power cannot be unleashed. If he were to unleash it at full force, based on the amount of seithr in this place...

(One shot left...)

He will be at lose of power and they won't be able to get through here.

(...No.)

It's different.

If it's just a break through, it's possible. In that case, though, everyone but Jin will have to be abandoned.

“Keep your mind focused.”

He told her in a whisper, then pressed the palm of his hand against Karenjina's back.

He closed his eyes and concentrated, matching his own exhalation to the wavelength of Karenjina beyond the palm of his hand.

Karenjina's body jumped. Instantly, the images she was seeing began to flow into Jin's mind as well.

A dull golden light was spreading across the underground space in every direction. It was as if they were nerves stretched out. However, the spreading light was disturbed by the countless signs that filled the area.

(So this is the noise...)

It's true that they couldn’t explore anything with this.

Even so, he earnestly looked for a different way, in the middle of Karenjina’s spread-out senses.

The Power of Order - with that, “manipulation of corpses” appeared in Jin’s consciousness as a black line in the images he saw through Karenjina's Drive.

It was a special power that he possessed that even Jin himself did not understand, he isn't even aware that he is in posession of it.

However, through it, Jin was able to see. The evil from his standpoint, the opponent to slash, the black "line" that connects to it all, the "line" that he should cut.

The black line that stretched from Jin's feet snaked its way around the underground space until... it reached a certain point.

“......Found it.”

Gently speaking aloud, Jin opens his eyes. As usual, he was surrounded by a pile of moving corpses, but Jin didn't even bother with them.

In the corner of the room where the corpses were stirring, on the floor where the arms and legs that had been blown off by Jin and Grimwood were lying in shreds. There was a strange figure huddled in the shadows of the wobbling corpses.

He couldn’t see it clearly, but it was definitely “there”.

Jin pulled out Yukianesa and ran through the bodies, jumping over Honoka.

The pale, ice-covered blades cut down the corpses in his way one after another. As he kicked them away and iced the ones in his way, Jin headed straight for Grimwood.

It was in the opposite direction of the necromancer he found.

But as he hurled the blades of ice he had created around him at the corpses all at once, Jin called out loudly.

"Grimwood!"

He shouted and jumped high. At the foot of his low leap, an ice blade that he had created at the same time appeared. The flying ice blades slid through the air and carried Jin like a vehicle.

"Come on!"

As he swung his great axe to clear the way around him, Grimwood let go of his axe to meet Jin who was coming straight at him. Instead, he folded his hands and dropped to his haunches.

Jin jumped for his hand.

“Gooooooooooooo!!”

Jin's feet landed on Grimwood's folded hands. He used it as a foothold from which to leap and Grimwood threw him high into the air, swinging his arms with all his might.

After jumping to an unusual height, Jin stared downward.

He didn't know where it came from, but the underground room was filled with more dead bodies than he expected. But in one corner, in the corner of the room indicated by the line, there was a person without a uniform or lab coat, huddled in a black cloth.

That's him.

“Yukianesa!"

In response to Jin's voice, a silvery-white blade sliced through the void. The sliding trajectory froze in the blink of an eye and the ice wrapped around the sword itself, changing its shape.

What appeared in Jin's hand was a bow. A pale, crystal clear bow of ice.

He put his hand on the string and an arrow of ice was born in his hand.

The only thing in the way was the corpses walking on the ground. With such a high jump, there was nothing to impede Jin's aim.

“Ice-Winged Moonsong!”

With a voice announcing this, a huge arrow was released from the ice bow. The pale blue arrow seemed to have a hint of light in it and with the icy wind in its wake, it flew sharply through the air.

The target was the necromancer, who looked like a blackened mass.

The arrow, too large to be fired at a single person, spun at high speed and was not well-aimed, ruthlessly destroying the surrounding walls, floors, and swarming corpses, including the necromancer.

The power was tremendous.

The corner of the room where the necromancer had been was instantly covered with ice, like the inside of a freezer and white frost stuck to it. What used to be the necromancer was stretched out on the floor like was like a remaining splat of abandoned trash, no longer moving.

Jin landed on the ground, returning the bow to its original form of a sword.

"..."

As soon as he did, his knees lost their strength and he almost lost balance. But Grimwood, who had rushed in front of him, supported him.

“You okay?”

"...Yes. I just used too much energy all at once."

“I see,” Grimwood said, his mouth twitching in a smile.

Jin heard a series of sounds like heavy objects falling from around him. It was the sound of bodies that had been moving, losing their strength and falling one after another. The corpse that was just about to bite him fell on him, and Honoka crawled out from under it, screaming.

Then he looked around in a daze and sat down.

“It’s not moving... Did we survive?”

As he let out his thin, trembling words, not a single corpse moved anymore. They collapsed on the spot like threadbare dolls and returned to being mere corpses.

The soldiers still couldn't believe what was happening in front of their eyes, rolling the fallen bodies close at hand to make sure there was no reaction.

Karenjina staggered over to Grimwood and Jin.

But Jin and Grimwood couldn't look up at the sound of her footsteps.

At Jin's feet lay a deadly Necromancer clad in black cloth.

The blow that Jin had unleashed with all his might had already left him breathless. No, he wasn't breathing to begin with.

Jin and Grimwood looked down at what had been the Necromancer, speechless with surprise.

It was not human.

It had long, slender arms and legs and an uncanny bloodless complexion. Wrapped in a black cloth, it was a doll.

"What is this...?"

Karenjina, who was finally standing next to Grimwood, muttered in a muffled voice.

The soldiers and Honoka both noticed the strange situation and looked down at the doll, all stunned.

"You mean the doll was a... necromancer?"

One of the soldiers said to himself.

“No," Grimwood replied lowly, holding Jin for support. “it wasn't a necromancer we were dealing with.”

"A Puppetmaster."

Staring at the battered doll, Jin's brows furrowed.

"What do you mean? Because a while ago, there was actually a body moving..."

Karenjina looked around. The lack of power in her voice was probably due to the fact that she used too much power on "Seagull". As she wondered, it was not a doll that actually attacked Jin and the others, but a corpse. There was no doubt about that. So that meant...

“The Puppetmaster had a puppet play the role of the Necromancer.”

“Such a thing...”

"There is no way. It's impossible, no matter how advanced that Ars Magus is."

"Unless it's magic..."

Magic. Everyone was rendered speechless by the words Jin had spoken.

Magic is an ancient Art that has been in gradual decline since the days of the Dark War due to a drastic decrease in the number of users. It is no exaggeration to say that it has been lost in the modern age.

If the owner of this puppet is indeed a magician, then the other party is not just a mere thing. At the very least, it was not something that a single squadron can handle. 　 And if the opponent was indeed a magician, it's not impossible to think about why all the guards of the Librarium died here.

“We are going back.”

It was too dangerous to stay here any longer. Grimwood carried Jin's arm on his shoulder and started to walk away.

The area was unusually quiet. It smelled of blood and dead bodies.

Jin and the others left the basement as quickly as they could, pushed back by the disquiet.

Part 4

There was someone who had been oberserving them closely.

Always observing. They have been observing the guards of the Novus Orbis Librarium descend into the basement while killing researchers of Sector Seven. The way they died there one after another and the confusion and struggles of the seven new samples who arrived late.

Always there. Observing.

A huge, motionless device, surrounded with countless coffins. From behind it, a man stepped out with small, clacking footsteps.

His golden hair was brushed back and he wore fine-looking clothes. If he had been in the right place, he would have looked like a noble gentleman, but the carpet of corpses under his feet, the golden mask covering the upper half of his face, and the eye-catching purple cloak turned that look of a nobel gentlman into a rather odd one.

"Seagull and... the Nox Nyctores, Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa. Hmmm. I've observed some pretty interesting stuff today."

The masked man put his white-gloved hand to his chin and spoke to himself in a voice that sounded impressed, but with little human emotion.

Behind him was another figure, even taller than him.

The smooth curves of her body were like that of a woman. The scarlet dress she wore was vivid, but on closer inspection, it was not a human being, but a very finely crafted doll.

The masked man started to walk away. The scarlet doll chased after him.

Eventually, as the undisturbed footsteps of the masked man and the scarlet doll receded into the distance, the basement finally became a space only for the dead.

Chapter 4: Promises and Vows / Listening

Part 1

There was a person walking at a quick pace down the long corridor. The wooden-floored corridor creaked as he stepped on it, but there was no sound of his footsteps as he was half running.

The unique attire that seemed to blend into the shadows, covering the entire body and even the head and most of the face with cloth of the same color, was the attire of a "Ninja", the ancient spies of the Ikaruga Federation.

It was night. The sun had already set and the area had been swallowed up by darkness. The ninja hurried noiselessly through the corridor that was dimly lit and visited the room.

This is Wadatsumi Castle.

This is the castle where Tenjō, the sole person who rules over the Ikaruga Federation, lives.

Then the ninja slipped in and kneeled down, behind the sliding door.

"My lord, I'm back."

“Come in."

The reply was immediate. The voice was quiet and composed.

The ninja replied briefly, then turned himself around and quickly went inside.

He closed the sliding door noiselessly and turned around to see that there was a place at the back of the room that was a few steps up, surrounded on all sides by a light brown bamboo screen.

Normally, all the blinds should be down and you can only get a faint glimpse of what's behind them, but now only the one in front has been lifted and you can see the figure of the person sitting behind it.

At the back of the boarded-up room, behind a bamboo screen, sitting on a chair waiting for the ninja was a person dressed in the distinctive Ikaruga garb with its generous sleeves. The black, white, and red tones of the garment gave off an air of nobility that stood apart from that of the average person.

Their long, waist-high purple hair flowed from her shoulders to her back like a glossy shoulder strap, reaching the floor besides her chair.

The posture was flawless. Lifting her hands slightly from her lap, the one named lord spoke to her kneeling subordinate spy.

“Your hard work is appreciated. Lift your face up. Report."

Their voice was clear and unhurried, but somehow lacked a sense of energy and vitality.

The ninja raised his head and saw the lords face for the first time in a long time.

There was no human face there. What was there instead was a white mask.

The male ninja had heard that it was to hide a large scar on their face from an old battle. Very few people had ever seen the lord’s true face. This ninja had also never seen it.

A white-faced figure with an unblemished and noble appearance. That was the lord, or in other words, Tenjō Amanohokosaka, who was the ruler of Ikaruga.

"The Nox Nyctores "Deus Machina: Nirvana" stored in the Sector Seven facility in the northeastern part of Ikaruga, has been seized by the Novus Orbis Librarium. It seems that a large-scale battle occurred at the facility and many people died."

The purple-haired figure, Tenjō, exhaled deeply, their chest rising and falling at the whimsical report.

The ninja continued.

“Relius Clover, who was in charge of analyzing the Nox Nyctores, is currently missing, and Nirvana's current location is unknown. Kokonoe of Sector Seven was also at the scene and was injured..."

Just as he was about to say something, a violent cough interrupted the Ninja’s words. It was Tenjō, bent over, holding their chest and coughing bitterly.

The Ninja hurriedly raised his hips. However, Tenjō sensed this and controlled their subordinate with their hand while still suffering and gasping in pain.

“C-Continue.”

“But...”

“I'm sorry to interrupt. No need to worry."

They then raised themself heavily and their voice was so muddy it was impossible not to worry.

However, if he was asked to continue, he would not be able to avoid doing so. Pushing aside the uneasiness that came to mind, the ninja straightened his posture once again.

“So, uhm... Professor Kokonoe, who was present at the scene, was also injured, but it is not life-threatening and she is currently being transported to the headquarters of Sector Seven. Also, as the lord can conjecture... a high density of seithr reaction was confirmed.”

The ninja spoke with uneasiness.

“...I see.”

After a full few seconds of pause, Tenjō also responded in uneasiness, then they closed their mouth again under the mask.

It was a thoughtful silence, but no one could see what Tenjō was thinking about, what their feelings were and what expression they were making.

Eventually, Tenjō looked at the Ninja from beneath their mask.

“Where is Bang?”

“The head is on a reconnaissance mission, my lord.”

“Tell him to come to me when he gets back.”

"Certainly!"

“You can go now. Get some rest."

The ninja remained on his knees, bowed deeply one last time and walked silently out of the room with the same swiftness with which he had come.

For a while after that, Tenjō was alone in the large wooden room.

After a certain while, they stood up slowly, their long purple hair shaking. They turned their feet to another sliding door, located on the opposite side of the one the ninja had left from.

They pulled open one of the sliding doors to enter the next room and then opened the sliding door at the far end to go further in.

There was a small bed on the floor. It was made of soft-colored wood and wrapped with a fluffy comforter and clean white sheets.

On top of it, a baby who probably couldn't even stand up on their own was sleeping peacefully.

Tenjō’s footsteps crept up to the baby's side and they peered into the bed. The baby seemed completely at ease and didn't seem to be awakened by the approaching presence.

Tenjō wondered if the baby was having a good dream.

Their soft lips moved in small gulps as if they were trying to eat something.

A lovely child. Their eyes and nose were clear and they would grow up to be beautiful one day. Their hair was soft and lush, still pale, but black.

(I think your face looks a lot like mine, now that I think about it, but it would seem your hair color is closer to your father. It's better that way.) Tenjō thought as she, that baby's mother, gently stroked the baby's head.

"For you, a life of hardships has been decided. If my wishes would be granted, I would have preferred that you live in tranquility, but..."

It’s beyond her power.

As she whispered to her, Tenjō seemed to regret leaving, but she still gently let go of their hand and sat up.

For a while, she stared at the baby's sleeping face, and then left the room.

Bang hadn't arrived yet when she went back to the room where she had met the ninja earlier.

As expected. However, if she were to be at leisure here, her reliable head ninja might rush in like the wind.

Before doing so... Tenjō went around to the back of the screened area.

There was a small sliding door that you can only enter by bending down. Tenjō walked through it and down the dimly lit corridor that led to it. The wooden floor was old and occasionally creaked under her weight.

Every time she took a step, it felt as if she was being separated, from the small sliding door that was gradually moving away and from the sleeping face on the other side of the door.

At the end of the corridor, an old wooden door was waiting. It opened in both directions, with a crest carved across the two doors. Standing in front of it, Tenjō quietly chanted something and touched the crest with a finger that peeked out from her generous sleeve.

Then the heavy-looking double doors moved by themselves and opened.

Just enough for one person to pass through. Just enough for a Tenjō to get through.

There was no hesitation now. She walked in, her lustrous purple hair fluttering. The door closed slowly and naturally, locking the area into darkness.

Soon, however, a small purple light appeared at Tenjō’s feet. It wasn't a room. It was a device. A lifting device.

When the device sensed the lord, it made a small cowering sound and started to move. Down, down, so far down that it seemed to go on forever. Eventually, the device carried the lord to the lowest level of the castle and opened its mouth again without anyones intervention.

What was there was a small room made into a perfect cube.

It was not really a room though, but a "space". No walls, no floor, but a place that clearly exists somehow.

Talismans were attached one by one to the part corresponding to the apex of the cube so as to surround it.

Tenjō stepped out into the empty space surrounded by the talisman and stopped right in the middle of the cube, then crawled her white palm over the empty space in front of her.

A fine bell-like sound was heard, and a vertical straight line of light was created in the space Tenjō touched with her hand. With that light as its boundary, the space opened to the left and right like a door.

As soon as she did, the scenery around her changed completely.

What surrounded Tenjō was not a space covered with protective charms, but a large room lined with thick pillars inscribed with what looked like ancient scripts.

A series of pipes and cords ran from the pillars up to the high ceiling, connecting to various devices that filled the walls.

In addition, all the pillars had sturdy-looking chains attached to them. At the end of the chains, there was something large suspended in the air.

It was shaped like an upside-down triangular pyramid. A metaphor for it would be a huge lynchpin.

The size was incomparable with that of Tenjō. It wasn’t something that a human can carry.

The blackish surface was smooth, with vaguely greenish glowing streaks running in all directions.

It was a relic of the past, discovered after the Dark War.

It is called "Kushinada's Lynchpin."

On top of the wedge hung a smaller one of a similar shape that seemed to follow. If the huge wedge was a lynchpin, then the smaller one on top of it was probably a nail.

The nail was also heavily sealed with a chain wrapped around it.

Tenjō looked up at the huge lynchpin and jumped like a feather towards it. The small leap softly lifted her body and carried her straight to the top of the lynchpins upper platform.

Silently, she landed on the Lynchpin of Kushinada. As soon as she did so, she saw that nail hanging above her, tied to the chain.

The nail was big if one might say. It was probably bigger than Tenjō’s body.

(I should stop. I shouldn't be thinking about it right now.)

Shaking off a sudden feeling of emotion, Tenjō looked up at the dangling nail and hurriedly removed her mask. Her face underneath, she was thin, gaunt, but beautiful.

Her skin was translucent white, and the blood in her cheeks was far gone.

It was not the beauty of life, but the beauty of death. The true face of Ikaruga was as beautiful as a dead woman.

There were no major scars anywhere, because that white mask was not meant to hide any scars.

Tenjō slowly lifted her eyelids and breathed in air that she hadn't felt in her lungs in a long time.

Her eyes were red. Like blood.

But soon, her blood-colored eyes flickered. A violent cough overflowed from her throat, shaking her whole body.

The whooping coughing that wrecked her lungs and tore her throat was due to the fact that her body was being poisoned by seithr. The mask was meant to hide Tenjō’s true identity and protect her weakened body from the seithr in the air.

It shouldn't be widely known. The broken body of Tenjō, that was on the brink of collapse. “Who” she really was.

But now, no one will see.

And for what she was about to do, any aspect that blocks even a small part of herself from the outside world is only a hindrance. The coughing finally subsided. Tenjō grabbed her chest and breathed heavily, trying to get her badly erratic breathing under control.

If she were to handle it too roughly, it would break.

"...It seems my "vessel" is about to reach its limit very soon. If I could, I would have stopped... “it” from coming back, but I can't anymore, I failed."

It's very hard to achieve anything with her current body. This is why the lord needed a vessel that could withstand for her purpose. For this reason, she sought out the Nox Nyctores "Deus Machina: Nirvana". To inject her soul into it and make it a new vessel.

But that, too, was now lost.

She doesn't have time. This body, this vessel, is in a state that could break at any moment.

So, this right now is the best she can do before her vessel becomes unable to do anything.

"A new 'order' is about to be born in this world. One day, the world will regain it. That’s why..."

As she spoke, Tenjō reached for the large nail hanging in front of her, as she touched it with both hands and pressed her forehead against it, avoiding the cold chains, the lord closed her eyes.

"Nox Nyctores... "Phoenix: Rettenjō". For the sake of when that time comes, I entrust my soul to you."

The moment she whispered, something like a heartbeat pulsated in Tenjō’s chest. It was as if a shockwave that was blinde for everyones eyes had struck her heart or even her soul.

But the shock soon wore off and Tenjō’s heart returned to its calm and serene state.

She quietly lifted her eyelids. It was dark all around and the sensation of something seeping in, like cold water, surrounded Tenjō’s senses.

(...I see 'myself' in front of me... I see 'myself' looking at 'myself' with a sad look.)

(A feeling as if I were looking into a mirror, but what I see here is not a mirror. It is a gap in matter and space. The inside and the outside of Rettenjō.)

Tenjō could no longer move a single finger. She was only conscious. She has no arms, no fingers, no mouth and no eyes.

She will never hold someone again. She won't be able to touch anyone anymore. If she won’t be able to talk to anyone. Nothing will see her.

(This never ending “Death”... It is such a sad thing. I'm sure it's much, much sadder than I could imagine right now.)

However, Tenjō’s heart was not in despair, it was infact in hope.

(But aside from me, the one who is closest to “Death”. My child... "Homura." Because “Life” was born, the possibility of ending this unfortunate world od death will also be born...”.

Without a voice, Tenjō spoke to the "self" standing on the other side.

(I believe in it. I will bet my all on that... "Possibility.")

It may or may not turn out the way she wants it to, but that is no longer in her hands. It is for those who will be born and grow up after this to find and choose.

(Goodbye... Homura.)

If only one wish would be granted, please let this child "live", no matter how much pain there is. No matter How much suffering there is.

With Tenjō’s wish, the connected chain flew vigorously high, as if something had pulled it up, then fell straight down with a sharp-pointed tip in high speed ── towards Kushinada's Lynchpin.

Higher and louder, the sound of clashing metal echoed through the air.

For a moment, something like a shockwave spread, but without destroying anything. The lowest level of Wadatsumi Castle was enveloped in silence.

The heavy chains that had restrained Rettenjō' were gone before she knew it.

The large nail was released and held in the air just before it touched Kushinada's Lynchpin, holding it still.

There was no sign of anything anymore.

She was staring at the scene and before she knew it, that white mask was covering her face. Keeping her face covered, she touched the nail that was standing still in front of her with the palm of her hand. At that moment, a red pattern appeared on the white mask that should have been empty.

The pattern was tinged with a liquid glow only once. Tenjō muttered under her red mask.

"...Well. I don't want to keep Bang waiting for too long."

The quiet tone of her voice quickly disappeared into the dimness of silence.

Turning around, Tenjō climbed down from the Kushinada's Lynchpin and headed back the way she came.

Her steps were unsteady and unaccustomed. It is like she was a doll that had just started to walk by herself.

Part 2

Night— At the frontline base in the jungle of the Ikaruga Federation.

Most of the guards had already finished dinner and the ones who were on late lookout duty began to fall asleep.

It was then. Suddenly, all the lights in the base went out.

“What in the hell?”

The battalion commander, who was enjoying his after-dinner coffee in his tent, hurriedly kicked over his chair.

He walked out of the commander's tent, spilling his still-hot coffee and feeling very angry, then the lights came back on without a moments hesitation.

The guard straightened his posture into a salute and replied.

"Sir! It seems that for a short time, the power supply has stopped. It's working fine now."

“Power outage?”

“Yes... The cause is unknown, sir.”

The battalion commander clicked his tongue in disapproval at the guards answer and walked back to his tent.

It didn't matter if the cause was unknown or not, as long as it was working. His priority was to get a new cup of coffee ready.

Part 3

At the exact same time, in the dark forest of night...

Honoka, who was gathering twigs with a handheld light, looked up when the light in his hand suddenly flickered.

He looked up at the night sky and gasped, opening his eyes wide as if he had noticed something.

The next moment, the light in Honoka's hand disappeared completely, and at the same time, a panicked voice came from a short distance away.

"Whoa!?"

“What’s the matter, what's wrong?"

It was one of the soldiers from the 9th squad who raised his voice.

Another soldier nearby turned around to see what was going on.

The one who suddenly spoke up stared at his outstretched hands and dropped his shoulders with a scowl.

"My Vigilance Ars Magus suddenly ran out in the middle of work. Shit, now I have to start all over again..."

For a brief moment, it felt as if seithr had completely disappeared.

Muttering and swearing, the soldier began to construct the Ars Magus again. It was an Ars Magus that alerts them when an unidentified entity is approaching them.

"You may be tired, but you're still in enemy territory. It's not safe here either. Don't let your guard down."

Grimwood slurped down a canteen of water and drank it when he called out to the extent that it didn’t interfere with the Ars Magus procedure.

They were in the middle of the forest, only a short distance from the dead bodies of Sector Seven’s research lab.

They hadn't yet met up with the Ars Magus Vessel to return to the main force. If they had, they would have been able to get to an open area in 30 minutes by jeep, but the jeep they relied on had been completely destroyed and is of course now useless. No one mentioned what had caused it, but everyone thought that it was most likely the work of those moving corpses. Above all, no one had the energy left to discuss the culprit.

It didn’t matter who it was. If they can’t move, they wouldn’t be able to leave the forest. That was the only thing that mattered and it was because of that fact that Grimwood and the rest of the 9th squad were preparing to camp, unable to move far from the laboratory where they had suffered so much.

"Honoka. Where's the firewood?"

Jin called out to Honoka when he spotted him standing there a little distance away. Honoka came to his senses and rushed over to him.

“I'm sorry, I found it. It's just this..."

"This won't last a night. Oh well, I'll look for more later. You can rest now."

He took a handful of dead branches from Honoka and placed a few of them in the small fire that was already flickering.

When they escaped from the laboratory, it was nighttime.

If the jeep hadn't been destroyed and if Karenjina had been able to use her Seagull, they would have been able to travel to a place where they could meet up with the Vessel without having to deal with the night. But now they had neither. All their vehicle opitions are out and Karenjina could no longer sense a rabbit a meter away without rest.

Looking at the burning twigs, Honoka bowed apologetically.

"I apologize. Now, if you'll pardon me."

Honoka, his valet, would have recommended that Jin, his boss, to take a rest, but Honoka seemed to have reached his limit. With staggering and unsteady steps, he collapsed into a sofa seat near the fire.

The sofa seat originally belonged to the jeep. When it became apparent that it had been destroyed beyond repair and that encampment was inevitable, Grimwood half-heartedly pulled it out of the jeep and set it down. Likewise, he dragged down a sofa from one of the other destroyed Librarium vehicles left behind from the battle before they arrived, so he was able to make enough beds for all of them.

Grimwood's dexterity with the battle axe and dismantling of the jeep and other vehicles was quite impressive and when Jin mentioned it to him, he smiled broadly with a hint of exhaustion and said that he might start work like that when the war was over.

Incidentally, Karenjina was already asleep in her leather-smelling bed, covered with a blanket, as if she had fainted. She was barely conscious until the moment she collapsed, though she might actually be in a state of unconsciousness now.

“Well then," said the soldier who had just finished applying the Vigilance Ars Magus, apologizing to Jin and slipping into the sofa seat.

Grimwood stood beside Jin as he lightly patted his subordinate on the back and sent him off to a simple bed to get some early rest.

"Are you sure you don't want to rest first? You're the one who's most worn out."

He said with concern, raising an eyebrow at his troubled face.

Jin nodded lightly. Grimwood was talking about watchkeeping.

They were going to spend the night in a place like this and no matter how many precautions they took with their Ars Magus, they never knew what might happen while they slept. That's why it was decided to set up lookouts in turn and Jin was one of the first to be nominated.

Jin split a long, thin branch in two and threw it into the fire.

"I'm too nervous to sleep anyway. I need you to leave me alone for a bit."

“Is that how it’s gonna be?”

“That's how it's gonna be. Just go to sleep. Your body is in the way when you're standing next to me."

When Jin said it plainly without even looking at him, Grimwood chuckled as he spewed. He patted Jin on the shoulder and turned away.

Dragging his strong, well-trained body, he sank into the sofa he had peeled off.

All of them, not to mention Jin, were badly worn out.

The air of repose has the effect of making the body aware of a great deal of fatigue. Lying on the couch, the members of the 9th squad soon stopped moving and deep slumber could be heard from every coach.

Jin turned to the fire that he had built for light and protection and pulled Yukianesa from beside him.

The night in the forest was quiet.

There were no sounds of animals, no sounds of insects. There were no signs of any presence other than their own. What he had said to Grimwood had not been out of strength or concern. He was indeed very tired, but right now he wanted to be alone with his thoughts rather than resting with the rest of the 9th squad.

The fire sparks scattered.

Jin looked up at the night sky.

He couldn't see the moon. That was convenient.

He hated the moon.

(...Still, I am glad we made it out safely.)

Leaning on Yukianesa as a staff, Jin exhaled from being tired.

As he recalled, it was a messy situation. They finally arrived at the site of the mission, where there were no allies or enemies, only the bodies of dead people and then all of them got up and started attacking them out of nowhere.

It was an unbelievable number to the point it was hard to believe that no one had lost their lives or even been seriously injured and then be able to return to the surface while being tangled up in all of that. He was also curious about the puppet master, who was controlling that many at once.

(...Ha...Unbelievable.)

Jin thought to himself.

He still couldn’t believe it, even though the crisis is over and he was now doing things like watching the fire.

It was not about that pile of dead bodies that bothered him though. It's about his own actions inside the lab. The moment where they reached the "Cauldron".

Looking at his hands with narrowed eyes, Jin pulled off the gloves he was wearing.

...A long time ago, Jin killed his 'brother'.

With these hands and with this sword.

The feeling of that moment was still firm in Jin's hand. He thrust Yukianesa's cold blade into his 'brother's' back as he fell, stumbling and screaming in anger.

After losing his brother and the home he grew up in, Jin was taken in by the Kisaragi family. Ever since then, Jin's life has had no meaning.

His 'brother' was everything to him. Everything about him had been established through his 'brother's existence'.

So the world without his 'brother' has no meaning and Jin's days have always been lacking without him. There was no desire for the environment around him. There were no expectations from the people around him. He thought he would just consume his remaining life span for a few more decades and eventually die for no reason.

But in that time. When he was surrounded by moving corpses in the basement. When Grimwood was alone.

For perhaps the first time, Jin wielded his power for... "friends".

To survive together...

As Jin watched the fire in his lamenting thoughts, he suddenly smelled a scent. Jin looked around and saw a flower blooming on a nearby tree. They were red flowers. Each one was large, probably as big as Jin's palm. He didn't know the name of the flowers.

But the color of the flowers reminded Jin of a girl.

A girl with the same hair color and unironically the same name as these red flowers.

The last time he saw the girl was at the port of an Ars Magus Vessel heading to Yabiko.

At the port, many of Jin’s classmates and juniors from the Academy had gathered to see him off. A little outside of the circle of these people, she was quietly looking at him.

She was not the kind of person who would push her way through a crowd of people. Jin looked her in the eye, received her troubled and sorrowful look instead of a farewell and planned to leave.

But just before he boarded the Vessel, her friends half-heartedly brought her before Jin.

He thought she was embarrassed and troubled, because she probably wasn't good at these kinds of occasions.

But as she looked back at her friend for help. She was still pushed forward and turned to Jin with big eyes filled with tears that looked like they were about to burst.

However, looking back at her friend asking for salvation, she was pushed forward and turned to Jin with big eyes that looked like they were about to burst into tears.

Amidst the expectations of good luck and success, and the concerns of injury and illness, she looks at Jin with the deepest sadness anyone could muster.

Her red lips were trembling. She was searching for words while being lost for them. She bit her lips and held back the tears that threatened to spill. Then she said it...

“Please 'live'... and return safely.”

That seemed to be all she had to say.

At that time, Jin simply thought that if he died, this girl would cry...

So he tried to reassure her with a little smile.

“I promise you, Tsubaki.”

With that, he boarded the Vessel.

Burnt twigs snapped and crumbled in the orange and fine sparks of fire fluttered in the air.

"...Promise, huh?"

As he plunged the new branch into the fire, Jin muttered to himself.

But before he could step into the swamp of sentimentality, Jin called out towards the back.

“What is it?"

"...You surprised me. I thought I'd erased my presence."

A voice came back, sounding impressed. It was Karenjina.

This time, she didn't pay attention to her presence and walked up to Jin's side.

“I'm taking over. Time to go."

Jin's eyebrows moved slightly when he was told. He felt a little clumsy. He didn't realize how long he had been seriously lost in thought.

“...I am still good to go."

He turned away from Karenjina and quickly put on the gloves he had removed.

As he tried to escape her gaze, Karenjina moved to the other side and looked down at Jin.

“You should get some rest, too. I'm fine now. Besides, I'm better at "spotting the enemy" than you are."

Karenjina said appealingly, as if she thought Jin was concerned about her health. Missing the point, Jin ignored the brown-skinned female mercenary.

An exasperated sigh fell from her lips. Jin expected her to just walk away, but Karenjina betrayed his expectation and sat down next to him.

With her chin resting on her lap, Karenjina gazed at the small bonfire. The flames that lit up her deep blue eyes looked rather wondrous.

“...Thanks.”

After a few moments of silence, Karenjina spoke.

"We're sleeping alive tonight because of you. If it weren't for you, we'd all be dead in that basement. So, thank you..."

She says it in a softer tone than usual.

Jin peeked at the person next to him for a moment. At the same time, Karenjina turned to look at him.

Their gazes collided and it was awkward for both of them, so averted them almost simultaneously.

“You don't have to thank me."

When Jin replied curtly, Karenjina raised her body and looked up as if she was trying to mend her usual tone.

“I haven't forgiven you for calling me a 'shit,' though."

After he was told, Jin remembered that he might have said something like that. It surely would have been a surprise to his juniors at the academy to hear him use language like that towards someone.

“I don't remember that.”

"Hm...Feigning indifference. That's just like you."

She sniffed in frustration and rested her cheek on her lap. Looking at the flames, she chuckled lightly. The tickling tone of her voice made Jin's mouth unconsciously break into a smile.

“Oh.”

Immediately, Karenjina shouted in surprise.

“What is it?

"No, It's- ...I guess even you can laugh. First time seeing that side of you."

She said with a look of deep surprise on her face.

Immediately, Jin pulled back his smile and raised an eyebrow. He must have relaxed his mind without even realizing. It's a little embarrassing for him to have his carelessness pointed out like that. Jin closed his mouth and there was silence again. The person from his side seemed much softer and calmer than usual.

The fire flickered. The night sky was distant and silent as the dancing sparks of fire were sucked in.

Karenjina rested her shoulders and took a deep breath. It was as if she was trying to let out all the energy she has been holding in.

“But this time it was really bad. Really a miracle that we survived down there."

After a short pause, Jin affirmed with an attentive gesture and replied, "Yeah, that’s right.”

He used short words as an answer, but inwardly he was holding a greater agreement than words.

It was true that Jin's work led to their survival. But if Jin had made a different decision or if he had already used up all of his power, they wouldn't be here tonight.

Karenjina was right, what happened in the basement was indeed, to use her words, incredibly "bad".

There were a few things that were stuck in Jin's mind.

Why did the Puppet Master leave this necromancer doll behind when there were no survivors left on the side of the Librarium or Sector Seven? It's as if they knew in advance that someone would come after this.

And those corpses had waited until Jin and the others had entered the deepest room in the basement before moving. It was as if they had been waiting for them to advance to a position where they could surround them.

(Were we ambushed?)

The situation might have to many holes to fill yet to determine that this was the case. But Jin, who was standing in the middle of all of this, was convinced of the ambush by his gut. They've been waiting for them. He could feel it.

But how did they manage to ambush them? Did they get word that Jin's squad was the only one delayed? Was that why they had set up the trap, knowing that the rest of the squad was coming?

For what purpose?

No, to begin with.

For “whom” was the arrangement?

Jin? Grimwood? The 9th Squad itself? Or else...

“Did you say something?"

Karenjina, who couldn't hear Jin's mumbling, turned to Jin as she threw a twig,too small to be used as firewood, into the fire.

Jin shook his head lightly.

"No, it's nothing."

He didn't want to cause unnecessary confusion by spreading uncertain doubts. If he was going to talk about it, it would be better to do it some other time.

Karenjina smiled bitterly at his curt attitude of not looking at her. She seemed to have gotten used to his deliberate lack of interest in her.

After waiting for Karenjina to gaze to the fire, Jin asked abruptly.

"What are you fighting for?"

When he pushed the disturbing doubts to the corner of his mind, an inexplicable question arose instead.

He thought it was a casual question, but Karenjina blinked a few times with a puzzled look on her face.

“I never thought you'd ask me that kind of question..."

“What do you mean? There isn't really a deep meaning to it."

It was Jin himself who chose his usual attitude, but when everyone feels surprised every time at it, he felt uncomfortable. Karenjina on the other hand was always poking at Jin with hostility, but tonight she had no stabs in her attitude.

Was it because of the fire? For some reason, Jin thought so.

Next to him, Karenjina rested her cheek on her knee again.

"I'm a mercenary and there is only one reason for mercenaries to participate in the war. Money."

“I didn't know that. That is why I asked.”

“Huh? What do you think you know about me?”

“Nothing much.”

I don't know anything. That's why I ask.

Jin waited for Karenjina's words, not coldly and without disrespect.

Karenjina was silent for a moment, then whispered to the flickering campfire.

"...It's about revenge."

He hadn't intended to turn around, but at the unexpected words, Jin couldn't help but look at Karenjina. With her beautiful blue eyes, she shimmered in the light of the fire.

"My drive ability is... 'Seagull'. It is not something I was born with. It is an acquired trait."

There are two types of people who have the ability to use a Drive. There are those who are born with the right qualities and power and as they grow, their power gets active. Then there are those who suddenly awaken it one day for some reason. A Drive is considered to be an ability that comes from the soul of an individual. For example, let's say a Drive is stored in a box. If the box is unlocked and the lid opens naturally over time to reveal the Drive inside, the latter is like the key unexpectedly bursting out of nowhere and the Drive flying out from inside.

Karenjina picked up a branch and continued onward, playing with it.

“I was born in a poor family. When I was still a child, I was bought by a research facility, where there were many 'friends' who came from similar backgrounds. There we became... laboratory animals."

The emotions were fading from Karenjina’s voice as she spoke, as if the fire was dying out along with them. She was always energetic and emotional up to now, so her sudden tone switch comes as somewhat frightening across.

At the facility, Karenjina and her friends were used for various experiments on a daily basis. They were repeatedly subjected to things that were not meant to be forced upon humans. Karenjina did not know what the experiments were for.

However, when most of her friends were disposed of due to their inability to endure the experiments, Karenjina suddenly awakened to her Drive ability.

“This power was the worst. After I got it, I was locked in a room and there was nothing I could do about it. I could hear them consulting about me to use me for their experiments. I could see from a long way off that the researcher who was going to make me suffer through unpleasant things coming this way. But this wasn't the actual hell, I was more afraid that my friends' voices would fade away. I felt myself becoming more and more 'alone'."

One day, she would be the last one. This was the greatest fear of the young Karenjina and it became reality.

The days continued, but one day...

The research facility where Karenjina was working was attacked by a certain mercenary group.

"I was in a room that looked like a prison and then... Grimwood found me.”

Karenjina had a smile on her face as she mentioned the name of the man who was now leading them as their reliable captain.

For her, affection, repose, joy and pleasure were accompanied by his name. Even if she didn't say it, Jin could somehow sense it from her expression.

Feeling like he shouldn't touch that part so casually, Jin asked something else.

“It was a research facility under Sector Seven?”

Is that why she was cooperating as a mercenary with the Librarium that antagonized Sector Seven? Jin's hypothesis was immediately rejected by Karenjina, who shrugged her shoulders.

"It seems that it was a facility of "someone" that neither belonged to Sector Seven nor The Librarium. I don't know their name, but it seems that they were researching the 'soul '."

She guessed she was somehow influenced by that research to awaken to her Drive ability. That's what Karenjina said.

"Is this revenge directed at that 'someone'...?"

Jin's face twisted in a quizzical manner. They used her for experiments and killed her friends. Whether it's an organization or an individual, that's who Karenjina would have to want to take revenge on.

But Karenjina shook her head to the side. Her lips hung up in a wry smile.

“No, no. I have nothing against the research facility. I'm sorry if I misled you, but I was 'sold' to the facility, not 'bought' by them. I sold myself."

“What?”

“I sold myself to the institution.”

When Jin asked again, Karenjina pulled her lips into a light grin and smiled.

“I had two parents and two younger brothers. Life was hard, but I was happy to be with my family. But then the war... The Ikaruga Civil War started and my parents got caught up in it and died. I had to protect my two younger brothers somehow.”

That’s why... she sold herself?

“That in itself was not a big deal.” Karenjina said calmly.

"My family, my two brothers, were the ones I wanted to protect, not a single thought went into my wellbeing, even if I had to led myself get reduced to an animal for researchers."

Her brothers. These words brought back childhood memories to Jin's mind. Jin had an older brother. He had a sister. But now, he had neither.

Karenjina’s eyes narrowed as she spoke.

“...After being rescued by Grimwood, I quickly returned to my house. But there was no one there anymore. It was just wilderness and no trace of it was left behind. I don't know what happened to my brothers."

"Our house was located in..." Karenjina voice seemed to fade upon revealing this. "In the 5th Hierarchical City of Ibukido."

(Ibukido-!)

During the civil war, a research facility set out a massive explosion and left Ibukido in the state it is now apparently. Though depending on who you asked, the reason for a entire Hierarchical City to be wiped are plenty. Before leaving for the frontline base, Jin stopped by at Ibukido on his way to Yabiko. The area where he engaged the Red Devil should be the location of the facility where the accident occurred.

That is where Karenjina’s brothers probably died. After all, they say that only one single girl survived the destruction of Ibukido.

"So I asked Grimwood to let me fight. To fight for revenge!”

Who or what is this revenge against? Jin had a suspicion.

Karenjina is seeking revenge on the one who took her family from her. It's not the research facility that used her as a lab animal and it's not the Ikaruga Federation or the Librarium.

"My revenge is to end this stupid 'war'."

Because war has taken everything away. The existence of this war was unforgivable to her. The word determination is not so easy to use. More like, it seems as if there were any margin for a different choice for Karenjina, her blood would freeze and her heart would stop. That was the kind of determination she had.

Karenjina fluttered her eyelids once and then turned her entire upper body to face Jin. Her dark blue eyes looked much like those of a wild predator.

“Why are you fighting?"

"Huh?"

"For the Kisaragi family? Or for the Librarium?"

“I'm..."

"Before, I thought you were fighting for something as simple as that. But now, I don't think you are 'that kind of Jin'."

As if the answer she sought was already there, Karenjina stared into Jin's eyes. They didn't look like the eyes of a human looking at another human. They were not that complicated and murky. They were pure and beautiful.

Why do you fight? Jin thought to himself when asked by Karenjina.

It wasn't for the Kisaragi family. It wasn't for the sake of the Librarium. He thought that he was just a residue of life, walking the path laid out by a flimsy name.

But now... for Jin of the "now" as Karenjina calls it.

“There is a... promise."

"Promise?"

“I'm gonna make it back alive.”

That's what I promised. To the girl with the name of that flower.

The promise to her meant something a little special to Jin.

(After all, I would hate to swallow a thousand needles...)

"The promise I shredded my little finger for on that childhood day is probably still valid..." Jin mumbled that so no one could hear it.

If you lie, they will make you swallow them.

“So why don't you help us out?"

A third voice came from behind her. Karenjina jumped up and looked back at where the deep voice echoed from with power. A voice so powerful, even though it was kept low so as not to wake the others.

"Grimwood, since when!"

"You have finally come out. You've been eavesdropping for too long."

When Karenjina panicked, Jin sighed and turned his head astoundedly. Karenjina was dismayed by this as well.

“It seems that even our vaunted Seagull can't sense everything all the time.” When Jin chuckled, Karenjina’s ears flared.

“Haha, so I've been noticed. My bad."

Smiling at their exchange, Grimwood comes over, raising his hand to soothe Karenjina.

As he walked up to the fire, Jin saw the color of the flames reflected on his strong body. His smiling, fearless face took on a rather disturbing air, perhaps due to the shadows cast by the flames.

"Jin Kisaragi. You have 'power'. Please lend it to me."

The voice that announced it was full of energy, even more so than the expression on his face.

A thin piece of firewood burns in the fire. The scattered sparks of the fire flutter in the night wind.

Jin stood up and faced Grimwood head-on. There was no smile there anymore. Not for Jin, not for Grimwood.

“What are you going to do with it?"

The moment he asked, he felt his chest beating faster.

Grimwood answered without hesitation. With eyes that were far too serious to speak of dreams and ideals.

"Jin. Let's end this war."

Part 4

A rough sound echoed through the office at night.

“You gotta be kidding me! What the hell is going on!?”

With a swung of his fist slamming down on his own desk, Kagura yelled at the man standing in front of him.

The man who was being shouted at reflexively cramped and took a step back as he was hit head-on with a sense of intimidation that can almost be seen as violent. He was wearing the uniform of a Librarium guard and had just arrived from Headquarters as a messenger.

Kagura's fists that swang downwards were still shaking with anger. Thereunder a cracking noise was heard that came from the desk broken in half.

“I'm sorry, but it's an imperial decree of the NOL Headquarters.”

Perhaps seeing himself in the destroyed desk, the guard desperately appealed in a thin, trembling voice.

"Imperial decree?"

Kagura's eyes stared at him. It was enough to make the guard freeze like a weak frog, unable to even speak.

Without a second thought, Kagura kicked his now broken desk with even more strength this time. There was a loud cracking sound and naturally, the desk completely shattered. But that didn't stop Kagura from shaking his head wildly and growling in frustration.

"Are they fucking kidding me!! What are they thinking... haven't we killed enough!??”

Instead of Kagura, who couldn't keep his cool anymore, Hibiki, his secretary, picked up a document that had been thrown on the floor after Kagura's rampage. It was an order brought by the guard in form of just a piece of paper.

It stated that they should quickly take down Wadatsumi Castle, the centerbase of the Ikaruga Federation.

A deep forest spread out in the territory of the Ikaruga Federation. The frontline base of the Novus Orbis Librarium stretched out in the middle of it.

It was on the evening of the day after the nightmarish event that Jin and the 9th squadron returned to the city aboard their Ars Magus Vessel.

Against the backdrop of the western sky, where the sun was swelling up, they descended to their familiar base, a place they would consider their home at this point.

The inside of the base was looking rather hectic, even though there was no siren sounding for the sortie.

Several soldiers are gathering supplies and spare equipment, which are usually left spread out in just one place to some extent. In another area, a large number of weapons were being spread out and inspected, while in a communications tent, hurried guards were busily coming and going, occasionally bumping into each other.

It was different from usual. That much was obvious at first glance.

One of the guards jumped out from the side of the vessel and hurried towards the commander's tent. Quickly, Jin grabbed his arm and forcibly stopped him.

“What's going on?”

"Huh? Oh, the 9th squad. You still hadn't heard? We got an imperial decree this morning."

"Imperial decree? From NOL Headquarters?"

This is something they indeed haven't heard. Grimwood stepped forward with his beloved axe in his hand.

The guard who had been halted by Jin was slightly pressured by him and Grimwood, but he told him quickly.

“I haven't heard the details either, but I'm told that we are to take down 'Wadatsumi Castle' immediately."

“Huh...?”

Jin couldn't help but reply in an absent-minded voice. The guards words didn't enter his head as quickly as they should have.

After escaping from Jin's hands, the guard man bowed his head, holding a piece of paper with the message on it.

“I'll hurry up now.”

With that, he hurriedly ran to the battalion commander's tent.

Jin couldn't help but look away with a look of confusion on his face.

There is a civil war going on right now. In order to bring it under control, they will eventually seize the leader of the Ikaruga Federation. For that reason, he could understand why they were attacking Wadatsumi Castle.

But what he didn’t know is the time.

The war situation is not in any way dominated by the Librarium. In fact, just yesterday, they lost a large number of soldiers at Sector Seven's laboratory.

It's not like they have a formation in place to take down Wadatsumi Castle. It was too abrupt, too far-fetched for a plan.

Even so, it is said that it is a direct command from NOL Headquarters, which is the pinnacle of the Librarium, and by extension, its ruler, the Imperator.

"Foolishness... It's too sudden no matter how you look at it. The schedule should still be ahead."

With his thick eyebrows furrowed and deep wrinkles etched, Grimwood stared into the void and muttered in a hushed voice.

There was no time to lose. He ran up to Karenjina with an urgent look on his face.

“Let’s get in touch right away.”

With that instruction, Grimwood ran deeper into the base.

Jin and the others hobbled to the tent of their squad, carrying the expedition's luggage.

Grimwood knows that there is “something” behind this war. Karenjina also knew from what Grimwood had told her. The other soldiers in the squad seemed to have heard of it too, judging by the expressions on their faces.

Now, Jin knows.

The story he had heard last night around the small campfire was going around in Jin's mind like a signal.

— To end the war.

This was a rather important confession, but Grimwood's words were confusing to Jin. 　 Feeling the heat from the small fire on one cheek, Jin looked up at the large man in front of him with a dubious expression on his face.

“...End the war? Yeah, I guess so. There's no reason to oppose it. It's what we're fighting for."

In order to end the war with a victory for the Librarium, he will go to war when ordered, no matter if it is late at night or early in the morning. It is his duty as a soldier.

“I didn't realize you were so green, you idealistic giant."

Jin said in a dumbfounded tone, as if he was making fun of him.

But Grimwood's question was in this serious tone, you could only take it for honesty.

"Well, listen. Jin, if this war were to end, when do you think it would be?"

The large man, his face painted in two colors, the darkness of the night and the burning orange of the fire, was not offended by Jin's agitated tone, nor did he waver in the slightest.

It seems that he had some serious intentions. Reading that, Jin once again, inhaled deeply into the night air.

In the middle of the forest, a decaying laboratory nearby, their friends sleeping exhausted around us, and a burning twig.

The exhaustion that was weighing him down was no longer in the forefront of his mind. He was more concerned about what Grimwood was trying to tell him.

Jin thought quietly in the silence of the night.

“...We have been ordered to annihilate The Ikaruga Federation. Peace negotiations and surrender are unacceptable. Therefore, if the war is to end, it will be when we take the head of Ikaruga’s former head, Tenjō."

Grimwood nodded deeply, "Yes, that's the general gist.”

“But as you know, Wadatsumi Castle, where Tenjō is located, is protected by a special battle formation. If you want to invade it, you have to break the encirclement first and the castle must have an adequate number of troops.”

After all, their leader, Tenjō, is there. If they lost them, they would be defeated. It would not be a half-hearted defense. An easy invasion would cause considerable damage to both sides. In order to defeat Tenjō and win the war, careful preparation and information gathering are essential. However, at this point, the Librarium was probably not prepared to do so.

“I don't have any proof, but I have a feeling that the Librarium is not really planning to bring down the castle. It's more like they're deliberately not dropping it."

If the Librarium really wanted to attack the castle, it would be ready and able to bring it down immediately. However, the Librarium will not do so.

It's not that they were not prepared to attack. It's that they not dare to do so.

Jin slid his gaze across the room and pondered. It's not that he didn't feel what Grimwood was talking about. He often felt uncomfortable with the attitude of the Librarium towards the civil war.

In the past, this would not have been much of a concern for him. He thought it didn't matter what the Librarium had in mind.

But now, that he remembered his little verbal agreement with that certain girl, he felt a little differently.

If the war drags on like this, that girl might end up being a soldier in this war someday. She admired Jin and even followed him to become a guard of the Librarium. Surely, she would aspire to fight in the same way and same war.

He wanted to avoid that.

He didn't want to dip her feet in this shallow, trivial quagmire.

"Even if you're right, why don't they drop the castle and try to end the civil war? What benefit would that be to the Librarium?"

Jin glared at Grimwood with a sharp stare.

There is no reason to continue a war when there is no profit in it. Something has to be done.

Grimwood thought for a few seconds and opened his mouth.

“Jin. You're the next head of the Kisaragi family, right?”

“That's how it's supposed to be, yes, and?"

"The Duodecim exist for the sake of the Imperator. One question, have you ever met the Imperator?"

Why did he suddenly bring up the subject of the Duodecim and the Imperator? Jin shook his head as he wondered.

“No, we've never met."

Then Karenjina, who realized Grimwood's intentions, jumped in front of the big man and held out her hands as if to stop him.

"Grimwood, no more!"

Grimwood stopped Karenjina’s words with a hand as she tried to stop him. The bright, youthful grass-colored eyes that looked at Jin were filled with a glint of light that matched their gentle hue.

"I will tell you now. The head of the Ikaruga Federation, Tenjō Amanohokosaka...

They are the head of the Novus Orbis Librarium, the Imperator.”

For a moment, Jin could not understand Grimwood's words.

He thought he must have a dumb look on his face right now. He couldn't find any words to say, but tried to say something. He opened his mouth halfway and was appalled.

“It's... That's not right. That can't be..."

The words he finally managed to squeeze out were such a cliché.

The Ikaruga Civil War began as a rebellion by the Ikaruga Federation against the Librarium.

The head of the Federation and the ringleader of the rebellion is Tenjō.

And the Imperator is the supreme head of the Librarium who ordered to take it down.

If they are the same person, then who is the Ikaruga Federation opposing and who is the Librarium being revolted by?

Grimwood nodded firmly.

"Yes, there's something fundamentally wrong here. This war is a farce. That's why we think there is 'someone' who is deliberately causing this war and in addition, is working in the dark to take away all forms of convergence.”

"Someone."

The one who established this crazy war and is stalling its end without giving either side a decisive victory.

Grimwood frowned sternly and said with a hint of indignation.

“The Ikaruga Civil War is not a “war”, it's a “farce” where “someone” is delaying the end of the war for some purpose. The war will not end even if we continue to fight as instructed by our superiors. “Someone” else's goal will be accomplished here."

And when "someone's" purpose is complete, the farce will be thrown out, having served no purpose. The pain, suffering, and sorrow will be thrown away, leaving them scattered on the stage.

"So I'm going to destroy that 'someone's' purpose."

If the reason for continuing the war is the purpose of some unknown person, then once that purpose is lost, there will be no reason to continue the war. That was the simple point Grimwood was trying to make.

Simple, but impractical.

It has not been proven here that Tenjō and the Imperator are really the same entity, nor have they identified the "someone" who wants to prolong the civil war. If there is someone, they don't even know if they have a real purpose as Grimwood says.

And yet, if nothing is done, the war will continue as it is. The death toll will be even higher than it is now. Maybe even unwittingly supporting someone else's shallow desires.

“It's up to you whether you believe what I say or not. I'd absolutely like to borrow your power, but I won't force you."

Grimwood calmly told Jin, who remained silent. He huffed and puffed, then he slapped himself hard on the chest with his wide hand.

“If you trust me, I'll tell you how to end the war.”

Let's give a blow to "the one" who is taking advantage of this situation. We're no puppets.

With that said, Grimwood grinned.

Jin looked back quietly. After all, he had not said whether he would cooperate or not this night.

"To end the war."

Jin kept thinking about the conversation he had had with Grimwood last night.

Back at the 9th squad's tent, with nothing better to do, he sat in a chair in the corner and continued to stare at a point in the sky and think. He didn’t think he could trust Grimwood's story in its entirety. but that didn’t mean that he could fully trust the Librarium. In the first place, Jin doesn't trust anyone, because he can't.

So the important thing here is not who or what to trust. It's what Jin himself decides he should do.

(What Should I do... What the hell for? Now it is to end the war, right?)

"Lieutenant Kisaragi?"

When he was suddenly called out, Jin looked up with a gasp.

Honoka was coming right next to him. From the expression on the boy's face, it could be inferred as he gently peeked at Jin that he had a very grim look on his face.

“What's wrong?"

He asked, and Honoka held out a plastic cup. There was warm black tea inside, and a faint scent of lemon.

"...Nothing."

Honoka smiled in relief as he took the cup and sipped it, then passed the tea around to the other people in the tent.

(It's the war.)

If it had not been for this civil war, the boy would not have been sent to this place.

He took a small sip of tea, which was a little astringent.

Then he heard a crunching sound as the entrance to the tent was flung open. Immediately, Grimwood came stumbling in with a hurried and clumsy gesture.

“Is everyone here?”

At the sound of Grimwood's taut voice, everyone in the tent turned and stood up. Jin recognized his voice and his mood immediately. It was work.

Grimwood's face twisted grimly as he waited for everyone's eyes to focus on him.

“Listen up. A new operation is about to begin. The target is Wadatsumi Castle. We will push the front line right up to the castle."

"Wadatsumi Castle? Wait, is that the imperial decree we just heard about?"

Taking a step forward, Karenjina spoke up.

Grimwood looked towards her and nodded.

“All units are being mobilized for a large-scale invasion. The commander-in-chief is Colonel Kagura Mutsuki."

Jin's eyebrows rose at the familiar name. He knew immediately that this was not Kagura's idea of a plan. Even so, he felt he could hear the rage of Kagura, who had been thrown into command as commander-in-chief.

Grimwood sighed loudly.

“The operation starts in six hours. Everyone be ready."

“Six hours? Are you serious? Even though it's such a big operation?"

Honoka was the one who asked back in an upturned voice, the other soldiers were just as dazed by this surprise. How much preparation can be done in just six hours? And it was night. This was a poorly lit encampment.

"Six hours."

Grimwood repeated once more with a pained expression on his face. Taking the upset in stride, Karenjina shook her head weakly.

"That's crazy and will absolutely fail!"

Jin agreed with her on that. He doesn't see that deep thought that went into this mission. What's the advantage of launching from this base in six hours?

They didn't even know where the Federation troops were camped beyond the forest. They also needed to find out if there were any enemy soldiers in the forest. No matter how he looked at it, it seemed to him that this was just an operation to force a breakthrough by putting all the manpower they have at their disposal immediately. This can't be called an operation.

In the first place, the idea of going through this vast forest in the middle of the night was out of the ordinary.

But while everyone knew it was crazy, everyone already understood. This operation was an imperial decree from NOL Headquarters.

A mere piece placed on the battlefield has no veto right.

Part 5

On this day, the Novus Orbis Librarium suffered a historic defeat.

Kagura Mutsuki, the commander-in-chief, was leading the troops on the front line, but he was injured in the middle of the battle when he engaged the cyborg soldiers of Sector Seven known as the "Red Devils” and was forced to retreat.

Colonel Mutsuki ordered the withdrawal of all troops in an attempt to rebuild his troops after being blindsided. However, some officers from the aristocracy, who interpreted his absence as a convenient opportunity, ignored the order and, at their own discretion, notified the entire army to continue the battle.

They were also the ones who took command of the entire army in place of Kagura Mutsuki. Their textbook command of the operation was completely outmaneuvered by the Ikaruga army, which was accustomed to guerrilla warfare, and they were destroyed from one side to the other.

The battle began at eleven in the morning. It was four o'clock in the afternoon when the scattered troops began to retreat at their own discretion, having been driven into a situation where they could no longer fight. There were hardly any soldiers left on the battlefield, and it was 5:00 p.m. when the official announcement of the withdrawal was made.

At that time, Jin was still in the middle of the battlefield.

The sun was just setting over the distant mountains when Jin led his troop of wounded men back to the nearby encampment.

Here and there in the messy tents, which seemed to have been erected in a hurry, soldiers wearing the uniforms of the Librarium sat, collapsed, or walked around busily.

The dizzying clamor was almost too much for the eyes.

Everyone was injured. Everyone was exhausted.

Jin hurried through the crowd, carrying the most seriously wounded of the party he had just brought back on his shoulders, and leading them into one of the tents.

"Lieutenant Kisaragi! Good, you're back."

The one who immediately spotted Jin and called out to him was Honoka, who was in the tent helping to treat the wounded. When he saw that the soldier Jin was carrying was in bad shape, he immediately turned pale, but helped him lay down on a blanket at the edge.

“Where are the medics?”

"They are in the tent two doors down. They will be coming to us in turn."

"If so, first aid until then"

“Yes, sir. But, you, the lieutenant is also injured..."

This was the second time Honoka had told him this.

The first time was when he rolled into this encampment with the 9th squad. This time, when they heard that there was a squad that was running late, they went to help them retreat and had just returned.

“It's no big deal. Give priority to the seriously injured."

Jin said extremely calmly. Honoka was overly concerned, but it really wasn't anything serious. He had a cut on his shoulder and leg, and bruises on his head and arm. All of them were minor.

He was more uncomfortable with the bloodstains he was exposed to here and there from enemies and allies. It seemed to have flown into his hair as well, and when he annoyingly wiped it off, it made an unpleasant crunching sound with the dried blood.

"Damn it!"

The muffled sound of a regretful voice was accompanied by the sound of a rough beating.

Jin looked up at the noise. It was the sound of Grimwood, sitting in a small folding chair, slamming his fist into his thigh.

"Those idiots... were completely ambushed. They're leaking information!"

A voice that still held the tension of the battlefield made the air in the tent go numb.

Karenjina, who had a first aid kit in her hand, turned around with a downcast look on her face.

"Grimwood, be quiet. There's still a lot of people hurt.”

"Oh...... I'm sorry."

Grimwood apologized sincerely, and leaned back against the poor back of his chair.

Speaking of injured people, so was Grimwood. He took a bullet in the back while defending an ally. His head was also bleeding lightly. First aid had been administered, but the bandage that covered his back was stained red in places.

"U-uh...... Gah......"

A weak groan and cough could be heard at Jin's feet. It was the soldier he had just brought in. Karenjina kneeled down beside him to give him first aid and was at a loss for words when she saw his wounded form.

His condition was terrible. He was covered in scars all over his body, as if he had been caught in an explosion, and his face and body were stained with blood and dirt. He had a particularly bad wound on his chest, and every time he moved his chest up and down weakly, clots of blood overflowed from under his clothes.

"Lieu…tenant…Kisa......ragi..."

He called out in a faint voice, his lips already bloodless and trembling.

Jin furrowed his brows and gasped. He realized who this soldier was.

"I never thought that Kisaragi-senpai would save me.......Thank you...very much......."

Behind his lifted eyelids, his large, still-childish eyes were shaking with tears. Even though he was hurt so much, his voice, which was almost snatched away, seemed somehow happy.

Jin took his hand and held it tightly. He spoke to him as softly as he could, as he had tried to do when he was a student.

“You're from the academy?”

"Yes... This year.......Ugh..."

He was about to say it, when he coughed up some clotted blood along with a cough from his throat.

Karenjina whispered Jin's name. Jin nodded shallowly without turning around.

He didn't have any specialized knowledge or skills, but he knew what she hinted at. Even if he were to apply a healing Ars Magus right now, he would not be able to survive.

The soldier's trembling eyes looked up at Jin, as if he was staring at something dazzling. His face was still that of a boy. That was to be expected. He was still a student at the military academy.

"I've always admired...... Kisaragi-senpai and when I heard that you were active on the battlefield......."

“Is that why you volunteered?"

"......Yes. I wanted to fight with you. I...I wanted to be close to...someone like you......”

His voice trembled as he spoke. Tears fell from the corners of his dirty eyes.

Jin heard that for this operation, the Librarium had recruited volunteers from the commoner cadets and sent them in as recruits. That's what he had heard.

It was ridiculous and reckless. There was no way they would put them into actual combat. That's what Jin thought.

Until this very moment.

The recruit, who was supposed to be a student, coughed and spat out blood instead of words as he moved his mouth to say something. The chest of his blue uniform was completely stained with blood. Jin wondered if he could see it. He squirmed on the blanket, shaking his motionless body.

“Am I... going to die?"

"...It's okay. You don't need to worry."

"I don't want to die. I don't...want to die..."

Jin held the boys fleeting hand and put a slight pressure on his fingertips as if he were clinging to it.

The boy from the Kisaragi household clenched his hand.

Until this morning, he was probably still proud and hopeful. He would have been thrilled to be on the same battlefield as the person he admired.

The reality of the scene was chilling.

"Help me...please... Kisaragi Senpa..."

The words he could squeeze out didn't last. The boy died with his lips pursed and his eyes wet with tears, clinging desperately to Jin and finally the hand that had been grasping him lost its strength and slipped from Jin's hand.

A different figure overlapped the image of the boy soldier lying in front of him in the form of familiar red-haired girl in a blue uniform, Tsubaki. She looks up at Jin, her chest turning red with overflowing blood. With a relieved smile, she extends her hand to touch Jin, but her fingers couldn't reach and fell to the cold floor.

The lips that have lost their color call out without a voice. She said “—Jin Niisama.”

"Jin? Hey, Are you okay?"

He was shaken lightly by a voice that came from right beside him, making Jin came back to himself.

Karenjina looked at Jin with a pained, caring expression on her face.

Jin clasped his hands, which were still in the air and nodded. That was all he could do and to him, it felt awfully sluggish.

“...It's okay.”

Yes, it’s fine. Jin was barely injured and was indeed 'okay'. He was not the same as the dead man. He was different. The dead man was not Jin. That boy didn't have the skills to fight, he didn't have the knowledge.

Jin was sure there were many other soldiers like him, volunteering.

Honoka worriedly filled a plastic cup with water and offered it to Jin. Jin took it and drank it all at once. As he watched, Honoka sighly rested his shoulders.

"The details of the operation... Where the hell did this leak come from?"

If it continues to leak, the Librarium will have little chance of winning.

Turning his gaze to the boy soldier with a blanket put over him, Honoka sighed even more. The dead boy looked to be about the same age as Honoka.

“I can't believe they're even inviting students to volunteer. It's unthinkable. It's like recruiting shooting targets. At this rate, even if you're not a volunteer, you can still go to..."

Honoka was about to say something but stopped, looking at Jin's face as if he had noticed something. Jin somehow guessed what he was going to say. At this rate, there might be a replenishment of the military force from the cadets, even if they are not volunteers.

Naturally, a familiar face flickered in Jin's mind.

What Honoka said could definitely happen in the near future.

It might be the girl he saw in his hallucination. Here, with a soiled blanket, the next time she breathes her last, covered in blood.

Looking down at the twitching, dead face of the unnamed junior who had stopped moving, Jin couldn't take it anymore and gently lowered his eyelids and stood up.

"Grimwood."

He stood in front of a large, strong man with a uniform jacket pulled over his naked, bandaged upper body.

“We need to talk.”

Leaning forward on his knees, Grimwood lifted his head only to look back at Jin and made a large nod in agreement.

Chapter 5: Foolish man / Left behind

Part 1

They left the tent where the wounded were crammed and walked through the desolate wilderness.

The night breeze was chilly, cooling down the euphoria of the battle they had been in just a few hours before.

Once they were some distance away from the encampment, Jin stopped in his tracks.

There were many clouds in the sky and the moonlight was scarce. They had come out without lights, so the only source of light allowing them to see each other's faces was from the campfires burning at a distance.

"You said you had a way to end the war. Tell me."

As soon as they faced each other, Jin immediately broached.

The area was dark. The land was empty. From the vantage point, it would have been easy to see from the camp that Jin and Grimwood were together. But at the same time, the clear view made it obvious that there was no one nearby.

Indeed, there was no one nearby.

Grimwood propped up his wounded body with the great axe that had taken the place of his staff, and grinned at him from a distance suitable for their secret talk.

“Are you ready to believe me now?"

"I don't believe it. But if it will end this war, I will cooperate."

“Even at a time like this, you're this weirdly composed."

The reason Jin doesn't say he trusts him is because there are things in his mind that take precedence over that. Ending the war. Whether that will come true with the card that Grimwood has. Grimwood understands that this is the most important thing for him right now.

In the same way, it was important to Grimwood whether or not Jin would cooperate with him, so he trusted in Jin’s cooperation, even if he said he didn’t believe him.

"I've told you before that there is “someone” behind the Ikaruga Civil War who wants to prolong it.”

"Yes. The war is being dragged out for the purpose by these 'someones', right?”

That's the reason why he and Karenjina joined this war in the first place. There is something wrong with this war, it is distorted. There was someone somewhere controlling the war. He couldn’t help but feel that way himself after hearing about that thing. That thing... The specific reason lies in the relationship between Tenjō and the Imperator, but before that, as a mercenary who has spent a long time on the battlefield, Grimwood couldn't help but feel uncomfortable.

This became more apparent the more as he got involved.

Irrational operations, opaque organizational structure and incomprehensible instructions. The development of the war was so amateurish that it was hard to believe that it was the work of a huge organization trying to win the war, the greatest authority in the world no less.

“In the end, we still don't know who's behind all this, but I was able to find out a little bit about its purpose, the purpose of the Second War of Ars Magus... Jin. Have you ever heard of a weapon that can stop the activity of seithr?"

At Grimwood's question, Jin's eyes sharpened.

“I've never heard of it. I don't even think... such a thing can exist."

Since the Dark War a hundred years ago, the world has been flooded with a large amount of seithr. It has become a matter of course to have it.

It is for this reason that the use of seithr has developed and taken root as Ars Magus. Even many transportation systems use seithr, as represented by Ars Magus Vessels. It is not only used in warfare, but is now deeply involved in the daily lives of ordinary people.

"If it existed, it would be a tremendous. It would be able to stop everything in the world, even a war.”

One huge button that could stop the whole functionality of this world. Something worth to fight wars over in some peoples eyes.

Grimwood nodded his head in agreement. If it connects to the acquisition of the weapon in question, it is a reason to continue the civil war that divides humanity.

“You think that's the reason of this 'someone'?”

“Very likely."

When Jin asked sharply, Grimwood replied firmly.

There is no proof that the weapon that stops seithr is the objective of these people. But in his own way, Grimwood seemed to be confident in his assumption. And the most important thing is not whether or not the weapon to stop seithr is a so-called third party objective. The fact that it might exist is what is important.

“If there is a weapon and it's for 'someone' elses purposes, we can't let that person get what they want, no matter what. They are still trying to get it in a civil war that is in such a horrible state. I don't think it will be used for any good purpose.”

What could be more horrible than a war? Grimwood tightened his grip on the handle of the axe that supported his body.

"Then... The one who uses it will be you? Grimwood?"

Jin asked, looking at him carefully.

If they could use a weapon that can stop the activity of seithr, they could stop the war right away. Small weapons, large weapons, Ars Magus that greatly affects these battles, they cannot be used anymore if seithr is gone. Even the vehicles used to move around the battlefield would not work. It becomes physically impossible to wage war.

But that means that the world will be under the control of one persons decision. If Grimwood uses it, then at that moment, Grimwood has taken control of the world.

Is that really stopping the war?

Jin's suspicion went straight to Grimwood.

He shook his stout head in denial.

“It's too much for me to handle. I can't use it. I don't even know how to use it."

“Though, if there was a polite explanation attached, I might think about it a little.” Grimwood smiled as he added that.

Jin couldn't help but gasp along with him. It didn't seem like Grimwood was the type of guy who would read the manual and learn how to use it.

With a single blink of an eye, Grimwood's expression changed to one of sincerity and he assured Jin in his typical unflappable voice.

“I'm going to destroy it when I find it. If someone wants to use the Ikaruga civil war to get their hands on it, then the weapon itself should be gone. Isn't that right?"

“That's a wild theory, but not that wrong.”

And in typical Grimwood fashion, Jin shrugged his shoulders at his logic.

No matter how long you prolong the war, if the objective does not exist, it is meaningless.

“And if there is a weapon that can stop seithr, even if this civil war is over, another one will start and there would be many more over that weapon. We have to avoid that.”

“...I agree."

Jin pulled his chin once toward Grimwood's serious face.

In fact, Jin was more concerned about that than about anyones "purpose."

If a device capable of influencing the activities of seithr were to fall into the hands of any individual, the order of the world would be turned upside down in no time.

Jin held out the Yukianesa he carried to Grimwood to show him.

“If you find it, I'll destroy it.”

Grimwood laughed, his eyes flashing.

“Actually, that's what I was hoping for when I approached you. It must be a huge weapon to stop seithr and I don't think it can be destroyed by a little bit of effort.”

In this regard, he trusted the Nox Nyctores, the Causality Weapon that had a run-in with the Black Beast. In fact, what else can it be destroyed with?

"So it's not me, it's the Nox Nyctores that's of use."

Jin carved a smile on the corner of his mouth even as he used the word self-mockingly.

Now it was Grimwood's turn to relax his cheek.

“That's not all. Rather... The next thing I want your help with is the main issue."

“What is it?"

When Jin tilted his head, Grimwood twisted his head to look behind him. He could see the lights from the torches and bonfires that had been lit. There were still many soldiers moving back and forth, looking busy. There were more than twice as many injured people moaning in the tents.

What Grimwood saw was a tent where the 9th squad was helping to treat the wounded.

"You remember the other day in the basement, don't you? That thing with the Necromancer."

“Yeah.”

“I want you to work with Karenjina to locate it, just as you did then."

It goes without saying what kind of place it is. This is the location of the "weapon that stops the activity of seithr".

“...Is it around this area?"

There was still no sign of anyone around, but Jin couldn't help but lower his voice even lower.

Grimwood growled crisply.

“I've done some research and I think I know where it is, but I don't know the exact location. Even with Karenjina's ability, I couldn't pinpoint it."

So, just as Jin helped Karenjina find the Necromancer that she couldn't identify that night in the basement, now it's time to find out where the weapon was.

He understood what he was saying, but at the same time he had his doubts.

Where did he get the information about the weapon and its location in the first place? Doesn't he know too much information for a simple mercenary?

At this rate, he might still have a story hidden away that Jin has never heard of.

(Does he have any special connections to the Librarium or to the executives of the Ikaruga Federation? Where is this guy chained to?)

A reliable squad leader wielding a large axe. Jin couldn’t help but feel a disturbing shadow over this man that can't be contained in such a position.

He still couldn’t trust him.

(No. I didn't trust him in the first place.)

A thought popped into Jin's mind, as if to excuse himself. He was not trying to work with Grimwood because he trusted him, but because his arguments spoke to his own interests.

But there was something that was bothering him, because he was unhappy that Grimwood hadn't revealed everything to him, so that he wouldn't have the option of not trusting him.

(Maybe it's that I want to trust...)

He didn’t even know how to do that. He was too inexperienced. Maybe he was a little taken aback by the trusting relationship between Grimwood and Karenjina and her fellow mercenaries, as if logic doesn't matter.

"...Okay. Let me help you."

“Thank you. I am relying on you.”

"But remember. If you ever try to get on the side that disrupts the order of this world, I will cut you down without mercy."

Even if that process stops the war, it must be stopped if it results in a disruption of order. This was not a sense of justice or morality, but an instinctive feeling engraved in Jin. A higher "power" obligating him to restore "order" for the world. If it disturbs the world, it will be eliminated. No exceptions.

Grimwood looked back into Jin's sharp, glaring eyes and saw a contrastingly calm color in them.

"All right, then. When it looks like that to you, don’t hesitate."

And then, with a hand that formed the shape of a hand knife, he made a gesture as if to cut his own neck. There was no alertness here.

That was a little less interesting to Jin. The more Grimwood trusted him, the more he felt a kind of innate difference between himself and him.

“...For now, you don’t seem to be 'evil'."

This was the extent of trust that Jin could show to Grimwood now.

When he focuses his attention, Jin can see. It's a black thread that leads to "evil" that disturbs the order of the world.

But it's fun around Grimwood and his squadron.

He couldn't fully trust this Grimwood fellow, so Jin decided to trust in his own abilities, which only he could understand and which were too sensual to share with others.

"Well, now that that's settled, let's get moving. When do we leave?"

Grimwood raised the body that had been supported by the ax. Looking at the white bandage wrapped around his tight chest, Jin thought for a few seconds.

“How's your wound?"

“It's no big deal."

The reply was immediate. It seemed that Jin already knew what he wanted to do.

Then there will be no need to hold back. Jin told him as he started to walk away.

“Right then."

“Roger that," came a low, gruff voice from the man walking right next to Jin.

Part 2

Upon returning to the camp, Grimwood gathered Karenjina and the three soldiers.

The location was on the outskirts of the encampment.

The first aid for the injured was finally completed, but the real medical care has yet to come. There might have been injured people or stragglers from other units still rolling in. In the midst of the confusion of information leaks, each of them had to do what they could now. Under such circumstances, no one cared if a few soldiers gathered in a corner and talked in private.

Briefly, he explained to Karenjina and the others the story of their trip out to the wilderness just a short while ago.

When she was told they were leaving right now, Karenjina hung her eyes and grabbed Jin by the chest.

"Are you insane!? Grimwood has just been treated for his injuries and just look at all this chaos here! Are we supposed to just walk out of here!?"

Karenjina looked back at the base and spread her arms, asking Jin to look at the situation.

From a distance, the state of the base could be objectively viewed.

They looked like they were able absent, not wishing to be here and just confused. No one even looked back when Karenjina shouted. Everyone had their hands full with themselves and their surroundings. Jin reaffirmed the correctness of his decision and pulled away from Karenjina’s hand.

“Because of this distortion in order, we have to.”

"What?"

Karenjina’s indignation was against the act of abandoning her friends even if they were fighting within the same framework of the Librarium.

She took the initiative in the tent to give first aid to the injured, as she had some experience in this area. There must have been many badly injured people that she could not help but to feel sorry for.

"But now is not the time to let cheap sympathy and camaraderie drag us down." Jin spoke with calm, emotionless eyes as he looked at Karenjina and the soldiers.

“It's about a two-hour walk from here to the place Grimwood is trying to find. It would be too conspicuous as an extra-operational activity if we headed there after things had settled down. Now it's the perfect opportunity to go off on our own without attracting suspicion."

Karenjina's lips tightened. Her fist that she clenched as she lashed out was unraveled

Jin continued.

“Furthermore, this area has just finished a large-scale battle. There are no extra civilians wandering around, liners have been temporarily suspended and civilian facilities, if any, have been closed. In addition, the amount of seithr consumed is far greater than normal.”

This was after a large number of weapons and Ars Magus had been used. Seithr drifts in from everywhere, but it does not recover instantly. If it is consumed locally in a short period of time, the amount of seithr in the air will temporarily drop to a certain level, making the use of Ars weaken if even impossible. That was now.

"I see... Less noise you mean, huh..."

Karenjina voiced her admiration bitterly.

Karenjina’s Seagull Drive probes her surroundings all at once. The more targets she investigates, the more confusing and ineffective the information will be, just as it was when she was underground with the dead.

But now, she should be able to find what they were looking for in a much clearer and a more orderly state than usual.

It's now or never. In fact, now was the best time.

Jin's words gave Karenjina and the others an immediate sense of resolve.

“All right. Let's go."

Karenjina said, and the other soldiers nodded.

Packing the bare minimum, Jin and the others quickly slipped out of the small encampment and ran through the uneven wilderness, skirting the shadows of the rocks.

Honoka was left behind on purpose. They didn’t even explain to him that they were slipping out.

It all started when Grimwood told them that he could not be trusted. Karenjina and the others have been working with Grimwood for a long time now and they were fighting with the same goal of ending the civil war.

But Honoka was different. He was a guard assigned by the Librarium to serve as Jin's caretaker and monitor. If anyone was going to leak information about Grimwood and the others selfish actions to the NOL, it would be Honoka first and foremost. Honoka was in a position where the Librarium should take precedence over mercenaries, Jin and squad members. He didn't trust him and he didn’t think it was in their best interest for him to be drawn into this.

Jin agreed with that decision.

Jin, more than Grimwood, had a hard time trusting Honoka.

On the way, he ran and hurried to reach his destination in the shortest possible distance while letting Karenjina use her "Seagull" to grasp the terrain.

It was about an hour and a half after leaving the encampment when Grimwood stopped and said that it was around that area.

The landscape had changed from a wilderness to a mountainous area. Although one might say, the land has probably turned barren. The trees were thin and weak, and vegetation was scarce. The ground seemed to be rocky, with complex silhouettes forming here and there from the rocks jutting out from the earths surface.

Upon finding a place as open and flat as possible, Karenjina put her hands on the ground.

"The range is quite large. It's a bit overwhelming, but..."

Standing a little further away, Grimwood looks apologetic.

Karenjina looked up and shook her head so loudly that her gathered hair swung from side to side.

“This is my job. Let me do it. I'll use all my strength."

“Take it easy. The less seithr you have, the less noise you'll make, but the heavier your burden will be. Worst-case scenario..."

“I know."

Crisply, Karenjina interrupted Grimwood's words.

In order to activate the drive, seithr is consumed as energy. However, if the output is greater than the amount of seithr that can be consumed, it is the soul of the practitioner that will be used up as an energy source.

Worst case scenario, you die.

“Jin."

With her hands still on the ground, Karenjina now was looking up at Jin. Instead of replying, Jin's eyebrows moved slightly.

Deep, profound eyes that had the color of the night sky stared straight into Jin's green eyes with the purity of a wild beast.

“I don’t like you.”

"...I know."

“But..."

A grin. The fleshy lips carved a challenging smile and disappeared.

“I trust you.”

Jin was bewildered and at a loss for words when he was told.

Trust. That again. He was getting fed up. Anger swelled inside. Grimwood, Karenjina and the others were quick to look at him that way.

Ignoring Jin's furrowed brow, Karenjina took a deep breath, focused and lowered her eyelids.

“...Let’s begin”

She strongly put it into words. The next moment a dull gold light emerged from her hand, and the light spread out in an intricate pattern.

The scale was different from what she had viewed in the basement of the research facility of Sector Seven. The light spread out and traced the surface of the earth at 360 degrees.

“...Ku”

A muffled groan escaped from Karenjina's throat. Her brown forehead was sweating profusely. The small amount of seithr was quickly consumed. Even so, Karenjina expanded her range.

Not yet. She still couldn't find it. Karenjina shouted as she continued to expand her range.

“Jin, do it!"

Without pausing, Jin stood behind Karenjina and pressed his palm against her back. His senses sharpened as he followed Karenjina's concentration.

When he closed his eyes, he could see the dull gold light emitted by Karenjina spreading out all around him. Jin searched, in the light that spread so finely and traced the terrain

Black... A black line.

They were easy to see. Rather, there were too many of them. Countless black lines running in Karenjina’s lights.

They were all stretched straight toward a point.

(What the heck is this...?)

He had never seen a line like this before. Most of the time, lines were more or less irregular, wavy and curved. However, the lines that he saw now were all straight, undisturbed and without hesitation, as if they were drawn by a machine, converging on a single point.

Jin followed Karenjina's consciousness further to the end of the black lines.

The distance was about ten kilometers from here.

(Where is... What is this line? Where are you gathering...)

He wanted to know where the line led to. As he desperately traced the line, he suddenly felt a shock as if he had been pushed from the inside and Jin collapsed on the spot.

"Uhh!"

It was such an unexpected shock that he fell to the hard ground without even taking any precautions. He let out a distracted and pathetic voice. A terrible headache followed. It was as if his brain was being pushed open from the inside. At the same time, a wave of nausea rushed through his internal organs, and Jin quickly clamped his mouth shut.

At the feet of the fallen Jin, Karenjina had collapsed. Unlike Jin, she was already unconscious and was convulsing violently.

“Karenjina!”

Grimwood rushed over and held her, but there was no response. The spasms only became somewhat more mild.

One of the soldiers took her pulse. From the look of relief on his face, it seemed that her pulse was fine. The blood from her nose slid down her cheek and stained it.

"...Are you okay?"

Swallowing down the nausea and holding his head against the terrible headache, Jin sat up.

Karenjina must have been under a load many times greater than the one he had been under. Even so, she did not stop the Drive until the limit. If her survival instinct hadn't refused to continue, she might have used it until she really died.

"She's just unconscious, but breathing fine."

One of the soldiers spoke up and Grimwood finally felt relieved as he laid the small body he was carrying on the ground. His brown fingertips, not even slightly relaxed, rubbed the soil and drew short lines.

“Did you find it?”

Grimwood asked Jin in a low voice.

Jin stared into the distance to the west. He remembered clearly where the lines had gathered.

"Yeah."

“Really?”

Without answering Grimwood, who leaned forward to ask, Jin stood up unsteadily.

His gaze remained fixed on the west, where the line had run.

“That’s.... What the-?”

When he remembered it with his limp brain, a tar-like fear crept up from his feet to his head. His body naturally cowered and trembled.

He has never felt this way about these lines before. Was this fear? Or was it something else?

His head was numb and he couldn’t think straight.

It was not coherent, but that invasive discomfort at the end of the line that seemed to absorb all evil was stuck to the back of his skull and won't come off.

Jin shook his head, trying his best to push that tremendously disgusting image to the edge of his consciousness so that it would not interfere with his minimal thinking.

“Th-There's something about ten kilometers west of here. It was very different, disgusting to be exact. Never was there nothing else that looked like this, so it was probably there."

"Ten kilometers... So far, huh."

With a sigh of surprise, Grimwood looked down at Karenjina.

The range of Karenjina's "Seagull" is usually limited to a radius of about one kilometer. If it reached ten kilometers away, that means she has searched a hundred times the usual area at once. With a sly grimace, Grimwood moved Karenjina into the shade of a nearby rocky outcrop. Here, the jutting rocks and the short trees that nestled against them would conceal her from a distance.

That would mean the choice to leave her here.

“Are you sure?"

"It's not like there were any enemy soldiers hiding in the vicinity, judging from using the Seagull earlier. But even so, leaving a woman alone in the middle of nowhere like this was a moralists unnecessary sense of ethics poking at something as trivial as the conscience."

Grimwood replied to Jin's question as he backed away from Karenjina.

"I wasn't planning on taking her with me originally. If it weren't for Seagull, I wouldn't have told her about this either."

With that, he turned away.

“I see." was all Jin said as he stepped out in front of Grimwood. Now that Karenjina had fainted, Jin was the only one who could see their destination.

(Ten kilometers west...)

That's where the black line ended. Was it the weapon that Grimwood was talking about to stop seithr, or was it something more sinister than that?

Still having that uncomfortable feeling inside his head, Jin ran down the slope where the earth was exposed.

The night had been quiet, but now there the wind blew strong.

It wasn't a dark night anymore. The moon must have risen very high.

The clouds that had covered the sky thickly were being swept away by the strengthening wind. The navy of the deep night resembled the color of the eyes of a female soldier, cowering in the shade of a rock.

The wind rustled the thin branches of the short, overgrown trees.

Karenjina, still unconscious, had not opened her eyes. Her limp, weak body laid on the dry ground, her cheeks motionless, her hair curling in a peculiar way.

Beside her, there was a foot.

It was a corner of the wilderness where a war was going on nearby. And yet, a pair of brown leather shoes with not a speck of dirt on them was right next to the fallen and sleeping Karenjina.

“Oh dear, you were left behind.”

The owner of the foot spoke to her with theatrical sympathy.

Karenjina couldn’t hear him.

The owner of the leather shoes bent his tall, slender body into an exaggerated peek at the face of the woman who was not speaking.

The clouds were peeled away and the moon appeared, illuminating the earth with its cold moon white color.

“Oh, I feel sorry for you."

Brown leather shoes, a black suit, and a black hat. The green-haired man grinned in a sadistic manner.

Part 3

The clouds that had covered the sky had gone away and the white moonlight was faintly illuminating the ground.

Before they knew it, the reddish-brown soil under their feet had changed into a grayish pebbly soil.

He walked down the gentle slope, then up, then down again. After repeating this process several times, Jin stopped for the first time in a while at the destination he had reached.

“This is it.”

Grimwood stepped forward from behind Jin. One of the soldiers illuminated it with a light from his equipment.

As Jin and Grimwood looked at each other, they saw a cave in the rocky wall, a mixture of rock and earth. It was not a natural cave. The entrance was chained, and the dark passage was reinforced with wood.

“It has the air of a mine... Do you think it’s a coal mine?"

The soldier with the light said and another soldier gave him a difficult look.

“Coal mines, who uses coal nowadays?”

“Who knows?”

“No, it doesn't look like a coal mine."

It was Jin who said this to the soldiers who were tilting their heads. He walked up to the entrance of the cave and picked up a small, black ore lying there.

Only about the size of a thumbnail. It had a tough texture and was much lighter than it looked. When he put pressure on his fingertips, it cracked and crumbled like dry clay.

A blue light flashed momentarily on the small section. Jin raised an eyebrow slightly.

“It's the same as the crystallized seithr that the Titan used back then.”

The rock giant that ran amok in the forest when Jin first went out with the 9th squad. Come to think of it, they still didn't know who on either side of the camp had summoned that Titan.

“It was probably made here."

Grimwood muttered bitterly as he stared into the cave.

“Our enemies have ties to the Librarium, the Ikaruga Federation and even Sector Seven. Coming along with all their distributing weapons.”

He took out a light from his equipment and led the way, illuminating the area as he went.

(Again...)

The entrance to the not-so-narrow cave was filled with huge bodies, and as he followed Grimwood's back, Jin's mind dripped with disquiet. Grimwood said that it was not a prediction, but a fact that the "enemy" was distributing weapons in various directions. Perhaps it is true.

But then, where did he find out? How did a mercenary who was running around the battlefield day in and day out know so much? Grimwood was the one who connected all the dots, wasn’t he?

(Oh well. If he's an “enemy”... Then I'll cut him down.)

Jin warned himself to not be too eager in trusting him as he leaned toward the man walking in front of him as the captain. When the time comes, he won’t let his cutting edge wander.

The cave soon turned into a long staircase. The stairs seemed to go on and on, downward with no end in sight.

"Hmm......"

After more than ten minutes of descent, Grimwood stopped and groaned quizzically.

It was a dead end. There was a landing slightly wider than the width of the stairs and the landing was cut off by a flat wall of earth.

But something didn't feel right.

“Grimwood, step aside.”

Pushing his body forward, Jin slowly pushed the tip of his Yukianesa against the earthen wall. The tip of the scabbard touched the wall and then dug in. The space was filled with ripples that can described as plunges into water, shaking the view of the earth wall.

He dug his sheath further into the ground and eventually buried himself in the earthen wall.

Then the view Jin looked at changed. The stairs, which had been a dead end, turned into a passageway and continued onward.

“Camouflage Ars Magus.”

When Jin said it out loud, it seemed to convey the understanding to the rest of the group. After Jin slipped through the wall and entered the back, Grimwood and the others followed him inside.

He wondered if the air had changed a little. It was hotter and more humid than before.

He had the chilling feeling that he had entered the body of a reptile. It was not a good feeling.

“Stay sharp.”

Muttering quietly, Grimwood turned off the light. Following suit, the soldiers who had their lights on also turned them off. 　 Then it was pitch black, he couldn't see a thing around him, not even the faintest bit.

It was not so easy to stand out in the dark with lights on. Now that they had passed through the camouflage Ars Magus, they should consider this to be enemy territory. Jin also pulled himself together and moved forward, keeping an eye on his surroundings.

As long as they were careful, the darkness was not a problem if they just wanted to keep going. They put their hands on the wall and walked forward, using each other's breathing as a guide to the distance.

“It's going downhill...”

One of the soldiers behind them said. The road was indeed gently descending.

After descending so many stairs, were they still going down? Growing more cautious with each step, Jin carefully pumped his saliva into his thirsty throat.

There was one more thing that grew on them as they went on. The smell.

It was a stinking smell that Jin, Grimwood and the other soldiers remembered. Rather, they were familiar with it for some time now

It was the smell of death. Naturally, they all remembered the incident with the ghouls in the basement. Come to think of it, the lift had gone down a long way that time too.

"Oh, light."

Jin, who was walking in the lead, took a small breath and sharpened his voice in alarm.

He saw a pale blue light down below. Once they reached the bottom of the hill, they arrived at the place where the light had been. It was a room with a domed ceiling. At least it was much larger than the two-connected tents of the ninth squad. The walls did not seem to be bare earth, unlike the passageways they had come through. The area was dark and the color and texture were visibly not clear, but it was seamless.

There was nothing that looked like lighting anywhere in the room. The blue light that Jin saw was actually water that was shallowly soaking the floor of the room.

There was water all over the floor, almost to the level of Jin's ankles. The water glistened with a blue light, illuminating the area around his feet.

When he stepped on it, it felt a little heavier than water. Still, it was not so heavy as to interfere with his walking.

“...Liquid seithr?”

As he said this, Grimwood walked past Jin, who stopped to look around, and dragged the sound of water to the center of the room.

The light was the same as the momentary glow of the section of mineral Jin picked up at the entrance. But he didn’t know where it was coming from.

“Captain, up there.”

One of the soldiers pointed at the ceiling. Jin looked up with Grimwood. The ceiling was inscribed with what looked like ancient letters, spreading out in a circle around the apex of the dome. In the center of the circle of letters was a coffin-like object.

“Jin, can you read?"

Grimwood asked, looking up at the letters with his eyes. Jin was also looking up at the strings of letters on the ceiling, looking for something to help him decipher them.

"No, I've never even seen them before..."

"Oh, yeah. Ancient ruins or something?"

Such is the look of the place. Giving up on deciphering the words on the ceiling, Grimwood turned his head around. He stopped his gaze at a point on the wall.

"This may be a hit"

As Grimwood said this, there was what looked like a door in the corner of his eye. The border of the wall, not found anywhere else, was made up of squares. There was more to it in the back.

Grimwood made his way to the door, making a sound of the water. He folded the handle of his great axe on his back so that he could remove it at any time and placed one hand on the handle of his back weapon.

The soldiers followed, guns ready. After some delay, Jin also started walking. But... Suddenly.

He could hear a voice.

— Niisama.

A young girls voice, stuttering. Jin could not immediately remember whose voice it was. But he knew it was a voice he should remember. It was a voice he had heard before.

At the same time, a feeling of discomfort like mud rose up in him.

He reflexively reached out and summoned Yukianesa, then turned around and positioned himself low.

“Jin, what's wrong?"

As he opened the door, Grimwood turned and asked. Without looking in his direction, Jin replied sharply.

“Go ahead.”

“But-."

On the verge of saying something, Grimwood bottomed out his words.

He felt a presence from somewhere. Something was there. It was an overwhelming and bizarre presence that grabbed up every instinctive fear in Grimwood. Even though he couldn't see it yet, his throat slumped and he heard the sound of air escaping.

The water at his feet, the walls and ceiling right there, and the empty space in front of him all seemed to be coming at him with mass and pressure, and he felt frightened. The fear of not knowing the reason or identity of such a thing led to more threads of fear that sewed Grimwood's spirit.

"Jin... This is..."

“Go! You're in the way."

He spat lowly. Grimwood understood what was unreasonable in that harsh but overwrought voice.

He pushed the soldiers, who were already hunched over and trying to escape to the next room, into the door and turned around.

“Finish up quickly!"

"I know, I know. I’ll catch up soon."

With Jin's reply, Grimwood and the nineth squadron left the room.

At that moment, the door slammed shut behind Grimwood with a sound like scratching metal.

With no time to interrupt anything, the doorway was blocked, and Grimwood and his soldiers held on to it, pulling and pushing with all their might, but it did not budge.

"Damn it!"

Unable to bear it, Grimwood slammed his fist against the door. The impact was oddly dull.

There was no sound from the other side of the door. Jin must have heard the door close, but he didn't see any reaction to it.

"What should we do, Captain...?"

One of the soldiers asked anxiously.

Beyond the door was another passage. It stretched without side passages into the unseen depths of darkness.

“...Jin said he would catch up. Let's just trust him now and move on."

If anything, at least a Nox Nyctores would be able to destroy this door.

He was very curious about the presence he had felt in that room, but there was nothing he could do standing here. Grimwood began to walk down the corridor with his men behind him.

Part 4

When the door was completely closed, the area was filled with silence. It was so quiet that the sound of his own breathing and heartbeat became noisy.

Jin stood in the shallow water and focused his attention. He was aware that he was separated from Grimwood and the others, but he didn't have time to focus on that right now.

— Kill.

An impulse whispered in his head.

— Kill. Kill. Kill. Slay. Murder. Slaughter.

Regardless of his intentions, the nauseating feeling of something that was not himself were penetrating Jin's nerves like cold water seeping in.

But no. This was not the voice he heard earlier.

It was not like the voice of Yukianesa, who always comes up with something to shake Jin's spirit and give him the will to kill in the hand that holds the sword.

Earlier, the voice that he heard was...

“.......Rugrurururugrururu...”

In place of the girls voice, which had sunk somewhere in his memory, he heard what sounded like the low roar of a beast. But at the same time, a voice with a strange undulation that would never be uttered by a beast approached from beyond the darkness where Jin was looking, beyond the blue glow of the liquid seithr.

Suddenly, the darkness moved. A shadow abruptly struggled as if it had a mass in the deep blackness and without a sound, a reddish-black line ran like a crack across its surface.

A pair of large eyes blinked at Jin.

And out of the darkness, it emerged.

A large head that seems to have developed only a jaw.

It crawled out of the darkness and fell to the surface. It didn't have a clear torso under its head, and it seemed to be dragging the darkness it had crawled out of.

It was as if only the neck had been forcibly pulled out of the torso and some of the flesh had been peeled off. The head was large and the top was higher than Jin's. Jin would be like a toy to that head. He could easily be swallowed whole.

But even so, Jin felt that the head was still on the small side of its kind. He didn't even know what kind of head this was, yet he was able to tell that.

Jin noticed that his breath was trembling. It was terrifying. The head that appeared in front of him. The very existence of it. The fact that it existed. His soul shriveled up in fright.

But a wave of murderous intent washed over it.

The urge to kill shook Jin.

His head was a mess. He wanted to escape, but he wanted to kill. He wanted to kill it even though he was afraid. He wanted to slash at it, cut off its jet-black flesh, bathe it in black blood and gouge out its red eyeballs.

Kill, Kill. Slay. Murder. Slaughter. Destroy.

"Argh! Shut up a already!"

The voice in his head was ranting and raving, and Jin resisted by biting his lips.

It was the voice of the Nox Nyctores, Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa that urged him to kill. It was Yukianesa's will. If he let his impulses take over and slashed upon the beast, Jin's consciousness would be easily swallowed and bend Yukianesa's will.

Whether looking at Jin or Yukianesa, the black head trembled as if it were rattling. The jaws, lined with huge black fangs, opened wide.

"Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh!"

It barked in a voice so loud that it gave the illusion of the earth shaking.

That was the signal to start the battle.

"Haaaaaaa!"

The water that had dissolved the seithr splashed up and Jin ran.

The urge crawling up his neck made Jin pull out his sword. The silvery white blade froze the air around him. As the cold air spread, a black feeling spread inside Jin.

“I'll kill you!”

Shouting unconsciously, Jin swung his sword sharply at the throat of the head.

The slash made a sound of wet flesh and cut off the heavy object.

But it was not the throat of a black beastly head, but one of the countless black tentacles protruding from an irregularly shaped body part extending from it.

The tentacle that flew through the air splashed up and fell behind the head. As it was, the tip of the tentacle melted into the water and disappeared. The rest of the tentacles attacked Jin at once. Some glided across the surface of the water, while others leapt up high and swung down like whips.

Jin responded to this with the blade of Yukianesa.

He flashed his blade to the left and right, cutting and discarding at random.

But no matter how many tentacles he slashed, the number did not decrease. In fact, the number seems to be increasing instead, and finally, one of the tentacles that he couldn't handle and missed, plunged deeply into Jin's abdomen in a horizontal cut.

"Fu...gu."

His lungs rumbled as he was forced to exhale. He was blown away with such force that he slammed into the wall behind him and fell into the shallow water.

"Ku... Cough!"

When he woke up, choking on the air he hadn't been able to inhale properly, countless tentacles were already closing in on him. He jumped sideways to avoid them and rolled in the water covered with seithr. As if chasing after him, the tentacles slammed into him one after another.

The flying droplets fell like rain.

Jin managed to pull himself up, shoveling his wet sticky hair into a muddled mess and raising his sword.

The sliced tentacles flew up again and fell into the water, melting and disappearing.

The tentacle that had been severed in the middle trembled finely and immediately regenerated from its cross section. The black whip that flew out came at Jin's face.

He almost evaded the powerful thrust, but the force of the graze sliced through Jin's ear and shoulder. The pain that raced through Jin's body disturbed his nerves. Something black was slowly rising from the bottom of his stomach.

He groaned and tried to swallow it, and when he looked up, he thought he saw a black head... laughing at him.

It ridiculed him.

Red eyes twisted, deeply cleft corners of mouth distorted, fangs lined up.

The inside of Jin rumbled.

"Ah...... Hah... Aah. AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!"

— Kill, kill. Kill the beast. Kill that pitch, black “BEAST!”

His throat trembled, and an unbearable scream rose up. His lungs filled up. His throat collapsed and he stopped breathing. It was as if black water of murderous intent began to circulate through his body instead of his blood. It was as if he was being swallowed whole.

He became awre of so immediately.

But before he could resist, a black emotion rushed in and engulfed Jin from the inside.

"Come on, this isn't like you."

“...Huh?”

Jin's movements stopped as he was startled.

He wondered if I had finally lost his mind. If not, he might have been temporarily addicted to the seithr that soaked his feet.

A voice that shouldn't have been heard over any other voice, but it was so close.

A calm, low, gentle voice. Yet, because he spoke with a coarse inflection, his voice sometimes sounded intimidating and even scary.

The voice of his brother.

"Don't get so hot tempered, you idiot."

It was right behind him. Or maybe it was at his feet. Anyway, the voice of his brother, who had no form, spoke to him as if he was melting into the air around him.

With a single breath, it washed away Jin's spirit, which was coated with Yukianesa's murderous intent.

Like a receding wave, Jin's heart became lighter. The sludge-like heaviness recedes from his internal organs.

His vision stabilized and his breathing was normal.

"Huh... Hehehehe... Yeah, that's right. This is not like me."

Wiping his dirty mouth, Jin smiled thinly.

Jin Kisaragi is calm and collected. In his school days, he was so polite to everyone that he was well-liked and was even made student president.

If he could talk to his brother about such things, he wondered how he would look at him.

Would he be surprised? It would be nice if he was, but he was sure he didn't know much about the school system, so he would probably just ignore it, without much interest.

Whatever it was, his brother is gone.

Jin killed him.

Thinking of this, his disturbed mind was flattened and he felt terribly calm.

"My brother is dead, so there's no one left for me to kill."

There was no one left to kill that can scorch his soul and freeze his heart.

Jin straightened his back and sheathed "his" Yukianesa, eyeing the head of that black beast. His hands remained on the hilt and he sat back.

“I just want to get rid of you."

(To go to the back of this room. To catch up with my friends who went ahead of me. I can't just sit around and wait forever.)

The beasts head roared and another wave of tentacles attacked Jin.

One by one, Jin slashed them away, dodging those that don't make it in time.

There was already no killing intent or fear. His cool green eyes calmly read the movement of the beast's attack. The trajectory was not complicated. He could dodge it if he calmed down. He didn’t have to focus on one thing, just look at the whole picture and slash as necessary.

The tentacles sliced off by Yukianesa fall off and disappear again.

At that moment, Jin noticed that the surface of the liquid seithr had taken on a blue glow. As if to absorb the light, a section of the beasts tentacles lit up and new tentacles regenerated from it.

In short, it sucked up the seithr in the water and used them to rebuild new parts of its body. In other words, the neck itself does not store an inexhaustible supply of seithr.

“...I see, that's how it works."

That small realization gave him a number of ideas on how to deal with it. So, he jumped backward to dodge the tentacles that came at him from above and below, as if they were trying to bite him and as he landed, he thrust Yukianesa to the floor.

At that moment, the water that had spread across the floor of the room, starting with Yukianesa, froze.

The black head reacted as if in agitation. Both he and his tentacles were half-buried in the ice, unable to move. Even so, a few of the tentacles flailed about, shattering the ice and lifting it up, but before they could swing down, Jin's ice blade struck through every last one of them.

The shredded tentacles fell and bounced on Jin’s ice. They didn’t soak up the seithr dissolved in the water and regenerate.

Perhaps sensing its inferiority, the beasts head roared.

As he shook his neck alone, countless cracks appeared in the ice. Without a pause, he jumped up as if to raise himself up, and his neck escaped the ice.

It went straight for Jin.

With that in mind, Jin swung his sword.

A blue-white light ran. Countless ice blades stuck out from below and pierced the flying black neck. The ice that spread out from there covered the neck, turning it into a lump of ice.

“Shatter...”

The flash that Jin released shattered it into pieces.

The cool, sharp sound of shattered glass work littered the area. The ice fell onto the still frozen floor and shattered again, eventually leaving no trace.

Jin puts his sword in its sheath and looked down at Yukianesa.

That murderous voice was no longer heard. It was quiet as if it were just a plain sword. The black head has been taken care of.

“You've taken up a lot of time...”

He wondered if Grimwood and the others have already reached the back. He said he would be right behind them, but it would be bad manners to keep them waiting and worrying too much. Jin turned his back on the frozen room and stepped towards the door leading to the back to follow Grimwood and the others.

Part 5

The pathway leading to the back of the building seemed to curve as they walked along the wall. A soldier walking right behind Grimwood, who was hurrying ahead without turning on the lights to avoid being spotted by the enemy, called out to him in concern.

"Lieutenant Kisaragi is all right, isn’t he?"

They couldn’t imagine what was going on behind the closed doors.

But just before the door closed, Jin noticed something and braced himself, which made the soldiers feel uneasy inside.

Grimwood replied calmly, without breaking stride.

"He'll be fine. He's the man chosen by the Nox Nyctores. In fact, it would be more dangerous for me not to be with Jin."

“I know, right?”

No matter what happens, Jin will get through it. Everyone, including Grimwood, had absolute faith in his abilities.

Rather than that, one person behind him said in a muffled voice.

“Hah.”

That was all Grimwood said.

He was worried about Jin, but he was more worried about the smell that was getting worse as he went deeper. The dense stench of death was almost nauseating. What could be in the back? He didn’t want to see another pile of corpses like the last time, Grimwood thought to himself.

Eventually, the passage was cut off and a gaping hole opened up at the end of it.

It was bright on the other side. A flaming orange light leaked out and illuminated the end of the passage.

They heard some kind of mechanical noise.

Cautiously and distractedly, Grimwood peered inside.

Then his eyes widened at what he saw.

“What is this...?"

He wandered into the room as if he were being sucked in.

It was a large room. The ceiling was domed and in the middle of it was a large......

“Gahh!”

“Wha-!?”

Suddenly there was a sound like the simultaneous crushing of air and a puddle of blood and Grimwood turned around.

The soldier next to him took a few steps back and let out a cramped scream.

A white arm protruded from the abdomen of the subordinate soldier who was right next to the entrance. Looking down at it, the subordinate soldier spat out a large amount of blood from his mouth.

“Cap...tain...”

“Owl!”

His subordinate looked up at him with eyes that didn't understand what was happening. Grimwood, in a scream, called out to his subordinates.

Grimwood stretched out his arms, not knowing what that is for.

However, before his hand could touch the body of his subordinate, it was thrown away without a second thought by a thin white arm protruding from his abdomen.

Owl’s body fell to the floor, drawing a band of blood.

Grimwood, who followed him with his eyes in dismay, was approached from the place where his men had been standing until a moment ago.

"You bitch... What are you doing here?"

It was a woman's voice that spoke with a smile of cold ridiculing mockery.

Grimwood turned around at the sound of the voice. It was an unbelievable sight, but it was real. Unmistakably she was-.

"You bastarrrrrd!"

With a grisly bark, Grimwood unfolded his battle axe and swung it wide.

The hem of a soft, white robe swept across his vision.

At the scream he heard, Jin was running in the dark.

The door that had separated him from Grimwood and the others opened straightforwardly with a flash of Yukianesa.

The passage ahead was dark and seemed to curve gently. Even without lights, it was not too difficult to follow the wall.

He was going along, paying attention to his surroundings, when he heard it.

He kicked the ground and ran down the long, narrow passageway as fast as he could. The dark walls echoed Jin's ragged breathing eerily.

Over there, behind here. The scream he heard belonged to the soldier who was with Grimwood, Owl. After a beat, he also heard Grimwood's angry voice, like the roar of a beast.

Something happend, else the calm Captain wouldn't have screamed like that. His heart was beating like a fast-ringing bell, alerting him continuously. He had a bad feeling about this. The blood in his body was rushing noisily. Seeing a flame-colored light at the end of the passageway, Jin abandoned his caution and jumped in.

It was an unexpectedly large room and Jin reflexively stopped in his tracks.

It was a circular room just like the previous one, with a domed ceiling as well. This structure also reminded Jin of that corpse-strewn underground facility of some time ago, but this one was much larger than that one. It was big and horrifying.

The room was filled with the stench of death, but no corpses were piled up this time.

Instead... Jin found them in a corner of the room.

Three corpses rolled around in a messy manner as if they were broken dolls.

One had a large hole in his abdomen. The other two had been torn to shreds all over their bodies. They were Grimwood's men who had been with him earlier.

“What happened...?"

It wasn't long before Jin rushed to the scene after hearing the scream. And yet.

He felt bad. It was a very unpleasant feeling. While enduring the discomfort that tugged at the back of his head, Jin looked around the room again, feeling slightly dizzy.

There was something bizarre about it.

A coffin.

A coffin-like box with some kind of writing on the surface hung in the middle of the room. Numerous pipes from the ceiling, walls and floor connected to it. It looked like a device of some kind. At the same time, he remembered the letters carved on the ceiling of the room before and the symbol of a coffin.

Below the floating coffin, there was a large hole in a circle. If the chain that hung the coffin were to break, it would easily fall into the hole. The hole was wide enough to do so, but narrow enough to cover the entire floor.

From within it. An orange light was flooding the room. It was similar to the color of a flame, it illuminated the room so brightly that he could see the whole room.

On closer inspection, the hole seemed to be boiling with a flame-colored sludge swirling inside.

It was like a "cauldron" filled with lava.

But he didn't feel any heat. In fact, the air was chilly. It was sticky and cold, like a corpse.

The sound of something hard hitting the ground came from the wall. He quickly braced himself and turned around, but as he looked back, a part of the wall slid out from under him.

It stretched out in a straight line until it reached the side of that lava-filled hole in the middle of the room, and then stopped. After that, a cheap driving sound started. 　 Jin ran up to it.

When he looked closely, he saw that the wall that extended to the side of the hole was like a conveyor belt. On the other side of the wall, he heard the sound of some heavy objects being dropped. The conveyor belt started to carry them away.

Jin froze in place in astonishment as the packages arrived in the room illuminated by the flaming light.

Unconsciously, his eyes widened and his mouth opened thinly, losing strength.

They were human beings that were brought to him. They were also ...... corpses. Some were wearing the clothes of soldiers of the Librarium, and others wearing the uniform of the Ikaruga Federation. He couldn’t tell which one they belonged to, but they were wounded bodies with bandages wrapped around them.

One after another, the corpses flowed in and were thrown straight into that hole.

It was as if they were stoking coal.

Suddenly, Jin's vision caught sight of a familiar figure. It was the corpse of a young man still wearing the uniform of the Librarium. His chest was stained black with blood that must have been his own. The face of a student soldier with a twitching expression and downcast eyelids that were the same as that of that student soldier who Jin took care of at the encampment and said he was a junior at the academy.

He flowed forward on the belt and eventually he too was thrown into the cauldron of heatless flame.

Immediately after that, the pipe above Jin's head made a muddy gurgling sound and swished. It was as if something was being fed into it. The end of that pipe was that coffin.

The idea itself was horrifying, but the device looked as if the corpses had been boiled in a cauldron and sucked up, then poured into the coffin.

A chill crept up the inside of Jin's spine.

He felt a different and more horrible fear than the one he felt when he confronted the black head earlier.

The smell of death lingered in the air unpleasantly.

And this crawling fear was much like the unpleasantness of the smell of death.

"Hmm? You're... Jin Kisaragi?"

Suddenly, he heard a voice. This time it wasn't an auditory hallucination. It was a human voice.

With minimal movement, Jin turned toward the voice.

He was so distracted by the large coffin and equipment that he didn't notice that there was a small figure on the other side of the cauldron. He couldn't see the details of the figure clearly because the light of the cauldron flame shining from below was too close. But he recognized her immediately by her voice and her clothes, which were too conspicuous for someone who belonged to the Librarium.

"You are... of the 'Zeroth Squadron'."

Meifang Lapislazuli. She was the commander of the Zeroth Squadron, whom he passed by at the Librarium branch in Yabiko.

The challenging clothes that deliberately expose her body lines. The fact that she exposes her true face without a mask. The unpleasant and conceited gaze, and the cruel smile. It's the same as that time.

Jin's heart thudded and trembled. The Yukianesa in his hand pulsated.

— Kill.

It whispered to him again. That she was a dangerous "enemy" and an "evil" that should be killed. A murderous intent lightened up in Jin.

(You're noisy... Shut up!)

For a moment, his mind went blank and he grabbed Yukianesa tightly as if to scold it, clenching his teeth to cement his stance. He resisted the urge to run and slash at Meifang.

But maybe that was a bad idea after all.

"Wha......"

When he regained his blurred consciousness, Jin was surrounded by white robed figures. Everyone of these figures wears a white mask over their face and a hood that covers eyes. The Zeroth Squadron. The "Garbage Disposal" squad. It is responsible for disposing of traitors who betray the Librarium in their own ranks.

Jin glanced around at all the white-robed people surrounding him, then glared sharply at Meifang.

"Why are you here? What have you done to them?"

He asked in a low, hostile tone. By them, of course, he meant Grimwood's men who were lying at the entrance of the room.

No one had passed them in that narrow passage before Jin came to this room. If a suspicious person had gotten to them, Meifang and the men of the Zeroth Squadron would not have let them escape.

The ones who killed them are the ones from the Zeroth Squadron here. No, it was definitely Meifang. Her white arms and the white robe she wore were covered with the red of blood.

"'What do you think you're doing?' That's my line. You 'renegades'."

Licking her blood-red fingertips, Meifang looked at Jin with emotionless, glass-ball eyes.

Jin clenched his teeth tightly.

It's true that they ignored orders and left the camp on their own. Acting on your own is a serious breach of discipline. Especially in an emergency situation like the current one, it is a serious crime.

But is it even possible to be called a traitor? Is it so bad to call for an end to the war as soon as possible so that no more unnecessary casualties will occur? It's absurd, Jin's stomach churned as he wondered if this was what an orderly world should look like.

But what Meifang continued to say was not exactly what Jin had assumed.

“This is a sacred place created for the "Imperator" of the Librarium... You were not only satisfied with trespassing, but you are also trying to sell it over to Sector Seven of all things. This is outrageous."

“Sector Seven?”

Why has that name come up? When Jin raised his eyebrows and asked incomprehensibly, Meifang licked off her fingertips and put her blood-soaked hand on his white cheek.

"Why didn't you know? Fufufu, was the man who could be the next head of the Kisaragi family used for such a puny mercenary?"

As she said this, she shook her loosely bundled hair and looked down at her feet. Underneath her high heeled boots, there was some kind of raised lump lying around. Grabbing it carelessly, Meifang lifted it with one thin arm.

"Uuu..."

The lump hanging lazily from the floor groaned. Jin was blinded by the sight. The one where Meifang grabbed a person by the neck and held him in midair.

"Grimwood!"

With an almost shouting voice, Jin called out the name.

His well-trained body, strong shoulders, sturdy arms and legs had no strength, and he was left hanging slackly. His whole body was wet with blood. His axe was also lying on the floor, smashed and broken. There was a muffled sound and blood bubbled in Grimwood's mouth as he was forced to look up. His ash gray mustache was stained with a sticky red liquid.

"You...!"

Jin braced himself with indignation.

Grimwood was quite strong. The soldiers in the 9th squad were also considerably powerful. It was hard to believe that she could so easily turn them into nothing.

But what he was seeing was undeniably true. It was an unforgivable fact.

Looking at the angry Jin with a tilted head, Meifang smiled smugly.

“What are you so upset about...? This is the man who leaked the information about our sides formation to the Ikaruga Federation during the last invasion. He is an informer and is also tied to that scum, Kokonoe.”

“......What?"

That's absurd. Grimwood was a traitor? On one hand, Jin also remembered that he had a number of doubts about his actions. Even Jin had looked at Grimwood with suspicion a few times, as he had been so well-informed. Was it that transparent?

Meifang made a deliberate sound of pity.

“Such innocence. You've been used.”

The next head of the Kisaragi family, a user of the Nox Nyctores. Jin was self aware of how he can be used in many ways.

But he was not easily convinced that Grimwood was using him.

It was not based on circumstantial evidence or logic, but on a silly emotional argument that he was not that kind of person. He simply had faith in Grimwood. That's why he couldn’t believe what Meifang said.

"Jin..."

A muffled voice came from the other side of the cauldron, causing Jin to look up breathlessly.

Grimwood, who seemed to be unconscious, desperately reflected Jin in his eyes while hanging in the air.

"Run... This one's bad... She’s a 'monster'...”

Grimwood complained in desperation, spitting blood from his strangled throat.

The next moment, however, his expression became that of frenzy, his eyes nearly popping out of his head.

"Gu, gaaaaah!"

The hand of Meifang grasping his neck was filled with a lethal force. Grimwood's neck creaked under the strain.

Narrowing her eyes as if enjoying the sound, Meifang sneered at the large, suspended man from below.

“'Monster'? Oh, who is the real 'monster'?

He was speaking very slowly, as if he was trying to make sure, as if he was trying to tell Jin something, but then his eyes were wide open and he was screaming like a broken man with rage in his eyes.

“You are garbage! You are trash who betrayed the Imperator, so watch how you talk!"

"Ohhhh..."

Her finger tips dug into his throat, breaking the skin and causing blood to flow.

“Stop it! No more!”

As Grimwood struggled to wriggle out with a completely weak body, Jin let out a cry of grief that surprised even him.

At the sound of his voice, Meifang glanced back at him, then huffed and relaxed the force that had almost snapped his neck.

Grimwood's body slackened and lost tension again. Jin wondered if he had fainted, but that didn't seem to be the case. He repeatedly opened and closed his mouth like a fish seeking oxygen and glared at Meifang with his light green eyes. Animalistic hostility can only describe his current image.

"Fufufu... Listen, trash. The Imperator is a generous person and they will give trash like you a chance to atone for your sins.

Meifang asked, looking back into Grimwood's eyes as he stared at her.

"Answer me. "Who” sent you here?"

“I don't know what you mean by..."

"Do I have to explain everything to trash like you so you can understand? I'm asking who's giving you orders? You're in the Librarium, right? It's someone with the equivalent authority of... Ah, yes. For example..."

She was about to say someone's name, but Grimwood interrupted her as if to shake her off.

"I don't know what you are misunderstanding... 'monster'. I'm here of my own volition, under no one else's direction..."

Grimwood's words were muffled in mid-sentence. Maifang's hand grabbed his neck and crushed it.

Looking up at the large man, Meifang made a smile with her mouth as she glared at him.

“I didn't give you permission to say anything. Well, if you really don't want to tell me, I'll thoroughly ask that woman eventually. Fufufu..."

It was obvious who "that woman" was referring to. Grimwood's face instantly changed color as he struggled, but he could not free his body.

"Hey, wait you bitc- Kuh!"

“I will not allow you to speak. You have disrespected the Imperator’s mercy. From now on, you are forbidden to speak at all."

With a tone of voice that judged any disobedience, Meifang licked her lips with her red tongue and traced them. A sign of decleration.

"Now, the charges. 'Disrespect' and 'rebellion' against the Novus Orbis Librarium and the Imperator!”

Meifang's high-pitched declaration reverberated through the basement.

Meifang tells her white brethren as he hangs up the sinner, Grimwood, even higher.

“With the blade of retribution and scales of judgment, I come to deliver... righteous justice! I am the condemner... I am the wing of judgment. This trial is over!”

At Meifang's sonorous declaration, the white-robed people surrounding Jin declared one by one.

“Death penalty!”

“Death penalty!”

“Death penalty!”

“Death penalty!”

The voices of dozens of people, seemingly endlessly repeating the words "Death penalty" one by one echoed loudly on the high ceiling.

Jin felt like he was going crazy with all the death threats blathering on around him. What the hell is this?

“Stop it... Let him go!”

Dazed and confused, Jin's voice was weakly overshadowed by the white robes that surrounded him. Eventually, the last one said, "Death penalty!”, and then…

Grimwood's body was thrust forward and Karenjina walked up to the cauldron.

"The Apostle's judgment is fair. Therefore, in the name of the Imperator, you, Grimwood Huster, are condemned."

There was already no response from Grimwood's body. The legs of his body slumped down and stopped over a hole that had the color of boiled lava.

With a grin, Meifang put a touch of torment on her lips.

“You are... sentenced to death!”

“Stoooooooooop!”

The sound of Meifang's voice echoing with ecstasy caused Jin to run. He had expected to be seized immediately, but the people of the Zeroth Squadron did not move.

Running straight ahead, he put his hand on the hilt of Yukianesa.

Meifang was watching him with amusement. The womans slender arms strangled Grimwood's neck with unbelievable force as she watched Jin run impatiently.

— For one moment, he thought he saw Grimwood jump.

But the next thing he knew.

Pop.

A wet light sound was mixed in with a heavy wet sound, and it made Jin want to cover his ears. The red liquid flowed and Grimwood's body and neck separated. The neck and body, separated by the bloodstained hand, fell apart.

It fell down, into the hole.

And was swallowed into the boiling cauldron.

A thick pipe moved above Jin's head, sending something into the coffin. The spilling sound felt like the pulse of life,

That... was Grimwood, wasn’t he?

At that moment, Jin felt something as cold as a snowstorm pass through his body.

— Kill.

The ice sword whispered.

An urge swirled inside Jin.

(Kill......kill.....kill....kill...kill..kill kill kill kill kill kill kill kill kill kill.)

His legs ran faster than he've ever run before, and his eyes widened even more as he stared at the white flesh before him. He was going to slice through that skin, through that flesh, and he was going to spill everything that's in there. The color, the sound, the heat, everything, everyone, cut, mince, reject.

"I'll kill you, I'll kill you, you bastard!"

The taste of blood rose in his throat as he howled on his own.

He stepped forward and with the same momentum, Jin pulled out Yukianesa. The silver blader, colder than ice, sliced through the air and tore at Meifang's skin, ripping flesh from body.

At the thought, a moment of unbearable pleasure made Jin smile.

But immediately after, Meifang was not there. Jin gasped as he swung out his blade, which ended up striking the air.

"I'll dismiss your current rudeness as temporary insanity. Fufufu, be grateful."

"Wha…!"

The voice whispering leisurely and seductively suddenly came from right beside him.

That's absurd. What kind of reaction and speed is that? Who the hell is this Meifang Lapislazuli? Jin turned around, feeling an instinctive danger like prey being gazed upon.

"Don't get so heated... BOY!"

She smiled gently with lips that had red blood printed on them as if it was lipstick and Meifang's palm bottom plunged into Jin's side.

"Argh......ku!"

He didn't even have time to brace himself. In an instant, his breathing stopped and his consciousness became clouded as the shock shot up to his brain. His knees lost their strength, and despite his will, he collapsed and fell to the floor.

Maifang grabbed Jin's hair and held him back as he tried to fall, then looked into his eyes and put her face close to his ear.

"Oh, and didn't I told you to watch your language around your superiors. Or is that also... 'none of your business'?"

After she told him that, Meifang let go of his hand. When he was released, Jin did not have the strength to resist. He slumped to the floor, hitting his forehead hard. The floor was cold, and above his head, he could hear the sound of pipes rattling in the distance.

In his cloudy vision, he could see a cracked and broken ax.

Grimwood's axe.

After that, Jin's consciousness was cut off.

Chapter 6: Hero / True face

Part 1

When he woke up, Jin couldn't stand up, not because of fatigue or pain, but because of a terrible feeling of helplessness.

Jin was in a small, dimly lit prison cell, surrounded by blackened gray concrete. He seemed to be lying on a mat on a bed that looked like a simple board attached to the wall, covered with a worn blanket.

He remembered what happened much more clearly than in his dreams while he was asleep.

Three soldiers, folded up and dead.

Countless corpses were brought in as if they were something like fuel for a cauldron.

Then there was... Grimwood's body, strangled by the throat and hung midair, Meifang looking up at him and smiling.

A neck that was shredded and a torso that fell.

Jin recalled the scene over and over again in the back of his eyelids as he sat cowering on the cold floor.

There was no rug on the floor, and the concrete was cold, but the sensation of feeling it seemed so far away that it was difficult to realize that it was his own sensation.

Jin was in a branch of the Zeroth Squadron in the sixth level of Yabiko City, in a room where criminals are detained awaiting justice.

The person who retrieved Jin was a member of the Zeroth Squadron who was in the same place at the time, and the wound on his shoulder had received only minimal treatment. What he was wearing was still the same, but all of his belongings were placed together right next to the prison.

...It was Honoka, standing behind the barred door, who explained to Jin.

"Captain Grimwood was a spy for Sector Seven. He has been leaking information to the outside, but this time he was informed that there were important secrets of the Librarium there, and he was trying to sell the contents to Kokonoe of Sector Seven...”

After these few words, Honoka moved his eyes to the document he was holding in his hand. It was a report on the series of events that had taken place after the boy soldier had arrived at the time.

Honoka dropped his thin shoulders and sighed.

“According to the investigation by the Zeroth Squadron, in addition to leaking information, he was involved in a variety of other activities, such as diverting equipment, sabotaging facilities and helping prisoners escape. It may have been because of him that the front line we were on did not produce effective results.”

Cleverly controlling the information and the battlefield, trying to coordinate so that neither side wins too much. They must have been using that place as their base of operations. That was how the Zeroth Squadron viewed it.

"...Lieutenant?"

Perhaps worried by Jin's lack of response , Honoka lowered his papers and peered behind the grate. Jin's eyes remained motionless as he stared blankly into the empty space. Not knowing if he was listening or not, Honoka peeked in, stepped forward and smiled a little.

"It's outrageous that he would involve and take advantage of you, Lieutenant Kisaragi, but since he was a spy, he was likely an expert at deception... And in the first place, there was no way around it.

“.....Ha!”

Apparently, Honoka thought that Jin was shocked by Grimwood's betrayal. An amusing thought, so Jin let out a light chuckle as he gushed.

He slowly raised his gaze to look at Honoka, who was puzzled. His green eyes had the color of exhaustion in them, though he was still able to reason.

"You don't believe it, don't you?"

His voice was hoarse and muddy as he spoke with a dry throat. Honoka tilted his head at the question. Then, he looked back and forth in a troubled way between the document in his hand and Jin, as if comparing them several times.

“Well, whether I believe it or not... it has already been officially accepted as a fact by the Librarium, so..."

Regardless of whether you believe it or not, this was acknowledged as a "fact". There was no room for personal feelings to enter.

Grimwood was recorded as a "sinner". That disgrace will remain with his name for a long time to come.

"With all due respect, I think you were deceived, Lieutenant Kisaragi. Deceived by how much of a good man he was. But I don't think the person you saw is necessarily the person they really are.”

Perhaps there was a side to Grimwood that Jin was completely unaware of. Jin didn't know the big, earnest man well enough to deny that possibility.

After all, it had only been less than a year since they had met.

(One year...)

In that period of time, Jin realized that he was quite fond of the big man. He liked him as a person. If he had stayed with him for a few more years, he might have had some unfamiliar feelings of respect for him, though not as much as Karenjina. He wasn’t sure if he thought that way because his emotions were romanticizing his impressions of his former captain.

"It seems that Lieutenant Kisaragi will be questioned as well. They’re preparing a meal right now, so you’ll probably be summoned when it's over." Honoka said to Jin, who turned his head down again.

It was probably Honoka's role to originally tell him this.

This time, he must have been told something by the Duodecim and the Librarium. He was grateful for the fact that he even brought the report and explained the situation and details.

"Honoka. What happened to Karenjina...?"

He asked in a muddy voice. The area was very quiet, so Honoka could still hear him without a problem.

"She was asked out a lot of questions about Captain Grimwood, but she didn't know anything about him and was not charged with a crime, but she was expelled and will be under surveillance for a while."

How she was interrogated was not in Honoka's words, but he could imagine. Jin felt a distinct sense of regret. Maybe he shouldn't have taken Karenjina with him, or maybe he should have kept her with him until the end.

It occurred to him that the choices she had made with Jin and Grimwood might have set her on the worst possible path.

"She's already been released from detention, but her... condition is not good. She is currently recuperating in a hospital room here."

"...I see."

“She seems to have had a tough time. But I'm sure the hardest part is yet to come.”

Honoka said, with an ambiguous tone.

Jin covered his face with his outstretched hand as the words seemed to pierce him.

“Well... I'll be on my way. If you'll excuse me."

Honoka saluted as he had been taught at the academy and walked away, a little concerned about Jin.

The sound of footsteps moving away echoed in the aisle. After that, it was no longer heard.

Jin clenched his weak hand into a fist and pounded the floor.

Jin's interrogation was surprisingly uneventful.

They started by checking his name and identity and then asked him when and where he was in battle, what he thought of the people of the 9th squad.

Then he asked him a few confirming questions and that was it.

It was probably decided from the beginning that Jin would not be punished. After all, he was the next head of the Kisaragi family, one of the Duodecim. There was no need to go to the trouble of incurring a grudge over something like this.

Jin was immediately released.

But before he left, he wanted to make a stop at a place. He asked a guard in a white robe who was walking behind him as his escort and he told him surprisingly easily where he should go.

He took the elevator up to the fifth floor and walked down the unadorned white-walled corridor. At the end of this straight stretch, Jin stopped in front of the door on the left.

A card labeled "Ward A" was held up.

The door had a small window with a grate on it, suggesting that this was a hospital room for those who were being judged.

He knocked on the door, bottled up the hesitation that was slowly seeping through and said her name.

“Come in.”

A horrifyingly inorganic voice came back, but it was definitely Karenjina's.

Jin opened the door and stepped inside.

It was a small room. There was a bed, an empty shelf, a white bedside table and a chair that was probably used by the doctor. That was it.

Karenjina lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling.

Jin groaned briefly at the sight of her.

They turned her into a mess.

Bandages were wrapped around her neck, shoulders and arms. The blanket was covering the rest of her body, but she must have been injured below her abdomen as well. A large piece of gauze was placed on her cheek, and her eyes were blue and swollen. He wondered what had been done to her, but one of her ears was also covered with a thick layer of gauze. They looked like assault marks, but that's not the case when you're dealing with the Zeroth Squadron. The dreadlocks were completely trimmed and gone. These were the scars of attempted torture in various ways.

Jin went to the side of the bed and stood there without a word.

The dark blue eyes did not look at Jin. They just stared at a point on the ceiling as if they were trying to hold back something and don't waver.

There was silence for a while. Jin didn't know what kind of words were needed at this moment. Was it an apology, an explanation, silence or tears? Indignation or chastisement?

He couldn’t really choose any of these.

“...I used to hate you."

He heard her take a breath, and when Jin looked up, Karenjina chimed in.

Her eyes were still fixed on the ceiling, but her words were clearly directed at Jin.

“You were assigned to us out of nowhere and one of the Duodecim. I thought you had it easy, even taking a valet with you."

Jin listened to Karenjina's words without saying anything. Somehow, he felt that she didn't want him to say anything at all.

Karenjina continued with a monolog-like tone.

"But Grimwood wasn't like me. He welcomed you. I heard over and over again... That with you, 'we could end the war.' But it wasn't with me. I thought, he can't end the war with someone like myself, but he might be able to end it with you. I was jealous. Jealous of Grimwood's expectations of you.”

"..."

“But you're so strong. I can't compare in any way. Until you came, I was the one who stayed by Grimwood's side this whole time. I was the one who was most useful to him."

Her tone was too pale and weak to be called resentment.

With no expression on either of their faces, Karenjina stares at the ceiling and Jin stared at her.

“...If only it was me.” she muttered.

Karenjina went silent for a while.

It was only a little later that Jin noticed that her shallow breathing was shaky.

“Grimmwood is...”

Karenjina's voice trembled.

“He didn't leak anything.”

"..."

Jin gasped in dismay at the assertion, unsure as to why he was so upset. But for a moment, he felt a twinge of envy. Jin couldn't affirm why, but it was envy.

Clutching her right hand, which was covered in bandages to the fingertips, Karenjina spoke as if she were spitting out her last breath.

"Grimwood wanted to end the war more than anyone. He hated the idea of anyone dying. Even though he was a mercenary, he hated war."

Karenjina choked once and sniffed.

"Grimwood was not a spy. I believed in Grimwood. I believed in the man who pulled me out of hell. He's may be asshole when left me with behind, but I'll always believe in him."

Unable to hold it in, her voice turned upside down and tear drops spilled out of the corners of her eyes. Karenjina kept her fists clenched and her eyes closed. Perhaps because she seemed to admit that she was crying when she wiped her tears away.

“But there's nothing left. I have no strength to fight. I have nothing."

Jin looked at Karenjina’s left arm.

Apart from the bandages that hold the fingers and shoulders in place, there were bandages that just cover her forearm area.

He didn't know what they had done to her, but when he saw it, he knew that she was no longer able to use her Drive.

"I'm 'alone' again. There is never a time when I am not."

Karenjina said, as if it was a curse she was placing on herself.

Jin saw the look on her face and emotions of regret spill out. She was a stout soldier, but her face was contorted and distorted. She bit her lips and started sobbing. She was crying incessantly. Then, closed her eyes tightly and stifled her cries with a quivering sigh.

"So please. Just leave me alone already. I don't need anything anymore."

Unable to bear it, Jin turned his head away. At the same time, Karenjina also turned her face away from Jin.

The sobs continued.

He couldn't stay here forever. Jin eventually turned around, keeping his lips pursed.

But before he could leave, her fingers. Karenjina’s fingers grabbed the hem of Jin's dress.

"...Jin."

“What?”

“End this war."

With that, Karenjina removed her fingers from Jin's clothes. After watching her hand go back to the bed, Jin turned his back to Karenjina again.

He walked with a calm and unhurried gait and left the hospital Ward A. Just as he was about to close the door behind him, he heard what sounded like a growl. Jin quickly left the room. He felt that he must not listen to her overflowing cries.

Part 2

As Jin exited the building of the Zeroth Squadron, he saw a familiar figure waiting for him.

The girl standing there holding the sword bag was a girl. Her long hair, fluttering in the gentle breeze, was a vivid camellia red.

"...Tsubaki."

Tsubaki Yayoi. She was the childhood friend of Jin, a junior at the academy and also the daughter of the Yayoi family of the Duodecim. The sky-blue eyes that sent Jin off in tears on the day he left for Yabiko were now gazing at him with a sincere look.

"...Jin Niisama. I'm glad you're safe."

She deeply bowed her head. Tsubaki was that kind of person. Polite and calm.

Not wanting to linger too long in a place where he could see the buildings of the Zeroth Squadron, Jin took Tsubaki with him and changed places.

After about ten minutes of walking, they chose a small park where they could see the arrival and departure of Ars Magus Vessels. On a bench painted green, Jin and Tsubaki sat side by side.

It was already evening.

The port welcoming the Ars Magus Vessels was lit up early, and the setting sun from the west added an orange hue to the long deck.

She tucked her hair behind her ears and turned her body to Jin, then lowered her eyes slightly and smiled modestly.

“When I heard that you had been detained, I just had to come over. I'm sorry for startling you."

"No, it's fine."

Jin spoke back shortly.

The moment he had seen her, Jin had understood. The reason why Jin was released had been so easy and straightforward. It was because Tsubaki had lobbied for it using her position in the Yayoi family. This would not have happened in the Kisaragi family. There were many people in that house who wanted to get rid of Jin. It would have been a hassle if they were disturbed and forced to help him. Rather, some would have tried to take advantage of this situation.

But before that could happen, the Yayoi family, no... Tsubaki made the first move.

"I'm sorry, Tsubaki. I'm sorry I caused trouble for you."

One more regret piled up in Jin's mind.

Tsubaki shook her head in panic.

“It's no problem. I wanted to meet you, Jin. That is what I decided myself, so there's nothing for you to apologize for!"

Jin squinted dazzlingly at Tsubaki, whose cheeks flushed red as she tried to excuse herself. It made him feel pain in his chest and he turned away. To the cold head of the Kisaragi household, she was such a brilliant presence, Jin could only squint his eyes to look at her.

Tsubaki gazed at him with a gloomy expression.

A few seconds of silence passed.

A breeze blew through the air. Tsubaki gently called out to Jin as she pulled her flowing hair back over her ears.

"You look in pain."

"Pain, huh?"

The murmur he returned was unexpectedly twisted into self-mockery.

(What exactly is the pain I feel for?)

Was it that Grimwood had betrayed him? Or is it that he couldn't believe that Grimwood betrayed me?

Was it that he believed in Grimwood? Or was it knowing that he did not believe in Grimwood?

Grimwood had 'trust.' He believed in himself and his friends, that he could end the war.

“I'll probably get scolded for saying this, but..."

Tsubaki opened her mouth so as to slip her words into the evening breeze.

“I hate... war."

Jin looked sideways at the girl he had known since childhood.

He remembered that her father was also away from home, in the war zone as a guard of the Librarium.

Tsubaki’s sky blue eyes were filled with melancholy and sadness.

“Of course, I'm also an officer school student of the Librarium. For the sake of order and justice, I am prepared to fight even if I have to use myself as a shield. But it's not because I want to defeat anyone. It's because I want to protect as many people as possible."

Tsubaki clasped her hands tightly around her chest and looked at Jin.

“Because I want to protect the people I care about.”

“...Such naivety."

“I know that, but despite though I know, I still hate... war."

Tsubaki's lips twitched as she said this in a sultry tone. It's one of those habits that he used to see in her when she was little and she can't seem to get over it.

Jin replied, exhaling deeply.

“My feelings are the same.”

(I never used to have any impressions or feelings about war. I was not interested in my own life or death or even the life or death of others and I was just aware of war as something where people die a little more than usual.)

(But now, it didn't feel the same as it had then and at the same time, I can't send Tsubaki to that crazy place called "war".)

(But what can I do now? Do I have the "power" to change anything?)

Grimwood is no longer here.

The war still rages on.

"Jin Niisama. Take this."

As if remembering, Tsubaki held out the sword bag that was propped up beside her. She untied the string that had been around it and opened the bag. Inside was a single sword in a blue scabbard with a silver-green handle.

"Yukianesa...”

The luggage they had been told to pack was almost gone. There were only a few pieces of minimal equipment lying around from when they left the encampment with Grimwood.

Yukianesa was nowhere to be found, but that was a Nox Nyctores. If he needed it, he would just call out to it and it will come back, like a summoning spell. That's what Jin thought when it was gone, so didn't pay much attention to it.

He didn't expect it to come back to him like this.

“It's valuable to you and I didn't want it to get lost. I've been keeping it at the Yayoi household. This is Jin Niisama's most precious possession, yours truly."

Tsubaki then presented Yukianesa to Jin with the sword bag intact, without touching it directly. When Jin had come to the Kisaragi family as an adopted child, this sword had been the only personal item he had with him. Tsubaki knew that.

As he was offered the sword, Jin took it from the bag. Through the soft cloth, he could feel the cool air of the pale blue scabbard.

Jin chuckled at the corner of his lips.

(Of course, this is the only "power" I have...)

The Nox Nyctores "Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa". This is the weapon that fought the Black Beast. If this sword had saved the world in the past, could it save at least one organization in turmoil during a civil war? Would I be able to protect at least this one girl who cared so much for me?

"Thank you, Tsubaki."

Jin stood up and returned only the sword bag to Tsubaki.

By that time, Jin's eyes had already changed their expression. This quiet, peaceful breaktime was over. It was too early for him to take any break. It was simpily not meant to be for him right now.

"I will do it."

There were still some things I hasn't finished.

"Are you going back to...?"

Tsubaki's lonely voice hung on his back. Jin nodded, gripping Yukianesa's scabbard tightly.

"Yeah. I'm not just going back. I'm going to 'End' it."

(That's what I've been entrusted with and it's the only thing I can do right now.)

Tsubaki stood up and saw Jin off as he started to walk away.

"Take care of yourself. When you return, I will welcome you wholeheartedly."

The gentle girls voice strengthened Jin's resolve.

Part 3

After leaving Yabiko, Jin went to the encampment to collect his belongings first. Fortunately, the base was still there and his luggage was still intact.

Currently, they were in the middle of a campaign to bring down Wadatsumi Castle and there were few of their people left here, making it easy for Jin to get his hands on them.

What he took out was a blue outfit. The battle dress of the Kisaragi family. Underneath it, he put an inner layer designed to resist cold air. He also put on a pair of gloves that were thicker than his usual and specially treated to block out the cold air.

Yukianesa is an ice sword. If you are half equipped, you will freeze yourself.

But with all this, he is able to run while swinging Yukianesa around with all his might. No need of worrying about the damage to his surroundings and without worrying about his bloodflow.

Once he was equipped, Jin quickly left the encampment.

He was headed to a battlefield — Wadatsumi Castle.

Now that Grimwood was gone and Karenjina broken, there was no time to find the someone who wanted to prolong the war.

That they are attacking Wadatsumi Castle again, makes this the perfect opportunity to end the war.

If this war were to end, when would it be? When Grimwood asked him that before, Jin replied that when they take the head of Tenjō, the head of the Ikaruga Federation, this war would be over.

That is the only "way to end the war" that Jin can choose.

He didn't know if he could kill Tenjō. He didn’t even know what Tenjō looked like.

But when that young soldier died, when his comrades died... When Grimwood died. When Karenjina lost even a place to cry.

And every time he thought of Tsubaki.

His mind was in 'discomfort'.

He didn’t care if he died in this mission. He didn’t care about anything, but to end the war. Jin's heart, which had before didn't care about the civil war, lit up. A cold flame flickered in his cold, frozen heart.

(That's enough. I've had enough! I don't want any more sacrifices, but still... There are people who need to be 'sacrificed' for this war to end. And I have a question for that... person.)

I don't care about the Librarium. I don't care about the Ikaruga Federation. I don't care about Wadatsumi Castle.

There is only one destination in sight. Tenjō, the head of the Ikaruga Federation.

Night had fallen and the sky was a refreshing light blue.

Wadatsumi Castle.

It was a large castle, spread out with the city at its feet. The towering keep was looking beautiful in the clear sky.

It was the residence of the head of the Ikaruga Federation, Tenjō, and is also the political center of the Federation. With the castle, which is also the symbol of the land of Ikaruga, as a magnificent backdrop, the battle between the Novus Orbis Librarium and the Ikaruga Federation forces had been going on since early morning on the plains before entering the city.

The firearms were larger, the Ars Magus and Armagus were flying about and people were out to kill each other with weapons in their hands.

The war situation was not looking good for the Librarium side. The persistence of the Ikaruga Federation Army, which had prepared itself for the end if it was allowed to cross this point, was tremendous and the Librariums forces were gradually being overwhelmed by their unending morale and momentum.

In addition, there was a great deal of distrust of the commander who was forcing the army to march without a plan, resulting in the soldiers of the Librarium gradually beginning to lose their will to fight.

The soldiers on the front line began to retreat, one by one. Finally, Ikaruga’s soldiers chase after the soldiers of the Librarium and raised their weapons.

That's when it happened.

Suddenly, a breath-chilling cold air streamed into the battlefield, creating a wall of ice so thick that the Ikaruga Federation soldiers, who were about to slay the Librarium soldiers, could not see beyond it.

"Wha... What the hell?"

The Ikaruga soldier, who had dashed at the ice with such force, backed away in confusion.

One after another, the walls appeared, cutting in between the Ikaruga soldiers and the Librarium soldiers. Their numbers grew quickly and eventually they surrounded the soldiers like a wall protecting them.

With his back to the wall of ice, a young man walks straight toward the Ikaruga Federation soldiers.

It was a blond young man dressed in blue. In his hand is a sword in a pale blue scabbard.

Cold green eyes glared at the Ikaruga Soldiers.

“Get out of the way unless you want to die.”

The cold air that swirled through the battlefield was generated around the young man.

The young man was even colder than the cold air that surrounded him. This became clear to Ikaruga soldiers the moment they set their sight on this young man.

A soldier of Ikaruga, realizing that the clothes he was wearing were of the design of the Librariums army, raised his weapon and said, "Don't fool with us, NOL scum!!”.

The surrounding soldiers followed suit, raising their guns or pointing their blades. But Jin, after taking just one look at them and walked right past them without a care in the world.

The soldiers with their weapons were unable to move. The moment they turned to face the enemy, ice crawled up from under their feet and covered their bodies, leaving their necks exposed.

There was a squad that spotted Jin and ran towards him. Turning around as he walked, Jin drew his sword and swung in the emptiness around him.

At that moment, ice ran across the ground and turned the entire squad into ice statues. The only thing that remained of them was their necks, so that they would not die.

One swing, then another. While icing anyone who comes near him, Jin aimed for the main gate of the castle.

Every time he used Yukianesa's power, he felt his heart grow colder.

— Kill

As if fed up with Jin, who has yet to kill a single person since entering the battlefield, Yukianesa invited him to kill them.

— Kill, slaughter, murder. Kill them all. Kill! Kill! Kill!

The harder he swung, the louder the voice disturbed Jin. But with each swing of the blade, Jin killed his own heart.

Wadatsumi Castle was surrounded by a strong defensive barrier.

This was not something that can be easily broken. Because of their inability to do so, the Librarium has been forced to retreat many times before.

A Ars Magus Barrier.

"...Yukianesa."

Jin called out with a breath the temperature of a blizzard and slashed with his sword. That was enough to freeze the barrier. The thrust that followed cracked the barrier with the ease of breaking thin ice.

The barrier will be repaired soon. However, after opening a hole just large enough for him to pass through, Jin entered the castle and looked up.

The highest point. The castle tower. There it was.

There she is. Tenjō.

The person sitting at the far end of the castle looked up at the shock of the barrier breaking.

Surrounded on all sides by bamboo screens, this was the place where Tenjō would sit. This is where she was waiting.

And she knew that it finally arrived.

"...Ah, so you are here. My 'death'."

The room was empty.

She made them all backoff. She told them there was no need to fight, but only few of them left the castle without a desire to fight.

That made her a little sad.

They shouldn't have to die. This sacrifice should have been minimal.

“It’s already more than enough.”

Yes, more than enough.

The seated figure, Tenjō, stood up and lifted the bamboo screen in front of her to welcome the icy wind that carried death.

At the same time, there was another person who noticed that the barrier had been broken.

He was a strong man who had been leading the evacuation of the inhabitants under Tenjō’s orders. He was wearing a special armor that has been handed down from generation to generation in Ikaruga. It is the costume of a Ninja, designed for speed and movement.

“Boss, what’s wrong?”

Called by his subordinate Ninja, the man in the deep green costume looked over with a difficult frown on his face.

"...I ask you to go ahead. I will catch up soon after!"

“Eh, wait! BOSS!!”

The figure who was called the "boss" kicked the ground and jumped into the air. He ran up on the roofs at a speed that no ordinary person could keep up with, using that speed to head for the castle tower in the shortest distance.

(It's falling...)

The Boss thought as he ran like the wind, if not faster than the wind.

He thought about the falling of... Wadatsumi Castle.

Part 4

Jin was running at full speed down the corridor of the tower he had stepped into, freezing every obstacle that stood in his way.

He was in a hurry. There was no time. He couldn’t afford to be lenient anymore.

He saw it just before he entered this place. He could see it clearly from the high tower.

The barrier that Jin had broke through in order to get here was still intact and the soldiers of the Librarium who had rushed inside were engaging the Ikaruga soldiers.

It was a place where the enemy should not have dared to enter. In addition, Jin had already passed through the area. With so few troops and so little time to react, the Ikaruga soldiers were unable to push back the Librarium soldiers and were being killed one by one.

(Why haven’t they repaired the Barrier yet...!)

They knew it was open. They knew that if they left it alone, the enemy would come in. Tenjō, the one who put up the barrier, knew that.

And yet it was not restored.

(Won't or can't?)

Does this mean that something happened to Tenjō, or was she already gone? All sorts of speculations swirled in his mind, but he couldn't be bothered with them.

(I will know when I get to the top. I won’t fall until then.)

He climbed over the railing, went out the window to the roof, and jumped across the building diagonally into a corridor that resembles a bridge.

That's when it happened. A number of fireballs flew across the corridor where Jin had landed. They were from Armagus, probably stray bullets from the brawl going on below.

Jin stopped in his tracks to avoid a direct hit, but the fire Ars Magus broke through the wall and landed in the back room, instantly turning the room into a sea of fire.

The fire flew across the corridor and started to burn from the end.

The freezing cold air that Jin had brought with him turned into hot, heat haze as the flames fanned it.

As if the heat called to him, a figure appears in his path. He was tall and had the type of physique in his silhouette, that makes one know he was armed with muscles.

Jin was familiar with the dark green costume worn in front of him. It must have been the costume of a Ninja, the spies who have lived in the land of Ikaruga since ancient times.

So the person who appeared in front of him, a man with his habitual hair pulled up high, was a Ninja from Ikaruga.

“Get out of the way. You are a nuisance.”

Looking at him coldly, Jin put his hand on the hilt of his sword and told him. Whoever the opponent, anything that blocked his way was an obstacle.

The Ninja standing on the other side of the corridor stared back at Jin with a powerful gaze as he brushed aside the hot air from the room that was burning nearby and prepared himself.

"No. I can't let you go any further!"

His grunch, thick voice twisted around the roar of the flames.

Jin clicked his tongue. It would be pointless to waste time here, even though he had walked across the roof to shorten the route.

But the other Ninja seemed to have no intention of giving way. His strong-willed eyes were blazing with hostility.

"My name is Bang Shishigami! I am a Ninja of Ikaruga, and I am the one who will defeat you!!"

He howled like a battering ram.

At the same time, the Ninja who called himself Bang came right at Jin in an instant, twisted in midair and unleashed a quick knee kick.

"...?!"

It happened so fast, like the blink of an eye.

Jin barely caught Bang's blow as he dove at him, right in front of his nose, just out of reach of his breath. As he caught the kick, Yukianesa's scabbard seemed to creak. The impact numbed his arm for a moment.

On recoil, Bang jumped and shot countless nails from high above.

Jin immediately pulled out Yukianesa and flicked the nails back, then ran down the hallway.

(He's fast!)

It was nothing compared to the average Ikaruga soldiers he had dealt with in the past. Jin's face twisted into a bitter expression as he dove into the back room, turning around and swinging his Yukianesa.

Sure enough, Bang was right on his heels. He jumped in and thrust his fist into Jin.

Jin half-accidentally caught it and parried it away.

Using his momentum to leap backward, Jin thrusts Yukianesa into the floor.

White ice ran. In an instant, it froze the floor in the area, but Bang's reaction speed was faster. In a single leap, he climbed to the ceiling and used the pillars as footholds to attack Jin again.

"Damn it...!"

He was in a hurry. As he clicked his tongue for what seemed like the hundredth time, Jin released the ice blade.

Countless shimmering ice blades shot through Bang's body one after another, knocking him down to the cold, icy floor.

He thought that was it... But it wasn't Bang that fell down, it was shabby wood from who knows where.

At the same time that Jin recognized, a hint of heat was generated behind him.

He turned around. At that moment, Jin received a strong impact on his chest and was blown backward.

He was slammed into the wooden floor and engulfed in several sliding doors supported by a thin framework. The blow to his head from the fall gave him a slight dizziness. He held his head and pulled himself up.

Bang bursts into his view.

"Don't think you can get away with the same move over and over again."

With these words, Jin cut. Yukianesa's slash, perfectly timed with the release of Bang's nails as shurikens, flicked off all three thrown with a single swipe.

The nails flew off in the wrong direction and made a rhythmic sound, piercing the floor at the back of the room, away from Jin and Bang.

Their gazes naturally turned to each other for a moment. Then they found something unexpected and swayed in dismay.

Right next to the nail stuck in the floor, there was a human figure.

Both Jin and Bang gasped in unison. The person who was looking at them quietly, without moving even though a nail flew at their feet, was a person with long purple hair flowing down their back. They were wearing a garment with wide cuffs and a white mask with a red pattern covering their face.

“My Lord... Why are you still here?”

At this sight, Bang shouted in clear agitation.

With that one word, Jin finally knew. He knew that the person there was Tenjō, the head of the Ikaruga Federation.

“Are you Tenjō?”

Muttering, Jin turned to the figure on the surface.

He was wondering what they looked like, but this only raised more questions. He couldn't even tell if they were a man or a woman. He felt a strange presence from Tenjō, as if they were neither.

"Don't look away!!"

Jin was about to head for the back when Bang's angry voice jumped at him.

Unhappy with his lords appearance, Jin kicked the floor and swung his fist at Bang, who flipped it back with a swiftly drawn sword. He instantly twisted around and slammed the tip of his scabbard into Bang's abdomen.

Unable to bear it, Bang bent over and moved backward to avoid Jin's continuous kicks.

“Huff, huff, huff.”

But still, with a ragged breath, Bang braced himself for more.

The unwavering hostility in his gaze caused Jin's heart to tremble.

— Kill, Kill, Kill.

(Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.....!!!)

It was unbearable. Jin thrust the blade into his heart to resist the urge to kill.

While tearing out his heart and soul and giving them to Yukianesa, he struggled to keep his unstoppable desire to kill from flowing outward.

(I don't kill...)

— Kill.

(I won’t kill!)

— Kill!.

(No more.........)

His mind couldn’t take it. If it was swallowed up, it will be the end.

The blade, driven mad by Yukianesa's murderous intent, would probably go on a rampage, wanting to kill everyone in the castle. That would be meaningless. If the sword would take over and kill everyone... What was even the point of coming here?

Jin inhaled deeply. His own breath was so cold that it froze him to the bottom of his lungs. The temperature dropped so fast that icicles formed around Jin.

Without a second thought, Bang came running in. Jin looked at him and cleaved the air with his Yukianesa.

“Arctic Dungeon.”

With a powerful ars, the breath that weaved words and the slashing stroke froze the whole area. The floor, the ceiling, the walls, the windows, the pillars and even Bang who tried to escape by jumping into the air.

“What!?”

Bang's body stiffened as his body could not withstand the temperature that had dropped too low.

“Trash...”

He did not realize that his short-sighted loyalty would lead to unnecessary sacrifices.

Jin slashed down on Bang's frozen body without hesitation.

"Aaaargh!!"

With a heavy wet sound, fresh blood splatters on the ice floor. After taking a slash to the forehead and then to the torso, Bang collapsed onto the floor on his back.

Jin brushed off the blood, sheathed Yukianesa, and strode to the back of the room without a glance at the fallen bang.

"And you...."

Tenjō was still standing at the back of the room. They could have escaped in this short time, but the white-masked lord did not.

It was as if they had stayed there to watch the situation unfold.

Bang crawled across the floor, staring up at Jin's back as he stepped toward Tenjō. He desperately reached out and shouted with all his might.

“My Lord! Please, run away! My Lord..!”

But he could no longer raise himself. His vision rapidly darkened and he choked back a scream, losing his consciousness at last.

A cold silence soaked the area.

In the frozen room, Jin faced Tenjō.

Tenjō, who until then had been as motionless as a doll, jerked slightly and changed the angle of their neck, shaking their long purple hair.

“Nox Nyctores Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa.”

The calm voice leaked through the mask with a hint of murkiness.

"...You're Tenjō, aren't you?"

Standing directly in front of them, Jin asked expressionlessly. Tenjō raised their face.

“Indeed and you, what are you called?”

“Jin Kisaragi."

Answered Jin as he put his hand on the silver hilt. He could pull it out at any time. If he pulled it out, he could kill her.

"No hard feelings, but... I will kill you and end this war."

With frozen determination, Jin looked coldly at Tenjō.

Slowly, the face with the white mask moved. Tenjō nodded deeply. It seemed to show understanding and deep acceptance.

With his eyes fixed on them, Jin opened his mouth without changing his stance.

"I have one last question. Is it true that you are the Imperator?"

"...Hm?"

Tenjō sounded impressed by the question.

"Knowing that I am the Imperator, why do you turn on me? Jin Kisaragi.”

The reply was affirmative. Jin swallowed the meaning slowly, as if gulping down a melting block of ice.

“Because you are the enemy."

The one to be defeated. That is the enemy.

“My enemy.”

Jin replied, and Tenjō chuckled slightly.

There's no time.

There is no time for unnecessary words.

"Tenjō. What was 'that thing'?"

At the question, Tenjō paused for a beat and dropped her thin shoulders.

"Oh, so, did you see that 'thing'?"

“Answer me.”

Jin's words were cold and sharp, as if he was thrusting the edge of a blade.

After a few moments of thoughtful silence, Tenjō turned their masked face upward. It was as if they were seeing a vision of that strange coffin that Meifang had told him existed for the Imperator.

"The price of freedom and peace: 'Death'... It is this war itself that death eats away at."

"The war itself?"

"And I am but a puppet that creates death."

Tenjō’s abstract words were not the answer Jin wanted.

However, the hints of despondency, resignation and emptiness in their voice made him feel that further questions were pointless.

The questions to ask and the one who has the answers that Jin seeks, was probably someone else.

"...Jin Kisaragi. End it."

Tenjō's whispered words sounded too gentle to be appropriate for this occasion.

"And resist against 'death' that will be born."

After saying that, Tenjō spread their hands. In their white ceramic-like hands that peeked out from their wide sleeves, there were a few talismans.

Somewhat mischievously, the 'woman' underneath the mask laughed.

"It must be a little painful to slay an unresisting opponent. However, there is no time for hesitation."

Just as Jin didn't have time, Tenjō seemed to not have it as well.

Jin raised his eyebrows in a quizzical manner. He didn't know why Tenjō didn't have time, but he also didn’t have a reason to find out.

Why?

Because this is where Tenjō ends.

Taking a deep breath, Tenjō spoke softly.

"Come now, I will accept it. With this, even if you were to die, it's the end."

"Nonsense."

Jin spat coldly, while gripping the silver hilt.

“I will survive.”

Underneath the mask, Jin thought he saw Tenjō smile faintly.

Jin closed his eyes, concentrating on his consciousness.

He saw the talisman released from Tenjō’s hand.

(What did she mean by “accepting it”...)

He muttered inwardly as if he were poisoning himself and Jin felt a moment of pity for Tenjō. Tenjō had been waiting. Letting death be the one who comes to kill her.

The blow of this talisman was only a bait to entice its cutting edge.

Then he must respond.

“Judgment...”

With a low chant, a pale blue magic circle spread out at Jin's feet. As soon as Tenjō’s talisman touches the circle, Jin releases it.

—Snowstorm.

The trajectory of the blade that he pulled out and swung caused the white ice to run.

The flash that he released froze Tenjō’s body instantly.

After a moment of complete silence, the ice shattered. At the same time, bright red blood spurted from the wound that had been slashed diagonally.

First, their knees hit the floor, then their slender body collapsed.

Walking to the side, Jin looked down at Tenjō, who was sinking in fresh blood.

They were still breathing. As he approached them, he noticed that the body, which was unexpectedly small, was trembling slightly as if it was responding to life.

Suddenly, a dry sound was heard. It was the sound of Tenjō’s mask falling off.

Her hidden face naturally appeared in Jin's vision. White skin, pale lips and eyelashes as purple as her hair. Beneath her eyelids, which looked as if they were about to fall, were bright red eyes.

Jin's eyes blinked.

Tenjō was a woman. She was youn, and had what most people would describe as a beautiful one.

Tenjō managed to lift her eyelids, which were losing strength, and looked up at Jin. Her red eyes were sad, but the expression on her face was in peace.

"Magnificent, such is the Power of Order..."

"The Power of Order?”

With an to him unknown name, Tenjō calls out to Jin and then draws her last breath.

Jin just stared dumbfounded at her dying face.

What surprised Jin was not that Tenjō was a woman.

It was because of the resemblance.

To a young girl.

“Saya...”

To his sister, with whom he had lived for a time as a child.

It made Jin understand all of Tenjō’s words that he hadn't been able to fully comprehend earlier.

“You don’t mean the 'purpose'... That things purpose... That coffin-!!”

"Oh, so, did you see that 'thing'? It is this war itself" Tenjō said, "that death eats away at."

So you could say this "war" is "that thing" itself. No.

(This 'war' IS for 'that thing'!)

That is assumption frightens Jin. For the past several years, both the Librarium and the Ikaruga Federation have been fighting. Countless people have died in a endless cycle without a clear end in sight for both sides. Seemingly, no one was benefiting from it other than scientists trying out new third party weapons. So, for what reason? For what use? For what purpose was this war for?

After seeing that cauldron of dead people being melted in masses, the way the 9th squad got rid of and the words of Tenjō herself, it became painfully obvious.

It was death.

'Death' was the purpose.

This war is about letting people die...

"Ohh, so here you were. I finally found you... Lieutenant Kisaragi."

Suddenly, he heard a voice and looked up with a gasp. His deep chain of thoughts were cut off as if a thread had been snapped.

Pulling himself up, Jin looked back toward the voice.

There was 'someone' there.

Part 5

Someone was standing at the entrance of the sliding door that Jin was blown through by Bang in the large room.

But Jin did not know who it was.

He could at least make out someone. There were two legs, a torso, two outstretched arms, a neck and a head on top of it.

Although he knew it had a human shape and he knew he could hear voices coming from it, he didn’t know 'what' it was. It's as if his vision had gone blurry and he couldn’t distinguish anything.

"At any rate, aren’t you cruel? I was the only one left behind. I'm still pretty hurt."

The person spread his hands around his shoulders and came towards Jin with a leisurely gait.

Jin gripped the scabbard of his sword tightly and stared at the 'someone'.

“Who are... you?”

Jin asked sharply and with caution. 　 The person paused as he entered the room.

"Who? Hmmm, this is troublesome. I don't know how to explain it... Oh, yes, I had a name, didn't I? It was Honoka, Lieutenant. Do you remember? Ohhhh, I hope so!"

Honoka.

Yes, that's the name of the boy soldier that the Duodecim forced on him when I left for the war. He was shorter than Jin and spoke without a sense of urgency, but once he started talking, he couldn't stop. However, when faced with dangerous situations, he cowered in fear and backed down.

On the battlefield and in the encampment, he was often worried about Jin's condition and was also busy with other chores such as making tea and fetching luggage.

He was there, however...

(What did he look like...? Why can't I remember?!)

What color was his hair? What color were his eyes? The color of his skin. He had assumed he was small, but he wondered how far his head actually stood in comparison to Honoka's. Even his voice. What was his voice like?

Jin's thoughts are jumbled and he can't put them together.

Honoka smiled at Jin as he stood there, unsure of what to do.

"Well, I don't really care what was I called.”

He shrugged his shoulders and walked nimbly to Jin's side.

"Even so, it's wonderful. To beat that Tenjō all by yourself like this. 'Jin Kisaragi', you are a 'hero'!"

Honoka spread his arms high and wide, speaking in an exaggerated manner like a stage actor.

“The war is now over. Well, it sure lasted for a long time. But, it's a shame, isn't it? So many people fought and fought and fought aaaaaaand... then died. For freedom and peace!! Oh, so many people gave up their lives......."

This person called Honoka enunciated from one end to the other.

He turned around and faced Jin, holding out his arms. It was as if he was holding the corpses of the many lives that died in this war.

“And then! The people of Ikaruga did not win their freedom and peace. They paid the price of so much death... It's sad, it's really sad."

"You..."

“But the war is over! I am glad! I am so glad!”

“Who the hell are you?!!"

(Wrong. I don’t know him. I don’t know that man who says Honoka.)

Jin asked himself as he slipped his hand onto Yukianesa.

At that moment, a dull thud struck Jin in the chest.

“Wha…”

Unsure of what had happened, Jin looked down at himself. A black snake's head was sticking out of his chest.

“Gah…”

He tried to say something, but his voice wouldn't come out. He tried to grip his sword, but his hand wouldn't move. It wasn't just his hands. He couldn't move his legs or his neck either.

Honoka... No, 'someone' walked up to Jin, who was trapped by the snake that had bitten his chest. A disgusting smile, like a crescent moon, clung to his mouth.

"But, you... you shouldn’t have gotten involved where you didn’t belong. "Jin Kisaragi..."

The tone of his voice changed drastically.

As soon as he did, Jin recognized the man in front of him clearly.

A tall man. He was wearing a black suit and a black hat. His hair leaked out from under the hat and turned out as green.

From the mans outstretched arms leaked a black chain that moored to the head of the snake that was biting into Jin's chest.

"You are...!"

Jin glared sharply at the man he had finally been able to see.

Overlapping the man in the suit, he saw a humanoid figure that looked like a mass of black shadow. The shadowy humanoid form had numerous green cracks running through it.

An unpleasant sensation spreads through Jin, one that he has never experienced before. This feeling is the same as the one he had when he saw the lines from Karenjina connecting to... "evil".

Forcing his immobile body to move, Jin tried to grab the sword, Yukianesa.

The double figured man bent over and laughed in amusement.

"Hihihihihi, as expected from the 'Power of Order'. Amazing, truly amazing!”

He wondered which of the two figures the coarse language was coming from. The sarcastic voice still laughed.

"Anyway, thanks for your help, Jin Kisaragi. I'm going to retrieve Tenjō’s body now, if you don't mind me."

With Jin in its grasp, the mass that made up a man in a black suit and the shadow with green cracks walked past him and lifted the fallen and motionless corpse of Tenjō onto its shoulders.

Then he looked back over his shoulder and smiled. He smiled with a crescent-shaped mouth.

“Oh, and... your 'memories' as well."

────。

─────────────────────。

The area was as quiet as if it had been flooded.

Everything in the large room was frozen and Jin was the only person standing in the middle of it, his breath white as clouds.

There were two people lying at his feet.

One was dressed in luxurious clothing with wide cuffs and wearing a 'White mask'.

“H-huh…”

Heavily tingling and aching, Jin pressed his head lightly.

"Damn... Did Yukianesa knock me out for a second...?"

He had held on desperately up to this point, but it seemed he had let his guard down at the last moment. Jin tightened his grip on Yukianesa in his hand.

Jin bent down on his knees beside the masked one who fell at his feet. He gently removes a mask that covered their face.

On the face that was hidden underneath, there was a large old scar that even changed their facial features. It was a scar that Jin wanted to turn away from, which would be enough reason to wear the mask.

“I'm sorry...”

He shouldn't have revealed it. He whispered an apology and put the mask back on their face.

The lord of the mask, Tenjō, was a formidable enemy and for that reason, he wanted to show at least a modicum of courtesy. Thid was the impact that Tenjō left on Jin.

"Jin Kisaragi has defeated Tenjō!"

He heard someone shouting that in the distance. Someones words spread one after another, creating a throb like a wave.

Jin cradled Tenjō’s corpse in his arms and opened the window of the castle tower to reveal himself outside.

Someone pointed at the window, noticing Jin and the word spread around.

A blond-haired young man in a Librarium outfit, along with Tenjō, who had died in his arms. At the sight of him, some jumped for joy with their hands in the air, while others collapsed on the ground and cried out. Some screamed in triumph, while others dropped their weapons in despair.

“Ahaaa!"

In the middle of it all, there was an unexpected scream. Jin could see exactly what had happened.

A soldier from the Librarium swung his sword at the helpless back of the Ikaruga soldier, who was nodding helplessly.

"The people of the Ikaruga Federation have been ordered to be 'exterminated'! Kill them all!"

The guard who had killed and discarded one of them raised his blood-soaked sword and shouted in high spirits.

In response, the surrounding guards of the Librarium took up their weapons one after another. The nearby Ikaruga soldiers fled one by one.

Jin furrowed his brow and kicked the roof he had been using as a foothold. Down, down. He slid down, and as soon as he landed, he pulled out his Yukianesa and stabbed it on the spot.

A cool sound rushed through the area with a chill breeze. Instantly the ground froze, engulfing the feet of all the soldiers standing there.

No one could move. The voices of astonishment and agitation were raised in their mouths.

In the middle of it. Jin stood up and coldly told them.

“The war is over."

(A lot of people died. I'm here to stop it.)

“No more futile killing... will be tolerated by me!"

There was no one who could resist Jin's words.

— On this day, the long lasting "Ikaruga Civil War" has ended.

Epilogue

A huge Ars Magus Vessel was well on its way to the 2nd Hierarchical City of Iwatsuchi.

The interior decorations, based on deep brown wood were elegant but not ornate and added a peaceful touch to the time spent on board.

From the office in the center of the ship, Jin came out into the hallway.

He was summoned because of a transmission from Yabiko.

The person on the other end of the line was Hibiki Kohaku.

Apparently, Kagura's wounds from the war were not looking good. He said that he would have to stay in the hospital for a while. Jin told him that he did not plan to visit him.

Then, Hibiki told him that a week later there would be a triumphal parade with the presentation of Jin's medal.

Jin said he would turn it down, but Hibiki convinced him that it was an important opportunity to make a big statement that the long war was over and that he had no choice but to accept.

The corridors of the ship were covered with blue carpets, and it was quiet and empty.

As he listened to the sound of his own footsteps, Jin stared blankly ahead.

Some people came from the direction in front of Jin, who was moving his feet at a pace. There were three of them. All of them wore white robes that concealed their identities. They are the Wings of Justice.

The figure leading the way caught Jin's attention.

Meifang.

Just before they passed each other, Jin moved to the end of the corridor himself. He stopped, made a slight salute and let Meifang go ahead of him.

But just as he passed in front of Jin, Meifang stopped in her tracks.

"Fufufu… I'm honored that I'd allowed a pass by the 'Hero of Ikaruga' who ended the war."

"Thank you for your assistance on that matter, and thanks for the pardon to Corporal... Karenjina, Colonel Lapislazuli."

With a polite manner, Jin bowed to his young superior.

Meifang looked at him with a sticky gaze and laughed.

"Hmm... I see you've finally learned how to address your superiors."

He couldn't tell from the way she spoke whether she was satisfied or dissatisfied.

“The war is over, but the fools who defied the Imperator still remain. ...Don't let your guard down, 'Hero'."

Her tone sounded as if she was testing him.

Jin looked up at Meifang. He stared at her with cold, cold eyes, like glass beads without emotion.

"It's none of my business."

For a few beats, Jin and Meifang stared at each other. One had a leisurely smile, the other a cold, blank expression, but it was unmistakably a standoff.

The white robes behind Meifang stepped forward in disrespect, but Meifang stopped him with her hand.

"Yes, it is. It's none of your business. ...Fufufu."

Leaving behind an eerie tickle of a smile, Meifang left the scene with her men in tow.

Jin stared down at the back of who was moving away from him at that moment.

A cold sensation came over him. Cold to no end.

With a heartfelt murderous intent.

The circular room was large and the high ceiling was domed.

The room deep underground was a different one from the one that used to be beneath the research facility of Sector Seven, or the one beneath the mine where crystallized seithr could be found.

However, the shape was very similar. This is because the shape was meaningful. Rather, it would be more correct to say that other facilities were built in the shape of this one.

The ceiling was carved with ancient inscriptions and the floor just below it was carved with decorations that resembles a cauldron. Well, infact it IS a cauldron by name as well, but that just is what the surface holds, what is beyond that cauldron is something vast, something that could drive anyone mad if they dared to get involved with it. A 'boundary' brimming with seithr and information of everything that there could be. And infront of one such cauldron, two figures stood there.

In the space between them, there was a coffin that was a little too large to just hold a single person, connected by several chains and attached to that coffin were countless pipes extending from the walls, ceiling and floor.

“Now, are all preparations in order?”

Looking at the coffin, a man in a black suit fixed a black hat on his head.

The person who spoke to him was the another man standing next to him. This one had blonde hair with a golden mask over his eyes and a purple cloak over his shoulders.

“But it's going to take a while to wake her up...”

The masked man said in a hushed tone, as if talking to himself. The man in the black suit turned around and smiled deeply at it.

“I know, and for that reason, we have to prepare the 'Successor of the Azure'."

“...That’s right.”

And that is one big problem. The man in the mask and the man in the black suit, however, may have already expected it.

"By the way, are you the one who sent the Zeroth Squadron?"

The man in the black suit asked in a somewhat hearted manner, as if he had just remembered something. The masked man, looking at the coffin, answered without even glancing at the man in the suit.

“I don't want any unnecessary interruptions.”

“Wouldn't things have gone a little more smoothly if you'd gone in person?”

"There's no need for me to go out there for that much. ِAlso... I wanted to observe that soul too.

"Also? Oh, what was that woman... Meifang, was she?"

The man in the black suit crossed his arms and held up the index finger of one of his hands, then looked at the masked man again with a fed-up expression.

“Is she... alright? She seemed kind of suspicious to me.”

“She is just like that. A very amusing person, however...”

The masked man put his hand on his chin and thought to himself.

The man in the black suit sighed. Given the situation, there is no one better to talk to than this man. But talking to him feels more like to engage to a brick that can only to himself.

"I'm on my way to adjust 'Ignis'. I'll leave the rest to you... Hazama."

Their conversation went as expected. After saying that, the masked man quickly walked away on his own.

The man in the black suit who was left behind called 'Hazama', shook his head lightly and then looked up at the coffin.

The black coffin was still there, silent.

"Well then. How did you feel after all that 'death'?"

As if in response to Hazama's voice speaking, the surface of the coffin pulsed with light.

A gust of laughter escaped from Hazama's mouth as if he understood what the coffin was saying.

"Oh, my goodness! Still more? Still not enough!?"

His voice, laced with joyful laughter, echoed high into the domed ceiling that held the coffin.

"Yes, but don't worry. There are still many, many, many more deaths in this world!”

(And we can create as many as we want. Any number we could imagine.)

Hazama smiled deeply as he thought of the endless deaths that would eventually be born.

"So please wake up at last... Hades: Izanami."

(When the lid of that coffin is opened, what kind of view will the world and myself have?)

“Oh yeah, I am sure it will be very fun.”

Yes, surely.

His golden eyes smiled narrowly under the hat he wore so tightly.

Afterword

Thank you for picking up this book. My name is Mako Komao and I am the author.

First of all, this book is a novelization of the fighting game "BLAZBLUE", which was released for PS3 and PS4 by Arc System Works Inc.

If you have played the original BLAZBLUE game, I think you will enjoy this novel much more. It's a fighting game, of course, but the story mode is so serious that it could be a whole game on its own, so please try playing the original story as well.

In addition, the latest title, "BLAZBLUE CENTRAL FICTION” was released a little before this book. I have also participated in some of the written scenarios in that game, so please take note of that as well.

Thanks to your support, I've been able to write a number of "BLAZBLUE" novelization series. I finally had the chance to touch his story, 'the hero' of the BLAZBLUE series, Jin Kisaragi. This story is a prequel to the game... or rather, it is about a very important past episode for him and the story, the "Ikaruga Civil War".

Personally, I have always wished for this episode to be published, but I never thought I would be able to deliver it to you in the form of a novel. I am beyond happy and honored. To be honest, I was so honored that I was scared and even now I am worried.

I've been involved in BLAZBLUE from the very beginning and I've enjoyed it as a fan of the game as well, so I know how important the "Ikaruga Civil War" is and even through the eyes of Jin. This was such a big role for me!

Now, I just hope that the readers are satisfied. Did you enjoy it? I strongly hope so.

When I think about it, this is the first time I've written a story with Jin as the central character. What I found when I actually wrote it was that he is a really complex person.

In particular, this Jin of the civil war era is from a different point in time than any of the other Jin's that have appeared in games and manga up until now, so as I was writing this, I felt a bit of loneliness thinking that the Jin of this era was like no other version of him...

In the original BLAZBLUE games, he goes on a rapid inner progress, so it's different from this Jin from SPIRAL SHIFT. I think that this novel depicts a part of that origin, a part of the time when he was different from the Jin of the main game, but he was still Jin.

Oh and... I know it's a bit late now, but this is an afterword, right? Another one of my "BLAZBLUE" novels is done at last. ...I love the world of BLAZBLUE, and I love it more and more every time I write in it. I'm sad that it's over every time I write for BLAZBLUE. Of course, the relief of finishing the novel is immeasurable, but at the same time, I'm filled with the desire to be able to write another one soon.

I hope to see you again in the next game with the name BLAZBLUE. I was very nervous about this book, but it was a great honor and privilege. Thank you for letting me write it.

Finally, I would like to express my gratitude to all the people who have helped me in writing this book, with my forehead grinding on the ground. Both the editor and the proofreader have been a great help.

Also, thank you very much to the producer, Mori-san, not only for the plot but also for the illustrations. The pressure was unbelievable. It looks like it will be a book that has trained my mind as well.

I would also like to express my heartfelt thanks to everyone who has read this book and to all those who love "BLAZBLUE”. May your blue be eternal.

Mako Komao

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