a continuous scream from the moment he'd first set foot in the room. It was a striking, sorrowful plea, one that only someone who'd experienced extreme pain could perceive. Please kill us, they'd been saying. Please make it all end. The people being used to pacify Diablo had long since gone mad from the pain. But in spite of that, they'd never stopped their desperate supplication. And now Kaito could hear their pitiful cries no more. He cast his gaze around the room, his expression full of affection and sadness. He looked to make sure they were all dead, that there were no sacrifices left in the room. After determining that to be the case, he let his face turn serious again. Having coldly wiped away his expression, the Kaiser's contractor turned on his heel. Then, alone, he began walking. Hurriedly, Hina rushed back into the nursery. Clutching the hem of her skirt, she faced the grisly spectacle and offered a deep bow. After closing her eyes for a moment as though in prayer, she ran back over to her companion's side. Nestling close to Kaito, Hina squeezed his hand in hers. He stayed facing forward, as though nothing had happened. But he returned his wife's grasp and intertwined his fingers with hers. Ever so faintly, his hand was trembling. 2 The Little Lady's Choice Officially, the underground tomb's sixth floor didn't exist. Everything past it was blockaded off by a colorful barrier, and the architecture took a turn for the bizarre. But once Kaito and the others ascended the seemingly endless staircase and returned to the fifth floor, the rest of the tomb was as calm and sanctified as ever. They walked down the long passageway. Individually crafted mausoleums of the kings of old lined them on either side. Even with the tomb's innermost secrets laid bare, the resting kings on the upper floors were unperturbed. As he cast a sidelong glance at the extravagantly decorated mausoleums, Kaito posed a question to Jeanne. "Did any of the kings know about the First Demon?" "Who can say? I imagine it depends on how close to the Church and how devout they each were. For example, I think the odds that the third king, hailed as the 'Faithful King,' was informed are quite high. He gave his generation's Grave Keeper special rights, after all, and their relationship was rather cordial. They're all crazy!" "Makes sense. Still, though, for some of the kings to find out about it and still give it their endorsement... Fanaticism's a hell of a drug, I guess." Kaito turned his gaze toward what appeared to be the third king's mausoleum. Compared to the other kings' mausoleums, its design was rather plain. It didn't even sport flowers, although the uncouth suits of armor surrounding the sarcophagus within hinted that the third king had specialized in battle. The only piece of ornamentation that could be described as beautiful was the statue of the Saint hanging upside down from the ceiling. Perhaps the cause of his faith had been a desire for divine protection in his countless wars. Now the Saint was always watching over him. Red gemstones were embedded in the sarcophagus's lid, even replicating the Saint's tearstains. That's one messed-up charade they're pulling. Kaito leveled a blunt rejection of the king's beliefs that he was clearly adhering to even in death. But he chose not to voice that impression of his. Instead, he asked a different question. "What about the current king, then?" "His predecessor died early, so he is still a whelp. I'd wager they haven't told him a thing. Ha, he'd likely faint on the spot." This time, it was Elisabeth who answered. Jeanne then offered a follow-up. "He also entrusted the battle against the demons wholly to the Church and has done little in the way of mobilizing troops on his own. As a result, the Royal Knights generally just obey the Holy Knights' orders. The Church no doubt saw that as an opportunity to seize greater power, but Godd Deos refused to use their strength as a pretext to meddle in domestic affairs. That geezer was a pain in the ass, but I gotta give him credit for being a decent guy. At some point, though, the king's advisers began tithing more and more, and their ranks grew flush with the pious. That being the case, it's anyone's guess as to what would happen if the king found out about the first demon." The two Torture Princesses exchanged a glance, then shrugged. Their billowing blond and straight black heads of hair shook. Kaito sighed. He knew almost nothing about the current king. But unlike the third imperial beastfolk princess, Vyade Ula Forstlast, he didn't seem like he'd be particularly reliable if things got down to the wire. It's gonna be rough, not having any influential humans who are sympathetic to our cause. Kaito sank into thought. Once he stopped talking, his surroundings grew quiet as well. Eventually, the group approached the stairwell to the entrance. As they did, Kaito looked up, thinking he'd heard something. Noise from the surface was finally starting to reach them, running down the stairs and echoing off the thick walls. Someone's shouting orders. And that's a lot of armor, swords, and footsteps I hear. Kaito cautiously strained his ears to make out the intermingling sounds. As a consequence, he found himself inadvertently frowning. "Sounds like they've got quite the crowd up there, huh." "I should certainly think so. Izabella and I originally came on orders from the Church to kill you, after all. And I did happen to destroy Yah Llodl's communication device before we entered the tomb, not to mention the fact that we left the paladins behind. 'Twould have been stranger if they hadn't called in reinforcements." "...Oh, right. That makes sense." As he bore the brunt of Elisabeth's exasperation, Kaito thought back to their battle from a few hours ago. He and Elisabeth had traded blows directly in front of the underground tomb. However, he'd been so engrossed in the fight that he hadn't spared much thought as to what would come afterward. And afterward, their entire worldview had been turned on its head. Everything just changed so quickly. Kaito's gaze grew distant. As she stood in front of him, Elisabeth went on. "The only reason we weren't attacked while we investigated this place was the strict orders the paladins received not to enter it. The fewer people who know the truth, the better for them, so the reconstruction sect no doubt plans to destroy us the moment we pop our heads out. However, therein lies a problem." "A problem?" "Indeed. Our foe is the Church." "What does that have to do with anything?" "You forget so quickly, fool. The Church has me bound with shackles." Kaito's mouth hung agape in realization. Now that she mentioned it, he remembered. Elisabeth had been ordered to slay the fourteen demons as a chance to atone for her sins. But because she was a sinner without peer, the Church had placed shackles on her body so that she couldn't betray them. If one of their priests recited scripture, the shackles would activate. That meant that Elisabeth's ability to oppose the Church was diminished. But Jeanne merely shook her head. "I don't think we'll find that to be much of a problem. This is the Capital. The reconstruction sect won't be able to deploy their transformed paladins. And even if they wanted to use a saint, it would take them too long to get a permit issued. In other words, the force at their disposal is currently quite low. No matter how much cannon fodder they call out, cannon fodder is still cannon fodder. After Deus Ex Machina tosses them aside in one fell swoop, I can activate my teleportation circle. Hunting mice is a specialty of mine, y'see. I don't mind taking the lead this time." "I see, how reliable of you. I've no objections." Elisabeth readily nodded to Jeanne's suggestion. Kaito, too, was relieved. Jeanne's Deus Ex Machina was even more robust and powerful than him, the Kaiser's contractor, and Hina, an automaton. Buying enough time to activate a teleportation circle would be a piece of cake for it. But although he gave the plan his approval, he made sure to add a warning, as well. "Just make sure you don't kill any of the paladins. They're only following their beliefs, after all." "Given the current situation, that alone is foolhardy in the extreme. Abandoning critical thought is a crime. Ignorance is sin. Sheep end up as mutton, as they say. But if we consider what's to come, it's true that unnecessary bloodshed will likely prove disadvantageous. And my little lady would object, as well. Agreed. We should avoid letting things get too complicated here." Surprisingly, Jeanne obediently nodded. Behind her, Izabella went slack as she breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that she'd been on the verge of shouting out. If things had gone poorly, it might have even ended in a fight. Kaito was glad it had gotten resolved peacefully. All in agreement, they headed toward the entrance. Light from outside streamed down onto the stone stairs. Kaito then stopped, calling out to Jeanne as he did. "Hold up a minute. Before you send out Deus Ex Machina, we should have one of us get a visual on the situation up there. I'll goâ€”if they fire off some kind of long-range attack, I can block it with my blades." "...Well, I suppose that's true. Your doll has a rather anxious expression on her face, mister, but you are in fact qualified. Guess you finally get to be useful for once, huh? After you, then." Despite the verbal abuse he was receiving, Kaito climbed up the stairs. Because they'd been made from a different material, the steps near the top had been melted when the demon attacked the Capital. Making sure not to fall, Kaito carefully jumped over the pit. Then he popped his head out through the entrance. "Let's see, here... Man, that's quite the crowd." The silver troops were lined up atop the gray earth at regular intervals like chess pieces. There was also a group Kaito wasn't familiar with beside them, covered from head to toe in scarlet cloth. Due to the way their faces were covered, they looked almost like executioners. Man, I'm not getting a good vibe from those guys... Hmm? At that moment, a sense of incongruity washed over Kaito. While it was true that the underground tomb was completely surrounded, their enemies were all standing strangely far away. Kaito frowned as he tried to find the reason. Then he noticed the bizarre-looking man standing in front of the assembled troops. Say...what? The man had a sturdy frame, enough that Kaito could make out his gender despite the distance between them. He had broad shoulders, and his height was on the taller side. In spite of that, though, the hem of his white robes reached all the way to the ground, as did his thick, bristly black hair. That alone would have been enough to qualify his appearance as strange, but his most conspicuous feature was the thick chains binding his arms around himself in an embrace. Kaito couldn't help compare him to the other bound saint he was familiar with. H-huh? He...looks kinda like La Mules, doesn't he? As that thought crossed through Kaito's mind, the chains binding the man's top half came loose without warning. He slowly spread his arms wide. When Kaito saw what was between them, a shiver of terror ran through his body. *** The man's chest had been excavated, clothes and all. The red flesh within had been shaved down, and his white rib cage lay bare. For some reason, though, there was no blood pouring out. The heart, lungs, and other organs a rib cage was normally designed to protect were missing as