concert with his chant, the summoning circle on the ground flickered. As the light grew stronger, the atmosphere in the room began to change. "La (become)â€” La (traverse)â€” La (become)â€” La (return)â€” La (become)â€”" The air grew dry and sharp, as if thousands of pieces of glass were flying through it. A formless radiance danced on the tip of Kaito's nose, and he tracked it with his gaze. The edges of his vision were full of images that were most definitely from another world. Highways, cars, crowds, billboards, rivers, schools. All of them scenes from the world he'd left behind. They refracted with a rainbow of colors, filling the dark room with a strange light. "You should close your eyes for the rest. Staring at the light for too long would drive ordinary men mad. You wouldn't want to have your soul sucked out, would you?" Hearing Vlad's warning, Kaito frantically squeezed his eyes shut. Still, the rainbow light burned into his retinas. As he turned toward the darkness to ward off the light, memories of the events leading up to now flashed through his mind. As if fleeing from the strange light, Kaito sank into the depths of a sea of memories. A beautiful girl with fluttering dark hair spoke, her tone of voice often waxing between malice and pride. "I am the Torture Princess, Elisabeth Le Fanu." "I am the proud wolf and the lowly sow." "You and Iâ€”we are fated to die, forsaken by all of creation." A pretty doll with fluttering silver hair gave a smile full of kindness and affection. "Everything is going to be okay, Master Kaito. No matter what happens, I'll protect you." "With a heart full of love and gratitude, I welcome death." A red-haired boy gave a pained smile, his voice trembling in confusion as he answered. "I was just hoping you could find happiness in this world." In the end, he hadn't been able to fulfill Neue's wish. When he realized that, his chest began pounding violently. His heart ached, and it hurt to breathe. Are you really okay with this? a calmer, more composed part of himself asked. Will this really leave you without regrets? Shut up, shut up... Even if it doesn't, I still have toâ€” As he tried to respond, he heard Vlad's voice. "...It is done." And Kaito opened his eyes. "...H-huh?" The man standing before him was unmistakably his father. The stern, unshaven man looked about anxiously. He tore at his unkempt black hair, and his eyes darted around the room like a chameleon's. Kaito recognized that face. He recognized that conspicuous hooknose. Yet, still he squinted, somehow unsatisfied. Kaito looked over the man before him from head to toe. After a moment, he murmured quietly. "...Huh, is that what he was like?" "Wh-where the hell am I? Even the afterlife ain't supposed to be this gloomy. And whaddaya think you're doin' here, Kaito? Hey. You little punk... You tryin' to get revenge or somethin'? Listen here, youâ€”don't go tryin' any dumb shit!" Suddenly, his father began carrying on and on. Even in death, his boiling point seemed to be as low as ever. And he'd always had a sense for when he was in danger, often to the point of paranoia. Spit went flying as he spoke, but his eyes lacked the shade of madness they'd once possessed. It was then that Kaito came to a realization. His father's madness had largely been the product of his rampant drug use. Even now, Kaito could see that the cruel, sadistic nature hidden within him was unchanged. His brawny figure and the readiness at which he hurt others were frightening, true. But that was the extent of it. His father was screaming at him, but his expression was a far cry from the wicked one Elisabeth wore. In fact, it didn't even compare to the gruesome images of the demons. It didn't compare to Clueless's dry, condescending gaze or to Marianne's tear-stained face. And it didn't even come close to Vlad's cheerful smile. Kaito was dumbfounded. "...You're not scary at all." The instant he witnessed his father's clumsy, mundane fury, the fear in his heart vanished. His anger and bloodlust turned on their heads, as well, as he wondered if this was really the man he'd hated so passionately. And then, the tension that had been wound throughout his entire body just...dissolved. Losing the composure he'd held until then, he rubbed his eyes. Sheesh, what's up with this? This guy? Is this really the guy? "Hey, Kaito. What're you all quiet for? Gimme some answers, you little shit!" Kaito couldn't even perceive the man standing before him as the same person who had killed him, the man he had feared, or the man who, by all rights, he should hate more than anyone else. Compared to this guy, the Earl had been a much more threatening foe. Ohhh... I get it. Thinking back on all the things he'd seen in this world, he found his answer. I'm already numb. He'd spent too much time around evils that surpassed human reason and too much time around the woman who fought them. The man who the old Kaito had been so terrified of no longer registered as someone to fear. He finally realized something. The despotic, tyrannical "father" he'd despised so much no longer existed. The only one here was a small man, quick to anger and unable to control himself. Watching his father continue to shout, Kaito spoke with quiet disappointment. "...What, so that's all he was?" In the next moment, Kaito broke out into laughter. His father looked confused. Kaito, finding this amusing, laughed even harder. As he clutched his sides with laughter, he could practically hear the invisible chains that had bound him shattering. This time, he truly, from the bottom of his heart, found it all to be so absurd. Who would have guessed that the person who long held the key to Kaito's mental prison had been someone this trivial? "I don't need him." "Huh? What're you goin' on about? And why're you just ignorin' me and laughin' like a dumb-ass? You losin' it or somethin'?" "I don't need someone like him. He's not worth the price." His father was grabbing him by the collar, but Kaito just shrugged as he looked over his shoulder. Vlad frowned. The wound in his left wrist should have been deep, but it had already healed. What a monster, thought Kaito as he pointed a thumb at his father. With a clear heart, he made his declaration. "Killing this guy isn't worth giving you my future." Although he didn't understand the context, Kaito's father could tell that he was being mocked, and he raised a fist. But Vlad snapped his fingers, and Kaito's father's arm fell motionless. He looked at his arm in surprise. Vlad tilted his chin at Kaito, instructing him to continue. Kaito nodded and spoke. "After I came to this world, I saw Hell..." He'd seen people who crafted horrors, and he saw those who fought them. He'd seen sickening spectacles. He'd seen the weak get devoured. And amid all that, he'd somehow been able to survive. He'd had a teleportation circle carved in his own chest. He'd stopped running away. He'd helped defeat a demon. All that had been possible only thanks to the twisted ego of one woman. The Torture Princess, Elisabeth Le Fanu. A woman as prideful as a wolf and as lowly as a sow. The woman Kaito now served was more terrifying, more beautiful, and more steeped in sin than any other. After all that, he couldn't remain shackled by a man as pathetic as his father. He'd been killed. But so what. He'd made a promise that was far more important than something as trivial as that. "...But in that Hell, someone made a wish on my behalf. So no matter how impossible it is, I have to do everything I can to find happiness." Kaito finished speaking his piece. Without a moment's hesitation, he called off his deal with Vlad. Vlad crossed his arms in consideration. He gazed intently at Kaito's face and heaved a heavy sigh. Then, with theatrical exaggeration, he buried his face in his slender fingers and shook his head. "It appears I approached you a hair too late." "Yeah, a little. Well, maybe more than a little." Kaito's response to Vlad's forlorn statement was lighthearted, and Vlad nodded in agreement. Vlad then walked with a limp, as if he was grieving this outcome from the bottom of his heart. He drew near Kaito's father, then placed a hand on his shoulder. As he did, Kaito's father opened his mouth and began babbling loudly. "Fuck's the matter with you you screwin' with me cut it out dammit fuckin' with me gonna kill you gonna fuckin' kill youâ€”" Apparently, Vlad had had restraints on his speech as well. No wonder he'd been so quiet. Knitting his brows in irritation, Vlad leaned toward Kaito's father's ear. As if approached by a carnivorous beast with fangs bared, Kaito's father immediately shut up. His earlobe had been warped in a fistfight, and Vlad's voice was sweet as he spoke into it. "If you kill that thing in front of you once more, I will allow you to enjoy life anew. What do you say?" After a moment of confusion, Kaito's father practically licked his lips. Quick on the uptake as ever. At the same time, Kaito turned on his heel and ran. An angry voice thick with avarice chased after him. "Hold it, Kaito! Don't you fuckin' run from me!" "I'm definitely gonna run, dumb-ass!" As long as his brain wasn't atrophied, he could at least make sound decisions. And he had no intention of lying down and dying. His father gave chase, shouting something incoherent. Kaito aimed for the entrance he had just come through. The maids did not stand in his way. He doubted he'd make it to Elisabeth alive, but if nothing else, even if he died, he had to stop Hina from shutting down. He should still be able to make it in time. Then Vlad snapped his fingers. Azure petals and darkness swirled, and stakes pierced Kaito's feet. "Gah-rgh!" Kaito let out a scream of pain as he dropped to one knee. At the same time, his father caught up with him and hoisted him by the scruff of his neck. Trembling with rage, his father wrung his neck. "Don't you look down on me, you no-good piece o' shit motherfucking brat! Don't you look down on me; don't you look down on meeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Ahhhhhhhhh, you're a pain in my ass!" Kaito tried to raise his hands and resist, but those were skewered as well. His arms drooped, covered in blood. His field of view shrank and grew blurry. He recalled the unpleasant sensation of having his windpipe crushed. He was experiencing the same thing again. His body might be immortal, but at this rate, the bones in his neck would snap and his arteries would get punctured. If that happened, even he wouldn't survive. Am I gonna get killed again? He'd talked a good game, which made this all the more embarrassing. Just like last time, nobody came to save him. Even if he called out, there was nobody his voice could reach. There was nobody to come to his rescue. This was the end for him, but he'd wanted to stop her, at least. He recalled her gentle smile and her warm embrace. Why hadn't he run up to her and held her to keep her from leaving? A tear ran down his cheek as he whispered, his heart full of regret. "...I'm sorry, Hina." Suddenly, a stampeding sound came out of nowhere. Kaito's father's grip loosened in surprise, and Kaito opened his eyes a sliver. His father was staring in the direction of the noise with his jaw hanging open.