blow in its master's place. Sparks flew, and Jeanne nodded once more. "Impressive." "I am a commander, after all." Izabella showed no signs of stopping. As she drew back her blade, she leveled a palm strike at Jeanne's jaw. Jeanne blinked in shock, but the surprises would not end there. "Oh?" "Huh?" At that moment, the two of them were both blown to the side. And it wasn't just them, eitherâ€”the paladins met the same fate. Only Hina, who'd clung to the Kaiser, managed to endure. The Kaiser himself said nothing, but his annoyance was written all over his face. Deus Ex Machina frantically reassembled itself, transforming into a warped yet supple metal net. Jeanne swooped down atop it, like a princess being caught by her valet. Izabella, for her part, managed to twist herself around in the air before sticking the landing on her own. She then looked up, trying to figure out what was going on. When she did, she immediately grasped the situation. She let out a quiet murmur, forgetting for a moment the fact that she was in the middle of a fight. "...This is chaos." A massive Wicker Man had just ruptured from within, its chest shredded to pieces. Kaito, having made his escape, wiped the sweat from his brow. Based on his expression, he was clearly in over his head. After all, normal circumstances would leave him woefully unequipped to go up against the Torture Princess. By some miracle, though, he was managing to endure her relentless attacks. Elisabeth, on the other hand, showed no signs of letting up. "Gibbet! Ducking Stool! Hellhole!" "Takes me back, y'know, watching you go all-out like that!" Kaito let out a half-desperate shout as he dashed. And just as he'd implied, the space around was growing more dangerous by the moment. One of the paladins fell into the pit of man-eating bugs, and another one hurriedly pulled him out. As he ran, Kaito avoided it altogether. But one of the five simultaneously deployed Ducking Stools found its mark. Right before he was bound in place and plunged underwater, Kaito called out. "Kaiser!" "What, you can't even deal with this yourself?! I'll have your head if you die on me, O unworthy master of mine!" Although he had yelled out in frustration, the Kaiser moved in a flash. Grabbing the back of the chair in his teeth, he hurled it into the air. A tank of water appeared in the ground, but instead of falling, Kaito went flying over it. Letting loose his blade, he cut himself free from his restraints. He then managed to land safely somehow. Once more, he and Elisabeth faced each other. He, for one, was exhausted. But Elisabeth's face didn't have so much as a bead of sweat on it. Crossing her arms, she cast an angry glare his way. "Why do you run, Kaito?" "Is that a serious question?! If I took that shit head-on, it woulda killed me! C'mon, Elisabeth, hold your fire for a minute and hear me out!" As Kaito launched his ardent plea, Hina snapped her neck up. It was hard to make heads or tails of her situationâ€”she was hoisting up one paladin who'd fallen in the water, yet at the same time, kicking away another who'd come to cut her down. Even though her surroundings had descended into chaos, though, she still spared the time to call out. "That's right, Lady Elisabeth! Even though I'm Master Kaito's companion, I've been getting the sense that I'd best not intrude in you two's battle! But if you insist on harming my beloved Master Kaito any further, my dear Lady Elisabeth, I will have to stop you, even if it means I must kill you!" "You too, Hina, enough from you! Not stopping Kaito when he decided to leave... Fools, the lot of you!" Elisabeth's rebuke was swift and brutal. It was so threatening, in fact, that Hina found herself at a momentary loss for words. Elisabeth's black hair fluttered as she turned back toward Kaito, before ruthlessly snapping her fingers once more. "Iron Maiden. La Guillotine." "Man, a guy can't catch a break." Another vortex of darkness and petals. A pair of maidens, red and white, lined up from within. They each had a decidedly different ambience. One was bewitching, and the other was pure. But while the impressions that the two statues gave off differed, they had their beauty and monstrous, overwhelming presence in common. As he glared at the two women, Kaito's thoughts raced. I wanna get as far back as possible. If Iron Maiden hugs me, it's all over. And from here, I won't be able to deal with the speed of La Guillotine's blades. Kaito set off an explosion of mana at his feet. With speed surpassing that of any human, he fled. La Guillotine brought its arms together as though in prayer, then opened them again. A blade shot out from its elbow at unbelievable speeds. No matter how high Kaito raised his physical capabilities, following them visually would be impossible. He snapped his fingers, virtually on instinct alone, and launched five blades into the air. "La (stop)!" One of them crashed against La Guillotine's blade. The strength of the impact sent the two slabs of metal spiraling off in opposite directions. As the paladins scurried about to avoid them, each cleft into the earth and vanished, leaving huge gashes in the ground. Kaito breathed a sigh of relief. As he did, though, he felt a chilly breeze at his back. Panicking, he whirled around. Fuâ€” The red maiden was standing there behind him. With a smile full of affection, Iron Maiden extended its arms. Then its neck was rent to the side. The kindness of its expression didn't waver, even as its head toppled to the ground. It crumbled to pieces, then transformed back into rose petals and scattered. As it vanished into nothing, Hina stood holding her halberd in Iron Maiden's wake. Her emerald eyes were wide and crazed. "Only I, his companion, am allowed to embrace Master Kaito, you hunk of junk that knows nothing of love." "Thanks, Hinâ€” No, get back!" As Kaito shouted, Hina leaped backward. Torture devices and chains had mercilessly borne down on him once more. The back-and-forth between Kaito and Elisabeth continued on in much the same way. At some point, they'd become the only two still fighting. The paladins simply gazed at the two of them, dumbfounded. And Izabella had been captured by Jeanne, who'd finally gotten serious. Deus Ex Machina had merged together and was presently pinning her to the ground. "Stop that at once! Let me go! Are you listening to me?!" "Quiet now, miss. I don't have any more time to play with you. This is turning out to be quite the show." Jeanne crossed her arms as she calmly observed the battle. Desperate as they were, Kaito's efforts were impressive. He continually summoned blades, with no time to even gather his breath. Each time the beheading axes and innumerable iron stakes bore down on him, he drove them back. Occasionally calling on aid from Hina and the Kaiser, he successfully continued prolonging his life. The difference in strength between him and Elisabeth was overwhelming. But in spite of that, he continued putting up a valiant fight. Armed with tenacity and zeal, Kaito fought back with all his might. His actions clearly weren't driven by a fear of death, either. It was as though he was crying out in violent protest. "Like hell I'm gonna let Elisabeth kill me," he was screaming. "Like hell I'm gonna let her kill anyone else she cares about," he was screaming. "To go to such lengths... Such folly, and such conviction." Jeanne murmured. Azure and crimson rose petals were whirling like tempests before her eyes. The two masses coalesced, then crashed straight into each other. Each wave of vividly colored darkness was trying viciously to engulf the other. Her dress and hair whirling about in the wind, Elisabeth let out a cry. "You chose to become the enemy of humanity, Kaito! You chose that path yourself, bearing sins you had no business bearing! That being the case, hurry up and present me your neck already!" "Screw that nonsense! And screw dying! Just listen to me, Elisabeth!" "No, you listen! What's nonsense is becoming mankind's enemy without the resolve to die doing so! You're but a little sheep, bleating with neither determination nor resolve! Cease your foolery!" "It's not like you wanted to die either, right?! It's fine, just listenâ€”" "Time and time and time again... You're the one who refused to listen!" "Whatâ€”" "I told you countless times! There was no need for you to bear those sins!" Chains shot forth, veritable agents of Elisabeth's frustration. They carved at the ground beside Kaito. Having gone too fast, they also cruelly scraped away at the Saint statue's cheeks. Massive fragments toppled to the ground, and dust billowed up where they fell. Agitated cries rose up from among the paladins. Elisabeth ignored them as she called out again. "'Tis a heavy thing, to harm others, to be loathed by the world, and to constantly shoulder sins, I told you!" "Elisabeth..." "'Tis too heavy a burden for you to bear, I told you!" It was like a desperate wail. Or perhaps the screams of a child. Hearing her heartbroken voice, Kaito ground his teeth into his lip. He'd never wanted to make her cry. I swore to myself that I'd protect you. He'd sworn to himself that he'd keep his hero alive, no matter the cost. But had that really been right? Kaito tossed that question around in his mind. Seeing Elisabeth's face, could he state that with any amount of confidence? Did I really make the right choice? Kaito Sena closed his eyes, just for a moment. His younger self sat before him in the darkness, just like he had once before. The young man innocently yearning for his hero gazed questioningly at Kaito. But when he sheepishly reached out and grasped Kaito's fingers, the real Kaito clenched his fists tight as though to squeeze back. And with that, Kaito let out an internal bellow. *** "I'd rather bear it a million times over than let you die!" Then, at long last, Kaito Sena snapped. The Earl's Grand Guignol. The Governor's banquet. The Grand King's circus. There was no shortage of things that had sparked Kaito's fury in the past. However, because of his experiences from when he was alive, his emotions had a sort of built-in brake. Whenever he was about to succumb to his negative emotions, he quickly regained his calm. And the decisions he'd been able to make as a result of this trait had come in handy time and time again. But as a result, Kaito Sena had never truly snapped. Yet now, he'd gone well, truly, and completely off the rails. All the common sense, reason, and composure in his brain had evaporated away into nothing. Taken over completely by rage, Kaito snapped his fingers. Six blades, the most he'd ever been able to summon, began whirling above his head. At times, strong emotions, even negative ones, could grant people abnormal bursts of power. His anger had surpassed its limits, and a new image welled up within Kaito. Then Kaito shouted, his eyes open as wide as they would go. "La (transform)." The blades lay atop one another, then merged into one. They melted like sugar, writhing as they took on a new form. A jet-black long sword hung in the air. Then it plunged straight down, directly into the earth. Kaito snatched it up by the handle as though selfishly claiming it for himself. Perhaps he'd been unconsciously mimicking Executioner's Sword of Frankenthal, as azure runes glittered across its blade. All things are pardoned unto me. But I am ruled by none. After flashing once atop the jet-black blade, the runes faded