Princess. And that was how the world had reached the here and now. Hallelujahâ€”that single word the Grave Keeper had said rattled about in Kaito's eardrums. He shook his head, then opened his eyes. Still silent, he turned back toward Izabella. The cold night bore down on her as she began speaking again. "Here I was, telling my men not to waver, and now look at me. How utterly pathetic. But even if we overcome this challenge, the world is too steeped in malice. With all the animosity and fear the people will bear, I have no faith we'll be able to keep on living like normal." "Izabella..." "If we're headed for ruin one way or the other, wouldn't it be best to welcome in a new world? I just can't get that thought out of my head. We're fighting so hard to save this world, but..." ...Was their salvation truly the right one? She posed the question earnestly to the Mad King, the man who fought while shouldering everything on his back. It was a sincere question, the kind that a child might ask. Kaito took it head-on. His shoulders, clad in his black, military-like uniform as they were, were frail and weak. His growth had been stunted. Now, though, those same shoulders bore the weight of everything he'd inherited from the Torture Princess. It was a heavy burden. Yet the Mad King gave his answer without having to think it over much at all. "Right, wrong, none of that matters." Izabella's eyes twitched as she narrowed them. One of them was surrounded by machine parts, and it moved ever so slightly slower than the other. Then she stared straight at Kaito, as though trying to figure out what he meant. Kaito placed his hands on the watchtower's ramparts, then leaned forward a little. He gazed out over the marred Capital. Among the corpses dotting the land, not all of them had met their ends at the underlings' hands. Kaito Sena knew. The world wasn't beautiful. It was as filthy as a swamp, and as hideous as a rotting flower. But in it, I found something truly radiant. This was the only place that he and the people precious to him existed. Even if, perhaps, anything and everything about it was wrong, that fact remained. "What meaning does some imaginary person's happiness have? Does it matter if some world we've never heard of is peaceful? Even if hell is the only thing left for us, I still want the people I know to fight back. And someday, I want them to find happiness." Every single person was worthy of finding happiness. Everyone had that right. Even if the world had already become hell on earth. And no matter how foolish the living all were. Just as he yearned for the ruthless, gentle Torture Princessâ€” â€”so, too, did Kaito Sena forgive the world for its contradictions, loving it for them instead. "That's why I'm going to protect them." The Mad King made his declaration without wavering for a moment. He then looked back at Izabella, his eyes so free of hesitation that they seemed almost crazed. She squinted. She looked as though she was gazing at something dazzling. Eventually, she placed her arm horizontally over her chest and bowed. Her next words were quiet, practically a prayer. "Kaito, I have nothing but thanks for you being who you are." Not Sir Kaito, but just Kaito. Her words were packed with a much deeper intimacy than usual. Kaito cast a gentle gaze at her mechanically supplemented body. Then he, too, spoke softly. "I should be the one thanking you." "Hmm? For what?" "No, I just... The world definitely needs people like you." "...Like me? I should hardly think so. All I seem able to do is complain and dither." "Not at all. After this, the world's gonna need people like you way more than people like me." Izabella frowned. Then puzzled, she opened her mouth. In all likelihood, she was about to try to put the sense of unease she'd just felt into words somehow. However, Kaito held up his hand and cut her off. He scratched his head through his faded-brown hair, then abruptly changed the subject. "So, uh, on that note. I feel kinda bad for saying something so casual after seeing just how bad the situation is, but...I guess that's also the reason I had something I wanted to ask of you." "If it's within my power to grant, then ask away." She cocked her head to the side, wondering what it was that he wanted. Kaito briefly cleared his throat. However, hesitating wasn't going to get him anywhere. "So here's the thing," he began. Then with utmost seriousness, Kaito made his request. A few hours later, Kaito had arrived at what had once been Mage's Row. Technically, the Row itself was still fine. However, upon determining that it was no longer possible to do business there as befitting its name, the mages put out a notice: Regardless of whether or not the world was actually going to end, Mage's Row was shutting down. Kaito stood still atop the narrow, alley-like main drag. After surveying his surroundings, he gave a small nod. "Huh... You really can tell the fourth-wave underlings hit this area." The artificial, boxy buildings around him seemed to intentionally spurn the notion of decoration. The entire sector was seedy. Normally, color would be all but out of place here. Now, though, it was dyed with ominous patches of black and red, and the walls had been transformed into some unidentifiable material so the underlings would have an easier time scaling them. They must have been crawling about on the shops' surfaces, none of which had had been built with windows or doors in an effort to keep out those who didn't understand the value and danger of the goods sold within. The viciously rent corpses of the underlings littered the walls. However, what was surprising was that the demise of Mage's Row had nothing to do with the grim spectacle before him. Everything happened shortly after the three merged demons had been successfully struck down. First, the magical merchants quickly made their way back to the Capital. After all, while their operations had been on standby, the market price of magical remedies had exploded. Of course, their trade dealt with a wide variety of dangerous goods by nature, so they were used to being tossed about by the fickle whims of the times. However, none of them could have predicted that the very moment they hung their BACK IN BUSINESS signs up, the bugles heralding the end-time would be blown. As a result, the merchants flipped out. If the end-time came, then all the people in the world would die. In other words, they wouldn't have any more customers. And they clearly refused to stand for that. If they'd thought about the situation a little more carefully, they probably would have realized their own deaths should have been the more pressing concern. But alas. In any case, they'd all taken their strange philosophy and offered their help in the defense efforts. Because of this, many of the veterans with summoned beasts in tow were actually powerful retirees from Mage's Row. To them, though, spending all their inventory in battle would mean having to close up shop. Preserving their precious goods and manufacturing magical remedies required quantities of mana that had taken them years to amass. Using this mana up would leave them no choice but to abandon the Capital, set up a workshop, and begin building it up again. But even knowing their actions would drive their own businesses to ruin, they still chose to strive for a world in which commerce was possible. "All for you, my dear customers." Those were the words of the merchant of legend, passed down for countless years. Anyone who dealt with trade knew and held them as a badge of honor. Maybe their choice was contradictory, but in a way, it was kind of a happy one, too. Upon reaching that point in his thoughts, Kaito reminisced on the Butcher's nonsensical behavior. He didn't pick up the way he acted and spoke from the Saint, nor did he learn from her his way of thinking as a merchant. Perhaps he'd picked them up while unifying the scattered peddlers in his efforts to make society prosper. And now that time had gone by, the Butcher's words were still living on in the merchants' hearts. Even if someone dies, as long as the world is still there, a part of them lives on. And if something was worth being passed on, then it deserved to be protected. Once again, Kaito appreciated the value of fighting back against the impossible. Suddenly, though, he was pulled from his reverie. "Ma-Ma-Ma-Ma-Ma-Ma-Ma-Maaaaaaâ€”!" "Mamam? "Master Kaitoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!" And with a great whoosh, a maid came bursting through the air. Or to put it another way, his wife came flying at him. His wifeâ€” â€”came flyingâ€” â€”at him! You've gotta be kidding me. On the spur of the moment, Kaito used magic to reinforce his body, a feat only made possible by the power of love. Then he spread out his arms, ready to catch her. Upon seeing that, though, she suddenly cast aside the halberd she'd been carrying. The weapon drew an arc through the air as it went flying off in another direction. Using the recoil from the throw, she made three and a half clean revolutions in the air and corrected her course. And just like that, she plunged headfirst into a nearby shop. Fragments from the wall sprinkled to the ground. Kaito nervously surveyed the damages. Her bottom, clad in the skirt of her maid uniform, was sticking out from the wall. Kaito turned and began speaking to it. "H-Hina? Why exactly did you go and self-destruct there?" "I'm afraid to admit I got a little too energetic. I was concerned I would hurt you. Oh, I was just ever so excited to see you. My deepest apologies." "Well, that's dumb. Here I was, more than happy to catch you." "Oh, Master Kaitoooooo, you're too kiiiiiiiiind! Everyone, come look, everyone in the whole wide world! This man here is my strong, invincible, perfect, adorable husband! Eek!" In concert with the "eek!" bit, Hina wrenched her head free from the wall. As she did, she turned about and flashed Kaito an ear-to-ear smile. After his brain finished rebooting, he came to the happy conclusion that she wasn't injured before going on. "You know, Hina, I was actually walking around hoping I'd find you. Thanks for coming and finding me, instead." "Of course! The moment I sensed your fragrant aroma, I lost myself in it and came flying right over!" "All right, I'm gonna be honest with you; I'm a little embarrassed you could track me down by smell from that far away." "Oh, don't be! You see, Master Kaito, your blood has a sweet fragrance to it, but your whole body smells warm and gentle, like the sun, or like freshly baked cookies... I mean, perhaps I'm the only one who can tell, but it's peaceful and pleasant. It's a lovely, lovely scent! Eek, I said it! How embarrassing!" "Wait, that's the part you're getting embarrassed about? Anyway, Hina, there's, uh, something I wanted to ask you." "What is it, my dearest Master Kaito? What is it? What is it?" Hina's cutely frilled skirt gently splayed out as she sat down in front of him. Her eyes glittered as she waited raptly for what he had to say. She resembled a puppy wagging its tail and was just as adorable. Even though the world was ending, Hina was the same as ever. Kaito let out a little chuckle. After choking back the affection welling up inside him, he knelt down, lowered his waist, and looked Hina in the eye. She blushed just like a