left wide open. The song was coming from inside. Kaito carefully ascended the stairs, which were made of brick and had been ground down by years of drunkards' footfalls. He cautiously peeked inside the store. Round tables were lined up atop the worn-out wooden floor within. And Elisabeth was sitting at one of those tables. She was crooning to herself as she bathed in the moonlight streaming in from the windows. Occasionally, she would kick her elegant legs back and forth, like a child playing in water. For some reason, cats were gathered around her. She stroked their soft backs as they nestled up to her, gazing vacantly off into space as the song drifted unconsciously across her lips. A smile played across her face, one that seemed somehow lonely yet also tranquil. After watching her for a moment, Kaito timidly called out to her. "So...you like cats?" "Hwah!" Giving a panicked cry, Elisabeth leaped to her feet. All at once, the cats relaxing at her side raised shrill meows and scattered. Whirling to face Kaito, Elisabeth struck an odd pose. "K-Kaito! What are you doing here?! Don't startle me like that!" The way she was practically hissing with anger resembled a cat with its fur bristling. However, her strange combat stance also called to mind some sort of bizarre bird. Trying to think back to where he'd seen it before, Kaito nodded. "Oh, hey, that's the same pose the Butcher made!" "Do not go lumping me in with that man! 'Tis the height of disgrace!" Elisabeth roared in indignation. Inside Kaito's head, his mental image of the Butcher was leaping up and down in protest. If the man himself had been here, he would probably have been shouting something about discourtesy. Plopping herself back down at the round table, Elisabeth crossed her arms. She scoffed in displeasure. "Ha, it's not as if I bear any strong fondness for cats! I merely sat, and they approached me of their own accord." "Oh, so you're the kind of person who cats are attracted to." "Quit speaking of me with such peculiar warmth every chance you get!" Elisabeth hissed with anger yet again. Kaito could practically see a bristling tail sticking out from behind her. Realizing that he'd be forced to sit on a ducking stool at this rate, Kaito shut up. After remaining angry for a moment, Elisabeth quizzically tilted her head to the side a little. "Hmm? I shall ask you again. What are you doing here, Kaito? Too much time on your hands?" "Right back at you. Why'd you head out like that? Sounds like you're the one with too much time on your hands." "Ha, fool. Should I rest for a moment in a place that ridden with knights, I should quite likely find myself challenged to a duel. And crushing all those fleas one by one seems like a hassle." Elisabeth shrugged. Kaito nodded in understanding. Given Godot Deus's orders, it was unlikely that anyone would try to kill her in her sleep. However, even in their current state of emergency, it wouldn't have been strange for someone to challenge her to a duel. There were probably also people who wanted to verify her power and true intentions before the decisive battle against the demon. As Kaito thought through that, Elisabeth's interest turned elsewhere. Turning her gaze to the bowl in his hand, she tilted her head to the side once more. "Hmm? What might that be?" "Oh, right, here." "Oh-ho?" "It's tasty." "Hmm." "Go on, eat it." "Mm." After their mysteriously short exchange, Elisabeth took the bowl from Kaito. As she scooped at the pale-yellow gruel, she gave Kaito a dirty look. Kaito nodded, urging her to believe him. Still looking somewhat concerned, Elisabeth dutifully shoved the gruel into her mouth. A complex expression made its way across her face as she chewed. Eventually, she gulped down the mouthful, then murmured. "Paddle." "Why?" Having a torture device summoned on him without so much as a discussion hadn't been what Kaito had expected to happen. Darkness and crimson flower petals swirled. A wooden stick laden with nails swung down on where Kaito was standing. Avoiding the merciless attack with movements that could either be described as graceful or weird, Kaito raised his voice in protest. "Heyyyyy! I went through hell bringing that to you! And you repay me with torture?!" "Mm, it was dreadful." "Whaddaya mean 'dreadful'? It was great!" "It was absurdly viscous and dreadfully pasty! This is some form of harassment!" "That can't... Oh." Snatching the bowl from Elisabeth and peering into it, Kaito stared, dumbfounded. Due to the grain that had been used, the gruel had hardened into a sticky blob. Dropping his shoulders, crestfallen, Kaito heaved a heavy sigh. As she watched him, Elisabeth snapped her fingers in acknowledgment and banished the Paddle. "It seems harassing me was not your intention... Hmm? Hold on a moment, wait. Don't tell me bringing me that was your sole reason for leaving the square?" "It was, why?" "You fool! You leaving for such an idiotic reason is certain to draw the paladins' doubt! With master and servant having left at the same time, they're sure to grow suspicious that we're plotting something!" "Ow! Don't kick me! It's fine; Izabella's not like that!" "What do you think you're doing, acting so chummy all of a sudden?!" "We met a little bit ago and chatted about stuff! And, uh..." Blocking Elisabeth's splendid roundhouse kicks, Kaito opened his mouth to speak. However, before he could finish, he felt a surge of embarrassment. N-now that I think about it, I have to admit, it was kind of an idiotic reason. But now that he was here, it wasn't like he could just turn back. Turning his head down a little, he gave his reason in a mumble. "I figured you might be hungry... And it made me really happy when the nun gave me my food, so..." "That's all?" "That's all." Kaito finally turned up his head, as if to ask what was wrong with that. He threw out his chest with pride. About to cry out in anger, Elisabeth pressed down on her forehead. Her shoulders slumped. With a "haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah," she heaved a gigantic sigh. "So you came all the way out here to bring gruel to the Torture Princess, eh...? Your foolhardiness truly knows no bounds." "I feel like you're making fun of me." "That I am, fool." Elisabeth snorted. Sitting back down at the round table, she waved one hand aimlessly. Sensing that the disturbance had settled down, the cats began gathering back around her. They mewled as they snuggled up to her. As she carelessly stroked their knotted fur, Elisabeth gestured toward the edge of the round table. Kaito looked and found bottles of wine, smoked meats, olives, cheese, and the like lined up on it. She'd probably gotten them from the kitchen. Flower petals flashed across the mouth of one of the still-sealed bottles. A fragrance drifted out, and red wine spilled onto the table. "Well, no matter. You're here. We may as well make the best of it. Make merry, Kaito, and drink with me." "A party, huh? That's a surprise. Won't this be bad for the fight tomorrow?" "As you are now, your magic will purge the impurities from your system no matter how intoxicated you get." "Damn, magic's crazy convenient." "Go on, then. Drink." Elisabeth took the sliced bottle and tossed it to Kaito. As its contents came gushing out, he caught it. When he did, Elisabeth grabbed an already-opened bottle and took a swig. A black cat came and sniffed at the spilled wine, then tried to lick it. Watching it, Elisabeth quickly leaped down from the table and gently grabbed the cat by the scruff of its neck. "No, no, none for you. Come, sit here now." The cat mewled after being placed on Elisabeth's lap. Watching the scene play out, Kaito posed a question to Elisabeth. "Hey, what are we gonna do about these cats? Based on their fur, it doesn't look like they belong to anyone. Are they gonna be okay here?" "Hmph. If all it needs to do is transport cats, I can draw any number of teleportation circles. I'll toss them through later. If I stick them in some other town, they should be able to manage." As she spoke, Elisabeth scratched the cat's chin. The cat purred in delight. "These little ones need not concern themselves with demon invasions and the like." Urging Kaito to try the hors d'oeuvres, Elisabeth gulped down her wine. As he watched her eat, Kaito was struck by an ominous premonition. Will Elisabeth Le Fanu ever have another chance to eat a proper meal outside the capital? He felt as though his wine had suddenly gone bitter. This was her final battle. Once they'd defeated the last three demons, there was only one path left for her. "Hey, Elisabeth." "What is it?" "The sides here are cold, and the gruel got all gross." "Mm." "After this, when we get back home to Hina, let's have something warm and tasty to eat." Kaito chose his words deliberately. However, no response came. Elisabeth remained silent. Kaito seemed like he wanted to speak to her again. However, as though wanting to prevent him from doing so, she took a big gulp of her wine. After downing a sizable amount, she began talking about something else entirely. "At forenoon tomorrow, we meet up with the Shepherd and begin our all-out attack. Keep your wits about you." Kaito, having not heard about that plan, gulped. That was where their conversation ended. The Torture Princess had nothing else to say. Kaito did nothing but gaze at her beautiful face in profile. Then he suddenly realized something. That song just now... In truth, Kaito had never heard one of those before. After all, his mother had passed before he was old enough to remember her. But he knew that gentle melody couldn't have been anything else. That was... It was a lullaby. He was sure of it. 3 The Weapon of the Church The sky over the capital the following morning was brisk and refreshing. Its clear blue was highlighted by the floating white clouds. The weather seems kinda misleading when you think about how awful the stuff going on down here is. That was Kaito's reaction. As he walked forward, he glanced around and surveyed the troops marching around him. The paladins' silver armor was sparkling radiantly in the sunlight. The flag they were hoisting, which bore the image of a lily coat of arms and the suffering Saint, fluttered in the blue sky each time the wind blew. Its splendor seemed rather unfitting, given the stench of blood the wind also carried. Then Kaito reconfirmed the current situation. Many of the knights had been scattered across the capital, acting as escorts to the evacuation shelter, but they were now all marching as one. Besides the ones manning the perimeter and those in charge of maintaining the barrier, every last one of them was currently advancing toward the appointed location. It truly was all-out war. Kaito and Elisabeth were traveling in the company spearheaded by Izabella and Godot Deus. From time to time, Kaito snapped his fingers to mow down approaching underlings with his blade. Trusting his judgment, Izabella and the paladins devoted all their energy into checking between buildings to head off surprise attacks. Leaving the others to act as her outriders, Elisabeth simply conserved her power. Finally, Kaito and the others reached their destination: a hill. A graveyard spread out behind the hill, but from atop it, Kaito could look down and see the entire townscape illuminated by sunlight. Groups of knights and paladins from other refugee camps were supposed to be on standby after having encircled the mass of flesh that the King, Grand Monarch, and Monarch had transformed into. However, from this