the entrails she walked over, nor the blood staining the ground in her wake. But now that all fourteen demons had been vanquished, things were different. Now, she had something she felt she needed to say to the woman beneath the grave. "Forgive me, Marianne, for I have lied." Her words, and the apology they carried, came from the heart. Clenching her fists, Elisabeth turned to look behind her. Her gaze was silent as she cast it over the ash-ridden town of death. "Forgive me, you all. I said I intended to follow you all shortly. But it seems I cannot go yet. Please, wait for me." No voices rose up to reply. The wind simply carried the same resentment as always. Loathsome Elisabeth, repulsive Elisabeth, cruel, hideous Elisabeth! A curse upon you, a curse upon you, a curse, a curse, an eternal curse upon you, Elisabeth! Elisabeth responded with a gentle smile. Then she repeated the same words she'd once said, words that now amounted to little more than a soliloquy. "I had no right to take the light of a single person in this world. Every person I killed led a vigorous life, a life they had every right to carry out as they pleased. They were innocent, and I murdered them. I killed you all cruelly, gruesomely, mercilessly, and unreasonably. And I've no intention of escaping on my own. I need put down but one more...or stop him, and that shall be the end." Her final words, and her final words alone, had a certain frailty to them. Turning her head up toward the ashen sky, Elisabeth closed her eyes. Beneath her eyelids, the scene leading up to Marianne's death played back. Clad in her mourning dress, her tutor hadn't directed a shred of hatred her way. Her eyes had been full of kindness, like those of an adult talking to a willful child. "I loved you from the bottom of my heart, young miss. Even now, I adore you just as much as I did when you were a child." Then, with a deep, harsh sadness in her voice, she'd laid out the truth. "Once you've killed me, I imagine there will be nobody left in this world who truly loves you." "Yes, I had no one. I was...supposed to have no one..." "I like her a whole lot." "For that person's sake, I could do or become anything." "To say such a thing of a woman who partook of a demon's flesh and became the Torture Princess... What a complete and utter fool." As she shook her head in exasperation, Elisabeth went quiet. Then she turned back toward the grave. She was on the verge of saying something, but then suddenly, her face froze. She'd suddenly been assailed by a deep sense of discomfort. It felt like a needle, piercing its way into her brain. "Wait. Just a moment. Just now, that..." Feeling a shock run through her head, Elisabeth pressed down on her forehead. She looked back over the scene before her. There was nothing strange about it, nothing out of place. There was nothing in particular about Marianne's grave that could have set off such a reaction. Yet for some reason, the discomfort refused to fade. What, then? What could it have been that I found so unsettling? As she racked her brain, she found herself thinking back on a certain memory. She'd been very young, and she'd thrown her quill pen on the ground. She'd been sulking at a lesson that hadn't made sense to her, but Marianne scolded her, kindly yet firmly. "If you think about it carefully, young miss, it will all make sense," she'd murmured. Then she'd smiled. "Let's go over it one more time, now, shall we?" "Go over my last words...one more time." To say such a thing of a woman who partook of a demon's flesh and became the Torture Princess. Elisabeth opened her eyes wide in shock. Now that she thought about it, it was obvious beyond belief. But back when she'd been hunting the fourteen demons, she hadn't had a spare moment to think about such things. But now, she'd realized. Therein lay a fundamental contradiction. "I partook of a demon's flesh." In and of itself, there was nothing strange about that fact. After all, Vlad and his compatriots had already summoned demons at that point. But just like her, Vlad Le Fanu was no mere human. He'd been the first of the fourteen to summon a demon, successfully forming a contract with the Kaiser, the strongest demon mankind could call forth. Kaito had received Vlad's help as an intermediary, but doing something like that alone was a feat no ordinary mage could pull off. Compared with the Torture Princess, who'd butchered the entire populace of her fiefdom, Vlad's power was surely inferior. But he himself must have eaten a demon's flesh before making Elisabeth do the same and trying to mold her into his successor. By eating a demon's flesh, Vlad Le Fanu gained the power to summon a demon. "Wait." It was contradictory. It was wildly, overwhelmingly contradictory. "Where did the first demon's flesh come from?" "As you haven't replied yet, I will ask you again. From now on, serve me." "Hard pass." Jeanne, the new girl who'd introduced herself as a Torture Princess, gave Kaito a forceful invitation, and his response was swift. The situation had taken an abrupt turn. The calmness of the room had been shattered, along with all their plans. The beastfolk who'd promised to fight with Kaito as allies were all collapsed on the floor. And for some reason, the perpetrator, a girl he'd never seen before, was ordering him to become her servant. Confused as he was, his response was as sure as it had been the last time something similar had happened. An image of the brutally slaughtered, strung-up corpses flashed through his mind. And the people who'd been kind enough to believe in him were currently lying on the ground and bleeding out. Given those two facts, refusing was the only sensible option. He was concerned her mood would sour, but for some reason, Jeanne nodded instead. But unlike Elisabeth, who'd reacted with amusement, Jeanne merely spoke unconcernedly in her barely human voice. "Your response was rather quick, mister. While your response itself fell within expected parameters, its speed was quite unexpected. What a strange sensationâ€”disappointing, and yet, at the same time, not. All is well, though. I have my conjectures, but would you mind elaborating on your reasoning?" "First of all, I already serve the Torture Princess Elisabeth Le Fanu. Second, given that you committed all those murders, and you did this, you're undoubtedly my enemy." "I suspect there is a third." Jeanne prompted him to continue. After taking a deep breath, Kaito spat out his answer with all the antagonism he could muster. "My third reason's that you make me straight-up sick." "I see. How illogical." Jeanne gave a light nod. Then she blinked a few times, her rose-colored eyes flashing as she did. Finally, she contorted her lips into what was likely meant to be a smile. "As for your first reason, mister, I believe you've already parted ways with the Torture Princess, have you not?" "Yeah, true. But even so, I can't serve anyone else. She's the one who called me, and she's the one I serve. I swore to stay by her side till the end, so even if we're separated, she's still my master." "I see, a decision based exclusively on psychological principles. It's no wonder I find it impossible to comprehend. After all, I've long since been deemed 'heartless.' As for the rest of your reasons, it would take too long for me to explain in my own words, so forgive me for borrowing the parlance of you lost sheep, butâ€”they're fuckin' horseshit." Kaito unconsciously stared at her, befuddled. Her features and expression were like those of a delicately crafted doll, just like always. Kaito found it hard to believe he'd heard the words he just had come out of her rigid-looking lips. But she went on much in the same way. "Man, quit lining up one pointless-ass reason after the other, ya little shit. Why don'cha take a look around you and think about how outclassed you are before you go running your damn mouth. You should either crawl back into your cradle and start over, or go dig yourself a grave and lie in it. As I said, pardon me." "Wh...what's her deal, exactly?" "I'd guess the people she used as reference for her 'parlance of the commons' had rather foul mouths. While it's a nonsensical method of finding common ground, it's hardly unheard of among preeminent mages." A clear, deep voice resounded. Normally, only Kaito could hear it, but at the moment, it was emanating from beside him. Just like he did when he talked to Vlad or Elisabeth, the Kaiser was currently projecting his voice such that he could be heard by all present. Disconcerted, Kaito looked to his side. At some point, black strands had started knitting themselves together in empty space. Sleek and obsidian, they began as supple muscles in the air. Then fine black fur sprouted atop them. Choosing this time to assume a form twice the size of an ordinary dog, the supreme hound finished materializing. As he shook his whole body, he let out a humanlike laugh. "Vlad and Elisabeth were fond of idle banter, you see. Those two should be taken as exceptions, not as any sort of standard." "Kaiser? You came out on your own? What, are things really that serious?" "Ha. At this rate, you're liable to carelessly get yourself killed. Take care, unworthy master of mine. You'll find out quick enough if you inspect her mana and compare it to yours, but that girl is far, far superior." "Oh, a doggy?" Jeanne tilted her head to the side, her choice of words almost eerily childish. She was silent for a few seconds, like a machine that had been shut off. After a moment, though, she clapped her fist against her palm. "I've parsed the applicable data. I see, you're the Kaiser! Y'know, this is all you guys' fault, you puke-smellin' pig humpers, or so I'd like to reprimand you, but for now, I bid you a fine hello. You look just like the books said you would." "Heh, your courtesy is lacking, but at least you're polite enough to manage a half-decent greeting. The surprise is all mineâ€”I'd hardly expected to see a Deus Ex Machina user in this day and age." "Oh my, mister. It's a bit of a buzzkill that even you didn't expect it." The girl and the hound engaged in a conversation, one that seemed frankly amiable. As they did, Kaito trembled. He'd done as the Kaiser suggested and checked Jeanne's mana supply. This...this is some sick joke, right? He hadn't noticed it due to the chaos and confusion, but the amount of mana the girl had in stock was leagues beyond your average person. She was practically a match for Elisabeth. And unlike the roselike, sinister sharpness to Elisabeth's mana, Jeanne's was sumptuous and cold. She gave off the twisted impression of an artificial flower, one that ate people alive. Kaito knew instantly that he was no match for her. But I gotta do something about her, or I can't save Lute and the others. He could still hear them groaning. As far as he could tell, none of their wounds were fatal, but that might change if they didn't get help soon. Beginning to lose his cool, Kaito asked the Kaiser a question while looking for an opening. "Hey, Kaiser, what's Deus Ex Machina?" "Hmm? It's an entity, one that requires a particular summoning rite to call forth." "A summoning rite?" Upon hearing the unexpected phrase, Kaito narrowed his eyes. When he heard "summoning rite," his mind immediately