[Assistant] An explosion sounded overhead. An incredible mass of magic emerged. In the center of it stood a beautiful woman. Her long flowing black locks danced in the wind.

[User] “Ahhhhh… ha-ha-haa! A-ha-ha-ha!” In a voice as clear as a bell, she laughed loudly. Tinasha’s shrieking howls reached the ears of the three people below. The noise was downright unhinged and didn’t resemble her usual demeanor at all.

[Assistant] Oscar’s eyes shot wide open.

[User] “Ah, she’s gone out of control.” In a blasé tone, he remarked, behind Oscar.

[Assistant] A light drizzle was falling, dampening her thin frame. Tinasha cast an annoyed glance at the raindrops on her shoulders. It was like she was burning on the inside. Her emotions were all muddled and chaotic; she didn’t know whether to find it funny or infuriating. Her soul threatened to split into pieces, and she clutched at her throat.

[User] "Ha-ha! Ha… ha-ha…” Power was gushing forth unbidden. It poured into Tinasha ceaselessly, as though to reforge her from the inside out. Tinasha touched her cheek; her fingers came away wet with tears. “Hmm?” She had nothing to be sad about. She shouldn’t have, anyway. At present, she possessed enough heat inside her to sear away everything around, and that was all that should’ve mattered. Tinasha glared at the gloomy, overcast clouds and the incessant precipitation. They were ruining what should have been a gorgeous view.

[Assistant] She snapped her fingers, and a blast of wind shot upward, sending all the clouds flying and clearing up the sky in the blink of an eye. Soft sunlight filtered down to earth.

[User] “Excellent…” Now things were a little better. She hated the cold. It made her feel like she’d been alone in an unfamiliar place. Roughly wiping away the tears on her cheeks, Tinasha assessed the heat building within her.


[User] She wanted something, and she wanted it very badly, but she couldn’t determine what. That uncertainty left her wanting to destroy everything in her path. She shook her aching head as her gaze darted around wildly. When it landed on the fortress of Ynureid, she scowled. "What an eyesore…"

[Assistant] Before she could cast a spell, someone suddenly roared at her from the ground below.

[User] "TINASHA!" His voice carried well.

[Assistant] She cocked her head like a kitten, gazing at the man glaring at her from below.


[User] Oscar and Aurelia were both dazed by Tinasha’s ability to change the weather without any sort of incantation. "What do we do?"

[Assistant] Travis scowled. She was growing more powerful than he’d imagined. It had reached a point that she now surpassed a forbidden curse, if only by a little. "Well… she’s getting used to her magic. It should take about half an hour for her mind to gain control over the power. By then, the terrain around here might look pretty different, though."

[User] "We just rebuilt that fortress." Oscar said sourly.

[Assistant] "So? Tell that to your lady." Travis retorted.

[User] This was all too ridiculous. Oscar massaged his temples.

[Assistant] Behind him, Aurelia had gone pale as she clutched the baby to her. Travis patted her shoulder. "We’d better find some shelter. Wanna head back?"

[User] "Hold on just a minute! Can’t you do something to stop this? !" she cried.

[Assistant] "Not possible." Travis answered flatly. "Normally, she’s about as strong as I am, but I could always handle her. Now, though? No way. I can’t do a thing. Besides, children of the spirits—spirit sorcerers, that is—get the best of everything in this world. Letting her be is the best course of action."

[User] Aurelia frowned at her guardian. "Come on. You sound like a coward."

[Assistant] "I just don’t make a habit of overestimating my own abilities. I do what I can and nothing more. Killing Tinasha’s about the only way of stopping her."

[User] "Absolutely not!" Aurelia cried.

[Assistant] "Thought so." Travis responded, throwing his hands up theatrically.

[User] Oscar threw him a stony glance, observing how this beautiful man seemed to be enjoying this somehow. He unsheathed Akashia again. "Then I’ll do it."

[Assistant] "Are you out of your mind? Sure, Akashia can beat her, but getting too full of yourself’s only gonna get you killed."

[User] "There’s a way to restore her. Besides, I’d rather not rebuild that fortress for a second time. I’m going to get close to her, and you’re going to help me." Oscar stated in a tone brooking no refusal.

[Assistant] Travis’s lip curled scornfully, and Aurelia poked him in the back. At that, the demon nodded. "Fine. Do you mean get close to her physically?"

[User] "Pretty sure I don’t need any help getting close to her emotionally." Oscar shot back, and Travis burst out laughing.


[User] While these two men were not on good terms by any stretch of the imagination, they worked out a simple order of operations and then set out to subdue the woman lingering in the skies.

[Assistant] Tilting her head to one side, Tinasha observed the man down on the ground. Irritation flashed in her dark eyes. "Who are you? Stop bothering me."

[User] That cut Oscar deep. Keeping his eyes focused straight ahead, he asked Travis, “Has she lost her memories?”

[Assistant] “It’s more likely they’re all temporarily jumbled. Phaedra’s consciousness may be gone, but her emotions are probably still there. She really, really hated mortals. If you make one wrong move, you’ll wind up in the ground.”

[User] “No way am I gonna let that go unchecked. That’s my fiancée up there.” With his off hand, he gestured to Tinasha to come toward him. "Tinasha, I need to talk to you! Come down here.”

[Assistant] “No. Go away.”

[User] “…” Oscar smiled grimly at her immediate refusal. Her loathing for him was written all over her face; the dead demon queen’s feelings truly were influencing Tinasha. After a moment’s thought, Oscar looked back up at her. “Come down here if you hate me so much. I’ll fight you.”

[Assistant] Tinasha’s eyes grew wide upon being provoked so openly. She looked shocked and hurt, but only for a second. Then there was only anger. She leveled a finger at him. “Die then.”

[User] Five orbs of light shot from her digit, snaking through the air toward Oscar. He broke into a run and slashed with Akashia, cutting the first two magic spheres apart. Without spells to hold them together, the luminous globes dispersed. The third and fourth orbs, racing at him from behind, exploded as soon as they touched Akashia.

[Assistant] Behind Oscar, Travis crossed his arms and smirked. “I’m getting tired of this. Just come down.”

[User] As Akashia cleaved through the final orb, an enormous pressure bore down on Tinasha from above.

[Assistant] “Hey!” She crumpled in the face of the sudden attack, plummeting to the earth. However, before she collided with the surface, a colossal explosion boomed. A tremendous blast of air swept over the area.

[User] Travis threw up a barrier to ward off the kicked-up dirt, and he sighed. “Come on, now. I just want to go home.”


[Assistant] Tinasha glowered at him crossly while floating a little off the ground. That surprise attack had garnered her wrath. Oscar had never seen her dark eyes so filled with pure hatred. “So there’s two of you… I see.” The woman was seething with fury, her emotions on the verge of burning anyone who so much as touched her.

[User] Still, Oscar stepped in closer to her. He touched the ring finger on his left hand, just to make sure. “Strictly speaking, I’m the one responsible for all this. Come here, and I’ll get that poison out of you.”

[Assistant] “I hate you,” she replied, lifting a hand.


[User] A gigantic wall of compressed magic appeared in front of her. The white edifice was as thick as a real stone one and as tall as a castle rampart. The other side of it was just transparent enough to reveal that it was knotted together with a roiling mass of dense, concentrated magical power. “Go.” The wall moved toward Oscar, plowing through the ground and sending dirt flying in all directions.

[Assistant] He set off at a run, sword in hand. As the colossal, intricate mass of magic pressed in on him, Oscar swung Akashia down at it. The mighty wall capable of toppling everything it touched developed a giant crack. Oscar slipped through that crevice and hurried closer.

[User] Tinasha frowned and snapped her fingers. A scalding flash of light formed behind Oscar. It pressed into his back, giving off sparks.

[Assistant] But without even looking behind him, Oscar sliced it to shreds. Embers flew off and landed on his arms, but the barrier Tinasha herself had placed on Oscar kept him safe.

[User] The fluctuation in magic reverberated through her body, making her jolt. “AHH!”

[Assistant] “Come back to yourself, Tinasha.”

[User] “Y-you shut up!” she snapped resentfully. She cast a teleportation spell to escape up into the sky.

[Assistant] However, Oscar had anticipated that and touched the ring on his left hand. The warp-blocking spell activated.

[User] Travis, who had finished eliminating the rest of the wall, whistled from behind.

[Assistant] Tinasha’s eyes grew wide with astonishment before her face darkened with animosity. A huge amount of magic formed between her hands—a radiant golden orb. Tinasha carried it up into the air and hurled it down at Oscar.

[User] Realizing it was big enough to blow a crater in the earth, he stopped where he was and readjusted his grip on Akashia.

[Assistant] “GO AWAY FOREVER!” The air crackled and sizzled.

[User] Oscar held the flat of his blade up against the radiant sphere. Akashia only held it in place for a second before splitting it in two.

[Assistant] By that point, however, Tinasha had conjured a black sword. The blinding orb had been a decoy, and she plunged at Oscar from above.

[User] Akashia easily repelled the incoming blade and dispelled it, though. Oscar caught hold of Tinasha’s wrist and pulled her in; her face turned to a look of startled dismay. Despite being presented with such a clear opening, Oscar hesitated for a fraction too long.

[Assistant] Seizing her chance, Tinasha focused her gaze as she kicked him in the shoulder. She moved far back, riding the wave of a small burst of power.

[User] Sighing as he looked down at the hand she had knocked away.

[Assistant] “You could’ve stabbed her in the stomach.”

[User] “If I did that, her guts would burst open."

[Assistant] “So? Just do it. I’ll heal them up later.”

[User] “But it’ll still hurt like hell.” When Travis had blown a hole in Tinasha’s abdomen, she’d writhed in agony even after restoring herself.


[User] Oscar didn’t want to put Tinasha through that, nor did he want to jeopardize her ability to have children by forcing her to reconstitute her body tissue repeatedly.

[Assistant] “AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!” The queen was caught in a fit of rage, tearing madly at her hair. A wild cry erupted from her tiny, battered frame. “I hate you! I hate you! I hate you! I hate you! I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!” She was like a child throwing a temper tantrum, though her screams were more heartbroken. “I hate you! I’m sick of looking at you! Die! Die already, you liar! I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!” She cried, cradling her head in her hands as she burned with enmity.

[User] Coldly eyeing the queen going insane from an over-infusion of pure magic, Travis said, “Phaedra’s emotions are really doing her in. All we can do is beat her into submission and wait for it to subside.”

[Assistant] “No.”

[User] What Travis suggested wasn’t impossible. While Tinasha had all the power of a full-scale calamity, she wasn’t in her right mind at present. Oscar and the demon could subdue her. That didn’t feel like the right way to go about it, however. Oscar gazed at her tearstained face. When his eyes met her dark ones, he made up his mind. “It will be all right.” Akashia in hand, he stepped forward.

[Assistant] Tinasha shivered when she saw the weapon. She held her hands out in front of her to stop him from taking another step and started to pour magic into the space between them. “I hate you! I hate you! I hate you! I hate you!”

[User] “Why do you hate me? Because I’m a mortal?” he asked.

[Assistant] “I hate you. You’re a liar. I despise you.”

[User] “Well, I can’t deny that I’ve lied to you,” he admitted. The muddled state of her emotions made it hard to tell where the demon ended and Tinasha began.

[Assistant] Bitterly, she shook her head. White light emerged from her hands, glowing brighter and brighter. Pure, raw magic—enough power to wipe out thousands in an instant.

[User] From behind, Travis piped up, “Watch out. You take that hit, and this whole region gets decimated.”

[Assistant] Oscar didn’t answer and instead kept his eyes trained on the woman before him as he moved nearer.

[User] As destructive radiance spilled from Tinasha’s hands, she turned a nervous gaze on him and snapped, “You didn’t even want me. You’re going to leave me.”

[Assistant] “I’m not. I’m yours.”

[User] “I hate you,” she said after a pause. A simple spell appeared between her palms. It possessed more than enough strength to annihilate a lowly mortal. All it would take was a thought. Scowling hatefully, Tinasha completed the spell. A feverish, crazed look crossed Tinasha’s face. “Love me.” Seven rings flared into being. The pressure emanating from them was similar to Druza’s forbidden curse, but more intense.


[User] The massive spell flew from her hands, hurtling toward Oscar. He only felt a minor flash of worry as he leaped directly into the path of the attack, however. With a sharp exhale, he dug Akashia’s blade into the interlocking spells. Light exploded with such intensity that Oscar momentarily lost his sight. Still, he cut away the spells on the outer edges as pressure seared into him. The hand gripping Akashia went numb. He was robbed of all sense of gravity. However, he continued undaunted, instinctually hacking away the sheer force pressing down on his body. As he breathed out all the air in his lungs, he found himself standing before her. Gazing down at Tinasha, her face streaked with tears, Oscar smiled.

[Assistant] “Is that what you’ve been worried about?” Was that an emotion belonging to the dead demon woman? Or was it a wish Tinasha herself had kept hidden? Either way, she was here with him now. He cupped her face in both hands. “Tinasha, I adore you. You don’t need to worry about that.”

[User] Her teary eyes widened a fraction. Gently, he lay the flat of Akashia against her ivory cheek. From that point of contact outward, magic diffused away. As her breathing slowly calmed, Oscar pressed a kiss to the bridge of her nose and murmured, “Do you want me to feed it to you? Can you drink it yourself?”

[Assistant] Tinasha’s long eyelashes fluttered. Her deathly pale cheeks turned a faint pink. “I’ll drink it myself.” She held out a hand, and Oscar smiled tightly as he pulled a vial from his pocket and passed it to her. It contained water from the underground Lake of Silence located beneath Farsas Castle. Drawn from the pool that had created the royal sword, the water could neutralize magic. Tinasha drained it in one gulp. When she fainted, Oscar took her in his arms.

[User] Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Travis waving at them in the distance.


[User] Seated in a chair, Aurelia closed her eyes.

[Assistant] Travis put his hand on her forehead. “You seriously can’t just undo the seal like that, you little runaway. What am I gonna do with you?”

[User] “You’re the one who wouldn’t come home.” She said, sulking.

[Assistant] “I’m strong enough to take care of myself.” He retorted, infusing his hand with magic.

[User] Aurelia grimaced as she realized her powers had been shut away once more. Then her face clouded over. She turned her ashy blue eyes on Travis and asked, “Is it really true that you almost killed Queen Tinasha?”

[Assistant] “Did he tell you that?” Travis responded, his tone dismissive as he waved an annoyed hand. “Don’t mind that. It’s my business, so just forget it.”

[User] “I will not. Tell me the truth.” She insisted, her gaze just as straightforward as it had been on the day they met. True to her proud spirit, she always carried herself perfectly upright and with the utmost grace.

[Assistant] Travis had known Aurelia for long enough to recognize when she wouldn’t give up. He scratched at his scalp. “Well, all right, it’s true.”

[User] “I… see.” She replied.

[Assistant] Travis frowned, having expected the girl to lose her temper. “That’s all? Don’t hold back.”

[User] “I have plenty to say. I’ve always wondered why you saved me and how long you plan on staying with me. But none of that is worth fretting over.” Aurelia responded, standing up to glare at Travis. “I know exactly what you are and how cold you can be. But if you’re planning to keep sharing my life, you are no longer allowed to do anything bad like that anymore! You will learn how humans behave! If you do, I will bear half of your ridiculous sins!” She cried, her gray eyes glittering with purpose. She fixed him with that same gaze that could see into the past.

[Assistant] Astounded, Travis could only manage, “Do you… do you really mean that?”

[User] “I wouldn’t have said all that if I didn’t! Don’t you realize how long we’ve been together?”

[Assistant] He could have never imagined that she’d come out with that; she had left him speechless. Did she have any idea just how different their life spans were? There was no way she could know him, nor could she possibly be able to carry half of his sins. The words seemed the foolish ramblings of a child. And yet, Travis could feel himself wanting to cling to them. He needed Aurelia’s strength. He needed her heart, even if he had to kill her for it. That was what he had thought once. She wasn’t the true fool here, though—he was. Travis didn’t understand a thing about mortals. His touch wounded them. His interest corrupted them. Knowing that, he still elected to get involved with them for his own amusement. Aurelia couldn’t possibly comprehend what aligning herself with someone like him meant. Travis cleared his face of surprise and asked, “Are you insane?


[User] "You’re going to end up ruined.” Gone was his usual teasing complacency, replaced with a loneliness as boundless and eternal as the night.

[Assistant] Aurelia’s eyes narrowed a fraction as she recognized how hollow he had gone. “Neither of us can know whether I’ll end up ruined or happy. If you want me with you, I’ll follow you all the way to hell.” Although the declaration was dramatic, she very clearly meant it.

[User] Travis had never met anyone like her before. She was the only one. Travis stared at her so hard he could burn a hole right through the girl.

[Assistant] She arched an eyebrow. “What? If you’ve got something to say, then spit it out.”

[User] “It’s just… hmm. I’ll concede this once that you’ve grown a little.”

[Assistant] “What’s that supposed to mean?” Aurelia complained.

[User] The demon only grinned in reply. Travis made up his mind to tell Aurelia that someday—when he looked back on this moment with deep longing. When that time finally came, he would honor this day.


[Assistant] The rain gradually tapered off after dark. The white glow of the moon and stars peeked out from rifts in the clouds. After dragging her battered self back to Tuldarr, she rushed through her paperwork and returned to her chambers. By the time she finished her bath and dried her hair, the sky had gone completely black, slumping over her table. "Ohhh, I’m so tired…” She heaved a deep sigh. Tinasha mentally reviewed the awful day she’d suffered, she flushed bright red and buried her face in her hands. “I—I can’t believe how embarrassing that was! Ugh!”

[User] “Love me.” Tinasha recalls her actions and felt humiliated. "I’ll need to give him a proper apology later…,”


[User] She held back another defeated exhale just as someone knocked on the door to her chambers. "Yes?”

[Assistant] "You have a guest, Lady Tinasha!” a spirit called brightly.

[User] Tinasha walked over to the door and opened it, not suspecting anything at all. Then she froze.

[Assistant] Standing before Mila, who was grinning mischievously, was her fiancé.

[User] “Aaaaahhh! Why?! This is Tuldarr!”

[Assistant] “Wow, that’s quite a reaction. I can’t believe you had the nerve to sneak out and scurry home while I was busy with work. I’m here to give you a lecture.”

[User] “Ow, ow, ow!” she griped as he swept into the room, dragging her by the cheek.

[Assistant] Mila waggled her fingers and shut the door behind them.

[User] “I—I don’t like this surprise visit.” Oscar’s heartless treatment left the queen with tears in her eyes.

[Assistant] “Did you really think you would get away with not telling me everything? I want the whole story.”

[User] “Urgh,” Tinasha grumbled. She hadn’t intended to keep it from him indefinitely, but she had hoped to at least delay his anger for a while. Rubbing at her sore cheek, Tinasha first apologized and then launched into an explanation of the events leading up to the day’s battles. Ultimately, she told him just about all of it.

[Assistant] Wearing an utterly appalled expression, Oscar sat in the seat across from her. Pinched to within an inch of her life and breathing raggedly, Tinasha lay slumped over her table.

[User] “Were you thinking clearly at all? You were under no obligation to risk your life for him.”

[Assistant] “He spared my life when he could’ve ended it. And then he offered to never meddle in Farsas or Tuldarr. It seemed like a very good arrangement.” she pointed out.

[User] “If you want to make sure he doesn’t trouble us, I’ll just go kill him myself.”

[Assistant] “Wai… wait…” Feeling at her wit’s end, Tinasha stood up. “Um, do you want something to drink? I have some liqueurs.”

[User] “Are those here for you to drink?”

[Assistant] “No, they’re for decoration. The colors are very pretty,” she replied, pointing to a row of bottles in a cabinet containing amber, golden, and ruby liquids. All looked unopened, and Oscar eyed them from over Tinasha’s shoulder.

[User] “All right, I’ll have some of the amber one, second from the left.”

[Assistant] “Okay. Do you need anything for it, or will you drink it straight?” she asked.

[User] “Just over ice,” he answered.


[User] She poked her head into the antechamber where Mila stood guard and got the ice from her. As she struggled valiantly to open the bottle.

[Assistant] Oscar plucked it from her and uncorked it himself.

[User] After a sigh, “I—I suppose I really can’t do anything without my magic, can I…?”

[Assistant] “Now you know what it’s like. I don’t mind at all. In fact, feel free to drink that lake water every day.”

[User] “I—I don’t know about that…”

[Assistant] While pouring a glass for himself, “I don’t know why you always decide to take on other people’s messes in the first place. You need to learn how to say no.”

[User] “In Travis’s case, I owed him a debt. He’s the one who told me to put myself in a magic sleep.”

[Assistant] Oscar’s eyes grew wide.

[User] Tinasha gave a tight smile. “It actually hadn’t occurred to me at all to try to find you again… We belonged to different eras, and I had no proof that what you’d told me was true. But Travis told me it was better to give chase than to sit and rot. Bizarrely, he sounded like he didn’t doubt the story at all. Now that I think about it, I wonder if he knew about Eleterria…” For a moment, Tinasha’s gaze turned very distant. It was a look she had often adopted when the two first met, one redolent of loneliness and homesickness. But when she looked back up at Oscar, none of that was present in her expression. “But now I don’t owe him anything anymore. I’m sorry for worrying you.”

[Assistant] With eyes narrowed, “I see.” As his thoughts led him in that direction, Oscar frowned. “Why did I go back to save you?”

[User] “What?”

[Assistant] “I’m just wondering what I jumped four hundred years into the past to do. Or was it just a fluke?”

[User] Tinasha shifted uncomfortably to be asked that now, after so long. Reluctantly, she answered, “Because in this time period, I was originally your wife.”

[Assistant] “You were my… what?”

[User] “Urgh… I didn’t want to tell you because I knew you’d react like this.” She admitted.

[Assistant] Oscar was floored. While he still hadn’t taken everything in, he reached across the table and caught up a lock of his sullen fiancée’s hair. “What exactly do you mean by that? Why was I married to you?”

[User] “I don’t know! I guess your taste in women is just that bad!” she cried.

[Assistant] “That’s not what I mean.


[User] "I’m talking about the whole… born in different eras thing."

[Assistant] Born over four centuries apart, they were only together now because Tinasha had gone into a magic sleep to see Oscar. How had they been married in the previous timeline? Tinasha crossed her arms and frowned. "I asked you the same thing a long time ago, but you wouldn’t tell me. I don’t think it was a lie, though, because you knew an awful lot about me."

[User] "Something about this doesn’t add up… Did he tell you to jump four hundred years ahead?"

[Assistant] "No. He told me that I’d never see him again because he’d changed history. I was about to be coronated, so he requested that I become a good queen." Tinasha replied, a forlorn smile on her lips. Her eyes, tinged with deep affection and loss, were turned to another man from the distant past. Her memories of that man—her sole comfort in those days—had propelled her through time and brought her here.

[User] In sharp contrast, however, Oscar scowled. "That makes no sense. If you’d focused on being queen and hadn’t abdicated, we would’ve never gotten to meet. He should’ve considered consequences more thoroughly."

[Assistant] "Look who’s talking!" Tinasha exclaimed, then she flopped over onto the table. Many coincidences had lined up so they could meet each other.

[User] Oscar was glad that he hadn’t made any missteps. He gazed at his fiancée earnestly as he mulled all that over.

[Assistant] Noticing his stare, Tinasha gave him a smile. She stood up from her chair and came over to him.

[User] He set down his glass and pulled her onto his lap. "Well, you’re going to be my wife anyway, so there’s no real issue in the end. Still, you should have told me that in the first place."

[Assistant] "No way. You would have thought I was a complete weirdo if I told you I was your future bride when we first met. Honestly, I did think you were crazy after you told me that when I was a kid."

[User] "Oh, you did, did you?"

[Assistant] As Oscar carded his fingers through Tinasha’s long inky hair, he buried his face in it and inhaled the faint scent of her floral perfume. That scent of hers, her slender frame, her eyes like the abyss—all of it drew him to her and held him fast. A little tipsy, he hugged her tightly. But then something occurred to him, and he looked up. "Tinasha, do you know what an insider is?"

[User] "An insider?


[User] "Right… What could that be referring to?" Oscar mused.

[Assistant] Her wide black eyes blinked at him curiously.

[User] He patted her head and dropped the subject. "Never mind. It’s not a big deal."

[Assistant] "I’ll ask Travis the next chance I get."

[User] "No, you won’t. I don’t want you seeing him again."

[Assistant] "Y-you really hate him, huh?" Tinasha sighed.

[User] Oscar caught a glimpse of her black eyes widening a little. "Oh? Did the lake water just wear off?" he asked.

[Assistant] She opened a hand and cast a spell. After inspecting her own exquisite handiwork, she nodded. "Everything seems to be fine."

[User] "So you can use magic?"

[Assistant] "I can. It’s all back," she confirmed.

[User] "Okay, then. Whenever you have a free moment, could you redo the spell on this?" Oscar requested, taking off the ring on his left hand and handing it to Tinasha.

[Assistant] With a dry laugh, she took it from him. "I’ll recast it now, since we don’t know what might happen." Tinasha said, and she began the incantation. After five long minutes, the ring was enchanted again, and Tinasha placed it back on Oscar’s finger.

[User] "Thanks." he said.

[Assistant] "It’s no problem. It was me who made you use it, after all," she replied with a bitter smile.

[User] Oscar pressed a kiss to her forehead as he stroked her hair.


[Assistant] Then Oscar got to his feet, helping Tinasha stand as well. "All right, I’ll be heading back now. You must be exhausted, so get some good sleep tonight."

[User] "What? You’re leaving?" she asked, gazing up at him with the innocent eyes of a little girl.

[Assistant] Oscar narrowed his eyes, confident she didn’t even realize what she was saying. A smile formed on his face, and he kissed her. "I worry if I don’t come to check on you regularly. I only came to make sure you’re okay."


[User] Tinasha’s eyes went a little wide and she dimpled with happiness. "I love you. I really don’t hate you at all. That wasn’t real.”

[Assistant] “I know.”

[User] And because of that, the two of them would walk hand in hand on their own paths toward their shared future.


[User] "But now you must throw that all away and serve me as faithful slaves." She turned her rosy gaze directly on the two of them. And when she did, Jeanne de Rais, the artificial Torture Princess, went on as though it were only natural. "At this rate, our world will be destroyed, and not so much as a trace will remain." Her words rang out through the chamber like a final verdict.

[Assistant] "...Hmph." Upon hearing what Jeanne had to say, both Kaito and Elisabeth abruptly crossed their arms. Then they closed their eyes, as if to scrutinize her order-like request. Kaito’s youthful face hardened.

[User] "...Hmm." Elisabeth’s beautiful face hardened, her expression serious.

[Assistant] Kaito opens his eyes.

[User] Elisabeth opens her eyes in unison.

[Assistant] Not even a breath separated their overlapping refusals.

[User] Not even a breath separated their overlapping refusals.

[Assistant] Jeanne blinked repeatedly. Her head slumped as it tilted to the side. "You made your decisions rather promptly, didn’t you, Lovers? Moreover, your answers themselves were outside my expectations. And ‘surprising’ hardly begins to describe the speed with which you responded. Please state your reasons."


[User] “First, ’tis wholly unclear what actions you intend to take hereon in search of this salvation of yours or what have you.” Elisabeth raised her forefinger. The black varnish on her nail glittered as she spun it aimlessly around in the air.

[Assistant] “Even if you tell me to become your servant, I have no intention of agreeing while unable to verify the validity of your plans and directions. And even prior to that, another problem arises. Do I look to you to be a laudable enough woman to labor like a slave under the direction of another?”

[User] “Yeah, nope, not seeing it.” Elisabeth pointed at herself, her face fiendish and cruel. Behind her, Kaito nodded earnestly. The two of them then traded an inane exchange.

[Assistant] “I have no desire to hear that from you. I shall kill you for that later.”

[User] “Wait, why? !”

[Assistant] Seeing them on their normal behavior despite the time and place, Jeanne tilted her head to the other side. “I see. That seems logical enough. Even the last section felt oddly persuasive. And your other reasons?”

[User] “Second, you clearly have intentions of dragging us into some battle for the sake of salvation, do you not? And with no regard for our thoughts on the matter, at that. Why, then, should we content ourselves with being your servants? I see little benefit. We have little proof that your true motives are worthy of such faith.”

[Assistant] “I see, I see. And what else?”

[User] “Third, Kaito, you tell her.” Elisabeth turned to Kaito and gave a sharp gesture with her chin. The two of them still hadn’t consulted with each other. But in spite of that, he took over her speech with utmost ease.

[Assistant] “Thing is, we just don’t like you that much. That’s all.”

[User] “I see. Illogical in the extreme.” Jeanne bobbed her head up and down. But that was the extent of her reaction. She didn’t seem satisfied, but she didn’t seem dejected, either. She simply began spinning around on the spot, her left foot acting as her axle. The chains dangling from her thin wrists like a prisoner’s jingled.

[Assistant] “Then I can assume that you have no intention of becoming my servants, but you plan on maintaining our collaborative relationship? After tellin’ you chucklefucks so many of the world’s secrets, having to be enemies with you meatheads sounds like a bad time! As you can see, I’m just a sweet little girl, after all!”

[User] “The way you manage to offend is nothing short of superb, and your manner of speech is as disjointed as always. But I have no complaints with your conclusion. My servant’s foolishness and goody-goody nature know no limits, so I’m all but certain he’d have gotten himself involved regardless, of course. But I am not he. Normally, I’d have lost interest altogether the moment you mentioned salvation.”

[Assistant] “Oh, do you intend on seceding, then? I’d like to see you try, bitch!”

[User] “Nay, I shall lend you my strength."


[User] "And rejoice, for I intend to give it my utmost.” A cruel smile accompanied Elisabeth’s declaration.

[Assistant] Kaito nodded, his expression devoid of surprise.

[User] Jeanne plopped her head to the other side again in puzzlement. "For what reason?”

[Assistant] “I slew the fourteen demons. I put them down, each and every one. I destroyed them.” Suddenly, Elisabeth’s tone grew cold and levelheaded. Her crimson eyes narrowed. Sharp bloodlust danced atop her tongue as the words slipped from her mouth. “But for that to be the mere opening act to the world being rebuilt? What an insipid farce. The ones who would laugh at the corpses I’ve left in my wake and accuse them of having died in vain shall perish by my hand. I shall kill them all. And in a manner befitting the name of Torture Princess, no less.” Elisabeth gave a grand laugh. Her smile was beautiful, twisted, and evil. Seeming half-likely to lick her lips, she gave voice to her blasphemous proclamation. “Even if they are the Saint, even if they are Diablo, and even if they are God.”

[User] “Bravo. I would expect no less from you. I would expect no less from the first Torture Princess, the woman who willingly gave herself to sin.” Jeanne loudly clapped, the chains on her wrists jingling like a tambourine. Then, placing an open palm over her chest, she gave an elegant bow. With a great display of pride, Jeanne endorsed Elisabeth’s statement. “Indeed, precisely. It would not do for us to be anything but haughty and proud. For without our human deeds surpassing those of God and Diablo, how could we possibly hope to bring about salvation?”

[Assistant] “Hmm,” pondered Kaito. On a basic level, Jeanne displayed the same arrogant disposition no matter who she was dealing with. But with Elisabeth, her reactions seemed to be of a slightly more positive bent. The plan to create a Torture Princess must have started way long ago. But back then, they probably hadn’t arrived at the name “Torture Princess” yet. And it’s probably not just her speech—she likely used Elisabeth as a point of reference for her actions, too. Perhaps Jeanne held a degree of respect toward the woman she’d used as a template.

[User] Elisabeth, though, seemed like she couldn’t care less about Jeanne’s admiration. She gave a small shrug.

[Assistant] As she did, Izabella interrupted their conversation. “I apologize for the intrusion, but isn’t it rather dangerous to be making such an uproar down here? If you’ll forgive me, you’ve all been rather loud the last few minutes… What do you intend to do if that thing wakes up?” At the moment, Izabella was being carried by Deus Ex Machina, the living, four-in-one weapon Jeanne had summoned as a servant. Sitting in its metal arms, she was looking at the cradle with a pallid expression on her face. Her eyes were filled with primal terror.


[User] Kaito and Elisabeth turned their gazes toward the first demon as well. It was still deep in slumber. But if it’s asleep, that means it’s eventually gonna wake up. As a matter of fact, the group scheming to have the world rebuilt was actively hoping for that thing to awaken. But just as unease began welling up within Kaito, a voice suddenly called out from beside him to refute it.

[Assistant] “Put your mind at ease. You needn’t worry about that, I daresay.” Kaito turned to look at the voice’s owner. A man wearing an aristocratic coat with a cravat was floating beside him, his legs crossed elegantly in the air. The man was Vlad Le Fanu, the Kaiser’s previous contractor and Elisabeth’s foster father—or, to be more precise, a replica of his soul. The smile that spread across his face bordered on beautiful. “After all, its contract with its master yet stands.” Vlad was a mere phantasm, and as such, the forces of gravity held no sway over him. He floated gently through the air on his way to his destination, which was, of all places, directly above Diablo’s cradle.

[User] Izabella quietly called out, trying to get him to stop. “Wait, stop, stop, that’s dangerous. You shouldn’t get any closer than that.”

[Assistant] “Good heavens, to think that the Holy Knights’ commander would be such a coward. Timidity and virginity go hand in hand, I suppose, which lends your reaction a certain charm to it.”

[User] “I’m gonna need you to dial it way back, man. That was a pretty blatant HR violation there.”

[Assistant] “What exactly might an ‘ay-char’ be, my dear successor? I’m afraid that we of this world aren’t familiar with that word.” Vlad calmly threw Kaito’s cold rebuke aside. Then he turned back to the entity before himself and peered at it, an act that would have been enough to drive any normal human mad. As he placed his hand on the side of the cradle, he let out a seductive whisper. “Upon manifestation, higher-ranked demons use their summoners as references and obtain from them language and ego. And upon gaining ego, many, like our friendly Kaiser here, go against the wishes of their inexperienced masters. This thing’s summoner, though, was first-rate. The Church built it this devious little room, but even with the pacification from the room’s pain, it wouldn’t awaken. The order it received was so effective, it borders on a curse, you see.”

[User] Kaito responded to Vlad’s words with shock. Then, still dumbfounded, he turned to survey the room. The people embedded in the walls were screaming in agony. But their vocal cords had been taken from them, and their howls were silent. The only things coming from their faces were tears and saliva. And the people hanging from the ceiling with rent stomachs were the same. The entire room was perpetually filled with the pain of the living, designed to pacify the demon within. But according to Vlad, all of it was meaningless.


[User] “Wait, the Church went out of their way to build this torture chamber…and it turns out they didn’t even need to?”

[Assistant] “That they didn’t, my dear. Since time immemorial, it has been an occasional habit of the weak to fearfully give offerings to the strong despite neither party wishing it. It’s a tragic tale, truly, and I’m sure the unfortunate victims around us find it more appalling than any.”

[User] Vlad chuckled, and Kaito clenched his fists. As they did, Diablo continued peacefully breathing. It looked like a satisfied child, one who had never so much as experienced sorrow. Vlad drew his face close to the child’s, which was repulsive in a difficult-to-quantify way. This time, his laugh was tinged with irony. “Heh, no matter how proficient its master’s order, seeing an entity with power enough to destroy the world merely sleeping like this after manifesting is wholly unprecedented. And I say that as someone who lives in that very world.”

[Assistant] “Nay, you were burned through and through till you were well and truly dead. I made quite certain of that.”

[User] “Ah, right you are. Burned to death by my own beloved daughter, ha-ha-ha-ha-ha. Wait, no, I suppose that isn’t anything to laugh about. But, well, I exist in some capacity, in any case. And because of that, it would be rather bothersome if the world went and got itself destroyed. But at the same time, as a mage, leaving Diablo to its rest seems altogether a waste. At any rate, though, it won’t wake unless it receives a new order from its contractor.”

[Assistant] As she heard Vlad’s declaration, Hina narrowed her emerald eyes just a hair. As she stood beside Kaito, she laid her hands over the breast of her maid uniform and clasped them together tightly. “Its contractor…”

[User] Seeing her unease, Kaito drew himself closer to her. After exchanging a glance, the two of them nodded. Jeanne had already told them who the contractor was. The Suffering Saint revered by the Church. She’s the one contracted to the first demon. The long-sung legend of the world’s restructuring at the hand of the Saint had another, hidden side to it. Before becoming known as the Saint, she’d formed a contract with the most powerful demon. While it’s unclear what her objective was, she was unable to maintain control and ended up destroying the world. In her regret, she summoned God, formed a contract with Him, and rebuilt the world. But she was unable to endure her two contracts, nor was she able to die, so instead, she fell into a deep slumber—and ever since, the truth had been perverted, leaving the focus solely on the fact that she’d carried God within her body as the savior who rebuilt the world. And because of that, she’d become worshipped as the “Suffering Saint.” Part of the reason that the order she gave to the First Demon was so effective was probably because she used God’s power for it as well.


[User] As that thought crossed his mind, a small question arose with it. The Saint was supposed to be the only one capable of waking up the first demon. That meant that the people plotting to set the world’s rebuilding in motion couldn’t wake it up, either. But if that was the case, then where was the woman who possessed that power resting? An eternal slumber, huh? Death and sleep were very different. And unlike Diablo, it was conceivable that any human would be able to wake up the Saint. If the Church got their hands on her, they’d be able to implore her to bring about the miracle of restructuring. That was something he and the others definitely needed to prevent. But where in the world could she be? "Hey, do we have any idea where the Saint might be? She isn’t dead, right? Because if she isn’t, then we gotta find her before the Church does.”

[Assistant] "You’ve asked an uncharacteristically pertinent question, mister. Allow me to answer it. We the Church, and for that matter all of humanity, have no idea where the Saint currently rests. And the Church has spared no effort in trying to locate her. But after all their investigations and expeditions, the only things they were able to locate were relics. And they were hunks of trash, the lot of ’em! And the other mages and believers looking for her found no more success than they.”

[User] “Well…I guess that’s good news. That means that there’s no way to bring about the world’s restructuring. I mean, without the Saint, Diablo won’t wake up. And they can’t pray to God to start the rebuilding, either, right?” Kaito felt a deep sense of relief. When he did, though, Jeanne’s eyes flashed as though she was looking at an incorrigible dunce. It was impressive, given that the rest of her face was as expressionless as always. Elisabeth heaved a heavy sigh. Kaito tilted his head to the side, unsure of what had been so stupid about what he’d said. Even after running it all back through his mind, he couldn’t find any contradictions.

[Assistant] Jeanne shrugged her bare shoulders derisively. “You really are The Fool, aren’t you, mister? The Church desires the world’s restructuring due to their blind faith in the Saint. Despite knowing of the first demon’s existence, the reconstruction sect still believes the Saint to possess boundless mercy. Because of that, they believe that no matter how they go about destroying the world, the Saint will naturally appear amid the rubble and carry out the rebuilding. Diablo is but one method at their disposal. Of course, they would doubtless prefer to find her themselves and witness the miracle firsthand.”

[User] “Wait, b-but are people even capable of such wide-scale destruction on their own?”

[Assistant] “With ease. And especially now that the Church can produce as much of the Monarch’s meat as they desire.” Elisabeth responded matter-of-factly to Kaito’s doubts. Without a shred of hesitation, she put forth a cruel supposition.


[User] "Let us say, as an example… All they’d have to do is cart a small army of transformed sinners to the border leading to the beastfolk and demi-human lands. War would break out, the forests would burn, and the earth would be shattered. And there’s no shortage of other methods one could conceive of. Just think back to your past life. You should be well acquainted with mankind’s capacity for tyranny, and the means of destruction at their disposal are legion.”

[Assistant] “The Church…the Church would never resort to such inhumane methods!” Suddenly, Izabella cried out. Kaito and the others all looked at her.

[User] Kaito’s gaze was unconsciously tinged with pity.

[Assistant] Her silver armor, what had once been proof of her status as a paladin, still shone. But she’d just defeated a monster created by a high priest called the Grave Keeper, and her armor now sported dark stains from its blood. Ironically, her own body served as a rebuttal to her outcry. Even so, she continued her emotional appeal. “I’ll concede that ever since the demon subjugation, a group within the Church has been acting suspiciously. Within the paladins, as well. And I’m well aware of how unusual this place is, along with the fact that they worked to conceal it. But the vast majority of the high priests are good, respectable people. Why are you all so unable to trust in their dignity and virtue? My paladins wouldn’t stand for the sorts of atrocities you speak of!” The more she spoke, the more she affirmed the perversion lurking within the Church. Her voice was full of desperation, as though she was clinging to something.

[User] Jeanne merely looked at her the way one would at a willful child. “Would you mind being quiet, miss? It takes a thief to catch a thief, they say! Even if you and your friends get pissed off, it ain’t gonna change shit! Organizations are like centipedes. The body follows the head, even if it doesn’t quite know what it’s doing. And people would sooner discard their dignity and virtue than be left behind. To put it kindly, it’s proof of their loyalty. To put it less kindly, well, sometimes abandoning one’s judgment ends up working toward the greater good. This time, however, the head is beyond salvation. Shit’s rotten to the core.”

[Assistant] “B-but…”

[User] “Godd Deos’s death was the turning point, no doubt. With nobody near the head to stop it from running wild, the situation can quickly turn for the worse, with little regard for the opinions of those involved.”

[Assistant] Izabella choked back her rebuttal. She was probably well aware of examples where organizations had undergone transformations without their members noticing. Still silent, she bit down on her lip.

[User] Jeanne, on the other hand, went on. Her tone was that of an instructor. “There exist shepherds who would gladly cast themselves into the fire just to catch a glimpse of a miracle. And most of their sheep will blindly follow after them.


[User] "Only when the situation becomes irreparable will the people first cry out. How did things get to this point? they will say, one and all.”

[Assistant] Izabella offered no reply, instead choosing to remain completely silent. But she hadn’t given up—she was clearly thinking in earnest about something.

[User] Concerned about how deeply she seemed to be brooding, Kaito called out to her. “Hey, Izabella—”

[Assistant] "Therefore, before the situation reaches the point of no return, we must locate and obtain the Saint." Jeanne, though, continued talking, paying no heed to Izabella’s mental anguish.

[User] Kaito went quiet for the time being. At the moment, figuring out their next course of action was of utmost importance. "If the situation degraded into a race war, reverting it would be nigh impossible, after all. It’d be like charging straight into Hell! Ain’t shit a group of our size could do about that!”

[Assistant] "But you have no information on the Saint’s whereabouts, either, aye? What do you intend to do about that?”

[User] “True. But that’s not to say the information doesn’t exist.” Jeanne offered an unexpected answer to Elisabeth’s question.

[Assistant] Kaito frowned. Who could possibly have information regarding the location of a woman who’d been missing since the very creation of the world? "Her location may well be known to a single…or rather, perhaps it’s best not to try to count, but they do exist. I’ve spent some time investigating him. But upon learning the secrets of this underground tomb, I find my suspicions have finally turned to confidence.” The chain on Jeanne’s wrist rattled as she raised an arm. Then she pointed at the wall they had broken the barrier on and passed through. It was currently functioning as a door and was resting ajar, and on its surface was an intricate carving of an apostle wearing tattered rags and standing alongside the Saint.

[User] As he gazed at the apostle’s familiar figure, Kaito muttered meaningfully. “…The Butcher, huh.”

[Assistant] "This, too, is a reason I sought the assistance of you two Lovers. He is the merchant of legend, one of the founders of the original Five Great Guilds, and known by all with even a passing involvement in trade. And he is also the Saint’s apostle, the Butcher. After working to build the foundations for the circulation of goods within society, he went into hiding for countless ages. But there have been sightings of him in recent years, all of which have been located around the two of you.”

[User] Kaito instinctively cast his eyes downward. He still hadn’t gotten his emotions in order over this whole ordeal. Hina, standing beside him, was much the same. The Butcher had saved them a number of times, so it was difficult to think of him as an enemy. But according to Elisabeth, he’d declared himself the enemy of no one individually but of every person living in the world. And he’d supposedly said something else as well. "They are of little consequence to the result.


[User] That doesn’t sound like something the “enemy of the world” would say, does it? That thought stole through Kaito’s mind unbidden. The Butcher’s words didn’t sound like they’d come from someone who wanted the world to end. But he swallowed down the doubts welling up inside and asked a different question instead. “Where is the Butcher right now?”

[Assistant] Elisabeth responded to his inquiry by crossing her arms. “He’s inside a Gibbet within my castle.” When she spoke, her voice had a mysteriously quiet ring to it.

[User] “You, uh, you did mention on the way down here that you’d captured him. But you didn’t just leave him like that, did you?”

[Assistant] “I did. What of it? I can hardly release a man who proclaims himself my enemy. ’Twould be folly.”

[User] “I mean, I guess…” Surely there are options other than just leaving him chained up, thought Kaito to himself. But the Butcher was notably elusive. Any lesser restraints would probably have ended with him just slipping out. Finally satisfied, Kaito turned his gaze away from Elisabeth. It landed on the first demon. It doesn’t matter if it wakes up or keeps sleeping, huh. But we can’t let them destroy the world, no matter what method they try to use… Wait, hold on a second. If that was the case, then just finding the Saint wouldn’t be enough to stop the Church from running rampant, would it? Was Jeanne perhaps hoping to get the Saint to persuade the fanatics to stop? That plan seemed altogether dubious, so Kaito posed Jeanne a question. “Hey, what’s your plan for after we find the Saint?”

[Assistant] “Duh, we’re gonna kill her ass.”

[User] Kaito found himself at a loss for words, and his eyes went wide with shock. He hadn’t thought that their plan involved killing the Saint.

[Assistant] Jeanne’s lips curled upward a smidgen. Then, in order to completely crush his naïveté, she elaborated. “Why do you seem so surprised? If we kill its contractor, Diablo will be unable to stay manifested and vanish. And God, who yet dwells within her body, is no different. When that happens, the two of them will return to a state where mankind’s desires cannot possibly reach them. Furthermore, if we deliver her head to our foes, they, too, will understand. ‘The miracle is lost to us.’ ‘Even if we destroy the world, it won’t be rebuilt.’”

[User] “But we don’t have to kill anyone… If we just get her to make the fanatics see reason—”

[Assistant] “Oh my, you would have us rely on the woman who once destroyed the world?


[User] “Please don’t tell me you only just now realized, Hanged Man. The praiseless road we walk down is paved with thorns, and at its end, we shall become true enemies of this world.” Jeanne shook her head in exasperation, her thick honey-blond hair gently scattering across her shoulders. She still bore no expression, but her rose-colored eyes opened alarmingly wide as she made her declaration. “Our salvation lies in murdering Diablo, murdering God, and, yes, murdering a human.”

[Assistant] A heavy silence spread throughout the dimness of the underground tomb. Kaito still offered no reply.

[User] Hina gently placed her hand atop his arm.

[Assistant] The Kaiser let out a deep, humanlike laugh.

[User] “Hmm… The Saint bears God within her body, so I have concerns about our ability to actually kill her. I suppose we’ll know once we try. Steady your resolve, if naught else.” As she scratched gently at her own black hair, Elisabeth spoke in an annoyed tone.

[Assistant] “Yeah, no, I’m okay. I’d be fine even without you telling me that.”

[User] “Very well, then.”

[Assistant] “I do appreciate it, though.”

[User] “Ha. Appreciate what exactly?” Elisabeth scoffed at Kaito’s words of thanks.

[Assistant] Even so, he nodded back at her. Jeanne’s declaration had come as a blow to him, but he was already over it. He’d seen grisly mountains of corpses before, and starting with Marianne, he’d killed his fair share of people. There was no reason for him to be fixated on the Saint’s survival. And besides, once we meet her in the flesh, everything might change on the spot. Right now, we should just worry about getting the Butcher to talk. “It seems there are no objections to our current course of action, then, so I think we’d best be off. Going back the way we came ain’t too glamorous or anything, but them’s the breaks. All the barriers are destroyed, but the building itself is designed to block teleportation. To go to the Torture Princess’s castle, we need to first make our way outside.”

[User] And with that, Jeanne practically danced her way out of the nursery.

[Assistant] The Kaiser scoffed in displeasure, but he, Vlad, Elisabeth, and Izabella, who was still being carried by Deus Ex Machina, followed after her. Accompanied by Hina, Kaito started walking out of the nursery as well. But as he approached the doorway, he stopped in his tracks.

[User] His leather soles screeched against the ground. Then he turned back, the hem of his military-style long coat rustling as he did so. As he stared fixatedly at the horrific nursery, he called out to one of the people behind him. “Hey, Vlad. You said that even without this room’s messed-up setup…even without the pacification from the pain, the First Demon won’t wake up, right?”

[Assistant] “Verily, my dear successor. This room was crafted out of an overabundance of fear. It’s meaningless, and dare I say even comical…so I have my suspicions as to your intentions.”

[User] “You’re not going to stop me, even though you’re onto me?”

[Assistant] “Perish the thought!"


[User] "True, your actions are hypocritical, grounded in a trivial sense of mercy! Yet, at the same time, they will lead you one step closer toward becoming a worthy vessel to inherit my will—after all, what you’re thinking of doing is a privilege extended only to the strong! Hypocrisy leads to arrogance, and from them flower the origins of all sadism and tyranny! Please defile them all you wish!”

[Assistant] “Huh… Well, if that’s the way you see it, at least you won’t get in my way.” Kaito nodded as he gave his blunt reply. Then he cast a fleeting glance outside the room. Vlad was spreading his arms exaggeratedly wide. At some point, Jeanne and the others had stopped as well. Elisabeth was shrugging at the very edge of his vision, as though calling him a fool. But Kaito knew.

[User] If I hadn’t stopped, you’d have come up with some excuse to do this yourself, wouldn’t you? The only bewildered member of the group was Hina. She looked back and forth between Kaito and the nursery. Before long, though, her expression stiffened with resolve. Gripping her halberd tightly, she stepped in front of Kaito.

[Assistant] “My dear Master Kaito, I, too, have grasped your intentions. You are far gentler than any other and far more merciful…and that is precisely why it will hurt you so. Please let me do—”

[User] “No. This isn’t something I should be foisting off on my wife. I’m gonna do it. I have to.” Her offer was kind, but Kaito turned it down. With Hina looking to be on the verge of tears, he patted her head, then gestured for her to leave. After waiting until Hina was a safe distance away, Kaito took a deep breath and raised an arm above his head. Then he snapped his fingers. Six blades appeared out of the empty air, deploying in a circle with the cradle at their center like the middle of a flower. They glittered sharply as they turned toward the walls and ceiling. After coming to eerily precise stops, they waited for their master’s cue.

[Assistant] “It’s a job befitting the enemy of mankind.” Kaito murmured quietly, as though trying to persuade himself.

[User] “La (kill them all).” Then he snapped his fingers again. The blades shot out with the speed of a guillotine dropping, the six of them carving up the walls and ceiling in unison. That is to say, they sliced up the victims installed therein. They’d all been cursed so as to avoid letting them die. But the curse wasn’t nearly effective enough to protect against Kaito’s magically empowered attack. Their lives, which had been held perpetually just shy of death’s grasp, instantly came to an end. One after another, the soundless screams faded. But the slaughter went on. Blood sprayed in all directions, drenching the room in a ghastly shade of red. It looked almost as though six beasts had leaped from Diablo’s cradle and savagely sliced their way through the room.


[User] And the noise of the walls and ceiling sounded like an orchestra. Kaito, in his black uniform, played the role of the conductor, waving his arm both violently and delicately. The blades were his instrumentalists, and they wove their shearing melody in accordance with his directions. The time it took felt like it lasted an eternity. But every performance must eventually come to an end. Ten or twenty seconds later, Kaito swung his arm wide, then brought it to a sudden stop. All at once, the blade disappeared. Silence descended upon the room. The only sound left was the faint trickling of blood. The nursery-like chamber had been completely ruined. Chunks of flesh and viscera littered the floor, and everything in sight was red. A thick, rusty smell began filling the air. Amid the tragic spectacle, the first demon slumbered gently, as though nothing had changed. Kaito averted his gaze from it, instead looking at the blood gathering at his feet.

[Assistant] “Good night, everyone. Sweet dreams.” As he faced the vast pool of red, he let out a gentle whisper. In a sense, his words were tinged with madness. But they came from the heart. After all, he’d heard a continuous scream from the moment he’d first set foot in the room. It was a striking, sorrowful plea, one that only someone who’d experienced extreme pain could perceive. Please kill us, they’d been saying. Please make it all end. The people being used to pacify Diablo had long since gone mad from the pain. But in spite of that, they’d never stopped their desperate supplication. And now Kaito could hear their pitiful cries no more. He cast his gaze around the room, his expression full of affection and sadness. He looked to make sure they were all dead, that there were no sacrifices left in the room. After determining that to be the case, he let his face turn serious again. Having coldly wiped away his expression, the Kaiser’s contractor turned on his heel. Then, alone, he began walking.


[User] Hurriedly, Hina rushed back into the nursery. Clutching the hem of her skirt, she faced the grisly spectacle and offered a deep bow. After closing her eyes for a moment as though in prayer, she ran back over to her companion’s side. Nestling close to Kaito, Hina squeezed his hand in hers.

[Assistant] He stayed facing forward, as though nothing had happened. But he returned his wife’s grasp and intertwined his fingers with hers. Ever so faintly, his hand was trembling.


[User] They walked down the long passageway. Individually crafted mausoleums of the kings of old lined them on either side. Even with the tomb’s innermost secrets laid bare, the resting kings on the upper floors were unperturbed. As he cast a sidelong glance at the extravagantly decorated mausoleums, Kaito posed a question to Jeanne. "Did any of the kings know about the First Demon?"

[Assistant] "Who can say? I imagine it depends on how close to the Church and how devout they each were. For example, I think the odds that the third king, hailed as the ‘Faithful King,’ was informed are quite high. He gave his generation’s Grave Keeper special rights, after all, and their relationship was rather cordial. They’re all crazy!"

[User] "Makes sense. Still, though, for some of the kings to find out about it and still give it their endorsement… Fanaticism’s a hell of a drug, I guess." Kaito turned his gaze toward what appeared to be the third king’s mausoleum. Compared to the other kings’ mausoleums, its design was rather plain. It didn’t even sport flowers, although the uncouth suits of armor surrounding the sarcophagus within hinted that the third king had specialized in battle. The only piece of ornamentation that could be described as beautiful was the statue of the Saint hanging upside down from the ceiling. Perhaps the cause of his faith had been a desire for divine protection in his countless wars. Now the Saint was always watching over him. Red gemstones were embedded in the sarcophagus’s lid, even replicating the Saint’s tearstains. *That’s one messed-up charade they’re pulling.* Kaito leveled a blunt rejection of the king’s beliefs that he was clearly adhering to even in death. But he chose not to voice that impression of his. Instead, he asked a different question. "What about the current king, then?"

[Assistant] "His predecessor died early, so he is still a whelp. I’d wager they haven’t told him a thing. Ha, he’d likely faint on the spot."

[User] "He also entrusted the battle against the demons wholly to the Church and has done little in the way of mobilizing troops on his own. As a result, the Royal Knights generally just obey the Holy Knights’ orders. The Church no doubt saw that as an opportunity to seize greater power, but Godd Deos refused to use their strength as a pretext to meddle in domestic affairs. That geezer was a pain in the ass, but I gotta give him credit for being a decent guy."


[User] At some point, though, the king’s advisers began tithing more and more, and their ranks grew flush with the pious. That being the case, it’s anyone’s guess as to what would happen if the king found out about the first demon."

[Assistant] The two Torture Princesses exchanged a glance, then shrugged. Their billowing blond and straight black heads of hair shook.

[User] Kaito sighed. He knew almost nothing about the current king. But unlike the third imperial beastfolk princess, Vyade Ula Forstlast, he didn’t seem like he’d be particularly reliable if things got down to the wire. It’s gonna be rough, not having any influential humans who are sympathetic to our cause. Kaito sank into thought.

[Assistant] Once he stopped talking, his surroundings grew quiet as well. Eventually, the group approached the stairwell to the entrance. As they did, Kaito looked up, thinking he’d heard something. Noise from the surface was finally starting to reach them, running down the stairs and echoing off the thick walls. Someone’s shouting orders. And that’s a lot of armor, swords, and footsteps I hear. Kaito cautiously strained his ears to make out the intermingling sounds. As a consequence, he found himself inadvertently frowning. “Sounds like they’ve got quite the crowd up there, huh.”

[User] "I should certainly think so. Izabella and I originally came on orders from the Church to kill you, after all. And I did happen to destroy Yah Llodl’s communication device before we entered the tomb, not to mention the fact that we left the paladins behind. ’Twould have been stranger if they hadn’t called in reinforcements.”

[Assistant] “…Oh, right. That makes sense.” As he bore the brunt of Elisabeth’s exasperation, Kaito thought back to their battle from a few hours ago. He and Elisabeth had traded blows directly in front of the underground tomb. However, he’d been so engrossed in the fight that he hadn’t spared much thought as to what would come afterward. And afterward, their entire worldview had been turned on its head. Everything just changed so quickly. Kaito’s gaze grew distant.

[User] As she stood in front of him, Elisabeth went on. “The only reason we weren’t attacked while we investigated this place was the strict orders the paladins received not to enter it. The fewer people who know the truth, the better for them, so the reconstruction sect no doubt plans to destroy us the moment we pop our heads out. However, therein lies a problem.”

[Assistant] "A problem?”

[User] "Indeed. Our foe is the Church.”

[Assistant] "What does that have to do with anything?”

[User] "You forget so quickly, fool. The Church has me bound with shackles.”

[Assistant] Kaito’s mouth hung agape in realization. Now that she mentioned it, he remembered. Elisabeth had been ordered to slay the fourteen demons as a chance to atone for her sins. But because she was a sinner without peer, the Church had placed shackles on her body so that she couldn’t betray them. If one of their priests recited scripture, the shackles would activate.


[User] That meant that Elisabeth’s ability to oppose the Church was diminished.

[Assistant] “I don’t think we’ll find that to be much of a problem. This is the Capital. The reconstruction sect won’t be able to deploy their transformed paladins. And even if they wanted to use a saint, it would take them too long to get a permit issued. In other words, the force at their disposal is currently quite low. No matter how much cannon fodder they call out, cannon fodder is still cannon fodder. After Deus Ex Machina tosses them aside in one fell swoop, I can activate my teleportation circle. Hunting mice is a specialty of mine, y’see. I don’t mind taking the lead this time.” Jeanne shook her head.

[User] “I see, how reliable of you. I’ve no objections.” Elisabeth readily nodded to Jeanne’s suggestion.

[Assistant] Kaito, too, was relieved.

[User] But although he gave the plan his approval, he made sure to add a warning, as well. “Just make sure you don’t kill any of the paladins. They’re only following their beliefs, after all.”

[Assistant] “Given the current situation, that alone is foolhardy in the extreme. Abandoning critical thought is a crime. Ignorance is sin. Sheep end up as mutton, as they say. But if we consider what’s to come, it’s true that unnecessary bloodshed will likely prove disadvantageous. And my little lady would object, as well. Agreed. We should avoid letting things get too complicated here.” Jeanne obediently nodded.

[User] Behind her, Izabella went slack as she breathed a sigh of relief.

[Assistant] Kaito was glad it had gotten resolved peacefully. All in agreement, they headed toward the entrance. Light from outside streamed down onto the stone stairs. Kaito then stopped, calling out to Jeanne as he did.

[User] “Hold up a minute. Before you send out Deus Ex Machina, we should have one of us get a visual on the situation up there. I’ll go—if they fire off some kind of long-range attack, I can block it with my blades.”

[Assistant] “…Well, I suppose that’s true. Your doll has a rather anxious expression on her face, mister, but you are in fact qualified. Guess you finally get to be useful for once, huh? After you, then.”

[User] Despite the verbal abuse he was receiving, Kaito climbed up the stairs. Because they’d been made from a different material, the steps near the top had been melted when the demon attacked the Capital. Making sure not to fall, Kaito carefully jumped over the pit. Then he popped his head out through the entrance.


[User] "Let’s see, here… Man, that’s quite the crowd." The silver troops were lined up atop the gray earth at regular intervals like chess pieces. There was also a group Kaito wasn’t familiar with beside them, covered from head to toe in scarlet cloth. Due to the way their faces were covered, they looked almost like executioners. Man, I’m not getting a good vibe from those guys… Hmm?

[Assistant] A sense of incongruity washed over Kaito. While it was true that the underground tomb was completely surrounded, their enemies were all standing strangely far away. Kaito frowned as he tried to find the reason. Then he noticed the bizarre-looking man standing in front of the assembled troops. Say…what?

[User] The man had a sturdy frame, enough that Kaito could make out his gender despite the distance between them. He had broad shoulders, and his height was on the taller side. In spite of that, though, the hem of his white robes reached all the way to the ground, as did his thick, bristly black hair. That alone would have been enough to qualify his appearance as strange, but his most conspicuous feature was the thick chains binding his arms around himself in an embrace. Kaito couldn’t help compare him to the other bound saint he was familiar with. H-huh? He…looks kinda like La Mules, doesn’t he?

[Assistant] As that thought crossed through Kaito’s mind, the chains binding the man’s top half came loose without warning. He slowly spread his arms wide. When Kaito saw what was between them, a shiver of terror ran through his body. “…!”

[User] The man’s chest had been excavated, clothes and all. The red flesh within had been shaved down, and his white rib cage lay bare. For some reason, though, there was no blood pouring out. The heart, lungs, and other organs a rib cage was normally designed to protect were missing as well. In their place were a large number of white feathered creatures. A second later, realization hit Kaito. The man was using his rib cage as a birdcage. “La (fly)!” Spurred on by instinctual fear, Kaito snapped his fingers. A blade went soaring toward the man.

[Assistant] At the same time, white light flared up in the man’s chest, then burst out. The two collided head-on. While the blade was successfully blocking the light, it melted like candy in the process before evaporating. Kaito shot out his second attack. But to his disbelief, the man was faster. He shot out more light, this time even brighter than the first. The white entity swallowed up the blade, but this time, it didn’t stop. Kaito’s eyes widened in shock. The light bore down on him. An unpleasant blasting noise rang out. As it did, the light burned away the tomb’s entrance.

[User] "Master Kaito, no!"

[Assistant] "Wh—?" It all happened in a single moment. Right before the light made impact, something grabbed Kaito by the scruff and yanked him backward. His back toppled into Hina’s chest.


[User] After embracing him, she leaped back over the melted pit in the stairwell, then crouched down. White light burst over their heads, accompanied by the sound of an explosion.

[Assistant] Kaito looked up. "Th-thanks, Hina… Geez, I seriously misjudged that guy’s power." When he did, he saw that the metal decorations at the tomb’s entrance that had miraculously survived were glowing red and dripping. If Hina had been even a hair slower, he would have died on the spot.

[User] "Oh, Master Kaito… Thank goodness, thank goodness you’re safe… I was so worried for you." Still sitting firmly on the ground, Hina squeezed Kaito tightly. As one might expect from the fact it had survived the demon invasion, everything from halfway up the stairs down was unmarred. The building material itself must have had a powerful anti-magic effect to it. But the bombardment showed no signs of letting up. They’d lost the ability to carelessly go outside.

[Assistant] Jeanne blinked, her rosy eyes flashing. “…Well now. This falls outside my expectations.”

[User] “Aye, it boggles the mind. What exactly is the meaning of this? Forgoing all the proper procedures to deploy a saint, then a summoned beast bombardment without so much as passing a verdict on us? Have they gone mad? No, wait… Ah!” Elisabeth clicked her tongue, looking as though she’d just realized something. When she spoke, her tone was filled with vexation. "The completed request, the one they submitted as part of the plan to defend the Capital immediately after La Mules’s death! Blast, we overlooked it!”

[Assistant] “I suspect your hypothesis is correct. We should assume they used the permit we obtained back then. Under the pretext of killing the Kaiser’s contractor and putting an end to the battle against the demons, fast-tracking its transfer would certainly be possible. And as for that light…” The one who replied to Elisabeth was Izabella. Still cradled in Deus Ex Machina’s arms, she thoughtfully observed the exploding white light.

[User] Kaito followed her lead. Now that he looked closely, he could see that the light was made up of tiny skylark-like creatures. Saints’ power came from sacred beasts. The man’s birds were clearly far weaker than the one La Mules had been able to deploy, but in exchange, he was able to shoot them out repeatedly.

[Assistant] “As far as the reconstruction sect is concerned, the end is nigh, after all. They’re starting to move more brazenly. ‘The sky is falling; the sky is falling! Let’s all dance, guys, memento fuckin’ mori!’”

[User] Kaito prefaced his comment with a groan as he thought back to the device Yah Llodl had been using to communicate. “Ugh, I feel like destroying that communication device didn’t do us any favors.” The orb that Elisabeth had mercilessly skewered had been needlessly extravagant and flashy. He didn’t know where Yah Llodl ranked in the Church, but the man’s pride was all too evident.


[User] Kaito had no doubt that Yah Llodl’s anger was only worsening his animosity toward himself and the others. That said, figuring out what their foes were thinking wasn’t going to help them much at this point. This is a problem… If we can’t get outside, we can’t activate the teleportation circle. Kaito furrowed his brow. The bombardment showed no signs of letting up.

[Assistant] “Tch, the intervals are too short. What to do. Send out Deus Ex Machina, perhaps? ’Tis fast and sturdy. Even so, it would doubtless be whittled away in short order. And you have to temporarily disassemble to activate the teleportation circle, eh… On the off chance they have a second saint in reserve, that would prove troublesome indeed. I wouldn’t mind activating the circle myself, but if they set off the shackles midway through, maintaining it would be no mean feat.”

[User] “I concur. We seem to have quite the problem on our hands. If the Kaiser offered his help, it would make things a deal easier, but… The bad doggy’s got a lot of pride, if nothing else!”

[Assistant] “Hmm? Did the puny human say something? Seems to me like you fancy getting yourself bitten in two.”

[User] “Quit fighting, all of you. I will go.” A dignified voice rang out, remonstrating them. Everyone turned to look at the speaker: Izabella. Still sitting in Deus Ex Machina’s grasp, her arm was raised and her face was earnest.

[Assistant] Jeanne blinked her eyes rapidly a few times. A few seconds later, her head slumped sharply to the side. “Have you lost your mind, miss?”

[User] “I suppose I probably have. But I suspect my odds of success are better than you think. Now, let! Me! Down!” Izabella contorted her body, her cynical remarks accompanied by a smile. Somehow, she was able to slip out from Deus Ex Machina’s arms. After gracefully hopping down onto the floor, she gave a long exhale. Then she turned her blue and purple eyes toward the incessant explosions of light going off above them. She narrowed her gaze. “I know the man who summons those beasts—La Christoph, the Modest Birdkeeper. I’ve had the honor of visiting with him a number of times. He possesses a firm spirit. Even after formally becoming a saint, he still recognized me and offered me kind words of advice.”

[Assistant] “That’s…impressive.” Izabella’s words filled Kaito with earnest admiration. After all, La Mules, a similar saint, had lost her reason and humanity and become little more than an animal. Maybe it had just been the case that La Christoph’s connection to God was weaker than hers had been, but odds were that his force of will was astounding. At the same time, being reminded of how brazenly the Church retained their saints caused Kaito to realize just how perverse of an organization it was. The cracks were always there—the current situation just tore them wide open. The time had finally come.


[User] “Even after being recognized as a saint, La Christoph persisted in his deep love for the people. I strongly doubt he knows anything about the plan to reconstruct the world. I’ll need someone to block two or three of his attacks for me, but if I call out to him, I believe there’s a good chance he’ll stop.” Izabella was totally serious.

[Assistant] Elisabeth crossed her arms and shook her head. “You expect a saint to see sense while firing off a bombardment? The odds are lower than low.”

[User] “If I die, then all it will mean is that my work up until now was unworthy of being remembered. In that event, I will accept my fate. And I apologize, but you’ll need to come up with a new plan.” Izabella’s voice was calm, and the evenness of her tone served to illustrate just how composed she was.

[Assistant] Kaito reflexively shuddered. The degree of certainty in her voice was alarming. “Izabella, no!”

[User] “Oh, Master Kaito—” Kaito hurriedly stood up, wrenching himself free from Hina’s arms. Then he turned to face Izabella. He stared straight into her mismatched, gemstone-like eyes. “Izabella, you can’t! Whether or not that saint guy will remember you isn’t the problem! It’s what’ll happen to you afterward. If your plan works, you won’t be able to go back to the Church. Hell, even trying to will be off the table. I’m not gonna let you go through with some plan that’ll get you killed, whether it works or not!” Kaito’s voice rose to a shout. When Izabella replied with silence, Kaito clenched his fists.

[Assistant] “Even if it was just because Jeanne kidnapped you, you still ended up going into the underground tomb. You can pretend not to have seen anything, but there’s no way they’ll believe you. And I bet the Grave Keeper will be especially pissed.” Kaito’s thoughts turned to the perverse nursery down in the depths of the tomb. There had been a monster with a snowy owl’s head and a huge mass of tentacles stationed in front of it as a guard.


[User] “If you go back, they’re just gonna dispose of you. If you’re lucky, all they’ll do is kill you. You can’t go back; it’s over!”

[Assistant] “I refuse to believe that! Or rather, I want to…but even I can see the truth.” Izabella answered frankly. Her voice was calm. So calm, in fact, that it filled Kaito with ominous premonitions. Izabella wasn’t even trying to deny the evil lurking within the Church anymore. But even so, her smile remained.

[User] “There would normally be no shortage of people who would defend me and ensure my sentence was just. But at this rate, I’m likely to be judged behind closed doors, without my allies knowing about it. Even so, there are things I still must do. You see, I want to go back to the Church.”

[Assistant] “That’s crazy talk…”

[User] “I have to make sure as many of the Holy Knights know the truth as possible. If things continue as they are, they’re liable to be taken advantage of.”

[Assistant] “But you can’t seriously think you’re gonna get a chance to—”

[User] “Even if I don’t. I can’t just sit back and watch my subordinates die.” Izabella’s words were matter-of-fact. She’d clearly had her mind made up for some time now.

[Assistant] The Holy Knights’ main force has to receive any untoward orders. But it’s only a matter of time. It’s as Ms. Jeanne says: Organizations are, for better or for worse, like long centipedes. I refuse to let my people unknowingly destroy the very people, the very world they’re trying to protect.

[User] “Even so, you still—”

[Assistant] “I understand how you feel. Or rather, allow me to pretend to sympathize despite being wholly incapable of understanding. Still, though, foolish little lady, I must ask that you stop.” Jeanne stepped forward and stood beside Kaito. She, too, didn’t hesitate to give her warning. Deus Ex Machina stooped over, as though trying to scoop Izabella back up. Falling away a step, Izabella took on a defensive pose. Jeanne pointed a pale finger at her. It hung in the air as Jeanne tried to elucidate the situation.


[User] "I didn’t bring you along just to let the Church pass judgment on you, miss. I needed someone besides the Torture Princess and her servant who knew the truth of the world and was able to help convey it. Someone who was affiliated with the Church yet could accept the truth without breaking. That was what I chose you from among the stray sheep for."

[Assistant] "So I supposed. I had the sense that your expectations for me were something along those lines."

[User] "It wasn’t so you could die a dog’s death. Don’t forget. Death is absolute. If you die, that’s it. Game over."

[Assistant] “…Forgive me. I understand the importance of the task you’ve given me. But would you be able to find someone else to carry it out? I have my own task I need to finish, you see.” Izabella flatly refused to heed Jeanne’s warning.

[User] Narrowing her rosy eyes, Jeanne made to set Deus Ex Machina into motion. As things were, Izabella had no means to resist.

[Assistant] "I am a commander, though perhaps only in name." With a gentle expression, she repeated back the words Jeanne had once thrust at her.

[User] "…" For once in her life, a look of surprise crossed Jeanne’s face.

[Assistant] Izabella began walking. It was easy to make out the unwavering pride in her gait, as was the fact that stopping her would accomplish nothing. She walked past Jeanne, practically daring her to act. Her silver hair nearly grazed Jeanne’s honey-blond locks.

[User] "…What a fool you are." Standing straight up, Jeanne let out a quiet whisper.

[Assistant] Taking her cue, Deus Ex Machina sprang into motion. But instead of trying to capture Izabella this time, it strode directly forward. It seemed that the steel giant intended to serve as Izabella’s shield, just as she’d requested.

[User] "You can’t…" Still refusing to give up, Kaito raised his voice.

[Assistant] "Farewell, ladies and gentlemen. Dreadful as it was, I’m glad I was able to learn the truth. Even now, I still hold that the Church’s teachings are wonderful. Using faith as a way to support a life lived nobly and properly is an honorable thing. People are weak. They need something to believe in. So as a member of the Church, I will fight to my last to right its wrongs." As light continued to explode at her back, her voice was the image of composure.

[User] Kaito sucked in his breath. Even after learning so many ugly truths, Izabella retained her piety and pride as the commander of the Holy Knights.

[Assistant] "That is why, Kaito Sena, Elisabeth Le Fanu, Jeanne de Rais, even if history ends up validating your actions, I cannot become like you." Her next words were stern, and her voice rang with conviction. With quiet yet unfaltering words, Izabella issued a complete rejection of Kaito and the others. The ebony and gold Torture Princesses said nothing.


[User] Kaito, too, gazed silently at lacerations running across Izabella’s skin and her tranquil eyes. His thoughts turned to the metaphor he’d just heard. There exist shepherds who would gladly cast themselves into the fire just to catch a glimpse of a miracle. And their sheep would follow after them, blind to the foolishness of their own actions. Even though she was just a lone sheep, Izabella was trying to shout out warnings to the rest. She was likely to find herself cut down in the blink of an eye. But even so, she refused to abandon her flock. Izabella Vicker is a noble person through and through. Authority and cajolery would utterly fail to make her falter. And she had the rare power to not only believe in her own sense of justice but to put it into action, too. Which means that there’s no way she’d ever become an enemy of the world. Kaito now felt that fact keenly. In other words, it was pointless trying to get her to stay by their side any longer. Kaito and the others were enemies of the world, and the road before them was paved with thorns. At the end of the day, what we’re trying to do is kill God and the Saint. Trying to coerce someone who was living their life nobly and properly wasn’t possible. Satisfied with that fact, Kaito threw in the towel.

[Assistant] Elisabeth quietly clicked her tongue. Her sleek black hair rustled as she shook her head. “Ha, do as you please. If one persists in their foolery, that, too, is a form of conviction. If you have no regrets, then go forth and die unburdened. Your brand of idiocy may differ from mine, but we are both idiots nonetheless.”

[User] “That we are, I suppose. Idiots, one and all.” Izabella’s smile was tinged with a hint of embarrassment. The lacerations running across her face twisted unattractively. Yet, even so, Izabella Vicker was beautiful. The next moment, she dashed up the stairs. Her silver hair fluttered as she broke into a run. Explosions of white light rocked the entrance she was heading for. With surprisingly fluid motions, Deus Ex Machina took the lead from Izabella. The steel giant was the first to rush outside. Izabella followed unflinchingly after. The bombardment exploded across Deus Ex Machina. Protected by its massive body, Izabella shouted out.

[Assistant] “Please stop, La Christoph! It’s me, Izabella Vicker! I have something I wish to report! Everyone, please, you have to listen to me!” Tragically, her voice was drowned out. It looked as though the attacks would continue. But she didn’t give up.

[User] “Rgh!” Seizing the tiniest of gaps between explosions, Izabella made her move, leaping out from behind Deus Ex Machina. Having abandoned her shield, Izabella laid herself exposed before La Christoph.

[Assistant] “It’s time for us to move.”

[User] “Indeed.” If they didn’t leave then, they wouldn’t make it in time.


[User] Jeanne and Elisabeth dashed forward, with no room to doubt whether or not Izabella would succeed.

[Assistant] Kaito and Hina followed after them.

[User] With a singularly nonchalant air, the Kaiser shook his head in exasperation and did the same.

[Assistant] Vlad floated along behind, a wide grin plastered across his face.

[User] Together, they passed through the entrance. Unbelievably, the bombardment had stopped. It was almost miraculous how quiet their surroundings were. They could see a priest wearing a lavish vestment shouting something at La Christoph. He was undoubtedly trying to get him to resume the bombardment. But as he gazed at Izabella in bewilderment, La Christoph obstinately refused to open his arms.

[Assistant] “What the hell are you doing? Why show mercy to someone who’s been won over by the demons?” The priest shouted again, even louder.

[User] As he did, Izabella’s subordinates started moving at once. They all rushed over to the priest. The group that looked like executioners tried to get them to fall back, but the paladins gave determined shouts.

[Assistant] “Please, that’s not it! Our commander was taken against her will!”

[User] “Bah! Back, you lot, back! What are you thinking? !”

[Assistant] “You’re the one trying to dispose of our kidnapped commander all on your own! What are you thinking? !”

[User] “She’s fallen into the demons’ clutches!”

[Assistant] “We told you, she was abducted! We’re not going to just let you blow away our commander!”

[User] Disorder swelled through their ranks. Taking full advantage of the opportunity, Deus Ex Machina collapsed into pieces. The steel giant’s body separated into a number of chunks. From them, four machines landed atop the ashen earth. One of them was a beast made of nothing but fangs. Another was an automaton, shaped like a human except for its fatally warped frame. One of the other monsters was a lizard with limbs made from pipes and wings of glass. And the final one was a bipedal suit of armor with no visible seams anywhere on its body. The chains on Jeanne’s wrists jingled. Taking their cue, the machines began spinning. White light started glittering in a circle around them, and golden flower petals danced up through the air. The teleportation circle began activating, leaving Izabella behind. The priest went slack-jawed. La Christoph continued looking solely at Izabella. She made no motions to flee, so La Christoph chose not to resume his attack.

[Assistant] “Get ahold of yourselves! Don’t let them get away, dammit—stop them!” As he shouted orders at the fighting paladins, the priest began chanting to activate Elisabeth’s shackles. As she stood beside Kaito, her skin started burning, and she let out a small cry of pain.

[User] “Urk—”

[Assistant] “Elisabeth…” Kaito and Hina supported her shoulders.

[User] “Lady Elisabeth.” Kaito and Hina supported her shoulders.

[Assistant] However, Elisabeth wasn’t the one giving the chant for the summoning circle—Jeanne was. The light gradually grew in strength. The paladins and the executioner-like group frantically rushed toward them. As they did, Jeanne gently extended her hand.


[User] Making sure she wasn’t seen by the people closing in on them, she lifted a tuft of Izabella’s hair. Then she kissed her, like a knight kissing a princess’s hand. Izabella’s shoulders twitched. But she didn’t turn around.

[Assistant] "I don’t hate seeing a mere human trying to oppose them. After all, such actions are the ones that are supposed to change the world. You may be an idiot, a dunce, and a fool, miss, but I choose to believe that your actions helped delay the clock hands in their march toward the end. You did catch my eye, and the eyes never lie." Jeanne offered a surreptitious murmur to her dignified back.

[User] With slight vestiges of sorrow, Jeanne let go of the silver hair. As she did, she offered a quiet farewell. "Good-bye, my stupid, gallant little lady.”


[User] “…Crimson?” Kaito tilted his head to the side in confusion. Then he noticed the second magic circle at their feet.

[Assistant] “Huh? Wait, don’t tell me this is…”

[User] “Jeanne, you little… I must say, I was expecting we would arrive in the forest nearby. Why is it that you’re able to leap directly to my castle? When was it you interfered with my teleportation circle?” Her skin still covered in burn marks from the Church’s shackles, Elisabeth crossed her arms.

[Assistant] “What are you talking about, miss? Why, you daringly left your castle exposed so as to invite attacks by the fourteen demons, did you not? Shit, you had openings everywhere! In other words, sending in a familiar to invade your castle and tamper with your teleportation circle was no grand undertaking. But hey, don’t sweat the small stuff!” Her abundant golden locks shook as she tilted her head to the side.

[User] Elisabeth gives Jeanne a murderous glare.

[Assistant] “Very well. I’m hardly pleased, but I shall overlook it this once. This once. Now then, let’s be off.” Letting out a short sigh, Elisabeth started walking. Her heels clicked loudly as she went.

[User] “Um, Lady Elisabeth, we should treat your injuries first…” Hina timidly called out to her.

[Assistant] Elisabeth stopped in her tracks and her harsh expression softened.

[User] “How kind you are to the woman you once betrayed… No, no, stop looking at me with those teary eyes! It feels as though I’m kicking a puppy. I had no intention of being snide to you, Hina. What I was trying to say was that you needn’t worry, that I would cast healing magic myself later, when we have time to spare. Aye.” But despite Hina’s frantic pleas, she just gently shook her head.

[Assistant] “Wait…doesn’t that mean that if you were talking to me, you would mean it snidely?”

[User] “How astute he is! I should surely think so. ’Tis your own fault for being so wholly unlovable."


[User] “You’re a man; deal with it.”

[Assistant] “Well then, I’ll just have to praise Master Kaito so sweetly that it all balances out!”

[User] “Uh… I dunno if ‘balances out’ is really the way you’re supposed to look at it…” Despite the crisis situation they were in, the banter the three of them exchanged was light. Kaito took care to speak in the same glib manner as always. By doing so, he managed to slowly but surely regain his lost composure. Eventually, he succeeded in shaking away the scene that had burned itself into his eyes. My grieving isn’t gonna make things any better. We’ve gotta hurry, for Izabella’s sake, too.

[Assistant] “…Hmph, ’Tis time to cut the idle chatter. Let us be off in earnest. There’s no shortage of information we need to drag out of the Butcher, whether he gives it freely or not. And time is of the essence.” Her words hinted at the possibility of torture. Elisabeth licked her scarlet lips, and Kaito quietly dashed after her. They all ran out of the chamber.


[User] Groan-like noises echoed throughout the labyrinthine basement as they hurriedly made their way through it and on up the stairs to the first floor. It was at that point that the Kaiser, who’d been dutifully accompanying them, paused. He raised his head high and sniffed at the air. Then, after shaking his head a few times, he let out a bored scoff.

[Assistant] “…Hmph, I thought as much. Already, eh?”

[User] “What’s the matter, Kaiser?”

[Assistant] “You can’t tell, boy? I should think it’s a smell that you, too, would be familiar with.”

[User] “Familiar…? !” Then Kaito finally realized what was different. The rusty aroma of blood was wafting down the first-floor corridor. After sniffing at their surroundings some more, the Kaiser approached something hidden in one of the walls’ shadows. When he realized what it was, a shock ran through Kaito. The Kaiser’s nose was right up against a large pool of blood. The supreme hound then poked at something dark sitting in the middle of the sea of red.

[Assistant] "This in particular. Its odor is like that of a demi-human, yet more mixed. What do you think, O unworthy master of mine? Surely you recognize it.” The Kaiser let out a satisfied laugh, his expression hinting at ominous things to come.

[User] Kaito silently knelt down beside him. When he saw what his hound was pawing at, his face went white. Resting half-submerged in the pool of blood was a scrap of tattered black cloth.

[Assistant] “…The Butcher.”

[User] “Kaito, Hina, to my bedroom! Investigate the status of the Gibbet! Jeanne and Deus Ex Machina, go search elsewhere! You two are better at covering ground!”

[Assistant] “I have no objections, miss. We are at least twice as fast as you punks, after all.”

[User] “Oh my, precious daughter of mine. Ignoring me?”

[Assistant] “You and the Kaiser, go search as well! And before that, the both of you need to muster up some determination! Especially you, Vlad, you deadbeat!"


[User] "You seem quite content to just sit there and do nothing!” Vlad peevishly pouted upon receiving his orders and insults in the same breath. Like always, his expression was creepily innocent. He stroked his chin and crossed his long legs in the air.

[Assistant] “Hmm, given that you all are the ones who killed me, I’d say I’m contributing more than my share. Also, given that I’m quite literally dead, perhaps ‘deadbeat’ isn’t the kindest insult you could have chosen… Oh, I see—you’re choosing to turn a deaf ear to my complaints. Ah well, I suppose I can help you out with your investigation.”

[User] Protest written across his face, Vlad floated on after Jeanne.

[Assistant] The Kaiser, on the other hand, seemed to think it was none of his concern. He snorted, then vanished.


[User] Separating from the others, Kaito’s group made for the stairs to the second floor. Kaito, Hina, and Elisabeth hurried through the oppressive cliff-top castle. Their footsteps echoed through the hall. Right before reaching the stairs, though, the three of them stopped in their tracks.

[Assistant] “…’Tis his handiwork, no doubt.”

[User] “Yeah…”