Editing BlazBlue:Bloodedge Experience Part 1 Chapter 5 (section)

===Part 4===

Placing his wide hands over his chest, Spinner Superior bowed deeply toward Raquel. He was an eerie man. Even though it was dim, there was light. The pale moonlight created shadows all over the corridor of Shinkawahama First High School. But he was deeper than those shadows. Tall and thin, his limbs were long and shadowy, making it doubtful if he was really there. His gray hair was neatly combed back, and his black clothes had a quality that made them look expensive even in the dim corridor.

"That's... Spinner Superior..." Naoto uttered, his voice strained. Next to him, Raquel carefully inhaled. Clenching her small hands into fists, she adopted a resolute demeanor, staring boldly at Spinner without a trace of fear.

As he received her gaze, Spinner looked around slowly and tilted his head. "And... where is Naoto Kurogane?" he asked politely, as if inquiring of a princess. His sharp, slitted eyes fixed intently on Raquel. On his pale, sickly face, a strange tattoo covered one cheek.

Raquel slightly moved her head to indicate Naoto next to her. "He's over there."

"...Huh?" Spinner asked again, looking puzzled, pausing for a beat. Moving his sharp jaw, he hesitated over his words, then asked again with confusion in his narrow eyes. "Raquel Alucard. I apologize, but where is Naoto Kurogane?" He repeated Naoto's name, but he never looked at Naoto. It was as if he had completely excluded 'Naoto Kurogane' from his mind and didn't even care about him.

(Why is he talking about me...?)

Naoto had never interacted with Spinner directly. Spinner was chasing Raquel, and Raquel was looking for Spinner. That was supposed to be the relationship. Confused by the unexpected conversation between Raquel and Spinner, Raquel grabbed Naoto's arm and pulled him close.

"He is Naoto Kurogane," she said. The instant she said that, Naoto's body was slammed hard against the corridor wall, as if he had been struck by something heavy.

"Ugh…” He couldn't understand what was happening. The sudden shock was so unexpected that he couldn't even manage a proper defensive posture, and he hit the back of his head against the window frame. He could feel his back crack against the wall.

Sparks flickered at the edge of his vision. For a moment, his sight threatened to fade into darkness, but as it blurred and then cleared, Naoto held his breath at the sight of Spinner’s expression before him.

"...Don't you dare touch my Raquel  Alucard... you lowly creature." His suppressed tone was filled with an extraordinary rage. Spinner’s eyes widened as he glared at Naoto, unleashing a merciless killing intent that seemed utterly insane.

"Oh, how disgusting... For trash like you to touch Raquel Alucard is a capital offense. Don't get cocky just because you disposed of a mere Apostle, you piece of garbage." Spinner took a large step forward, dragging his shadow behind him. "I can't stand it. I can't possibly stand it... My Raquel Alucard being soiled by the breath of trash like you. I must crush you as soon as possible..."

Muttering to himself, his voice echoed loudly through the corridor. His unnaturally long arms rose ominously. In response, the darkness behind Spinner stirred. It was the same darkness that had eaten the soldiers earlier.

"Damn it!" Naoto tried to get to his feet, pushing off the floor. But his body wouldn't move the way he wanted it to. To be honest, his body was at its limit. The hand he had put on the floor to get up was shaking weakly.

"Naoto, run!" Raquel's voice rang out sharply. Her words seemed to further enrage Spinner. The darkness swelled and slid across the corridor toward Naoto. But then, something came flying in with a slicing sound, cutting through the darkness and scattering it away. Slowly, Kiiro stood in front of Naoto and Spinner.

"What do you think you're doing? Don't get cocky, just because you're a mere 'magician'. I'll 'disassemble' you." She smiled wickedly. Naoto couldn't see what had cut through the darkness. It certainly wasn't the gun that had incapacitated Isa. It was something more mysterious... a Drive.

[[File:BE1-11.png|frameless|right]]

His fun ruined, Spinner retracted the excitement in his eyes and fixed his gaze on the new intruder. With a bored expression, he ran his long fingers along his tattooed cheek. 

"Is this Drive... Kiiro from the Mitsurugi Agency?" He muttered blandly, then closed his eyes and laughed—a professional smile. "......What does 'Mosaic' think it's doing?"

That seemingly solitary remark changed Kiiro's complexion instantly, filling it with murderous intent. The swelling malice, like it was about to explode, transformed into a sound that tore through the air, approaching Spinner. However, Spinner lightly tapped the floor with his leather shoe, summoning darkness from beneath his feet. The darkness curled and formed a sphere that enveloped him, as if watching bubbles burst in reverse. Whatever Kiiro had released was swallowed up by that darkness and disappeared.

Once again, the darkness shifted to reveal Spinner in the hallway. The eerie man with tattoos on his face had not changed his stance even slightly since shrouding himself in darkness. However, it seemed he hadn’t completely avoided harm, as there was a deep gash on his right shoulder. If you looked closely at the wound, you could see countless maggot-like insects gathering and making a sound like chewing flesh, repairing the torn flesh. With her eyes narrowed and her expression tense, Kiiro opened her arms as if preparing to fight.

"I'll 'annihilate' you right now..."

"Oh dear... what do you think you're doing? It's pitiful for a mere puppet to be so presumptuous." As if not intending to take her seriously, Spinner calmly brushed aside a stray lock of hair with a languid gesture. But darkness still lingered at his feet. Even though she was a trivial opponent, there was no reason to overlook her. As if obeying his master's will, the darkness trembled at Spinner's feet.

Then—

"Wait," Raquel's unwavering voice echoed. There was an undeniable power in her voice. It was a voice that was different from magic or a Drive, a voice that belonged to Raquel Alucard. 
"Retreat now, Spinner Superior. It's not time for you and I to fight." Raquel spoke to Spinner with a strong, almost prophetic weight, as if giving an order. Her intervention carried a force that was both commanding and impossible to defy, causing Kiiro to sharpen her voice sharply.

“Don’t get in my way... little girl.” There was none of the usual seductive ease. Her voice and gaze were as cold and sharp as metal, a side of Kiiro that Naoto had never imagined. 
However, despite Kiiro’s readiness to attack and her sharpened hostility, Spinner seemed to have completely forgotten about her at Raquel's words. He simply let the darkness retreat at his feet, behaving as if he were perhaps in a cheerful mood.

Mustering a strange, ominous smile, he seemed to be enjoying himself.

"I understand, Raquel Alucard. I merely came to pay my respects tonight," he said, bowing respectfully again. Keeping his body bent and his head bowed, Spinner looked up at Raquel. His gaze was like a spider's web. The sticky thread, while eyeing its prey, did not bind it so tightly as to show respect for its beautiful wings. He grinned, his eyes smiling. "The next time we meet, please bring the real 'Naoto Kurogane' with you. You must have been testing me, but... even someone like that trash is insulting to me."

As if delivering a line in a stage play, Spinner bowed and sank into his own shadow with a sound like dragging a sandbag. And just like that, he disappeared.

The school regained its stillness once more. The hallway was littered with the shattered fragments of stick-like light fixtures, extending far down the corridor. The clouds that had covered the day in a gloomy haze seemed to have been swept away by the wind. The moonlight shone brighter than before. 

Bathed in the white moonlight, Kiiro opened her mouth without looking back at Naoto, keeping her head down. "...I'm sorry, Naoto-kun. I'm going home too..."

Her voice was weak, unlike her usual self. With her hands clasped together, trembling slightly as if she were holding back tears, Kiiro turned away from Naoto as if to turn her face away from something. Naoto watched her leave, dumbfounded. It might have been his imagination. Maybe he had mistaken the glass shards and moonlight, but... it seemed as if he had caught a glimpse of tears streaming down Kiiro's cheeks.

The members of the Mitsurugi Agency all departed, leaving Kiiro behind. The area was still horribly damaged, but it would probably be completely restored by the start of school tomorrow. Just like the residential area that Raquel and the Bug Man had rampaged through, which had been restored overnight.

Suddenly, he heard the sound of glass breaking nearby. When Naoto looked up, Raquel was there.

"Pathetic," she said disdainfully, extending her hand to Naoto. A white hand, much like the moonlight. Beyond it was Raquel's face, with skin the color of moonlight, and her mouth, which always wore a defiant expression, was slightly curved into a smile.

(Ah... she's smiling, isn't she?)

He realized that he had never seen her smile before. As he thought about it, Naoto placed his hand on hers as if being drawn in. Spinner had said that moonlight suited Raquel. Although he disliked the idea that the opinion came from him, he couldn't help but agree. 

Raquel, with her hand outstretched in the moonlight, was beautiful. Her golden hair shimmered fantastically in the moonlight. Her eyes, a slightly deeper color than her hair, were like the most beautiful jewels in the world.

"What are you doing?" Raquel frowned, puzzled, as she continued to hold Naoto's hand, who didn't seem to be trying to get up. Naoto snapped back to reality. He had been completely captivated.

"Oh, sorry. Let's get Haruka home before anyone comes," he said hastily, trying to cover up his embarrassment. With Raquel pulling him along, he got up and returned to the student council room to retrieve Haruka and the school uniform jacket he had draped over her.

The uniform was completely torn up after being attacked by Isa and Spinner, those two monsters. This shirt and pants were practically new, and now they were ruined.

(Uniforms are surprisingly expensive...) Naoto thought. If only clothes could return to their original state like his body. While mulling over such a convenient thought, he slung the unconscious Haruka over his back. He put the undamaged uniform jacket on Haruka.

"Let's go."

"Yeah." It was already well past dinner time. As they left the school, Naoto and Raquel made their way home, trying to stay out of sight.

...It had been a long day, to say the least.

When he had been asking around about Kana at school during the day, he never would have thought that such a major event would be waiting for him at night. The sky still had some clouds, but it was filled with bright moonlight. A crescent moon, not quite full or new, elegantly looked down at the earth.

“By the way...” Naoto turned to Raquel. With her long blonde hair swaying, Raquel turned to him.

“What?”

“Why did Spinner know my name earlier? Did Isa tell him?” Given that he was a supposed Apostle, it wouldn’t be unusual for him to have such connections, but it seemed unnecessary for Isa to inform Spinner of Naoto’s name. Moreover, the fact that Raquel lived with Naoto had only come to light after Isa had started skipping school.

“Oh,” Raquel said, her tone casual. “Do you remember when we fought Valkenhayn Hellsing before? I left something written on the wall.”

“Yeah, I remember. I couldn’t read it, though.” It was next to the vending machine behind the game center, though the vending machine had been brutally destroyed by Valkenhayn.
Raquel moved her fingers in the air, as if writing letters. “I wrote, ‘If you want me, make the servant Naoto Kurogane yours. If you can do that, I will become yours. Raquel Alucard.’ ...That’s what I wrote.”

“...Huh?” Did he hear that wrong? Didn't Raquel just say ‘defeat Naoto Kurogane'? When Naoto looked up at Raquel, confused about what she meant, she smiled slightly, a smug, superior smile. 

"Still, this is troublesome. It seems I've given quite the misunderstanding ...It seems Spinner thought that an opponent on the level of Father was waiting for him." Retracting the slight smile she had shown, Raquel placed her hands on her hips and mouth, deep in thought. Her long ponytail swayed behind her like a tail with each regular step.

"Anyway, that's how it is. Do your best, servant," she said, sounding as if she didn't feel any responsibility at all, and she continued walking down the night road with light steps. 
Naoto, taken aback, stopped in his tracks and stared at the scene in shock for a moment.

"You..." To the self-proclaimed master's vampire girl, who had planted such an absurd seed in his mind, Naoto shouted so loudly that it echoed around him. "Are you crazy?!" His echoing voice stretched out into the distance and was swallowed up by the soft autumn night.

It was the end of one curtain. And the beginning of another.





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