Editing BlazBlue:Bloodedge Experience Part 2 Chapter 8 (section)

==Part 5==

The white moon hung in the sky. It looked like a sliver of a crescent moon, a gaping window in the night sky, as if someone was peering in.

Perhaps this thought arose because Naoto had been reminded of the Mitsurugi Agency's surveillance during the day. Or maybe it was because he was about to step into this surreal world, which seemed out of place on such a peaceful night.

Stepping out from the brightly lit apartment into the dimly lit night, Naoto retied his loose sneaker laces.

"Don't dawdle," came an impatient voice from a few steps ahead.

"I know, I know," Naoto replied, glancing up casually.

Even in October, the air turned chilly at this late hour. Raquel stood in the darkness of the night, wrapped in her own dark black cloak. If one only focused on her appearance, she looked just like she did on that night they first met. However, there was now a crucial difference. Raquel was wearing a blouse and skirt under her cloak.

Naoto joined Raquel, his sneakers tapping lightly against the ground. Suddenly, the sound of high heels approaching from ahead caught his attention.

"Oh? You two are going out at this hour?"

At first, Naoto thought it was Kiiro, but it was Yuki, Haruka’s mother and his aunt. Dressed in a neatly arranged milk tea-colored pantsuit, Yuki looked ready for work. It was past nine at night, well past dinner time. It seemed early for her to be returning home from work.

“You’re home early, Yuki-san,” Naoto replied, surprised. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Raquel flinch and step closer to him.

Seeing Raquel’s reaction, Yuki smiled brightly. "I can't keep working late every day. Sometimes I want to eat my daughter’s cooking at a decent hour."

"Well, it’s not exactly a decent hour, is it?"

"Details, details. More importantly, where are you two going? Out late at night alone with a girl... that’s suspicious." Yuki smiled knowingly and brought her fingers to her mouth. She glanced at Raquel with a look of childlike curiosity. Despite working late every day and getting up early, she seemed full of energy.

Naoto grimaced and scratched his head. 

“It’s not suspicious at all. We’re just going to the bookstore by the station. It’s open until ten.”

“A bookstore? You?”

“No, not me. Her.” Naoto pointed at Raquel, who was nodding vigorously, her expression exaggerated.

It was a lie. He had told the same lie to Haruka just a few minutes ago.

“Hmm.” Yuki replied, her voice sounding thoughtful. Despite trying to appear calm, Naoto was incredibly nervous. Yuki was sharp. She had caught him in lies countless times before. It felt like she could always sense when he was being dishonest.

But…

“Well, be careful. Don’t worry Haruka too much,” Yuki accepted Naoto’s lie effortlessly and adjusted the work bag on her other shoulder. Naoto didn’t know if she had believed him or simply chosen to ignore his lie. If he asked, it would be like admitting to the lie himself. 

Yuki patted Naoto lightly on the shoulder and went into the apartment building, her steps surprisingly light for someone who had been working late. Naoto watched her go until she disappeared into the orange glow of the hallway, then turned back to the night.

“Let’s go.” he said, patting Raquel on the shoulder as Yuki had done to him. Startled, Raquel seemed to snap back to reality.

“Ah!? Oh... yeah, let’s go. No dawdling.”

“I’ve heard that before.” Naoto wanted to say, “I should be the one telling you that,” but he kept it to himself. He ran his hand through his hair and started walking. Their destination was near Shinkawahama Station. But instead of the bookstore, they were headed for a darker, more secluded area.

This was the beginning of their... training.

Running through the narrow alleyways wasn’t difficult. Jumping into the shadows away from the streetlights and moving farther from the bright station wasn’t scary. 

The night air was pleasantly cool, and under normal circumstances, Naoto would have enjoyed the walk. Despite the cloudy sky, the high moon continued to cast its silvery light upon the earth. But right now, he had no room to appreciate the autumn night’s ambiance.

“Damn it… how long is this going to last?!” As he ran deeper into the narrow alley, which was too small for cars, Naoto vented his frustration between heavy breaths. Close behind him, something was following, keeping an uncomfortably close distance. An occasional clicking sound from somewhere outside his vision sent a shiver of disgust and fear down his spine.

Naoto was being chased.

With an unyielding persistence, something the size of his torso was pursuing him through the darkness and sudden bursts of streetlight. It was an insect as large as Naoto’s torso. 

Its dirty brown shell resembled oxidized oil, with a creepy luster reminiscent of a jewel beetle. It had four wings that buzzed unpleasantly as it flitted about. Its silhouette resembled that of a bee, but instead of a sharp stinger, it had a round mouth from which a liquid capable of burning concrete simmered, hidden behind serrated fangs. Just a moment ago, it had bitten his arm, and he still felt the searing pain of burnt flesh.

Where a bee would have a mouth, this creature had enlarged legs, and four eyes that fixed on Naoto’s back as he ran.

“How long do you plan on running? This is training. It’s pointless if you don’t fight back!” Raquel called out, her voice carried on the wind as she gracefully descended from a nearby building. She joined Naoto, her expression bright and carefree, as she effortlessly ran beside him.

Training. Tonight’s “event,” as Raquel called it, was essentially a hunting game. Using her magic, Raquel had located an Apostle of Spinner’s, and now Naoto was supposed to gain combat experience by defeating it.

They had left the house around ten o’clock and had spent some time preparing Raquel’s magic at a secluded spot near the station. After following a faint magical trace, they had finally found their target. But the moment the creature realized Naoto was there, it had detached itself from its host and attacked with ferocious intent.

Of course, Naoto had come here intending to defeat the creature. He wanted nothing more than to stop running and turn around, to punch the giant, grotesque, bee-like thing. But it was too close. If he stopped and turned, the creature would be able to attack him before he could react. 

(I never want to experience that again...)

Just moments before, he had been ambushed by the severe pain from a bug that had been lurking by the tracks under the station platform after the last train had left. The wound had healed within three seconds, but the psychological shock of being attacked by such an unnatural creature was not so easily forgotten.

"Hi-i-i-i!"

As if on cue, a wet sound splattered behind Naoto, followed by the creature's acidic fluid spraying in the direction he was running. A splash landed on his face. He felt a burning sensation near his eye and his vision blurred white.

He wiped his face with the back of his hand, trying to clear his vision. The wound was already gone, but the pool of the creature's fluid where he had jumped over had melted the asphalt, leaving a sticky, cotton-candy-like substance.

"R-Raquel, what should I do?" 

Naoto had never faced one of Spinner's Apostles so directly before. The confusion and fear overwhelmed him, and Naoto felt himself slipping into a mild panic.

“You're pathetic. Are you really from the Demon Sealing clan?” 

“That’s the Amanohokosaka! Compared to that, we’re just an afterthought... besides, what I was doing was with humans, not fighting against monsters like this!”

Naoto wondered if the martial arts he'd learned for fighting humans would be effective against this creature.

Skating alongside Naoto as if on ice, Raquel sighed, treating him like a slow child. “You’re an idiot. That’s why I’m giving you this real combat experience.”

“You’re doing this for me? I’m so grateful, I could cry!”

“We’re going to waste the whole night at this rate.”

“If you think so, then help me out a little!”

“Honestly... you really are a handful.”

Shaking her head in exasperation, Raquel lowered her body without slowing down. Then, she kicked off the ground and jumped high. With a powerful leap, she jumped into the air, pulling Naoto up with her.

“Whoa!” Naoto exclaimed as he was lifted off the ground. He landed hard on the asphalt, wincing in pain as his backside and legs stung. But when he looked up, his breath caught in his throat.

The creature, unable to keep up with the sudden change of pace, had overshot where Naoto had been and was now further down the alleyway. It quickly sensed Naoto’s presence and turned around, its wings buzzing.

But there was now a safe distance between them – a distance perfect for a fight.

“Naoto.”

“I know!” Naoto replied roughly in response to Raquel’s urging. He clenched his fists and began to run.

His target, a creature with enormous red eyes, stared at Naoto. It lifted its thick legs, making an odd clicking sound as it raised its lower body, filled with corrosive acid. Its round mouth was pointed at Naoto like a gun.

To be honest, Naoto was terrified. He wanted to lament why he was doing this. But he pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind and focused on what was in front of him. 

He took a deep step forward, feeling the hard ground beneath his feet, and pulled back his fist. As if waiting for this, the creature's bloated belly trembled, and a glob of acid was ejected from its round, toothed mouth, as if firing a cannonball.

If it hit him directly, it would be right in the face. But Naoto twisted his body at an unnatural angle, dodging the acid from close range almost the same time as the bug's counterattack.

(Huh? I dodged it?)

Naoto was surprised. He had taken a deep step forward, and his movements had been quick. He should have been completely defenseless against the attack. But as the bug's movements registered in his vision, his body moved on its own. The bug's movements were much slower than he had anticipated. He was more agile than he realized.

“Take this!” With all his might, Naoto threw his fist down onto the bug's head, adding the force of his body behind it. His fist, thrust straight up from below, caught the creature’s large eye and pierced through the tough, jelly-like substance. Body fluids splattered, and a sticky substance covered him. Despite the unpleasant sensation, Naoto's arm had pierced straight through the bug.

“Ugh... gross…”

As he realized what he had done, the thought of fighting was replaced by disgust. With a shudder, he kicked the creature's body, which was convulsing violently, and pulled his arm out. The slimy feeling was raw and real, leaving no room for excuses or dreams.

Resigned to his situation, Naoto swung his arm and kicked the creature that was trying to grab him. With a cracking sound, the creature slammed into the wall of the nearby building. Even then, it got up and tried to fly, but Naoto, who had only been able to run away until now, grabbed it and pulled it towards him.

With all his might, Naoto slammed the creature into the ground. He stomped on it repeatedly until it couldn’t move anymore.

“Ugh, haah, haah… haah, ha… it smells so bad…”

It smelled like rotten meat. Breathing heavily, Naoto grimaced and stepped away from the now motionless bug. Acid was leaking from the creature's abdomen, slowly dissolving the asphalt. Overlooking the gruesome sight, Naoto wiped its fluid off his arm and tried to calm his stomach, which felt like it was about to spit out its dinner.

“...You took that down surprisingly easily.”

“Surprisingly? I was fighting for my life here! You could at least say something a little kinder.” Naoto shot a disgruntled glance at Raquel, who had landed next to him, draped in a vibrant breeze like a dress.

The acidic liquid from the creature he had crushed had burned his leg, but perhaps because he was so excited, the wound had healed before he felt any pain. Only the holes in his jeans remained as a reminder. His T-shirt was also torn and melted in several places. It had been a good idea to leave his hoodie with Raquel, knowing he was going to get dirty.

As Raquel returned the gray hoodie he had been carrying, she widened her eyes in apparent surprise at his complaint. "I was complimenting you," she said.

Was she? Naoto didn't have the energy to argue. It seemed he had grown up with much warmer compliments.

“But...” Raquel continued, her voice unexpectedly sincere. Naoto's expression softened. "You didn't seem to be trying your hardest since I started helping you." Her golden eyes locked onto his, and Naoto felt a lump in his throat. He looked down at his dirty hands, at his right hand that had pierced the creature's head.

“...Ah.” With a sigh, Naoto nodded. He had a vague sense of what Raquel was trying to say. If he had to put it into words, it would be “unexpected.”

More than unexpected. It was unbelievable. His right hand had worked as a powerful weapon. And maybe it wasn't just his right hand. It felt like every part of him had adapted to the fight with surprising ease. Naoto could feel his heart beating faster than usual.


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