Editing CubexCursedxCurious:Volume17 Chapter4 (section)

===Part 2===

Rewinding back slightly earlier&mdash;Last night.

After literally plunging Pendragon into smoke in order to escape from the Dan-no-ura, Kuroe was running in the streets.

"Oh man, I forgot to roar in laughter. Maybe I should have left behind the words 'Huhahaha, so long, Akechi-kun!'..."<ref>Reference to "The Fiend with Twenty Faces"(怪人二十面相), a fictional gentleman thief who serves as a recurring antagonist in the mystery fiction written by Edogawa Ranpo.[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fiend_with_Twenty_Faces]</ref>

There were probably no more future opportunities to use her treasured emergency escape device that she had originally installed in the shop partially in jest, she thought. What a shame to have wasted this rare opportunity.

Staring blankly up into the night sky, she was thinking "so, what should I do next?" when she noticed a car suddenly slow down after passing by her side. Then it started to move slowly, following her pace beside her.

In the next second, the car door opened and out reached a hand&mdash;pulling her into the car.

"Wah~ I've been kidnapped~"

"Hahaha, don't say something that will lead to misunderstandings."

For just an instant, her heart really skipped a beat, but she became reassured after hearing the voice. Sitting in the car's back seat, next to her was the gas mask-wearing superintendent. Kuroe looked over to the driver's seat to see Zenon nodding at her lightly as a greeting. Ganon was collapsed in the front passenger seat motionlessly with her limbs all limp.

"Renting a car to drive along the streets is also a great way to perform reconnaissance. And once we receive emergency news, we can also move instantly without worrying about the Knights Dominion finding our whereabouts and attacking us."

"In other words, a mobile hideout? Then take me along for a spin... What have you guys been doing so far?"

The superintendent explained what had happened so far. Back when the Knights Dominion showed up, they happened to be just outside the school, so it was truly a close shave. They then hurried over to help out at the Yachi home after Honatsu contacted them. In order to stall Pendragon, they had fought him again&mdash;

"..."

Hearing they had selflessly put themselves in harm's way to stall for time, Kuroe was extremely grateful to them, feeling that no amount of thanks would be enough. But as soon as she recalled how she had later stayed at the Dan-no-ura beauty parlor to deliberately wait for Pendragon's arrival, she felt quite apologetic because it was as though she had wasted their efforts to a certain extent.

"Then we rented a car and started roaming the streets. While calmly contemplating our next move, we also needed to gather information. Besides, there seems to be a few squads of knights strutting about in the town nonchalantly. If possible, we also want to patrol while we're at it, to prevent them from causing unnecessary commotions."

"What about the police?"

"We can't rely on them this time. Apparently, someone is putting pressure on the police. And it's coming from higher-ups that are impossible to oppose for the connections I've slowly accumulated over the years."

A sigh came from beneath the gas mask.

Then the level of seriousness increased in his voice.

"Right now, the Knights Dominion has occupied my school, so it is my duty to protect the school and the students within... It is also for this purpose that I've worked hard all along to acquire influence in this town. Now that all this is in peril, I must step up to fight with everything I've got."

"...Yeah."

"I will protect everyone. Whether it is the school, the students, this town... To this end, I will do anything."

As though swearing an oath to himself, his statement was strong and firm.

But next, as though to balance his excessive seriousness just now, his tone of voice turned light and lively:

"Especially on the town side, it's very hard for Haruaki-kun's group to take care of, right? I hope you can pass the message to them and tell them not to worry."

"Understood~ But specifically, what are you planning to do?"

"Hmm? Well, I guess I have to start mobilizing troops... Hoho, but not limited to manpower alone, for I've been training as a beast tamer lately. Now that I've decided I'm willing to do anything, I will make use of that side too."

"Beasts... Like a Doberman for example?"

"Haha, indeed, something akin to that. Judiciously using animal feed alternately laced with poison and antidote in order to tame them, like 'If you don't want to die, eat tomorrow's feed with the antidote.'"

The superintendent's shoulder shook while he spoke. Kuroe did not quite understand what he meant by animal feed, so she simply tilted her head in puzzlement and remarked "What are you talking about?"

"Next... During this time, we spotted a familiar figure from behind, so we tried to kidnap you. I can't believe you're loitering out in the open while under pursuit. That's really not a great idea."

"Ah~ Hmm~ Well, I guess this is part of a plan."

Actually, I was facing off alone against him at the Dan-no-ura and just made my escape&mdash;Kuroe really could not bring herself to voice these words. She simply explained how she had left Haruaki's group on her own to avoid putting them at risk, which was technically not a lie.

"Oh...?"

The eyes behind the gas mask could not be seen, but he might have realized something. Even so, he did not pursue the matter.

Kuroe exhaled. Now was truly a good opportunity.

"That person... Basically, is he very tenacious?"

"You mean Max? Well... I suppose."

"I believe his personal convictions can essentially be summed up as 'plain and simple' and 'rushing headlong into things.'"

"Too tired, agree with the above~"

A voice from the front passenger seat chimed in as well.

Speaking of which, Zenon and Ganon knew Pendragon too. Judging from their voices just now, Kuroe could get a sense like they were recounting a relative's naughty kid's exploits in exasperation. With such great familiarity between them, there was naturally no need to mince words. Kuroe felt deeply curious.

"I want to hear about your past. As his hunted target, I'd like to know more about him."

"I don't mind, but you probably know most of it already, right? Picked up and raised by the previous Commander, he is a Draconian through and through. Unbelievably, he and I got along quite well together, yeah, kind of like rivals. It was a sparring relationship."

"What about Zeno-Gano-san?"

"...You mean us?"

"Yeah, it's a short form to refer to us both. Fewer words, less tiring. Approved~"

"How should I put this? As one's «Blaze» rank increases, you gain the privilege to take in disciples. Hence, they started to follow me and naturally, they came to know Max."

"Then the same goes for the other side... Oh right, I think someone mentioned that those two weren't by his side back then, were they?"

"Granaury was present back then, except that she was not by Pendragon's side."

Slowly leaning himself against the seat rest, he looked up at the car's roof and said:

"Indeed, she was present since a long time ago. For some reason, she was very close to my partner Liz&mdash;the «Treason Piercer». The 'spear whose power increased the farther it was thrown' and the 'spear whose power increased the shorter the separation'... Like foils, the two of them were both spears full of contradictions. Perhaps it was like birds of a feather? Thanks to this layer of relationships, Max and I got to know her for a very long time."

"Ohoh~ I can imagine catfighting scenes like 'There is no spear better than mine!' back then. Oh dear, you breaker of women's hearts~"

"Hahaha, Liz and Granaury actually became friends first. I was just an accessory."

"..." "..."

Hearing the superintendent's response, Kuroe noticed Zenon and Ganon exchanging sideways glances with each other while sighing in exasperation. As a girl herself, judging from their attitudes, Kuroe's sensor of maidenly feelings instantly reacted&mdash;But there was no need to expose things on purpose. And compared to Granaury, she was more interested in understanding Pendragon.

"Back to the subject, I'd like to ask about my stalker. Is he the kind who never gives up?"

"Hard to say. He can just as well fit in both extremes."

"Indeed. When full of fervor, he will chase to the ends of the earth no matter what obstacles he encounters, but as soon as he loses interest, he will cast it all aside without another thought."

"Hmm... I wonder which is it right now? If only there was a way to make him lose interest in me..."

"Did you do something to make him lose interest?"

Kuroe pondered for a while then shook her head.

"Oh dear~ I'm not too sure myself, but I only toyed with him a little. Besides, if his objective is my power, I think it's hard to make him lose interest... But somehow, I get this vague feeling that certain things could be changed..."

"Sigh... You really did do something on your own, after all. That's way too reckless."

"Ah."

Crap. A slip of the tongue.

The superintendent then said in apparent exasperation:

"Listen carefully. Even if he seems easy to get along with and easy to talk to&mdash;He is the leader of the Draconians, all things considered. The strongest man, the closest thing to a dragon. This is not an analogy. He really could crush you with just a single finger. Do not lower your guard towards him for even a moment... I would advise you not to approach him again."

"That's what I'd like, but he's chasing after me anyway."

"True."

"By the way, you can't guarantee that this car is absolutely safe, right? Perhaps he's currently jogging in the adjacent lane right now... Hmm, just imagining that is scary enough already. I guess I really should find a suitable chance to leave this car, right? I can't get you caught up in this."

"No no no, rather, it would be better to say that we're here precisely to avoid getting caught up, so don't you worry... Even if he finds us, we've got a dragonslayer sword here that could buy some time at least."

"What, that kind of legendary weapon exists!? How much gold did you spend to buy it?"

Kuroe looked left and right, but could only find Ganon's hand waving from behind the front passenger seat. It was some kind of joke after all, right?

(Putting that aside...)

Kuroe operated a switch to open the tinted car window by a few centimeters. A refreshing night breeze caused what could be considered her other self, her hair, to flutter. The coolness made her exhale "Haww."

It was time to decide on the next move.

Given the current situation, was staying on the run the right choice? If the Yachi home were to be lost during this time, Kuroe could not stand back without doing anything. The deadline was noon tomorrow. Before that time arrived, what was the most correct thing to do?

Closing her eyes, lost in these thoughts...

Kuroe was gradually guided into the realm of dreams by the cool night breeze and the car's vibrations.



The signal that woke her was the sound of a cellphone ringing inside the vehicle.

Kuroe instantly opened her eyes to see the superintendent take out a cellphone from his pocket, then start speaking with a tilt of his head.

Several minutes later, a notebook computer was set up between the driver and the front passenger seat. Shown on the screen was the usual living room. Transmitted over was everyone's usual voice.

Fear was one of them. Her head of silver hair was glittering brightly. While she listened to her friends' gentle words, her shoulders trembled.

(Fufu, in any case, now's not the time for hesitation.)

Next up, in order to liberate the school, in order to release "Dominionization."

In order to protect the Yachi home&mdash;She had already decided to put in everything in her power.

She was definitely worried about Pendragon, but she also felt that the current situation did not allow her to go into hiding alone.

There was not much time left. Fear&mdash;and everyone else&mdash;was moving forward. Then she had to catch up to them too. No matter what happened next, the more help the better.

When the time came&mdash;What if that man were to appear again?

Hmm, she would decided when it actually happened. Kuroe easily swept away the worries that surfaced in her mind.

In the worst case scenario, she would simply have to finish off what she only managed to do halfway back in the Dan-no-ura.