Editing BlazBlue:Bloodedge Experience Part 2 Chapter 9 (section)

==Part 5==

Before Naoto could ask why, Clavis, with his usual calm yet ominous voice, interrupted. 

"Do you want to know what happened?" Naoto nodded eagerly. 

In that instant, the surrounding scenery shifted as if curtains were being drawn. Naoto looked around in confusion. The bustling evening streets were gone, replaced by a dimly lit, gloomy atmosphere. The buildings, once crowded together with bright signs and logos, now looked like abandoned ruins.

The place looked familiar. It was an abandoned apartment complex.

In the deserted twilight of the complex, Naoto stood facing Clavis on a winding promenade.

"I have been fighting for some time to eliminate a certain Drive." Although the sky was still bright with evening light, the housing complex seemed to have welcomed twilight earlier than the rest, cast in a faint, eerie darkness. Against this unsettling backdrop, Clavis gazed around with a nostalgic look in his blood-red eyes.

"Five years ago, I fought someone with the Drive in question here. But it wasn’t easy. Many people were sacrificed. The number of people I sacrificed to eliminate that single Drive user must have exceeded one hundred thousand."

One hundred twenty-eight thousand nine hundred thirty-two.

Naoto recalled it as if it had fallen from the sky. That was the number of people who disappeared in the "mass disappearance incident" that Kiiro had mentioned, caused by Clavis.

Clavis turned his gaze back to Naoto and continued.

"The name of the Drive I was chasing was... 'Soul Eater'. You already know what that is, don't you?"

Naoto felt as if his heart had been seized. He held his breath, staring in disbelief at what he heard. But there was no doubt—he had heard it. Soul Eater. He couldn't count how many times he'd heard that name in the past few days. It was the power that had taken his family away five years ago, a power he had been unaware of until recently. And it was the Drive that his sister, Saya, possessed.

“That’s when I happened upon this.” Suddenly, Clavis's tone shifted slightly, as if the wind had changed.

(Has it become more colorful...?)

It was a subtle change, too subtle to be certain, but it left a distinct impression, and Clavis held out his white hand towards Naoto, palm up. In his hand, as if inviting him to dance, was a blue sphere. It was a bit too large to be held in a fist. Yet, it was the size of a marble, smooth and without a scratch. It was flawless, clear, and yet seemed to flicker faintly like a flame.

"Do you know what this is?" Clavis asked, implying that Naoto should know. The sphere in Clavis's palm glowed faintly. It was a dull, blue glow, as if ink had been dropped into water. A black blotch formed at the top of the sphere. It was like a few drops of ink had been dropped into water.

The smudged black gradually took shape. It was a symbol, and for Naoto, it was a number. It was the number that always appeared above people's heads, representing their life force. A vast eight-digit number floated above the blue sphere.

"This is..." Naoto knew that number. After all, he had just seen it next to him a moment ago. Naoto looked up at Clavis, his eyes wide with confusion. He didn't know how to interpret what he had seen and understood. 

Clavis nodded slowly, as if reassuring him.

"Yes. This is Raquel."

"B-but this is!"

It was just a sphere. It didn't have her bright golden hair or her innocent golden eyes. 

Clavis nodded heavily, as if confirming.

"To be more precise, I should say this is something that will eventually take the form of Raquel... This is the result of the countless lives I sacrificed. It has come together to form a blue crystal - an 'Embryo'."

Embryo, a term referring to a developing organism before it becomes a fetus.

"And this is also the key to the Azure."

"The key to the Azure?"

In other words, it was necessary to reach the Azure. Naoto stared at the blue sphere in Clavis's hand, as if drawn to it.

This is Raquel.

Does this mean that Raquel was created from this little sphere? From more than 120,000 lost lives? Naoto couldn’t understand it. He could only accept Clavis' words as they were and memorize them.

Clavis sighed softly, like velvet rubbing against velvet. His expression softened as he exhaled, a faint smile appearing.

"That key to the Azure, Raquel, has chosen 'Naoto Kurogane' as a partner in the pursuit of the Azure. Moreover, your sister happens to be a Drive user of that powerful Soul Eater. I think it’s only natural that I would take a special interest in you," he said, and Naoto felt a chill run down his spine at the smile.

Thinking back, it might have been obvious all along. But Clavis knew—he knew about Naoto's sister Saya and the Soul Eater she possessed, which he had presumably defeated at a great cost. Though it wasn’t stated outright, he probably also knew that Saya had appeared before Naoto.

(I take it back... I can’t trust Clavis Alucard.)

What he knew was different. What he saw was different. The place he stood was different. The sense of superiority he felt towards Raquel was on a different level. It was higher, farther away, and it felt strangely out of sync. Trusting him wholeheartedly would mean submitting to his transcendence.

"Why does someone as powerful as you want the 'Azure'? You can do anything without it, can't you?" Naoto asked his question naturally.

He had said it earlier. Clavis had said that he could somehow undo Naoto's transformation into a vampire, something that Raquel couldn't do without the Azure. Whether that "somehow" would be in a way that Naoto desired was another matter entirely.

Clavis gently closed his hand around the blue sphere. Was it a chicken? When his white fingers opened again, the mysterious sphere was gone. With a calm gaze, Clavis looked at his empty hand.

"There are countless things I cannot do. I want to return the world to the hands of humans. For that, I need the Azure." Once again, his red gaze slid back to Naoto, as if to pin him down like an insect. Avoiding the sharp pin, Naoto turned his eyes to Clavis's beautiful hands, whose beauty seemed unbecoming for a man.

"I don't really get it. What do you mean by returning to human hands?"

"It's exactly what it sounds like... Naoto Kurogane, what do you think of me?"

“Huh? What do you mean?” After a pause, Naoto turned to Clavis, who asked to change the subject, with a look of confusion on his face.

Honestly, he would say 'monster'. But was it appropriate to say that to his face?

As if seeing through Naoto's hesitation, Clavis chuckled.

"You can say whatever you want. To put it simply, I am a 'monster.'" Ignoring Naoto's apprehension, Clavis himself said the words Naoto had tried to avoid. Naoto couldn’t help but frown. Imagining how it felt for someone to call himself a monster filled him with a deep sense of loneliness. Yet Clavis continued without changing his expression.

"Beings that are not human... That’s what Drives create. It’s a power that exceeds what a person should have. Monsters are unnecessary in this world. That's why I want to erase monsters... and the Drives that cause them from this world.”

"Erase Drives? Wait, but that means..." Naoto hesitated, biting his lip. He remembered Raquel's words. Clavis, born from the Azure, was a Drive himself. If Clavis wanted to "erase Drives from this world"...

Clavis quickly answered the question that was weighing on Naoto's mind.

"Listen, Naoto. There shouldn’t be monsters like me. They shouldn’t exist. I intend to obtain the 'Azure' to erase 'myself' and everything like me."

In other words, to erase himself along with all Drives.

Understanding the meaning, Naoto didn't know what to say. He felt a bit confused. What exactly was the 'Azure'? He pondered this in the back of his mind. He had heard it was the power that made all possibilities possible.

Naoto wanted to use it to live as a human. On the other hand, Clavis, who sought the same thing, wanted to use it to die as a monster.

"...It's almost time." Suddenly looking up at the void, Clavis murmured in a slightly troubled tone. Narrowing his crimson eyes, he ran his fingers through his beautiful, glossy black hair before turning back to Naoto. "Naoto Kurogane, let me give you one last piece of advice. If you continue to seek the Azure, you will cease to be yourself. You will suffer more than you do now. Even so... will you seek the Azure?"

It felt like a threat, yet it wasn’t. It was just a question, as if questioning his resolve.

Naoto couldn’t see his true intentions. He buried his hand in his hair, messing it up, and responded cautiously.

"...Even if I don't, I'm going to become a vampire, right?" If he lost his sense of self, he might attack the people around him. He might kill the people he cared about. He couldn’t imagine what kind of suffering could be worse than that.

Naoto lifted his chin, answering firmly with a glare.

"Then it’s the same either way. Besides, I promised Raquel. I will get the Azure..."

Raquel is probably doubling down on that promise.

Clavis smiled, a blend of amusement and something darker.

"Would you still seek the Azure even if it meant fighting me?" The vampire casually spoke, his words threatening. 

Naoto's expression twisted.

"W-Well, if it comes to that, I hope you’ll go easy on me," he stammered. Even now, facing Spinner, Raquel had told him he had no chance of winning. There was no way he could face Clavis head-on.

Clavis burst out laughing, revealing the most cheerful smile he had ever seen.

"I can show mercy. I promise to end it before you suffer."

Was he joking, or was he serious?

What was certain was that those words, tossed out in jest, pierced Naoto’s heart with fear. It would be effortless. With just a flick of those white fingertips, he could end Naoto’s lift as many times as he wanted.

"Ha... are you serious...?" Naoto wanted to slap himself for having the courage to say that much. He realized too late that he had stepped into forbidden territory. A feeling of unease gnawed at his stomach. But in an instant, Naoto was released from both that unease and the beautiful terror smiling before him.

"...To. Naoto? Are you even listening to me?"

"Huh...? W-What?" Startled by the reprimanding voice that came from beside him and slightly below, Naoto, flustered, took several steps back. The bustling crowd surged around him, overwhelming his thoughts. Voices from all directions flooded in, the air shifting.

Beside Naoto stood Raquel, looking concerned. Her sharp, captivating eyes fixated on him, glaring intently. 

"Finally, you've looked at me. You've been so lost in thought since a while ago... Are you really serious about your training?"

"Training...?" It took a moment for his slow mind to understand that she was referring to exterminating Spinner's apostles. "Oh, yeah, of course," Naoto managed to squeeze out, his throat dry. He unconsciously put his hand to his forehead.

(Another... dream?)

But it didn’t seem to be the case. Naoto quickly pulled his hand away to look closely. 

Something was off. It wasn’t just his palm; there was cold sweat beading where he had touched his forehead.

(Was I that scared?)

The memories weren’t vague like those after waking from a dream. They were clear. He remembered the exact distance between him and Clavis, and what they had talked about, whether it was in the deserted city or the empty apartment complex. What he had been told.

"Hey Raquel. Looks like he’s going to finish me off before I have a chance to suffer too much. That's kind of a relief." Naoto chuckled wryly, but Raquel seemed to get even more irritated. She tugged hard on his sleeve.

"What nonsense are you talking about? Honestly, what trivial thoughts have been filling your head? I can’t believe your mind is capable of ignoring my words."

"… Why are you so angry?"

For once, Raquel was expressing her emotions openly. No, it wasn't so much anger as it was frustration. A simmering resentment at Naoto for not listening to her. But Naoto was puzzled.

She had made sarcastic comments before, but had she ever conveyed her emotions so clearly? Of course, compared to the girls in their class, her anger was more restrained, but it was still a surprisingly expressive display for Raquel.

“I’m not angry at all.” She said, turning away and sulking.

"You are, clearly," he retorted.

"I told you I'm not!" she insisted, even more stubbornly.

Naoto couldn't help but chuckle. Was she acting like a child? He wondered if Clavis had ever seen this kind of expression from her.

"Okay, okay, my bad." If he kept laughing, he would just make Raquel angrier. Trying to suppress the laughter welling up inside him, Naoto raised his hands in surrender. At that, Raquel's expression suddenly changed. The anger that had been there a moment ago disappeared as if it had never existed, replaced by a dazed look as she looked up at Naoto. Naoto tilted his head, wondering what was going on.

At that moment, Raquel saw something. She saw the shadow of another man behind Naoto. It was a shadow, a hazy memory. But it was the presence of someone "Raquel" shouldn’t have known.

It was like a scene from the distant past, or a view of the distant future. It was vague and indistinct, but strangely, it moved Raquel's heart. She felt a strange affection. For that awkward expression, the way he twisted his mouth into a smile as he looked at her.

"Hey, Raquel..."

Was Raquel experiencing some kind of phenomenon interference? Thinking that as a half-hearted joke, Naoto started to speak, but Raquel suddenly turned around, snapping out of her trance.

"This is..." In an instant, the atmosphere around Raquel changed. It was a sharp, needle-like wariness. After a few moments, Raquel said softly, “I can feel the strong… power of the Azure.”

Startled, Naoto scanned his surroundings. All he could see was the ordinary sight of a bustling city. But he knew that beneath it, in the shadows, the seeds of danger had already been sown.

"You mean a Drive, right?" 

"Yes, that's right."

Was it Spinner? Or Saya? Or someone else?

"Let's go..." Grabbing his bag tightly with sweaty hands, Naoto said in a low voice. Raquel nodded, her attention focused, and ran towards a path that led to the other side of the station. Naoto hurried to follow her.

The sun was still hanging low in the western sky. It was still too early for the e-wave. But little by little, the town was approaching the time of nightfall.


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