Difference between revisions of "BlazBlue:Spiral Shift - Hyokujin no Eiyu"

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The sirens were repeating the same sound mechanically, signaling an emergency sortie and the approach of the enemy.
  
The sirens were repeating the same sound mechanically, signaling an emergency sortie and the approach of the enemy.
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==Chapter 2: Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa/ Laughing man==
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===Part 1===
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In the midst of the gunfire, Jin hid behind the trees that filled the dense forest.
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No matter which way he turned his head, whether he looked up or down, he could only see dense foliage, branches, trunks, and grass. The smell of earth was so thick that it was almost nauseating while there was no breeze to be felt at all.
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It was terribly hard to hide his breath in this. The sweat on his forehead had never seemed so annoying.
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After being prodded by the siren and shortly briefed on the enemy's formation, Jin ran into the forest under Grimwood's command.
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He ran and stopped repeatedly, following the others, for what seemed like... over twenty minutes. There was a gunshot somewhere, and Jin knew that the battle had begun.
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Grimwood immediately split the squad in two. The four soldiers, including Karenjina, went ahead. Grimwood, Jin, and Honoka stood by at this spot.
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During the instructions, Karenjina kept her hands on the ground and listened intently. Eventually, she stood up and said…
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“I can go.”
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As if on cue, the advance team of the ninth squad dispersed into the forest.
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Jin, who had been assigned to the waiting group, gripped the large pistol that had been provided to him, ready to attack at any time, and leaned his back against a thick tree trunk to focus on the sounds around him.
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He didn't have time to get a detailed explanation of what kind of strategy the squad was going to take. The only thing he was told by the huge captain was that enemy soldiers were wandering into the area and that they should be defeated.
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"...The enemy, do you think they'll come this way?"
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At Jin's feet, Honoka, clutching his gun, which was also supplied to him, shrank in the shade of the overgrown grass, He peered hurriedly at the other side and then pulled his head back.
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Taking one glance at it, Jin tilted his head shallowly.
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“Who knows.”
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He had meant to say, "Don't waste your breath," but it seemed that Honoka hadn't heard him anyways.
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He peeked his head out once more, then quickly pulled it back and let out a long, yet very low sigh.
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"Ah, I'm so nervous. I can't believe we're going to have a real fight as soon as we get here."
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“That’s right.”
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At first, he wanted to warn him about the private conversation, but all that escaped from Jin's mouth was a murmur of agreement.
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Since they had come to a war zone, they were prepared to fight at any time, but they didn't expect it to start so suddenly.
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It felt like reality was being thrown into their mouths one after another when they were not ready to swallow it. It was not a good feeling, by any means.
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"Lieutenant Kisaragi."
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"Ah!"
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Honoka's voice hardened as he gasped for breath. Earlier, Jin had focused his consciousness sharply.
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Grimwood raised his hand at face level as he disappeared into the jungle. Behind him were only Jin and Honoka.
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His hand cleaved the sky. Forward.
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Jin moved as if he were sliding. Immediately after that. A soldier with his muzzle pointed in the wrong direction came flying out of the forest ahead.
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He was a soldier of the Ikaruga Federation.
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Instantly judging the situation, Jin attacked the soldier who was about to turn around from behind. He grabbed the soldier's arm with his gun in his hand, twisted it, and threw him down on the ground. Without waiting for the soldier to breathe, he slammed the bottom of the gun into the base of the neck, causing the Ikaruga soldier to faint in a daze.
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“Damn it, get out of here!"
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"What the hell are they doing, where did they come from?!"
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Panicked voices were heard from the front again and Ikaruga soldiers appeared one after another from behind the bushes. It was as if they were being chased by something.
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When the four soldiers finally found Jin, they jumped out and hurriedly raised their guns. However, a large battle axe snatched all four of them in one fell swoop.
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It was Grimwood who was swinging the big axe.
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The battle axe, which was even taller than his large frame, had a large blade and took up a lot of space. But despite its apparent unsuitability for the dense jungle, Grimwood skillfully wielded it.
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The long handle shot straight through the intervening vegetation and accurately struck an enemy soldier between the eyes at a distance.
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An axe with a large blade can fell a tree as thick as Jin with a single swing.
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Without letting his momentum get the better of him, he knocked down a poor enemy soldier who had jumped out of the bushes to the ground.
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But it was the back of the axe that took the enemy soldier in one swipe, which saved Jin from getting the blood of the soldier blown up in front of him.
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This was not for Jin's sake, but simply for the ease of fighting. In the forest, where footholds are poor, the scattering of flesh and blood is a hindrance.
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"...It seems like he isn't just big muscled, huh?"
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A few words of truthfulness spilled out of Jin's mouth.
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Because of his rough appearance, he thought that he would be more of a rampaging fighter, but it seems that Grimwood was not that simple of a man.
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Rather the opposite. While wielding his axe with gusto, he instantly judges from which direction the enemy soldiers are coming and prepares to intercept them.
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And from the direction he had turned his attention, the enemy soldiers would indeed appear, as if they had escaped from somewhere.
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(Escaped? No, wrong. We're being driven into a corner here.) Jin thought and before he even knew it, he prepared himself to follow Grimwood's sharp consciousness and steel up for the enemy soldiers.
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The ones who were driving the enemy soldiers back are undoubtedly Karenjina and the others who were ahead of them. They spotted the enemy troops, disrupted them, and led them to the rear where Jin and Grimwood were.
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It was Grimwood who commanded them and gave them detailed instructions. Occasionally, he would glance into the distance or raise his axe as a signal to Karenjina and the others.
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While firing bullets from behind the bushes at the enemy soldiers who reappeared, Jin looked sideways at Grimwood.
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He was a rugged man for whom the battlefield suited him well. However, his weapon was not his well built body or the axe he wielded with his strong arm, but his excellent leadership, flexible grasp of the battle situation, and precise instructions.
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(This is like a hunt.)
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Jin thought, and strongly convinced himself.
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That's right. This was a hunt.
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Unleashed hounds find their prey and drive them away, while their masters wait and kill them.
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But in order to do that, you need a good commander who can give precise instructions to the troops, a good sense of direction that keeps you on track even in the forest, and the sense of smell of a beast that can find its prey.
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Jin wondered if that's what Grimwood and his team were carrying as a whole squad.
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Suddenly, Jin remembered. The ninth squad of this base is sometimes called the Hound Squad. This may have originated from their fighting style.
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(But how is that even possible?)
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When Grimwood gave him a look, Jin turned and pointed his gun at him. Three Ikaruga soldiers appeared ahead of him, and without a moment's hesitation, Jin shot the first one in the shoulder.
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He closed the distance between them and kicked the first one in the side of the head, knocking him into a coma. Then, he immediately switched to his gun and hit the second one in the face with the bottom of the gun, followed by a knee to the stomach.
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"Damn... it..."
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The third person finally understood what was going on and raised the muzzle of his gun. Jin kicked him in the arm and elbowed him in the chest. After firing a few more bullets, the soldiers were all stretched out on the grassy ground.
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“Not bad.”
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Grimwood chuckled a little further away. Jin returned a cool glance.
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That was Jin’s line, too. Before he knew it, there were three new soldiers lying at Grimwood's feet.
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His skill was unquestionable. In addition, he had an excellent ability to command his men. He was not stupid.
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Karenjina and the others under her seemed to be quite useful soldiers, as they were able to disperse the enemy soldiers and guide them to here.
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So why is it that this frontline base is struggling to the point of being called the "worst" while having troops like them that can be called "excellent" without question? Jin wondered.
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In fact, even now, the battle situation was clearly in their favor. Ikaruga’s soldiers have already lost all semblance of control and there was no such thing as a formation.
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If Grimwood and his men were so inclined, they could toss around soldiers of this caliber and take over this jungle and push the front line to the stronghold beyond.
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(So why don't we do that...?)
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Either the other troops are blindingly incompetent or there is a secret about Ikaruga that Jin has yet to see.
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Otherwise, there is a more different reason.
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He was tracing the barrel of an unfamiliar gun with his gloved finger.
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From his side of the line, he heard a strange rhythmic sound of gunfire. It sounded like a joke for a gunfight. Jin looked up to see what was going on, and Grimwood lowered his axe at almost the same time.
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"It's about time. All right, let's get out of here."
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"Wh-what?"
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Grimwood's words, as he lowered his broad shoulders, caused Honoka to roll out of the bushes in dismay.
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“By "retreat," you mean withdraw, right? Why is that? I've already gone through so much trouble today and now this~..."
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It looked like they were going to win. Although they faltered and broke off, Honoka's words were clear.
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Jin also looked at his large superior with a puzzled expression on his face.
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Grimwood placed the blade of his axe down on the ground like a staff and leaned against it, his lips hanging up in a smile. It was a wry smile.
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“This is our 'job'.”
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“What's that supposed to mean?"
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It was Jin who asked the question. He didn't know what Grimwood's smile meant, nor did he know what the words meant.
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"We're also known as the Hound Squad. Have you heard of us?"
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“Yes.”
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"As the name suggests, we are 'hounds'. We find our prey, drive them away and then let our superiors (alternatively 'masters') 'hunt' them."
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While Grimwood was talking, Karenjina and the others came back from the deep forest. They were much dirtier than when they had left, with small scratches here and there, but none of them seemed to have any life-threatening injuries.
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After confirming that his men were safe, Grimwood nodded his head.
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“Let's go back then. Job's done."
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A rough voice was heard from the center of the allies, so that it might have been mistaken for his words.
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“Go, go! Ikaruga’s soldiers are nothing to be afraid of, kick them all to the curb!"
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It was the voice of that commander.
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Through the trees, He could be seen charging straight into the enemy line with many of his men, making his presence known to the enemy in the dense jungle where visibility was poor for better or worse.
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The soldiers surrounding him had a somewhat different atmosphere than Grimwood and the others. They were more unfamiliar with the battlefield, and smelled like the well-behaved and well-mannered guards of the Librarium headquarters that Jin had seen every day until a short while ago.
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They charged into the enemy lines, which had already been thrown into chaos by Grimwood and the others, and began to "hunt" the remaining Ikaruga soldiers with loud gunfire.
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"...So that's how it works."
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As expected, Jin understood. He could feel his emotions cooling down.
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In other words, this is a battlefield, but it is also a hunting ground.
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The guards of the Librarium were originally born into respectable families and were treated with a certain amount of favor. They may be relatives of political executives or of aristocratic lineage. It was a hunting grounds for those who go into battle as guards in order to acquire the prey of victory.
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The skirmishes never connect to a decisive victory because they are wreaked by "superiors" who don't know or understand war very well.
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But as long as this is a hunting ground, it must continue to be a battlefield that is exposed to moderate danger.
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So this is war. The "worst" front?
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(Trash...)
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(Is this what I came here for? I came here to be a dog that chases down its prey for the sake of "masters" who mistakenly thinks it is something special.)
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The thought of the head of the Mutsuki family, who had taken on more responsibility than anyone else for this war and was probably still busy in his office or somewhere else, flashed through Jin’s mind.
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Did he know about this reality? Did he send Jin away knowing this? If he did, what were his feelings about it?
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But, at the end.
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“...it doesn't really matter."
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Jin muttered in a faint voice that no one could hear.
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He didn’t care what kind of place this is or how many petty pretensions and agendas it's infested with. It didn’t matter who dies and who survives for it.
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With that in mind, he shouldered his gun.
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And then... came the moment.
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Suddenly, there was an explosion in the forest.
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“Wh-what happened!?”
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Honoka shouted in a voice that was raised in surprise.
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The area was shaken by the aftermath of the explosion and orange flames shot up in a corner of the forest.
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Some kind of scream echoed through the jungle. It was not a human voice. This was a howl... the howl of a "Seithr Beast".
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"There they go again, those idiots!"
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Looking back at the roar, Grimwood's voice rang out in anger, but his anger was not directed at anyone here. It wasn’t known who it was directed at.
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But more than that, Jin gasped at the unpleasant presence. When he sensed the unfolding of an unknown Ars Magus around the roar and flame, he rushed out at full speed.
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“Hey, wait!”
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Grimwood and the others wanted to stop him, but the voice of restraint was already out of Jin's consciousness.
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He shook off the thin branches sticking out of the ground, roughly shoveled through the thick grass and headed straight for that presence.
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It took a few dozen seconds. After passing through the ivy-covered and crooked trees, Jin shook off the bushes and jumped out of the way, only to see the soldiers looking up at him, speechless, and inching backwards.
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It was the uniform of the Librarium.
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Kicking the dirt again, Jin turned to meet their gaze.
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"Gaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!"
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The roar of that Seithr Beast came from right in front of him. The owner of the voice painted with destructive intent, which a human throat could not possibly emit, was a giant whose entire body was made of rock.
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Its height was still less than two Grimwoods combined. The huge demonic beast, with its eyeless and noseless face, was looking around from side to side and rampaging, reaping trees and people at random.
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There was no longer any distinction between friend and foe.
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The Ars Magus that Jin had sensed earlier had probably been used to summon or manipulate this giant, however, it had already escaped the control of said Ars Magus and was no longer capable of making decisions on its own, but only of reaping and crushing those around it.
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Someone was crushed by the rock fist that swung down. One of them, covered in spattered blood, screamed insanely and fled into the forest.
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With that, everyone scattered and ran away, shouting something incomprehensible.
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There was not a shred of 'order' or 'leadership' in it.
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Some of them ran without thinking and collided with someone they didn't know and fell down, only to be crushed to death by the giant.
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The sound of flesh crushing flesh was drowned out by the horrible screams and helpless gunfire.
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“Jin, are you okay?”
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Grimwood and the others caught up with him, scrambling through the bushes behind Jin.
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But as soon as they realized what was going on, they both stood back.
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“I've never seen a Seithr Beast like this before in this forest!”
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Karenjina’s voice was strained and disconcerted. As Grimwood held his ax up to protect his men, his face twisted into a bitter, grim expression.
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"This one... we are not going to be able to handle it with our current equipment. We'll have to retreat and join up with the main force."
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It would certainly be difficult to take on this guy with bullets or an axe. Grimwood's judgment was spot on. With that in mind, Jin stepped forward, interrupting Grimwood's words.
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“Hey, back off, Jin!"
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Grimwood reached out to stall him, but the sliding Jin slipped through his fingers and stopped in front of the giant.
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The rock giant was still surrounded by the hapless figures of soldiers who had failed to escape. Keeping them at the edge of his vision, Jin threw away the gun in his hand.
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A clatter with a frivolous sound bounced off the dirt.
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"Ji-!"
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Grimwood's impatient voice was absorbed and faded from Jin's consciousness.
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Standing quietly, Jin lowered the sword he had been carrying on his back. A blue scabbard with a green handle. He held it horizontally in front of him, looking straight at the giant and gripped both handle and scabbard firmly.
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The air was cold.
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The forest was so hot that if you just stood still, you would sweat instantly, but as if the scene had changed completely, cold air flowed in from somewhere and spread.
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At the center of the coldness was Jin.
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Or, more accurately, the sword he held.
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The air grew even colder.
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Still, even more.
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It was as sharp and cold as the edge of a sharpened blade and it surrounded Jin and the rock giant.
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—Kill
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There was a whisper in Jin's mind.
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It is like a voice but not really a voice actually, like a will that is not a will actually.
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It was like a vibration, a tremor of something dark that was born and lit deep in his chest.
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Gradually, it began to circulate through Jin's bloodstream. As he savored the sensation of it spreading, Jin glared coldly at the rock giant.
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Seithr Beasts are beings that are made and affected through seithr and this giant was summoned by an Ars Magus that uses seithr as its medium.
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Jin's neck muscles buzzed with the presence of the dense seithr swirling around inside his huge body.
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—Kill, Kill...
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—Kill, Kill, Kill, Kill, Kill, Kill, Kill.
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——Kill it.
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The moving boulder swung its misshapen arms high in the air. The faceless head looked down with an eyeless gaze at Jin, who remained motionless with his sword at the ready.
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I thought I heard someone shouting.
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I wonder who it was. Was it... the voice of my brother, who I had parted from in death on a distant childhood day?
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No way. He's dead. He was murdered.
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Then what are these voices? It was noisy. It resembled the moaning of a beast.
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(Shut up! Be quiet! Stop interrupting me!)
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Jin exhaled. It was an icy cold breath.
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The wind roared overhead. The giant swung their arms down in unison.
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He looked up at that.
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“Activate, Yukianesa.”
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The moment Jin whispered the words, everything froze.
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In accordance with the words, the freezing began to take root. The ground that Jin stepped on, the grass that surrounded him. The tree beside him, the ivy running through it, and the rock giant who was about to swing his fist down at Jin.
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After a beat, a cool sound like hitting ice was heard.
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Immediately, the giant's body split into four pieces and fell to the ground. It was as if it had been slashed crosswise with a very sharp blade.
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The blade was none other than the sword that Jin was carrying. However, no one present could see the moment when Jin pulled out his sword.
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It was all over in a blink of an eye.
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“What the hell was that...?"
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Karenjina muttered in a stunned voice as she was dumbfounded
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It was Honoka, who had retrieved the gun that Jin had thrown away.
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“It’s a Nox Nyctores. Nox Nyctores Causality Weapon: Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa.”
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Honoka's voice trembled with joy and his cheeks were pale with elation.
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Beside him, Grimwood was staring desperately at the unbelievable reality.
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"That's the Nox Nyctores... It really exists...?"
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Karenjina’s agitation, Honoka's excitement, and Grimwood's astonishment did not reach Jin's ears.
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The blond-haired recruit, who had slashed and discarded the giant in an instant, lowered his sword in its cold blue scabbard and quietly turned on his heel.
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Before he knew it, the sky had taken on the color of dusk. In the distant sky, a small star twinkled dimly, as if it were a piece of scattered ice that stuck to the sky.
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===Part 2===
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The inside of the tent was filled with shadows. The result of the light from a lantern on the desk was kept to a minimum, and the subdued light directed in all directions cast black shadows all around the tent walls.
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In the small light of the lamp, a man sitting on a chair laughed, and the shadows on the tent wall also laughed.
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“More than anything, it went well.”
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"Yes, sir. There was no problem in activating the Nox Nyctores. We've confirmed that it was activated successfully."
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There were two men in the tent.
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One was a middle-aged man with a broad belly on his belt, the commander of a battalion of the Novus Orbis Librarium which was camped in the jungle of the Ikaruga Federation.
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The other was a slender young man, wearing a black suit, black hat, with green hair and a thin smile on his mouth.
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“So. It was more than planned... or is it on schedule? That's Jin-Kisaragi for you."
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It was the general commander who sat on the chair and talked pompously.
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“But it's really powerful, this Nox Nyctores thing. To conquer and bury that many beasts. I'm looking forward to the day when it’s put to practice as a real weapon.”
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“I couldn’t agree more. Thanks to you, the data collection is going well. Thank you very much for your cooperation.”
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The words of a man in a black suit, which sounds exaggerated, seem to be comforting for the battalion commander. He was very pleased with the attitude of the other person, who was overly abasing himself.
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With a scheming look on his face, the battalion commander smiled greedily.
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The man in the suit looked at it from behind his hat and smiled.
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===Part 3===
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Jin, Grimwood and the others returned to the base just before the sun went down and the forest was enclosed in darkness.
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Here and there in the base, generators powered by seithr were working with a low hum, providing minimal lighting to the tents and serving areas. The iron frames that held the dirty white light bulbs were quite rusty from exposure to the wind and rain and looked as if they had been here for years.
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Jin and the others returned to their tents, receiving thanks and praise from the fleeting soldiers who had escaped with them, and even more gratitude and praise from their comrades who had heard their stories after that.
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Feeling a little fed up with the different welcoming mood from when he arrived, Jin ducked into the dark and quiet tent and turned on the white light.
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As he took off his gloves, which were stained with dirt and blood from the enemy soldiers, he thought he could finally take a break, but this time Jin was met with compliments from the soldiers of the 9th squad.
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"That was amazing earlier, Lieutenant Kisaragi!"
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As soon as he put down his gun, one of the soldiers ran up to him with a glow on his face and a hint of excitement, but then another one grabbed Jin's shoulder with a friendly smile, a far cry from the daytime.
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"I've never seen such a powerful Ars Magus before ...I apologize for having been so rude."
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"...No, You don’t need to worry about it. And besides, I was helped a lot by your leader a while ago. It's thanks to you all that I came back mostly unscathed from my first battle."
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It was uncomfortable to suddenly be praised openly. The words came out as a way to gloss over the issue, but what Jin said was the undeniable truth.
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Grimwood's troops were excellent. In a battlefield where you never know what tomorrow will bring, Jin thought he may have been lucky to be assigned here.
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The two soldiers who spoke to him smiled tantalizingly and shook their heads.
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“No, it's my pleasure. It's very encouraging to have someone like Lieutenant Kisaragi as the captain's adjutant."
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“Adjutant?”
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Jin couldn't help but ask back at the unexpected appearance of the word.
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This made the soldiers roll their eyes rather puzzledly.
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“After Captain Grimwood, the next highest in rank is you, Lieutenant Kisaragi. Wouldn't that be obvious?"
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The other soldier, who had been fiddling with his gun a little off to the side as if something was bothering him, looked up and said.
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“Now that you mention it, that’s right.”
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Jin was less impressed and more convinced.
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He hadn't paid much attention to their ranks because he wasn't interested in them, but as he recalled, Karenjina said she was a corporal. He didn’t remember asking the other three what their ranks were, but if they didn't say, it must mean that they were lower than Karenjina.
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(So that's what it means.)
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Jin looked at Karenjina, who was untying her equipment.
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Perhaps she was also concerned about this, and soon their eyes collided. Karenjina frowned in a sullen manner and turned away.
  +
  +
“I'm going to wash my face.”
  +
  +
She spoke that over her shoulder, then quickly got out of the tent.
  +
  +
Grimwood arrived at the same time.
  +
  +
"Oh, the food's ready. Make sure you eat well after you get some rest."
  +
  +
As he spoke, he placed his favorite weapon, the large axe, in a corner of the tent. Jin walked up to it.
  +
  +
"Grimwood. There's something we need to talk about..."
  +
  +
The slight hush in his voice was to let him know that it was a confidential conversation. Grimwood immediately sensed this and looked at the back of the tent.
  +
  +
“Do you want to go inside?”
  +
  +
“No, preferably..."
  +
  +
He wanted to get rid of all eyes except for Grimwood. This time, the soldiers sensed his intentions and emptied the tent so that they could eat dinner. If this flexibility was also a tribute to his earlier achievements, then it was worth to defeat that rock giant.
  +
  +
The entrance to the tent that had been shoveled closed back up with a heavy thud and they waited for the outgoing soldiers to leave for a good minute.
  +
  +
In the meantime, Grimwood sank his strong body into a simple chair.
  +
  +
The tents assigned to each of the squads were too spacious for two people to occupy, no matter how big they were. A lonely ambiance hanged in the air.
  +
  +
“I told the commanding officer to gloss over the earlier matter.”
  +
  +
“Is that so? Thanks, that saves me some trouble.”
  +
  +
Jin replied briefly to Grimwood's words. The case in question was Yukianesa. As the name implied, a Nox Nyctores is a unique weapon. It was not a good idea for anyone to know that a new recruit was carrying one. Jin asked him to keep it under wraps and Grimwood said he understood and will assume responsibility for it.
  +
  +
But Jin's talk was a different topic.
  +
  +
There was no one in the vicinity of the tent. After looking around him once more, Jin placed a hidden object in front of Grimwood.
  +
  +
It was a stone block half the size of Jin's face. A yellowish-gray stone with fine black sand in it. Grimwood could see what it was at a glance.
  +
  +
“Is this a piece of the giant from earlier?”
  +
  +
“Yes.”
  +
  +
“How did you get this...?”
  +
  +
He looked down at the lump of stone lying on the table.
  +
  +
"This was created by a non-Librarium Ars Magus."
  +
  +
Ars Magus is a kind of artificially created form magic that uses seithr to create various phenomena. In order to activate it, you need to have an aptitude for it, as well as something called a "Grimoire".
  +
  +
It is also the Librarium that gathers and manages the countless number of Grimoires in one place. The number of Grimoires managed by the Librarium is enormous and for this reason, it is sometimes sarcastically referred to as thr "Library" by rival organizations such as Sector Seven.
  +
  +
In other words, most of the Ars Magus in the world are under the control of the Librarium.
  +
  +
The fact that other Ars Magus are being used in the civil war suggests the possibility that Ars Magus are being developed somewhere that is not under the control of the Librarium. There is a fear that the technology of Ars Magus owned by the Librarium may have been leaked, or one can imagine a more sinister scheme.
  +
  +
With all this in mind, Jin turned his sharp gaze to Grimwood.
  +
  +
"When you first heard the explosion, you said 'those idiots'. What did you mean by that?"
  +
  +
It wouldn't make any sense to try to trick this guy or probe him in a roundabout way. It would only put him on unnecessary alert. Determining that, Jin asked the question too directly and straightforwardly.
  +
  +
“...You are indeed the owner of a Nox Nyctores."
  +
  +
His mouth twisted into an indescribable shape that was both bitter and amusing, then Grimwood grabbed the stone block that Jin had placed infront of him.
  +
  +
Suddenly, he put a lot of strength into his hand and crushed the lump of stone as if it were a glass ball. He had a tremendous grip.
  +
  +
“It seems that Mr. Commander was not aware of the Nox Nyctores... am I right? Jin, 'who' is the one who sent you here?"
  +
  +
The way he shrugged his shoulders caught Jin's attention. It was as if he had found something he shouldn't have.
  +
  +
Jin scowled. If Grimwood knew 'who' sent him here, then would it be inconvenient for him?
  +
  +
"I'm the one asking the questions. Answer it."
  +
  +
He said as if he was thrusting words at him.
  +
  +
Instead of answering, Grimwood dropped his gaze. He opened his stone-crushing hand lightly and fragments of sand spilled from between his fingers onto the desk.
  +
  +
Grimwood did not answer. The silence clearly meant that there were some circumstances.
  +
  +
Should he have asked again? Just as Jin was about to open his mouth, the cloth at the entrance of the tent was pulled open.
  +
  +
“Grimwood. There's a transmission for you from Yabiko.”
  +
  +
The one who got inside was Karenjina, the petite woman with brown skin and dreadlocks. Grimwood immediately stood up.
  +
  +
"Yabiko. Okay."
  +
  +
Jin chased after him, his voice slightly hoarse, as he made his way out of the tent without hesitation.
  +
  +
“Wait, we're still talking!”
  +
  +
"Headquarters's on the line. Do not interfere."
  +
  +
Quickly turning around, Karenjina blocked Jin's path.
  +
  +
As he was leaving the tent, he thought he saw Grimwood looking at him for a moment, but in the end, the muscule packed captain left without saying a word.
  +
  +
The heavy cloth at the entrance came down, and now Jin was left alone in the tent with Karenjina.
  +
  +
Grimwood's heavy footsteps moved further away.
  +
  +
As he listened, Jin glared at Karenjina, who looked up at him as if she was looking down at something annoying.
  +
  +
Looking back at the cold ice green eyes undauntedly, Karenzina lifted the edge of her lips sarcastically.
  +
  +
"That Art you just used. Is that the 'Nox Nyctores'?"
  +
  +
She said, somewhat mockingly. Her hands rested on her smoothly curved hips, her eyes fixed on the pale scabbard in Jin's hand. She gave him a depreciating look.
  +
  +
"You've brought in some pretty extravagant stuff, but using a person from the Duodecim... It seems even a privileged family like the Kisaragi family can be used as 'guinea pigs'.”
  +
  +
"Guinea pigs? What are you talking about?"
  +
  +
He didn't know what Karenjina was talking about. When Jin frowned and clouded his voice with doubt, Karenjina raised her eyebrows up in mockery.
  +
  +
"Didn't you realize it yet? What a pity. You're just like those noblemen around here who flaunt their great power conceitedly."
  +
  +
“I don’t understand what you are getting at. What are you trying to say?"
  +
  +
There was a dark feeling of pent-up resentment in the way Karenjina spat out her words at him.
  +
  +
He well understood the fact that she was accusing him of being a member of a prestigious family and she made it clear that she felt ill will towards people of that kind. However, just because of that, it doesn’t mean Jin could just be convinced with her taking it out on him as an individual. That was a different matter.
  +
  +
“The lab animals are getting high and mighty is what I am saying. It's really annoying that they're forcing their 'nuisance' onto our troops."
  +
  +
Saying this as if spitting it out from the bottom of her heart, Karenjina glared at Jin without hiding her aggressive tone.
  +
  +
It was not even a matter of shunting. He was no different than being directly accused of being an abomination.
  +
  +
Jin was not so gentle as to try to keep a calm attitude after being told so much. He was going to let some of it slide, but it was frankly unpleasant for him to have to go on like this forever.
  +
  +
“You seem to be trying to irritate me, which is annoying. If you don't like me, that's fine. Don't talk to me."
  +
  +
"How can a recruit be so high and mighty? Are you saying that the Duodecim are more important than a bunch of rogue mercenaries? Or do you already feel like a superior?"
  +
  +
“I don't mean to, but I'm not going to play along with your paranoia either. Are you really that unhappy that you were forced out of your position as second-in-command? If you don't want to be despised as a mercenary, you should learn a little more about the military organization.”
  +
  +
"Wha-!?"
  +
  +
Karenjina raised her voice, her dark skin flushed with red. She took a big step forward and tried to grab Jin's chest, but just as she was about to do so, a different hand reached out from her side and pulled her away.
  +
  +
"Hey, hey, hey. You two need to calm down."
  +
  +
It was Honoka who half-heartedly and forcefully stepped in between Jin and Karenjina, who were staring at each other. Jin didn’t know where he’d been before and come to think of it, he couldn’t find him until now. As he pushed the chests of his two superiors apart until they were barely out of reach, Honoka looked from side to side and smiled wryly.
  +
  +
“You can't have a fight on base. We're all in the same squad after all, right?”
  +
  +
Honoka, while repeating the last bit many times over, tried desperately to persuade the immature adults to calm down. Jin had no choice but to put his unsettled emotions in check when that boy, who was probably much younger than him, said that.
  +
  +
Karenjina seemed to think the same way and with a bitter expression on her face, she reluctantly stepped aside.
  +
  +
“It's not like we were fighting."
  +
  +
She said this in an attempt to disguise her lack of decorum, her arms crossed as if she was holding her taut chest.
  +
  +
Sighing, Karenjina slipped past Honoka with a supple gesture, then headed for the place where Grimwood had been a moment ago. She stopped in front of a chair and looked down at the pile of sand and pebbles scattered on the table.
  +
  +
It was the remnants of the stone that Grimwood had crushed moments ago.
  +
  +
“...You were asking the Captain about this earlier if I recall correctly?"
  +
  +
Unclasping her crossed arms, Karenjina softly spoke up.
  +
  +
Her voice was quiet. She looked down at the small pile of sand with an indifferent gaze and dug her finger into it, taking a scoop in the palm of her hand.
  +
  +
"This is some experimental Ars Magus."
  +
  +
The sand spilled from Karenjina's hands and fell again onto the table. Jin's eyes blinked. It was just as he thought. Hearing the faint sound of his breathing, Karenjina turned around with a thin smile on her face.
  +
  +
“You're not so stupid after all."
  +
  +
She said that with a girlish softness, rather than the stiff, masculine voice of a soldier. This must have been the real tone of Karenjina's voice. It was a throbbing voice that suited her well.
  +
  +
"I don't know how they make Seithr Beasts, but the Librarium gives it to “them” as new weapons. To the stupid nobles, to specific."
  +
  +
Said Karenjina, who had stopped behaving in her stiff demeanor,as she crumbled the pile of sand with her fingers. With a cold glare, she flicked a small piece of the stone with her fingertips and rolled it around as if this object holds height to her.
  +
  +
"Those fools use it with glee. They think they're the chosen ones, without thinking about how dangerous what they've been given is."
  +
  +
The nobel people who were born and raised in this area come here on a regular basis to take advantage of the hunting grounds, to build up their military prowess. Without merit, there is no promotion. So if they were given special weapons for that purpose, who wouldn't use them on the battlefield? After all, they are coming to this base to earn merit. In the first place, those who truly want to participate in the war as soldiers and fight for the Librarium are the troops that will be sent to a more proper battlefield.
  +
  +
“Of course, there are times when the new weapon will produce unexpected results, but most of the time it doesn't. Sometimes it'll just kill lots of people and other times it's..."
  +
  +
"...taken by the enemy."
  +
  +
A murmur spontaneously escaped from Jin's mouth as he scooped up the muddled end of Karenjina's words.
  +
  +
Karenjina didn’t say anything, but her closed lips spoke affirmation.
  +
  +
Subconsciously, Jin clicked his tongue.
  +
  +
“Just as I expected, that giant was originally an Ars belonging to the Librarium, wasn’t it? But, It was used by the Ikaruga Federation...”
  +
  +
As a result, the rock giant summoned by the unofficial Ars Magus lost control and went berserk.
  +
  +
Perhaps one of the several bright red blotches on the ground at that time was the casters who had summoned the giant. Whatever the actual situation was, the fact of the matter lied in how more than a few people had died in vain thanks to that annoying "new weapon".
  +
  +
Karenjina brushed the sand off her fingertips and leaned over the table.
  +
  +
"The Library and Ikaruga guys are both the same. They don't give a damn about human life."
  +
  +
She must have encountered scenes like today's one many times. Probably the other soldiers of the 9th squad, and Grimwood as well.
  +
  +
"This is not a 'battlefield'. It's a 'testing ground' for those idiots."
  +
  +
There are enemies, there are allies and there are reasons to fight. There is no better place than the lively battlefield to test a large-scale new weapon such as new Ars Magus. It is also a good place to get data on the actual situation, to see how much damage the weapon will cause to the enemy and the allies.
  +
  +
(So this will continue to be the "worst" battlefield with no progress or retreat?)
  +
  +
It was a hunting ground for noblemen to earn achievements and a testing ground to measure the results of weapons development.
  +
  +
Therefore, no matter how hard you fight, the war situation will not move. There is no need to move it. In fact, it is "meaningless" if it is moved. Jin gripped the scabbard of Yukianesa in his hand tightly to the point it could break if it were a normal scabbard.
  +
  +
(Then why was I assigned here?) Jin asked himself.
  +
  +
At least it was not to change the situation at this base. They were not expected to be a force to be reckoned with in order to win the battle and push deeper into Ikaruga.
  +
  +
If that is the case.
  +
  +
(...Yukianesa.)
  +
  +
Finally, Jin understood what Karenjina meant by "guinea pig" earlier.
  +
  +
It is not Jin himself who was being sought after. It is Yukianesa, Jin's personal possession.
  +
  +
The purpose of this research was to find out how powerful the Nox Nyctores sword would be on the battlefield, and whether it would be able to withstand actual use as a weapon. Jin guessed the purpose was to investigate such things.
  +
  +
That's why Jin was sent to the "testing ground" instead of the "battlefield. That was probably, no, that was the reason.
  +
  +
Jin chewed on his lips in secret. He felt a lingering twinge of annoyance.
  +
  +
He hadn't originally intended to stand on the battlefield for anything. Jin hadn't become a soldier for the sake of the Librarium, nor for a sense of righteous indignation and definitely not for justice, but because the Kisaragi family, who raised him, demanded it.
  +
  +
So he had no intention of playing a leading role in dramatically changing the situation of the civil war. But he didn’t want to be made into a clown playing a farce. More importantly, he was uncomfortable with the idea that someone unknown would be using this sword.
  +
  +
“Anyway, I don't want to die 'cus I'm caught up in your aristocratic complacency. Just remember that."
  +
  +
Once again, with hostility and rejection in her voice and eyes, Karenjina said in a biting tone.
  +
  +
Jin remained silent, but stared back at the brown-skinned female mercenary with an unsettling look in his eyes. The information he was able to get out of her was useful, but that doesn't mean he was going to accept this attitude. In between Karenjina and Jin, who were once again creaking the air, Honoka dropped his shoulders and sighed like he was fed up.
  +
  +
"Now, now. Corporal Karenjina Parsett, I'll pretend that I didn't hear you say anything 'rebellious' against the Librarium, so why don't we make up now?”
  +
  +
Honoka may have meant to soothe the situation, but his comment was even more offensive to Karenjina. The word "rebellious" was particularly wrong.
  +
  +
Karenjina, who steeply lifted the corners of her eyes, glared at Honoka as if he was her enemy. But before she said anything, things were brought to a close by another voice.
  +
  +
"Just as he said. Leave it at that."
  +
  +
Karenjina raised her eyes at the calm, powerful, and deep voice. Grimwood had come back through the entrance of the tent. As soon as she saw Grimwood, Karenjina turned her head in an uncomfortable way and her tone faltered.
  +
  +
"I'm sorry, I... I was out of line."
  +
  +
She bowed lightly to Grimwood, not to Jin, with whom she had been arguing and walked quickly out of the tent.
  +
  +
“She’s not a bad girl, but she's a mercenary, She's got a lot on her plate. Don't be offended."
  +
  +
“I don't really care about ......."
  +
  +
Jin answered in a composed tone, without any excess facial expressions.
  +
  +
Yes, there was no need to worry about it. All he had to do is do the work that was required of him in the way that was required of him. That is all.
  +
  +
There was nothing anymore left for him to do in his life but this.
  +
  +
She bowed lightly to Grimwood, ignoring Jin and walked quickly out of the tent.
  +
  +
“She’s not a bad girl, but she's a mercenary, she's got a lot on her plate. Don't be offended."
  +
  +
“I don't really care about it."
  +
  +
Jin answered in a composed tone, without any facial expressions, without a hint of emotions.
  +
  +
Yes, there was no need to worry about it. All he had to do is do the work that was required of him in the way that was required of him. That is all. There was nothing anymore left for him to do in his life but this.
  +
  +
  +
  +
After becoming aware of what this base was, it was still the “worst” frontline base in the world.
  +
  +
Attacks from the Ikaruga Federation took place at morning and night. Sortie orders were issued as many times a day as needed.
  +
  +
Whenever that siren sounded, Jin took his weapon and went into the forest to engage the so-called "enemy soldiers". Then make up a winnable battlefield and retreat.
  +
  +
He had become accustomed to working as a "hound" through repetition.
  +
  +
As many battles as he had, Jin had shown his outstanding strength to the members of the 9th squad, and his strength had built a certain amount of trust between him and the members of the 9th squad.
  +
  +
But Karenjina was different.
  +
  +
On the battlefield and at the base, she did not acknowledge Jin. She never accepted him. She never looked at Jin the way she looked at her friends. Jin also didn't want to try to repair his frayed relationship with her. If she didn’t want to be acknowledge him, then that is fine. If she didn’t want to accept him, then that is also fine. In Jin's opinion, it had nothing to do with the fighting.
  +
  +
Karenjina and Jin mutually felt the same in that regard.
  +
  +
However, there was still something concealed in her heart. At the bottom of it something was obvious, but how could he trust someone who wouldn't show it to him?
  +
  +
The people around them became accustomed to the stinginess of their relationship before anyone else tried to mediate between them. Occasionally, there was an exchange of sarcasm, and there were also voices raised in frustration. However, They weren’t obsessed with trying to completely eliminate each other, and before they knew it, many days passed...
  +
  +
Before he knew it, Jin's life at the frontline base had lasted more than a month.
  +
  +
==Chapter 3: Accumulated death / He is near==
  +
  +
===Part 1===
  +
  +
Jin learned that after a month of living in the jungle, it is easy to lose track of what day of the month it is, what time it is, and other things that he used to unconsciously pay attention to.
  +
  +
The unpleasant heat and the suffocating smell. The occasional arrows of rain, the unrestrained splashing of mud. The food was poor and the beds were far from clean. It wasn't the most comfortable living environment, but even so, Jin was beginning to feel more comfortable in his new surroundings.
  +
  +
Then, one day. The 9th squad, including Jin, received a request from the Librarium and were ordered to sortie to a place far from the jungle that he just started to get used to.
  +
  +
The location was a certain research facility near the mountain area. The building looks like a large block with gray walls, blending in with the rocks and barren trees.
  +
  +
There were very few windows and on top, the ventilation system roared low like the sleep of a giant creature.
  +
  +
Undecorated lighting lined up at regular intervals in a seamless, perfect flat corridor with no visible horizon. The dimly lit white walls were all fitted with black doors of exactly the same design.
  +
  +
The inside of the laboratory, with an interior that seems to have been assembled inorganically, has been... cruelly destroyed.
  +
  +
There were large holes in the doors and walls and many cracks in the ceiling and floor. Lights were broken and shattered and pieces of glass were scattered everywhere.
  +
  +
Only a small quantity of lights were left. The few that remained barely gave off a faint glow that seemed to be about to fade, but it was not enough to light up this large laboratory at all, making the area be bathed in an eerie dimness.
  +
  +
It was awfully quiet.
  +
  +
It smelled terrible.
  +
  +
"This is horrible..."
  +
  +
Standing in the corridor where some torn and burnt papers were scattered with pieces of shattered furniture, Honoka said aloud in dismay.
  +
  +
It was a sight that could no longer be described as anything other than that.
  +
  +
There were countless corpses lying at Honoka's feet as he stood stock stil and all around inside the destroyed laboratory, which still bore the scars of an obvious battle that took place. The corner of the corridor where Jin was looking, as well as under the gaze of Karenjina, who walked around and looked into the nearest room were the same.
  +
  +
Soldiers in the uniform of the Librarium were lying on top of each other, creating a small red fountain on the floor.
  +
  +
Right next to them, laying down dead, was an old man wearing a white coat over another uniform. He must have been a staff member of this institute, or in other words, one of Sector Seven’s personnel.
  +
  +
This is the research facility of Sector Seven.
  +
  +
Sector Seven is a group of rebels who disagree with the methods of the Librarium and work to disrupt their current order. The mission that Jin and the others were called up for this time was to retrieve a certain "Nox Nyctores" that they had stolen from the Librarium.
  +
  +
But Jin and the others arrived two hours late.
  +
  +
For some reason, the 9th squad was not notified until the last minute. In addition, arrangements for an Ars Magus Vessel to travel nearby were also delayed.
  +
  +
But still, it was just two hours. The number of people at the scene were not that many to begin with, but there was still a battlefield that took place here. Why weren't there some reinforcements? Still, even if the conflict was over, they wanted to help with the aftermath. That’s what they decided to do and hurriedly made their way with the jeep to the place from were they were at moments ago.
  +
  +
“Looks like we're too late.”
  +
  +
Bending down, Jin let out a heavy breath when he saw that the fallen Librarium guard had no pulse.
  +
  +
“But what the hell is this all about? Did the mission fail?"
  +
  +
Karenjina shook her head in disbelief after looking into a room that seemed to be some kind of office and came out with an face full of anguish.
  +
  +
“I didn’t receive a confirmation about that yet.”
  +
  +
Answered Grimwood, who had entered a another room, came out into the hallway and shook his head in denial. It seems there weren't any in this room either. Survivors.
  +
  +
Whether they succeeded or failed in retrieving the Nox Nyctores or if the operation had produced any results in the past two hours, it would have been reported to the NOL. Outside the research facility, there were a number of vehicles that the guards of the Librarium must have used for transportation. All of them were equipped with communication facilities and the guards themselves were also equipped with communication devices.
  +
  +
But when Jin and the others had left the Ars Magus Vessel for the jeep about thirty minutes ago, they had not received any such information.
  +
  +
One possible explanation for why there has been no contact is that the operation was still ongoing in the depths of the facility. Then there is the possibility that there was no one left in the Librarium to contact...
  +
  +
(But that's unlikely, because the other party is Sector Seven.)
  +
  +
Jin's expression clouded in thought.
  +
  +
The basic philosophy of Sector Seven is the convenient development of seithr through pure science, rather than through Ars Magus. Because of this aspect, the people who belong to Sector Seven are mainly researchers with a wealth of scientific knowledge. Many of them are considerably rational, logical and pragmatic.
  +
  +
(...although I can't rule out the possibility if it makes the most 'sense'.)
  +
  +
If possible, that was a possibility he didn't want to consider.
  +
  +
Grimwood stepped over a lied-down corpse in a white coat and into the corridor leading to the back of the building.
  +
  +
"Let's check ahead. There might still be survivors."
  +
  +
As things were, there was no point in dwelling here dumbfoundedly counting the bodies, smeared in the smell of blood and rust. No one disagreed with Grimwood as he looked toward the end of the long corridor. Grimwood was in the lead, followed by the soldiers of the 9th squad and Karenjina, then Honoka, with Jin at the tail of the line.
  +
  +
Everyone's footsteps were careful as they walked, keeping a distance that would allow each of them to move around sufficiently.
  +
  +
They opened all the doors they saw along the way and checked them. Some of the rooms seemed unharmed, only slightly ransacked and not particularly destroyed. But in non were living people.
  +
  +
The hallway grew darker and darker as the lights became less and less useful. The air was cold with a metallic odor and the temperature seemed to drop even lower as they stepped into the darkness. While they continued on with their handheld lights, they found a staircase leading up and down at the far end.
  +
  +
As a test, someone peeked upstairs and shone a light on it. There was still a dead body lying on the stairs,
  +
with a red thread dripping down from the top to the bottom.
  +
  +
"Is anyone there?"
  +
  +
Jin raised his voice in a pitch, but the only answer was an empty echo.
  +
  +
Grimwood then looked at the stairs leading to the lower level. The light from a thrown light revealed a lift-like elevation device just ahead.
  +
  +
"So, what now? Up or down..."
  +
  +
Honoka asks softly about which way they were supposed to go, while peering cautiously into the lift.
  +
  +
Grimwood pondered for a few seconds, then looked at Karenjina. Karenjina squinted at the tip of Grimwood's light, and shook her head after a moment.
  +
  +
"I'm not sure about down below. But upstairs... there are probably no survivors."
  +
  +
"Okay. Down it is then. Everybody, get on the lift."
  +
  +
After making his decision, Grimwood's movements were swift. He quickly got into the lift while giving instructions, and Jin and the others followed him. One of the soldiers checked the lift's control panel and flipped a few switches. A yellow light came on in the control panel and the lift began to slide silently, descending diagonally downward.
  +
  +
A faint orange glow told them that there were walls and a ceiling, but it made it impossible to see where they were going. Still curious about what lay ahead, Karenjina grabbed the thin railing at chest height and stared at the destination of the lift, her voice irritated with frustration.
  +
  +
“What's even going on? It's just a mission to get one weapon back, right? Is the Nox Nyctores so great that it has to cause this much damage?"
  +
  +
"You don't know what a Nox Nyctores is, do you?"
  +
  +
The soldier who was operating the panel mischievously said to Karenjina, who choked on her words now and puckered her lips in frustration.
  +
  +
“...It’s an old, awesome weapon, right? You talk big game, but do YOU even know what that thing really is?"
  +
  +
Staring at him, Karenjina appealed to her colleague to explain. The soldier who had been making a joke of it immediately flinched and averted his gaze.
  +
  +
“It's a, um... an old weapon yes. I believe it was made a very long time ago..."
  +
  +
“See, you only know as much as I do."
  +
  +
Karenjina took a step forward as if to accuse him. The soldier moved back by that same amount.
  +
  +
Grimwood, who was watching the scene, shook his large shoulders and laughed briefly.
  +
  +
“Nox Nyctores are superweapons of extraordinary power that were created during wars long ago.”
  +
  +
Leaning his beloved great axe on his shoulder and placing his muscular arm on top of it, Grimwood answered his subordinate in a calm tone. He had a soft smile on his face, but his eyes were glaringly sharp.
  +
  +
"The Nox Nyctores were created about a hundred years ago during the Dark War. When a monster called the Black Beast was trying to destroy humanity, one of the Six Heroes developed them in order to defeat that monster.”
  +
  +
The Six Heroes. The name was well known to both Karenjina and the soldier who teased her.
  +
  +
They were the legendary heroes who defeated the Black Beast, the monster that caused the disaster that nearly destroyed the human race. As young children, they would encounter them in fairy tales. When they grow up a little, they become the subject of make-believe games. And when they are older, they meet them in biographies and history textbooks, in stage plays and in various other media. Time after time.
  +
  +
Everyone has admired them at one time.
  +
  +
Against the background of the faint driving sound of the lift sliding quietly down, the soldiers of the squad, intrigued by the term "Six Heroes," were drawn to Grimwood's story.
  +
  +
Jin watched from a short distance away, leaning against the railing.
  +
  +
“These weapons were all different in shape. Each of their uses and abilities also differed. There were 8 or 9 of them in total I believe... Anyhow, the Six Heroes used them to defeat the Black Beast. But after the end of the Dark War, the Nox Nyctores were lost. Only few people know where or what they even are now.”
  +
  +
“So," Grimwood continued, looking at Jin. He made a boyish face for a moment.
  +
  +
“It's a pretty miraculous coincidence that he's got one of those.”
  +
  +
Karenjina and the soldiers turned to Jin as they were drawn into the story. One of them was Honoka. The petite boy nodded his head repeatedly, looking deeply moved.
  +
  +
"That's right. That sword might have been used by one of the six heroes too!"
  +
  +
One of the soldiers muttered, to which Honoka nodded in agreement. Jin's shoulders slumped in disgust at such a reaction.
  +
  +
"I don't care how it was used in the old wars. I only use it because it's in my possession."
  +
  +
Jin said curtly and turned away from them.
  +
  +
But that was a bit of a lie. He doesn't use it because he has to. He has to use it, because he can't let go of it. This is a curse placed on Jin. All the while, it is also a testimony.
  +
  +
For what he did — to his brother.
  +
  +
“Sorry, my bad. Don't be mad, 'kay?”
  +
  +
“I am not particularly..."
  +
  +
Perhaps his voice was more prickly than he realized. The admiring soldier laughed and held up his hands in surrender. It must have been his bad habit again. It wasn’t that he was angry. It was not even something to be angry about. He was going to say that, but before he could finish the words, the lift came to a silent stop.
  +
  +
At the same time, the view around Jin and the others opened up. They had arrived at the bottom of the stairs.
  +
  +
It was a much larger space then the facility above.
  +
  +
It was surrounded by square walls, dimly lit by orange emergency lights on the walls and a few white bulbs left on the ceiling.
  +
  +
It was large enough to accommodate the five jeeps that they had driven here.
  +
  +
They might have been using this lifts to carry large items up and down on a regular basis. There were several large dollies lying on the wall, probably used for transportation.
  +
  +
The ceiling was high, probably higher than two stories of a normal building. They have been down here long enough to have wasted a lot of time talking, so they are anticipating rooms and facilities beyond the ceiling or there may just be a thick layer of ground separating them from the surface. Thouge at this point, it didn't matter what the underground structure was.
  +
  +
The yellow light on the lift's panel went out. The handrails slid down, creating a doorway.
  +
  +
Grimwood descended first to the end of it. Then Jin, Karenjina, and the rest.
  +
  +
No one spoke a word now.
  +
  +
Maybe he had imagined it somewhere in his head. At least, when Jin saw this scene, he was naturally convinced that it would be so.
  +
  +
The underground lift station was a pile of dead bodies.
  +
  +
There were a number of bodies lying around the room in a state of disarray. Most of them were wearing the uniform of the Librarium, as could be seen from their scattered clothes.
  +
  +
“What happened here...?"
  +
  +
Karenjina asked in a weak voice, not to anyone in particular. There was no one who could answer her words. Rather, everyone was thinking the same thing.
  +
  +
“Oh, look there. T-there is an interior..."
  +
  +
Honoka, who was cowering at the very back, his face pale, pointed ahead with a trembling hand. At the back of the square room, there was a rectangular opening that probably had a door in it, and another room seemed to be leading to it. The back of the room seemed to be even bigger than this one. They could see a few pale blue lights, probably emergency lights.
  +
  +
“Let's go.”
  +
  +
Grimwood announced lowly, still leading the way as he walked off. It was hopeless to look for survivors in this room. If the room ahead was a dead end, that would be their last hope in the basement.
  +
  +
Through the square entrance, Jin also stepped into the back room.
  +
  +
Then he let out a long, deep breath at the sight of despair spreading.
  +
  +
At the back was a semi-circular room. Its purpose was not clear, but various machines and devices were set up along the curving walls, and they were arranged in such a way that they observed the larger devices that took up most of the room.
  +
  +
The large device looked like a giant lid. Various cables, large and small, moored together, and at the end of the mooring was a circular mouth that seemed to open.
  +
  +
However, the mouth was tightly closed and half of it was buried by the rubble of the collapsed ceiling, so it was not in a condition to be opened and checked.
  +
  +
In this room, the most quantity of people were lying on the ground yet, as if to mock what they had seen so far as trivial.
  +
  +
The room was large. It was very spacious.
  +
  +
From the moment they entered that large room to the opposite end of the room, dozens of meters away, there were people lying everywhere.
  +
  +
None of them moved. There were so many of them that it didn't feel that they were corpses anymore, but instead they looked like a pile of discarded dolls.
  +
  +
Even more bizarrely, there were countless boxes strewn around the large device, which added to the eeriness of the scene. The boxes, neither blue nor black, were just large enough to hold a single person.
  +
  +
They were like coffins.
  +
  +
Some of them were twisted and cracked as if beasts had eaten through them, and a thick human-like fluid was flowing out from inside.
  +
  +
The moment he saw it, Jin's heart leapt.
  +
  +
"Ugh..."
  +
  +
A crushing moan was caught in his throat. Jin instantly lost his balance. It would look like dizziness from the outside, but it was different. He felt as if he had been swallowed by something, consuming his darkened consciousness and then...
  +
  +
he saw it.
  +
  +
A "Cauldron" that swirls the unworldly and submerges emptiness beyond the throbbing heat.
  +
  +
It's approaching from behind. It comes. It overflows, and it takes shape.
  +
  +
Black... a black beast. A black monster with sharp fangs, a thick neck, a giant jaw and all.
  +
  +
The creature dragged its indistinct body around, eating people at random, killing them as it went.
  +
  +
But the fangs do not tear flesh. The jaws do not crush bone.
  +
  +
All it had to do was slip by the living and occasionally let out a loud roar.
  +
  +
When touched by the black head, a black mist overflows from the human body. The human body collapses, losing all its strength, as if its life had been sucked out along with it.
  +
  +
The word associated with it would be predation. The black mass ran around the vast underground room like the winds of death, sucking and devouring the life of every human being in the room.
  +
  +
The head suddenly turned to look at Jin as if it had noticed something.
  +
  +
It looked more like an exaggerated version of a head, with only fangs and jaws. On top of its ferocious mouth, there was a glittering eye.
  +
  +
A red eye. Among the countless red streaks that run across the surface like blood vessels, the eyes that seem to have collected and hardened the most ominous reds in the world stared at Jin.
  +
  +
— Kill.
  +
  +
Someone's voice whispered to Jin.
  +
  +
— Kill it.
  +
  +
Yes. I have to kill it.
  +
  +
There is no other choice but to kill it.
  +
  +
(Who... is the monster?)
  +
  +
The higher the concentration of the seithr the more the urge swells inside Jin.
  +
  +
A murderous intent. It is a straightforward, pure, and single-minded murderous intent that is like nothing else.
  +
  +
(No, what I, what I... want to kill is...)
  +
  +
It's not a monster. What I want to kill is. What I want to kill with my own hands is...
  +
  +
A spark of lightning flashed behind his eyes, and Jin's vision instantly turned orange.
  +
  +
  +
  +
  +
  +
— It’s burning.
  +
  +
The whole area was ablaze.
  +
  +
This is a memory. Inside Jin, they were the pages of a burned and scorched memory that got torn to pieces and disordered.
  +
  +
In the flames, Jin was standing with his sword in his hand. In the hot, blazing flames, he was holding a cold, freezing Yukianesa.
  +
  +
Someone collapsed in front of him.
  +
  +
Who is the one who was down? It could have been someone, it could have been no one.
  +
  +
The boy was lying there helplessly. Bright red blood was pouring from his small back.
  +
  +
Red. Red. Everything. Red.
  +
  +
The rush of exuberance was so cold that he didn't feel any emotion when the burning church roared to life and collapsed, even when the hot wind blew against it.
  +
  +
The moon was laughing in the distance.
  +
  +
The bright red crescent moon was laughing joyfully.
  +
  +
No, it's not. It's a shadow. The shadow of a person. Laughing behind all.
  +
  +
A pair of pitch-black eyes stared at Jin.
  +
  +
The dark gloom kept staring at him, firmly, without a single motion.
  +
  +
===Part 2===
  +
  +
──in!!
  +
  +
The sound revived him.
  +
  +
The roaring sound of flames receded like a wave and in its place is now the dull drive of machinery along with the sound of human voices flooded Jin's consciousness.
  +
  +
“Jin!! Hey, Jin! Stay with me!"
  +
  +
"......ah... what is...?"
  +
  +
As if with a click of a switch, Jin's vision became clear and fixed.
  +
  +
The area was dimly lit and surrounded by achromatic colors such as black and gray. The small lights were pale, and the air was cold as metal. Before his eyes, stood a figure of a man with a large high stature. He grabbed Jin by both his shoulders with his large hands and shook him.
  +
  +
When Jin blinked a few times and looked up, Grimwood, the man who had been holding his shoulders, dropped his broad shoulders and breathed deeply.
  +
  +
“Don’t give me that. You suddenly stiffened and stopped moving in a panic. What in the hell happened to you?”
  +
  +
“...No, I was...”
  +
  +
As he tried to answer, Jin lost track of his words. He had no idea what had happened.
  +
  +
(A hallucination?)
  +
  +
He hasn't been snapped back for a while now, but he still had a numb feeling in the back of his head.
  +
  +
“I'm sorry, I'm fine. I just got dizzy all of a sudden..."
  +
  +
Holding his cheek and forehead with the palm of his hand as if to confirm that he was really here, Jin let out his voice along with his choked breath.
  +
  +
He suddenly felt a sharp gaze on him and turned around, and there was Karenjina, glaring at Jin with a face that was clearly in a bad mood. Her deep navy eyes collided with his gaze and Karenjina blatantly looked away.
  +
  +
(...She's like a jealous child.)
  +
  +
She likely didn't like the fact that Jin had worried Grimwood, but he didn't have the time to point it out and get himself in trouble. Letting out another sigh, he shook off the annoyance and looked around with eyes that finally reflected a sane reality. While Jin was in a daze, the soldiers had apparently gone to check on the equipment they had lined up. The three who had dispersed came running back to Grimwood.
  +
  +
“Captain, all the equipment's been destroyed. It's unlikely we'll be able to see the data inside."
  +
  +
“No luck here either. What is the cause of all this violence? Communications and recording facilities are also dead."
  +
  +
“I see..."
  +
  +
Grimwood's face twisted in bitterness. One of the last to return opened his mouth, his words and expression muddled, as if he was having trouble saying it.
  +
  +
“Err. There's one thing that's been bothering me...”
  +
  +
“What is it?”
  +
  +
“Aren’t the corpses in this room too "clean"? I didn't check all of them, but compared to the ones before we went down here, they are completely uninjured. It's as if only their souls have been pulled out... It's creepy."
  +
  +
With these words, he must have remembered some of the faces he'd seen while checking the equipment. The soldier shuddered and rubbed his arm vigorously. Without saying a word, Jin approached the nearest body. It was the one that had fallen right next to the entrance. It was lying with its arms outstretched in a desperate attempt to find a way out. When he turned the body over from its prone position, he saw that it had died with a miserable expression on its face, twitching with fear.
  +
  +
Honoka, who peeked in with Jin, let out a twitching scream and backed away to escape.
  +
  +
Indeed, there was no resemblance of any injuries. In fact, there was no reason for the corpse to have died, as if only the soul had been extracted.
  +
  +
(The soul... You don’t mean the hallucination I just had was-)
  +
  +
With a tingling headache, Jin remembered the head of the Black Beast that had popped out of the Cauldron earlier.
  +
  +
The monster that sucked up the souls of humans just by touching them. The black head that absorbed the human of that time was probably the seithr from the Cauldron. Jin wondered if that scene had actually happened here. If so, what the hell was that black head?
  +
  +
“Tsk…..”
  +
  +
As he thought about it, another sickening sensation crawled up his spine and he shook his head, trying to stop thinking about it. He didn't know what's going on with him, but he needed to get rid of any signs of strangeness. He was on a mission as one of the 9th squad.
  +
  +
Grimwood looked around again and placed the great axe he was carrying on the floor.
  +
  +
“...I heard that Kokonoe of Sector Seven was here, but... it seems that she escaped.”
  +
  +
The giant captain muttered while pondering something.
  +
  +
Honoka looked up quickly at his words.
  +
  +
"Does Kokonoe mean the Dr. Kokonoe? Isn't she the famous Grimalkin of Sector Seven?”
  +
  +
Jin had heard that name before. She is a scientist belonging to Sector Seven, and her genius mind is said to be unrivaled. She has the blood of a beastkin, and the ears and tail of a cat, which gives her a special appearance.
  +
  +
Grimwood looked down at Honoka and nodded.
  +
  +
“Yeah. I've heard that she was taking part in the Nox Nyctores research that was being conducted here. I was told to 'politely' take her in if I found her. ...... but there's no sign of her."
  +
  +
“If Kokonoe of Sector Seven was here, no wonder they deployed so many troops.”
  +
  +
Jin said quietly as he moved away from the corpse and looked at the large device at the back of the room.
  +
  +
You could say that Kokonoe was the brain of Sector Seven itself. If Kokonoe could be eliminated, it would be easy for the Librarium to overpower Sector Seven. That's how important she is and that's also why she is considered as so troublesome. With this in the picture, it could be seen that this was not just a usual laboratory.
  +
  +
If a person of Kokonoe's talent had been in and out of this place, she must have been doing some kind of special research. What it was, though, was something they had no way of knowing now.
  +
  +
“What do you think, Karenjina?"
  +
  +
Grimwood turned and asked Karenjina, who had been crouched down for some time and was just about to stand up.
  +
  +
Jin didn't understand the meaning of Grimwood's question. What is the "What" here? But despite Jin's small doubt, Karenjina's expression clouded over.
  +
  +
"...No. There are no survivors. Underground's wiped out."
  +
  +
She clearly said so.
  +
  +
How did she know? Jin was puzzled further. Grimwood not so. Why were they asking her? It was another group of soldiers who had been searching the room to check the equipment. Before Jin could ask that, Grimwood looked around at his men and said in a thick voice.
  +
  +
“That's it for the investigation. I'm going back upstairs. I'll contact headquarters."
  +
  +
“Oh, if so should I contact them? There are some things I haven't checked yet. If you want me to go back to the car and call them, I can do it by myself.”
  +
  +
Honoka put his hand on his chest and stepped forward, but Grimwood shook his head with a difficult look on his face.
  +
  +
“No. Let's all go back. I have a bad feeling about this place. We should get out of here as soon as possible-"
  +
  +
In the middle of his words, he suddenly heard a noise.
  +
  +
The sound, which was neither a rumble nor a thud, sounded like a creature crawling out from under something and for a moment everyone held their breaths and fell silent, then Grimwood turned and raised his axe that he just picked up from the ground earlier.
  +
  +
“Who's there?"
  +
  +
“Grimwood, t-that can't be!”
  +
  +
“I know."
  +
  +
Trying to calm Karenjina with his hand, who called out to him in panic, Grimwood stared at the area where the sound had come from in alarm. The sound came from the area where about five people were folded up and dead, slightly in front of a large device in the room.
  +
  +
There was no immediate reply. Honoka slowly retreated, and Jin prepared to move at any moment.
  +
  +
There was no sign of life. None. But...
  +
  +
The pile of corpses stirred, and one of the people underneath sluggishly got up.
  +
  +
“Wha…!?”
  +
  +
Karenjina choked out in astonishment at such absurdity.
  +
  +
"A Survivor?"
  +
  +
“No. Wrong.”
  +
  +
The soldier's words, shouted in an expectant but trembling voice, were dismissed with alarm by Jin.
  +
  +
“He's not alive anymore.”
  +
  +
It was a corpse. The corpse had suddenly risen and was heading straight towards them with the awkward movements of a puppet.
  +
  +
"W-WHAAAAA!! Lieutenant! Lieutenant!!"
  +
  +
Before they could fully comprehend the current situation, Honoka screamed and shouted. He shuddered exaggeratedly and pointed to a room with a lift in the back.
  +
  +
He could have guessed what was going on without looking, but he still looked back.
  +
  +
Just as expected. On the other side of the square entrance, countless corpses that were supposed to be lying in the room had all risen up and were heading towards them. Indeed, each corpse, one after another inside the room were starting to rise. It was not a number they could count on the spur of the moment.
  +
  +
"Wha-what should we do, Captain!?"
  +
  +
In dismay, one of the soldiers asked the obvious.
  +
  +
The first corpse that stood up was almost upon them. After slashing the body in half with a swinging axe, Grimwood turned around and shouted.
  +
  +
“Everybody, run!! Get to the lift!"
  +
  +
At that moment, as if he had been pushed back, Jin ran, knocking down the moving dead corpses that had been positioned between the room swith a single swing.
  +
  +
===Part 3===
  +
  +
With his scabbard, he hit the corpse that ran towards him at the side of its head and kicked the other one that came at him from the other direction with his leg that made them cracked like a whip. Several bodies were caught up and lost their balance when they were slashed together in one go with Jin’s Iai technique. After that, he stepped over the collapsed ridge of bodies and moved forward.
  +
  +
The underground space, which had been so quiet when they arrived that the only sound present was the driving force of the running machine, was now filled with a ghastly noise.
  +
  +
The corpses revived, or to say arose like they were waking from a slumber, now attacking Jin and the others without hesitation, as if they had no other choice.
  +
  +
At first glance, the bodies with few external injuries looked like living people. However, their faces were unmoving from the expression of fear and anguish they had shown when they died and their open eyes were as vacant as a cloudy glass ball.
  +
  +
"Shit! What in the hell are these things??"
  +
  +
"A trap from Kokonoe!?"
  +
  +
As the soldiers whined and cursed, they fired their guns at the ghouls, who were slowly closing in distance. The sound of wild gunfire blasted away the arms and heads of the corpses, but they continued to move without a care in the world.
  +
  +
Grimwood used his large axe to flick them all the way to the wall with every ounce of his strength.
  +
  +
“No, Kokonoe would never use these kinds of Art. Necromancy Ars Magus is the most detestable means on the battlefield. She is a genius far beyond the average, but she is apparently also a woman of common sense when it comes to such things!”
  +
  +
"Apparently," he said, but Grimwood said it as if he knew her personally. Jin wondered if they might have known each other, but now was not the time to mention it.
  +
  +
Jin reversed his grip on the ghouls arm and slammed it to the floor, crushing his head with his hard heel. A gunshot rang out right next to him. It was Honoka who fired the shot. He seemed to have completely gotten cold feet and turned terribly afraid, but his shooting skills were accurate. One by one, he carefully hit the moving corpses right between the eyes.
  +
  +
"Whoever did it, we are in big trouble, because of them now!!"
  +
  +
When Honoka shouted in a shameful, falsetto voice, to which Grimwood's mouth twisted up in a bitter, twisted smile.
  +
  +
“Sure we are.”
  +
  +
Then Grimwood swung his great axe again and blew off the tops of three corpses at once.
  +
  +
Karenjina shot an approaching corpse in the forehead with her short rifle and responded to a near one with a large knife she held in her other hand. She kicked away the corpse that had its throat quickly slit and immediately pointed the muzzle at the next one.
  +
  +
The corpse took several bullets to the face and fell down in a big heap. It jumped around for a while, but eventually got up and joined the fray with a distorted head as if nothing had happened.
  +
  +
Jin clicked his tongue at that.
  +
  +
“Necromancy, is it?”
  +
  +
Grimwood nodded.
  +
  +
It was possible to use magic or medicine to make the corpses move, but in that case they will attack on their own in a disorderly fashion. However, it was clear that the mass of corpses that filled the underground room was moving under the direction of someone.
  +
  +
They did not indiscriminately attack the dead bodies in front of them, nor did they move unevenly. They knew that the target is Jin and the rest of the 9th squad and they also knew that their path of retreat was the lift.
  +
  +
"Nonsense! You can't control all these bodies in here at the same time!"
  +
  +
While firing her gun, Karenjina’s voice rang with impatience.
  +
  +
Jin thrust the tip of his scabbard down on the dead man's head, who had grabbed his leg.
  +
  +
"It doesn't matter if it's possible or not. These guys can sustain a head injury and still get up and move with no trouble."
  +
  +
A corpse that can move by Arts or medicine acts according to its ego, albeit poorly. They think and move with their dead brains, so if they lose their heads, they lose their functions movement. However, a necromancer is someone that can manipulate a ghoul at will. A moving body is nothing more than a puppet for the practitioner. Even if the head is lost, the body will continue to move as long as the chain of connection with the practitioner is not broken.
  +
  +
"If it's a necromancer, then wouldn’t defeating the practitioner stop these guys from moving!”
  +
  +
To the right and the left. Grimwood asked in his crude voice as he swung his large axe and cleaved down any approaching corpses. Jin replies calmly.
  +
  +
"Yeah. They are controlling so many of them, they can't be that far away."
  +
  +
“Karenjina, find them!”
  +
  +
“Understood!”
  +
  +
When Grimwood gave his instructions, Karenjina responded quickly and took a few steps back, shoving her gun into the holster on her hip. She bent down on the spot and pressed her hands against the cold floor. Grimwood wedged himself in front of Karenjina. He used his great axe as a weapon and shield to protect Karenjina from the hands of the ghouls.
  +
  +
In the meantime, Karenjina took a long breath and closed her eyes to focus her attention.
  +
  +
A dull golden crest spread around her hands with a thin, high-pitched squeak that sounded like ringing in the ears.
  +
  +
“Wait, it's a Drive!”
  +
  +
Jin's voice jumped up uncharacteristically in surprise.
  +
  +
Drive.
  +
  +
It is a special kind of power that is inherent in the individual, fundamentally different from the kind of power that can be used to some extent through training and Arts, such as an Ars Magus.
  +
  +
The mechanism is not completely elucidated and there are those who can use it and those who cannot. It is more like a constitution than a talent. Its origin lies in the form the soul. Jin was also someone with a Drive, but it's not something that the usual person would carry with them. Infact it is very rare, so he didn't expect to encounter someone with Drive abilities in the 9th squad.
  +
  +
Behind Jin, who was unintentionally blinded by Karenjina's talent, Grimwood ran in and mowed down the ghouls.
  +
  +
One after another. There was no end to them.
  +
  +
“It's called "Seagull". Karenjina can sense the movements of her surroundings even though she can't actually see them, it's a power that has saved our lives many times before.”
  +
  +
Jin understood and was convinced at the same time. The questions that had been lingering in the corner of his mind were now resolved.
  +
  +
Why was the 9th squad able to disrupt the enemy lines and lead the enemy soldiers to their allies with such precision, as if they knew the enemys position? Why did Grimwood often ask Karenjina for her opinion on the situation, and why was she able to answer him without hesitation?
  +
  +
Karenjina was the too-good-to-be-true nose and ears of the 9th squadron, the Hounds.
  +
  +
But Karenjina, who had been concentrating on the crest that emerged with a faint light, distorted her expression as if in pain and finally stood up, holding both ears.
  +
  +
The crest disappears as it was sucked down to her feet.
  +
  +
"No, there's too much noise. I can't locate it!"
  +
  +
She must have dived into a very deep state of concentration, since they could see the greasy sweat on Karenjina's forehead. Grimwood impatiently frowned at Karenjina, who was breathing heavily, while keeping an eye on their surroundings and state of affairs.
  +
  +
Each of the ghouls was no great threat, but there were just too many of them. No matter how hard they tried to kill them, they kept coming as long as they had legs or hands. It was like a wave of ghouls.
  +
  +
"Oh, hey, there!"
  +
  +
Honoka, who was holding the gun with his hands crossed as if in prayer, shouted out in a most sorrowful voice.
  +
  +
Jin followed his gaze and looked up to see the path of the lift they had just come down. On top of it, bodies, probably from inside the facility, covered in wounds and blood, were descending towards them.
  +
  +
There was no doubt what their purpose was. The dead eyes, cloudy and empty, were all looking at the only seven people alive in this place.
  +
  +
"Damn it! I guess we should clear a path of retreat first."
  +
  +
Grimwood growled in abhorrence. The lift was already occupied by the bodies that had rushed in. It would be faster to run up the passageway than to retrieve it and use the device to move slowly forward.
  +
  +
“I'll make it happen. Follow me!"
  +
  +
Quickly, Grimwood regained his grip on his great axe and charged forward with a mighty yell from the pit of his stomach.
  +
  +
“Oooooooooooooohhhh!"
  +
  +
Grimwood swung his great axe from side to side as he ran with a much shocking force.
  +
  +
The large blade, swung with all its power, kept slashing, blowing and reaping corpses one after another as if it were reaping dead branches. Along with the sound of crushing flesh, there was the light sound of crunching bones.
  +
  +
Kicking away even the sound, Grimwood rushed forward and forcefully stepped into the lift corridor.
  +
  +
Exactly as the word "cut through" implies, a path was formed behind Grimwood. Karenjina and Honoka were ahead of him, followed by Jin, while the rest of the soldiers chased after the captain with their guns firing in a mess. But still the numbers were overwhelmingly violent. Grimwood's steps were gradually blocked and slowed.
  +
  +
A ghouls nails clawed relentlessly at his face and another corpse clutched at his big shoulders, trying to drag him down.
  +
  +
It was not just Grimwood, but also Karenjina and Honoka, who were following close behind, blocking their progress.
  +
  +
"Grimwood!"
  +
  +
Karenjina let out a thin scream right near Jin, who slashed down the ghoul in a wide arc.
  +
  +
Grimwood was pushing too hard for the ones in the back to catch up. A large number of ghouls interrupted the carelessly opened distance and quickly surrounded Grimwood with a thick wall of dead flesh.
  +
  +
On the other hand, more than a dozen corpses jumped at their side with such force that Honoka was knocked over by the momentum.
  +
  +
The head of the corpse that was about to bite his throat was chopped off by Jin with a single stroke. As the head flew off, the distance between him and Grimwood was no longer something that could be easily bridged.
  +
  +
"Captain!"
  +
  +
The soldiers shouted in unison.
  +
  +
It would be bad if he didn't join up. It was too dangerous for anyone to be isolated against this number.
  +
  +
But when he tried to run to him, the corpses formed a wall as if they were trying to keep him away from Grimwood. Punching and kicking down. There was no end to the shooting and slashing.
  +
  +
On the other side of the writhing corpses, Jin saw Grimwood still shouting and swinging his axe.
  +
  +
The axe that was swung down created shockwaves that were bigger than the eye could precive, blowing away a group of corpses.
  +
  +
“ِAbandon me! Run!”
  +
  +
That was Grimwood's decision.
  +
  +
Karenjina gave a horrified voice.
  +
  +
“I can't... I can't do that!”
  +
  +
“Go, Jin!”
  +
  +
“You cut it open, while I'm pulling most of the weight, maybe Jin can do it.”
  +
  +
Jin looked up at the top of the lift with a grim expression at Grimwood's words, entrusting him with a such heavy responsibility.
  +
  +
The number of corpses pouring in was small compared to the ones chasing them from underground, but it was not an easy task to get through. If they were separated by the narrow passageway, Honoka and Karenjna would be torn apart in a matter of seconds.
  +
  +
"Don't fucking joke with meeee!"
  +
  +
A swear word escaped from Jin's mouth unconsciously. If he was even able to run, he would have done it by now.
  +
  +
(Forcing a breakthrough is not a good idea. Then...)
  +
  +
Jin stabbed at his feet with Yukianesa. The impact blew up in a white color, instantly turning the surrounding corpses to ice.
  +
  +
Using it as a makeshift wall, Jin grabbed Karenjina’s arm as she was about to run to Grimwood.
  +
  +
"Hey. Use that Drive again."
  +
  +
“What? What are you talking about? I told you we'd never find the necromancer, so this is not the time at all!　Get out of the way and let me help Grimwood!!"
  +
  +
Karenjina twisted and tried to shake off Jin's hand. but Jin would have none of it. He holded her arm even thigher and pulled her to him.
  +
  +
"Calm down, you'll only add to the bait if you jump in. Instead, I'll hit the necromancer."
  +
  +
“Shut up! You don't get to tell me what to do! Let go of me! Grimwood's at..!”
  +
  +
Karenjina flailed about in a mess, trying to escape Jin's clutches. He could feel Karenzina's nerves screaming in fright under her skin. It was as if he could feel the vibrations. Fear gripped her as she writhed and flailed. The fear that she might lose Grimwood was driving her into delirium.
  +
  +
That's how important he, Grimwood was, to Karenjina. This thought crossed Jin’s mind, but-
  +
  +
Jin shouted in frustration.
  +
  +
  +
"Shut up, you piece of shit!!!"
  +
  +
  +
At the sound of Jin's angry voice, which came from up close and personal, Karenjina’s eyes blinked as she forbore to speak.
  +
  +
She was pressured by Jin's change in attitude.
  +
  +
It didn’t matter, it's rather convenient like that. There's no point in making any more noise. Jin shouted at Karenjina with a intensity fitting for their situation.
  +
  +
“Just use it! Who else can do it but you? You want Grimwood getting killed along with you, or what!?”
  +
  +
If Karenjina ran off, she wouldn't be able to help Grimwood. They would dietogether in a pile of corpses.
  +
  +
She must not be so stupid that she couldn’t understand that. Karenjina opened and closed her mouth a few times, as if lost for words in the blazing cold eyes of Jin that were fixated on her. Then, immediately her eyes sharpened and her lips got frim in determinaion.
  +
  +
She shook off Jin's arm. This time, Jin let go of her hand obediently.
  +
  +
Immediately, Karenjina put her hands on the floor and focused her attention. A dull golden light was created under her palms as they touched the floor.
  +
  +
"Cover Karenjina. Don't let the ghouls near her!"
  +
  +
“Ye-yes!”
  +
  +
Honoka replied as he jumped up and raised his gun along with the other soldiers.
  +
  +
The guns could not fire indefinitely, but the soldiers knew that if they didn't hold out, there was no way out.
  +
  +
Seeing them start firing wildly without caring about the remaining ammunition, Honoka, who was upset, started firing randomly.
  +
  +
After all, Grimwood's squadron was excellent.
  +
  +
Admiringly, Jin stood behind Karenjina with Yukianesa.
  +
  +
A crest spreads at Karenjina’s feet. Immediately, her expression became distorted. Even through her back, Jin could tell that the level of concentration was different from before.
  +
  +
They couldn’t hold out much longer. Neither Karenjina nor the soldiers who were trying to fight off the ghouls and Jin, too.
  +
  +
Even if there is an abundance of seithr in the world, converting it into Ars Magus involves a great deal of wear and tear. In addition, when it comes to dealing with Nox Nyctores, the wear and tear can be life itself.
  +
  +
Therefore, no matter how powerful it is, Yukianesa's power cannot be unleashed. If he were to unleash it at full force, based on the amount of seithr in this place...
  +
  +
(One shot left...)
  +
  +
He will be at lose of power and they won't be able to get through here.
  +
  +
(...No.)
  +
  +
It's different.
  +
  +
If it's just a break through, it's possible. In that case, though, everyone but Jin will have to be abandoned.
  +
  +
“Keep your mind focused.”
  +
  +
He told her in a whisper, then pressed the palm of his hand against Karenjina's back.
  +
  +
He closed his eyes and concentrated, matching his own exhalation to the wavelength of Karenjina beyond the palm of his hand.
  +
  +
Karenjina's body jumped. Instantly, the images she was seeing began to flow into Jin's mind as well.
  +
  +
A dull golden light was spreading across the underground space in every direction. It was as if they were nerves stretched out. However, the spreading light was disturbed by the countless signs that filled the area.
  +
  +
(So this is the noise...)
  +
  +
It's true that they couldn’t explore anything with this.
  +
  +
Even so, he earnestly looked for a different way, in the middle of Karenjina’s spread-out senses.
  +
  +
The Power of Order - with that, “manipulation of corpses” appeared in Jin’s consciousness as a black line in the images he saw through Karenjina's Drive.
  +
  +
It was a special power that he possessed that even Jin himself did not understand, he isn't even aware that he is in posession of it.
  +
  +
However, through it, Jin was able to see. The evil from his standpoint, the opponent to slash, the black "line" that connects to it all, the "line" that he should cut.
  +
  +
The black line that stretched from Jin's feet snaked its way around the underground space until... it reached a certain point.
  +
  +
“......Found it.”
  +
  +
Gently speaking aloud, Jin opens his eyes. As usual, he was surrounded by a pile of moving corpses, but Jin didn't even bother with them.
  +
  +
In the corner of the room where the corpses were stirring, on the floor where the arms and legs that had been blown off by Jin and Grimwood were lying in shreds. There was a strange figure huddled in the shadows of the wobbling corpses.
  +
  +
He couldn’t see it clearly, but it was definitely “there”.
  +
  +
Jin pulled out Yukianesa and ran through the bodies, jumping over Honoka.
  +
  +
The pale, ice-covered blades cut down the corpses in his way one after another. As he kicked them away and iced the ones in his way, Jin headed straight for Grimwood.
  +
  +
It was in the opposite direction of the necromancer he found.
  +
  +
But as he hurled the blades of ice he had created around him at the corpses all at once, Jin called out loudly.
  +
  +
"Grimwood!"
  +
  +
He shouted and jumped high. At the foot of his low leap, an ice blade that he had created at the same time appeared. The flying ice blades slid through the air and carried Jin like a vehicle.
  +
  +
"Come on!"
  +
  +
As he swung his great axe to clear the way around him, Grimwood let go of his axe to meet Jin who was coming straight at him. Instead, he folded his hands and dropped to his haunches.
  +
  +
Jin jumped for his hand.
  +
  +
“Gooooooooooooo!!”
  +
  +
Jin's feet landed on Grimwood's folded hands. He used it as a foothold from which to leap and Grimwood threw him high into the air, swinging his arms with all his might.
  +
  +
After jumping to an unusual height, Jin stared downward.
  +
  +
He didn't know where it came from, but the underground room was filled with more dead bodies than he expected. But in one corner, in the corner of the room indicated by the line, there was a person without a uniform or lab coat, huddled in a black cloth.
  +
  +
That's him.
  +
  +
“Yukianesa!"
  +
  +
In response to Jin's voice, a silvery-white blade sliced through the void. The sliding trajectory froze in the blink of an eye and the ice wrapped around the sword itself, changing its shape.
  +
  +
What appeared in Jin's hand was a bow. A pale, crystal clear bow of ice.
  +
  +
He put his hand on the string and an arrow of ice was born in his hand.
  +
  +
The only thing in the way was the corpses walking on the ground. With such a high jump, there was nothing to impede Jin's aim.
  +
  +
“Ice-Winged Moonsong!”
  +
  +
With a voice announcing this, a huge arrow was released from the ice bow. The pale blue arrow seemed to have a hint of light in it and with the icy wind in its wake, it flew sharply through the air.
  +
  +
The target was the necromancer, who looked like a blackened mass.
  +
  +
The arrow, too large to be fired at a single person, spun at high speed and was not well-aimed, ruthlessly destroying the surrounding walls, floors, and swarming corpses, including the necromancer.
  +
  +
The power was tremendous.
  +
  +
The corner of the room where the necromancer had been was instantly covered with ice, like the inside of a freezer and white frost stuck to it. What used to be the necromancer was stretched out on the floor like was like a remaining splat of abandoned trash, no longer moving.
  +
  +
Jin landed on the ground, returning the bow to its original form of a sword.
  +
  +
"..."
  +
  +
As soon as he did, his knees lost their strength and he almost lost balance. But Grimwood, who had rushed in front of him, supported him.
  +
  +
“You okay?”
  +
  +
"...Yes. I just used too much energy all at once."
  +
  +
“I see,” Grimwood said, his mouth twitching in a smile.
  +
  +
Jin heard a series of sounds like heavy objects falling from around him. It was the sound of bodies that had been moving, losing their strength and falling one after another. The corpse that was just about to bite him fell on him, and Honoka crawled out from under it, screaming.
  +
  +
Then he looked around in a daze and sat down.
  +
  +
“It’s not moving... Did we survive?”
  +
  +
As he let out his thin, trembling words, not a single corpse moved anymore. They collapsed on the spot like threadbare dolls and returned to being mere corpses.
  +
  +
[[File:SS1-3.png|thumb]]
  +
  +
The soldiers still couldn't believe what was happening in front of their eyes, rolling the fallen bodies close at hand to make sure there was no reaction.
  +
  +
Karenjina staggered over to Grimwood and Jin.
  +
  +
But Jin and Grimwood couldn't look up at the sound of her footsteps.
  +
  +
At Jin's feet lay a deadly Necromancer clad in black cloth.
  +
  +
The blow that Jin had unleashed with all his might had already left him breathless. No, he wasn't breathing to begin with.
  +
  +
Jin and Grimwood looked down at what had been the Necromancer, speechless with surprise.
  +
  +
It was not human.
  +
  +
It had long, slender arms and legs and an uncanny bloodless complexion. Wrapped in a black cloth, it was a doll.
  +
  +
"What is this...?"
  +
  +
Karenjina, who was finally standing next to Grimwood, muttered in a muffled voice.
  +
  +
The soldiers and Honoka both noticed the strange situation and looked down at the doll, all stunned.
  +
  +
"You mean the doll was a... necromancer?"
  +
  +
One of the soldiers said to himself.
  +
  +
“No," Grimwood replied lowly, holding Jin for support. “it wasn't a necromancer we were dealing with.”
  +
  +
"A Puppetmaster."
  +
  +
Staring at the battered doll, Jin's brows furrowed.
  +
  +
"What do you mean? Because a while ago, there was actually a body moving..."
  +
  +
Karenjina looked around. The lack of power in her voice was probably due to the fact that she used too much power on "Seagull". As she wondered, it was not a doll that actually attacked Jin and the others, but a corpse. There was no doubt about that. So that meant...
  +
  +
“The Puppetmaster had a puppet play the role of the Necromancer.”
  +
  +
“Such a thing...”
  +
  +
"There is no way. It's impossible, no matter how advanced that Ars Magus is."
  +
  +
"Unless it's magic..."
  +
  +
Magic. Everyone was rendered speechless by the words Jin had spoken.
  +
  +
Magic is an ancient Art that has been in gradual decline since the days of the Dark War due to a drastic decrease in the number of users. It is no exaggeration to say that it has been lost in the modern age.
  +
  +
If the owner of this puppet is indeed a magician, then the other party is not just a mere thing. At the very least, it was not something that a single squadron can handle.
  +
　
  +
And if the opponent was indeed a magician, it's not impossible to think about why all the guards of the Librarium died here.
  +
  +
“We are going back.”
  +
  +
It was too dangerous to stay here any longer. Grimwood carried Jin's arm on his shoulder and started to walk away.
  +
  +
The area was unusually quiet. It smelled of blood and dead bodies.
  +
  +
Jin and the others left the basement as quickly as they could, pushed back by the disquiet.
  +
  +
===Part 4===
  +
  +
There was someone who had been oberserving them closely.
  +
  +
Always observing. They have been observing the guards of the Novus Orbis Librarium descend into the basement while killing researchers of Sector Seven. The way they died there one after another and the confusion and struggles of the seven new samples who arrived late.
  +
  +
Always there. Observing.
  +
  +
A huge, motionless device, surrounded with countless coffins. From behind it, a man stepped out with small, clacking footsteps.
  +
  +
His golden hair was brushed back and he wore fine-looking clothes. If he had been in the right place, he would have looked like a noble gentleman, but the carpet of corpses under his feet, the golden mask covering the upper half of his face, and the eye-catching purple cloak turned that look of a nobel gentlman into a rather odd one.
  +
  +
"Seagull and... the Nox Nyctores, Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa. Hmmm. I've observed some pretty interesting stuff today."
  +
  +
The masked man put his white-gloved hand to his chin and spoke to himself in a voice that sounded impressed, but with little human emotion.
  +
  +
Behind him was another figure, even taller than him.
  +
  +
The smooth curves of her body were like that of a woman. The scarlet dress she wore was vivid, but on closer inspection, it was not a human being, but a very finely crafted doll.
  +
  +
The masked man started to walk away. The scarlet doll chased after him.
  +
  +
Eventually, as the undisturbed footsteps of the masked man and the scarlet doll receded into the distance, the basement finally became a space only for the dead.

Revision as of 21:39, 25 February 2023

STORY

SpiralShift.jpg

Once upon a time, mankind was forced to fight against the “Black Beast”. With its overwhelming power, it seemed only a matter of time before the humanity would be destroyed. In that moment, six warriors appeared.

They passed on the ancient power of Magic to mankind and the people combined it with their science to create a new power. With this they succeeded in perfecting the all-powerful system of Ars Magus. Armed with this new power, mankind, together with these six warriors started a counterattack against the Black Beast. After a long, fierce battle, the Black Beast was finally defeated.

This battle was later called the First War of Ars Magus. These six were revered as the "Six Heroes".

In order to exercise the authority of using Ars Magus during the war to control the massive quantity of Grimoires produced, a new organization with the name of Novus Orbis Librarium (or Librarium) was formed. The world was ruled by means of the Librarium, commonly shortend as NOL. Making use of their newfound power, humans would achieve rapid development in all fields. And then, the rebuild world has undergone a dramatic change from what it was before the Dark War.

Decades have passed since the start of the dictatorship of the Librarium. The world that has become Ars Magus-driven has given birth to a huge disparity in individual abilities. Dissatisfaction grew in all four corners of the world and in the end, the estranged attempted to break away from the Librarium as well. Because of “The Ikaruga Federation”, the Second War of Ars Magus has broken out. In this war, mankind has used Ars Magus against their fellow companions. It was my first war—.





Prologue

A single desk stood out in the darkroom.

The desk itself served as a light. There were no other lights in the room, instead the surroundings were filled with pitch-black darkness.

The bright blue light dimly illuminated several figures sitting in rows on both sides of the desk.

Five people on one side, five on the other.

They wore matching uniforms, and although their presence seemed obvious, their appearance was not clearly recognizable.

They didn't reveal their identities, but they got the necessary talking done. The lack of lighting at hand was convenient for a clandestine meeting like this one.

“...So, I take it you have no objection to our proposal?"

A low, solemn voice came from one side of the room to the opposite shore. A stack of papers lay between the man speaking and the man facing him.

The addressed man nodded his head in agreement and replied.

"Yes. We, “Sector Seven”, will do our utmost to cooperate with the independence of the Ikaruga Federation as per the above agreement.”

“I'm relieved to hear that. Now please sign..."

A hand covered with black gloves slid the intervening document towards the other man.

The man on the other side took it in his white-gloved hands and ran a pen across the bottom of it. When he was done, the document was turned around and now the white-gloved hand held out a stack of papers.

The black gloves received it and a name was listed with a pen next to the signature.

Another sheaf of papers with the same text was signed in the same way in a manner where one by one they passed it into each other's hands.

“Now, let's get into the main subject and details...”

The man who had referred to his people as Sector Seven looked over his shoulder to the rear. A new figure emerged from the depths of the darkness.

As he stepped closer, his appearance came into focus in the light that came from the desk.

A slender man, he seemed to be. He was wearing a black suit that was different from the uniforms of either of the men sitting across the glowing desk. In this dark room, he was wearing a black hat and underneath it, his green hair and the corners of his mouth smiling deeply could be seen.

The man in the black suit came to the edge of the desk, his hard leather boots echoing in his footsteps. He craned his neck to look at all the seated men.

"It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. From here on out, I'll explain everything."

The man smiled again as he bowed deeply as if he were a stage performer.

His tone of voice was polite and gentle, yet it sounded as if it was looking down on others.

It was just a baseless sensation that could be called an accusation, but although no one said it out loud, everyone felt uncomfortable.

Still, the seated men waited for the black-clothed man to speak. They didn’t have time to let the attitude of the explainer divert their important discussion.

Knowing this, the man in black began to speak in a relaxed manner.

“A research facility owned by Sector Seven, located in the Hierarchical City of Ibukido in the Ikaruga Federation, will soon be conducting an experiment. It is an experiment to activate a revolutionary weapon! To put it simply: ...if it is successful, it will be enough to counter the Novus Orbis Librarium.”

The black-gloved men lined up at the desk throbbed lowly at the stagnant tone of the man speaking softly.

One of them leaned slightly towards the desk and asked, looking up at the man in the black suit.

"So, with this weapon, we can beat the... Librarium?"

"Yeees, certainly"

The man in the suit's smile deepened. As he spread out his hands in an exposing manner, he continued leisurely.

“Sector Seven will not hesitate to help you do so. We have a common goal and a common enemy. On top of that, we have the strength to fight and... 'win'."

It was like a complaint of temptation.

There was a scent in the man's words that gave the illusion that the promised victory was there. Not a single person in the room noticed how poisonous that scent was.

Rather, the words of enchantment had already intoxicated those present, as if they were drinking the wine of an early victory.

“In this case…”

“We can’t let this get away…”

“Finally, the time has come.”

A number of voices murmured. The voices shook the darkness of the room.

The sound of the man in the suit clearing his throat in amusement disappeared as a matter of course.

The man in the hat spoke.

“We've waited long enough. Come on. ...Let's start a war. A war to win great freedom and peace. There will be a lot of sacrifices, a lot of suffering, but it is inevitable.”

Now, let the war begin.

“It's a necessary cornerstone for defeating the great evil and achieving freedom and peace!”

Now, let the war begin.

“Greater. For the sake of greater freedom and peace.”

The words were like ripples, letting a quiet exaltation permeate the dim light and darkness.

Everyone was convinced. Today, this moment was the beginning.

And it was, truly, "The Beginning”.

The beginning of a very long history.


In the darkness where no light could reach, the man was smiling inconspicuously.

Chapter 1: The Human of the Kisaragi Family / Distorted recognition

Part 1

Should it be called a wasteland or a ruin?

It was just a place that had fallen apart.

The dry land, with deep lacerations running through it, was cluttered with scattered debris. From the extent of the damage and the apparent robustness of the rubble, it was clear that there had been a structure of some size here.

But not anymore. At least not on the ground, which was cracked, unnaturally raised, and burnt in many places.

Everything that used to be here exploded and blew away in an accident four years ago. And... as at his feet, it turned into an atrocious group of rubble.

“...It's awful."

Looking at the area from the top of the largest rubble, he -Jin-Kisaragi- muttered bitterly.

He was a well-featured young man with silky blond hair and bright green eyes. His lifted eyes gave a sense of calmness and intelligence, but now there was a deep melancholy in them.

He had heard a lot about this place many times, mostly in his classes at the military academy he attended until last year.

This place is Ibukido.

Four years ago, a research facility located here was destroyed in an explosion of unknown cause. The accident, which engulfed a wide area, was so horrific that only one girl was recorded to have survived.

And with that accident, the civil war intensified.

The Ikaruga Civil War. It's a civil war that has been going on for four years and is still going on.

Sighing bitterly, Jin jumped quietly from the top of the rubble to the ground. A cloud of dust danced under his boots, and his blue jacket fluttered loudly.

He was wearing the uniform of a guard of the "Novus Orbis Librarium" to which he belongs. Jin is a member of the 4th Division of the Novus Orbis Librarium, commonly known as the Librarium.

Originally, he came to this land — to Ikaruga’s territory, including Ibukido, to fight in a war.

Of course, it was the Ikaruga Civil War. In spite of the warm-hearted measures taken to grant them special autonomy while still under the control of the Librarium, the rebellious Ikaruga Federation, which suddenly betrayed the Librarium and started a civil war, must be suppressed.

But before that, Jin left the battlefield and came to this place alone...

(I felt... like I was being called...)

To someone. Something. He didn't hear a clear voice or receive a physical message, but he couldn't help but feel that way.

He had to come here.

This place must mean something very important to him.

He thought there must be a reason why he felt this way and thought he would understand it when visiting it, but he was wrong.

“...At least it doesn't look like that they are the ones who called me."

Jin's mutterings were mixed in with the thirsty cloud of dust and washed away.

Jin's bright green eyes suddenly sharpened as he slid his gaze to follow the destination of the wind. The area around him was simply quiet, but he had already noticed that there were countless signs lurking within.

In the shadows of the rubble jutting out of the ground, in the shallow cliff-like terrain created by the cracking of the earth, and in the fissures running deep. Soldiers holding weapons lied dormant.

There were about thirty of them. Everyone was tense and paying attention to the direction of Jin, but for some reason or other, they didn't seem to be attacking even when Jin turned his back on them.

Jin wondered if they are soldiers of the Ikaruga Federation, but this is a long way from the battlefield. It was just a coincidence that he had stopped by here.

Does this mean that even such a sudden decision has been leaked to the outside world? If so, there is a possibility that a serious information leak has occurred.

With this in mind, Jin's nerves were on edge.

A heavy thud occurred, and the pile of rubble collapsed.

As if he had been hit by a bullet, Jin turned around and reached for the sword in its blue scabbard that he carried. He lowered himself and prepared to pull it out at any time.

Another piece of rubble fell out from under his gaze and a thick, red arm grew out from underneath it.

Then came the head, followed by a thick, broad, and strong body.

The thing that came out from under the rubble was like a puppet. If it had to be classified by gender, it would be a man, but the figure was a little too large to be human.

He was tall enough to look up at, with a stout body that would have been impossible for Jin's arms to carry, like a boulder.

His skin color was red, as was apparent from the log-like arms that were stretched out from the tight clothing and the head, which is the only part that felt human.

A huge man with red skin. His appearance was widely known within the Librarium. He was a cyborg soldier who belongs to an organization called Sector Seven, which has been active in resisting the Librarium for many years. Also known as…

"The Red Devil of Sector Seven, isn’t it?"

Jin, who put himself on guard, looked at the red-skinned man who appeared in front of him.

The man did not confirm or deny. He just stared at Jin and pushed up his sunglasses, which were small for the size of his face, with his fat thick fingers.

"You didn’t run nor hide, instead brazenly stood your place. Are you so confident in your skills or are you just a fool who doesn't know how to fight?"

"Answer the question."

The discourteous insult was unpleasant but unconcerned, Jin glared sharply at his opponent.

The giant man sighed and nodded with a slight movement as he stared back at the cold gaze.

“...You're right. It seems you know who you are dealing with. Are you a new recruit? If you run away, I will overlook it. Don't take your life for granted."

The red devil talked as if he cared, then abruptly cut off his words.

The sunglasses he wore were opaque, so it was hard to see what he was looking at underneath them, but his gaze was clearly focused on the sword Jin was holding.

“This is ...... no way."

The deep voice of the red devil threateningly darkened. This was enough for Jin to understand what the cyborg had sensed.

He knew. He knew what kind of sword Jin was holding.

It was in an unadorned ice-blue scabbard.

“A Nox Nyctores…”

Jin sniffed curtly at the low muttered words of the red devil.

Nox Nyctores (Arch-Enemy).

About a hundred years ago, there was a plague that threatened to destroy the entire human race. Its name was "The Black Beast".

The Nox Nyctores (Arch-Enemies) were legendary weapons that were developed to fight and exorcise the evil, and they succeeded in defeating it.

Jin's sword is one of them. It is the Nox Nyctores "Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa".

The monologue of the red devil was not a question. Therefore, Jin did not answer.

Instead of answering, the air around Jin cooled down. The presence of Yukianesa, which manipulates ice and cold air, quietly dominated the place.

“Let's hear your name. Recruit."

It was a modest movement, but the red devil readied himself for battle.

The edge of Jin's mouth lifted slightly.

"Jin=Kisaragi."

That one word sparked the fight.

They moved almost simultaneously. Jin, however, was clearly more nimble. He kicked the earth hard, stepped forward deeply and at the same time swung his sword swiftly.

The sword in the scabbard sharply tore the sky. The pale blue scabbard split the red demon's forehead with such force that it seemed as if the blade was right there, at least it should have done that, but sparks scattered about just before it did.

“What!?”

He may not have been able to catch up with Jin in terms of speed, but he probably knew what he was going to do. With the stiff arm he had lifted and the metal parts attached to it, the red devil had narrowly escaped Jin's blow.

Jin let out a frustrated voice and jumped back. However, his body was suddenly pulled forward strongly.

It was the red devil who pulled him. The discharge from the device on his arm caught Jin like a lump of iron attracted by a powerful magnet.

As soon as the red devil raised his arm, Jin, who was caught in the discharge, was easily lifted into the air. In a single breath, from that high position, he was slammed into the dry ground.

"Ugh..."

Jin moaned lowly as he was hit in the back without a shred of mercy.

A fist immediately followed, raining down like a rock, but he wasn't going to take it that quietly. Jin quickly rolled backward and pulled himself up.

The red devil's fist cracked the ground, grazing his fluttering blonde hair.

It was a tremendous force. If he had been hit properly, the bones of Jin's entire body would have been shattered.

Without a moment’s delay, Jin ducked under the red arm that looked like a big tree as it was brandished at him, then approached the red devil’s chest, this time he slashed up from a low position and struck with his scabbard.

A dull response. The tip of the scabbard stroke the jaw of the red devil. Then, the silver hilt chased after the red devil, who turned away. With a single strike of the handle against his temple, the red devil's head shook greatly.

However, he couldn’t push back the red devil’s legs even for one step.

With the momentum of his wavering body pulling back, the red devil tackled him with his strong body.

Jin jumped. He used the red devil's shoulder as a springboard to escape to the other side. A sense of pressure loomed on his back.

Reflexively, Jin swung his sword.

As he looked back, the blow luckily collided head-on with the red devil's fist.

The impact was numbing to Jin's arm.

It may have caused some damage to his opponent as well. The red devil's face twisted into a grim expression.

Jin rushed in and continued to attack. The red devil's power was immeasurable. That’s why Jin should not give him time to attack.

However, the red devil, despite being on the defensive, did not allow a decisive blow. Each time Jin's sword and the red devil's metal parts collided, a high-pitched metallic sound echoed loudly.

None of the soldiers who had surrounded them made any move. They couldn't move. If they got involved untactfully, they would die. That was the level of the battle that was unfolding in front of them.

In the midst of the repeated slashes, the red demon unexpectedly moved. However, it was not a counterattack. He was holding his other hand to his ear and muttering to himself as he took in the constant stream of attacks.

“The preparations? ...then now, please.”

That was what Jin heard him say.

As if to interrupt his low, grating soliloquy. He drove in a remarkable strike, and using the recoil from the hit, Jin leaped backward, then he put his gloved hands on the hilt of his Yukianesa.

“You have a lot of time on your hands. Who are you talking to?"

“That's none of your business.”

The red devil replied to Jin's blade-cold question without moving his expression in the slightest. He then puts his fingertips to his ear and turned his attention to it for a moment.

Jin aimed for that moment.

"Certainly not."

That was the end.

Declared Jin, as he tried to pull out his Nox Nyctores: “Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa”.

But before he could, he saw the red devil nodding lightly towards the empty space.

"Yeah, no problem. Just do it."

The words, which he could hear much more clearly than before, were obviously directed at someone else.

Jin gasped. It was a communication.

He pulled the handle and ran the scabbard over the blade, but the red devil was in the lead. Without a minute's hesitation, he raised his fist overhead and the red devil slammed it down at his feet.

The ground shattered and burst open with the cloud of dust that whirled up became a screen that momentarily obscured the figure of the red devil. As he was hit head-on by the blowing dust, Jin couldn't help but protect himself with both arms.

"Wait, red devil!"

He was going to run. He understood just that.

But when Jin swung his sword through the dust, the red-skinned giant was already gone.

Part 2

Through the large window, the orange sunlight of the dusk streamed into the room.

The walls were white, and painted with several gold symbols that looked like wings spread out. The floor was a deep blue, covered with a red carpet and intertwined with golden thread embroidery.　

The room was clean and tidy, without a speck of dust.

At the back of the room, Jin-Kisaragi was standing in front of a large desk.

This was a room in the Yabiko branch of the Novus Orbis Librarium.

The Yabiko branch was located in the territory of the Ikaruga Federation, which is currently in the midst of a civil war, but it still functions as a branch of the Librarium, and because of its security, it has become the general command center for the civil war zone.

Although it was originally a large branch, it was smaller in scale and had fewer guards than the headquarters of the Librarium. However, morale was high and above all, the branch was very well organized. On top of that, despite the chaos of the civil war, it was managed in a very rational manner.

Colonel Kagura=Mutski was in charge of this branch.

As for the Ikaruga Civil War, He was the commander-in-chief of the Librarium Guard Battalion, and like Jin, he was a member of the Duodecim. He was also the current head of the Mutsuki family, the first of the Duodecim families. Moreover, he was the man who sat in a chair at the back of the room in front of Jin’s eyes with his arms folded and a sullen look on his face

SS1-1.png

“Good grief... As soon as you came here, you did something this flashy.”

He shook his head in dismay and sighed loudly.

Black hair, deep purple eyes, a fearless face and a somewhat frivolous atmosphere. That was the impression of this man at first glance.

However, underneath the rough clothes he wore, the robustness of his body could be seen and his crossed arms were much tighter than they appeared. It was a body that had been built through actual battles, which could not have been acquired through training in a well-organized environment, much less by living as frivolously as he appeared.

Jin looked back at Kagura with an almost irreverent calmness as he stood between him and a large office desk with a red ornamental cloth hanging from it.

"I didn't mean to cause a scene. I was just stopping by and happened to run into the red devil."

“That's what problem is what I'm saying."

It was not Kagura, but a slender young man standing beside him, who replied to Jin's words with a stinging tone.

While Kagura's collar was wide open, this one had it tightly closed up to the topmost clasp, giving him a serious and sturdy look. His fine black hair, which suited his thin face, and his gray-black eyes, which were only mildly colored, created a neutral impression.

His name was Hibiki=Kohaku. He was often underestimated for his appearance due to his boyish voice, but over the past few years, he has been supporting, disciplining, and scolding Kagura, who tends to have a disorderly personal life together his skills have certainly gained recognition from those around him.

Hibiki's narrow eyebrows furrowed in discomfort as he continued to advise Jin.

"Lieutenant Kisaragi. Your actions have been nothing short of rash. We are in the middle of a civil war and you have been assigned to a war zone. One person's selfish act may cause an unexpected situation, and someone may lose their life because of it. I ask you to understand that very well."

"...I know that much."

"You don't understand!"

Hibiki’s words flamed Jin’s answer with a flat denial.

Jin looked at Hibiki, somewhat annoyed. Crossing his gaze, Kagura rose from his chair and walked over to the desk.

"Ah, don't get so worked up, Hibiki."

"But, Lord Kagura!"

"...Just for now."

Kagura waved his hand briefly at Hibiki, whose eye corners were lifted to ease the strength of his voice and then turned to Jin. Immediately after, Kagura's expression disappeared for a moment to which his fist struck Jin on the cheek.

There was no mercy in the dull sound.

Jin's head was shaken by the impact, but he kept frowning at the same angle without change. The edge of his lips was cut and something red oozed.

Hibiki looked slightly upset.

A tense silence descends in the room for a few seconds.

“I'll give you credit for not dodging."

As Kagura said grumbly, he walked back to his seat with a far from tense pace. He flumped into the chair deliberately and looked at Jin again.

"Tager, or better known as the Red Devil, has been pursued by the military authorities for quite some time now, but you just happened to show up during the capture mission. Because of that, the mission was ruined. Do you understand?"

Kagura said in a tone of voice that sounded more like a reminder than a condemnation.

Jin did not speak back, but instead raised his eyebrows slightly.

The countless people that he thought were surrounding him at that time seemed to be a unit of the Librarium organized for the capture of the red devil. It was certainly Jin's fault for wandering in unaware that this was the case.

Kagura smiled bitterly at Jin's expression. He had no intention of asking the blonde recruit in front of him for an apology or words of remorse here. He didn't believe there was any point to such things, and even without that, Jin's self-admonition would convey the meaning without words.

"Normally, this would be a court-martial, but this time I'll let you off with just one special punch. It seems like it was really just a coincidence."

However, Kagura continued as he erased his smile, placed his folded hands on the desk, then leaned forward. His strong-willed raised eyebrows were narrowed as if he was trying to look into Jin's inner heart through his purple gaze.

"This... wasn't like you. What's wrong?"

The relationship between Kagura and Jin is not a small one. Even before they were part of the Librarium as soldiers, their link through the Duodecim brought them together many times. For that reason, they were well aware of each other’s position, who were they as humans, and what sort of things their eyes have been exposed to.

Jin is a non-biological related son of the Kisaragi family, one of the Duodecim. He was taken in by the head of the family when he was very young.

Originally, the Kisaragi family did not place much importance on bloodline, and the more talented people were given important roles. Even so, it was unusual for someone like Jin to be recommended as the next head of the family despite being adopted. Just as there were many expectations for him, and allies by his side, he also has a lot of enemies and people who want to take advantage of him.

He was in such a dangerous position, but the fact that he left the discipline arbitrarily right after graduating from the military academy was a matter of concern that would affect the future of not only him but also the people around him.

Jin is well aware of that much, and Kagura also knew that.

“There's nothing in particular, to talk about.”

After a few seconds of silence, that was all Jin had to say in reply.

There was no way he could say that he felt something calling him. It was not only lacking in credibility, but also not a viable explanation.

Kagura would probably take him seriously, but he didn’t feel the need to dare to put it into words, because he couldn’t explain enough to deserve that seriousness.

Kagura gave a disgusted sigh and leaned heavily back in his chair, wondering to what extent he had foreseen.

“However, the guys in charge of the operation were amazed. Now they're all talking about you."

“I don't want to talk about it."

Jin interrupted Kagura, looking unhappy. Even if the red devil was interrupted by him, the fact remains that the operation was ruined. It was a complicated feeling to be evaluated on that basis.

“But who are these people?"

Feeling the need to change the subject, Jin suddenly looked behind Kagura.

It had been bothering him ever since he entered the room. At the back of the room, near the wall, away from the light coming in from the window, there were two unfamiliar figures. Both of them were completely covered by white capes and hoods, and even their personalities were hidden by white masks.

The mask with the single eyeball painted on it and the white uniform were known to most of the people belonging to the Librarium, along with their ominous two names.

Zeroth Squadron — “The Wings of Justice”... and the second rumored name was the Librarium’s "Garbage Disposal" squad.

It is a special unit that investigates and brings justice to traitors and dangerous people within the Librarium, but that's just the surface of the story. In reality, it is whispered that they are the ones who dispose of - in other words, assassinate - the rebels who rebel against the Librarium. Therefore, they are the "garbage disposal" squad.

"Oh.. As you can see, I've got two scary babysitters from headquarters. Good grief. I wonder what they are not pleased with regarding me, the example of irreproachable conduct..”

Looking back at the white outfit, which would raise the eyebrows of any guard who knew what it meant, Kagura shrugged his shoulders in an amused tone. Then, without a moment’s delay, sharp words from Hibiki flew.

“I would like you to look up the meaning of the word "irreproachable" right away.”

His manner was polite, but it didn't seem like something he would say to his immediate superior. When Jin glanced over at Hibiki, the boyish-looking second-in-command remained nonchalant and looked down at the documents at hand.

Kagura didn't seem to mind, and gave Jin a good-looking smile.

"Well, anyway. I'm glad you're here. I know you're leaving soon, but in the meantime, why don't you take it easy in Yabiko? I'll show you a good place to eat if you want."

Jin couldn't help but smile at the joking remark. Remembering the presence of Hibiki and the Zero Division standing silently behind him, he quickly pulled back and shook his head.

“I'll pass. I don't think you know the kind of store I prefer. Besides, Tsubaki will scold me if she finds out that I've been in and out of "irreproachable" stores.”

"Tsubaki... the daughter of the Yayoi family! She went to military school too, right? How is she doing?"

"Who knows. I haven't seen her since we graduated."

Kagura's delightful and lively question caused Jin to shake his head again.

Tsubaki Yayoi is the name of a girl born into the Yayoi family, anther one of the Duodecim families. For both Jin and Kagura, it was a name that they had known for over ten years.

"Yeah, right. Well, I guess so."

Kagura twisted his mouth bitterly and scratched his head.

It was as if the distant images of their childhood days were proof of the years they had spent together.

Regaining his composure, Kagura sat back down.

"Do you want a tour of our branch?"

"No need. I know where the quarters are."

Jin didn’t intend to rove around the branch, so he didn’t shake his head this time.

"I see. Then..."

Kagura took a short breath and stopped talking.

The necessary formalities had been completed and all the documents were in order, because Kagura had allowed it. He had let go of his formal attitude, but he couldn't just sit here and talk about private matters forever. This man in front of Jin is the commander-in-chief of the Librarium.

At least for the last time, Jin adjusted his posture formally.

“Excuse me, Colonel Mutsuki."

"Oh... Jin."

He raised his hand in response and then looked at Jin with a very serious face.

The purple eyes that turned straight seem to have strong resolve on something, and at the same time seemed to suffer from that something as well.

“Don't die so easily.”

It was an ill-omened farewell gift.

Jin turned his heel in silence, bowed once in front of the door, and walked out of Kagura's room.

Part 3

The long, red-carpeted corridor was empty and silent. 　 As he listened to the sound of his own footsteps, Jin stared blankly ahead.

Tomorrow is the battle. Even though he knew this, Jin's feelings did not tremble with elation or anxiety.

They were like the surface of a frozen lake that did not know the wind. The only thing he could do was to organize the necessary information in his mind.

He had received information about the war zone in advance and already read through it several times, but he should probably read through it again before he arrived. There was no way he would be able to live comfortably on a battlefield. He needed to rest up tonight and prepare for the harsh environment.

(Hm... I have nothing in particular to do. Let's get to the lodging house without delay.)

Jin was just going to do what he had to then would head to bed early. He didn't need to do anything else. He was going to the battlefield to fight, to win, to lose, or to die.

As he moved his legs steadily, some people appeared in front of Jin.

There were three of them. They were all wearing distinctive white costumes that concealed their true identities — the Wings of Justice.

Like the two in Kagura's office, they wore a long cape that covered their bodies, while their face was hidden by a deep hood and a one-eyed mask.

However, the first one was different.

She was wearing a white cape, which indicated that she belonged to the Zeroth Squadron, but her front was open, exposing the clothes she had put on underneath. There was no mask, and her bare face was exposed along with her long hair, which was tied up in two.

She was still young. She didn't look much older than Jin. However, it seems that her rank was higher than Jin's. It could be guessed from the design of the cape she wore, and most importantly, the way she proudly carried two subordinates while wearing her uniform.

Just before they passed each other, Jin moved to the end of the corridor himself, then stopped, made a slight salute, and let the woman from the Zeroth Squadron go ahead of him.

But just as she passed in front of Jin, the woman from the Zeroth Squadron stopped in her tracks.

A beat later, the two behind her also stopped.

The purpose was soon apparent. The woman in the lead looked back at Jin.

"Are you Lieutenant Jin Kisaragi?"

Along with her words, she caught Jin's gaze as if she was judging him.

It was not a pleasant look.

The woman who turned to him had a reasonably well-proportioned figure, and a seductive body that would excite any man, as could be seen from her clothing that clearly showed the unevenness of her body. The lips on her face expressed a gentle arc.

But her eyes were wrong.

Even though she had a soft expression, her eyes were cool and inorganic, as if they were glass beads inlaid with no flicker of emotion.

There was no emotion there, no emotion worthy of a smile. Jin felt as if he was being stared at by a doll.

“I heard the story. I heard that you defeated that red devil all by yourself.”

The woman stepped closer, watching Jin from head to toe with glass marble eyes.

He kept his mouth shut as he pulled his momentarily thrown gaze back to the front, Ignoring her. He didn't want to get into trouble by saying something he didn't want to.

However, it seemed that his intentions had leaked out from somewhere. Two members of the Zeroth Squadron, who were standing behind the woman, revealed their displeasure from beneath their masks.

"You, what's with your attitude!"

From the sound of his voice, he was a man underneath the mask. When the man stepped forward as if to grab her, the unmasked woman stopped him with her hand without even giving him a glance.

The woman's gaze slowly lowered, lighting a dull glow of interest in Jin's hand.

There was Jin's sword.

“Is that a Nox Nyctores?”

“That’s right.”

He didn't expect she would be able to guess at a glance without even having to pick it up.

Nox Nyctores are known to exist, but not many people know what they actually look like.

The unrest made Jin's mouth light up. Immediately after, he frowned at himself for reacting carelessly and clicked his tongue.

"Tch, you. Cut it or else..."

The masked men leaned forward again at the sound of his tongue.

But, interrupting the words of warning, a dull thud and crushing sound echoed low in the quiet hallway.

"Hey..."

"Colonel Lapislazuli...?"

The masked men were dismayed, even though their expressions were not visible. Against this backdrop, the woman called "Colonel Lapislazuli" smiled.

What she was looking at was a man-made dent right next to Jin's... face. The wall material was cracked and dented in a round shape, as if it had been struck with a tremendous force.

There, just a moment ago, was Jin's head.

Jin, who quickly swerved to the side was unharmed. This apparently amused her to no end. She chuckled and laughed.

“I'm impressed. You're just as good as they say you are. Good response."

As she said this, she reached out her hand casually. By the time Jin noticed the movement, it was too late and the woman's fingers caught Jin's chin.

Even though it looked like she was just resting her finger, somehow the force of her touch was even stronger than if he were to be forcefully grabbed with no chance for refusal.

He didn't have time to ask what she was going to do. Suddenly, a strong force pulled him closer, and the tip of the woman's tongue traced over Jin's mouth, tickling him away.

He noticed it immediately. It was his blood that she had licked off. The cut on the edge of his mouth from when Kagura had punched him earlier stung in discomfort.

While holding Jin's chin, the woman from the Zeroth Squadron whispered in a strangely seductive way.

"But this is the military. You'd better be careful how you talk and conduct yourself."

The voice was too disturbing for just a piece of mere advice. At the same time, she seemed to be enjoying it.

Jin vowed to ignore it this time. He kept his posture in the salute he had made and stared straight into the empty space.

Eventually, the woman's hand left Jin's chin. Gazing at Jin again, the woman shook her shoulders.

“Kukuku. You're an interesting man. I'm Meifang Lapislazuli, a colonel. It is reassuring to have a guard such as yourself joining the fight. At all costs, do your utmost for the sake of the Imperator.”

As she said this, her long hair fluttered silently, and the woman who called herself Meifang walked away. The destination must have been Kagura's office.

Looking at her white back as she walked away, Jin felt a hint of sympathy. It's a tough job to be a branch chief or commander-in-chief when you have to deal with people like that.

After watching out as the three shadows were sucked into the sunlight-melted corridor with a side glance. Jin turned around and left the place as quickly as he could.


After passing through the corridor, Jin arrived at the elevator hall of the Yabiko branch of the Novus Orbis Librarium.

Soft sunlight streamed in through the skylight on the high ceiling, filling the area with a clean beauty.

At the back of the atrium, a statue of a white goddess stood with a book open and a compassionate gaze on the world below. The polished pale floor was like a mirror even though many people came and went every day, and it seemed to glow faintly in the sunlight.

In the inner part of the circular hall, there stood statuses that imitated the goddess as one would expect. The goddess is a symbol of order. A world properly controlled by the right power. That is the philosophy of the Novus Orbis Librarium, and it is also a guideline that many guards, including Jin, are taught at the military academy.

The two elevators set up between the small statues of the goddess were Jin's way home.

A small figure who had been gazing at the stairwell wandered up to Jin, who headed straight for the door without a second glance.

"Lieutenant Jin Kisaragi, correct?"

It sounded like something he had heard just a moment ago.

But this time it was not a woman who approached him, but a man. He was probably a bit younger than Jin. A young boy you can call him.

There was the impression that he was from the same military academy as Jin. He wore the same blue uniform, and on his head he wore a blue beret, and looked up at Jin from underneath it.

It was someone Jin didn't know. Raising an eyebrow slightly, Jin cast a glance at the boy.

"Yeah, that’s right and who are you?"

“I'm so glad. I was told that you would come if I waited here, but you didn't show up at all, so I was afraid that I might have misunderstood.”

He let out a big breath and patted his chest exaggeratedly, then he hurriedly straightened his back and took a firm posture of salute.

"Nice to meet you, Lieutenant. I'm ──……──"

"Wait... what? What did you say...?"

Suddenly, the boy's words became inaudible, as if mixed with noise. Putting his hand to his ear to suppress the ringing in his ears, Jin frowned and asked.

The boy paused for a beat, then straightened up even more and answered.

"Yes, I am Corporal Honoka. I will be taking care of Lieutenant Kisaragi on the battlefield. Please make my acquaintance from now on!"

Despite his nervousness, Honoka said this with a smile on his face and a youthful, fresh tone of voice.

"Oh, yeah, ...right."

Jin just replied in an unhappy voice. His brow was naturally wrinkled.

The boy soldier, who called himself Honoka, was a valet, so to speak, provided by the Kisaragi family, the house where Jin grew up.

He repeatedly told them in advance that he didn't want any, but they apparently didn't take him up on that offer.

In the first place, it is customary for the people of the "Duodecim" - the aristocratic families with special power in the Librarium, including the Kisaragi family - to prepare a valet when they are appointed as officers.

For Jin, the Kisaragi family is the family that took him in as a child when he had nowhere else to go, and has taken care of him in every way. Even though he was being touted as the next head of the family, there was no way he could treat the family's arrangements with disrespect.

"Um, Lieutenant? If I may ask, are you unwell?"

Honoka peeked at Jin, who sank into silence and had a nervous look on his face.

Jin looked up with a gasp and shook his head lightly. It didn't matter to him whether he was a valet, a member of one of the Duodecim, his family background, or his upbringing, as long as he was on his way to war.

"No, it's nothing. I'm fine."

The tone of his voice was almost as if he was shouting at him, but he didn't care and walked to the elevator.

Honoka quickly followed and reached his arm out from under Jin's arm to press the switch for the elevator.

Soon, without a sound, the elevator arrived as if it were sliding into place. Jin got in, then Honoka, who was waiting for him, ran inside, where he operated the button.

Jin looked at him sideways. The way he followed him around was reminiscent of a puppy.

The boy probably didn't know much about the relationship between Jin and the Duodecim, nor did he know where he was going. That made him feel a little sorry for him.

(But I don't know anything about the war, either.)

Jin thought to himself as he watched the number of floors displayed on the elevator as it descended.

So far, Jin has only lived in the heavily guarded homes of the Duodecim families and the military academy, which is directly controlled and protected by the Librarium.

Growing up in a privileged family, he was used to situations where his life was threatened, but this was the first time he had actually been in a war zone.

Tomorrow, the landscape of Jin’s world would probably be completely altered.

But that still didn't shake Jin's heart. His place will change. That was all.

That's all there was to it.

Part 4

About a hundred years ago, humanity was on the verge of extinction.

A gigantic monster called the Black Beast, which may or may not even be a living thing, appeared and went around destroying cities, countries, lands, people and all life.

Mankind fought against the moving evil, "Black Beast" with many sacrifices, and eventually, the monster was defeated by six heroes.

However, the fallen monster left behind an evil souvenir for the world, seithr.

With the disappearance of the Black Beast, the black mist-like substance that erupted on the ground - the substance called "seithr" - spread to the world in large quantities, and has now become a natural part of the air.

Seithr has a profound effect on living things. It eats away at the body and causes the loss of logic and reason of this world. Wild animals that have been exposed to it for a long time become violent, deformed, and become what is called demons.

That's why humanity has built "Hierarchical Cities". In order to live away from the surface of the earth, where seithr accumulated. They built "Hierarchical Cities" by piling up several layers higher in places with high altitudes, such as mountainous areas.

However, seithr is not all bad. It is also the energy dust that fills the air with an inexhaustible supply.

Seithr has come to be used in a variety of technologies and power sources.

The flying ship that Jin is on right now, the "Ars Magus Vessel" also uses seithr in the air to propel it.

"Wooow, the scenery is finally starting to take shape.”

Honoka muttered in a relaxed voice, looking out the window surrounded by a dull golden frame.

Sitting in the front of the seat facing him, Jin, who had been thoroughly reading the materials about his new assignment, lifted his gaze for the first time in a long while at the sound of the boy's carefree voice.

The running view from the window had left the hierarchical city of Yabiko and had long crossed the wilderness, and before long it had passed over a deep green forest.

They were sailing at such a low altitude that the tips of the tall trees were about to scrape the bottom of the ship. The altitude of the ship, as if we were about to crash, made Jin feel a little uneasy.

“In any case, it would be unthinkable for a member of the Kisaragi family to be assigned to a place like this. I wonder why the big-wigs decided to do such a thing.”

As he stretched his neck to peer into the forest below, Honoka directed his words only at Jin.

“I don't know.”

Jin answered with only that, and returned his gaze to the document. 　 Noticing this, Honoka pulled his leaning body back and settled neatly into the seat.

“I know this may be unnecessary, but... were you okay with that Lieutenant Kisaragi?"

Jin thought that he would finally calm down, but he was still not satisfied with his answer. He seemed to be repeating himself until he answered, so Jin sighed lightly and looked up.

“I'm a guard of the Librarium. I obey orders. That's all."

“So you have no complaints?"

“No.”

In the first place, Jin entered the military academy in order to belong to the Novus Orbis Librarium which is both the government and the military. If he was dissatisfied with being assigned to the battlefield as a soldier, he was not doing himself any favors.

However, He didn't feel obligated to talk that much to Honoka. Jin ended the conversation with a few short words and went back to reading the documents silently.

However, the silence he had hoped for did not come.

"Ah!"

Suddenly, Honoka raised his voice. He wondered what was going on, and even though he was a little annoyed, Jin looked up again.

Honoka seemed to be preoccupied with looking out the window again. However, it wasn't the forest under the ship that he was focusing on.

"Look, Lieutenant. We're almost there."

The view outside the window, which Honoka was still gazing at without a sense of tension, but rather with a sense of enjoyment, wavered for a few seconds. The rainbow-colored light licked its way through the entire ship. It was as if they had walked into a soap bubble.

The scenery changed as they passed through the rainbow-colored light.

It used to be a dense forest with trees growing in every crevice, but now there was a clearing in the middle of it. Just a little while ago, it was invisible.

“Camouflage Ars Magus.”

In practice, it is an Ars Magus Art that makes people seem like that there nothing is there when there actually is.

Ars Magus was an Art developed during the same time when the Black Beast was running rampant, as were the Nox Nyctores Causality Weapon's. Although each person has different aptitudes, anyone can cause various phenomena by using a Grimoire. They can light fires, control the wind, create water, and make shapes out of clay. As a kind of pseudo-magic, it was widely used mainly within the Librarium.

The root of the problem was still the seithr. This area was very far away from the city and seithr was very thick. It is said that there were many demons that have been driven mad by seithr and were walking around.

In a place like this, it would not be difficult to maintain a large-scale camouflage Ars Magus.

“The reality in front of you is not always the truth, don’t you think so?”

Honoka muttered with a hint of amusement as he pulled his beret on his head and fixed it.

Jin only gave him a sideways glance, but didn't retort anything in particular.

A uniformed guard soon arrived and announced that they would be landing soon.

They could see that the altitude of the ship had dropped drastically. The ship landed in the forest as if it had been sucked in, and Jin and Honoka were freed from the long journey at low altitude.

Stepping down from the short steps that had been installed, they found the place to be much more cluttered than it had looked from above.

Surrounded by a crowded area of trees that looked more like a jungle than a forest, they found themselves in a bare space on the earth’s surface. Amidst the protruding rocks and sparse weeds, a number of tents were erected without a trace of neatness.

The tents themselves were provided by the Librarium, but they must have been collected from all over the place, so they were of varying sizes, ages, and degrees of dirtiness.

Around the tent, rugged-looking men and women in and out of Librarium uniforms came and went with weapons and materials in their hands.

It was a strange sight for Jin, who had grown up in a city for a long time, and in a well-managed environment at that. Of course, he knew from documents, books, and the news that these kinds of sites existed.

But he was reminded of how different it is to actually see something with your own eyes than to know about it indirectly.

The air was different. The heat was different.

The accumulated heat and the damp climate were uncomfortable and everything seemed to cling to his body. The smell of the trees and grass was so thick that it seemed to seep into his nerves.

Everything here contained so many things that stimulated the senses, such as temperature and smell, diminishing the reality that he was standing there.

The Ars Magus Vessel unloaded Jin, Honoka, and some of the supplies it had been carrying, and then quickly took off. It could not stay here for too long.

Honoka watched in amazement as the vehicle they had come in mercilessly drove away, his luggage clutched to his chest. He looked as if he had been left behind.

If he wouldn't have been a soldier of his own age, Jin would have been blatantly appalled, but he was a young soldier. So he felt a small amount of sympathy for the young soldier next to him.

“Let's go."

After calling out to him, Jin hung up his belongings and started walking. He was headed for the command tent at the far end of the base.

Honoka jumped up and chased in a hurry. He follows behind Jin as if he was trying to hide behind him.

"Aren’t we... being watched a lot?"

As he walked, clutching his bag tightly in both hands, Honoka looked around.

Jin replied shortly, keeping his gait steady and his eyes forward.

“That’s only natural.”

Word must have already reached the base that Jin would be assigned.

A male member of the Kisaragi family, one of the Duodecim families, is being sent from the headquarters of the Librarium. He had just recently graduated from the military academy, but he was given the rank of lieutenant.

As Jin and Honoka made their way through the clutter of tents to the back of the base, they were met with unreserved stares. Suspicious, quizzical, curious. It's hard to say they were all pleasant.

Jin was used to this. Ever since he was a child, he had been subjected to this kind of gaze.

But Honoka was probably not. Jin wondered if he should be concerned, but with a small movement, he looked over his shoulder, and surprisingly, Honoka seemed unconcerned.

"This is the... front line, isn't it? Moreover, it's the forward area of the front line. In addition, it is the only place where the Librarium side is currently outnumbered. It is said that this is the worst battleground in the world.”

Honoka regained his tone and opened his mouth without worrying about his surroundings and hiding his voice. Even though he was retracting his neck, Honoka didn’t seem to be aware that some of the gazes that were focused on the words of inferiority turned into an aggressive hue.

“I'm listening.”

Apparently, there was no need to worry about it. Jin walked on, inwardly admiring his unexpectedly thick nerves.

Honoka's voice followed him back.

“This is also part of the territory of the Ikaruga Federation, so the climate and familiarity with the land are better there, and the Ikaruga side has the advantage in terms of a geographical sense. On top of that, the visibility is so bad in the dense jungle that a small Ars Magus Vessel like the one we just saw can barely land here, and supplies can't be distributed. No matter how well-trained the soldiers of the Librarium are, they would have a hard time fighting.”

“...Looks like you've been studying hard."

"Mmm, yes. I've read the material many times."

He was half trying to be sarcastic, but Honoka seemed to take it as a compliment, and his voice bounced back.

Jin gently pressed his forehead so as not to be noticed. It wasn't the exhaustion of the trip that made him feel dizzy.

But indeed, as he said, he had read the documents carefully. What Honoka had said was the reality of this base itself, as Jin had also confirmed many times.

The worst battleground, forever forced to fight an uphill battle in the jungle.

In addition to the soldiers of the Librarium, many skilled mercenaries have also been deployed. This is why there were so many Beastkin and demi-humans with both human and beast-like characteristics in the base, which was rare among the soldiers of the Librarium.

“It's a tough place, but they say it's an important base, so they won't give it up easily."

Honoka said it like that were someone else's affairs.

Although he would be the one who will protect the base from today, it seems that he has not yet actually felt it.

But rather than that, Jin was distracted by something else he had said.

(Important? Here?)

His eyebrows naturally drew together.

It was clear from the documents that this was an important place, but he couldn't figure out why this place was so important.

Although it was located deep inside the Ikaruga Federation, there were no cities or war-related facilities nearby. Even if the Ikaruga Federation were to seize this forest, it would not pose a threat to the Librarium.

There should be more strategic places to focus on, whether it is offense or defense.

For some reason or other, he wasn’t satisfied. As Jin swallowed his frustration in the back of his throat, Honoka continued to talk.

“I wonder what an Ikaruga soldier looks like... I've never seen one in person, but I've heard rumors that they're incredibly strong. They're scary, aren't they?”

He peeked at Jin from behind.

Unintentionally, Jin sighed.

Honoka was a boy who talked a lot, despite his quiet demeanor, as he had sensed during the entire day's journey on the ship.

At first, he thought he was talking too much because of his nervousness and anxiety, but in the past few hours, Jin had changed his mind and thought that it was just his nature.

Jin didn't really hate talking to people. But he didn’t like the noise.

The thought of living with this boy in this land for a while filled his heart with a different kind of anxiety.

"It doesn't matter if they are scary or not. It's my mission to defeat the enemy here."

“That's true, but...”

Said Honoka said in a troubled tone, without realizing the meaning of Jin's sigh.

He was expecting him to start talking again, but he had just the excuse to shut up his talkative mouth. They had arrived at the biggest tent of all, the command center.

When Jin stopped, Honoka also stopped walking and talking.

Jin handed the papers announcing his assignment to the guard standing at the entrance of the tent, and one of them nimbly walked in. He waited for a moment, and then a thick man called out to him to enter.

The air inside the tent was stuffy and raw, and the smell of human sweat seeped into the air.

The air was raw and unpleasant, something you don't get in a hierarchical city where the temperature and climate are perfectly controlled. It was smelly and unsanitary.

In this atmosphere, the head of the base was sitting in a simple chair behind a desk with a map of the area spread out.

He was a man in his forties with a strong body. The muscles all over his body must have been trained to a certain degree, but he also had an equal amount of fat on top of that. Under his black mustache, his thick lips were twisted into a sarcastic grin.

From the high-handed glances he was giving to the people around him and the pompous manner in which he was slumped in his chair, Jin could see that he was the commander of this base and how he was behaving in it.

"I am Lieutenant Jin Kisaragi and I've been assigned here today."

Under the commander's coercive gaze, Jin straightened his back and said the greeting for his arrival that had been repeatedly drilled into him at the officer's school. Honoka followed as if in a hurry.

"Likewise, Corporal Honoka. I'm here as Lieutenant Kisaragi's valet."

"Oh. A valet."

The commander suddenly raised a thick eyebrow. He crossed his thick fingers on the desk.

“I've been told that Lieutenant Kisaragi is a new recruit fresh out of the military academy, but I didn't realize he was accompanied by a valet. ...Ah yeah, just as expected from the son of the Kisaragi family, one of the Duodecim.”

It was obviously sarcasm.

Honoka looked sideways at Jin, wondering if he had said something wrong.

It seemed deliberate. Jin sighed coldly inwardly. It was as if he had never heard of it before, but he had been informed in advance that Jin would be bringing a valet.

However, it was not necessary to think about how foolish it would be to argue here. Jin chose to remain silent.

The commander's eyes traveled back and forth over his entire body, as if he was assessing Jin, who had not moved a muscle.

“It seems that your rank is Lieutenant. I've heard that people from the Duodecim families are given the rank of lieutenant as soon as they graduate from the military academy, but I didn't know it was actually true. I'm sure you've got a lot to be "proud" of if you've been given a high rank and even a valet, and now you're assigned here. It’s probably “expected”. You've been sent all the way “on purpose” to the battlefield, where the casualties are extremely high..”

The commander's tongue slipped as he spoke, exaggerating his words in places. As he spoke, he flipped through the documents that Jin had just handed to the guards, looking at them as if he were not interested in them, and then tossed them on the desk.

"You'll be assigned to the ninth squad. The tents are numbered, so you'll have to find it yourself."

He waved his hand in the air as if to say go away.

It was clear that they were not welcome, and not just to the commander. The guards standing by the commander's side also glanced at Jin with a look of displeasure.

Indeed, it seemed to be a very uncomfortable base.

“Excuse me..."

He said this in a cold and simple voice, then turned around with lean movements. Just as he was about to head straight out of the tent, a voice called out to him from behind.

"──Welcome to Hell."

The hair on Jin’s neck stood up in horror at the eerie way the commander’s manner of speaking crawled up his feet. But although he stopped for a moment, Jin didn't look back and walked quickly out.

Part 5

Once outside, the smell of plants and soil that seemed to be coming from the dense forest put pressure on Jin. The heat that made Jin’s back sweat only made him feel uncomfortable, and even though it was almost time to call it an evening, the sun was still burning high above the ground, asserting its vicious presence.

While naturally raising his eyebrows, Jin made his way through the not-so-large encampment.

On the outskirts of the crowd of tents, somewhere between the encampment and the jungle, there was a khaki tent with the number nine written in large letters.

It seemed to be the tent for the ninth squadron they were assigned to.

No one bothered to offer to show him the way, so he walked into the tent he was looking for, passing the strange stares that were still pouring in.

He entered, and as soon as he did, Jin couldn't help but frown.

The first thing that struck him was the smell. The stench of earth, sweat, and blood.

The smell of the command center was also quite strong, but it was still much better than here and that alone made him keenly aware of the difference between the role of this place and the command center.

“Uu......"

When Jin heard a small groan, he looked over to see Honoka holding his mouth and nose. His face seemed to be pale. He was surprised that he hadn't jumped out of the tent and ran away.

Instead, the small boy soldier lets out a muffled grumble under his palm.

“We'll be sleeping... here, right?”

“That’s right.”

"A-are you serious?"

“ٍSerious or not. There are no other alternatives, or do you want to sleep in the middle of the jungle?”

“No. No!”

Honoka shook his head in panic.

Jin sent a single sigh at that.

The inside of the tent seemed to be more spacious than he had expected, probably because of the lack of useless things. There seemed to be two tents connected together inside, with a folding table and chairs in the front room and sleeping bags and simple bunk beds in the back room.

There were four soldiers inside.

All of them were wearing the uniforms of the Librarium in different ways, but from the atmosphere, he could tell that they were mercenaries hired for this war. At the very least, it was unlikely that they had attended the military academy from the primary level.

One of them was a woman. She and one other person had tanned skin, one had white skin and the last one was from the yellow race.

They were of different genders and skin colors, and they stared at Jin and Honoka with a quizzical look in their eyes.

They looked as if they wanted to say something, but Jin didn't feel the need to call out to them, so he turned away and walked to the back room.

There was a shelf near the bunk beds, and he could see that each of them had a bag that looked like their personal belongings pushed into it. He was going to put his luggage in the empty space there.

But before he could do so, a figure quickly stood in front of him.

“Wait."

With a sharp voice, Jin's path was blocked by the only female guard with brown skin.

Her slim, toned body was much smaller than Jin's, and she was probably on the smaller side of the average. She wore the uniform of the Librarium to keep herself light, and her shoulders and stomach were boldly exposed, revealing her dark, wild skin tone.

Her black hair was collected in particularly long and strong dreadlocks, and it was pulled up high in a unique way. The way she pulled it up made her eyes look even tighter than they already were.

Under her thick, strong-willed eyebrows, her mysterious indigo blue eyes reflected Jin's image without becoming overcast.

“Who said you could go in there without permission?”

Her piercing eyes were as big as a cat's. Jin looked back into her eyes with an indifferent expression.

“I've been assigned here. I have the right to use this tent."

"Assigned? Don't act like you're a full-fledged soldier already, even though you're a scion of the Duodecim."

The woman sniffed at Jin's nonchalant remark.

Jin raised his eyebrows slightly. The term "Duodecim" was handy because with just one word you can understand what she was complaining about.

The woman still glared at Jin with a sharp glint in her eye.

"I have no use for a new innocent well-bred recruit. Now get back to your mom and dad before you hurt yourself and get a scar on your beautiful face."

The woman lifted her peach-colored lips sarcastically.

Behind her, the other soldiers breathe mockingly, as if they were fed up. It's him who was being mocked. He can tell by their gazes and attitudes.

But this level of sarcasm and cynicism was adorable compared to what he had heard in the Kisaragi household so far. It wouldn't affect Jin now.

“You're not the one making the assignments, or do you think you're the captain here? If that's the case, then I can't just go home without a formal discharge order. If you have that authority, feel free to use it."

Jin's green eyes were cold, as he returned the blow without stuttering.

The woman's cheek flushed red, probably because of her anger at being scorned in front of her peers without knowing how to back up. She wagged her chubby lips and tried to find something to say to him.

But then another voice interrupted her.

"No, but I'm the captain."

Concomitantly with the voice, a dark shadow came from behind Jin. The shadow was so large that it completely swallowed Jin's shadow. Somewhat startled by its size, Jin looked back.

A large man with a rich mustache stood at the entrance of the tent.

It was a man with the most splendid physique.

His massive body looked as if it were clad in muscular armor and his broad shoulders would still be wider for the big man even if Jin and the brown-skinned woman stood side by side. His chest and belly were thick enough to hide Jin completely in the shadows, and his legs were as big as Jin’s torso.

Although not as inhuman as the red devil he encountered in the wilderness the other day, he was a man covered with flesh so well trained that Jin doubted a human skeleton could have any more muscles.

His head atop of his steel body was also big and squared, with short trimmed ash gray hair and a beard that surrounded his mouth, giving it an even tougher impression.

However, his bright green eyes, and the expression showing on his face, were taken in by his soft demeanor and his gentle amiability.

“Oh, that's a big guy...”

When Honoka blurted out an overly honest mutter, the big man gushed boldly, his thick chest rising and falling. Then, with a good-natured smile on his face, he held out his hand toward Jin.

"Captain Grimwood Huster, Captain of the Ninth Squad. She is my subordinate, Corporal Karenjina Parsett. Nice to meet you."

“My name is Lieutenant Jin Kisaragi. As of today, I have been assigned to this squad. I look forward to working with you."

Jin replied in a firm tone of voice.

Jin was momentarily lost in the proffered hand, but first he took a salute, then shook Captain Grimwood's hand as discreetly as possible.

Immediately, the captain squeezed Jin’s hand back with such strength that he felt as if he were trying to capture him.

Jin's shoulders jerked involuntarily.

Grimwood's smile remained cheerful and exuberant. After shaking hands firmly, he slapped Jin's back with his hand once, hard and with a bang.

SS1-2.png

“But I never thought that a member of the Kisaragi family would be assigned to a place like this. It seems that they 'like' you very much. What have you done to deserve this?"

He said jokingly and laughed gaily.

Looking up at the falling laughter, Jin did not move his expression and remained silent. But more than that, he was unsure of how to react when he dared to do so.

Grimwood's words were teasing, but there was a friendly "familiarity" about them. It was the first time he had been on this base.

Jin was used to sarcasm and irony, but he was not very good at this kind of thing. There were only a few times in his school days when he was not afraid to take a big step.

Without thinking, Jin looks at Karenjina and the others. The brown-skinned woman folded her arms in reluctance, while the other guards looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders.

They were unfazed. Grimwood must be this kind of person in general. He could smile and offer his hand to even the cockiest recruit who had just graduated from the academy.

Of course, Grimwood shook hands vigorously with Honoka, and also introduced the three guards who were smiling behind him.

It seems that the ninth squad was made up of seven members: Grimwood as captain, the three of them, Karenjina, and Jin and Honoka, who were assigned to the squad today.

“This tent is where we eat, get ready, and go to bed. As you can see, the back room is the bedroom. Pack your things there. Then go to-"

Grimwood then walked to the back of the tent to show them around, but his words were cut off before he could finish.

Suddenly, a siren wailed loudly.

Jin heard someone gasp and saw Karenjina look up like a guitar string that has popped. Grimwood let out a muffled moan and perspired his head, and after a single blink, his expression changed.

At that moment, something like a needle passed through the field.

It was not a thread of tension, but something far sharper and stronger. It was a kind of concentration and spirit that instantly tightens up what had been loose.

“Ninth squad, get ready! Time to work!"

Grimwood barked, his voice was thick and full of life.

“Yes, sir!"

As if in unison, Karenjina and the rest of the 9th squad took their weapons and ran out of the tent.

Jin followed, throwing away his personal belongings.

He must have been affected in no small way. Something like an electric shock ran through his body. He knew what was going on even without asking.

The sirens were repeating the same sound mechanically, signaling an emergency sortie and the approach of the enemy.

Chapter 2: Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa/ Laughing man

Part 1

In the midst of the gunfire, Jin hid behind the trees that filled the dense forest.

No matter which way he turned his head, whether he looked up or down, he could only see dense foliage, branches, trunks, and grass. The smell of earth was so thick that it was almost nauseating while there was no breeze to be felt at all.

It was terribly hard to hide his breath in this. The sweat on his forehead had never seemed so annoying.

After being prodded by the siren and shortly briefed on the enemy's formation, Jin ran into the forest under Grimwood's command.

He ran and stopped repeatedly, following the others, for what seemed like... over twenty minutes. There was a gunshot somewhere, and Jin knew that the battle had begun.

Grimwood immediately split the squad in two. The four soldiers, including Karenjina, went ahead. Grimwood, Jin, and Honoka stood by at this spot.

During the instructions, Karenjina kept her hands on the ground and listened intently. Eventually, she stood up and said…

“I can go.”

As if on cue, the advance team of the ninth squad dispersed into the forest.

Jin, who had been assigned to the waiting group, gripped the large pistol that had been provided to him, ready to attack at any time, and leaned his back against a thick tree trunk to focus on the sounds around him.

He didn't have time to get a detailed explanation of what kind of strategy the squad was going to take. The only thing he was told by the huge captain was that enemy soldiers were wandering into the area and that they should be defeated.

"...The enemy, do you think they'll come this way?"

At Jin's feet, Honoka, clutching his gun, which was also supplied to him, shrank in the shade of the overgrown grass, He peered hurriedly at the other side and then pulled his head back.

Taking one glance at it, Jin tilted his head shallowly.

“Who knows.”

He had meant to say, "Don't waste your breath," but it seemed that Honoka hadn't heard him anyways.

He peeked his head out once more, then quickly pulled it back and let out a long, yet very low sigh.

"Ah, I'm so nervous. I can't believe we're going to have a real fight as soon as we get here."

“That’s right.”

At first, he wanted to warn him about the private conversation, but all that escaped from Jin's mouth was a murmur of agreement.

Since they had come to a war zone, they were prepared to fight at any time, but they didn't expect it to start so suddenly.

It felt like reality was being thrown into their mouths one after another when they were not ready to swallow it. It was not a good feeling, by any means.

"Lieutenant Kisaragi."

"Ah!"

Honoka's voice hardened as he gasped for breath. Earlier, Jin had focused his consciousness sharply.

Grimwood raised his hand at face level as he disappeared into the jungle. Behind him were only Jin and Honoka.

His hand cleaved the sky. Forward.

Jin moved as if he were sliding. Immediately after that. A soldier with his muzzle pointed in the wrong direction came flying out of the forest ahead.

He was a soldier of the Ikaruga Federation.

Instantly judging the situation, Jin attacked the soldier who was about to turn around from behind. He grabbed the soldier's arm with his gun in his hand, twisted it, and threw him down on the ground. Without waiting for the soldier to breathe, he slammed the bottom of the gun into the base of the neck, causing the Ikaruga soldier to faint in a daze.

“Damn it, get out of here!"

"What the hell are they doing, where did they come from?!"

Panicked voices were heard from the front again and Ikaruga soldiers appeared one after another from behind the bushes. It was as if they were being chased by something.

When the four soldiers finally found Jin, they jumped out and hurriedly raised their guns. However, a large battle axe snatched all four of them in one fell swoop.

It was Grimwood who was swinging the big axe.

The battle axe, which was even taller than his large frame, had a large blade and took up a lot of space. But despite its apparent unsuitability for the dense jungle, Grimwood skillfully wielded it.

The long handle shot straight through the intervening vegetation and accurately struck an enemy soldier between the eyes at a distance.

An axe with a large blade can fell a tree as thick as Jin with a single swing.

Without letting his momentum get the better of him, he knocked down a poor enemy soldier who had jumped out of the bushes to the ground.

But it was the back of the axe that took the enemy soldier in one swipe, which saved Jin from getting the blood of the soldier blown up in front of him.

This was not for Jin's sake, but simply for the ease of fighting. In the forest, where footholds are poor, the scattering of flesh and blood is a hindrance.

"...It seems like he isn't just big muscled, huh?"

A few words of truthfulness spilled out of Jin's mouth.

Because of his rough appearance, he thought that he would be more of a rampaging fighter, but it seems that Grimwood was not that simple of a man.

Rather the opposite. While wielding his axe with gusto, he instantly judges from which direction the enemy soldiers are coming and prepares to intercept them.

And from the direction he had turned his attention, the enemy soldiers would indeed appear, as if they had escaped from somewhere.

(Escaped? No, wrong. We're being driven into a corner here.) Jin thought and before he even knew it, he prepared himself to follow Grimwood's sharp consciousness and steel up for the enemy soldiers.

The ones who were driving the enemy soldiers back are undoubtedly Karenjina and the others who were ahead of them. They spotted the enemy troops, disrupted them, and led them to the rear where Jin and Grimwood were.

It was Grimwood who commanded them and gave them detailed instructions. Occasionally, he would glance into the distance or raise his axe as a signal to Karenjina and the others.

While firing bullets from behind the bushes at the enemy soldiers who reappeared, Jin looked sideways at Grimwood.

He was a rugged man for whom the battlefield suited him well. However, his weapon was not his well built body or the axe he wielded with his strong arm, but his excellent leadership, flexible grasp of the battle situation, and precise instructions.

(This is like a hunt.)

Jin thought, and strongly convinced himself.

That's right. This was a hunt.

Unleashed hounds find their prey and drive them away, while their masters wait and kill them.

But in order to do that, you need a good commander who can give precise instructions to the troops, a good sense of direction that keeps you on track even in the forest, and the sense of smell of a beast that can find its prey.

Jin wondered if that's what Grimwood and his team were carrying as a whole squad.

Suddenly, Jin remembered. The ninth squad of this base is sometimes called the Hound Squad. This may have originated from their fighting style.

(But how is that even possible?)

When Grimwood gave him a look, Jin turned and pointed his gun at him. Three Ikaruga soldiers appeared ahead of him, and without a moment's hesitation, Jin shot the first one in the shoulder.

He closed the distance between them and kicked the first one in the side of the head, knocking him into a coma. Then, he immediately switched to his gun and hit the second one in the face with the bottom of the gun, followed by a knee to the stomach.

"Damn... it..."

The third person finally understood what was going on and raised the muzzle of his gun. Jin kicked him in the arm and elbowed him in the chest. After firing a few more bullets, the soldiers were all stretched out on the grassy ground.

“Not bad.”

Grimwood chuckled a little further away. Jin returned a cool glance.

That was Jin’s line, too. Before he knew it, there were three new soldiers lying at Grimwood's feet.

His skill was unquestionable. In addition, he had an excellent ability to command his men. He was not stupid.

Karenjina and the others under her seemed to be quite useful soldiers, as they were able to disperse the enemy soldiers and guide them to here.

So why is it that this frontline base is struggling to the point of being called the "worst" while having troops like them that can be called "excellent" without question? Jin wondered.

In fact, even now, the battle situation was clearly in their favor. Ikaruga’s soldiers have already lost all semblance of control and there was no such thing as a formation.

If Grimwood and his men were so inclined, they could toss around soldiers of this caliber and take over this jungle and push the front line to the stronghold beyond.

(So why don't we do that...?)

Either the other troops are blindingly incompetent or there is a secret about Ikaruga that Jin has yet to see.

Otherwise, there is a more different reason.

He was tracing the barrel of an unfamiliar gun with his gloved finger.

From his side of the line, he heard a strange rhythmic sound of gunfire. It sounded like a joke for a gunfight. Jin looked up to see what was going on, and Grimwood lowered his axe at almost the same time.

"It's about time. All right, let's get out of here."

"Wh-what?"

Grimwood's words, as he lowered his broad shoulders, caused Honoka to roll out of the bushes in dismay.

“By "retreat," you mean withdraw, right? Why is that? I've already gone through so much trouble today and now this~..."

It looked like they were going to win. Although they faltered and broke off, Honoka's words were clear.

Jin also looked at his large superior with a puzzled expression on his face.

Grimwood placed the blade of his axe down on the ground like a staff and leaned against it, his lips hanging up in a smile. It was a wry smile.

“This is our 'job'.”

“What's that supposed to mean?"

It was Jin who asked the question. He didn't know what Grimwood's smile meant, nor did he know what the words meant.

"We're also known as the Hound Squad. Have you heard of us?"

“Yes.”

"As the name suggests, we are 'hounds'. We find our prey, drive them away and then let our superiors (alternatively 'masters') 'hunt' them."

While Grimwood was talking, Karenjina and the others came back from the deep forest. They were much dirtier than when they had left, with small scratches here and there, but none of them seemed to have any life-threatening injuries.

After confirming that his men were safe, Grimwood nodded his head.

“Let's go back then. Job's done."

A rough voice was heard from the center of the allies, so that it might have been mistaken for his words.

“Go, go! Ikaruga’s soldiers are nothing to be afraid of, kick them all to the curb!"

It was the voice of that commander.

Through the trees, He could be seen charging straight into the enemy line with many of his men, making his presence known to the enemy in the dense jungle where visibility was poor for better or worse.

The soldiers surrounding him had a somewhat different atmosphere than Grimwood and the others. They were more unfamiliar with the battlefield, and smelled like the well-behaved and well-mannered guards of the Librarium headquarters that Jin had seen every day until a short while ago.

They charged into the enemy lines, which had already been thrown into chaos by Grimwood and the others, and began to "hunt" the remaining Ikaruga soldiers with loud gunfire.

"...So that's how it works."

As expected, Jin understood. He could feel his emotions cooling down.

In other words, this is a battlefield, but it is also a hunting ground.

The guards of the Librarium were originally born into respectable families and were treated with a certain amount of favor. They may be relatives of political executives or of aristocratic lineage. It was a hunting grounds for those who go into battle as guards in order to acquire the prey of victory.

The skirmishes never connect to a decisive victory because they are wreaked by "superiors" who don't know or understand war very well.

But as long as this is a hunting ground, it must continue to be a battlefield that is exposed to moderate danger.

So this is war. The "worst" front?

(Trash...)

(Is this what I came here for? I came here to be a dog that chases down its prey for the sake of "masters" who mistakenly thinks it is something special.)

The thought of the head of the Mutsuki family, who had taken on more responsibility than anyone else for this war and was probably still busy in his office or somewhere else, flashed through Jin’s mind.

Did he know about this reality? Did he send Jin away knowing this? If he did, what were his feelings about it?

But, at the end.

“...it doesn't really matter."

Jin muttered in a faint voice that no one could hear.

He didn’t care what kind of place this is or how many petty pretensions and agendas it's infested with. It didn’t matter who dies and who survives for it.

With that in mind, he shouldered his gun.

And then... came the moment.

Suddenly, there was an explosion in the forest.

“Wh-what happened!?”

Honoka shouted in a voice that was raised in surprise.

The area was shaken by the aftermath of the explosion and orange flames shot up in a corner of the forest.

Some kind of scream echoed through the jungle. It was not a human voice. This was a howl... the howl of a "Seithr Beast".

"There they go again, those idiots!"

Looking back at the roar, Grimwood's voice rang out in anger, but his anger was not directed at anyone here. It wasn’t known who it was directed at.

But more than that, Jin gasped at the unpleasant presence. When he sensed the unfolding of an unknown Ars Magus around the roar and flame, he rushed out at full speed.

“Hey, wait!”

Grimwood and the others wanted to stop him, but the voice of restraint was already out of Jin's consciousness.

He shook off the thin branches sticking out of the ground, roughly shoveled through the thick grass and headed straight for that presence.

It took a few dozen seconds. After passing through the ivy-covered and crooked trees, Jin shook off the bushes and jumped out of the way, only to see the soldiers looking up at him, speechless, and inching backwards.

It was the uniform of the Librarium.

Kicking the dirt again, Jin turned to meet their gaze.

"Gaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!"

The roar of that Seithr Beast came from right in front of him. The owner of the voice painted with destructive intent, which a human throat could not possibly emit, was a giant whose entire body was made of rock.

Its height was still less than two Grimwoods combined. The huge demonic beast, with its eyeless and noseless face, was looking around from side to side and rampaging, reaping trees and people at random.

There was no longer any distinction between friend and foe.

The Ars Magus that Jin had sensed earlier had probably been used to summon or manipulate this giant, however, it had already escaped the control of said Ars Magus and was no longer capable of making decisions on its own, but only of reaping and crushing those around it.

Someone was crushed by the rock fist that swung down. One of them, covered in spattered blood, screamed insanely and fled into the forest.

With that, everyone scattered and ran away, shouting something incomprehensible.

There was not a shred of 'order' or 'leadership' in it.

Some of them ran without thinking and collided with someone they didn't know and fell down, only to be crushed to death by the giant.

The sound of flesh crushing flesh was drowned out by the horrible screams and helpless gunfire.

“Jin, are you okay?”

Grimwood and the others caught up with him, scrambling through the bushes behind Jin.

But as soon as they realized what was going on, they both stood back.

“I've never seen a Seithr Beast like this before in this forest!”

Karenjina’s voice was strained and disconcerted. As Grimwood held his ax up to protect his men, his face twisted into a bitter, grim expression.

"This one... we are not going to be able to handle it with our current equipment. We'll have to retreat and join up with the main force."

It would certainly be difficult to take on this guy with bullets or an axe. Grimwood's judgment was spot on. With that in mind, Jin stepped forward, interrupting Grimwood's words.

“Hey, back off, Jin!"

Grimwood reached out to stall him, but the sliding Jin slipped through his fingers and stopped in front of the giant.

The rock giant was still surrounded by the hapless figures of soldiers who had failed to escape. Keeping them at the edge of his vision, Jin threw away the gun in his hand.

A clatter with a frivolous sound bounced off the dirt.

"Ji-!"

Grimwood's impatient voice was absorbed and faded from Jin's consciousness.

Standing quietly, Jin lowered the sword he had been carrying on his back. A blue scabbard with a green handle. He held it horizontally in front of him, looking straight at the giant and gripped both handle and scabbard firmly.

The air was cold.

The forest was so hot that if you just stood still, you would sweat instantly, but as if the scene had changed completely, cold air flowed in from somewhere and spread.

At the center of the coldness was Jin.

Or, more accurately, the sword he held.

The air grew even colder.

Still, even more.

It was as sharp and cold as the edge of a sharpened blade and it surrounded Jin and the rock giant.

—Kill

There was a whisper in Jin's mind.

It is like a voice but not really a voice actually, like a will that is not a will actually.

It was like a vibration, a tremor of something dark that was born and lit deep in his chest.

Gradually, it began to circulate through Jin's bloodstream. As he savored the sensation of it spreading, Jin glared coldly at the rock giant.

Seithr Beasts are beings that are made and affected through seithr and this giant was summoned by an Ars Magus that uses seithr as its medium.

Jin's neck muscles buzzed with the presence of the dense seithr swirling around inside his huge body.

—Kill, Kill...

—Kill, Kill, Kill, Kill, Kill, Kill, Kill.

——Kill it.

The moving boulder swung its misshapen arms high in the air. The faceless head looked down with an eyeless gaze at Jin, who remained motionless with his sword at the ready.

I thought I heard someone shouting.

I wonder who it was. Was it... the voice of my brother, who I had parted from in death on a distant childhood day?

No way. He's dead. He was murdered.

Then what are these voices? It was noisy. It resembled the moaning of a beast.

(Shut up! Be quiet! Stop interrupting me!)

Jin exhaled. It was an icy cold breath.

The wind roared overhead. The giant swung their arms down in unison.

He looked up at that.

“Activate, Yukianesa.”

The moment Jin whispered the words, everything froze.

In accordance with the words, the freezing began to take root. The ground that Jin stepped on, the grass that surrounded him. The tree beside him, the ivy running through it, and the rock giant who was about to swing his fist down at Jin.

After a beat, a cool sound like hitting ice was heard.

Immediately, the giant's body split into four pieces and fell to the ground. It was as if it had been slashed crosswise with a very sharp blade.

The blade was none other than the sword that Jin was carrying. However, no one present could see the moment when Jin pulled out his sword.

It was all over in a blink of an eye.

“What the hell was that...?"

Karenjina muttered in a stunned voice as she was dumbfounded

It was Honoka, who had retrieved the gun that Jin had thrown away.

“It’s a Nox Nyctores. Nox Nyctores Causality Weapon: Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa.”

Honoka's voice trembled with joy and his cheeks were pale with elation.

Beside him, Grimwood was staring desperately at the unbelievable reality.

"That's the Nox Nyctores... It really exists...?"

Karenjina’s agitation, Honoka's excitement, and Grimwood's astonishment did not reach Jin's ears.

The blond-haired recruit, who had slashed and discarded the giant in an instant, lowered his sword in its cold blue scabbard and quietly turned on his heel.

Before he knew it, the sky had taken on the color of dusk. In the distant sky, a small star twinkled dimly, as if it were a piece of scattered ice that stuck to the sky.

Part 2

The inside of the tent was filled with shadows. The result of the light from a lantern on the desk was kept to a minimum, and the subdued light directed in all directions cast black shadows all around the tent walls.

In the small light of the lamp, a man sitting on a chair laughed, and the shadows on the tent wall also laughed.

“More than anything, it went well.”

"Yes, sir. There was no problem in activating the Nox Nyctores. We've confirmed that it was activated successfully."

There were two men in the tent.

One was a middle-aged man with a broad belly on his belt, the commander of a battalion of the Novus Orbis Librarium which was camped in the jungle of the Ikaruga Federation.

The other was a slender young man, wearing a black suit, black hat, with green hair and a thin smile on his mouth.

“So. It was more than planned... or is it on schedule? That's Jin-Kisaragi for you."

It was the general commander who sat on the chair and talked pompously.

“But it's really powerful, this Nox Nyctores thing. To conquer and bury that many beasts. I'm looking forward to the day when it’s put to practice as a real weapon.”

“I couldn’t agree more. Thanks to you, the data collection is going well. Thank you very much for your cooperation.”

The words of a man in a black suit, which sounds exaggerated, seem to be comforting for the battalion commander. He was very pleased with the attitude of the other person, who was overly abasing himself.

With a scheming look on his face, the battalion commander smiled greedily.

The man in the suit looked at it from behind his hat and smiled.

Part 3

Jin, Grimwood and the others returned to the base just before the sun went down and the forest was enclosed in darkness.

Here and there in the base, generators powered by seithr were working with a low hum, providing minimal lighting to the tents and serving areas. The iron frames that held the dirty white light bulbs were quite rusty from exposure to the wind and rain and looked as if they had been here for years.

Jin and the others returned to their tents, receiving thanks and praise from the fleeting soldiers who had escaped with them, and even more gratitude and praise from their comrades who had heard their stories after that.

Feeling a little fed up with the different welcoming mood from when he arrived, Jin ducked into the dark and quiet tent and turned on the white light.

As he took off his gloves, which were stained with dirt and blood from the enemy soldiers, he thought he could finally take a break, but this time Jin was met with compliments from the soldiers of the 9th squad.

"That was amazing earlier, Lieutenant Kisaragi!"

As soon as he put down his gun, one of the soldiers ran up to him with a glow on his face and a hint of excitement, but then another one grabbed Jin's shoulder with a friendly smile, a far cry from the daytime.

"I've never seen such a powerful Ars Magus before ...I apologize for having been so rude."

"...No, You don’t need to worry about it. And besides, I was helped a lot by your leader a while ago. It's thanks to you all that I came back mostly unscathed from my first battle."

It was uncomfortable to suddenly be praised openly. The words came out as a way to gloss over the issue, but what Jin said was the undeniable truth.

Grimwood's troops were excellent. In a battlefield where you never know what tomorrow will bring, Jin thought he may have been lucky to be assigned here.

The two soldiers who spoke to him smiled tantalizingly and shook their heads.

“No, it's my pleasure. It's very encouraging to have someone like Lieutenant Kisaragi as the captain's adjutant."

“Adjutant?”

Jin couldn't help but ask back at the unexpected appearance of the word.

This made the soldiers roll their eyes rather puzzledly.

“After Captain Grimwood, the next highest in rank is you, Lieutenant Kisaragi. Wouldn't that be obvious?"

The other soldier, who had been fiddling with his gun a little off to the side as if something was bothering him, looked up and said.

“Now that you mention it, that’s right.”

Jin was less impressed and more convinced.

He hadn't paid much attention to their ranks because he wasn't interested in them, but as he recalled, Karenjina said she was a corporal. He didn’t remember asking the other three what their ranks were, but if they didn't say, it must mean that they were lower than Karenjina.

(So that's what it means.)

Jin looked at Karenjina, who was untying her equipment.

Perhaps she was also concerned about this, and soon their eyes collided. Karenjina frowned in a sullen manner and turned away.

“I'm going to wash my face.”

She spoke that over her shoulder, then quickly got out of the tent.

Grimwood arrived at the same time.

"Oh, the food's ready. Make sure you eat well after you get some rest."

As he spoke, he placed his favorite weapon, the large axe, in a corner of the tent. Jin walked up to it.

"Grimwood. There's something we need to talk about..."

The slight hush in his voice was to let him know that it was a confidential conversation. Grimwood immediately sensed this and looked at the back of the tent.

“Do you want to go inside?”

“No, preferably..."

He wanted to get rid of all eyes except for Grimwood. This time, the soldiers sensed his intentions and emptied the tent so that they could eat dinner. If this flexibility was also a tribute to his earlier achievements, then it was worth to defeat that rock giant.

The entrance to the tent that had been shoveled closed back up with a heavy thud and they waited for the outgoing soldiers to leave for a good minute.

In the meantime, Grimwood sank his strong body into a simple chair.

The tents assigned to each of the squads were too spacious for two people to occupy, no matter how big they were. A lonely ambiance hanged in the air.

“I told the commanding officer to gloss over the earlier matter.”

“Is that so? Thanks, that saves me some trouble.”

Jin replied briefly to Grimwood's words. The case in question was Yukianesa. As the name implied, a Nox Nyctores is a unique weapon. It was not a good idea for anyone to know that a new recruit was carrying one. Jin asked him to keep it under wraps and Grimwood said he understood and will assume responsibility for it.

But Jin's talk was a different topic.

There was no one in the vicinity of the tent. After looking around him once more, Jin placed a hidden object in front of Grimwood.

It was a stone block half the size of Jin's face. A yellowish-gray stone with fine black sand in it. Grimwood could see what it was at a glance.

“Is this a piece of the giant from earlier?”

“Yes.”

“How did you get this...?”

He looked down at the lump of stone lying on the table.

"This was created by a non-Librarium Ars Magus."

Ars Magus is a kind of artificially created form magic that uses seithr to create various phenomena. In order to activate it, you need to have an aptitude for it, as well as something called a "Grimoire".

It is also the Librarium that gathers and manages the countless number of Grimoires in one place. The number of Grimoires managed by the Librarium is enormous and for this reason, it is sometimes sarcastically referred to as thr "Library" by rival organizations such as Sector Seven.

In other words, most of the Ars Magus in the world are under the control of the Librarium.

The fact that other Ars Magus are being used in the civil war suggests the possibility that Ars Magus are being developed somewhere that is not under the control of the Librarium. There is a fear that the technology of Ars Magus owned by the Librarium may have been leaked, or one can imagine a more sinister scheme.

With all this in mind, Jin turned his sharp gaze to Grimwood.

"When you first heard the explosion, you said 'those idiots'. What did you mean by that?"

It wouldn't make any sense to try to trick this guy or probe him in a roundabout way. It would only put him on unnecessary alert. Determining that, Jin asked the question too directly and straightforwardly.

“...You are indeed the owner of a Nox Nyctores."

His mouth twisted into an indescribable shape that was both bitter and amusing, then Grimwood grabbed the stone block that Jin had placed infront of him.

Suddenly, he put a lot of strength into his hand and crushed the lump of stone as if it were a glass ball. He had a tremendous grip.

“It seems that Mr. Commander was not aware of the Nox Nyctores... am I right? Jin, 'who' is the one who sent you here?"

The way he shrugged his shoulders caught Jin's attention. It was as if he had found something he shouldn't have.

Jin scowled. If Grimwood knew 'who' sent him here, then would it be inconvenient for him?

"I'm the one asking the questions. Answer it."

He said as if he was thrusting words at him.

Instead of answering, Grimwood dropped his gaze. He opened his stone-crushing hand lightly and fragments of sand spilled from between his fingers onto the desk.

Grimwood did not answer. The silence clearly meant that there were some circumstances.

Should he have asked again? Just as Jin was about to open his mouth, the cloth at the entrance of the tent was pulled open.

“Grimwood. There's a transmission for you from Yabiko.”

The one who got inside was Karenjina, the petite woman with brown skin and dreadlocks. Grimwood immediately stood up.

"Yabiko. Okay."

Jin chased after him, his voice slightly hoarse, as he made his way out of the tent without hesitation.

“Wait, we're still talking!”

"Headquarters's on the line. Do not interfere."

Quickly turning around, Karenjina blocked Jin's path.

As he was leaving the tent, he thought he saw Grimwood looking at him for a moment, but in the end, the muscule packed captain left without saying a word.

The heavy cloth at the entrance came down, and now Jin was left alone in the tent with Karenjina.

Grimwood's heavy footsteps moved further away.

As he listened, Jin glared at Karenjina, who looked up at him as if she was looking down at something annoying.

Looking back at the cold ice green eyes undauntedly, Karenzina lifted the edge of her lips sarcastically.

"That Art you just used. Is that the 'Nox Nyctores'?"

She said, somewhat mockingly. Her hands rested on her smoothly curved hips, her eyes fixed on the pale scabbard in Jin's hand. She gave him a depreciating look.

"You've brought in some pretty extravagant stuff, but using a person from the Duodecim... It seems even a privileged family like the Kisaragi family can be used as 'guinea pigs'.”

"Guinea pigs? What are you talking about?"

He didn't know what Karenjina was talking about. When Jin frowned and clouded his voice with doubt, Karenjina raised her eyebrows up in mockery.

"Didn't you realize it yet? What a pity. You're just like those noblemen around here who flaunt their great power conceitedly."

“I don’t understand what you are getting at. What are you trying to say?"

There was a dark feeling of pent-up resentment in the way Karenjina spat out her words at him.

He well understood the fact that she was accusing him of being a member of a prestigious family and she made it clear that she felt ill will towards people of that kind. However, just because of that, it doesn’t mean Jin could just be convinced with her taking it out on him as an individual. That was a different matter.

“The lab animals are getting high and mighty is what I am saying. It's really annoying that they're forcing their 'nuisance' onto our troops."

Saying this as if spitting it out from the bottom of her heart, Karenjina glared at Jin without hiding her aggressive tone.

It was not even a matter of shunting. He was no different than being directly accused of being an abomination.

Jin was not so gentle as to try to keep a calm attitude after being told so much. He was going to let some of it slide, but it was frankly unpleasant for him to have to go on like this forever.

“You seem to be trying to irritate me, which is annoying. If you don't like me, that's fine. Don't talk to me."

"How can a recruit be so high and mighty? Are you saying that the Duodecim are more important than a bunch of rogue mercenaries? Or do you already feel like a superior?"

“I don't mean to, but I'm not going to play along with your paranoia either. Are you really that unhappy that you were forced out of your position as second-in-command? If you don't want to be despised as a mercenary, you should learn a little more about the military organization.”

"Wha-!?"

Karenjina raised her voice, her dark skin flushed with red. She took a big step forward and tried to grab Jin's chest, but just as she was about to do so, a different hand reached out from her side and pulled her away.

"Hey, hey, hey. You two need to calm down."

It was Honoka who half-heartedly and forcefully stepped in between Jin and Karenjina, who were staring at each other. Jin didn’t know where he’d been before and come to think of it, he couldn’t find him until now. As he pushed the chests of his two superiors apart until they were barely out of reach, Honoka looked from side to side and smiled wryly.

“You can't have a fight on base. We're all in the same squad after all, right?”

Honoka, while repeating the last bit many times over, tried desperately to persuade the immature adults to calm down. Jin had no choice but to put his unsettled emotions in check when that boy, who was probably much younger than him, said that.

Karenjina seemed to think the same way and with a bitter expression on her face, she reluctantly stepped aside.

“It's not like we were fighting."

She said this in an attempt to disguise her lack of decorum, her arms crossed as if she was holding her taut chest.

Sighing, Karenjina slipped past Honoka with a supple gesture, then headed for the place where Grimwood had been a moment ago. She stopped in front of a chair and looked down at the pile of sand and pebbles scattered on the table.

It was the remnants of the stone that Grimwood had crushed moments ago.

“...You were asking the Captain about this earlier if I recall correctly?"

Unclasping her crossed arms, Karenjina softly spoke up.

Her voice was quiet. She looked down at the small pile of sand with an indifferent gaze and dug her finger into it, taking a scoop in the palm of her hand.

"This is some experimental Ars Magus."

The sand spilled from Karenjina's hands and fell again onto the table. Jin's eyes blinked. It was just as he thought. Hearing the faint sound of his breathing, Karenjina turned around with a thin smile on her face.

“You're not so stupid after all."

She said that with a girlish softness, rather than the stiff, masculine voice of a soldier. This must have been the real tone of Karenjina's voice. It was a throbbing voice that suited her well.

"I don't know how they make Seithr Beasts, but the Librarium gives it to “them” as new weapons. To the stupid nobles, to specific."

Said Karenjina, who had stopped behaving in her stiff demeanor,as she crumbled the pile of sand with her fingers. With a cold glare, she flicked a small piece of the stone with her fingertips and rolled it around as if this object holds height to her.

"Those fools use it with glee. They think they're the chosen ones, without thinking about how dangerous what they've been given is."

The nobel people who were born and raised in this area come here on a regular basis to take advantage of the hunting grounds, to build up their military prowess. Without merit, there is no promotion. So if they were given special weapons for that purpose, who wouldn't use them on the battlefield? After all, they are coming to this base to earn merit. In the first place, those who truly want to participate in the war as soldiers and fight for the Librarium are the troops that will be sent to a more proper battlefield.

“Of course, there are times when the new weapon will produce unexpected results, but most of the time it doesn't. Sometimes it'll just kill lots of people and other times it's..."

"...taken by the enemy."

A murmur spontaneously escaped from Jin's mouth as he scooped up the muddled end of Karenjina's words.

Karenjina didn’t say anything, but her closed lips spoke affirmation.

Subconsciously, Jin clicked his tongue.

“Just as I expected, that giant was originally an Ars belonging to the Librarium, wasn’t it? But, It was used by the Ikaruga Federation...”

As a result, the rock giant summoned by the unofficial Ars Magus lost control and went berserk.

Perhaps one of the several bright red blotches on the ground at that time was the casters who had summoned the giant. Whatever the actual situation was, the fact of the matter lied in how more than a few people had died in vain thanks to that annoying "new weapon".

Karenjina brushed the sand off her fingertips and leaned over the table.

"The Library and Ikaruga guys are both the same. They don't give a damn about human life."

She must have encountered scenes like today's one many times. Probably the other soldiers of the 9th squad, and Grimwood as well.

"This is not a 'battlefield'. It's a 'testing ground' for those idiots."

There are enemies, there are allies and there are reasons to fight. There is no better place than the lively battlefield to test a large-scale new weapon such as new Ars Magus. It is also a good place to get data on the actual situation, to see how much damage the weapon will cause to the enemy and the allies.

(So this will continue to be the "worst" battlefield with no progress or retreat?)

It was a hunting ground for noblemen to earn achievements and a testing ground to measure the results of weapons development.

Therefore, no matter how hard you fight, the war situation will not move. There is no need to move it. In fact, it is "meaningless" if it is moved. Jin gripped the scabbard of Yukianesa in his hand tightly to the point it could break if it were a normal scabbard.

(Then why was I assigned here?) Jin asked himself.

At least it was not to change the situation at this base. They were not expected to be a force to be reckoned with in order to win the battle and push deeper into Ikaruga.

If that is the case.

(...Yukianesa.)

Finally, Jin understood what Karenjina meant by "guinea pig" earlier.

It is not Jin himself who was being sought after. It is Yukianesa, Jin's personal possession.

The purpose of this research was to find out how powerful the Nox Nyctores sword would be on the battlefield, and whether it would be able to withstand actual use as a weapon. Jin guessed the purpose was to investigate such things.

That's why Jin was sent to the "testing ground" instead of the "battlefield. That was probably, no, that was the reason.

Jin chewed on his lips in secret. He felt a lingering twinge of annoyance.

He hadn't originally intended to stand on the battlefield for anything. Jin hadn't become a soldier for the sake of the Librarium, nor for a sense of righteous indignation and definitely not for justice, but because the Kisaragi family, who raised him, demanded it.

So he had no intention of playing a leading role in dramatically changing the situation of the civil war. But he didn’t want to be made into a clown playing a farce. More importantly, he was uncomfortable with the idea that someone unknown would be using this sword.

“Anyway, I don't want to die 'cus I'm caught up in your aristocratic complacency. Just remember that."

Once again, with hostility and rejection in her voice and eyes, Karenjina said in a biting tone.

Jin remained silent, but stared back at the brown-skinned female mercenary with an unsettling look in his eyes. The information he was able to get out of her was useful, but that doesn't mean he was going to accept this attitude. In between Karenjina and Jin, who were once again creaking the air, Honoka dropped his shoulders and sighed like he was fed up.

"Now, now. Corporal Karenjina Parsett, I'll pretend that I didn't hear you say anything 'rebellious' against the Librarium, so why don't we make up now?”

Honoka may have meant to soothe the situation, but his comment was even more offensive to Karenjina. The word "rebellious" was particularly wrong.

Karenjina, who steeply lifted the corners of her eyes, glared at Honoka as if he was her enemy. But before she said anything, things were brought to a close by another voice.

"Just as he said. Leave it at that."

Karenjina raised her eyes at the calm, powerful, and deep voice. Grimwood had come back through the entrance of the tent. As soon as she saw Grimwood, Karenjina turned her head in an uncomfortable way and her tone faltered.

"I'm sorry, I... I was out of line."

She bowed lightly to Grimwood, not to Jin, with whom she had been arguing and walked quickly out of the tent.

“She’s not a bad girl, but she's a mercenary, She's got a lot on her plate. Don't be offended."

“I don't really care about ......."

Jin answered in a composed tone, without any excess facial expressions.

Yes, there was no need to worry about it. All he had to do is do the work that was required of him in the way that was required of him. That is all.

There was nothing anymore left for him to do in his life but this.

She bowed lightly to Grimwood, ignoring Jin and walked quickly out of the tent.

“She’s not a bad girl, but she's a mercenary, she's got a lot on her plate. Don't be offended."

“I don't really care about it."

Jin answered in a composed tone, without any facial expressions, without a hint of emotions.

Yes, there was no need to worry about it. All he had to do is do the work that was required of him in the way that was required of him. That is all. There was nothing anymore left for him to do in his life but this.


After becoming aware of what this base was, it was still the “worst” frontline base in the world.

Attacks from the Ikaruga Federation took place at morning and night. Sortie orders were issued as many times a day as needed.

Whenever that siren sounded, Jin took his weapon and went into the forest to engage the so-called "enemy soldiers". Then make up a winnable battlefield and retreat.

He had become accustomed to working as a "hound" through repetition.

As many battles as he had, Jin had shown his outstanding strength to the members of the 9th squad, and his strength had built a certain amount of trust between him and the members of the 9th squad.

But Karenjina was different.

On the battlefield and at the base, she did not acknowledge Jin. She never accepted him. She never looked at Jin the way she looked at her friends. Jin also didn't want to try to repair his frayed relationship with her. If she didn’t want to be acknowledge him, then that is fine. If she didn’t want to accept him, then that is also fine. In Jin's opinion, it had nothing to do with the fighting.

Karenjina and Jin mutually felt the same in that regard.

However, there was still something concealed in her heart. At the bottom of it something was obvious, but how could he trust someone who wouldn't show it to him?

The people around them became accustomed to the stinginess of their relationship before anyone else tried to mediate between them. Occasionally, there was an exchange of sarcasm, and there were also voices raised in frustration. However, They weren’t obsessed with trying to completely eliminate each other, and before they knew it, many days passed...

Before he knew it, Jin's life at the frontline base had lasted more than a month.

Chapter 3: Accumulated death / He is near

Part 1

Jin learned that after a month of living in the jungle, it is easy to lose track of what day of the month it is, what time it is, and other things that he used to unconsciously pay attention to.

The unpleasant heat and the suffocating smell. The occasional arrows of rain, the unrestrained splashing of mud. The food was poor and the beds were far from clean. It wasn't the most comfortable living environment, but even so, Jin was beginning to feel more comfortable in his new surroundings.

Then, one day. The 9th squad, including Jin, received a request from the Librarium and were ordered to sortie to a place far from the jungle that he just started to get used to.

The location was a certain research facility near the mountain area. The building looks like a large block with gray walls, blending in with the rocks and barren trees.

There were very few windows and on top, the ventilation system roared low like the sleep of a giant creature.

Undecorated lighting lined up at regular intervals in a seamless, perfect flat corridor with no visible horizon. The dimly lit white walls were all fitted with black doors of exactly the same design.

The inside of the laboratory, with an interior that seems to have been assembled inorganically, has been... cruelly destroyed.

There were large holes in the doors and walls and many cracks in the ceiling and floor. Lights were broken and shattered and pieces of glass were scattered everywhere.

Only a small quantity of lights were left. The few that remained barely gave off a faint glow that seemed to be about to fade, but it was not enough to light up this large laboratory at all, making the area be bathed in an eerie dimness.

It was awfully quiet.

It smelled terrible.

"This is horrible..."

Standing in the corridor where some torn and burnt papers were scattered with pieces of shattered furniture, Honoka said aloud in dismay.

It was a sight that could no longer be described as anything other than that.

There were countless corpses lying at Honoka's feet as he stood stock stil and all around inside the destroyed laboratory, which still bore the scars of an obvious battle that took place. The corner of the corridor where Jin was looking, as well as under the gaze of Karenjina, who walked around and looked into the nearest room were the same.

Soldiers in the uniform of the Librarium were lying on top of each other, creating a small red fountain on the floor.

Right next to them, laying down dead, was an old man wearing a white coat over another uniform. He must have been a staff member of this institute, or in other words, one of Sector Seven’s personnel.

This is the research facility of Sector Seven.

Sector Seven is a group of rebels who disagree with the methods of the Librarium and work to disrupt their current order. The mission that Jin and the others were called up for this time was to retrieve a certain "Nox Nyctores" that they had stolen from the Librarium.

But Jin and the others arrived two hours late.

For some reason, the 9th squad was not notified until the last minute. In addition, arrangements for an Ars Magus Vessel to travel nearby were also delayed.

But still, it was just two hours. The number of people at the scene were not that many to begin with, but there was still a battlefield that took place here. Why weren't there some reinforcements? Still, even if the conflict was over, they wanted to help with the aftermath. That’s what they decided to do and hurriedly made their way with the jeep to the place from were they were at moments ago.

“Looks like we're too late.”

Bending down, Jin let out a heavy breath when he saw that the fallen Librarium guard had no pulse.

“But what the hell is this all about? Did the mission fail?"

Karenjina shook her head in disbelief after looking into a room that seemed to be some kind of office and came out with an face full of anguish.

“I didn’t receive a confirmation about that yet.”

Answered Grimwood, who had entered a another room, came out into the hallway and shook his head in denial. It seems there weren't any in this room either. Survivors.

Whether they succeeded or failed in retrieving the Nox Nyctores or if the operation had produced any results in the past two hours, it would have been reported to the NOL. Outside the research facility, there were a number of vehicles that the guards of the Librarium must have used for transportation. All of them were equipped with communication facilities and the guards themselves were also equipped with communication devices.

But when Jin and the others had left the Ars Magus Vessel for the jeep about thirty minutes ago, they had not received any such information.

One possible explanation for why there has been no contact is that the operation was still ongoing in the depths of the facility. Then there is the possibility that there was no one left in the Librarium to contact...

(But that's unlikely, because the other party is Sector Seven.)

Jin's expression clouded in thought.

The basic philosophy of Sector Seven is the convenient development of seithr through pure science, rather than through Ars Magus. Because of this aspect, the people who belong to Sector Seven are mainly researchers with a wealth of scientific knowledge. Many of them are considerably rational, logical and pragmatic.

(...although I can't rule out the possibility if it makes the most 'sense'.)

If possible, that was a possibility he didn't want to consider.

Grimwood stepped over a lied-down corpse in a white coat and into the corridor leading to the back of the building.

"Let's check ahead. There might still be survivors."

As things were, there was no point in dwelling here dumbfoundedly counting the bodies, smeared in the smell of blood and rust. No one disagreed with Grimwood as he looked toward the end of the long corridor. Grimwood was in the lead, followed by the soldiers of the 9th squad and Karenjina, then Honoka, with Jin at the tail of the line.

Everyone's footsteps were careful as they walked, keeping a distance that would allow each of them to move around sufficiently.

They opened all the doors they saw along the way and checked them. Some of the rooms seemed unharmed, only slightly ransacked and not particularly destroyed. But in non were living people.

The hallway grew darker and darker as the lights became less and less useful. The air was cold with a metallic odor and the temperature seemed to drop even lower as they stepped into the darkness. While they continued on with their handheld lights, they found a staircase leading up and down at the far end.

As a test, someone peeked upstairs and shone a light on it. There was still a dead body lying on the stairs, with a red thread dripping down from the top to the bottom.

"Is anyone there?"

Jin raised his voice in a pitch, but the only answer was an empty echo.

Grimwood then looked at the stairs leading to the lower level. The light from a thrown light revealed a lift-like elevation device just ahead.

"So, what now? Up or down..."

Honoka asks softly about which way they were supposed to go, while peering cautiously into the lift.

Grimwood pondered for a few seconds, then looked at Karenjina. Karenjina squinted at the tip of Grimwood's light, and shook her head after a moment.

"I'm not sure about down below. But upstairs... there are probably no survivors."

"Okay. Down it is then. Everybody, get on the lift."

After making his decision, Grimwood's movements were swift. He quickly got into the lift while giving instructions, and Jin and the others followed him. One of the soldiers checked the lift's control panel and flipped a few switches. A yellow light came on in the control panel and the lift began to slide silently, descending diagonally downward.

A faint orange glow told them that there were walls and a ceiling, but it made it impossible to see where they were going. Still curious about what lay ahead, Karenjina grabbed the thin railing at chest height and stared at the destination of the lift, her voice irritated with frustration.

“What's even going on? It's just a mission to get one weapon back, right? Is the Nox Nyctores so great that it has to cause this much damage?"

"You don't know what a Nox Nyctores is, do you?"

The soldier who was operating the panel mischievously said to Karenjina, who choked on her words now and puckered her lips in frustration.

“...It’s an old, awesome weapon, right? You talk big game, but do YOU even know what that thing really is?"

Staring at him, Karenjina appealed to her colleague to explain. The soldier who had been making a joke of it immediately flinched and averted his gaze.

“It's a, um... an old weapon yes. I believe it was made a very long time ago..."

“See, you only know as much as I do."

Karenjina took a step forward as if to accuse him. The soldier moved back by that same amount.

Grimwood, who was watching the scene, shook his large shoulders and laughed briefly.

“Nox Nyctores are superweapons of extraordinary power that were created during wars long ago.”

Leaning his beloved great axe on his shoulder and placing his muscular arm on top of it, Grimwood answered his subordinate in a calm tone. He had a soft smile on his face, but his eyes were glaringly sharp.

"The Nox Nyctores were created about a hundred years ago during the Dark War. When a monster called the Black Beast was trying to destroy humanity, one of the Six Heroes developed them in order to defeat that monster.”

The Six Heroes. The name was well known to both Karenjina and the soldier who teased her.

They were the legendary heroes who defeated the Black Beast, the monster that caused the disaster that nearly destroyed the human race. As young children, they would encounter them in fairy tales. When they grow up a little, they become the subject of make-believe games. And when they are older, they meet them in biographies and history textbooks, in stage plays and in various other media. Time after time.

Everyone has admired them at one time.

Against the background of the faint driving sound of the lift sliding quietly down, the soldiers of the squad, intrigued by the term "Six Heroes," were drawn to Grimwood's story.

Jin watched from a short distance away, leaning against the railing.

“These weapons were all different in shape. Each of their uses and abilities also differed. There were 8 or 9 of them in total I believe... Anyhow, the Six Heroes used them to defeat the Black Beast. But after the end of the Dark War, the Nox Nyctores were lost. Only few people know where or what they even are now.”

“So," Grimwood continued, looking at Jin. He made a boyish face for a moment.

“It's a pretty miraculous coincidence that he's got one of those.”

Karenjina and the soldiers turned to Jin as they were drawn into the story. One of them was Honoka. The petite boy nodded his head repeatedly, looking deeply moved.

"That's right. That sword might have been used by one of the six heroes too!"

One of the soldiers muttered, to which Honoka nodded in agreement. Jin's shoulders slumped in disgust at such a reaction.

"I don't care how it was used in the old wars. I only use it because it's in my possession."

Jin said curtly and turned away from them.

But that was a bit of a lie. He doesn't use it because he has to. He has to use it, because he can't let go of it. This is a curse placed on Jin. All the while, it is also a testimony.

For what he did — to his brother.

“Sorry, my bad. Don't be mad, 'kay?”

“I am not particularly..."

Perhaps his voice was more prickly than he realized. The admiring soldier laughed and held up his hands in surrender. It must have been his bad habit again. It wasn’t that he was angry. It was not even something to be angry about. He was going to say that, but before he could finish the words, the lift came to a silent stop.

At the same time, the view around Jin and the others opened up. They had arrived at the bottom of the stairs.

It was a much larger space then the facility above.

It was surrounded by square walls, dimly lit by orange emergency lights on the walls and a few white bulbs left on the ceiling.

It was large enough to accommodate the five jeeps that they had driven here.

They might have been using this lifts to carry large items up and down on a regular basis. There were several large dollies lying on the wall, probably used for transportation.

The ceiling was high, probably higher than two stories of a normal building. They have been down here long enough to have wasted a lot of time talking, so they are anticipating rooms and facilities beyond the ceiling or there may just be a thick layer of ground separating them from the surface. Thouge at this point, it didn't matter what the underground structure was.

The yellow light on the lift's panel went out. The handrails slid down, creating a doorway.

Grimwood descended first to the end of it. Then Jin, Karenjina, and the rest.

No one spoke a word now.

Maybe he had imagined it somewhere in his head. At least, when Jin saw this scene, he was naturally convinced that it would be so.

The underground lift station was a pile of dead bodies.

There were a number of bodies lying around the room in a state of disarray. Most of them were wearing the uniform of the Librarium, as could be seen from their scattered clothes.

“What happened here...?"

Karenjina asked in a weak voice, not to anyone in particular. There was no one who could answer her words. Rather, everyone was thinking the same thing.

“Oh, look there. T-there is an interior..."

Honoka, who was cowering at the very back, his face pale, pointed ahead with a trembling hand. At the back of the square room, there was a rectangular opening that probably had a door in it, and another room seemed to be leading to it. The back of the room seemed to be even bigger than this one. They could see a few pale blue lights, probably emergency lights.

“Let's go.”

Grimwood announced lowly, still leading the way as he walked off. It was hopeless to look for survivors in this room. If the room ahead was a dead end, that would be their last hope in the basement.

Through the square entrance, Jin also stepped into the back room.

Then he let out a long, deep breath at the sight of despair spreading.

At the back was a semi-circular room. Its purpose was not clear, but various machines and devices were set up along the curving walls, and they were arranged in such a way that they observed the larger devices that took up most of the room.

The large device looked like a giant lid. Various cables, large and small, moored together, and at the end of the mooring was a circular mouth that seemed to open.

However, the mouth was tightly closed and half of it was buried by the rubble of the collapsed ceiling, so it was not in a condition to be opened and checked.

In this room, the most quantity of people were lying on the ground yet, as if to mock what they had seen so far as trivial.

The room was large. It was very spacious.

From the moment they entered that large room to the opposite end of the room, dozens of meters away, there were people lying everywhere.

None of them moved. There were so many of them that it didn't feel that they were corpses anymore, but instead they looked like a pile of discarded dolls.

Even more bizarrely, there were countless boxes strewn around the large device, which added to the eeriness of the scene. The boxes, neither blue nor black, were just large enough to hold a single person.

They were like coffins.

Some of them were twisted and cracked as if beasts had eaten through them, and a thick human-like fluid was flowing out from inside.

The moment he saw it, Jin's heart leapt.

"Ugh..."

A crushing moan was caught in his throat. Jin instantly lost his balance. It would look like dizziness from the outside, but it was different. He felt as if he had been swallowed by something, consuming his darkened consciousness and then...

he saw it.

A "Cauldron" that swirls the unworldly and submerges emptiness beyond the throbbing heat.

It's approaching from behind. It comes. It overflows, and it takes shape.

Black... a black beast. A black monster with sharp fangs, a thick neck, a giant jaw and all.

The creature dragged its indistinct body around, eating people at random, killing them as it went.

But the fangs do not tear flesh. The jaws do not crush bone.

All it had to do was slip by the living and occasionally let out a loud roar.

When touched by the black head, a black mist overflows from the human body. The human body collapses, losing all its strength, as if its life had been sucked out along with it.

The word associated with it would be predation. The black mass ran around the vast underground room like the winds of death, sucking and devouring the life of every human being in the room.

The head suddenly turned to look at Jin as if it had noticed something.

It looked more like an exaggerated version of a head, with only fangs and jaws. On top of its ferocious mouth, there was a glittering eye.

A red eye. Among the countless red streaks that run across the surface like blood vessels, the eyes that seem to have collected and hardened the most ominous reds in the world stared at Jin.

— Kill.

Someone's voice whispered to Jin.

— Kill it.

Yes. I have to kill it.

There is no other choice but to kill it.

(Who... is the monster?)

The higher the concentration of the seithr the more the urge swells inside Jin.

A murderous intent. It is a straightforward, pure, and single-minded murderous intent that is like nothing else.

(No, what I, what I... want to kill is...)

It's not a monster. What I want to kill is. What I want to kill with my own hands is...

A spark of lightning flashed behind his eyes, and Jin's vision instantly turned orange.



— It’s burning.

The whole area was ablaze.

This is a memory. Inside Jin, they were the pages of a burned and scorched memory that got torn to pieces and disordered.

In the flames, Jin was standing with his sword in his hand. In the hot, blazing flames, he was holding a cold, freezing Yukianesa.

Someone collapsed in front of him.

Who is the one who was down? It could have been someone, it could have been no one.

The boy was lying there helplessly. Bright red blood was pouring from his small back.

Red. Red. Everything. Red.

The rush of exuberance was so cold that he didn't feel any emotion when the burning church roared to life and collapsed, even when the hot wind blew against it.

The moon was laughing in the distance.

The bright red crescent moon was laughing joyfully.

No, it's not. It's a shadow. The shadow of a person. Laughing behind all.

A pair of pitch-black eyes stared at Jin.

The dark gloom kept staring at him, firmly, without a single motion.

Part 2

──in!!

The sound revived him.

The roaring sound of flames receded like a wave and in its place is now the dull drive of machinery along with the sound of human voices flooded Jin's consciousness.

“Jin!! Hey, Jin! Stay with me!"

"......ah... what is...?"

As if with a click of a switch, Jin's vision became clear and fixed.

The area was dimly lit and surrounded by achromatic colors such as black and gray. The small lights were pale, and the air was cold as metal. Before his eyes, stood a figure of a man with a large high stature. He grabbed Jin by both his shoulders with his large hands and shook him.

When Jin blinked a few times and looked up, Grimwood, the man who had been holding his shoulders, dropped his broad shoulders and breathed deeply.

“Don’t give me that. You suddenly stiffened and stopped moving in a panic. What in the hell happened to you?”

“...No, I was...”

As he tried to answer, Jin lost track of his words. He had no idea what had happened.

(A hallucination?)

He hasn't been snapped back for a while now, but he still had a numb feeling in the back of his head.

“I'm sorry, I'm fine. I just got dizzy all of a sudden..."

Holding his cheek and forehead with the palm of his hand as if to confirm that he was really here, Jin let out his voice along with his choked breath.

He suddenly felt a sharp gaze on him and turned around, and there was Karenjina, glaring at Jin with a face that was clearly in a bad mood. Her deep navy eyes collided with his gaze and Karenjina blatantly looked away.

(...She's like a jealous child.)

She likely didn't like the fact that Jin had worried Grimwood, but he didn't have the time to point it out and get himself in trouble. Letting out another sigh, he shook off the annoyance and looked around with eyes that finally reflected a sane reality. While Jin was in a daze, the soldiers had apparently gone to check on the equipment they had lined up. The three who had dispersed came running back to Grimwood.

“Captain, all the equipment's been destroyed. It's unlikely we'll be able to see the data inside."

“No luck here either. What is the cause of all this violence? Communications and recording facilities are also dead."

“I see..."

Grimwood's face twisted in bitterness. One of the last to return opened his mouth, his words and expression muddled, as if he was having trouble saying it.

“Err. There's one thing that's been bothering me...”

“What is it?”

“Aren’t the corpses in this room too "clean"? I didn't check all of them, but compared to the ones before we went down here, they are completely uninjured. It's as if only their souls have been pulled out... It's creepy."

With these words, he must have remembered some of the faces he'd seen while checking the equipment. The soldier shuddered and rubbed his arm vigorously. Without saying a word, Jin approached the nearest body. It was the one that had fallen right next to the entrance. It was lying with its arms outstretched in a desperate attempt to find a way out. When he turned the body over from its prone position, he saw that it had died with a miserable expression on its face, twitching with fear.

Honoka, who peeked in with Jin, let out a twitching scream and backed away to escape.

Indeed, there was no resemblance of any injuries. In fact, there was no reason for the corpse to have died, as if only the soul had been extracted.

(The soul... You don’t mean the hallucination I just had was-)

With a tingling headache, Jin remembered the head of the Black Beast that had popped out of the Cauldron earlier.

The monster that sucked up the souls of humans just by touching them. The black head that absorbed the human of that time was probably the seithr from the Cauldron. Jin wondered if that scene had actually happened here. If so, what the hell was that black head?

“Tsk…..”

As he thought about it, another sickening sensation crawled up his spine and he shook his head, trying to stop thinking about it. He didn't know what's going on with him, but he needed to get rid of any signs of strangeness. He was on a mission as one of the 9th squad.

Grimwood looked around again and placed the great axe he was carrying on the floor.

“...I heard that Kokonoe of Sector Seven was here, but... it seems that she escaped.”

The giant captain muttered while pondering something.

Honoka looked up quickly at his words.

"Does Kokonoe mean the Dr. Kokonoe? Isn't she the famous Grimalkin of Sector Seven?”

Jin had heard that name before. She is a scientist belonging to Sector Seven, and her genius mind is said to be unrivaled. She has the blood of a beastkin, and the ears and tail of a cat, which gives her a special appearance.

Grimwood looked down at Honoka and nodded.

“Yeah. I've heard that she was taking part in the Nox Nyctores research that was being conducted here. I was told to 'politely' take her in if I found her. ...... but there's no sign of her."

“If Kokonoe of Sector Seven was here, no wonder they deployed so many troops.”

Jin said quietly as he moved away from the corpse and looked at the large device at the back of the room.

You could say that Kokonoe was the brain of Sector Seven itself. If Kokonoe could be eliminated, it would be easy for the Librarium to overpower Sector Seven. That's how important she is and that's also why she is considered as so troublesome. With this in the picture, it could be seen that this was not just a usual laboratory.

If a person of Kokonoe's talent had been in and out of this place, she must have been doing some kind of special research. What it was, though, was something they had no way of knowing now.

“What do you think, Karenjina?"

Grimwood turned and asked Karenjina, who had been crouched down for some time and was just about to stand up.

Jin didn't understand the meaning of Grimwood's question. What is the "What" here? But despite Jin's small doubt, Karenjina's expression clouded over.

"...No. There are no survivors. Underground's wiped out."

She clearly said so.

How did she know? Jin was puzzled further. Grimwood not so. Why were they asking her? It was another group of soldiers who had been searching the room to check the equipment. Before Jin could ask that, Grimwood looked around at his men and said in a thick voice.

“That's it for the investigation. I'm going back upstairs. I'll contact headquarters."

“Oh, if so should I contact them? There are some things I haven't checked yet. If you want me to go back to the car and call them, I can do it by myself.”

Honoka put his hand on his chest and stepped forward, but Grimwood shook his head with a difficult look on his face.

“No. Let's all go back. I have a bad feeling about this place. We should get out of here as soon as possible-"

In the middle of his words, he suddenly heard a noise.

The sound, which was neither a rumble nor a thud, sounded like a creature crawling out from under something and for a moment everyone held their breaths and fell silent, then Grimwood turned and raised his axe that he just picked up from the ground earlier.

“Who's there?"

“Grimwood, t-that can't be!”

“I know."

Trying to calm Karenjina with his hand, who called out to him in panic, Grimwood stared at the area where the sound had come from in alarm. The sound came from the area where about five people were folded up and dead, slightly in front of a large device in the room.

There was no immediate reply. Honoka slowly retreated, and Jin prepared to move at any moment.

There was no sign of life. None. But...

The pile of corpses stirred, and one of the people underneath sluggishly got up.

“Wha…!?”

Karenjina choked out in astonishment at such absurdity.

"A Survivor?"

“No. Wrong.”

The soldier's words, shouted in an expectant but trembling voice, were dismissed with alarm by Jin.

“He's not alive anymore.”

It was a corpse. The corpse had suddenly risen and was heading straight towards them with the awkward movements of a puppet.

"W-WHAAAAA!! Lieutenant! Lieutenant!!"

Before they could fully comprehend the current situation, Honoka screamed and shouted. He shuddered exaggeratedly and pointed to a room with a lift in the back.

He could have guessed what was going on without looking, but he still looked back.

Just as expected. On the other side of the square entrance, countless corpses that were supposed to be lying in the room had all risen up and were heading towards them. Indeed, each corpse, one after another inside the room were starting to rise. It was not a number they could count on the spur of the moment.

"Wha-what should we do, Captain!?"

In dismay, one of the soldiers asked the obvious.

The first corpse that stood up was almost upon them. After slashing the body in half with a swinging axe, Grimwood turned around and shouted.

“Everybody, run!! Get to the lift!"

At that moment, as if he had been pushed back, Jin ran, knocking down the moving dead corpses that had been positioned between the room swith a single swing.

Part 3

With his scabbard, he hit the corpse that ran towards him at the side of its head and kicked the other one that came at him from the other direction with his leg that made them cracked like a whip. Several bodies were caught up and lost their balance when they were slashed together in one go with Jin’s Iai technique. After that, he stepped over the collapsed ridge of bodies and moved forward.

The underground space, which had been so quiet when they arrived that the only sound present was the driving force of the running machine, was now filled with a ghastly noise.

The corpses revived, or to say arose like they were waking from a slumber, now attacking Jin and the others without hesitation, as if they had no other choice.

At first glance, the bodies with few external injuries looked like living people. However, their faces were unmoving from the expression of fear and anguish they had shown when they died and their open eyes were as vacant as a cloudy glass ball.

"Shit! What in the hell are these things??"

"A trap from Kokonoe!?"

As the soldiers whined and cursed, they fired their guns at the ghouls, who were slowly closing in distance. The sound of wild gunfire blasted away the arms and heads of the corpses, but they continued to move without a care in the world.

Grimwood used his large axe to flick them all the way to the wall with every ounce of his strength.

“No, Kokonoe would never use these kinds of Art. Necromancy Ars Magus is the most detestable means on the battlefield. She is a genius far beyond the average, but she is apparently also a woman of common sense when it comes to such things!”

"Apparently," he said, but Grimwood said it as if he knew her personally. Jin wondered if they might have known each other, but now was not the time to mention it.

Jin reversed his grip on the ghouls arm and slammed it to the floor, crushing his head with his hard heel. A gunshot rang out right next to him. It was Honoka who fired the shot. He seemed to have completely gotten cold feet and turned terribly afraid, but his shooting skills were accurate. One by one, he carefully hit the moving corpses right between the eyes.

"Whoever did it, we are in big trouble, because of them now!!"

When Honoka shouted in a shameful, falsetto voice, to which Grimwood's mouth twisted up in a bitter, twisted smile.

“Sure we are.”

Then Grimwood swung his great axe again and blew off the tops of three corpses at once.

Karenjina shot an approaching corpse in the forehead with her short rifle and responded to a near one with a large knife she held in her other hand. She kicked away the corpse that had its throat quickly slit and immediately pointed the muzzle at the next one.

The corpse took several bullets to the face and fell down in a big heap. It jumped around for a while, but eventually got up and joined the fray with a distorted head as if nothing had happened.

Jin clicked his tongue at that.

“Necromancy, is it?”

Grimwood nodded.

It was possible to use magic or medicine to make the corpses move, but in that case they will attack on their own in a disorderly fashion. However, it was clear that the mass of corpses that filled the underground room was moving under the direction of someone.

They did not indiscriminately attack the dead bodies in front of them, nor did they move unevenly. They knew that the target is Jin and the rest of the 9th squad and they also knew that their path of retreat was the lift.

"Nonsense! You can't control all these bodies in here at the same time!"

While firing her gun, Karenjina’s voice rang with impatience.

Jin thrust the tip of his scabbard down on the dead man's head, who had grabbed his leg.

"It doesn't matter if it's possible or not. These guys can sustain a head injury and still get up and move with no trouble."

A corpse that can move by Arts or medicine acts according to its ego, albeit poorly. They think and move with their dead brains, so if they lose their heads, they lose their functions movement. However, a necromancer is someone that can manipulate a ghoul at will. A moving body is nothing more than a puppet for the practitioner. Even if the head is lost, the body will continue to move as long as the chain of connection with the practitioner is not broken.

"If it's a necromancer, then wouldn’t defeating the practitioner stop these guys from moving!”

To the right and the left. Grimwood asked in his crude voice as he swung his large axe and cleaved down any approaching corpses. Jin replies calmly.

"Yeah. They are controlling so many of them, they can't be that far away."

“Karenjina, find them!”

“Understood!”

When Grimwood gave his instructions, Karenjina responded quickly and took a few steps back, shoving her gun into the holster on her hip. She bent down on the spot and pressed her hands against the cold floor. Grimwood wedged himself in front of Karenjina. He used his great axe as a weapon and shield to protect Karenjina from the hands of the ghouls.

In the meantime, Karenjina took a long breath and closed her eyes to focus her attention.

A dull golden crest spread around her hands with a thin, high-pitched squeak that sounded like ringing in the ears.

“Wait, it's a Drive!”

Jin's voice jumped up uncharacteristically in surprise.

Drive.

It is a special kind of power that is inherent in the individual, fundamentally different from the kind of power that can be used to some extent through training and Arts, such as an Ars Magus.

The mechanism is not completely elucidated and there are those who can use it and those who cannot. It is more like a constitution than a talent. Its origin lies in the form the soul. Jin was also someone with a Drive, but it's not something that the usual person would carry with them. Infact it is very rare, so he didn't expect to encounter someone with Drive abilities in the 9th squad.

Behind Jin, who was unintentionally blinded by Karenjina's talent, Grimwood ran in and mowed down the ghouls.

One after another. There was no end to them.

“It's called "Seagull". Karenjina can sense the movements of her surroundings even though she can't actually see them, it's a power that has saved our lives many times before.”

Jin understood and was convinced at the same time. The questions that had been lingering in the corner of his mind were now resolved.

Why was the 9th squad able to disrupt the enemy lines and lead the enemy soldiers to their allies with such precision, as if they knew the enemys position? Why did Grimwood often ask Karenjina for her opinion on the situation, and why was she able to answer him without hesitation?

Karenjina was the too-good-to-be-true nose and ears of the 9th squadron, the Hounds.

But Karenjina, who had been concentrating on the crest that emerged with a faint light, distorted her expression as if in pain and finally stood up, holding both ears.

The crest disappears as it was sucked down to her feet.

"No, there's too much noise. I can't locate it!"

She must have dived into a very deep state of concentration, since they could see the greasy sweat on Karenjina's forehead. Grimwood impatiently frowned at Karenjina, who was breathing heavily, while keeping an eye on their surroundings and state of affairs.

Each of the ghouls was no great threat, but there were just too many of them. No matter how hard they tried to kill them, they kept coming as long as they had legs or hands. It was like a wave of ghouls.

"Oh, hey, there!"

Honoka, who was holding the gun with his hands crossed as if in prayer, shouted out in a most sorrowful voice.

Jin followed his gaze and looked up to see the path of the lift they had just come down. On top of it, bodies, probably from inside the facility, covered in wounds and blood, were descending towards them.

There was no doubt what their purpose was. The dead eyes, cloudy and empty, were all looking at the only seven people alive in this place.

"Damn it! I guess we should clear a path of retreat first."

Grimwood growled in abhorrence. The lift was already occupied by the bodies that had rushed in. It would be faster to run up the passageway than to retrieve it and use the device to move slowly forward.

“I'll make it happen. Follow me!"

Quickly, Grimwood regained his grip on his great axe and charged forward with a mighty yell from the pit of his stomach.

“Oooooooooooooohhhh!"

Grimwood swung his great axe from side to side as he ran with a much shocking force.

The large blade, swung with all its power, kept slashing, blowing and reaping corpses one after another as if it were reaping dead branches. Along with the sound of crushing flesh, there was the light sound of crunching bones.

Kicking away even the sound, Grimwood rushed forward and forcefully stepped into the lift corridor.

Exactly as the word "cut through" implies, a path was formed behind Grimwood. Karenjina and Honoka were ahead of him, followed by Jin, while the rest of the soldiers chased after the captain with their guns firing in a mess. But still the numbers were overwhelmingly violent. Grimwood's steps were gradually blocked and slowed.

A ghouls nails clawed relentlessly at his face and another corpse clutched at his big shoulders, trying to drag him down.

It was not just Grimwood, but also Karenjina and Honoka, who were following close behind, blocking their progress.

"Grimwood!"

Karenjina let out a thin scream right near Jin, who slashed down the ghoul in a wide arc.

Grimwood was pushing too hard for the ones in the back to catch up. A large number of ghouls interrupted the carelessly opened distance and quickly surrounded Grimwood with a thick wall of dead flesh.

On the other hand, more than a dozen corpses jumped at their side with such force that Honoka was knocked over by the momentum.

The head of the corpse that was about to bite his throat was chopped off by Jin with a single stroke. As the head flew off, the distance between him and Grimwood was no longer something that could be easily bridged.

"Captain!"

The soldiers shouted in unison.

It would be bad if he didn't join up. It was too dangerous for anyone to be isolated against this number.

But when he tried to run to him, the corpses formed a wall as if they were trying to keep him away from Grimwood. Punching and kicking down. There was no end to the shooting and slashing.

On the other side of the writhing corpses, Jin saw Grimwood still shouting and swinging his axe.

The axe that was swung down created shockwaves that were bigger than the eye could precive, blowing away a group of corpses.

“ِAbandon me! Run!”

That was Grimwood's decision.

Karenjina gave a horrified voice.

“I can't... I can't do that!”

“Go, Jin!”

“You cut it open, while I'm pulling most of the weight, maybe Jin can do it.”

Jin looked up at the top of the lift with a grim expression at Grimwood's words, entrusting him with a such heavy responsibility.

The number of corpses pouring in was small compared to the ones chasing them from underground, but it was not an easy task to get through. If they were separated by the narrow passageway, Honoka and Karenjna would be torn apart in a matter of seconds.

"Don't fucking joke with meeee!"

A swear word escaped from Jin's mouth unconsciously. If he was even able to run, he would have done it by now.

(Forcing a breakthrough is not a good idea. Then...)

Jin stabbed at his feet with Yukianesa. The impact blew up in a white color, instantly turning the surrounding corpses to ice.

Using it as a makeshift wall, Jin grabbed Karenjina’s arm as she was about to run to Grimwood.

"Hey. Use that Drive again."

“What? What are you talking about? I told you we'd never find the necromancer, so this is not the time at all!　Get out of the way and let me help Grimwood!!"

Karenjina twisted and tried to shake off Jin's hand. but Jin would have none of it. He holded her arm even thigher and pulled her to him.

"Calm down, you'll only add to the bait if you jump in. Instead, I'll hit the necromancer."

“Shut up! You don't get to tell me what to do! Let go of me! Grimwood's at..!”

Karenjina flailed about in a mess, trying to escape Jin's clutches. He could feel Karenzina's nerves screaming in fright under her skin. It was as if he could feel the vibrations. Fear gripped her as she writhed and flailed. The fear that she might lose Grimwood was driving her into delirium.

That's how important he, Grimwood was, to Karenjina. This thought crossed Jin’s mind, but-

Jin shouted in frustration.


"Shut up, you piece of shit!!!"


At the sound of Jin's angry voice, which came from up close and personal, Karenjina’s eyes blinked as she forbore to speak.

She was pressured by Jin's change in attitude.

It didn’t matter, it's rather convenient like that. There's no point in making any more noise. Jin shouted at Karenjina with a intensity fitting for their situation.

“Just use it! Who else can do it but you? You want Grimwood getting killed along with you, or what!?”

If Karenjina ran off, she wouldn't be able to help Grimwood. They would dietogether in a pile of corpses.

She must not be so stupid that she couldn’t understand that. Karenjina opened and closed her mouth a few times, as if lost for words in the blazing cold eyes of Jin that were fixated on her. Then, immediately her eyes sharpened and her lips got frim in determinaion.

She shook off Jin's arm. This time, Jin let go of her hand obediently.

Immediately, Karenjina put her hands on the floor and focused her attention. A dull golden light was created under her palms as they touched the floor.

"Cover Karenjina. Don't let the ghouls near her!"

“Ye-yes!”

Honoka replied as he jumped up and raised his gun along with the other soldiers.

The guns could not fire indefinitely, but the soldiers knew that if they didn't hold out, there was no way out.

Seeing them start firing wildly without caring about the remaining ammunition, Honoka, who was upset, started firing randomly.

After all, Grimwood's squadron was excellent.

Admiringly, Jin stood behind Karenjina with Yukianesa.

A crest spreads at Karenjina’s feet. Immediately, her expression became distorted. Even through her back, Jin could tell that the level of concentration was different from before.

They couldn’t hold out much longer. Neither Karenjina nor the soldiers who were trying to fight off the ghouls and Jin, too.

Even if there is an abundance of seithr in the world, converting it into Ars Magus involves a great deal of wear and tear. In addition, when it comes to dealing with Nox Nyctores, the wear and tear can be life itself.

Therefore, no matter how powerful it is, Yukianesa's power cannot be unleashed. If he were to unleash it at full force, based on the amount of seithr in this place...

(One shot left...)

He will be at lose of power and they won't be able to get through here.

(...No.)

It's different.

If it's just a break through, it's possible. In that case, though, everyone but Jin will have to be abandoned.

“Keep your mind focused.”

He told her in a whisper, then pressed the palm of his hand against Karenjina's back.

He closed his eyes and concentrated, matching his own exhalation to the wavelength of Karenjina beyond the palm of his hand.

Karenjina's body jumped. Instantly, the images she was seeing began to flow into Jin's mind as well.

A dull golden light was spreading across the underground space in every direction. It was as if they were nerves stretched out. However, the spreading light was disturbed by the countless signs that filled the area.

(So this is the noise...)

It's true that they couldn’t explore anything with this.

Even so, he earnestly looked for a different way, in the middle of Karenjina’s spread-out senses.

The Power of Order - with that, “manipulation of corpses” appeared in Jin’s consciousness as a black line in the images he saw through Karenjina's Drive.

It was a special power that he possessed that even Jin himself did not understand, he isn't even aware that he is in posession of it.

However, through it, Jin was able to see. The evil from his standpoint, the opponent to slash, the black "line" that connects to it all, the "line" that he should cut.

The black line that stretched from Jin's feet snaked its way around the underground space until... it reached a certain point.

“......Found it.”

Gently speaking aloud, Jin opens his eyes. As usual, he was surrounded by a pile of moving corpses, but Jin didn't even bother with them.

In the corner of the room where the corpses were stirring, on the floor where the arms and legs that had been blown off by Jin and Grimwood were lying in shreds. There was a strange figure huddled in the shadows of the wobbling corpses.

He couldn’t see it clearly, but it was definitely “there”.

Jin pulled out Yukianesa and ran through the bodies, jumping over Honoka.

The pale, ice-covered blades cut down the corpses in his way one after another. As he kicked them away and iced the ones in his way, Jin headed straight for Grimwood.

It was in the opposite direction of the necromancer he found.

But as he hurled the blades of ice he had created around him at the corpses all at once, Jin called out loudly.

"Grimwood!"

He shouted and jumped high. At the foot of his low leap, an ice blade that he had created at the same time appeared. The flying ice blades slid through the air and carried Jin like a vehicle.

"Come on!"

As he swung his great axe to clear the way around him, Grimwood let go of his axe to meet Jin who was coming straight at him. Instead, he folded his hands and dropped to his haunches.

Jin jumped for his hand.

“Gooooooooooooo!!”

Jin's feet landed on Grimwood's folded hands. He used it as a foothold from which to leap and Grimwood threw him high into the air, swinging his arms with all his might.

After jumping to an unusual height, Jin stared downward.

He didn't know where it came from, but the underground room was filled with more dead bodies than he expected. But in one corner, in the corner of the room indicated by the line, there was a person without a uniform or lab coat, huddled in a black cloth.

That's him.

“Yukianesa!"

In response to Jin's voice, a silvery-white blade sliced through the void. The sliding trajectory froze in the blink of an eye and the ice wrapped around the sword itself, changing its shape.

What appeared in Jin's hand was a bow. A pale, crystal clear bow of ice.

He put his hand on the string and an arrow of ice was born in his hand.

The only thing in the way was the corpses walking on the ground. With such a high jump, there was nothing to impede Jin's aim.

“Ice-Winged Moonsong!”

With a voice announcing this, a huge arrow was released from the ice bow. The pale blue arrow seemed to have a hint of light in it and with the icy wind in its wake, it flew sharply through the air.

The target was the necromancer, who looked like a blackened mass.

The arrow, too large to be fired at a single person, spun at high speed and was not well-aimed, ruthlessly destroying the surrounding walls, floors, and swarming corpses, including the necromancer.

The power was tremendous.

The corner of the room where the necromancer had been was instantly covered with ice, like the inside of a freezer and white frost stuck to it. What used to be the necromancer was stretched out on the floor like was like a remaining splat of abandoned trash, no longer moving.

Jin landed on the ground, returning the bow to its original form of a sword.

"..."

As soon as he did, his knees lost their strength and he almost lost balance. But Grimwood, who had rushed in front of him, supported him.

“You okay?”

"...Yes. I just used too much energy all at once."

“I see,” Grimwood said, his mouth twitching in a smile.

Jin heard a series of sounds like heavy objects falling from around him. It was the sound of bodies that had been moving, losing their strength and falling one after another. The corpse that was just about to bite him fell on him, and Honoka crawled out from under it, screaming.

Then he looked around in a daze and sat down.

“It’s not moving... Did we survive?”

As he let out his thin, trembling words, not a single corpse moved anymore. They collapsed on the spot like threadbare dolls and returned to being mere corpses.

SS1-3.png

The soldiers still couldn't believe what was happening in front of their eyes, rolling the fallen bodies close at hand to make sure there was no reaction.

Karenjina staggered over to Grimwood and Jin.

But Jin and Grimwood couldn't look up at the sound of her footsteps.

At Jin's feet lay a deadly Necromancer clad in black cloth.

The blow that Jin had unleashed with all his might had already left him breathless. No, he wasn't breathing to begin with.

Jin and Grimwood looked down at what had been the Necromancer, speechless with surprise.

It was not human.

It had long, slender arms and legs and an uncanny bloodless complexion. Wrapped in a black cloth, it was a doll.

"What is this...?"

Karenjina, who was finally standing next to Grimwood, muttered in a muffled voice.

The soldiers and Honoka both noticed the strange situation and looked down at the doll, all stunned.

"You mean the doll was a... necromancer?"

One of the soldiers said to himself.

“No," Grimwood replied lowly, holding Jin for support. “it wasn't a necromancer we were dealing with.”

"A Puppetmaster."

Staring at the battered doll, Jin's brows furrowed.

"What do you mean? Because a while ago, there was actually a body moving..."

Karenjina looked around. The lack of power in her voice was probably due to the fact that she used too much power on "Seagull". As she wondered, it was not a doll that actually attacked Jin and the others, but a corpse. There was no doubt about that. So that meant...

“The Puppetmaster had a puppet play the role of the Necromancer.”

“Such a thing...”

"There is no way. It's impossible, no matter how advanced that Ars Magus is."

"Unless it's magic..."

Magic. Everyone was rendered speechless by the words Jin had spoken.

Magic is an ancient Art that has been in gradual decline since the days of the Dark War due to a drastic decrease in the number of users. It is no exaggeration to say that it has been lost in the modern age.

If the owner of this puppet is indeed a magician, then the other party is not just a mere thing. At the very least, it was not something that a single squadron can handle. 　 And if the opponent was indeed a magician, it's not impossible to think about why all the guards of the Librarium died here.

“We are going back.”

It was too dangerous to stay here any longer. Grimwood carried Jin's arm on his shoulder and started to walk away.

The area was unusually quiet. It smelled of blood and dead bodies.

Jin and the others left the basement as quickly as they could, pushed back by the disquiet.

Part 4

There was someone who had been oberserving them closely.

Always observing. They have been observing the guards of the Novus Orbis Librarium descend into the basement while killing researchers of Sector Seven. The way they died there one after another and the confusion and struggles of the seven new samples who arrived late.

Always there. Observing.

A huge, motionless device, surrounded with countless coffins. From behind it, a man stepped out with small, clacking footsteps.

His golden hair was brushed back and he wore fine-looking clothes. If he had been in the right place, he would have looked like a noble gentleman, but the carpet of corpses under his feet, the golden mask covering the upper half of his face, and the eye-catching purple cloak turned that look of a nobel gentlman into a rather odd one.

"Seagull and... the Nox Nyctores, Mucro Algesco: Yukianesa. Hmmm. I've observed some pretty interesting stuff today."

The masked man put his white-gloved hand to his chin and spoke to himself in a voice that sounded impressed, but with little human emotion.

Behind him was another figure, even taller than him.

The smooth curves of her body were like that of a woman. The scarlet dress she wore was vivid, but on closer inspection, it was not a human being, but a very finely crafted doll.

The masked man started to walk away. The scarlet doll chased after him.

Eventually, as the undisturbed footsteps of the masked man and the scarlet doll receded into the distance, the basement finally became a space only for the dead.

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