It had been a day since Kugutsu and Kohaku's conversation.
The woman had immersed herself in her research, searching high and low for the name Yukihime within her organization's archives, trying not to attract Goto's attention.
After years, the [Black Corps] had finally uncovered the name of the undisputed leader of all the [New Dawn], not that she was the most elusive and inactive among them.
Kugutsu knew the code names and the genders of the other leaders, but knew little about the most important and powerful among them.
However, the joy of having discovered this crucial information was soon overshadowed after many hours of fruitless searching.
Nothing.
There was nothing about Yukihime in the databases of the [Black and White Corps].
In the end, the [mage] decided to leave this thankless task to others: her most loyal collaborators and subordinates.
Two days later, before going to her new target, Kugutsu decided to ask for the results of their searches, to have an extra card to play if things went in the right direction.
"Have you found anything about her?"
The men and women entrusted with this task were exhausted after all their effort, but they had found something.
"Not in our archives, Kugutsu-sama. But there were incomplete reports regarding a project with this name, created in Japan, and only—"
"'Only what'?" (Kugutsu)
"...if the dates are correct, the Yukihime project started over 200 years ago and disappeared without a trace at least a few decades ago."
"Did you find anything else?" (Kugutsu)
"Yes, the experiments conducted were aimed at creating some kind of 'enhanced artificial life,' using as a base... well, living vampires, Kugutsu-sama."
"Vampires? Real vampires?" (Kugutsu)
The confusion in Kugutsu's voice was understandable. Vampires were stories for children.
It was true that [mages] with abnormal traits existed—such as sharp fangs, blood-red eyes, tails and animal ears, bodies covered in scales, and so on—but they were rare and hard to find.
Some considered them legends.
Others saw them as abominations born from [mana] itself.
The truth behind why such individuals were born was unknown due to the lack of concrete data on their existence.
They were often mistaken for [mages] capable of transforming their bodies with non-human traits, which is why Hajime and all those who didn't know the truth about Yukihime had never asked many questions.
A little-known theory suggested that these children inherited some traits from ancestors who were far from human, species completely different from those living on Earth.
"Through ancient [magic] and some form of selective breeding, they aimed to create an artificial vampire to use as a living weapon, although calling them 'true vampires' might be a bit of a stretch... after all, they're just urban legends."
"How did you find this information?" (Kugutsu)
"They were well hidden in government databases. They were kept in the most secure place, managed by the Prime Minister himself and the royal family. I believe no one else besides us managed to access them."
"Oh, you want to be praised? I can't blame you; your team has always been useful to me. You did excellent work. Return home now; your payment will be sent within 24 hours." (Kugutsu)
Kugutsu knew how to manipulate people, to win them over.
She understood that capable and useful individuals were never enough. Even Goto and Shogun knew this. after all, that was why they held power: to have loyal and reliable subordinates.
(Vampires, huh? Considering what I've seen and the vastness of this world, I can't dismiss this possibility... but what powers could Yukihime have? Perhaps blood-related? Or just an insatiable desire to drink it? Maybe her strength is really so high that she dares to challenge Goto-sama alone?... 'Enhanced living weapon'... in the end, some things never change, even after centuries.) (Kugutsu)
Her mental musings as a [Black Corps] continued until she reached her destination.
"Alright, alright, it's time to begin."
The cell opened, and like Kohaku, the prisoner inside tried to attack.
The doll accompanying Kugutsu stopped him before he could take a step, forcefully throwing him against the cell wall.
"Oh, dear. That must hurt, especially now that you no longer have your [mana], Hajime-chan."
Like his master, Hajime and his two companions had received a massive dose of substances that blocked and weakened their magic powers, making them resemble normal humans. At least, that's what Kugutsu thought, but unfortunately, Hajime was different.
With an abnormal sudden movement, he exploited the moment to launch a surprise attack on Kugutsu, using his maximum physical enhancement, aiming to crush her head with a single punch.
The doll managed to block the second strike, but at a great cost—the doll's hand was completely destroyed, and the impact sent her flying out of the cell, bleeding from her head.
"H-How is this possible?" (Kugutsu)
Thanks to her immense resistance to poisons and pathogens that affected her body, Hajime could use his mana and strength differently from his companions. He bit into his own wrist, and with the blood dripping from it, he created a couple of short katana blades, grabbing them with both hands using just a few drops, having learned from Veronica how to generate more blood through mana without wasting it, to make his enemies faint.
"I'll kill you here and now!" (Hajime)
"Damn it." (Kugutsu)
Deciding to call in more dolls, Kugutsu realized the space was too tight for her giant tiger-shaped monster.
So, ten dolls arrived to her aid, capable of manipulating their mana to increase their physical strength, some even with elemental manipulations.
Hajime tried to pierce Kugutsu's head with one of his katanas, but his attack was blocked and deflected by a shield held by one of her dolls, a relic that, once activated, created a mana barrier to defend her.
The other ten dolls lunged at the boy, surrounding him. Hajime swiftly slashed the head of one doll with his katana and cut off the head of the doll behind him with the other, but then all the others decided to throw themselves together at him. Still, it was all in vain—Hajime manipulated his blood, turning it into tiny needles that he shot at the dolls, flowing his blood into their bodies at specific points to immobilize them.
"He's stronger than I thought... one day, he could become a star... but not today." (Kugutsu)
Hajime was about to strike the barrier to destroy it and kill the woman who had thrown him into a cell, thinking she could contain him, but the doll that had defeated Fumio arrived, a sort of domestic doll wielding a giant hammer, far surpassing Hajime's strength. With a powerful blow, she smashed the boy through the floor, crushing him onto the ground—unable to block or absorb the hit, causing multiple fractures.
"lucky that was nearby... if my doll had arrived a moment later, I'd be dead." (Kugutsu)
"D-Damn it..." (Hajime)
Hajime spat some blood from the blow he received, trying to get up and free himself from the heavy hammer, but it was too heavy for him to lift.
"It's useless. That hammer weighs ten tons, and with the blow you took earlier, you've suffered several fractures. Yet you still insist on trying to get up... that's admirable... stupid... but admirable." (Kugutsu)
Then, Cris, the vice of the Black Corps in this district, arrived where Kugutsu was, drawn by the enormous noise.
"Kugutsu-sama, I came as quickly as possible." (Cris)
"Here you are, Cris... are you sure you administered a massive dose of anti-mage poison to the boy?" (Kugutsu)
She pointed at Hajime, who was still thrashing as he tried to get up, cursing and insulting Kugutsu and her doll.
"Yes, I'm sure. I gave the same dose to all of them, but he seems to recover mana much faster than the others. Usually, such a substance lasts much longer." (Cris)
"I'LL KILL YOU! YOU AND YOUR DAMN DOLLS!!" (Hajime)
Hajime's curses and threats stopped when the doll pressed the hammer into his back, making his bones crack.
"Hmm... he probably has excellent resistance to poisons and pathogens. That's how he managed to recover so quickly. In that case, we need to give him doses every two hours and keep him under the watch of my elite dolls. for now....." (Kugutsu)
The woman decided to return to her study, for now. She would speak with Hajime tomorrow, after drugging him and restraining every part of his body with chains.