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Cough—!
The young man's hand clamped around the middle-aged man's throat like steel pincers, lifting him from the ground. Kensei Kanase's mouth gaped involuntarily, his aging, wrinkled face contorting in pain.
Though he'd once served as Royal Court Magical Technician of Aldegyr, at the end of the day he was just a technical specialist—basically a bookish intellectual type.
And typically, when technical specialists had conflicts, they rarely went beyond verbal arguments, usually debating scientific evidence and methodologies.
As for being physically grabbed by the throat and interrogated like this? This was Kensei's first experience.
Yet even so, he didn't immediately surrender. He even struggled to speak:
"Who... who are you..."
"None of your business."
Bokue's expression remained unchanged.
In the past, he might have delivered his usual "I am a washing machine" introduction, but this time he genuinely couldn't be bothered with words.
"After all, I have zero interest in conversing with a human trafficker who adopted a girl just to use her as experimental material. So let's keep this brief—answer my question instead of beating around the bush."
Bokue tightened his grip further.
Cough!
As the pressure on his neck intensified, Kensei could no longer hold out. His eyes bulged as if they might pop out, blood trickling from the corners of his gaping mouth.
"Human trafficker? Kanon's birth mother was my own sister! When she first gave birth to Kanon, I was the only one secretly caring for them to avoid causing problems with the Aldegyr royal family. After that, I quit my job and brought Kanon back to Japan, but her mother died from poor health. Only then did I adopt Kanon, and I've always treated her as my own daughter!"
"...What?"
Bokue froze for a second, a look of utter bewilderment flashing across his face.
This was absolutely ridiculous.
If Kensei had simply admitted—like those two cannon fodder he'd just disposed of—that he was experimenting on Aldegyr royal bloodlines for money, at least the logic would track.
Hell, even admitting he was experimenting on his late sister's daughter would be acceptable—just morally more reprehensible.
But now Kensei not only admitted to experimenting on his late sister's daughter but also adopted the attitude of a devoted parent.
This was absurd.
You're experimenting on your late sister's daughter while claiming you raised your niece as your own child? What kind of logic was that?
So basically, you're experimenting on Kanon Kanase precisely because you raised her as your daughter?
Hiss...
For perhaps the first time in his life, Bokue felt like laughing from sheer rage.
Unlike the explosive anger of seeing red, this feeling was like discovering—after thorough communication—that their thought processes existed in completely different universes, that they probably weren't even the same species and therefore fundamentally unable to communicate.
While Bokue had completely given up on thinking, Kensei continued:
"I hate the Aldegyr royal family! If not for you royals, my sister never would have weakened from childbirth, then died from the strain of raising a daughter alone in Japan! I don't want Kanon to experience the same pain my sister went through, so I want to give her the best—even if it costs everything I have, I'll free her from this filthy world! By ascending her to become an angel!"
"...Is that what she told you?"
Bokue looked down at the middle-aged man he held suspended by the throat.
"She told you she wanted to be experimented on and turned into that kind of monster? She said so herself?"
"She..."
Kensei gritted his teeth, unable to continue.
But only for an instant before he returned to his self-righteous "it's all for the child" attitude.
"What would you know?!"
His hands, hanging at his sides, spread their fingers. A black controller resembling car keys slipped from his sleeve into his palm.
Catching the controller, Kensei didn't hesitate, using his last strength to press the largest button on top.
Vwoom—
As the switch activated, motors hummed across the deck.
A rectangular opening appeared as the deck panels slid aside. A long box shaped like a coffin rose on a lift platform through the opening.
Click.
With a soft sound, the box's external locks disengaged automatically. White mist, like vapor from a freezer, seeped through the seams.
Then the lid opened. Under the blazing sun, a silver-haired girl in a form-fitting combat suit lay quietly within, streams of spiritual light flowing gently beneath her skin.
"Could that be..."
"That's Kanon Kanase."
Before Sayaka could voice her surprise, La Folia on the beach had already answered.
Not that explanation was really necessary.
Knowing they were aunt and niece, their similar appearances made it immediately obvious.
La Folia's silver-blue eyes reflected the spiritual radiance flowing over the silver-haired girl on deck. Her beautiful face grew increasingly serious.
"She's already evolved this far..."
❁❁❁❁
Without a sound—not even rustling fabric—Kanon Kanase, who'd been lying with closed eyes in the box, slowly floated upward into the sky, effortlessly surpassing Bokue's altitude.
The angel wings behind the girl spread once more. Under the golden sunlight, her pristine white feathers seemed edged in gold, holy and immaculate.
Only this time, it wasn't two wings—but three on each side.
She'd already ascended to become a six-winged angel.
"..."
Bokue also looked up.
Under the combined gaze of four people on deck and beach, the six-winged angel who was once "Kanon Kanase" finally opened her eyes.
They were eyes devoid of any reason or emotion, containing only chaos and pure killing intent.
Simultaneously, her six wings transformed. Six purple-red eyeballs grew upon the wings themselves.
Bokue released his grip, letting the gasping Kensei collapse to clutch his throat on deck. He looked up at the six-winged angel in the sky—completely at odds with the girl's former title as "Middle School Saint."
"So, is that monster what you wanted for your niece?"
As his words settled, the six purple-red eyeballs on the angel's wings lit up in sequence. Ultra-high-density magical cannons compressed to terrifying degrees instantly descended.
Bokue raised his hand, erecting a defensive barrier to block the attack. Simultaneously, his form appeared before the angelified Kanon Kanase.
But he didn't strike. Instead, he extended his arms, gently stroking the girl's head as he embraced her softly, whispering in her ear:
"Don't worry. I'll change you back soon."
"!"
The young man's voice seemed to carry some kind of magic. The attack movements of Kanon—whose consciousness should have been completely overwritten—suddenly paused.
Big... broth... er...
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