— — — — — —
It was the dead of night.
Deep underground in a building still under renovation, rows of experimental pods glowed a pale green, their light spilling across the chamber and reflecting off Rudolf's face.
Rudolf Eustach, a veteran priest and Attack Mage, had come all the way to the Far East—to Itogami Island—to reclaim the right arm of a dead saint from the West European Church.
But Rudolf knew it well.
He was already trapped, with no way out.
Standing in the testing facility, his expression dark and rigid, he spoke in a low, grim voice. "Mr. Gardos, what exactly is the Black Death Emperor Faction's position?"
The Black Death Emperor Faction was a terrorist organization once active within the First Primogenitor's empire, the Warlord Dominion.
Its leader had been killed by Dimitrie Vatler years ago. Its vice leader was suspected to have been erased by the Fourth Primogenitor at the beginning of last year. By now, the faction was a shadow of its former self.
And the man currently in charge of it was the one standing across from Rudolf.
An elderly man in military uniform, broad-shouldered and powerfully built.
Gardos' aged face creased into a smile. "I'm afraid the Black Death Emperor Faction has no intention of acting against the Dawn Empire at this time."
After a brief pause, he added meaningfully, "Especially now, when the Fourth Primogenitor has revealed himself and is about to meet with the Aldegian princesses. It's a very sensitive moment."
Over the past year and a half, much of the Dawn Empire's terror had stemmed from that elusive Primogenitor, who rarely showed his face.
With no one able to track the Fourth Primogenitor's movements, countless factions had been forced to tread carefully, too wary to make a single reckless move.
After all, rumors circulating through the other Primogenitor Empires painted him as both short-tempered and frighteningly powerful.
There were even whispers that the Third Primogenitor had suffered a serious loss at his hands and had been forced to open up large portions of their magitech as a result.
Now the Fourth Primogenitor had stepped into the open. That meant his movements were, to some extent, traceable. But Gardos knew very well that the fanatic standing before him would never let an opportunity like this slip by.
Catching the hint loud and clear, Rudolf clenched his teeth before replying coldly, "Don't forget, the Nalakuvera outside was lured here by you."
"Without my cooperation, and without Astarte, you'd never have captured even a single Nalakuvera."
Gardos' expression didn't change, but his eyes grew deeper, darker. "One unit isn't enough."
Nalakuvera—an autonomous weapon of the Dawn Empire. A slaughter machine developed in ancient times by Cain, these Weapons of Gods were feared for their mastery of computer networks and their abilities to repair, improve, and evolve themselves. When a horde of Nalakuvera was involved, the same attack never worked twice.
The Black Death Emperor Faction had been eyeing Nalakuvera for a long time. But with the Dawn Empire's tight security, and with strong figures always guarding Cyber Empress Asagi, they had never managed to succeed.
Now that Rudolf had brought it up himself, it would be easy enough to pin everything on him afterward.
The saint's remains Rudolf sought were buried at the very bottom of the Keystone Gate. Charging in there was no different from committing suicide.
But a priest who willingly embraced martyrdom was the perfect scapegoat.
With that thought, Gardos smiled. "Two units. And you'll form a soul contract with me to keep this secret."
As he spoke, his gaze shifted to the short, blue-haired girl standing beside Rudolf. His eyes narrowed slightly.
"That shouldn't be too hard for you."
"Deal."
---
Ryo, who had been sleeping in the large bed, suddenly opened his eyes and sat up.
"What's wrong?"
A puzzled voice sounded beside him.
It came from the black-haired girl lying next to him.
Ryo glanced at Nozomi Kamikiba, said nothing, and swung his legs out of bed. With a snap of his fingers, his sleepwear changed into casual clothes.
"Someone's testing an intrusion into the Keystone Gate."
"Huh?" Nozomi looked stunned, as if she couldn't believe anyone could be that stupid.
"You stay here," Ryo said as he walked toward the door.
He opened it and immediately saw a figure standing in the hall.
"Not continuing your fun?" Natsuki, holding a parasol despite the late hour, glanced into the room and let out a soft scoff.
"I can tell work from pleasure," Ryo replied calmly. Then he added, "You know me. I was just fulfilling a lonely woman's small wish."
"And that somehow ended up in bed?" Natsuki shot him a mocking look, snorted, and then said evenly, "You can keep women around, but don't let Asagi see her."
"This island can afford to lose a vampire, but it can't do without Asagi's brain."
Ryo stared at her in surprise. "You're really that pragmatic?"
"Aren't you?" Natsuki sneered. Then, with clear disdain, she added, "You've never cared much about what happens on this island. Who do you think has been holding up this so-called Empire while you've been slacking off?"
Ryo fell silent. He knew this one was on him. "Well, since you put it that way, I'll go deal with the trash downstairs while I'm at it."
"Is that all?" Natsuki looked at him, utterly speechless.
If she hadn't wanted to probe whether the Western European Church had more tricks up their sleeve, that priest would have been dead the moment he set foot on the island. There would've been no need to wait for Ryo at all.
With a face thick as steel, Ryo said, "I'll personally show up for the Aldegyr meeting."
"You're shameless," Natsuki said flatly.
Ryo Yagami meeting the most beautiful girl of Aldegyr. What kind of scheme that was, did he really think anyone was fooled?
Hearing this, Ryo said with righteous seriousness, "You misunderstand. I honestly don't care whether a woman is a spirit medium or not."
Natsuki turned her head and glanced into the room, where Nozomi was clutching the blanket and wrapping herself up tight. She nodded. "Yeah, you really don't. As long as the face is pretty, that's enough."
Ryo casually closed the door and said calmly, "I think there's been a serious misunderstanding between us."
He figured Natsuki was probably jealous. Otherwise, she wouldn't be this sharp-tongued.
Noticing Ryo approaching without a change in expression, Natsuki took a small step back.
"This is just a projection," she warned. "You can't do anything to me."
As she spoke, the hostility in her tone eased a little.
"By the way, weren't you going to deal with the trash downstairs? Just hurry up and handle it."
"Oh, and leave that homunculus alive."
(Homunculus was a title given to a Manmade Life-form constructed via biotechnology.)
"Homunculus?" Ryo narrowed his eyes and gave her a knowing look. "What are you planning?"
Natsuki muttered, "Liana is way too clumsy. She still can't even make a decent cup of coffee."
"I see," Ryo said with a smile.
So that was it. She had her eye on someone else's homunculus.
With a silent snort of amusement, Ryo vanished from the room.
When he reappeared, he was already in the lobby on the first floor.
Amid the crowd of fleeing administrative staff, he moved calmly against the flow, heading straight for the underground passage.
At that instant, a massive hand burst out from behind the door.
The hand was nearly two stories tall. In a flash, it grabbed Ryo as if he were a figurine and lifted him into the air.
...
"Don't come any closer! One more step and I'll kill him!"
A few seconds later, Rudolf Eustach—his body drenched in blood—screamed in a shrill, frenzied voice.
.
.
.