Chapter 62: End of the road

Part 1

3rd Person POV

"...hmmm." 

Tilting her head, the woman observed how the boy who recently arrived twisted the neck of one of her companions. No emotion could be seen on her face other than a frown.

"...how odd."

Her eyes never left his figure and she stood in her position. Other than signaling another of her companions to warn the dead woman, she had not tried to do anything else.

In the meantime, the 'fight' progressed after the actions the boy took.

The pup named Jin had lost his target after the woman died, the bear disappearing along with the death of its wielder. The boy's eyes seemed to look at something after the woman died and his eyes followed it.

Thinking of it as a chance, the Silent Stalker's presence and form vanished. No doubt trying to take this chance to attack again.

Her target appeared to be the boy, however, despite what everyone believed, he had not lost his eyesight. No, his eyes should've become no different from a blind person's, but he somehow was still able to see.

The boy seemed to push something away with his hands, unaware of the approaching threat. However, the boy, Nora, shifted his position quickly all of sudden, he made a grabbing motion and soon he performed a shoulder throw. His actions looked strange and the bystanders wondered about his bizarre movements until they heard a tud. The sound of a body colliding heavily against the ground.

"Urfgh."

Soon, the figure of the woman known as the silent stalker reappeared, but this time, she was laying on the ground, as she struggled to get up, the boy, not having left of her hand, twisted it until the woman had to turn her body. Regardless of the size difference being a couple of heads, the boy had a strong grip and he easily subdued the other party.

"Is it fun? To torture people using your ability?" Nora muttered.

"Let me go, you little bastard!"

Twisting her body as much as she could, the woman resisted and tried to attack Nora with her knife. However, before her arm could even approach Nora, a cracking sound was heard. Nora twisted her arm further and he broke the bones of her arm.

"AHHHHHHHH!"

Her screams of pain made everyone focus on her. Not only did her companions turn to see what was happening, but Tobio and the rest also stared at Nora's actions. The companions of the woman did not stay looking for too much and they decided to intervene, but this made Tobio and the others react. Their only fighting force acted to intercept any attackers that would get close to Nora. Kouki braced himself and charged towards Nora, ready to intercept the avatar holding a dice that was summoned.

"Jin!" Tobio yelled.

Following his words, the pup went to aid Kouki.

In the meantime, Nora moved and put his knee on top of the woman's back. He continued to pin her, making her scream and directing his eyes to her companions. They took it as a taunt, but no one else went to help her.

Clicking his tongue, Nora lifted his free hand.

"<Aport>" Nora called out.

Instantly, a hand ax appeared and he brought it down on the woman. Blood splattered and he was covered, but there was hardly any difference compared to his bloodied outfit from before. The screams stooped and Nora stood up, not before subtly touching the ground.

Looking at their grim situation, the man who had the avatar of the statue wanted to turn around to leave, but by the time he did so, he noticed that his left foot was stuck. Roots from a nearby try had encroached his foot, and no matter how much he tried to release himself, he was unable to do so.

"This damned thing...!!!"

His complaints were loud and his tone was anxious but the roots only grew more.

"You two, do not let him use the dice." Nora warned the duo of Kouki and Tobio. "Natsume-san, stay back and unsummon your avatar. It will recover faster. However, it will still be dangerous so you should go to Shigune-san. The little one, Poh, he will keep you safe."

The group was already aware of the dangers of these people, the Abyss team, but they were still thankful for Nora's words.

After mumbling something in a low tone, a vial appeared in Nora's hand and he simply threw it in Natsume's direction. The girl hastily caught it and puzzledly looked at Nora.

"Drink it." Nora muttered and his eyes no longer wandered on the group but were fully on the man with sunglasses.

Looking at the vial containing a red liquid, Natsume hesitated, but soon shook her head and determinately drank its contents at once. It had no taste, so it felt no different than drinking water, but the pain from her arm began lessening until it was no more. The swelling due to the damaged muscles was reduced too and she felt a refreshing feeling in all her body.

Throwing a thankful at Nora whose attention was no longer on her, Natsume felt guilty for doubting him. She followed his instruction and went towards Shigune and Sae, although she never dropped the branch, her eyes warily on the woman who had a spaced-out look when she caused her wounds.

"Answer." Nora said. "How do you get right of the curse?"

The anxious expression of the man with sunglasses twisted and certain confidence was regained.

"Hehe, you want to know, well, you- AHHHHH!"

The man did not manage to finish his sentence when Nora arrived in front of him a delivered a swift kick that broke his knee. The sounds of bone breaking were loud, but the fact that the man lost his balance due to his twisted limp made it seem obvious how strong the kick was.

"Answer." Nora mechanically said. "How do you get rid of the curse?"

"You little!"

Cursing the man extended his hands after pulling a knife from his pocket. Now that Nora was close enough, he planned to attack the boy but his hand was easily caught.

"I might be a child, but you underestimate me too much. Have you even exercised before?" Nora frowned after stopping the attack midway.

Easily stopping the attack, Nora's hands twisted the man's arm forcefully. The boy twisted so hard that a peculiar sound was heard and a scream followed it.

"ARGHHHHH!"

The other parties fighting stopped to look at what was happening, just in time to see Nora stepping back as the man with sunglasses wailed and tried to keep his arm extended so his hand, hanging loosely, would not move.

"Don't cry, it is unsightly." Nora spoke. "Can't you handle a few broken or dislocated parts of your body?"

Using a chilling tone, Nora asked an equally chilling question. It made the listener shudder, and the man subjected to the violence could only hatefully look at the boy.

"So much for your sadistic facade. You people cause so much pain, but you can't stand being on the receiving end." Nora muttered with a shake of his head. "I will repeat myself again. How do you undo the curse of your sacred gear?"

Grinding his teeth, the man kept his silence in defiance.

Shaking his head once again, Nora easily caught the hanging hand, and pulled the man, until the elbow was between his reach.

"As much as I would like to say that I could do this all day... Sadly, the human body only has a limited number of bones." Nora immediately acted, with his bare hands, he dislocated the elbow of the man.

"ARGHHH! YOU DAMN MONSTER!"

The man wearing sunglasses cursed a loud and tried to use his healthy hand to attack Nora, but history was bound to repeat again.

"ARGHHHHHHHHH."

As loud as before, the man's screams reached his companions, but only the woman seemed to pay attention to them but did not react in any particular way. His other companion, however, did pay attention to him but his hands were full. The pup was about to finish his avatar, who despite having his owner paying attention to Nora's actions, faithfully followed his last orders. On the other hand, Kouki managed to focus on the battle again and with one thrust to the stomach followed by an electric discharge, he knocked out the man before sending him flying and crashing into a tree not too far from them.

"How do you undo the curse?" Nora mechanically asked once again.

There was no change of expression even though he cause great suffering to the other party, he just asked again.

"How do you undo the curse?" Nora paused after seeing the man biting his lips and keeping his silence. 

Noticing that, Nora simply followed up by aiming at the man's shoulder. The gruesome sound chilled the listeners' hearts, but no scream came out.

Tilting his head, Nora soon noticed that the man had fainted.

"I did not give you permission to nap." Nora muttered.

Walking in front of the man, Nora extended his hand to the man's stomach and used his hand to twist his abdomen after sinking his hand into the other party's flesh.

"URGHHHHH!"

Waking up to the feeling of having your flesh twisted savagely until blood tainted his shirt would make anyone grunt from pain.

"You sure cry a lot." Nora commented. "That psycho would do the same when I fainted, so I know for sure that you do not need to cry this hard. If you have the energy to cry in pain, tell me what I want to know."

Tobio and the rest furrowed their eyebrows after hearing the boy's words, they could not ascertain if he was lying or not, but it did not sound like he did. From the way the boy spoke, the group caught sight of another side of Nora, another one beside his kind visage or now ruthless side.

"I have the answer you are looking for."

A voice called out and Nora immediately glared in that direction. The woman, who should a companion of the man that Nora is interrogating, took a few steps closer to Nora but his wariness and hostility made her stop when she was a couple of steps of so from him.

The way he was looking at her was enough for the woman to understand that he would turn to engage her if she got any ideas of getting closer, whether it was to release her companion or attack the boy. Maintain a blank and uninterest look, like everything around her, was not of her concern, the woman pointed at her companion.

"If he wills it, the curse could take days or even weeks before it is dispelled. He never archived the balance breaker so his power is still limited. However, that is not the answer you seek."

The man was about to interrupt the woman but Nora swiftly caught in by the throat and pressed his vocal cords, making the man unable to utter any words and slightly choke.

"He can either dispel it by his own will, something he has never done since he entered Satanael-sama's class, and getting to enjoy the freedom to use his power so I am certain this method is going to prove ineffective. That said, there is one last method that works faster than the one just mentioned. Kill him, that would be your best choice."

Narrowing his eyes, Nora was the only one who stared at the woman in deep consideration.

The group of Tobio all gasped and showed baffled looks at the woman's suggestion. However, the most surprised was the man in question.

"*Cough* *Cough* Why did you tell him that!? Now we will all get killed."

Being released of Nora's grip after he pondered silently, the man angrily yelled.

"At least you will have a swifter death that way."

Without a care in the world, the woman kept a blank and spaced-out look while speaking, but the man did find her words comforting.

"Don't speak like it does not concern you!"

Scared in his heart, the man tried to make his companion understand their situation.

"It does not. The one who will die will be you, not me."

Uninterested, the woman no longer concerned with her companion, no, ex-companion in her opinion. She rather focused her gaze on Nora who made up his mind.

"<Aport>" Nora softly called out.

Soon, an old butcher knife appeared in his hand and he struck it on the man's throat. The man, who had been left tongue-tied by the betrayal of his companion, could only helplessly watch as the knife made its way to his throat. A gruesome sound was heard and he was unable to scream, his vocal cords being destroyed in one move.

The splash of blood did not seem to bother Nora and he simply changed the target to the woman. He faintly nodded his head as the light returned slowly to his eyes.

"The next one is you." Nora muttered.

Tilting her head, the woman question stared at the boy.

"You don't plan to let me go this easily, do you?" Nora spoke.

Shaking her head, the woman glanced at each of her dead companions.

"I do not understand. Putting aside their incompetence in working as a team, they all had abilities that would've troubled even Ultimate Class beings. However, you simply shrugged off the effects of one of the most effective attacks this team had. Yet, your strength is not good enough for the abilities to not affect you."

Listening to that, Nora opened his lips and the woman showed slight interest in the answer. However, Nora never spoke a word in response, but rather swung the knife at the woman after dashing in her direction. Yet, with the same expression, the woman's left hand struck the boy's hands away, while the right one had her fingers spread and aimed at his eyes. Nora seemed to expect some sort of counterattack so he simply ducked slightly and pushed himself away.

Having his attack meet failure did not discourage Nora, he mumbled a few words and nails appeared on his free hand.

"It is never easy, is it?" Nora sighed.

Closing his eyes slightly, he stared at the woman. After her brief reaction, she stayed standing there, with no further interest in initiating the attack.

Shaking his head, Nora threw the nails in her direction and they shot out in a straight line.

Back stepping lightly, the woman easily dodged the attack. Nora mumbled once again and the same attack pattern repeated itself three times.

Clicking his tongue, Nora dashed forward to meet the woman once more. He tried to slash at her from below, but she dodged by jumping. While in midair, she could not dodge so he brought more nails and threw them at her, yet he was wrong because she twisted her body adeptly and avoided the attack again.

Watching that, Nora was not discouraged, he followed after her and slashed at her continuously. However, she would adeptly use her hands to smack his away, whenever he tried using kicks, she use her feet to respond. With every attack Nora launched, he noticed how there was a glint in her eyes, and while her expression remained the same, that glint was not something related to her mood, or Nora inwardly imagined.

Throwing the butcher knife at her, Nora brought his axes and continued his pursuit, but they kept exchanging blows without actually hitting each other. That is not to say that the woman did not try to attack him, but rather that Nora did not allow himself to be hit so far, using short movements to not let an opening appear, or so he thought until the woman broke through his defenses by pressing a few points on one of the hands holding the axes, and it made the boy widen his eyes. 

His hand got weak all of sudden and he hastily took a few steps back. Nonetheless, the woman gave chase and took the leading position.

Nora found himself in a tricky situation and could not understand how his earlier movements and actions that allowed him to dodge were now being easily seen through.

Not allowing to get in complete disadvantage, he managed to land a hit as she took the opportunity to strike at his weakened hand in a few places before using one of her hands to dislocate his hand and the other to prevent him from digging deeper into her stomach with his ax.

They parted ways and Nora stared at his powerless and dislocated hand. The same could be said about the woman who pulled out the ax from her stomach.

"How strange..."

Furrowing her eyebrows, the woman looked at Nora in confusion.

The only spectators left wanted to rush to aid Nora but he glared at them.

"Stay away from her. Unless you want to get your hand like this." Nora warned.

Swing his hanging dislocated hand at them, he made Tobio and the rest sweat coldly from his actions that lacked delicacy and care for his well-being.

"Was it that man who sent you here? Just to kill me? No, he is after them too, is he not?" Nora spoke.

Iddly staring at his hand, he nodded to himself before easily putting it back in place, not much of a change of expression covered his face as he did that.

His words or actions made the woman's frown deepen, before taking out something from her pocket. A small vial with reddish liquid made Nora click his tongue. She applied some drops to her wounds and they healed in the blink of an eye.

"...how strange."

Shaking her head, the woman saved the rest of the liquid in the vial and put it in her pocket again.

"Did you all have the same mission?" Nora changed his question.

"He only sends us to meet with you. The ones you took care of simply decided to act on their own. My job... was to observe you."

Absentmindedly, the woman answered back.

"If that is how it is, why would you stand in the way?" Nora muttered.

"Because... It is strange. I can easily tell if I can or cannot beat someone. If there is or there is no solution to something. Yet, while I can see getting a victory against you, I can also see myself getting defeated. No, to be precise, even if I win, I will lose."

Listening to her words, Nora failed to grasp her intentions. However, he could at least understand that like the rest of the Abyss team, she must suffer some kind of illness in her head.

"I wanted to see why that happened and... It is strange. You should've been blinded back then, yet you could still see. It does not make sense. Your chances of killing Silent Stalker were almost null as well. Even if you somehow got information about her abilities beforehand... It was almost like you could see through her invisibility. Then it was our exchange earlier, that injury was treated like nothing."

"It was a minor issue, anyone could fix something this minor by themselves, couldn't they?" Nora glanced at the spectators who shook their heads in denial.

"I suppose you can be right."

Getting support for his claims from an unexpected side, the boy did not feel any better.

"My job is done. My curiosity has been more or less satisfied."

Nodding at that, the woman simply turned around and walked away.

Debating whether go and strike her from the back, Nora changed the direction of his gaze toward another part of the forest where the fog did not allow one to look deeper. He ignored the woman nonchalantly left and massaged his hand to restore its mobility of it. There was a sense of tension in the air, and Tobio and the rest found themselves unable to speak. After an unknown period of time, a figure walked slowly from the fog. A man of middle age and wearing a suit, one of the sleeves from his suit was torn along with a part of his pants. No injury could be seen but dried blood stained his garments. A broken staff was carried in his hand and he slowly made his way toward Tobio and the rest, ignoring Nora completely. His gaze lingered on each of the group but he paid more attention to Tobio and his avatar, or rather, to the blade it carried.

"So this is... Ah, I see..."

Nodding to himself, the man directed his gaze to Tobio and-

Part 2

3rd Person POV

Inside a large castle that looked unexpectedly spotless, sitting on her throne in a great hall, Scathach who was lazily tapping her fingers on the armrest of the throne with her eyes closed, opened them.

"Hmmm? The seal... It is being forcefully broken again?" Scathach directed her gaze in a particular direction. "Why? It should not be the time yet... Unless, no, there is still plenty of time before that happens. The giantess 'he' mentioned will not appear just yet, neither the cult will make their move soon."

Pondering slightly, Scathach shook her head and closed her eyes again.

"...I doubt 'he' would want to fight if 'he' is in a hurry. I shall force 'him'- no, I will coerce- no, hmmm, I will ask him to have a match against me when 'he' finishes his business." Scathach muttered.

Like it was none of her business, Scathach ignored the seal and began pondering. Her visage was peaceful and would make any man or even woman feel charmed due to her outstanding looks and majestic charm exuded from her persona at this moment. Many would wonder what is she thinking, and perhaps many would consider that she has certain worries as she furrows her eyebrow at times. Yet, their backs would be soaked in a cold sweat if they heard her next words.

"No good, the training regimen I thought of is lacking... Not harsh enough." Scathach sighed. "I am getting soft... he only has 5 chances of 10 from dying."

Certain boy felt a chill run down his spine continuously for weeks, but he only came to understand that feeling one month later.

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3rd Person POV

Standing still on a high point of a mountain, a man was watching the spectacle that would unfold. Beside him, a younger man stood respectfully wearing a uniform.

The Abyss team uniform was a giveaway to the younger man's status, and the older one who received the respect of the young one could only be someone, Satanael, the former member of the Grimori. He is a tall man dressed in the usually fallen angel battlesuit like others of his kind, with brown hair, silver eyes, and masculine facial features.

Fog covered his surroundings and soon the figure of a woman was seen walking from the thick fog.

"Kuro, you are back." Satanael nodded. "How was it?"

"He is as strange as you told me." Kuro replied. "It is the first time I have been hurt facing a single person weaker than me."

"Despite being a human, your abilities can only be on par with supernatural beings due to the Gladius prototype you carry hidden on your waist. Do not let it confuse you. Until the prototype stays at that, it will never be your strength." Satanael advised. "There is still too much to improve. You are only the one capable of using it due to its unstable nature, otherwise, Yousuke and you would not be the only ones remaining from the group I brought."

Looking at the younger man, Yousuke, Satanael wondered if his Sacred Gear, Fog of the Lost Ones, which can work to manipulate the space in a surrounding area, was the cause. It lacked the ability to directly hurt other people so he stayed behind scenes, separating the Absolute Demise girl from the others and helping his allies to move to different locations faster.

"My apologies, it is as you said." Kuro mumbled absentmindedly.

"How did he fare?" Satanael asked.

"I had to retreat as you instructed me, but..." Kuro furrowed her eyebrows. "I can't seem to be able to win against him. No matter how many scenarios my Sacred Gear showed me, they would show me victory, but would soon be distorted and twisted, replaced with defeat. The process repeated continuously."

Surprise flashed on the expression of Yousuke, but he did not say a word.

"Is that so?" Satanael seemed to anticipate that answer so he did not look surprised. "If even your eyes that can guarantee victory cannot see through him, then nothing can. Certain victory or certain defeat should be the only thing you see. Only one of those, yet he... Hmmm, as expected. Listen, that child must not be underestimated. Fate has no effect on him."

Confused, the woman tilted her head.

"Enough of that." Satanael did not elaborate further. "If I interfere further, I am afraid I will become their enemies. I would rather not be the target of that history eater woman. I invited him before and today's events will determine if he will come."

"Teacher, if you could excuse my ignorance. Why do you want to bring that youkai to the group? He is an odd one but..." Kuro hesitated in her speech.

"He is not worth mentioning compared to the Four Fiends users and the Longinus boy?" Satanael raised an eyebrow.

Nodding deeply, the visage of the woman remained the same albeit with traces of confusion.

"His origins are something you can't grasp. He is an oddity not only among his kin but in this world. The fact that those cultists worshipping Outer Gods had a link to him, makes him strange. Not to mention..." Satanael narrowed his eyes. "Long time ago, I met a peculiar person. He told me how chaotic this boy will be and how that would help me accomplish what I desire."

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3rd Person POV

"Nora!" Natsume yelled in distress.

After the man in the suit introduced himself as Hanezu, Nora urged Tobio and the rest to flee, but the group did not dare to leave the boy alone. They could tell that the man was as dangerous as the woman who left all of sudden.

The man had his eyes on them and Nora seemed to have a grudge against him as he prepared to attack him after grinding his teeth. Yet, the man noticed Nora's attack and angrily counterattacked. He took stacks of talismans and threw them at Nora, they stuck to the boy as glue, and his movements were sealed. They adhered to Nora and made him an easy target to Hanezu who took out several talismans and stuck them on Nora's stuck-in-place figure. Immediately, smoke began to raise from Nora's figure as the man chanted something. The figure of the boy tried to get away from the talismans but before his efforts were rewarded, Hanezu threw him against a tree. Taking strips of paper with several markings, he chanted again and they came to life, binding Nora to the tree, in addition, he put talismans on his mouth so he could not talk.

The movements of the man were swift and accurate, a sign that he was used to repeating them often.

"I will deal with you later." Hanezu glared at the boy.

Lowering his broken staff, the man took another look at Tobio.

"You... do you know of your origins?" Hanezu asked.

Throwing a strange question as soon as he spoke to him left Tobio confused, but given the other's party actions, he did not consider answering him seriously.

"Jin!" Tobio shouted.

Barking in response, the pup ran straight at the man, ready to pierce him in a ram attack. However, the man easily parried the attack with his broken staff. The pup flew into the air from that and the man followed by thrusting at the pup.

A whine of pain was heard yet Jin courageously stood up again, ready to attack again.

"An incomplete awakening will not be capable of causing me any harm." Hanezu said lightly. "You all seem to have only recently awakened your Sacred Gears, did you not?"

Glancing at the group, Hanezu raised a question that none of them felt like answering. However, Natsume felt the need to stall for time until they come up with a countermeasure.

"Are you the boss of those people who we faced at the entrance? No, you also command those who attacked Urakyoto, don't you?" Natsume inquired.

Closing his eyes, Hanezu seemed to ponder something.

"You must be Natsume Minagawa. Let me ask you, what would you do if I replied 'yes'?"Hanezu spoke.

Groaning in response, Natsume thought that he would not be this straightforward thus it would buy them more time.

"Why did you do it?" Natsume followed with a personal question, and probably something of all them share.

This cause Hanezu to furrow his eyebrows in confusion.

"I am afraid I do not understand why you ask that." Hanezu muttered. "Youkais... no, supernatural beings, in general, are threats to humans. What happens to them is not something you should worry about. In fact, you should celebrate since your daily life can be said to be protected the more youkais are killed."

"DON'T F*CK WITH ME!" Kouki shouted. "What rights do you have to spout that kind of crap?"

While the choice of words would vary depending on the person, the group was of the same thought.

"It is amusing of you to say that. All of you are children blessed by God, blessed with abilities to stand up against the threat to humans supernatural beings." Hanezu slowly said. "Your abilities were made to deal with the likes of youkais, such as the boy behind me."

Doing his best to not be consumed by anger Kouki bid his time by staring hatefully at Hanezu.

Located at one side, Nora managed to get his head free at least.

"However, you people must be confused as to why we did such a sudden attack. We never planned to reduce our fighting forces through such a reckless attack considering that our goal was primarily revenging against the Five Clans." Hanezu said. "That said, you can only blame yourselves for that one. Before we had to rely on a desperate plan of using a youkai as the base for our goal, you were our first option. We were supposed to capture you and develop the Utsusemi using you as the base. The Four Fiends plan was over before we could act on it since you all disappeared."

Those words were like knives stabbing into the group's hearts. They subconsciously looked in Nora's direction and saw him scowling, they immediately avoided looking at him out of fear of reproach, but the man still had things to say.

"Come with me, the allies you once thought would have your back are no longer going to aid you. In fact, it is only a matter of time before they find out what you did and began blaming you." Hanezu's expression softened. "Tobio Ikuse. You probably are in the dark, but your grandmother was part of the Himejima Clan, they dedicated their lives to protecting mankind from the likes of creatures such as that monster with a human appearance."

The mention of his dead family member shook the black-haired young man greatly.

"However, due to the unreasonable traditions and laws within the clan, people like us were excluded. For them, unless we had the same Fire Phase as the rest, we were not considered Himejimas. Your grandmother left the clan to bring you with her, afraid of the life you would have ahead of you." Hanezu spoke. "Being the target of the clan would be hard, given what kind of existence you are."

Biting his lips, Tobio remained silent. Hanezu judged it as the young man contemplating his words so he continued.

"Your Sacred Gear carries the blade that killed a god, in particular, the same god that the Himejima believes in." Hanezu revealed. "You are destinated to become their enemies."

Not being able to stay silent, Natsume decided to speak up for her friend who found himself at a loss from the sudden revelations.

"Why would we believe something like that? You are just trying to drag him to your camp. You are taking advantage that we cannot confirm anything so that it is too late by the time we do." Natsume exclaimed.

"Is that so? I guess that it must look that way to you." Hanezu did not look upset. "However, I am not only trying to invite him to my side, but all of you. After all, it is not only Tobio Ikuse who is in danger of being hunted down by the Himejimas, all you are, and it will be done by all the Five Clans."

Pausing slightly, Hanezu saw the bewildered looks he received so he inwardly smiled.

"You are the users of the Four Fiends, Sacred Gears that contain beasts of the same caliber as the Four Auspicious Beast of directions that the Five Clans own. Of course, you are lacking a bit in numbers to be considered the full force, but the creatures you carry are more than a match to the ones the heirs of the clan carry. Such a thing is already threatening enough, but to add salt to the wounds, your creatures are considered evil and misuse of their powers can lead to tragedies. Do not let their current appearances fool you. They are terrifying creatures capable of planting fear in the minds of your foes just with their presence."

The group looked at their rather adorable version of their avatars only to be met by the avatars tilting their necks at them.

"I can help you shake off their pursuit. I am also capable to train you so you can use your powers effectively, and we can all get revenge on them. At that time, you will no longer be chased by them." Hanezu offered.

It was a grim revelation, and they were shaken. There was fear of what they might have to go through, however, above all, they felt guilty toward Nora and the youkais. Yet-

"Sorry, but I will have to refuse." Kouki mumbled. "I would rather stay the way I am than to go with you."

Giggling, Natsume found her friend's words aligned to what was on her mind and she laughed.

"Indeed. I think I would like to stay beside Shiki-kun." Natsume confidently said.

However, she got stared at strangely by her companions. Sae and Shigune were even blushing.

"...Stray-sensei is a child." Kouki warned.

It was at that point that Natsume caught on to their lines of thought and she blushed as well.

"I DID NOT MEAN IT LIKE THAT, YOU MUSCLE HEAD!" Natsume glared hatefully at her companion.

Clicking his tongue, Kouki watched from the corner of his eyes the movements of a small creature and prepared himself.

"Yeah, yeah. We all know that what happened in the bathroom was an 'accident'. Aren't you glad? I don't think that youkais are bound by the same law as us humans so you can do plenty of stuff." Kouki shrugged his shoulders.

Understanding from his strange behavior in front of an enemy that he is up to something, Natsume decided to play it along instead of using the special technique Nora showed the girls for self-defense.

"What do mean with all kinds of stuff? Oi, don't look to the other side." Natsume narrowed her eyes.

Getting annoyed that the conversation got sidetracked, Hanezu decided to interrupt them.

"...why?" He asked a simple question.

A little curious about his companions' answers, Tobio still felt shaken, and while he did not like the man, he felt that troubling Nora is not something that he wants. Perhaps she noticed his unrest, his childhood friend, Sae, grasped his hand and the warmth of her small hand caused Tobio's restless heart to calm down.

"It is ok. As long as we are together..." Sae mumbled shyly.

To the words that sounded sweet in his ears, Tobio felt like his worries were not that troublesome anymore.

"It is not a complicated matter. We like him more than you. No, we don't like you one bit so there is no way we will trust you, isn't that right? Birdbrain (with a subtle taste for younger boys)" Kouki laughed.

"You took the words out of my mouth... Uh? I think you added something at the end that-" Natsume glared at Kouki.

"Your imagination, Birdbrain." Kouki muttered with a smirk.

Noticing that the matters were getting out of hand and that he had failed to convince them peacefully, Hanezu silently took a stance and prepared to attack. His eyes did not fail to notice the subtle actions of the petite girl and the young man thus in his mind, he formed a plan.

"It seems we will have to do this the hard way." Hanezu muttered grimly.

Before he could dash forward, he felt a chill behind his back and the figure of Jin running in his direction ready to pierce him with its blade could be seen. Changing his stance to meet the charge, Hanezu saw from the corner of his eyes how Kouki began running his way as well. Clicking his tongue, he chanted a defensive spell that raised the toughness of his body and briefly thrust his staff to meet Jim's blade. This time, however, Jin did not confront him in a clash, but rather... darkness covered him and he took a dive into the ground, exactly towards the shadow the staff made. Alarmed after losing his target, Hanezu changed his priority and prepared to receive Kouki's thrust, however, just as he shifted his place, a long blade covered in ominous symbols grew from his shadow and stabbed him in his thigh, making him lose his balance, and despite his best efforts to move his body, he ended up receiving a full stab in his stomach. He tumbled backward and he did not get pierces due to the spell he cast beforehand.

"Guh!" Hanezu grunted from pain.

Taking his distance, Hanezu parried the follow-up attack from Kouki despite the numbness he felt after a sneaky electric discharge he received with the blow. As he expected, a blade once again came from his shadow and it was hard to dodge, so he prepared to receive the injury, chanted briefly, and stabbed with his staff at the base of the blade, he seemed to hit something other than the ground. It cause the blade to retreat and the pup came out a few meters away from the shadow of a tree shaking its head in discomfort.

Taking a deep breath, Hanezu let his heart calm down. He began chanting immediately several self-strengthening buffs that wore off after dealing with Nora and while he tried to convince the group to follow him.

Feeling the change occurring to Hanezu, Kouki braced himself. He tried to attack again yet this time his attack was dodged and he received a counterattack on his stomach. The blunt part of the staff was not as deadly but the force of the strike left Kouki gasping for air.

"Playtime is over..." Hanezu muttered.

------------------------------------------------------------------

3rd Person POV

"Keke, it is so nice to be young. You are full of energy." Augusta cracked a smile.

Waving her staff, a magic shield manifested before her and stopped the magic bombardment from her foe.

Lavinia furrowed her eyebrows after the Nth attack that resulted ineffectively. It was not matter that said she was at disadvantage, rather, the attacks from the older witch were also stopped easily by Lavinia. They were currently engaged in an exchange of attacks from low-level magic so it was not a surprise that none had the upper hand. It was common for witches of a certain caliber to engage in such a fight when they did not intend to kill each other instantly and wanted to get information from one another.

"Perhaps you are just getting too old for this." Lavinia spoke.

She tried to make the other party get angry but Augusta did not mind her comment.

"Certainly, after this, I should just stay indoors for some time, my old bones need a rest and I have a lot of research data to sort out." Augusta smiled.

Biting her lips, Lavinia prepared another spell.

"Tell me. Where did you take that child?" Lavinia asked.

"Ho hooo? I thought you would start by asking me about your mentor but you suddenly asked something I did not expect. That said, I will have to disappoint you. I do not know about any child." Augusta responded with a spell.

"Don't play tricks on me, I know you took a girl with you after attacking Urakyoto." Lavinia exclaimed.

Pondering slightly, the answer came to Augusta.

"I do recall catching not a girl but a cat... Yes, it was a small white cat." Augusta nodded.

Hastily creating several shields, she defended herself from several spells from Lavinia who looked angry.

"How odd, I thought that you would only care about asking about your mentor, but it seems you have grown since the last time I saw you." Augusta smirked. "Could it be that you have lost interest in knowing about your mentor?"

After those words were muttered, the air began to turn cold like Lavinia's expression.

"You still like to talk nonsense." Lavinia accused.

"Keke, what are you going to do about it?" Augusta smirked. "Look at you, I thought you had grown up and left behind the nonsense with your mentor, but you cannot leave it behind. Your face is quite scary. Is a comment all it takes to make you lose your patience? Keke, it seems it was the right choice."

Narrowing her eyes, Lavinia's mind could not help to focus on the last part. She recalled a conversation she had with Nora, one she did not pay complete attention to. Even though she liked Nora, that day she asked him to leave her alone due to the shock his words left on her, and perhaps, she was a bit harsh on him. For a couple of days, she stayed locked in her room and refused to meet anyone. Nora worked extremely hard in coaxing her out of the room but the topic was never spoken again.

"Hey... Do you want to know a secret?" Augusta smiled.

Gritting her teeth, Lavinia thought of refusing, she could feel that it was going to be a trap, and Nora's words fr back then echoed in her mind.

"...tell me where the girl is." Lavinia muttered.

Rousing her magic power, she not only prepared several spells to attack but also called upon her Sacred Gear. The surrounding temperature dropped sharply and a figure manifested beside Lavinia. A three-meter tall disfigured doll made of ice that takes a form of a woman in a dress stood obediently beside Lavinia ready to attack the older witch.

"Keke, I refuse." Augusta grinned fearlessly.

Suddenly, the dropping temperature stopped and from the side of Augusta, it rose sharply. Behind her flames erupted fiercely, forming a giant composed of purple flames.

"Incinerate Anthem..." Lavinia bitterly said. "It seems you will not tell me anything obediently."

"I always had this question, among the Longinus, there has been the obvious rivalry between the Boosted Gear and Divine Dividing. However, our Sacred Gears could be said pretty much the same. Your Absolute Demise or my Incinerate Anthem, which one do you think is stronger?" Augusta raised a question.

Not in the mood for quizzes, Lavinia remained silent.

"How about this then? If you are able to amuse me, I will tell you what you desire to know." Augusta grinned. "That is to say, I will answer a question you have. Only one question."

A wicked grin covering her face, Augusta was the representation of an evil witch. It left Lavinia in a conundrum, she did not come here with that intention, but now that it presented itself, she wanted to hear about her mentor's disappearance, she wanted to confirm it. However, it weighed on her mind everything Nora had said before. Not only the 'truth about her mentor' but also the look he gave her before, saying that only came here for her revenge. Part of her wanted to deny it, she wanted to say she came here only to help the cheeky little brother she got (self-proclaimed), yet... the rumors about her mentor were too many. Some stated that she died in the hands of Augusta, while others that she was seriously injured and went into hiding. No real evidence of any had been found and Lavinia had been after Augusta since a long time ago.

"Keke, you seem to have a lot in your mind. Well then, I will take the lead here." Augusta gestured.

Using her hand to motion toward Lavinia, Augusta signaled the start of the fight between the two Sacred Gears. Watching the distressing look Lavinia had, she smiled, an idea formed in her head. She briefly considered her odds and the possible outside interruptions before coming to a conclusion.

"This could interesting as well, I will get to use those spells again." Augusta mumbled.

Part 3

3rd Person POV

"Kuh." Kouki groaned.

Crashing into a tree for the Nth time, he tried to stand up, but his body did not respond.

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Around him, the group lay on the ground. Barely conscious, Natsume, Tobio, and Kouki tried to get back on their feet but their bodies did not listen. Shigune was the only one without many injuries, yet she was thrown far away from them and her avatar stood threateningly in front of her half-kneeling figure. The only one un-harmed was Sae, who was being held captive by Hanezu.

"Leave her alone!" Tobio angrily shouted.

"You left me no choice." Hanezu mumbled. "Even if you will not join our cause. After you lose control here, you will become their target, and at the end, you will end up erasing the Himejima Clan, no, the Five Clans from this world."

Despite his calm exterior, a maddening glint shone on Hanezu's eyes. Sae tried to get away, but the grip of Hanezu held her in place. Looking at her condition, anger began to cloud Tobio's mind. Jin, who had been lying down as well, began to show changes, darkness began to emanate from its body and its eyes glowed in deep red.

"...you are truly trash." Nora's voice could be heard once again. "Very well, even if I wanted to save as many trump cards as possible, if I am stopped here, I will not be able to accomplish anything."

There was something in his voice that made everyone turn to look at the boy. They noticed that his state looked a bit different than before. Now his hand could be seen slipping through the gasps of the talismans. Even as he received damage from the exorcising ofudas, the boy had remained silent so far so his actions could not go unnoticed now that everyone was looking in his direction.

"This is...?" Nora's surprised voice was heard.

As his hand gripped the talismans, they began to quickly lose power. Hanezu observed carefully and noticed how the power they had to bind the boy was drained by his left hand gripping them. Soon enough, there was no power binding Nora and he pushed away the now ordinary paper strips.

"It is not like I cannot understand where you are coming from. Being completely cast away by those you believed to be your very allies and family can be quite heartbreaking." Nora simply stated. "I can't even begin to fathom what you went through, neither what your subordinates went through. It must've been hard for you to be judged just because you were different, and how you were pushed away by something you could not change since that was the way you were born."

His words were the very things that Hanezu and his people had felt, but he found it laughable that the one who came to understand them accurately was the same creature that put them in such a bad position. Hanezu had heard from Augusta, she told him that the one who paid close attention to the group of youths in front of him and took them in before they could put forth their plans was the youkai standing here.

"...you could never understand our pain." Hanezu gritted his teeth.

"Perhaps." Nora shook his head and took a step forward. "However, I do understand the desire for revenge. It consumes you quite dangerously. It fills your head with unthinkable thoughts and narrows your mind. It was quite some time ago, but I did kill out of rage someone. He did terrible things to someone I care deeply about so I understand that desire for vengeance."

"Shut up! You wouldn't-" Hanezu felt the need to make the other party close his mouth.

"I wouldn't understand? You are quite equivocated there. Youkais are the ones who should understand more than anyone what it fills to be labeled as evil by exorcists as soon they are born." Nora said in a plain tone of voice with a slight coldness. "I will not completely take the fault that lies with many of our kin, but humans have always labeled us as evil just because we were different than them. Even if the youkais had done nothing wrong, just because we were different, you would prosecute us."

Shrugging his shoulders, Nora took a step forward. The surrounding air began to feel heavy, and a strange pressure began to emanate from the boy. Hanezu found himself baffled by this phenomenon, he had already judged the boy's power level to be below his own and he had even beaten him a while ago, yet his instincts were telling him that the boy represented a bigger threat than he initially estimated.

"Of course, there are plenty of humans who did not follow the norm and befriended our kin. Well, it does not really matter." Nora took another step. "My point here is that a monster like me is not different than someone like you, but even I would not lower myself to sacrifice an innocent girl to accomplish my goal. You must be really deep, way too deep in your desire for vengeance, although, honestly, I do not care."

Halting his steps, Nora closed his eyes and chanted in a hushed tone.

"Listen, and listen well. Tobio-san, you must never let anger cloud your mind. You are better than that." Nora spoke. "You are one of a kind, someone like you could be said to be unique. You carry more power than what you think, however, there is only one thing stopping you from grasping it. That would be your fear toward your own power."

Slowly, Nora's figure began changing, from a child to a tall figure in his late teens with well-defined muscles that could be seen from the torn parts of his hakama and haori.

"You are doing well in being afraid of it, it means you know that is dangerous. You can tell how difficult will be for the current you to control it." Nora's childish voice also changed. "However, that is only because of your mindset. You must recall the words she once told you about, your grandmother, she thought you were too kind to be exposed to the supernatural world at such a young age so she sealed your powers. Yet, if you desire it, your power will respond to you."

Finishing with his piece, Nora opened his eyes and raised his hand. Whitish glowing spheres the size of a finger appeared and they began growing slowly, they could not fit on his hand so they began to float around him. They made Hanezu raise his guard since a large amount of energy could be felt from them. If he was hit by it, it could be dangerous. While Hanezu considered what maneuver he would use to dodge, Nora gestured his hand the spheres, Senjutsu Bullets, shot away.

Surprisingly, only one was directed in his direction while the others were sent towards the beaten-up group. Hanezu relaxed slightly since he did not have to face the full attack of all the spheres. Since he wanted to test the waters firsts, he pushed Sae towards the sphere. If the damage was enough, he concluded that it would kill the girl and cause Tobio to lose control. He would undoubtedly enter his Balance Breaker form and he would target Nora instead of him.

Yet, the boy, no, the youth looked unperturbed. He stared directly at him- no, his eyes shifted towards the arm and leg that the other youkai he fought today had crushed.

Curious about his actions, Hanezu caught the sight of something that sent a chill down his spine. Something he thought that he got rid of when he was treating himself. A long strand of hair was tied to his arm, and he could tell it was not his from the length.

"Eh? I am ok?" Natsume's dumbfounded voice caused Hanezu to ignore what he saw.

The middle-aged man turned his head in time to see how at a speed visible to the naked eye, the minor injuries such as scratches disappeared from the group. They seemed to be full of energy again as they stood up like their previous status was a lie.

"...what did you do?" Hanezu asked.

"I am unable to use Senjutsu Bullets for offense for the time being. Hmm, that does not sound correct." Nora furrowed his eyebrows. "Let's just say I used Healing Bullets on them."

Nodding to himself, the now youth replied.

"Hmph, so you want to have all you attack me at once?" Hanezu snorted yet he still vigilantly took a stance.

"There is no need for such a thing. I am more than enough." Nora briefly said.

Hanezu was about to call it sheer arrogance and conceit but soon he had to hastily crouch. Nora had arrived in front of him before he could notice and delivered a kick. Hanezu only dodged because his body reacted by instinct, otherwise, he would've failed to react in time.

"What is it? It is hard to deal with an adult now?" Nora mocked. "When you find a helpless enemy, you do not hesitate, but I guess the same cannot be said when the enemy is beyond you."

The words he said were aimed directly at him, yet Hanezu had no time to refute or retort to them. As soon as he backed away in order to escape the range of the youth, he found himself in a tricky situation. In an instant, his leg had been caught by the roots of some sort of plant.

No matter how hard Hanezu's mind worked, he could not recall any root being on the ground where he was. It had to be because of the youth, yet he could not consider the matter anymore because his stance was broken due to his situation... Nora took that chance to get closer and punched him in his solar plexus. Immediately, Hanezu felt terrible pain and he had problems breathing. The strength packed in that punch was monstrous and he felt incredible pain, yet he did not show it, biting his lips, he mustered his strength to move his staff and destroy the bindings that caught his foot.

"You should've killed me when you had the chance." Nora muttered.

Inwardly agreeing to that, Hanezu braced himself since Nora began to send punch after punch in his direction. It was an indiscriminate attack, he aimed at his face or chest, and Hanezu felt like every time he was hit in the face, his teeth would shatter more, and even a few were sent flying.

The more time passed, the more the roots would grow and hold his feet back. To avoid being knocked out, Hanezu took out a talisman and put it on Nora after bracing himself and receiving heavy damage.

His actions seemed to be effective since the attacks stopped.

His bloody figure was unsightly, but Hanezu did not have the time to care about it. He took his time to take a breather and pulled more talismans to attach them to Nora, yet... the moment his hand was about to do so, Nora's hand stopped him in place.

"...w-what?" Hanezu raised his head and look at the youth's unconcerned look.

At this point, he noticed that despite the smoke that was raised from the contact point of the talisman, Nora did not show any reaction to the attack. In fact, while holding his hand, he used his other one to pull off the talisman on his body and soon a bluish fire burned it.

Gritting his teeth, Hanezu did not give up. Inwardly chanting, he tried to strengthen himself to the limit. He pushed his body to its limits and tried to get away from the youth.

"Don't underestimate me!" Hanezu fiercely said.

Yet, the reality of things was easy to see. No matter how much he tried, he was powerless. Not only his strength was insufficient, but his techniques, the ones he worked on for decades were useless.

"You are finished." Nora bluntly mumbled. "I am afraid that your plan to cause Tobio-san to go berserker will not work, I will not let you do it. If he goes on rampage, I think that only Lavinia-san would be able to hold him back, and even then, it might not be enough. Besides, Sae-san is a good kid, I don't think she has to suffer from the likes of you. None of them has to."

"What do you know!?" Hanezu growled. "We are desperate! At this point, we would sell our souls to the very devils if it would mean our enemies would die!"

Scowling at that, Nora looked at Hanezu straight in the eyes.

"I doubt that there is a devil that daring." Nora replied. "And your soul does not worth enough for any kind of deal. I would never make a deal with you."

"You! You are a devil?" Hanezu frowned.

"A part-timer." Nora mumbled. "Never mind that though. This is where it ends."

"Why!? We just wanted to be accepted!" Hanezu gritted his teeth.

After those words were said, Nora pulled up Hanezu, with his hands on his throat.

"Don't go acting like a martyr at this point! You do not deserve it!" Nora's angry tone and killing intent made Hanezu shut up. "You have no bottom line, and would sacrifice the lives of others only to satisfy your desires. Even after I almost got those children out of their fate of engaging in fights, you almost caused one of them to lose himself in power. I never desired that kind of outcome! However, people like you who selfishly act for deranged reasons cannot leave good people like them alone. You will always find a reason to mess with their daily lives."

Choking, Hanezu could feel the sheer amount of animosity Nora had towards him.

"If you wanted to be acknowledged why didn't you become some sort of doctor, or just go doing good deeds for the rest of your life!? No, you can't. You are nothing more than an obsessed man whose pride was hurt and arrogantly think that he will be able to change something with his underhanded means." Nora said. "Well, sorry to break it to you! That will never happen. It will never change a thing."

Tired of talking, Nora twisted the man's neck.

Extreme unwillingness could be seen in Hanezu's eyes as the light left his eyes, but Nora did not think it was enough. Blue flames erupted and covered Hanezu's body.

The group looking at such a spectacle felt a chill when a ghostly wail was heard, but it soon died out.

The temperature of the flames was enough to cause the body to be charred in seconds, and it did not take long for the remains to turn into ashes.

It was only then that Nora turned around and watched the group. Noticing the way they looked at him, he sighed and was about to leave.

"Wait!" Natsume called out unconsciously.

Recalling the way she acted before and what kind of face he had, Natsume felt that she could not remain silent and let him go.

Glancing at her, Nora waited in silence for whatever she had to say. That said, Natsume was not sure what to say. The spectacle a second ago was still vivid in her mind and it made her wonder whether she should comment on it. Killing was wrong, that is something that her common sense cultivated in modern-day Japan told her, doing so would be a crime, and laws were made to punish those who broke them. However, despite the strange circumstances, such as Nora being a youkai and the like, she could not bring herself to completely accept his methods. Natsume could not be certain if that would change in the future, but at this point, she wondered if something else could be done to avoid it.

Like he recalled something, Nora got closer to the group step by step. He completely ignored Natsume as she pondered and stopped in front of the surviving member of the Abbys Team.

"Stray-sensei..." Kouki called out.

Ignoring him, Nora lifted his leg slightly, and using the heel of his foot, he aimed at the neck of the fallen man. The death came instantly and the man felt nothing.

"You guys should leave. This is no place for you guys." Nora mumbled.

"Stray-sensei, you should know by now that I am not the type to back down." Kouki said.

"Do you want to die? None of you stand a chance against that woman in your current state. Perhaps in a couple of years, but not now." Nora warned.

Shaking his head, Kouki faced Nora.

"You don't stand a chance either, yet you are still going." Kouki spoke.

"I have something I must do. I have a reason to do so, you guys don't." Nora coldly muttered.

"...can I ask you a question?" Natsume made her way towards the now youth.

Raising an eyebrow, Nora saw that the rest of the group got closer to him as well, yet he did not point it out.

"You are going to ask even if I say no, so just ask at once." Nora said.

"...I can't understand one thing." Natsume frowned. "Why do you still aid us? You... could've abandoned us."

There were several questions that Natsume had, including moral ones, but those were something she had to come to terms with on her own, and perhaps by the end of this day, she will come to find the answers she is looking for.

"...what kind of answer do you want?" Nora asked back. "I have not lied. I am scum, a true and bonafide bad guy like many people have called me, a monster. I just act on impulse. I did what I wanted to do."

"...that is not true." Sae interrupted. "I... I am still here because you decided to act back then. The fact I can stand beside Tobio is because Nora-kun decided to help us."

"..I-I think so too!" Shigune shyly said. "E-Even if you have been acting a b-bit scary, I believe in you!"

Being stared in the eyes by the adult version of Nora made Shigune even more shy than usual, however, she still finished her words.

"I just killed a man just now. Are you guys insane? You, Tobio-san, you should agree that what I did was wrong, shouldn't you?" Nora asked.

"...I think it was wrong. That is what I feel..." Tobio mumbled.

"See? You guys-" Nora tried to speak but was interrupted.

"But it was something that had to be done." Tobio spoke. "I can't chide you or condemn you when I didn't have to be forced to do it. I never considered such a thing before so it would be bad for me to judge you. That said, there is one thing I can say in all honesty."

Smiling slightly, Tobio grasped Sae's hand a little tighter.

"You protected the one I care about, for me, for now, that is all I care about." Tobio expressed his gratitude. "Thank you, you are not really a monster, but a good-natured guy to the core."

Slightly shocked and stunned by the sheer gratitude he received, Nora did not know what to say back. He even saw the duo of Tobio and Sae bow down to him.

Scowling slightly, Nora shook his head in denial.

"You guys, what is wrong with you?" Nora said.

"There is nothing wrong, Stray-sensei, although there might be a problem with birdbrain here." "Hey!" "Heh, anyways, you shouldn't look down on me that much. I know that I will be not able to fully watch your back now, but I will return the favor you have shown to me. Besides, there is no need to sweat the small details. You and I are friends." Kouki muttered, and while a certain lady got angry, she got ignored easily.

"You got beaten too hard a while ago, I think I can fix you up if I knock your head hard enough." Nora offered.

Laughing at that, Kouki did not seem to mind Nora's joke (?), and watching such a thing, Natsume wondered why she hesitated, why she was scared. There is nothing to be afraid of, the boy, or now youth, he might've acted in the matter she could not accept, but giving it more thought, Natsume concluded that his methods and actions were only to benefit them. Perhaps they could really find a way to succeed without killing anyone, but if by doing so, they could put the safety of their own into jeopardy... she would rather take drastic measures. At this point, she could understand one thing. His hands were surely stained with blood, but if he had not done it in their stead, wouldn't they have to do it? If they let these people go, wouldn't that cause them trouble in the future? Natsume could not see the future, but given the personalities, these people exhibited during their fight, she could imagine how much harm they would've caused if they were not stopped.

Making up her mind, Natsume nodded to herself and walked toward Nora. Grinning, she grabbed both of his hands and shook them strongly.

"Thanks!" Natsume cheerfully said.

In response to that, Nora calmly looked at her and-

"Sorry, I do have someone in my heart already. Besides, I think it would be illegal if you make a move on me." Nora uttered.

The air stagnated and Natsume's expression froze.

"Pfft! Ahahaha!" Kouki laughed aloud.

...

...

...

"You still plan to stick around?" Nora muttered after they began to walk away, with the group in tow.

"Yup!" Natsume cheerfully said.

"You guys stand no chance against her." Nora shook his head.

Picking his stuff a while back, he rearranged his bag's contents as he walked.

At his words that were said coldly, Natsume scratched her cheek hopelessly. The young woman did not wish to comment on that topic since she was certain that he was right. Instead, she looked at him from the corner of her eyes.

"Are you actually older than what you have shown?" Natsume inquired.

Using both of her hands to form a frame, she looked at Nora's figure through the opening.

"What makes you say that?" Nora saw her actions but said nothing.

Walking behind in silence, the group paid attention to the conversation. After Natsume embarrassed herself, Nora just left on his own albeit at a slower pace so they could catch up with some effort. He refused to talk to them and only Natsume kept pressing for a conversation.

"You look big... Eh, I mean your height, don't give that look..." Natsume awkwardly looked away.

The accusatory gaze of Nora put some pressure on the girl.

"This is a special technique. I will turn into an older version of me and my strength will go up, although it consumes a lot of stamina and ki." Nora explained.

"Hmmm, wouldn't it be better if you went back... Again, don't give me that look!" Natsume whined.

"I am a minor..." Nora narrowed his eyes.

"Argh! I am a minor as well!!!" Natsume retorted.

Snorting, Nora looked away. Looking down, Nora seemed a bit at a loss.

"Don't you suspect that what I have been doing is an act, that I plan to use you...?" Nora mumbled in a low tone.

Noticing that the mood is a little different, Natsume took a good look at Nora, and she could see certain worry after getting in front of him a lowering her head to match his eyes. Smiling wryly, she stopped, causing him to stop at well, although a little close to each other since he seemed genuinely unaware of her actions as he walked.

Coughing slightly and taking some distance away from him, she got rid of her nonsensical thoughts about a certain sweet smell he carried that was rather tempting.

"You would never try to make use of us." Natsume spoke in a resolute tone of voice.

Furrowing his eyebrows, Nora was interrupted before he even said anything.

"The governor-dono told us that if you truly had bad intentions toward us, our avatars would not be attached to you and would instead be hostile." Kouki decided to cut in. "This guy, Byakusa, sometimes listens to you more than me. In particular, if you have food on your hands..."

"We were puzzled about it as well, but even Barakiel-san told us this: 'You can put your trust in him, he is even more reliable than the likes of me, and even Azazel... although keep the last one a secret'." Tobio added.

"M-My mother and father told me that the young boy who contacted them first was very nice to them and patiently explained our situation even after they refused to believe him." Shigune muttered.

"Yup! Yup! That is why you don't need to worry about such a thing!" Natsume brightly said.

"Damn you, Azazel." Nora cursed in a low tone.

Making up his mind, Nora looked straight into Natsume's eyes.

"I think this might have a better chance so..." Nora pulled an object from his bag. "Carry this from now on, do not drop it, do not lose it. Understood?"

Gulping slightly out of nervousness, Natsume could not tell if it was from the seriousness that Nora expressed or if it was for another reason as Nora took both of her hands and put something on them.

Nodding by reflex, Nora hesitated before speaking.

"Let me be blunt. I want to take advantage of your kindness, would you allow me a selfish wish?" Nora asked.

Slightly surprised at the sudden outcome, the group nodded at once.

"After advancing a certain distance, we will find Augusta and Lavinia-san fighting, the outcome will most likely be the defeat of the Magical Girl, at that time, I want you to-" Nora began explaining.

Curious about the certain of his tone about the defeat of their companion, the group listened with their full attention, however, the more they heard, the more their expressions darkened. Nora's tone, expression, and gestures were his genuine thoughts. None of them felt like following what he asked, yet, his plead made from the bottom of his heart was hard to refuse. He provided with a plan, yet-

-------------------------------------

3rd Person POV

"...that was what you wanted, right? You owe me one after this, I hope you will share the information you collect if your next experiment is completed."

An aged but cold voice concluded and the communication was cut short. Augusta could not resist the temptation to torment the poor girl standing stunned a few meters ahead of her after they entered at a stalemate. No matter how much the girl denied it, she desired to know about her mentor. However, Augusta knew better, like her, Lavinia's mentor was an evil witch. She recalled that Glenda once came with the news that she had found a young girl who had a Longinus and would take her under her wing in order to study the Sacred Gear all so she could develop her magic skills further. That said, Glenda never had the intention to take her as her true disciple. She forged a fake image on the girl so she could exploit her more easily and when she got tired of her, she just abandoned the girl. Augusta was very familiar with the story since she had offered some advice to Glenda on how to deceive the young Lavinia, which included dealing with her parents and her relatives so she had no place to call home.

The fact that she was left all alone never made Lavinia hesitate or look back and question her relationship with her mentor. For the wielder of the Absolute Demise, Glenda was just a kind and gentle parental figure that guided her in the ways of spell casting. This caused Lavinia to want to find out what caused her separation from Glenda. In a way, Augusta considered that Glenda was 'kind' towards Lavinia since the girl was left alive and her Sacred Gear was never removed. However, if she thought about it from the point of view of a witch, perhaps Glenda only had eyes for magic and she only desired to improve her craft rather than simply power, in that case, her actions could be seen as simple stubbornness and pride which Augusta could actually relate in a way, and letting the girl live was her way 'repaying' for her efforts, a way of not being indebted to Lavinia after receiving a lot from her.

It was all speculation on her part but Augusta was inclined to believe that her thoughts were not far from the truth. Either way, she wanted to see Lavinia lose herself completely in order to disable her mental defenses. If she can accomplish that, she might be able to perform a feat thought to be impossible because of a variety of reasons. Wielding two Sacred Gears was not unheard of, and it was a topic that raised many contradictions. However, it was possible in theory to artificially have someone wield both, albeit not at the same time. However, Augusta considered a possible way to solve the issue and that was to use Possession, a spell to turn into spiritual form and take control of someone's body.

Sadistically grinding, Augusta prepared the spell that will allow her to possess Lavinia's body. If she succeeds, she could try to take over that body and make it hers.

"W-Why? He... he was right all along?" Lavinia's expression was filled with grief.

Furrowing her eyebrows, Augusta found the situation a little odd. Lavinia looked heartbroken, but not to the point she imagined. She expected her to have a least a mental breakdown, yet she looked rather composed from someone who just received a piece of shocking news.

"H-How did he know?" Lavinia mumbled a little at a loss.

Clicking her tongue, Augusta wondered what to use to push her to the brink of collapse. While she did not think she will be overpowered by a little girl, Augusta would rather have an easier time when she test her idea. The fewer factors against her, the better. Just in case, she prepared a spell to send her mind into a disorder and that should put her out of commission for a couple of hours. However, she decided to save it as a last resort since she just got an interesting idea. After all, Lavinia did ask about this topic before.

"By the way, since the time of being honest came up. I have a confession to make." Augusta put on an honest expression. "The cat you were looking for, I killed it since I had no use for it."

Those words had a bigger effect on the girl, or perhaps they worked as an add-on, fueling the flames of unease she was feeling. Lavinia visibly paled and she unconsciously shook her head, her reaction clearly stronger than before. Augusta was slightly confused about the difference in the reaction, but it was a welcomed reaction nonetheless.

"T-That can't be true, you are lying!" Lavinia denied.

"Keke, I might be called many things, but being a liar like your mentor is not one of them." Augusta smiled.

If the person she lied to, dies, then no one will find out that she lied after all.

The mention of her mentor in her state, or rather, the comparison, caused Lavinia's face to crumble.

"I would not mind showing you the evidence, however, I usually turn my targets into ashes so I am afraid that nothing remains of it." Augusta shook her head regretfully.

"No, no, no!" Lavinia denied. "She..."

Her emotions got the better of her and her Sacred Gear began acting up indiscriminately. Her surrounding began freezing again and Augusta had to make an effort to keep the ice in check.

"As expected, a sudden rush of emotions will strengthen the performance. I had the upper hand before but she is now easily overpowering me. There is a difference in the time we had our Sacred Gears activated, but even that is meaningless in front of a user who is unable to control her power. Was this how the system was originally designed?" Augusta pondered aloud. "I can't understand what passed through the creator's mind when he made this design. The worse is that he granted it indiscriminately so I can't seem to get how he would benefit from it. Was it simply his love towards humanity? Somehow, I feel like that is not all there is to it... if the Sacred Gears were made for humans to not become preys to the Supernatural beings, the fact that such obscure gears exist makes you question many things."

Shaking her head, Augusta put her thoughts aside. She had been musing the same thing for a few decades and her atelier had her notes and thoughts about the topic written in several books, but there had not been progress in it. Finding the situation close to spiraling out of her control and predictions, Augusta watched as Lavinia's demeanor began changing from grief to one of anger, her mentality was unstable so Augusta did not hesitate to use her spell.

"<Curse of Unending Bliss>" Augusta mumbled.

Her words were not caught by Lavinia, but she did react after seeing the magic circle that manifested before her. Lavinia tried to resist it and commanded her Sacred Gear, but Augusta ordered hers to stall it. The spell took effect and Lavinia's eyes began to close and she got unsteady on her feet.

"Keke... <Possession>" Augusta followed up with another spell and her form turned incorporeal.

Rushing toward the girl, Augusta suddenly felt a death threat and stopped in her tracks, hastily undoing her incorporeal form, but whatever caused her to stop did not waste any second.

Bluish flames descended upon her and Augusta had to summon back her flaming giant. It rushed towards her at an alarming speed, sensing the distress its wielder found herself in. Yet, even after raising a wall of purple flames around her, Augusta still got burned by the blue fire. They brought indescribable pain and her soul felt like it was set on fire. It was a type of pain she had never felt and found unable to express outwardly.

Soon enough, the blue flames were unable to reach her as the purple flames created a tight defense around her.

The spectacle was sudden but it was flashy as well. Lavinia who found it hard to open her eyes and her command over her Sacred Gear wavered found herself staring dazedly at it and stopped her actions to form a spell to resist the one cast on her.

Before her body gave up and fell, she found herself held in a princess carry by a tall figure. The warmth she felt when their skin touched felt strangely familiar and she turned her head slowly to face the figure. She had no recollections of ever meeting this person, the eye color was different and the air this person exuded felt slightly different, more mature and charming instead of the childlike and cute her memory recalled, but she could tell who this was.

"How careless can you be? I warned you repeatedly about the outcome of this fight, yet you ignored what I said." Nora reproached lightly. "Princess, you can't expect a knight to come and save you when you are in danger. Heck, even now, a knight did not come, but me."

A smile found herself on her face unknowingly, Lavinia could feel that the boy, no, the youth was worried about her so she chuckled. Fighting with all her strength, she resisted the sweet temptation to sleep.

"Tee hee, you are as sweet as always..." Lavinia said. "I don't think having Nora-kun coming to my rescue is any worse than a knight, or rather, you can become your big sister's knight."

Sighing, Nora shook his head.

"You should've stayed at home. This was something I had to fix by myself." Nora muttered. "You are probably aware of it now..."

Smiling sadly, Lavinia buried her face in his chest.

"It was not like I could ignore what you told me back then. I began an investigation and found certain loopholes in my past that did not match up so I did consider your words to some extent."

"So you knew yet still came..." Nora mumbled.

"Yes, I guess I did. I said I wanted to help you find Shirone-chan, but in the end, a part of me still could not accept your words and I came looking for this witch." Lavinia looked visibly exhausted. "Nora-kun... I am no good enough to call myself your big sister..."

Her mind was already a mess, and forming words was difficult, Lavinia could feel the weight of telling Nora what Augusta said to be hard to bear, so the words could not leave her mouth. There was an opportunity that Augusta lied, but if it was the truth, Lavinia did not want Nora to go and learn about it all alone.

"Why do you all insist on calling yourself my big sisters, I am not worthy of that title..." Nora spoke in a gloomy tone. "I am just..."

"Fufu, Nora-kun does not understand it... but we..." Lavinia could not speak another word since she succumbed to the sleeping spell.

Raising his gaze, Nora directed his eyes towards the dome of fire formed by the purple giant. Grimly making estimations, he wondered if his tricks will manage to bypass the holy flame. However, he soon got rid of those thoughts. He activated his abilities and ignored the pain it provided. It did not allow him to see for a long time before the ability disabled itself.

Blood running down his face, Nora sighed in relief since he saw the cat he was looking for in a wooden building quite some distance away.

Patiently waiting, he noticed the group arriving a second later. They looked out of breath and sweat ran down their faces.

"Seriously, ahhhha, running out all of sudden, haaaa, we, haaah, could not follow you!" Natsume complained as she tried to catch her breath.

Tobio and Kouki had also trouble breathing, but their eyes were glued to the dome of fire, their expressions solemn. Shigune and Sae looked like they would fall at any minute, barely standing thanks to the training Nora and Barakiel provided to improve their stamina.

Watching their state, Nora provided support. While walking towards them, he created several senjutsu Bullets and shoot them at the group, making their states visibly improve until they looked completely recovered.

Marveling at the miraculous effects, Natsume did not notice Nora approaching her until he was just in front of her. His serious gaze made her feel ticklish and she nervously looked away, somehow trying to avoid his eyes.

"You guys know what to do. I will do my best here and you continue going in that direction, if you call out to her and mention my name, she will respond." Nora reminded. "Sorry, but I will entrust you the princess to you. There are some enemies in your path so the fighting force needs to be free to move as they please."

It was at this point that Natsume noticed the unconscious Lavinia looked too comfortable in Nora's arms. Natsume wondered if the girl was truly in danger going by her peaceful expression, but she nonetheless listened to Nora and took her. She was unable to carry her in princess carry as Nora so she could only try to carry her on her back, which she failed. Inwardly cursing at the difference in development despite their similar ages, it was only after Sae rushed to help that they both carried Lavinia from each side that they were ready to go.

Reluctant to part, the group stared at Nora.

"Go, this is the best way... or at least, I believe it is." Nora's serious expression changed into their all-familiar wry smile. "You guys don't have to stop, keep moving forward. I believe if it's you guys, you can do it."

Saying that Nora turned around and slowly made his way toward Augusta. The only reason why he had not seriously started to fight was because of the group and they were aware of it so they could only leave. They had many things they wanted to say, but the least they wanted was to distract him so they left hastily.

Before everything started, he made some arrangements.

...

...

...

"How about you stop locking yourself inside that?" Nora called out.

Inside his sleeves, several vials were hidden. He pondered which one to use first as the fire died down.

Glaring hatefully at the youth, Augusta warily glanced at her surroundings.

"Who are you?" Augusta asked.

Rolling his eyes at that, Nora simply crossed his arms.

"Who cares, you are going to tell me that you bother asking the name of everyone who attacks you? What are you going to do after knowing? Write it down on your Death N*te?" Nora shook his head. "If that is the case, I am called Kotomine Kirei, it is a pleasure to meet you."

"That must be a fake name..." Augusta narrowed her eyes.

"How did you know?" Nora furrowed his eyebrows.

"Everyone knows the name of the Saint who graced the Church with his heroics acts and left a prophecy close to occurring." Augusta replied.

"Pffft!" Nora drastically reacted. "*Cough* *Cough* You gotta be kidding me..."

Finding it hard to maintain a straight face, Nora incredulously stared at the older woman to see whether she was lying or not but she seemed dead serious.

"Is this enough time for your companions to get away?" Augusta asked.

"Heh, so you were aware." Nora smirked. "Yeah, I think they should be far enough, although I wouldn't mind if you actually decided to talk some more."

"Keke, is that so? My apologies, these old bones are not very comfortable being outside this late so I would like to wrap my businesses and go back to my atelier." Augusta answered.

Gesturing lightly, Augusta summoned her fire giant in front of her.

"Is that so? Must be hard to be so old." Nora shrugged his shoulders.

Hidden in his sleeves, he opened the vials and let the liquid fall down while taking a stance that hid his left hand from Augusta. The sweet smell soon filled his nostrils and he could feel that he would be rolling on the ground if he did not develop resistance to this type of potion long ago.

It would be hard to let the wind carry it to Augusta while her giant of fire stood in the way, but the poison would linger for a long time thus he had to make the older woman move this way.

"Trying to provoke me? That trick is nothing new to me." Augusta ordered her giant to burn her surroundings.

In the meantime, Nora decided to test one thing. He recalled a certain image and took a crouching pose. He used a seed to create a plant and he shaped it like a spear.

"It is ultimately inferior, but..." Nora enhanced his body to the limits and shot off like an arrow in a straight line.

His movements were swift and his feet took him as far as they took. His target seemed to be the giant and it did not stay idle. It moved intending to put a stop to the charge of the youth and attacked with a cross it formed from purple flames. The strike made the cross shatter and fire spread wildly. However, ignoring that, Nora emerged from the sea of flames the giant caused, his body was on fire and it was constantly being burned and regenerated at a visible rate.

The spear made on the spot had been half destroyed, yet Nora added more ki and made it regrow again. His arm pulled backward and he planted his feet on the ground before throwing the spear made of wood toward the giant. The impact came soon, or rather, the spear passed through devastating the giant and making a large hole in its body. Augusta was surprised but did not panic. Nora created a foothold in the air and headed down towards Augusta. He aimed his fist toward her but it ended up crashing and destroying a transparent shield made of magic. He passed through it, but he soon found his fist slamming against a second one. It took one look at Augusta's composed look to learn that he failed so he just moved his other hand and created blue flames in order to destroy the shield.

Augusta seemed confident enough, and she did not move from her position. Nora could only click his tongue and retreat, not before dropping a vial half broken that spilled its contents as soon as it crashed on the ground.

Backing down was a wise choice as Nora could see purple flames converging on the giant and taking the shape of the completed giant.

"No one likes bosses that go full health every time you beat them." Nora complained.

Feeling a little tired, Nora moved his hand towards a special pocket on his hakama, but he shook his head and stopped.

"There is no turning back once I use that." Nora uttered.

Once the giant was armed with his cross again, Augusta studied the youkai in front of her. She could not recall anything about him, his ability to destroy her giant once was not something any youkai could do and remain unknown. He was not from the old generation that remained hidden, or that faction that seeks their return to their origins. Their leader, that tanuki woman, would not show her cards like this. Augusta knew how crafty she was in her dealing with the witches so it was unlikely he was from that faction. She could also rule out the possibility that he was among the fighting force in Urakyoto during their attacks-

"Keke, I see... I did not see it in person, but I guess it fits somehow." Augusta commented.

"What is it? Are you going senile on me? Lady, you should just go home." Nora recommended as he created a ball of fire in his hand.

"Keke, aren't you considerate? Boy, you almost fooled me. How was it? Having all that power in the grasp of your hands and having taken it away?" Augusta asked.

Gesturing to the giant made of fire to rush towards the youth, Augusta waved her wand as she mumbled a chant.

Annoyed, Nora dodged and made trees grow to stand in the way of the giant. Augusta expected them to turn to ashes instantly, but they actually managed to resist the flames.

Intrigued, Augusta ordered the giant to ignore the trees and spread its fire even more.

At this point, there were few places that Nora could use to evade the pursuit so he began walking using a foothold in the air.

Sneakily dropping vials every now and then, the youth tried to attack Augusta a couple of times but the shields she kept around were spammed continuously.

Soon enough, Nora reached his limits and his transformation was undone.

"Keke, as expected..." Augusta muttered.

Her body levitated and the flying spell she had prepared before was activated.

"Sorry to disappoint you..." Nora sweated coldly and had to stop in place.

"I would say it is checkmate, boy." Augusta smirked.

She was certain that now that his buffed state was over, he would not be a treat, but the boy actually smiled at that, a slightly unsightly smile giving his twisted expression, he looked tired and had trouble breathing, he even fell to the ground, yet, he was smiling.

"Even with the rune that Shishou carved on my back, I did not last long enough against you. As expected, I can maintain that state for a long time if I do not needlessly use my ki, but as soon as my expenditure goes up, it will soon get undone. Tsk, there is much to improve." Nora sighed. "Ah, sorry, you said something about a checkmate? Yes, I agree."

Before she could arrive at the possible answer to Nora's agreement, Augusta felt a churning pain in her insides and the urge to throw up came up.

"Uwaaaa." Augusta covered her mouth, but she did not manage to keep the contents her body tried to throw inside.

Bewildered, Augusta fearfully moved her hand from her mouth and finally saw it, completely covered in blood, Augusta's hand was painted red.

"*Cough*" Nora coughed. "I honestly did think it would be this effective."

"You!!!" Augusta angrily pointed at Nora.

"Yeah, me." Nora laughed.

Coughing more blood, Augusta had to lower her height, or rather, she almost plummeted down.

The boy did not look completely healthy either, although compared to her, only a small amount of blood dripped from his mouth.

"Poison..." Augusta soon noticed a strange aroma in the air, something she failed to do after being focused on the youth.

"Poison. The sweet nectar of eternal rest, the gentle way to confront thine foes." Nora mumbled. "I say, it is quite fitting."

Groaning, Augusta coughed continuously and more blood was spilled on the ground.

"How come you are fine?" Augusta swallowed one mouthful of blood and began to search on her robe for something.

"Depending on the amount of poison you ingest, it can determinate the speed it acts upon a target." Nora explained. "However, some people are more susceptible to some substances while others have more resistance towards another."

Pulling a small vial, Augusta drank its contents. The churning feeling inside of her disappeared and she stopped coughing.

"Too bad I had this." Augusta snorted.

Looking unconcerned, Nora remained motionless.

"Did you know? My dear mother was quite competitive, one of her goals was to create a medicine more powerful than the Phoenex Tears." Nora spoke. "That said, that idiot started by creating a special kind of poison that will not be cured by using theirs."

The moment the boy said those words, Augusta coughed again.

"Damn you!" Augusta cursed.

"Go home, I am sure that you have witches that specialize in poison, you can get treated over there." Nora said.

Taking another vial, Augusta swallowed it in one go.

"Boy, you underestimate me. I am Augusta of the Purple Flame!" Augusta pulled a broom from her storage. "To go back after being beaten by a brat, does not fit my image at all. No, I will only go back after killing you all. Not only you, but that Demise girl, those brats that came with you, and that stupid cat!"

Laughing fearlessly, she made the broom float and took off. The fire giant was unsummoned and Nora was left alone.

"Damn it!" Nora cursed and ran like his life depended on it.

His hand went towards that hidden pocket and he tried his best to catch up.

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