Chapter 84: I ask you, are you my enemy?

Part 1

3rd Person POV

"Geh." Nora stepped back.

"Could you not make that kind of face as soon as you see someone?" Baobhan Sith said.

As the youth was taking a walk towards the forest, he came a cross of a pink-haired young woman. His first reaction was to warily step back and frown.

"Have you finally come to kill me?" Nora asked.

"...someone as annoying as you can tell that much?" Baobhan Sith replied.

"Is this about causing 90% of the maid population to wear mini skirts maid outfits?" Nora inquired.

"...what in the world have you been up to?" Baobhan Sith was baffled.

"It is not about that? Then it is because the cute and young maids now wear garter belts and pantyhose out of consideration of my tastes?" Nora mumbled.

"How scummy can you be?" Baobhan Sith incredulously raised a question.

"They say the sky is the limit, I always felt like I can go further than that..." Nora spoke.

Feeling like if she continued with the topic she will surely face some loses, Baobhan Sith changed the topic.

"I just came to see your stupid mug." Baobhan Sith commented. "Some idiot has been making scenes all over Melusine's city and had made some reputation that spanned a cross the land."

"So it is about how I set up a booth to gamble and left several people without even their underwear?" Nora bit his lips. "I even hid my face, but I guess I was already that famous."

"Are you some kind of heartless guy?" Baobhan Sith was left speechless.

"I was kind enough to return back the underwear I got." Nora argued.

"A true gentleman wouldn't have even accepted their underwear and even try to stop them." Baobhan Sith smirked. "Although I guess that is concept foreign to you from what I heard."

Despite her words dripping with sarcasm, Nora sighed.

"It was in secluded alleys, once there was enough people, they made a circle to surround me." Nora shrugged his shoulders. "They prevented anyone from peeking so it was not as bad as it looked... although for some reason, I won't way too easily and some did not accept anything when I tried to give back their stuff..."

"...were there only women there?" Baobhan Sith asked.

"Oh, how did you know? They were kind looking onee-sans and widows... not sure why the last ones told me that several times." Nora furrowed his eyebrows.

"...in more ways than one, you are dangerous." Baobhan Sith scoffed.

"So, what bring one of the exalted fairy knights here? Have you finally decided to accept my petition for a duel?" Nora ignored her earlier words.

"I would rather not. Allowing you to get close to Mother- the Queen is not something I am willing to let happen. You are far too dangerous." Baobhan Sith said. "You could say I only came to see you."

"That so? I am honoured then. You took time of your busy (lol) schedule to grace me with your presence. I am flattered that my eyes could finally catch your figure." Nora mockingly bowed.

"You are very rude." Baobhan Sith.

"Thank you for your flattering words." Nora smiled. "Miss Baobhan Sith, shouldn't you be on your way by now? You came to look at me, and now you just did so you no longer have a reason to stick around."

His words were enough to make anyone feel annoyed and Baobhan Sith seemed to be holding back the urge to lash out, but she had decided to meet the youth for a reason a calmed down, albeit forcefully. Her eyes narrowed as she wondered if the youth wanted to get rid of her for a reason and she voiced out her doubts with a grin on her face.

"Isn't that a little cold of you? I took the bother of coming to meet the groom of a precious coworker in person and exchange a few words out of concern for my friend." Baobhan Sith said.

"You are giving me the chills..." Nora rubbed his arms as he trembled.

Her eyebrow twitched but Baobhan Sith maintained a smile on her face.

"...could this be NTR?" Nora doubtfully looked at the pink-haired one.

"I have no idea what it is, but I have the urge to kill you." Baobhan Sith chuckled. "...I will discard myself as an option so that only leaves Melusine."

Pondering deeply, Nora raised his head with a shocked expression.

"You got a crush on the legal loli!?" Nora asked.

"As disgusted as I am with the idea, I would prefer if you used yourself first before pairing me with another woman!" Baobhan Sith retorted.

Chuckling at that, Nora came face to face with the young woman.

"I don't want to." Nora smiled. "You seem like the rotten type. Have you heard the term 'haraguro'?"

Raising her head due to their height difference, Baobhan Sith glared at Nora.

"Aren't you quite disrespectful to a lady? I have the authority to 'punish' you if you cross the line so I would be careful with what I say if I were you." Baobhan Sith said.

"That so? That is scary. A poor cat like me would be hopeless if that happened." Nora grinned. "I guess I will just need to go and cry to Melusine. She told me that she would beat up anyone who bullies me."

"Aren't you a little too pathetic to go and beg for her help? Don't you have any pride?" Baobhan Sith asked.

"What's that? Is it eatable?" Nora showed a confused face.

A vein popped up from Baobhan Sith's forehead, but she kept a smile on her face.

"Oh, I get it. You would rather get beaten by me." Nora nodded to himself. "I am shocked though, I had pictured you like a sadist rather than a masochist."

"Heh, is this where you wanted to lead the topic to?" Baobhan Sith grinned.

Her anger dissipated and she felt like Nora's colours were finally showing.

"Who knows? Some way or another I always have to deal with this topic. It is to the point of being sexually harassed at least 6 times a week when I go for a walk everyday." Nora bitterly said.

Somehow, Baobhan Sith felt some pity for the youth who had a tired face.

"I will be straight with you. What do you think of this land?" Nora opened his mouth.

Taken by surprise, Baobhan Sith looked incredulously at the youth.

"I can't say I have looked everything there is to see." Nora mumbled. "However, I can tell that under that peaceful exterior, there is great discomfort."

Baobhan Sith glared at Nora with a frigid gaze but he seemed unaffected by it.

"The lack of males... such a thing has not reached a dangerous phase because it has not been long enough for them to learn how dangerous the actual situation is." Nora said. "Currently, in the human world there is a ration of Female to Male of 60/40. There are no issues with that. However, if that number where to till even more in the female's favor and become 70/30 is at the level of world crisis. If from ten people, three are males and seven are women. You might hear men saying that it is a paradise with the possibility of open harems and the like, however, reality would be harsher than fiction. They might respect their rights and try to be accommodating as possible, but that is only if they show results. Things would get more dark if they cannot show results since they would take them and turn them into breeding bulls. Now, here is a question. What would happen if the ratio was around 85/15?"

"...what is your point?" Baobhan Sith asked.

"The ratio is important, yes, however, the most important details is about... how supernatural creatures that are long lived have low reproductive abilities, add that to fact they are low in number and... well, you will get chaos." Nora smiled. "That much is between the manageable range as you would say. Long lived races are after all, not very active given their long life span. That said, you cannot actually erase their libido. But on that note, if you cannot even take care of that, there is bound to be displeasure raising among the population. The already negative opinion of the male population about the ruler will degrade more and unrest will be a common thing."

Pausing for a moment, Nora noticed the unchanging expression on Baobhan Sith's face and just shrugged his shoulders.

"The negative feelings born out that are sure to become a nice fuel, don't you think?" Nora asked.

"Why do you ask ME that?" Baobhan Sith asked back.

"You are different from the others." Nora stated. "Your thirst for blood is more intense, that is for sure, but... after getting close to you like this..."

Slowly, Nora held Baobhan Sith face with both hands.

"I can tell you are involved with them." Nora grinned.

"Women do not like smart asses." Baobhan Sith smiled.

"Thank goodness I am an idiot." Nora chuckled.

"...was that the only hint that gave me away?" Baobhan Sith said.

"Who knows?" Nora lowered his face until he was an inch away from the young woman. "I have spoken with everyone, but you give me a different feeling."

"Oh my, did you fall for me?" Baobhan Sith narrowed her eyes as her lips twisted into a seductive grin.

Her left hand was put between them and she raised her index finger. Her sharp nail easily tore the fabric as Nora's shirt was destroyed.

"You are definitely a beautiful young woman, those long boots you wear, I heard they hide a pair of long legs that many fantasize about and I would be lying if I said I am not curious about it. That said, I am not thrilled about making a move on a woman who is pointing her knife at me." Nora narrowed his eyes.

"Oh?" Baobhan Sith looked genuinely surprised.

Looking down, Baobhan Sith's left hand slowly creeped up and down while her right hand was holding a knife just and inch away from stabbing the youth.

"It seems you are not like most of the men around here who just ignore everything else as soon as they get horny." Baobhan Sith praised.

"It is an honour to hear that from you." Nora chuckled.

"If you know already that I am not flirting with you, why don't you take your hands off me, you filth." Baobhan Sith erased the smile from her face.

"Oh dear, how else am I going to be to snap your neck if I do that?" Nora replied.

Immediately after that, the young woman feeling fear as an immense killing intent was directed at her. Her empty hand tried to take a hold of Nora's shirt while her knife was about to stab him, however, as she felt danger coming from Nora's hands, her body evaded as priority and abandoned attacking Nora. Nora narrowed his eyes as his hands attached something on Baobhan Sith's hair.

Few steps behind and Baobhan Sith noticed Nora smirking as he looked at her.

"You are going to break my heart if you run away from me like that." Nora mumbled. "Well, how about we leave the greetings like that? I will let you off for your actions this time."

Failing to understand what he meant, Baobhan Sith finally noticed the bleeding on Nora's stomach. From her knife, blood was dripping slowly.

"You don't think you are making a mistake by letting me go here...?" Baobhan Sith asked.

"Am I? I guess I could smack you unconcious and take you to the queen and just babbler how you 'might' have connections to some hidden enemies that she has not been able to see." Nora scoffed. "I don't want to become the first diplomatic cat to be hanged in public."

"You... don't really believe any of that." Baobhan Sith glared at the youth.

"Heh." Nora smirked. "And what does that exactly have to do with you?  What I do, what I think... it is my business."

"If you harm Mother, I will-" Baobhan Sith glared at the youth.

As she opened her mouth, a pair of sharp fangs could be seen.

"Easy there." Nora said. "We both have fangs, but yours are sucking blood while mine are for killing prey. Want to bet about which ones will do more damage?"

Showing his ears and tails, Nora's eyes became those of a feline while the fangs in his mouth showed as well.

"Heh, a kitty can ruffle his fur to scare others but the fact that he is a cat will not change." Baobhan Sith scowled.

Ignoring that, Nora turned around and left. Without saying anything, the youth disappeared inside the forest.

Once he was long gone, Baobhan Sith took a deep breath.

"...this was supposed to end up differently." Baobhan Sith commented. "It seems like it will take more effort to take him down than what I expected. Unless I... Huh?"

Suddenly, Baobhan Sith's nose twitched and she noticed a sweet scent. It was fragrant like she had never smelled before. It did not take her long to notice where it was coming from and she raised the knife until it was before her nose. One sniff and she felt like electricity coursed through her body, her breathing became rough and an intoxicated look was plastered on her face. Like she had not control over her body, she pulled out her tongue and licked the blood from Nora. This time it shook her to her very core and she had trouble staying in place. She wobbled forward and backward, her hand dropped the knife and she held her body.

It started slowly but then it burst in an explosive manner. Baobhan Sith's aura deepened and she felt an unusual surge of power coursing through her body. Raising her hand she swung it at a tree and it was easily destroyed.

"...he...Heh...Hehehe." Baobhan Sith giggled incoherently. "...a disaster? He might be one, but he can also become a tool depending how you use him."

Standing straight again, Baobhan Sith had an intoxicated look with a flushed face.

"Who would've have though that his blood would be this... invigorating..." Baobhan Sith smiled. "I guess that the way to bring him down has just presented itself."

Picking the knife from the ground, Baobhan Sith ignored the dirt and licked off the rest of the blood.

...

...

...

A distance away from Baobhan Sith, Nora was facing a challenge.

"Could you stop nonchalantly letting others hurt you?" Tamamo who was fuming pulled the youth's cheeks.

Seeing how he obediently accepted the punishment, she sighed. Tapping the floor, a certain maid emerged from the shadow and began to take off Nora's shirt. Under Tamamo's glare, the maid Miyako professionally changed his shirt. Cleaning the blood, there was no sign of injury whatsoever but no one made a comment about it.

"So, did you put it on her?" Tamamo asked.

"I should be able to get a hold of her location now." Nora nodded. "The stone in the ring was the important part so even if I remove it, the stalking- I mean, locating function will still work. I added a few enhancements to prevent her from noticing it, but she could still find it if she starts playing with her hair."

"Why didn't you use your usual shikigamis?" Tamamo inquired. "Did you want to have an excuse to get close to-"

Allowing Miyako do her job by moving his arm to match her, Nora smiled wryly. It was not until Miyako had finished that pulled a strip of paper.

"I have been using these a lot so not only people assume exorcist use them or other Youkai, but when people I know think of shikigamis, they think of me. Even Suzaku now comes to ask me about the use of them... despite teaching me the ropes when I started after I stole- I mean, I found that teaching manual." Nora wryly said. "The point is, they are becoming part of my character and people will always think of me when they see one."

Blinking her eyes momentarily, Tamamo then nodded in understanding.

Compared to the two who had a tacit understanding of each others ideas, Miyako was not sure what they meant, however, she obediently waited at one side without interrupting the two. Easily noticing this, Nora was about to explain, before Tamamo stepped in to Nora's surprise.

"Dear, a sign for a good wife is to understand your husband without sharing a single word. Sometimes, we could express entirely different messages from the words we say without getting confused and that is because of the trust and understanding we have for one another." Tamamo explained.

Wondering if she was trying to explain something or brag, Nora and Miyako were not sure what to say.

"My dear hubby here has made carved quite the reputation wherever he goes to. So people are bound to make an image of him." Tamamo explained. "Nora, the Youkai. Nora, the cat. Nora, Tamamo's husband. Nora, the shikigami user. Those are the sort of titles he has earned.

Despite the serious look on her face, Tamamo muttered a bit of nonsensical words but Nora let it slide... or not, he dangerously looked at Tamamo's ears as he wondered how to punish her.

"Putting aside the danger of impersonating him, this means his methods will be seen through." Tamamo added. "However, what if he tried to do something that was out of character? No, something he did not want others to find out? To have that class of flexibility, you need to have ample of methods to choose from. Which is why hubby practices in the use of several weapons to a crazy degree, or you see him researching techniques he hardly uses in his daily life."

"Ah..." Miyako finally caught on. "Thank you for bothering to teach me."

Gratefully vowing, Miyako seemed to be rather happy from learning a bit about Nora. Her happy smile made Nora look at her enough for the girl herself to notice and bashfully cover her face as she sank in the shadow at his feet.

"Pretty cute, right?" Tamamo asked with narrowed eyes.

"She has always been a cutie." Nora honestly said.

"Hoh?" Tamamo glared at the youth.

"Why did you do explain her?" Nora asked.

Tamamo's intense gaze did not faze him as he spoke his mind.

"Hmhp, you are lucky that I fell for you harder than Chromium and stronger than Tungsten." Tamamo snorted. "...as a woman, I cannot simply look away."

"Even if she is your rival?" Nora inquired curiously.

"Her status is irrelevant... is what I would like to say, but I am helping her because she is in love with YOU." Tamamo pointed at Nora. "I am certain that she will stick to you no matter what. It would be cruel of me to crush her feelings just because of my insecurities. It is obvious that you will have a harem so acting all insecure is not the way a good woman has to act. A good wife is always her hubby's ally."

Pushing her finger on his chest, Tamamo made one point clear.

"Nightstands aside, the harem is for those who love you. There can be people who desire your body, but if they only want to enter the harem to have sex with you, I will not stand idle. Although I am aware that there are people who would be happy just with a lover status so there are details we have to work out in the rules for this relationship." Tamamo said.

"...when did you begin to make rules?" Nora wryly asked. "Wait, nightstands...? Who do you..."

"Lalalala, I cannot hear you!" Tamamo covered her ears and ran in circles around Nora.

Aware that he would not get anything of Tamamo like that, Nora just dropped the idea to ask. Only then did Tamamo went back to normal.

"So, I believe you have a plan if you finally confronted her." Tamamo asked.

"Hahaha." Nora awkwardly laughed. "Would you believe me... if I say that I do not have an idea what to do?"

"Haaaaaaaaaaah!?" Tamamo raised her voice.

Part 2

3rd Person POV

"Do you think it is true?"

"That he was capable of injuring one of the knights of the queen gravely as he tried to kill her?"

"I heard he sneaked upon her and struck with a knife when she least expected it."

"How scary!"

"I would still accept to be in that situation if I could get HIM to stuck something behind me."

"I know, right?"

Rolling her eyes at the conversation she heard as she went back to her workshop, Habetrot did not show her perturbed emotions. As soon as the sun came out, it was announced that Nora had attacked Baobhan Sith and had been on the run. Melusine was enraged when she heard how a capture order was put on him, but she was not able to properly put on a defense for him given how much dissatisfaction the duo had gathered after their 'date' the day before. Nora was missing and Melusine tried to find answers from Baobhan Sith, but her whereabouts were unknown to protect her in case of another attack.

"...I wanted to play with him today." Habetrot sighed helplessly.

Entering her workshop, Habetrot passed the door and locked the door as she put down a bag she had carried with her.

"Why the long face?"

A carefree voice came from the room and Habetrot replied without giving it much thought.

"A precious friend is in trouble, but I am not sure how to help him." Habetrot downheartedly said.

"Yikes, to make Habenyan worry, that person must be a pain in the ass to deal with."

"Don't talk to him like that! He might be a pervert who likes maids too much, but he is genuinely a good guy!" Habetrot muttered.

"...he must be a splendid person if he likes maids."

"...not only maids, I have seen the sketches he has in done in a notebook. He not only plans to sell maid outfits beside the wedding dresses, but he also has prepared lewd outfits like bunny girls or cat girls in racy leotards. There were even more things I have never heard about such as nurse, office lady, school swimsuit and even more things that make me blush just by recalling the design." Habetrot covered her face shyly. "It is no wonder that many of our clients come to buy just to see him."

"Sounds tough..."

"It is tough. I got stopped the other by a group of young girls who were adamant on knowing my secret for being close to him. They chased me for hours!" Habetrot complained. "I am afraid of going out alone..."

"...is it just me or does it sound like I have made the life of this girl a total mess?"

Finally, Habetrot found the voice strange. There should not be anyone inside her workshop and the voice was rather familiar. In her memories, the relaxed and carefree tone of voice that had a slightly hard to ignore charm that drew you in. As she turned her head, she saw Nora who had an apologetic look for some reason.

"...Nora?" Habetrot blinked in confusion.

"The one and only." Nora replied.

"What are you doing here!? Don't you know they are looking for you everywhere? If you move around carelessly, they will catch you." Habetrot looked around until she found a large white sheet. "Here, use this, we can try getting you out once there are less people on the streets."

Covering Nora with the sheet, she pulled a pair of scissors and immediately cut a pair of holes exactly where Nora's eyes were. 

Satisfied, Habetrot nodded.

"...and they say I am silly." Nora chuckled.

"How rude! I am trying to help you!" Habetrot tightened her fists and began punching the youth.

A chuckle was heard underneath the sheet and Nora extended his hand to pat Habetrot's head until she finally stopped.

"You sure you want to do this?" Nora asked.

"Do what?" Habetrot sulkily asked.

"I am a wanted criminal... again." Nora lowered his tone again. "Won't you get in trouble for this? As far as I recall, you are besties with the queen, not only staying with me will cause others to doubt you, but even the Queen will be seen in bad light."

At this, Habetrot lowered her head.

"I... am not going to abandon a friend in need. Morgan is my friend but you are as well. I promised myself one thing after the previous queen died." Habetrot raised her head and her eyes were filled with resolution. "I will always be there for my friends."

"...Habetrot, you who hold a position closer to the ruler of these lands, you are in a rather special position whether you are aware or not. Closer to the queen than anyone else... why have you not considered that I am targeting you in order to get close to that woman so I can end her life."

Waving his hand under the sheet, paper talismans left the sheet and glued to each side of the workshop. However, before Habetrot could question Nora, his eyes turned blue. The sheet was unable to cover him anymore as his aura sent it flying away. Different from his usual self, Nora sat while looking down on Habetrot with a pair of cold eyes. Arms and legs crossed, he narrowed his eyes.

"What if I simply acted? I am evil, and my hands have been stained with blood many times... however, I am cunning." Nora's cold look changed into a warmhearted smile as soon he put his hand on his face and then removed it. "I can easily deceive others, no matter who it is, I can easily guess the best way to get close to them. Particularly women, I have more than enough practice doing that. I can like a helpless guy who makes you want to take care off him, or maybe I could become a reliable big brother. For me, there is no limit to the types of personas I can imitate."

Even as he spoke, Nora's usually warm ki exuded with his aura turned murky and dark. The tempeture lowered and a pot of flowers nearby was destroyed after the plant mutated after coming into contact with Nora's ki. It had grown excessively and twisted into a hideous form full of spines that leaked a murky liquid.

Nonetheless, even though she found herself in that situation. Habetrot raised her head without changing her expression.

"I put my trust in you because I believe you are a good person." Habetrot said. "I did not base my judgement in your appearence or the way you 'acted'. I could tell after talking with you once."

Without fear or hesitation, Habetrot walked forward and grasped Nora's hand.

"Regardless of what others believe, or what you believe. I think you are a good guy." Habetrot smiled brightly.

Pausing, Nora was unable to come up with anything as he blinked in surprise only to chuckle and dispersed his aura.

"...people like you are usually taken advantage of by me a lot." Nora said.

"I will always lend a hand to my friends." Habetrot replied. "I don't mind to help those close to me."

"Your type is what I am weak against." Nora sighed. "Very well, I guess that you and I will have to fix all this mess."

"Just you and I? Melusine, Britomart and Morgan are sure to lend us a hand if we talk to them." Habetrot pointed out.

"Dragon girl will surely be sent to deal with a certain thing given that she is the strongest person  the queen is able to use." Nora explained. "Her characteristics make her perfect for defending several positions on her own. Nonetheless, I reckon she will have a hard time and be probably be overwhelmed before long."

"Isn't that bad!? We should-" Habetrot raised her voice but she closed her mouth when Nora shook his head.

"I cannot catch her so I will be unable to match her speed if she is moving around all over the place. If I focus on following her I could manage, but that would require my full attention and that is not necessarily the best way to invest my time." Nora suddenly scratched his neck.

Curious about Nora given that Habetrot caught a strange symbol on his neck, she was brough back to reality when Nora pulled a stack of talismans.

"I will entrust you with handing this to the queen when the time comes." Nora said.

Albeit confused, Habetrot kept the huge stack of talismans.

"I can probably deal with one of the main issues easily." Nora narrowed his eyes.

"Wait." Habetrot hurriedly pulled a small book from her bag.

Confused why she had decided to do that at this moment, Nora observed how Habetrot gave him the book.

"Is this about the addresses of those ladies? I think now it is not the time..." Nora unwillingly said.

"What? No!" Habetrot shook her head. "...I have an idea what you have in mind. Morgan... also has a similar solution. However, that solution will take away Morgan's smile away forever. I cannot accept  it, yet unfortunely I have no power to do something about it."

Listening in silence, Nora patiently waited for the small girl to finish.

"Aren't you expecting a little too much from me? I am about to take care of all your problems yet you still want me to do more?" Nora asked.

"I... will let you decide after you read. I have no right to force you." Habetrot replied. "You will have the final say..."

"You are actually very cunning, you know?" Nora sighed. "Alright, what do you want me to do? Hoodwink a girl? Steal candy from a baby? I can do all kind of suspicious and questionable actions all to get what I want."

Smiling wryly at his joking tone, Habetrot pointed at the small book.

Sighing, Nora pulled a pair of glasses as he got comfortable on the chair he was sitting.

"Why the glasses...?" Habetrot asked in a doubtful tone.

"...look, I cannot expect my girls to satisfy my fetishes without doing the same for them. What is the harm in wearing glasses sometimes during the day but as much as possible as I read?" Nora replied. "This is nothing... the troublesome requests are the ones that threaten to awaken the sides of me that I try to keep in check. Like that time I got asked to put a collar and a leash on some girls as we walked around Urakyoto. The way people look at me... has never been the same. Argh, I knew that letting Akeno-chan with the fallen angels unchecked would make her awaken weird kinks."

Doing her best to ignore what she heard, Habetrot thought the fact he just admitted he did it was a proof he was just as devious as the people he was complaining about.

"Then Kuroka-chan got jealous and wanted me to get her a collar... and just when Shirone-chan was looking at me like an abandoned cat when she did not get one, Raikou-san appeared." Nora sighed. "She tried to spank me for being a bad kid outside and with everyone seeing me so I had to make run for it."

"...you have it tough." Habetrot muttered but her mind could not help but think that perhaps that was karma.

"I wish you sounded more sincere." Nora snorted and started to read.

...

...

...

"Urgh, this is... cringe." Nora muttered in a tired tone.

"Hahaha..." Habetrot awkwardly laughed.

"You know that by asking me this, things will get a lot harder." Nora asked.

"I know..." Habetrot nodded.

"You are aware that your wish might cause innocent people to die?" Nora inquired.

Trembling at this, Habetrot shook her head and still faced Nora's piercing pair of blue eyes without looking away.

The eyes that were full of resolution made Nora a little envious, her pure wish was selfish but she was still willing to accept the consequences for her friend.

"Your secret will be safe with me. I was the one who found this book, and I was the one who one-sided decided to act like I will." Nora stood up.

Picking the white sheet that was blown away before, he put it on his head. Habetrot look baffled and got in his way.

"No! I am the cause so it is my job to-" Habetrot tried argue but Nora just flipped her forehead lightly.

Habetrot felt an unusual amount of pain and her eyes immediately watered.

"Even if someone else tell you to pull the trigger, the one pulling it will always be guilty." Nora mumbled. "You are Morgan's light. That woman will do everything she can to protect you and keep you from getting close to that which is dark."

"I won't let you bear that alone." Habetrot insisted.

Chuckling at that, Nora handed the small girl another piece of paper with a magic drawn on it.

"Then promise me that you will use this if this are dire. Just rip it off. Got that?" Nora asked.

Still wanting to argue, Habetrot swallowed her words given that the youth did not seem like he would listen to her. He was a good nature fellow that would always try to carry every heavy burden from those close to him. Nora was similar to Morgan, or so Habetrot thought.

Lifting the sheet out off sudden, Nora carried a cheeky smile as he leaned towards Habetrot.

"If you feel like that is not enough... how about helping me hook up with the queen?" Nora chuckled as he teasingly patted the girl's head.

Hearing that, Habetrot added another description to the youth that could overwrite the rest.

Perhaps, he was just a pervert.

Nonetheless, after knowing him from a while, Habetrot learned of a way to get back at him.

"Alright, I will help you in your quest to court Morgan. She is indeed of marriageable age." Habetrot smile.

Caught by surprise, Nora awkwardly coughed and covered himself again as he basically ran away.

"...what's this feeling..." Habetrot held a hand over her chest as a new found emotion blossomed inside her. "...messing with him is really nice."

...

...

...

As another person who had found the pleasure of messing with the cat was born, Nora, unaware of it began doing some preparations before everything started. His cat senses were telling him that everything would turn for the worse so he tried contacting the outside however he could while using a wide range of methods. He was unsure if any of the messages actually worked but he requested for help from as many people as possible.

"I should thank her later for helping me prepare so many explosives in such a short notice." Nora sighed.

"I don't like that woman." Tamamo grumbled as she helped the youth.

While Tamamo opened a hole in the ground and Nora placed a box full of explosives, Tamamo would proceed to fill it again. Their work was by no means done by them alone since several shikigamis were doing the same. Hundred of shikigamis controlled by Nora were repaying this action around several places outside each of the cities and properties where people lived.

"...I was outsmarted by her in a way I am not sure I can quite agree but I cannot say I am heartless enough to say no to her child." Nora said.

"Gununu." Tamamo only grumbled.

"Well, THAT situation aside, you cannot deny her skills with explosives. Whether it is the way she mixes stuff with her alchemy or her repertory of spells... I would say that she is a true master." Nora muttered.

"I begrudgingly admit that you are right." Tamamo shuddered as she recalled a memory she did not want to.

"Do you think you will be able to manage the tasks I entrusted to you?" Nora continued to put explosives.

"Tamamo is your always reliable wife! No matter how difficult the task, I will surely accomplish it. Ah, there is one thing I am afraid I will be unable to ever accomplish..." Tamamo seriously spoke.

Feeling like the change of her tone could mean something bad, Nora stopped his actions.

"I will NEVER sign divorce papers! No, Sir! It will not happen even if the world is destroyed! Saving the world or signing divorce papers? Goodbye world! Got a problem with that? Ha! Too bad, once you signed our marriage certificate, there is no turning back." Tamamo spoke in a loud tone.

...

...

...

"So everything is prepared! Alright." Nora continued to plant explosives.

Tamamo sniffed begrudgingly while one her hands rubbed her forehead where a red spot could be seen slightly swollen.

"...yes." Tamamo nodded. "We lack people to resist a large scale attack and protect the fairies, but I think Morgan-chan has plans for that. The best scenario would be that she does not need our help but we are against the cult and..."

Gritting her teeth, Tamamo hesitated to speak for a moment. Nora patiently waited for the fox to talk instead of saying anything.

"That GUY most likely has a hand here." Tamamo spoke.

"...I know." Nora muttered. "Miyako, Rin, Kiyohime."

Calling the names softly, the group hiding on Nora's body jumped out and lines up in front of him.

"Miyako, Kiyohime, Yasaka's seal, you have my permission to remove it." Nora ordered.

Raising his hand, a symbol appeared above his hand. There was a change among each of the figures. However, before the changes manifested, there was a tremor that shook the ground.

The 'weak' Tamamo lost her balance and was about to accidentally fall face first on Nora, but the cat automatically evaded the young looking woman when his reflexes anti danger kicked in.

"...it has started huh." Nora directed a look towards the sky.

Turning pitch black, devoid of any light. Compared to the other nights he spent, there was not even moonlight or stars shining. Looking towards the cities, the exclamations of distress and fear from the fairies was conveyed despite the distance as they used several lighting methods to push away the darkness.

His attention was brought back to his companions as Tamamo stood up and undusted herself sulkily.

A literal mass of darkness with two red dots was behind the fox and Miyako's aura was hard to contain.

"How does it feel?" Nora grinned.

"...the best." Miyako spoke. "This is the best! Finally, finally!"

Someone with a regular eyesight would have trouble distinguishing between Miyako's aura shaped as darkness and the usual darkness but Nora could easily noticed how she was exuding more power than before.

"Ah, Master... I cannot thank you enough for this opportunity to unwind." Miyako spoke.

"Do you resent Yasaka-san?" Nora asked.

Extending his hands towards Miyako, the girl moved forward and rested her cheek on his hand.

"I asked for this myself." Miyako replied.

"Today you can knock yourself and go all out." Nora said. "Do not engage with any of the fairies, they are sort of our allies."

"Master! I implore you, allow me to-" Miyako wanted to plead but her words were cut short when Nora pulled her cheek.

"You will not go after Mordred." Nora shook his head.

At that moment, strong emotions of unwillingness, jealousy and anger slowly creeped from the darkness around her, but when Nora stopped pulling her cheek and caressed it instead, those emotions dissipated.

"That child is a mess. If you two fought, no matter if you won, you would ended up losing something as well." Nora muttered.

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"Ah... how envious..."

Another voice joined in as Nora was busy flirting- no, talking to Miyako. A young woman with long green hair with horns coming out her head. She was wearing a fancy green kimono and holding an unfolded metal fan to cover her mouth as she gaze at Nora and Miyako with envy clear in her golden eyes.

"...that seems nice." Kiyohime sighed dejectedly.

"Why are you staying there?" Nora asked curiously.

"Ah... Master... I long for your warmth embrace in this form again, but I know I would not be able to follow your command if I indulge myself in your kindness." Kiyohime replied. "...instead, if I might be so bold to ask... after this is over... and while I am m this form, I want to receive your caresses."

Nodding at that, Nora released Miyako much to her disappointment. The last figure to change was the usually small crystal spider growing far taller than Nora. The spider did a military salute in Nora's direction before digging the ground and disappearing from his view.

"She is a really smart child, but I wonder if she knows what I wanted it to do..." Nora sighed. "Also, she picked up some strange quirks."

"Haha, hubby. You must be tired." Tamamo awkwardly looked away. "How about laying on Tamamocchi's lap pillow to rest and forget what you saw."

"I will mercilessly punish that fluffy tail." Nora said.

Looking rather excited than scared, Tamamo nodded.

"Create as much chaos as you can among their ranks. It would be nice if you can catch someone alive to understand their objective, but do not put yourself in a spot due to it. Your safety is more important to me." Nora spoke. "I am guessing a troublesome individual will be roaming around as their leader so avoid him at all cost. Do not provoke him."

Stressing out that point, Nora narrowed his eyes. The red eyes inside the mass of darkness and the golden eyes above the fan shared a look that did not escape Nora's eyes. His eyes that turned back into green stared at the two with a dangerous glint.

"...I will not give rewards to anyone who disobeys that." Nora spoke.

 Immediately, the pairs of eyes that seemed to be thinking about doing something foolish shook and looked at Nora pitifully.

"You may leave." Nora signaled them to leave.

A little crestfallen, the duo left. Only Nora and Tamamo who looked rather amused were left.

"Are were checking out the shrines first?" Tamamo asked.

"I thought for sure you would throw some sneaky comment about what happened." Nora looked confused at the fox.

"You seem to be confusing me with Artoria-san." Tamamo retorted. "That said, satisfying their husbands is the way of a good wife and Tamamo is the best wife out there."

Rolling his eyes at the bragging to tone, Nora looked at Tamamo who puffed her chest proudly while he controlled his shikigamis remotely to look for enemies.

"Hubby has indeed made up his mind to create a harem and is working hard to become the dominant in the relationship." Tamamo smiled. "You have already a good grasp on how to keep them in check."

Rolling his eyes, Nora tried to act undisturbed but he looked troubled by what he heard.

"Heh." Tamamo chuckled. "Does it really bother you if someone says that to you?"

Looking at Nora meaningfully, Tamamo slowly walked around him while one of her hands caressed the area around his shoulders.

"It kind of hurts when Tamamocchi says it." Nora sighed. "Although I cannot deny that I feel like I use the fact that they like me to my advantage."

"I think it is normal for you to think that." Tamamo passed in front of Nora as she slowly caressed his face. "Numerous women get close to you for your looks, despite your denial, you need to accept that you are an eye candy... and if you take your clothes off... it annoys me how much drool those women let fall to the ground as they check those pictures..."

Gritting her teeth, Tamamo pulled Nora's nose.

"Owww, stop it. This is animal abuse!" Nora complained.

"I am a fox, you are a cat, this is just just two animals fighting, the way of nature." Tamamo glared at Nora.

"I cannot retort to that." Nora smiled wryly.

Snorting, Tamamo pinched his nose before releasing him. Nora rubbed his nose and pinched Tamamo's in revenge.

The fox did not stay quiet and fought back, nonetheless, it was a losing battle and second later she sulkily looked away with a pointy hat made of paper with the word LOSER.

"I will ignore the bit about the pictures about me without shirt and leaving the bath that are sold 'without' my knowledge." Nora sighed. "...I don't think my charisma is high enough, neither I think I have what it takes to gather people under my banner unconditionally."

Watching as Tamamo tried to take off her hat, Nora bonked her head. The fox glared at him but just showed a sullen look and Tamamo did not say anything.

"Dear me, I find it strange how you can deny your charm like that, but still be confident on picking up girls in the street." Tamamo sighed.

"Does a fish deny his abilities to swim?" Nora replied with a question.

Rolling her eyes, Tamamo wanted to smack his head for the nonsense, but she still held back nonetheless.

"Even if you do not 'use' them like you believe you do, they will still flock towards you." Tamamo muttered. "Urakyoto, the area around your residence... do I have to say something else?"

"Urgh, I believe the prices of the houses there are very reasonable!" Nora stated.

"...families were convinced to leave so the girls after you could live as close as possible to you. The name of the district is joking now as, Nora's district, given your sphere of influence." Tamamo mercilessly said.

"...there is a candy shop that sells some Dango..." Nora mumbled weakly.

"You ask Ei-san, the dango sommelier which one better, the ones from the store or yours?" Tamamo retorted.

"I... Huh? Finally." Nora suddenly regained his wits. "The shikigamis found the Shrine, I will proceed to destroy the whole place."

Saying that before leaping away, Nora left a sighing Tamamo as he practically escaped.

"Should just gather everyone to brainstorm for a way to convince him...? I guess this happens when those girls follow him without questioning him anything." Tamamo tapped her chin thoughtfully. "I guess this is why that Artoria girl actually gets along with him and Nora likes to hang out with her. Putting aside her thorny comments, she is honest. Perhaps what my copy-fox said before is not so far off from the true."

Pondering about the issue, Tamamo did not seem concerned with possible dangers that might befall the fairies.

"I guess that most of them deserve a degree of punishment from their actions, but my Hubby is too kind to allow casualties for no reasons." Tamamo chuckled. "I guess I should prepare to assist him when he starts going overboard."

Pulling ofudas from her sleeves, Tamamo chant briefly and the pieces of paper transformed into small foxes.

"Go look for the shield." Tamamo ordered. "The spell that hides it will most likely be cancelled soon. Bring me the strongest shield that belonged to the greatest knight order in England."

Faithfully following the order, the dozen of foxes left the scene.

"Although... I don't think it was mentioned anywhere in their history about a multilayered shield." Tamamo furrowed her eyebrows. "Unless... she is using..."

Finishing with her train of thoughts, Tamamo could hear the sound of fighting coming from the city.

Her first thought was to ignore it and go after Nora, but still let her feet take her to the city.

"...this isn't like me." Tamamo annoyingly said.

Unfortunately for the fox, Nora was too far to hear or see what she was doing or saying in person, a shikigami in the shape of a bird was quietly perched on top of a tree as it curiously observed the fox. From the other side, looking at that display, Nora smiled.

"There is no way someone who just wanted to make friends and enjoy her life back then can be evil." Nora chuckled.

Letting the wind be the only witness to his words, Nora decided to spoil the fox later on. His worries could be put on hold. In his opinion, helping to heal Tamamo's wounds and self image was more important.

Nevertheless, the cat and the fox were thinking the same, unbeknownst to the other, or not. The duo had a grasp of the other party train of thought.

Part 3

MC's POV

While I dashed full speed, I felt a change and one look at the sky, I noticed that things were progressing faster than I expected them to. I could briefly caught the sight of the multi-layered barrier before it was deactivated. The dark sky was no longer so dark, the night sky was full of stars and the full moon was as bright as ever. I did not bother with it before, but it seemed that Morgan had used magic to imitate how the night sky looked outside the barrier. There was no difference.

Inwardly praising the queen, I sighed at my lacks of skills in magic since I could not do such a detailed tune ups. I usually left that to Lavinia or Rossweisse when she came to visit. It is not like I did not practice but even if I spend my nights awake and doing all sort of things to train... I am not a genius like Lavinia or give my all beside having a talent for certain types of magics like Rossweisse.

Stopping in place, I pulled out my bow. The same one that Kaa-san gifted me, or rather, she planned to gift me but I took it. It was a dark bow with a simple design, but I was unable to even pull the the string until a few years ago, not to mention shooting an arrow. That is without counting the fact that this bow already had a will of her own and she refused to let me pull the string.

"Be a good girl, ok?" I sighed pulled an arrow out my magic storage.

Aiming ahead, I took a stance and waited. Even without using my ability, I had superb eyesight, one that has been enhanced by a pair of blessing from Goddesses I met during my travels around the globe. I had a fair number of those, but right now I was being aided by the one from a certain crazy goddess of hunt and the moon.

My target was rather small, a bird. Nothing you would usually bother with, but as soon as I laid my eyes on it, I noticed an unique detail about it. I did not have my ability activated, and my senses were not extended that far enough, my limit is just a few hundred of meters after all. Nonetheless, as soon as I spotted it, I found it odd.

What was different?

My eyes... I don't think I changed them back.

I usually relied on my ability rather than studying what the changes of my eye color brought other than making the girls at home want me to cosplay as anime characters.

Nonetheless, my actions were never hindered or stopped. It did not matter if I was having nonsensical thoughts, I could still act and move without making a single mistake.

The arrow left the bow in one swift motion, it moved through the air without being slowed down. One of the perks of this bow was the ability to erase the sound of my attacks if I wanted it and it was properly applied to this shot.

The target was pierced not long after the arrow left my bow and I slowly made my way towards it as I observed in detail how the bird struggled after being pinned in the tree by the arrow. It flapped its wings pitifully as it tried to escape, but the arrow was heavy. An unique type of wood with properties that multiplied it's weight the more liquid it absorbed. In this case, there was no added weight. The 'bird' stopped struggling and soon... the bird turned into a piece of paper with old school kanjis.

Once that happened, I hastened my steps and soon reached my 'target'.

"Now then, how to go about this? I had my suspicious..." I grumbled. "That asshole is here. The one who could be said to be my nemesis."

Shaking my head, I decided to call for help using magic. Pulling two pieces of paper with magic circles drawn on it. Nodding to myself, I thought inwardly.

Why not?

Ripping them both at once, I wondered how to 'pay' them for this job. High-ranking devils like them are very expensive, even more, the fact that they do not take jobs anymore.

The response came pretty quickly and two magic circles shone on the ground.

A pair of figures I was familiar with appeared as I grinned.

"Hello there, my fair maidens." I playfully winked at them. "Are any of you interest in having a date with me tonight?"

Of course, I receive a curious gaze and a slightly cold one with a raised eyebrow.

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

3rd Person POV

"I must say, I am disappointed. You said you could easily corrupt her and turn her into a mindless killing machine." Baobhan Sith snorted. "I guess you are not that familiar with Supernatural creatures as you said you were."

"I am well versed in all sort of supernatural creatures, yourself included, however..."

Looking at the figure of Barghest who was kneeling down while tendrils of black and murky liquid entangled her.

The female knight did not seem to notice the duo looking at her as she gasped for breath. Her armor,  usually silver was now tainted black. Her eyes had their sclera tinged black.

"Her will is not something you can simply put in the category that describe her kin. The fact that him interacted with her already caused our earlier preparations to corrupt her be for naught, but even without counting that, she has remarkably resisted the corruption on her own."

Shrugging like there was nothing he could do, the hooded looked behind him. A small crowd of figures with similar outfits were chanting in a barely audible tone of voice while another one was setting an altar.

"How do you plan to keep him from interfering?"

"Do I need to?" Baobhan Sith asked. "If he interferes with the ritual, you would have to stop him."

"Dealing with a god is not easy. You should be aware of it since you have agreed to collaborate only because you were unable to do anything on your own."

Smirking under the hood, the man snapped his fingers.

Some of the chanting figures responded and walked towards him. They wordlessly kneeled and waited.

The man received a deadly glare from Baobhan Sith but he unconcernedly pulled a small box from his sleeves and extended his hands towards the pink-haired young woman, Baobhan Sith who did not try accept it look at the man with a suspicious gaze in response to his actions.

"This is power."

The pink-haired young woman still did not react and crossed her arms as she glared at the man.

"Use this, and you will be able to stop him. Vampiric creatures can adapt much faster to this. You might have your doubts since when you investigated us, you learned about the unstable methods of one of our allies, but you could say we all have our methods. I do not hand over defective products."

Snorting, Baobhan Sith looked at the box and then grabbed it. Her thoughts regarding using it or not could not be read by the hooded man, but he seemed unconcerned about it.

"Our people have began pouring inside this land after the barrier was taken down as we agreeded to. Thanks to your accurate information, we have the possibility to capture THAT knight. Your information regarding her mental traumas will also serve greatly in our quest to corrupt her."

"...why is it that I feel like you do not consider her or Her Highness that dangerous?" Baobhan Sith narrowed her eyes.

"I have confidence in dealing even with gods if I have enough preparations, but... you do not understand. He alone, just his existence is abnormal."

"You give him too much credit." Baobhan Sith shook her head.

"Do I?"

"He is just one individual, and while I agree that he is hiding his overwhelming reserves of energy, I don't believe he can be more dangerous than Barghest, Melusine or Mother."

Chuckling softly, the man looked at Baobhan Sith in ridicule.

"...you think that is all he can do?"

"Is it not? He-" Baobhan Sith was about to speak but the man stopped her.

"...he is foolish enough to hold back even in a deadly situation."

"...I find that hard to believe." Baobhan Sith could not accept that.

"I will not speak about the time or the situation too deeply, but let me tell you thing. He has way too many hidden cards to play. He has mastery over dozen of weapons and can effectively fight even in a precarious situation."

"Big deal, many knights are suppose to train their mastery over different weapons." Baobhan Sith said. "Whether it is because they ride any creature or have to move on foot, depending on the situation you have to handle different weapons to adapt to new environments."

Sighing, the man found her answers correct but too simple.

"It seems you will not understand unless you see it yourself. However, let me ask you a question. Judging this matter from your perspective... if a warrior, no, a knight has a special weapon, whether it is Holy or Demonic in nature, a weapon that far surpasses the output from any regular one. Wouldn't they stick with that one and use it more often? Their mastery would surely go up."

"Is that common sense? All of the knights under the queen were bestowed weapons of extra ordinary caliber. It is not like we do not have knowledge in handling other weapons, but the output of our current ones is good enough to make using other weapons meaningless. They are able to adapt to different situations so there is no need to change them accordingly." Baobhan Sith replied.

"That is correct. However, while I cannot say to be an appraisal master, I can tell you this. HE carries dozens of weapons that far surpass ordinary weapons, yet... He is able to wield them skillfully."

"That is impossible. Putting aside how doubtful is the fact that he can wield sacred weapons, that would leave us with demonic ones. No matter what kind of being he is. The higher grade of the weapon, the bigger the burden one has to bear. The courses they carry are not something you can simply look down upon. Low grade ones are easy to wield in the dozens, but extended uses of weapons of the same caliber as my bow or Barghest's sword would be dangerous. Even if he is a supernatural creature, I don't think it makes it possible for the situation you described to happen." Baobhan Sith shook her head incredulously. "Besides, his hand to hand combat techniques are what I am most wary off. He is capable of reaching high-level speed easily without breaking a sweat."

"Go face him them, he will have his ways to find you. However, take that woman over there with you. I tried to put on some diversion for him to stall for time but he is not going to be stopped by that."

Giving a glance at Barghest, Baobhan Sith nodded as she traced a plan in her head.

...

...

...

Sitting comfortably drinking a cup of tea, Baobhan Sith waited for a certain someone. Beside her Barghest had a pained expression but did not even groan as she lowered her head.

Not letting her wait too much, Nora appeared from within the woods.

"It seems I am a little late to the party." Nora chuckled.

His voice was close to laughing, but his eyes were serious as he looked at Barghest.

"Indeed, how much did you intent to make a lady wait?" Baobhan Sith smirked.

"My apologies, I lost my way a couple of times. Not to mention, I met a few admirers that did not allow me to move forward." Nora apologized. "It can be tough to be so popular, although you, my lady, would not understand that."

Shrugging his shoulders, Nora provocatively looked at the pink-haired young woman. Her irritation was obvious on her face, but Baobhan Sith did not voice it.

"Is that so?" Baobhan Sith looked around and tried to sense any other presences but she failed to find anyone. "...you are alone? I had found the way to finally detect those sneaky creatures hiding in your shadow and body but..."

"Bringing another girl to a date with a girl would be uncouth." Nora shrugged his shoulders.

"A date, is it?" Baobhan Sith smirked. "I am actually quite curious about how many women have you hoodwinked with that line."

"Nonsense, you are the only one I have used that line with." Nora smiled.

"You are really a trash." Baobhan Sith coldly glared at the youth.

"Hehe, you need to try a little harder, I have been called way harsher..." Nora chuckled. "It almost feel like you are praising me here."

Even though Baobhan Sith's glare could freeze anyone who dared to cross it, Nora ignored it and looked at Barghest.

"I assume you plan to pit her against me." Nora sighed. "Let's skip the questioning and get to the exchange of passionate skinship that will shake our cores."

"You really only think with your lower half." Baobhan Sith snapped her fingers.

The tendrils holding Barghest twisted and turned, that action made the woman growl in a combination of pain and anger. Her eyes, bloodshot, landed on Nora who blew her a kiss.

Baobhan Sith was speechless at the nonchalant behaviour of the youth and she released Barghest. The woman who had targeted Nora already leaped towards him and he just looked as she approached.

This attack was a wild one but Barghest instincts as a knight seemed to still work somewhat as she had swung her sword as well.

In one second, Nora pulled a pair of katanas still on their sheath and blocked the attack. The ground suffered for his behaviour since it was filled with cracks as it sank, but Nora did not break his stance. Even as Barghest growled angrily, Nora's tail got closer to her and tickled her nose. The woman's first reaction was sneezing.

"Oh, so you still do that huh." Nora nodded. "Careful there."

His laid back attitude only made Barghest angrier and attacked with her free hand, although the attack was stopped by Nora's other tail. Barghest tried to kick him but from Nora's clothing, a bandage had left and acted like another arm to hold her back.

"You are scarier, but weaker." Nora commented. "Sorry about this. I don't really dislike you but..."

Sighing, Nora kicked Barghest in the stomach. The first kick was the most brutal one, he had caused her almost drop her sword, but she held onto it for dear life. Nora followed with two other kicks before releasing her and pulling back. Unsheathing the katanas, an ominous aura spread from both, but Nora did not seem bothered by it.

"Your sword doesn't look that holy now." Nora glanced at Barghest's sword that had turned into a tone of black and red.

Dashing towards her, Nora attacked with one katana vertically and horizontally. His attack was intercepted by Barghest swing her sword and the slash was followed by aura shooting from it.

Nora's attack slashed her attack and Barghest used the chance where he had both arms in an awkward position to counterattack. Concentrating a great amount of aura, she sent several attack wildly towards Nora.

Evading hastily, Nora clicked his tongue. His hand seemed to move independently and contrary to his face that seemed annoyed. They swiftly slashed the aura that Barghest sent his way. He tried to close the distance but Barghests buried one of her hands in the ground and pulled a chunk of it to throw at Nora. He dodged by stepping to one side then dashed again. A reddish aura appeared on the katana's blade on his right while a pale white on the left one.

Thanks to this, Nora was able to advance as he slashed his way through, Barghest's slashes did not stop him anymore and Nora soon reached her. His aim was her chest, he circulated ki inside him and soon the Senjutsu began to enhance his physical abilities. His movement speed went up a notch and that was enough to catch the crazed Barghest by surprise. It was just a second, but in that second Nora relentlessly slashed her torso. The right katana raised the temperature with each slash while the other one cooled it down. The armor was suffering considerable damage and the force of the collision of the blade with the armour was enough to make your regular person to be knocked down, nonetheless, Barghest was not a regular person, not to mention, she was in a state that pain only angered her more. She reached her boiling point easily and after growling meanincily at Nora, she reached for him with one hand while the other swept horizontally.

Cursing, Nora's head went down. Just like that, he left Barghest confused. The had split his legs and was now looking at her from below, or at least trying to look at her face but the front armor did not allow him to. The same could be said to happen to Barghest, but Nora took advantage of it before he was found.

Buring the swords at each side, Nora put both hands on the ground and twisted his body until he was hand standing while using the motion he used to get into that position to spin just so he could add more force to a kick he mercilessly planted on Barghest's face.

Pushing his feet in her face, he gained momentum to sent himself in the oposite direction and once again change positions until he was standing on his two legs.

Barghest's seemed to feel the impact and shock for just a second as she was charging towards him once he landed on his feet.

Snapping his fingers, orbs of different colours began to hover around Nora after leaving his body, a closer look would reveal a small person's figure.

Without waiting for his command, a greenish orb sent a gust of wind. It was not enough to stop Barghest's charge but a bluish orb joined the fray and the regular gust of wind turned extremely cold, enough to make snow and hail hit Barghest.

Observing how that seemed to still be lacking, Nora revaluated briefly what the female knight could do. In his mind, he had rated her endurance very high, but whether it was because of the crazed state or because she was usually this resilient, Nora thought that even after doubling the power, she would still push forward. This all happened in a second, and Nora soon found himself  jumping back to evade the sword ready to decapitate him. Yet he had not take one step forward when he noticed a strange detail. The tendrils that still clung to Barghest seemed to take shape and form a chain. The woman immediately used it and swung it at Nora.

Barely evading it, Nora actually smiled.

"Hey now, that's pretty cool. So you can do things like that as well..." Nora chuckled.

From there on, Nora was subjected to an onslaught from sword and chain attacks. The more that Barghest attacked the more her movement speed seemed to grow and the more natural those became. However, it was still not enough to make Nora have a hard time. His use of the katanas was adept enough to parry the attacks and mix his own attacks.

It was when Nora had parried a double sword and chain attack when he tried to land a double blow to  Barghest that he jumped more than ten steps away in a hurry. As soon as his feet left the ground to escape to the next position, 'something invisible' hit the place he was standing in before.

"I didn't expect you to be interested in a 3 way, Baobhan Sith." Nora called out.

"Huh? 3 way? What is...!!!! You!!!" Baobhan Sith who looked confusedly at Nora suddenly turned bright red.

In her hands there was bow, but unlike other bows, this one had more than one string. Baobhan Sith's delicate fingers stroke the strings not like bow strings but rather some music instrument.

Chuckling, Nora jumped from his position. The same pattern as before happened and the ground suffered the consequences.

"Man, that is one cool bow. Makes me jealous." Nora nonchalantly said.

His attention did not remain on Baobhan Sith for long since Barghest was already swinging an aura filled sword at him.

"Oh dear, knowing your perverted mind, I can only imagine that you are jealous of the bow being stroke by me." Baobhan Sith attacked again.

Dropping his left katana and grabbing it with one of his tails, Nora used both hands to hold the katana on his right and received Barghest's attack. Slowly tilting his katana as the sword descended, Nora guided the sword while causing it to miss him. Although the aura still caused some damage to him. On the other hand, or tail, it moved swiftly like a whip and intercepted the invisible attacks from Baobhan Sith.

"I guess he won't go down this easily." Baobhan narrowed her eyes.

To her vexation, Nora was not even looking at her to parry her attacks. She was by no means being serious, but he had more tails to use. It was possible that her full power could be enough to take care of him, or even make an opening for Barghest unleash her sword's might.

Shaking her head, Baobhan Sith denied that possibility. Her adopted mother had bestowed the strongest holy sword to Barghest, the sister of the strongest sword ever known, but the woman was only able to bring 40% of the maximum power under the best conditions, but she was far from that level. Her sanity was at the bottom, even if they knew each other or happened to recognize her... Barghest would not doubt attack her as well for what she did.

Smirking at that, Baobhan Sith buried the other feelings she had regarding her problem. Her eyes observed how Nora was able to keep up with Barghest yet still focus on her from time to time. His ability to multitask was something beyond normal given that she had heard from her collaborator that he was, despite fighting, controlling shikigamis to do his biding. Truly an eccentricity hard to understand.

He could not be left alone. Just he alone is dangerous enough to be able to harm her mother, and that would not be allowed.

Pulling the 'gift' from her collaborator, Baobhan Sith considered that perhaps it would come in handy.

Approaching Nora, she stood at a distance that he not consider her a threat.

"I was told to ask you this just in case, but... could you quietly walk off? As long as you promise to stay away from these lands' business, I will not come after you." Baobhan Sith asked.

Given that she was using him as a shield to get immediately attacked by Barghest, Baobhan Sith ended behind the youth.

"Yeah, how about... No." Nora looked back and smirked.

"...you have a second agenda?" Baobhan Sith inquired.

There was anger in her tone and her eyes were looking dangerously at the youth.

"I actually have more than 10 agendas, each managed by a different secretary." Nora snorted.

Resisting the urge to change recklessly like Barghest to attack the cat, Baobhan Sith patiently questioned again.

"Why do you remain here? You have claimed several times how you did not agree with the marriage that Melusine is interested in having." Baobhan Sith said. "Is it because you made friends with Habetrot and Britomart? No, what is holding you back? You should've seen it. The barrier is down. You should be able to escape now. I would turn a blind eye to that."

"Let me cut your dialogues by a lot." Nora parried another attack with the katanas and sent a kick towards Barghest. "I am not an ally of justice."

That phrase made Baobhan Sith look at Nora with a murderous gaze.

"...where did you hear about that?" Baobhan Sith asked.

"I legally broke into your bedroom and stole this cute book that had so many things I will be sharing  online." Nora smiled.

Although she only understood half of what he said, she felt dread about the part she did not get, but the part she did made her blood boil.

Pulling out an object that was familiar to Baobhan Sith, Nora tossed it to the young woman. If a gaze could kill, Nora would not have enough lives to survive Baobhan Sith's rage.

"I am just here for one thing." Nora ignored the glare. "I am trying to make Her Highness listen to me. I am an envoy, part-timer though, that would like to extend an invitation to a meeting. My boss, part-time boss, is part of the devil government, in particular, the diplomatic section of it. Our wish is for more people join our peace alliance. Well, theirs, as I mentioned, I am a damn part-timer. Heck, I do not get paid enough for this crap."

A little annoyed, Nora dropped his weapons and let himself fall back to Baobhan Sith's surprise. Although that also surprised Barghest that charged again like a maddened bull, yet she took it as a sign to attack and swung her sword again.

"I noticed this but..." Nora sighed. "You guys did not have a proper training, learning from a book can only take you so far."

Putting one hand on Barghest's hand and kicking her stomach to use as a pivot point, Nora used the motion of the charge to throw her towards Baobhan Sith.

The speed that Barghest charged with was already high, but Nora added more as he threw her. Baobhan Sith was too close to physically evade given the suddenness. Nonetheless, Baobhan Sith clicked her tongue and her body melted in darkness they turned into bats made of darkness and dispersed resulting in Barghest passing by and crashing into several trees until she managed to get a hold of herself.

"Wow." Nora honestly clapped his hands. "I always marveled at abilities like that. I wish I could do the same."

Picking his katanas, he sent them an apologetic look when they began shaking in his hands.

"Aren't you underestimating all of us a bit too much?" Baobhan Sith's voice was heard as her figure reappeared. "You continuously look down on our abilities like that."

"So it looks like that to you? Sorry, I did not mean to do that. I am really not looking down on you, to be honest, I am just slightly disappointed." Nora snapped his fingers but Baobhan Sith saw nothing happening. "For whatever reason, you do not come at me with the real intent to face me for real. Nor you or any other knight has done that... no, wait. A minute, I guess Mordred did act like that."

Shrugging slightly, Nora sighed. Looking down, he began to scribble gibberish using his right hand katana.

"...For you, I am probably considered dangerous, perhaps something you should exterminate." Nora said. "However, I am not who you are ultimately after. Perhaps for you, Melusine and Morgan are your true targets or whom you consider to be the most troublesome foe you will face so you cannot help to try to save your energy as much as you can."

By the time Baobhan Sith noticed that the gibberish was not what she expected but some sort of spell in written form, a fog began to form and cover the area. Nora's figure began to be difficult to discern. However, the hovering orbs of light that had disappeared for a second were back again and Baobhan Sith took out her bow again and pulled the strings to attack in the direction of the shining orbs. Yet, the cold steel of a blade was put on her neck before she could even notice that the hovering orbs were the only thing there. She could not feel the presence of the youth, but once the blade touched her neck, Baobhan Sith was able to tell that he was looking at her with his green eyes.

"You guys think I underestimate you? Please, you are the ones looking down on me." Nora snorted. "You could raise the difficulty of this fight by ten times and I would not find it challenging."

Despite her precarious situation, Baobhan Sith felt the need to talk back.

"Heh, as expected. Guys like you... need to brag to feel superior." Baobhan Sith smirked. "It is easy to preach how amazing you are and how you have not shown your true power, but that is only because you have been put temporarily in an advantageous position. Although I expect that you will soon find yourself spouting excuses once you get beaten, about how you were not feeling well or it was unfair."

Not holding back Baobhan Sith expressed herself in a harsh tone as she mocked Nora. She believed it had touched a nerve because he had stayed quiet, until-

"I would not do that." Nora sighed. "My Shishou would kill me if I did."

Confused, Baobhan Sith waited for Nora to articulate more.

"Worry not, I practice with a woman who no matter if I protect my body with dozen of defensive spells or reinforce my body numerous times, she is able to break my bones and crush my muscles nonchalantly. She can bend my joints to the oposite side without breaking a sweat, but I must never stop fighting." Nora commented. "Even if my weapon is gone, I have to use my claws, if she snaps those, my fangs will follow. A warrior does not give up a fight for minor injuries."

"That woman and you are insane." Baobhan Sith retorted.

"Not as much as the woman who joined hands with the cultist to break havoc around her home ground." Nora argued.

"Heh, home ground is it? Do you even know a thing?" Baobhan Sith asked.

"I know a bit. I legally read you secret diary hidden below the latest galter belt you brought." Nora added.

"Disgusting." Baobhan Sith spitefully spoke.

"No, it is actually a pretty sexy underwear. You will look amazing in it." Nora mumbled. "That aside... Baobhan Sith. Let me tell you this. I don't care about your reasons or grievances, or at least I will not care as long as you continue with your stupid act. I am actually a very peaceful guy, but I think you will not learn your lesson if I am nice."

Hearing clashes behind them, Baobhan Sith imagined how the hovering orbs she saw, the fairies, were keeping Barghest busy so Nora could talk to her.

"Then what? You are going to be bad to me? Since I am being a bad girl, you will punish me?" Baobhan Sith scoffed. "Will you spank my ass like a naughty girl?"

"That sounds unnecessarily appealing since you are an attractive young woman, but I am afraid you are wrong. You and I are pretty similar people." Nora said.

"Don't fuck around, you and I have nothing in common." Baobhan Sith annoyed voice was clear.

"Well, duh. I am a man and you a woman, I have black hair while yours is pink. If I start counting our physical differences, I will never end. However, I was never talking about that, you moron." Nora kicked softly above Baobhan Sith's calves and that made her bend her knees forward.

Grabbing her hair and pulling her closer until her ear was closer to his mouth, he still kept a blade pointed at her neck.

"You and I are idiots that need a good trashing so we can wake up from our stupid delusions." Nora said. "Go on, give it your best shot, I will mercilessly crush and trample on it."

Feeling dread from the serious tone he said it, Baobhan Sith did not understand why it caused her to react like that. Nonetheless, since he had pushed her... there was only one thing to do.

Extending her hands backward to hold his head in place, Baobhan Sith gritted her teeth as she managed to sent one her knees towards Nora's face. The youth let her go and easily evaded, but Baobhan Sith expected that much. Her equilibrium was lost and she felt, but she immediately acted.

"BARGHEST!!! IT'S TIME TO EAT!!!" Baobhan Sith yelled as loud as she could.

An equally loud growling was heard and you could feel a hulking figure charging in their direction.

Nora was left speechless as he mumbled something under his breath, but Baobhan Sith regained her footing and when after him. She grabbed his shirt and pulled him closer. Her lips got closer to his face and his questioning face made him want to mock him, but she nonetheless sank her face in his neck. Her fangs aimed for his vein and she sucked without hesitation.

She had understimated Nora in many ways since meeting him, but she had thought that after a taste, she would be ready for the next step. Baobhan Sith was wrong. It was an incredible and exhilarating experience that had immediately made her blush. Despite her desire to keep sucking his blood, Baobhan Sith was not given the chance. Nora, or rather, his katanas seemed to move on their own as they pierced her legs. This simple but brutal action caused the young woman to react and pull away.

It was instantly, she felt her powers soaring. Strength she could never imagine was overflowing from all over her body and she felt like nothing could stand in her way.

The young woman could not noticed, but after Nora parted from Baobhan Sith, he simply rubbed the area he was bitten with his index finger and the wound was gone. He absentmindedly looked how Baobhan Sith grew a pair of black wings, but he marveled at material they were made of. They were similar to crystals much like his own, but pitch black, although that was not the only change, much like the fairies hovering around him most of the time, Baobhan Sith's hair was glowing faintly.

"Heh...hehehe...HEHEHEHE." Baobhan Sith began laughing all of sudden.

Her laughter only stopped when Barghest passed Nora and ran straight up to her. With a wicked smirk, Baobhan Sith threw something towards the other woman's mouth who without thinking it, swallow it.

"Yikes." Nora muttered. "Didn't know that vampires could go SS too..."

Ignoring Nora's nonsense, Baobhan Sith noticed her wings and found it strange but she decided to slowly test them later on.

Suddenly, no matter who, they all turned towards Barghest who held her head in pain. Darkness began to form a cocoon around her and it began expanding nonstop. Far over shadowing his figure and dispersing the fog, the cocoon was soon broken from the inside. The figure of Barghest was replaced by an humongous black dog.

"Oh no." Nora panicked. "Cats are weak against big and angry dogs."

His mutterings seemed to cause the black dog focus on him.

Putting back his katanas in his storage space despite their refusal, Nora acted helplessly.

"Was it really all that a talk? You said you would mercilessly trample on me." Baobhan Sith chuckled sarcastically. "This is all it took to break you? About now, my collaborator should've brought all his people into these lands. You are alone and will be trampled instead."

Narrowing her eyes, Baobhan Sith found it hard to get used to one feature that her newfound power brought her. Enhanced senses. These seemed to hear a strange sound that kept getting closer but she was not able to tell what it was about since she had never heard it before.

Denying that at once, Baobhan Sith noticed that Nora's and Barghest's ears were twitching.

"I never said I would trample on you. Stop trying to put your kinks into my words. That can wait until a battleground called bed, I can trample on you all you want at that time." Nora looked at Baobhan Sith like she was a deviant. "Besides, who said you only got reinforcements? Two can play that game."

Barghest's humongous figure seemed ready to jump in a particular direction but Nora picked a pebble and threw at her eye. That was enough for Barghest to bite towards Nora. Even her smallest teeth was twice as bigger as Nora so her opened jaws were overwhelming when seen approaching. However, Baobhan Sith saw that Nora did not move.

A flash went by and Barghest had swallowed what she just bit.

A rumbling sound could be heard clearly and Baobhan Sith saw a peculiar scene.

"Hey, being saved instead of saving feels kind of nice." Nora chuckled.

"Don't get used to it, moron."

A familiar voice and a face that she could swear she had seen before, Baobhan Sith saw a young woman clicking her tone while riding s strange thing. It had two wheels and continued to a strange rumbling sound even though it was not moving.

Nevertheless, what stood out was one thing. That was something that caused her to prioritize a retort.

"Why a princess carry?" Baobhan Sith asked.

It was indeed like that. Gallantly riding her ride, a young woman with blonde hair was holding Nora in a princess carry.

"Why not a princess carry?" Nora defiantly asked back.

Baobhan Sith felt stumped since she could retort to that. Indeed, why not?

Rolling her eyes, Nora's ally (?) dropped him.

"Where are the others?" Nora asked.

"I went on ahead and left two-goodie shoes and my sister to bring everyone here."

"That so? Good." Nora chuckled. "Thank you, Artoria."

Sighing, the young woman, Artoria, summoned a regular iron sword using magic and covered it in a golden aura. 

"I ask you, are you my enemy?" Artoria asked.

Raising the sword and pointing it at Baobhan Sith, Artoria spoke.

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Author's notes

Work has been too busy, did not even have a day to rest and had to work continuously for almost a month. Kind of harsh given my type of job.

Bad news is that the next chapter will most likely take about the same, but later on will go back to two weeks per chapter. Sorry about that fellas.

Anyways, how was the chapter?

Any questions?

Yeah, it needs to be edited but I seriously cannot pull an all nighter to do it, wait for a day or two if it bothers you too much.

Tendrils

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