This guy′s life had no worth.

  Riku clicked her tongue in a low sound.

  After Riku had told him she had killed Selestinna, Rook had finally directed her with killing intent.

  Riku was so happy about the killing intent that she couldn′t hold herself back. Her body getting animated if it was a natural reaction, and her heart started to tremble because of the excitation. Of course, Riku still remembered the orders of retreat that had been given by Leivein. She knew that perhaps it would be thoughtless of her to exhaust her body in a place like this.

  However, until she had killed this enemy that is fallen down at this back-alley, she wouldn′t pull back.

  After she was finally going to be able to completely beat down a serious enemy, she had to click her tongue.

  That is because her excessive expectations had quickly been destroyed to the point of it being sad.

  Riku was able to guess by Rook′s first attack. She was able to guess that that guy was not an opponent worth fighting.

  With his body left to his anger, Rook′s swordplay definitely had strength. However, it was nothing but an increase in strength. On other hand, in exchange for that, he had lost other important factors.

  Rook wasn′t thinking about where to aim at all. Despite his killing intent, she couldn′t feel him wanting to kill her in those blows.

  “…Hey, are you properly aiming?”


  Laughing it off, Riku mocked Rook.

  Riku thought that if she provoked Rook, he would be able to become a little bit more serious about their fight.

  However… The result was extremely disappointing, and the more the time passed, the more Rook′s attacks became rougher.

  If those blows Rook had kept repeatedly sending at her was to even touch her a bit, Riku wouldn′t be left untouched.

  …But that was if it actually [hit].

  Rook′s swings were too long, its tragectories were easy to read. Let alone how he had given up on hitting, it was as if he was saying “Feel free to kill me”. Because of how plain the blows were, Riku had suspicions about it being at trap, but then after looking at Rook′s eyes, who had lost himself in anger, it didn′t seem to be the case.

  “Shit, hit, hit, hit, hit, hiiiit!!”


  While letting out annoying yells, he kept recklessly swinging his sword. Because how irritating it was, it made Riku start considering cutting his throat already.

  Rook was much more of a small fry than Riku had expected. Only deciding whether there was any worth in fighting with him or not was the problem.

  Although Riku had the handicap of having only a single army, if she didn′t hold back in addition to that, it wasn′t impossible that Rook′s life might have ended up reaped at anytime by accident.

  …It was such a boring and meaningless fight.

  But even so, Riku tried to endure this.

  She was in expectation that Rook might still have a hidden a trump.

  Riku was planning to completely crush Rook and take away every single bit of hope he had. And after that, she would take him back home with her and killing him after torturing him even more.

  To have this become true, if Rook was going keep up with this half-assed fighting, there wouldn′t be any meaning to it. Whether Rook would have the resolve to stand up and struggle, or then clench his teeth in despair, although Riku wanted the former if possible, what Rook had chosen was the path of the loser.

  “Let me kill you already, damn it! You demon!”


  The killing intent faded away from Rook′s eyes and only fear remained. Riku had completely lost her motivation. While regretting how she had wasted her time for such a boring thing, she decided to change her attitude about this battle.

  “…I see, you only amounted to this much.”


  As soon as Riku said that, she hit Rook at his stomach with her left elbow.

  Riku had changed her mind.

  She wouldn′t catch him alive and torture him to death. Rather than that, killing him right now seemed to be much better. After all, there were still people she wanted to kill remaining.

  Thinking back about it, the one leading the spiritualists at Derufoi and the one to command the army at Karkata was Rook Barusak. Despite him being in a clearly favored position with higher numbers, he had suffered misfortune. There was no way Riku would lose to an opponent of this extend. To begin with, there was no way she would be able to enjoy herself if she continued with this battle.

  “Goodbye, Rook Barusak.”


  Once Riku declared Rook′s death sentence, Rook started to cry like a pig that was about to be butchered. What was sitting there was the very unsightly figure of the next head of the Barusak.

  Looking at him with cold eyes, Riku raised her sword and…


  “Hm?”


  Riku noticed something was wrong.

  Rook was supposed to be trembling with his hands in the head until a few moments ago.

  Despite that, Rook wasn′t trembling. Moreover, he was now standing. He was away from the range of Riku′s sword and was glaring at her. He was filled with killing intent, but she felt that he had regained his composure.

  More than anything, the eyes that were supposed to be trembling in fear were now burning with fighting spirit.

  “…Heh.”


  Maybe he used some kind of technique to set her into an illusion, or maybe he activated some other sort of power.

  Whatever it may be, it looked like this time she would be able to have some fun. With her feeling of excitement starting to come back, Riku licked her lips.

  “Entertain me with your life on line, Rook Barusak.”


  Riku nimbly fixed her grasp on her sword.

  Riku started to pounder about what in the world had happened at this moment that lasted less than a few seconds, but then, she immediately stopped. Rather than thinking about such worthless things, she decided to think on how she should cook the enemy in front of her eyes.

  “I will be crushing everything you have after all.”


  When Riku had just given one step forward, Rook spoke words that made her hesitate.

  “Sorry, Riku-ane. I would like to have this end today.”


  “…End today?”


  With Rook′s words, Riku′s tone of voice went down by one level.

  “I… I need to take responsibility for my sins. I indirectly changed the future of Selestinna-chan, Riku-ane, and the others…. I need to make up for that. …That′s why, I can′t die until then.”


  Rook kept talking while having his eyes above Riku′s right shoulder. He spoke to her as if there was someone standing where he was looking at.

  “I… There is no way I can die yet. Besides, I want to fight Riku-ane fair and square. I want to fight you, and fix Riku-ane′s wounds and everyone′s regrets. This is something I think I can do for compensating for everything… …That′s why I can′t rely on the shinigami!!”


  Speaking at a fast pace, Rook just like that showed Riku his back and started running away. Right when he turned away from Riku, she immediately started to follow after Rook.

  However, the one to give the last word was not herself. While keeping down her heart that seemed it would jump out of her chest, she turned her eyes to where Piguro was.

  “Staff officer Piguro! Please, gave me the permission to follow after him! …Huh?”


  However, Piguro′s figure was nowhere to be seem. Rather, even his presence vanished.

  Maybe he became scared of her battle with Rook and went ahead to the main forces?

  “No, that′s not it.”


  Thinking well about that, Riku shook her head.

  From what Riku knew, even if Piguro had less merit than Leivein, he would not leave his subordinates in the middle of a battle and run away by himself.

  Even if he would get angry and shower Riku with insults, he would still be looking at the battle from the side.

  Although she felt he was this kind of person, it seems he had gone to somewhere.

  “…That′s weird.”


  Riku′s concerns turned from Rook to Piguro′s whereabouts. In the place Piguro was standing, there was a few of some sort of black marks that seemed as if the ground had been scorched.

  Crouching down, Riku tried to touch the ashes with her hand. It was still slightly warm. It was as if Piguro had been burnt down. However, if that is the case, then [when] did it happen?

  Riku thought back about her exchange with Rook.

  Rook was by himself without doubts. There were no presences of other people in the back-alley; it was only Riku, Piguro and Rook. Only the three of them.

  From what she knew about Piguro, there was no way he would go kill himself right in front of her eyes. Besides, no matter how much she was deranged at the time, the fire that supposedly turned him into ashes would definitely enter in her view.

  “Perhaps… There was a third party?”


  Riku uttered the hypothesis she suddenly thought about.

  Right at the time before Rook was about to leave, while he was speaking, he wasn′t looking at Riku, but looking at the position [around at her left shoulder]. She couldn′t sense anyone′s presence there, but may there had been a ghost-like third party she couldn′t see then?

  Regardless of what it was, there was some kind of connection between Piguro′s disappearance, the third party, and also Rook′s Barusak change in behavior.

  “Coloneeel!!”


  While Riku was thinking about those things, she heard Roppu′s voice.

  Without lowering his speed despite bleeding from his abdomen, he approached Riku.

  “We successfully carried the princess outside the royal capital. All there is left to do is to escape from here… By the way, where is staff officer?”


  “He went back ahead… Probably. …Let′s go, Roppu.”


  Grasping the ashes, Riku followed after Roppu.

  While having her mind jumbled up with mysteries, Riku escaped from the royal capital.

  —-

  After the red hair that would stand out even at night and the silver hair left the place, the shinigami showed himself.

  Looking at the direction of the water fountain plaza, which was where the silver haired disappeared to, he spoke in a bored tone.

  “Really, no meals this time either.”


  While hanging his head down dispirited, this time he looked at the direction outside the royal capital, which was where the red haired left to. The moment he turned his eyes, the shinigami′s eyes started to sparkle.

  And then, extremely happy, he muttered.

  “Soon enough, it will be the time to eat the other soul.”


  While slightly drooling, the shinigami muttered. There was no person around to hear those words.

  The only ones that knew of these words were the rats running around in the darkness of the night at the royal capital.