The night was like ink.
Night was meant to be quiet. People, tired after a day's labor, should have long since sunk into dreams, saving their strength for tomorrow's work and life. Even those night owls whose energy only awoke after dusk would, unconsciously swayed by the silence of the night, try their best not to disturb others' rest.
But tonight—tonight was noisy, tonight was chaotic.
"!!"
Grotesque creatures, shaped like flowers yet like octopi, gathered together, forming a tide of black waves. Their howls pierced the mind like needles stabbing straight into the skull.
Their target was an ambulance—and the few escort vehicles surrounding it like bodyguards. To be precise, their target was the people inside.
They were faithful devotees of madness and chaos, enemies of reason and order. What made up their essence was pure frenzied malice.
"Raise some hell, Hangaku!"
The man who shouted was a purple-haired thug-looking figure—the gangster boss himself, Mirokuji Yūya. At his call, he summoned his partner, Hangaku.
A heroic woman clad in Sengoku-style armor, her naginata dancing with a force like a storm—she was Hangaku, who seemed like a Valkyrie descending. Like a tiger pouncing into a flock of sheep, she leapt into the tide of monsters. Her blade, sharp and gleaming, resembled a crescent moon reflected in still water.
Her swings were so graceful they looked like a dance—but beneath that beauty was cold killing intent.
Any monster caught in the storm of her blade was shredded in an instant, reduced to flesh and blood mist.
Though Hangaku was a Stand-like avatar, Yūya himself also had formidable combat strength. His black wooden sword whipped up violent gusts. Before that gale, the monsters' bodies tore apart like paper.
And yet, there was no joy on Yūya's face—only heaviness, only irritation.
"Uwah! What the hell is that black, slimy stuff on these things? I just cut them into pieces, but a second later they're back again?!"
The one who cried out wasn't Yūya, but a boy younger than Mizushino Sōta and Selesia. He had blue hair, and with the weather cooling fast, he wore a padded winter coat.
The fact that he could resist the monsters' mental corruption meant one thing clearly—he, too, was a Created.
His name was Kanoya Rui. Protagonist of the mecha anime Infinite Divine Machine Monomagia.
Just a few days ago, he had descended into this world. He had also fought Altair back in his own. Then, when he came to his senses, he was already here. His Divine Mecha was colossal, far larger than [Vogelchevalier], and when it appeared, it made such a disturbance that the government found him almost immediately.
As a side note, Kanoya Rui's place of descent happened to be the home of a friend of Matsubara Takashi—scriptwriter Nakami Akira, who had been in charge of Monomagia's story and composition.
With one forceful strike, Yūya split apart several black monsters. As they revived, he immediately followed up with another blow to finish them off. Hearing Rui's question, he barked a reply without looking back.
"No idea! The last time we ran into these disgusting bastards, they didn't have this crap on them. Been gone a few days, and they've gotten nastier? I don't even feel like cutting them anymore."
Even as he spoke, more monsters lunged. Yūya pushed off the ground, springing into the air, landing lightly on a billboard.
Seeing the crowd of monsters surging toward him below, drawn by his presence, Yūya roared:
"Hangaku!"
No need for further explanation—his partner knew his intent. She leapt, naginata flashing, severing the billboard's supports with two strikes.
With a thunderous crash, the billboard, sped along by Yūya's shove, smashed down heavily on the monsters.
Boom—!
From far off, Rui winced at the sight of shattered pavement and billboard debris, his mouth twitching.
"…We don't have to pay damages for this, right?"
With only that worry passing through his mind, Rui turned his attention back to the battle.
He saw that the monsters crushed beneath the billboard crawled out almost immediately. But this time, the black substance covering their bodies was gone.
"Good thing… that black slime only blocks one attack. No matter if it's lethal or not, once it's absorbed a blow, it disappears…" Rui lowered his eyes, voice listless. "Originally, Mirokuji-ani could take out a whole crowd in one swing. Now every single one needs two hits. No wonder he's pissed."
He hadn't joined Yūya in fighting. Instead, he remained in the vehicle.
Unlike Selesia, who even without Vogelchevalier retained some combat power, Rui's strength existed only in his [Divine Mecha]. And his mecha was even larger than [Vogelchevalier]. Kikuchihara Aki had warned him strictly—not to pilot it inside the city without permission.
Rui hadn't complained. On the contrary, he was relieved. He never wanted to fight in the [Divine Mecha] anyway. He only wanted to enjoy life. But the story of his world had always forced him unwillingly onto the battlefield.
Inside the vehicle, it wasn't only Rui. Since this was a rescue, the ambulance was filled with medical staff.
They were ordinary humans, powerless against the monsters' mental contamination. But solutions had been found.
Back in Sunshine City, because the monsters polluted the mind, every ordinary person present had been affected, unable to remember anything that happened. Mizushino Sōta and Matsubara Takashi among them. The government had then explained it away as a gas explosion.
Yet government personnel themselves remembered clearly. The difference was that they hadn't faced the monsters directly. They observed them through cameras, through recordings.
The monsters' psychic contamination wasn't strong. Through recordings, the effect was weakened enough that even ordinary people could endure it.
So the government had studied these abilities, preparing countermeasures.
For example now—their mental attacks worked mainly through sight and hearing. So the medical staff stayed in the car, avoiding the battle outside, with special headsets blocking the sound.
Although still within city limits, they were close to the outer wards, a deserted place. And it was the dead of night. No chance of bystanders wandering into this carnage.
By the time Selesia and Meteora descended from the sky, rushing to the scene, the last monster had just fallen beneath Hangaku's naginata.
"You two are late."
Yūya slung his wooden sword over his shoulder, casting the pair a glare. His eyes were fierce, his killing aura not yet faded.
"We came here the very instant we got word." Selesia planted her hands on her hips, face showing exasperation.
"I'd put it differently." Meteora said flatly. "It's not that we were too slow. It's that you killed too fast—or the monsters were too few."
"Oh? So that's a compliment?" Yūya's mouth curved faintly, gaze behind his sunglasses fixed on Meteora.
"If you choose to take it as such, I won't deny there is some truth to it."
"Honestly… if I'd known there'd be this few, I wouldn't have flown here in such a rush." Selesia grumbled helplessly.
She had been tense all the way, worrying about what might happen here. She admitted Yūya was strong—arguably their side's strongest fighter—but even with his Stand-like partner, one person could only do so much. Even if tonight's monsters were half the number of Sunshine City, Yūya couldn't both fight and protect everyone at once.
Then Selesia's eyes fell on Rui, still seated in the vehicle.
"So… you just sat in there the whole time?"
Rui shrugged indifferently. "My [Divine Mecha] could crush a whole horde in one step. But if I really did that, tomorrow's headlines would be all about me."
"You… maybe train your own body a little? If that robot ever gets wrecked, you'll be the one in danger."
"My world is pure mecha, okay? Unlike yours, where there's mechs and swords and magic. Feels like your side's a bit overcrowded."
Meanwhile, Meteora was busy reassuring the medical staff. Since they hadn't been allowed to observe the battle, they'd been terrified the entire time. Even after being saved, they were still shaken.
It was then that Yūya turned to Meteora.
"These monsters… evolved?"
Meteora's eyes widened slightly.
Her hand rose to her chin. She fell into thought.
"Those black substances… without samples to analyze, I cannot form any useful hypotheses. We don't know whether that sludge is produced by the monsters themselves, or granted to them by the summoner. And more importantly… we don't know if this 'evolution' is an exception or the norm. Whether there is a limit to it—or none at all…"
Meteora then lifted her gaze toward Mirokuji Yūya and asked another question.
"During the battle just now, did you attempt to track the source of the monsters' appearance?"
To this, Yūya shook his head.
"Couldn't find it. Either they hid too well, or they ran too fast. What about you?" He tilted his chin, curious. "You were chasing the one who might be pulling the strings, weren't you?"
"When we arrived, the suspect had already fled. But we encountered members of Altair's side—Magical Slayer Mamika and the knight Alicetaria. Alicetaria, however, was gravely wounded and left unable to move."
"Mm? Oh! That female knight from last time? She was a rare strong opponent, felt like fighting her would be exhilarating. Reminded me of Shou, that guy."
Yūya straightened slightly, mouth splitting into a grin filled with fighting spirit. But immediately after, she curled her lip.
"But even she ended up that injured? Then it really must have been a dangerous individual… And considering you weren't far from here, it makes sense. After wounding the knight, that woman ran to this area and sent monsters to attack us… The more I think about it, the more likely it sounds."
"Her ability is dangerous, impossible to guard against. It may sound rude to say this… but thanks to Alicetaria probing her power beforehand, we now understand it. If we had encountered her blind, with no intel, we would have been at a great disadvantage."
After a quick cleanup, the group returned to the vehicles and continued driving toward the place where Alicetaria and Mamika waited.
After all, Alicetaria was still awaiting their help.
What they did not know was this: not long after they left, Alicetaria and Mamika were themselves attacked…
Time rewinds slightly…
When Selesia and Meteora learned that the rescue convoy had been attacked, they decided to go provide support. Mamika and Alicetaria both understood the gravity of the situation, and did not stop them.
After all, the reason those people encountered monsters at all—the reason they were in danger—was essentially because of Alicetaria and Mamika. If someone died because of it, the two would never escape guilt.
"It's okay! I'll protect Alice-chan! I'll take care of her!"
Though nervous, Mamika still gripped her magical staff tightly, determination hardening her expression.
Alicetaria was her friend. Alicetaria had been wounded to protect her. So she had to protect her in return.
Absolutely.
While tending to Alicetaria, Mamika suddenly heard strange cries from outside.
The sound was unfamiliar, but that power—that evil power which disturbed emotions, which agitated the heart—was all too familiar. Both Mamika and Alicetaria recognized it.
Monsters appeared before them, wings beating.
Not the flower-octopus type from before, but birdlike creatures. Horse-like heads, bat wings, scales instead of feathers. Their torsos bore strange devices inside the chest, pulsing as if they were hearts.
Selesia and Meteora had only just left, and at once monsters arrived—as though they had been lurking nearby all along, waiting only for the moment Selesia and Meteora departed.
The number of bird-monsters wasn't large. Their ability to fly might have made them troublesome for others, but Mamika could fire magical projectiles. Pink, heart-shaped blasts of mana shattered their scales easily, felling them one by one.
Perhaps realizing Mamika's strength, the monsters stopped recklessly diving at her. Instead they circled in the sky, launching rainbow-colored beams toward the bridge underpass.
These monsters… could fight at range too!!
Mamika couldn't allow them to destroy the bridge and bury them alive. She had no choice but to leave Alicetaria beneath the underpass and fly out herself to intercept the bird-things.
Back under the bridge, Alicetaria leaned against the stone wall, biting her lip in frustration. Her eyes burned like fire.
"Mamika…"
The sounds of battle reached her ears. She loathed this sense of helplessness. She despised her own weakness.
Because she had seen it too many times.
A peaceful village, just days ago. Children dreaming bright dreams—one day they would join the knight order and become as strong as her. Honest villagers pressing gifts into her hands in gratitude, for saving them.
Days later, that village was consumed by war. Those children would never fulfill their dreams. The gratitude of the villagers now stabbed at her chest, a thousand blades.
Such scenes replayed over and over in her world. That was its normal state. No matter how hard she tried, she was always one step late. Just one step.
If only she had arrived in time… If she had been stronger, just a little stronger, perhaps she could have saved them.
If she had been stronger, perhaps she would not now be dragging Mamika down…
"[Gauntlet…]"
"!!!"
Suddenly—a sinister laugh. Alicetaria flinched violently.
Her body was already at its limit, but that brief rest had restored a sliver of strength—enough to grasp her spear, enough to glare toward the source of that laughter.
From the shadows ahead, a small figure emerged.
Eyes glowing pink, terrifying, staring straight at her. A small girl, smiling brightly, as though delighted beyond words.
"Alicetaria… it is Alicetaria… COS? So realistic… No, no… the real one? The real one, ahh… ehehe… Just like Van Gogh… Yes… that's right… Van Gogh was the real one too… Please take care of me, Alicetaria. Van Gogh is Van Gogh, you know…"
Alicetaria's eyes widened, stunned. For a long moment, she could only stare. Then, at last, she parted her lips.
"…It's you?"
---
...
Umu! I am Nero Claudius—the brilliant Emperor of Rome, the dazzling Saber, the one and only performer who can steal a stage with a single smile!
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