"You..."
Ellen stood frozen, shark scissors in hand, staring at Hoshimi Miyabi in disbelief. Her gaze shifted to the demonic blade lying beside her—the final trace of blood on its surface was dissolving into faint motes of light.
After securing the children's safety, she had come here with the other members of Victoria Housekeeping, hoping they could offer some assistance.
But none of them had any news about Zane—what he was doing, or even if he had entered the Hollow at all. Because of that uncertainty, they had held back, unwilling to act rashly in front of the Hollow on the river's surface.
However, not long ago, they noticed a change—the Hollow above the river had begun to disperse. That was what prompted them to investigate.
Ellen had seen Zane's figure with her own eyes. She had also seen his final disappearance.
On the vast, open river, the two figures were impossible to miss.
"Hoshimi Miyabi, you'd better give me an explanation!"
"What the hell just happened out there?!"
Ellen didn't move closer. Her sharp voice carried across the icy air, eyes narrowed and locked on Miyabi. The grip on her shark scissors tightened until her knuckles turned pale.
Hoshimi Miyabi kept her head lowered, her gaze lingering on the spot where Zane had vanished. Though her arms were now empty, she still held them in an embrace as if he were still there.
Her reflection shimmered faintly on the frozen surface. The light in her eyes flickered once, then dimmed.
Secrecy... Responsibility...
No matter what the Master planned—she would see his task through to the end.
More footsteps echoed across the ice as Lycaon and the others arrived. They didn't know what had just happened, nor why Ellen and Hoshimi Miyabi stood in opposition.
But Miyabi didn't respond to Ellen's demand. Instead, she closed her eyes slowly.
She understood what the Master had meant.
And she knew what needed to be done.
This way... the result would be more favorable.
Miyabi raised her hand and grasped the fallen demon blade. Her fingers tightened around the hilt.
In an instant, a pale blue flame-like aura surged along the blade's edge.
No Tail.
The name echoed silently in her mind.
A moment later, Hoshimi Miyabi's eyes snapped open. Her pupils were dull, devoid of light or awareness, as if her consciousness had been hollowed out. The demon spirit reformed beside her, emerging from the sword and floating at her side.
But this time, its eyes glowed with a deep black luster streaked through with crimson.
Miyabi rose to her feet. Though no wind stirred, her long hair lifted, floating and twisting wildly as she stood—like the spreading wings of a demon.
Her empty gaze swept toward the members of Victoria Housekeeping. Raising the long blade, she leveled it at them.
In the distance, a single firework streaked into the sky, bursting beneath the dawn light into a brilliant bloom.
The sun was rising.
Across the heavens, shards of pitch-black Hollow fragments drifted apart, disintegrating with time like paper catching flame.
The unfinished fireworks from earlier finally bloomed all at once as the flow of time resumed.
On the river's surface, the ice left behind by "Wind, Flower, Snow, Moon" floated like an island at the river's center.
And upon that frozen island—two groups now stood opposed.
Watching Hoshimi Miyabi's unhinged demeanor, Ellen's expression darkened. She knew of Zane's decision to disperse the Hollow and suppress the Hollow calamity—it had been far too conspicuous to ignore.
That was precisely why she had come to help.
But they were too late.
The person before her—was no longer in control.
Ellen shivered as the thick wave of malice and killing intent rolled over her.
"You... you've got to be kidding me..."
"You bastard! What the hell did you do?!"
The freezing air thickened with killing intent. As her words fell, Ellen's figure vanished from sight. In the blink of an eye, a streak of red light flashed across the ice.
The next moment, the Shark Scissors and the Demon Blade collided with a thunderous crash!
BOOM!!!!!
The ice cracked apart. The river roared and surged.
Once again, battle erupted across the frozen expanse.
Only when the Defense Force arrived did the chaos begin to subside.
And as the shattered ice on the river vanished completely, news spread through New Eridu like wildfire—
Void Hunter Hoshimi Miyabi had encountered an unknown anomaly within the Hollow, lost control, and after defeating over a hundred Defense Force officers—vanished without a trace.