"You two, wandering around late at night isn't good behavior. And naughty children..."
"Must be punished."
Hearing this, Aaron scrambled up from on top of Kiana, on high alert, and pulled his enhanced metal bat from his storage space.
The man in the shadows, his face showing an intrigued smile, walked into the moonlight, revealing himself fully.
"Oh? I didn't see any weapons on you just now. What's this... are you 'colleagues'?"
Looking at Aaron's current stance, the man immediately dismissed his own guess.
"No, no. If you were a 'colleague,' you wouldn't be such an amateur. Your stance is full of openings. Any rookie 'colleague' wouldn't stand so poorly."
"Aaron, you..."
Seeing a fresh red mark on Aaron's neck, Kiana suddenly shouted.
"You're bleeding!"
"It's nothing, just a scratch. But this guy..."
Looking at the two sharp blades in the man's hands, Aaron let out a deep breath.
"This won't be easy. We ran into a Teigu user right off the bat. What awful luck."
"Ahaha, delightful. To think you recognized me as a Teigu user just by seeing me."
Zank the Beheader. This was one of the hidden bosses of the Imperial Capital.
Well, for the current Aaron, Zank the Beheader was definitely a boss.
He was the Imperial executioner, tasked with beheading criminals. Due to his long-term work, his personality became twisted. Unsatisfied with only killing in prison, he began serial killing on the streets.
Aaron had been wondering why the Imperial Capital's streets were so quiet at night.
Then he remembered: for a while before the story began, Zank the Beheader roamed the streets as a serial killer, causing ordinary residents to be too afraid to go out at night.
It was precisely because he remembered this that he sensed a killing intent lock onto him and Kiana.
He didn't know if it was a coincidence or if Zank's attack was just that precise, but Zank's last blow had still managed to graze Aaron's skin.
Although Aaron's D-rank Noble Phantasm clothes had strong defense, as long as the enemy bypassed his clothes and attacked his exposed skin, they could still hurt him.
And now...
"Hmm, let me see. Miss, over there, I suggest you don't move."
Looking at Kiana, who had also taken out her bat, Zank chuckled grimly at them.
"Trying to pincer me from the back? Good children shouldn't use numbers to bully one person."
"Wh...!"
Kiana, having her thoughts read, frowned slightly.
She had been planning to find an opening, circle around, and attack Zank from his undefended side or back.
But before she could even move, the enemy had already seen through her plan.
"Be careful. This guy can read minds. So don't bother with tactics..."
Stomping his foot, Aaron dashed forward and swung his metal bat.
"A frontal assault is the best tactic!"
"Oh? This young man seems to know my Teigu well. But..."
Lightly dodging Aaron's blow, Zank slashed at Aaron's arm.
'Clang!'
With a crisp sound, Zank's blow...
—easily took a large chip out of the blade in his hand.
"Hmm, no wonder."
His weapon damaged, Zank dodged Aaron's attacks while looking at the new chip in his blade.
"No wonder your thoughts had no intention of dodging. So, your clothes have powerful defensive abilities. But..."
"—Doesn't that just mean I can still hurt you as long as I get around them?"
"And you, miss. Please be quiet. At first, I was planning to have a nice chat with you, but it seems this young man is a more suitable conversation partner."
With a backflip, Zank put distance between himself and Aaron, then activated his Teigu, [Spectator], using its [Illusion] ability on Kiana, who had leaped into the air for a downward strike.
The Illusion ability was one of [Spectator's] five abilities. Anyone hit by it would see an illusion for a short time.
And after activating this ability, Zank the Beheader's favorite thing to do was to make those confused by the illusion see the person most important to them.
...........................