The guest room was sparse but functional—four beds, a wooden table, a single window that looked out onto the courtyard. Dust motes floated in the slanted afternoon light, and the faint smell of cigarette smoke lingered in the air, seeping through the walls from the corridor outside.
Hiro sat on the edge of his bed, watching Yurei unpack. She moved with practiced efficiency, her hands steady, her expression unreadable.
"Before the introduction of the Spirit Chain and Beast Slave system," Yurei began, her voice low, "in order to match the power of Abyssals, some awakened women created enhancers."
She pulled a folded uniform from her bag and placed it on the bed.
"A drug capable of boosting one's Aether reserves and strengthening their blessing. But at a cost."
Marian leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "They caused individuals to become more erratic and emotional. A death sentence in combat."
"So when the Beast Slave system was introduced," Yurei continued, "the use of enhancers was abandoned completely."
"Wait those Enhancers?" Hiro's brow furrowed. "Are they crazy?"
Even he knew about them. The police would regularly arrest berserk awakened women who had taken the drug—their eyes wild, their blessings unstable, their bodies slowly burning out from the inside. He'd seen the footage on the news. The screaming. The purple veins. The way they kept fighting long after their bodies should have collapsed.
"The main question," Marian said, holding her chin in thought, "is how did they get them?"
"Isn't the use of that stuff illegal?" Hiro asked, still in disbelief.
"Only outside of the army." Yurei didn't look up from her unpacking. "The army uses every advantage it has."
The room felt colder suddenly. Hiro glanced at the window. The sun was still shining, but a shadow had passed over the courtyard—or maybe it was just his imagination.
"So they're going to cheat during the duel later," he said.
"Most likely."
"So we have to do something—"
"Don't worry, Hiro." Yurei finally looked at him, her crimson eyes steady. "Even if they cheat, we can handle them."
"Okay, that—" He stopped. "Wait. 'We'?"
"Did you honestly think I was going to fight alone?"
She turned to face him fully, Longinus still resting against the wall behind her.
"Whilst I fight Beatrice, you will be handling her slave."
"That guy Scott?"
"So wait—how did you fight them before?"
"One on one." Yurei's lips curved slightly. "And wiped the floor with them both."
Marian chimed in from the side, a teasing grin spreading across her face. "And luckily for you, we know what his beast form is. Whilst he doesn't know what yours is." She tapped her temple. "Element of surprise."
"I don't think that's going to help."
"Come on, Hiro." Marian clapped him on the shoulder. "Have some confidence. He's just an oversized gorilla with metal bones."
"A gorilla?!"
"A B-class Elemental Type, to be more precise," Yurei added.
The words hung in the air. Hiro felt his stomach tighten.
B-class. Elemental. Metal bones.
He thought about his own classification—S-class Spirit Type. The highest rank. The rarest category.
Wait. I'm an S-class. I should have an advantage over him.
With that thought, Hiro felt some of his confidence return. A small spark, but enough. He straightened his back, squared his shoulders.
What he didn't know—what no one had told him yet—was that judging a beast slave's strength by its class alone was a fatal mistake. Class measured potential, not experience. Not training. Not the savage cunning of a beast who had fought for years in the shadows of the Delinquent Base.
But that was a lesson he would learn soon enough.
---
The group unpacked their belongings in comfortable silence. Fabric rustled. Zippers slid. Boots thudded against the wooden floor. Marian disappeared into the room next door—probably to check on something, or someone.
Hiro couldn't focus.
His mind kept circling back to the duel. To Scott. To the oversized gorilla with metal bones waiting for him in the shadows.
Then—a knock.
Rap. Rap. Rap.
"Princess." A voice from outside, formal and cold. "The challenge will proceed in the next five minutes."
Hiro's heart slammed against his ribs.
"Oh gosh, this is really happening." He looked at Yurei. "What if she—"
"I'm not going to lose, Hiro." Yurei's voice cut through his panic, steady and certain. Through their bond, he could feel her calm—a deliberate, anchored presence that seemed to pull him back from the edge.
He swallowed. "But what if I lose?"
"In the event that you lose, Scott will be allowed to help Beatrice in the duel."
Hiro's brow furrowed. "How does that work?"
"In a Princess wage duel, the challenger's slave battles the princess's slave. If the challenger's slave wins, it can go assist its mistress. But if the princess's slave wins… it cannot go help its mistress."
"Wait, so it will be two against one?" Hiro's voice rose. "That's insane."
"Pretty much." Yurei's expression didn't change. "But even if that becomes the case, I will still win."
"But who made up such a stupid rule?"
Yurei was silent for a moment. Then: "My mother did."
Hiro's mouth snapped shut.
The Matriarch.
He knew exactly which mother she was referring to. The woman who sat on the Crimson Throne. The woman who commanded the Divine Generals. The woman who could erase cities with a thought.
"She said she didn't want any of her daughters relying on the help of our 'monkeys.'"
Yurei pulled Longinus from her spatial ring. The spear hummed faintly as her fingers wrapped around the shaft—a low, resonant sound that vibrated through the room. She stood, tall and composed, her crimson eyes blazing with quiet fire.
"Let's go win this thing."
Her confidence was infectious. Hiro felt some of his anxiety melt away—not all, but enough.
He stood.
"Okay. Let's go."
---
Hiro's first fight against a beast slave was about to begin.
And Yurei's duel—with her title on the line—would determine the future of the Delinquent Base.
Outside, the courtyard had been transformed. The sun hung directly overhead, casting no shadows. The air was thick with dust and sweat and anticipation. Soldiers lined the edges, their eyes hungry for blood. The murmur of the crowd was a low, hungry growl.
Beatrice stood at the far end, cracking her knuckles. The sound echoed off the walls—pop, pop, pop—like gunfire.
Scott waited beside her, his blue suit replaced by combat gear. Dark. Lightweight. Practical. His glasses were gone, replaced by a thin visor that covered his eyes.
Behind them, the shadows shifted.
Something large was breathing in the darkness. Two yellow eyes glowed from the gloom.
The gorilla.
Hiro's throat went dry.
This is really happening.
He glanced at Yurei. She was already walking toward the center of the courtyard, Longinus gleaming in the sunlight.
No pressure.
He followed.