The Half-Baked Vampire vs. The Strongest Little Sister?!

by Tsuyoshi Fujitaka

  Even Natsuki couldn’t have beaten it. It was on a completely different level.

  “Fine... Fine, then!” With that, Aiko flew out of Nihao the China.

  “What should we do? Do you have any ideas?” Natsuki asked, clearly flustered despite her outward calm.

  “Good question,” Mutsuko said. “I don’t have any ideas, but I think Yu can win!”

  “Why?” Natsuki was amazed that Mutsuko wasn’t at all worried. Her brother was clearly dying. It didn’t seem like the behavior of a girl who loved her brother.

  “I believe in Yu,” Mutsuko said simply. “That’s all!”

  ✽✽✽✽✽

  Hitting the wall drove all the air out of Yuichi’s lungs. He only just barely managed to stay conscious. He fell to the floor, face first, unable to dull the impact.

  He’d positioned himself to land back-first to lessen the shock, but it had barely mattered. He hadn’t expected to fly back ten meters and crash into a wall.

  It was the wing that had hit him — the wing, transformed into an enormous fist.

  He had made a terrible mistake in judgment. The momentum had completely turned against him. Yuichi had underestimated what a vampire could do.

  Perhaps it was because he was always around Aiko; he had convinced himself that it couldn’t be that bad. But this was a monster. Eyes shining red, fangs fully bared, huge bat wings growing from his back... It could turn into mist, and even into a wolf. It was completely unlike anything Yuichi had faced before.

  It was an honest-to-goodness monster.

  How could anything Yuichi knew about the world possibly apply to it?

  The principles of his martial arts were based on expectations about human limits. He knew a few things about fighting animals, as well, but there was no reason to think those would work on a vampire.

  Kyoya reverted to human form and stalked slowly towards Yuichi. “Hmm. It seems I’ll finally have vengeance for the humiliation I suffered at the hands of a lower lifeform like you. Well, you fought well enough... for a human,” Kyoya said, haughtily.

  Yuichi couldn’t find it in him to argue. He could barely even move. He’d reached the limits of what he could do with the furukami. It was the only thing that had kept him from being killed on the first hit. The blood spilling from his forehead blurred his vision.

  “You’re like a tiny thorn on my path to world domination,” Kyoya announced. “I just couldn’t move on until I’d paid you back for the humiliation you inflicted on me. Now, all that remains is to deliver your corpse to Aiko. Then I can leave the past behind me.”

  Yuichi struggled to catch his breath. If Kyoya was going to take his time, then he had to make efficient use of that time. Yuichi picked himself up slowly, coming to one knee.

  What do I do now?

  Mutsuko and the others must have been watching, but no advice came. The glasses were on the floor nearby, but no voices came through it. The transmitter must have broken. In other words, he couldn’t count on Mutsuko anymore.

  But Yuichi had no intention of going out quietly. Just because he couldn’t win was no reason to simply give up.

  But can I do it? That’s Noro’s brother there... He was hesitant. Kyoya clearly wouldn’t stop and talk or see reason, but still, knowing that he was part of Aiko’s family gave Yuichi pause.

  “Big Brother, stop it!” A voice cried out from behind Yuichi. He turned to look at it. It was Aiko, running towards him from the entryway hall.

  “Idiot! What are you doing here?” Yuichi shouted.

  Aiko interposed herself between Kyoya and Yuichi.

  “Oh? I can’t believe you came right to me,” Kyoya said smugly. “Everything just seems to be going my way today.”

  “This is all crazy! Knock it off and come back to your senses!” Aiko shouted.

  “I am in perfect command of my senses. It was the way I was before — twisted and oppressed — that was mad. Don’t you agree?”

  “What are you doing?” Yuichi demanded uncertainly from behind Aiko’s trembling form. He couldn’t let her stay there.

  “I’m protecting you, of course!” Aiko cried.

  “Please, just run away!” Yuichi shouted.

  Kyoya flapped his wings, sending out a gust that sent Aiko tumbling backwards.

  Yuichi sprang to his feet and seized Aiko in his arms. He hit the wall again, knocking the wind out of him once more.

  “Aiko, you shall be allowed to die after him, writhing in the grips of deepest despair,” Kyoya said.

  Yuichi was stunned by the sheer callousness in his voice. Kyoya’s hatred apparently ran deeper than Yuichi could have imagined. If Yuichi fell, then he really would kill Aiko.

  “Sakaki...” Aiko turned in Yuichi’s arms to look him in the eye. “Mom told me that I have the power to protect the people I care about.”

  Yuichi had a bad feeling about where this was going.

  “I didn’t believe her... but if my brother can turn into something like that, then maybe it was true, right?” Aiko smiled, and with great trepidation, returned Yuichi’s embrace.

  Yuichi couldn’t move.

  “I’m sorry.” She pressed her face to his neck.

  He could feel her tongue tracing along the line of his neck, licking up the blood that stained it.

  He felt her fangs extend, then sink deep into his flesh. The pain caused him to writhe.

  “Please! You don’t have to do this!” he shouted. “I...”

  He couldn’t stop Aiko from drinking his blood.

  Chapter 8: Vampire Versus Vampire!

  The feeling of having his blood drunk was pleasant. Was it because Aiko was the one doing it, or because the act itself was pleasurable?

  Yuichi could barely move, so he certainly couldn’t fight back. He was forced to yield to Aiko entirely.

  Aiko laid Yuichi back on the floor and stood up.

  “Ha!” her brother laughed. “What do you plan to do, Aiko? You think that drinking a little blood will help you?” His tone was an amalgamation of fear, jealousy, and hatred.

  Shining wings began to unfold from Aiko’s back: thin and delicate, like many layers of thin glass on top of each other. At the same time, four blades appeared around her, equally transparent and seemingly without substance. Her eyes had turned red, and Yuichi could see fangs peeking out from the corners of her mouth.

  “Vampire Princess.” At some point, the label above Aiko’s head had changed, as well.

  The world around Yuichi was spinning. He had never dreamed that Aiko might transform.

  “No! Don’t you dare! You always do this... It’s always about you!” Kyoya shouted. He had abandoned all pretense of his earlier haughty calm.

  He began a new monstrous transformation, morphing into a wolfman covered in silver fur.

  His transformation complete, Kyoya dashed forward. He leaped into the air, brandishing his claws to tear at Aiko.

  Aiko thrust her palm towards him, causing the blades hovering around her to lance forward towards Kyoya. They drove him back while still in midair and struck him to the ground.

  “Your blood isn’t tasty, Big Brother,” she said calmly. The blades returned to their formation around Aiko. These were Aiko’s fangs, and they were now stained in blood. “Wait for me, Sakaki. I’m going to end this.”

  The chill in Aiko’s voice brought Yuichi back to his senses.

  “Don’t you dare! I didn’t ask you to do this!” Yuichi fought against his unsteady legs, trying to rise.

  He couldn’t let Aiko kill her brother. Mutsuko had told him once that killing someone could scar a person in a way that they would never fully heal from.

  Aiko gave another gesture, and her fangs slashed at Kyoya once more.

  Kyoya stood up and began sprouting more arms. Two new arms now grew from each shoulder, giving him an Asura-like silhouette. He used four of those bestial arms to seize each of Aiko’s attacking fangs.

  “Well? What now?” Kyoya asked as he approached Aiko.<
br />
  She threw both hands in front of her — perhaps trying to regain control of the fangs — but Kyoya kept tight hold on them.

  Kyoya lowered his center of gravity and ran towards her.

  Aiko awkwardly flapped her wings to get out of the way, but although they likely existed to let her fly, she wasn’t used to them at all. She ended up losing her balance and, unable to remain properly airborne, hit the wall.

  Kyoya dove upon her, thrusting out with his savagely extended claws.

  Aiko brought her wings in front of her to defend herself, but the force of the claws sent her flying back.

  Aiko hit the wall and fell down beside Yuichi. Nevertheless, she stood up again.

  Her eyes glowed, her wings extended. She took a step forward, ready to keep fighting to protect Yuichi.

  Stop it... Yuichi didn’t want her to do this for him.

  Kyoya laughed. “Serves you right! You think a little sister can beat her big brother?”

  They were both superhuman. There was no room for Yuichi to interfere. This was no battle for an ordinary human.

  So... so what? Yuichi forced power into his legs. Did I really make you worry that much?

  Slowly, he rose.

  You really think I’m so weak that you have to do something like this?!

  Aiko couldn’t move her wings properly. She must have been at the limit of her strength.

  “This is it! The proof that I’ve overtaken you as a vampire! That I’m stronger than you are!” Kyoya brandished his claws again and charged straight for Aiko.

  Aiko began to topple over, her strength gone. She couldn’t protect herself anymore.

  Kyoya’s claws were aimed right for Aiko’s heart.

  Yuichi unleashed a primal scream.

  ✽✽✽✽✽

  “What’s going on with Noro?” Natsuki murmured as she watched Aiko’s transformation.

  Shining wings had appeared on Aiko’s back. Her eyes had shone red, and fangs had poked out from behind her lips. There was no sign of the easygoing Aiko that they knew.

  The closest frame of reference that Natsuki had was the horn that appeared on an oni’s brow. That was also semi-transparent and insubstantial.

  “Maybe it’s the power of love! Hey, does that mean you can transform too, Takeuchi?” Mutsuko asked excitedly.

  “No, I...” Natsuki did have something inside of her, the source of both her superhuman strength and her urge to kill. But it had never caused her to transform.

  “This is kind of a ‘wow, really?’ moment, huh?” Mutsuko babbled. “When you think of female vampires, you’d expect something more like Carmilla, right? The real sexy type! But Carmilla was a lesbian, so I guess this is sexy in a different way!”

  Mutsuko showed not the least bit of surprise by Aiko’s transformation, and just kept blabbing on about whatever came to mind.

  “Should we have stopped Noro?” Natsuki asked. Now that she was gone, there was nothing they could do. Perhaps, Natsuki thought, they should have stopped her from going.

  “Good question,” Mutsuko said. “It’ll probably be scary for her... but she’ll be okay. Yu won’t let anything bad happen to her.”

  Natsuki looked at her dubiously. Yuichi couldn’t win; Mutsuko must surely realize that.

  Natsuki had been surprised when Aiko had run in and abruptly transformed, but she didn’t think it would change anything. Aiko didn’t have enough practical combat experience. No matter how much power you had, it meant nothing if you couldn’t use it.

  “Sakaki can’t move anymore,” Natsuki said.

  “Yeah,” Mutsuko nodded. “He used a full-body furukami and he’s reached his limit.”

  “That vampire is stronger than him,” Natsuki added.

  “Looks like!”

  “So how is he going to win?”

  “He’s reached his limit and he’s been rendered immobile against an overwhelming enemy, so he’s lost... Is that what you think? Give him a little credit! Yu’s not that weak! You think he’s the protagonist of the kind of story where the heroes fail, to make a statement about the cruelty of the real world and how bad endings are more realistic? No!” Mutsuko proclaimed. “This is the turning point! Got it? When you’re the best of the best, you always find a way!”

  ✽✽✽✽✽

  The bestial arm spun end over end through the air.

  Kyoya watched it fly, but he could not understand what he was looking at.

  It traced an arc towards the ceiling, blood trailing behind it.

  His claws were about to pierce Aiko’s heart... but now it was Yuichi who stood in front of him.

  Yuichi’s arms were crossed and stretched in front of him, and he was falling backward.

  He should have been finished already... What was he doing there? But just as the thought entered Kyoya’s mind, Yuichi disappeared.

  Kyoya’s vision tilted.

  The next instant, he realized that he was the one falling over.

  Everything was moving in slow-motion.

  The pain in his arm and leg registered simultaneously.

  Kyoya suddenly realized that he was missing a hand, and that his left leg was twisted at a bizarre angle from the knee down.

  His memory of how things had come to this were blurry. What had happened? Who had it done this to him? He couldn’t even begin to piece it together. All he could do was feel time passing.

  He reached out instinctively, attempting to stop his fall. But he was not allowed.

  He felt fingers stab into his eyeballs, then felt the impact of his head striking the wall.

  Everything went black. But it only lasted for a moment. The next thing he knew, Yuichi’s face was in front of him.

  “You son of a—” Kyoya attempted, but a dislodged jaw kept him from finishing his curse.

  Yuichi had used the heel of his hand to strike Kyoya’s jaw at extremely close range. The whole mandible had gone flying. The pain caused Kyoya’s vision to cloud over.

  He flailed desperately with his six arms. If only one of them could hit...! But he only made the situation worse, as Yuichi dealt with each arm systematically, one at a time.

  Yuichi began to pummel Kyoya indiscriminately, with fists, with chops, with jabs from his fingers. He twisted his joints and broke his bones.

  Another transformation... But the time it would take would create a fatal opening.

  Healing... But he’d been regenerating this whole time; it simply couldn’t keep up.

  He’s a monster.

  It was impossible to believe this man was human. Kyoya didn’t even know what it was he was fighting. He had absolutely no idea what was going on.

  At last, Kyoya’s feelings caught up with the circumstances around him.

  Terror...

  He was experiencing the primordial fear of death. He couldn’t even get a good look at Yuichi. It was impossible to even stay on his feet. His body was in a constant state of being destroyed.

  Kyoya spread his wings. Those, at least, he could still use. Maybe if he got away from the school...

  But Yuichi kicked off the ceiling to assail him from above. He struck down with a heel and smacked Kyoya back to the floor. Then, without a moment’s pause, Yuichi threw the stakes in his hand.

  The slender stakes of white magnolia stuck into Kyoya’s back. Blood — the source of his power — flowed out of him. The fluid from which his immortality sprung was draining away.

  There was only so much his regeneration could do, and now it was reaching its limits.

  Kyoya felt suddenly, acutely aware that he was standing on the verge of death.

  ✽✽✽✽✽

  “He won,” Mutsuko said quietly.

  “Huh?” Natsuki asked, jaw slack.

  “Get in the spirit, Takeuchi! Give me a good, proper ‘yeah!’”

  Natsuki couldn’t understand what Mutsuko was talking about, nor could she process what was happening in the video that was being projected on the wall.

  “The he
ro in a manga can’t bring out his all until he’s really up against the wall! ...Though he may have overdone it a little.” Mutsuko knitted her brow in concern.

  “What even was that?” Natsuki burst out.

  “What? Oh, the thing at the start? That’s the Type 0 Extreme Defense Technique, ‘Fukuro’! It’s a move when you focus your opponent’s power and your own body weight into torque, all against a single joint... and wow, I know joint locks can be powerful, but I wasn’t expecting him to tear it right off!”

  “I thought he couldn’t move...” Natsuki stated in disbelief.

  “That kind of thing is all about the mood, though. Even a robot that’s out of fuel can move if you shout at it enough!”

  “He didn’t do any of this when he fought me... What does it mean? Wasn’t he fighting me seriously?” Natsuki’s face screwed up in frustration.

  “Well, he’s removed another of his limiters,” Mutsuko explained. “The furukami removes the limiters on his body. But there’s also a limiter on the mind. I mentioned it before, remember? Humans generally can’t kill other humans, and any attacks against another human will have an inherent resistance built in. If you remove that resistance, things can get pretty scary! In other words, Yu is currently attacking with intent to kill. That’s the difference between this and his battle with you!”

  “Something so simple can make that much of a difference?” Natsuki asked.

  Don’t think of him as human. Natsuki had given Yuichi that exact same advice. Yet there was something unbelievable about the scene unfolding in front of her eyes.

  “It’s because Yu’s such a nice guy. Though that can cause its own problems... I bet he almost didn’t even use it!” Mutsuko exclaimed.

  Yuichi was showing no mercy. Kyoya was left completely on the defensive, but he couldn’t actually defend himself properly. He simply couldn’t keep up.

  That’s strange, Natsuki thought. Yuichi was moving fast, but not so fast she couldn’t follow him.

  Mutsuko must have read her mind, because these were the next words out of her mouth:

  “The thing is that whether you’re fighting a vampire or an anthromorph, they still don’t think or react any faster than a human. That’s why he can’t deal with Yu’s disappearing moves. In martial arts, disappearing moves are moves that run contrary to what your opponent assumes you’ll do. See, what we perceive as ‘vision’ is an amalgamation of what the brain assumes will happen, and what’s really happening. The brain runs various simulations based on stimuli about what’s going to happen next, and presents the results as if you really saw it... Well, that explanation might not make sense to you, but I’ll explain more about how the brain works later.”