Red Nocturne

by Shūsuke Amagi

  (The power of hatred of filth monsters wars with the power to protect. This balance had been broken when the filth monsters drew near.)

  Haikizoku.........The man with the mask of a beast had said so too.

  "Hatred against filth monsters? So the Haikizoku in Nina wants to destroy her body because it knows filth monsters are close?"

  But Nina chose to fight the Wolf Faces instead. Was that the reason that the balance was lost?

  (Yes.........)

  Leerin didn't say anything but something had answered her.

  "Are you speaking, Myath?"

  Myath was the only choice.

  (Yes.)

  A weak voice that did not belong to a male or a female. A neutral voice.

  (Two Electronic Fairies are inside Nina. One is the Haikizoku. The other is a normal Electronic Fairy. The Electronic Fairy is controlling the power of the Haikizoku. And that is the balance that enables Nina to control it. But the Haikizoku's power increased when it sensed the nearness of filth monsters.)

  "What should I do?"

  (You must calm the Haikizoku.)

  "How?"

  (.........)

  "This is connected to your life. Keep at it!"

  Called by that strong voice, Myath answered weakly. (Pray!)

  "Huh?"

  (You hold the En of Grendan......... No, the Holder of En of the other Electronic Fairy that Grendan has hidden. You're rare. Your prayer can calm the Haikizoku.)

  "Then, what.........?"

  Grendan had hidden an Electronic Fairy. Leerin didn't know.

  (Pray. Pray to the hidden Electronic Fairy. The prototype of all Electronic Fairies.)

  "Pray......... How?"

  No answer. She could only hear the sound of fighting and Nina's pain. Any information on religion was the legacy of a time long past. It was said that prayer could increase one's faith. Anything else was just an individual's wish. Hoping the day would sail by smoothly and peacefully was only a person's wish. It was useless if other people didn't think so. Saying anything in everyday words was meaningless if she didn't make a wish to a god or any other supernatural entities. Even so, Myath had told her to "pray!"

  "Um!" Leerin prayed. Nothing surfaced in her mind except for her wish for Nina to win and the Haikizoku to calm down.

  (But who do I pray to?)

  Myath mentioned the hidden Electronic Fairy, but what was it? Leerin hadn't the memory of such a thing. In Grendan......? She recalled the beast she saw on the night when Gahard attacked her and Derek. That was probably Grendan's Electronic Fairy.

  "If that was Grendan, then there really is an Electronic Fairy I'm unaware of......"

  Because it had hidden itself, it wouldn't easily show itself before people.

  (Now that I remember it, Synola senpai was there too?)

  She chased the flitting memories of the past, recalling how she had fainted and woken up with Derek beside her. Was Synola senpai with her when she fainted?

  (AH?!)

  It seemed Synola and Savaris knew each other. Leerin didn't think it'd be so easy for a Heaven's Blade successor to so easily tell her of his mission. Then why was Synola there?

  (.........Ah.)

  Reflexive thinking took her down the memory lane of her time with Synola as her their first meeting surfaced in her mind......

  (Why, why did I cry at that time?)

  Leerin had lost her way after the entrance ceremony, and met with Synola who was lying on the grass. As she watched Synola, tears spilled down her cheeks. It wasn't sadness, but a feeling threatened to burst out of her chest.

  (What was that......?)

  What was it? She must recall it. That feeling......

  - Let me lend you a little of my strength then!

  "Ah?"

  - But please don't forget.

  "Who are you?"

  - Because that moment won't come again.

  "Why?"

  - Because, it's near......

  Leerin's consciousness went empty the next moment.

  Nina kneeled at the intensity of the Wolf Man's attack.

  "Uh........."

  "For someone who can't control her Kei vein, you've worked hard in this fight!"

  "This is nothing!"

  "This will of yours to fight against the Haikizoku is worthy of praise."

  More voices from the Wolf Faced Men.

  "But will alone can't take you any higher. We'll cut you down here!"

  "As if!" Nina stood up and readied her iron whips. The weight she was used to in her hands turned painful. In the next moment, the iron whips lightened tremendously. It appeared the power inside Nina was unstable. The iron whips turned heavy again......Proof of the instability of her Internal Kei system. It was hard to move with this much pain in her.

  The Haikizoku was inside her, and Zuellni was losing its control in suppressing the Haikizoku. The strength of a Haikizoku came from its hatred against filth monsters. If Nina's will was any weaker, she'd have ended up as Dinn.

  The Wolf Face man remained inert. He wasn't that far from the center of the Mechanical Department but he chose to be cautious, leaving no opening for her to take him down.

  "I can't lose here!"

  She must return to Zuellni where Layfon and everyone were. Zuellni. A place where she had things she had to do and wanted to do.

  "No matter when it is, fighters who fight with a purpose wouldn't want to lose," the Wolf Face man said lightly and blocked Nina's assault. His saw-like blade slashed at her left leg. She kept her distance from him.

  This was like fighting against a wall. And her condition was far from her best. (Damn!) She forced herself to stand up as she pressed down the despair in her. The pain in her left leg restricted her movement. She stretched her hand. She knew it wasn't easy to win against the Haikizoku. And that fight with it was preventing her from fighting against this Wolf Face man with her full potential. Despair.

  A strength that hardly matched a dream. The shadow of despair that had caught hold of her since the formation of the 17th platoon. She needed a strong sense of determination and resolution to dispel that despair and fear.

  "This is only what I have."

  How could she stop this reality? Nina stood up. To lose her heart and fall – That wasn't permitted!

  Who wouldn't permit it? Nina herself.

  "Aaaaaaah!" she howled and stood up again.

  The Wolf Face hadn't moved from his position of victory. In silence, he swung down with his sword.

  And-

  "Uh?"

  "What?"

  They both felt it and they both turned their gazes away from each other to look at Leerin. Leerin was praying, but her eyes watched somewhere empty, blank. Something had appeared at the line of Leerin's sight......

  What was that?

  What was that?

  "What......?"

  That attraction exuding from Leerin wasn't that of Kei. That presence was hidden from others.

  "What......You, can you be......"

  Something had deeply shaken the Wolf Face. "I knew it......This isn't a joke. Ignasis knows you. So that's why? For a normal person, a non-Military Artist, to appear here. That's why!?" Wolf Face said to the invisible presence.

  "........." The presence remained silent. The air trembled.

  "So bad. This is bad!" Someone said, appearing behind Leerin.

  Nina recalled this was the Military Artist who was with Leerin in the canteen.

  "It's not everyday that I get to head outside the city, but I can't do what I want. Besides, I just came from a fairly boring fight."

  Why did he appear? This man was looking at Nina and the Wolf Face man without a hint of surprise. Obviously, he wasn't surprised at Leerin's condition either. Was he observing them all along?

  "My mission is to protect her. I thought I could let you go if you don't mean to hurt her, but that person said I can't. In truth, I don't care about the fate of this city."

  He was looking at wha
t couldn't be seen. Had he seen it? It appeared he had some level of understanding of it.

  "A Heaven's Blade successor?"

  "Excuse me. I'm Savaris Qaulafin Luckens," Savaris smiled at the Wolf Face man as he introduced himself.

  (A Heaven's Blade?)

  He was the same as Layfon? Why was he here?

  "To expose yourself here. It's indeed an incomprehensible situation, but I did anticipate it," Savaris continued. "You're under Ignasis. The first Luckens fought you too. The first of my family was a hero, so we had wanted the script of some legend, but for some reason, my family is unexpectedly plain. That, I really hate!" A smile still hung on Savaris's face. "Geez.........I want to say I'm glad to be here. If I hadn't heard of the story of the first Luckens, I wouldn't have taken that person's order so seriously. The residence of monsters. I wouldn't have taken it so seriously......!"

  Savaris vanished.

  "Uh-"

  Savaris had his hand around the Wolf Face's neck as he lifted him off the floor. The Wolf Face flailed his sword at his attacker, but Savaris blocked it with his bare hand. The blade shattered in pieces, leaving the handle intact. Layfon had also used this skill before, but Savaris did it with his bare hand. The Kei from this Heaven's Blade successor battered Nina. If the Wolf Face was likened to a solid wall, then Savaris was a typhoon.

  "Tell Ignasis," he declared with laughter. "He can't win with this boring style of fighting."

  Nina averted her gaze the next moment as the sound of shattered bones assaulted her eardrums.

  "This is the strength of those who are truly powerful."

  The sound of something heavy hit the floor. But when Nina turned her gaze back to the fight, the body of the Wolf Face man was gone.

  "Ah~ they can't die. That rumor really is true. That's troublesome!" Savaris said, looking at the floor. He then turned his gaze to Nina. "......You. I saw you when you suddenly appeared. I see. A fight that we can't get involved with but is nevertheless connected to us really does exist. The First of Luckens didn't lie."

  "You......Are you really a Heaven's Blade successor?"

  "Yes!" he nodded.

  "I knew about you! That's.........Rigzario. You got information from there?"

  "Wrong." A man like a storm who could blow everything into the air in a sudden. An icy gaze accompanied his smile. "Did you hear this from other Heaven's Blades? .........If it's Layfon, then that's another matter."

  She must hide the truth. If this man knew it was Layfon, she'd be in danger.

  "It seems my guess is right!" he said, discerning the slight changes in Nina's expression.

  "Humph-!"

  "Don't you feel that the stirring in your Kei is now back?"

  "Aa-? Ah......" Now she did realize her body felt normal.

  "This means the Haikizoku inside you has been suppressed. This person is the origin of all Electronic Fairies. All Electronic Fairies listen to her, and that includes the Electronic Fairy that has gone mad."

  He strode to her, his sharp gaze pinning her to the floor. "You knew Layfon, so you must be a student at Zuellni! Then please convey to him a message from me. I'm heading to Zuellni to take over the job of the Mercenary Gang. My purpose is to bring back the Haikizoku – no matter the means."

  "What did you say.........?"

  "About the thing inside you," he stood next to her, took hold of her head with his hand and lifted her up. Eyes that seemed to be laughing. The presence of unrestrained violence swallowed her.

  "I'll kill you if you fell so much like a worm. I'll eat you whole if anything's left. You no longer need......that power!" he released her. Nina felt the strength inside her being sucked away. Embarrassed by her defeat, she heard Savaris say "Not interested anymore."

  That unusual presence was gone, leaving behind Leerin who was staring at an empty space as if time had stopped.

  "Please convey my words to Layfon," Savaris said and left.

  "........................Eh?"

  What did she do?

  "Ah? That........." She couldn't recall anything except for the feeling that something big had happened.........

  "Speaking of which.........Uh? When did I get here?" She had no idea why she was spacing out in the Mechanical Department.

  "Uh?" She saw her hands put together but nothing was in it. A feeling. A feeling of warmth was all that was left. Something wet fell on her hands.

  ".........What?" Her face was wet too.

  "Why, why am.........I crying?" Yes, it was a feeling of having met with something very important. Something she couldn't lose. Very important.........

  The sound of trembling shook Leerin's entire body. Everything else around her vibrated.

  "Ah........."

  Green light exuded from the tubes in the Mechanical Department as the vibration hit the air. It felt like blood was circulating around Leerin. Orange light flooded the bottom of the Mechanical Department.

  "It's working!"

  The City's multi-legs woke into movement. The city was leaving the danger presented by filth monsters. Myath's crisis was solved.

  "This is great!" She wanted to share this happiness with.... With whom? She couldn't remember.

  Nina had hidden herself to watch Leerin. "Memory loss......the same as Layfon?"

  But this felt different to Layfon's situation back then. Leerin's mission was the same as Nina's. "But I saw the depth of that mask. Am I wrong.........?"

  Leerin wasn't a Military Artist. Her fate was too cruel. "The Alchemists who made Regios.........Did the world become like this because of them?"

  The world before the coming of Regios that nobody knew about. Perhaps Nina was now in contact with something in the past. "But why does Leerin have the same mission?"

  Leerin was just a normal citizen traveling outside her city. However, she possessed something and that something was guarding her. Savaris too. Why was a Heaven's Blade guarding Leerin? Did she have some secret?

  "So many things remain unresolved!" Nina shook her head.

  No time to think about that though. "Time to head back?" She felt dizzy as her consciousness left Myath.

  "Am I returning to Zuellni......or?"

  Was she being taken to another city to continue her fight with the Wolf Faces? Dixerio, the person who sent her on this path, was he fighting somewhere too?

  "There're things I must do."

  She must return. Everyone would worry about her if she continued to remain missing. Besides, she was still concerned with how much the Haikizoku had affected Zuellni's Mechanical Department. If the effects remained in place, then Zuellni was still in danger.........

  "And Layfon. He must still be reproaching himself!"

  She needed the reassurance. "Head back............"

  The strong will that came with thoughts.........

  "Can Leerin really be............?"

  Nina's figure disappeared from Myath as she finally realized her suspicion.

  Chapter 6

  The Owner of the Blade

  "Time for you to go," Karian calmly said, despite feeling a little terrified.

  "I don't have the confidence to win."

  The filth monster was leading them......In this unbelievable situation, Layfon was sitting on a bike with Karian and talking with him.

  It was an ancient filth monster. So ancient that even Layfon couldn't tell which phase it was in. Its swift appearance had brought fear to the entire city. Karian had then called for the special team to stop its attack. Did he trust the words of that filth monster? Or was it because he was in despair?

  The filth monster didn't make a move against the Military Artists and Zuellni. All it did was hover above the city. The Leader of the crowd......It was waiting for the Student President Karian to finish his preparations. Karian had then ordered Layfon to go with him.

  "This is my first time seeing such an ancient filth monster. It is my first time knowing it can speak human language. I don't think I can win."

  "We do
n't know whether we need to fight yet."

  Layfon couldn't see Karian's face, hidden by his helmet. Karian's words, transmitted by the flakes, did nothing to ease him.

  "If we have to fight, doesn't that mean we'd be annihilated in one moment?"

  "Perhaps......"

  Felli was still recovering and had not received permission to leave the city. The psychokinesist of the 1st platoon was acting as their support.

  "I'm not interested in how powerful this filth monster is, but rather in what it proposes."

  "I don't think we can deal with it......"

  "That isn't an issue," Karian said, putting his hands together. "So long as it understands human language, then there's room for negotiation. We have to quickly understand what it values, then decide how to negotiate."

  So Karian really was here for the negotiation. Layfon pressed on the accelerator to keep up with the flying filth monster. He didn't think the negotiation would work. Their bike sped along the uneven ground. It leapt over an edge of a raised piece of earth to land heavily.

  "I've had this doubt for a long time," Karian said loudly. "Filth monsters. They eat pollutants. Do they really have to consume human meat to survive?"

  "Uh?"

  "I've investigated the living conditions of the filth monsters. The most beneficial information for a City is the way to fight filth monsters. And what is the best is to be able to avoid a fight. Fighting filth monsters guarantees a certain level of harm. No matter what city it is, one or two Military Artists would die in a fight. That's the same with Grendan. Even with Zuellni now. Sending out a Heaven's Blade successor again and again to fight them is still detrimental to our fighting strength."

  Layfon himself was the best proof here.

  "But filth monsters will attack us."

  "Yes, but why?" Karian said.

  "The way the larvae consume each other isn't anything special. It's the baptism needed for the fittest to survive, and it's also a hunt. Eating each other isn't evil in their eyes"

  "But they never thought of it this way."

  "Yes, that's the problem. A human baby isn't immediately aware of his consciousness. Humans live together to find food. But what about filth monsters? They prefer to obtain nutrients rather than consuming pollutants. In that case, what about the matured filth monsters that can think for themselves? How so? Isn't that in itself a complex way of communicating?"