The legend of the Crimson Demon clan started from Suqing

#136 - Attacked X Shot X Show off

Near Hekireki Academy, there is a large, nationally known shopping center, and the group's destination is the movie theater on the fourth floor.

However, they didn't immediately head to the movie theater.

According to Kurogane Shizuku, there was still some time before the movie started, so at Arisouin Nagi's suggestion, they went to the dessert shop on the first floor to kill time.

Takeru wasn't too interested in sweets, so he temporarily separated from the group.

When he returned, he was carrying a red and black humanoid doll almost as tall as himself.

The people in the dessert shop all stared at him.

Besides the eye-catching large doll, Takeru's exceptional good looks also contributed to the attention.

The combination of the two made him even more conspicuous.

Stella also commented, "A doll... I didn't expect you to still be at that age."

"What's wrong with that? Actually, I quite like dolls myself. I still have one by my bed. I have to hug it every night, or I can't sleep well," Arisouin Nagi said with great tact.

The Kurogane siblings didn't say anything, but they looked at him with curiosity and inquiry, seemingly surprised that Takeru liked dolls.

"I don't actually like dolls."

"Then?"

"Because I feel lonely."

Takeru pouted and said, "You all have roommates and are paired up every day. I enrolled late and there aren't any students with the same rank as me, so I have to live in a single dorm all by myself. It's so boring, so I bought a doll for company."

"Oh, I see... That must be tough," Kurogane Ikki said awkwardly, and the other three nodded in agreement.

Lonely?

Normally, having a dorm all to oneself should be a great thing, right?

But considering his age...

Never mind, let's not overthink it.

"Wait," Kurogane Shizuku suddenly said, "In that case, why not have my brother live with you?"

"...Eh?" X2

Stella and Kurogane Ikki were slightly taken aback.

Kurogane Shizuku continued, "I remember Takeru's magic rank is also A, right? If that sow hadn't enrolled earlier, Takeru would have been number one. Doesn't that mean that under normal circumstances, you and my brother would be living together?"

"I-Is that so...?" Kurogane Ikki's eyes were filled with confusion.

Actually, this was incorrect. Although Takeru's magic rank was A, he still couldn't compare to Stella, who was a born magic user and considered an exception. So, no matter what, Stella would always be number one.

"Hey, who are you calling a sow, you ugly woman!"

"What's wrong?" Facing Stella's question, Kurogane Shizuku didn't back down at all, retorting venomously, "Being with a sow like you who only knows how to seduce others, I'm worried about my brother's safety. But Takeru is different. He has someone he likes. And he can keep you away from my brother, killing two birds with one stone."

"W-Wait a minute...!" Stella slammed the table and shouted, "I know you want me to leave Ikki, and although I won't leave, I hope you think carefully! It's true that Takeru doesn't have any feelings for Ikki, but what about Ikki? What if he has feelings for Takeru? What would we do then!?"

"Ugh!" Kurogane Shizuku's expression instantly froze.

She really wanted to say that she trusted her brother immensely, but after looking at Kurogane Ikki and then at Takeru, she ultimately chose to compromise.

"...Indeed, this is probably better."

"Right!" The two instantly reached an agreement.

Only Kurogane Ikki and Takeru exchanged glances.

"...What's going on? I feel like my credibility has been destroyed."

"I also feel offended."

Arisouin Nagi watched all of this with a peculiar smile. He really wanted to suggest that Takeru and Stella share a dorm room. They were both A-rank, and it would also prevent Kurogane Ikki from being tempted.

However, that would sour his relationship with Stella and Kurogane Ikki, so he chose to remain silent with his high emotional intelligence.

It was almost time.

The group headed towards the movie theater on the fourth floor.

However, just as they reached the third floor, Kurogane Ikki seemed to suddenly remember something and said, "Sorry, I need to go to the restroom first. Buy the tickets for me first."

"Oh dear, then I'll accompany you."

"Yeah, I'll go too."

Takeru didn't actually want to go to the restroom. Kurogane Ikki had secretly signaled with his eyes, clearly wanting to talk to him and Arisouin Nagi about something.

The three men walked towards the men's restroom on the third floor.

On the way, Kurogane Ikki said to Arisouin Nagi, "I'm very curious about you."

"Really? Oh my, oh my, this is quite an unexpected development! Then why don't you come with me to watch 'Men's Paradise Lost' (Note: PG-15) now!"

"I'm not talking about that kind of curiosity!" Facing Arisouin Nagi's bold invitation, Kurogane Ikki retreated slightly and quickly explained, "It's because Shizuku is very shy. She rarely gets so close to others, especially men, so I'm a little curious about what kind of person you are."

"Because I'm a girl."

"..."

"What kind of look is that? Besides, if we're talking about getting close, Takeru was clearly faster, right?"

The two looked back at Takeru, who was like a beautiful scenery.

"Ah? Me?" He pointed at himself.

Kurogane Ikki nodded: "Yes. Although Shizuku and I haven't seen each other for many years, I knew as soon as we met that she was still the same as before, even more shy."

"Yet, even though I spent nearly three days gradually entering Shizuku's heart, Takeru only took three minutes, and they're even close friends... Really, it makes me sad," Arisouin Nagi covered his cheeks as if hurt.

"N-No, no, you were also fast, okay?"

The most hurt should be him, the older brother.

He seemed to understand the feelings of those fathers whose little cabbages had been snatched away by goblin fire teenagers.

Takeru pouted.

That's not what you call close friends.

Kurogane Shizuku was only friends with Takeru because she was afraid of being condemned and despised by the world, and Takeru had the same thoughts.

To put it nicely, they were like-minded; to put it bluntly, they were seeking comfort.

Just as Takeru was about to say something, his brows furrowed slightly, and Arisouin Nagi's expression also stiffened, his eyes filled with vigilance as he looked around.

"Takeru, Alice?"

"Ikki, come here for a second."

Arisouin Nagi grabbed Ikki's hand and rushed out without explanation, with Takeru following closely behind. The three rushed into the men's restroom they had originally planned to go to.

The next second, a deafening roar mixed with the sound of shattering glass pierced their eardrums.

Following that were gunshots and screams.

Arisouin Nagi flipped his wrist, and a silver-gray dagger appeared in his hand. He stabbed it into the floor, and immediately a pool of black liquid appeared, and then he pulled Kurogane Ikki and Takeru into the floor.

Just after the three had completely disappeared.

Two fully armed men—wearing black combat uniforms, gas masks, and holding long guns—rushed into the men's restroom in a hurry.

"Good, this is the last place. I'll check each stall, you keep watch outside for me."

"No need to be so troublesome."

"Hey... Hey!" The man with a frivolous tone ignored his partner's obstruction, raised his long gun, and swept the restroom, emptying the entire magazine before stopping.

Gunshots echoed in the cramped restroom, leaving the cubicle door riddled with holes.

If anyone had been inside, they definitely wouldn't have survived. However, no blood flowed from the half-destroyed restroom.

"Good, no one's here."

"Don't act on your own! The higher-ups ordered that the customers are to be taken as hostages!"

"Whatever, whatever, wasn't there no one here?"

"…If you get killed by Master Smile, I won't care."

The two of them left the restroom, muttering complaints.

A little while later.

A pitch-black, puddle-like substance appeared on the restroom floor. Arisuin Nagi, after confirming the enemies had moved far away, brought himself and two others up from within it.

"Phew, looks like they're gone."

"Yeah."

Kurogane Ikki stared at the silver-gray dagger in his hand.

"This?" Arisuin Nagi twirled the dagger, saying with a smile, "This is my Device, Dark Stalker. Its ability isn't bad, right?"

The ability to manipulate shadows.

It's certainly quite convenient.

However, the drawback is that in a fully illuminated area, it can't create shadows without obstacles, so it's useless.

This ability is less like a knight for broad daylight and more like something that brings an assassin to mind.

But there's no time to explore these things. The most important thing now is to assess the situation.

Kurogane Ikki contacted the chairwoman, Shinguuji Kuro乃, and learned that the organization behind this attack is Rebellion. They believe that Blazer are humans chosen by God, and therefore want Blazer to rule over ordinary people.

This attack, kidnapping hostages, is simply to obtain operating funds.

After obtaining permission to use their Devices, they also learned that the hostages were being gathered in the open-air plaza.

The three of them used Arisuin Nagi's Device to quickly move to the vicinity of the open-air plaza. They stopped at the edge of the plaza, in the corner where the third-floor beams met, from where they could overlook the entire food street.

Just as the chairwoman had said.

The hostages were gathered in the center of the plaza, surrounded by about ten men wearing black combat uniforms.

The enemy had hostages and about thirty armed militants, while they only had three people. Under normal circumstances, they should observe the situation, but the situation was developing in an unpredictable direction.

"—You little brat!"

An angry roar echoed through the unusually quiet open-air plaza.

It turned out that a little boy among the hostages had attacked one of the Rebellion members, using an ice cream cone.

This was hardly an attack, but it was more than enough to enrage the other party.

The furious Rebellion member kicked the little boy away, sending him crashing into a pillar, where he lay motionless, his condition unknown.

His mother screamed, but was also kicked away.

"That guy…"

Kurogane Ikki was about to get up when Arisuin Nagi held him down, but he forgot that there was another person here.

"Unforgivable!"

Son-Son stood up with an angry expression, then stepped onto the wall of the shopping mall. His complete disregard for gravity astonished Kurogane Ikki and Arisuin Nagi beside him.

He walked down the wall step by step in front of the two of them.

"W-Wait, wait!"

Arisuin Nagi hurriedly took out his dagger, wanting to use his Blade Art—Shadow Stitch, which could immobilize other people's shadows—to stop Son-Son's rash behavior.

But whether it was because the light suddenly changed, Son-Son's shadow flickered strangely, and the dagger brushed past the shadow.

"No way…"

Arisuin Nagi's expression changed.

What he didn't have time to say was that Kurogane Shizuku, who was hiding her magical power among the hostages, had already secretly set up a barrier. They were planning to take action when the barrier was deployed.

But Son-Son's actions could easily disrupt their plans.

At the same time, Son-Son's appearance also alerted the fully armed Rebellion members below.

"Hey, up there!"

"What, there's someone else?"

"Able to walk on the wall… a Blazer!"

"Fire!"

Da da da — — — — — —

With a command, accompanied by the muzzle flashes, dense bullets shot towards Son-Son.

If an ordinary person were hit, they would definitely be injured, even an average Blazer—like Kurogane Ikki and Arisuin Nagi—wouldn't dare to take it head-on.

However, Son-Son didn't even intend to dodge. He just walked leisurely through the hail of bullets.

And what was even more unacceptable was that not a single bullet landed on him, not even a scratch!

"You guys, aim properly!"

"I know! Master Metallurgist, but…!"

"Can't hit! Wh-Why!"

The bullets in the guns had been emptied two or three times, yet not a single one had hit. In such dense firing, the target was even getting closer and closer…

Is this a Blazer?

"Damn it!"

The man named Metallurgist gritted his teeth secretly.

But soon, he thought of a countermeasure, shifting the gun originally aimed at Son-Son to point at the hostages beside him.

The dark muzzle still emitted the smell of gunpowder, causing the hostages, who were ordinary people, to let out shameful, fearful whimpers.

Son-Son walked down the wall step by step.

No one could give off this sense of oppression. He was holding a doll as tall as himself, and this absurdity did not dilute the fear, but instead caused Metallurgist's sanity to plummet.

"D-Don't come over!"

Metallurgist shouted at Son-Son: "If you come any closer, I'll shoot!"

"Then go ahead and shoot."

"…Huh?"

"Anyway, these people have nothing to do with me. Killing them won't affect me in any way. On the contrary, I can use this as an excuse to lift the ban and kill you all."

Clearly, Son-Son's answer left him unsure of how to respond.

"I-I…"

"What's wrong? Don't dare? In the end, that's all you are. You say you want Blazer to rule over ordinary people, but in reality, you're just promoting violence to make money and do evil. You're simply acting for your own selfish desires."

Son-Son didn't intend to stop.

He walked towards Metallurgist step by step.

"D-Don't come over… I'm going to shoot! I'm really going to shoot! I'm not kidding!"

"Your ideology is that Blazer are above everything and can rule ordinary people, right? Then, can I, this Blazer, also rule you?"

"N-No! I-I… This daddy is an honorary citizen of the new world, I-I…! N-No… Please, please…"

Metallurgist, who had just been lording over ordinary people, was now sweating profusely and trembling, unable to even hold his gun, begging for mercy.

Son-Son stretched out his hand to him, as if he hadn't heard a word.

"Light of Saber."

"Eeeeeeeeee!"

A powerful electric current burned him until his body was charred, and he lay on the ground, spewing white smoke, his condition unknown.