[Complete] Ch 11 Is it Wrong for a Sword to Remain Sheathed Against Injustice? (Patreon)

Is it Wrong for a Sword to Remain 

Sheathed Against Injustice?

Story Starts

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Chapter 11

The Last Good Evening

"Here's your jagamarukun," Shirou said.

The blonde girl in front of him was distracted.

Shirou leant over the counter of his yatai to see where she was looking.

The monument stood at the centre of the plaza—a pillar of white stone rising three medr high, its surface weathered but legible. The name carved into its face read ALBERT WALDSTEIN. Below the name, a single line: THE MERCENARY KING. No dates. No epitaph. Just the name and the title, as if those two things were enough to explain everything.

They probably were.

"Ais?"

Shirou had finally convinced her to call him Shirou instead of Jagamaru-sama. At least, he had with Riveria's help. The High Elf had taken one look at Ais addressing him like some kind of fried-food deity and put a stop to it with a single raised eyebrow.

He still couldn't believe they let fourteen-year-olds start adventuring. Well, they allowed it because in this world, fourteen was already considered an adult. Though, to be fair, maybe their standards were skewed—especially with prums looking the way they did. That, or the deities' influence had warped mortal sensibilities over the centuries.

Shirou had a feeling it was the latter.

He also hadn't known Ais was famous. She carried the moniker of Sword Princess, or was sometimes called the Doll Princess by those who'd watched her fight without expression. And to think she'd managed to achieve Level 3 at sixteen years old—within two years of starting as an adventurer—when most languished at Level 2 for the better part of a decade.

He looked at the monument again.

Albert Waldstein. The Mercenary King. One of the few names that came up when he'd researched the banishment of the Zeus and Hera Familias. A man who'd wounded the One-Eyed Black Dragon back when deities had not yet descended to Gekai and granted their blessings. A mortal who'd stood against a calamity that had later broken the two strongest Familias in history.

"Ais?" Shirou repeated.

Ais slowly turned her head towards him and blinked twice.

Shirou blinked back.

"Oh, your order is finished." He pushed two bags of jagamarukun across the counter. "I double-bagged the spicy curry ones you like. Please wash your hands before touching anything else. I don't want to hear complaints from Riveria."

Ais gave a small nod. Her face remained stoic as ever. He could understand why they called her the Doll Princess.

"Do you not want to try any of my other food?" Shirou offered. "It'll be my treat."

The Level 3 swordswoman shook her head.

Shirou sighed. Well, she was Riveria's problem.

"So are you eating here?"

Ais shook her head, turned, and walked away holding her two bags.

Shirou grabbed his cloth to wipe the oil splatter from the counter.

"Shirou-sama."

He looked up. Ais had turned around.

"Thank you."

Shirou gave her a smile and a wave as she continued on—presumably back to her Familia's mansion.

That was the thing. Even with Riveria and Gareth intervening—Gareth, who actually liked his cooking and had taken a particular fondness for the spicy curry udon—he couldn't get Ais to drop the sama.

That conversation had been yesterday. The two Loki Familia executives had asked about his background over bowls of udon at this very counter.

He'd given them what he always gave: that he was from the Far East, that he'd learnt to cook there, that he'd come to Orario for a change of scenery. When they'd asked how he'd managed to face someone two levels above him, he'd explained that he was used to sparring against those far stronger than himself. And the fact was, if Vito hadn't been enraged and sloppy, Shirou would have come out worse for wear.

When Gareth had asked why he hadn't done the same with Lowell, Shirou had been forced to ask who Lowell was. Gareth had laughed at that—a deep belly laugh that shook his beard.

When it was explained that Lowell was the werewolf from their Familia who'd interrupted his date, Shirou had flushed and sputtered that he hadn't meant to forget the man's name. It had simply slipped his mind amidst the chaos.

He'd also explained that people had already been saying the werewolf was Loki Familia and the elf was Dionysus. He hadn't wanted trouble with two larger Familias.

That was the main reason. He really hadn't wanted more attention.

But fate had still managed to screw with him. Vito held a grudge.

He should have just killed the man with the projectile from the start. At the time, he'd thought capturing someone clearly important to Evilus should take priority.

Now it was known that he could fight above his level.

The gap between levels in this world was real—a Level 4 against a Level 2 was a gorilla against a child, and it only got worse from there—but if you were skilled enough to dodge most attacks and mitigate the pressure of their strength and speed, you could still—

Thud.

Shirou looked up.

Two customers had sat down at his counter.

He turned to the one on the left first.

It was that woman again. The one from the day he'd first met that god who seemed to enjoy riling up Ryuu. The cloaked woman who'd sat quietly and left after eating without a word.

The other was a giant of a man. The only other person Shirou had seen that tall was Ottar of the Freya Familia. A fringe of red hair showed beneath the hood, and a red beard below it. Scars marked what little of his face was visible.

Shirou readied several blades in his mind, priming them for tracing. He still wasn't keen on exposing the Gate of Avalon.

Both wore hooded cloaks, and with Orario's recent climate, you could never be too careful.

Though, like the woman before, the man carried the same presence—the feeling of someone grand. Not unlike the heroes and heroines Shirou had been exposed to in Chaldea. Not that they felt as strong as Servants. Then again, after going toe-to-toe with a Level 4, he wouldn't be surprised if a Level 5 or higher could match some of them.

Shirou placed two menus in front of his customers. His standard menu was displayed above the stall, but he'd recently expanded—more fried goods, a few additional dried noodle dishes.

"I would like everything on your menu."

The large man's tone was pleasant and respectful. It wasn't a reason to drop his guard, but Shirou couldn't detect any malice from him.

The cloaked woman pointed at the same dish she'd ordered before. Kake udon.

"Would the gentleman wait whilst I prepare the lady's dish first?"

"We are together. Serve both at the same time—start with mine, and have her bowl ready when the last of my order is complete."

Shirou nodded.

He turned the magic-stone burner to high. The equipment roared like a wok burner, and the oil began to shimmer.

The woman stood and walked away—towards the monument.

"She doesn't like noise," the hooded man said. "She'll return once everything is done. Prioritise my food, so when she comes back there'll be no more of it." He settled onto the stool, which creaked under his weight. "By the way, when did you start? I don't remember your stall in this part of town."

"I tend to move around Orario, starting at the foot of Babel during the morning rush." Shirou brought out his ingredients, arranging them in order. "I'm relatively new. Only a few months in the city."

He brought out several pots and lit additional burners. He started with reheating every type of jagamarukun—apart from the regular and spicy curry, since the flavour and heat would bleed into the others.

He kept a separate small pot of oil for each variation. The spice would bleed into the regular curry if they shared. He probably should have settled for dusting chilli powder on top of the curry jagamarukun to simplify his workflow. But stewing the spices into the dried curry filling gave a far better flavour—not heat for heat's sake, but the chilli working into the fats and moisture of the stew.

He laid out parchment on the counter and placed the jagamarukun before the giant one by one.

Then he started frying the tempura.

He prepped the vegetables for the stir-fries next. This part of Orario was empty, so everything was quiet except the chop of his cleaver as he julienned cabbage and the roar of the burner.

He dropped several servings of udon into a wok of rolling water. On an empty surface, he lined up bowls and ladled boiling water into each to heat them.

With a spider skimmer, he fished out the tempura he'd refried. These had been stored in his gate, but he always used the fiction of storage beneath the counter and a little sleight of hand to retrieve them as pristine as when they'd gone in. They only needed a quick refry.

He arranged everything in a basket with a platter beneath to catch the oil and presented it to his customer. Beside it, a ceramic condiment dish—white pepper and salt on one side, tsuyu dip on the other.

"If you're not familiar with this, you can dip the fried goods in the salt to bring out their natural flavour. The tsuyu changes the experience."

The imposing presence had lessened somewhat after the first jagamarukun.

Shirou set out both a fork and chopsticks. The man handled the chopsticks expertly and took the whitebait fritter first.

He dipped one side into the salt.

Shirou went back to juggling orders, prepping vegetables as he fished the udon into a large mesh strainer.

He had to step outside the yatai to shake off the excess water onto the pavement.

The woman stood by the monument. Beside her was another cloaked figure. They didn't seem to be talking. Just standing there, looking at the name carved into the stone.

Shirou went back in and portioned the noodles. He left the woman's bowl for last.

Whilst he worked, his thoughts drifted.

Just as Sophie had threatened, the night after the Guild meeting, both she and Rose had visited him. And as promised, they'd proceeded to drain him "dry."

Shirou could only shake his head at the memory. Even after Chaldea, he'd managed to build something like the companionship he'd had there. He had friends—Rod, Mamma Mia, others. He had good relations with adventurers, his regulars in Rivira and on the descent to the eighteenth floor, the customers of his yatai. And now his lovers: Sophie, Rose, and Syr.

Though judging from Syr's complaints when she'd stopped by his stall this morning, her punishment for being late that day was going to take a while to work off.

And of course, his thoughts went to tomorrow.

The campaign against Evilus. The thing he'd been dragged into.

Thud.

Shirou looked up from placing toppings on the udon.

He'd already served the man the first kake udon—he hadn't wanted the stronger dishes, the curry udon and the dandan udon, to overpower the subtler kake and maze udon.

The man had lowered his hood.

Short red hair, cropped close. A red beard, thick but trimmed. And scars—several, concentrated around the eyes. Old wounds, long healed, pale lines across weathered skin. The eyes themselves were a pale grey, almost blue, and despite the scarring around them, they were warm.

"It's been a long time since I've enjoyed a meal this good," the scarred man said, and laughed. "I'm not long for this world, so won't you join this old man for a drink?" He gestured to a barrel beside his stool—Shirou heard liquid slosh as it shifted. The man hefted it onto the counter.

That was the thud, then. Not the man sitting down.

For all his cheer, there were dark shadows under his eyes. The kind that came from sleepless nights, or from something eating at you from the inside.

Shirou resisted the urge to sigh.

"I don't mind joining you. I have something important tomorrow, so I can't drink much." He reached beneath the counter for a tankard. "Let me grab something to drink from. Will your friend be joining us?"

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A bright red sunset lit up the western sky. Dusk came early in Orario, owing to the high walls that bordered the city, and there was a long stretch after their shadows began to creep along the streets before the last of the sunlight died out completely.

In happier times, adults would while away these hours drinking in taverns whilst children played on street corners. Nowadays, the spectre of Evilus hung over the city, and the long twilight was spent behind bolted doors and shuttered windows.

Ryuu walked these quiet streets without a word.

The mask hid most of her face. It did nothing for what was beneath it. As she watched the sparse crowds, she thought to herself.

What exactly was her justice?

Eren's words rang in her mind. Beneath the mask, she ground her teeth.

"It's obvious..." she said, as though he were still there to hear her. "Our justice... the cause we all carry in our hearts... It's..."

Her words reached no ears but her own. And still she failed to produce a single answer. With one question, the god had shown her how foolish she really was. A follower of Astraea, goddess of justice, unable to define the term. It was shameful. Idiotic.

Even Emiya had an answer. He simply refused to call it justice.

Work, he'd said. Someone's hurt, I help. Nobody has to thank me. Nobody has to know.

She had turned it over a hundred times since. It should have been unsatisfying. It was unsatisfying. There was no oath in it, no cause, nothing a person could stand behind and be seen standing. He had made helping sound like sweeping a floor.

And yet the god had stopped smiling.

She had watched Emiya say it, and then pick up the end of a beam, and she could not shake the feeling that he had answered Eren's question by refusing to enter the room where it was asked. She did not know whether that was wisdom or exhaustion. He'd said tired. He'd sounded it.

A job—

"Ryuu! There you are."

That voice was bright enough to light the darkening avenue. Ryuu felt somebody bump her from behind, and a pair of arms wrapped around her.

"A-Ardee?!"

"Yep! Who once told Lord Ganesha that even though I always cling to people like a dog, I actually love cats, and he said, well, elephants are ele-fun? It's me, Ardee!"

"Why do you always introduce yourself like that?" cried Ryuu, still not over the shock. "Don't crash into me, it's dangerous!"

"I'm sorry, Ryuu," said Ardee. "I just saw you all alone, and I had to."

Ardee scratched her cheek, still pressing her ample chest into Ryuu's back. She shared that shapeliness with her sister, it seemed. Ryuu's face grew redder and redder until Ardee at last had enough and released her.

"So, are you by yourself?"

"Yes," Ryuu replied. "I'm on patrol. We decided we should keep up appearances, so Evilus don't suspect anything."

Ardee fell in beside her, and the two started walking. Alise and Kaguya had passed on the details of the meeting that same night, so Ryuu knew about Finn's plan. All of Astraea Familia were buzzing with energy thanks to this new course of action, but they were trying not to let it show.

"Oh, right," said Ardee. "I just got off work too! I've finally finished taking inventory of everything we seized at the black market!" Her eyes lit up. "Listen to this. You'll never guess what we found! It's the branches from—"

But then Ardee noticed the look on Ryuu's face. The elf was far away, not even listening.

"...Is something up?" she asked. "Was it that other day?"

Ryuu's mind went, without her permission, to a different day. Or rather, a night. A certain frequency. A certain neighbour. A certain—

Her ears went hot beneath her hood. Beside her, Ardee's smile froze for one heartbeat, and the human girl's cheeks coloured to match.

"The god," Ardee said quickly. "I meant the god."

"Yes. Of course. The god."

Neither of them looked at the other for a moment.

"No, I'm just... thinking about things," said Ryuu, her eyes fixed to the ground. "...Yes. It was."

"You really shouldn't lie to me, you know," said Ardee. "Besides, you're really bad at it!"

"A-Ardee..."

Ryuu looked over at Ardee's indefatigable smile. All the warmth of human kindness lay within it.

"Let's worry about it together," she said. "I mean, what else are friends for?"

They stopped to rest on a planter by the side of the road, and Ryuu told her.

"This Eren's a lot meaner than he seemed at first, don't you think?"

"I hope that's all it is..." mused Ryuu. "I know gods can be detached, but this seemed like more than that."

"From what you said," Ardee replied, "I think he sounds like a dumb boy trying to get a girl's attention!"

"How did you reach that conclusion?" asked Ryuu, with a mixture of indignation and embarrassment. Then her voice turned sombre. "I don't think that was it. I don't think that was it at all..."

The events of that day replayed in her mind. It was as if the strange god were mocking her, even now.

"If you can't answer that..."

"...then whatever you call justice must be twisted beyond measure. Far more than any evil."

His words reverberated in her very soul.

Emiya had answered him—or rather, he had declined to, and somehow that had unsettled the god more than her fury had. She had mixed feelings about how he'd done it. His answer had been so simple. So devoid of the weight she expected. He treated heroism like a chore to be finished and set aside.

And yet it was the only thing anyone had said that day that Eren had not been able to smile through.

Before she knew it, Ryuu had turned to Ardee.

"What do you think justice is?" she asked. "True justice, I mean?"

"Hmm... That's a hard question," Ardee replied. "I think everyone has their own answer to that. I wonder if deities do, too?"

There was little certainty in Ardee's response. She stroked her slender chin and closed her eyes.

"I'm not as smart as my big sis," she said. "If we overthink it, we're just going to go round in circles."

Ardee's answer was insightful, and it might even have convinced Ryuu, once. But she couldn't exactly go back to Eren and say, "I try not to think about it." She needed a concrete theory, one that would persuade both him and herself.

What made good better than evil? That was the question she needed to answer, and it looked like she would have to find that answer on her own. It felt as though Ardee had left her alone at the centre of a great maze, and Ryuu cast her eyes to the ground once more.

Then Ardee's face lit up. "How about this?" she asked. "Justice is turning weapons into music."

"...Wh-what? Weapons into music?"

"Yeah! Like hanging up swords and spears and making them into wind chimes! Or getting two shields and crashing them together as cymbals! Or, or beating on a cannon like a big drum!"

Ryuu half suspected the girl had gone mad. She gestured wildly as she talked, and her eyes were as wide as a child's.

"Making it so weapons don't hurt people anymore but bring them smiles instead! That's my justice, and it can be yours as well! Do what I do and just don't think about it so hard!"

Ardee's attempts to cheer her up prompted a long silence from Ryuu. Then, at the end of it, she said:

"That's not true, Ardee."

She looked up into the carefree girl's eyes.

"You've thought about this much longer and much harder than I have. I know because of what you said the other day."

Even if Eren—prompted by Emiya—had later revealed that the man had been lying from the start.

Ryuu thought back to that day, just before the pair had first encountered Eren. It was Ryuu who had wanted to pursue the law to its fullest extent, and Ardee who had fought not to.

"That man was right. The only reason we can afford to be worried about justice is because we're the ones with all the power."

"I've been thinking, Ryuu. Do you think forgiveness can be a part of justice?"

No words from Eren's lips had ever shaken Ryuu so deeply as Ardee's had.

"Whilst I was mindlessly following the word of the law, you had gone beyond that," Ryuu said. "You thought about it until you found a justice you could believe in."

The two girls sat side by side, dyed in the red glow of evening. Ryuu's words caused Ardee to give up her carefree demeanour.

"But in the end I was proven wrong by that god. You're right," she said. "Justice isn't easy, Ryuu."

She smiled, a lonely smile.

"You can't make others agree with it, but you can't keep it to yourself, either, or else you'll never change the world... You know, sometimes I think there's no such thing as true justice."

"Ardee..."

In that moment, the girl sounded much older than she appeared. Ryuu gave her a supportive look.

"All I want is for everyone to get along, to be happy, and to not have to think so hard about anything," said Ardee.

It was a child's wish. Noble, and very simple, and almost impossible to grant.

What would Alise have to say? What about Astraea? And would Ryuu agree with them? The gods of heaven had come down to live among the people, but they brought no answers. They only offered guidance, as if saying, This is your story.

But how long would that story take? And would Ryuu ever reach its end and find the answers she was searching for? She asked herself over and over as the red sky darkened. In that hour between night and day, Ryuu felt as though she were standing alone in a vast desert, far away.

At that moment, Ardee spoke again.

"But you know," she said, the smile returning to her lips. "At times like this, I find it's best to be honest with yourself."

"Huh?"

"About what it is you really want to do."

Ardee stood up and turned around.

"And what I want to do is make you happy, Ryuu!" she said. "I guess that's my justice now!"

Ryuu's sky-blue eyes went wide. Ardee smiled and took her hand.

"Let's dance, Ryuu! Right here, right now!"

"Wh-what? Ardee? Have you lost your—?!"

Ardee pulled Ryuu to her feet. Their fingers entwined, the pair skipped across the cobblestones, Ardee leading and Ryuu trying desperately not to fall over. Before long, the sunny girl broke into a fit of giggles, and people stopped and stared at the curious sight.

"What's going on?" said a dwarven labourer.

"An elf and a human, dancing?" said another, a weary human man.

"They just started all of a sudden, in the middle of the street!" said a third, a sparkly-eyed catgirl.

Before long, a crowd gathered, to which Ardee paid no mind whatsoever. Ryuu, on the other hand, was blushing so hard you could see it through her mask.

"A-Ardee! Stop it!" she shrieked. "Why are we doing this?"

"It's what an old hero used to say!" the girl replied, smiling innocently. "I read it in the Tale of Argonaut! 'So dance, fair maiden! Dance to your heart's delight! Show me the smile that graces your lips!'"

"Wh-what?"

"It's my favourite story! I think I know what my justice is! It's to make everyone happy!"

Ardee recited the line with great familiarity and hastened her footsteps. Now Ryuu felt she really would fall if she didn't keep up, and was too busy landing her feet to defy the human girl's whims. It was as if she'd been pulled up on stage to play the main part in a slapstick comedy.

"What an odd couple," muttered the dwarf. "Though I must say, it does look quite fun..."

"Yeah, I think I like it!" said the man. "Go, girls, go!"

"You're so beautiful!" said the catgirl.

As they watched, the miserable grown-ups cast aside their gloom, hooked on Ardee's smile. Soon they were hooting and whistling, calling out to the pair, joined by the whoops of children jumping up and dancing on the stones. Before long, Ardee and Ryuu were completely surrounded by a wall of people.

"See?" sang Ardee. "Everyone's smiling now! They're clapping their hands, stamping their feet, and getting all excited!"

"B-but they're looking at us!" Ryuu protested. "Everyone's watching me trip over my own feet! This isn't making me happy, it's just embarrassing! Stop it, Ardee!"

"No! We're going to keep dancing until you like it!"

"Wh-what...?!"

So long as Ardee refused to listen, there wasn't much Ryuu could do beyond clumsily staying upright. It was then that a familiar face appeared out of the crowd.

"I thought I heard loud voices..." the girl said. "What on earth are you two doing?"

"Ah, Asfi!" said Ardee. "Do you want to join us, too?"

"I'll pass," said Asfi, a tired expression on her face. "I took enough dance lessons in the castle where I grew up to last me a lifetime."

"A-Andromeda! Save me!" came Ryuu's voice, pinning her final hopes on the blue-haired girl, but Asfi mercilessly shrugged.

"I'm afraid there isn't anyone who can stop Ardee now. Certainly not me... Besides," she said, cracking a mischievous grin, "I don't get to see you like this very often. I think I'll stay and watch awhile."

The grin faltered for a fraction of a second. Ryuu saw it, and knew why. The three of them—Ryuu, Ardee, Asfi—had last shared an evening's entertainment through a crystal none of them could remove, and none of them had spoken of it since. Asfi adjusted her spectacles. The moment passed.

"Andromedaaa!!"

The dance continued. There was no music, no instruments, and yet the cheers of those nearby were all the melody Ardee needed. With her smile, she banished the sadness and pain that lurked in all their hearts.

"...Ryuu!" she said suddenly. "Justice will persevere!"

"Huh?!"

By now Ryuu was so embarrassed she could hardly remember how depressed she'd been.

"Even if the answer we reach isn't the right one at first, justice can change and keep going!"

This was the guiding principle behind Ardee's sense of justice. Even if it wasn't the answer Ryuu wanted to hear, it was what Ardee saw, what she felt. This was what she carried with her every second of every day.

"Softness can turn to hardness, warmth can turn to cold, but our justice can always change into a new flower! Or maybe not a flower at all, but a star that shines down on everyone!"

Ryuu stared back. She suddenly couldn't remember when she'd last blinked.

"Someone we save can go on to save someone else! Today's kindness can become tomorrow's smiles!"

Perhaps that was just her wish. A worthless, unattainable dream. But to Ryuu's ears, it was hope. A hope that took flight within her heart.

"Ardee..."

"Smile, Ryuu. Smile for the sake of your justice, no matter what form it takes!"

Ryuu stopped dancing. She reached for her mask and showed the girl the smile she longed to see.

"...I will!" she said.

Ardee couldn't have been happier. The two began dancing again. Soon, instruments joined in and added to the chorus of cheers, and the entire street became a ballroom in the gloaming. Smiles returned to people's faces, and the sounds of good cheer echoed across the town.

"...Justice will persevere, huh?" muttered Asfi as she watched the two girls. She committed every last detail of the scene to memory. "I'll remember those words in the sunset."

The girls remained bathed in the song of justice, dancing to its beat, until the dark crept in from the east and night fell at last.

Ryuu saw a light in the young girl's smile. She vowed never to forget what Ardee had told her.

-=&<o>&=-

As evening approached, the clouds finally parted, bringing an end to the day's gloom. The sky, the streets, the buildings—all were stained in the same crimson light.

Shirou felt better than he had that morning.

He'd drunk more than expected, but that wasn't anything unusual. Servants who loved their cups before a mission or battle had been common enough at Chaldea. Drinking with Cú, Iskandar, and most of the others had become routine. Though, drinking with Shuten-dōji was something he consciously avoided—not after the first time.

Shirou shivered at the memory.

'Never again.'

Despite the melancholy way yesterday's customer had invited him for a drink, the evening had proved enjoyable. The man said he was a retired adventurer, his body blighted by some nameless sickness. Shirou hadn't asked about his deity. That would have been hypocritical.

They'd talked about the old days—or at least the old days of Orario, back when Evilus was something people laughed about rather than feared.

His companion, the quiet woman, had sat to the side with a book. Shirou had turned on a magic-stone lamp for her when they ran late into the night.

-=&<o>&=-

The backstreets buzzed with activity. Adventurers from both Ganesha Familia and Astraea Familia worked in controlled silence, carrying supplies and taking positions in building shadows.

"Here's the supplies from Dian Cecht and Miach Familia!"

"All right. How long to distribute?"

"Ten minutes, sir!"

"You've got five! Hop to it!"

For all their speed, everyone kept quiet. The two Familias had gathered in district six, northwest Orario, to enact their part of the operation and neutralise one of Evilus's suspected bases.

"Everyone's in position, Captain," Kaguya said. She wore her usual battle garb, katana at her hip.

Shirou had his regular adventuring gear—chest plate, long sleeves, arm guards, trousers, boots, and shin guards. He'd chosen Kanshou and Bakuya over the plain daos he used for Dungeon delves.

"Understood," Alise replied. "Do you think they've spotted us?"

Kaguya's eyes narrowed. "If so, they haven't shown it. It's quiet. Too quiet. Makes me wonder what we're walking into."

"We don't have a choice. We have to crush this base one way or another."

Shirou listened without comment. He'd been assigned directly to the Astraea team—he had more experience fighting alongside them, even if that experience had been unconventional.

Alise's resolution showed clear on her face as she shifted her gaze to the building ahead. A large warehouse that had once belonged to a wealthy merchant, now fallen into disrepair.

Ryuu stood nearby. Shirou saw her turn to the human girl at her side and open her mouth.

"Ardee..."

"Hmm? What is it?"

"...No, nothing. Good luck."

Whatever it had been, she put it away. This wasn't the time.

Ardee turned and smiled at her. "You too."

-=&<o>&=-

A blast blew the heavy door clean off its hinges. The magical explosion announced the battle to come.

"W-we're under attack!!" Evilus followers screamed as adventurers rushed inside.

In the abandoned trading house, boots thundered on stone.

"Chaaarge!" Shakti yelled, and her warriors advanced with speed and force. The unsuspecting Evilus members didn't stand a chance. Ganesha Familia men joined Astraea Familia women, dominating the field.

"Hyah!"

"Gwaaaagh?!"

Ryuu's wooden sword flashed, eliminating a frontline enemy. Kaguya, Asta, and Noin joined her, defeating their foes with practised skill.

Shirou rushed in, staying close to the team. He disarmed three operatives at once and planted a boot in a fourth's chest, sending them into a wall.

The figure bounced off the stone and dropped.

"Seize control of the base!" Alise shouted. "Neze, Maryuu! Take the others and split up! We'll press on!"

"Don't let a single one escape!" Shakti ordered her squadron. "Take them all out and capture every last one!"

Neze and an upper-class Ganesha adventurer barked acknowledgements before splitting east and west with their squads.

Shirou gave a sharp nod and moved to the next operative. Behind him, Ganesha members secured downed enemies with rope.

The hallway walls had been torn up, the building material blackened with soot. It looked less like a trading house and more like an abandoned factory. A locale worthy of housing the city's undesirables.

"They're coming!" Lyra called from the squad's centre. "Back of the hall, and up above!"

Several Evilus members leapt down from the open second floor.

"Got 'em!" Ardee replied. She abhorred violence, but she was Level 3 all the same. Her one-handed sword, Sacred Oath, rose above her head. A vicious onslaught flung the soldiers to the ground before they could attack.

Two more foes kicked down doors at the hall's far end and strode in, only to meet Kaguya and Ryuu.

"You take the right," Kaguya said. "The other's mine."

"Already on it!"

The two women danced with swords in hand, outnumbered yet unflinching. Kaguya's blade sliced clean through enemy armour, her follow-up strikes allowing no counter. Cold, frightening technique.

One by one, enemies fell to her wall of sharpened steel. Those at the back saw what awaited them and grew scared. Kaguya showed no mercy, hacking and slashing until even Ganesha Familia members stared in fear and awe.

Shirou complemented their approach without demanding attention. He gave support when a team overextended, secured enemies when others' hands were full, threw captured weapons to warn Familia members about flankers.

He was mostly support. That suited him fine.

Ryuu ran in the opposite direction, covering Kaguya's back. As she cut down foes, she chanted.

"...Cross the skies and sprint through the wilderness, swifter than anything. Imbue the light of stardust and strike down my enemy..."

Ryuu wasn't as proficient in hand-to-hand combat as Kaguya. She had something else. A song of power far beyond those wielded by most frontline troops.

"Luminous Wind!"

Balls of light appeared, encased in green air, and blasted the enemy soldiers packed into the hallways.

Shirou looked up at the display. Multiple orbs of destruction—beautiful and mesmerising at once.

"Gwaaaaaaaaaaaaagh?!"

The magical onslaught slammed foes into walls, knocking them unconscious. Ryuu dismissed the last of her magic and muttered, "I suppose I overdid it again."

"What a show! And she ain't even a mage!" Lyra said. "The rest'll be a piece of cake! ...As if."

She narrowed her eyes. Shakti approached, wielding her spear.

"Indeed. It's all going far too smoothly."

The enemy soldiers fought, but this was supposed to be their main stronghold. It was disturbing that no adventurer had suffered so much as a scratch. Everyone who'd been in the Dungeon recognised this feeling. Walking deeper and deeper into a trap.

"I knew it," Kaguya said. "Something's not right."

"Still, we continue the operation!" Alise's voice rang with determination. "The enemy is losing numbers fast! Now's our chance to strike a decisive blow!"

Retreat was impossible. They were deep behind enemy lines. Turning back prematurely would get them killed. There was only one way to end the Age of Darkness—press forward.

Ryuu and the others nodded. Six women—Shakti, Ardee, Alise, Kaguya, Lyra, and Ryuu—led their complement of upper-class Ganesha members through unlit corridors. Every window was boarded shut, forbidding even a single ray of light. The air grew colder with each step. Everyone got the distinct impression they were descending into the underworld.

The long hallway ended abruptly, opening into a vast room.

"Look!" Ardee pointed ahead. "This must be it!"

Maintaining formation, Alise and the others stepped into the open space.

"Wow...!"

Dilapidated and dark like the hallways, but this room had a ceiling ten medr high and was filled with steel cargo containers. A cross between warehouse and shipping harbour. Perhaps once a storeroom, but now the only thing stored there was evil itself.

'I should probably not quit my day job,' Shirou thought.

As they entered cautiously, a voice rang out.

"Oh, hey. There you are."

Shirou tightened his grip on his blades.

"Arachnia!" Ryuu cried.

Everyone turned and looked up towards the source. Valletta Grede sat atop a stack of containers. Her eyes scanned the group.

"Tch. Thought Finn was gonna be here." Her face twisted into a scowl. "Shoulda known better than to trust that worthless woman."

Then her lips curled upward. "You guys sure got here fast. It ain't a race, y'know."

"You don't seem too worried about it," Lyra said. "Wipe that gross smirk off your face. What are you up to?"

"Who knows? Maybe I'm just figuring out how to kill you guys?"

Valletta didn't seem bothered by the prum girl's murderous glare.

Shirou's concern grew at her mocking grin.

"Valletta Grede!" Shakti took a bold step forward. "Lay down your arms and surrender! This base is ours, and your troops are being taken into custody as we speak!"

Valletta stared down at them, enjoying every moment.

"Hyah-hah-hah-hah!" she cackled. "Has anyone ever actually done that? How stupid do you think I am? Go on, you lot. Get 'em!"

A band of Evilus soldiers stepped from the shadows.

"It's an ambush!" Ryuu shouted.

"I didn't think there were this many left!" Ardee cried.

The soldiers readied their weapons. Milky robes and cowls, all identical—mostly dwarves and animal people from their shapes, none appearing to be mages. They outnumbered the adventurers more than two to one and quickly surrounded the group.

"Now, come get me," Valletta said, greatsword across her shoulder. "Let's have some fun!"

She leapt into the fray. The soldiers roared and charged. Steel clashed against steel.

"Out of my way!" Kaguya shouted. For each foe she felled, another took their place. She clicked her tongue and adopted a defensive posture. Beside her, Ryuu sidestepped a dwarven hammer and went for a counterattack—but a second foe came in and beat her back.

"This is chaos!" Ryuu cried. "So this is how they fight when their backs are to the wall!"

"Stick together!" Lyra warned. "Don't underestimate these guys—if we give ground, they'll trample us!"

These forces were more formidable than anything encountered elsewhere in the base. Lyra flitted between greatswords and claws, tossing boomerang blades at anyone trying to flank Kaguya and Ryuu.

Meanwhile, Valletta faced Shakti and Alise.

"Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Not bad, Ankusha! You too, Scarlet Harnel!"

The sole Level 5 on the battlefield against a Level 4 and Level 3. But Shakti and Alise remained undaunted. They relied on tactics, strategy, and teamwork to close the gap.

'Something doesn't add up.'

Shirou dodged a warhammer and planted a boot on a dwarf's face.

With the numbers against them, no one held back anymore. Enemies were dispatched rather than secured. He broke an axe handle, hooked the back of his blade around a man's collar and hurled him into a charging group, opened a werewolf's thigh.

The werewolf went down.

And smiled.

Shirou had seen that smile before. Not in Orario. In places where people had already decided they were dead and were only waiting for the paperwork. He knew what it meant, and for one more exchange he refused to know it.

He raised Kanshou to finish the werewolf.

"Wait!"

Lyra's hand caught the man's collar first. "This feels wrong. What are you planning?"

The werewolf looked up at her. Still smiling. He didn't answer. His left hand was closed against his chest, and it stayed closed.

Left hand.

Shirou looked past Lyra. The dwarf he'd booted, on his back, left hand at his breast. The two Kaguya had cut down, lying where they'd fallen with their left fists tucked under them. The soldiers still charging, every one of them, swinging one-handed—

Finn's voice from the briefing. A bomb of this design could be used even by followers with no combat ability whatsoever.

Shirou dropped Bakuya, seized the werewolf's robe in his fist, and looked.

"Trace on."

Blaze rock. Packed flat into the lining, front and back, layer on layer. A magic-stone igniter in the closed left hand, the pin already half-drawn.

'No—'

He kicked Lyra clear.

And turned, already knowing what he would see, and saw it.

A child had come out from behind the containers at Ardee's back. Everyone else still fighting. No one else looking.

Ardee turned. Her eyes went wide. A little girl in a milk-white robe like the others, so young she barely came up to Ardee's chest.

"A-a child?!"

Shirou saw the rage hit Ardee's face—the mild-mannered Ganesha girl who abhorred violence, staring at the depths Evilus would stoop to.

"How could they do this?!"

The little girl clutched a knife in her right hand, whimpering as tears formed.

"Put down that knife!" Ardee ran towards her. "You mustn't fight! Don't listen to anyone who puts a weapon in your hand!"

The child paused, eyes wide. Then slowly began to cry.

Ardee smiled. "It's okay. I would never hurt you." She lowered her sword and reached out her other hand. The girl stared for a moment, then reached out her right hand. Her left stayed clasped tight to her breast.

"Now, come here. Let's get you to safety."

Across the room, Valletta grinned.

Too far. Twenty medr, and a floor full of smiling men between them.

The little girl looked up at Ardee with vacant eyes. In an emotionless voice, she said, "O Lord, please..."

Shirou knew that voice. It wasn't evil. It was a wish.

"Please let me see my mother and father again..."

Shirou's circuits flared white-hot.

"I AM THE BONE OF MY SWORD—"

-=&<o>&=-

End

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