Eroge? Bad Ends? Betrayal? I’m Just Here to Suplex Monsters through Buildings. (Patreon)

Piledrivers are perfect (6.3).

…

After a match, I was heading back to my hotel room when I caught someone in the corner of my eye.

The guy who almost killed me was just sitting there having a cup of coffee at the hotel lobby’s café.

I thought about just filing that information away for later, but when our eyes met and he motioned for me to join him… I couldn’t help it.

I went over there, though I didn’t sit down right away?

“Since you’ve invited me, I assume you’re the host?” Entering the café had me go through some sort of boundary. Sound was deafened, and looking outside showed a blurry image. If anyone else in the small café noticed, they paid no heed. “Or did I just get lured into a trap?”

“I am the host, and no, this is no trap. Don’t worry. My oath that night was fulfilled. I killed you. You just came back to life.” He wore a white long-sleeved shirt and a tan vest with a golden pocket watch hanging off the chest pocket. A jacket hung on the back of his chair. Silver hair was tied up in a sharp ponytail. A cane with a jeweled pommel leaned against the table, and if I squinted, I saw it as the sword that pierced my heart. “Well done.”

“I appreciate it.” I took a seat after he confirmed that, and then he gestured for one of the staff to come over. I blinked. She was dressed. No. I looked closer. There was a glamour on her to make her look like she was wearing modest clothes. Underneath it, she was wearing just an apron like the café’s servers usually did. “I need to learn how to do that.”

“You’ll have the time. Eventually. The ninja arts of illusion are more than capable of achieving it.” He told me simply while I looked over the menu and ordered a steak. Rare. There's not much point in hiding it. “Do you know who you are now?”

“Me, personally? Or, as someone who inherited a ninja clan’s bloodline?” I asked, and he pondered the question with a hum. “Honestly, I’m figuring it out for both still. Until then, I’m just training and fighting to get stronger.”

“I see. That’s wise.” The vampire commented with an appreciative nod. “I sense no maladies from your transformation, either. You’re growing into it very well.”

“I appreciate the checkup, but you didn’t show up here for that, did you?”

“No. I made an oath to hunt down Lady Catherine’s mother should she arise once more. I find oaths… troubling. So, I have come here to deal with the one most likely to resummon her.” He took a sip of coffee while my steak arrived. He stared at it before looking at the waitress and ordering one for himself. “But now I see that a trap has been set, and perhaps my presence may complicate matters.”

“Sounds likely. We’re trying to scare him out of here, then take care of him outside, then leave. Alecia is here.” He gave a small frown and nodded at my words. She was the sort of person to pick dumb fights, so I was sure she made a dumb oath or something to avenge me. “Personally, I don’t have any hard feelings. You were bound to fulfill your oath, and I could’ve avoided you if I played things smarter.”

“You are more generous than most. Still, I loathe to live with regrets. Think of this as something for my own, personal desires, then. When I defeated you that night, you exploded, and I suspect you lost the items you held on your person.” He produced a rectangular box from his pocket and placed it on the table, then opened it. On black velvet lay slivers of silver. “Should you find issue with others of my kind, this will be of great help. Aim it at a vampire, wish to bind them, and this will surge forth to do just that. It will hold even the likes of Alecia fast in her bloodlust, and it will offer protection against most magics when on your person.”

The value of the bracelet to many was priceless.

How many presidents or people in power would go to war over this in this sort of world? Probably all of them, if they didn’t have their own methods to protect themselves. This was something carefully made in secret by people like the Argent Knight. Immortal warriors who had the time to develop powerful countermeasures with their own hands, since those were the only ones that they could trust.

Part of me wanted to just take it, but I couldn’t.

“This is too much in exchange. I will owe you a favor for taking it.” Surprise came upon his features for a moment before a small smile played on his face. It was like seeing a placid statue suddenly smile. It was almost creepy, but I nodded at it while taking the bracelet. It smoothly wrapped itself on my wrist before turning into gossamer threads almost invisible to the naked eye. With a ninja technique, it was. “I’ll be sure to tell Alecia to break that oath of hers and for the Hiyo to contact you.”

“That… would be a great boon to my efforts here. I accept this favor of yours.” He gave a small incline of his head before his steak arrived. I heated mine up a little, and he gave a little snort when he realized I waited for him out of respect. “Hm. Perhaps, I will ask about your hiring rates soon. My siblings here need to be brought low, and while they’re prepared for me, they’re most certainly not for you.”

I took a bite of the steak and enjoyed the taste of meat. It was rare, tender, and juicy. The taste of iron was strong, and the crust provided a decent amount of salt and crunch.

Still, my interest was in his question.

“I’m interested, but I’ll need more than an offer of money to go after someone. Tell me about them, and I’ll give you a quote after doing some of my own legwork.”

“Hm. Prudent. You’ll do well, but let us leave that matter for another time. A good meal with decent company is hard to find nowadays.” He raised his glass my way, and I obliged him while we both took a sip. Water for me and wine for him. “So, if I may ask, why not choose a good household to offer your services to, rather than go forth alone?”

Huh.

It's been a while since I had a real conversation just to get to know someone.

This might be nice.

“Honestly? I didn’t think it was an option. Everywhere I looked, there were just a bunch of terrible people running around. Taking money from honest people to do honest work would’ve been great, if I found any.” I paced myself with the steak before just shrugging and calling the waitress over for ten more orders and pushing some money her way. The knight raised an eyebrow, but I waved it off. The first steak was courteous enough. “Going right to another ninja clan after parting ways with mine didn’t seem good, either. At least, not without a reputation.”

“Perhaps if you were in Europa, you would have fared better. The church and the lords they crown are stringent and overzealous, but they hold themselves to high standards as well. The blood of a dragon is cherished there.” He spoke evenly while I finished my first portion. He considered his own for a moment, which he was delicately cutting, before calling on the waitress and asking for more as well. It was really high-quality meat, and there really was no need for us to keep up appearances. We knew what we were. “But this land and its eccentricities… you most likely took the only path that allows you a measure of agency, even if it has resulted in you entering a place of learning for their warriors in the end.”

I realized after he spoke that I didn’t know his name.

“I go by Kay now, but I’ve called myself Keita first. No last name until I earn it, though.” I got up, and I offered him my hand. He looked for a moment before a faint smile formed on his face, and he took me up on my offered handshake. He had a firm and confident grip. No strength-testing bullshit or machismo. Just a decent, practiced handshake. “And I didn’t get your name. Only a title.”

“I rarely get to share it, I’m afraid.” He admitted it before letting go and giving a small nod. “Damien of House Tepes. It is nice to meet you, Kay.”

Surprisingly, I shared the sentiment.

I really hope this isn’t some stupid TS plotline waiting to pop.

…

Interlude: Helena Horner, Supporter.

…

“Wait, we could’ve had a super-powerful vampire supporting us here, but you told him to leave? Why would you tell him to leave?”

“His presence invites variables that we’re not prepared for.” Kay answered, and I kept staring at him, just to make it clear he needed to sell that idea some more before I bought into it. From my perspective, having another person as strong as Asakura on our side was a good thing. “The Silver Knight can’t linger anywhere for too long, either. He has his own enemies.”

I looked over at Kine to see what she thought, and a bit of my frustration went away when she nodded.

“He’s right. That guy, whatever name he goes by, brings trouble wherever he goes. Or, he shows up whenever there is trouble. Nothing in between. If he’s around, anyone with sense goes to ground and hides out for a couple days.” Kine was in a sports bra and panties while she cleaned a gun. Kay was at the coffee table and going over the limited arsenal he was able to bring. As for me, I was using a high-pressure BB gun to make potshots at moving holographic targets from the balcony. If we paid extra, the targets would be live. Holograms were free. “In an op like this, we don’t want someone who causes that much trouble around.”

Still, I thought that having someone strong on our side would be great, but the facts laid at my feet were by two different people with more expertise on the situation than me.

Meaning that I was being an idiot insisting on it.

“Got it. Got it. I just… thought that it’d be good to have another strong person along. That’s all.” I admitted and took aim. The carbine I was using didn’t have any kick like a real gun, but the point was to get used to aiming and hitting the target quickly. Target acquisition under two seconds. That would let me get some shots off and force someone into cover, then run away while keeping in cover. It was better than nothing. “So, the same plan is in place? No changes?”

“None. We sit down, flush Daichi out, and regroup and kill him outside. Any changes happen; we deal with it.” Kay answered and finished making a seal. I glanced at it. Regular explosive seal. Not Hiyo. 15-yard range kinetic and thermal damage with plenty of curses to make it go through supernatural defenses. According to Kine, a lot of monsters could just tank anti-personnel grenades, but those same monsters died quickly against explosive talismans used by ninjas. Their standard weapons were all in another league, and given what they fought, it was easy to see why that was the case. “If it gets any hotter and Daichi holds on, we’ll send you out of here, though.”

“I mean, do I really need to be here now? Being outside with Asakura and the others seems safer for me, and I can deal with things out there better.” After Daichi took note of us and started putting pressure, I had to keep looking over my shoulder for any of his goons. While I was armed and could call for help, neither option guaranteed anything. Most of his thugs could shrug off small calibers just fine, and the staff might value him over Key, meaning I can just get taken without getting aid. “I mean, I’m just another body now. Wouldn’t he be more freaked out if I suddenly stopped showing up here?”

“Perhaps, or it’ll mark you as a target for him to easily take care of, or you may let him discern that we have a force outside waiting for him.” Kay shot down my idea without a hint of mercy. It made sense, too. Once I was away from the group, I was either a target or someone to be followed to the rest of the herd. “If you want out of here, you’ll need to go to the Hiyo Clan.”

I shook my head at that proposal.

“That’s as good as saying I can’t hack it for the mission. I want to still be a part of this. Just be safer. Not, you know, leave.” Kine shot me a look of understanding. Despite the fact she could easily transform into a monster that could rip through concrete with ease, she was quickly becoming my favorite person to talk to about this sort of stuff. She was somewhat normal. “Is there anything on this side that I can do, besides just walk around and attract attention?”

Kay considered my question for a moment, and I shot a few targets before he gave a grunt.

“Come over here.” For a moment, my heart stopped. His voice offered no argument. I got flashbacks to my time at school. Girls being picked and taken aside by teachers and the staff, or even just seniors. I wondered if this was it. The jig was up, and I’d be slaking Kay’s lust after acting out. Unlike all the other times, I couldn’t run away either. He noticed my pause and probably my fear and snorted. “Relax, you’re going to be making explosive tags and start managing our supplies. We’ll need someone manning communications and the safe house anyway. This is a good chance for you to start.”

Some stupid part of my brain wanted to be indignant and ask why, but I knew better than to trust those thoughts, since they only started surfacing after I started high school.

They were a part of me thanks to my school, but I didn’t need to indulge them.

I walked over to him, and even though that stupid part of me was getting me ready, I managed to keep a straight face even when Kine snorted as I passed her by.

“Thanks, I appreciate this opportunity. Honestly.”

That was really how I felt and what I meant.

My body’s reactions were just things I needed to overcome.