Volume 4 -A Chapter 11 (2/2)
”I'd heard the Dragon Eon eye has been placed inside it”
”That's right The dragon's arht and left pairs Each of theon inside”
”Is it alive?”
”Want to test it out? Not even I have taken it to the final activation needed to wake it up”
”Please don't …There's no point in destroying half the city here, and that's what I've heard the other Dragon Emperors did”
”True enough”
Taeko grabbed the on Emperor's fist and white smoke rose from between the metal claws and metal bars
”Hold on Are you sure you're okay there?”
”It's just the rubber on the pal …There”
—Taeko - Boxing Tech - Take - Brute Force - Hit
Thea low sound like a root being pulled from the dirt
A on Emperor's fist held them
In the pale light of the Dragon Emperor, Taeko looked back and forth between its shoulder and the bars
”Did ya say removin' it would sound the alarm?”
”You idiot!? Wh-what did you do!?”
”Well, I broke it…and it broke”
”You've ruined all the worked we've been doing here!”
”I didn't h Ha ha ha”
”This is no laughing matter!”
”Calotta create a diversion on the surface while ya head straight there, right?”
Taeko held the metal bars out toward Hisahide
”So what should I do with these?”
He did not hesitate to answer
”Throw them away, idiot!”
5:58 PM
The first thing Shoui sahen he opened his eyes was a brown shadow
His eyes focused on that brown color instead of the dimly-lit space around him
Finally, he could tell what it was: a Dog God
The s on Shoui's chest as he lay on his back
He was also staring curiously at the boy's face
”You don't need to worry”
The words ca God's mouth rather than his own
He placed a hand on his throat and felt the bandages there
He still could not speak
”I can't believe this”
After having the Dog God say that, he looked in a different direction
His focus shi+fted and the ceiling came into view
It was an expensive-looking ceiling with a pattern drawn in warm colors
It was both high and large
”Is this a ?”
”No, it's a hotel”
He turned toward that male voice
He re God quickly hopped over to his shoulder
Shoui looked to the speaker while feeling the Dog God's claws through his thin innerwear
A Buddhist ed on the twin bed next to the one Shoui was lying on
Shoui recognized the monk outfit as the kind worn at the Mountain
Theit had folded up the bed's blanket and sat on the flat sheet
A tray on the sheet held a glass and a rectangular bottle of whisky
The glass only contained some damp ice, so he had apparently already drank the contents
But Shoui looked to thethat any heed
The short hter than he seemed
”Who are-…?”
”Wait”
When Shoui started to get up, the estured to the boy's feet with his chin
Shoui looked down and found Takada lying on the bed
She had removed her stole, the blanket by his feet was placed over her, and her eyes were closed
He saw a ring on the hand gripping the top of the blanket
It was an unadorned golden ring
He tilted his head at the glittering ring of unknown origin, but then he noticed some small movement
It was Takada's Dog God
The creature ran up onto her back and hesitantly looked between Shoui and the azes
The one on Shoui's shoulder replied with a quiet voice re door
”It see to you,” said the man
”Is that so?”
”To be honest, this is a problem”
”Is she your daughter?”
”Of course not”
”Then why?”
”That Takada girl is destined to become the queen”
Shoui stared at the monk when he heard that
His mouth remained closed, but…
”Talk about sticking with the classics Don't tell me you're seriou-… Don't say it! Not now!”
”I do not mind”
”Oh, that's luck-… Stop that!”
”I see the Dog God is reading all of your thoughts”
”Yeah, and it's not exactly fun Can't you stop it?”
”This is the first ti to anyone other than Takada, so there is nothing I could do”
”Is that so?”
Shoui shrugged and lay down on his side
He made sure not to wake Takada as he adjusted his position and sighed while propping his head up with his hand
”So what's going to happen to me here?”
”It see with you here”
”Nakamura…”
”If what he said is true, then he is the one that kicked you in Osaka Prefectural 2's student dorm”
”Oh, the guy who crushed my throat”
The man frowned a little at that
”…Your throat?”
”Yeah, he kicked it Got a nice solid blow from directly below”
”It's unusual for Nakamura to miss”
”Miss? …Where was he trying to hit me?”
”When going for the face, he was trained to hit the side of the head here or the jaw”
”If I took that kick to the jaw, I think I'd have lost about five teeth”
”It was an additional attack , so the end result was little different Still, allow ize in place of my student”
The man obediently bowed
Shoui was impressed that the man still did not sink into the bed even when he moved
”Who are you?”
”Yuuki Senga hasn't told you? I used to train under her”
”Oh, so I was kind of following in your footsteps Sorry …It's only been three days since I came down from the Mountain, so I still haven't been by Nandaimon”
”But I had heard the boy naé”
”That hed bitterly ”I trained at the Mountain for two years and still didn't becoured out how to face her when I go back”
”Two years? Has Yuuki Senga had anything to say about that?”
”Like I said, I haven't seen her She hasn't co to ”
”I see Then…”
The man crossed his arms for a few seconds
”You may have been lucky to be so talentless”
”What?”
”I assua used to be a head teacher at the Mountain”
”Yes”
”But I doubt you know that she traveled around japan thirteen years ago, creating Chancellors as she did so She created Chancellors who could use the Heavy Rhythms that have since become Death Techno”
”Thirteen years ago?”
”Yes, the saan as a sports riot after the Koshi+en gas”
The ht sleeve to show off the arm
The entire right arm was covered in keloids
Shoui gasped and the man continued
”As we fought each other, sohting And…”
”And?”
”After the third death, when the Heavy Rhythan to be feared, I realized that we had been placed on the path to conflict”
He covered his arm with the sleeve once more
”Yuuki Senga tried to seal away the Heavy Rhytherous and she tried to suppress that age in which student conflicts were frequent To do so, she taught the Chancellors supporting japan how to use the Heavy Rhythht”
”You're lying”
”I am not”
”Do you have any proof?”
Shoui laughed quietly at the man's silence
”Not even Old Lady Senga could manipulate people's hearts to that extent Besides, the sports riot that began the Kinki Riot wasn't faked It was a natural incident caused by the cheering squad She couldn't have interfered in that”
”Then why did I alone survive?” asked the man ”We realized our mistake and wished to settle our differences, but our surroundings did not allow it Most notably, the Mountain …The Tokyo Chancellor and Osaka Chancellor were driven to death by the Mountain and the corporations”
”But…”
”They were pursued by the private army of the corporations that feared the Heavy Rhythms…and they were surrounded by the special forces of the Mountain led by Yuuki Senga”
”That hen ed”
The h
At the saed into the bed
His head was still hanging
”Dis-Worder, it was only Chancellors with special abilities like yours that Yuuki Senga taught to use the Heavy Rhythms”
”Eh?” asked Shoui
He recalled what Saki had said on the roof the other night
”There was once a boy who had no Words He brought misfortune to Osaka and died…”
”You heard that from the 1st Special Duty Officer of Osaka's Chancellor's Officers, didn't you?”
”Yes,” confirmed Shoui ”The 1st Special Duty Officer at the time was his friend And his Words…”
He looked to the monk, but the man did not raise his head
His shoulders shook a little but there was a small smile on his downturned face
He was laughing
”Yes, this hand is all that remains …This hand that, at the end of it all, could not defend against Yuuki Senga's spear and allowed those two to kill each other!”
Shoui was left speechless
”Do not worry You were kicked out of the Mountain, so they must have decided you cannot use a Heavy Rhythm Even if it took them two years to do so”
”Why would they want to have me use a Heavy Rhythm?”
”Because of what I said”
The Dog God on Shoui's shoulder expressed his confusion by tilting its head
The monk raised his head with a powerful smile on his face
—Shoui - Mind Tech - Take - Decode Expression - Miss!
The expression was too powerful to read
A chill ran down his spine and the Dog God hid behind his head
”I said I would create soa attempted to create someone to oppose them”
”What?”
”You still do not understand? Think carefully It is not just you Her granddaughter is the same” The a erased all kings and split japan between east and west, I intend to create a king and reunite japan once h”
”Doesn't like it? …And that's why she made Yuuki like that?”
”Yes, the Killing Holder …She irl killed someone I assume she did so once she realized she could not rely on you”
Shoui silently removed his head from his hand and lay down on the bed
”Ahh, ahh,” he sighed ”So it's all my fault”
”I don't think it is,” said Takada's voice without warning
Shoui froze in place on the bed
”Don't be so , and you make it sound like Shoui-san caused all this”
”No, I was saying Yuuki Senga had-…”
”Shoui-san trusts this Yuuki person”
The man named Iba fell silent at that
Shoui realized the weight of Takada's arot up
He saw her s
It felt like the roo only that smile
He scratched at and tilted his head
”I feel like these past few days have been the busiest in my life Everyone who shows up says whatever they want and I'e revelations on a daily basis”
”You are probably working through two years' worth of truths and obligations,” said the Dog God on Takada's shoulder
Shoui nodded and the ht cleared his throat
”Takada, I need to get going soon”
”Oh, you're causing a diversion in the city, right? Froround”
”I really should have gone with the other two…but I wanted to speak with Yuuki Senga's current student”
Shoui tilted his head at that
”U about?”
”We're stealing the strongest Rhythm from Ixolde”
Takada sounded entirely casual as she clasped her hands and stretched a little
Shoui's head dropped forward
”What?”
”You understand the situation, don't you? We're fro the strongest Rhyth to steal it”
”Um… This is kind of sudden”
”Don't worry We aren'ta diversion”
”Attack? Diversion? I' a lot here that makes me worry”
”You don't have to worry because you have tiure it all out …The diversion tea until the attack team has made their attack and escaped We still have plenty of time”
Takada smiled
”Please understand your position here If you do, nothing like the Kinki Riot will happen That misfortune only occurred because there was no one to worry about who they were”