Campione: Strongest# 480: Envoy of the Church

Night was already drawing close to its deepest hour.

Unlike the chaos swallowing Tokyo, nearby Misaki City was still living out the same peaceful, ordinary night as always.

In this city that had only just stepped fully into modernity, the only truly “famous” landmark was probably Reien Girl’s Academy, the noble ladies’ school.

As a full‑time academy, almost all its students lived in the dorms, but at this hour of the night the school itself lay in darkness.

A school at midnight was always steeped in something eerie — a chill in the air, a heavy silence, the whole place like some otherworldly magic mirror.

By day it stood as a symbol of knowledge, yet by night it might as well have been a demon’s lair — and tonight, it genuinely had become one.

Ripples shimmered in the air at the front gate of the academy.

A black Toyota rolled slowly out of the distortion.

In the driver’s seat, Haru frowned slightly, easing down on the gas as the car maintained a steady speed and slipped through the open gate.

He understood better than anyone just how serious the situation was.

If Tohno Akiha was saying she had something important to report, then using a little “shortcut” to jump straight to his destination was hardly out of line.

Even if that shortcut dipped into the realm of True Magic, it was still worth it.

“A school??”

Three voices — each tinged with surprise in a slightly different way — overlapped at once.

Asagami Fujino, Ryougi Shiki, and SHIKI were all familiar with the World, which meant every one of them could feel the large‑scale bounded field wrapped around the academy grounds.

That sensation — like stepping straight into another world — was impossible to miss for three girls whose bodies were already halfway outside normal humanity.

Vmm—

Haru had arranged to meet Akiha in the prep room behind the main auditorium, so he steered the car straight up to the front of the hall.

“This feeling, huh?”

He lifted an eyebrow, senses brushing over the familiar presence inside the auditorium, and a faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

“All right, everybody out.”

Haru glanced back at the three girls and spoke lightly, then was the first to push his door open and step into the night air.

The four of them moved through the front entrance of the auditorium, heading toward the prep room in the back.

The wide corridor leading there was lit by bright fluorescent lamps, the white light turning night into false day.

No one spoke as they walked; the only sounds were the sharp clack of shoes and wooden geta against the floor, echoing back from the walls.

Barely two minutes later, they were standing in front of the prep room door.

Without the slightest hesitation, Haru pushed it open and stepped inside.

“Guess who— huh??”

A playful voice rang out — and cut off in a startled yelp.

Haru raised his hands and gently pried away the soft little palms covering his eyes, then turned his head toward the girl with deep blue hair whose neck was currently caught between one long and one short blade.

He couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped.

“Been a while, Ciel.”

His gaze softened with nostalgia as he looked at the girl in the black‑and‑white nun’s habit.

Come to think of it, ever since he’d captured Roa and then let Ciel head off to the Vatican for further “training” with the Church, he’d barely seen her outside of the occasional stolen night once a month.

She’d given him both body and heart — and he still had a bad habit of vanishing for long stretches, remembering her only when his own loneliness crept up.

In a sense, even Haru had to admit he was kind of a bastard.

“I’d like to say ‘long time no see’ too, but… could you ask them to move the blades first?”

Staring at the gleaming steel beside her throat, Ciel’s eyelids twitched.

A wry smile tugged at her lips as she shifted her watery blue eyes toward Shiki and SHIKI, hands tight on the hilts of the blades pinning her in place.

The swords slid slowly back into their scabbards.

The two girls — synchronization disturbingly perfect — let their eyes drift over Haru’s neck, then down to the weapons in their hands, matching dangerous smiles curling across their faces.

Off to the side, Asagami Fujino rested her head lightly against the back seat, dark blue hair spilling forward to hide the jealous twist in her expression, looking every bit the sulking, put‑upon wife.

“…”

Haru’s mouth twitched as he took in the three of them.

He could only offer a strained smile.

He’d chosen this minefield — he’d have to cross it himself, even if it meant getting cut to pieces.

“Honestly, there are always girls around you, aren’t there?”

Ciel’s brows quivered as she swept her gaze over the trio behind him, her tone edged with a soft, unmistakable complaint.

“Anyway, business first. All of you, come inside.”

She let the gripe go with that one line, then slipped an arm through Haru’s, smiling as she tugged him fully into the room.

Shiki and SHIKI exchanged a long look, some silent conversation passing between them, then walked in after the other two, faces carefully blank.

Fujino hesitated for a moment at the threshold.

Then she followed as well, quietly stepping into the room.

“Yo, long time no see, Boss.”

A lazy female voice drifted over.

Narbareck — clad in a brown leather coat — sat at the only long table in the prep room, idly playing with a short knife in her hand as she eyed Haru with open amusement.

“It has been a while, Narbareck.”

Haru gave her a small nod, then let his gaze slide past her to the other three figures in the room.

His eyes met Tohno Akiha’s where she sat beside Narbareck; they shared a brief nod before his attention shifted to the only “stranger” present.

He studied the silver‑haired girl in front of him — golden eyes shining like molten metal, features not quite European, skin pale and fine, and a slight, delicate frame that looked almost doll‑like.

“Caren Hortensia.”

Haru spoke the name in a quiet, certain tone.

“This is the first time I’ve heard your true voice, Your Eminence.”

Caren nodded, her refined features perfectly composed, empty of expression.

If not for the reverence glimmering in those pale gold eyes, she truly would have looked like a beautiful, emotionless doll.

He and Caren had met many times before — though always in the sea of consciousness, connected through faith.

In a way, their souls had been intertwined for a long time already.

He couldn’t help feeling a little nostalgic for how soft and yielding her soul had been in that space.

Watching Haru and Caren trade that long, quiet look, Akiha’s brow twitched.

She pressed her lips together.

“Is now really the time for this, Father?”

“Ahem. Right.”

Haru tilted his head slightly toward her.

“So, Akiha — what exactly was so important that you needed to talk to me in person?”

Narbareck slid the short blade back into the sheath strapped to her thigh in one smooth motion, then lifted a hand to stop Akiha just as she drew breath to speak.

“Let me handle this one…”