Fantasy Library, Ch 401-405

Chapter 401: A Quietly Changing Past

"————"

This was a dream.

A dream that did not belong to Kaiser, yet felt as if he were personally experiencing it, accepted by him as though it were real.

In the dream, Kaiser became Avrora Florestina and lived through her brief yet brilliant life.

The Fourth Progenitor, the Kaleid Blood, was a God-Slaying weapon created jointly by the three Progenitors and the Devas. Due to rebelling against the Devas, it was split into twelve base bodies, each containing one of the twelve Familiars, and scattered across the world to be hidden.

The base bodies were purely seals, vessels for the Familiars of the Fourth Progenitor, and at the same time, they were artificial vampires created by the Devas, just like the Fourth Progenitor.

Avrora Florestina was the vessel for the Twelfth Familiar of the Fourth Progenitor—she was the twelfth base body.

She originally had no name and had been asleep beneath Gozo Island since her creation.

Gozo Island, part of the Republic of Malta in Europe, is a famous tourist destination, belonging to the Northern Sea Empire Federation. It is the oldest special zone for demons in the world, once a battlefield with a long and storied history.

Within this ancient demon special zone, in an underground tomb, the twelfth base body of the Fourth Progenitor lay in slumber.

Her sleep lasted until four years ago.

Four years ago, a group of people excavated the old ruin where the twelfth base body slept and broke into her resting place.

Among them were fallen nobles from the Night Empire ruled by the First Progenitor, the Lost War King, as well as experienced archaeologists, and even a young brother and sister.

That’s right—Akatsuki Kojou and Akatsuki Nagisa.

The reason they were there was because the archaeologist leading the excavation was their father, Akatsuki Gajou.

Due to difficulties encountered during the excavation, Akatsuki Gajou called in Akatsuki Nagisa, who was a hybrid ability-user. With her powerful medium abilities, she received the lingering consciousness of the tomb’s creator, which allowed them to successfully open the tomb and enter the stone chamber housing the twelfth base body.

Thus, the Akatsuki siblings saw the twelfth base body for the first time. Upon seeing her slumbering in the ice coffin, Kojou unconsciously murmured:

“She looks just like a sleeping beauty…”

And so, the twelfth base body received a name.

Avrora Florestina—derived from Princess Aurora, daughter of King Florestan, known as the Sleeping Beauty.

At that time, Avrora had not yet awakened and remained in a slumbering state.

Until… another group broke into the tomb.

The Black Death Emperor Faction, radical terrorist beastman supremacists, aimed to completely destroy the Sanctuary Treaty and seize control of the War King Domain of the Night Empire from the First Progenitor, the Lost War King. They were true war maniacs.

During the Old Ruins Incident four years ago, this terrorist group invaded the tomb. Their leader killed the fallen noble of the War King Domain present at the time and gravely wounded Akatsuki Gajou. When they tried to kill Kojou and Nagisa, Nagisa forcibly broke Avrora’s seal and drew out her power, killing the leader. The rest of the terrorists were annihilated—none survived.

From then on, Nagisa’s frail body couldn’t endure such trauma and fell ill. She and the still-slumbering Avrora moved to Itogami Island, where they were monitored.

“This is pretty similar to how I was treated.”

Watching this unfold, Kaiser thought to himself.

He had also appeared around four years ago and was taken in by the Lion King Agency, placed under their surveillance, and transferred to High God's Forest for training.

“Could it be that at that time, I already had some connection with Avrora?”

Kaiser couldn’t help but think this.

And what happened next confirmed his speculation.

Up to this point, everything Avrora experienced more or less aligned with the development in the original story.

But at this moment, a clear deviation occurred.

Kaiser personally witnessed the first and only interaction between him and Avrora when she was transported to Itogami Island while still asleep.

When the aircraft carrying Avrora flew toward Itogami Island and passed over a dragon vein, the Leviathan sleeping there awakened.

At that time, Avrora’s seal had already been broken once, and the magical power within her—similar in nature to Kaiser’s—began to leak out. This triggered a reaction in the sleeping Kaiser inside the Leviathan.

Thus, the Leviathan awakened and, sensing Avrora’s magical power, appeared on Itogami Island.

Avrora was startled awake by the Leviathan’s magical power and awoke as well.

So, Avrora escaped from the ice coffin, fled the transport aircraft, and went missing on Itogami Island. Meanwhile, due to Kaiser’s awakening, the Leviathan’s vessel and sacrifice—his body—first surfaced, washed ashore on Itogami Island, and was discovered by members of the Lion King Agency.

Both were vessels: one sealing the Familiar of the strongest vampire, the other sealing the world’s strongest magical beast.

Both were sacrifices, human pillars, artificially created lives.

Thus, their magical power resonated with one another, and they awakened simultaneously, setting off on different life paths.

Kaiser was taken in by the Lion King Agency, while Avrora wandered clumsily around Itogami Island, eventually finding Nagisa, who was receiving treatment there.

The meeting between Avrora and Nagisa was inevitable.

Because Nagisa carried something Avrora had to reclaim.

At that time, no one knew that the reason Nagisa fell ill wasn’t just from forcibly drawing out Avrora’s power, but also due to a foreign entity within her.

As an artificial vampire, the Fourth Progenitor—created by the three Progenitors and the Devas—had several built-in safety mechanisms to prevent endangering its creators.

Among them were Root: Logic Bomb, used to safeguard secrets; Root: Freeze, which stripped self-awareness to serve purely as a magical power source; and the virtual personality Root: Primordial, which governed the Fourth Progenitor’s aspect as a weapon.

These safety measures were inherited by the base bodies. The virtual personality, Primordial, existed as a cursed soul sealed within Avrora’s body.

Avrora, the twelfth base body, not only served as the container for the Twelfth Familiar of the Fourth Progenitor, but also as the monitor of the Fourth Progenitor—a vessel for the cursed soul, Primordial.

When Nagisa forcibly broke the seal in the tomb on Old Ruins to draw out Avrora’s power, the Primordial sealed within Avrora awakened, escaped the seal, and possessed Nagisa, causing her to fall ill.

After awakening, Avrora gradually realized her mission and sought out Nagisa, intending to re-seal the Primordial’s soul within herself.

Unfortunately, Nagisa did not agree.

“This development is completely unexpected.”

Kaiser hadn’t expected events to unfold like this.

Nagisa was an exceptionally talented spirit medium with powerful Spirit Vision and medium constitution, capable of full divine possession—an excellent spiritual vessel.

She knew what had happened to her. When possessed by the Primordial, she also gained many memories through divine possession.

So, she knew about the Primordial—knew it was a cursed soul, a highly dangerous virtual personality, representing the weapon aspect of the Fourth Progenitor. Its manifestation would bring destruction.

At the same time, she understood Avrora’s mission—that she was a vessel, a sacrifice. If she were to seal the Primordial again, Avrora would have to die.

After all, the seal by the Devas had already been broken. For Avrora to sleep again would be difficult. Only by dying with the cursed soul could all future threats be eliminated.

How could a kind girl like Nagisa possibly agree to that?

After all, Avrora had been asleep since creation and had only just awakened.

In other words, her entire life had only just begun. It was no different from that of a newborn baby.

From Nagisa’s perspective, asking Avrora to fulfill her mission was no different from sending a baby to die.

Thus, Nagisa firmly rejected Avrora, and their conflict lasted three and a half years.

They were once enemies and even dragged those around them into their conflict.

They also became friends—despite Nagisa being seriously ill and Avrora being childlike and innocent, they traveled to many places together, shared meals, encountered dangers, supported each other, and became deeply bonded.

In the process, they developed an extraordinarily deep bond.

Until six months ago, the Blazing Banquet began. The other eleven base bodies besides Avrora all arrived on Itogami Island, shattering that peaceful time.

During the Blazing Banquet, the awakened Primordial used Nagisa as a focal point to collect the other eleven Familiars and succeeded in reviving.

To save Nagisa, Avrora—supported by Kojou and others—fought the Primordial and successfully separated its soul and the Fourth Progenitor’s power from Nagisa, sealing them within herself.

In the original story, to end the Primordial, Avrora used an unbreakable Blood Binding Curse to control Kojou and made him shoot the Anti-Magic Holy Spear—created to destroy Progenitors—into her own heart, dying together with the Primordial’s soul and passing the Fourth Progenitor’s power to Kojou.

But here, because of her prolonged bond with Nagisa, Kojou never became Avrora’s blood servant. As a result, she could not force him to kill her.

Avrora could only carry the identity and power of the Fourth Progenitor and use the Anti-Magic Holy Spear to die alone.

Nagisa then did everything in her power to absorb the entire soul of Avrora—who had become the complete Fourth Progenitor—into her own body, saving Avrora’s life...

Chapter 402: Awaiting the Arrival of That Day

“So that’s what it was?”

After experiencing Avrora’s short life firsthand, Kaiser finally understood why things had developed into their current state.

It was precisely because of his existence—because he had chosen to approach an important component of this world, namely Leviathan’s background—that the butterfly effect was triggered, causing events to evolve into their present form.

Although he had never met Avrora in person, the moment the two of them resonated magically outside of Itogami Island and awakened together, the future had already undergone an irreversible change.

As a result, Kojou Akatsuki didn’t become entangled with Avrora as he had in the original story and didn’t end up becoming the Fourth Progenitor. Instead, it was Nagisa Akatsuki—who first came into contact with Avrora and effectively disrupted her slumber and seal—who became involved in all sorts of emotional entanglements with her, ultimately absorbing the deceased Avrora, who was originally destined to die as the Fourth Progenitor, into her body and became what others saw as the Fourth Progenitor.

“In truth, Nagisa didn’t exactly become the Fourth Progenitor—she merely became the vessel for the already-deceased Fourth Progenitor.”

“The true Fourth Progenitor is still Avrora, not Nagisa Akatsuki.”

“The Lion King Agency probably knows this, which is why they sent me as an observer.”

In the original story, the Fourth Progenitor was Kojou Akatsuki, and the Lion King Agency also dispatched an observer. On the surface, the goal was the same as the one Kaiser had been given: to monitor the behavior of the Fourth Progenitor and eliminate them if they proved dangerous.

But in truth, the Lion King Agency’s intent was to prevent the Fourth Progenitor from acting outside their expectations, and to secretly use him to solve certain issues—that’s why they sent an observer to help awaken him.

Because the Fourth Progenitor had been created hastily, and because Kojou was just an ordinary high school student before becoming one, he was initially not acknowledged by the Familiar Beasts within him, unable to command them, and his power was extremely unstable.

To help Kojou gain recognition from his Familiar Beasts and obtain the authority to control them, the Lion King Agency deliberately placed several mediums around him.

As long as he drank the blood of an excellent medium, the Familiar Beasts within him would be satisfied and obey his summons.

That was the true purpose of the observer.

“But now, the one who became the Fourth Progenitor is Avrora. She was originally the vessel of the Familiar Beasts of the Fourth Progenitor and was inherently capable of commanding them.”

“Even if a medium was required, Nagisa Akatsuki, being a high-level medium, could satisfy the appetites of all the Familiar Beasts.”

“The Lion King Agency had no need to send mediums—but still sent me. Their goal was clearly the same as four years ago: to use the unique similarity between me and Avrora to stimulate her and awaken the slumbering Fourth Progenitor within Nagisa.”

Therefore, Kaiser felt certain: the Lion King Agency definitely knew that the true Fourth Progenitor was not Nagisa Akatsuki, but Avrora.

As for Nagisa Akatsuki, her role from the beginning was that of a vessel for the Fourth Progenitor. Moreover, she had already lost all memory related to this aspect and had even forgotten about Avrora’s existence. Her excellent spirit medium abilities had also been entirely lost—she was a vessel, nothing more.

The reason she developed a fear of demons was because her body’s self-protection instinct was acting up, causing her to suffer from a phobia of demons.

“Judging from Kojou Akatsuki’s appearance, he must have lost his memories of the Blazing Banquet and of Avrora, just like Nagisa.”

“More than that, it seems they’ve completely lost all memory of what happened on Gozo Island back then.”

“That should be due to the Blazing Banquet or perhaps the logical bomb, right?”

The reason the Fourth Progenitor was referred to as the “phantom vampire” was because they possessed the ability to extract memories—capable of replenishing the magical power they needed by devouring the memories of others.

During the Blazing Banquet, this ability had enveloped the entire Itogami Island, affecting all 560,000 of its inhabitants, making them lose their memories of the time around the event. Even the Akatsuki siblings were affected by this power.

And the logic bomb was a mechanism used to maintain confidentiality. The combination of these two factors caused all memories related to the Fourth Progenitor to vanish from people’s minds.

“Looks like you’ve figured everything out.”

As that voice entered his ears, Kaiser’s consciousness had already returned to his body, and he opened his eyes.

Athena’s bright gaze rested on him, as if she had seen through something.

“Yes, I’ve more or less figured it out.” Kaiser rubbed his temple and said, “Never thought my arrival would cause such a change.”

“You god-slaying types are the true darlings of the times. No matter the era, no matter the place, you’ll always stir up storms.” Athena looked at Kaiser with meaningful eyes. “Let alone one like you, who is hundreds of times stronger and more unique than the average Campione.”

As she spoke, Athena turned her gaze to Nagisa Akatsuki, who was lying on the bed.

“What do you plan to do with this girl?” Athena said indifferently, as if it had nothing to do with her. “If you leave her alone, she will die.”

Kaiser fell silent.

Indeed, Nagisa’s current condition was not good.

Not only had she lost her spirit medium abilities and developed a phobia of demons, but her frailty had always been an issue.

Even though she had used all her remaining spirit medium power, sacrificing her abilities just to protect Avrora, she was still destined to be unable to protect her for long.

The power of the Fourth Progenitor was ultimately too vast for her to endure. Moreover, although Avrora was the Fourth Progenitor, she was already dead—her body destroyed, only her soul remained.

Without a body, Avrora could not possess the virtually infinite negative vitality of a vampire true ancestor, nor could she nurture or summon Familiar Beasts.

In other words, Avrora’s very existence required Nagisa’s constant expenditure of power to sustain. If she summoned Familiar Beasts or used the Fourth Progenitor’s power, it would be an unbearable burden for Nagisa.

Don’t forget, Familiar Beasts inherently consume life force.

Aside from vampires who possess infinite negative life force, anyone else who summoned Familiar Beasts would have their lifespan instantly drained and die.

That Nagisa could still survive was already thanks to Avrora holding back as much as possible, cooperating with her fully, and because she herself was exceptionally talented.

But if this went on, the two of them would still die—it was only a matter of time.

“The Lion King Agency really knows how to scheme,” Kaiser said with a blank expression. “They let me come into contact with Nagisa and awaken Avrora. They’re probably thinking of using my nature as a vessel to make me the new container for the Fourth Progenitor after Nagisa’s death—or maybe they want me to become the new Fourth Progenitor altogether?”

If even Leviathan could be housed within him, then Kaiser could certainly accommodate the power of the Fourth Progenitor with ease.

By then, possessing the power of the world’s strongest vampire and the world’s most powerful magic beast, he would become the ultimate trump card of the Lion King Agency. Even if he faced the Three Night Empires or stood against the three True Ancestors, he would not be at a disadvantage.

If things really turned out that way, the Lion King matchmaking agency would definitely send a new observer, introduce him to a bunch of mediums, form bonds with them, and ultimately tie him completely to the Lion King Agency’s cause.

This was an open scheme—although it was a calculation, all the benefits would go to Kaiser. Considering that the Lion King Agency had practically raised him, they were like his natal family—would he not help his own people?

Even if he didn’t, they could still use his name as leverage, allowing the Lion King Agency to act more freely on the international stage, wielding more influence and authority.

In short, it was a win-win situation for everyone—except Nagisa Akatsuki, who had become a complete sacrificial pawn.

“Humans are always like this, constantly pursuing and desiring all sorts of things.”

“Wealth, power, status... these are the things that drive them forward.”

“Even the warriors once blessed by me fought for such things.”

Athena narrowed her eyes, looking at Kaiser, and suddenly smiled.

“So, my master—the high being who can even enslave the Trinity’s most powerful queen—what will you do?”

“This human world, overflowing and rampant, is noisy, ugly, and filthy to the point of being unbearable.”

“Why don’t you join me in cleansing all this filth—destroy the human-infested surface world. How about it?”

As she spoke, Athena reached out and caressed Kaiser’s face as if touching the most precious treasure in the world.

“Don’t you think... this is the duty of gods—of higher beings?”

The Goddess of the Underworld, the one who presides over death, spoke in a sweet voice, bewitching the warrior and man who had shattered her worldview, made her realize how vast the world was, and made her curious about what lay beyond. Unknowingly, she had been captivated by him.

Pa!

But Kaiser expressionlessly slapped her hand away and said:

“Don’t forget, I too am one of the filthy humans you speak of.”

Hearing this, Athena shook her head.

“You already left the category of human long ago. You’ve even transcended life itself and become an existence far nobler than the gods.”

“Even if you continue to identify as human, your essence is no longer human.”

“From the moment you entered that library and became its Librarian, there has no longer existed any being nobler or higher than you.”

“Deny it all you want—it’s useless.”

Athena stood up and looked at Kaiser, her gaze shining with light.

“But it doesn’t matter. You and I are both eternal beings. Even if you can’t recognize this now—even if you refuse to acknowledge it—what about hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, or even hundreds of millions of years from now?”

“Sooner or later, you will come to realize your uniqueness—to realize the truth that you stand above humanity.”

“I will wait for that day to come.”

With those words, Athena turned into the Gorgoneion and flew back into Kaiser’s body.

Kaiser didn’t respond—he simply stared at Nagisa Akatsuki, who lay on the bed, silent for a long, long time...

Chapter 403: Open Surveillance

An entire night passed quietly.

When the sky began to show faint light and the night was about to be dispelled, the girl who had been lying on the bed all night finally woke up faintly.

"Wh-Where am I...?"

Looking at the ceiling similar to her own room and the unfamiliar bed and bedroom, Akatsuki Nagisa, who was still a little drowsy and dazed, suddenly sat up and was fully awake.

"Wh-Where is this? Why am I sleeping here? Huh? Eh? Wh-What happened...?!"

Nagisa instinctively clutched the blanket tightly, looking completely flustered and unable to form coherent sentences.

Before Nagisa could start having shameful associations, a familiar voice entered her ears.

"So you’re finally awake."

Kaiser was sitting cross-legged next to the bed, leaning against the wall, looking as if he had been dealing with things there all night. He was stretching lazily as he spoke to Nagisa.

"K-Kai-kun?" Nagisa clutched the blanket even tighter, still somewhat panicked and incoherent as she said, "Why are you here? Why are we in the same room? Is this some kind of prank? There must be others hiding here... holding a 'prank successful' sign, right?!"

Obviously, waking up in a strange room and bed with a male peer nearby was a bit too stimulating for a young girl who hadn't even graduated middle school.

"What’s wrong?" Kaiser looked at the panicked Nagisa, blinked, and said, "Did you forget what happened last night?"

"L-Last night?" Nagisa couldn’t help but swallow, her mind going completely blank.

That phrasing... Could something unbelievable really have happened last night?

And with the older neighbor she’d just met?

Something like that... No way!

With tears brimming in her eyes, Nagisa began racking her brain, desperately trying to recall what happened last night.

She remembered that after club activities, because it was too late and she missed dinner time, and because Kaiser warmly invited her, they went together to a family restaurant near school and had dinner.

After leaving the restaurant, they chatted as they walked home, and then along the way, they ran into...

"Demons..."

Nagisa finally remembered that incident, and her panicked face turned pale.

"Looks like you’ve remembered." Kaiser had been watching the changes in Nagisa’s expression. Seeing her pretty face turn white, he immediately spoke. "That’s right. On the way home, we ran into some delinquent demons who picked a fight with us."

Perhaps recalling the scene from that time, Nagisa’s delicate body couldn’t help but tremble slightly.

"Th-Then I...?"

Nagisa’s voice was weak and uneasy.

"I see." Kaiser seemed to understand and said, "You don’t remember what happened afterward, do you?"

Nagisa nodded faintly, her face pale.

She really didn’t remember anything after that.

Seeing this, Kaiser’s eyes flashed.

Logically speaking, he should hide what happened then, to avoid stimulating Nagisa’s lost memories.

But such a method would only treat the symptoms, not the root cause.

So Kaiser decided to reveal part of the truth.

"Nagisa, you’re probably not an ordinary person, are you?" Kaiser said. "You might not remember, but actually, you did something quite incredible at that time, you know?"

"Eh?" Nagisa froze instantly, a face full of confusion. "I... did something incredible?"

"That’s right." Kaiser nodded and said, "At first, you were terrified of those two delinquent demons, but suddenly, it was like you turned into someone else. You burst out with amazing power and scared those two demons off."

Kaiser’s words left Nagisa not just stunned but dumbfounded.

"I scared off those two demons?" Nagisa shook her head quickly, full of disbelief. "No way, that couldn’t have happened!"

"It’s true." Kaiser looked into Nagisa’s eyes, as if to add weight to his words, and said, "I saw it with my own eyes, saw how you looked at that time."

"You were like someone possessed by something, completely unlike yourself."

Hearing that, Nagisa suddenly fell silent.

"Possessed..."

The girl murmured with a complex expression.

"Could it be..."

As for matters regarding the Fourth Progenitor, Nagisa had indeed completely forgotten.

However, matters unrelated to the Fourth Progenitor, or those related but unimportant or unnecessary, Nagisa hadn’t forgotten.

For instance, she remembered that she used to be a mixed-ability user, not only possessing extremely excellent spiritual medium aptitude but also once having clairvoyance.

She remembered helping her grandmother and father with work for a time, and using her spiritual sight and medium abilities to locate underground ruins, deciphering unreadable ancient inscriptions, and even being commissioned by universities or special institutions to do many volunteer archaeological activities.

Even though she had forgotten what happened on Gozo Island, she still remembered the work she had done in the past.

Therefore, Nagisa knew that she had originally been a highly gifted spirit medium, possessing powerful Spirit Vision and exceptional spiritual medium aptitude, allowing her to perform full divine possession—a remarkable spiritual vessel.

Kaiser’s words made Nagisa immediately think that she might have briefly regained the abilities she once lost and had been possessed by some entity at that time.

That was likely why, in Kaiser’s view, she had become someone else and burst forth with astonishing power she didn’t normally possess.

"Th-That me... I didn’t do anything else, right?" Nagisa asked worriedly and a bit fearfully. "I didn’t do anything excessive, did I?"

For some reason, Nagisa was particularly afraid of this point.

As if she once did something terrifying under the possession of some dreadful entity.

Fortunately, Kaiser shook his head.

"Nothing too outrageous, since I was there and stopped you just in time."

Kaiser said this, which made Nagisa freeze again.

"You stopped me, Kai-kun?"

The girl looked completely incredulous.

Seeing Nagisa like that, Kaiser smiled.

"Come to think of it, I haven’t told you my true identity yet, have I?"

As he spoke, Kaiser pulled a document out of his pocket.

"This is my qualification certificate." Kaiser handed the document to Nagisa and said, "I’m a special agent of the Lion King Organization, an active national Sword Shaman."

Upon hearing this, Nagisa widened her eyes.

"Kai-kun is an sword shaman?" Nagisa exclaimed, "A special agent of the Lion King Organization?"

"Yes." Kaiser nodded and said, "The Lion King Organization is a special agency under the National Public Safety Commission, established to prevent large-scale magical disasters and terrorist attacks, while also conducting intelligence gathering and espionage. It’s an organization that traces back to the Heian era, protecting the imperial court from vengeful spirits and demons—older than even the current government."

"I’m a fresh graduate this year from a facility specialized in cultivating such talent. After graduating, I received official sword shaman qualification."

"The reason I came to Itogami Island is because of an organizational assignment. From now on, I’ll be stationed here, responsible for handling matters related to Itogami Island."

Kaiser put away his certificate, smiled at Nagisa, and said:

"So, don’t be fooled by my appearance. I’m actually quite capable. Luckily, I was with you last night. Otherwise, who knows what might’ve happened while you were in that state."

Kaiser’s self-reveal, while surprising to Nagisa, also quickly made her understand and accept it.

A national sword shaman, a fresh graduate assigned by a special agency, and her neighbor and upperclassman having such a background—though unexpected, it wasn’t unbelievable. After all, Nagisa herself wasn’t a normal person, and there were others like Natsuki Minamiya stationed at Saikai Academy too.

"So that’s why Kai-kun transferred here?" Nagisa quickly accepted it and gratefully said, "I’m really glad you were there last night. Otherwise, I might’ve done something terrible."

"Thank you for stopping me, Kai-kun."

Nagisa expressed her gratitude sincerely, and Kaiser casually waved it off.

"It’s my job as a special agent to stop magical disasters and terrorist attacks. If I hadn’t stopped you at that time, you might’ve caused a magical disaster or terrorist incident. So I had to act."

Kaiser said this first, then changed the tone slightly.

"But you, Nagisa, having such a dangerous ability really makes people uneasy."

Nagisa showed a bitter smile and a troubled expression.

"I haven’t used that kind of ability in a long time. I also lost it four years ago. I didn’t expect it to suddenly come back. I’m really at a loss myself."

Nagisa’s expression was filled with confusion and a hint of dejection—her face visibly complex.

"Can you still use that ability now?"

Kaiser asked casually.

"No, I can’t." Nagisa shook her head. "If you hadn’t mentioned it, I wouldn’t even have known I could still use that ability until now."

"That’s a bit troublesome." Kaiser said nonchalantly, "Looks like your situation is a bit complicated."

"In that case, for the time being, stick with me."

"I’ll watch over you and see how to resolve this issue. If you enter that out-of-control state again, I can stop you in time to prevent anything irreparable."

Hearing this, Nagisa, though a bit hesitant, thought about how she might unknowingly cause something irreparable and ultimately agreed with Kaiser’s decision.

Thus, Kaiser went from operating in the shadows to openly becoming the one monitoring Nagisa’s side.

Chapter 404: Was I the One Who Was Wrong?

Seventh floor of the apartment, Room 704.

When the sun finally rose from the edge of the sea, Nagisa Akatsuki at last returned home.

She gently and quietly opened the front door, peeked her head in to look inside the house, and then tiptoed in, looking just like a guilty thief.

Because the sun had just risen, the lighting in the house was still insufficient, dim enough that Nagisa couldn’t see the state of the living room.

So, Nagisa cautiously turned on the lights, and was immediately startled.

“Ko-Kojo-kun?!”

Yes.

Nagisa saw Kojou Akatsuki.

Under the lights that brightened the living room, on the sofa directly facing the entrance, Kojou was sitting there.

His face was stiff, his eyes bloodshot, with clearly visible dark circles under them. His entire body radiated an aura of grievance and fury, causing Nagisa to involuntarily take a step back.

“...Nagisa.”

Looking at his younger sister who hadn’t returned all night, Kojou seemed as though he was about to vomit blood or burst into tears, as he slowly opened his mouth.

“Why didn’t you answer your phone?”

“Why didn’t you reply to my texts?”

“Why... didn’t you come home all night?”

Kojou, as if he had gone completely insane through the night and had become mentally and physically exhausted, sounded hoarse as he spoke.

“Where did you go?”

This simple question filled Nagisa with fear.

“Um... Kojo-kun?” Nagisa asked weakly, “Are you angry?”

“Angry?” Kojou’s face contorted into an incredibly forced smile. After a few dry laughs, he said, “No, I’m not angry. How could I possibly be angry?”

“Even if my sister stayed out overnight, and even if it was with a boy her age, I wouldn’t be angry.”

“So... it’s about time you told me, right? What exactly did you do out there? What did you do with that bastard? What happened that made you stay out all night?”

Looking at Kojou, who was forcing a smile, whose eyes were vacant and bloodshot, Nagisa was completely terrified.

“Ko-Kojo-kun, don’t get the wrong idea, okay? We didn’t do anything bad...”

By the end of the sentence, even Nagisa herself had become unsure.

We didn’t do anything bad, right?

We only drove off two delinquent demons, that shouldn’t count as anything bad, right?

But did we really just do that? Nothing else?

Maybe something else did happen, and Kai-kun just didn’t tell me?

With that thought, Nagisa’s voice weakened.

However, she had no idea that her guilty demeanor made her words entirely unconvincing and directly snapped the already tightly wound string in a certain siscon’s mind.

“I’m going to kill that bastard—!”

Kojou’s eyes turned bloodshot, as if he had become a true Vampire Progenitor. He rolled up his sleeves, ready to charge out the door.

“Kojou-kun?!”

Nagisa immediately cried out and hurried to grab him.

“Don’t be rash, Kojou-kun!”

“Let go of me! I’m going to kill the bastard who dared lay a hand on my sister!”

“It’s not like that! You’ve misunderstood! Kai-kun didn’t do anything to me!”

“You’re even defending him?! He must’ve tricked you!”

“Listen to me first!”

“That bastard! Nagisa still has some time before she turns fifteen! She hasn’t even graduated middle school yet! She’s just a kid!”

“I-I’m not a kid!”

“What?! So you’re saying you’ve already stepped onto the path of adulthood?!”

“Ah, no, that’s not what I meant, I didn’t mean that not being a kid meant that...”

“I’M GONNA KILL HIM—!”

“NOOOOOO—!”

And thus, the Akatsuki household in the early morning became exceptionally lively, enough to disturb the neighbors left and right.

In the middle of washing up, Kaiser heard the commotion, and the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

“Now I definitely won’t be able to clear my name, even if I jumped into the Yellow River.”

Thankfully, Nagisa hadn’t minded why he didn’t send her home last night and instead brought her back to his own place, otherwise it would’ve been hard for Kaiser to explain.

“Well, this is actually kind of funny too.”

Kaiser quickly stopped caring about the matter, continued washing up, and prepared to head to school.

He had already made plans with Nagisa that from today on, they would go to and return from school together, and except for going home, they would act together no matter where they went.

“This is the proper way for a Fourth Progenitor and his watcher to get along...”

Indeed, I’ve taken the heroine’s route.

Reconfirming this once more, Kaiser left the bathroom and headed toward the door.

……

Kaiser didn’t wait for Nagisa outside Room 704. Instead, he went downstairs first and waited for Nagisa outside the apartment entrance.

And so, Kaiser waited for nearly an hour.

Then... Kojou showed up.

“Take this!”

Charging out of the apartment door, Kojou looked like a King of Fighters with his rage meter maxed out, swinging a punch directly at Kaiser who was standing outside.

That punch was fast and fierce. Though thrown by an ordinary human high school student, it carried an aura that made it seem like even a strong and burly beastman might not compare.

Unfortunately, that fast and fierce punch was effortlessly dodged by Kaiser.

“Hmm? Isn’t this Kojou-kun?”

As if he hadn’t noticed Kojou’s anger and that punch just now, Kaiser greeted Kojou with the same demeanor he had when they first met yesterday.

“Good morning. Heading to school too?”

That calm expression easily pushed Kojou’s rage meter back to full.

“You’ve got the nerve to greet me?!” Kojou shouted, trembling with fury. “You kidnapped someone’s sister for a whole night, and you dare greet me?!”

“This means you’re mentally prepared to have a real fight with me, right?”

For that usually laid-back Kojou to be this angry, to become so aggressive, it could only be because it involved his sister.

And there was no doubt that Kaiser had stepped right on that landmine.

So, he let out a laugh, both amused and helpless.

“Don’t say it like that. I’m just happy to be getting along well with a classmate’s sister.”

As soon as those words came out, Kojou instantly exploded.

“How dare you say that...! Take this!”

Kojou charged forward in a rage, launching a barrage of attacks at Kaiser.

And honestly, he wasn’t bad. As expected of someone who used to be on the basketball team, his agility was leagues above the average high schooler.

Kojou had once been the star of the basketball team. None of his teammates could keep up with him, which is why he was ostracized and ended up quitting the team.

Now, with his anger unleashed, he was fighting with quite a bit of force.

Unfortunately, while he had some presence, it wasn’t enough.

At least, not for Kaiser.

Kaiser simply retreated and sidestepped at will, easily dodging Kojou’s full-force “turtle punches.”

Then, when Kojou threw his eleventh punch at Kaiser’s face, Kaiser not only dodged by sidestepping and letting the punch brush past him, but also quickly extended his hand and sharply tapped Kojou’s elbow.

That one tap caused Kojou’s punch to veer off course, and he lost his balance.

CLANG!

With a crisp sound, Kojou’s fist smashed into the nearby signboard.

“OWWW!”

Kojou immediately clutched his fist and squatted down, crying out in pain.

“You okay?” Kaiser also squatted beside Kojou, speaking with a seemingly concerned tone, “Why were you so careless? Next time try to aim better before you punch, okay?”

As he spoke, Kaiser poked at Kojou’s reddened, swollen hand, causing him to hiss in pain.

“Y-You bastard...!” Kojou quickly backed away from Kaiser, shouting with teary eyes, “Just because you’re good at fighting, don’t think I’ll let you off!”

“Such deep resentment, huh?” Kaiser raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, “It’s just your little sister staying over at the neighbor’s house for one night. Is that really something to get so worked up over?”

“You’ve got the nerve to say that?!” Kojou was so mad he laughed, raging as tears welled up in his eyes, “Nagisa’s just a middle schooler! You beast! How could you do that to her?!”

At that, Kaiser finally understood.

So Kojou had no idea that while Nagisa did sleep over at his place, nothing had actually happened between them.

Most likely, he thought his sister had already been completely defiled by Kaiser, which is why he got this worked up.

Well, it made sense. A girl spending the night at a boy’s place, not returning home all night, unreachable by phone, ignoring texts, just the two of them alone—it would be hard to believe nothing happened.

Nagisa may have explained, but the agitated Kojou probably didn’t listen.

In that case, Kaiser had no intention of explaining.

“Oh? So you do know Nagisa’s just a middle schooler?” Kaiser said with a faint smirk, “Then whose middle schooler is doing nearly all the housework at home, has no parents, and rushes home every day to cook for her big brother and take care of him?”

Kojou instantly froze and was speechless.

“In the end, the reason I was with Nagisa last night is kind of your fault, right?” Kaiser continued to twist the knife. “She’s someone who usually goes straight home after school and even has club activities. Why should she have to go home and cook for you?”

“If you’d just made dinner last night, Nagisa wouldn’t have lost track of time and ended up going out to eat with me.”

“I’m new here, unfamiliar with everything. I didn’t even know where to find a decent meal. And you, my deskmate, a member of the Going-Home Club, didn’t show me around at all. In the end, your kind-hearted sister did it, and now you’re blaming her instead.”

“What kind of logic is that?”

Kaiser’s blend of sophistry and twisted reasoning left Kojou on the verge of questioning his own existence.

Could it be... the one who was wrong... was me?

Chapter 405: This Little Sister Is No Good Anymore

There was no denying that Kaiser's few words had indeed left Akatsuki Kojou completely dumbfounded.

Because he had to admit—what Kaiser said made some sense.

Leaving all the housework to his younger sister, who was still in middle school—this really wasn’t good.

He was just a member of the go-home club with no club activities, and Kaiser was new to town, both his neighbor and classmate. In such unfamiliar surroundings, he should indeed help him get used to the environment.

However, although it was true that Nagisa handled all the housework at home, that was because his sister was a worrywart with a pathological obsession with cleanliness. If he tried to do anything, he’d just get scolded and criticized. Over time, it simply became this way. It wasn’t because he didn’t want to do anything.

And as for helping Kaiser get familiar with the environment… that wasn’t a valid reason to make a move on my sister, was it?

Just as Kojou nearly got lost in his own logic, he managed to stay focused and snapped back into anger.

“Cut the crap! Take a punch from me first!”

Kojou had made up his mind. No matter what, he was going to punch Kaiser once to avenge his sister for being deceived.

“Alright.” Seeing Kojou’s determination, Kaiser didn’t say anything more and simply replied, “Then go ahead.”

Upon hearing that, Kojou didn’t hesitate and punched straight at him.

And this time, Kaiser didn’t even dodge—he took Kojou’s punch head-on.

“Bang!”

As the punch landed squarely on Kaiser’s face, Kojou’s own face twisted in pain.

“Owowowow…!”

He crouched down again, clutching his fist, nearly in tears.

On the other hand, Kaiser, who had just taken the punch, burst into laughter.

“Hey, I didn’t dodge this time. It’s your own fault you can’t deliver.”

Kaiser teased with a chuckle.

No joke—his current physical strength could rival that of someone like Doni, who used the Protection of Steel Authority to become nearly undead, or Sun Wukong, whose body was indestructible. His body was as hard as steel. Forget a punch—even being stabbed, slashed, or sprayed with machine gun fire wouldn’t leave a scratch.

Forget that Kojou was just a regular high schooler. Even if he did become the Fourth Progenitor like in the original story, punching Kaiser wouldn’t do a thing.

To hurt Kaiser now, you’d need at least the power to cleave steel, or some special ability like the Type-100 Heavy Armament Demon-Slaying Blade that could even cut space. Without that, it was impossible.

Even if you could hurt him, Kaiser had High-Speed Regeneration, the immortality granted by the Hōgyoku, and even healing-type divine tools like the Hourai Branch. Not just minor injuries—even if he were blown to pieces and reduced to ashes, he’d still recover instantly.

For Kojou to try and hurt him with mere mortal fists—pure fantasy.

“W-why is your face so hard?!”

Kojou’s face was flushed red with pain, staring at Kaiser in confusion.

“Who knows? Maybe I’ve got thick skin?” Kaiser folded his arms and smiled. “Anyway, I gave you the chance. If you couldn’t do anything with it, that’s your own problem.”

Kojou nearly lost it at that remark.

“I don’t believe this!”

Just as Kojou was about to go for another round, a sharp voice rang out.

“Kojou-kun!”

A voice even angrier than Kojou’s erupted at the entrance of the apartment.

“N-Nagisa?”

Kojou’s expression froze.

The next second, Akatsuki Nagisa came stomping over, her steps full of fury.

“What are you doing, Kojou-kun?!” Nagisa yelled at Kojou like an enraged wildcat. “You actually used violence on Kai-kun? Unbelievable!”

Apparently, Nagisa had come out just in time to see Kojou about to strike again.

Naturally, she got angry.

And seeing Nagisa this angry, Kojou—who had looked furious a moment ago—suddenly shriveled.

He might shout at her at home, but in reality, Nagisa had always been the highest-ranking member of the household.

Their divorced parents were no contest—his father was a doting dad who couldn’t say no to Nagisa, and his mother was barely functional and under Nagisa’s strict management. Even their grandmother back home doted on Nagisa.

As for Kojou—he was basically the family scapegoat. It was hard to imagine how disliked he was.

So in the Akatsuki household, even if you didn’t count the grandmother, the ranking was Nagisa > Mimori > Kojou’s dad > Kojou.

It was a good thing the family didn’t keep pets, or Kojou might’ve been ranked below the dog or cat too.

Moreover, while Nagisa was normally forthright and didn’t badmouth people, once she got mad, her verbal barrage became terrifying. Not just Kojou—anyone would have to sit up straight and behave.

Kojou still remembered back in middle school when Yaze Motoki, who brought over his country's most prized and world-renowned action films to watch, got caught and was subjected to a relentless verbal assault by an enraged Nagisa.

That rapid-fire scolding left Yaze with temporary gynophobia—just a glimpse of how fearsome Nagisa could be.

And now, Nagisa was walking over with her rapid-fire barrage ready.

“I just can’t believe it. It’s so unreasonable. My Kojou-kun actually used violence against his neighbor and classmate? Isn’t that bullying?”

“Kai-kun just transferred here! He only arrived on Itogami Island yesterday! And he’s already being bullied by his classmate and neighbor? What were you thinking, Kojou-kun?!”

“I don’t remember ever raising you to be like this!”

Nagisa seemed truly furious. She launched into a full-on lecture, leaving Kojou on his knees on the spot.

“I don’t remember you raising me either…”

Kojou muttered feebly, which only brought on more scolding from Nagisa.

“You dare talk back? Kojou-kun, do you even realize how terrible your behavior is right now? If someone saw this, they’d think our family had no upbringing! Using violence against a new neighbor and classmate… Even Dad wouldn’t go that far!”

“What if someone called the police? You’d be taken to the station, Kojou-kun! You’d get a criminal record!”

“Then you’d be expelled from school, deported from Itogami Island, and your life would be completely ruined!”

The more Nagisa spoke, the angrier she got. Her imagined future scenarios began to seem real to her, and her gaze toward Kojou turned full of disappointment.

Kojou: "…………"

All I wanted was to teach the guy who made my little sister stay out all night a lesson. What did I do wrong?

Does she really have to paint me as such a heinous villain?

Could it be… my little sister is siding with an outsider?

At that thought, Kojou tried to fight back.

“It’s all because of this guy, he—”

Before he could finish, Nagisa cut him off sharply.

“Didn’t I already tell you? Kai-kun has been really kind to me! He didn’t do anything to deserve your bullying!” Nagisa said angrily. “He even helped me out a lot! I’m still grateful to him, and you dare to bully him? Too much!”

That was why she was so angry.

In her view, Kaiser not only treated her to dinner last night, but also stopped her from losing control, prevented her from making a huge mistake, and even took care of her after she lost consciousness—he even gave up his bed for her and slept on the floor. What a gentleman, what kindness!

Especially now, knowing he was an Enforcer for a special agency, responsible for handling magical disasters and terrorist attacks on Itogami Island, yet he was willing to stay close to watch over her because of her circumstances—such thoughtfulness and kindness made it impossible not to feel grateful.

Nagisa was very grateful to Kaiser and had a great impression of him.

Who would’ve thought her idiotic brother still tried to attack him? That was just too evil, too unreasonable.

“Apologize to Kai-kun!”

Nagisa said seriously.

“…Sorry, I acted on impulse.”

Kojou didn’t want to, but to calm his sister down, he grumbled an apology to Kaiser.

“There’s no need to go that far,” Kaiser said with a chuckle after watching the whole drama. “It’s not like I got hurt.”

Kojou’s lips twitched.

He had come to cause trouble, ended up injuring his own hand, and had to apologize in the end…

Kojou didn’t even know who to complain to anymore.

And to make things worse, under Kojou’s gritted gaze, Nagisa worriedly leaned toward Kaiser.

“Are you really okay? Are you hurt anywhere? If you are, just say so—I’ll go get the first aid kit.”

Hearing that, Kojou really wanted to scream at her: I’m the one who needs the first aid kit!

But for the sake of his dignity as an older brother, he held back.

“I’m really fine.” Kaiser glanced at the sulking Kojou and said with a smile, “Kojou’s got some skills, but I’m not bad either.”

At that, Nagisa recalled that as an Enforcer, Kaiser shouldn’t be easily injured by a mere high schooler.

“That’s good, that’s good.” Nagisa patted her chest in relief and then said, “Sorry, Kai-kun. It’s all Kojou-kun’s fault for being too rash. But he only acted out because he was worried about me, so please don’t blame him.”

“Nagisa…” Kojou looked at her with a touched expression.

His little sister still cared about him after all!

“Maybe you should hit him back to let out some steam,” Nagisa said seriously. “Don’t worry—Kojou-kun’s been resilient since childhood. Even Dad says so.”

The look of gratitude on Kojou’s face slowly disappeared.

Indeed, all little sisters will one day betray you. All little sisters are unlovable. They always side with outsiders.

This little sister is no good anymore!

…Alright, I’ll keep her anyway. She’s still young and doesn’t understand. (Mumbling of a siscon.)

“No need for that,” Kaiser chuckled upon seeing Nagisa wasn’t joking. “I’m not mad at Kojou. He was just worried about you. Besides, I did make you stay out all night, and that’s not exactly a good thing.”

“Thank you for being so considerate, Kai-kun.”

This time, it was Nagisa’s turn to be moved.

She didn’t think about why, if their houses were next door, Kaiser didn’t just send her home, but instead brought her to his place.

At that time, she had just been possessed and lost control, nearly causing a disaster. As an Enforcer, Kaiser would be worried she might wake up and start rampaging again—it made perfect sense.

So taking her to his place to watch over her was a very reasonable decision.

Of course, what Nagisa didn’t know was that the main reason Kaiser brought her back was to get Athena to come out and help him solve the mystery behind Nagisa’s condition.

In any case, this time Kaiser had earned favor and could now act alongside Nagisa openly—he hadn’t lost anything at all.

Kojou was still sulking, but with Nagisa around to suppress him, he could only sulk in silence.

Besides, what else could he do?

He couldn’t even beat Kaiser.

The guy stood still and let him hit, and he still injured himself. That’s cheating!

However, Kojou wasn’t stupid. By now, he realized that Kaiser’s background might not be simple. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have that kind of skill and physical toughness.

“Nagisa said he helped her with something big… Did something happen that I don’t know about?”

Kojou was starting to worry.

He and Nagisa had both lost their memories of the events around Gozo Island and the Blazing Banquet. They didn’t remember Avrora, nor the matter of the Fourth Progenitor. But Kojou still remembered that Nagisa suddenly fell ill, lost her spirit medium powers, and had to be transferred to the Demon District for treatment.

He also remembered that Nagisa suffered from Demonphobia.

Given the situation now, he had reason to suspect that something was wrong with her body again, and that their new neighbor and classmate was someone special who had helped her—thus earning her gratitude.

If that were true, then maybe her staying out all night had a hidden reason.

“No, I have to find out what really happened.”

Kojou was no longer calm.

He had moved to Itogami Island for Nagisa’s sake.

Given that, he couldn’t ignore Nagisa’s health.

Unfortunately, while Nagisa was chatty, she always kept the important things to herself, not wanting others to worry. And Kaiser had no reason to tell him anything either.

So Kojou’s efforts ended in vain, leaving him filled with frustration.

The three of them finally headed off together toward Saikai Private Academy.

It was time for school.

(End of Chapter)