In the Silence

It wasn't that the Lungmen Guard Department's blades were too cheap—it was that Superintendent Chen's blade was too fierce.

But there was no point discussing any of that.

Hoshino had lost.

It wasn't a failure of her own abilities, but because her weapon was far too lackluster and had held her back.

Only then did Hoshino realize how absurd this mission was.

When she closed her eyes, the icon for the Spirit Katana: Sakura Blossom was still bound in chains, dim and gray, unavailable for use.

She had fallen into an obvious paradox.

Only by completing the mission could she obtain the graduation weapon of the Godslayer Shrine Maiden.

But given the current situation, without that blade, Hoshino had no way to deal with this mission at all.

She was stuck.

Though she didn't know much about it, she felt that whoever designed her stage and mission had probably been fresh interns with no project experience whatsoever—assuming all this had truly been arranged by real people.

Hoshino's thoughts lasted only for that fleeting instant.

She opened her eyes.

Superintendent Chen was clearly in the same state. Her draw had been too fast; she only realized what had happened when she sheathed her weapon. Drawing Chi Xiao in that instant seemed to be a challenge even for her. Sweat trickled down her smooth forehead as she struggled to believe her own instinctive action.

She clearly held two swords.

One was an ordinary black longsword, while the other was [Chi Xiao], manufactured by Raythean Industries.

Chi Xiao was a weapon with a mind of its own. Chen still couldn't fully control it. When faced with opponents who were too weak, it could even leave her in the awkward position of being unable to draw it no matter what she did.

In Chen's view, testing this Cautus didn't require using all her strength.

But she had been wrong.

Wildly wrong.

Chen pressed a hand against the hilt. A searing tremor passed through it, burning her palm through her fingerless glove.

Chi Xiao was excited. Killing intent churned endlessly within its sheath.

It wanted to be drawn. It wanted to bloom with a deep crimson light and cut its powerful opponent to pieces.

What should she do?

Chen was a superintendent with principles. She would never allow herself to be driven by a weapon. Even though the brutality of a dragon flowed through her blood, Chen would never lose herself.

She reminded herself that she had to calm down.

This exchange, which had taken place within milliseconds, looked rather baffling to the onlookers.

"Did you see that?"

Hoshiguma asked in a familiar, easygoing tone. Rope shook her head. She hadn't seen anything at all; her eyes even hurt a little.

Hoshiguma continued, "Neither did I, but they both seemed pretty strong."

At that moment, they desperately needed someone to break the deadlock.

Hoshiguma had anticipated how the battle might unfold, but she had never imagined something this absurd would happen. Although she had prepared in advance, it was hard to say whether those preparations would be of any use now.

Just like Hoshiguma herself, her preparations had been rather casual.

"Rope..."

Rope had assumed this had nothing to do with her. When she suddenly heard Hoshiguma call her name, she immediately grew a little nervous.

Of course, none of that showed on her face.

"Don't smile so casually."

As Hoshiguma spoke, she handed something over. Rope knew it well: a black flexible whip that could lengthen or shorten at will, like a third hand.

It was Rope's weapon.

After her capture, the whip had naturally been confiscated. Now that it had been returned to her, Rope had been entrusted with a mission.

"Use [Drag] on the shrine maiden."

Hoshiguma said.

Drag.

Rope wasn't particularly educated, so she couldn't come up with impressive skill names. She could only choose something simple and unadorned.

She lightly flicked her whip.

A jet-black shadow cut through the air like a snake leaving its den. The long whip slipped nimbly behind Hoshino, wrapped around her waist, and dragged her backward.

Everything happened in a flash.

Hoshino had a certain fear of whips, worried that she might fall into some pit. Fortunately, she didn't. She crashed straight into Rope's arms.

Hoshino raised her head and glanced at the still-shocked Superintendent Chen. They stood about five meters apart, with nothing between them. If Chen wanted to, she could rush in with her blade raised in less than half a second.

Then she looked up at the green-haired oni. Perhaps the shrine maiden outfit gave her an inexplicable sense of familiarity, because Hoshiguma gave her a thumbs-up.

At nearly two meters tall, Hoshiguma was imposing no matter what she did.

Hoshino had to stand up and stretch Yae Sakura's fox ears as high as she could just to barely edge Hoshiguma out in height.

She was like an insurmountable mountain.

Hoshiguma praised her, "Not bad, Shrine Maiden. It would've been even better if you had a decent weapon."

"Forget it. I love peace. I don't pick fights with people."

"Is that so?"

The aura Hoshiguma gave off made Hoshino hesitant to approach her carelessly. Though she had acted very easygoing, some things were buried in one's bones and could never be changed.

Besides, they were still in the Guard Department.

Half a minute ago, Hoshino and Rope had been discussing how to break out of prison and leave this place.

Now, two Lungmen officers stood before them. At a time like this, even the most thick-skinned vampire of an unscrupulous merchant couldn't chatter away in front of them and smooth over the conflict.

That would have been too foolish.

Hoshiguma seemed to understand that as well. She stepped aside without another word and pointed to the side. The window was wide open, and the cold night wind howled in, seemingly showing them a clear path.

Rope nodded and smiled awkwardly.

That window was the door she used every time she escaped from the Guard Department. It was the unspoken understanding between her and this place, a delicate and sensitive relationship like a hazy veil. Hoshiguma's gesture was like using the horn on her head to poke a hole through that veil, letting in the blinding sunlight.

Some things simply couldn't be discussed openly.

Hoshino didn't care much. She walked to the window against the night wind, judged the height, and jumped.

Boom!

Hearing the commotion outside, Rope couldn't help clicking her tongue. She wanted to know just how much strength this shrine maiden had hidden in her body.

How could she jump from a building without even changing expression or skipping a beat?

Rope also walked to the window, stepped onto the sill, took a deep breath, and leaped down. From a height of nine meters, she fell like a rabbit, landing on her back and rolling several times across the lawn before bleeding off the force of the fall.

Hoshiguma leaned over the windowsill and watched it all happen.

It seemed the Guard Department's streetlights had broken again. Fortunately, an oni's eyesight was better, and she could clearly see their retreating figures.

After watching for a while, Hoshiguma turned her head and asked oddly, "Old Chen, you were the one who said we should let them go first. Why aren't you coming over to watch?"

"I'm not interested for the moment."

Superintendent Chen seemed somewhat fatigued as she reached up to wipe the sweat from her forehead.