Chapter Summaries

Hoshino and Ifrit’s confrontation ended with Ifrit admitting she had found a friend, completing Hoshino’s mission and letting Silence finally fall asleep. Ch’en pursued the thieves and caught them as they celebrated their escape, while Hoshino remained exhausted and unable to claim her reward in front of the others.

• Hoshino paralyzed Warfarin with an electric shock, and Silence asked Ifrit whether she had enjoyed herself.
• Ifrit apologized to Silence and admitted she had found a friend, after which Silence fell asleep and Hoshino’s mission was marked complete.
• Hoshino noticed her power was depleted and told Ch’en where to find the thieves and the stolen Lungmen Dollars.
• Ch’en left the group and found Si Jiu and Mr. R dividing their stolen money in their car.
• Ch’en ordered the thieves out of the car so she could beat them, and they cried out in protest.

Ch'en and Hoshiguma dealt with the aftermath of the Catastrophe, arrested Si Jiu and Mr. R, and found Hoshino and Ifrit asleep in a car. After Hoshiguma repaired the motorcycle, Ch'en rode with the exhausted Hoshino, who teased her while leaning against her shoulder.

• Ch'en cuffed the unconscious Si Jiu and Mr. R, then called the Lungmen Guard Department for backup.
• Hoshiguma asked Ch'en about the missing motorcycle and the vanished tornado; Ch'en said a woman had caused the strange events but withheld details over the radio.
• Three hours later, the Guard Department arrived and arrested Si Jiu and Mr. R, who begged the officers to save them from Ch'en.
• Ch'en led Hoshiguma to the scene, where they found Hoshino and Ifrit asleep in the car, with Hoshino suffering dangerous muscle spasms.
• Hoshiguma diagnosed the motorcycle's damaged ignition battery, and Hoshino restarted it by touching its wires.
• Ch'en rode the motorcycle with the exhausted Hoshino leaning against her, and Hoshino teased her as her last electrical discharge made Ch'en flush and shiver.

Silence woke with a cold while Warfarin and Swire negotiated increased payment for the trouble in Lungmen. Ch'en considered her loneliness and fear of weakness, and Ifrit used gentle flames to comfort Silence before the chapter ended.

• Silence woke sick in the hospital, and Warfarin and Swire began negotiating additional payment for the incident.
• Ch'en lay awake thinking about the Queen of Lightning's loneliness and the conditions under which she could touch others.
• Hoshino visited Ch'en, sparred with her, thanked her for caring for the child, and brought her rice balls.
• Ifrit quietly warmed Silence with healing flames, and Silence thanked her and stroked her head.

Ifrit stayed with Silence until she fell asleep, while Hoshino tested Luna Kindred and discovered the vampire form’s hunger made it difficult to use. After reading Silence’s report, Kal'tsit chose cooperation with Yae Shrine over recruitment and sent Yato to investigate it.

• Ifrit watched over Silence as she slept and reflected on her growing friendship with her.
• Hoshino tested Luna Kindred’s strength under the moon, but intense hunger forced her to change back into Yae Sakura.
• Hoshino examined the Heavy Magnetic Storm and set it aside because Lightning Empress needed time to recharge.
• Kal'tsit reviewed Silence’s report, rejected recruiting Yae Shrine for now, and considered a cooperative arrangement pending investigation.
• Yato accepted Kal'tsit’s mission to assess and observe Yae Shrine, and said she was ready to depart.

Yato traveled to Lungmen to carry out her mission at Yae Shrine, but found the shrine eerily deserted and encountered Hoshino. Hoshino detected Yato hiding nearby, leaving Yato in a tense standoff after her mission seemed to end before it began.

• Yato prepared a katana in a cello case and left Rhodes Island for Lungmen without telling anyone.
• Yato ate a meal in Lungmen, then approached Yae Shrine and circled around to its back mountain.
• Yato found Hoshino resting in the back courtyard and hid in the grass to observe her.
• Hoshino noticed Shadow Dash's character card beginning to unlock and deduced that someone with matching attributes was nearby.
• Hoshino called for the hidden person to come inside, then identified them as a possible shadow warrior carrying a katana.
• Yato realized Hoshino had discovered her and suspected that the empty shrine was a trap.

Yato’s covert observation mission at Yae Shrine ended when Hoshino caught her, then took her to Penguin Logistics’s bar for a week-long vacation. There, Emperor asked Hoshino to help resolve a freight job stalled because the seller refused to hand over the goods.

• Hoshino caught Yato at Yae Shrine, disarmed her, and brought her into Tenshukaku for tea.
• Hoshino recognized that Yato was from Rhodes Island and invited her to spend her week-long observation period on vacation.
• Hoshino took Yato to Penguin Logistics’s bar, where Exusiai and the others tried to get Yato to relax and play cards.
• Emperor asked Hoshino for help with a shipping job whose seller refused to send the goods, insisting it was freight shipping rather than robbery.

Hoshino accepted Emperor’s commission to help Penguin Logistics retrieve cargo from a heavily guarded factory, asking for a concert in payment. She brought Yato along and encountered Rope and Lin Yuhsia, whose suspicions about Penguin Logistics’ unusual calm left the cargo operation shrouded in uncertainty.

• Hoshino agreed to help Penguin Logistics reclaim its cargo from the seller in exchange for a concert arranged by Emperor.
• Hoshino brought Yato to the guarded factory and learned that Yato had once been a cellist but left her troupe because harsh stage lights hurt her eyes.
• Rope slipped into Hoshino’s car and offered to steal from the factory, while Hoshino reminded her that she now worked for the Lungmen Guard Department.
• Lin Yuhsia joined them and said she was worried because Penguin Logistics had gone a week without causing trouble and Emperor had announced a plan to build a harmonious new Lungmen.

Emperor recruited Hoshino to retrieve a counterfeit a.k.a. CD from Factory Owner Mu Mo without using violence, but Lin Yuhsia and Swire turned the job into a loud raid. Their arrival convinced Mu Mo and onlookers that Penguin Logistics had come to kill him, setting off a citywide rumor about Emperor.

• Mu Mo showed Emperor a supposedly autographed a.k.a. album, and Emperor recognized it as a counterfeit of his old alias.
• Emperor asked Hoshino to retrieve the CD, and Lin Yuhsia concluded that Emperor was the anonymous buyer.
• Lin Yuhsia called Swire for help, and Swire brought bodyguards to join Hoshino, Rope, and Yato near Mu Mo’s factory.
• Yato and Rope discussed stealthy ways to enter the factory, but Swire instead ordered the people inside to surrender.
• Mu Mo screamed that Penguin Logistics had come to kill him, and observers began spreading rumors that Emperor was starting another killing spree.

Hoshino and Yato watched Swire’s staged assault on a factory, where Mu Mo tried to escape with a prized Emperor record. After Mu Mo was captured and spirited away, Hoshino followed the van as another group intercepted it and knocked him unconscious.

• Hoshino, Yato, and Rope watched Swire’s bodyguards and the factory’s security forces stage a violent but controlled battle.
• Emperor called Hoshino about the commotion and congratulatory emails, and she assured him the outcome would go as planned.
• Mu Mo hid a signed a.k.a record and an old bottle of tequila in a wooden box, then escaped through a hidden door with the record.
• Someone ambushed and captured Mu Mo in the factory’s backyard while Hoshino delayed Yato from intervening.
• Lin Yuhsia and Swire searched the factory but found no Penguin Logistics connection, as Mu Mo was loaded into a hooded van.
• Hoshino had Yato follow the van, which a truck promptly flipped; Mu Mo crawled out before another attacker knocked him unconscious.

Yato and Hoshino followed Mu Mo through a chaotic series of kidnappings, only for his hired security team to betray and interrogate him over the wooden box. Swire concluded Emperor was behind the affair and, after Lin Yuhsia persuaded her, reluctantly called Ch'en for help.

• Yato followed Mu Mo's kidnappers for six hours as he was repeatedly robbed and beaten before reaching a hideout.
• Mu Mo discovered that his hired security team had taken him after their contract ended, and the captain tried to force him to explain how to open the wooden box.
• Mu Mo revealed that the box could be opened by prying its lid, and the security team beat him for supposedly trying to deceive them.
• Swire and Lin Yuhsia lost track of the kidnapped contact, and Swire decided Emperor was orchestrating the operation to mock and evade them.
• Lin Yuhsia persuaded Swire to seek help from the Lungmen Guard Department, and Swire reluctantly called Ch'en.

Ch'en traced a series of black-on-black robberies to a warehouse where masked factions had gathered to seize Emperor's treasure. As the Lungmen Guard Department faced the resulting riot, Hoshino left the rooftop to retrieve the goods.

• After Swire asked for help, Ch'en summoned Hoshiguma and led the Lungmen Guard Department to investigate the brawl's trail.
• Ch'en's team linked sixteen black-on-black robbery scenes and found the trail ending at a warehouse.
• Hoshiguma confronted masked robbers, who joined forces and rushed toward the warehouse after Mu Mo called the goods a treasure.
• Ch'en ordered the officers to switch off their body cameras as the factions erupted into a chaotic fight over Emperor's treasure.
• Hoshino spoke with Yato on the rooftop, then vanished in a burst of speed to take something from the crowd.

Hoshino ended the brawl over the wooden box after Ch'en ordered the Guard Department to withdraw. Emperor took the box's contents, destroyed the pirated record, and invited the crowd to a concert, leaving them cheering under threat.

• Hoshino told Ch'en to pull the team back and revealed that someone had prompted Swire to ask for help.
• Ch'en withdrew the Guard Department's offensive, and Hoshino began throwing combatants out of the melee.
• Yato watched the crowd's fight wind down as Penguin Logistics arrived with Texas, Emperor, and Exusiai.
• Hoshino handed the wooden box to Emperor, who gave the tequila to Exusiai and destroyed the pirated record.
• Emperor announced a concert with discounted tickets, then threatened the crowd until they cheered.

Yato joined Sora and Luna Kindred for a concert, where the vampire’s appearance left Yato breathless and the trio performed a graceful song and dance. Afterward, Emperor grumbled about the concert’s low ticket prices while drinking stolen tequila.

• Hoshino pulled Yato from the crowd, gave her a cello, and explained her role in the performance with Sora and a mysterious dancer.
• Yato rehearsed on the cello and sang for Sora, who was struck by how much Yato resembled an idol.
• Luna Kindred entered the preparation room, and Yato struggled to control her breathing at the sight of the exceptionally charming vampire.
• Sora gave Luna Kindred blood plasma, and Luna introduced herself by her stage name before the concert began.
• Yato played cello and sang alongside Sora as Luna danced beneath the spotlights.
• Emperor complained that ticket prices and costs left too little profit, then drank tequila and praised himself as a kind boss.

After the concert, Hoshino drank Yato’s blood and unlocked Shadow Dash, while Yato returned to Rhodes Island with a favorable assessment of Yae Shrine and began practicing cello. Hoshino then tested her newly unlocked ability at the shrine.

• Emperor sent Mu Mo away from the concert with a record after giving him a reason to accept the loss of his pirated one.
• After the concert, Luna Kindred persuaded Yato to donate blood, and Hoshino’s Shadow Dash progress reached 100%.
• Yato reported to Kal'tsit that Yae Shrine was mysterious but trustworthy and described Lungmen as lively.
• Yato returned to her dormitory and began practicing cello each night from 19:00 to 21:00.
• At Yae Shrine, Hoshino swung Sakura Fubuki and shouted, “Shadow Clone: Flash Step!”

Hoshino changed her Shadow Clone into Sixth Serenade and discovered that the system’s autopilot marked Lappland as an enemy. As Kallen fought Lappland in Lungmen, Hoshino watched and wondered whether to summon Texas.

• Hoshino changed her Shadow Clone from Shadow Dash to Sixth Serenade and activated its autopilot mode, which would not attack friendly units.
• Croissant and Texas delivered an order together while Sora recovered from a cold caused by excessive blood loss.
• Lappland arrived in Lungmen to investigate Texas’s rumored change and watched Texas’s vehicle pass her alley.
• Hoshino monitored Kallen at the shrine until the clone entered combat readiness and disappeared.
• Kallen confronted Lappland, who drew her swords and attacked; Hoshino recognized Lappland as the system’s enemy unit and watched Kallen gain the advantage.

Hoshino and Croissant set out to deliver the captured Lappland to Siracusa at Texas’s request, but Lappland woke during the drive and attacked. Hoshino deflected her strike and sent her crashing into the backseat.

• Hoshino tied up the unconscious Lappland, called Texas, and learned Texas wanted Lappland delivered to Siracusa without meeting her.
• Texas assigned Croissant the delivery job, and Croissant brought Lappland to Yae Shrine in a body bag.
• Hoshino accepted a mission for its Faux Judah: Blood Embrace reward and joined Croissant on the trip to Siracusa.
• Hoshino left Kallen at the shrine and traveled with Croissant and Lappland out of Lungmen.
• Lappland attacked from the body bag, but Hoshino anticipated the strike and knocked her into the backseat.

Lappland tried to escape Hoshino, but Hoshino subdued her and took her toward Siracusa with Croissant. Back in Lungmen, Ch'en challenged AI Kallen and ended up trapped in her hold when Hoshiguma arrived.

• Lappland attacked Hoshino with Originium Arts, then fled, but Hoshino caught her with a slash and knocked her unconscious.
• Hoshino kept Lappland bound in Croissant's car and restrained her by squeezing her tail as they traveled toward Siracusa.
• Hoshino teased Lappland about her failed trip to Lungmen and considered delivering her to Madam Sicilia, before deciding to write a letter instead.
• Ch'en practiced swordsmanship at Yae Shrine until AI Kallen arrived and identified her as an enemy after Ch'en accepted her challenge.
• Hoshiguma arrived to pick up Ch'en and found Kallen gripping Ch'en's tail and horn while holding her legs around Ch'en's neck.

Hoshino arrived in Siracusa with Lappland and Croissant while concealing Lappland’s identity as the White Wolf, but her arrival as a Higashi shrine maiden drew attention. Lisa’s mother learned that a shrine maiden had come and feared she intended to take Lisa away to inherit a legacy.

• Ch'en escaped the shrine with Hoshiguma after Kallen choked her unconscious, and she wondered whether Kallen was jealous of Yae Sakura’s closeness to Penguin Logistics.
• Hoshino reached Siracusa at night with Lappland and Croissant, settled into an inn, and kept Lappland’s return as the White Wolf secret.
• Hoshino bathed the exhausted Lappland while news spread that a Higashi shrine maiden had arrived in Siracusa.
• Lisa listened as her mother confided in her about family life and repeatedly praised Lisa’s absent father.
• Lisa’s mother heard that the visitor was a genuine Higashi shrine maiden and declared she would not let anyone take Lisa away.

Hoshino and Croissant left the sleeping Lappland outside Madam Sicilia’s café with a letter for Lady. After Lappland woke and insisted on settling her grudge alone, Lady agreed not to interfere but promised the family would support her.

• Hoshino tied the sleeping Lappland to a bedpost for the night, then prepared a letter addressed to Madam Sicilia.
• Hoshino asked Croissant to drive them to Madam Sicilia’s café, where they dumped Lappland outside with the letter stuck to her forehead.
• Lady examined Lappland and the letter, then woke Lappland by stamping the ground.
• Lappland told Lady she wanted to settle her grudge herself and refused to explain what Hoshino had done to her.
• Lady agreed not to interfere and told Lappland that the family would always have her back.

Lappland planned an assassination after being left in Siracusa, while Hoshino and Croissant explored the city and wondered why the system mission had not progressed. Their outing turned dangerous when Lappland ambushed two Lupos approaching Hoshino and sent a threat to their master.

• Lappland withdrew from Madame Sicily's protection and began planning to kill the Priestess, using a violin performance as cover for her assassination scheme.
• Hoshino found that the mission to send Lappland back to Siracusa had not progressed, so she and Croissant decided to stay and sightsee.
• Hoshino and Croissant wandered through Siracusa, where Hoshino remarked that the lack of mafia trouble made the city boring.
• Two black-haired Lupos approached Hoshino from a car, but Lappland appeared and stabbed one of them.
• Lappland sent a warning to the Lupos' master, and Hoshino noticed a photograph of a nine-tailed fox girl inside their car.