Chapter Summaries

Belle, Wise, and Griseo visited Casa’s restaurant in Blazewood, where Burnice’s attempt to make pizza turned the kitchen into a disaster. The chapter ended with the group discovering the flour-covered wreckage after a dust explosion.

• Belle livestreamed the restaurant and stopped Burnice from serving the group flaming fuel drinks.
• Belle and Wise discovered that Anby was working part-time at the restaurant because the Cunning Hares had gone over budget.
• Burnice mixed tequila into a huge batch of pizza dough while Anby chopped the toppings.
• Burnice roasted sausages with her flamethrower, setting off the fire alarm and causing the kitchen equipment and flour to explode.
• Wise, Belle, and Griseo rushed into the kitchen, where they found Anby beating dough and Burnice amid the ruined, sauce-covered kitchen.

Casa returned to Cheesetopia and found it destroyed after Burnice’s fiery cooking demonstration, then Su treated the injured. Burnice was punished at Blazewood’s gates, while Wise learned he needed to recuperate.

• Casa returned to Cheesetopia and discovered the kitchen engulfed in smoke and the restaurant wrecked by Burnice’s Flaming Meteor Pizza.
• Burnice’s cooking stunt caused a fireball that left Casa, Wise, and Belle overwhelmed; Belle still promoted the restaurant on her livestream.
• Lucy put Burnice on trial at Blazewood’s gates, and Caesar and Lucy punished her with sweet potato leaves.
• Griseo summoned Su to treat Casa, Belle, and Wise at Calydon Camp.
• Su said Casa and Belle would recover, diagnosed Wise as weak, and offered restorative prescriptions; Wise immediately bowed to him.

At the Sons of Calydon's camp, Perlman accused Sarah and Bringer of masterminding the Vision Bombing Case and revealed evidence linking them. Nicole decided to seek powerful help, and Hoshimi Miyabi and Tsukishiro Yanagi set out for Blazewood on a mayoral assignment.

• Perlman woke up and claimed Sarah and Bringer had used him as a puppet in the Vision Bombing Case.
• Nicole urged the Cunning Hares to continue, and Griseo confirmed Perlman's account during his interrogation.
• Perlman revealed that his backups held Sarah and Bringer's communications, project records, and money transfers.
• Nicole proposed calling on her connections, while Anby explained that she barely knew Hoshimi Miyabi.
• Hoshimi Miyabi told Tsukishiro Yanagi that Nicole had contacted her, and Yanagi realized their mayoral investigation also led to Blazewood.

Nicole brought Perlman to Blazewood so Section 6 could hear his testimony, but Hoshimi Miyabi turned the investigation toward Wise and Belle. As Section 6 and the Cunning Hares faced off, a stranger named Setsuna Sakura attacked Miyabi.

• Piper drove Nicole, Perlman, and the others to Blazewood, where Section 6 interrogated Perlman.
• After hearing Perlman's account, Hoshimi Miyabi and Tsukishiro Yanagi questioned Nicole's claims and said they lacked enough evidence to call Bringer a criminal.
• Anby recognized that Section 6 was positioning to surround the Cunning Hares, and Harumasa pointed out that the Cunning Hares were also armed.
• Yanagi accused Wise and Belle of being linked to a Proxy involved in several incidents and ordered them to come with Section 6.
• Nicole and the Cunning Hares blocked Miyabi and Section 6 from taking Wise and Belle, and Miyabi drew the Demon Blade.
• A katana-wielding attacker named Setsuna Sakura appeared behind Miyabi and wounded her robe as she parried the strike.

Sakura confronted Hoshimi Miyabi to protect Griseo, Wise, Belle, and the Cunning Hares, then accepted Miyabi’s challenge to fight. After revealing that she and Griseo had once been called the Flame-Chasers, Sakura explained that Miyabi’s attacks could not harm her phantom form.

• Sakura ambushed Miyabi, cut her hunting robe, and drew blood before Griseo shielded Wise, Belle, and the Cunning Hares.
• Yanagi warned Miyabi that Sakura was radiating Ether Energy, and Miyabi identified Griseo as the third target in the mayor’s secret orders.
• Sakura asked Miyabi to leave, but Miyabi chose to fight and told Yanagi, Harumasa, and Soukaku to back away.
• Griseo poured her remaining Ether Energy into the Signets of Setsuna, strengthening Sakura as Yanagi watched the readings rise.
• Sakura told Miyabi that she and Griseo had once shared the name Flame-Chasers, then charged into a direct attack.
• Miyabi and Sakura exchanged blows, but Sakura’s phantom body felt no pain and her wound dissolved into Ether Energy.

Hoshimi Miyabi fought Sakura to master more of Tailless’s power, and the duel ended with Miyabi surviving Sakura’s final technique. Sakura faded away after thanking Griseo, while Miyabi looked forward to fighting her again.

• Hoshimi Miyabi unleashed more of Tailless’s power and battled Sakura as Sakura’s Ether Energy dwindled.
• Sakura revealed that she had been guiding Miyabi so she could see Miyabi’s strongest move, and advised her to face her past.
• Hoshimi Miyabi asked Tsukishiro Yanagi, Harumasa, and Soukaku to retreat before she and Sakura prepared their final attacks.
• Sakura and Hoshimi Miyabi clashed with their strongest techniques, leaving both wounded but Miyabi standing.
• Sakura admitted she had held back to avoid killing Miyabi, then thanked Griseo and faded away.

After Miyabi ended her test and negotiated for Wise to return to New Eridu, armed rebels ambushed the group. The Sons of Calydon helped them break out, while Wise stayed behind with Section 6 and sent Belle, Griseo, and Nicole to safety.

• Miyabi sheathed her blade after Sakura vanished, confirmed Griseo was not a threat, and approached the Proxies to discuss the test and the accusations against Bringer.
• Miyabi offered to protect Wise if one of the siblings returned to New Eridu, and Wise agreed to go while Belle stayed with Griseo.
• Griseo warned Belle of danger as rebels opened fire, and Miyabi cut down an incoming bullet before the ambush surrounded the group.
• The Sons of Calydon arrived, and Piper used her truck as cover while urging everyone to escape.
• Wise gave Nicole the Cunning Hares' car keys and stayed to retreat with Section 6 as Belle helped Griseo into Piper's truck.

Section 6 and the Cunning Hares fought their way through the rebel encirclement, while Griseo summoned Aponia to confront the rebels pursuing the others. The chapter left Wise and Miyabi under attack and Aponia using her Discipline Signet to restrain the rebels.

• Miyabi, Section 6, and the Sons of Calydon fought off rebels and retreated with the Cunning Hares, leaving unconscious Perlman behind.
• Harumasa destroyed a rebel rocket launcher with an arrow, and Wise drove the group away in Nicole's van.
• Miyabi sliced apart pursuing motorcycles as Wise drove, but rebels fired three loitering munitions at the van.
• Nicole's group gathered around Griseo as she absorbed Ether Energy, while Belle reported she could not reach Wise or Miyabi.
• Caesar and the others arrived at the hillside with rebels close behind, and Griseo summoned Aponia.
• Aponia asked everyone to stop and used threads of fate to command them not to flee, resist, or make a sound.

Aponia used Discipline to judge and erase Belle’s pursuers, then bound the witnesses to secrecy and cured Tsukishiro Yanagi’s vision problems. Griseo and Aponia left to find Wise and another woman, while Belle’s group stayed behind, shaken by Aponia’s power.

• Aponia immobilized the rebels pursuing Belle’s group and erased those she judged guilty with purple flames.
• Aponia introduced herself to Belle as the nun of Discipline and greeted Griseo’s companions.
• Aponia ordered Tsukishiro Yanagi and the others to keep the events secret, then healed Yanagi’s eyesight and purified her Oni blood.
• Griseo and Aponia left to find Wise and another woman, while Belle told them to be careful.
• Soukaku and Harumasa checked on Yanagi, who remained wary of Aponia’s power.

Griseo asked Aponia about fate, guilt, and the colors beyond Discipline, prompting Aponia to reveal the painful history behind her Signet. The chapter ended with Griseo asking to hear the story Discipline had guarded for True Self.

• Aponia showed Griseo a thread of fate leading toward the person she sought and explained that seeing fate made her its prisoner.
• Griseo challenged Aponia’s self-blame, saying that though Aponia held a lamp for others, she still blamed herself for failing to save them.
• Griseo asked to learn about Salvation and True Self, whose powers and Authorities were sealed within her, and Aponia reluctantly agreed to explain.
• Aponia recalled caring for children and wounded people, then showed Griseo how they died despite her efforts to help them.
• Aponia described the contradiction of Discipline and said Elysia was not truly free, then asked whether Griseo wanted to hear the story behind True Self.
• Griseo nodded and asked Aponia to tell her the story.

Aponia told Griseo the hidden story of Elysia as the Herrscher of Humanity and asked her to remain herself. In the Outer Ring Hollow, Miyabi and Wise became separated from their companions, and Miyabi struggled to control Tailless before she and Wise sealed it.

• Aponia recounted how Elysia broke free of fate, sacrificed herself, and became the Herrscher of Humanity.
• Aponia asked Griseo not to take on the roles of [Discipline], [True Self], or [Salvation], and Griseo promised to remain [The Stars].
• Miyabi and Wise, stranded in the Outer Ring Hollow after escaping rebels, searched for an exit while Wise copied Carrot Data.
• Tailless erupted with crimson Foxfire and urged Miyabi to cut down those around her.
• Wise held the scabbard steady as Miyabi sheathed Tailless, but she then wondered who had spoken to her in a second voice.

Aponia taught Griseo not to interfere lightly with others’ fates, then encouraged her to follow her own judgment. In the Hollow, Wise drew out Hoshimi Miyabi’s admission that something was wrong with her Demon Blade, while Griseo prepared to face the matter herself.

• Aponia explained to Griseo that changing one person’s fate could affect many others, and urged her to let people find their own paths.
• Aponia told Griseo she would support her if she chose to help someone, then sent her to discover what awaited Hoshimi Miyabi.
• Wise repeatedly tricked Hoshimi Miyabi into reacting to imaginary Foxfire until she admitted that something was wrong with her.
• Hoshimi Miyabi explained that the Demon Blade carried her family’s destiny, consumed its wielders, and had gone out of control despite her father reinforcing its seal.
• Aponia told Griseo she could solve the blade’s problem but would not, and Griseo agreed to go see what would happen.

Hoshimi Miyabi and Wise escaped the Hollow with Griseo’s help and reunited with their companions, while Caesar reported that the rebels had taken Perlman. As the group prepared to return to New Eridu, Nicole learned her car was totaled and nearly fainted over the debt.

• Griseo found Wise and Miyabi in the Hollow, healed them, and told Miyabi that her companions had already escaped.
• Wise, Griseo, and Miyabi emerged from the Hollow and reunited with Belle, the Cunning Hares, and Section 6.
• Miyabi struggled to understand Harumasa’s explanation of Griseo’s actions, while Yanagi, Harumasa, and Soukaku praised the girl.
• Caesar reported that the rebels had withdrawn from Blazewood and likely taken Perlman, and said Pompey was gathering people to retaliate.
• Nicole asked Wise where her car was, learned it was totaled, and nearly fainted when she remembered her unpaid car loan.

Bringer confronted Sarah over the heavy losses among his forces, while Wise and Belle learned that Perlman’s signal had appeared in the Ballet Tower Hollow and that Griseo had fallen asleep again. When public security officers arrived at the video store and Fairy’s systems began failing, Wise prepared to face them himself.

• Bringer accused Sarah of deliberately weakening his forces after nearly all the troops sent to the Outer Ring were killed or wounded, but Sarah dismissed his suspicions and told him to prepare for the next stage of the plan.
• Fairy reported that a signal matching Perlman’s vital signs had been detected in the Ballet Tower Hollow, leading Wise to question why Bringer had abducted Perlman instead of simply killing him.
• Belle told Wise that Griseo had fallen into her recurring deep sleep, and Wise and Belle resolved to rely less on her and fight using their own skills.
• Fairy warned that personnel were approaching the video store, then the HDD sparked and lost power; Wise determined someone was tampering with the store’s power supply.
• Wise saw public security officers knocking at the entrance and told Belle to stay with Fairy while he went to deal with them.

Wise and Belle nearly had their hidden HDD room exposed during a Public Security Department inspection, but Zhu Yuan and Qingyi intervened. Once the siblings were safe, Fairy connected them to Hollow Special Operations Section 6, where Void Hunter Hoshimi Miyabi began explaining the situation.

• Wise tried to keep the inspecting officers out of the storeroom while Belle rushed to finish a command on the HDD system.
• As the officer opened the storeroom door, Zhu Yuan and Qingyi arrived and redirected the patrol to another district.
• Wise and Belle recovered from the close call, and Zhu Yuan asked Wise to explain what was happening at the video store.
• Qingyi noticed the HDD system was back online, and Wise brought her and Zhu Yuan into the back room.
• Fairy revealed that she had contacted Hollow Special Operations Section 6, and Hoshimi Miyabi began speaking to Zhu Yuan and Qingyi.

Wise and Belle admitted to Zhu Yuan and Qingyi that they were Proxies, while Zhu Yuan reluctantly agreed to delay reporting their accusations against Bringer until they found evidence. Guided by Wise, Section 6 reached the captive Perlman in Ballet Tower, only to discover the rebels had lured them into a trap and forced them to flee toward a dangerous spatial rift.

• Hoshimi Miyabi recounted the group's Outer Ring ordeal to Zhu Yuan and Qingyi, and Wise and Belle confirmed they were Proxies.
• Qingyi revealed that Zhu Yuan had lost a bet and would owe her a month's worth of premium tea; Zhu Yuan then threatened to fine the siblings for employing Griseo.
• Zhu Yuan declined to report the accusations against Bringer that day and urged Wise to gather evidence quickly.
• Wise guided Section 6 through Ballet Tower, where they found Perlman bound and called for help.
• A large explosion and an assault by unmanned mechs revealed the rebels' trap, so Hoshimi Miyabi's team ran toward a spatial rift while carrying Perlman.

Hoshimi Miyabi surrendered herself after kicking Perlman into the Hollow, while the others recovered him and discovered Bringer had tracked him all along. Qingyi organized a rescue plan that split the group between reaching Miyabi and confronting Bringer.

• Tsukishiro Yanagi tried to protect Hoshimi Miyabi by claiming Section 6 had been investigating her, but Hoshimi kicked Perlman into the Hollow and was arrested in his place.
• Tsukishiro Yanagi and the other Section 6 members recovered Perlman, and Zhu Yuan found that a monitoring chip had let Bringer track him throughout his escape.
• Wise revealed that Hoshimi Miyabi might be connected to the case because her Demon Blade had once gone out of control, prompting Tsukishiro Yanagi to realize their actions may have served Bringer's plan.
• Qingyi explained that the escort vehicle could be tracked and that Bringer was near the Vision Corporation Case site, then assigned Zhu Yuan and the Proxy to reach Hoshimi while Tsukishiro Yanagi's group went after Bringer.
• Harumasa argued that Tsukishiro Yanagi and the others should not pursue Hoshimi, and Tsukishiro accepted Qingyi's plan after calming herself.

Qingyi checked on Belle and the sleeping Griseo while Zhu Yuan pursued the prison van carrying Hoshimi Miyabi. Sarah revealed that her group had engineered the crisis to copy Miyabi’s peak strength, and Miyabi lost control near Bringer’s speech as Zhu Yuan rushed to stop her.

• Qingyi visited Belle and Griseo, sensed an unfamiliar aura around Griseo, and left Belle hoping Griseo would wake soon.
• Sarah explained the Demon Blade’s blood-sacrifice seal and revealed that her schemes aimed to replicate the combined power of Hoshimi Miyabi and the blade.
• Sarah drew power from the Demon Blade with a crystal, intending to provoke Miyabi into losing control and turn her into a threat to nearby civilians.
• Zhu Yuan caught up with the prison van and saw Miyabi lose control amid scarlet energy and blue flames near Bringer’s speech.
• Zhu Yuan ran toward Miyabi with Eous, determined to stop her before civilians were caught in the attack.

Harumasa, Tsukishiro Yanagi, and Soukaku confronted Bringer during his inaugural address, and Perlman publicly exposed Bringer’s role in the Vision Case. Bringer admitted his crimes, triggered a coordinated attack on the square, and injected a drug to transform himself into a Sacrificial Ghost and seize the power of Dead End Hollow’s lord.

• Tsukishiro Yanagi declared Bringer under arrest, and Harumasa brought Perlman forward as a witness.
• Perlman accused Bringer of masterminding the Vision Case and claimed to have copies of their contracts, emails, and encrypted accounts.
• Bringer admitted the accusations and preached that [Primus] would remold New Eridu.
• Bringer’s subordinates detonated explosives around the square, Sarah freed Hoshimi Miyabi from her transport, and Dead End Hollow expanded toward the crowd.
• Bringer injected a golden drug and began transforming into a Sacrificial Ghost, channeling Dead End Hollow’s stored Ether Energy to become its Hollow Lord.

Bringer transformed into a monstrous form and attacked the agents and civilians, forcing Hoshimi Miyabi to unleash the Demon Blade. She lost control after striking Bringer, who entered his strongest phase, until a mysterious woman trapped Miyabi in pink crystals.

• Bringer became a monster with a giant eye in his palm and attacked Hollow Special Operations Section 6, while Soukaku and Tsukishiro Yanagi blocked his beam and Harumasa's arrow was cut apart.
• Bringer's shockwave knocked Tsukishiro Yanagi, Harumasa, and Soukaku down and injured civilians, while Hoshimi Miyabi weighed whether to release the Demon Blade.
• Zhu Yuan and Wise urged Hoshimi Miyabi to trust them and use the Demon Blade, saying Griseo was awake and on her way.
• Hoshimi Miyabi unleashed the Demon Blade and struck Bringer, but he survived, injected a second syringe, and entered his strongest phase as Sarah shot him with a bullet carrying a data model of Miyabi and the blade.
• Hoshimi Miyabi lost control, and a mysterious woman fired a pink energy arrow that trapped her in crystal clusters.