Night had fallen over Tokyo. Having just finished the summit, Seitenshi stood alone in a high-rise, gazing out over the city. Although the negotiations with Osaka had ended on a sour note, the proceedings had been tense but ultimately safe. Before the summit began, Rentaro had anticipated that Qi Zongxuanwu might send someone to assassinate her.
During the rounds of negotiations, they had indeed encountered a sniper attack, but the enemy had been nothing more than an ordinary sniper. Working together, Rentaro and his Initiator had taken the attacker down with ease.
But this had also made Seitenshi see Qi Zongxuanwu's ambitions clearly. He would stop at nothing to establish his dictatorship over the Land of Sakura.
"Ah..." At that thought, Seitenshi could not help letting out a soft sigh. When would the people of this country understand that they all looked up at the same sky?
Yet just as Seitenshi was lamenting this, a Self-Defense Force soldier on duty at the Giant Stone Monolith suddenly sensed faint movement outside. He hurriedly switched on his flashlight and slowly advanced to investigate. A dark shape flashed past just beyond the orange beam. His heart tightened, and the hand holding his flashlight trembled. After a brief pause, he summoned his courage and continued cautiously forward.
The soldier reached the suspended ladder and angled his flashlight slightly downward. As the beam drove back the darkness below, his body suddenly froze. His breathing quickened, and sheer terror flickered in his eyes.
A dense swarm of spiderlike Gastrea rapidly climbed the Giant Stone Monolith. An enormous monster twisted its body, its torso covered in a golden shell like a turtle's. Atop its long neck sat a ducklike head with a golden bill. A savage eye turned toward the trembling soldier. He shuddered and was about