The returning blade

The returning blade stood poised to strike.

The one-eyed demon swooped down from midair, its gaping, bloody maw less than half a meter from Rokuya's neck.

The foul gust tousled the hair over Rokuya's forehead. A few drops of murky saliva splattered onto his cheeks, carrying the nauseating stench of rotting flesh.

The long-clawed demon raced along the ground, its ten purplish-black blades already slicing open Rokuya's tattered trouser legs.

"Such a tender little bug!"

A shrill, grotesque laugh squeezed from the one-eyed demon's throat, its bulging eye threaded with greedy blood vessels.

"What makes you think you can be faster than us!"

The long-clawed demon echoed it with a hoarse howl.

In their limited understanding, the explosive power of human muscles could never compare to a demon's.

Prey had only one fate: to be torn to pieces and become bloody food in their bellies.

Rokuya did not answer.

The spasms in his stomach drew large beads of cold sweat from his forehead, but the five fingers gripping his sword hilt remained steady as stone.

He abruptly spread his fingers.

The deep-blue Arcana Blade flew from his hand.

It spun rapidly in midair, becoming a blue wheel of light like a full moon.

Bzzzz-

A piercing sonic boom tore through the alley's air. The powerful airflow instantly shattered the surrounding raindrops into a dense cloud of fine mist.

Carrying devastating momentum, the wheel of light slammed toward the long-clawed demon below and to the right.

Too fast.

The long-clawed demon did not even have time to wipe the vicious grin from its face.

The blue wheel had already sliced into its knee joints.

Before the searing heat of the Arcana Power, its hard bones instantly evaporated into a puff of white smoke.

The long-clawed demon's lower body was still racing forward, but the tremendous momentum sent its upper body crashing toward the ground.

Its face slammed squarely into the flagstones, plowing a half-meter-long bloody furrow. Shattered teeth spewed out with black blood.

After severing both legs, the wheel lost none of its speed.

It slammed into the flagstones, gouging a deep crater the size of a bowl's mouth and sending stone fragments shooting in every direction.

Using the recoil, the wheel threw up a long trail of dazzling sparks and ricocheted at an acute angle that defied the laws of physics.

Blue light shot skyward, heading straight for the one-eyed demon above and to the left.

Suspended in midair, the one-eyed demon had nothing to push against.

It could only watch as that blue wheel of death closed in.

Shhk-

The wheel flashed through its waist.

Foul black blood burst into a huge blossom in midair.

The one-eyed demon was cut in half at the waist, and both pieces crashed to the ground.

Its upper half smashed into a puddle, splashing mud half a person's height into the air; its lower half struck the ruined brick wall with a dull thud.

In the corner.

Kanae bit down hard on her lower lip, both hands digging into the muddy water. Blood seeped from beneath her nails, and her knuckles whitened from the strain.

Shinobu Kocho poked half her head out from her sister's embrace, both hands clutching her sister's clothes so tightly that even her breathing stopped.

The slowing effect of the Arcana Power erupted instantly.

The two demons lay in the muddy water, frantically twisting their mutilated bodies.

But their movements had become exceedingly sluggish.

Every swing of an arm demanded tremendous effort, held fast by an invisible, viscous mire.

The muddy water beneath them was slowly squeezed out, making wet squelching sounds.

The blue wheel traced a graceful arc through the air and flew precisely back into Rokuya's hand.

Rokuya grasped the hilt.

The rough leather wrapping rubbed against his palm.

He stepped forward, striding over the broken bricks on the ground.

One step.

Two steps.

He walked slowly, his studded combat boots striking the flagstones with dull thuds.

There was no fear, no panic.

Only the composure of a leisurely stroll.

He walked up to the long-clawed demon.

The long-clawed demon flailed its remaining arms, its ten nails clawing frantically at the ground and leaving ten deep grooves as it attempted one final struggle.

Rokuya raised his right arm.

His hand rose.

The blade fell.

The deep-blue blade's light cleaved a straight rift through the night.

The edge sliced into the long-clawed demon's neck.

The deep-blue glow erupted with astonishing heat the instant it touched flesh.

The enormous head rolled into the muddy water.

Extreme terror and bewilderment still lingered on its face.

It had not even had time to scream.

Rokuya turned and walked toward the only remaining demon, the one-eyed one.

The one-eyed demon's sole remaining eye filled with horror.

It desperately scrabbled at the ground with both hands, trying to retreat, its severed waist dragging a long trail of black blood across the ground.

Rokuya stood before it, looking down from above.

The one-eyed demon let out a desperate roar and raised its thick left arm, trying to block.

The Arcana Blade rose again.

It swung down.

The blue edge sliced through its thick left arm and neck without resistance.

Its head hit the ground and rolled two meters across the flagstones.

The two headless, mutilated bodies convulsed violently a few times in the muddy water, then began rapidly charring.

Starting at the cuts, their flesh turned to black ash.

A night breeze swept past, scattering the ashes until they vanished completely into the darkness.

Silence returned to the dead-end alley.

Rokuya stood where he was.

The silver-blue Demon Form on his right arm began to disintegrate.

The heavy metal components turned into specks of deep-blue light, peeling away piece by piece and dissolving into the air.

The explosive strength ebbed away like the tide.

An overwhelming weakness instantly swept through his entire body.

He turned to face the two girls in the corner.

Moonlight poured through the opening behind him, stretching his shadow long.

Kanae sat in the muddy water and raised her head.

As the Demon Form faded, it revealed a scrawny, frail body.

His tattered shirt flapped in the night wind, covered in mud and bloodstains.

But in her eyes, that ragged boy was now a god descended to the mortal world.

It was an impression she would never be able to erase for the rest of her life.

Rokuya looked at them.

"Don't be afraid."

He uttered those words.

He lowered his voice, his cracked lips meeting to form faint syllables.

"As long as I'm here, no one can hurt you."

The moment he finished speaking.

Ding-

A mechanical voice rang out deep inside his skull.

"Extremely intense gratitude detected!"

"Gratitude points gained: 1,000!"

"Gratitude points gained: 800!"

"Current balance: 1,800 points!"

Rokuya had no time at all to check the system panel.

A tearing agony surged through his stomach.

His internal organs twisted together, crying out in protest.

Hunger utterly destroyed what little reason he had left.

His vision went black.

He toppled stiffly forward, slamming onto the flagstones and splashing muddy water.

An unknown amount of time passed.

Rokuya opened his eyes.

His vision was somewhat blurry.

An unfamiliar wooden ceiling came into view.

The wood grain had an aged, dark-brown hue, and several thick beams spanned the roof.

A faint medicinal scent hung in the air.

Mixed into it was the faint fragrance of wisteria.

Soft bedding lay beneath him. The fabric felt exceptionally fine, certainly not a material an ordinary household could afford.

He tried moving a finger.

Every muscle in his body ached, as though several heavy trucks had run over him back and forth.

He tried to prop himself up on his elbows.

A tearing pain shot through his arm muscles, making him suck in a cold breath and collapse back onto the bed.

A sound suddenly came from outside the door.

Tap, tap, tap...

Footsteps echoed across the wooden floor.

The sound drew closer and closer.

Finally, the footsteps stopped outside the sliding door.