When Rolonia and Nashetania saw the light grenades, they sprinted off eastward. Plowing through fiends as they went, they listened and looked for Adlet’s party.
“N-Nashetania, you understand that you can’t kill Chamo or Hans, right? We’re just going to defeat and capture them,” said Rolonia.
“Don’t worry. I’m hoping the situation will allow it.”
✦ ✦ ✦
Goldof and Mora both saw the light of the flash grenades, but being surrounded, they couldn’t go anywhere.
“Hans… Chamo…,” Goldof murmured. He was still on the fence. He didn’t quite believe that Adlet was a real Brave. In his mind, he called out to Hans and Chamo. If you two are real Braves, then show me you can get out of this. Prove you’re not the fakes. You’re the only ones who can.
✦ ✦ ✦
Upon receiving the order from Tgurneu, the wolf-fiend sent out its troops—the thirty best fighters of the hundred under its command. They would be the first to engage them and prepare a surprise attack. The wolf didn’t explain to the fiends who the seventh was. It only ordered them to kill Chamo while the others were busy fighting. It moved the remaining seventy to a position where they could quickly rush to the battle.
The wolf-fiend then found a conveniently large tree and climbed up into it. Looking out through the canopy into the distance, it immediately spotted Adlet’s party and two lights rushing toward it with incredible speed. That would be Hans and Chamo. They would catch up to Adlet’s group soon.
✦ ✦ ✦
“We’re gonna fight!” Adlet yelled.
They couldn’t get away. Hans and Chamo would catch up before they could rejoin Rolonia and Nashetania. Adlet yelled and turned around, readying paralysis and pain needles in the fingers of both hands.
Astride the back of a slug, Chamo was making a beeline for them, illuminating the whole area with a light gem. Her eyes were locked on Fremy, and she stuffed her foxtail down her throat to vomit up every slave-fiend she had. Lightning, bombs, and needles held them at bay, but even Adlet, Fremy, and Dozzu attacking simultaneously couldn’t stop all her forces.
“Watch out!” cried Adlet. The slave-fiends that had slipped through their attacks were after Fremy. Adlet shoved one away with a body blow while Dozzu fried another with its lightning. Where is Hans? Adlet wondered, looking around. He sensed something in the darkness. Hans was coming for Fremy from the side.
“Just lie down and die already!” Chamo yelled, pointing at Fremy. Instantly, even the slave-fiends protecting Chamo joined the attack as Hans leaped from the treetops toward Fremy.
“It’ll be a cold day in hell!” Adlet’s sword blocked Hans’s swing.
“Hrmeeeaow!” Hans fell back, throwing two knives. One missed, sticking near Adlet’s belt and leaving him unhurt. The other went for Fremy. She easily repelled it with the grip of her gun, but the slave-fiends used that moment to close the distance.
The fight turned to chaos, with both sides in a jumble together. This is bad , thought Adlet, and he ran for Fremy to protect her.
Right then—Hans grabbed hold of a light gem he’d been hiding in his hand, and for just a blink, the gem flashed at its brightest intensity. The glare wasn’t as powerful as a flash grenade, but as Adlet’s, Fremy’s, and Dozzu’s eyes were used to the dark, it blinded them for an instant. Fremy and Dozzu both froze for that split second.
“Is that all you got?!” Adlet didn’t flinch, slicing out at Hans, but Hans slipped past Adlet’s sword and switched targets. Landing on the ground with his hands, he took the fight in the exact opposite direction—toward Chamo, on the back of her slug-fiend. His sword was raised, ready to descend on Chamo at full force.
“Huh?” Chamo muttered weakly. Hans’s blade was nearing her neck as if a magnet were pulling it in.
“Chamo!” A high-pitched, metallic sound rang out. Hans’s trajectory was suddenly reversed by Fremy’s bullet, but he’d blocked it with his sword and escaped injury.
“…Wh…at?” All the slave-fiends froze, as did Adlet and Dozzu. The only movement was in Fremy’s fingertips, loading her next bullet.
“…Huh?”
Hans rolled on the ground, then slowly stood up. Carelessly, he scratched his head and shrugged.
“…Catboy?” Chamo touched her hand to her neck. She looked at her palm. It was sticky with blood.
“That was close. I blew it. If Fremy hadn’t gotten in my way, I’d have taken ya meowt.” Hans smiled gleefully.
✦ ✦ ✦
The wolf-fiend stood on its branch, frozen. Unable to process what was going on, it simply stopped just as it was about to give the fiends waiting nearby the order to charge.
Tgurneu’s instruction had been to kill Chamo while the Braves were fighting one another. But the wolf-fiend could no longer obey. Both sides had stopped fighting.
Hans and Chamo were supposed to be working together. So then, why would Hans attack Chamo? Had Commander Tgurneu lied? If so, then what for?
✦ ✦ ✦
“So I couldn’t even kill Chamo. Oh, meow . I can’t do anythin’ right.” As Hans spoke, he started ambling around. Chamo was stunned, still staring at him.
He’s finally stopped hiding it , Fremy thought.
“Fiends, y’all stay back a bit longer, meow . I’m talkin’ here, so don’t get in the way,” Hans called out to thin air. “Well, that’s neow problem. I got other cards to play. Lemme tell ya somethin’, Adlet.”
Adlet seemed unable to process the situation. For the moment, Dozzu was watching attentively.
“I’ve decided I won’t try to kill Fremy no meowr. I realized there’s a better use for her.”
“…What are you trying to say?” demanded Fremy.
“My first idea was to use ya as a tool to kill Chamo. Well, that failed. But there’s still one other way you can help me. I’ve decided to take ya hostage, Fremy.”
“…Hostage?” repeated Adlet.
“I’ll be frank: I can kill Fremy at any time. If ya wanna save her, Adlet, then listen up. Look, if ya do anythin’ funny, it’ll all be over in a flash. You don’t behave, Fremy’s as good as dead.”
“What did he do, Fremy?! Hans or Chamo did something to you, didn’t they?!” Adlet yelled. But Fremy shook her head. She didn’t recall even being touched by a slave-fiend, much less Hans. But then she quickly remembered something—that red mark stamped on her chest.
It was probably no lie that he could kill her at any time.
“…He’s…a helluva bastard,” Adlet muttered.
“My demand is…well, I’m sure I don’t have to tell mew, Adlet.”