Chapter 39

2. ATHLY’S BATTLE Whenever she slept, that scene haunted her in her dreams. There was incandescent heat. Countless bullets whizzed through the air like flashes of light. Flame rained down on the familiar townscape, on the area where she’d made her first friend, on the school she’d attended as a child, on the streets she’d often shopped in… They were all dyed crimson, consumed by the flames. The people fled, but rampaging Exelias violently blocked their avenues of escape, mercilessly sealing their fates. It was a massacre. Helpless citizens without the means to fight back were slaughtered, one by one. The western soldiers who led the assault burned the fleeing citizens like they were on some kind of hellish assembly line. After a long while, she crossed the street lined with thousands of corpses. And then… Aaah… …the last thing she saw… No… …was the sight of her parents, who she’d left behind in this town. They were both mages, so they had their own weapons and at least some power to resist. And so, they took the rifle they kept in their house for decoration and charged the armored tank. Don’t…! It came without any warning. A single blast of Bullet Magic landed right in front of them like a stray bullet, producing an intense flurry of crimson fire. Their bodies instantly burned as if they were made of dry straw, and they died before they even had a chance to scream. Reduced to ashes within seconds. The crimson girl who’d fired that bullet stood at the back of the scene. Ah…! Her hair resembled blood…and her eyes were a mysterious black-on-red hue. She woke up with a start, cold sweat on her skin. At some point, she’d dozed off while sitting and apparently had a dream. Looking around, she confirmed she was somewhere safe… No flames were consuming everything. But her heart kept beating with the intensity of an alarm bell. What a terrible dream… No matter how much she tried to forget it, she couldn’t. The few times she managed to sleep, that scene replayed in her mind. It was the day she’d lost everything. She remembered her parents burning to nothing…and that crimson girl who stuck to her memory and refused to leave… “Athly.” “Ah!” Athly yelped and jolted up. The voice had simply spoken to her, but the vestiges of the dream left her feeling jumpy. “Wh-what?!” “…What do you mean ‘what’?” the boy replied, taken aback by her surprise. “They said we’re almost there, so you should get ready.” The boy was one she knew well. He had faint black hair, an average build for a cadet his age, and nothing distinctive about him except that he had a rifle strapped to his back. The cadets were being ferried to their destination in a transport vehicle. Several dozen people were packed in the car like sardines. However, the boy sitting before her, who was once her partner, had simply watched over her silently before she jerked awake. “……” Athly forced herself to wake up, then called his name: “Rain.” After that, she grabbed hold of her own rifle once more. “Let’s make it through today unharmed, okay?” The Lakuta ruins region was once a flourishing industrial iron mining and processing city. But the East and West warred over the mine in the area, and the town suffered. Many citizens fled in search of a safer place to live. Over 90 percent of the town’s population left their houses and belongings behind, so it soon lost all its municipal functions. Lakuta was then designated a deserted region and left under the military’s jurisdiction. Five years had passed since then. The townscape was left largely unmaintained, and the area was visibly weathered as a result. Most of the residential buildings were windswept, leaving their outer walls cracked. The roads were unmaintained and riddled with protuberances that made them uneven, making it difficult for a normal vehicle to drive through. It was, for all intents and purposes, a ghost town. “Oh, there are some people around.” Still, although over 90 percent of the populace had left Lakuta behind, it remained a town for the refugees. “I can’t believe people are living here.” “I guess it’s not completely unlivable, if you ignore the war.” “How do they get stuff like electricity and water, though?” “I hear they manage by using a few lines that still work.” In the few miles they walked into town, they spotted several residents. And they didn’t look like neglected vagrants, either. The people seemingly maintained at least some standard of living. From what Athly had heard, a human could survive as long as they had access to a fresh water supply. And so, as long as they could adjust to the low standard of living, they didn’t need to leave their homes behind. Athly understood them, but it still made no sense to her that they chose to live in a war zone. The two sides had fought over the iron mine, which had been seized by Harborant three years ago. Unlike the rarer, far more unique graimar nuclear alloy, iron was quite common. But the mine in Lakuta yielded several times the ore others did, making it important territory. And that was why Athly, Rain, and the rest were sent there. “A suppression battle…?” “Yeah. We’re launching a surprise attack that doubles as a blitz. We’re going on the offensive, despite being on the back foot overall.” For once, they weren’t going to be on the receiving end of an attack. The East planned to initiate a battle to retake the stolen iron mine. And in so doing, they would regain the precious natural resources required to continue their war effort. Rain, Athly, and the other cadets would serve as the rearguard of this battle. Meanwhile, the central part of the battle would take place directly near the mine. Athly Magmet’s life had always been touched by war, but it had become terribly gruesome in recent years. That said, her parents had both been soldiers, and she was greatly influenced by them and the many relatives she had who were also military personnel. So, in her eyes, people dying in the line of duty was natural. Still, every time it happened, unspeakable grief tormented her. Each time, another scar was etched into her heart. No matter how many times she experienced that pain, the blow never softened. The thought of them drowning in despair, of never seeing them again, filled her heart and body with pain that defied description. And yet, she didn’t flee from battle. Quite the opposite, in fact. A righteous flame burned within her chest… Yes… Several people had died around her, and each time, she felt it vividly. Thanks to the irrational, fickle nature of the world, good and evil didn’t separate life from death. Only strength mattered. The weak died. That was all there was to it. And once she knew that, Athly had started to hate feeling powerless. That feeling hadn’t changed since the first time she’d experienced it at the age of ten. In order to suppress it, she’d found her way to Alestra Academy and jumped at the chance to become a soldier. But that long-held emotion began to waver at last. I… There was a distinct reason for that. A series of shocking events had taken place several months ago. That hellish, burning scene still haunted her dreams. The West had invaded the town she was born and raised in, Leminus. And the battle that took place there had claimed the lives of the people she wanted to protect most, her parents. Back then, Athly had seen her—the one who set fire to her home and killed her parents… Kirlilith… She was an uncanny presence, a crimson existence. Something about her seemed fundamentally removed from the rest of the world. And she stole everything from Athly: the town she lived in, the peace around her, the parents she loved… Bitter resentment filled her heart. She began to hate the world itself. But a few days later, maddened as she was with grief and confusion, she chose to step onto the battlefield with a broken heart. And there, the whims of fate changed Athly’s future. During a battle over a mine, in an urban area where the East and West clashed, she accidentally laid her hands upon it. In the end, this is… Athly looked around to confirm no one was looking, then pulled out a single bullet casing hidden in her breast pocket. The bullet itself had long since disappeared, but the shell looked different from an ordinary bullet’s in a few ways. It was silver in color. It shone as if covered in foil, unlike other bullets. However, its coloring wasn’t the only odd thing about it. I… The most striking, startling aspect was the name etched onto it. What do I do…? Kirlilith Lambert. The name of the woman who had reduced both her hometown and her parents to ashes was etched on the silver bullet. It had appeared after Athly shot her… …Enough. I have to stop thinking about this! Athly shook her head, refusing to let thoughts of the bullet dominate her mind. The moment she killed that girl flashed through her memory. Rolling flames had surrounded her as Kirlilith appeared before her, already deathly wounded. Faced with her parents’ killer, Athly had been overcome by bloodlust and fired a bullet. In fact, it was the first time she’d ever shot another person. Forget about it. For now, at least… She forcibly pushed the image from her mind. No…she had to banish it because the battle was about to begin. Thirty minutes ago, the East had launched a surprise attack on a satellite base located near the mine. They then expanded the front by sending in waves of soldiers like a tsunami, flooding Lakuta with armored weapons. The cadets were ordered to remain on high alert aboard their Exelias. Athly may have had the leisure to ponder the silver bullet, but that was only thanks to luck, since they had to be ready to fight at a moment’s notice. Of course, because they were the rearguard, they only ran the risk of getting involved in the battle if it turned in the West’s favor. And that wasn’t likely. Still, they were on a battlefield, so there was no telling what might happen. And so, Athly really had to focus on the events unfolding before her eyes instead of wandering off into thoughts about unrelated events. However, right when that thought crossed her mind… Huh…? Athly looked around calmly and realized something. The classmate who often paired with her was nowhere to be found. Rain… She couldn’t find her former partner’s unit. The cadets’ units had formed a circle to better observe the area, but Rain’s Exelia wasn’t among them. He’d been paired with the transfer student, Air, for the operation, and she’d seen the two of them sitting on the same unit earlier. But the cadets were ordered to remain on standby and weren’t permitted to move from their position in the middle of the operation. So what had happened to them? Where did they go? Athly looked around one more time, but… Ah…! …the view before her soon distorted. This feeling…! Reality seemed to bend. And yet, she knew the sensation wasn’t something conjured by her mind, since she’d experienced it before. Not again…! Athly didn’t even get the chance to grasp the situation. The scene before her eyes distorted and bent. And then…the world shifted. Ugh… An odd sensation washed over Athly for a few seconds. But eventually, the distortion died down. After that, Athly looked around and… Huh…? …realized she no longer stood in the same spot she had a few seconds ago. A burning forest filled Athly’s field of vision. “What…?” Athly questioned reality, failing to grasp what had happened. After the odd sensation overtook her, the scene before her also changed. “This is…” She was surrounded by trees, while Bullet Magic was quickly whittling them down. It was the cold season, but the swirling flames filled the area with smoldering heat. This was a battlefield…the front lines. She no longer stood at the rear. The Exelia she was in was a different model from before, though. And one other factor greatly differed from her previous situation. “Athly,” a voice called out from behind, from the gunner’s seat. She’d been paired with someone she didn’t usually work with for the mission. He was an intellectual, mature classmate named Bearis. But this wasn’t his voice. “Rain…” “Um, I know this sounds strange, but I’ve gotta ask you something.” The black-haired boy who never let his guard down on the battlefield… “Where are we again?” …suddenly asked where they were. An hour earlier, right when the battle over Lakuta began… The East had begun its final preparations. They’d deployed five platoons, four of which consisted of five Exelias, while the remaining one contained sniping and intelligence experts. A total of roughly twenty Exelias and over two hundred combatants on foot were set to penetrate the West’s defensive lines and suppress the area with overwhelming firepower. The cadets weren’t counted among their ranks, since they served as reserve members. They would only be called in if there was a need to make one final push to secure victory…or if the operation failed and the East needed to retreat. Still, even with that in mind, one duo among them had no intention of sitting on their hands: Air and Rain. “There’s only one thing we need to keep in mind this time,” Air said. The two of them sat in their Exelia, which was an armored weapon in its own right, even if it was only equipped for cadet use. “And that is…?” “The enemy’s on the defensive this time,” Air said as she looked in the direction of the mine. They were situated directly north of the Lakuta ruins region, meaning the mine was even farther north. “Our side’s usually on the back foot, but that’s not the case here, which makes the Devil’s Bullet that much harder to use. We’ll have to be extra careful.” The Devil’s Bullet could erase people from existence. Shooting someone who initiated a battle would make it so the battle never began. Killing an officer who made great strides in that battle could overturn the damage they caused. Thus far, the East had only acted to defend themselves, so Rain had managed to use the Devil’s Bullet to turn unfortunate results on their heads. But this time, things were different. The East was the aggressor in this battle. In other words, their enemies hadn’t done anything yet. “Though, once the battle begins, I assume some people in the West will employ some interesting tactics,” Air continued. “To begin with, the West will have to react to our side as they defend, which they aren’t used to. Rather than attack, they’ll probably focus on holding the line.” A defensive battle was fought differently. There was no line to attack the enemy, since the objective wasn’t to win, but to “not lose.” To that end, standard tactics were somewhat predictable…and commanders couldn’t showcase their true skills in such a monotonous exchange. Unlike in offensive battles, where a wide range of tactics was put to the test, erasing an acting commander wouldn’t change much. Their replacement would likely act in the same manner, after all. The Devil’s Bullet could erase people, but the world corrected things accordingly. Erasing one skilled commander simply paved the way for someone else to take their place. That was why even the Devil’s Bullet couldn’t truly change an unfavorable battle. “I want you to decide how we fight, Rain,” Air told him. The battle for the Lakuta ruins region was about to begin. If the East lost, they’d be in an even worse position than before. And in that tense situation, Air entrusted the choice to Rain’s judgment. “How we handle this situation is entirely up to you.” “……” Air insisted that the choice remained fundamentally with Rain. She shared his objective, planned to help him if needed, and was willing to offer advice, but she decided to step back from the situation and stay there from start to finish. Rain couldn’t understand what she was thinking. And yet, he knew her decision likely wasn’t a mistake. Air had challenged other Ghosts to battle multiple times, but not once did things end up how she wanted. Even when she tried her best and made all the right choices, it always ended in tragedy. That was why she’d decided not to move of her own volition, whether Rain’s judgment seemed good or bad. That hadn’t changed since the moment she’d entrusted him with the Devil’s Bullet. Air had decided to be an observer and nothing more. After thinking it over for a second, Rain made his choice. “…This time, we’ll stay in the rear.” “Oh?” “I mean, I know we can’t guarantee the East will win, but we’re in an objectively advantageous position.” Rain understood the East had the chance to strike an overwhelming blow so long as he used the power to erase people wisely. But he also knew from experience that it was a bad idea to use the Devil’s Bullet frivolously. Its effects were simply too complicated to properly predict their results. And taking the risk seemed silly given the situation. Erasing Isuna after Deadrim had tried to seize the second-generation Exelia had only resulted in the West getting their hands on it—the unsettling reality they found themselves in now was proof of that. Rain couldn’t use the Devil’s Bullet recklessly. “For now, we’ll wait and see,” Rain said. “There’s no one from the West we absolutely need to erase in this battle. Any one of their commanders can hold the line effectively, so erasing one of them won’t change anything.” “Well, the one thing we want to avoid is screwing up and turning the tables.” “Yeah. I agree.” They decided to remain in place. At least, for the moment. As Rain finished speaking, a flare echoed in the distance. The East’s armored units had made contact with the enemy and entered combat. Both countries’ main forces clashed, embroiling the Lakuta ruins region in conflict. Rain watched over the ensuing battle from the rear. True to his word, he stayed put, keeping an eye out as events unfolded. The fact that he possessed the Devil’s Bullet was a secret few knew. In the eyes of every other soldier, Rain was a mere cadet of little importance. His only duty was to guard their rear flank. The cadets remained motionless, only receiving information through scheduled transmissions. They waited with bated breath, praying for victory. I have a bad feeling about this… Unfortunately, a premonition of disaster struck Rain, who could do nothing but hold his ground and wait. Fifty minutes later… “We have currently suffered zero casualties. Cadets are to remain on standby.” They’d received their fifth scheduled report. The transmission was brief. “Wow…,” Air uttered as she listened to the transmission from the manipulator’s seat. “It seems this country can get results when it puts its mind to it. Maybe they pulled it off by using weapons other than Exelias? Not that I care.” “Well, you should! It’s not like this doesn’t concern us.” “Looks like we won’t have to interfere today.” Fifty minutes had passed since the battle began, and the East had broken through the West’s defenses and breached their lines. In a defensive battle, that initial breakthrough was crucial. Their success meant only one thing. “I guess we won.” The surprise attack had worked. Their chances of success were predicted at over 70 percent, so it wasn’t an unexpected outcome, but Rain still sighed in relief. The sounds of the bombardment in the distance gradually died down. The enemy forces decreased, and the engagements between Exelias also lessened alongside them. However, some units still fought back. They were too far for him to see, and there were enough obstacles to hide them from sight, but Rain used his rifle’s scope as a makeshift telescope to keep track of things. They were well outside of his firing range, but by focusing as much as he could, he at least got a lay of the land. It was a mere whim. He knew they were about to win, so he decided to take a casual glance around. But when Rain focused on the front lines, he saw something shocking. “That’s…” “What’s wrong?” Air asked him. No way… It can’t be! Why?! A lone shadow lingered at the edge of his vision, rushing through the western side of the ruins. The black machine was so tall he could tell how massive it was even through the scope. It was also fifty times heavier than any ordinary Exelia, but its speed seemed to completely ignore that fact. This was Rain’s first time seeing it directly, and it was well over a thousand feet away at that, but…he could never mistake it for anything else. He’d heard of it a few days ago and had seen footage of it in action. The Razor-Edge Model’s main strength is its sturdy and heavy frame. A second-generation Exelia had appeared on the battlefield, and it was an evolved combat tank that boasted specs far beyond any older models. The Razor-Edge Model…! “Air!” Rain shouted. “Yeah?!” Air replied. She probably heard the urgency in his voice, since her listless expression disappeared immediately. “What happened?” “The Razor-Edge Model just showed up,” he told her. “What?!” she cried. “You mean the one we—?” “Yeah, the same one Kreis showed us footage of the other day.” The Razor-Edge Model was a second-generation Exelia that boasted overwhelming offense and defense. If it acted anything like in the footage, it had the ability to single-handedly decimate the East’s forces. This is bad…! Shivers ran down Rain’s spine. They didn’t have time to think of countermeasures, so it had free rein to stampede through the battlefield and destroy the East’s advantageous position. Thus far, the East hadn’t lost any units; their armored force had destroyed six enemy machines without any casualties. But the Razor-Edge Model barreled toward them… Ah…! …and crushed two eastern Exelias in an instant. As soon as they noticed its approach, the troops fired Bullet Magic at it and even hit their mark, but it failed to penetrate the Razor-Edge Model’s armor or deal any damage at all. The second-generation Exelia’s thick defenses rendered the magic powerless. Unlike an ordinary unit, its manipulator seat was also heavily armored, so sniping the manipulator was out of the question. In order to destroy that unit, they needed to destroy the Exelia altogether. Rain remained frozen as another unit was crushed mercilessly beneath the giant metallic menace. Even from afar, he heard the rumblings of the massive explosion as mechanical bits scattered about. The enemy had somehow snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. “Air!” “I’m on it!” As soon as Rain said the word, their unit sped away from the rearguard. Air had previously placed them in a blind spot away from the other cadets, so they managed to quickly rush down the road. Exelias could run swiftly even on hard soil, which meant they reached immense speeds on paved surfaces. Air crossed the Lakuta ruins region with the speed of a soaring falcon. As they made their way to the heart of the battle, Rain and Air sorted through the information they had. “I didn’t think we’d run into it this fast.” “Neither did I.” They needed to think of a plan. Victory seemed within their grasp, but the Razor-Edge Model changed everything. It had likely been placed in the western base assigned to watch over the mine. That, coupled with its slow start-up time, explained why it’d joined the battle so late. …… They’d gotten extremely unlucky, to say the least. They hadn’t anticipated enemy reinforcements in the form of a second-generation Exelia here. Kreis’s words came to mind: “This unit is fifty times the weight of a normal Exelia…” It had impregnable defenses. And currently it was wreaking havoc, turning the tides. Information on the Razor-Edge Model was classified, so none of the soldiers who were locked in combat with it knew what to do. The only ones present who understood its true power were Rain and Air, who’d heard about it from Kreis. But even then, how are we supposed to beat that thing? The two of them watched the massive unit storm through the battlefield, still unsure what to do. And at that exact moment, a wireless transmission reached their ears. “Incoming report.” A scheduled message from HQ resounded. “We are under attack by a unique unit that has entered the combat area. The manipulator of that unit is attempting to make contact with us. The East rejects any attempts for negotiation on principle. No one should respond.” This is… A warning. An enemy soldier wished to negotiate with them, and HQ warned everyone to ignore it. Any other soldier would have immediately understood, however… “The contents of their transmission are as follows: ‘My name is Kaisei Reisman.’” …Rain and Air heard something different within that message. “You are forbidden from accepting transmissions from that officer.” Kaisei… Rain felt a chill run down his spine. He felt immense fear for a moment because of Air, who sat in the seat in front of him. “I see…” That single utterance contained an unspeakable amount of rage, and he noticed her back shiver. She shook with intense anger…and her emotional reaction made perfect sense. If Kaisei was who they thought he was…if he truly controlled the Ghosts and manipulated Deadrim’s desire for peace to his own ends…they could never forgive him. “Hmph,” Air exhaled once. “Isn’t this a nice twist of fate? Putting the stolen second-generation Exelia aside, we’ve run into the man I most want to see. If we defeat the Razor-Edge Model, we can meet Kaisei. And I, for one, refuse to let this stroke of luck pass us by.” “What do we do?” “Win, obviously.” “Sounds good to me…,” Rain said, nodding in agreement. No one but them had any chance of dealing with the Razor-Edge Model. But a reckless approach to it made no logical sense. They needed to cook up a plan to defeat the monstrosity. And as far as they could see, they had no real countermeasures at hand. The black beast continued its one-sided rampage. It simply charged forward, felling Exelias left and right. It had such overwhelming defensive and offensive capabilities that it almost seemed like there was no real path to victory. But thanks to her trained eye, Air noticed that something seemed off. “…This makes no sense.” “What?” “It’s moving way too fast.” “Huh? I mean, yeah?” “No, you don’t get it.” Something felt off, but whatever it was didn’t have to do with the Razor-Edge Model movements, per se. “It’s navigating too well. I’ve been watching it rush around, and I’ve noticed that it’s fighting like it can see through everything in its path. The thing’s driving through a forest, which means its vision is impaired by the trees, but it’s still not getting lost.” “Oh, now that you mention it, you’re right.” “No matter how good a unit’s specs are, it’s a sitting duck if it can’t see. Usually, a unit works in tandem with its consorts to counteract that, but the Razor-Edge Model’s all alone. It should have tons of blind spots, but it’s fighting like it’s part of a team. That shouldn’t be possible.” In other words… “You’re trying to say there’s a hidden force helping it, right?” That was something Rain would never have noticed on his own. But that conclusion begged the question, Where were they? As far as Rain could see, the Razor-Edge Model fought on its own. No Exelia was small enough to actually hide, and while the climb up from the Lakuta ruin region to the mine offered a view of the area below, the actual battle was taking place near the mine. Rain was certain no other western Exelia occupied the area, but Air proclaimed that the Razor-Edge Model wasn’t working on its own. That meant it was getting information from somewhere, but… …It can’t be! The moment the thought occurred to him, Rain looked around wildly, feeling startled. This was no ordinary forested mountain. It was the Lakuta ruins region. People still lived here. And since they’d launched a surprise attack, the residents of the town weren’t given a notice to evacuate. Many of them had failed to flee in time…or simply decided to wait out the battle. Of course, the soldiers fought with no regard for the lives around them, so some civilians got caught in the cross fire. But even so, many of them refused to flee. Where…? Rain wondered as he looked around. But he only saw dilapidated houses, a ruined church, and water storage facilities. Where could they be? Rain tried to figure out the enemy’s position as he looked east. Oh, there! And eventually, he arrived at an answer. That’s the perfect hiding spot… Once he’d found what he was looking for, Rain told Air their destination. A one-hundred-and-thirty-foot clock tower stood in the center of the ruins. Later, Rain would learn that it had served as a tourist attraction before war ravaged the area. It was a symbol of the city, of the dreams of its many citizens who wished for peace. But at that moment, Rain stood at the top of it… “Hold it right there.” …threatening violence. “One wrong move, and I’ll shoot you through the heart.” Rain kept the muzzle of his rifle fixed forward…at two civilians clad in casual clothes. They had neither firearms nor knives in their hands, but something no ordinary citizen could have had rested at their feet: a military transceiver. “You’ve been watching the battlefield and providing instructions this entire time, haven’t you?” he asked. The clock tower rose high into the air, making it a perfect observation deck. “Go on, admit it. You’re ordering the Razor-Edge Model around from up here. Isn’t that right, Kaisei Reisman?” “…My,” said a slender man with his face hidden under a hood. His attire appeared dirty and his hair seemed disheveled, but he didn’t look weak or sickly. He possessed the toned body of a soldier, which was evident even with his clothes. There wasn’t a trace of needless flesh anywhere on him. There are two of them… Rain had found two young men atop the tower, but only one stood upright. Something about this situation was strange. The man squatting next to the hooded figure was struggling to breathe and cradling his bleeding abdomen. He seemed to be dying, but that wasn’t the most surprising thing about him. On closer examination, Rain realized he knew him. It was First Lieutenant Ian, a rather famous western officer. Why is he here? Rain wondered, feeling extremely confused. The wounded man, Ian, was a high-ranking officer in charge of organizing the West’s troops in this region. Rain wouldn’t have misidentified him, no matter what state he was in. “Oh, him?” the hooded young man said with an oddly androgynous voice. “This looked rather troublesome, so I brought him along. He’s apparently pretty important in the West, so I figured he’d be good insurance.” “……” Rain fell silent. The situation felt incomprehensible. First Lieutenant Ian had authority on the level of a commandant in the West. Injuring a man of his position and dragging him around was no simple feat. “So how can I help you? I imagine you didn’t climb all the way up here just to take in the sights.” Despite the plainness of the hooded man’s voice, there was a stark threat behind it. Rain nearly flinched, but he caught himself at the last moment. “Oh, I see. You heard Kaisei was involved and came to see me. Yes, I suppose that makes sense. You’re right, I’m the one who’s managing the Razor-Edge Model. Though I doubt that’s why you’ve come, given you already know my name. You’re here for me.” He readily admitted that he was Kaisei Reisman. It really is him… The sole hint Deadrim had left behind was the name of the man responsible for maintaining the war between the East and West over the last century. They’d finally found the man responsible for the creation of Ghosts… Rain had no intention of letting him escape. I’ll finish him here! He planned to settle the score. And as soon as he made the decision, Rain prepared to shoot his rifle. However… Ah! …Kaisei crumpled in place and fell forward, as if his legs had suddenly given out. Or, at least, that was what he wanted Rain to believe. Unfortunately, the truth was entirely different. After he bent forward, Kaisei swiftly drew the rifle on his back. Shit! He’d fallen forward to trick Rain and quickly draw his gun, which had worked perfectly. Fuck! Ideally, he’d hoped to take him alive, but Rain had lost that opportunity. There was so much information to gain from him. If he was involved with the Ghosts, there were many questions he could answer. To what end did he create the Ghosts? What was the point of continuing the war for so long? Why did the Ghosts even exist? If Rain killed him in self-defense, the answers to those secrets would forever be lost. And worse yet, if Kaisei truly was the one who’d created the Ghosts, what would happen if he was struck by the Devil’s Bullet? All the Ghosts he created, including Air, might get erased… When that thought crossed his mind, Rain hesitated. He stiffened, refusing to pull the trigger. However… “Do it.” …a voice cut through his hesitation. “Shoot him, Rain!” Air roared, wiping away his doubts. She ordered him to take Kaisei’s life despite the possible consequences. She’d accepted any outcome. You’re so strong… Air had long since made her decision. She knew what they had to do, even if it meant erasing her existence, so she’d summoned her resolve. Rain clearly understood that…and he decided to honor her firm will. Die, Kaisei! Rain thought as he fired his gun and the silver bullet in its chamber. The Bullet Magic capable of wiping anyone from existence crossed the few yards between Rain and Kaisei. The hooded figure disappeared before Rain and Air even got a good look at his face. Or, at least, that was how it should have ended. And yet…