'My lord!　I'm here!　Na, Kurama.

Oh, Tsukuba, he's in this room!

Thank you so much for your help, Kurama, Tsukuba.

　Yuto squatted down and smilingly patted Kurama and Tsukuba's heads.
　Kurama and Tsukuba were pleasantly surprised.
　In fact, as Yuto stepped into the dark castle of the Water Margin, these two suddenly appeared and hugged him like they were flying. And since Kurama and Tsukuba had been hiding out since they arrived here, they boasted that they knew most of the inner workings of the place, so they were able to show him to Alessandro's room.

''Hey, Chieftain, were we useful?''

Hey, hey, do I get a treat?

'Of course!　When I get back, I'll give you your prize. There are two of my associates outside that are watching the area, so call out to them. Those two, in particular, were very grateful to Kurama and Tsukuba for their good work.

'Oh!　I can't help it, I'll call on you!
'Oh!　We'll get a treat from those people too!

　As soon as he said that, Kurama and Tsukuba left the room as if they were vying to be the first to leave.

''Well....

　Yuto stood up and erased his expression.
　He takes a quick look around the room, which is tilted at an angle, and then stares at the bookshelves that are placed unnaturally without collapsing in the tilted room.



　The door to the crude shed there, west of the large pond on the north side where the dark castle of Water Margin is named, opens.

'All right, I'll get the jeep out in the barn. Wait for me, Lorenza.

　Alessandro and Lorenza reached the hut that was the secret escape route and breathed slightly. On the way, the building tilted and the passage was not connected because it was difficult, but Alessandro, who is also the designer of this passage and an alchemist, managed to get here while proceeding to patch up the path with magic power.
　Of course, he destroyed the first aid part as he passed by.
　When he got into the jeep that Alessandro had brought around, Lorenza turned to him.

'What do you want to do with it?　From now on,

Well, let's head for the military base first. There, we won't be able to hurt them, even if they come after us.

'Oh yes I do,'

What's going on?

'No, I am not going to leave my curses and ritual vessels for divination that I left in my room.

Well, bear with me, Lorenza. We'll retrieve whatever we can when they leave. And with the two of us, we can start over as many times as we want. And after all these years, the agency's people-especially this hermit boy and Shitenji, who are here this time-will get what they deserve.

'Hmph, yes. I'm sure....

'And we've got this. We'll set up an altar as soon as we get to the base.

　Saying this, Alessandro takes out a piece of parchment with Marion's hair and a geometric pattern on it from his chest.

''Yes, I suppose that's all you can do with it.

Okay, I get it.

　Alessandro's mouth twisted into a grin and he stepped on the gas pedal and drove the jeep between the beastly roads, heading north with the Water Margin's Dark Castle at his back.
　And then ... just as the jeep left the scene, there was a figure coming out of the hut at the escape door of the Water Margin's Dark Castle.



　Lorenza opened her mouth hatefully as the jeep made its way through the bad road in the forest, fanning the leaves of the trees annoyingly.

''And even so, that little boy and Shitenji did me in this time. Especially that little boy........If it wasn't for that little boy, we would have invited Azi Dahak-sama by now.......Oh, hateful.

''........I had no information about that little boy at all. The agency had attached an able-bodied person with this much power to rank D. What a bunch of idiots!　But as it turned out, it derailed our plans. We've become embroiled in the stupidity of the agency and our guts are churning.

'But is the boy happy?　With that much combat power, being treated as a mere rank D, that's like being branded the same as an inferior ability person in that area....... And that knowledge of the other world........

'You sure are a creepy little bastard... what's your purpose in the agency?　This kid is dangerous. We need to make it a top priority to do a thorough search... yeah?　Tsk.

What's going on?　You

I think we got a flat tire. Why now?

　Alessandro jumped out of the driver's seat and checked the rear wheel tires in frustration. Looking at it, both rear wheel tires had burst and were completely useless.

'Mh!　This is ... Lorenza!

　Alessandro called and Lorenza got out of the car as well.

'Something....'

'This punk is not natural!　There's someone out there!

....!

　It is obvious that the puncture was only punctured by an attack from the outside. Alessandro and Lorenza take the utmost caution in their surroundings, but there is no sign of an enemy.

''The agency's gifted.......Ha, another contracted outsider of sorts!

So I'm telling you that's not true...

!

　Alessandro looked for the location of the voice that had suddenly replied, and the owner of the voice was in the driver's seat of the jeep he was sitting in earlier.

''Ki, you ... no, that voice is the one from earlier!

"You're a little hermit crab!

　Yuto exited the jeep with a relaxed movement in front of the astonished and poised alchemist and sorcerer.

'I told you.　I'm ... a curse to you guys.

You're not going to die!

　Lorenza unfurled the fan and threw it horizontally at Yuto.
　Without changing his standing position or expression, Yuto cleaved the fan with a posture that appeared from his right arm. The fan was cut in half and stabbed into the trees behind Yuto.

''Kuh!''

　Alessandro and Lorenza's faces contort as they are lightly mocked by Yuto.

　By nature, Alessandro and Lorenza are not skilled in actual combat. That's why they are parasites in a large organization and try to seize power from within it.
　In the case of Alessandro, he never thought of fighting the enemy on the front line. This is what pawns like the Leopard of the Dark Night should do.
　And moving them as pawns and figures is my, Alessandro Di Cagliostro's natural position.
　This idea has never changed, and when the people revolted against him two hundred years ago, Alessandro wept, wondering why he didn't understand it.
　If you don't have the head and the ability, then you should leave it to yourself, who has the head and the ability, to wait for instructions.
　Leave that life and life to yourself.
　If you look at people's lives from a bigger perspective, it will ultimately be the shortest way to happiness.
　The sacrifices and damages that occur along the way are trivial.
　It's pointless to try to reason with the foolish people, it's a waste of precious time.
　In the long run, this action is also for the sake of the gifted who have lived in the shadow of the times... or rather, for the noble and far-reaching purpose of benefiting humanity as a whole.
　Without knowing that, this little boy's way of condemning Alessandro, getting angry, and coming to this point is nothing short of recriminatory.
　For Alessandro, the boy, who is only stupid and foolish, takes a step forward.

''Uh........''

　Without a second thought, Alessandro and Lorenza backed away.
　Even though he looked seriously wounded, this boy had almost single-handedly destroyed the Dark Night's Leopard. And more than anything else, he was pressured by his eye power.

''Hey I have a lot of questions for you guys.

"...what's the matter with you, kid?

''The first thing I want to ask is, how did you get that half-demon's body?　So did those guys, the Sword of Surt, but what is your connection to them?　You do have one, don't you?　And the technique that was put on that recognition slip........ Probably the same route, but where did you get the idea from?

"...don't listen to that, kid.

'Secondly, where do you know Azzi Dahak?　No, who blew it to you?

　Alessandro's eyes were filled with astonishment.
　I had heard from Lorenza that this boy had some knowledge about the other world.
　But this manner of speaking by the boy it seems as if he knows the demon god Azzi Dahak.

Who are you? Why do you have to go to such lengths...

I'm asking you. Answer me....

....!

　Both Alessandro and Lorenza get choked up by Yuto's gaze.
　However, gradually Alessandro adjusted his expression and approached Yuto with a condescending manner.

''Alright fine, it seems you know a lot of things. So you're interested in the information we have........ How about that?　Wouldn't that be a good deal in exchange?

...in exchange for?

"You're out of this case in exchange for us giving you the information you want. Of course, we also promise that you'll never touch that blonde girl again. It seems that's what you're going to do. I won't break your face. And if you're willing to provide me with the knowledge of the other world that you have now, I'll pay you a fair price for it, but... what do you think?

Well, the price... what's it like?

I'm in!　Well, I guess I'll have to show my cards to earn a certain amount of credit I guess in this situation, I don't blame you. That's the kind of kid I'd rather have on my side. In fact, I think there's something to this guy. No, we have to be very careful here!　Now is not the time to be greedy. (Anyway, getting away from this place is a top priority...)

Hey, you. So what's the price?

'Oh, oh!　Naturally, I guarantee a financial one. You can say as much as you want, okay?　As you know, this one is backed by the state budget of the Communist People's Republic of China. And.........

　Alessandro looked into Yuto's eyes, smirked, and put a beat on it.
　He made a show of trying to say, "From now on, it's going to be beneficial to you," as if he was trying to say.
　In response, Yuto raises one eyebrow slightly and waits for Alessandro's words.

I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it work for you.　Originally, your ability to be a rank D is impossible, but I guess the agency's exam couldn't measure your ability. Utterly foolish, but...

　Yuto's eyes widened for a moment.
　Alessandro looked at it and cowered his shoulders in an exaggerated manner.

''Well, your rank will rise with your work this time. After all, you crushed the dark night leopard with just three people. That's a tremendous achievement. I'm sure the agency can't help but be surprised... But even so, your new rank is a rank B at best.

....

'You do know that normally the institution's rank is up to AA and you have to take the exam, right?　There is also a system for moving up in rank based on performance, but that system is limited to two ranks, if it raises at all, except for rank S and above. As an example of an institution in the past about 80 years, only one person has been promoted more than 3 ranks based on performance alone. So at this rate, you'll be a rank B stop at best. Besides, those two rank A lasses will take the credit for it. "Rank D can't play that much of a role against the Dark Night's Leopard, they must have gotten the credit behind those two rank A's. As expected of Shitenji, as expected of the Orleanian bloodline," he said, and that's how it will be judged. In fact, it's because of your success,

Hmm, you seem to know a lot about the inner workings of an institution.

'Huh, I don't just live long, either. ─ I haven't been alive for long either, the agency doesn't want to move up the ranks based on performance alone. The agency doesn't want to raise the rankings based on performance alone, because then the test that was set up could be disregarded. The agency wants you to take the test. ........Do you know why?

No....

'Ostensibly, it's about knowing the characteristics of the person with the ability and assigning a commensurate and efficient request, but it's not. It's........risk management.

Risk?

Oh, yes. What if ... some of the people with abilities were planning an uprising against society?　Of course, anyone with the ability to be willing to defend the current existing society will be confronted with these. Especially those who set up organizations like the Agency. And when that happens don't you think it's important to know the characteristics of your opponent's abilities?

....

The inception of the World Organization of Gifted Persons began with the Gifted Persons War. The jutsu and techniques possessed by gifted people are infinitely different. It's a very good idea to have a good idea of what you can do to help. That can change the status of a battle in a big way.

　Yuto had heard from Gaston that there was once a history of a massive battle between people with abilities on the other side of the First World War.

''Did such a thing actually happen?　That able-bodied man, during the Great War....

"...hmmm. But that's not the point. You belong to such an institution. And as far as I can see, you are very loyal to it, aren't you?　Until he was made an inferior rank of rank D, which is not commensurate with his abilities. Are you sure?　The agency will make you take the test whenever you have the opportunity to move up in rank. That means that your techniques and skills are being discovered and analyzed more and more. If you get noticed by that, you can't deny the possibility of more investigations?

Well I see. That's a problem.

'Apparently, for some reason, you know a lot about the Otherworld. Even though this is our top secret. That means you must have a lot of things going on, right?　What do you think?　Let me guarantee you a rank AA if you accept this deal. If you try to move up from rank AA, you won't have to take an exam. That means you won't have to take the test. And if you do well, the rewards will be more than comparable to what you've been paid. None of this is bad news for you.

...hmm.

'What's bothering you?　You're gonna have to make good on that promise, right?　It's worth it to deal with someone as good as you. I think I at least know how to add and subtract.

'Well...'

　Alessandro was inwardly relieved when he saw that negotiations were concluded, although he did not show it on his face. Beside him, Lorenza also grinned and smiled.

''Mm, then.........''

No, it's another weak one for the price.

What?　 Well, it's not that I don't like people like that. In fact, they're quite trustworthy. So ... what more do you want from me?

Greedfulness is out of the question. In fact, I don't want all the conditions you've just offered. I don't need them.

'What!　Then what are you...!

The only thing I want for you guys is...

　
　The investors and their families who were cursed without reason.
　Among them was Mizuho's friend, Akiko Houzuki.
　Akiko was extremely weak, most of her hair had fallen out, and her parched lips moved slightly as she wept. The comb that her cousin had given her to visit her in the hospital was no longer needed....
　This is a very cruel state of affairs for a girl of her age.
　She also planned to kidnap Marion, an important friend and comrade-in-arms of Masato, with the aim of using her as a sacrifice to summon a demon god. Even more so, it was one that was willing to kill all the people who stood in the way of it, and Mizuho and Akara also put themselves in danger.

　Furthermore.....

　The man who was once known as the Deadbird was hired to abduct Marion.
　The man was lured by the darkness from his less fortunate birth and lived in the darkness.
　But that man met it.
　The people who gave him warmth to escape the darkness, his family....
　The joy of life he had never known before was short-lived, but the darkness pursued this man.
　At this time, this man, who was reborn under the surname of Swallow, made a decision.
　It made him make a fierce decision to cut off his own life connected to the darkness in order to protect the children who had become his family.
　And now, that man, Yan Zhizui, is wandering on the border between life and death.

　The main culprit behind it all is in front of Yuto.
　Moreover, the main culprit is a world where humans are controlled by demonic gods.
　In order to achieve this, many people will be involved and the number of lives lost will be countless.

My desire is your redemption. Atonement with your own flesh and blood.

What the hell...?

　Yuto's gaze, the Senki that comes out of his entire body, gives Alessandro and Lorenza goosebumps.

''Didn't you.......tell me?　I am ... a curse to you. It's a curse that can never be broken, to erase your existence.

　Yuto pointed the tip of the blade of the Aiken ETOBA to Alessandro and the others quietly from below.
　

''Only for your purposes you who curse people and play with them and trample those who wanted a little happiness!　I will give you the end that you deserve!