Victoria said that the reason why she wanted to join the club was to kill her sister, right?

 

 

[...Now that I’m hearing it again, don’t you think she’s being too harsh?]

 

…Honestly, I don’t think she means it.

 

 

I thought as such while looking at Victoria, who was preparing tea for me as her guest, in front of me.

 

Gotta say, this was quite the sensible way to welcome a guest. I mean, she always wore no expression on her face, so it was difficult to figure out what she was thinking about.

 

 

So, you know that the Empire is enforcing a strict discriminating law against the Cardinal Humans, right?

 

 

To put it simply, Cardinal Humans were those who possessed practically prominent characteristics of ‘other species’ among the humans.

 

We kinda met one of them the other day, but you’d understand what I was talking about if I were to use Seras as an example. They were those who had animal ears on top of their heads, basically.

 

 

[Yes and I think that law is fucking disgusting.]

 

“...”

 

 

I knew that he was the leader of the Guardians, the group of people who were devoted to uphold justice throughout their lives, but I still didn’t expect him to show such a strong reaction like this. What a man.

 

And here I thought he’d defend the Empire since his group worked under them.

 

I really thought that he’d make an excuse too, since he practically belonged to the Empire, you know?

 

 

[In the first place, it’s such an outdated and evil law. It’s just that there are only a few Cardinal Humans left in the Empire, that’s why no one bothered to raise a topic to get rid of that law.]

 

…If you know about that, then it’d be easier to talk about this.

 

 

Because that meant he wouldn’t refute my words with a foaming mouth when I talked about it.

 

While looking at Victoria in front of me, I let out a sigh inwardly.

 

 

You see, this punk and Seras are the few Cardinal Humans survivors.

 

[...]

 

 

As soon as he heard the word ‘survivor’, Caliban went silent. I could only let out a bitter smile inwardly.

 

That meant he understood what I was trying to imply.

 

Cardinal Humans looked like humans and behaved like humans, but the Imperial Law didn’t guarantee their ‘human rights’.

 

And so, people treated them the same way as they treated animals.

 

In other words…

There were some scumbags who hunted them ‘for fun’.

 

 

[What?]

 

 

Caliban reacted, as if he had heard something he shouldn’t have. Well, my words were true. Cardinal Humans Hunt was a ‘sport’ that used to trend among some noble circles.

 

The ‘Beastkins’ often used their physical capabilities and covertness to perform as assassins, so they were an especially easy target for such evil acts.

 

Especially since the nobles only needed to use their old bullshit excuses to justify the massacre, like calling it a ‘purge for justice’ or ‘preventing troubles in the future’.

 

 

[...Those things actually happened…?]

 

 

Hearing how sad and angry his voice was, I held my tongue.

 

This person had thrown his life away for the Empire, yet something like this happened. The evidence of such atrocities was right in front of us even.

 

Anyway, the root of the nonsense she said the other day—the thing about her wanting to kill her own sister—was because of what happened in the past, back when she first found herself as a survivor.

 

 

This girl thinks that her whole family died because of her sister. That’s the reason why she said such a thing.

 

[...Hey, hey, wait. You skipped a lot of things from your explanation.]

 

 

I could picture Caliban pressing his temples as he said those words.

 

 

[Let’s go back to the start. You said that she doesn’t mean it, but with those circumstances, there’s no way that’s the case. She has all the reason to try and kill her sister for real.]

 

You see, at this point, she’s only being suspicious of her sister. There’s no evidence yet.

 

 

Victoria herself must've had complicated feelings.

 

After all, Seras was her only family left. She couldn’t exactly treat her as a mortal enemy because she only had an uncertain suspicion.

 

I threw a glance at Victoria, who came over with the two cups of tea that she had brewed.

 

 

That’s why, I doubt that she’ll say anything big.

 

 

As I told Caliban that…

 

 

“The one who kills my sister first will be the winner.”

 

“...”

 

 

Victoria spouted that nonsense.

 

She said it so casually, as if she was saying something like ‘Let’s eat, I’m hungry’. As if this was a matter of course and it wasn’t even worth discussing it.

 

And from such an attitude…

 

I could feel her firm will ever so clearly.

 

 

[...What did you say just now?]

 

…Ugh.

 

[Look at her eyes. She’s being serious.]

 

In a normal situation, she shouldn’t be like this though…

 

 

I replied while trying hard to soothe my headache.

 

And then my gaze fell on the Purple Aura in her eyes.

 

I see. Now I understood. That thing was eating away this punk’s rational judgment whenever a Seras-related topic was brought up, huh?

 

As I had stated before, the Devil’s Fragments would always try to fuse with one another. If two people each had a single Fragment, they’d try to ‘encourage’ the Vessels to ‘unite’ them together.

 

Seeing me staying silent for too long, Victoria, who was sitting across from me now, tilted her head.

 

 

“You were the one who told us to suggest the match, weren’t you?”

 

“...I did.”

 

“Then, since you said that, this should count as a ‘match’. The winner will be decided by whoever is able to kill her first.”

 

 

Her tone suggested that she didn’t think she had said a single wrong thing at all.

 

It was as if she was trying to ask me, ‘Why the hell are you taking so long to give the okay?’.

 

 

[...Why don’t you just refuse it? I don’t think this is right.”

 

 

Caliban said. His tone sounded like he was struck by a headache.

 

 

[Cooperating in an attempted murder is already ridiculous enough, but I feel like she’s just provoking you. She was the one who said that her goal of joining the club is to kill her sister and yet she asked you for a match to achieve that same goal. Don’t you think it’s a little—]

 

 

He had a point.

 

But, when I listened to him speak, something flashed in my mind.

 

 

“Sure. Let’s do that.”

 

 

That was why I threw out my answer like that before Caliban could even finish his words.

 

 

“...”

 

 

Victoria's hands stopped.

 

She stared at me, as if thinking that she heard it wrong.

 

 

“...What?”

 

 

Her reaction—aside from her eagerness to do this—suggested that she didn’t expect me to agree so coolly.

 

Now I could tell that she was just trying to get me to refuse and from there, she’d try to ‘negotiate’ with me or something.

 

 

“I said, let’s do it. Let’s see who’d get to kill your sister first.”

 

 

I said with a smirk.

 

Hearing what I said, she made the same expression as I did when I first heard her suggestion, but I ignored that and continued.

 

 

“But you'll have to keep the promise, okay?”

 

 

‘Obey me if you lose’. That promise.

 

 

“...”

 

 

Hearing my words, her whole body flinched and trembled a little.

 

It seemed like she was sensing something ominous from my words.

 

 

●

 

 

[...]

 

“...”

 

[...]

 

“...”

 

 

I was walking down the corridor, then I stopped before letting out a deep sigh.

 

The silence coming from the Soul Linker stung. I could sense that whatever it was that Caliban wanted to tell me had risen up to his throat.

 

 

“... Caliban.”

 

[Hm?]

 

“If you have something to say, just say it.”

 

[Don’t mind me, I know better. There’s no point in questioning you about it.]

 

“...”

 

[I know you’re up to some crazy shit like usual anyway. What’s the point?]

 

“...”

 

 

For a moment, I wondered what the heck happened to his evaluation of me, but I didn't ask him that.

 

Just like what he said, there were things that we didn’t need to ask about. We already knew the answer to them.

 

 

“...So, since she asked me to, I decided that I’d do it.”

 

 

It wasn’t like I had another choice. She was influenced by the Purple Devil, so she was pretty much dead set on attacking Seras. No words could change her mind.

 

Nevertheless…

 

 

“I need to do some preparation.”

 

 

Well, of course I did.

 

Victoria was pretty much a master in beating ‘humans’ to death. She was one of the Grand Assassins, the people who were considered as the best assassins on the continent.

 

Well, Seras was also one. In fact, she held that title for way longer than Victoria did.

 

Anyway, for the ‘works’ that I needed to do, I had to check out her movements, measure her capability and find the best time to deliver a blow she wouldn’t be able to avoid.

Once I fulfilled everything…

 

It would spell my victory.

 

And…

 

I decided that the best time to ‘commit into it’ was right now.

 

So, I knocked on the door before my eyes.

 

 

“Yes— I’m coming—”

 

 

‘Who is it at this time, seriously—’

 

Following such grumbling, the door was slightly opened.

 

 

“...H-Huh? S-Senior…?”

 

 

I could see Seras behind the front door, stuttering in confusion at my visit.

 

While I came here right away after I finished talking with Victoria, it was still quite late at night. Her nightcap and polka dot pajamas came into my view.

 

 

“...”

 

 

What a…catastrophic taste…

 

Even Yuria, the youngest one around me, would get angry and run away from me if I were to give her those clothes. She’d told me to not treat her like a little kid or something. Well, to be fair, Seras seemed to feel embarrassed standing before me in those clothes. It was obvious from the way she blushed in an instant.

 

 

“T-This…! I-I mean—! I-It’s comfortable to sleep in—”

 

“Can I come in?”

 

 

I said, cutting her words off.

 

 

“I have something to talk about with you. Just the two of us.”

 

“...”

 

 

I could see her whole body stiffened.

 

She seemed to notice that my mood was different than usual.

 

Here I was, a man, visiting her room in the middle of the night with a serious face. Not only that, I even told her that I wanted to talk with her alone.

 

Also…

 

 

“This is an important matter and it’s something that only you and I can do.”

 

“...A-Ah…? S-Shorry…?

 

 

There was no way she could keep her composure after hearing all these words. Her white polka dot pajamas and nightcap only served to make her blush seem deeper.

 

Her blush even reached her ears—tomatoes would’ve looked pale compared to how she looked right now.

 

 

“So, would you let me in?”

 

“...O-Of course…”

 

 

As if she was possessed by something, she let me in dazedly. It seemed like she had forgotten about the embarrassment she felt when I first saw her in those clothes.

 

Her mind must’ve been filled with wild imaginations since it seemed like she couldn’t even make a rough guess about what the heck was I about to talk with her.

 

Also, uhh…

 

Honestly…

 

The current situation probably wasn’t so much different from her wild imaginations.

 

After a rustling sound, she took out a candle. She looked as if she had lost all sense of reality.

 

She probably took that candle out so that we could at least talk while looking at each other’s faces, but…

 

 

…Honestly, I don’t think we’d need it.

 

 

I swear, it would be better to do what I had in mind without any lights. It would only make both of us feel uncomfortable if we were to have it on.

 

So, when she was about to light the candle, I immediately grabbed her wrist.

 

 

“Seras.”

 

“Ihiiiiiik—!”

 

“...”

 

 

What? Why was she so surprised…?

 

Her body began to shake, as if she had been startled by a ghost. I could even see the tears in her eyes.

 

 

“...Y-Yes, Seniooor…”

 

 

She said as such in a trembling voice. Hearing that, I let out a deep sigh inwardly.

 

Since she didn’t seem to be in a good condition, I figured there would be no need to drag this on.

 

So…

 

“Let’s do something that will make both of us feel good.”

 

 

I said, not trying to be subtle about it.

 

 

“...”

 

 

Hearing my words, she opened her mouth wide.

 

And so did Caliban apparently. He was probably just as dumbfounded as she was.

 

 

“...S-Senior?”

 

 

Seras looked at me, her eyes were shaking.

 

Maybe I saw it wrong, but it seemed like she kept on shifting her gaze between me and her bed.

 

As if that was the correlation she could instinctively find upon hearing what I said.

 

 

“U-Um… Y-You are just telling a joke to lighten the mood r-right?! R-Right??!”

 

“...Hm...”

 

 

I let out a frown while stroking my chin.

 

Right. That was my bad, I phrased it wrongly, that was why she seemed to misunderstand me.

 

Alright, I’ll make it easier for her to understand then.

 

 

“Let’s do something that will make you feel so good that you’ll feel like dying.”

 

“...”

 

[...]

 

 

Seras and Caliban in the Soul Linker went silent at the same time after hearing my words..

 

 

[...So, by killing her, you meant doing ‘that’?]

 

 

Well…

 

That girl didn’t specify ‘how’ I should kill her.

 

So, technically, this is a fair game, no?