Strike the Blood, Vol. 6 (light novel): Return of the Alchemist

by Gakuto Mikumo

  Amatsuka had no way to evade the surprise attack, even though the figures were still immobile. His white coat ripped into shreds from the bullets’ countless hits.

  Even so, the young man mocked them with a laugh. “And there’s Kensei Kanase for you. To think, you can still use a spell like this with your magic power sealed…”

  The old man’s expression tightened. The alchemist had pointed out an inconvenient fact: As a criminal in custody, Kensei Kanase’s magical power had been heavily restricted by the Gigafloat Management Corporation. He couldn’t use the vast majority of magical energy available to him as an engineer of sorcery.

  “What a pity. You can’t kill me with tricks like these.”

  “Nn…?!”

  Amatsuka raised his right hand high. A viscous, black metallic fluid flowed from the cuff of his sleeve. The fluid, extending to the length of a whip, instantly transformed into a sharp, polished blade and mowed down the golem statues.

  Then, having lost his servants, Kanase too was cut down. Slashed from his shoulder almost to his heart, the engineer gushed blood as he silently crumbled to the floor.

  “A foolish decision. If you’d just politely handed it over, I wouldn’t have had to hurt you…” Scowling at the fallen man, Amatsuka advanced into the heart of the lab.

  Now exposed to the light, his right arm, covered in a metallic fluid, gave off a wet-looking sheen.

  No—his arm was not covered in the liquid; his right arm was metal to begin with. The metallic black fluid, flowing with the consistency of quicksilver, was merely imitating a human hand.

  Realizing the nature of Amatsuka’s form, Kanase groaned in pain. “I see… Wiseman’s Blood… That’s what destroyed Adelard’s Abbey back then…”

  The alchemist did not reply. All he did was shoot a hateful smile.

  “Sorry… I’m taking back the half of my body Master stole from me.”

  Amatsuka sliced apart the thick metallic safe with ease, as if it were paper.

  Alchemists could freely construct and deconstruct anything made of metal. Even the hardest of alloys became as fragile as a tin can under their touch, no matter how slight the contact.

  Crouching down, Amatsuka removed a ball about fifty centimeters in diameter from the safe—a transparent scarlet gemstone. When he held it up to the light, a satisfied smile came over his face.

  When the young alchemist finally departed, it was to the sound of his cane rhythmically tapping the floor.

  When Kensei Kanase had heard the man’s steps grow distant, his frail lips formed a single word:

  “Kanon…”

  As he sank into the pool of blood, he spoke only his daughter’s name, begging for forgiveness.

  CHAPTER ONE

  THE WATCHDOG’S HOLIDAY

  1

  Yukina Himeragi awoke to the first wan light of morning creeping over the eastern horizon.

  Getting out of bed as silent as a cat, she brushed back her sleep-disheveled hair and let out a small, unguarded yawn. Teardrops stung the corners of her eyes, and she wiped at them with a sleeve.

  Though many people thought otherwise, Yukina was not actually a morning person. In fact, at that very moment she sported a vacant look, her mind still hazy. But at times like this, she looked much younger than her usual cold, mature countenance conveyed.

  Without fanfare, Yukina stripped off and tossed aside the white shirt she wore as a nightgown and proceeded straight to the bathroom. Because it seemed she might nod back off at any moment, she ran a cold shower to wake herself up, bit by bit.

  Coming out of the bathroom, she dried off with a towel and looked herself over in the mirror. She was in perfect physical condition; no fatigue remained from the deadly combat she’d endured during the Harrowing Festival. However, seeing her slender body unchanged, she sighed inadvertently. Maybe I should drink more milk, she thought absentmindedly.

  After that came maintenance on her weapon, Snowdrift Wolf. It was a gleaming silver spear that she polished, one she considered synonymous with her own being.

  Just as wild beasts did not do morning exercises in the natural world, the Lion King Agency’s Sword Shamans did not undergo any special conditioning. In the first place, a little bodybuilding wasn’t going to make a person any more able to fight a demon on even terms. Instead, they thoroughly trained their senses and reflexes. To Yukina, breathing, walking, and other unremarkable activities of everyday life were the training that heightened her ritual energy strength.

  In short order, the apartment next to hers became much livelier, too.

  Apparently, the Akatsuki residence’s girl had slapped her older brother awake a little earlier than usual. Yukina smiled as she imagined the back and forth taking place between the siblings—they got along extremely well.

  “Ah—!”

  All of a sudden, her soft, charming smile changed into the sharp look of an Attack Mage. Someone’s ritual energy was invading the wards that Yukina had erected around her apartment.

  Down from the sky the intruder danced, until it stopped right outside her window.

  Yukina would be at a disadvantage, wielding a spear indoors; she set Snowdrift Wolf aside and drew a knife she’d hidden in the bottom of her schoolbag. Though not as mighty as the spear, it was nonetheless an enchanted weapon imbued with fierce exorcist power, something standard-issue for Sword Shamans.

  Keeping her guard up with the knife raised, Yukina got to her feet and forced open the window in one move.

  But there were no enemies there.

  Instead, a single bird of prey stood before her eyes, one with the glimmer of cold steel in its gaze.

  But before Yukina’s eyes, it suddenly changed shape—into an ordinary piece of paper. It must have been a shikigami—a familiar—and one strong enough to pass through Yukina’s ward with ease. Even the Lion King Agency contained few practitioners able to use shikigami of such power. For simple messenger duty, the ritualized spell was complete overkill.

  However, she sensed no hostility from the caster.

  It was a mystery, but Yukina picked up the letter and opened it anyway.

  This time, she was so shocked that her voice exclaimed:

  “Eh…?!”

  The sun’s rays outside the window were already shining brightly. It seemed that Itogami Island would have another balmy day.

  2

  Coastal scenery flowed past the train car’s window.

  Kojou and Yukina took the monorail to get to school. Thanks to boarding earlier than usual, they were in a less crowded car. The extra space seemed to make the air conditioning more effective.

  However, what was truly different from usual was Yukina’s behavior as she stood beside him.

  She had her silver spear sheathed in the guitar case on her back, just as she always did when monitoring Kojou. But she seemed far away, somehow; from time to time, she looked like she was gazing in the distance as she sighed.

  Kojou, mindful of this, leaned close to her ear and called: “Himeragi? Um, Earth to Himeragi…?”

  But she made no response. All she did was worry her lip a little, mulling something over; she didn’t even respond when he waved his hand in front of her eyes. The lack of reaction from her perfectly shaped face gave him the distinct feeling he was talking to a hologram.

  “Hey, are you all right…? Or maybe you’re not feeling well?”

  Maybe she has a fever, Kojou thought with concern as he peered at his watcher’s face.

  Curious, he put his hand to Yukina’s forehead, hidden under her bangs. Her skin felt pleasantly cool to the touch—but the moment Kojou’s palm registered the feeling, his field of vision literally turned upside down.

  “Eh?!”

  Kojou had no idea what was going on as his body soared into the air. As it turned out, Yukina had swiveled around on the spot, using the weight and motion of Kojou’s body to toss him judo-style.

  Her face still as neutral as that of a doll, Yukina proceeded to put Kojou�
�s arm in a lock. It was a martial arts technique used by Sword Shamans, experts in anti-demonic combat. Kojou, the so-called World’s Mightiest Vampire, could do nothing to resist her incredible might. In pain far surpassing what one would normally expect from a girl that size, Kojou pathetically cried out for mercy.

  “Nuooo! I give up, I give up—!!”

  “Ah…?!”

  Kojou’s plaintive cries seemed to have finally brought Yukina back to her senses. She released Kojou’s right arm from its rather unnatural twist and hastily squatted close to him as he groaned in agony.

  “Senpai… A-are you all right?!”

  A hollow smile came over Kojou as he spoke, rather sarcastically, “…Well, you’re in better health than I thought. That’s good.”

  Kojou’s touch had made Yukina’s body go into self-defense mode without any conscious thought. Once more, he had become painfully aware of the off-the-charts combat capabilities of a Sword Shaman. Note to self: If I ever come across Yukina sleeping, DO NOT TOUCH.

  But what hurt even more was how not a single one of the passengers had lifted a finger to help Kojou while Yukina was twisting the screws on him. The greater half of the passengers sported looks that said they didn’t think it was worth the effort so early in the morning; the rest were glaring at Kojou like he’d done something to deserve it. The underbelly of human society was truly ugly.

  Looking seriously embarrassed, Yukina hung her head as she earnestly apologized to her classmate. “I’m sorry. I was thinking about something.”

  Well, it was bad manners on my part, too, Kojou said, smiling at his own expense.

  “Something on your mind?” he inquired.

  “Something… Yes, there is something, in a sense.”

  Kojou raised his eyebrows at the strange phrasing. “In a sense?”

  But then the back and forth that morning with his little sister came to mind: “Oh yeah, the middle schoolers are heading off on an extended field trip real soon. You ready for it, Himeragi?”

  “Field trip…”

  Yukina’s expression grew darker still. Did I say something wrong? Kojou wondered nervously.

  Yukina wasn’t just any student; she was an Attack Mage dispatched by the Lion King Agency to watch over Kojou. In that sense, Saikai Academy was just a place where she observed the Fourth Primogenitor according to her duty. It was quite possible she wouldn’t be able to participate in a field trip irrelevant to her mission.

  If that was the case, he could understand why she’d be brooding over it.

  “You don’t mean you’re not going? —The Agency said you couldn’t?”

  “No, that’s… This morning, I received…this.”

  Yukina pulled an oddly folded piece of stationery from her schoolbag.

  “What’s this? Some kind of letter…?” Kojou asked.

  The page was so white that it looked like glittering silver, but the writing on it was English in a very floral style. It didn’t seem to be written in code, but even so, Kojou had trouble reading the contents.

  “It says,” explained Yukina, “Lion King Agency Advisory: Snowdrift Wolf shall be sealed for four days beginning at midnight tomorrow. Ensure that you turn it in prior to that time—”

  “‘Snowdrift Wolf’… Isn’t that your spear? And ‘sealing’ it means…”

  Yukina’s tone was grave. “Yes, it means I am relieved of my duty as Watcher of the Fourth Primogenitor.”

  Her spear, granted the name of Snowdrift Wolf, was properly called Demon-Purging Assault Spear Type Seven, aka a Schneewaltzer, the Lion King Agency’s secret weapon. The spear, able to nullify any magical power and rend through any barrier, was deemed to be the ultimate anti-demonic weapon, powerful enough to destroy a vampiric primogenitor. When Yukina became the Watcher of the Fourth Primogenitor, she had been granted the right to slaughter Kojou at will. Snowdrift Wolf was the very symbol of that right.

  In other words, sealing the spear meant relieving Yukina of her duty as his keeper. But four days starting the next day—that was the same time frame as Saikai Academy’s middle school trip.

  “…So that means you’re on vacation,” Kojou muttered. “Lucky for you, huh?”

  Apparently, the people in the Lion King Agency thought it was a fine idea to arrange things so that Yukina could attend the field trip.

  Perhaps it was no more than a simple tactical decision; having infiltrated Saikai Academy while keeping her identity a secret, participating in the trip would keep her cover intact. Even so, the bottom line was that she’d be able to take time off and spend it with friends her own age—definitely a good deal from Yukina’s point of view.

  But for some reason, Yukina had an oddly sullen look as she glared sidelong at Kojou in displeasure.

  “Lucky…you say?”

  “Well, it’s a good thing, ain’t it? Anyway, it’s good you don’t have to watch me during it. Sticking close year-round would mean never getting a moment’s peace.”

  Kojou’s smile was quite bright as he spoke.

  It had been a little over two months since Yukina had entered his life. During that time, she had been at Kojou’s side throughout, watching him without a break. Surely taking time off once in a while and living it up with her classmates wouldn’t hurt anything.

  Of course, Kojou was also happy for the temporary reprieve. No matter how pretty a girl Yukina was, having a government-approved stalker walking around with a deadly weapon and watching him 24-7 was a major weight on his mind.

  But Kojou’s reaction brought even greater displeasure to Yukina’s face.

  “You seem quite pleased by this, senpai.”

  “…Eh?”

  “I had no idea you regarded not having me around as so enjoyable. Is that so… I’m a little surprised, to be honest.”

  After hearing Yukina vocalize her pain, Kojou rushed to excuse himself. “Er, no, it’s not that it’s enjoyable, I just think I can, you know, spread my wings a little bit more while you’re not around—”

  “That’s what worries me!” Yukina appeared to be mulling over the issue, lowering her eyes as if appealing to a higher power. “I mean, really, what will you do when I don’t have my eyes on you, senpai—?”

  “I won’t do anything!! Things’ll just go back to how they were before you came. Nothing’s gonna happen from you taking your eyes off me for three or four days, geez!!”

  Kojou had to object to being discussed as if he were some fiendish criminal. However, Yukina glared at him with narrowed eyes, very nearly pouting.

  “Just the other day, didn’t you end up drinking Yuuma’s and Sayaka’s blood in just the three or four hours you were out of my sight…?”

  Kojou went red-faced. “You’re gonna talk about that here?!”

  In the first place, a vampire’s vampiric urges were triggered by lust—in other words, sexual arousal. Thanks to Yukina’s mentioning it, he had vivid flashbacks as he recalled just what had taken place between him, Sayaka, and Yuuma that night.

  “That was an emergency, you know! Something that big doesn’t happen every day!”

  “…I suppose you’re right. It would be nice if nothing happened.” Yukina sighed, still a bit worried. “But will you really be all right, senpai? Nagisa won’t be with you either this time, will she? Are you going to wake up on time in the morning? Then there’s closing up at night and checking for fire hazards—”

  “Geez, what are you talking about? I can hold down the fort for a few days.” Kojou forced a reassuring smile, exasperated. “I’ll be fine. If the Lion King Agency says it’s okay to take a break, there’s no reason for you to worry ’bout me, Himeragi. No need to go overboard.”

  Kojou’s throwaway declaration was an effort to calm Yukina’s overactive imagination.

  Emotion vanished from Yukina’s eyes, which then turned icy. She ceaselessly echoed a phrase in her mouth, over and over:

  “…No reason, you say? Overboard, you say…? Is that so?”

  “Ah…er
… Miss Himeragi…?”

  Unable to understand the cause of her anger, Kojou called out to Yukina, once more perplexed.

  Right around then, the monorail arrived at the terminal closest to school.

  3

  A scent tinged with fried butter wafted through the classroom. Sliced onions sizzled as they were added to the well-heated frying pan.

  This was a home-ec morning practicum, with the class divided into several teams. The menu called for Caesar salad, omelets with rice, and beef stew for a high-calorie, three-piece set. With a practiced hand, Kojou controlled the frying pan while pouring seasoning on top, causing Yaze to let out a whistle of admiration. “Whoa, that’s pretty good, Kojou.”

  Rin Tsukishima, the class representative, followed suit, sounding like she was praising a pet for doing a good trick. “Indeed. He’s quite good.”

  Dressed in an apron and munching on salad croutons, Asagi Aiba commented, “I guess all human beings have one thing they’re good at.”

  Without pausing his cooking, Kojou shouted back, “Oh, shut up, you guys! Don’t stare like it’s got nothin’ to do with you. Why do I have to make it all myself?!”

  The other three gazed enigmatically back at him. Their looks said, Why is he asking the obvious only now…?

  Yaze sighed with an exasperated shake of his head. “Hmph, stupid question, Kojou… I dunno about Tsukishima, but if Asagi and I were helping, it’d only mean more work for you.”

  “That ain’t a line you should say like you’re proud, y’know?” Kojou retorted in a low voice.

  You’d never know it from his appearance or his laid-back attitude, but Yaze was the son of a family running a conglomerate. Kojou could understand why Rin and Asagi had no cooking experience, being daughters of surprisingly upper-crust families. But there’s no way not helping’s better than helping, is there…?

  “So naive,” Yaze pontificated. “I mean, that cake Asagi made in fifth grade was a weapon of mass destruction that put fourteen boys in the hospital. Thankfully, I expected that, so I was able to escape unscathed. But…”