One sharp alarm after another echoed in the room.
On the screen, an arm holding a gun was flung from the shadows, landing in front of Satomi Rentaro.
Blood splattered, and the severed limb slid across the ground.
Rentaro's pupils contracted, and fury quickly spread across his face.
—
In the conference room—
Seitenshi finally arrived, with Tendo Kikujou following close behind. Seitenshi gave Haruto a brief glance before turning to the others.
"How's the progress of the recovery operation?"
Faced with her question, everyone in the room looked visibly grim. For a moment, no one answered.
When no response came,
Seitenshi turned her gaze toward the monitor herself.
Finally, a Tokyo government official spoke up:
"I'm afraid… the majority of the Civil Officer teams sent out have already been killed. The remaining few are still far from the target area due to continued Gastrea attacks. Even the closest team will need at least over an hour to arrive.
But based on our data, the Seven Star Relic will be fully decoded in about fifty minutes.
Hiruko Kagetane appears to have some sort of machine that boosts computation—it's cracking the encryption at an alarming speed.
As for the support units, only one person has made it to the area so far. And surrounding that location are at least four Stage Threes, with numerous Stage Twos and Stage Ones And of course, there's Hiruko Kagetane himself, a survivor of the New Human Creation Project… There's basically no chance of success."
After reporting, the man lowered his head.
"Miss Kisara, what do you think Satomi Rentaro's chances of success are?"
The Saint suddenly turned to Tendo Kisara and asked.
Kisara was silent for a few moments, then answered:
"If I go by my own subjective judgment… he has a 70% chance of success."
As soon as the words left her mouth—
The man who had just reported the situation cried out in disbelief:
"What? Against four Stage Threes? And that guy's from the mechanized army?! There's no way there's a chance of success!"
Kisara, unfazed by the doubt, calmly continued:
"Ten years ago, our Tendo family was attacked by Gastrea. My father and mother were killed. During that disaster, I lost my liver function. Rentaro lost his left eye, right arm, and right leg. He was then sent to the 22nd Bureau in critical condition. The doctor who treated him was Doctor Muroto Sumire."
At the mention of "Muroto Sumire," the room fell into brief silence—then faces changed drastically.
The reason was simple.
Dr. Muroto Sumire was the chief architect of the New Human Creation Project. One of the Four Great Sages of the new era.
Japan's greatest scientific mind.
To be treated by her—what that meant was self-evident.
Hope rekindled in the room.
But Kisara, who had said all this, had a dark and unreadable look in her eyes. Only now did she truly realize just how contradictory Satomi Rentaro was.
Not dark enough to walk alongside her.
Not bright enough to redeem her.
Instinctively, she glanced at Haruto.
Coincidentally, Haruto was also looking at her.
Their eyes met.
Kisara's previously sorrowful mood vanished in an instant.
—
Meanwhile—
Satomi Rentaro stepped over a severed limb. Before him stood a dilapidated church. Before the Gastrea outbreak, this had been the largest Christian church in Japan.
Even in ruins, one could still see traces of its former grandeur.
At that moment, Hiruko Kagetane stood atop the church roof.
"Rentaro… I knew it would be you. Ah… I've been wanting to settle things with you."
Kagetane said with a touch of nostalgia.
Unfortunately, due to Haruto's orders—he couldn't make a move.
But while he couldn't personally act—He had lured a large number of Stage Threes to this location from the forest.
That wasn't against the rules of the game.
Now, four Stage Threes surrounded Rentaro like predators stalking prey.
Kagetane respected Rentaro's strength.
But only that.
He didn't believe Rentaro could defeat four Stage Threes.
"Yeah, it's time to settle this. I've lost twice. My team's been wiped out. A final showdown? I've been waiting for this, you bastard!"
Rentaro growled as he loosened his tie—and roared in rage.
In the next moment, his figure blurred, dashing straight toward the nearest Stage Three.
His goal:
Defeat all four Stage Threes, then kill Hiruko Kagetane—
And retrieve the Seven Star Relic.
"Tch tch…"
From the rooftop, Kagetane clicked his tongue.
Seeing Rentaro charge in fury rather than using ranged weapons or tactics—
He thought the game was already over.
But then—
"Tendo-style Combat Art, First Form—Third Technique!"
Rentaro shouted.
He landed a punch squarely on the Stage Three Gastrea's body.
He was so fast, even the monster couldn't react.
And in the next instant—
A blast echoed out.
A spent shell popped from his right arm.
Blue fire flickered.
The Stage Three took a direct hit, a hole the size of a human head blown clean through it. The sheer force passed through flesh and exploded out the back.
Even Kagetane widened his eyes in shock at the sight.
Blue flames glowed from Rentaro's right arm, right leg, and eye. His skin was scorched—Revealing the gleam of metal beneath.
"Varanium prosthetics?! Wait… you too?!"
Kagetane exclaimed in disbelief.
"Allow me to properly introduce myself, Hiruko Kagetane. Former Eastern Division of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force, 787th Mechanized Special Unit—Satomi Rentaro, product of the New Human Creation Project!"
Rentaro bellowed.
In that moment, the battlefield and the conference room ignited with emotion.
"So there was another one! A human weapon born of the Gastrea War!"
Cries of astonishment rang out.
A hero entering the scene, turning the tide—
Even if cliché, it stirred the blood.
From the rooftop, Hiruko Kagetane's mouth stretched in a grin so wide it nearly reached his ears beneath the mask.
A fellow war weapon.
How he craved combat.
Only in battle could he prove his worth.
Kagetane was just about to leap down for a duel—But was stopped mid-air by a sword slash from Hiruko Kohina.
"Papa, you can't. Lord Haruto said no fighting."
Though Kohina also wanted to kill the prey below—Since it was Lord Haruto's command, she would obey.
This little girl's personality was twisted beyond reason.
She was obsessed with overwhelming power, like an addict.
So even against her "papa," she'd hold him back.
Rentaro, confused as to why Kagetane wasn't attacking—Focused instead on dealing with the Stage Threes.
He needed to kill them quickly, while conserving as much strength as possible—
To defeat Kagetane and reclaim the relic.
And with his prosthetics fully activated—Rentaro's strength was enough to match Kagetane.
Regular Stage Threes couldn't even last one round.
In mere moments, the four Stage Threes had all been slain.
Catching his breath—Rentaro looked up at the church roof where Kagetane stood.
He took the opening stance of the Tendo Combat Art.
Kagetane wanted to come down for a fight—But his own Initiator held him back.
So, under Rentaro's watchful gaze—Kagetane leapt away behind the church, his figure vanishing like a shadow.
Seeing him flee, Rentaro stood stunned.
After all, this was their third encounter—
And Hiruko Kagetane, a known battle maniac and madman—
How could he just retreat like that?
But there was no time to dwell.
He still had to recover the Seven Star Relic.
Remaining cautious of traps, Rentaro rushed into the church.
There, in front of the statue of Christ, lay a silver box—the container for the relic.
A shaft of moonlight shone through the broken ceiling, illuminating the box in a pale, holy glow.
The drone followed Rentaro into the church.
When it was confirmed that the relic had been recovered—
The conference room erupted in cheers.
Many shouted Satomi Rentaro's name.
They had begun to see him as a hero.
—
However, at that very moment—
Rentaro stepped forward to retrieve the relic.
Just as his hand touched the box—
The silver lid snapped open.
The contents were exposed to the air and moonlight.
Inside was…
A child's red tricycle.
Slightly worn, a bit old, with a simple frame.
This—
Was the Seven Star Relic.