Oceanus Grave, Deck.
The deck was entirely different from the interior; while the main hall was filled with laughter, merriment, and music, the deck felt like another world altogether. The lights were dimmer, reflecting faintly off the endless sea surrounding the ship, and the night air—laden with the scent of salt—gave the place a solemn stillness. Luxurious leather seats were arranged with meticulous care, while small tongues of flame danced atop glass torches along the transparent barrier.
Kojou lifted his gaze slightly, his calm eyes glimmering with the moon's reflection, before he spoke with a faint, mocking tone:
"Seems like what you want to talk about… isn't something simple."
He had already noticed the magical barrier enveloping the deck, a complex construct woven with threads of strange energy, completely isolating the place from the interior as if it were its own separate world. It resembled a temporal bubble that allowed no sound or trace to escape.
Yet to Kojou, the barrier was pathetically fragile. With a mere press of his power—or even the slightest leak of his raging magic—he could blow it apart into invisible shards. Still, there was no denying that its creator possessed exceptional skill; anyone of lesser caliber would have been utterly paralyzed within it.
Vatler advanced slowly, his smile never leaving his face, his blue eyes shimmering with exaggerated excitement. A wine glass remained in his hand, swirling lazily between his fingers as if it were a rhythmic instrument to accompany his words.
"You're right, Kojou," he said in a low but clear voice. "If it were something simple… I wouldn't have needed to call you out here, away from prying eyes."
He stepped closer, until only a few paces separated them, then continued with a wide grin that bordered on madness:
"I wanted to see… if you truly are him. If you are really the embodiment of the Fourth Primogenitor, or just a boy living above a power he cannot control."
Asagi and Nagisa tightened their grips around Kojou's arm, their eyes fixed on Vatler with utmost caution, as if any word could ignite a confrontation impossible to stop.
Kojou, however, did not budge. He slowly pulled his hand out of his pocket, his gaze steady, his tone colder than the sea breeze:
"Did you bring me here only… to test me, Vatler?"
"That was my intention, but clearly I've underestimated you." Vatler nodded, his manic expression fading as he downed the wine in a single gulp. A waiter quickly approached to take the empty glass and replace it with a new one. "And so, I'll share some important information with you as an apology for my rudeness."
Calm down. He's strong, but still incomplete. Fighting him when he's whole will be far better, Vatler mused silently, suppressing his own bloodlust. He was itching for battle against Kojou, but while Kojou lacked the full power of the Fourth Primogenitor, his own strength compensated for it. Yet to Vatler, there was no joy in fighting someone who wasn't at their peak.
Vatler's demeanor shifted quickly from madness and mockery to a mysterious calm. His smile lingered, but it had become more composed, concealing something weightier than whimsy. He raised the new glass slowly, watching the dark red liquid shimmer under the moonlight before speaking:
"Have you ever heard the name Christoph Gardos?"
"Not really. Should I have?" Kojou shrugged indifferently; hearing the name Christoph Gardos didn't ring a bell in his mind.
"Not exactly. Christoph Gardos is just an insect who can be crushed at any time." Vatler shook his head with a mocking smile. "But you must have heard of the Black Death Emperor Front, haven't you?"
"The Black Death Emperor Front!!" Kojou roared, his blue eyes blazing crimson as a terrifying surge of magic erupted from his body. His expression twisted with fury, and a cold killing intent filled the air—the very mention of the Black Death Emperor Front had struck a nerve.
The deck itself trembled as a wave of crimson magic burst forth from him. The air grew heavier, as if the sea itself froze under the weight of his raw power. The flames in the glass torches along the barrier quivered violently, some extinguishing instantly as if unable to withstand the presence of the enraged Fourth Primogenitor.
Nagisa shuddered, clinging tighter to his arm, while Asagi gasped in fear, trying to compose herself though cold sweat slid down her forehead. Both of them felt, if only for a moment, that Kojou was no longer himself—but something deeper… and far more dangerous.
Vatler, however, did not step back. On the contrary, his blue eyes gleamed with manic fervor, his wide grin like that of an obsessed man:
"Yes… this rage. The true rage of the Fourth Beast. I wasn't mistaken after all."
He raised his wine glass, watching how the surging magic began to crack the surrounding barrier. Several threads of magic snapped, nearly shattering the whole construct, though it struggled to repair itself.
"Calm yourself, Kojou," Vatler said, almost reveling in his own madness. "I didn't call you here to make you explode. I came to tell you that the Black Death Emperor Front hasn't disappeared as you thought… they're moving again. And their movements are directly tied… to this island."
"Kojou-kun…" Nagisa whispered softly, her voice trembling with fear. She had never seen her usually smiling, gentle older brother consumed by such anger.
Kojou's gaze shifted to Nagisa and Asagi, and his terrifying magic withdrew. His crimson eyes returned to icy blue once more, though they now resembled a frozen lake—cold and heavy, betraying that he was anything but calm inside.
"Those bastards… I didn't expect them to have survived. But this is better—I'll crush them with my own hands." Kojou growled in a low, trembling voice, veins bulging along his face as he ground his teeth.
"Christoph Gardos and the Black Death Emperor Front may be trash, but you should still be careful," Vatler warned, his blue eyes shifting crimson with excitement at witnessing Kojou's overwhelming might. He could barely restrain his desire to fight, but he was the kind to save the best dish for last. "It seems they've obtained an ancient weapon from the age of the gods, one that destroyed countless civilizations. Its name is Nalakuvera. And even as the Fourth Primogenitor… you may not survive against it. So it would be wise to tread carefully."
"I appreciate the warning, but there's no need to worry." Kojou exhaled, beginning to walk away with Nagisa and Asagi. "But I'll give you a warning too, Vatler—control your lust for battle, because you never know when you'll die at the hands of someone not in the mood."
As he spoke, Kojou cast a sidelong glance at Vatler, his crimson eyes glowing with a demonic, terrifying light.
Rumble!!
Time itself froze.
Everything on the deck—from the flames of the torches to the very breath of the sea—seemed to halt beneath the crushing pressure radiating from Kojou.
Twelve dark beasts, fragmented creatures of terror and blood, manifested as phantoms behind him, glaring at Vatler with ravenous eyes like wolves freed from their chains. The muffled cries of their roars reverberated within the barrier, echoing like a never-ending nightmare.
And above them… a transcendent entity, its six black wings spreading like curtains of darkness, veiling the illusory sky conjured by the barrier. Its face was shadowed, without clear features, but its gaze upon Vatler was deep, lethal.
A faint shudder, more akin to euphoric chills, coursed through Vatler's body. He did not retreat, nor did fear appear on his face. Quite the opposite—his smile widened, and his blood boiled with exhilaration:
"Magnificent… this is what I've been searching for!" he whispered madly, his eyes turning fully crimson, a reflection of a vampire's madness before a force beyond imagination.
Yet Kojou's pressure was so overwhelming that the luxurious floor beneath Vatler's feet began to crack, and the nearby waiter collapsed unconscious instantly, his mind unable to endure even a glimpse of such power.
And they weren't the only ones affected—Sayaka, who had been about to reveal herself and scold Kojou for bringing Touka back, collapsed on her rear, unable to withstand the crushing aura, an unknown liquid seeping between her thighs.
Asagi clutched her chest, gasping for breath, while Nagisa gripped her brother's arm desperately, as though pleading for him to come back to his senses.
"Kojou!! Stop… enough!!" Asagi cried, her voice breaking, tears threatening to spill from the unbearable pressure that nearly crushed her.
Her voice rang in his mind like lightning cutting through the darkness. For a brief moment, the air trembled, and the Beast Vassals receded one after another, until the winged entity itself vanished into nothingness.
Kojou exhaled heavily, shutting his eyes before reopening them. His gaze had returned to that icy blue, like a lake frozen solid, as if everything that had just transpired was nothing but a deadly illusion.
He stepped forward, past Vatler—who still stood frozen, his eyes gleaming with madness and ecstasy.
"…Next time, Vatler," Kojou said in a low voice, his words carrying the weight of an executioner's sentence. "I may not be able to stop myself."
Vatler grinned with childlike bloodlust, raising the wine glass to his lips:
"And I… will be waiting for that time, with indescribable anticipation."
...
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