On the day of the ritual, at dusk. The afterglow of the setting sun dyed the sky a tragic and beautiful orange-red, as if foreshadowing the coming nocturnal revelry. The atmosphere in the school had an indescribable eeriness, a hidden restlessness driven by an invisible force surging in the undercurrents.
Kanjuro pushed open the door of the Nurses Office. Reika Kitami was standing by the window, looking down at the girls who were gradually gathering below, appearing confused yet somewhat excited after receiving a mysterious notification. Her face was paler than usual, her lips tightly pressed, and those eyes that were always filled with melancholy and struggle were now burning with suppressed anger.
Hearing the door open, she turned around abruptly, her gaze shooting toward Kanjuro like a knife.
"Kanjuro!" Her voice trembled slightly with anger, her hand tightly clutching a notice printed with strange runes that required all female teachers and students to gather at the school playground at 8 PM tonight. "This notice circulating in school today... you ordered Saeki Kaori to do it, didn't you?! What on earth are you trying to do?!"
Kanjuro closed the door behind him, shutting out the noise from outside. A lazy smile played on his lips, as if Kitami's anger was merely an inconsequential breeze. He approached slowly, his gaze sweeping over Kitami's chest, which rose and fell slightly with her agitation, before finally landing on her pale face.
"Kitami," his voice was as gentle as ever, yet carried a chilling calmness, "I am saving you. Haven't you always wanted me to do something 'good'? What I am doing now is a monumental 'good deed'."
"Saving me?" Reika Kitami acted as if she had heard the most ridiculous joke, pointing out the window. "By doing this... by summoning every woman in the school? Kanjuro, stop making excuses for your madness! This isn't saving me; this is dragging everyone into hell!"
Her voice held a desperate hoarseness: "Are you going to repeat the tragedy from eighteen years ago? And this time... on an even larger scale! Just how many people do you need to sacrifice before it's enough?!"
The smile on Kanjuro's face faded slightly, and he let out a sigh. There was no trace of guilt in that sigh, only a hint of impatience. "Kitami, why don't you understand? The eighteen-year cycle is up, and your body has reached its limit. Without a new, vital vessel, you will completely dissipate. I absolutely cannot stand by and watch you vanish."
He took a step forward, closing in on Kitami, his eyes becoming sharp and filled with a desire for control. "This ritual is prepared for you! Using the life radiance and soul energy of a thousand women as a catalyst, supplemented by the purest dark power, I will reshape your body and grant you a true rebirth! Isn't this a 'good deed'?"
"Exchanging over a thousand innocent lives just for my own survival?!" Reika Kitami shook her head violently, her eyes filled with fear and resolution. "No! Kanjuro! I would rather dissipate completely than agree to you doing it this way! This isn't salvation; it's the ultimate evil! I don't need it! I will never need it!"
Her refusal was categorical, carrying the determination of a martyr.
Kanjuro looked at the familiar, stubborn light in her eyes and knew that words could no longer sway her. The last trace of his feigned gentleness vanished completely, leaving only cold indifference.
"Then it is no longer up to you, Kitami," he said flatly. At the same time, he slowly raised his right hand, extending his index finger as a point of deep black light, like the primordial darkness of the universe, condensed at the tip.
The light was not dazzling, but it carried a terrifying aura that seemed to devour everything.
Reika Kitami's pupils shrank as she realized what Kanjuro was about to do. She wanted to retreat, to resist, but the depletion of the light magic within her and Kanjuro's absolute power suppression left her as if pinned to the spot.
Kanjuro's fingertip lightly touched Reika Kitami's forehead.
That speck of black light merged into her skin instantly, like a drop of water into a sponge. Reika Kitami's body stiffened abruptly; all the anger, fear, and resolution in her eyes froze for a moment before dissolving. She let out an extremely faint groan, like a sigh, and her body slumped forward limply.
Kanjuro opened his arms just in time to catch her unconscious body, lifting her up in a princess carry. Reika Kitami's head rested powerlessly in the crook of his arm, her long hair hanging down. Her face was as peaceful as if she were in a deep sleep, though her pallor betrayed the fragility of a life rapidly fading.
Just then, the door to the Nurses Office was pushed open soundlessly. Yui Yuigahama, Yukinoshita Yukino, and Miura Yumiko walked in. They had already changed into the dark cloaks of the Occult Research Society, their expressions beneath the hoods complex—there was absolute obedience to their father's orders, but also a hint of unspeakable heaviness. They were the 'moles' Kanjuro had planted by Saeki Kaori's side, as well as witnesses and participants in this grand sacrifice.
Holding the unconscious Reika Kitami, Kanjuro turned to face his three daughters. His tone was calm and without a ripple, as if he were merely assigning a perfectly ordinary task.
"Take her over. Hand her to Saeki Kaori and have her... place Teacher Kitami in the crystal coffin directly beneath the ritual platform."
His words were cold and clear, defining Reika Kitami's 'core' position in this dark feast—she was both the target of the ritual and the 'key' and 'coordinate' for its operation.
Yui Yuigahama bit her lip but eventually stepped forward. Together with Yukino and Yumiko, they carefully took the unconscious Reika Kitami from him. They could feel the lightness and fragility of the body in their arms, a mix of guilt and blind obedience to their father intertwining in their hearts.
"Yes, Father," Yukinoshita Yukino replied softly, accepting the task on behalf of the three.
Carrying Reika Kitami, they turned and left the Nurses Office, heading toward the playground that was about to be shrouded by a dark barrier, toward the magnificent yet cruel coffin of'salvation' prepared for her long ago.
Kanjuro remained alone in the empty Nurses Office. The last rays of the setting sun filtered through the window, casting a long shadow of his tall figure. He walked to the window, looking down at the increasing number of female figures gathering below like lambs to the slaughter, a smile of anticipation and cruelty slowly curling at the corners of his mouth.
Night was about to fall. The feast was about to begin.
At exactly 8 PM, the night was as black as ink, completely swallowing the vast playground of Sobu High School. Unlike its usual silence, the playground was now shrouded in a bizarre and fanatical atmosphere. Hundreds of Occult Research Society members, clad in uniform dark cloaks with hoods pulled low, stood like silent night watchmen forming a large, regular circle around the edge of the playground. They held flickering candles in their hands, the flames dancing in the night wind, illuminating faces that were excited, confused, or nervous.
In the center of the circle, nearly a thousand girls were packed together in a dense mass! They were the'sacrifices' summoned here by the mysterious notice. Most of them had no idea what was actually going to happen, lured only by illusory promises like 'transcendental experiences' and 'contacting reality.' Now, caught between the night and the crowd, they appeared restless, their whispers surging like a tide.
When Kanjuro's figure appeared at the playground entrance, all eyes instantly focused on him. He was still wearing his crisp male school uniform, but against such a bizarre backdrop, he exuded a heart-stopping aura of a king. Beside him followed three core'sacrifices'—Imari Kurumi with a determined gaze (believing she carried a mission), Minase Aoi with a complex yet resolute expression (seeking revenge for her brother), and Shiraki Rie with a cold face but hidden submissiveness (having been completely bewitched).
Meanwhile, Yui Yuigahama, Yukinoshita Yukino, and Miura Yumiko, acting as Kanjuro's 'mole' daughters, stood quietly near the temporary ritual platform, assisting the nominal 'host' of the night—Saeki Kaori.
Upon seeing Kanjuro, Saeki Kaori's face immediately broke into a smile of extreme worship and joy, and she hurried over to meet him. "Lord Kanjuro! You've arrived! Everything has been prepared according to your instructions!"
Kanjuro nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping across the field before finally landing on the center of the ritual platform. There sat a transparent crystal coffin. And Reika Kitami, bound by invisible magic, lay flat upon it! She was completely naked, her pale skin reflecting a fragile, jade-like luster under the candlelight and the faint magical glow. She struggled violently, her eyes filled with despair, anger, and entreaty as she stared deathly at Kanjuro.
"Kanjuro! Stop! I beg you... don't do this! Don't make so many innocent people die with me! I'd rather die!!" Her cries sounded exceptionally clear and piercing in the silent night sky.
Many of the girls in the center gasped in horror upon seeing this scene, and a commotion began to spread.
Saeki Kaori also noticed Kitami's state and Kanjuro's arrangements. Though fanatical, she wasn't without doubts and couldn't help but ask in a low voice, "Lord Kanjuro, why... why is Teacher Kitami tied here like this? Isn't she... isn't she the target of our ritual?" She had thought the ritual was for gaining power or knowledge, not targeting a specific person.
Faced with Kitami's cries and Saeki's question, Kanjuro's face timely displayed a complex expression of 'compassion' mixed with 'resolve.' He sighed softly, his voice not loud, yet clearly reaching everyone inside the barrier, suppressing all the commotion.
"Saeki, and everyone else," his gaze swept across the crowd with a guiding'sincerity,' "you do not know. We gather here tonight not just to seek truth and gain power, but to complete a great salvation, and... to summon the true, complete 'dark bible'!"
He paused, pointing to Reika Kitami on the crystal coffin, his tone heavy.
"Teacher Kitami is not our enemy, but the indispensable 'key' and 'coordinate' for the ritual! The remnant light power within her body, attracting and colliding with the soon-to-be gathered dark power, will be the door that opens the ultimate mysteries of the 'dark bible'!"
This explanation sounded profound and 'noble,' instantly shifting everyone's attention. It even caused some girls' eyes to light up with sudden realization and even greater fanaticism.
Immediately after, Kanjuro showed his true intentions, throwing out the core and most horrific step of the ritual.
"And to gather the vast magical power sufficient to summon the Bible and complete the salvation, we need... the purest and most massive life energy as a sacrifice!" His voice rose sharply, carrying unquestionable authority. "You thousand sisters are not victims, but contributors of power! You will unite with me, the bearer of this darkness, and in the ultimate pleasure, release your life radiance and magic, gathering them into a river!"
These words were like a thunderclap exploding in the crowd! A thousand people... uniting with him alone?! This was simply a fantasy, a desecration, madness!
However, Kanjuro did not give them much time for shock or reflection. He immediately pointed to Imari, Minase Aoi, and Shiraki Rie beside him.
"And these three, Imari Kurumi, Minase Aoi, and Shiraki Rie, possess world-rare pure souls and special bloodlines! They are the 'core hubs' of the ritual, the keys to guiding and stabilizing this vast magical power! Their devotion will ensure the ritual does not spiral out of control, ensure everyone's safety, and ultimately succeed in summoning the 'dark bible,' completing the salvation of Teacher Kitami!"
He had packaged an ultimate act of plunder and desecration as a necessary deed filled with the spirit of sacrifice for a 'great goal' and 'collective safety'!
Hearing Kanjuro's words, Imari Kurumi and Minase Aoi showed determined expressions of 'as expected' and 'great mission'; they had long been completely brainwashed by Kanjuro's lies. Although a trace of imperceptible emotion flickered across Shiraki Rie's cold face, thinking of Kanjuro's 'kindness' and 'trust,' she also chose silence and obedience.
Looking at the girls below, whose shock and fear were gradually turning into blankness or even being bewitched by the sense of a 'great mission,' Kanjuro knew the time had come. He said no more and slowly raised both hands.
In an instant, with him as the center, a boundless, tangible dark magical power erupted! The pitch-black energy, like an overturned giant bowl, instantly and completely shrouded the entire space bounded by the playground! The light inside the barrier became distorted and gloomy, and all sounds and sights from the outside were completely cut off. This place became an independent dark domain belonging only to Kanjuro!
"The ritual—begins!"
Kanjuro's cold and majestic voice echoed over the playground shrouded by the barrier, like the tolling of the final judgment bell.
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