His words directly exposed Akako Koizumi's goal, turning her face pale instantly. She clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging into her palms, trying to use the pain to dispel the throbbing and fear originating from her bloodline that made her feel ashamed.
"You are not my father!" Akako Koizumi forced her presence and retorted sharply. "You are just a demon who gave me life using filthy means! I will never acknowledge you!"
"Whether you acknowledge it or not, the facts will not change." Kanjuro's tone remained flat, yet carried an unshakeable certainty. "Your blood, your magic, and even the stubbornness you're using to try and oppose me right now... are all deeply branded by me."
He tilted his head slightly, looking with great interest at her body, which was trembling slightly with anger and fear, as if admiring a precious collectible full of rebellious spirit that was about to fall into his hands.
"Continue your research, Akako." Kanjuro's lips curled into a nearly cruel smile. "I eagerly await that look of despair, when you exhaust your efforts only to realize that all your hard work is futile before absolute power. How... beautiful that expression will be."
After speaking, he said no more, not even making a move to attack. He simply gave her a deep look, his gaze seemingly seeing through all her struggles and efforts, viewing them as nothing more than an interesting play. Then, he turned and, as silently as he arrived, his figure merged into the darkness outside the door and vanished.
Inside the secret room, only Koizumi Akako remained, breathing heavily. The magical light surrounding her flickered erratically due to the host's mental shock. Kanjuro's sudden appearance and departure did not cause physical harm, but rather a deeper spiritual crushing and psychological deterrence.
He was telling her that all her resistance was under his scrutiny and utterly futile.
Koizumi Akako slumped back onto the chair, looking at the open ancient text. For the first time, she clearly felt the despairing chasm of power that lay between her and Kanjuro. However, his words about "awaiting your look of despair" acted like a barb, further stirring the inherent pride and defiance in her bones.
"It won't end here..." She gritted her teeth, a more determined flame reigniting in her eyes. "Kanjuro... even if you are my biological father, I will definitely find... a way to defeat you!"
Yet, this time, deep within her resolve, an instinctive fear of that unfathomable dark power was inevitably mixed in. Kanjuro's "visit" was like a giant stone thrown into the lake of her heart, completely disrupting her attempt to calm down and seek countermeasures. Kanjuro's predatory posture and words completely ignited the suppressed anger and humiliation in Koizumi Akako's heart. Watching him about to disappear into the darkness of the castle corridor, a resolute, almost self-destructive courage surged within her—she couldn't wait any longer! Instead of passively waiting in endless fear and research, she might as well fight for her life now!
"Stop right there!"
Koizumi Akako shouted sharply, and the Scarlet Magic surrounding her exploded like a volcano! She rushed out of the secret room; her purplish-red long hair danced wildly in the surging magical currents, and her ruby-like eyes burned with a death-defying flame. In a few bounds, she caught up to the leisurely retreating figure and blocked Kanjuro's path.
"Trying to leave? Not so fast!" She rapidly moved her hands, complex magical gestures leaving streaks of afterimages, as magical elements in the air frantically converged. "Kanjuro! Right here, right now, fight me to the death!"
Kanjuro stopped, looking at this "daughter" before him, who was like an irritated kitten yet burst forth with astonishing momentum. A flicker of unexpected appreciation crossed his eyes, but it was still dominated by the composure of someone who controlled everything. He gently shook his head, his tone carrying a trace of lazy regret:
"Akako, you are still too immature. Forcing a challenge now is merely a moth flying into a flame."
"So what?!" Koizumi Akako retorted sharply, her voice trembling with excitement, yet carrying a broken, heartbreaking tenacity. "I'm going to die by your hand sooner or later, or be controlled by you like those others! If that's the case, why can't I choose to fight until the last moment?! Why can't I, as a warrior, issue a final challenge to my damned, demonic father?!"
Her final cry of "my father" was heart-wrenching, filled with complex emotions she couldn't even clarify herself—hatred, resentment, unwillingness, and perhaps... a deeply buried thread of desperate acknowledgement of this twisted blood relation.
Kanjuro paused for a moment upon hearing this. Then, the playful smile on his face gradually widened, eventually forming an arc that held a hint of genuine pleasure.
"Very well," he murmured, as if finally seeing the drama he had long anticipated. "Since you are so eager to prove yourself... then, as you wish."
He said nothing more, simply raising his right hand gently.
In an instant, the atmosphere changed drastically!
Koizumi Akako dared not show the slightest negligence; she knew the magnitude of the existence she faced. She launched the first attack!
"The radiance of Scarlet Magic, transform into chains of restraint—Binding of the Ruby!" She chanted the spell, pushing her hands forward. Several chains, composed of pure Scarlet Magic and burning with a flame-like glow, shot toward Kanjuro from different angles, sounding like living vipers piercing the air, attempting to confine him.
This was the binding sorcery she had painstakingly practiced, powerful enough to instantly restrain a giant elephant.
However, Kanjuro didn't even move his feet. He simply extended his index finger and lightly tapped the empty air.
"Stasis."
A single, simple word, as if his speech commanded the law. The swiftly approaching scarlet chains, when they were still a foot away from his body, slammed into an invisible wall. Their speed abruptly slowed, and they finally froze completely in mid-air, their magical radiance instantly dimming as if their life had been drained away.
This was not sorcery; this was—Magic!—closer to the fundamental rules of existence.
Koizumi Akako's pupils contracted, but her offensive did not cease.
"Explode! Crimson Star!" She clasped her hands together, instantly condensing a highly compressed, scarlet magical orb containing unstable, volatile energy, and violently thrust it toward Kanjuro!
Where the magical orb passed, the air warped, carrying a destructive aura.
Kanjuro remained composed. He opened his palm and gently clenched his hand toward the approaching Crimson Star.
"Annihilate."
There was no earth-shattering explosion. The magical orb, powerful enough to destroy half the castle, completely and silently dissipated the moment it touched the invisible force field in front of Kanjuro's palm, like light swallowed by a black hole, without even causing a ripple.
Absolute power crushing!
Koizumi Akako gritted her teeth, refusing to give up. She continuously changed her hand gestures, chanting even stronger incantations. The Scarlet Magic in her hands transformed into fire storms, thunder spears, ice crystal arrows... various dazzling and dangerous sorceries poured toward Kanjuro like festival fireworks.
The fire storm automatically split and flowed around Kanjuro as it approached.
The thunder spears were flicked away by his finger, dissipating into nothingness.
The ice crystal arrows melted into warm droplets of water before him.
Kanjuro remained standing in place, neutralizing Koizumi Akako's full-force attacks with the most basic movements, the simplest magical vocabulary, and sometimes even just a look. His magic lacked dazzling lights and complex forms, yet it struck directly at the essence, containing absolute power akin to fundamental rules.
This was not a battle; it was a one-sided, elegant, and cruel teaching demonstration. He was using absolute strength to show Koizumi Akako the insurmountable gulf between "sorcery" and "Magic."
Finally, Koizumi Akako's magic was nearly depleted. Her face was as pale as paper, and her body swayed precariously. She half-knelt on the ground, gasping for breath, looking at the man who remained spotless, as if he had merely taken a stroll. Her eyes were filled with resentment and... a trace of desperate realization.
Kanjuro slowly walked up to her and looked down.
"Do you understand now, Akako?" His voice was calm and steady. "Your struggles, your sorcery, are meaningless before true power."
Koizumi Akako raised her head, glaring at him stubbornly. Tears mixed with sweat streamed down her face, but she defiantly did not utter a single sob.
Kanjuro reached out, seemingly intending to stroke her hair, but stopped just before making contact. He withdrew his hand, turned, and left only a cold sentence echoing in the empty corridor:
"When you truly understand what power is, challenge me again. My... daughter."
Kanjuro's figure had long vanished into the deep darkness of the castle, leaving only the words, "When you truly understand what power is," echoing in Koizumi Akako's ears like cold mockery. She slumped onto the cold floor, the weakness from her depleted magic and the frustration of being crushed by absolute power nearly destroying her pride and will.
Unwilling... how could she possibly be willing?!
She was Koizumi Akako, the legitimate successor of Scarlet Magic, an existence possessing pride and demonic charm! How could she surrender so easily? How could she accept the fate of being forever controlled by the man who gave her life and yet felt like a nightmare?!
But... the power gap was too vast. Even her most powerful sorcery was instantly defeated by his most basic magic. There was simply no hope using conventional methods.
"Understand... what power is?" she murmured, repeating Kanjuro's words. Her bloodshot red eyes were filled with confusion and anxiety. "His power originates from the dark bible; that is an essential crushing... How am I supposed to understand? And how can I defeat it?"
Suddenly, another seemingly casual remark from Kanjuro surfaced in her mind—"For example, check my resume, my personality."
Resume? Personality?
What kind of hint was that? Was he mocking her?
But at this moment, any possible clue was like the last straw a drowning person could grasp. Koizumi Akako struggled to her feet, dragging her exhausted body back to the secret room filled with ancient texts. She stopped flipping through the Scarlet Magic texts detailing how to fight Dark Magic—those seemed so pale and powerless before absolute strength. She began utilizing all her connections and magical methods to search for and trace Kanjuro's "resume," hidden in the fog.
Ancient contract scrolls, records of forbidden rumors, and even glimpses of time fragments made chaotic by Kanjuro's power viewed through a crystal ball... she acted like the most dedicated detective, piecing together every detail about Kanjuro.
As the information converged, a clear pattern emerged—one that simultaneously filled her with disgust and shock—
Kanjuro had an astonishing number of female associates. From Tomoko Suzuki and Eri Kisaki, to Miyano Elena, and finally, her deceased mother Aozaki Sakuya... these women, whether initially willing or coerced, eventually seemed to revolve around Kanjuro in a twisted manner, becoming part of his dark kingdom.
"He likes women... or rather, he is keen on 'collecting' and 'controlling' women, especially those with special bloodlines or traits..."
This realization made Koizumi Akako feel a wave of nausea. But at the same time, an extremely bold, extremely insane, and arguably sacrilegious and immoral thought, like a poisonous mushroom growing in the darkness, suddenly sprouted from the deepest, darkest corner of her heart!
Her breathing suddenly became rapid, and her face flushed red then turned pale.
If... if Kanjuro's "weakness" or "point of focus" lay here... if he "cared" about her, his "daughter" who shared his blood and possessed extraordinary magical power, in the same way he "cared" about those other women... then... a cold and clear plan gradually took shape in her mind, accompanied by a self-destructive resolve and chilling calmness.
"Since I cannot defeat him through power... then I must exploit this 'preference' and 'concern' of his..."
"What if... what if I actively approach him, submit to his intentions, and even... become intimate with him, like his other women..."
At this thought, Koizumi Akako's body began to tremble uncontrollably, and a shiver mixed with extreme shame, nausea, and a strange sense of excitement shot through her spine. This was undoubtedly dancing with the devil, stepping into the filthiest mire!
"At the moment he is least guarded... at that most intimate instant when he believes he has completely controlled me, and his guard—both physical and mental—might drop..."
Her gaze fell upon an ominous Obsidian Casket in the corner of the secret room, used to seal forbidden magic. Inside, there was an Ancient Curse Poison that was almost imperceptible, yet could instantly corrode the soul's origin upon contact—a poison so potent that even the power of the dark bible might not react quickly enough.
"...That is my only chance."
"I will use my body as a trap, use the thing he 'cares' about most as bait, and deliver a fatal blow when he least expects it!"
The thought was so insane, so contrary to human ethics, that it made her dizzy. Patricide... and in this manner... But the moment she thought of Kanjuro's all-controlling smile, and the future where she and others might be eternally imprisoned under his dark shadow, the sheer hatred and her pride as a Magic User overwhelmed all hesitation and fear.
She slowly walked up to the Obsidian Casket, reaching out with a slightly trembling hand to caress its cold surface. The last trace of confusion in her eyes was replaced by a cold, resolute light, almost like that of a martyr.
"Kanjuro... Father..." she murmured softly, her voice hoarse yet possessing a terrifying calm. "Don't you want me? Don't you 'care' about me, your daughter?"
"Fine... I'll give myself to you."
"Using my body, my soul... as the final 'gift'... to send you to hell."
She had decided. She would walk the most forbidden and dangerous path of "Patricide." Even if the ultimate outcome was mutual destruction, she absolutely refused to exist as Kanjuro's "property."
The curtain quietly rose on the darkest and most immoral counterattack—one that used her body as the battlefield, intimacy as the disguise, and life as the stake. Koizumi Akako, the proud inheritor of Scarlet Magic, did not hesitate to sacrifice herself on the devil's altar to defeat her unmatched biological father.
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