"It's you again, you bastard. I should've shot you dead earlier!" Kurusu raised his Steam Gun, hatred burning as he aimed at Ikoma.
"Stop! I'm not a Kabane!"
His heart — now like a Kabane's — hammered in his chest. Panicked and staring down the barrel of a gun, Ikoma's voice shook.
"You Kabane — don't imitate humans and talk like one!" Kurusu roared and pulled the trigger.
"Wai — " Takumi tried to stop him, but it was already too late.
Bang!
The shot struck Ikoma in the heart, blasting him clean out of the Kōtetsujō.
"Block the door. Hurry!" Kurusu barked, ordering everyone to barricade it.
Takumi could only stand there, helpless, calling his friend's name.
Yet just before Ikoma fell, Ryuji felt something strange — a faint "connection" coming from Ikoma's body. The idea of sensing a connection from a man sent a chill down his spine.
'Damn it… I'm not gay.' Cursing silently, Ryuji left that car.
Mumei, looking bored at everyone blocking the door, followed after him.
"This isn't a place for you to stay. Get the hell out — "
As Ryuji reached the second car, an unpleasant voice hit his ears.
✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦
A few minutes earlier.
"Big Sister Shino, are you knitting clothes for the baby in your belly?" Kajika asked, watching Shino's hands with curiosity.
"Yeah. If the baby's born with nothing to wear, that won't do." Shino paused, smiling with a motherly warmth as she gently stroked her several-months-pregnant belly.
"How many months?" Kajika squatted in front of her, staring at the high, round belly.
"Almost eight."
"Was it really… conceived from your wish?" Kajika couldn't help asking.
Shino had never been intimate with any man — there weren't even rumors — yet she was pregnant. In town, it had practically become a legend.
"Huh?!" Shino blinked, confused.
"Ah, I didn't mean anything by it. I'm just curious." Kajika hurriedly waved her hands.
"Hehe, it's fine. Honestly, I don't really understand it either. Eight months ago, there happened to be a meteor shower, and I wished to become a mother. A month later, I realized I was pregnant."
"That's incredible…" Kajika breathed, wide-eyed.
Bang Bang Bang!
Rough pounding on the door shattered the gentle atmosphere. Even the two sleeping little girls jerked awake.
"Hey! You inside — get out here, now!"
The rudeness outside made Kajika frown.
"Big Sister Shino, you stay here. I'll see what's going on."
Outside, a group of better-dressed men had gathered. At their front stood the same middle-aged noble from earlier.
"Did you figure out who's inside?" he asked, scowling at a young man who'd just returned from the back.
"Just two women and two kids."
"Oh? A noble's family?" The middle-aged man raised an eyebrow.
"No. One works at a textile shop, one in logistics. The kids' parents are probably dead."
"So that's all… commoners." The curly-haired noble who'd been kicked by Ryuji earlier spoke with open displeasure, "How dare they occupy this place."
Eager to take credit, one of the young men stepped forward and hammered the door harder.
Creak!
"Excuse me… what do you want?" Kajika opened the door and looked at the crowd in confusion.
"What do we want? You still have the nerve to ask? Do you know this is where Lord Ota is supposed to stay?"
The young man moved aside, revealing the middle-aged noble at the front.
"B-But Lord Ryuji said we could live here…" Faced with such hostility, Kajika shrank back.
"Ryuji?" The young man lifted his chin, contempt dripping from every word, "There's no lord named Ryuji in Aragane Station. You made that up because you wanted to take this place, didn't you?"
"N-No, I didn't. Lord Ryuji really told us to stay here."
"This isn't a place for you to stay. Get out — "
Before he could finish, the middle-aged noble cut in.
"Enough. Step back."
The young man blinked, then retreated into the crowd.
"This 'Lord Ryuji' you mentioned… is he a youth dressed differently from us?"
Kajika nodded.
"I see. Then you may continue living here." With that, he turned and led the group away to find someplace else.
Ryuji watched, surprised. He'd expected them to forcibly drive Kajika and the others out, but instead they backed off.
"Heh. Didn't expect your name to be that useful." Mumei peeked her small head out from behind him.
"He was just intimidated by my strength." Ryuji headed toward the compartment without looking back, "If you want more tasty things, come with me."
He shook a bag of snacks in his left hand.
"Hmph. Lolicon. Only a little dog would eat your stuff."
She said that, but the moment she saw the bread in Ryuji's right hand, her stomach betrayed her.
Grrr!
"Damn it!"
Mumei rubbed her small belly. That earlier piece of bread hadn't come close to replenishing the energy she'd burned.
In the end, hunger won, and she followed — flushed with embarrassment.
"Lord Ryuji, you're here." Kajika stood at the door, smiling as he approached.
"Stop calling me 'lord.' I'm not a noble. Just call me Ryuji."
He followed her inside, greeted Shino, then looked over with a teasing expression at Mumei lingering in the doorway.
"Here. Come in. This is for you." This time he didn't tease her further, simply tossing her a pack of cream-filled bread.
He took out more food and handed it to Shino, Kajika, and the others.
"Grrr… damn it."
In the end, the law of 'it smells good' prevailed. Mumei bit into the cream bread like she was biting Ryuji.
✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦
"Hey — where did you conjure all that food from?"
After finishing the last bite, Mumei licked the crumbs at the corner of her mouth and stared at Ryuji's now-empty hands.
"Just treat it as a special ability."
What else could he say — tell her it came from the Reincarnation Space? That would only invite endless questions.
"Oh." Mumei nodded, seeing he didn't want to say more, "Hm? Why did we stop?"
Feeling the Kōtetsujō come to a halt, she looked around, confused.
✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦
"Where are you going?"
"I'm going to manually start the drawbridge."
"No, you can't. It's all Kabane outside."
"No. As a warrior, I should sacrifice myself at a time like this."
"But — "
When Ryuji and Mumei reached the cockpit, they found Kibito Araka restraining Kurusu as the two exchanged a rather… intimate-sounding argument. Ryuji couldn't help pulling Mumei a little farther away.
In the original story, those two were always together no matter what, and Ryuji had always felt there was something strange about their relationship.
From Kenshō (Ayame's father), Ryuji learned the gear linking the Kōtetsujō to the drawbridge had jammed, and the cooling-water tank had been smashed by the Kabane. If they didn't leave soon, then once the tank ran dry, the Kōtetsujō would overheat and be unable to move.
"I'll go." Ryuji spoke up.
"No. It's too dangerous outside." Ayame rushed over and clutched his hand.
Worry filled her silver-gray eyes, tears trembling at the edges.
"You know my strength, don't you?" Ryuji lifted a hand and gently wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes, "Don't worry. I survived out there alone. This little scene is nothing."
"But…" Ayame still didn't relax.
After all, many of her "first times" had been given to him, and her heart was already tied to his.
Why does this feel so familiar… Ryuji cleared his throat.
"Ahem. No more 'buts.' When it's safe later, you're going to help me with something." Ryuji winked.
Ayame froze. Her tear-streaked face turned instantly red, and she buried her head against her proud chest.
"Look!"
A warrior watching through the scope shouted, snapping everyone's attention outside.
"There's a person in the Kabane horde!"
✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦
Outside, Ikoma staggered toward the manual switch for the drawbridge, cutting down every Kabane that attacked him.
When Ryuji reached the outer corridor of the Kōtetsujō, he saw Ikoma muttering to himself:
'Watch… just watch.'
'The man you looked down on…'
'I'll save you.'
'So you'll all have to live with guilt forever.'
Ryuji was speechless. They'd thrown him off the train to die, and he still came back to save them like some saint — while trying to justify it to himself.
"Sure enough… we can't possibly be the same kind of person." Ryuji drew the Shadowless Sword, couldn't be bothered listening to the rambling, and jumped down.
Up close, he was certain: that strange connection came from the turquoise crystal in Ikoma's hand.
"Ah — y-you… what are you going to do?!" Ryuji's sudden approach made the exhausted Ikoma stumble back two steps like a startled girl.
After casually stabbing a few Kabane to death, Ryuji stared at him with dead-fish eyes.
"You're not a beautiful girl. What do you think I'm going to do to you?"
Rolling his eyes, Ryuji couldn't be bothered with more nonsense. He kicked Ikoma up onto the Kōtetsujō's outer corridor. Takumi arrived at just the right moment and caught his friend.
At the drawbridge mechanism, Ryuji kicked the switch back into place, sheathed the Shadowless Sword, and leapt up onto the Kōtetsujō with ease.
"Ryu-kun."
Seeing him return, Ayame's grip on her Beretta finally loosened. She rushed forward and threw herself into his arms, eyes shining with tears.
"Come to my room later." Ryuji held her close and whispered, his hand giving a brazen squeeze to the soft curve beneath her long skirt.
"Mmm… I-I understand."
Blushing, Ayame darted away.
Stare!!!
Mumei stared after them, certain those two were going to do something bad tonight.
Once Ayame had calmed down, Ryuji headed to the car where Ikoma had been tossed back inside.
Kurusu and several warriors had their Steam Guns trained on him. Everyone else stared at Ikoma in fear. Ikoma knelt on the floor, insisting he was a Kabane or something, while only his chubby best friend stayed at his side.
"Even if you saved us, I won't feel guilty. If you still have any humanity, then kill yourself for everyone's sake!"
Kurusu tossed the suicide bag down in front of Ikoma.
Even though he hadn't managed to play the saint, those words still stung. Ikoma's face darkened.
"This guy isn't a Kabane." Mumei stepped out from behind Ryuji with her hands on her hips.
"If he's not a Kabane, then what is he?" Kurusu didn't dare be rude to Ryuji, but he wasn't afraid of her.
"Of course… he's not human either."
As she spoke, Mumei turned as if to strip off her outer clothes and show the patterns on her back.
"Seriously…" Ryuji, speechless, pulled her into his arms and stopped her from flashing everyone.
"Mmph! Damn lolicon — what are you doing?!" Mumei struggled, couldn't break free, and finally gave up.
Mm… this guy smells really nice.
For some reason, Mumei caught a trace of the same scent as her mother on Ryuji.
"Alright. Leave the rest to me."
Mumei glanced at Ryuji strangely. Somehow, a sense of safety rose in her chest.
"Warrior Kibito, there's no need to be so on guard." Kurusu lowered his gun, confusion in his eyes, "Lord Ryuji, then… what is that guy?"
"A Kabaneri."
"Kabaneri?"
"Simply put: he's infected with the Kabane virus, but he still has human reason. Half human, half Kabane."
"But in the end, he's not human…"
Ryuji cut him off and pointed at Ikoma, "On the way to Kongōkaku, we'll run into plenty of Kabane. He's no longer afraid of the virus. Keeping him will add to our fighting strength."
Kibito and the others fell silent.
Mumei's cheeks reddened as she wriggled out of Ryuji's arms, no longer in the mood to reveal her identity.
She hadn't expected him to know so much about Kabaneri, and she looked at him with surprise.
"Lord Ryuji is right. The road to Kongōkaku is perilous — one more person means one more fighter." Kenshō walked over, nodded at Ryuji, and continued, "Besides, this little brother's weapon can deal with Kabane easily. If we let him modify our Steam Guns into weapons like that, our chances of survival will rise."
Everyone had already seen the power of Ikoma's weapon — it killed Kabane with ridiculous ease.
And just like that, Ikoma was not only allowed to stay, he even got a promotion and a raise, becoming a weapons modifier.
"I saved you and let you stay. So shouldn't you pay me? Hmm… how about that green crystal in your hand? That one's nice." Ryuji stepped up to Ikoma and pointed at the turquoise crystal.
"Huh? Yes, Lord Ryuji." Ikoma took it off and handed it over, then hesitated, "But… my little sister and I picked this up by the river when we were kids. As payment, it isn't valuable enough."
"It's fine. That's all I want." Ryuji waved him off. As he turned to leave, he remembered something and looked back, "Oh, right. Ikoma may not be a Kabane, but he still needs human blood for nourishment. When he's hungry, just let him drink blood."
With that reminder, he left with Mumei.
Everyone exchanged uneasy looks. Even if Ryuji said Ikoma wasn't a Kabane, the people terrified of the monsters didn't care what he was — they didn't want to be near him.
In the end, Kenshō arranged for Ikoma to stay in the last car.
✦✦✦
T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
If you want 20 chapters ahead of this novel for just $1, as well as smut chapters ($2) or spicy images ($5) or enjoy a large catalog of good novels with excellent translations (free or starting at $1.5): MrBlackWing (you know where to search)
That's it and happy reading! (-‿◦)