The Conquest Festival was now just a day away.

With victory all but assured, the students of Kisou Academy were in a festive mood, their excitement palpable.

They would divide the vast territory of Kisou Academy and even claim its holy relics as their own. Moreover, the idea of righteously punishing Kisou Academy—the school that had harassed them relentlessly—was deeply satisfying. Naturally, every student wore a bright expression.

All except one: Touraku, who was sprinting down the hallway.

“Tch!”

His face was desperate as he pushed past the other students. Normally, he would apologize for even the slightest bump, but now, he didn’t even notice the collisions as he ran.

Slamming open the infirmary door, Touraku shouted the moment he entered.

“Mihaya!!”

His voice drew the attention of those inside. The first to speak was Rinka.

“Touraku, you came.”
“Of course I did. More importantly, Mihaya—?!”

Seeing his agitation, Rinka smiled reassuringly. Then, she pointed to one of the beds.

“She’s asleep right now. Don’t worry, she’s not in any danger.”
“…I see. Haaah, thank god…”

As Touraku slumped to the floor, Lutra —having shifted from her blade form—caught him. Despite her childlike appearance, she supported his limp body effortlessly and glanced at Mihaya.

“…Yeah, there are traces of an angel.”
“I figured as much… Mihaya said it herself before passing out. That she was attacked by an angel.”

Touraku’s expression hardened again.

Angels—the most dangerous Irregulars they needed to be wary of right now.

Thanks to the data Sorciera had provided, they had a rough understanding of angels. That was precisely why Mihaya’s testimony couldn’t be ignored.

“An angel… So they’ve finally appeared.”
“Listen, I need you to stay calm when I tell you this.”

Rinka placed a hand on Touraku’s shoulder and met his gaze. It was a technique she’d learned during her time in the organization—one meant to steady someone’s nerves.

The fact that she was using Silver Twilight’s methods on a friend meant only one thing: she had no idea how Touraku would react to what came next.

“The angel that attacked Mihaya… might have been under Kisou Academy’s control.”
“…What?”

Touraku stared back at her, waiting for an explanation. Choosing her words carefully, Rinka continued.

“It’s just a possibility for now. But the reason Mihaya got hurt in the first place was because she went to help another Kisou student who was being attacked.”
“…And that student?”
“They’re fine. Mihaya’s amazing, you know? She protected them, killed the angel, and still made it back alive.”

Rinka gently patted Mihaya’s head before turning back to Touraku.

“According to the students’ testimony, the one controlling the angel was wearing a Kisou Academy uniform. A white, bird-like monster.”
“So… Kisou Academy did this.”
“No. Touraku, calm down. It’s not confirmed to be Kisou’s students. Anyone could get their hands on another school’s uniform. There are other possibilit—”
“Kei mentioned Kisou Academy’s angel-capture plan… What if they succeeded?”

Rinka fell silent. She knew that was the most likely scenario.

But if she acknowledged it as the truth, Touraku might lose control.

(He’s already blinded by rage over Kei. If he finds out Mihaya was hurt too, it’ll be bad.)

Rinka knew better than anyone.

The scariest people when consumed by anger were the kindest ones.

That was why she had to handle Touraku carefully.

“Kisou Academy has no reason to attack us now. Provoking us right before the Conquest Festival would only risk their own dissolution. Why would they do that?”

Eventually, Touraku would reach the conclusion himself that Kisou was behind this. So Rinka was trying to preemptively guide his emotions by presenting the possibility first.

But right now, Touraku was beyond her expectations.

“You know how cruel they are, right? Remember what happened at Fectom Academy? Their student council president was blackmailed and turned into a test subject. Kisou’s been behind countless incidents. Expecting them to fight fair now is naive.”
“That might be true, but… this feels too obvious. If they were going to attack, they’d cover their tracks better—”
“Rinka, why are you defending them?”
“…That’s not it. Touraku, I just want you to stay calm.”

Ignoring her, Touraku approached Mihaya’s bedside. He gently stroked her hair and whispered, “I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you.”

Lutra wordlessly took his trembling hand and looked up at him.

“Touraku, are you okay?”
“I’m fine… I’m fine. Mihaya’s the one who suffered. Once again, I couldn’t do anything…!”

He spat the words out as if carving them into his own heart.

“I am calm. Don’t worry… I’m not going to storm Kisou Academy and slaughter them all. They’ll come to us tomorrow. And when they do, they’ll try something. I’ll just cut them all down then.”

His eyes were ice-cold, trembling with something deeper than rage.

The eyes of a Gatou.

“…I’m going to complete the Star-Slash form. I’m leaving.”
“Are you sure? You can stay with Mihaya a little longer.”
“And what—?”

Touraku didn’t turn back as he stood at the door.

“Will just watching make me stronger? …I hate this. That my weakness is why I couldn’t save anyone.”
“Wait—!”

He didn’t respond to Rinka’s call. He was probably heading to the training grounds.

(Ugh, the one person who could stop him when he’s like this is out cold. What do I do now?)

Rinka stared at Mihaya’s sleeping face.

“…Guess I’d better move too.”

With a nod, she left the room as well.

■

“—So, Vice Prez of the Disciplinary Committee, what do you want?”

In one of the most luxurious apartments in Kisou Academy’s district, Rokuhara stood at the entrance, looking thoroughly annoyed.

Peeking out from behind him, Eina muttered, “Oh… Not a pizza delivery, huh?”

“I’m kinda busy enjoying my day off here?”
“W-Wow, Rokuhara-senpai, you’ve moved into a nice place! As expected of the glorious Rokuhara! A true king who pays off his debts in no time, yessir!”

Chiaki, the vice president of Kisou Academy’s Disciplinary Committee, bowed deeply with an exaggerated smile. It was a level of humility that would shock anyone who knew her usual authority.

Seeing this, Eina grinned. “Oh, this’ll be fun.” She tried to step forward, but Rokuhara grabbed her by the scruff and tossed her back into the room.

“Get to the point, or I’ll wring you out like Eina.”
“Eek!”

Chiaki let out a small scream at the sight of Eina flying across the room and bowed even lower.

“P-Please, help me! You’re the only one I can turn to, Rokuhara-senpai!”

Rokuhara sighed, already sensing trouble.

“Fine. Talk.”
“Y-Yes! Earlier today, one of our students was attacked!”
“Happens all the time. You’re not exactly popular.”
“But—they were attacked by something weird!”

Chiaki pulled up an image on her Dive Gear and showed it to Rokuhara. It depicted a white, bird-like creature.

“Look at this. It’s not a dungeon monster, and it’s not someone’s Autonomous Armament either.”
“This… an angel?”
“An angel? Like that urban legend going around lately…?”
“Where did this show up? Is it still there?”

Chiaki shook her head.

“No, Chairwoman Kiraku took it down. But the problem is what happened after.”

Hesitating, she continued.

“Apparently, there was a student controlling the angel… and they were wearing a Kisou Academy uniform.”
“…Ahh, I see.”
“You get it, right?! This is bad! Chairwoman Kiraku is—she’s smiling while polishing her naginata, saying she’s gonna raid them right now! The whole Disciplinary Committee’s trying to stop her!”

Rokuhara sighed again, imagining the bloodthirsty “Yamato Nadeshiko” in full rage mode.

“She can’t even wait one damn day, that idiot… Wait, hold up. You sure it was actually Kisou’s students?”
“Huh?”
“They’ve got no reason to attack now. Especially not with angels—why would they show their hand like this?”

Rokuhara’s lips twisted into a smirk.

“Seems like some dumbass’s half-baked plan to me. They think they can take Kisou down while we’re weak.”
“R-Rokuhara-senpai—!”
“Quit clingin’, you’re annoying.”
“I knew it! I thought the same thing! But everyone’s so mad at Kisou Academy, they won’t listen! I’m the vice president, and they’re ignoring meee!”

As Chiaki bawled and clung to him, Rokuhara pried her off with a look of utter exhaustion.

From the back of the room, Eina suddenly perked up.

“Hey! Who said you could hug my leader?! Back off, you thief!”
“W-Waaahhh! Eina-chan, help meee!”

Chiaki grabbed Eina’s outstretched hand and clung to her instead. The sight of a taller, higher-ranked girl sobbing like a child made Eina grin as she glanced at Rokuhara.

“Ehehehe. Leader, let’s take a pic! I’m in such a good mood right now~.”
“You…”

Rokuhara gave his ever-terrible partner a deadpan look before crouching in front of the now fully weeping Chiaki.

“I could step in, but did you even report this to the student council? Disciplinary Committee’s under their jurisdiction, right?”

He was subtly trying to pass the buck, but Chiaki shook her head violently.

“The student council’s already dissolved!”
“Hah?”
“After the president went missing, everyone started fighting over her position—they all ended up in the hospital! Then another group tried to take over, and now… nobody even knows who’s in charge anymore! We’re barely keeping Chairwoman Kiraku in check, but with all the infighting, the Disciplinary Committee can’t handle it alone! With no president, you’re the only one we can turn to, Rokuhara-senpaiaaah!”
“Holy hell, I really don’t wanna deal with this… Wait, she’s missing?”

Rokuhara looked up at the ceiling in disbelief. He knew the S-Rank student council president hadn’t participated in the Conquest Festival, but disappearing was another matter entirely.

(This is gonna be a massive pain in the ass…)

With no outlet for his irritation, Rokuhara roughly scratched his head. Meanwhile, Eina was forcing Chiaki into a two-shot while flashing a peace sign.

“Leaderrr, let’s take one together! Hehehe, this’ll make the pizza delivery even tastier!”
“…Ugh.”

Today was supposed to be a rare day off for Rokuhara, an S-Rank Executor.

But apparently, that was no longer the case.

“Waaahhhh! Rokuhara-senpaiii!”
“Eheheh, your nose is running! You’re totally crying, aren’t you?!”

His precious day off had effectively vanished in that moment.