The dining hall of Yonabe Tavern was heavy with the tension of three people, despite the early morning hour when pale light still filtered through the windows before dawn. Souichi spread a piece of paper on the table and traced a route with a stick. The outer wall of the ruined fortress. Circling north from the main gate. Infiltrating through the back entrance, reaching the deepest chamber. Based on Tougo's information, the strategy they'd devised last night should have no gaps. "[serious]There's a blind spot on the north side of the outer wall. We enter from there. The guard rotation happens an hour after dawn. Right now, they're understaffed." Tougo leaned over the map, nodding repeatedly. So far so good. "[excited]So once we're inside, if we go right there's the prison, left is the kitchen, and straight ahead is Haikui's chamber. So from the start we should go straight——ah" Souichi looked at Tougo. "[cold]Ah, what?" "[sarcastic]It might be the opposite. Right and left, my memory's a bit fuzzy on that……" Souichi closed his eyes and took a deep breath for a few seconds. "[cold]You were planning to lead us in with a fuzzy memory? Really?" "[excited]It'll be fine! We can confirm once we're inside. That's what I call field pragmatism." "[angry]That's not the right context for that phrase." At that moment, Gintsuki's hand snatched the map away. Souichi and Tougo looked at Gintsuki simultaneously. Gintsuki didn't spare them a glance, borrowing a quill pen and beginning to write on the map. Her slender fingers moved smoothly. Room numbers. Corridor widths. Guard post locations. Even a passage to the basement and a rendezvous point. The parts Tougo had only vaguely remembered were filled in meticulously with information from who-knows-where. Gintsuki finished writing and handed the map to Souichi. "……" He tried to read it. He really tried, but the handwriting was too fine. And the calligraphy was so elegant it was hard to decipher. Souichi spent about thirty seconds seriously decoding the mixture of kanji and numerals. "[sarcastic]Handwriting so good it's actually hard to read, huh." Tougo murmured while resting his chin on the armrest. Souichi finally grasped the full picture and nodded. The route was accurate. Haikui's chamber was definitely straight ahead. "[serious]Got it. We go with this." At that moment, Yoshino emerged from the kitchen. In her sixties, her hair streaked with white tied back in a single knot, she stood solidly in the dining hall with her sturdy frame. She held a large furoshiki cloth in her hands. "[serious]Take these with you." She unwrapped the cloth to reveal three rice balls. Two for Souichi. One for Gintsuki. For Tougo——Yoshino paused for a moment, then turned toward him. "You" And with that, she returned to the kitchen. Tougo checked the furoshiki. One rice ball was missing. "[sad]Wait, where's my share……" "[cold]That's the evaluation for your last betrayal. Accept it." "[sad]You could at least give me one……" Souichi stood up and put on his jacket. Gintsuki had already fastened her coat. There were no words between them. That was fine. They'd confirmed everything necessary last night. ＊ The path to the ruined fortress was a beast trail branching off from Akanagi Town's main road. The morning air was cold, and grass dew dampened their shoe soles. Tougo walked slightly ahead, checking for any guards as they progressed. Behind him, Souichi and Gintsuki walked side by side. It was a quiet path. Only bird calls echoed distantly. To confirm their direction, Souichi reached out to touch Gintsuki's right shoulder. He meant to tap it, but Gintsuki moved first. She grabbed his wrist in reverse and pointed ahead. Go first. That's what it meant. Gintsuki took the lead. Her silver hair swayed in the cold morning breeze. Following her back, Souichi remembered that until yesterday, he had been the one walking in front of Gintsuki. The moment their positions switched, something he couldn't quite put into words was born in his chest. After a while, Gintsuki stopped. She turned back. Her gaze questioned him, waiting for his direction confirmation signal. Their eyes met. Close. Gintsuki's face was closer than expected, and Souichi suddenly didn't know what to say, only managing a nod. It's fine, that meant. Keep going, that meant. Gintsuki turned forward and walked on. Souichi followed about three seconds later. Something was beating fast in his chest, but he told himself it was just from the early morning exercise. He lectured himself that it was uncool for a middle-aged man to be flustered by such things. "[sarcastic]No guards around. And, uh, you two had a pretty good atmosphere going there." Tougo emerged from the grass, speaking carelessly. "[angry]What do you mean." "Well, you know, like you two were in your own little world——" "[cold]Shut up. Let's go." Souichi moved forward, ignoring Tougo. His voice had no strength. He heard Tougo laughing behind him, but he pretended not to. ＊ The outer wall of the ruined fortress was old stonework covered in moss and dust. They circled around from the blind spot on the north side and searched for the back entrance according to Gintsuki's map. A rusted iron door opened silently when they put their weight on it. The wood supporting it from inside must have rotted. The three entered without a sound. The corridor was dim. Torches stood at regular intervals along the stone walls, but many were burning low. A sign of poor maintenance. Tougo went ahead and gave a hand signal. Souichi read the finger movements. Two people? Gintsuki read the finger movements. One person? Tougo himself thought there were three. All three had different interpretations as they proceeded to the corner, where the actual situation came into view. Two people on the left side of the corridor. Another one half-leaning against the right wall, dozing. "[whispers]……How do you count a half-person……" Tougo whispered at Souichi's ear. Souichi silenced him with an elbow. Souichi took a proper stance and approached the two guards on the left with minimal footsteps. Before the first one noticed, he struck the torso, collapsed it against the wall. Knocked it unconscious before it could cry out. Turned to the second one. Struck the face and collapsed it similarly. Both neutralized. Gintsuki handled the dozing one. She pointed her fingers, and the faintest chill emanated from them. Kotoyomi required a voice to use. But the faint magical power in her fingertips remained even without incantation. That chill enveloped the sleeping guard, deepening their slumber. The guard continued leaning against the wall. Souichi sent Gintsuki a look. Can you still use it like that? That's what it meant. Gintsuki nodded slightly. Three bodies, passed silently. "[whispers]You two are way too in sync……" Tougo leaked from behind. Souichi didn't turn around, just signaled silence with his hand. ＊ The moment they pushed open the door to the deepest chamber of the ruined fortress——the enemy was already waiting. Haikui. A head taller than Souichi. Skin with the reddish tint characteristic of焦土領's demon race, both arms marked with flame patterns——proof that blood-pact sorcery formulas were inscribed on his body. A power dwelling in blood, different from kotoyomi. It activated without incantation, but required three seconds of stiffness to activate. That weakness, Souichi had heard about last night from Tougo. Several subordinates behind Haikui. But Haikui's eyes weren't on them——they were fixed straight on Souichi. "[sarcastic]……A swordsman with no magical power, reaching this far." His voice was low, full of composure. "[sarcastic]A voiceless witch and a brat. What garbage crawled out from where." "[sad]That brat would be me……that kinda hurts, you know." Tougo appealed quietly to Souichi. "[cold]I'll hurt you later." Haikui waved his hand lightly. His subordinates retreated. One person was enough, his judgment said. "[cold]So you're handling this alone." Haikui's mouth curved upward. Instead of answering, the patterns on both his arms began to glow red. Not incantation. Power rising from within his blood. The temperature around them rose, the air dried. The flame blood-pact sorcery charged toward activation. Three seconds. Souichi took a proper stance. The stance he'd repeated every morning for thirty years in the dojo. The basic of basics, performed ten thousand times. No special power, no magical ability, nothing. Just swordcraft. Just a human's technique. But Souichi already knew that in this world, it could become a weapon unlike any other. Gintsuki kept her gaze fixed on Souichi's back, unmoving. Watching only his movements. One second. Two seconds. Three seconds—— Flames shot toward Souichi. Coming straight on. Dodge or retreat——Souichi barely deflected the flames to the side, and without killing the momentum, he stepped in. The distance closed. Haikui deployed a magical barrier at full power. A thin membrane of light wrapped around his body. If the blade could pass through this, everything would be over——Haikui's face showed that certainty. Souichi's blade touched the barrier's surface—— It passed through. Without a sound, the blade slipped through the barrier. The wall constructed of magical power couldn't react to a blade that held not a single particle of magic. Treating it as nonexistent, the blade passed through. "[surprised]Impossible……the barrier……it's not working……!?" His voice cracked. Eyes wide with shock tracked Souichi's blade. Souichi drove forward with the momentum of his step, concentrating all his body's strength into a single point of the blade. Thirty years of repetition had soaked into his muscles. No hesitation. No doubt. A strike to pierce——carving deep from the shoulder toward the torso. BOOM!!! The impact echoed through the chamber. Haikui's knees buckled. Before his legs could give out, he tried to brace himself, but his legs wouldn't obey. Slowly, he knelt to the ground. "[sad]Why……why does a blade without magic……" His gasping voice, looking at the ground, had completely lost its earlier composure. Souichi sheathed his sword without turning around. "[cold]Don't underestimate an old man's blade." Gintsuki rushed over. She concentrated the faint chill remaining in her fingertips, directing it toward Haikui's arms. This wasn't treatment. Not examination or confirmation——just touching. Souichi understood the meaning and didn't try to stop it. The chill wrapped around Haikui's arms, freezing them and sealing away the remaining magical power. Haikui became completely immobilized. Tougo's voice came from the corner of the chamber. "[surprised]Wait, it's over? I thought it'd be more dramatic." "[sarcastic]What's wrong with how it went." "Nothing's wrong, it's just that he looked so strong, but it was over in an instant——" "[cold]Shut up and get the rope." "Right, right." After confirming the binding, the remaining subordinates one by one placed their weapons on the floor. Haikui had fallen. There was no reason to continue. "[serious]……The Kurogane Sect's unit in this region already has a retreat order." Bound, Haikui spoke in a low voice. "[serious]Even if you win, it means nothing. The higher-ups are moving. Something bigger is——" "[cold]We'll hear the rest later." Souichi kept his hand on his sword hilt, facing Haikui. Retreat order. The higher-ups' movements. What that meant, he wouldn't think about now. He had to check on Gintsuki. He turned around. Gintsuki was standing directly in front of him. As a post-combat confirmation after fighting in a voiceless state, Souichi lightly tapped Gintsuki's shoulder. Are you hurt? That's what it meant. Gintsuki tried to nod. She opened her mouth——normally, only breath would come out. Her vocal cords couldn't produce sound, a state that had continued. This time was different. "[whispers]So……u……" A hoarse soun