The next morning, Kagerou Tower was wrapped in an uncanny heat. In the mid-level strategy room, the guild's elite hunters had been assembled. The large wall monitor displayed a structural diagram of the Lament Corridor, while equipment lists and formation charts lay spread across the table. The air was taut with tension; everyone moved in hushed voices. Ren stood at the center of it all. Beneath his short black hair, deep brown eyes traced the terminal in his hands. On his arm, faint black tattoo-like patterns—marks that surfaced each time he invoked Absolute Obedience—now lay quietly dormant beneath the skin. "Second squad's equipment. Is the check complete?" His voice was low and steady. "Yes. Everyone's been fitted with additional anti-humanoid armor." The reply came from a young B-rank hunter. His voice pitched slightly upward with nerves. Ren merely nodded, offering no further words. In the corner of the room, a few hunters were quietly confirming the details of the emergency order among themselves. A summons for all S-rank hunters—there had been almost no precedent for this since the day of the Collapse. "Humanoid monsters... you serious?" "They say an A-rank squad was wiped out on the eleventh floor." "Even Ren-san's Absolute Obedience... can it really control something like that..." Ren's ears caught every whisper with precision. But his expression remained still. *(The unease I felt in the Association's hearing room last night—it's still lingering in the shadows.)* Last night. The hearing room at Hunter Central. Inspector Saya's cold blue eyes. The alarm. The voice of the humanoid monolith—*WE HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU.* In that moment, the monoliths within the shadows had stirred, just for an instant. As if his subordinates—beings he should have held under Absolute Obedience—were responding to something. A reaction unlike any before. Ren clenched his left hand lightly. A faint numbness lingered at his fingertips. A constant sensation lately, from overusing his skill. "Vice-Master Ren." Another hunter addressed him. A mid-level A-rank, in charge of equipment management. "We've pulled anti-monolith grenades from the armory. Thirty in total. Distributing to all members." "Understood." Ren lifted his gaze from the terminal. "First and second squads, standby here. Third squad, guide our guest up from the first floor." "Guest... sir?" "An inspector from the Association. She'll be here shortly." At those words, the atmosphere in the room shifted. Several members exchanged glances, brows furrowing. One clicked their tongue quietly. Ren watched it all in silence. The relationship between Guild Kagerou and the Hunter Association was cooperative on the surface. The reality was different. The Association constantly monitored the guild, seeking to control it. And their scrutiny toward Ren—an S-rank—only grew more severe. *(Yesterday's hearing. This is likely its continuation.)* Ren turned his gaze toward the window. The view from the forty-fourth floor of Kagerou Tower. The high-rise cluster of New Tokyo glittered in the morning sun. But on the southern horizon, gray clouds hung low. The direction of the old city, Kuzuriha. Even in daylight, the light of the Gate faintly stained the sky. —*That day.* The day of the Collapse. The image of his six-year-old self, sitting alone among the rubble, flickered through his mind for just a moment. Ren exhaled slowly. The weight sunk deep in his chest felt just a little heavier. --- Just before noon, a woman stood in the entrance of Kagerou Tower. Her long, silver straight hair gleamed, reflecting the white light of the fluorescent lamps. Her back was perfectly straight, her Hunter Association uniform without a single wrinkle on the shoulders. Cold blue eyes stared directly at the reception counter. Saya. Inspector, Hunter Association New Tokyo Branch. The moment her figure came into view, the air in the first-floor lobby froze. Guild members peeking out from the waiting room all turned their eyes toward her at once. In their gazes floated undisguised wariness and hostility. "...The Association's dog is here again." Someone's muttered voice echoed faintly through the quiet lobby. Saya heard the voice, yet her expression remained utterly unchanged. She simply extended the inspection authorization in her right hand toward the reception desk. "Inspector Saya, Hunter Association Audit Department. I request a meeting with Guild Kagerou Vice-Master, Ren Kazama. Special orders from headquarters." Her voice was stiff, businesslike. Somewhere between a monotone recitation and forced calm—the speech pattern of someone trying to suppress their emotions. The receptionist fumbled with her terminal, flustered. "J-just a moment, please..." "This is urgent. I don't have much time." Saya stood perfectly straight, not moving a muscle. From deeper in the hallway, other guild members could be seen gauging the situation. One whispered into the ear of the man beside him. "She's here to put a leash on the S-rank." "Pretty damn smug for a non-hunter." "Auditing Absolute Obedience... if anything happens to Ren-san, our guild is finished." The whispers grew steadily louder. But Saya ignored them all completely. Only the fingertips of her left hand gripped the edge of her authorization badge just a little tighter. The elevator doors opened. Ren appeared. Their gazes crossed in the center of the lobby. For an instant, Saya's blue eyes moved as if searching Ren's face. A continuation of the gaze they had exchanged in last night's hearing room, just before the alarm sounded—a faint wavering, as if trying to confirm something. But immediately, she dropped her eyes to her terminal. "By order of Association headquarters, I will conduct a detailed audit of the Absolute Obedience skill and accompany the Lament Corridor operation as an observer. A thorough examination of your command records is required. May I borrow a space to work?" Ren stared at her face for several seconds. Silver hair. Cold blue eyes. A flawless uniform. And something hidden deeper within. "...This way." He answered curtly and turned toward the elevator. Saya followed behind him in silence. The moment the doors closed, a voice drifted from the lobby again. "The watchdog's going up to the forty-fourth floor, huh..." Saya's shoulders stiffened, almost imperceptibly. Ren saw it. *(She's the same as me.)* Lost something, shouldered something, and then—standing alone. In the silence of the ascending elevator, that thought quietly settled into Ren's chest. --- The strategy room on the forty-fourth floor was spacious and quiet. A space enclosed by black walls. A large table stood in the center, illuminated white by the ceiling lights. Beyond the window overlooking the city of New Tokyo, the morning light was gradually strengthening. Saya set up her analysis equipment at one corner of the table. She pulled cables from her terminal, connecting two small monitors. Her movements were precise, without waste. "I'll need to borrow your hunter terminal." Without a word, Ren removed the wristband-type terminal and handed it over. Saya took it and connected it to her analysis equipment. Data began streaming across the monitor. "I will examine your command records from the past six months. Based on Association Regulations Article Seventeen and Article Twenty-Two concerning the Absolute Obedience skill, I need to confirm the cumulative state of your mental strain." She scrolled through the screen as she explained, her tone detached. "Total commanded monoliths: currently thirty-one. Types include seven varieties, among them Shadow Hounds, Armor Knights, and Sirens. Average usage frequency: twelve times per month..." Her voice was flat, devoid of emotional inflection. But Ren understood. She was reading the data aloud in more detail than necessary. It felt less like adherence to regulations—and more like stalling for time to confirm something. "Memory contamination incident reports: two. The first occurred three months ago, during an operation in the old city of Kuzuriha. The second, six weeks ago, after a solo mission in the bay warehouse district. Both confirmed memory loss exceeding thirty minutes." Ren leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. His expression didn't move. But the index finger of his right hand tapped lightly against his arm. "Both were self-reported. No issues arose from them." "My task is not to determine whether issues arose, but to evaluate risk." Saya spoke without looking up. "Judging from the cumulative mental strain graph, your skill usage is approaching critical limits. Participating in an S-rank dungeon operation in this state may not satisfy the Association's safety standards." At those words, Ren's finger stopped. The air in the room tightened, just slightly. "...May not satisfy standards, huh." Ren's voice dropped lower. It wasn't a cold resonance. Rather, it was too quiet—so quiet that it carried its own pressure. "You don't have the authority to stop me from using my power. Guild Kagerou has two hundred hunters. I'm the one filling the vacant Master's seat. I can't back out of this operation." Saya's fingers stopped above the terminal. She looked up for the first time, meeting Ren's eyes directly. Deep brown and cold blue. The two gazes clashed across the table. "...I just..." Her voice trembled. Saya's blue eyes wavered, just for a moment. She released the terminal, her fingers pausing over the documents. Her perfectly straight posture crumbled, ever so slightly. "[whispers] I just... wanted to..." The moment her words began to dissolve into the air— *Bang, bang.* A loud knock resounded. "Vice-Master Ren! There are items to confirm for the strategy meeting!" A voice from the hallway. One of the guild members. Saya's hand swiftly returned to the terminal. Her back straightened once more, her expression cooling over. The wavering from moments before vanished in an instant. "...Continuing from earlier. The memory contamination incidents will be classified as risk factors and noted in the audit report. I will also confirm your command records periodically during the operation." Her voice had completely returned to its business tone. Ren didn't move. He remained seated, arms still folded—quietly repeating the continuation of the words she had started to say within his chest. *(I just... wanted to...)* What had she meant to say next? *Wanted to say I'm worried.* Or *wanted to tell you it's dangerous.* Or perhaps— Ren stood and headed for the door. After a brief response to the person who had knocked, he returned to the room. Saya was already beginning to pack up her equipment. In her profile, there was no trace of the earlier wavering. But Ren could see it. The fingertips putting away her terminal were trembling, faintly. --- A short while later, the terminals on both their wrists vibrated simultaneously. An emergency notification from the Association. The text displayed on the monitor—*Emergency summons for all S-rank hunters. Assemble at the entrance of the Lament Corridor, 0600 tomorrow morning.* A stir could be heard from beyond the hallway. The sound of guild members all confirming the notification at once and springing into action. Saya stood and packed her analysis equipment into her bag. "The audit records will be submitted to the Association. The accompanying observation will commence tomorrow morning." Her voice was now entirely businesslike. Ren also stood. The two of them headed for the exit. The moment they stepped into the hallway, several guild members looked at Saya. One averted their eyes. Another made an openly cold expression. "...The Association's watchdog, here to leash the S-rank." It was a murmur, but it echoed clearly through the quiet hallway. Saya heard it, yet she continued walking without breaking her express