Half an hour later, Kaiser and Akatsuki Nagisa left the apartment and boarded the monorail train.
When the two of them left the apartment, there were still faint screams coming from Room 704. It could be foreseen that the person inside was most likely going to be late for the first class of the morning.
And the first class this morning was none other than Natsuki Minamiya's English class...
"…I'll take care of your remains, Kojou."
Kaiser silently mourned for his unfortunate classmate and neighbor, then resolutely set off for school together with Akatsuki Nagisa.
Fortunately, today wasn't as hot as yesterday. Though it was still around 30°C, perhaps because of the heavy rain the day before, there was at least a bit of coolness in the morning.
Walking up the gentle slope in front of the academy, bathed in the cool breeze, and with the chattering voices of cute girls in his ears... one had to say, this kind of scene was rather pleasant.
Only, the leisurely life that Kaiser had decided to enjoy ultimately didn't last long.
"Hm?"
At a certain moment, Kaiser's steps suddenly came to a halt, and his eyes narrowed slightly.
"Kai-kun? What is it?" Akatsuki Nagisa also stopped immediately and looked at Kaiser, surprised. "That expression... you look like Yaze when he's out shopping and suddenly gets a stomachache but can't find a public bathroom."
…What kind of devilish metaphor is that?
Also, Yaze Motoki, just what have you done in front of Nagisa?
Kaiser's eyelid twitched slightly, then he shook his head at Nagisa.
"It's nothing. Let's go to school."
Upon hearing that, Nagisa was still somewhat confused but didn't think much of it and continued chattering as she walked toward school.
Just like yesterday, the two parted ways upon entering the school—one headed to the high school building, and the other to the middle school building.
However, unlike Nagisa, who went directly into the middle school building, Kaiser once again stopped halfway.
Suddenly—
"Bang!"
The stone tiles on the ground exploded.
A silver arrow suddenly tore through the air and struck the spot where Kaiser had been standing, piercing through the floor.
Kaiser had already stepped back a second before the arrow appeared, directly dodging the incoming arrow and causing it to miss.
But just as he dodged the first arrow, from the top of a distant building, several more arrows rained down.
"Whoosh!" "Whoosh!" "Whoosh!" "Whoosh!" "Whoosh!"...
With successive sounds of air being pierced, silver arrows shot through the sky like bullets, continuously aimed at Kaiser.
Some of the arrows were fast, some slow, some ahead, some behind. They carried waves of magical power and subtly enveloped the area around Kaiser, sealing off all his escape routes.
"This archery…"
Kaiser was slightly taken aback. He found the scene before him somewhat familiar.
Not only was the archery familiar, but even the magical energy on the arrows had a familiar feel to it.
Based on this sense of familiarity, Kaiser instantly determined that these arrows were imbued with a curse-type spell. Once they made contact with the human body, even the strongest person would fall severely ill.
"To think they even added a curse…"
Kaiser had a pretty good idea of who the attacker was.
However, that was something to be dealt with later. For now, he had to handle this wave of attacks first.
"Bakudō No. 39: Enkōsen."
Kaiser invoked Bakudō, and a circular spiritual shield appeared in front of him.
"Clang clang clang clang clang clang…!"
The incoming silver arrows collided one after another with the circular shield and were deflected away.
However, once these deflected arrows hit the ground, they began to transform.
They first quickly melted, then changed shape, like curtains losing their hooks. After becoming thin metal sheets, they stretched out flexibly, gradually reshaping and swelling into sharp-angled plates, eventually forming intricate beast-like figures out of folded steel.
"Roar!"
"Roar!"
The steel beasts all let out roars. Their wild appearances made them seem like they had truly come to life, but there was no sign of vitality on them—only magical energy, indicating that they were still dead objects.
And for dead things to behave so lifelike, there could only be one explanation.
Someone was controlling them from behind.
"Roar!"
"Roar!"
At once, the controlled steel beasts roared as they pounced toward Kaiser, surrounding him from all directions.
Kaiser didn't move. Instead, he looked toward the direction from which the first arrow had come.
The surrounding steel beasts launched merciless attacks, about to swallow Kaiser's figure whole.
But just as they were about to strike, a group of black shadows suddenly flew in from the sky.
"Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!" "Boom!"...
With dull crashing sounds, the steel beasts attacking Kaiser were all knocked away.
The ones who sent these massive beasts flying were actually a flock of birds no bigger than the palm of a hand.
"Chirp chirp chirp—"
The flock of birds let out angry cries while flapping their wings, actively flying toward the steel beasts.
In an instant, a surreal scene unfolded in this area where people had long stopped appearing or passing through—flocks of birds clashing fiercely with a horde of steel beasts.
Though the silver-arrow-turned steel beasts weren't particularly powerful magical creatures, they were massive in size and entirely made of steel. Logically, they should have been far more threatening than large carnivores. A flock of tiny birds shouldn't even be enough to fill the gap in their teeth.
Yet, under the repeated assaults from the airborne birds, not a single steel beast was left standing. They were sent flying as easily as rubber balls.
The birds were incredibly fast and agile in flight. Despite their tiny appearance, they carried astonishing power for reasons unknown, easily smashing away steel beasts that weighed hundreds of kilograms.
Thus, the terrifying steel beasts—more fearsome than real wild beasts—were mercilessly trampled by these birds. Some were knocked away, while others were pierced straight through by birds that flew like arrows, creating an overwhelming sense of contrast.
But in truth, all of this was only natural.
Empowered by the Authority of the King of Beasts, these birds had already been transformed into magical beasts. Even though they were small in size, their bodies contained tremendous power, far exceeding that of wild beasts.
Though they were just ordinary birds, after being empowered by a god's Authority, even if they hadn't reached the level of Divine Beasts, they were still equivalent to Divine Servants—certainly not inferior to the monkey Divine Servants once controlled by the Heretic Sun Wukong in Nikko City.
Those monkey Divine Servants were difficult opponents even for Great Knights like Erica and Liliana.
If Erica and Liliana's combat strength was a ten, then these Divine Servants were a four or five—already half as strong as a Great Knight.
Such Divine Servants were by no means just tools for reconnaissance.
At the very least, in this world, ordinary magical beasts were no match for them. Average combat mages might not even be able to defeat a single bird, making them despair-inducing beings capable of shattering people's confidence.
As such, even if those steel beasts were more difficult than typical large monsters, to magical birds possessing Divine Servant-level power, they were nothing more than tough, mobile sheets of metal.
"Shunpo!"
Taking advantage of the chaos as his magical birds trampled the steel beast horde, Kaiser used Shunpo and instantly vanished from his spot.
By the time he reappeared, he was already on the rooftop of a nearby building.
Then, almost at the very moment he appeared, a figure lunged at him.
"Slash!"
A silver slash suddenly descended, aiming at Kaiser's shoulder, tearing through the air with ease.
"Clang!"
The next second, the silver slash was deflected.
Amid the scattering sparks, Kaiser—at some point—was holding a silver short blade and had easily deflected the incoming attack.
"Tch…!"
The attacker let out an unmistakable sound of annoyance, their attitude extremely foul.
She distanced herself from Kaiser, leaping seven or eight meters away, facing him from afar.
Only then did Kaiser clearly see the attacker's appearance.
She stood nearly 170 centimeters tall and appeared to be around fifteen or sixteen years old. She had chestnut-colored side ponytails, fair skin, a graceful face, and a slim figure that was quite attractive—enough to make one's eyes light up.
The person before Kaiser was an exceptionally pretty girl.
Upon seeing her, Kaiser finally confirmed that his earlier guess was correct.
"As expected, it's you, pervert girl."
Kaiser didn't hesitate and blurted out the nickname.
And that sentence thoroughly set the other party off.
"Who are you calling pervert girl, you filthy man?!" the girl shouted furiously. "I'm Sayaka, Kirasaka Sayaka! Call me Lady Sayaka, you degenerate man lurking in an all-girls school!"
"Who lurked in an all-girls school?" Kaiser immediately retorted. "How many times do I have to say it? It was the Three Saints who threw me into the High God's Forest! I didn't sneak in there on my own!"
"Hmph, do you think that's enough to hide your wicked intentions while mingling in a girls' school?" Kirasaka Sayaka's attitude couldn't have been worse. It was like she had encountered her lifelong nemesis. She glared at Kaiser with gritted teeth and said, "Now that you've graduated and started taking missions, you're still hanging around a middle school girl, going everywhere with her. You really are the root of all evil!"
"If I'm the root of all evil, then you're a suicide truck, aren't you?" Kaiser crossed his arms and spoke with a cold smile. "I heard you don't even answer calls from your male superiors, just keep shouting Yukina, Yukina all day long. Even ambulances and fire trucks aren't as loud as your sirens, right?"
"A woman, and a senior at that, yet you're always obsessed with your junior…"
"And you say you're not a pervert girl?"
Kaiser's words made Kirasaka Sayaka so furious that her chest heaved violently.
The atmosphere between the two of them couldn't have been more hostile—like mortal enemies.
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