Since he couldn't figure it out no matter how he turned it over in his head, Arthur simply stopped wasting brain cells on it.
He turned to the curious Shuzen Ya'ai beside him and smiled.
"Nothing. I just remembered there's another place we need to go."
"Another place?"
Shuzen Ya'ai blinked her pretty eyes.
"The Shuzen household."
"Eh?!"
Her eyes widened a little. She hadn't expected Arthur to actually say he was going to the Shuzen estate. A complicated look flashed through her gaze.
She was a member of the Shuzen family.
But her feelings toward that family… were not simple.
It was that kind of love–hate mess.
Especially toward the family head, Shuzen Issa.
She hated him for neglecting her mother and letting her die in the human world.
What she loved were her sisters — mainly Moka.
The other two still counted.
So she couldn't help asking, "What are you going there for?"
"To pick something up. I'll tell you when we get there."
Arthur had just said that when a thought flashed through his mind.
Fujisaki Miyabi was dead, and yet the Compendium hadn't lit his entry.
Alucard's sealed true body…
Don't tell me I have to erase that empty Alucard shell they've been keeping sealed too before the Compendium will count it?
The more he thought about it, the more it made sense.
"What is it?" Shuzen Ya'ai saw him slip into 'mystery-man' mode again and her eyes moved. Her curiosity only got worse.
"Nothing. It has to do with what I'm taking from the Shuzen estate."
Arthur didn't explain further.
With a thought, he dispelled the domain.
The two of them reappeared high above the mountain castle Fujisaki Miyabi usually lived in.
"This castle…"
Arthur stroked his chin, thoughtful.
"Are you going to destroy it?" Shuzen Ya'ai asked. She forcibly pressed down her curiosity about him playing riddles again and looked down at the castle.
"Yeah. Let's just destroy it."
After sweeping the place once with his psychic sense, Arthur made his decision.
He'd killed Fujisaki Miyabi.
Might as well bulldoze his house.
Arthur looked down at the castle.
His right hand clenched into a fist. Terrifying power gathered; he punched.
An invisible shockwave, condensed to a single point, hammered straight down.
A deafening boom rocked the mountains.
Where the castle had been, a crater nearly a kilometer wide sank into the earth.
For tens of thousands of meters around, the ground shook.
It really did feel like an earthquake.
"...!!!"
Kinjō Hokuto, who had already run ten thousand meters away, felt the tremor roll through the ground. He froze, whipped his head around, and his face went pale with horror.
Then he turned again and ran even faster.
Whatever had just happened over there — he was not getting caught up in it.
After vaporizing the entire castle with one punch, Arthur glanced at the bright-eyed Shuzen Ya'ai and smiled.
"Let's go. Next stop."
"Okay."
Her expression softened and she nodded.
He locked onto the direction. A silver sanctuary unfolded around them, and the two shot toward the Shuzen family's manor deep in the Yōkai Domain.
About twenty minutes later…
Arthur and Shuzen Ya'ai arrived.
What spread out below was an estate covering thousands of mu, with grand buildings everywhere; in the very center stood an enormous castle, ostentatious and imposing.
They didn't bother to hide.
In fact, they deliberately let their auras be sensed.
The moment they drew near the Shuzen grounds, someone sensed them. A figure flickered and appeared in the sky.
"…"
Facing them stood a middle-aged man in a formal suit, a high-collared cloak over his shoulders, black hair loose to his shoulders, elegant but cold.
Shuzen Ya'ai's eyes flickered. Her red lips parted slightly, but she didn't speak.
This was her father.
The head of the Shuzen family — Shuzen Issa.
"Ya'ai…"
Shuzen Issa's eyes flashed when he saw her. He called her name softly, then looked at Arthur.
"You're… human?"
He gave Arthur a once-over, brows knitting slightly.
"That's right. Human," Arthur said, lips curling.
The instant he confirmed Arthur was human, Shuzen Issa narrowed his eyes. A faint disgust flashed through them.
He asked, "Human, what is your relationship with Ya'ai?"
Arthur had already noticed the loathing in Shuzen Ya'ai's eyes when she looked at her father, so he blinked thoughtfully.
Then he chuckled.
"Ya'ai is my retainer."
"What?!"
Shuzen Issa's heart surged with anger. His daughter… had actually become a human's retainer? Absolutely unacceptable.
His little cabbage had been taken by a pig.
And not just any pig — a human pig.
No matter how he looked at the boy, he didn't like him. It was like seeing some punk on a spirit bike asking to park downstairs.
He turned to Shuzen Ya'ai.
His face darkened. His voice sank.
"Ya'ai, did this human force you?"
Sensing that her father was hostile toward Arthur, Shuzen Ya'ai's gaze flashed and cooled.
"No. I did it willingly."
"This is my freedom. Who I become a retainer to is none of your business."
"You…"
Shuzen Issa's expression changed.
Rage flashed — but also helplessness.
He couldn't vent it on his own daughter.
So he could only… redirect it.
He stared at Arthur, eyes going cold, and said in a deep voice:
"Human. I'll give you a chance. Leave on your own."
"…?"
Arthur arched a brow.
Hands in his pockets, standing there in midair.
The corner of his mouth lifted with a mocking curve.
"No."
"You what?"
Shuzen Issa's face sank.
Arthur didn't even blink. "I said no. Are your ears deaf?"
As he spoke, he even pulled Shuzen Ya'ai into his arms and dropped a quick kiss on her.
"—You what???"
For a moment Shuzen Issa doubted his own hearing.
What did this brat just say?
He said I was deaf?!
It was like watching some blond punk hugging his daughter and grinning, "Hey old man, my ghost-bike's downstairs — safe to park?"
Shuzen Ya'ai watched Arthur mouth off to her "father" like that and couldn't help the small smile tugging at her lips.
"Good, good… good…"
Snapping back, Shuzen Issa was so furious he laughed. Demonic power surged off him like a tide.
"Kid, I hope your skills are as big as your mouth."
"Let Ya'ai go and fight me one-on-one."
"I said — no."
Arthur's smile deepened, and he hugged Shuzen Ya'ai even tighter.
Her eyes flashed. Her lips curved. She tipped her head up and planted a light kiss on Arthur's mouth.
Shuzen Issa: "???"
Seeing that, his rage spiked straight to the heavens. His chest tightened — he almost spat blood.
He gritted his teeth, fists clenched so hard his body trembled.
He really wanted to beat Arthur up.
But his daughter was in the other party's arms. If he struck now, she might get hurt.
So he could only force himself to hold it in.
Arthur chose that moment to smile and speak:
"Old man — no, father-in-law — I'm actually here today to take something."
"Alucard's true body."
"!!!"
The raging Shuzen Issa's pupils shrank. Shock and suspicion invaded his gaze.
How does he know?!
Shuzen Ya'ai also stared, stunned.
Alucard's true body… has been hidden in the Shuzen family this whole time?!
Shuzen Issa stared fixedly at Arthur, his expression shifting.
"…Who exactly are you?"
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