Lord <Storm Coffin> had apparently started making a name for himself about four years ago.
There were rumors that he had been an executive in a Kansai-based yakuza syndicate, but nobody knew whether that was true.
What was true was that in western Tokyo’s Yamanote area, where the conflict had been dragging on like a swamp, he expanded his influence in no time. Maybe he had a talent for that sort of thing. Maybe he had powerful connections. Either way, he was a pain in the ass.
The decisive moment was, of course, the <BFE> conflict in Ikebukuro that broke out two years ago.
It started as a minor dispute over rights to a narrow piece of land. Then a few street punks got killed, the Demon Kings flew into a rage, Heroes joined the fray, and the situation explosively worsened. That was all. Lord <Storm Coffin> made excellent use of it.
While the powerful Demon Kings and Heroes of the time were busy killing one another, he seized the opening, assassinated no fewer than four Demon Kings in a single night, and took their territories.
“Should’ve killed that bastard back then.”
That was the complaint Joe the <Salt> still made to this day.
Now, in western Yamanote, he was without question the Demon King with the largest force. The Demon King powers of western Tokyo’s Yamanote area, which had been locked in conflict for ages, were being unified under Lord <Storm Coffin>. Or rather, within the next year or two, they probably would be.
He was a powerful Demon King.
—Which was exactly why he was worth paying a visit.
Ishinoo’s death had happened in his territory.
I was not letting him say he knew nothing.
A party held by a Demon King was, as a rule, an extremely lavish affair, and naturally there was a reason for that.
The Demon Kings wanted to show off how powerful they were. In the Demon King business, what mattered even more than actual strength was how much hidden power people thought you had, or whether you could make them hallucinate that power into existence. If people looked down on you, the Demon King trade did not work.
Even accounting for that, though, Lord <Storm Coffin>’s party was excessive.
He had spent a stupid amount of money on it. At this point, it was a hobby. It was like he had taken words like flashy and extravagant and amplified them by a factor of five. He had remodeled an entire building for the party, and the guest list was huge.
Among them were probably famous figures from various fields, washed-up Heroes, and would-be Demon Kings. Heroes employed by Demon Kings were nothing unusual. Sometimes that side paid better, and I had been hired by Demon Kings before to kill rival Demon Kings.
In other words, this was a situation where carrying swords was not unnatural.
That lowered the difficulty of sneaking in. We blended in with the other regular customers, passed through the entrance, and made it all the way to the reception desk in the entrance hall without any trouble.
In fact, Lord <Storm Coffin> seemed to enjoy welcoming unexpected guests like that.
“Welcome.”
When the receptionist saw us, she bowed smoothly.
As expected from someone entrusted with Lord <Storm Coffin>’s reception. Even after seeing a man like me, obviously radiating the atmosphere of a highly skilled warrior while accompanied by three weird little girls, she responded this naturally.
“May I have your name, please?”
The receptionist wore a perfect customer-service smile. I nodded magnanimously.
“I’m Ed Silas. I’m here as the representative of King Rob, the great eastern star of war. He asked me to give Lord <Storm Coffin> his regards tonight.”
I rattled off a string of bullshit that was definitely meaningless, but the receptionist’s smile did not crack in the slightest. Instead of asking more questions, she began operating the tablet in her hand.
“I’ll check that for you. Please wait a moment—and your companions?”
“Yes!”
Even in the noisy entrance hall, Shirogamine’s voice rang out with a pointlessly refreshing clarity. She began speaking with obvious delight.
“I am Master’s foremost disciple, Aki Shirogamine. These two are Yukine Indo and—around second or third disciple—”
“This one’s an acquaintance of my cousin. She absolutely insisted on joining the social-studies field trip, so I brought her along.” This chapter is updated first at g.com.
I covered Shirogamine’s mouth before she could say something fatal.
Maybe this was what they called perfect team communication, because Indo had seized Shirogamine’s right arm, while Sera had pinned her left. Shirogamine looked at us in mild surprise, apparently unable to understand why she had been restrained.
“And this is my bodyguard, Indo.”
I pointed at Indo. Expressionless, Indo nodded and released Shirogamine’s right arm. Then, for reasons unknown, she gave an awkward bow.
“...Nice to meet you.”
She even added that. Maybe that was her idea of acting.
“And this is my little sister, Sera.”
“Wh—hey.”
Sera panicked badly. She grabbed my arm and pulled hard. Her blue eyes bared like a mad dog’s, she growled in the lowest voice she could manage.
“What the hell is that? You didn’t say anything about this. You screwing with me?”
“My dear sister, your brother is hurt.”
“Don’t screw around. I’ll beat the shit out of you.”
“Be my guest, if you can. Just don’t tell Daddy on me.”
“You bastard.”
I had said it with every intention of thoroughly wounding Sera’s pride and mocking her, but all she did was grimace.
That was a little disappointing, but I decided to move the conversation along.
“Well, jokes aside—”
“—No, wait.”
Shirogamine, who had escaped restraint at some point, stood before me with a severe expression. It was a splendid, statuesque stance that neatly blocked the receptionist’s line of sight.
“The way you introduced only me felt strangely distant on a psychological level.”
Her tone accused me openly.
“Why is Yukine the bodyguard and Sera the little sister, while I am treated as an acquaintance of your cousin? I would like an explanation I can accept.”
“No real reason. It just came out naturally.”
“That is even worse. At least let it be an introduction based on some rational reason—Yukine! Sera! Did either of you bribe Master somehow? Even if Master does seem like the sort of person who would be weak to that kind of thing!”
“I didn’t.”
Yukine shook her head. Obviously.
“I’m pretty strong. I think that’s why.”
“More like this Mr. Yashiro is insane. What the hell does he mean, little sister?”
Sera spat the words out, but that seemed to drive Shirogamine into another impulse.
“Wait, Sera! That! That right there! Something has felt off since the other day, but now I have realized what it was. I want to know when you started calling Master ‘Mr. Yashiro.’ I do not overlook such matters.”
“Right, right. It’s because you realized I possess extraordinary teaching ability.”
This was clearly going nowhere, so I cut the conversation off quickly. Sera glared at me in displeasure, but tonight was about to get a little busy.
“Anyway, let’s discuss that another time.”
“Ah! Master! Are you clearly trying to dodge the subject right now?”
“Um, excuse me, sir.”
The receptionist put an end to the utterly barren debate.
“The name Ed Silas is not on the guest list. Do you have anything that can verify your identity?”
“Ah, wait. Something to verify my identity, like, say...”
I shoved Shirogamine, who still looked dissatisfied, out of the way and pulled a cylindrical tool from my pocket.
A specialized syringe for <E3>.
Naturally, it was loaded full.
“Will this work? I didn’t bring my health insurance card.”
The receptionist looked at the <E3> with a puzzled expression. Which was why she was about two seconds late glancing urgently at the security staff.
I leisurely brought the <E3> to the side of my neck and injected the contents. While enjoying a momentary rush of intoxication, I tapped Sera on the shoulder.
“Training starts now. You can use <E3>.”
Indo could do whatever she wanted. In fact, she had already jabbed <E3> into her own neck.
As expected. The girl was weirdly used to it.
Sera, on the other hand, wavered slightly, narrowed her eyes, then opened them again.
“Huh? Oh—ah.”
The way she lifted the <E3> was a little clumsy. A security guard who had caught the receptionist’s glance approached. He was pretty damn fast. As expected from staff assigned to an entrance hall where suspicious assholes could easily slip in.
But the movement that followed was, as expected, mine.
The instant I drew my bastard sword, I cut down one of the approaching security guards. Practically bullet speed. A moment later, I felt the wind.
“They can’t use handguns in this place.”
I said it loudly enough for Sera, Indo, and, technically, Shirogamine to hear.
This was the entrance hall. There were too many guests. They had to worry about stray bullets, so gunfire was out of the question.
“We’ll start with an easy stage.”
Shirogamine let out some brave-sounding cry and drew her sword. Sera, face twitching, settled into an iai stance with her Japanese sword. Indo vanished instantly.
The training began here.
Somebody might die tonight, I thought.