Wooo! Wiiiik! Wiiiik!
The sharp sound of sirens echoed across the island, piercing the air like a metallic blade cutting through silence. Red warning lights mounted on the buildings flickered in harsh rhythm, amplifying the urgency of the scene. Shops slammed shut with the dry clatter of descending metal shutters, while public facilities locked down with the cold efficiency of the island's central security system.
In the streets, cries of panic rose as residents scrambled to evacuate the danger zone. Footsteps stumbled in chaos, tangled with women's screams and children's wails, while self-driving cars halted in place to clear the way for the flood of evacuees.
[Warning!! Warning!! Warning!! Terrorist activity has been detected in the Sub-Floats area. All nearby citizens are to evacuate immediately to avoid the risk of terrorist encroachment.]
The loudspeakers shuddered as the automated message repeated, its hollow, mechanical tone devoid of emotion—only adding to the chilling detachment, as if the island itself had become a machine unconcerned with human cries.
The sirens spread through every corner of Itogami Island, casting terrifying echoes across the horizon. Fear seeped into hearts, faces froze in panic—some bolted in frenzied escape, while others stood paralyzed, unable to comprehend what was unfolding.
Amid the chaos, Kojou stood atop a tall building, his eyes coolly following the rising flames and thick black smoke billowing from the distant Sub-Floats. A faint, mocking smile curved his lips, like a man watching a performance too familiar to stir anything but boredom.
"So, it's begun…" he murmured, his tone dripping with indifference and a touch of irony.
The scene was like a recurring nightmare. In the past, the Gigafloat Management Corporation had sought to exploit his power, even putting Asagi in danger to achieve their ends. Though his rage burned that day, he chose to walk away rather than lose himself to another blood-soaked frenzy. But he never forgot. He never forgave.
And now, he was deliberately allowing Gardos and his followers to seize the activation codes for Nalakuvera. He knew they would unleash that terrible weapon to wreak havoc upon the island. Still, he showed no will to intervene. In his mind, the citizens had been given enough time to evacuate; they would not suffer immediate harm. As for him… he chose to stand and watch, coldly observing the flames devour the horizon, unconcerned with what might follow.
"Oh~ I didn't expect someone else to arrive before me."
The voice rang clear, elegant and mocking, like fine wine swirling in a crystal glass. A blond man descended lightly from the sky, his long white coat flowing in the wind like a wing of light, landing beside Kojou with graceful pomp. His shining blue eyes glinted like a hidden blade beneath his calm smile.
"Vatler…" Kojou acknowledged with the slightest nod, his expression unchanging.
Raising his gloved white hand, Vatler cast a glance toward the distant horizon where flames and smoke rose from the Sub-Floats. A soft chuckle escaped him—quiet, yet carrying the weight of a devil's music.
"A marvelous sight, don't you think?" he said with theatrical flair, his eyes savoring the chaos. "The flames, the smoke, the screams… ah, battle and war are the finest of delights. They alone remind one that they are truly alive."
He laughed lightly, spreading his arms as though to embrace the pandemonium consuming the skyline. The glimmer in his eyes sharpened, reflecting the distant blaze, and his smile widened to reveal sharp white fangs.
"So this is Nalakuvera—the weapon forged by the Gods, said to have destroyed countless civilizations in ages past."
"It truly lives up to its name."
It was a six-legged tank, standing some seven or eight meters tall. At a glance, it resembled a monstrous ant clad in the shell of a lobster. Two small arms like antennae sprouted from its elongated, oval head. Its armor carried the texture of clay or bronze, giving it the eerie presence of an "ancient weapon."
The Taoist war-god Nezha was said to have three faces and eight arms, his body of lotus roots and gold, wielding a flame-spewing spear and an armband that could crush the skulls of his foes… Yet the Nalakuvera, modeled in homage to Nezha, bore a form far too twisted and fiendish to be called a god. Encased in thick armor, it moved on six legs.
A heavy mechanical roar rumbled from afar, shaking the earth beneath their feet as though the island itself groaned. On the horizon, Nalakuvera advanced with slow yet majestic strides, each movement of its six metallic legs like a colossal hammer striking the island's heart. Buildings shuddered, windows shattered under the shockwaves of its march.
The flames reflected across its bronze frame, making it look like an ancient statue resurrected by a demonic hand. Its metallic screeches against the ground shrilled like a harsh discord, tearing at the ears, while engraved lines along its body glowed with the weight of divine commands carved in forgotten ages.
Kojou gazed at the monster in silence, its sheen mirrored in his eyes, before shifting his gaze back to the blond figure beside him.
"So, what brings you here without your beloved ship?" he asked, his voice calm, though inwardly he seethed with contempt at Vatler's hand in this chaos.
Vatler turned slowly, his smile unwavering, eyes sparkling with childish mischief laced with bloodlust.
"Do you mean the Oceanus Grave?" he said, placing a hand upon his chest like an actor reciting tragedy. "Alas… it was seized by Gardos. I barely escaped with my life." His mocking smile deepened, the feigned dramatics in his tone so transparent they fooled no one.
Kojou exhaled softly. He needed no Spiritual Sight to know this aristocrat relished lying as much as he savored the blood of his prey. Still, he let him speak.
Vatler chuckled again, then gestured with his white-gloved hand toward the beast on the horizon.
"But worry not. I shall take responsibility and rid us of Nalakuvera."
For a moment, silence hung between them, broken only by the thunder of another explosion from the Sub-Floats. Thick violet smoke coiled upward, and the ground trembled once more beneath the monstrous steps of Nalakuvera.
It was as though the sky, the sea, and the city had fused into a single stage—where every soul was but a helpless actor crushed beneath the emergence of a weapon born of divine wrath and human folly.
...
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