It was only a few minutes' walk from the park to the mansion.
Erika was still lost in thought as she entered the house and quietly made her way to her room.
Only after closing the door did she realize she was still carrying the sleeping wolf pup in her arms.
"…Oh, right."
She looked down at him.
Where should she put him?
For a moment, she considered taking him back to his own room. But when she imagined placing that small, fluffy creature alone in that large, quiet space, she hesitated.
"…He'd look lonely there."
Her gaze shifted toward her bed and the army of plushies occupying it.
"Yeah… he would fit perfectly."
Besides, they had shared a room for a long time in the Demon Slayer world. And it wasn't like they had never slept in the same bed before.
And he was a puppy now.
So, it was perfectly fine.
After nodding to herself as if approving an important decision, she gently placed him in the middle of the plushies.
He sank slightly into the soft mountain of stuffed animals, white fur blending seamlessly among them.
"…Yep. Perfect fit."
For a brief second, she just stood there watching him sleep.
Then suddenly, a wave of dizziness hit her.
She grabbed the edge of her desk lightly.
"…What?"
Why did she feel this tired?
She had eaten properly today.
Then it clicked.
"…Ah."
She hadn't drunk blood in nearly two days.
"Huh. I seriously forgot again…"
The magic Akira taught her was excellent at calming her bloodlust.
But it also made her forget to drink blood on time. She normally drank Akira's blood every night, but she had forgotten for the last two days.
She sighed.
She knew she needed blood soon.
Her eyes drifted back toward the bed.
The wolf pup was still sleeping peacefully, surrounded by plushies like a misplaced legendary artifact.
Erika sighed softly.
"…I can't wake him up now. Tomorrow morning would be fine. Probably."
Then she stared at the sleeping wolf pup buried among the plushies.
A small, hidden desire surfaced.
She muttered, "…I could probably just hug him to sleep."
And if he woke up after that, she could drink his blood immediately.
Yes.
That was perfectly reasonable.
Completely normal.
She nodded slightly to herself. "It's fine. It's completely fine."
She leaned forward, reaching out toward the soft white fur.
Then suddenly.
A loud, pulsating electronic siren erupted without warning.
Its rhythm was fast and relentless, like the interior of a warship thrown into combat alert.
Erika flinched back immediately. "I didn't do anything—!"
She quickly calmed herself and looked up.
Red lights flashed across the ceiling. The alarm echoed through the house.
"What happened?"
Selena's voice came telepathically. "It's an intruder alert."
Erika stiffened. "Someone's attacking the house?"
"Impossible," Selena replied instantly. "The mansion barrier is impossible for anyone in this world to breach forcefully. It's the school. The outer defensive layer has been damaged."
Erika's expression changed. "The school? Is it okay?"
"Don't worry. They haven't breached the school grounds. Iori is already heading there, too."
Erika turned sharply toward the bed. "Akira. We need to…"
She stopped.
Akira was still asleep.
Completely asleep.
She blinked in disbelief. "…You've got to be kidding me."
Then she froze.
"…Wait. This sound…"
Her eyes widened slightly.
"Is this the Venator-class Star Destroyer alarm?"
Selena replied casually, "Yes. When he was a kid, my brother replaced every alarm in the house for aesthetic purposes."
Erika stared at the ceiling. "…Of course he did."
Then she looked back at the still-sleeping wolf pup.
"Then why is he still sleeping?"
"When I said every alarm," Selena continued dryly, "I meant even his wake-up alarm. He's probably immune to it. Try physical force."
Erika nodded and rushed to the bed.
She grabbed the wolf pup and started shaking him. "Akira, Akira, wake up!"
Akira only telepathically muttered, "Five more minutes…"
Erika went speechless.
But seeing the situation was serious, she picked him up and shook him with all her might.
"Wake up! Someone is attacking!"
Akira's eyes snapped open.
He found himself being furiously shaken by Erika.
"Erika… wait… I'm awake. What happened?"
He finally noticed the alarm.
Selena immediately spoke to him telepathically. "Someone is attacking the school."
Akira's expression sharpened. "What?"
He transformed back into his human form.
He removed his sunglasses.
His purple eyes turned toward the direction of the school.
The irritation in them was unmistakable.
With his Mystic Eyes working at full power, Akira activated his long-range vision magic.
He saw them.
Fifteen human mages.
He could also see the school's emergency barriers rising into place, shimmering faintly in the night air. And Iori was already speeding toward them.
Erika asked urgently, "What happened?"
Akira didn't answer.
Instead, he bent down, picked her up in a princess carry.
"W-Wait—!" Erika yelped.
And in the next second, Akira shot out of the window, flying toward the intruders at high speed.
The night air roared past them.
"Who is attacking the school?"
His grip tightened slightly.
"I'm finally starting my school life. Who in the hell dares to do this?"
Through his Mystic Eyes, he observed carefully.
Fifteen mages.
But beyond them, he also detected long-range surveillance magic watching the scene.
"So, it's probably a test."
Akira's gaze hardened.
"Seems like now that Mother and Father disappeared… they've started getting cocky."
His expression darkened.
"Well then. I guess I have to teach everyone what happens when they cross me."
He knew very well how many enemies the Starlight family had.
Back then, he never really cared about them.
But now they were targeting the place where his important people were.
He would not let them go easily.
"They seem to have forgotten."
A brief pause in his thoughts.
"It's fine." His purple eyes glowed brighter. "I'll remind them."
He accelerated.
In seconds, he caught up to Iori mid-dash without a word, grabbed him with one hand, and continued flying forward at even greater speed.
They reached the intruders almost instantly.
Akira landed and gently placed both Erika and Iori on the ground.
He lifted his gaze toward the intruders.
Iori, who had been grabbed mid-flight, stumbled slightly and complained, "Akira! At least give me a heads up…"
But Akira didn't respond.
He only looked forward.
Fifteen black-robed mages stood ahead, already on alert the moment he arrived. Near them, a small, shattered artifact lay on the ground, likely what they had used to damage the barrier.
One of them shouted, "He's here! Everyone, get ready!"
They raised their hands in unison.
Magic circles bloomed into existence before them, glowing in layered formations.
Akira spoke without turning his head.
"Stay right here."
Erika felt something shift in the air around him.
"…Akira," she called softly.
But he didn't stop.
He walked toward the mages as if none of it mattered.
The spells completed.
And then.
They fired.
Flames, lightning, compressed wind, torrents of water, jagged earth spears… every elemental attack surged forward at the same time.
For Akira, time slowed.
50% processing speed.
Entropy Axiom Sequence—activate.
He raised his hand.
A white magic circle unfolded in his palm.
Instantly.
Every spell froze mid-flight.
Silence fell across the battlefield.
The mages stared at the suspended attacks in disbelief.
Slowly, they lifted their heads.
And saw him.
White hair beneath the night sky.
A face almost unreal in its perfection.
Too young and refined.
For a split second, it didn't belong on a battlefield.
Then they met his eyes.
Glowing purple.
Empty.
He wasn't looking at them as opponents.
He was looking at them like something insignificant.
Like ants beneath a higher being.
A chill ran down their spines.
And in that moment, they understood.
Something was wrong.