The riots had begun.
At first, it was only scattered clashes here and there across Chernobog—small fights breaking out between the Infected and the uninfected.
But soon, men and women clad in Reunion uniforms began swarming the streets, seemingly appearing out of nowhere.
Blood. Screams. Fire. Corpses.
The local police and soldiers, who had initially been able to suppress the chaos, now found themselves losing control.
Confusion spread among them. Where had the rioters gotten so many people, so much equipment?
Could Chernobog's Infected really number this many?
---
"Count Boris, it's time for you to depart."
"…Why? Why disguise yourselves as Reunion and attack Chernobog's civilians?! You stain Ursus' honor with this farce!"
"So, you've finally realized something's wrong. But thanks to you, our plan succeeded more easily than expected. If you hadn't kept Duke Kashchey from interfering, we might have had to abandon it altogether… In truth, I should thank your pride. Afraid that Kashchey might seize the city you poured your soul into, you focused all your attention on guarding against him. That gave us the opening we needed."
"…"
"Surely you know the contract Kashchey signed with the Emperor? He does not interfere with any territory beyond his own."
"You fools! That contract is nothing but a scrap of paper! How could mere words bind a being like him?!"
"Heh. Do you think we would've dared act without carefully studying the Duke's patterns? If we hadn't been sure, we never would have taken this risk."
"To entrust your city's safety to the promise of an immortal… I truly don't know how you ever rose so high in the first place."
"You…!"
"Enough chatter. I've no more patience for you. Farewell, 'Mayor' of Chernobog."
Count Boris collapsed, staring up with unyielding fury at the officer's triumphant sneer.
To think… I gambled Chernobog's safety on the word of a monster who's lived for centuries…
And now, I'm undone by men like this.
---
"You filthy brats… Now you'll taste the same suffering we've endured!"
A man in a Reunion uniform loomed over a group of terrified children, clutching a shard of Originium in his hand.
They were cornered in a dead-end alley, huddled together in fear.
Some of them might have once despised the Infected. Others might have pitied them. But what did that matter to this man?
To him, none of it mattered. He wanted only to spread his pain, to vent his hatred.
"Relax. You won't die… you'll soon become one of us—an Infected, just like the ones you scorned every day!"
He seized a boy by the wrist. The child's eyes blazed with terror and hatred as the shard of Originium was brought closer to his skin.
The man savored it.
Not long ago, he had lived like a rat—hunted by Ursus police, hiding in alleys, dreading each day he might be dragged off to the mines or beaten to death.
But now?
Now, everything had changed. He had joined Reunion. He was no longer prey.
He was the hunter.
"Don't worry. It won't hurt a bit."
Children sobbed. The man laughed. The shard drew closer and closer to the boy's arm—
---
[Harming children is forbidden here.]
A voice echoed through the alley.
Kashchey—wearing Koshelna's form—stepped in from the entrance.
She had merely been on her way to the school where Natalya studied. This scene was nothing more than an interruption.
It stirred little in her heart.
For in her long life, she had seen countless acts of cruelty—Infected against uninfected, uninfected against Infected. This was nothing new.
But this man… he doesn't even realize he is just a pawn, a toy in the games of the non-Infected elite who pull the strings from above.
Koshelna softened her expression, donning a gentle, almost maternal smile. With deliberate ease, she extinguished the Originium Arts flowing around her.
"It's… it's Lord Kashchey!"
One of the children recognized her. Overcome with relief, the child rushed forward, desperate for protection.
The Reunion Infected froze as realization dawned—just who it was that now stood before him.
He didn't say a word—he just turned and bolted.
Koshelna made no move to pursue. Instead, she calmly raised her quill and notebook, writing a single line.
[Those who dare show me disrespect shall meet their deaths, their corpses left where they fall.]
When she finished, her gaze shifted to the children still staring at her in awe and relief.
After all, Duke Kashchey often appeared as a noble figure in children's tales.
To them, the sudden arrival of Koshelna had been like the descent of a hero who had driven away the villain.
But Koshelna had no intention of wasting her time comforting a handful of frightened little whelps.
She wrote again.
[The children fall asleep.]
[While they sleep, a second persona awakens within them. This persona will take control of their bodies and guide them to safety.]
[Once they are safe, the persona will self-destruct, and the children will awaken, remembering Kashchey's intervention with gratitude, ready to spread his name as their savior.]
Before the children could even thank her, they collapsed to the ground.
Seconds later, they rose again.
Their eyes were hollow, their movements mechanical. They gave Koshelna a formal bow before filing away in orderly silence.
She watched them disappear into the distance, then turned back toward her path, notebook and quill in hand, continuing toward Natalya's school.
…I have no intention of wasting time on children.
---
"Doctor Kal'tsit, we're ready to depart… Are you truly not coming with us?"
"…I still have multiple surgeries scheduled, and a mountain of work that requires my attention here on the Rhodes. The mission to rescue the Doctor will fall to you, Amiya."
"…Understood, Doctor Kal'tsit."
"…Since you've chosen this path, do it as best you can. Bring the Doctor back safely—no matter what."
"Yes, Doctor Kal'tsit!"
Amiya's expression brightened, the sorrow of before replaced with determination. She turned to prepare for the mission.
Kal'tsit could only sigh, weary and uncertain.
She didn't know if reviving a Doctor already half-consumed by madness was the right choice.
She didn't know how she would face him when the time came.
Yet in her heart, a thorn still lingered.
…Doctor, when Her Highness was assassinated… what was truly on your mind?
---
While Chernobog was being "occupied" by the so-called Reunion, another group of Reunion fighters arrived outside the city.
"…"
Talulah stood at the blocked entrance.
There, more "Reunion" members were stationed, holding their posts.
But as the former heir to Duke Kashchey—educated among the highest nobles of Ursus—and as someone who had once served in the Ursus military, Talulah could tell. Patriot, too, noticed.
Their patrol formations, their squad deployments… faint traces of the Ursus regular army bled through the disguise.
"…Looks like we've been used as pawns."
Frostnova muttered bitterly.
"Leader, should we attack?"
Mephisto's voice trembled with unease as he looked to Talulah.
"Leader…"
Another figure—wearing a mask, clad in stockings, and hefting a grenade launcher—looked at her with barely concealed hunger. This was Skullshatterer.
His eagerness was clear. He wanted inside Chernobog… for reasons of his own.
"…"
Talulah's eyes swept over her followers.
These people had chosen this fight of their own will.
And in their eyes, as they looked back at her, was unwavering trust.
Talulah's resolve hardened.
"Attack!"
"We will cut down every last impostor! The ideals of Reunion will not be sullied by frauds!"
---
Moments later, the gates were breached.
No—melted.
The true Reunion had entered the battlefield.