[Location: Rooftop Bar – Shibuya, Tokyo, 00:22]
In the distance, a deep and thunderous explosion shook the night, tempting listeners to think it was just the typical sound of construction. However, for Makima, the sound felt close enough to make her tilt her head slightly, sensing the tension in the air.
Fitran stared at her with a serious expression, his eyes shining in the dim light of the bar. "That's not the sound of workers, is it?" his voice was hoarse, suggesting more than just doubt.
A flash of orange light reflected off the bar's glass enclosure, followed by a much louder second explosion, as if compressed metal had burst in an instant.
Makima turned to face west, her expression calm as if nothing could shake her. "Attention-Para has just been triggered," she said, her tone flat yet laden with meaning.
[SYSTEM PROMPT]
Residual Contract Detected – Target: Unknown Hostile Entity – Distance: 170 meters
The sound of a siren began to fill their ears, soft yet increasingly urgent, like a whisper warning of danger.
Fitran choked, standing up quickly, and his chair scraped against the floor. "You really did provoke it, didn't you?" he asked, his voice trembling, containing the seeds of growing doubt.
"No," Makima replied firmly, taking a sip of her wine and placing the glass down with conviction. "But someone has exploited the trace of our contract, and that... is intriguing."
Before she could continue her explanation, a shadow darted quickly across the road, its movement halting intermittently, resembling a teleportation between points of light.
"Devil?" Fitran asked, his voice hoarse, reflecting the astonishment and fear that enveloped his heart.
"No," Makima answered, her eyes trying to trace the shadow with high precision. "This is something attempting to mimic a Devil, but its system... is broken."
Suddenly, a shrill scream echoed from the alley to the right of the building, shattering the silence. People at the bar began to rise, some of them rushing straight towards the elevator, their faces radiating anxiety.
Makima extended her hand toward Fitran, not merely as a request, but with a firm command. "Come with me," she said, her voice powerful, leaving no room for refusal.
They took steps toward the emergency stairs. "This metallic smell is truly piercing," Fitran commented, feeling the suffocating tension as they descended two floors. "It seems we are facing something far more dangerous than an ordinary Devil."
Below, the figure appeared—towering at two meters, half flesh and half metal frame, its eyes gleaming with an erratic blue static light. "Makima, that… is truly terrifying," Fitran said, feeling the tension creeping in the air around them.
Its movements resembled a puppet being handled carelessly—one joint looked broken, yet it still forced its body to move forward. "Nothing can stop it, at least not in the usual way," Makima explained, her eyes focused on observing every motion of the creature.
Makima suddenly halted her steps, standing upright in the middle of the corridor. "Watch its eyes. You'll know who controls it," she instructed sharply. "We need to be extremely careful."
Fitran sharpened his gaze. "In the artificial pupil, I can see reflections… as if there's a thin red web pulsing," he uttered, his eyes widening with newfound awareness. "There's something deeper than this."
"Remote control," he murmured quietly, his heart trembling with a fresh understanding of the threat they were facing.
Makima smiled faintly, a mysterious tone lacing her voice. "And you know, I don't like it when someone copies my work," her tone was calm, but an undercurrent of anger slipped through her words.
The figure roared—an unsettling, distorted noise, like a puzzle between a broken amplifier and someone's last breath. "We don't have time!" Fitran shouted, his feelings surging. "It will attack!"
Makima stepped half to the side, giving Fitran space to intercept the attack route. "Be careful!" she warned, the intensity of her gaze hardening, as if implying they were facing something extremely dangerous.
Fitran activated a fragment of his contract—the air around him vibrated as if responding to the call of his power. "Vector Snap!" he shouted with enthusiasm. His voice poured out courage that propelled strength into every word.
In front of his fist, the air seemed to tear, halting the creature's movement and redirecting it toward the wall. "Good! Keep it up!" Makima exclaimed, her eyes brimming with hope reflecting her desire to win.
Black blood mixed with oil splashed, staining the dim neon light on the concrete wall. "We have to destroy it before it's too late," Fitran insisted, feeling the pressure mounting as the time grew short.
Makima stepped closer, her voice flat yet full of certainty. "Destroy its eyes. That's the center of its control," she explained, her gaze sharp penetrating through the figure. "Without that, it won't be able to move."
"Come on! Follow me!" Fitran shouted, pursuing the creature that was trying to climb the wall to escape. "You won't get away from here!" He attempted to grab its metal ankle, feeling the weight as he pulled it down.
The sound of cracking joints echoed in the air as he succeeded in bringing it down. "At least you won't go home easily," Fitran said, satisfaction clearly visible on his face, as if celebrating a victory that still felt very distant.
Makima approached, observing with her sharp red eyes, penetrating the artificial pupil of the creature. "Deliver a message to your master… there is only one chain that binds this city," she said in a flat tone that held strength enough to send shivers down the spine.
The artificial eye shattered, creating a helpless web of red cracks. Fitran felt the tremors of failure from the creature as its body started to collapse, losing the power it once held. "You're finished," he murmured, unable to hide the burning satisfaction in his chest.
He stared at Makima, sensing there was something he could no longer contain. "You know who's behind all this, right?" he asked, his voice trembling with hope for the answer he longed for.
Makima glanced briefly, a dangerous thin smile spreading across her face again. "I've always known," she replied, her tone cold and firm—asserting her position as the one in control of this situation.