Kaitansha HQ—-
Throughout the building, TV screens displayed a live feed of the tournament. Agents sat at their desks, watching the scoreboard updates. Marin walked around the building, monitoring everything.
"Hayate's still on scene," she thought. "Can he really be so obsessed with Nyugawa?"
While absorbed in her thoughts, she bumped into a young white-haired man wearing casual clothing.
"Sorry," the man apologized. "I've just been running into crap today."
He turned to leave, but Marin stopped him. "Who are you?"
"Shion," the man said. "Arakane."
Marin narrowed her eyes. "That name isn't in our database."
"I'm new."
"What's your division?"
"Eikaidan. The Kaidanchō was too busy playing with his phone to notice I wasn't in the pack."
"Then, what business do you have here?"
"Just needed to grab my outfit," Shion explained. "Then I'll be outta your hair!"
He gave an awkward bow and left, just as Junpei approached Marin. "Ma'am. Director Hayate will be late. He's given me the order to put you in charge of the rest of today's operations."
Marin pointed to Shion, who bounced around the hall, checking each door. "Keep an eye on him."
"Who's that?"
"I don't know. And that's the problem. Don't let him out of your sight."
Meanwhile—
Yuka ran through the hallways, each of her steps deliberate as they produced ice beneath her feet. Her rookies had to maneuver around the ground so as not to fall.
"Where are we going, Miss Yuka?" Shino asked.
Yuka didn't respond.
"Figures," Shino mumbled.
As they went deeper, ominous whispers rang through the air.
"Turn back…"
"You march to your death…"
"The Endless rebukes you…"
Bakuō bit his fingernails. "D—did any of you guys hear that too?"
"Focus on what's real," Yuka ordered. "Not what isn't."
The corridor suddenly broke off into a large Grand Hall chamber, littered with pillars and paintings of skulls and death.
"Creepy," Bakuō gulped.
Yuka scanned the area. "Don't let this phase you. Whatever's in here, it's just another dungeon crawler."
Baruto pointed to the center of the hall. "There's someone in the middle."
Sitting at a chair in the center was a tall, thin, hunched-back old man in a kimono. His head was devoid of hair.
"Ahh, guests!" he greeted. "Come, have a seat."
The kids shared a look before stepping forward, but Yuka held out her arm.
"Stay back. This man isn't what he appears."
"Rude," the man grumbled, sipping a cup of tea. "You come into my residence and judge me? How would you like me to judge you? It'd be extremely rude if I called you a stupid, blonde-haired icy witch, wouldn't it? Manners are a virtue."
"They are," Yuka agreed. "But a virtue for mankind, not dungeon spawn."
"What's the difference?" the man questioned. "We eat, sleep, and breathe just like you humans do. Answer me this. What gives you humans the right to come into our homes and treat them like slaying grounds?"
The aura emerging from him shook the room, instantly shifting the tone. Yuka looked up, noticing skeletons hanging from the ceiling.
"This isn't a typical monster," she thought. "This one seems to have more…intelligence? And malice…"
The man stood up, brushing off his kimono. "Your name is Yuka Natori, isn't it?"
Yuka stood her ground as the man stepped a few feet closer, squinting. "Hmm, not exactly Nyugawa, but level 78,000 is no joke. You've really honed your strength!"
"A good eye on you," she commended. "For as long as you still have them."
A chuckle ran down his throat. "Answer my question, Yuka. What gives you and those kids behind you the right to barge in here like soldiers?"
Yuka put a hand on her hip. "Simple. In a dungeon, there's only two forms of creatures."
The man lifted an eyebrow. "Hmm?"
"The ones who help, and the ones who hurt. I doubt a creature like you has heard this term before, but we have a certain saying."
Ice danced across her fingertips. "Kill, or be killed."
The man remained quiet for a long moment. "I'd wondered what a Kaidanchō was like in person. I'm disappointed to admit…I'm not a fan."
He tossed off his kimono, revealing a plate of blackish-bronze armor. "Let's see if your combat matches your mouth."
〈Rule: Defeat Mayoi no Yōsei no Kawaribito—-Mikage Rui. Level: 81,000〉
"How's he so high?" Bakuō exclaimed.
"Stand down," Yuka commanded. "Even at your best, this is beyond you."
The kids nodded.
"Way ahead of you, Miss!" Shino replied.
In the blink of an eye, Rui charged at Yuka, slamming his fist into the ground. Yuka easily evaded, retaliating with her ice eagle. It struck him dead in the face.
"You move slow for someone leveled so high," Yuka noted. "Perhaps I was wrong?"
She delivered a kick to his face, sending him sliding backward. To her surprise, he began to laugh.
"Such a confident woman…let us see why!"
Suddenly, his body started to shake and twist, until Yuka was looking at a perfect reflection of herself.
"What trickery—-?"
〈Domain Effect: Changeling Mimicry. *Rui* can change into any opponent who has struck him, and has full replication of their *Skillset.*〉
Rui flexed his new arms, his voice coming out as Yuka's. "Never been a woman before. I like it!"
Yuka quickly threw her arm out.
"Jugen-Mahōshi: Shimotsuki Raisan no Washi!"
As her eagle shot out, Rui did the same.
"Jugen-Mahōshi: Shimotsuki Raisan no Washi."
The two eagles collided, sending an explosion of ice so powerful it coated the entire room. Without missing a beat, Rui lunged at Yuka.
"Let's see what else you've got? Ooh, I like this!"
His shoulders straightened, and eight massive ice tendrils slowly grew from his back.
"Jugen-Mahōshi: Yukigumo Bukyaku!"
The icy spider legs reached and struck at Yuka, who quickly jumped in and countered.
"Jugen-Mahōshi: Yukigumo Bukyaku!"
Unleashing spider legs of her own, they rapidly clashed again and again, shaking the room and causing the kids to stumble back.
"Whoa, they might level this whole damn building!" Shino gasped.
Bakuō covered his face. "Is she winning? I can't look, I can't look!"
Baruto yawned. "Can we take a break?"
Yuka unleashed a flurry of attacks at Rui, who countered them all. "What powers do your kids have? I'm dying to know!"
"Then die," she spat. "Jugen-Mahōshi: Yukigumo Bukyaku—-Rampage!"
Her legs grew larger, stabbing at Rui repeatedly, whose own attack began to falter.
"I didn't know you had that in your bag! What a strong woman!"
With two legs supporting her, Yuka rose into the air, the other legs striking again and again until Rui's ice cracked, and he got stabbed in the shoulder.
"Heh," Rui chuckled. "Sharp."
〈Boss HP: ??? → ???〉
"Why can't I see his Health?" Yuka thought. "He's a strange one…"
He unleashed an ice eagle at her, blasting her back. "Time to dip my hand in the cookie jar one more time. This move looks fun."
His eyes glowed light blue, just as a block of ice began to rise beneath his feet. Yuka immediately turned around.
"Move!"
"Jugen-Mahōshi: Hyōga Sōmetsu!"
The ice carried him into the air and formed a mountain below him, with waves of frost shockwaves rippling off like blades. Yuka used her spider legs to shield the trio, but they easily tore through and cut her repeatedly, forcing her to her knees.
"Miss Yuka!" Shino called out. "Are you alright?"
"This opponent has turned my own moves against me," she explained. "Only ice can shatter ice. Watch carefully, and don't forget this lesson!"
More frost waves erupted, but Yuka used her eagle to block them.
"You've overlooked something, Natori," Rui mocked.
"What are you getting at?"
"Did you think I was here alone? You should know, *we* are everywhere."
From the darkness behind them, perfect copies of Shino, Bakuō, and Baruto emerged.
"Uh…Miss?" Bakuō stammered. "I see me! Why do I see ME?"
"I see," Yuka realized. "So this entire run has been one big trap."
Rui clapped. "The ice witch gets it! Those skeletons you fought? I slipped a few of my brethren in there."
Shino slapped her forehead. "Gosh! Played like a fiddle…"
"Bigger problems are at hand," Yuka pointed out. "These things are dangerous. It seems you've got no choice but to fight. So fight with everything you've got—-!"
"Jugen-Mahōshi: Shimotsuki Raisan no Washi!"
An ice eagle blasted Yuka into the wall, cracking it.
BOOM.
"Miss Yuka!"
"Crap, crap!" Bakuō panicked. "C—can we talk this out?"
The Bakuō replica got into a low stance.
"Kōya Funnu no Jūgyū!"
A large bison took his place, grunting and preparing to charge.
"Wait, wait, wait!"
The bison rammed into him, dragging him away. Shino's replica sized her up.
"Gosh," she scoffed. "How much makeup does one girl need? Humans are such vain creatures. Progress with no results, you're a prime example."
Shino's face cracked. "What did you just say? Oh, you're dead!"
Without wasting a second thought, she lifted her hand, flicking her fingers.
"Jugen-Metsusha: Yubisaki Mekken!"
A vector sprang forth, but the replica waved her off. "Painfully light."
Another vector met it head on. "Jugen-Metsusha: Yubisaki Mekken!"
The replica pointed to her face. "Hey. Turtle face. If you want to erase something, you've actually gotta, you know, hit it."
Shino began to fume. "I'll hit you, trust me!"
With a feral scream, she charged at the clone.
Meanwhile, Baruto and his replica just stared at each other, hands in their pockets.
"So," the replica said.
"So," Baruto responded.
"How'd you get here?"
"Took the job. Got the job. On the job."
"Fair."
"What now?"
"I think we're supposed to fight."
"Cool. You wanna go first?"
"Doesn't matter to me."
The replica clasped his hands together. "Jugen-Tōshi: Retsudan Senmetsu no Sūken."
He slammed his sword down, and Baruto casually stepped back. "Jugen-Tōshi: Retsudan Senmetsu no Sūken."
Forming a greatsword of his own, the two circled each other.
"How many moves you got?" the replica asked.
"Two," Baruto answered. "Working on a third."
"Cool. Can I see?"
"Sure."
Baruto lifted up his sword, which grew double its size. "Jugen-Tōshi: Ansa Kyojin."
He swung the sword at the replica, who slid under it. "I'll match that."
Gripping his own blade, it began to glow as well.
"Jugen-Tōshi: Ansa Kyojin."
The two stepped forward at the same time and clashed blades, the screeching sound of metal emitting from them.
"Good arm," Baruto acknowledged.
"You too."
As they traded blows, Bakuō was on the other side, running from his own replica.
"Whyyyy?"
He rolled out of the way as the bison charged into the wall, embedding its horns inside.
"Haha! I'm free!"
The bison ripped his horns out.
"Spoke too soon!"
As the bison rushed him again, he quickly gathered himself. "O—okay, that's it! Jugen-Henshōsha: Kōya Funnu no Jūgyū!"
Bakuō shifted into a bison form of his own, and he and his replica collided horns, angry grunts filling the air.
"Yah!"
"Hmph!"
The two bison tackled each other and rolled around like wild animals, tossing every which way.
A beam of ice shot from the damaged wall, and Yuka slowly landed on her knees, breathing heavily.
"Never knew how my own move feels," she remarked. "An interesting experience."
Rui walked up to her. "Most people would have died by now. For such a smart mouth, you've got a sharp skillset to you."
Without responding, Yuka unleashed her ice spider attack on him, nearly catching him off guard.
"Whoa! Still got fight left? Must be the Kaidanchō for you."
He held one arm up, and ice clones of himself sprang from his body.
"Wait…I can't do that…" Yuka realized.
"I don't just copy the skills of whoever I shift to," Rui informed her. "I also add my own."
He brought his hands together. "I call this one: Eitō Hyōgen. Buckle up, Natori. Winter's coming."
Kaitansha HQ—-
Shion walked through the hallways until he stopped in front of a door titled "Archives."
"Gotta be in here."
He twisted the doorknob, and it opened. "Huh. For an organization this powerful, you'd think they'd have more security."
Shion ran his fingers through the archives. "Tōshi…Mahōshi…Henshōsha…Kaiseisha…Kōbisha…Sōunsha…Metsusha…damn it, musta scrapped it."
He noticed a file in the corner that caught his eye. "Omariro Nyugawa? Now that's a find."
As he took it, a voice cut through behind him.
"Excuse me. I do believe that doesn't belong to you."
Shion froze. "Shoulda known this'd be too easy. What do you want?"
Junpei was at the door, a handful of agents beside him. They all had guns pointed at Shion.
"I want you to place that folder down, and put your hands up."
"Cute," Shion scoffed. "You want a donut to go with that?"
"You've got five seconds. Five…four…three…two…"
Junpei's eyes went wide as Shion's body began to shift. Dark black armor replaced his skin, and a black helmet covered his face. When he spoke, his voice came out almost incoherent.
"…One."
As the agents screamed, the door shut behind them, and a loud explosion could be heard.
BOOM.
——-