Yes. While I Was Spinning the Wheel to Make Gyoza Wrappers, for Some Strange Reason, I Ended Up with This – Part 06
The sky had gone completely dark. Over Tokyo, the air was so murky that no stars were visible again tonight.
There were only clouds above, but on the ground, people swarmed like countless stars. Office workers heading home, students returning from club activities. And among them was that man.
The King of the Night. A zombie, just like me. True to his name, this time of the day was his world.
After leaving the department store, we tailed him as he strolled leisurely along the main street lined with restaurants. Moving with the slow flow of people, he headed toward the station.
Hands in his pockets, he walked on. I couldn’t tell if he knew we were following him or not.
Haruna, Sera, and I kept behind him, trying to stay hidden whenever possible.
Tomonori was gathering Vampire Ninjas. Better to have them surround him later than to try catching him ourselves now.
“Ayumu, how long are we gonna keep tailing him?” Haruna’s cowlick swayed, her irritation showing.
“Until the Vampire Ninjas get here.”
“I can’t wait anymore!”
“You idiot. If we lose him now, we’ll lose another lead on Big Tea—”
Before I could finish, Haruna pitched forward and took off, closing the gap between them.
“And she’s not listening.”
“Where’s Big Teach, you pervert?!” Haruna roared.
In that instant, the King of the Night vanished into the crowd.
“Ayumu!” Sera called sharply, a crease forming between her brows.
“I know. Let’s go.”
Damn it. Now we had no choice but to catch him.
Haruna adjusted her course, and I followed after her. People stared as we suddenly broke into a sprint, but I didn’t care.
Don’t just stand there. Move!
Couldn’t they read the room? Apparently not.
The King of the Night fled with light, easy steps, almost as if he were luring us. Fine by me. If there was an ambush or trap ahead, all the better. Whatever it was, it would be a lead.
After a few turns, we entered a narrow alley. Haruna stopped ahead of me.
It was a dead end. Wedged between two restaurants, the alley was long, narrow, and grimy. The stench suggested it doubled as a trash dump.
A lone man stood there. Same lazy stance, hands in pockets, that faint smile still on his face.
“I don’t see Eucliwood. She’s the one who hates me most.”
“Eu…”
“Don’t tell me she’s returned to the Underworld?”
“Probably.”
The moment I answered, his smiling face twisted into something demonic. Rage burned in his eyes. That look alone was enough to send shivers across my skin.
But just as quickly, his expression shifted again into a mocking, condescending grin.
“All right. I’ll kill you all,” he said with a small shrug.
Sera’s crimson eyes locked on him. A single step toward us and a suffocating pressure gripped me.
I kept my focus not on him, but on the surroundings. Sera’s gaze darted around as well. There might be a trap waiting.
Haruna, however, had a different idea.
“I just need one good hit!”
She already had her fist drawn back. I quickly grabbed her arm.
“Haruna, you moron!”
“Don’t stop me!” She glanced back, her wide eyes burning with fury.
“I’m the one hitting him.”
If someone was going to jump into a trap, it should be someone who couldn’t die. Shoving past Haruna, I rushed straight into the King of the Night’s reach, only to have my chin kicked upward.
I hadn’t seen it at all. One moment, a blue mist flashed before my eyes, and the next, a blow slammed into my cheek.
Something struck me square in the face, hard. I still couldn’t tell what he’d done.
But it didn’t matter. I steadied myself and swung at him. His heel came down on the top of my skull, driving me to the ground.
“If I recall correctly, you’re a zombie,” he said.
“And if I recall correctly, you’re a zombie too.”
“Then there’s no point in hurting you. I’ll just kill the other two.”
You’ve got to be kidding me. Somewhere inside, I’d let my guard down.
I never thought he’d try to settle things here and now. I figured he’d just show his face for a moment and then run off.
“Tell me why you’re doing this,” I growled.
“Why I’m doing this? Right. I’ll explain while I kill them. Makes for a good way to pass the time.”
In an instant, the King of the Night was behind Haruna. This wasn’t some cheap trick like super speed. It was something far more terrifying.
Haruna turned. The man’s right hand came out of his pocket, swinging down toward the top of her small, adorable cowlick. And Sera cut his arm clean off.
The King of the Night stood between Haruna and Sera, meaning Haruna’s back was right in front of Sera.
Nice! I expected nothing less.
“Secret Art: Swallow Reversal!”
She followed with a slash on the return swing. There was no way he could dodge that.
“You’re faster than I thought.”
And yet, in the next moment, blood sprayed from Sera’s back, and she crumpled to her knees. Again, I had no idea what he’d done.
“You wanted to know why, so here it goes,” he said. “I’m going to drag Eucliwood out into this world.”
“That doesn’t really tell me anything,” I replied.
“You people seem close to her. If I kill one or two of you, she’ll definitely appear. She was always so kind.”
“You want to use me as bait? Well, fuck you!” Haruna lashed out with a sweeping kick. It landed with a sharp crack, but he didn’t budge.
“Magiclad Girl, you’re delightful. I’m glad you keep your will to fight. Most people shrink away.” He gave a broad but hollow smile.
Just like he said, I’d frozen up. Hit by a baffling attack, watching Sera suddenly go down, I’d forgotten to even move.
I pushed myself up at once and went in to attack.
“If you’re her friends, then you should die for Eucliwood’s sake. Don’t you know what kind of treatment she’ll face in the Underworld?”
“No, I don’t!”
Four hundred twenty percent!
I poured power into my right hand. The King of the Night kicked Haruna away, picked up his severed right arm from the ground, and threw it at me. Was he Mazinger Z[1] or something?
I hadn’t expected him to actually throw his own arm, so it hit me square in the stomach. No, it went straight through my belly.
“That was about four hundred percent by human standards. If you were human, that would hurt a lot. Shame.”
He was toying with us. Completely.
Sera, propping herself up with her leaf-blade, looked like she couldn’t decide how to attack.
“Now, back to the story,” the King of the Night went on. “Eucliwood herself isn’t all that suited for combat. But she’s essential to the war against the Magiclad Girls. Healing abilities, immortality blood, power of words. If she wanted, she could stand against them. But she won’t use her powers. So, what do you think the Underworlders would do?”
“They’d force her to use it,” Haruna growled.
“Correct. But pain won’t break her. She’s been through so much that she’s grown used to it. Makes you want to save her, doesn’t it? I used to feel the same. I understand all too well.”
“I doubt a zombie like you understands pain.”
“My apologies. Still, if you die, she’ll come back to this world. So? Feel like dying yet?”
“Hell no! I’m gonna meet her alive!”
“You shine, like the sun. And for the King of the Night, that’s… deeply unpleasant.”
The air darkened. Not because it was night. It was as if the air itself had turned into pure malice, thick and suffocating.
What is this?
It was like when you jaywalked, saw a car coming, knew you had to move, but your body wouldn’t.
Am I fucking stupid? I didn’t have time to think about stupid stuff. Move your damn legs!
“Haruna! Fall back!” I shouted as I dove in low for a tackle.
Haruna leapt back like a shrimp. If my tackle landed, she’d be out of his attack range. But if I missed…
“Here I go!”
Sera hurled a green leaf, spinning like a shuriken. It whirled past the King of the Night’s leg. He’d dodged it.
But it was enough. I got my hands around his waist.
How’s this?
I glanced Haruna’s way. At this distance, unless he used another rocket punch, he couldn’t reach her.
But Haruna’s face snapped sideways from a blow. Even with a barrier to guard herself, her body was sent flying into a pile of garbage bags.
This time, I saw what happened. So that was it. I finally understood his ability.
That dark blue mist of his could teleport objects.
His right wrist was covered in mist, and there was mist beside Haruna’s face. His fist had shot out from there.
The mist drifted after Haruna. She still hadn’t realized what his mist could do.
Sera! Do something! I had no idea how to stop him.
That’s when the Vampire Ninjas appeared.
“Well, well. The guardians of this world have rather sharp noses,” the King of the Night said.
“We’ve spotted the man from the report! Requesting backup!”
Like Sera, the Vampire Ninjas always showed up with the perfect timing of a superhero. Or maybe Haruna was just that lucky.
A young woman stepped forward, carrying a sword of clear blue water. She was a conservative Vampire Ninja like Sera and went to the same school as me. Her name was… come to think of it, I never asked.
She swung the water sword. The King of the Night knocked me aside, shrouding himself in mist. I quietly counted the seconds.
“Unfortunately, I can’t let myself be caught. I don’t want to die just yet.”
With an audacious grin, the King of the Night vanished into the mist.
It took about five seconds from the moment the mist started gathering to the moment he disappeared. He probably couldn’t teleport until it reached a certain density.
So, to keep him from escaping, we’d have to knock him out in under five seconds.
“Don’t let him get away!” the girl commanded.
The newly arrived Vampire Ninjas scattered. The few who stayed didn’t even spare us a glance, murmuring among themselves.
“Thank you, Saras,” Sera said. “You saved us.”
The girl whipped her water blade with a furious glare.
So her name was Saras.
“Don’t speak to me so casually, traitor!”
Sera’s eyes widened. The swing wasn’t just for show. The tip of the blade sliced her skin.
“You’re an eyesore, Seraphim. Get out of my sight,” she snarled, then swung again.
Normally, Sera would have dodged with ease, but her unsteady steps made her too slow.
“Hey, hold on. Saras, right? What the hell are you doing?”
I reached for her shoulder, but another Vampire Ninja leveled a sword at me, freezing me in place.
“Watch how you address me. My name is Sarasvati. Only my comrades may call me Saras.”
Goddess of water, right? Saras was definitely easier to say.
“Then I should be able to call you that, too. And besides, Sera didn’t do anything.”
“Her not doing anything is the problem.”
She must be referring to how Sera abandoned the mission to kill Eu.
“Come on, refusing one mission is not the end of the world.”
Saras grabbed me by the collar with sharp, piercing eyes.
“In our world, saying no is not an option,” she snapped. “We stake our lives on our duty.”
Right. Vampire Ninjas were sticklers for their code, putting the mission above all else. Some of those missions must have been bitter pills to swallow.
Nevertheless, they chose the hard path. I didn’t need her to spell it out to understand that much.
“No one wants to see your face again, Seraphim. Never show yourself before us.”
She shoved me aside and thrust the water blade at Sera.
“Understood,” Sera answered softly, shakily.
1. Mazinger Z is the titular robot of the Mazinger Z series. The Rocket Punch, its signature special move, involves the mecha launching its lower forearm, powered by internal rockets, to strike enemies from a distance.
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