The day after Mina defeated Batanel...

  Seraphim sat alone in his room, head hanging in listless defeat.

  Having lost Canconel and now Batanel, what gripped his chest wasn't so much grief as the anxious panic of a general stripped of his forces.

  "Unbelievable. That Batanel, beaten by a little girl... and a human child at that."

  Seraphim pulled a bottle of whiskey from the cabinet and poured it into a glass with a weary hand. He brought it to his lips and took a single sip.

  He let the barrel-aged bitterness roll across his tongue, then swallowed. The alcohol burned its way down his throat, scorching his chest as it went.

  He sat motionless, eyes closed, still as a stone statue.

  "Lilisia must have given her a treasure-class weapon. There's no other explanation."

  He took another mouthful of whiskey and swallowed it — then, overcome by irritation, hurled the glass at the wall.

  Crash! It shattered, leaving an amber stain spreading across the stone.

  Seraphim stared at the shards of broken glass, trembling with a fury that had nowhere to go.

  Then, cutting through the silence, words resounded directly inside his mind — as though spoken from within. Seraphim startled, the whiskey haze dissolving in an instant.

  It was the voice of Auerios.

  "Seraphim... it seems Batanel has been defeated..."

  Seraphim pressed his index finger to his forehead and closed his eyes — his customary pose for sending thoughts.

  "Lord Auerios... I offer you my deepest apologies."

  "...We must devise a countermeasure."

  "Understood. Mina has obtained the device. We must reclaim it before another moment is wasted."

  Seraphim's brow furrowed, his mouth pressing into a hard line.

  "Seize it before they learn how to use it. I am having Verglies prepare for war as we speak. Once his assault begins, strike the castle while their defenses are thin."

  "As you command. And... when does Verglies intend to attack?"

  "That is the problem — he refuses to heed my counsel. He says he will strike tomorrow."

  Seraphim's frown deepened.

  "That is most troubling, my lord... Tomorrow is the new moon, is it not?"

  "Indeed... I had been counting on Batanel to bring back the device. That was precisely the plan."

  Seraphim exhaled slowly, his shoulders sinking.

  "I was aware of the device's malfunction, and yet... I am truly sorry."

  "It cannot be helped. I still do not understand why it suddenly became unable to collect magical energy on the night of the new moon. But that changes nothing — we cannot allow a war to be launched at this moment. Their energy would be completely beyond our reach."

  "A meaningless slaughter... Does Verglies understand any of this?"

  "I have not told him everything, as I have told you. He need not know — for he is fated to fall in this battle."

  Seraphim's expression soured.

  "Then all the more reason not to send him out tomorrow. Allow me to persuade him myself. I will tell him I plan to strike Lilisia from the rear and ask him to delay by one day — that should be enough to bring him into line."

  "Yes... I am counting on you, Seraphim."

  After a few minutes of idle conversation, the telepathic link dissolved. Seraphim let out a long, weary sigh.

  "Hah... Everything I touch turns against me. I'm well and truly exhausted."

  He was still sighing when a new telepathic signal arrived — and the identity of the sender made him go rigid with surprise.

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  It was Isarufe.

  Seraphim pressed his finger to his forehead and composed himself.

  "Isarufe... what is it? What's happened?"

  The next instant, his eyes lit up.

  "You've captured Mina?!"

  His eyes narrowed to gleaming slits, a white-toothed grin splitting his face.

  "How in the world did you — no, never mind that. Well done! Magnificently done!"

  On the other end, Isarufe laughed with quiet satisfaction.

  "Lord Seraphim... as you know, fighting is rather beyond me, so I put my mind to work instead. Ha. It was nothing, really. I simply posed as one of Mina's companions, earned her trust, and then betrayed it at the right moment."

  Seraphim burst out laughing.

  "Isarufe, you are extraordinary! And the device — did she have it with her?"

  "Of course. That is also in my possession."

  "Ah! You've done the finest work imaginable! I couldn't be more pleased!"

  "Lord Seraphim... there is one thing I would ask of you, if I may..."

  "Ask anything. Go on."

  Seraphim's voice was buoyant, the kind that made anything feel possible.

  "Regarding the arrangements for delivering the girl... I would like to do so tomorrow, if at all possible."

  "Hmm. Rather soon, isn't it."

  Seraphim had to persuade Verglies tomorrow in preparation for the attack the day after. He mulled it over.

  "If it's inconvenient, please don't trouble yourself — I can simply arrange another time—"

  Isarufe moved to sever the connection, and Seraphim spoke quickly.

  "Wait, wait — no, you must have your reasons for wanting to come tomorrow. I have no objection."

  Come to think of it, having Isarufe arrive the day after tomorrow would be its own problem. If he arrived tomorrow, there was still a slim chance of making the new moon operational window. A slow smile crept across Seraphim's face.

  "Thank you, Lord Seraphim... The truth is, this is the girl who defeated Lord Batanel. The sooner I have her out of my hands, the better — I won't pretend otherwise."

  "If you're that worried, shall I send an escort?"

  "No — I'm quite close already, and I have several guards with me, so we should manage. Then, until tomorrow..."

  "I'll be waiting! Thank you, Isarufe!"

  The moment the link went dark, Seraphim broke into laughter — long, unrestrained, and full of relief.

  It had been a nuisance, he thought, to deal with this on top of everything else. But for Mina and the device, he'd make the time. He immediately summoned his subordinates and gave the order to prepare the dungeon.

  "What a day... I thought I'd been cast into the pit, and then Isarufe comes through like this..."

  Still smiling, Seraphim reached for the whiskey bottle.

  He poured a fresh glass and took a sip. This time, the burn of the alcohol going down felt almost pleasant.

  He fixed his gaze on the middle distance, his fangs bared in a slow, predatory smile.

  "Mina... that little girl won't get an easy death. I'll have to think carefully about what to do with her... then again, she's human — she'll break too quickly. I'll need to be delicate about this."

  He turned those raptor's eyes on his whiskey glass, then drained it in a single swallow.

  ◆

  "Well then... that should do it, don't you think?"

  Isarufe turned and gave a smile — that impossibly handsome face as dazzling as ever. Mina smiled back.

  "Quite the performance. We should have no trouble getting to the Celestial Realm now."

  She was in high spirits. Then Arc rose smoothly to his feet, stepping in front of her.

  "Mina, we should still be careful. This could be a trap."

  Mina put a hand on her hip and fixed him with a look.

  "Arc! He's just agreed to join us and fight alongside us — how can you say something like that?"

  Arc shrank back slightly under her glare.

  "But he wants to put a collar on you. A magic collar."

  Isarufe made a pained expression.

  "I'd ask you to trust me on this. She defeated both Batanel and Canconel — two of the most powerful enemies we've faced. Bringing her in without any restraints would look completely unnatural."

  At that moment, a hand settled on Arc's shoulder from behind. A striking woman in a black combat suit — Queen Lilisia. She too had been summoned for the assault on Seraphim.

  "Arc... I understand how you feel. But bear with it for now."

  Arc went quiet.

  "I know how many times you nearly gave your life to protect Mina. Which is why your distrust of angels runs so deep, I imagine. But I've been watching from the shadows for a long time — and Isarufe is someone I trust. So please, make your peace with him."

  With Lilisia saying it, Arc had nothing left to argue. He was silent for a long moment, then raised his eyes to Isarufe's.

  "Fine. I won't say another word. But Mina is only human... if anything goes wrong, protect her too. That's all I ask."

  Isarufe met his gaze steadily, his expression grave.

  "Don't worry, Arc. I will keep her safe. I promise."

  He held Arc's eyes without flinching.

  "And I will never betray you. Not ever. Because... my father served under Lord Lucariel."

  That stopped everyone — Mina, Arc, and even Lilisia.

  Isarufe reached up to his own head. A glowing halo materialized above him.

  "This ring was given to my father by Lord Lucariel himself. And when my father was defeated in the battle against Auerios... Lord Lucariel quietly helped him escape. Because of that, he was never punished."

  "Then... the one who was secretly helping us all this time..."

  "I knew what Auerios was doing — my father told me everything. But I wasn't sure you could actually fight him and win. I needed to see it for myself before I could commit to this fully."

  "And now that you've seen our team... you think we have a chance?"

  "I do. Though I'll admit, I'm still a little nervous."

  Lilisia clapped her hands together.

  "Right — let's go over the plan. Isarufe, your role is to put the magic collar on Mina and escort her in."

  She gave Mina a faintly worried look.

  "Putting a collar on Mina that seals her magic... I hate it. But Nox — you stay hidden in Mina's shadow. If anything happens, you're her backup. As for the three guards: get changed into these uniforms — you, me, Arc, and..."

  She passed out the disguise clothing with a wry smile.

  "Who would have thought I'd end up fighting alongside you... Verglies."

  The silver-haired man accepted the guard's uniform with a composed smile, then gave a short, dismissive sniff.

  "I was thinking the exact same thing. Just don't slow me down."

  He turned away with an air of cool indifference. Lilisia looked at each of them in turn.

  "All right. Are you ready? The six of us are going to take Seraphim's head. Everyone — let's go!"