Only a few minutes earlier—

  Renjiro and Rikuya lay beneath thick blankets in the quiet comfort of their bedroom. The mansion was still, wrapped in the deep calm that only came long after midnight. A single candle burned on the bedside table, its gentle flame painting warm, flickering shadows across the walls and ceiling.

  They lay close together, bodies relaxed, breaths slow and steady, as if the world beyond those walls did not exist.

  Renjiro let out a soft chuckle, careful not to break the peaceful mood.

  “It looks like Kaoru is going to get a little sister or brother.”

  Rikuya sighed, though there was no real annoyance in it. She lifted her hand and lightly tapped his chest.

  “Stop it, dear,” she murmured. “It takes more than that to make another baby.”

  Renjiro opened his mouth to reply—

  BOOM.

  The sound tore through the mansion like thunder.

  The candle flame flickered violently, nearly going out. The warmth vanished in an instant.

  Renjiro shot upright, heart hammering.

  “What is happening at this time?” he demanded, already swinging his legs out of bed.

  “It’s late at night!” Rikuya added, fear creeping into her voice.

  They dressed hastily, movements rushed and clumsy, and hurried out into the hallway. Each step down the staircase felt heavier than the last, the echo of the crash still ringing in their ears.

  The moment they reached the ground floor—

  They froze.

  A man stood in the hall.

  His posture was wrong—twisted, predatory, like a beast barely pretending to be human. His entire face was wrapped in blood-soaked bandages, crimson stains seeping through the cloth. In his hands, curved blades glinted under the dim lights, their edges shimmering with a sickly, unnatural hue.

  The man turned slowly toward them.

  Eyes gleamed beneath the wrappings.

  “Well, well…” he chuckled.

  “Looks like the prey has come to me!”

  Before either of them could scream—

  “OI! LOOK ABOVE YOU!”

  Seraphine Orion’s voice rang out, sharp and commanding.

  The ceiling split open as thick vines burst forth, writhing like living serpents. Two wooden swords dropped straight down.

  Akitsu Shouga caught them instinctively.

  “Run away!” Akitsu shouted, not looking back.

  “Go back upstairs!”

  Renjiro didn’t hesitate for even a heartbeat.

  He grabbed Rikuya’s hand, and they ran.

  Their feet pounded against the stairs as panic clawed at their lungs. Halfway down the corridor above, they nearly collided with Liora, who was walking toward them, confusion clear on her face.

  “Liora-san!” Rikuya cried.

  “You need to come with us—now!”

  “What’s happening, ma’am?” Liora asked, alarmed.

  “No time to explain,” Renjiro snapped. “We need to hide!”

  They rushed straight for Kaoru’s room.

  Renjiro threw the door open—

  And his breath caught in his throat.

  Kaoru lay on the floor, completely still. A small puddle of tears shimmered beside her face, catching the faint light from the hallway.

  “Kaoru!!”

  Rikuya dropped to her knees, hands trembling as she shook her gently.

  Kaoru stirred. Her eyes fluttered open, unfocused.

  “…What’s happening?”

  Rikuya let out a sharp, broken exhale, relief flooding her voice.

  “We thought you were dead!”

  “There’s no time!” Renjiro barked. “We need to barricade the door!”

  He dragged the bedside table across the floor, the wood scraping loudly as he slammed it against the entrance.

  “Don’t just stand there—help me!”

  They moved frantically, stacking chairs, boxes, even the wardrobe against the door. The mansion trembled with distant impacts, the sounds of battle echoing through the walls like a storm drawing closer.

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  Downstairs—

  The bandaged man dashed toward Akitsu.

  Akitsu swung the wooden swords in a clean arc, but the man twisted past them with terrifying ease and bolted down the hall.

  “Hurry up!!” Seraphine Orion shouted as vines erupted from the floor, snapping upward like whips.

  The man didn’t slow.

  He tore through the vines with brute force, snapping them apart and charging onward.

  “Get back here!” Akitsu yelled, chasing him.

  The intruder smashed through the first door he saw—the drawing room—then carved straight through the walls, toxin-coated blades ripping through wood and stone alike.

  Akitsu burst in just in time to see him tear into the master bedroom.

  The man glanced around.

  Nothing worth taking.

  He turned—

  And Akitsu stood in the doorway.

  “You’re persistent!” the man snarled.

  “Thanks for the compliment,” Akitsu replied calmly. “Why not give up?”

  “If I run,” the man hissed, “my boss will kill me personally for failing.”

  “So you’re a crook after all,” Akitsu said. “I wonder how you ended up like this.”

  The man snapped.

  “WHY YOU LITTLE PIECE OF SH—!”

  He lunged.

  Akitsu parried—

  And the wooden blade melted in his hands, dissolving instantly under the toxin.

  He jumped back.

  “Orion! I need another weapon!”

  “On it!”

  Vines twisted overhead, weaving together into a long, spiked vine whip. It dropped neatly into Akitsu’s grasp.

  He swung it without hesitation.

  The man laughed.

  “Your tricks are useless! I’ll slice through it!”

  Before the whip could connect—

  CRASH.

  The door exploded off its hinges.

  It slammed straight into the man, sending him flying across the room. He hit the far wall hard and collapsed in a heap.

  Akitsu turned.

  A young man stood in the doorway.

  White hair.

  Red eyes.

  Crimson yoroi armor gleaming under the lights.

  At his waist rested a katana in a white sheath, red roses painted delicately along its length. A strip of red cloth was tied neatly around it, swaying slightly.

  “I am Kael Ardent,” the man declared.

  “And I am here to save this noble family’s residents. There is no nee—”

  He stopped.

  His eyes locked onto Akitsu.

  “…It’s you.”

  Akitsu blinked.

  “You’re the one I saw at the royal ball a few months ago!”

  “Huh?” Akitsu snapped. “I don’t know who you are, but if you’re here to save people, do your job instead of talking!”

  Kael’s gaze sharpened.

  “Where is the villain?”

  Akitsu pointed flatly.

  “He’s under the door you just sent flying.”

  The man groaned, shoved the door aside, and forced himself upright.

  “Ugh… it has to be you.”

  “Please do not resist,” Kael said, resting a hand on his katana. “There is no need for casualties.”

  “Tch… damn it,” the man whispered. “Looks like I need to retreat.”

  He charged.

  Kael unsheathed his katana in a blur.

  Steel flashed.

  The man barely avoided the strikes, suffering shallow cuts across his arms and side before breaking into a sprint.

  Kael chased—

  Then suddenly stopped.

  A vine had wrapped around his ankle.

  He tore free and ran again.

  Akitsu followed close behind.

  The man smashed through a window and leapt into the darkness outside.

  Kael reached the window.

  Nothing.

  Gone.

  “He got away,” Kael said calmly.

  Akitsu ran up behind him.

  Without warning—

  Kael spun, katana flashing upward, the blade stopping inches from Akitsu’s throat.

  The room went silent.