Out of the three demon generals walking out in the hallway, only Auris sweated bullets for what was to come. Meretrix still had her stoic expression while Lupa looked like she would throw hands at any moment. As he walked from behind, Auris scratched his head metaphorically. “Hey, Meretrix! Sorry to ask, but I forgot why the fuck that beastly man is so strong in the first place. What was it, again?”

“Fire blood cells, or pyropeptides scientifically.” Her look was still stern when she briefly turned her head around.

“Fire-what now? I thought we had that.” Auris raised an eyebrow.

“No,” she shook her head, “we have the Iblis and Athena Core. Through that man’s unique Core, pyropeptides are not actual cells—but complex protein chains that augment human biology to absurd levels. At its peak, its power is far, far—far greater than world-shattering.”

“How could you be so sure, though? You got firsthand accounts?” He shrugged.

Meretrix sighed. “Under Adel’s command—I tested one of the Twelve Sons. Half-breed offspring of the previous Yama that he sold off as newborns. Not an ounce of demon blood was in him, yet he had Hokori’s forbidden gift. At age twelve—he obliterated his fighting mentor’s upper half by accident.”

Now outside, they all jumped up a wall in front of them and called attention to their men.

Back in the sky, Hokori flew beside the couple. “You know somethin’, boy?” He grinned widely.

Haruto sighed. “What is it, this time…?” he looked at him on the left.

“If we met face to face back in Shibuya, I would have pulverized your weak ass all the way to Chinatown. Hahahahahahaha!!” he closed his eyes as he laughed.

Surprisingly, Haruto was not angry and sighed again. “That’s not even located in the same ward….” As he looked back in front, the city was now close.

Before their arrival, demon soldiers had to dodge the malfunctioning metallic arms all around the place. The arms swung frantically without warning and hammer-fisted random areas on the ground. Any unlucky demon who fell victim to it had their bodies explode like a hand grenade—their most unique biology studied by research mages. Others managed to get to safety due to their generals rescuing them. With that, most soldiers now set camp away from said arms.

After five minutes, Hokori and his comrades landed their flying carpets outside Smaragdos’ now nonexistent borders. Kenkō Yukino on her back like a toddler; the latter rested her head with eyes closed.

As the family walked on the city ruins, Tokino noted internally its state fared better above the sky. Haruto, beside her, drew his swords on the alert. Suddenly, out of nowhere, one of the malfunctioning arms came out swinging from the rubble in front of Hokori—who led the way. He never even bothered to use a fist, let alone two fingers. Kneeling, he observed the now crumbled machine and noticed red smeared all over.

He dabbed with his finger. “Hmmm… dis ain’t human at all,” he shook his head, “Seems a whole lot of demons met their end here. Poor bastards had it rough….” The Minagawas cringed extremely at Hokori’s test—especially when he smacked his lips.

Walking back, Hokori told Haruto to “do the honors,” signaled by his raised and lowered posture. As a result, the arms within a large vicinity got sliced into ribbons. Beforehand, Haruto told him he would only follow his command just this once, by which Hokori agreed—after giving him a condescending chuckle.

“What the hell are those things, anyway?” Haruto asked from behind.

Hokori continued walking in front. “The Smaragdonians used them to mine those rocks right there,” he pointed at the distance. “Immortal Jasper, they called it. They claimed it was harder, better, tougher, and stronger than Palladium.

“One day, however—a Coelestian journalist went ‘missing’ when he stress-tested both materials side to side. I guess y’all can already tell what happened next between the two cities. All part and parcel, I tell ya….”

Kenkō walked next to him while still carrying her sister. “So, blood god… what do we do now?”

Hokori chuckled again. “Pretty fuckin’ simple. We lay low ‘til we face the generals. They’ve expected us long before, and morale quickly diminishes when leaders kick the bucket, y’know?” he looked down at her.

“So we dress up like them in the meantime?” Kenkō looked up and raised an eyebrow.

Hokori cracked his knuckles, “Yup! It’s foolproof….”

“Now hold it right there, Hokori!” Tokino moved in front to protest, “Our mission is to turn them in. Not splatter their brains.” she pointed at him upward.

Hokori chuckled again and walked past her. “Whatever… The wanton killing was usually allowed,” he shrugged. Going with his plan, the family were now near their targets, being very cautious.

Kenkō shrank a demon uniform for Yukino via Runic Art. Service caps were not the former’s style—but even beggars in the otherworld were never anything else. Nor could the two have chosen when the Devil’s minions spoke or not in front of them.

One of the two soldiers quickly questioned their enlistment. “Do you have your ID with you? I can lend you mine back home if need be. Just show me your badge,” he explained as he walked closer. Never one to make an alibi, Kenkō quickly grasped their foreheads. At first, the demon soldiers got confused. But their eyes immediately drooped down, now feeling groggy.

The next thing Yukino knew before her, the said demons fell face-first and slept sounder than infants. She realized that Kenkō cast no runes when she assaulted them.

Hokori and the Minagawa couple went together while Kakunō went on his own accord. As Hokori and Haruto went on a lookout uphill, numerous soldiers spotted Tokino in front and asked for her credentials. Flash-stepping away was her only reaction when she turned around.

Haruto saw his wife running into another area in a flash. He cried out her name and unsheathed his swords against the demons. Fortunately, Hokori pulverized all of them faster than Tokino’s pace. “Let’s go, boy.” He flash-stepped into the distance and sighed internally. “So much for the action flick undercover routine….”

Tokino managed to lose the soldiers after twenty minutes of exerting the taxing technique of concentrating magic under one’s feet. She decided to hide inside a rundown home. After catching her breath and sweating bullets, she stripped her disguise and wore back her regular attire. Moments later, she overheard two demons outside the ruined house, so she ducked by a wall.

“Why are we doing this again? Laying claim over this absolute trash heap?” he kicked a rock on the ground.

“Honestly, man… I dunno what’s going on inside the generals’ minds,” the friend shrugged with eyes closed. “But hey, remember when Vetusian mages came in here? This one guy here kept beggin’ below our feet just so he can see his daughter again,” he chuckled. “Poor sap never understood we were at war!”

“Hahahahahaha! Oh, yeah, I do remember that. And when he tried to escape—we had a lot of fun using the extra sharp fillet knife on him!” The two demons shed tears of amusement more and more. They shared similar stories between them as Tokino hid under for ten minutes. She began breathing heavily in place. Her eyes widened with the pupils narrowed to pin-sized.

In Tokino’s viewpoint, she listened to the most depraved and degenerate creatures alive. At that moment, her visage changed slowly. Something inside her heart wanted to come out so badly, but it would jeopardize her cover—so she clutched her upper arm until red seeped out. “Happy place, Tokino… Remember your happy place. Remember—” Unfortunately, the two demons outside cackled about torturing a single mother who battled stage four breast cancer.

Tokino went silent, sulking down as she stood up. She took a deep breath and uttered softly, “Welcome back… my old friend…” and unsheathed her rapier.

From afar, Kenkō hopped around on top of the ruined houses and buildings while still carrying Yukino on her back. “Big Sis, are you okay with this?” she lifted her head. Kenkō immediately answered with a declaration that nothing for her little sister was too much. With that, she rested her head back while smiling.

Yukino’s declaration of eternal love for her big sister made Kenkō’s heart bounce. But alas, the heartfelt moment was short-lived.

Suddenly, the two heard the countless screams of demons as more charged right into a specific area to attack somebody. At a distance, Yukino witnessed her mother hopping on houses and buildings. Her eyes widened in utter shock—and got off her sister’s back. “What are you doing, Yukichi?” Kenkō followed her.

She panted as she ran as fast as she could. “This is really bad, Big Sis…! When Mama hears very evil peoples—the Bear will take her place!” She flash-stepped into the distance.

“The ‘Bear’?” Kenkō wondered briefly and followed suit.

They eventually arrived at Tokino’s whereabouts, shocking them even further. Just as they stood wide-eyed, Hokori and Haruto arrived at the scene as well. Haruto’s eyes also showed complete shock, yet he quickly knew why this occurred.

Kakunō also arrived when called in by Hokori via his Pocket Hub. He witnessed corpses in droves littering a kilometer stretch of land—and all of them had a bloody, gaping hole on their chest cavities.

Hokori looked at Haruto and gestured his hand, “Lemme guess… this was her problem during your dates before? And still in play?”

“Yeah…” he nodded. “It’s safe to say—no one alive in Parallaxis today could ever dream to compete with my wife’s rage. Not even the Gods themselves….”

They all decided to walk closer to Tokino, noticing her standing over the edge of a flat top building. She sheathed her rapier, looking at more demons coming in from below. “Sorry, Hokori… I wanted Tokino to introduce me at a later time…” she spoke softly again.

Hokori shrugged. “Well, I wouldn’t have wanted to, anyway. So, um—where’s she now?” he raised an eyebrow.

“She is safe… Tokino is fast asleep. I will protect her, now. I hope Haruto forgives me again….”

The mentioned husband tried reaching out to her—but his comrade held his shoulder in front. “Let’s go, boy! We ain’t got no choice now but to whoop some demon ass back to Hell. Just leave her be.” Hokori walked past Haruto and proceeded to tell the others similar things. Then he turned around, “Your girlfriend completely loses her marbles every time this happens, right?” he raised an eyebrow.

Tokino shook her head. “No, you’re wrong—Hokori… I’m still me. I’m just a little different, now…” she drew out her rapier slowly, “…Tell me… what do you suggest I should do now? I might disagree with you….” She stared down at the charging enemy.

Hokori stopped in his tracks and let out a bloodthirsty chuckle. “Well, that’s just very simple, kid…” he grinned widely with eyes lit up. “…Relish your glory—until you’ve had your fill….”

Tokino finally pulled out her weapon, “Gladly!!” she concurred and flash-stepped below to the ground. As the demon horde charged right at her, she charged right at them a million times faster. Usually, her rapier techniques flowed like horizontal raindrops while moving like a curved stream. This time, all she threw at her enemies was one blinding hit intended to kill. Elegance was no more.

Downhill, Tokino murdered more demons—and the next—and the next. Her vision at that point was incredibly hazy. All she could recognize were their crimson military uniforms appearing like bullseyes. While still sprinting around, it took a significantly big obstacle to halt her nigh-unstoppable pace. It flew to her like a giant fireball and punched her abruptly in the shin. Her vision became clear again. She laid eyes upon one of the ultimate targets before her.

Auris Concentio. Twenty-three years old. The three hundred and fifty thousandth general of Naraka stood tall with stern eyes.

“Get out… Get the fuck out….” Tokino breathed heavily.

Auris shrugged while shaking his head with eyes closed, “Sorry, miss. I’m gonna have to kill you now.” Bright orange flames appeared all around him.