— — — — — —
Deep in the mountains around Kannawa Lake, beneath a towering ancient tree—
Leaning against the massive trunk, Kenon spat out a mouthful of thick, black blood.
The foul liquid hit the ground, which was carpeted in rotting leaves, and immediately began to sizzle. In seconds, a wide patch of earth was eaten away by corrosion.
"You alright?"
Clade, the man with a dinosaur skull strapped over his head, pressed a hand to the deep claw marks carved across his chest and asked hoarsely.
(T/N: Clade, a dragon species who appears in only 3 episodes. He doesn't exist on any local wiki, only the Japanese one. For those interested, I'll leave the link at the end of the chapter.)
"Sigh~"
Compared to before, Kenon looked even younger.
Earlier, he'd had the appearance of an eleven- or twelve-year-old boy. Now, at most, he looked ten.
"I'm fine. Once I forced out the corrupted blood, my body will recover in a few minutes."
He wiped the corner of his mouth and scanned the forest around them.
When they'd set out, he had led more than three hundred members of the Order of the End.
Now, scattered weakly beneath the trees, there were barely fifty left.
The rest had been abandoned as bait, sent to draw away that terrifying demonic hornet-serpent.
Clade's expression darkened. His voice dropped. "Wasn't Glenda supposed to be sleeping in Kannawa Lake?"
"Because of that thing, Merriloé is dead." Kenon let out a bitter laugh "And from the magical fluctuation that just vanished, it looks like we lost a comrade without accomplishing anything."
"Damn it… The plan had barely started. How did it turn into this?"
"That's on me." Kenon pushed himself to his feet, face heavy with guilt.
"Cain ordered Glenda to sleep in Kannawa Lake, yes. But that was seven thousand years ago. In all that time, she could have awakened on her own. Or someone could have found her and moved her."
"But what about that demon?" Clade frowned and raised his arm, bronze scales cracked and split. "It shattered my dragon's scales in one strike. I've never heard of a demon guardian that strong existing in this world."
"I don't know," Kenon admitted with a hollow smile. "Maybe we were just unlucky."
Demon Guardians were beings from another world, summoned through contracts with witches.
To call one forth required a witch to sacrifice her own soul. And even then, it was only temporary.
A demon existing freely in this world? Even Kenon had no explanation.
Clade bared his teeth, but in the end he only sighed. "We haven't even begun and we're already bleeding manpower. What a joke."
"So what now? You still planning to go after the current Fourth Primogenitor? With what we've got left, we can't break the Dawn Empire."
"And don't forget, he's been recruiting nonstop."
Clade began counting them off on his fingers.
"Kato Magatoki, who defected from us. Shizuri Kasugaya, the last descendant of the Holy Order. The Three Saints and shamans from the Lion King Agency. The Six Blades of the Bureau of Astrology. Ancient alchemists. The princess of Aldegyr."
"And that's not even counting Natsuki Minamiya and Aya Tokoyogi."
He exhaled slowly. "On sheer combat power, they've got at least double what we do."
"The Fourth Primogenitor has momentum on his side now. Even if you can hold him off personally, our mid-tier forces would get crushed."
Clade felt more helpless the longer he talked.
On Ryo's side, talent flocked to him like iron filings to a magnet. And most of them were absurdly gifted, dangerously charming women at that.
Compared to the Dawn Empire's lineup, his camp looked downright shabby.
Toppling the Dawn Empire. Destroying the Primogenitors who opposed dragonkind. Achieving his goal.
It all felt impossibly far away.
Even if Kenon burned his life away and dragged Ryo down with him, it might not be enough.
Besides, every time Kenon used a Familiar, his age regressed. He wasn't built for a drawn-out fight.
If he clashed with Ryo head-on and unleashed his Familiars recklessly, he might kill himself before the enemy did.
And Clade understood his real aim.
What Kenon wanted was a complete Fourth Primogenitor. One who would ignite the Cleansing and become the King of the World.
He himself had no desire to become that completed being. Using Familiars shaved years off his life. It was a fatal flaw.
Seven thousand years ago, that very flaw was why he'd been labeled the failed product of the Fourth Primogenitor.
Given that, would he truly fight Ryo to the death?
Hard to say.
"...."
Kenon fell silent for a moment before speaking again. "I know it's difficult as things stand. But I'm not without leverage."
"Oh?" Clade frowned. "What kind of leverage?"
Kenon narrowed his eyes.
"I've contacted the president of MAR. And the Moscow Empire. They've agreed to move."
MAR (Magna Ataraxia Research) — a giant conglomerate with branches all over the Far East. It is a corporate group made up of several sorcerous product manufacturers with global reach, and is one of the world's leading magic industrial complexes.
"The president of MAR? Shahryar Ren?" Clade's eyes lit up. "As one of the few remaining living Devas, he's solid backup. If I remember right, he's got the High Priestess — the Priestess of Abel."
Now that changed things.
Shahryar Ren's strength aside, just the presence of the Priestess of Abel was significant.
On Itogami Island, the altar of the Cleansing would massively amplify a priestess's power.
Compared to the still-inexperienced Asagi Aiba on Ryo's side, the Priestess of Abel had already helped activate a Cleansing ritual before. She was no amateur.
With her there, the terrain advantage of Itogami Island would swing in their favor.
"And that's not all," Kenon continued. "When we strike Itogami Island, we'll immediately release the prison barrier. Free the inmates. And unseal our comrades locked away there."
His tone softened when he said comrades.
Most of the Order of the End's members had been sealed inside prison barriers scattered across the world.
Some for a hundred years.
Some for over a thousand.
If they could gather those old companions again, it would cause the Dawn Empire no small headache.
If possible, he wanted to push Ryo into a corner. Force him to awaken the completed form of the Fourth Primogenitor.
"If that's the case," Clade said slowly, a grin finally spreading across his face, "our odds aren't bad."
The Order of the End. The MAR Corporation. Moscow. And the prisoners in the barrier.
That kind of force was enough to storm any one of the Primogenitor Empires.
And with the enemy in the open while they remained in the shadows, a surprise attack could cripple Ryo even if it didn't kill him.
They didn't even need a head-on clash.
If, during the prison break, they captured Natsuki Minamiya or Asagi Aiba, just one of his wives would be enough to put Ryo on the defensive.
After that, how could their grand plan fail?
Clade drew in a breath. "Let's do it. No point waiting around and letting things get worse. We start immediately."
"Agreed."
Kenon closed his eyes and began gathering magic, steadying his breathing, restoring his strength.
The decisive battle was coming. And this time, he intended to succeed.
.
.
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ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/ストライク・ザ・ブラッド
(T/N: The Strike the Blood arc is almost over)