"You think you won just because you managed to survive my Water Dragon?"
I turned to face her fully. She'd pulled herself upright at the far end of the pool, one hand pressed against her ribs where the backlash of her own attack had left its mark. Her scales were dull, patches of them flaking away like dead skin. Her golden eyes—those beautiful, predatory eyes—were fixed on me with an intensity that bordered on madness.
"So what if you're an S-tier Vampire?" She spat the words like they tasted of poison. "So what if you've been playing with me this whole time, letting me believe you were something I could hunt?"
She pushed off from the wall, swimming toward me with the last dregs of her strength. Not attacking. Just... approaching. Like she wanted to see my face clearly when she said what came next.
"I am a direct descendant of Scylla." Her voice trembled—not with fear, but with something that sounded almost like reverence. "The monster who plagued Odysseus. The terror of the straits. The daughter of Crataeis, blessed—cursed—by the gods themselves."
She stopped a few meters away, treading water, her chest heaving.
"You think I'll surrender myself to this fate? To the spite of gods who turned my ancestors into monsters and then laughed as we were hunted, killed, erased from history?" A bitter laugh escaped her. "You think I'll bow to you just because you're stronger?"
Tamao even as she was exhausted, even after seeing no chance of winning in sight against me, she didn't back down.
And while watching her, I couldn't help but feel the amount of respect I had for this girl continue rising.
She might be a bitch for scheming against me. She might have planned to drain me dry and leave nothing behind. But all was fair in the world we lived in. She'd seen a chance to grow stronger, to escape the fate her bloodline had suffered for millennia, and she'd taken it.
I couldn't fault her for that.
And now, with nothing left, with every plan shattered and every ally broken, she was still fighting. Still refusing to yield.
The amount of respect I had for this girl was rising with every passing second.
A cornered beast chooses to bite again. That's what they do. That's what survivors do.
Water exploded behind me.
I spun, claws raised, and barely caught the edge of Tamao's strike. Her hand—fully transformed now, scaled and clawed and fast—raked across my forearm instead of my throat. Black lines appeared where her claws had passed, then faded as my regeneration kicked in.
She was already moving again, using her tail—long and powerful, built for speed—to propel herself through the water like a torpedo. She came at me from below, from the side, from above, each attack faster than the last.
[Time remaining: 3:02]
I dodged that attack because, for how much confidence I had in my Ghoul form, my brain hasn't decayed to shit. Choosing to tank such an attack would be stupid against someone at her level.
But my agility in this form was at the peak of B-tier, one step away from A, while her attacks, fast as they were, couldn't quite land on my body.
"You're fast," I admitted, twisting away from a strike that would have taken my head off. "I'll give you that."
"Fast enough!" She lunged again, and this time I let her get closer. Let her think she had me.
Her claws raked across my chest—
—and I caught her wrist.
Her eyes went wide.
"Fast," I repeated my eyes blazing with crimson Yoki. "But not fast enough for a Vampire's eyes."
I threw her.
She flew across the pool, her tail thrashing uselessly in the air, and crashed into the diving board, leaving her imprint on the metal structure, as it later began collapsing.
'Tsk, how reliable are human construction skills.'
Tamao pulled herself free from the collapsed metal bars, her expression shifting from confidence to something else I intuitively could smell and taste on the top of my tongue.
It was fear. Sure, only for a flicker, but it didn't change the fact that she began fearing me and my power.
Regaining her composure and resolve, she came at me again, but differently this time.
There was no longer the blind aggression driven by greed and lust over my vitality and essence. Instead, she began putting that pretty head of hers to use.
Using the water itself as a weapon and the remaining of her Yoki, she started shaping it into tendrils that reached for me from every direction. Her yoki flared bright, illuminating the pool with an azure glow that clashed with my crimson.
[Environmental attack detected: Water Manipulation (B-tier)]
I cut through the tendrils as they came, my claws parting them like smoke. But there were always more and it made me question her interests…
She was drawing on the entire pool, using every drop of water as ammunition to create tendrils and kraken tentacles.
'Wait, you've got to be kidding me. She can do this using water?'
'I got this itch for no reason just thinking about tendrils and tentacles. But, why doesn't it fit with this moment? Aren't we suppost to fight until one gives up?'
'Urgh, I'm not into that type of play.'
'Fuck, I have to focus. Leave the sexual intrusive thoughts for when the fight is over.'
'What do you mean? I already got this fight in my pocket. I have five paths of winning that I thought in this small frame of time we were exchanging blows.'
'Multithreaded consciousness for the win.'
The effect of this multithreaded conciounsess was otherwordly in itself.
Time slowed. No—that wasn't right. Time moved normally. I was just... thinking faster. Processing more. While one part of me tracked Tamao's position, another calculated the angle of her next strike, another monitored the timer, another analyzed the other mermaids' positions, and another still wondered why the hell I was suddenly capable of all this at once.
It was like someone had unlocked a door in my brain I didn't know existed.
Was this what they meant by unlocking the full capacity of your brain? I couldn't tell for sure, but I can't deny its usefulness.
I even started to question if Inner Moka had this type of perk as a Shinso Vampire… she should afterall, she's not my Mommy for nothing.
In itself, you could name this as an euphoric experience, but I still chose to stay grounded and not do anything dumb based on whatever the Ghoul's instincts were pushing me into.
"You can't dodge forever!" Her voice echoed from everywhere and nowhere, carried by the water itself. "This is my element! My territory! You're just a guest here, Tsukune-kun!"
Oh yeah? Then let me give you a taste of me.
With her own declaration, I stopped dodging and started preparing for my offense.
The tendrils wrapped around my arms, my legs, my chest, tightening and squeezing like I was put under a hydraulic press. They tried to pull me under.
For all the hurt, negligible to say the least, I let it happen.
Tamao surfaced before me, her yellow eyes gleaming with triumph. "See? In the water, I'm invincible. You never had a chance."
I looked at her. At the tendrils holding me. At the pool around us.
Then I flexed my right arm, and my crimson Yoki started to gush out from my body.
Clashing with my Yoki and burst of strength, the tendrils didn't hold long and exploded in seconds. Water sprayed everywhere, and Tamao's eyes went wide at such a display of strength.
"Invincible?" I repeated. "Funny. I don't see it."
She attacked again—had to, now, because hesitation against something like a monster like me meant imminent death, or so she might believe. Her water manipulation sharpened, becoming spears instead of tendrils, projectiles designed to pierce rather than restrain.
I dodged some, displaying my Vampire inhumane moves that would make Madara, a master at dodging and dancing, proud. As for the other projectiles, I let them hit me, breaking against my skin.
She circled, always moving, always attacking. Her Yoki flared brighter with each strike, drawing deeper from her reserves. She was putting everything she had into this. Her everything to survive against such a monster.
And I was still standing in the face of her unleashed offense.
"You should have run when you had the chance," I said, catching another water spear and crushing it in my grip. "You're burning through your yoki fast. Another minute, maybe two, and you'll have nothing left."
Her eyes flickered in doubt. She knew I was right.
"Doesn't matter," she hissed. "I just need to hit you once. One good hit, and—"
She lunged.
Her claws extended, longer than before, sharp enough to cut through steel. Her tail propelled her at speeds that should have been impossible. Her yoki flared one last time, a final desperate burst of power—and she struck.
Her claws raked across my side and for once my Vampire eyes displayed a new emotion from their cold indifference, that being surprise. So when you pushed a beast in a corner it would bite back, a tale as old as humanity.
I'm glad I didn't lower my guard and let my arrogant ass lead this fight. As for my wounds, they weren't that deep. I managed to twist my body at the last moment avoiding the brunt of her attack. It was deep enough to draw blood, and sure as hell it hurt.
I looked down at the wound, then shifted my eyes at the dripping blood drifting in the water between us. I placed my fingers over the wound while it was still open, smearing them with blood, and while giving my blood a taste, I looked back at Tamao.
'Doesn't taste like anything sweet as Moka claims to be. Metalic, and bitter as fuck. Wouldn't make it worth the effort of drinking such an awful cocktail.'
Her chest was heaving. Her yoki was flickering, nearly depleted. She'd given everything she had, and all she'd managed was a scratch.
"That," I said quietly, "was a mistake."
I moved, by my standard not as fast, but it was fast enough that Tamao, exhausted and depleted, couldn't track my movements.
I appeared before her like a phantasm, shocking her and her body instinctively reacted, but it wasn't quick enough for her to dive into the pool and stop my hand closing around her throat.
She thrashed, her tail whipping against my legs, her claws raking at my arm. It didn't matter. Nothing she did mattered. The gap between us was too wide.
"You're strong," I said, and I meant it. "Stronger than I expected, but you made a detrimental mistake to your plans… believing that I was a mere human lost like a sheep in a den of wolves."
"If I was the human you desired, I would be fodder for you fishes."
The fight in her spirit and eyes didn't diminish, instead she kept on struggling, refusing the cruelty of reality.
"What is wrong? You can't concieve that you were fooled by my human form? Don't you know how many strange things exist in this world? And you were so sure that I was a human."
[Time remaining: 1:41]
I tightened my grip—just enough to get her attention, not enough to hurt. Her eyes met mine, and for the first time, I saw what I'd been looking for.
Acceptance.
"You lose," I said.
She went limp, I could feel it in my grip, but it seems that even thought I had around 2 minutes of 'safe' time while in my transformation, the Ghoul inside of myself had other plans for me.
It started acting up in all sorts of ways that made me feel paranoic, and for fear I would crush Tamao's windpipe while fighting the dark impulses of my bloodthrist I overlooked, no, better said I ignored that I was facing a desperate Mermaid capable of great lengths for victory.
Sure, at first tell signs, her eyes stared at nothing, it was a tell-sign of being defeated, and for a moment, I thought she'd accepted defeat.
But it seems I've been gotten. Shame on me, truly.
I felt the shift—the coiling of her tail, the tension in her scales. Playing dead was just a ruse to get my focus to waver as I also had an inner battle with the Ghoul.
(3rd Person POV/Narration)
On the other hand, while the fight between Tsukune and Tamao was shaping up toward a conclusion
The mermaids who weren't part of Tamao's inner circle had finished their feeding. The boys they'd targeted lay scattered around the pool deck, pale and weak but alive—these mermaids had principles, apparently.
They didn't kill just about anyone, in fact even the history was wrongly interpreted and some jealous Greek writers who didn't receive the affection of their ancestors spread blatant lies about them…
Now they stood at the edge of the pool, watching the scene before them with expressions of pure horror.
"That's..." one of them whispered, her voice barely audible over the lapping of the water. "At first when I saw Tamao-san use her famous Water Dragon, I thought that Vampire would be done for… She's the strongest mermaid in the Academy, the pearl of the Ocean. She's never—"
Tamao hung limp in Tsukune's grip, her transformed body still, her eyes staring at nothing.
"—lost," the mermaid finished weakly.
Another mermaid, the redhead who'd spoken earlier in the chapter, shook her head slowly. Her name was Akari, and she'd been with the Swimming Club since her first year. She'd seen Tamao fight before. She'd never seen this.
"It's unfortunate, but there are levels to monsters." Akari's voice was quiet, measured. "Tamao-san is powerful for a mermaid—the most powerful any of us have seen in generations. But she's not Lady Scylla. She can't make Greek heroes shudder in terror just by speaking her name."
She wrapped her arms around herself, scales still visible along her cheekbones from her incomplete transformation.
"Against a Legendary Vampire? It's simply a hopeless fight. But she didn't lose our pride. She put on an excellent display. That's more than most could do."
"No, wait!" Another mermaid—a short-haired brunette named Yuki—pointed at the pool with trembling fingers. "Don't rush with your conclusions. Tamao-sama hasn't lost yet. Look, she's using that trick. The limp body… She's waiting for him to drop his guard."
Yuki's voice rose with desperate hope. "She hasn't given up!"
Akari followed her gaze, and watched Tamao's tail coil almost imperceptibly beneath the surface. Watched her scales tense.
"So what?" Akari's voice was bitter. "Even after everything she's done, after all that power she poured into that dragon, can you see a single scratch on that monster, Aono Tsukune? Look at him…"
They looked.
Tsukune's form, wreathed in crimson aura, showed almost no signs of the battle. A few scratches, yes. A few lines where claws had found their mark. But they were already closing, already healing, already becoming nothing more than fading memories of attacks that should have meant something.
Nothing more.
Another mermaid, a quiet one named Sora who rarely spoke, finally broke her silence.
"Tell me," she said, her voice flat and dangerous, "who was the idiot who told us that Aono-kun was a human? I want to skin him alive for dragging us into this mess. I want to make him understand what 'consequences' mean."
A murmur of agreement rippled through the group.
"If we didn't have enough problems with the Punishment Committee and the one standing behind them—that nine-tailed bastard Kuyo—now we have to face an immortal vampire who isn't even weak to water." Akari laughed, but there was no humor in it. "Wonderful. Just wonderful."
The frustration among the mermaids was palpable, shared equally between fear for themselves and genuine worry for their president. Whatever else Tamao was—ambitious, predatory, ruthless—she was also theirs. She'd built this club. She'd protected them. She'd given them a place where mermaids could be mermaids without apology, to avoid the annoying rules of the Academy that forbade them from revealing their Yokai form..
And now she was hanging limp in the grip of that monster, and none of them could do a thing about it.
Across the pool, the boys who'd "survived" their first experience with mermaids were slowly pulling themselves up. They were pale, weak, and visibly aged—but alive. A few of them shot conflicted looks at the beauties who'd drained them, expressions caught somewhere between terror and lingering attraction.
They stared at his crimson figure with new eyes, respect was winning amongst the string of emotions.
"He's..." one of them gasped, his voice thin and reedy. "He's a vampire. A real vampire."
"I heard the rumors," another whispered, clutching his chest where his vitality had been drained. His name was Kenji, and he'd been one of the loudest advocates for following the mermaids. "About him being human. About him being some kind of weakling who stumbled into the Academy by accident."
He looked at Tsukune, at the crimson energy radiating from his form, at the way the water itself seemed to recoil from his presence.
"If this guy is a human," Kenji declared, "someone please slap me."
SLAP.
"Hey!!" Kenji reeled, clutching his cheek where one of his friends had connected with surprising force. "That was metaphorical! You didn't have to actually slap me!"
"Ahh, my bad." Takeshi grinned sheepishly, rubbing the hand he'd used. "Couldn't resist. You set it up too perfectly. Besides, you said please."
"That's not—I didn't mean—ugh." Kenji rubbed his cheek, but there was no real anger in it. "Whatever. At least now I know what a real vampire looks like."
Another boy, older than the others, pushed himself up on shaky arms. His name was Ryota, a third-year who'd always wanted to come to the Swimming Club even when taking in account all the rumors circling about the girls. He didn't even mind giving up some of his vilitaty to Akari-san who was gentle with him when bitting his clavicle.
And since he knew more about the true monsters of the Yokai Academy that shouldn't be crossed, he'd been watching the fight more attention than most he could see a Dark Horse raising with the reveal of Tsukune's true powers.
"Sure, he might not be human as the rumors claimed," Ryota said slowly, "but even as a vampire, he doesn't seem simple. Did you notice how Moka-san reacted to water? She could barely touch it. But Aono? He's swimming in it like it's nothing."
The boys exchanged glances.
"Does anyone know anything about vampires?" Ryota asked. "Beyond the basics? Blood drinking, sunlight, stakes through the heart—that kind of stuff?"
"I do."
All eyes turned to Kenji. Surprisingly.
"What?" Kenji blinked at the attention. "I read. Sometimes. When I'm bored. My family has this old library, and there's this one section on supernatural creatures that my grandfather insists I memorize. Says it's 'practical knowledge for a young man in today's world.' I always thought he was being paranoid, but..." He gestured weakly at the pool. "Well."
He cleared his throat, doing his best to look scholarly despite the fact that he was pale, drained, and still had a red handprint on his cheek.
"I heard that even Vampires have classes, from B-tier to S-tier." The guys nodded as if understanding. "Look at him. He destroyed her inner circle in seconds. Seconds. And even Tamao-sama couldn't hold much of a fight against him, so, he for sure is an S-tier Yokai."
"Would he go for the kill? I don't want to see a Goddess being taken away from us…" another boy asked, his voice small.
He stopped, unable to further that idea of his.
"You're not much of a help," Ryota said dryly. "That enters in the 'basic' information. I think most who passed the first year exams should know about the true monsters of the Yokai World."
"Anyone else?" asked Ryota as he watched the clash between Tsukune and Tamao.
"I can try it." All heads turned. A tall boy with silver hair and sharp features pushed himself up from where he'd been leaning against the wall.
His name was Jin, and he was a second-year who'd followed the crowd mostly out of curiosity. Unlike the freshmen, he'd been around long enough to know better—but curiosity had gotten the better of him, and he was with no regrets.
"Since you, freshmen, are all a bunch of ignorant simps, let your senpai shed some light to your meager, puny brains."
Kenji's eyes twitched. "Fuck you, man. You're one to talk? Weren't you the idiot who tried to sniff Rin-sama's butt and got slapped the fuck out? Why are you so smug, you damn pervert? At least, we guys are civilized gentlemen and admire beauty from a distance."
Jin's composure cracked. "Ahem." He straightened, doing his best to look dignified despite the obvious embarrassment coloring his cheeks. "That was a strategic reconnaissance maneuver. I regret nothing."
Kenji stared at him. The other boys stared at him. Even some of the mermaids nearby glanced over, curious about the sudden outburst.
"It was worth it," Jin added defensively. "For science."
"I feel you senpai's are worse than us freshmen," Kenji muttered.
"Be that as it may." Jin cleared his throat, rallying with impressive speed. "Back to what I was saying. The reason you should all be terrified—or impressed, depending on your perspective—is what Aono Tsukune might actually be."
He nodded toward the pool, where Tsukune was currently walking through one of Mizuki's desperate water barrages like it was nothing.
"I've heard stories from the older generation in my family. My grandmother, she's been around for a long time. Seen things. Fought in things. And she told me about vampires once, when I was young and asked about the scary ones I should avoid from crossing."
His voice dropped, taking on a storyteller's cadence.
"Don't mess with a Primordial Vampire, they have powers that rival the first of the Devils, the Mao of the Old, equal to the Grigori Governors and the Archangels."
"Those that have inherited the blood of the Primordial Vampire are said to rule over the other Vampire Clans, akin to the human's Royalty."
He looked at Tsukune, at the chilling crimson energy radiating from his form, at the way the water itself seemed to recoil from him. "I think we're seeing one."
The mermaids, worried about Tamao's life, exchanged glances. One of them, the dark-haired one who'd spoken earlier, took a step back from the pool.
"We should—" she started.
"No." The blonde-haired mermaid Rin, who didn't join the fight since she was too embarrassed to face Tsukune, was sharp. "You should stay back and watch, don't get involved in the mess of the President."
"But Tamao-sama—" the dark-haired mermaid protested.
"As much as I love her to death as a sister." Rin's voice cracked, just slightly, before she steadied it. "Getting into a fight with a being like Tsukune-kun would be hopeless. You saw what he did to the others. You saw how easily he dismantled them at their strongest."
The dark-haired mermaid swallowed hard. But she stayed.
She shook her head slowly.
"All we can do now is hope he's merciful."
The dark-haired mermaid swallowed hard. Her eyes returned to the pool, to the crimson figure standing against her president, to the clash that would decide all their fates.
While they were at it, doors to the pool building slammed open, and Kurumu strode in like she owned the place.
She'd heard the rumors—that Tsukune was here, that he was joining the Swimming Club, that Moka was here too. None of that mattered. What mattered was that she wasn't going to let that pink-haired vampire win by default.
"I'm here, Tsukune-kun!" she announced, striking a pose that showed off her figure to maximum effect. "Your one and only destined—" But as soon as she made it there, she stopped.
The scene before her was not what she'd expected.
The pool was left in tatters from the previous chaos. Boys lay scattered everywhere, pale and aged. Mermaids in various states of transformation huddled at the edges, but overall the majority were back in their human form, their faces wearing a mask of fear and worry.
She could notice three mermaids floating unconsciously in the water, their bodies limp on the surface of the pool's crimson water.
And in the center of it all, wreathed in crimson energy, was Tsukune as he was facing the Water Dragon that Tamao had cast with a vast amount of Yoki.
It was the Tsukune she had met this morning, when she watched him fight against the Idiot Trio that submitted to him. However, she couldn't help but notice that instead of that hungry, bloodthirsty look into his eyes, there was now a cold control that didn't betray any outburst of emotions.
It felt to her that Tsukune was more in control than the previous time when he let his dark emotions cloud his actions.
Kurumu's jaw dropped.
"What... what the hell happened here?" she breathed.
Then came the unforgettable scene of Tsukune while utilizing his Crimson Fang Fist clashing with the Water Dragon, destroying it.
Still, she was further shocked by the fast-paced clash after the Water Dragon was destroyed, where not long after, the image of Tamao being hung limp in his grip has imprinted itself in the minds of all the spectators who were originally at the Swimming Pool or have just arrived.
Tamao's Mermaid form remained still, while her eyes stared into nothing. Nonetheless, her focus immediately drifted to Tsukune, watching and appreciating his 'Vampire' form
His expression retained his natural charm and that assuring calmness, in fact, the longer she looked at this form of his, the more she was feeling herself charmed.
'The first time I've seen Tsukune reveal his true form I was frozen silly. More by the fear of the unknown, since revealing your True Form means revealing your true personality, in a way.'
'I thought that after he killed those three idiots, he would then shift his attention on me, and… ravage me… sink his fangs into my neck.'
'But I was wrong, Tsukune in his true form, while appearing rougher than his human form, is still the same silly guy.'
'In fact, I think I know the reason why he didn't use his true form against me. It is because he is uncomfortable with the transformation, maybe of losing himself in that monster instinct. In a way, it is similar to me when I can't help but thirst for a strong guy.'
'Ahhh, I want you, Tsukune, even more.'
"Kurumu-chan."
The voice came from her left and snapped her from the bliss of a dreamer. Kurumu turned to find Moka emerging from behind a row of lockers, her school uniform still damp, her face pale but determined.
"What are you doing here?"
Kurumu's eyes narrowed. "Hmph. Of course I came here because of Tsukune-kun. I heard he wanted to join the Swimming Club, so it's only natural that I join the same club as him."
She looked Moka up and down, noting her disheveled state, her pale skin, the way she held herself like someone who'd just been through an ordeal.
"What about you? Shouldn't you also transform to support him?" Kurumu's voice sharpened. "If not, I'll join the fight myself. I can't have my man being hurt by a bunch of fishes."
Moka's jaw tightened. "It's not what you think. Unlike Tsukune... I can't turn into that form unless my Rosario Cross is taken off." She met Kurumu's eyes. "And you shouldn't interfere with Tsukune's fight."
"Why not?" Kurumu's voice rose. "Fuck these bitches. Trying to hurt my Tsukune. It's only natural that I teach them a lesson about messing with my man."
She stepped closer, her generous chest pressing forward—and accidentally (or not so accidentally) brushing against Moka's own breasts.
Moka's eye twitched.
"You're blocking my view with your stupid cow jugs." Her voice was flat. "Move."
Kurumu blinked. "Excuse me? Cow jugs?"
"Besides." Moka crossed her arms, doing her best to ignore the way Kurumu's assets seemed to have their own gravitational field. "Tsukune told me not to get involved. So why should you?"
Kurumu opened her mouth to retort, then paused. Her eyes flicked to the pool, to Tsukune's crimson form, to the mermaids cowering at the edges, to Tamao hanging limp in his grip, then back to Moka as if realization came hitting her.
"..." Her expression shifted, the jealousy warring with something else—reluctant respect, maybe. "...Tsk. Fine. I doubt you'd lie about something Tsukune said."
She settled beside Moka, arms crossed, eyes fixed on the pool.
"But when this is over," she added quietly, "you and I are going to have a talk about who gets to call him 'my man.'"
Moka didn't respond, trying her best to ignore Kurumu, instead she was too busy watching Tsukune and worrying herself to the point of heaving a headache, because of this unnatural transformation of Tsukune's and it all because of a remark from her Inner Self that gave her the chills.
[Other me, I have to tell you something…]
[Tsukune before us, I fear, he is not transforming into a Vampire like us. I think his transformation is a failed one because his Vampiric traits resemble the one of a Ghoul.]
[You might ask, what is the difference… Think of it like this. While we Vampires are rational monsters that can control ourselves from the impulses of the blood, a Ghoul resembles a bloodthirsty beast who lacks control over themselves and their actions.]
[I just hope that I am wrong. That for once, my own knowledge is nothing but a misinformation.]
She tried not to think about what her Inner self has confessed to her regarding Tsukune's vampiric transformation,
'Come on, Tsukune. I know you'll not allow yourself to succumb to darkness. As much as I don't like these Mermaids, please, don't kill them.'
'You'll lose yourself, and I fear you'll no longer be the same person I fell in love with.'
(Tsukune's POV)
While she was in my grip, and my focus had shifted into the transformation, her eyes focused again—not with defeat, but with a raw type of emotion, that one being, desperation.
It reached such an extent that her tail whipped up gathering all the momentum she could have possible gotten in that situation, then catching me across the ribs.
It wasn't hard enough to break my ribs, but it was hard enough to break my hold over her throat, and in doing so she managed to break my hold over her throat. She twisted free, putting distance between us, her chest heaving, her yoki flickering like a candle in the wind.
"You..." She gasped for breath, "What are you?"
"Can't you tell already after fighting me?"
"...I am a monster."
Her eyes widened. Then narrowed.
"Don't give me that." Her voice was sharp, cutting through the exhaustion. "We're all monsters here. That's not an answer."
She pointed at me, her clawed hand trembling with effort.
"Answer me this, Aono Tsukune." Her voice dropped, low and intense. "Why do you have the smell of a human? Why does your essence—the thing I've been craving since the Entrance Ceremony—taste like something that shouldn't exist in this Academy?"
She took a step closer, ignoring the danger.
"You shouldn't be here. You shouldn't be allowed in this Academy. The wards, the barriers, the headmaster's own power—they should have detected you the moment you crossed the threshold."
Her eyes searched mine, desperate for an answer. "So tell me. What ARE you?"