"I promise you, Lady Mika."
Shino agreed without a second thought.
Naming a child personally was something Misono Mika never did before. Precisely because she never tried it, she felt a spark of interest.
'This is a first in my life. I must think of a nice name when the time comes. What should it be... Goudan? No, that sounds a bit ugly...'
Misono Mika rubbed her smooth chin, sinking into serious thought.
Thump-thump!
An abnormal heartbeat suddenly rang out.
Shino clutched her chest in agony. A sharp, violent pain pierced her heart, and her entire body felt as if it were being pricked by thousands of needles.
A crimson glow shone through her clothes like a lantern lighting up in her chest. The blood vessels beneath her skin glowed red, crawling across her body like a terrifying spiderweb.
"Cough... Lady Mika... save me! I can't... hold on much longer..."
Shino couldn't stop coughing. It felt as if the fear of death gripped her throat. Trembling, she reached out her right hand toward Misono Mika, begging for mercy.
"Then let's begin."
Misono Mika regained her focus. She raised her hand and lightly gripped the air; a sharp short sword appeared out of nowhere in her palm.
She picked this up back at Aragane Station. Since she knew she would eventually need to draw blood to save people, she prepared some tools in advance to guard against unforeseen circumstances. This happened to be the perfect moment.
'I wonder if my blood needs to be applied topically or taken internally? Kabane and Kabaneri both have an extraordinary craving for blood, so it should probably be consumed.'
While these thoughts crossed her mind, Misono Mika stepped toward Shino with the blade.
However, this scene of her approaching with a weapon terrified Shino.
"Lady Mika... what... what do you plan to do to me?"
"I am preparing to save you, of course."
"Will... will it be... the kind of saving I think it is?"
Shino scooted her backside backward in fear, a smile on her face that looked more painful than crying.
The kind of 'saving' that sends one to the afterlife.
Misono Mika saw this and knew the woman misunderstood, but she didn't bother to explain.
"I'm sorry, mother couldn't give birth to you..."
When the short sword was raised, Shino shrunk her neck and closed her eyes, resigning herself to fate while waiting for death to descend. Perhaps she shouldn't have pinned her hopes on someone else; after the roller coaster of emotions, her life felt even more bleak.
Ting!
The crisp sound of a blade snapping echoed in front of her.
"Eh...?"
The imagined death did not arrive. Shino gathered her courage and peeked with confusion.
She saw Misono Mika holding a broken short sword, staring at her other hand with a look of utter bewilderment.
'I expected this, but this defense is a bit too ridiculous. As expected of a Kivotos superhuman who can survive heavy missiles.'
Misono Mika looked at her perfectly intact left hand. For a moment, she was at a loss regarding her own freakish durability. There was no other way—she had to concentrate on a single point and win through quantity!
Misono Mika pulled another dagger from her storage module, aimed it at the pad of her index finger, and stabbed down hard.
Ting!
The dagger shattered into pieces instantly. On the snowy white fingertip, a tiny white dot actually remained!
Good, it's working!
Misono Mika decided to keep trying and pulled out a kitchen knife.
"...Lady Mika, what are you doing?!"
Shino's eyes widened. She didn't understand why Misono Mika was self-harming. Then again, if no wound appeared, did it even count as self-harm?
"Naturally, it's to save you... Tsk, that hurts a bit."
Misono Mika frowned slightly at the pain. After wasting several knives, a single drop of bright red blood finally formed on her white fingertip. As for the wound... it already healed!
"Open your mouth!"
"O-Okay!"
Shino realized she misunderstood again. Knowing Misono Mika was saving her, she hurriedly opened her mouth.
Misono Mika flicked her finger lightly, and the bead of blood landed steadily in Shino's mouth.
Thump-thump!
The moment Shino swallowed the blood, her glowing heart pulsed violently and restlessly, but it quieted down in the next second. The ominous red light faded, and the spiderweb-like crimson veins grew dim until they vanished.
The stinging pain receded like a tide. Shino felt as if she were soaking in a hot spring; her whole body felt warm and cozy. She knew she was truly saved.
Seeing Shino return to normal, Misono Mika shook her numb left hand and turned around. "Follow me back. Don't forget our deal."
"Thank you for your mercy, Lady Mika!"
Tears of joy fell from Shino's eyes. She wiped them away and scrambled to her feet to follow. Aside from not wanting to get lost, she had important matters to report to Misono Mika.
★ ★ ★
"Where did Lady Mika and Miss Shino go?"
Kajika sat on a cloth-covered stone. She watched the fish soup in the pot, occasionally glancing toward the direction where Misono Mika and Shino disappeared.
"They probably have important business to handle."
Mumei had a blade of grass in her mouth and her hands behind her head. She asked, "Is that Shino woman an acquaintance of yours?"
"Why do you ask? We aren't actually close. I just saw she was struggling alone, so I felt a bit concerned."
"I see... that's fine then."
"Eh? Mumei, what are you trying to say?"
Kajika looked at her with a confused expression.
"No, nothing~"
Mumei turned her head away, acting as if she knew nothing. If they weren't close, then if that woman named Shino died, Kajika wouldn't be too sad.
Mumei felt a weight on her heart. A flash of pink crossed her mind, and she thought to herself, 'Will you... save her?'
Suddenly, a commotion from behind interrupted her thoughts.
"Stop right there! No unauthorized people allowed near here!"
"What are you all doing crowding over here?! Do you realize what you're doing?!"
The "sliding dogeza" duo blocked the crowd that was swarming toward them, barking with sharp rebukes. Seeing the guns in their hands, some people stepped back in fear. But even more remained unafraid because they had the numbers.
"We are here to supervise!"
"That's right! What if that girl Kajika tries to drag everyone down with her and secretly poisons Lady Mika's food?! What do we do then?!"
"Lady Mika is the object of all our respect, but we can't be sure no one harbors evil intentions to harm her!"
"Therefore, we have a duty to protect Lady Mika! Someone must stand by and supervise her!"
"Why are you stopping us?! That Kabaneri can go over, why can't we?!"
Everyone shouted at once, voices clashing in a mess of opinions.
★ ★ ★
T/N: I missed yesterday's release cause I was too tired yesterday, hence today's quad chapter.