Shuho Hitaka's dress was red with a slit in the front. She wore shorts and stockings, and her armor was black. Although it was slightly damaged, it was much less than Shika Kagura's.
The rain didn't even touch her before it was blocked by something invisible and evaporated.
But that wasn't the main point.
She held a longsword in her right hand. The sharp blade was inscribed with runes that flowed with a blood-red glow.
She held a gun in her left hand … this gun was larger than an ordinary handgun, and it also had runes and pentagram inscriptions on it. There were also intertwining lines that glowed with a faint green light, making it seem like something out of science fiction.
But that wasn't the main point.
The main point was the red-haired girl's face.
There were … veins protruding from her face? Probably veins and arteries? Or something like that … Her face became very strange and hideous.
Her eyes were bloodshot and filled with coldness and indifference.
As he stood on the sunken and cracked ground, he emitted a cold, oppressive aura that was almost tangible.
"Shuho-san?" Seiji spoke up.
He had an ominous premonition.
Shuho Hitaka didn't respond to his voice at all. Her eyes were empty as she stepped forward.
One step, two steps.
Suddenly, the red-haired girl revealed a pained expression, and her expression became even stranger.
She loosened her left hand, and the strange gun fell to the ground. However, before it could touch the ground, it suddenly disappeared in a flash of green light. She then covered her face with her hand, as if she was in great pain.
"Shuho-san, why are you …"
This time, the red-haired girl instantly turned to look at Seiji.
"Harano … Haruta … why are you … here!?"
'She recognized me.' Seiji blinked and was about to say something.
"That's … Snow Girl … what's going on between you and her!?"
Something flashed in Shuho Hitaka's eyes as she suddenly raised her longsword.
Snow Girl?
Seiji's mind raced.
Was Shika Kagura the Spirit-branded Retainer that Wanhua Summer Night and Shuho Hitaka were supposed to intercept!? No … that's not right! Wanhua Summer Night had already investigated and ruled out Shika Kagura as a suspect!
But the current situation was obvious. The person who fought against Shika Kagura and killed her was none other than Shuho Hitaka!
So what was going on?
There was only one truth.
There should be two snow maidens!
Seiji thought of it.
The one who had been spreading the mysterious drug and freezing those people to death was a Snow Girl Spirit-branded Retainer.
Shika Kagura, who entered school and pretended to be an ordinary student, was also a Snow Girl Spirit-branded Retainer.
At school, Shika Kagura behaved herself and didn't do anything strange, so Wanhua Summer Night didn't investigate her identity as a Spirit-branded Retainer.
When the Snow Girl Spirit-branded Retainers were detected by Wanhua Summer Night and intercepted by Shuho Hitaka, the two Snow Girl Spirit-branded Retainers switched places!
And so, the one who fought against Shuho Hitaka became Shika Kagura, who should have been cleared of suspicion.
Shika Kagura was the "Reaper's Curse."
In that case, Shuho Hitaka, who fought against him and even seriously injured him to death, would …
"Answer me! Haruta!! "
The red-haired girl shouted hoarsely.
She was obviously in a bad state.
"Calm down, Shuho-san … Shuho Hitaka! I'm not your enemy! "Seiji shouted loudly.
"I've already realized that you might be mistaken … You've fallen into a trap!"
"A trap … for me?" Hitaka clutched her face in pain.
"I can't … fall into a trap … I can't fail … for the sake of Grand Mistress …"
"Wah … Ahhhh!!!" she screamed in pain.
But then, her voice suddenly stopped.
Seiji's ominous premonition became even stronger.
The red-haired girl slowly lowered her hand. Her eyes were hollow and cold once again.
A sense of oppression … or perhaps some sort of invisible force suddenly pressed down on Seiji!
Seiji felt like vomiting.
The next second.
The red-haired girl suddenly disappeared from where she stood and reappeared in front of Seiji like a ghost. She raised her longsword …
Slash!
[Bullet Time], activate!
Seiji saw that the blade was right in front of him.
He hurriedly dodged, barely managing to roll over and avoid the attack.
* Smack! *
The blade fell. Even though it didn't touch the ground, it left a deep gash in the ground!
Seiji stood up and speedily retreated, putting some distance between him and Hitaka.
Hitaka looked at him blankly. Just as she was about to take another step, she revealed a pained expression.
Her right hand loosened, and the longsword fell to the ground. Just like the gun from before, it disappeared in a flash of green light.
"Wahhhhh!!!" Hitaka covered her face with her hands and screamed hoarsely.
Seiji, who was standing some distance away, cautiously observed Hitaka.
'Now … load. '
That was all he could do.
Just as Seiji was about to leave, Hitaka's screams stopped.
"Ahh … Haruta -sama …"
The low and raspy voice, the tone of voice, and the way he addressed Seiji were all different from the girl from earlier.
Seiji paused for a moment.
Hitaka slowly removed her hands from her face. Her eyes revealed an expression that Seiji had never seen before.
"I am the bonded spirit … Inugami …" the raspy voice spoke.
Inugami?
"My host … is already … irredeemable …"
Seiji furrowed his eyebrows.
"Irredeemable … is it because you killed the 'Reaper's Curse'?"
Hitaka … no, it should be said that Inugami was controlling the red-haired girl's body. She had a pained expression as she nodded.
"Just as … sama said …"
"This is … a trap …"
"Kill … my host … or else …"
She reached out with her right hand and abruptly pulled out the longsword from the green light and tossed it out.
The longsword spun through the air and landed in front of Seiji.
"Hurry up … do it …"
Seiji glanced at the longsword, then back at Hitaka.
"I won't do it."
'I'll save you.'
That was what he said in his heart.
Then, he loaded.
The world fell into darkness.
Then, it lit up again.
Seiji lay on his bed and stared at the ceiling.
He slowly turned around and looked out the window at the gloomy sky.
Then, he sighed and closed his eyes.
…
Just like before, he went to school together with Mika and Feng Wu.
After arriving at school, Seiji gave Hoshi a call and told him to go to Year 3 Class 4 and see if Shika Kagura had come to school today.
Hoshi was more than willing to agree.
After that, he gave Seiji a call and reported that … Shika Kagura hadn't come to school today and had applied for a day off.
After that.
Just like last time, Seiji received a call from Wanhua Summer Night and went to the student council office to listen to her explanation.
This time, he didn't leave immediately.
"President, you investigated Shika Kagura further and discovered her uniqueness … but didn't do anything else. This means that you've completely eliminated the possibility that she's the enemy Spirit-branded Retainer," Seiji said. "Can I ask how you confirmed this?"
Summer Night blinked in surprise.
"Apart from investigating her, I also sent someone to keep an eye on her and confirmed that she didn't do anything while the enemy Spirit-branded Retainer was active … she didn't disappear, nor did she do anything else noteworthy."
Seiji nodded.
"This indeed eliminates the possibility that she's the Snow Girl."
"But … I still feel that something's off."
"President, you should feel the same, right? A special existence like Shika Kagura just happened to transfer to Genhana High School this semester … would you believe it if you said that it was purely a coincidence? "
Summer Night slowly furrowed her eyebrows.
"Haruta-kun, what do you mean?"
He had been waiting for this sentence.
Seiji took a deep breath.
"I think … I smell a conspiracy."
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