~3665 words
A man was waiting outside Capim's Villa for someone.
He had an impatient look on his face and kept looking at his pocket watch over and over again.
That man was slightly taller than 1.70 meters, and he looked a bit old. He had some wrinkles and a high nose bridge. His brown eyes were filled with spirit, and he didn't seem to have a look of deterrence.
As he was waiting, he suddenly heard a rather familiar voice.
"Mr. Harras? What are you doing there?" He asked Harras who was standing in the pitch black darkness.
"Ugh..." Harras let out a pained grunt as he doubled over in the dark.
"Mr. Harras!" The man—Parker, a Sequence 8: Sheriff of the Arbiter Pathway—ran towards his superior.
Harras was throwing up when Parker reached there. However, just as he bent down to reach out for Harras, he saw a pair of legs behind him.
*****
Laying comfortably in the large bed that emanated various sorts of exciting smells, Kiyotaka suddenly sat up.
Capim was back, and limping by her side was a small girl. She was around 12 years old with light brown hair. She had extremely thin hands and her face was caked with soot and streams of dried tears looked quite obvious.
Her eyes were hidden behind a blindfold that was tightly wrapped around her.
"Mr. Holmes." Capim smiled and pushed the girl towards the edge of his bed. "I hope this one will cater to your tastes."
Kiyotaka's eyes flicked towards Capim and stood up. He picked the tiny girl up from beneath her arms and gently sat her down on the bed's edge.
Capim's demeanor seemed to suddenly change. "I am sorry Mr. Holmes but this is my personal estate. You cannot continue your... fun, here."
Kiyotaka looked back towards and tilted his head. "You have no qualms about imprisoning children in your basement but it's unacceptable if I do the deed in your bed? That's odd."
Capim cleared his throat and his eyes narrowed. "Rules are rules. I would advise you to clear your settlement and leave. I have guests coming soon. I made an exception for you because..." Suddenly, Capim's expressions changed.
"Why did I make an exception..." His lips quivered as he looked up.
Before he could reach out for the revolver hidden in a shoebox by the door, Kiyotaka flicked his wrist.
The flesh beneath his skin began to writhe.
At first it resembled muscle spasms, but then the movements became visible as something bulged beneath his cheeks, neck and chest, as though dozens of living things were attempting to crawl out from beneath his skin.
Capim collapsed to his knees and his fingers dug into his throat so hard that his nails tore his skin over Adam's apple.
Blood trickled down his neck as he gasped. "Help..." The word emerged as little more than a gargle as his bloodshot eyes found Kiyotaka. An alchemy of pleads, confusion and terror brewed behind his panicked eyes and only then did it dawn on him...
Capim tried to crawl backwards, however, the strength had already left him.
A thick lump rose visibly through his throat and his eyes bulged while the jaw stretched.
Then—
A sickening crack echoed through the room as Capim collapsed sideways. His body twitched several times and then became still. The silence that followed felt strangely ordinary.
Capim was dead!
Flesh and Blood Curse of a Rose Bishop had struck mercilessly!
Kiyotaka removed the black glove, revealing the ugly mystical item underneath—Cyst!
Kiyotaka had implanted a Flesh Bomb inside Capim when he shook his hand. Later, he was able to curse his blood through his pores.
Quickly removing Cyst from his hand, he looked down at the miserable man with a sigh. "Honestly, you took too long. My own blood kept infecting and my flesh was quite close to permanently mutating, had you been any later."
Turning around, he walked over to the thin, malnourished girl and picked her up before flinging her over his shoulder like a sack of rice.
The weakened girl didn't even have enough strength to fight back, letting herself be carried like an inanimate object. However, before long, Kiyotaka settled her down in the dining room and removed the blindfold from her eyes.
The girl's dark brown eyes struggled to adjust in the sudden brightness, however, a flicker of recognition flashed across her face as her entire body froze.
"Mr..." Her voice cracked. "Mr. Williams!"
"Yes."
She seemed to flinch back but when Kiyotaka placed a hand on her head, she calmed down. "You're safe now."
For several seconds she simply stared at him, first wondering if what she had heard was true and then afraid that he would disappear if she even blinked.
Then she suddenly threw herself forward as her thin arms wrapped around his neck.
The force behind it was pitiful as there was barely any strength in her body. Yet she held on as though letting go would condemn her to that basement once again.
"Mr. Williams..." Her words dissolved into sobs. "I thought..."
Another sob interrupted her. "I thought nobody was coming."
Kiyotaka remained motionless. He did not hug the little girl back and instead waited for her to settle down as she brown down into a fit of sobs.
Once about 10 minutes had passed and she had nearly passed out from crying so much, Kiyotaka poured her a glass of water and provided with a handkerchief to wipe her snot and soot on her face.
"I know where your mother and sister are. Let's go." Kiyotaka ordered.
"Mr. Williams... There are many other girls... Can we please save them?" She looked back at the room which smelt of foul blood. "That man was bad... But—But he used to feed us. If we leave, all of them will die."
Kiyotaka breathed out heavily through his nose. He took out a coin from his coat and equipped Guile to perform a quick divination, however, before he could do that, the main doors of Capim's Villa suddenly flew open.
Four figures emerged from outside.
The first was a man who was slightly taller than 1.70 meters, and he looked a bit old. He had some wrinkles and a high nose bridge. His brown eyes were filled with spirit, and he didn't seem to have a look of deterrence—Sheriff Parker.
The second one was a woman wearing a brown bonnet, a thin white blouse, and suspenders, as well as leather boots that reached her knees. There were old scars on her face and a cruel look on her lips—Interrogator Katy.
The third one was a bearded man of unknown age, with a pair of frighteningly cold blue eyes. He had a panicked look on his face and pointed at Kiyotaka with anger. "He's the one! Lord Capim died after he met him!" Interrogator Belize roared.
The final one, the one standing in the middle, was a middle-aged gentleman in a black tailcoat and a white wig. This gentleman had a long, thin, and stern face, and his mouth was naturally pursed. Judge Harras!
Kiyotaka motioned towards one of the rooms in the back without taking his eyes off the four newcomers.
"But Mr. Williams..."
Kiyotaka glanced at her. "Do you intend to help me fight them?"
Daisy froze. "N-No..."
"Then leave."
The girl opened her mouth but nothing came out. Kiyotaka had already looked away by that point. To him, the discussion was over.
Daisy suddenly felt a chill run down her spine. Not because he was angry—she couldn't tell even if he was. After all, Kiyotaka was just a customer.
A generous customer.
He was someone who used to overpay for their services. He was also someone who once paid for a lot of their food by giving her money. He was also someone who had advised her to be safe outside and not go out too late.
However, despite all that, in the end, he was a stranger.
The tremble in her body was not even because of Kiyotaka. The natural urge to bow down towards one of the men was what made her feel so queasy.
"Go." Kiyotaka mumbled as he took out a bracelet and wore a pair of glasses that seemed to contain magma inside them over his pale blue eyes.
This time, Daisy obeyed.
*****
Judge Harass looked at the little girl scurry away and then turned his head towards Interrogator Katy.
The cruel looking woman suddenly took out a whip and lashed at the marbled floor.
Her stride was confident as she completely ignored Kiyotaka and continued to walk with her attention elsewhere.
"Mr. Holmes." Judge Harass called out. "It seems like you are being guilty of murder and indulging in adultery with a minor."
"Am I? That's news to me." Kiyotaka replied. There was no scorn or humor in his voice.
As all of them stared at Kiyotaka, his overall appearance seemed to suddenly change, making him look wicked and evil. As Interrogator Katy was about to pass by him, she suddenly felt extremely irritated.
Before she could pass, Kiyotaka suddenly took out his revolver and pointed it at her. "I would not advise taking another step."
"Mr. Holmes, insubordination could result in disastrous consequences." It was Parker this time who spoke.
"I am feeling particularly daring today."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Katy lashed at him with her whip.
Kiyotaka side-stepped and caught the whip with his hand. The skin underneath it seemed to burn, and when Katy tried to pull it, she felt as if the whip had been stuck in place.
Kiyotaka's expressions grew wicked as disastrous thoughts began to rampage in his head. Pulling the whip towards himself, Katy jerked forward but regained her footing.
However, in the meantime, Kiyotaka had closed the distance between themselves.
Katy instantly recovered and jumped up, trying to ram her knee into his face. However, Kiyotaka took out his pocket knife before stabbing it towards her knee.
Katy saw it coming and twisted her kick before shifting her position to deliver an axe kick towards Kiyotaka's head.
Combat Proficiency!
And while Katy had obtained a knack for fighting after her advancement, her technique was nothing when compared to Kiyotaka.
He had already guessed her next move and had abandoned the knife, instead unsheathing his cane-sword. Due to the speed of her downward kick, it was impossible for Katy to stop her leg from being severed.
Kiyotaka held it with both hands and slashed upwards!
"Using sharp weapons is prohibited here!"
A boisterous voice suddenly bloomed in the entire hall as Kiyotaka's sword hit Katy's thigh harmlessly. However, due to the amount of force behind it, she was thrown a yard away.
Just as she landed on her feet, bolts of lightning coursed through her irises.
Psychic Piercing.
At the same time, Kiyotaka suddenly fell to his knees as a crippling pain invaded his entire soul. While he had gained quite a lot of mental resistance, this attack was directed directly at his Soul Body!
Picking up her whip, Katy seethed through her teeth. She was losing all reason and looked even more agitated than before.
"You brat! I am going to kill you!" She screamed as she abandoned all reason and lashed at Kiyotaka, beating him all over his body.
The layers of his clothing gave away, revealing deep red marks all over his body.
"Katy." Harass called out, however, she seemed to have gone deaf. She was not responding and kept lashing at Kiyotaka mercilessly, leaving deep red marks on his back, wrists, arms and legs.
"Katy!"
In her rampaging and manic state, Katy completely ignored her superiors' calls.
Just as she was about to mercilessly whip Kiyotaka again, he suddenly pointed his revolver at her head and pulled the trigger, causing grey matter and blood to fly out of the back of her head.
Kiyotaka limped back to his feet, still reeling from the after effects of Psychic Piercing and removed the glasses from his face while removing the drool from his mouth with his sleeve.
The mania that had clutched his own mind began to subside as he straightened his back.
A Sequence 7: Interrogator, who was too confident in her own abilities, was killed just by relying on Gloom's passive ability: Aura of Wickedness!
However, he was not in a condition to fight for too long. After all, a lot of his wounds seemed to worsen suddenly and blood began to gush out of them.
Just as Katy fell to the floor, Gloom's Danger Premonition, which was still partially active, made Kiyotaka's body shiver as he ducked and rolled.
In the following instant, a bullet fired from a Steam Rifle by Interrogator Belize tore through where he was standing.
Kiyotaka ran and entered the room where Capim's desiccated corpse was rotting away and pressed his hands together as flames ignited and began to compress into a ball of destruction.
Interrogator Belize kept firing shots inside the room, causing Kiyotaka to unable to focus, coupled with the fact that Ember was constantly making him have irrationally destructive thoughts.
However, before Belize could pull his hammer and fire another shot, Sheriff Parker cocked his gun at Belize's neck and pulled the trigger. Judge Harass was quite quick on the uptake and before Sheriff Parker could blow the man's neck off, he kicked his elbow.
Having expected that, Sheriff Parker had aimed the revolver down and when Judge Harass kicked his arm up, the gun was still pointing towards Interrogator Belize.
The bullet found its mark in the old man's bald spot and punctured it, killing him instantly.
Judge Harass did not succumb to shock and instead opened his mouth.
"Death!"
He declared as he merged with some strange force, dragging a blur at speeds that created afterimages as he crashed into Sheriff Parker. His fist struck Parker's head with an unavoidable force.
However, Parker suddenly dissolved and burnt, turning into paper that disintegrated.
Judge Harass' eyes widened as the realization suddenly dawned on him. 'A mid-Sequence Seer... What is a mid-Sequence Seer Pathway Beyonder doing here?'
Even without looking back, Judge Harass jumped to the side as Tarot Cards representing Strength, Judgement and Hanged Man flew in his direction, narrowly avoiding him and embedding themselves deep inside the walls.
From the other end, suddenly flames took shape and three Fire Ravens conjured by Kiyotaka flew out of Capim's room and homed in towards Judge Harass.
He dodged a lot, however, the Fire Ravens had directly locked in on him.
Suddenly, he turned around and ran towards Parker who had directed his fingers in the shape of a gun towards him and suddenly jumped up.
Due to the proximity, the Fire Ravens were unable to turn in time and rammed into Sheriff Parker.
The moment Judge Harass landed, he looked up with a scowl. "Use of Mystical Items is prohibited here."
The compressed Flaming Spear that Kiyotaka was going to launch suddenly fizzled out.
Ember and all of his other Mystical Items were instantly shut down!
Looking around, Judge Harass saw that Sheriff Parker was nowhere to be found.
However, the lack of any body parts made him suspicious.
'Was the attack so strong that it disintegrated his flesh? I cannot detect anyone else in the vicinity.'
As he was thinking, he saw Kiyotaka rush towards him at a blinding speed.
Once Judge Harass made sure that he was not equipping any of the Mystical items from before, he rushed in as well.
He extended his hand forward and then closed his fist.
"Imprison!"
Layers upon layers of transparent walls as well as a flowing, extremely viscous, transparent liquid manifested that froze Kiyotaka in place.
His limbs began to struggle, however, he was unable to do anything. Judge Harass walked slowly towards him, his stride confident.
"Williams J. Holmes. Too bad you were in my Area of Jurisdiction. I know everything you were up to."
Judge Harass let out a condescending laugh as he looked at Kiyotaka who was still trapped in the viscous liquid.
"Are you wondering why people from MI9 are not hunting you down actively? Well, I am not an official member, you see. Regardless, I must thank you. Because of you I will be able to advance."
Judge Harass swung his hand and mumbled, "Flog" as Kiyotaka's entire body seemed to have been riddled by wounds.
An invisible soft whip tore through his clothes, lacerated his flesh, and exposed bone over his arms.
Kiyotaka exhaled deeply but there was no change in his features.
Judge Harass looked down at him and frowned.
"Looks like you are conditioned to take pain. Are you a spy? No, you were always here. Then how?"
As he was contemplating, Judge Harass motioned his hand once more and a soft whip flashed across Kiyotaka's back, splitting it.
Blood began to flow and yellow pus burst out of the laceration.
"Tell me. Right now! Who are you really?"
Kiyotaka looked up and made a forced, crazy expression. "You'll have to kill me for that."
Judge Harass' emotions stirred and he seemed to have taken deep offence to that. However, instead of acting on that amplified feeling, he frowned. He seemed to be thinking about something and it troubled him.
Kiyotaka, who was still bound, suddenly limped, his eyes closing.
A moment later, he suddenly broke through the restrictions and pressed his hands together, firing off an uncompressed Fireball.
Judge Harass was able to react in time as he side-stepped and looked at him with a strange look.
'He is a Sequence 6. Of course his Prohibition would last only a few seconds on Mystical Items that correspond to Sequence 6 or above.'
Not giving the man too much time, Kiyotaka equipped Gloom and attacked Harass.
Before Harass could fully form his sentence and impose a new or previous restriction once again, Kiyotaka did the same before him.
Judge Harass pushed open a metallic box and equipped it before declaring: "Punish—"
"Slow!"
Kiyotaka declared in the Language of Foulness, causing Judge Harass to instantly slow down.
A card representing the Lovers flew out from somewhere and lodged itself in Judge Harass' jugular in that moment of slowness.
At the same time, Kiyotaka whose flesh seemed to be a writhing mess due to using Gloom, forced through the pain and declared once again.
"D-Death!"
Various kinds of negative emotions bloomed inside Judge Harass as blood constantly gushed out of his neck. Kiyotaka pounced on Judge Harass as a blinding hot pain shot up his arm.
Using Guile's Damage Transfer, he moved his wounds from his arms to his thigh, hooking one arm around Harass' throat from behind while the other came across the back of his skull in a rear naked choke.
The geometry of it was unclean, and that was intended, as such was the requirement of being a Barbarian.
Harass still had enough left in him to fight against Kiyotaka as his fingers wrapped around Kiyotaka's forearm and dug in while his chin dropped to tuck against the pressure on his carotid.
Kiyotaka, however, wrenched the chin back up with his free hand and reset the choke high and tight against the jaw where the carotid had nowhere left to hide.
Harass bucked, got a foot under himself, nearly stood with Kiyotaka's full weight riding his back, aiming to slam Kiyotaka down.
However, by now, all of Kiyotaka's Mystical Items had regained function as he used Ember to increase his physical capabilities as Kiyotaka began to pull Harass' head up.
Harass' hands went from pulling at the forearm to hitting it, and then they stopped hitting, and then they stopped moving.
Completely.
Kiyotaka used his remaining strength to barbarically rip his head off and then tossed it away.
Klein, who was still wearing Sheriff Parker's face, walked in and his face suddenly contorted into that of a tight grimace.
Receiving the genuine feedback, Kiyotaka felt his Barbarian Potion digest even more, coming dangerously close to full digestion.
Looking back, he nodded at Klein. "I feel like you should perform the anti-Divination as soon as possible. With this much commotion, authorities will be on their way very soon."
Klein nodded and sat down in one of the seats around the dining table.
Once he was above the Grey Fog, he quickly responded to Kiyotaka's "prayers" and placed his hand on the upside down Black Emperor Card of Blasphemy before bestowing its anti-Divination and anti-Prophecy properties upon Kiyotaka.
An angel with 12 pairs of black wings suddenly wrapped itself around Kiyotaka and then disappeared.
Before Klein descended into the real world, he looked back at the Card of Blasphemy and felt a rather strong urge to turn it upwards, however, his own morals refrained him from doing so.
Back in the real world, as soon as Kiyotaka saw the black-angel dissipate, he wore Gloom on his face once again. This was done to equip the Interference ability of a Devil which could effectively interfere with Divination and Spirit Channeling.
The flesh over his face began to writhe, but he used Cogitation to keep himself and his sanity intact.
*****
Once Klein helped Kiyotaka get patched up, the two of them went into the underground tunnel.
Klein changed his features to that of Parker. The two of them broke the chains that bound the door behind which were so many abducted girls. As they did, many of them rushed out and began running after Klein told them to quickly go back home.
Once everything was done, the two of them quickly left the scene, changing appearances multiple times, and making various stops before finally arriving in their own respective homes.
Klein and Kiyotaka, once more performed an anti-Divination angel ritual, just to be sure.
*****
Author's Note: Hello hello. As you can guess from the last bit of the chapter, I am extremely burnt out, idk why. I was really motivated but all of a sudden, I had some strange "worms-in-brain" feeling and I felt drained as fuck.
Anyhow, I know the fight against Harass was quite disappointing.
Personally speaking, I could've done much better but as a lot of those who know me from previous stories, I can't store a back-log. I can't go a long time without publishing lol.
But this kind of disappointing fights won't happen again. Not a promise, but will try my best to not disappoint again.
Anyways, it's been me, and I will see you all next time.