Strike the Blood, Vol. 11: The Fugitive Fourth Primogenitor

The woman in the priestess outfit stated calmly, “Unfortunately, by unanimous decision of the Lion King Agency, I have come to bind you to this soil.”

“Senpai! She’s dangerous—get away from—!”

“Flee, Kojou Akatsuki!”

Yukina and Kiriha shouted simultaneously.

For her part, Yukina thrust her silver spear into the ground, deploying a magic-nullifying defense ward around them. Kiriha leaped out of Kojou’s arms and deployed her gray forked spear.

The next moment, the world was governed by silence once more.

Kiriha’s body was sent flying as if struck by an invisible maul.

Pure-white sand scattered all about as Yukina collapsed to the ground.

Then Kojou was slammed into the concrete water-break hard enough to half bury him in it.

“Wha…?”

Kojou coughed, a large amount of thick blood pouring out of his throat.

Meanwhile, sound returned to the world.

Kojou didn’t know what had happened. What he did know was that this was a completely different kind of attack than any normal spell. It wasn’t like Natsuki’s teleportation. The fact that the woman called Paper Noise had not walked a single step was proof enough.

It wasn’t that time had stopped. It wasn’t that she’d moved it frame by frame. It was more like…

…she was able to insert time that shouldn’t exist, anytime and anywhere she wished—

Paper Noise.

“Please forgive me—”

At some point, Paper Noise had moved in front of Kojou. She held a silver spear in her right hand.

This was the secret weapon of the Lion King Agency that had rightfully been in Yukina’s hands mere moments ago. In the hands of Paper Noise, Snowdrift Wolf—the primogenitor-slaying holy spear—glowed with a dazzling pure-white light.

Then, without any hesitance, without a sound, she swung that spear downward.

Gently, under afternoon rays of sun like those of midsummer, silence befell Itogami Island—