Ritsuka stiffened slightly upon hearing Kagaya's words.
"Kagaya-san… what do you mean by that—" he began, but his words were cut off by Koko's voice.
"It seems we're thinking the same thing, Kagaya," Koko said, crossing her arms.
"I felt it from the very beginning too. I thought it was just my imagination, but now it's clear. So, old man… what exactly are you?" she asked sharply, directing her gaze at Zelretch.
Zelretch fell silent. He slowly rubbed his chin, then smiled faintly.
"What do you think I am?" he said casually, glancing toward L, who was still absorbed in eating sweets.
"You must already have an answer, right, L?"
L lifted his gaze briefly and replied flatly,
"You're a vampire, aren't you? Or at least some kind of blood-sucking being," he said while continuing to chew on the sweets.
"V–vampire?!"
Ritsuka was shocked and immediately stood up from his chair.
Koko and Kagaya also looked surprised.
"Wow… I knew you weren't human, but a mythical creature like that? That's really surprising," Koko said half-jokingly.
"So do you live in a castle and drink blood too?"
"Cough… cough!" Kagaya suddenly started coughing.
Ritsuka panicked and immediately grabbed Kagaya's shoulders.
"Kagaya, are you alright?" he asked anxiously.
"I'm fine, Ritsuka," Kagaya replied calmly as he sat back down.
He then turned toward L.
"L, do you mean that Zelretch is a vampire like the ones in Western culture? A blood-sucking creature?"
L nodded slightly.
"Yes. It's still only a theory," he said flatly.
"But your physical traits fit—red eyes, fangs, and Western aristocratic clothing. All of those are classic patterns in vampire mythology."
Zelretch was silent for a moment… then burst out laughing.
"Hahaha… right on the mark," he said with satisfaction.
"You're correct, L. I am indeed a vampire."
He grinned faintly, his gaze glinting subtly.
"However, in my world, we have another name for it—Dead Apostle."
Koko frowned.
"Dead Apostle?" she repeated quietly.
"So… are you some kind of messenger for someone or something, like a god?" she asked.
Zelretch merely smiled.
"That explanation would take a long time," he replied casually.
"If I explained it now, it would take far too much time."
His gaze then shifted toward Kagaya.
"But before that," Zelretch continued,
"Kagaya… it seems you have something you want to say."
Zelretch noticed that Kagaya looked wary.
Kagaya was silent for a moment, then spoke calmly.
"I need to ask you something first. Just two questions," he said.
"First, do you kill and consume humans indiscriminately?"
"And second… do you stand on humanity's side, or not?"
Zelretch answered without hesitation.
"Rest assured, Kagaya. I'm not that kind of creature. I do require human blood, but not actively—I do not kill or hunt them."
"And as for your second question," Zelretch continued,
"I stand on humanity's side. I protect them."
Kagaya visibly relaxed. He leaned back in his chair and let out a relieved breath.
"Thank you for your answers, Zelretch. And I apologize if I sounded too harsh earlier."
"Hahaha, it's fine. I'm often misunderstood," Zelretch said, then continued,
"But why do you seem so wary? Is there something in your world?"
Kagaya was silent for a moment.
"In my world, we are at war with man-eating demons," he replied.
"De–demons?" Ritsuka looked nervous.
"You mean demons from hell?"
"No," Kagaya said softly.
"They are called oni. They were originally humans who transformed after receiving the blood of other demons. They possess extraordinary strength, cannot be killed except by sunlight or special swords, and they crave human blood. We are fighting against them."
"That's… unbelievable," Ritsuka murmured.
"So creatures like that really exist in your world."
"So there are beings like that in your world. No wonder you were wary of this strange guy once you found out he's a man-eater," Koko said, glancing at Zelretch.
"How rude, Koko. I may look strange and suspicious, but I stopped eating humans directly a long time ago," Zelretch replied, pausing briefly before continuing.
"Besides, my tastes are far more refined. I prefer quality blood—not just biting randomly," he added with a chuckle.
"Shut up, old man. You're just making things more tense," Koko snapped.
"As far as I know, Japan in the Taishō era in my world has no records of such creatures," L said.
"I'm quite interested in the oni from Kagaya's world," Zelretch said.
"Would you mind if I conducted research or experiments on them someday?"
Kagaya looked pleased.
"Please do. If it helps deal with them, I will accept it."
"But how would Zelretch even go to Kagaya's world?" Ritsuka asked.
"We come from different worlds, don't we?"
Suddenly, a childish voice echoed from the sky.
"Don't worry. Once this group has enough members, I'll open doors for interworld travel."
L looked up.
"Is there a cost for traveling between worlds?" he asked.
"There's no cost at all. Everything is free," the voice replied.
"I only open the doors. Whether you choose to pass through them or not is up to you."
The voice continued,
"Oh, and this—please accept it."
Suddenly, floating lumps of water appeared in front of each of them, hovering in midair.
"Huh? What's this?" Ritsuka asked as he touched it with the tip of his finger. The water curved and responded to his touch.
"That is a communication tool between all of you," the voice explained.
"It's a kind of device that connects you, allowing you to send messages to other members. Its initial form looks like that, but once you return to your respective worlds, you can change it into any form you want—an animal or even an inanimate object. Think of it as your partner."
"Then how do we use it?" Koko asked.
"You'll understand naturally in time," the voice replied.
"For now, our time is almost up. If anyone has something to say, go ahead."
No one spoke. Ritsuka, Koko, Kagaya, and Zelretch remained silent.
Eventually, L spoke up.
"How does this group actually work? Do we just gather here, or is there another purpose? Are there any rules?"
"A system? Rules?" the voice chuckled softly.
"This group has no system and no rules. You're free to do whatever you want. I won't interfere—because there's already someone suited to do that."
"Build whatever you wish," the voice echoed.
"Relationships, bonds, friendships… or hostility. You're free to protect, to attack, to choose peace—or to start war."
It paused briefly, then continued.
"Even if one day there's a world you wish to destroy," it said without hesitation,
"I won't stop you. Genocide is also a choice."
Ritsuka swallowed.
"Are you a demon?"
"Hehe~ maybe. Or maybe not," the voice replied lightly.
"Alright. This concludes your first conference."
One by one, they vanished into the light. Only Ritsuka remained, sitting alone.
"Hey, why haven't I been sent back yet? Is there still something to do?" Ritsuka asked.
The light child appeared before him, standing atop the table.
"Did you forget? I haven't given you something yet."
"What are you going to give me?" Ritsuka asked in confusion.
The light child raised its hand and pointed it toward Ritsuka's head.
"I'll give you a power that suits you very well," it said.
"A power that will continue to grow without limit."
Its tone suddenly became serious.
"But remember one thing," it continued.
"Avoid attacks that can completely destroy you in a single blow. This power takes time to master."
As those words ended, a blinding light enveloped Ritsuka. In an instant, the color of his eyes changed—from ordinary blue to a brilliant, shining blue.
"From now on," it said,
"you are no longer someone who walks and stands behind others. You are someone who stands on the front lines—different from who you were before."
Ritsuka lost consciousness, then vanished from the space.
"Even if where you are now isn't your original world… keep fighting, Ritsuka.
And become strong."
The space fell silent once more.
---
Ritsuka woke up in his apartment, lying on the sofa in the morning. He slowly sat up, holding his head.
"Was that… just a dream?" he murmured.
But when he looked up, his eyes widened.
"Looks like… it wasn't," he said softly, staring at the floating lump of water in front of him.
"So this is what will connect us…"
He was about to touch it when his phone suddenly rang.
Ritsuka picked up his phone, his eyebrow twitching slightly.
"What does this useless person want now? Did she run out of allowance again?" he muttered before answering.
"What is it, you lazy bum? If you're asking for money, I can't help. I'm almost broke myself," he said.
"What are you talking about, bro?! I'm your cousin! Do you think I only call when I need money?!" an eccentric girl's voice shouted from the other end.
"Isn't that exactly how you are? You're the cousin who can blow an entire month's allowance just on gacha," Ritsuka shot back.
"Hey! You like gacha too, don't you?!"
"Yeah, but I know my limits. You? You're basically possessed by gacha. When you roll, you're like a beast, you know," Ritsuka replied.
An annoyed grumble came from the other end.
"So, why are you calling this early in the morning?" Ritsuka asked with a sigh.
"Oh right! I almost forgot. Bro, I got the job! The pay is really good!" the girl said cheerfully.
"What kind of job? Do Uncle and Aunt know yet?" Ritsuka asked.
"Don't worry, I'll tell them later. As for the job… it seems to be related to security."
Ritsuka let out a breath.
"So, what's the name of the company you're working for, Rikka?"
"Hmmm… it's called Chaldea."