Buzz!
A soft pink healing beam descended onto Seraphim.
Under Sarasvati's wide-eyed gaze, Seraphim's severed arm and leg regenerated at a visible speed.
Two seconds later, newborn-like limbs reappeared. Her pale face regained color, though she remained unconscious.
"As for you… should I kill you, or erase your memories?"
In Sarasvati's eyes, the man who had read her memories and inexplicably saved her subordinate now turned his gaze toward her. His words made her blood boil.
Damn it! What did I ever do to you?!
You save Seraphim but not me, and now you even want to kill me?!
What part of me is worse than her?!
"…I'll just erase your memories. Whether you survive afterward depends on your own luck."
Murmuring to himself, Raize ultimately spared Sarasvati's life.
Ignoring her furious glare, he erased her important memories, knocked her unconscious, and only stopped her bleeding before leaving her there.
One act of mercy for Seraphim was enough. Any more was unnecessary.
From Sarasvati's memories, Raize learned that the vampire ninjas were, in fact, victims of collateral damage.
The Khaos Brigade and other unknown forces had entered this area, only to be discovered by the vigilant Tohru, who immediately tried to expel them.
Neither side was willing to back down. Negotiation was impossible.
As a dragon, Tohru's temperament was naturally proud and violent. She had already claimed this region as her territory.
Entering a dragon's domain without leaving was basically asking for a fight.
Thus came the massacre.
The vampire ninjas, drawn in by the battle fluctuations, were also deemed enemies and annihilated.
As the daughter of the Dragon Emperor of Demise, Tohru's strength was unquestionable. These scraps were no match for her.
Today, Tohru intended to kill everyone who intruded upon her territory.
For Kobayashi's and Raize's safety, she had transformed into a dragon and issued a warning—any supernatural being still present would die.
Arrogant, unreasonable, and tyrannical—Tohru displayed it all without restraint.
Even killing innocents meant nothing to her.
Raize felt no pity for them. The vampire ninjas were no exception.
Regardless of faction, all of them coveted Eu's power. Raize would never treat them kindly.
If not for Seraphim, he would have already ended them all.
Now that Tohru had wiped out nearly everything, two powerful attacks—flames and freezing air—struck her body, yet failed to pierce her scales.
Tohru's icy dragon eyes looked downward.
A girl with shoulder-length hair loosely tied had lost consciousness, but behind her appeared a massive humanoid figure—the Magical garment within her body.
"Maternal host abnormal. Restrictions lifted."
A deep male voice echoed from within the unconscious body as the humanoid weapon launched a frenzied assault on Tohru.
Raize recognized her from Sarasvati's memories.
Using the alias Yoshida Yuki in the human world, she was a reformist vampire ninja and had strong ties to Haruna's "Master."
She was also the daughter of Ariel's close friend.
When she had once been near death, Ariel implanted a Magical weapon that could no longer remain hidden in Velliers, saving her life.
When the host lost consciousness, the weapon would activate automatically, unleashing powerful fire and ice magic at maximum output until the host recovered.
But to Tohru…
"Trash."
Tohru didn't dodge, letting the attacks hit her harmlessly.
A magic circle radiating destruction formed before her as dense light bullets poured down like a storm.
"Stop!"
A frantic voice rang out.
A silver-haired girl with twin tails and a pristine white lab coat appeared—it was Ariel.
She barely blocked the attack, drenched in sweat, standing before the unconscious Yuki.
Ariel was strong, but against Tohru, she was nothing more than a slightly troublesome ant.
"Daughter of the Emperor of Demise—Tohru…"
Knowing the vast difference in power, Ariel pleaded sincerely:
"Please spare this child. She poses no threat or malice toward you."
Tohru merely snorted.
In her eyes, today's targets were all disgusting insects.
Those who disturbed Kobayashi and Raize's life deserved death.
Why would she need permission to crush insects?
Even if a stronger one appeared—it was still just a slightly larger ant.
Buzz—buzz—!
Having no intention of conversing with those about to die, Tohru once again drove her magic power. Dozens of magic circles unfolded in front of her, radiating waves of destructive power that made Ariel's face turn pale. All of them locked onto the two small insects below.
Ariel took out her Magical weapon. With a helpless and bitter smile, she glanced at the unconscious Yuki behind her. At this point, she had no way out—she had to fight. Yuki was her friend's daughter, and she couldn't just stand by and watch her die.
Just as both sides were building momentum and Tohru was about to strike, a familiar voice made her stop.
"Tohru, that's enough. Stop for now."
"…Raize?"
Tohru's dragon eyes shifted, immediately spotting Raize standing in midair atop a golden magic circle. The dense array of magic circles before her dragon head instantly dissipated.
The coldness in her eyes faded as her massive dragon body emitted an orange glow of magic. When the light dispersed, she reverted to the dragon maid form Raize was familiar with.
Below, Ariel let out a long sigh of relief. She didn't know who the man was, but judging from Tohru's reaction, he clearly had a close relationship with her. Not having to continue the fight was a blessing.
"Tohru, that person is an important figure in Velliers. Killing her would cause trouble for your current life."
As Tohru flapped her wings and flew closer, Raize pointed toward Ariel and Yuki below.
Tohru looked down at the two women with disdain. Only when facing enemies did she truly feel like a powerful dragon—violent, domineering, and utterly unrestrained, a presence that made hearts tremble.
"Those two weaklings could cause me trouble? If I go all out, she wouldn't last five seconds!"
"I know she's no match for you," Raize said, glancing at the silver-haired twin-tailed Ariel below. Ariel was also looking at him with curiosity, wondering why a human was on such good terms with Tohru.
Whether Ariel lived or died didn't matter to Raize. The issue was her special status—killing her would bring serious trouble to Tohru and Kobayashi.
"She's a subordinate of Velliers's queen. Killing her would spark major political conflicts, which would be bad for you and Kobayashi. Besides, you don't like constant fighting anymore, right?"
Raize didn't care about Ariel's life—only about Kobayashi and Tohru. Kobayashi hated conflict, and Tohru had grown fond of her peaceful life with Kobayashi, no longer attached to her former chaotic days.
Tohru fell silent after hearing this. Raize's words had struck home. She truly enjoyed her current routine with Kobayashi—simple, happy days were far more fulfilling than her past life.
But when it came to those who disturbed her life with Kobayashi or threatened Raize, Tohru would bare the fangs of a true dragon.
Kobayashi and Raize were Tohru's treasures. What happened when someone coveted a dragon's treasure didn't need explanation.
Recently, many had approached this territory as if searching for something. Tohru wasn't stupid—she knew those pests were eyeing Hellscythe.
She respected Eu and didn't care to interfere, but once Eu moved into Raize's home, things changed. Anyone targeting Eu would inevitably involve Raize, and that was something Tohru would absolutely not allow.
Raize understood Tohru's intentions. Groups like the Khaos Brigade or other shady factions deserved death.
Raize would kill them himself if he encountered them. But he didn't want Tohru to shoulder everything alone.
"Ariel, was it? Take the vampire ninja behind you and leave. Inform your students to stay far away from this area."
"Oh my… then many thanks to this mysterious gentleman. If you have time, I'll treat you to Kyoto tofu someday," Ariel said with a charming smile.
Seeing Tohru's silence as tacit approval, Ariel helped Yuki up, gave Raize a friendly wave, and left.
Raize watched her go with indifference. He had zero interest in Ariel, the age-unknown scheming loli, and no goodwill toward her either.
"Thank you, Tohru."
Facing Raize's sincere gratitude and seeing the complicated, hesitant look in Tohru's eyes, he already understood why she had acted as she did. Feeling seen through, Tohru averted her gaze awkwardly and scratched the back of her head.
"Let's clean up the aftermath. If Kobayashi comes back from work and sees this, she'll probably get a headache. After that, I'd like to learn magic from you today. Do you have time?"
"Yes, yes… but Raize, aren't you supposed to go to school today?"
Tohru genuinely welcomed Raize's visit and was happy to teach him magic. But today wasn't Sunday—she often observed his school life when bored.
Raize smiled slightly, then activated Doppelganger. An identical Raize appeared, smiling at Tohru as well.
With a doppelganger in place, skipping class to learn magic with Tohru was no problem.
---
A few days later, Raize sat in his company's reception room, discussing cooperation with arcade owners who had come to visit.
Prototype was still undergoing optimization, but KOF and Street Fighter had already been completed. To expand the company's influence, they naturally needed to be released.
After some discussion, and with Raiden Company's games recently exploding in popularity, arcade owners flocked in to collaborate once Raize announced availability.
After prices were settled and contracts signed, several arcade owners teamed up with Raiden Games for promotion.
The next day, well-dressed men and women appeared at large arcade entrances, promoting the games.
Raize understood certain tastes well. The models hired were naturally handsome men and beautiful women.
After special makeup, a woman with a great figure cosplaying Mai Shiranui instantly attracted certain enthusiasts.
Wearing only minimal fabric, exposing large areas of fair skin, the cosplay accuracy exceeded ninety percent.
Passersby—especially men—felt their legs turn heavy as lead and unconsciously followed the girls into the arcade at a glance.