Chapter 181 - Purge Day

Similar things were happening throughout the Military State.

The deep-rooted hatred of beastkin inherited from the Kingdom persisted even after the Military State took over. People simply no longer had the leisure to act on it. The Military State exploited beastkin and humans alike.

Even the few who did have time to spare could not attack beastkin lightly, thanks to the Family. They could not withstand an organized counterattack. In the old days, at least there had been knights. Now, if they launched an attack, both sides would be packed off to a labor camp together.

JJJ was a supremacist group whose urges had been building up.

Having received word that the Family's enforcer, the man responsible for its muscle, had died at the Shadow's hands, JJJ sprang into action as soon as explosions rang out from the district over there.

It was time to hunt.

Some orphans harbored a bitter grudge against the Shelter.

The Shelter was a place where retired soldiers cared for children. Accustomed to military-style drills from an early age, its children began distinguishing themselves as early as elementary civic school.

Anything that towers high casts a shadow. Children from ordinary orphanages grew up feeling inferior to those at the Shelter. Having finished only civic school, they spent their days toiling away. Their sole small comfort was gathering occasionally to air their grievances. To them, the Shadow's temptation was all too sweet.

Children, still young and all the more dangerous for it, roamed the Military State's night in packs.

It was no longer enough to say they had mistaken the date of the operation. Things had spiraled so far out of control that anyone who did not jump on the bandwagon would be a fool. Besides, the fireworks that had started in District 13 were so loud that the information claiming the operation was tomorrow felt like the lie instead.

Chaos needs no mate to breed more chaos. Alarmed citizens reported it to police officers, but this was beyond the police, reduced to puppets under military rule.

Whether a snowball or a blaze, anything not stopped at the outset will continue to grow. That was exactly the state the Military State was in.

Premature unrest broke out across the country.

But gathering a horde of riffraff did not turn the Shadow's core into riffraff. Messengers watching events unfold from the darkness moved swiftly, and word of all this reached the Shadow relatively quickly.

Upon receiving reports of the unexpected developments, Wolfen summoned the Shadows.

The Shadows gathered in darkness so deep they could barely make out the face beside them. In that pitch blackness, it was impossible to tell exactly who was there, or how many had gathered. There, where only tightly restrained breathing could be heard, Wolfen's voice carried through the shadows.

"... The plan has gone awry."

His voice seemed to come from right beside them, yet also to echo from far away. The Shadows shuddered at the uncanny sensation of being unable to gauge the distance.

One thing was certain: everyone could hear Wolfen's voice.

"But it makes no difference. Whoever interfered with us does not know our true plan."

With a smooth, silent motion, Wolfen settled like smoke upon a dais touched by faint moonlight. His arrival was so devoid of any presence that it took quite some time for all the Shadows to notice him.

Six Penumbras appeared beside Wolfen one after another. Wrapped in black clothing and radiating a razor-edged aura, they overwhelmed the assembly by their presence alone.

The leader of the Shadow and his officers. Every one of them an assassin capable of killing even a general.

Their leader, Wolfen, might even be capable of assassinating one of the Military State's vaunted Six Generals... Or so the Shadows believed.

Such was the excellence of Wolfen's concealment techniques and energy arts.

Wolfen spoke.

"Our objective remains to sow chaos, to sound a warning to the Military State. And to use their hands to clear away the trash."

Indeed. There was no reason to be anxious simply because the date was off by a day.

Those fighting outside were only small fry anyway. The powder going off a day ahead of schedule was hardly a serious problem.

"Whoever it is seems to have plotted to throw us out of step... Very well. If someone insists on tugging our hand forward, we shall match their pace."

Wolfen vanished in the blink of an eye. They had been certain they were watching him, yet by the time they realized it, the place where he should have been was empty.

Concealment was useless once detected, and light-foot techniques were merely a means of leaping far. But Wolfen had mastered both to their utmost limits, and watching him move was like seeing a phantom.

A man everywhere and nowhere. Wolfen Fenstein, leader of the Shadow.

Having melted into the shadows once more, he spoke.

"I hereby declare that we shall move the operation forward. Shadows, fan the chaos. Penumbras, spread the poison. This day, we shall reclaim the darkness."

In the pitch-black darkness, countless Shadows bowed their heads as one.

* * *

Guilt and shame come from the face. In other words, merely covering one's face grants the courage to commit sins without fear.

Wearing black masks, the members of the anti-beastkin group JJJ strode boldly down the dark streets.

Normally, they went about with their shoulders sagging helplessly, but tonight was different. United with like-minded comrades, they had nothing to fear.

Their target was the Black Cat magazine office.

A place full of filthy paparazzi that offered beastkin jobs and peace. Those thieving alley cats shamelessly called making money by digging into other people's secrets a profession.

Normally, fear of the Family's retaliation or the Military State's surveillance would have kept them from daring to act. But tonight was different.

Hadn't the Shadow stirred things up for them?

A masked figure in a pointed hat shouted.

"Run wild to your hearts' content. No one will pay us any mind tonight anyway. Even the public order the Military State prides itself on is powerless tonight."

The day the Shadow ran rampant, when chaos swept through every corner of society.

This was the moment their long-repressed lives were set free. Behind masks, the dangerous instincts crushed beneath military boots bared their teeth at the beastkin.

"Let us unleash the hatred we've held back. We'll teach those beasts a lesson for failing to recognize their masters and daring to covet humanity's place. Oom!"

"Oom!"

The members advanced down the street, shouting the chant they had devised themselves.

Watching them from a distance, the Fifth Penumbra surveyed the surroundings with cold, impassive eyes.

'... Hmm. Nothing particularly suspicious. Were they really just taken in by false information?'

Aside from moving a day ahead of the operation, JJJ was doing exactly what the Shadow expected. The Fifth set aside his suspicions.

Whenever they encountered beastkin along the way, they immediately fell upon them. Some managed to escape, but not everyone had such sharp instincts. The young, the naive, and the elderly were caught and savagely beaten, then bound with rope and dragged along as prisoners.

Beastkin were dragged through the streets with the fur on their ears and tails singed by fire. The Fifth nodded in deep satisfaction at the sight.

'Hmph. The truth remains unchanged, even with the Military State in power. Collars suit those beasts.'

The Fifth hated beastkin to the marrow. His hatred ran so deep that when the Umbra appointed a beastkin as the Seventh Penumbra, he had seriously considered leaving the organization.

No one would ever know how delighted he had been when the Seventh died at Wolfen's hands.

'Peoples who have survived through habitual betrayal and wagging their tails at others... Beneath human feet is where you belong.'

That hatred, clinging thickly to the depths of his soul, was part of the reason he had volunteered to take charge of this district.

After all, opportunities to kill beastkin with his own hands were few and far between.

'Go on. Howl like the beasts you are.'

Beastkin might possess a chest-voice roar, but it was no divine power capable of making the impossible possible.

It was merely a final, desperate struggle before death.

'Nothing is quite as enjoyable as driving a blade into the neck of a struggling beast...'

His first kill had been ecstatic. The moment he drove his knife into the nape of a thrashing beastkin's neck, the Fifth knew that assassination was his calling.

He had never forgotten how it felt in his hand. Just as he was anticipating the pleasure soon to come—

"Catch that one!"

Apparently, they had found another victim. The members broke into a headlong run.

The distant human-shaped silhouette bounded away from them, but their relentless pursuit eventually drove it against a dead-end wall.

"Don't run!"

"Nya? Run? Did I say I was running, nya?"

The beastkin turned with a fierce scowl.

She was a strikingly beautiful beastkin girl. Neatly groomed black-and-white hair fell to her waist, and a long tail swayed gently behind her. Her frame was small, but her feline ears and tail stood out all the more.

The girl, who seemed to have inherited a strong strain of beast blood, scowled in displeasure.

"I do not run, human, nya. I only avoided you because you're a nuisance, nya."

"Heh heh. So much pride... Well, shall we make you look like them?"

One masked member grinned with his exposed mouth. When he stepped aside, the bound beastkin prisoners came into view. Covered in blood and scorched fur, they sobbed as they looked at their fellow beastkin.

The girl frowned and replied.

"I thought only dogs wore collars, but humans put collars on each other too, nya. Humans and dogs really are much the same, nya..."

How would a supremacist feel about being compared to a dog by a cat? Surely not pleased.

The masked group's laughter abruptly stopped, and menace poured from them.

"You dare compare us to dogs? Don't worry. You'll end up just like them."

The masked man yanked hard on the rope, sending a bloodied beastkin tumbling to the ground. Skin scraped against the surface, shedding drops of blood.

And so the human made the mistake of thrusting the scent of blood and ash before the girl.

Her fur bristled all over as she growled low.

"Nyaaa... The smell of blood..."

"Hahaha. Do you understand now? It's your turn to end up like this."

"Nyaaa. Nyaaaa."

A cat's cry, at once pitiful and chilling, filled the alley, then the district. It was so ominous that merely hearing it made one's hair stand on end.

The members froze for a moment, then grew angry at the realization that they had been frightened. One holding a torch shouted.

"Grab her!"

At that command, the members advanced on the girl, gripping their ropes tightly...

Watching the scene, the Fifth murmured inwardly.

'... This bodes ill.'

What was it? She looked like nothing more than an ordinary girl.

Before his hatred of beastkin could stir, a survival instinct boiling up from his very depths sounded a warning. Though he knew they would not hear him, the Fifth reached out to stop them.

"Hyaaaaah!"

Too late. Those who reached out with ropes in hand had their arms ripped into three strips.

Lengthwise.

Blood, driven from its owners' bodies, traced its trajectory across the concrete wall. The sharp claws extending from the girl's hands gleamed coldly.

Sharp claws, and an arm reduced to tatters.

Even a fool could deduce the connection. A masked man let out a scream of agony.

"Aaaaaaargh!"

"M-murder! Call the police!"

"Wh-what? What's going on?"

It was utter chaos. A few foolish members who had not grasped the situation charged at her, only to be flung back with some part of their bodies permanently crippled.

They had gained the upper hand by gathering in a pack. Now, faced with a true predator, the tables had turned.

After a few sprays of blood, the members understood the caliber of their opponent and began edging backward in terror. The masked man holding the beastkin captives hastily threw down his rope and fled.

Seeing this, another masked man shouted in anguish.

"You idiot! Take them hostage!"

"Oh, right!"

Regardless of their antics, Nabi was full of stress, and frightened beasts swarmed before her. Her vertical pupils narrowed further.

With her tail standing rigid, Nabi was on the verge of slaughtering the humans before her. Then, suddenly remembering something, she reined in her killing intent and felt around in her pocket.

"Nyaaa. Instead of humans, tribute..."

The mana herbs she had been given to use when she wanted to kill humans, in exchange for restraining her murderous urges.

Here was a legitimate opportunity to smoke them. Cunning Nabi did not let the chance slip away. She took out a mana-herb cigar and placed it between her lips.

At that moment, Nabi's face relaxed completely.

A refreshing, blissful fragrance filled her nose, masking the smells of blood and smoke. Neither the humans before her nor the smells of blood and smoke troubled her any longer.

At this moment, Nabi was happy.

"Nyaha...!"

Her spirits lifted, Nabi held her claws before the end of the cigar and struck them together. Sparks flew, lighting its tip.

The sinful fragrance of burning the World Tree soon brought bliss to the King of Cats.

But humans were always the problem.

As Nabi savored her bliss with her eyes closed, human groans reached her ears. She scowled fiercely at the interruption to her pleasant time.

"You're disturbing me, nya!"

Then she leaped up onto a building's roof, where no one would disturb her.

It was utterly absurd. After tearing people to shreds, she had suddenly pulled out a mana-herb cigar, smoked it, then bounded away.

Capricious, with unfathomable intentions. It was impossible to tell why she had appeared in the first place.

But the Fifth had no time to ponder any of that.

Because he had just come face-to-face with Nabi as she reached the rooftop.

"Nyaa? There's a human here too, nya."

"Urk...!"

Confronted with a being more beastkin than any other, the Fifth felt fear rather than hatred. His hatred could not overcome his survival instinct.

Wary of Nabi as though facing a savage beast, he met her eyes and began backing away slowly, ever so slowly...

"If you're leaving, hurry up and go, nya!"

But Nabi's patience was shorter than the mana-herb cigar burning down by the moment. She rushed forward and 'cleared away' the Fifth with a forepaw.

He had no time to block or dodge. With a dull thump, the Fifth's body flew toward the edge of the building.

When he barely managed to cling to his fading consciousness, he was already hanging in midair, far beyond the rooftop.

"Gaargh!"

And so, answering Mother Earth's call, the Fifth plummeted to the ground.