I needed to plan my next move.
I teleported back to the mansion, as Kuroka might be awake by now.
When I finally arrived, I found her still lost in sleep, her chest rising and falling with each quiet breath.
Somehow I felt relief, truth was, I had no clue how to break this to her. How exactly do you tell someone their sister was kidnapped by Loki, the Norse god of mischief and lies?
I crept closer and ran my fingers through her dark hair, watching as it slipped through my fingers like black silk. Her face looked so peaceful. My stomach twisted at the thought of being unable to protect Koneko, her sister, from harm.
The thought of that made my chest ache.
I sat on the edge of the bed, still absently stroking her hair. Her cat ears twitched slightly in her sleep, responding to my touch even in her dreams. I needed to figure out a plan before she woke up. Loki wasn't just any opponent – he was dangerous, cunning, and held a serious grudge against me. And now he had Koneko.
I left Kuroka sleeping and quietly closed the door behind me. My footsteps echoed in the empty hallway as I made my way to my office. Time wasn't on our side.
Once inside, I locked the door and summoned E.V.E. The orb of blue light appeared instantly, hovering at shoulder height.
"I need to find Valper Galilei," I said without preamble. "Now."
E.V.E.'s light pulsed once in acknowledgment.
"No confirmed sightings of Valper," E.V.E. replied after a short moment.
"However, I've detected unusual energy patterns in the abandoned church district."
That's all I needed. Based on the previous investigations, the abandoned church was one of Valper's possible locations.
"Notify Dante and the rest about Valper's location. I'll head there first."
"Understood." E.V.E.'s light pulsed.
=====
The monastery's underground laboratory hummed with a low, steady drone. Machines whirred.
Valper Galilei moved between the tanks, his weathered face lit with satisfaction.
"Beautiful," he whispered, pressing his palm against one container. "Absolutely beautiful."
The figure inside twitched. Artificial muscles rippled beneath pale skin. Enhanced. Modified. Perfect.
This was vindication. Everything he'd worked toward. Everything the Church had condemned him for.
He was right all along.
"Father Valper."
The voice made him turn. One of his assistants stood at the entrance, a thin man with nervous eyes.
"What is it?" Valper didn't bother hiding his irritation. He hated being interrupted during his observations.
"The ritual room. You wanted to inspect the specimens before the next phase."
Ah. Yes. He'd almost forgotten.
"Very well." Valper straightened his robes. "Lead the way."
They walked through narrow stone corridors. The monastery was old. Ancient. Perfect for work that needed to stay hidden. The cold seeped through the walls, but Valper barely noticed anymore.
His assistant opened a heavy door. More tanks waited inside. Smaller room. Fewer specimens. But these ones were special.
"Status report," Valper demanded.
The assistant consulted his clipboard. "All subjects stable. Modifications proceeding as planned. The Excalibur fragment integration is at seventy percent."
"And their combat capabilities?"
"Exceeding projections. The enhancements have bonded well with the base material."
Valper smiled. This was good. Better than good.
He moved between the tanks, studying each specimen.
Then he reached the third tank from the left and stopped.
Silver hair floated in the viscous fluid. The young man's face was peaceful now. Calm. So different from when they'd first met.
"Specimen 17," Valper said softly, a hint of something almost paternal in his voice. "How are you progressing?"
His assistant checked the readings. "Excellent integration. Neural restructuring is ninety percent complete. The hand modifications are responding perfectly to the Excalibur compatibility treatments."
Valper nodded slowly, remembering.
A month ago. A dingy bar in Prague. That's where he'd found Freed Selzen.
The mad exorcist had been drinking himself to death. Hands wrapped in dirty bandages. Eyes hollow and broken. That insane grin gone, replaced by despair that stank worse than the alcohol.
Valper had recognized him immediately. How could he not? Freed Selzen had been one of the successes from the Sigurd Institution. One of the children who'd survived that brutal project to create a true descendant of Sigurd. While so many others had died screaming, their bodies rejecting the modifications, Freed had adapted. Thrived, even. Became one of the Church's most effective exorcists.
While Valper hadn't been part of that project. His own work had been separate, different in methodology. But he'd followed the results with great interest. Freed had been living proof that humans could be enhanced beyond their natural limits to wield holy swords.
But now the silver hair was unwashed. The face that had once worn that manic grin was slack with despair. The dangerous edge was gone. Just a broken man drowning in cheap whiskey.
Leon Mishima had done this. That monster had made sure Freed would never hold a weapon again. The fallen angels had kicked him out immediately after. Called him useless. Nobody wanted a crippled exorcist.
So Freed had ended up here. Drinking himself to death in a city where nobody knew his name.
So he'd offered Freed a choice. New life.. Strength beyond what he'd had before. A chance to wield holy swords better than ever. A chance to be useful again.
That had been three months ago.
Now Freed floated in that tank, peaceful and calm. His hands were new. Rebuilt from the cellular level. Designed specifically to channel holy power without the weaknesses that had plagued normal humans.
The Church had cast Valper out for his own experiments. Called his methods heretical. But they'd done the exact same thing at Sigurd, hadn't they? Created child soldiers through painful modifications.
"Continue monitoring the specimens. I want hourly updates on Specimen 17's progress."
"Yes, sir."
Valper paused at the doorway, looking back one last time.
"And prepare the awakening chamber. We'll begin the final phase within the week."
His assistant's eyes widened. "So soon?"
"Lord Loki grows impatient. And frankly, so do I." Valper's smile grew wider. "It's time to show the world what we've accomplished. Time to prove that the Church was wrong to cast me out."
The door closed behind him with a heavy thud.
Inside, the tanks continued their steady humming. The green fluid bubbled. The specimens floated peacefully.
And Freed Selzen, the broken exorcist turned perfect weapon, slept on.
Dreaming of purpose.
Waiting to wake.
Waiting to kill Leon Mishima.
Unfortunately for him, it will only be a dream.
As Leon voice resounded thorugh out the whole monastery
A voice. Clear. Cold. Unmistakable.
"Valper Galilei."
Valper's hand was on the door handle when he heard it.
Everyone heard it.
He froze.
Valper's blood ran cold.
He knew that voice.
Leon Mishima.
No. This couldn't be happening. Not now. Not when everything was so close to completion.
And then came the pressure.
It started as a weight in the air. A subtle heaviness that made breathing just a little harder. Then it grew. And grew. Like invisible hands pressing down on everything, everyone.
Valper's assistant stumbled backward, gasping. His clipboard clattered to the floor.
"Sir?" His assistant's voice cracked. "What's going on?"
"Sound the alarm," Valper said. "Now."
But even as the words left his mouth, he knew it was pointless. If Leon Mishima had found them, alarms wouldn't save them.
Nothing would.
Leon Mishima was here.
And there would be no escape.
====
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