That man had no face.
Like the faceless spirits from ghost stories, his features were smooth and blank, devoid of any organs—unnerving in a way that sent chills down the spine.
However, where his eyes should have been, two crimson crescent moons glowed, emitting a sinister red light in the darkness. A sudden glimpse of them would be enough to startle anyone.
"What the fuck?!"
Eiji blurted out an elegant C-word.
"What kind of freakshow is this?"
It was too sudden.
If this thing scared him so badly in the middle of the night that he ended up cutting it down with one slash, wouldn't that be a shame?
In the alley, the faceless man's empty mouth suddenly split open, revealing a simple, eerie smile.
Still, it was the same crimson crescent—long, stretching all the way to his ears.
Like a grotesque smiling mask.
Then, he raised his hands.
Clang—!
Those weren't hands at all—they were massive blades!
No face!
Blades for arms!
Not human!
In that instant, Eiji sensed clear hostility from this man.
Without hesitation, he flung open the floor-to-ceiling window and lunged forward like a hunting leopard!
Despite the sheer force of his movement, his body remained as agile as a monkey's.
Silently, he dashed out from the second floor, crossed the courtyard like a loosed arrow, and landed lightly in the alley outside the wall.
The faceless man was a step too slow.
By the time he reacted, Eiji was already standing directly opposite him in the alley.
Immediately, the faceless man crossed his arms—the two blades forming a pair of giant scissors—and rushed at Eiji with startling speed.
Swish!
But his opponent was far faster than he expected!
In the span of a single breath, the young man's figure closed the thirty-meter gap like a fired arrow.
A mere blink—
And his enemy was already before him.
The faceless man's eyes widened slightly, the crimson crescents morphing into full moons.
He seemed utterly disbelieving.
In his perception, his opponent's speed was inhuman—more like a monstrous beast in human form—throwing his calculation circuits into chaos.
Rip!
Eiji ducked under the sluggish scissor strike, closed the distance, and seized the faceless man's arms.
Then, with two simultaneous tearing sounds, the faceless man's arms were ripped clean off.
"Solid as hell!"
Eiji knocked the two blade-arms together, testing their weight.
The quality was surprisingly good—thanks for the free delivery, buddy!
"…! …!"
The faceless man's eyes trembled violently, as if panicking.
What kind of monster was this?!
He had just torn his arms off with sheer brute strength?!
This defied all human logic, sending his programming into complete disarray.
He desperately wanted to turn and flee, to transmit the battle data to his master—but the moment the thought crossed his mind, he was slammed to the ground.
"Can you talk?"
Eiji planted a foot on his chest, casually resting one of the blades against his neck as he began his interrogation.
"…!"
Despite the clear fear, there was no verbal response.
"Then you're useless."
Eiji shook his head and lopped off the faceless man's head in one clean slash.
As expected—
Not a single drop of blood spilled. The neck and body were connected by what appeared to be entirely mechanical components.
"A mechanical puppet… Could this be that woman's handiwork?"
Eiji crouched down, dismantling the puppet while inwardly grumbling.
Though he had forgotten most of the plot and character details, the first thing that came to mind when he thought of Aozaki Touko was her "Unlimited Virgin Works"—no, wait, her peerless puppet-making skills.
Aozaki Touko could create puppets indistinguishable from real humans—even crafting backup bodies for herself. If one version of her died, another could instantly take its place.
With this terrifying technique, she had achieved a pseudo-immortality.
Even in the hidden world, this was considered an awe-inspiring feat, earning her one of the highest titles among magi.
This mechanical puppet was undoubtedly her creation.
"What the hell? If you want to kill your sister, go kill her—why bother me?"
Eiji was indignant.
He'd been targeted for no reason!
Wait a minute—
He suddenly remembered.
Earlier in the shop, hadn't Aozaki Touko asked if he was a "colleague"?
Looking back, had she mistaken him for a magus?
Did she think Eiji might interfere with her plans to kill her sister, so she decided to test him first—or even eliminate him outright before proceeding with her sibling rivalry?
Or maybe… she had taken a liking to him and wanted to kidnap him as a collectible?!
Regardless, Eiji wasn't a magus—though he wished he could be one—but that didn't mean he was someone to be trifled with.
"I'll get my revenge for this! A hundred times over!"
Eiji thought viciously.
Well, she had "Unlimited Virgin Works", so a few extra deaths wouldn't matter to her!
After disassembling the puppet, he gathered all the parts before any neighbors could wake up, planning to dispose of them himself to avoid unnecessary trouble.
"Oh right, what about that metal bird?"
He quickly turned to where the metallic familiar had been.
All he found were scattered fragments.
The bird had already self-destructed.
Having fulfilled its purpose, it likely blew itself up to prevent Eiji from tracking its master.
"Do all magi have a self-destruct function for their familiars?"
Eiji sighed in disappointment.
Then, carrying the pile of debris, he headed to a nearby river and dumped all the scrap metal into the water.
Fortunately, the whole incident hadn't made much noise, and it was still the dead of night—no one had noticed.
After swiftly cleaning up the scene, Eiji returned to his room. His mother and sister remained unaware of the commotion outside, much to his relief.
But now, things were complicated.
One thing was certain: Aozaki Touko meant him harm.
Yet Eiji had no way of locating her. After this failure, she probably wouldn't show herself so easily again.
If a magus wanted to hide, finding them would be nearly impossible.
Though she appeared in multiple Type-Moon works—often in a somewhat positive light—she was still a magus. Eiji didn't dare trust Aozaki Touko's conscience.
He had to act fast!
***
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