Under the moonlight and streetlights,
Souta wandered through the night streets.
This town was practically countryside—
Far from the lively, neon-lit nightlife of the city.
There were barely any people outside.
Only a handful of pedestrians walked the quiet streets.
Souta glanced around.
"Are those three vampire hunters really gonna show up?"
The night sky covered the town like a blanket.
He had already been wandering for half an hour.
Despite what he expected—
He still hadn't run into his targets yet.
After Kiss-Shot accepted his proposal,
The two of them began discussing how to restore her body.
Now that her emotional conflict was resolved—
All that was left was to bring her back to full power.
His mission would be completely cleared.
And more importantly—
A chance to evolve his immortality.
Once he cleared the mission—
That reward would be added to the system store.
After he earned the points, he could buy another one.
That would also solve Kiss-Shot's weaknesses.
Kiss-Shot had warned him before he left—
"In my current state—"
"My body can only barely use regeneration."
I cannot use any of my vampire powers.
Kiss-Shot's tone was clear and commanding.
"The task of retrieving my limbs from those vampire hunters..."
"...Falls entirely to you."
"Don't worry about fighting them."
Kiss-Shot had smirked.
"You might not realize this yet..."
"But if you actually fight seriously—"
"Those three brats are nothing to you."
She tilted her head slightly, eyes gleaming with amusement.
"Didn't you say you have superpowers, too?"
"I can accelerate, slow down, and briefly stop time for objects."
"...And I can also create fire and ice."
He could only manipulate the time of specific objects.
He wasn't able to affect an area yet.
That was probably because he lacked an energy source.
Kiss-Shot's golden eyes flickered with surprise.
"Time manipulation, huh...?"
"Your abilities are pretty impressive."
She sounded genuinely intrigued.
She completely ignored his fire and ice powers.
She must've thought they were too flashy.
Not worth mentioning.
Kiss-Shot's lips curled into a smirk.
"Now I'm looking forward to seeing how you fight."
Seeing her own servant turn out to be stronger than expected...
She seemed very pleased.
It was almost like she felt...
Kiss-Shot said lazily,
"I worried that if all three hunters attacked together..."
"You wouldn't stand a chance."
Her smile grew wider.
"...It seems I was overthinking things."
"Since that's the case... Servant, Go."
Kiss-Shot's tone was light, yet regal.
She tilted her head slightly, golden eyes narrowing.
"For your good news."
Souta scratched his cheek.
"...How exactly am I supposed to find them?"
He couldn't remember all the exact details from the novel.
Kiss-Shot's lips curled into a smirk.
"That is quite simple."
"Those three are experts in hunting vampires."
"They naturally have ways to track us down."
"Had it not been for the fact that this abandoned cram school is so remote—"
"They would have already found me by now."
Her golden gaze swept over him.
"You, my dear servant, are practically a walking beacon of vampire blood."
Kiss-Shot let out a small chuckle.
"Just wander through town for a bit—"
"And they will come to you."
He didn't ask Kiss-Shot to come along.
If something unexpected happened,
In her current state...
She would be way too easy to kill.
"...It's been almost half an hour."
"Still no sign of them?"
As he walked down the dim streets,
There were fewer and fewer pedestrians.
His eyes darted around more and more frequently.
The ones he was looking for—
They were the three vampire hunters
Who severed Kiss-Shot's limbs.
Dramaturgy took her right leg.
Episode took her left leg.
Guillotine Cutter took both her arms.
As for her stolen heart...
That was taken by Mèmè Oshino.
But Souta wasn't looking for him right now—
Because he had no idea where to find him.
In the original story—
Oshino had appeared on his own when Araragi first encountered the vampire hunters.
Souta could only hope the story would stay the same.
That Oshino would appear when the hunters found him—
Wanting to mediate the situation.
Getting that heart back was going to be a real pain.
A buzzing vibration jolted his pocket.
Souta blinked, startled.
His right hand instinctively reached into his pants pocket, pulling out—
The system phone had one very special trait—
Whenever you needed it—
It would always appear within reach.
Even if you didn't have pockets—
It would literally stick to your clothes.
...Like some kind of yandere.
Souta distinctly remembered leaving the phone back at the cram school.
How the hell did it end up back in his pocket?
Shaking his head, he unlocked the screen.
A new message had appeared in the chat group.
"@Souta. I finally escaped from DEM's pursuit."
"Even Ellen Mira Mathers was deployed this time."
That was quite the thrilling experience."
Seeing that it was from Kurumi, Souta's lips quirked slightly.
"Long time no see, Kurumi."
"Hmm? Long time no see?"
"It's only been four hours, hasn't it?"
"For me, it's been almost three days."
"Each world has a different time flow—"
"And there's no set pattern to it."
"You mentioned Ellen?"
"As in, the strongest magician in that world?"
Souta furrowed his brows.
He remembered that in the novel, she was called Ellen.
Was this just a translation difference?
"DEM went all out this time."
"Both Itsuka Kotori and Ellen Mira Mathers came after me."
"Fighting them was quite the hassle."
"You care about my body so much."
"How could I possibly let myself get injured?"
"I have to keep it in perfect condition just for you~"
How does she always find a way to flirt mid-conversation?!
Kurumi—Romance Master!
"You said three days have passed for you?"
"You haven't been sneaking around behind my back...
"...Like a cheating cat, have you?"
"...Wait, what? Why the hell are you calling me a cheating cat?"
"We're just friends, aren't we?!"
She completely ignored the last part.
She only saw the answer she wanted.
Another message popped up.
"It's been half an hour."
"Why haven't you returned yet?"
"Are those three brats really that hard to deal with?"
"Since when did you get so close to this 'Kiss-Shot' lady?"
"What does she mean by return?"
"Are you two... living together?"
"@Souta. Explain. Now."
A chilling sensation suddenly crept up his spine.
It wasn't from the weather.
It was the instinctive warning of a vampire's danger sense.
Souta's hand tightened—
Then, without hesitation—
He threw the phone aside.
His eyes snapped forward.
A towering, muscular man was approaching.
Souta's eyes narrowed.
The first target had arrived.