[Claude]

"SHIT!!!" he grunted as he punched the large drainage pipe in the middle of a small… park? An unused, concrete pipe where one may find cats or dogs making homes.

This was the same park, where he had fought Nicolas and Garth before they were hospitalized.

"To think I'd have to rely on THAT right in the end…" he thought, facing the ground in humiliation, "Just as I suspected, I can't use Raze unless I use that technique… DAMMIT! This is pissing me off SO much!!!" and thought of getting back at Diavolo no matter the cost for making him go through all this.

But then…

"You're Claude Brandt, aren't you?" an unfamiliar voice asked.

It was a voice that clearly asked for trouble. No, even if it wasn't someone who wanted trouble, Claude didn't care. That was because… he was absolutely not in a good mood.

He didn't care about limitations or pride anymore. He just wanted to thrash around. And it looked like… a very fitting punching bag had appeared. And thus, he willingly activated his… 'technique'.

Slowly turning back to look at them, he finally said in a menacingly hoarse voice, "Huuuh?!"

[Shin and Hannah]

Just as they had set their top priorities, they went straight for weapon shopping. A quite pleasantly luxurious store, named Lozzert. Spacious, yet not lacking in the collection of goods. One would need a considerable amount of free time to look through all of them in the racks and shelves.

The Rose family, however, was a regular customer. And Hannah was well loved. Following a cheerful greeting between her and the middle aged manager, she cut to the point right away.

A third generation weapon with the Plasma attribute.

"You're in luck, young man. The new models just came in! They have much less issues when it comes to the synchro rate, so I think you'll find them pretty easy to use. As for plasma… I think I have two in stock…"

And he brought the two out and lay them on a desk. A broadsword and an axe.

In both of them, the blades were not exaggeratingly complex, which was a good thing. If the part that actually did damage to opponents was made too peculiar, it would only show how less thought was given to actually design it as a 'weapon'.

On the blades, however, were exquisitely patterned engravings, in attempts to make the weapons look as least dull as possible.

And of course, the hilt and axe handle were not left out. This was where the creativity of the craftsmanship could really shine. Although, even if one could've made these parts as crazy as possible, these two had simple, but elegant design.

Slightly disappointing perhaps, but nonetheless, quite refreshing. It seemed that the people in the smithy weren't a big fan of extravagance.

"It's your pick, young man. How'd you describe your fighting style?"

"Something that deals a lot of damage!" simple minded as always.

"Then the axe might just be your thing. The weight itself is pretty dangerous. And if you add it in with your strength and its sharpness, you can expect some pretty destructive properties!"

"Hmm… but wouldn't it be difficult to cut and slice up meat with an axe?" he bluntly asked.

"Whoa boy, that's some scary thought you got there! Just what do you plan on doing to your opponents?!" he said slightly frightened.

Shin, however, was not talking about people, but animals. Even if he wanted to grow as a fighter, his brain is wired into prioritizing tasks as a hunter.

After several small-talks, in the end, Shin ended up choosing the broadsword.

There was a slight problem when it came to actually paying for the weapon, but Hannah decided to pitch in… although she paid for most of it.

"Ah, right! We also need to get something for Yukio, right?" she asked herself, "Do you have anything good with the liquid attribute?"

"Well, since the boy isn't here, knowing the synchro rate is a little bit of a problem. But anyways, do you have any further details?"

"He's the kind of person who doesn't really like to hurt others," Shin replied.

"Ahaha! Buying weapons for someone who doesn't want to fight, eh? Well, this is kinda difficult! Hold up, let me see what I can find…"

And after a few moments he returned.

"Here you go! Just like I thought, it was hard finding this. It's rare to see someone who would fight like this, so I needed to look up the old stash. It's a third generation, but the model is much older. He might have a little trouble with syncing, but I tried to get one which was as general as possible."

"Yeah, thanks… but this is a little… you know… how do I put this…" Shin hesitated as he stared at the odd looking boots that rested on the desk.

"Hey, you can't be too picky about it! It might be old, but it's still top notch. I know it looks weird, but you can't help it. If it bothers you that much, then you'll just have to go back empty handed. Alternatively though, you could get him to learn Raze and have it transform!"

"Don't make it sound like learning Raze is such an easy thing!" Hannah complained as she remembered a 'certain someone' who could already do it, "Fine, we'll take it," and sighed.

Other than that, things went pretty smoothly. Like any other purchase, pretty normal.

On their way back, however,

"Uh, I remembered. If Diav is going somewhere with Suzume, doesn't that mean he isn't getting any weapons either?"

"..."

"Should we really have come out with just Yu's and mine?"

"......"

"Hannah?"

"........."

"Uh… yoohoo, earth to Hannah~"

Yup, she forgot about it too. They made such a fuss, according to her at least, at the garage that she didn't even ask Diavolo if she needed to pick his weapon as well or not.

Adding to that, none of the boys had any cell phones. She might be able to call Yukio through Marvin's, but she didn't think of a way to contact even Suzume yet.

And thus, she put communication setup the top priority in her head. From the next moment they were all together, she'd make sure they could keep in touch. But before that…

"I… I'LL BE RIGHT BAAAACK!!!" and she comically ran back in the direction of the store.

KSSSSHHHH——

"LOOK OUT!!!" Shin shouted as he grabbed Hannah before a car crashed into her. A black limousine to be precise.

With a tire punctured, the car had trouble maintaining control and stopped right as it touched the building across the road.

"Hey, hey! Using a weapon you just bought to poke holes in strangers' wheels, eh?! Would you do that to just about any civilian car that ran up to your girlfriend?!"

A man in a nicely primmed suit got out of the car. It was slightly out of place with his coarse tone and scary looks, but they say that just about any man looked good in a suit.

Following him, three more people came out — a group that clearly looked like they had some business to deal with.

"Just as I suspected… you guys were after us, weren't you?" Shin asked with his newly bought sword held firmly in his hand, and his other arm wrapped around Hannah.

From the moment they entered the store, Shin had noticed their car parked nearby. At first, he just found it cool to look at, but he didn't say anything about it since he was busy with the weapons and what not.

Later, strangely enough, the engines seemed to turn on right as they were done with their purchase. It could've been just a coincidence, but it felt slightly odd. Like a faint itch at the back of your neck that you could perfectly ignore, yet still felt very annoying if you did.

His thoughts turned more concrete when the car moved some time after they had left. And finally, confirmed, when they made contact this moment.

As an added present for almost hitting Hannah, he stabbed one of their tires in the small chance he got.

Internally, Shin was contemplating on whether Diavolo's needlessly cautious nature was being rubbed off on him. But on the outside, he asked the real question.

"Who are you?!"

[Marvin and Yukio]

"This is it, our holy land!" stated Marvin as they reached the video game store.

"Ah~ so this is where you get all the games~!" Yukio replied with sparkling eyes.

"But was it really okay to tag along with me?"

"Yup, yup! It's fine! I already told your sister about it and I trust her judgement! I wanted to go if we were all going together, but since we were splitting up anyway, I wanted to try out the games instead~! Ehehehehe~!" and he drooled.

"Ah, the real reason has come out… You weren't prioritizing the weapons in the first place, were you?" he thought with listless eyes and gave a hollow giggle.

But just as they were about to enter, they were interrupted by a sudden gunshot. It was loud and clear. Neither of them could mistake the sound for anything else since the source wasn't that far away. And so, they looked to their right.

"I-idiot! Why'd you have to shoot all of a sudden?!"

"B-but they would've entered and we might've missed our chance! A-and… I'm also hungry. I don't wanna wait until they come out!"

"But there could've been many other ways! You just blew our cover! Not just that, but you could attract a fuckton of attention like that, you know?! Just because this city has been basically empty since that Rose guy went out, you can't just do whatever you want!"

They beheld a scene of two men in formalwear grumbling about something.

The one who made a shot at the sky was short and fat. He had a deep voice, almost as if he was always exhausted.

The other was a tall and skinny man with a high voice and bucktooth.

Honestly, even if a suit made men look stunning, these two looked terribly underwhelming compared to the others. But of course, Yukio and Marvin had never seen the other assailants, so these two simply looked like street performers of some sort.

Putting their quarrel aside for now, "Y-you're Yukio Hitoshi, correct?" the thin one stammered; and the assault thus commenced.

[Diavolo and Suzume]

"Well? Now that we've split up, where are we heading?" he asked carefreely.

Suzume gulped as she steeled her resolve. She was about to take on a huge leap, and the responsibility was weighing her down. But she couldn't let her emotions take over her right now. What her sister had said, was logically correct.

Yes, Suzume had explained everything that had happened the previous day, that very morning.

「"I see. However, Suzu, no matter what happens, you mustn't hesitate in guiding him to what is his rightful place.

I know I told you to use a classmate as a bodyguard, but I didn't expect 'him' to show up. Looks like the dice have already been rolled.

The correct decision right now would be to act quickly. However, you said he doesn't remember you, right? Then he would have a hard time accepting it all if you told him.

Right now, he's just a normal teenager living out his life, who thinks he just 'happened' to get involved in something.

But judging by how you described it, he'll probably help you out even if you don't reveal everything. And that is something good!

Listen, I want you to properly guide him! Help him grow stronger as fast as possible!"

"Yes, Onee-chan… I'll try…"

"Don't try! Just do it! Don't you understand? Fate has already come into play! It must be done! Otherwise, if things catch momentum, and he isn't ready for it, he'll die! Not just him, but all of us!

This isn't something you can cut him off from! No matter what you do, he will always end up involved in this again in some other way! So get him prepared!"

"B-but what should I do?"

"Give him that weapon! You know where the store is. And if I remember correctly, those classes start today, doesn't it? I'm pretty sure he doesn't have a weapon yet.

Take him there. It doesn't matter if the other three tag along or not. Do it today! I put my money on that he will definitely follow you!"」

That was the issue. She was afraid of Diavolo getting hurt again, but if she hesitated, an even worse outcome would occur. And that was something she could not afford.

"Just a shop of an acquaintance," she replied as they turned around a corner and entered a small store.

"A weapon store?" Diavolo thought as he eyeballed the small room.

It didn't look like it was prospering that well, yet it wasn't near bankruptcy either. A small and quiet store away from most of the city commotion.

"Welco—! Oh, it's you," greeted the owner from behind the counter.

He was mildly fair, had short, blonde, messy hair and wore round, thin-framed spectacles. He was garbed in a green robe and, although it could not be seen from Diavolo's point of view, wore wooden sandals.

He also seemed to have locks of white hair here and there, but it wasn't clear whether that was due to old age since his skin didn't seem to have wrinkles. Was it stress? Nobody knew. He looked somewhere in his thirties.

Without stopping his hand-fan, he continued, "It's a rare occurrence to see you enter my shop. When was the last time? When you were twelve? Well, whatever. What brings you here?"

"Came to look for a weapon."

"For whom? Your boyfriend?"

Suzume flinched, "H-he's not my boyfriend… but yes. For him," and turning towards Diavolo, "Diavolo-kun, sorry for making you follow me around. As compensation, please feel free to choose a weapon of your liking."

"Hey, that isn't something to apologize for," he giggled, "It was my own decision. Well anyways, since we're already here, might as well take a look. I forgot to tell Hannah to choose a weapon for me too, so…" and he started walking across the room.

Suzume of course was faking it. Even if she said 'as compensation', bringing him here was her true goal. She was simply trying her best to make it look natural and keep Diavolo thinking that the situation he was involved with was all just an accident.

"What about you, Suzume? Don't you need a weapon? Oh no, wait. You were in second year last year too, right? You must already have a weapon…"

"Ah, no, not really. Well… I can't actually use a weapon. My powers are unstable after all…"

Diavolo remembered the 'going berserk' rumours. He suddenly felt like he touched on a delicate topic and felt very awkward. With nothing more than a "I see…" he continued his browsing.

It had been about ten minutes as he scanned the weapons. The owner didn't seem to mind and simply continued reading the newspaper. It was awfully quiet, with only Diavolo's footsteps and the collision of insects with the lamps being the only noises.

If it was any other customer, there would be a short Q&A taking place about Material affinity and preference and whatnot. But since Diavolo was checking out weapons without a word, the owner assumed he already knew what he was doing.

Rather, the owner didn't actually care much.

Diavolo's eyes finally fell on one particular sword; a katana. The hilt was entirely black, with the braided handle being a combination of black and red. The blade was a shiny silver with a slight tint of red.

A simple but mesmerizing piece of work. However, it was slightly odd that such a sword didn't have a proper scabbard and was simply kept resting on two stands.

But its appearance was not what caught Diavolo's eye. Also, he was neither particularly looking for a sword among other weapons. But he felt… 'something' from this object.

Suzume, who was now sitting in front of the counter, smiled.

"That sword is…" thought the owner, giving him a sidelong glance, "Suzume, what are you planning? Don't tell me… this boy is—!"

"Should I take this one?" the silver haired boy broke the silence.

"Hey, that weapon is—"

But immediately, all of Diavolo's senses went on high alert! Danger! Something was approaching! A threat that required a split second decision or it would be bad news. And so, his shout interrupted what the owner was about to say.

"GET DOWN!!!" he jumped at Suzume… and a giant fireball broke through the walls and burned down the entire store.