Chapter 33: Tatara

According to Raynare's plan, Tatara and his group weren't supposed to be here in the first place. But they came anyway. She was annoyed by their insubordination—still, with the ritual about to begin, she didn't explode in anger. She just ordered them to guard the perimeter.

Even so, Tatara didn't leave right away. His gaze fell on the man bound to the cross. He opened his mouth to ask:

"…Is it actually possible to extract a Sacred Gear from someone's body?"

"Of course. Why else would I waste all that time playing house with this guy?"

Raynare replied, clearly displeased.

"Now get out! Don't bother me until the ritual is finished!"

"Understood, Raynare-sama."

Tatara responded. Leading the other ghouls, he left. Under the moonlight outside, they exchanged glances.

"Tatara-sama, are we just gonna let this slide? Our brothers who caused that diversion will likely die—they can't beat the devils. That bitch is obviously using us as cannon fodder!"

A blond ghoul spoke up, and the others agreed heatedly. They'd hoped that siding with the Fallen Angels would improve their circumstances—allowing them to corral humans for food. Instead, they found themselves being bossed around for menial, dangerous tasks every day.

"I know. Once the ritual's almost done, we head back down together."

Tatara was no punching bag. Even if they were Fallen Angels, he wasn't going to endure this forever. Besides, he had his doubts about that legendary Fallen Angel from the Bible. After months of membership, they hadn't so much as glimpsed him—just Raynare waving Kokabiel's name around to threaten them. This upcoming artifact-stripping ritual was the perfect chance to make a move.

Ghouls became prey only because their powers were too weak. But if they got hold of a Sacred Gear, they might harness its strength to change their fate. Tatara's followers shared in his ambition, and their killing intent flared as they stood waiting.

Meanwhile, underground, with all preparations in place, Raynare and her two companions began the ritual. A magic circle glowed brightly, and Issei Hyoudou—tied to the cross—let out pained groans. The principle behind forcibly taking a Sacred Gear is straightforward: it's bound to the host's body, so removing it requires a technique that can interfere with one's biology. The drawback is that once the Gear is ripped out, if the host doesn't receive proper care in time, their life force will be drained until they die. Raynare, of course, couldn't care less about a measly human's survival.

It wasn't long before a glowing green orb emerged from Issei Hyoudou's body. At the sight of it, Raynare's face lit with eagerness—just as she was about to grab it, a tremor came from the basement entrance. Tatara and the ghouls launched their assault.

"You traitors!"

Raynare's eyes flared with fury. Because of her momentary shock, the fastest among them—Tatara—got there first. As the leader of Aogiri Tree, he had power on par with a low-level Fallen Angel. He used his kagune for defense, forcibly enduring the other two Fallen Angels' attacks and seized the Sacred Gear that had just been stripped from Issei's body.

The artifact looked like a gauntlet. Although he'd never used it before, he instinctively put it on and channeled its power, shouting:

"Boost!"

A mechanical voice echoed from the emerald gemstone, and Tatara's body was immediately reinforced. Moving at blinding speed, he charged forward. Caught off guard, Raynare was nearly sliced in half by his newly augmented strength. A wild melee broke out.

…

When Hikaru arrived at the church, he found an odd scene: the Fallen Angels and the ghouls had turned on each other. Weren't they on the same side? A quick glance told him everything—clearly, this was a case of internal betrayal. The three Fallen Angels were overwhelmed, wounded, and about to be overrun. They tried to break out, heading for the exit where Hikaru stood.

They saw a stranger, but Raynare had no time to worry about him—her only concern was escaping alive. Tatara, however, wouldn't let them leave; he had no intention of leaving survivors. High on the success of besting three Fallen Angels and brimming with confidence, he swung his massive kagune, aiming to wipe out everyone at once, including Hikaru.

But Hikaru was faster. He stepped forward directly.

"Die!"

Tatara's eyes glowed red. Having tasted Fallen Angel blood, every cell in his body was blazing with excitement, and the scent of Hikaru, a human, only fueled his beastly urge. The Sacred Gear flashed again, doubling his power once more. A mere human? He'd kill him with ease!

Yet Hikaru didn't waste words. He casually brushed aside the kagune's blow, then raised his leg in a swift kick to Tatara's chest. The sheer force shattered his kagune defenses and sent him hurtling dozens of meters, crashing into several of his fellow ghouls before finally colliding with the wall.

~~~

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