11. Wonderland (42)
11. Wonderland (42)
The demon horde surged into Cadsun with vicious momentum, smashing through buildings indiscriminately as they advanced.
Their onslaught was so one-sided because nothing stood in their way. Thanks to the Ticketers, who swiftly distributed tickets allowing people to retreat to the rear, the Zakanuba were merely rampaging through empty streets.
While the residents were being evacuated, the Guard Corps was being mustered at the Judicial Theater, the heart of Wonderland. Every citizen granted a registration number—an Inspira—in Wonderland was required to serve in the Guard Corps on a regular cycle. And when an emergency struck, they were bound to fight to defend Wonderland.
Conscription orders were issued to every citizen, save for the theater owners who were providing shelter to guests in the rear areas. A staggering hundred thousand Personas assembled in the Central Plaza in an instant.
The entire process unfolded in under three minutes. This was made possible by the Ticketers, who acted as messengers, and the power of instantaneous movement they possessed.
Scarecrow, Minova, and Hobbs stood speechless at the sight of Wonderland's forces filling the plaza. A place that had been cheerful and bustling only moments ago now crackled with the energy of war.
"This is no time to stand around. Ruelo!"
Just as Minova snapped out of his shock and began searching for his daughter, the Crazy Hatter walked out from inside the theater.
"Living ones, you must have been quite startled."
"I-is this situation under control?"
"Nothing unusual. A periodic occurrence in the domain of a Demon God. Though, I admit, a scale like this is rare... At any rate, this is no longer a matter for you to concern yourselves with. Prepare to return home."
"Is the lullaby... the ensemble, fully finished?"
"Almost. It should wrap up in about five minutes."
"But some of our party are still missing— ah, I see them coming."
Three figures came running up the stairs from below: Oberon, Rumi, and Clara. Each carried a heavy sack. They had just returned from receiving the 'Sleep Sand' from Puck, intended for Kirkeus.
"You two guides! As soon as the ensemble ends, escort the guests to the exit! Squad Leader Mae, you will guard the guests. Troupe Leader Oberon, once the ensemble is finished, find any Eyes that aren't fully wrapped and finish the job properly with the Sleep Sand."
After shouting those orders, he descended the stairs toward the plaza below to take command of the Guard Corps.
Scarecrow shared a silent glance with Rumi, then called out to the other two troupe leaders.
"Mr. Minova, Mr. Hobbs, get inside and bring your people out!"
"Ah, understood."
"Fantastic is in there too. Let's not forget him."
The two men dashed into the theater. Oberon exchanged what looked like a final farewell with Rumi, then ran after them. The rest of the group turned their attention to the situation unfolding in the plaza below.
The Zakanuba horde near the entrance had already pushed right to the edge of the plaza. It was clear to everyone that they weren't simply rampaging blindly. They were moving with a distinct strategic objective.
Their target was obvious. The defenders could see them drawing ever closer with increasing frequency. They were converging on the Judicial Theater.
The Guard Corps must have noticed this as well, shifting into a circular defensive formation that ringed the theater.
It wasn't long before they surged into the plaza. Springing forward as if to collide head-on, they skidded to a halt mere paces from the Guard Corps.
Thud.
A single, synchronized crash of halted footsteps echoed through the plaza. A cloud of dust swept across the open space.
The Zakanuba snarled at those standing before them, bodies hunched in a predatory crouch. The guards, unfazed by the vicious display, glared back with unwavering defiance.
From between the two opposing forces locked in their tense standoff, several figures emerged from the demon side. They were more than twice the size of ordinary Zakanuba, each wielding a massive scythe and draped in flowing black cloth.
"Reapers."
At Scarecrow's murmur, the people around him flinched and turned to look at him.
"Reapers? You mean the Reapers?"
"Nua-Zakanuba! I've never seen one in the flesh."
"What are high-ranking demons like them doing here..."
The Reapers bellowed loudly enough for everyone in the plaza to hear. Their demand: that half of Wonderland be ceded to them as their home.
One only had to look at the Crazy Hatter's face to grasp how absurd the demand was. Even he seemed flabbergasted, as if he had never encountered foes brazen enough to make such a request.
A strategically nonsensical action designed to draw attention.
Scarecrow understood at once what it signified.
A diversion!
His mind rapidly assembled a hypothesis.
What if that massive army was nothing more than bait to draw their gaze?
At that instant, the Bouncer's shout from earlier flashed through his mind.
—Guest, this area is off-limits!
The mechanical voice of the sentry had rung out from every direction at once.
That sound would only occur if demons had simultaneously breached the perimeter from multiple angles. Yet those voices had sounded just once, and then nothing more. If that single coordinated attempt, along with the army before his eyes, were all a feint...
Scarecrow turned toward the one direction from which no Bouncer's voice had been heard.
The opposite side of Cadsun, perfectly symmetrical to the Arch Gate.
The north.
In the lower levels of that area, there was a secret passage that led directly into the basement of the Judicial Theater!
At the exact moment he opened his mouth to alert the others, screams and a deafening explosion erupted from within the theater.
Simultaneously, the Zakanuba legion charged the Guard Corps.
***
High-ranking demons were rarely born through simple reproduction. More often, they were ordinary demons that reached new heights through a process of awakening, fusion, mutation, or evolution triggered by some catalyst.
The Nua-Zakanuba, known by the alias 'Reaper,' gained power and intelligence when a lower Zakanuba obtained the relic called a Reaper's Scythe—just as the name implied.
The origin of the Reaper's Scythes, and when they first appeared in the Abyss, was a mystery. However, it was clear that all existing scythes had once been a single entity that had fragmented into the weapons now carried by the Reapers. The exact causal link was unknown, but with few exceptions, only a Zakanuba could wield one.
Kataropi recalled the moment he had come to possess his Reaper's Scythe. Dozens of his kin had tried before him and died, their bodies exploding into scattered pieces when they couldn't contain the power. His parents, his siblings—all of them had perished.
He couldn't fully remember what thoughts had passed through his head back then, when he was little more than a beast.
He only knew for certain that he had been terribly sad, and terribly afraid.
Yet some stubborn defiance must have remained. He had grasped the Reaper's Scythe and survived. After enduring unimaginable agony, he had obtained power he never could have dreamed of before.
He believed he had been chosen. He expected that the other Reapers would surely be noble beings, worthy of the scythe's power, just like him.
Whenever the Reapers gathered like this, however, he couldn't help but question the criteria by which the Reaper's Scythes chose their owners.
"Cappi, Cappi! Come on, try some of this."
A Reaper, plumper than him in both face and body, spoke while stuffing food into his mouth by the fistful. Beside him, a middle-aged Reaper watched the sight with a fond smile. She held out a lunchbox containing more food toward Kataropi.
"Young Cappi, wouldn't you like a fairy dumpling? I ground up some soy-marinated fairies for the filling."
"No, thank you. Please, you two eat as much as you like."
Kataropi sighed, looking at companions who displayed none of the dignity worthy of the name 'Reaper.'
"Why is he so on edge today? Being laid-back was always part of Cappi's charm."
"He got trashed by some humans when he went up to the surface a while back."
At the fat Reaper's words, the middle-aged Reaper covered her mouth with her hand.
"Oh my, oh my. Our little Reaper prince?"
"Who's a prince?! And get your facts straight! There were three Apostles at that scene! Plus an Orthodox priest and a knight! Can you beat three Apostles? Huh?"
As Kataropi jumped up in outrage, the fat Reaper pouted his lips and muttered.
"He always takes his anger out on me."
"Oh my, only on our Patty? Is that just my imagination?"
"He won't even use polite speech with me."
"Don't even dream of it. You'll never hear it in your lifetime."
As Kataropi stood there fuming, a Reaper who had been observing quietly approached him. Unlike the others, this one had a sharply defined waist and curved chest and hips, carrying a distinctly feminine presence.
"Kataropi."
"M-Miss Shaanura."
Her voice was thinner and higher-pitched than the others as well. As she looked straight at him, Kataropi felt his face flush.
"I told you to drop the 'miss.' Our age gap isn't that big."
"I-I'm just more comfortable this way..."
"Did you really lose to humans? With your abilities? Even if there were three Apostles, they were nothing more than the living."
"...I'm telling you, I didn't lose! It was a d-draw! If it weren't for that damn knight..."
Just then, the fat Reaper barged in between them.
"Shaya, come eat some dumplings."
"Hey! You! Don't shorten Miss Shaya's name all willy-nilly!"
"We're all friends here, what's the big deal? You're making a fuss over nothing, Kaddaropi. Kattallopi."
The minecart carrying the four Reapers sped down the underground passage toward the Judicial Theater's basement.
Nine Reapers in total had been hired for today's mission.
While five of them led the Zakanuba forces to keep everyone's attention fixed forward, the four gathered here were tasked with finishing the job their clients had failed to accomplish ten days prior.
First, they had funneled Zakanuba into the outskirts of Cadsun to trigger the Bouncers' alarms. At the same time, the four of them had slipped in from the north and cooperatively eliminated a single Bouncer.
-Shooo...soo...ooon...
The Bouncer was a powerful spirit. In a one-on-one fight, even a Reaper could not guarantee victory. But under the combined might of the four of them striking in a surprise attack, it had crumbled without uttering a single word.
Having infiltrated Cadsun, they were now using the secret passage in the northern lower levels, just as their clients' intelligence had described.
The mission was dangerously deep inside a Demon God's domain, yet Kataropi couldn't detect even a trace of tension among his comrades.
"Come to think of it, a group of humans broke into my place the other day."
"Were they heroes coming to slay you, ma'am?"
"No, just some idiots who fell in by accident."
"What did you do with them?"
"The meat skewers you're eating right now are them."
"Whoa! I knew it! Shaya, wouldn't you like some too?"
"No, I only eat vegetarian these days."
"Vegetarian? Greens are disgusting."
They were nearly at their destination. Kataropi shot a glare at his friend, who was huffing from being too full, and shouted at the group.
"What is with this attitude? Are you on a picnic? Please, for once, get a grip! You're shaming the name Reaper..."
Just then, the middle-aged Reaper pulled a bowl out of her lunch basket.
"Cappi, dear. I made you some cold noodle soup in herb-infused water, just the way you like it."
"Miss Muna, please..."
"You won't eat it? Hmm? Hmm?"
"Hhgh... fine."
Kataropi reluctantly sat down and accepted the bowl she offered. The scent of herbs in the cold soup was one of his absolute favorites.
"I knew it. He was just being grumpy because nothing suited his taste."
"I'll give you a taste of my fist, you—!"
Before Kataropi could even lift a spoonful, the minecart jerked to a halt with a loud crash. The bowl of soup tumbled off the edge, spilling onto the tracks below.
"Eey..."
"What now? Go down there and lick it up?"
"Forget it! Let's just go!"
"Cappi dear, I'll make you another one after the job. Don't be too upset."
The four Reapers each grabbed their Reaper's Scythe and disembarked from the minecart.
"I hear music coming from above. We were told to stop it as soon as it's playing, right?"
"Someone needs to go to the prisoners being held, too."
"The attack on the innermost chamber..."
They divided their assigned roles and parted ways.
Kataropi chose the ground-level hall.
The instant he entered the hall, he launched a surprise slash at a man who appeared to be an Apostle. The target, seemingly absorbed in directing the defense, couldn't even mount a decent counterattack before being hurled into the wall.
A section of the seating collapsed with a thunderous crash, and the shockwave of the slash split the stage from which the music had been flowing in two.
Everyone screamed and tumbled to the floor, but Ella, unburdened by an instrument, managed to keep her balance and remained standing on the stage.
Spotting her, Kataropi grinned wickedly.
"Hoho, aren't you the young acrobat lady from last time?"