"Hahahahaha!"

A young girl laughed manically amidst the scorching field. She glanced at the motionless body and frowned. "Aww... You're not already dead, are you?" Akiha smirked and mocked the dead nun. "You're all talk... and here I was planning on torturing you before killing you. But-" She suddenly felt strength leaving her body, which caused her fall down.

"Akiha-sama! You've overworked yourself!" Kohaku came out of hiding and held the headband girl. She gazed worriedly at Akiha, who was worn out after repeating usage of her unique ability.

The Caging Hair is a cursed field of plundering that is effective in the range of her field of vision.

Being a half-demon, she can "plunder" the heat and lifeforce from a living creature she can see, but the maximum output relies on time on how long she keeps plundering heat. At the same time it is a double-edged sword as she can plunder someones entire concept with it as well.

The ability of interfering with the outside world is rare, even within the Tohno family. On the other hand, she is also able to share her own lifeforce with others and can so animate a dead animal/human or non-living object and use it as a servant.

The half-breeds with thick blood are often overwhelmed by their blood with Inversion Impulses, and those that maximize the blood are called Crimson Red Vermillion. Also known as Ancestry Return, they are enveloped by an illusion-like fog and their demon blood overwhelms and consumes their human blood.

And those that become Crimson Red Vermillion... are never able to return to humanity again.

"The Tohno clan has always eliminated enemies in this fashion. I only did what was natural, don't you agree?" Akiha panted heavily and gave the corpse a forced grin.

"Let's return to the residence, Akiha-sama. Please leave the rest to me." Kohaku supported the exhausted girl and gesture at their home.

Akiha steeled herself and glanced at Ciel's unmoving figure one last time. She turned around and asked her maid. "Nii-san... has he gone out again tonight?" Kohaku smiled awkwardly at the Tohno head's question and nodded. "... I see." 'What are you doing... Nii-san?"

"Even though I can't die, it's not as though I don't still feel pain." The pair froze at the unexpected voice that came from behind them. This familiar voice... it belonged to the dead nun...! "Indeed, since I'm still conscious, I had to endure that pain uninterrupted. That's still better than being killed over and over again..."

"But you should have nailed your last blow! You know?" Ciel grinned and rise up. She summoned three Black Keys from her frock, and without a warning, she threw the blades at Akiha, who still has her back against the inquisitor.

Swoosh!

"Stay back, Kohaku!" Akiha pushed her maid away and turned to Ciel. Two of the flying blades were knocked off by a heat wave, and the last one was caught by...

"Wow, that's some impressive hair." Ciel complimented the extending hair. It was as if they have their own will as they stopped the Black Key and flung it to the ground.

"Fine then." The weary headband girl glared at the completely healed nun and gave her a strained smile. "I will kill you over and over and over again."

"I see." Ciel replied and extended her arm. Droplets of water formed on her fingers and starting dripping onto the floor.

Drip. Drip. Drip. BOOM.

"?!" Akiha exclaimed in shock as the entire open space was covered in a dense fog. 'I can't see...!' She searched around for the Church's inquisitor and found nothing since her eyes could not see through the vapor.

"Your power relies heavily on what you can see, so you wouldn't want to put yourself in a situation such as this. Therefore, I imagine you are not used to fighting under such conditions." A voice sounded from within the imperceptible fog. Her opponent's calm and collected tone has made the Tohno head increasingly stressful.

"Even if you were to use a booster, taking into account the toll it takes on you, you can't attack me the way you did before... am I right?" Ciel appeared behind Akiha and slashed at the girl's back with Black Keys.

"Shut up!" Surprisingly, the nun missed. Akiha had ducked down and caught Ciel's arm. "SHUT UP!" The young girl roared and a burst of heat was formed as it blasted away her attacker and the surviving foliage in front of her.

Ciel leaped up to the sky threw more Black Keys at the raging girl. Even though Akiha tried her best to evade the flying blades, she was still grazed in the shoulder. She held her bleeding wound in pain and gave out another roar.

Another heat wave headed towards the young nun. Seeing the incoming assault, the charred Ciel calmly took out another set of holy blades and exhaled. She then hurled them at the injured girl. When the Black Keys came into contact with the heat... they exploded.

Pant. Pant.

Moonlight shined down upon the open area as the flames from the detonation enveloped the greenery. The young nun has disappeared, leaving only the Tohno head alone in the wilderness.

'Is, is she finally dead...?' Akiha crumbled down and lied against a tree while breathing heavily. She had used her ability multiple times when she was already worn out. Her body could no longer handle anymore strain. She was now virtually defenseless.

Crack.

'Huh? Don't tell me...' Someone has stepped on a tree branch. Akiha collected the remaining energy she possessed and lifted her head, launching a blast of heat that was many times smaller than the previous ones she had used against Ciel.

"Ugh." The Church's inquisitor merely moved her hand to shield her face from the attack and uttered. "Wow. Your power is an incredible one."

'H-How? Why is she still standing after all the attacks I have used against her?!' Akiha widened her eyes at the nun's careless tone. "What... what do you want?" The young girl voiced out in difficulty as she couldn't even muster any strength to speak normally. "You came, to kill me, didn't you?"

Ciel bit her lips at the question and gazed at the panting girl earnestly. "If you put your mind to it, you could easily disintegrate me. Just by willing it to happen... But you didn't do it. Are you afraid that if you do that, the people so dear to you will turn against you, and your world will be worthless?"

Ciel extended her arm forward and show it to Akiha. Her hand, which was burned to a crisp as all her fingers excluding her thumb were gone, was regenerating at a rapid rate. The hand was healing at a pace that was visible to human eyes as if time itself was being rewound.

'Is she... immortal?' Akiha stared in shock at the impossible sight. Without a word, Ciel pulled out a Black Key from her frock and grabbed the headband girl's hand. "I'm sorry." She placed the blade in Akiha's hand and pulled it upwards, inserting it into her left eye.

"Ahh..." The young girl cried out. 'N-No...! N-Not like this... I... I...' She had never murdered someone before. Controlled by the instincts of her demon blood, she had went insane and killed the nun earlier. However, she was currently sane.

'Nii... Nii-san...' Seeing blood flowing from Ciel's eye, Akiha's hands trembled as she tried to call out for her brother.

"You're trembling." It was at that moment that the young nun, who was supposed to be dead seeing that her brain was pierced, spoke up gently. "So you weren't the one, after all. Because, you. You aren't capable of killing people." After leaving those words, Ciel pulled out the blade from her eye and left the forest.

Rustle. Rustle.

"-sama, where are you?!" A shout came from a nearby thicket. A few seconds later, a redhead ran out of the bushes and spotted the person she was searching for. "Akiha-sama!" Kohaku raced towards the fallen girl and supported her up. "Are you hurt, Akiha-sama!"

Akiha, still holding the Black Key, ignored her maid's worried look and gazed at the blade in her hand. "Are you afraid that if you do that, the people so dear to you will turn against you, and your world will be worthless?" The question which Ciel asked her earlier echoed in her mind. 'I was going easy on her... because I was scared...?'

"Ah...!" Akiha clenched her fists and threw the Black Keys away. She gritted her teeth and cried out. She howled, screaming out all the frustrations she was feeling. "AAAH...!"

Morning sun rises as the orange sky brightened up the entire town with its glow.

Misaki Municipal High School was a local high school which Shiki and his friends went to. The white building was four-story tall. It has the appearance of a standard high school, with paned windows facing the entrance. The structure was built in an L-shape and a track field was located at its center. An auditorium stood on the east as a basketball court was located behind it.

Tohno Shiki walked pass the school gate and turned left. 'What the...' He frowned since he saw that someone had wrecked the flowers and the white wooden fence. Why would someone do this? Were they so bored that they decided to destroy school property in order to vent their boredom? The hell's wrong with people these days?

"Hmm?" Shiki heard the sound of solid objects hitting against one another. He looked around and spotted a girl hammering a piece of wood on the ground. "Good morning, Senpai." Shiki approached Ciel, who was crouched down and wiping her sweat.

"Huh?" At the familiar voice, the young girl raised her head and noticed how near her underclassman was. "Oh, hi, Tohno-kun. What's up?" Ciel smiled and greeted back.

"Well, I was wondering what you're doing."

"Someone ruined the fence around the flowerbed, so I'm fixing it." Ciel pointed at the ruined garden.

"I see." Shiki smiled softly. "But I think school is starting soon. Won't someone come to fix it if you just report it to the facilities manager?"

"Yeah, I'm sure you're right, but..." The young girl turned around and gestured at the school building. "Right by the window on the second floor. My seat is right there. When I looked over here from where my seat was, I noticed that the fences were broken in three sections."

"At first I was thinking of just reporting it to the facilities manager. But because I sit right by the window, I couldn't help but stare at it. If it doesn't get fixed right away, I'll probably keep looking at it and get distracted during class."

"When I realized that, I couldn't just sit there and do nothing about it. So before I knew it, I was borrowing tools from the facilities manager."

"Heh heh." Shiki chuckled. His upperclassman was really kind. She was repairing the fences even though she was not responsible for it.

"Wha, what is it?" Ciel held the hammer tightly as she blushed in embarrassment.

"Oh, nothing. I was just thinking about the image of you standing out in the hallway-" The high school boy gazed down and saw how dirty her hand was. He scratched his cheek and looked away. "Can I borrow some of the tools? If the two of us do it together, maybe we won't be late."

"But... all I have left is this part, so it should be fine." Hearing Shiki's offer, Ciel smiled brilliantly.

"You probably didn't notice it, but the fences over there are broken too." The glasses boy moved near the school gate and pointed at the ruined flowerbed. "And I figure you'll be distracted again if you find those. Besides, I was concerned about it myself."

...

"Ugh." Shiki opened his eyes and saw concrete ceiling. 'This is... the school infirmary...?' He scanned the room and sighed. 'Did I pass out from an anemia attack again?' He quickly stood up and picked up his black gakuran.

"Man, it's already evening. Why am I here at school for?" He exited the room, and looked out the window. The sky was dark orange, signifying that the sun was starting to set. 'I should go home.' He walked down the corridor leisurely.

'Um?' However, it was as if his instincts tugged at him, before he could move to the staircase and leave the school, the young boy decided to head upstairs. 'Ah, I need some fresh air anyway.' When he arrived at the rooftop, he moved closer to the edge in order to take in the scenery of the setting sun.

'The things that have happened... could it be that I have done them all without realizing?' Shiki supported himself against the railings and gazed at the faraway buildings. 'Am I Roa, after all?'

The dreams, the nightmares he's been having all indicated that he has been attacking innocent people during the night. And the only remaining Dead Apostle remaining in this city was the Serpent of Akasha, who has the ability to reincarnate into others' body.

He had similar dreams for the past two days. He hunted down humans and sucked out their blood. He devoured their flesh and the ones who survived were turned into either ghouls or the Dead. With these proofs, the chances that he was actually the Dead Apostle Ancestor's eighteenth incarnation was incredibly high.

'Tonight... How am I supposed to face her?' Shiki recalled the face of the young girl who he had accompanied for the past few nights. The last True Ancestor trusted him and never doubted him as the current incarnation of Roa.

So what if he turned out to be the vampire's eighteenth incarnation...? What will he tell the blonde vampire? Will they fight each other? Will Arcueid try to kill him because he housed Roa's soul? Does he has what it takes to murder the young girl again? Will he be able to keep on living while knowing that he and Roa were one and the same?

"Tohno-kun..." Shiki flinched at the abrupt utterance. He breathed deeply to calm himself down before turning around, coming face to face with a blue-haired young girl.

It was Ciel.

"What's the matter, Ciel-senpai?" The glasses boy smiled softly and greeted his upperclassman.

"That's my line! You seemed quite depressed, you know?" Ciel pointed at the young boy's gloomy face.

"Do I?" Shiki said. "Don't worry about me, Senpai. It's just that I had a bad dream this morning. I will be fine after a night's rest."

"But I am worried." Ciel raised her voice. "You look like you're about to disappear from the face of earth. Could it be that you have an incredible dilemma on your hands?" The young girl stepped closer and took out two juice boxes from her skirt's pockets.

"Here!" She handed one to the gloomy boy and gave him a warmhearted smile. "Tell me about it. Your behavior tells me that you're taking it all upon yourself. You know how they say that even if it doesn't solve the problem, you'll feel better after telling someone about it. I can halve your burden, Tohno-kun!"

"No... It's not something I can tell anyone." Shiki gripped the juice box and looked down at the rooftop floor.

"Which means you are worried about something." Ciel touched Shiki hand and tried to comfort him.

"!" Shiki pulled away and lashed out against the concerned upperclassman. "It's none of your business, Senpai!" He threw the juice box on the floor and yelled out. "SO PLEASE, LEAVE ME ALONE!"

"...I understand..." Shiki bit his lips when Ciel replied. Although it seemed that he wanted to reject the young girl's help. Nevertheless, deep down in his heart, he wanted someone to understand him and sympathize with him. Fortunately, his wish was granted when she opened her mouth once again."...not."

"Did you think I'd back off so easily?" Ciel gave Shiki a caring smile. "I'm not leaving your side until you do."

"...That's messed up." Shiki fought off his blush and uttered quietly.

"I don't care if it is! It's better than having you look like that." The young girl's blue hair fluttered against the blowing wind. Shiki was stunned by how charming she looked. The orange sun behind her amplified her beauty further as its light radiated her smile with a charming luster.

However, the beautiful scene was immediately destroyed when he remembered the nightmare he saw. He exhaled and turned around. "Thanks, Ciel-senpai. But it's really okay." Even though he might not be able to forget those gruesome sights, he was now determined to find out the truth.

"It's true that I'm troubled, but my problem is a little abnormal. It's not something I can tell you about." It was all thanks to the young girl behind him that he managed to regain his courage, so he was not about to get her involved with all the messed up occurrence that is the moonlit world.

Ciel seemed to be hurt by his words. Though at the next moment- "NO, YOU MUST TELL ME!" She pouted and grabbed the boy's shoulder.

"HUH?!" Shiki took a step back. "I-I said I can't tell you!"

"Nothing good will come out of being troubled alone!" The young girl inched closer and held Shiki harder. Thus, the serious atmosphere that has been built up earlier have all vanished. And then, they started arguing.

"I-I can't!"

"You'll feel better if you tell me!"

"No!"

"Please, you must tell me!"

"I won't tell you, no matter what!"

"Why can't you even tell me a little bit?!"

"Because...!"

Author's Note:

Another chapter completed! And yes, it's more canon stuff~ Though they are slightly altered to fit the story~

Fufun. You thought Ciel was dead, didn't you? Speak. Come, speak. Speak quickly. Admit it to me.

superpierce: Nein, it's canon. C:

Stratos263: Well, the Nasuverse is a really dark place. Priests, Magi, Dead Apostles, Phantasmal Species, they are all portrayed in a dark yet realistic way. Akiha is insane because she's being influenced by her demon blood.

All reviews are appreciated :D