50 chapters! Gaaaah I'm so thrilled to have made it this far. I've spent a good year or so on this journey, and I just want to thank you all for being here with me. This is, without a doubt, the greatest fic I've ever done. Thank you all.

This is a meaty, meaty chapter, so strap yourselves in and enjoy the break from fighting.

"Gather 'round, fighters!"

Before anyone really had a chance to get away (it didn't stop some of them), Rose Bernstein, with Adelheid and Silber in tow, rounded up everyone for a congregation on the sidelines. Though very few of them cared what she had to say, they stuck around, for there was always the off-chance she'd drop some new opportunity on them.

"Are the quarter-finalists all present?"

Everyone looked around, taking a head count: Terry, Beni, Chizuru, Saisyu, Kula were here. Iori was isolated, as usual. Adelheid was beside Rose.

...The only one not present was Gato.

"Eh, one short. Good enough." Benimaru shrugged.

Rose, satisfied, carried on. "First of all, allow me to congratulate the final eight! You've all fought so hard to get here! One of you, more than most~"

Benimaru put his hands on his hips, grinning. "Awwwww, you flatter me."

"...No, I was talking about my brother." Rose said with a frown... but upon turning to Adelheid, a bright smile returned to her face, as she kissed his cheek. "Adelheid and I, out of the kindness of our hearts, are inviting you finalists to dinner aboard the Sky Noah. There'll be great food; we spare no expense on our caterers! You're also welcome to take one, and I mean ONE, guest with you. So let's get that out of the way now."

Terry raised his hand. "Mary." The blonde woman in question hugged him tight.

Benimaru pondered for a second. "I'll take... uhhh..."

"HEEEEYYYY I'M BACK FROM THE HOSPITAL...!"

The fighters all turned to the source of interruption: Shingo, out of nowhere, came stumbling in, sporting intense facial bandages, and a goofy smile. "I mightta takkhen one too maaaahy pahhhkillers... heheheheheheheee..."

Benimaru sweatdropped. "I'll take my doofus- uh, I mean charge."

Saisyu was next. Putting a hand to his chin... he pondered for several seconds, before speaking. "I have nobody in particular I care to bring with me. Pass."

Chizuru was caught in a serious dilemma. "Ummm... uhhh... M-Mai...?"

Mai clung to Andy's arm tight. "Sorry, I'm a no-go without my Andykins."

"Yuri...?"

Yuri wiggled her hand sideways in a 'so-so' manner. "Ehhh, I kinda wanna hang out with Robbie. Sorry, Chiz."

Finally, the Kagura maiden turned to King, whose body language didn't exactly speak 'refusal.'

"How about you, King?"

King tucked a fist under her chin, as she thought about it. Her eyes occasionally cut to Ryo. "Hmmmm... am I even allowed in Rose's vicinity?"

Rose nodded gently. "Miss King, despite your... barbaric attack on me... I'm willing to overlook your transgression out of compassion and understanding."

King smiled. "Okay, but there better be wine. You gonna be okay here, Ryo?"

Ryo waved. "Yeeeah, go and have fun. Just please don't roundhouse our hostess."

"No promises." King smirked.

With four down, two to go, Kula was next. "I'm taking Hotaru."

Upon hearing this, Hotaru's face lit up with excitement, and she met the ice girl with a glomp. "Thank you, Kula-chan~!"

...And that just left Iori.

"Iori, do you want to bring a gues-"

"NO. I'm good." Iori barked. "In fact, I don't even want this dinner."

"Sorry, but I really, really, REALLY want you to come." Rose persisted. "This dinner is very important, ceremonially! To preserve the integrity of this week's competition, I must treat the quarterfinalists to dinner! Now PLEASE, don't say no!"

Iori let out a long, uninterested sigh. "Fiiiiiiiine... but I don't have any guest to br-IINGHGKKkkkkk?!"

"He'll take us." a woman spoke.

"We're simply famished~" a second woman continued.

"OHHHHH no. No no no no, NO." King demanded. "Homicidal ghost bitches are NOT allowed! Right Rose? Rose?!"

...Rose, who hadn't spoken up yet, fixated her eyes on that of Mature and Vice, the blonde with Iori in a headlock, the redhead with her hand cupping his mouth. They both flashed her angelic smiles, batting their pretty, mascara-darkened eyelashes.

"Are you going to say it, or do I need to say it for you?" Adelheid spoke up for the first time, a stern look bearing down on his sister.

Rose's eyes narrowed, as they shifted to the two in question. "You two are not welcome here. Stay away from my ship... and stay away from by brother."

Mature and Vice, not one to take rejection well, tried to push their luck.

"What the hell?!"

"What gives you the right?"

"We want to celebrate with our boy, same as the rest of them."

"You're not being fair!"

Adelheid stepped forward. "She's being a lot more merciful than I'd be. Now get out of here... before I give you a recap of Round 3."

Mature stared menacingly into Adelheid's eyes... but a discomfort washed over her when she saw his eyes flicker with an unnatural red. No doubt, a traumatizing recent memory.

"L-let's go, Vice. We don't need this."

Fiercely taking her arm, Mature started to lead the redhead and herself away from the area. But before they could get far, they stopped and turned one last time.

"You coming, Iori?"

Iori remained where he stood. His hands casually sank into his pockets, as his face remained unchanged.

"I-Iori?!" Mature cried.

"You're coming with us, aren't you?!" Vice pleaded.

"What? I'm f***ing hungry." Iori sneered.

The ghost duo were taken aback, looking totally betrayed. Chizuru, with a frown, stepped forward boldly. "You heard them. Get lost!"

"Your reign of evil is over." Saisyu backed her up. "Go back to wandering in limbo!"

Clearly outmatched and defeated, the ghost duo were forced into a retreat... but never ones to go out with a whimper, Mature and Vice did give the victors a parting gift: a perfectly-coordinated middle finger.

"You'll be sorry!"

"Yeah, you'll be sorry!"

"Enjoy your little dinner."

"Iori always comes back to us."

"Always."

On that final note, Mature and Vice disappeared from view. That last, and rather awkward statement, couldn't help but prompt Benimaru to address the redhead in their vicinity.

"Dude, why do you put up with those bitches?"

Iori blew his bangs. "Recommend me a good exorcist and I won't."

Having retreated from their horribly unsuccessful ploy, Mature and Vice stood in isolation, where no eyes or ears could reach them. Obviously, they were displeased.

"I'm not happy, Mature."

"Neither am I, Vice."

"It's a shame they didn't let us on the ship."

"We could have done such good work on our boys."

"I consider it a missed opportunity."

"At least we don't have the Heavenly Idiots to deal with."

Vice smirked. "The cards are still in our favor. Yashiro and Shermie's spirits broke. They won't stand in our way now."

Mature shared that smirk. "Things will happen naturally... the way they were always meant to. Our plan can't fail at this point."

Several yards away, with a grin on his face, Ryuji Yamazaki watched... and his smile widened more with each passing second.


THAT NIGHT, ON THE SKY NOAH...

If anyone needed a reminder of the luxury Rose and Adelheid lived in... this was the night for it. While Adelheid had come in and immediately retreated to private quarters, Rose was left to give the quarterfinalists and their guests the grand tour of the place.

"This is our library." Rose led the guests into a room adorned with wooden shelves... and a SEA of colors, plastered all over the walls. Hardback copies, as far as the eye could see... a mesmerizing rainbow, reaching nearly to the top of the ceiling.

"Wow... that's a lot of literature." Terry admired.

"It would take multiple lifetimes to read all this!" Benimaru's voice hid no amazement.

Rose's smug grin widened more and more with their praise. "All in perfect condition, I might add. Not even a greasy thumbprint on any of the pages."


Rose next led them into a large recreational room: a giant tv, pool tables, dartboards, playing cards... even a mini-bar.

"This is one of our many game rooms." Rose gesticulated like one of the ladies on a game show. "My brother and I love to play each other in billiards... our win/loss ratio is almost even~"

"You keep it well-stocked back there?" King curiously eyeballed the contents of the mini-bar. "Keep it all rotated?"

"I assure you, Miss King, there's not even a single fruit fly in our bottles." Rose nodded politely. "You're welcome to help yourself, though there will be plenty of drink to be had at dinner."

"Hey Chizuru..." Shingo chimed in out of nowhere. "Can you play yourself in pool?"

Chizuru's lips curved with an amused smile. "I suppose I could, but it'd look rather silly."


After a few more areas, the next one to really pique their interest was a wide-open area, littered with various equipment: punching bags, weightlifting chairs, dumbbells... there was a clear space in the middle of the room with several mats, plenty of room to maneuver around.

"This is our gym." Rose described. "We practice here almost daily. Sometimes we'll hire sparring partners, though my brother runs through them quite easily~"

Mary eyeballed the mats, her hand on her chin admiringly. "Hmmm, not bad, not bad. These are similar to the ones I like to roll on. Hey Ter Bear! Cmere and let me take you down a few times!"

Terry formed a sweatdrop. "M-Mary, you're injured..."

"Miss Kagura! Miss Kagura, over here!" Rose excitedly giggled as she hurried over to a little wooden stand: reaching over, she grabbed a metal handle, attached to a hand guard, and pulled upwards, revealing a long, slender blade, with a dull tip attached to the end.

"Here!" Rose flung the rapier over to Chizuru, before securing one of her own.

Chizuru blushed. "R-Rose I'm not sure I..."

"En garde~!"

Rose lunged at her with a deep strike, forcing Chizuru on her back feet immediately. Chizuru was barely able to parry her initial flurry, but the Kagura lady was able to finally regain her footing and counter with an advancing step, responding with multiple thrusts.

Rose parried high, then dipped her blade low and redirected Chizuru's lower thrust off-trajectory, before she stepped in and delivered the finishing blow to her chest.

"Point! I win~!"

Chizuru rubbed her chest with a nervous smile. "Ehehehe... congrats."

Saisyu watched these events unfold with a goofy grin. "Heh. I'd like to see her try Chizuru in hand-to-hand."


The next room Rose introduced them to was huge and spacious. Inside were several surefire signs of what kind of room it was: a food bowl, a water bowl, numerous toys littered around, scratching posts, tunnels, a bed... and six litterboxes.

As if they didn't need anymore confirmation, Rodem Jr. was already present in the room, on his back, wrestling some kind of stuffed rodent.

"Holy crap," Shingo said with a bewildered expression. "Why is her cat's room bigger than my apartment?!"

"Well dude, you do have a pretty crappy studio apartment." Beni said with a chuckle.

Shingo let out a pained groan, while Rodem Jr. continued to happily play.


"And this is where I get off."

The tour abruptly halted at a certain special door... and although the fighters were curious as to its nature, Rose had positioned herself in front of the door in a way that suggested halting entry.

"This is a private room, for myself and my brother only. I imagine he's in there right now." Rose explained. "Now then... Mr. Silber will escort you all to the dining room. Dinner should be ready quite soon. I'll join you shortly."

Saisyu looked over at Chizuru; he could tell she was feeling uneasy. He himself was feeling it...

"Chizuru." he whispered.

"You feel it too?"

"Yeah... similar to what I was getting from the Bernstein boy... but stronger."

"Enough gawking!" Silber stepped to the front and gruffly addressed them all. "Follow me, and don't get lost."

Though they were slightly insulted by the man's rude tone, they all recognized their roles as guests and fell in line. Within seconds, Silber had led the expedition out of the hallway, leaving Rose by herself.

Her face turned solemn, as she took a deep breath, and opened the door... she quickly slipped inside, shutting it behind her, turning around and turning her attention to the room...

...Sure enough, he was there, just as she predicted. Sitting in that same chair... in front of that same fireplace... his eyes never left the grand painting of their father, plastered on the wall. This room, this... mausoleum... Adelheid had been frequenting it over the past few days.

"Brother." she called out to him. He didn't respond.

She finally joined him in the adjacent chair, looking up at the wall, trying to see what he saw... but she saw nothing but a distant memory. His smiling face, his blonde hair obscuring a strange eye... a man that she never felt entirely close to, but at the same time, loved with all her heart. Unconditionally.

"Brother..." she called out to her side again. "Please talk to me. I want to know what's going on."

'You didn't want to listen the first time." His first words came in the form of a sharp, scolding rebuttal. She winced.

"I didn't take you seriously, and I'm sorry..." Rose humbly spoke. "I was so focused on getting you healthy, making sure you could fight and win... I ignored that there was something very off about you. Something in you, that I've never seen before. Something... th-that scares me."

"...It's him."

Rose eyed him, seeking elaboration; his eyes only focused forward, on the painting before them... on the man, who raised them, smiling down at them.

She turned her attention to the painting... capturing its every fiber... she shivered when she saw the covered eye, and the sinister mysteries that lie beneath it.

"Y-you can't be serious." she tried to deny.

"If you're not seeing it, it's because you don't want to." Adelheid replied brusquely. "I can feel his soul... lingering... trying to fulfill some passage... some form of closure. Something to do with me."

"B-but how is that possible?"

Adelheid's leg came up; draping it across his lap, he propped his chin on his fist. "You and I know our father tapped into some otherworldly powers. Maybe it's because of that, he's still around. Maybe he wants to pass it on to me. Or maybe... maybe he wants to BECOME me."

"W-well, can't you just ignore it?" Rose naively asked.

Adelheid frowned at her. She winced. His face held that look for a minute... before softening again.

"Rose... you know it's not that simple. If if were that simple, I wouldn't be... urgh... I wouldn't be fighting it constantly... the urge to do something horrid."

"You're just defending your life against these barbarians." Rose justified.

"But what happens when I flip out against someone who doesn't deserve it?" Adelheid shot back. "Someone who's just trying to make a good match. What happens when I hurt them bad, and... and..."

Adelheid's fist left his chin. His hand opened... and his face sank into his palm.

"I'm really worried about next round, Rose... REALLY worried. But at the same time... I know we're stuck in this. We're in far too deep in to back out. That's why I've got to..."

A weary sigh. "...I've got to find some way to reason with him. To make him back off... to put an end to this internal struggle, and put me back to normal. I've just got to, Rose. I've got to... before this evil consumes me."

Rose wanted to speak. She wanted to say a lot of things pertinent to the situation... but how could she, when she was all but ignorant? For whatever reason, Father had chosen HIM for this ordeal... it was impossible for her to get inside his head and do it for him.

All she could do, as a sister, was offer him the least of comforts. Rising from her chair, she went over to his side and hugged his arm, pressing her face in his neck. "Brother... please come to dinner. Forget about this stress for a while."

"Just go, Rose."

Her blood ran cold at those dismissive words.

"Just go... please." he softened a bit the second time. "I need to deal with this myself. I won't face them like this."

Rose didn't want to leave... but she knew she was doing more harm than good here. Plus, the guests needed to be entertained. With a disappointed sigh, she removed herself from him and made her way to the door... but not before turning around one more time.

"Brother, if you need anything, ANYTHING, I'm here, okay? Just... please call if you need help. I love you."

"...I love you."

With one last worried glance, Rose shut the door. She walked a few feet, letting out a few more sighs...

"He's not coming, is he?"

Rose gasped, not expecting to hear a voice out of the blue. Startled, she turned to pinpoint it; it was Saisyu Kusanagi, standing against a wall, his arms folded, a smug grin on his face.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Rose angrily admonished. "I told you to stay with the others!"

"Sorry, sweetie pie... your weak security lost track of me." Saisyu retorted, removing himself from the wall. He slowly inched towards Rose... making the Bernstein girl nervously back up against the wall.

"What do you want?" she addressed, trying not to sound meek.

Saisyu leaned in... presenting his open hand, he spawned but a tiny flicker of his sacred flame. "I know what's inside the boy. I can see it... I can smell that stink from half a mile away. It's HIM... the man who tried to ruin my life. The man who tried to make me kill my own son."

Rose slightly trembled. "Y-you know...?"

"Oh I know." Saisyu assured. "His pollution has taken hold of your brother's soul, trying to convert him... transform him. But I can help. I can extinguish the darkness that plagues your brother's soul."

Rose looked in his eyes, then warily looked a few inches over... at the flame in his hand. She didn't follow the mythology much, but she didn't take him as a liar... anyone who could spawn such power in their hand surely must be able to...

"It's my duty as a Kusanagi to dispel evil." Saisyu continued to plead his case. "Match me with your brother in the next round. I'll do everything in my power to save him."

"B-but... you'll kill him! You're going to kill him, aren't you?!" Rose lashed.

Saisyu shook his head. "I've got a personal score to settle with your family, yes... but I'm no murderer. Your brother will live on... and he'll come back to you as his old self. That bastard's taint in him will be vanquished, never to return."

Rose wasn't happy to hear such words against her father, but she had other concerns. "But... he'll lose..."

"You're going to have to make a choice." Saisyu presented her with a dilemma. "Do you want your brother to win this tournament, but lose himself in the process? The world will see him as a monster. That negative influx will do great harm... more than you can possibly imagine. Or, you can pit your brother against ME... I'll strike him down before he gets worse, and end this once and for all! You'll get your brother back, safe and sound! Now, what matters most to you?!"

...For several seconds, building up into an eventual minute, Rose had no answer. Eventually, with a frustrated puff, Saisyu turned away and walked off, with parting words:

"You've got a lot to think about tonight."


DINNER

Silber led the party to the dining room, upon which he immediately excused himself into the kitchen. Probably to enjoy some pre-emptive bites. The group was then confronted by a man in a pristine black suit, donning raven hair, a neat, shimmering pair of spectacles, a tall posture, and an air of propriety about him.

"Greetings, all." he spoke in a posh tone. "My name is Hein. I'll be your caterer for this evening."

"Great." Benimaru spoke with an eyeroll. "Of course they have their own butler."

"I am not Miss Bernstein's butler." the man cleared up. "I have simply been hired to cater this event. Now, allow me to seat you all."

Hein led them all around the table, allowing them to pair up into groups they'd want to be beside. Terry and Mary sat adjacent, with King at her side, followed by Kula and Hotaru, Beni, Shingo... and Iori sat wherever the hell he wanted, without direction.

"Miss Bernstein would be honored if you sat beside her at the head of the table, Miss Kagura." Hein politely directed with his white-gloved hand, to one of the chairs adjacent to the head.

"Doesn't she want her brother next to her?" Chizuru asked.

"...My brother won't be joining us."

The voice entering the room belonged to Rose herself, who took her place at the head of the table. Saisyu was also with her, upon which he rejoined Chizuru.

"Saisyu! Where have you been?" Chizuru asked.

"Don't worry about it." Saisyu asked, with a cheeky grin. "Now, where's the food? I'm starving!"

"Yeah, Papa Kusanagi speaks the truth!" Shingo backed up his mentor.

"Miss Iroha will serve the food shortly. Please be patient." Hein commanded them all.

Hein excused himself to go back into the kitchen and check on progress... things weren't going completely smooth, as Silber was attempting to pick food off the plates, and Iroha was trying to stop him.

"S-Silber please... please don't do that. Silber please-"

SMACK!

"Ahh~!" Iroha yelped in terror as Silber reached a hand around and delivered a hard smack to her backside, breaking the stalemate and ultimately causing him to win the battle. With a deep cackle, Silber strutted out of the kitchen, sausage in his mouth.

Iroha angrily rubbed the afflicted area... but upon seeing Hein standing there, watching her, an ominous shimmer in his glasses... she straightened up and got back to her job. The butler-by-trade eventually joined her, gathering platters of his own, and the two walked in tandem into the dining room...

Everyone was seated, even Silber, who was rudely leaning back in his chair, with his feet plastered on the table.

Upon seeing the two come out of the kitchen, everyone's eyes brightened with excitement (with some exceptions of course)

"Dinner is served!" Hein proclaimed in a loud, commanding voice. "Mr. Silber, feet off the table! Mr. Yabuki, elbows!"

Shingo obeyed, removing his elbows from the table... while he was at it, his eyes couldn't help but dart towards the sexy crane maid, who was leaning over, putting plates on the table. A huge, perverted grin spread on his lips as he said.

"Um, excuse me, can I get a double serving of THAT meat?!"

Beni silenced him with a gentle smack. "Shut up, dude. You're embarrassing us all."

Plates were presented to all of them. Napkins. Utensils. Glasses. Everyone waited with anticipation to see the lids removed from the platters... upon doing so, the room was filled with a burst of flavorful aromas, and appetizing visuals. Several types of marinated meat dishes, sausage, and potatoes were present, all expelling fresh steam.

"Sauerbraten. Rouladen. A choice of three sausages: Bratwurst, Bregenwurst, or Leberkäse. We have multiple potato dishes for sides, including Pellkartoffeln, Kartoffelklöße, and Kartoffelpuffer."

...There was a collective waterfall of drool shared between them all. Except King, who was a bit of a tougher sell, as she eyed Hein warily...

"And we also have several beers and wine."

"NOW we're talking." King grinned.

The 13 people at the table (seven finalists, four guests, Rose and Silber) ate heartily, truly basking in the luxury that the Bernstein's probably lived in every day. Rose and Chizuru were the epitome of etiquette, taking diligent bites while keeping their mouths clean with napkins. King was among the more polite ones, especially the sexy flair with which she swirled her glass of wine to take sips between bites. Kula and Hotaru, despite their younger age, were also matching them.

Others, like Shingo, Iori, Saisyu, Silber.. not so much. They demonstrated the opposite of table manners, aggressively shoveling the savory meat and potatoes into their mouths, with portions that nearly didn't fit in their mouths. Terry and Beni were perhaps the cleanest men among them.

"So," Rose entertained the room with some light conversation. "How is everyone enjoying my tournament? Am I not a gracious hostess~?"

"No comment." Mary spoke.

"No comment." King echoed.

"No comment." Iori grunted.

"No comment." Beni spoke mid-bite.

"Actually, the general consensus is that you're kind of a jerk."

...The most honest voice of the room ended up being Kula Diamond, who, even after spilling the beans, stayed fixated on her plate, looking the epitome of cute and innocent.

Rose, while normally offended, simply laughed at the girl. "Ahahahaha. Well thank you for your honestly, Miss Kula. I guess I can't win EVERYONE's hearts."

"Well, I like you well enough." Kula casually mentioned, taking a sip of her glass of milk.

"Hey, anyone who feeds me is a friend in my book!" Shingo blurted, expelling a chunk of food onto the floor. Hein walked over to it and immediately picked it up with a napkin.

"Actually, I'm most curious to hear Miss Kagura's criticism." Rose looked to her left, at the woman. "I'm sure she'd be brutally honest with me as well, yes?"

Chizuru wiped herself before speaking. "Well Rose, it's not your fault that evil forces infiltrated the tournament... but you could have handled things much better, had you listened to Saisyu and I."

Saisyu nodded in agreement.

"Well, it still got handled, yes?" Rose retorted. "Your villains are defeated. And now, here we are, having an elegant feast~"

Chizuru chuckled. "I suppose you're right."

Iori cut his eyes at them... before they turned back down to his plate. But he seemed to be looking down, not at his food, but at something deeper... something beyond their plane...

"So, here's a golden opportunity for anyone to pitch their fight requests at me. Any takers?" Rose questioned aloud.

"I want my rematch with Terry." Beni cut eyes at the Wolf, who responded with a raise of his glass.

"I'm not picky." Iori grunted.

"Nor am I." Chizuru smiled. "Saisyu, who do you want to fight?"

Saisyu's eyes cut to Rose. The Bernstein girl's eyes responded for only a split second, before looking away. She then changed the conversation.

"DESSERT! Anybody want dessert? We have cake, strudel, and Miss Kula, I have a special order for you, to celebrate you making it this far~"

Rose clapped her hands twice. Iroha emerged from the kitchen, carrying a large glass bowl... upon Kula's eyes hitting said bowl, her mouth dropped wide with joy.

It was a mountain of vanilla ice cream, with scoops of chocolate mixed in, covered in a perimeter of whipped topping, with a hearty waterfall of hot fudge cascaded down each slope, littered with colorful sprinkles, toffee pieces, crushed peanuts... there were three large, chocolate chip cookies sticking out of the edges, and, to complete the image... a peak of marshmallow fluff, with a cherry resting on it.

This was perhaps the happiest Kula had been since K's disappearance. "Th...th... THANKYOUMISSROSECANIHAVEASPOONPLEASE!"

Iroha handed her a spoon with a warm smile, and Kula almost immediately plunged it in... but she stopped at the last second to look at Hotaru.

"Wanna share?"

Hotaru blushed madly as she shook her head. "N-no no no, Kula-chan. Please, enjoy your gift."

"Okay, if you're sure... NOM~"

Kula was rendered silent for the remainder of the dinner, as her face was perpetually receiving spoonfuls of the sugary, dairy dessert.

"While I'm in a generous mood..." Rose spoke with a slightly fatigued tone. "Miss Ryan. This is for you."

Mary, who had been mostly silent, cocked an eyebrow upon hearing her name brought up. Rose presented her with a white envelope, which she tossed across the table. Mary caught it, tearing it open and looking inside.

"What have we here... a-ah?!"

Her eyes widened when she saw the contents inside... and the digits it contained.

Mary's eyes were glued, all her speech rendered useless, as Rose continued on. "My brother INSISTED, because you apparently 'saved his life', that I pay you double the fee we agreed on. So there... enjoy."

"Mary, what's she talking about?" Terry interrogated. "Mary? Mar-pphhh."

Still not looking up from the check, she reached up and pinched his lips. "Don't worry about it, baby. Don't worry about it."

"Guess you're not such a bitch after all." King teased, taking a sip of her third glass.

"I have my moments~" Rose beamed. "Did everyone get enough to ea... hey wait a minute. We're missing someone!"

Everyone had been so occupied in the good food, good drink, good company.. they had failed to notice one seat at the table was empty this entire time, and it wasn't Adelheid's.

"Where's that angry Japanese guy?!" Rose grunted.

"Present." Iori raised his hand.

"Not you! The other one!"

Everyone looked around with puzzled expressions, until Hotaru nervously broke the silence. "My br... ummm ehehehe... I mean... we got separated on the tour."

Rose glared at her bodyguard angrily. "Silber, you let some guy run amok on my ship?!"

Silber just shrugged, still eating.

"Grrrr! How uncouth! I'll go find him myself! Hein, Iroha, keep the guests entertained!"

Hein and Iroha bowed politely as Rose excused herself from the table. Shingo, upon seeing Iroha, tried to discreetly whip out his phone... but Beni grabbed his wrist and stopped his efforts.


Rose angrily stomped across the ship, checking doors, scoping out rooms. "I swear, I try to have an organized party..."

Finally, her search led her to one of her favorite tea rooms... and she gasped with fright upon seeing what was going on inside.

Gato was indeed present. The man had his eyes closed, legs spread, knees bent, his arms protruding outwards, like some kind of... meditative stance. His eyes were closed, his nose inhaling and expelling sharp, steady breaths...

...But the real horror, to Rose, was seeing that her favorite teacups were sitting, full, on his legs... and her teapot was resting atop his head.

"Hey! HEY! Unacceptable!" Rose tried to yell for his attention. Gato ignored her, maintaining his focus.

Rose approached him. She wanted to forcefully end this... but she knew that would put her precious china at risk. Thus, she just poked and lightly slapped him a bit.

"Hey! You! Put my tea set back, and go join the others at dinner!"

Still ignored her.

"Hey! I'm giving you an order! This is my ship!"

Still ignored her.

Rose got angry and shoved his chest a little. "HEY!"

...Gato's eyes shot open. He moved like a lightning strike; Rose had to step back rapidly in the midst of his swift motion. His entire body spun around, his long hair whipping through the air... and the contents resting atop him flew up high.

Gato hooked a foot around a nearby coffee table; with one flick, he hoisted the table on top of his foot. He aimed it high, as the teacups began falling, one at a time, precisely on the table... and finally, the teapot itself. Not a single drop was spilled. He put the table down.

Rose frowned. "Good. Now-ahh?!"

Gato slowly approached, his intimidating frame easily towering over her. Rose frightfully backed away, finally hitting the wall next to the door, as he continued to close in on her, his gaze sharp enough to physically cut.

Rose swallowed. The man was right in her face, no escape possible from this angle.

He raised a hand. She winced... but she opened her eyes, and the hand had stopped but inches from her neck.

"You live a charmed life." Gato's warm, menacing breath chilled her skin. "One day, your magisterial illusion is going to be shattered."

All at once, he lowered his hand, removed himself from her proximity, and exited the room. Rose's chest must have risen like dough, before finally expelling a humongous breath.

She'd be sure to punish him for that later.


In the aftermath of the dinner, a good chunk of them exited the Sky Noah and took cabs back to Castle Stronheim. Terry, Mary, King, Saisyu, Beni, Shingo, others... but Rose surprisingly offered the ones she held in higher esteem to stay the night with her. A perfect way to cap off perhaps the first night of complete pleasantries for the entire week.

"Miss Kagura, won't you join me in the tea room? I'll have Iroha prepare a fresh pot for us." Rose requested with angelic eyes.

Chizuru politely nodded. "Okay, I'll be up with you in a sec. I just need to.. see someone out first."

Rose exited, allowing Chizuru to go off and find the certain someone in question... it wasn't a long trip until she found him, in the kitchen, a glass of beer in his hand.

"Iori." she called out. "You heading out?"

Iori looked slightly at her, before resuming his glass, tilting it upwards and downing the rest of the suds in one gulp. He harshly slammed it on the table, before reaching for the pitcher again.

Chizuru approached. "How many of those have you had?"

Iori shook his head. "Not much... it's just to help me sleep."

He raised the pitcher... Chizuru gently placed a hand on his, setting it back down. He turned his attention back to her, and they just... stared for a while. It must have been a minute or two, that they shared an uncomfortable silence between them, while their eyes persisted.

Until finally... Iori spoke first.

"...Why am I still here, Chiz?"

The question wasn't one she could answer abruptly, as she wasn't sure what context he meant it in. With him, it could mean a lot of things... so she bided her time and waited for more words.

Iori turned away. "We beat the Hakkeshu. That was my only reason for being in this damn thing. So why... what am I even fighting for now? Why am I still in this damned country?"

He reached for the pitcher again. Chizuru again stopped his hand.

"It's called having a good time." she somewhat brusquely responded. "Can't you do that?"

Iori sharply scoffed, snatching his hand from hers. "Pssssh, yeah... a guy like me has that privelege."

"...What is wrong with you?" Chizuru asked him a question that must have been tiring at this point.

He was silent at first. But eventually... he reached his hand up, opened the fingers... stared into his own palm, as that hand began to tremble.

"...I should just quit. Quit, and get out of here." he spoke words that may not have even been directed to her.

"Iori-"

"I'm not any better, Chiz." he cut in. "We beat the Hakkeshu, but I still feel it... I feel that voice inside me, trying to coax me into something bad. Don't you get it, Chiz? I'M the bad guy now. I'm the only thing still keeping the danger around."

"You don't know that!" Chizuru tried to dissuade. "The Hakkeshu could still be planning something-"

"The Hakkeshu are DONE." Iori interjected. "I made Chris disappear. Yashiro and Shermie are broken. Yamazaki doesn't give a f***. All that's left is... but they're more of a headache than a danger."

"Maybe if you stayed away from them, you'd feel better." Chizuru turned on the offense. "Have you thought of that?!"

"Don't tell me what I should do!" Iori barked back. "I can't... I can't just...!"

Iori sharply turned away from her. Without her resistance, he snatched the pitcher up and began drinking straight from it. He took several hard gulps, before setting it down.

"You're never going to understand it, Chiz." Iori spoke softer. "You just think it's as easy as saying words... but it's not. You don't know what it's like to need... the comfort of familiarity."

Chizuru felt an unbearable sadness at hearing those words. "But what about me? Don't you... find comfort in me?"

...Iori gave her perhaps the coldest response one could give.

"Sorry. I guess I don't."

He walked away, leaving Chizuru standing there... trembling. It wasn't long until tears formed in her eyes.

Sadness turned to anger. Anger clouded her judgement. All at once, she stepped forward and blurted.

"FINE! I'm sorry I can't be your Kyo! Or your Mature and Vice! So forget it! I'm done! I give up on you!"

He never turned back around, to acknowledge her.

And that's a wrap! We have one more "side adventure" chapter to do before moving on to the quick and brutal quarterfinals. There will be only four fights, so... we're getting down to the nitty gritty, gents.

NEXT CHAPTER: Dinner was nice and all, but what was going on with everyone else? Find out in the sister chapter!

But first... looky looky. Bonus scenes! Don't miss!


BONUS SCENE 1

"Cmon, Kula-chan~"

Hotaru and Kula, two lucky recipients of Rose's generosity, opted to spend the night on the flying fortress. They were afforded showers, sleep clothes... pretty much anything they wanted, really.

Hotaru patted the extra space on the bed next to her; Kula, with a slight blush, joined in, taking that free spot under the covers. Hotaru pulled them up.

...The two girls who became fast friends snuggled up against each other, letting out a blissful sigh at the comfort and warmth the bed and their embrace provided, as well as the freshness of their newly-bathed states.

"Ahhhhhhhhhh... this is the best I've felt in a very long time." Hotaru sighed.

"Me too..." Kula whispered in response.

The two settled in, Hotaru resting her head atop Kula's chest, her beautiful blue hair flowing freely... it was the first time Kula had seen her without her pigtails, and she was absolutely gorgeous.

"...Kula-chan?"

"Hmm?"

"I... I just want to thank you for this."

"What do you mean?"

"I haven't... I haven't felt... affection... like this... in a long time. It feels good."

Kula gently rubbed her head. "I know how you feel. The truth is, I like to snuggle with my robot Candy a lot. Diana and Foxy too. But there's someone out there... kinda like your brother... that I really wish I could do this with. He means a lot to me. He makes me feel... kinda like this. But better."

Hotaru pressed her face tighter. "You're missing someone you love too?"

Kula blushed. "Yeah... but it's a little... different... from you and that man. In multiple ways."

"You mean like how the person you seek is actually far away, and Gato is in the same area as me?"

"Well... yeah. That too." Kula continued to blush.

"Well, I hope you have an easier time than I do. Ehehehe... haah..." Hotaru slightly chuckled... but it carried out into a rather somber noise.

...The room grew ominously quiet for a second. Hotaru noticed something was weird, when she started shivering a bit.

"K-Kula-chan? You're getting.. c-colder."

"Oh! S-sorry."

Kula reigned it in a bit... but she still felt emotional. Words needed to come out. She just... didn't know how. Finally, she just rolled the dice and said it.

"Hotaru... your brother is bad to you. He deserves to be punished."

"...You really think that?"

"I do."

Kula was just about to open her mouth and say the other thing, but Hotaru cut in first.

"Kula-chan... I don't expect you to understand, but... I love my brother. I want to believe that he loves me too, with every bit of strength in my heart. Somehow... somehow I know I can get through to him. Sometimes I want to quit... but after I cool my head a bit, everything's okay again. I'm not going to quit. So please... I don't want my brother to get hurt, or punished. I don't want any bad things to happen to him. I just want to keep trying... maybe forever... until the day I get through to him. Maybe one day, I can snuggle with him, just like this. Wouldn't that be nice?"

...Silence.

"Kula-chan?"


BONUS SCENE 2

Blood. All around.

Allianz Arena was completely desolate... though plenty of bodies still occupied the facility.

They were no longer of the living.

All but one.

He sat on his knees, drenched, up to his neck in red, some splattered across his face, his hair... even his eyes stung with the spray of fresh spatter, enough to hinder his vision. He looked down at trembling hands, still dripping, and his gaze rose up, to look outwards at the madness he wrought.

The bodies of everyone he knew, laid out, unmoving. Some without all their parts. Acquaintances. "Friends."

Athena lay three feet away, her purple hair draped over a face that contained no eyes, a detached jaw, the mane providing a gracious concealment.

Benimaru and Shingo lay side by side, a pool of red expelled from their insides, like a pool they were tandem floating...

Saisyu lay right in front of him, the last to fall. He went to his knees, before eventually finding his current facedown position. It was fortunate he was flipped over; it concealed the gnarly burns, down to the bone, on the other end.

He finally rose to his feet. Limped forward. One yard... two yards... no specific destination in mind, it seemed... until he collapsed to his knees once more.

His torso hunched over, quaking all around... his hands found a solid form, and scooped it up, lifting it...

He parted the raven hair, and looked into the dead eyes of Chizu-

"AHHH!"

Iori shot upwards in the bed, his bare torso, hair, drenched in cold sweat, enough that it stuck to him like a wet sock. Not showing any regard for the other bodies present, he kicked the sheets away, leaping out of bed.

The draft kissed his unclothed form, and he felt freezing cold.

He shambled over to the window, opened the blinds, peering out into the city, glistening in the moonlight... his mouth expelled harsh pants, as he visualized a reality where all the people in this city could die. By his hand.

He heard the sheets rustle. He ignored it, still looking outwards.

...Finally, he felt a body press against him from behind. Two hands wrapped around, resting on his pectorals, as they slowly, gently slid down with the grace of a paintbrush.

"You're sweating." Mature whispered into his ear. "Bad dream?"

"Nightmare." Iori breathed back. "Bad one."

"Tell me?"

Iori, eyes still overlooking the city, controlled his breathing. "I... lose control. People die."

"You can feel it coming, can't you? And you can't stop it. Maybe you're just doing what you were always meant to do."

"I need to get away from here. I don't think it's safe for me to..."

Her finger shot upwards, pressing on his lip.

"You're just thinking too much, Yaggy. You're in control of your own destiny. You decide what you do."

"Y-yeah, but I..."

"Come back to bed." she whispered in his ear, her lips touching his lobe. "Sleep... sleep your stress away. I'll protect you from the nightmares. I'll make the bad dreams go away."

A kiss on his cheek.

Iori's eyes grew hazy. It was... exhausting... having to fight all the time. Half -lidded eyes grew dimmer and dimmer... until he let go, and sank into her embrace.