Last semi-important character introduced this chapter... Woo! Enjoy~

Naoki was on edge every time he thought he saw any red or black cross his vision and, well, Chiaki and Isamu were clearly getting annoyed with it. It wasn't like they knew what could happen if they ran into those guys, after all… And Naoki didn't feel like explaining. Too much would have to go into it.

"If you're gonna act like that while we're out in the open, we should just go in a building already…" Isamu, still acting as weird as when they got here, shot Naoki a look. "We won't get anywhere at this rate…"

"There isn't much around here, anyway." Chiaki walked towards a door. "We might have better luck if we go in somewhere."

"Yeah, good point…" Naoki moved to stand next to Chiaki, pushing the door open. "Let's go."

The building they walked into seemed to be a store of some sort, walls lined with what looked like weapons and armor… None of that really interested Naoki, though. His body and abilities were all he really needed… But then again, maybe they'd be helpful for Chiaki and Isamu…

"Are these bugs…?" Isamu walked up to a case, frown on his face. "Everything else looks like stuff for fighting…"

"Magatama?" Naoki frowned when he saw them sitting there. He could use those, of course, but… Odd for there to be so many, more than he usually saw at stores.

"Are you all just browsing, or do you plan on buying something?" They all turned at the voice of a woman. Standing there was a blonde woman, blue dress on and no shoes on her feet.

Something about her reminded Naoki of that little boy and that old man… Not just in the fact they all seemed to have eerily similar faces, but… Even the vibe she gave off reminded him of them.

"Are you the shop owner?" Chiaki tilted her head to the side.

"I am Louisa Ferre, this isn't my shop… But the people here will need supplies somehow, so I'll be running it all the same."

"That so…?" Chiaki rose an eyebrow and opened her mouth to speak again. "You-"

"Ah, you're that woman…!" They all turned their attention to the now open door. A man was standing there, dressed in some sort of uniform as he stared Louisa down.

"Oh, so you really did see a woman like that, huh?" Another, more demonic, man stepped forward. "That's crazy…"

"I honestly was worried I was just hallucinating for a while…" The first man sighed. "But now that you and Zelenin will probably see her…"

"You two shouldn't run ahead." A voice hit Naoki's ears and he grimaced. He felt like someone was driving a screw into his head when he heard it… "We need to remain together if we're to get out!"

Another human, no… Naoki was pretty sure this woman was a literal angel, appeared behind them. Naoki frowned when the woman looked at him and showed clear distaste upon seeing him. What the hell?

"Another lost lamb…" She closed her eyes and sighed. "If only my power was stronger…"

"That again?" The demonic man scoffed, glaring at the angel. "Now isn't the time for that, Zelenin!"

"Jimenez…!"

Louisa looked back to Naoki and smiled. "Give me a moment and I'll explain what seems to be going on. Then all of you can work towards escaping… If you can handle the angel's voice, of course."

Flynn and his allies were beginning to feel the effects of exhaustion. They had been wandering for hours now with no reprieve… And he needed to do something. Maybe there was a building they could duck into and rest in. This place didn't seem nearly as destroyed as Tokyo, after all.

"We need to rest, going on like this won't do us any good." Flynn looked back at them and Isabeau gave a nod.

"Where do you suggest we rest?" Walter rose an eyebrow. "Do you think it's safe enough to do it in the open?"

"Perhaps going into a building and making sure it's a secure area would be better…" Jonathan looked around before pointing to a nearby building. "Maybe we should try that one?"

"Good idea, Jonathan." Flynn nodded and started for the door, reaching for the handle… Only for his hand to touch another reaching for the same thing.

He looked over, a child who could be no older than fifteen standing there. At first, Flynn thought he looked just normal… But then he noticed what seemed to be tattoos and a scar, both slightly glowing? Was that normal here?

"F-Flynn…!" The boy took a step back, eyes wide. "You're here too…?!"

"Excuse me?" He furrowed his brow. "Do I know you…?"

"I-"

"Nanashi…!" A girl in a blue dress ran up to the boy. "What are you- Oh, Flynn! Miss Isabeau, you're safe!"

Before either could say anything to girl, she was running up to Isabeau, eyes sparkling. "Oh, uh, you…"

"How did you escape Mikado?"

"E-escape?!" Isabeau blinked a few times. "Why would I ever try to escape Mikado?"

"What do you mean why…?" She frowned. "You were captured and being interrogated!"

"Why would Isabeau ever be interrogated?" Jonathan stepped forward. "Are you implying she did anything but her duty?"

"I… Wait, what?!" The girl looked to the Nanashi boy. "Nanashi, what's going on?"

"I'm not sure…"

Before much more could be said, more people came shuffling up… A lot of people, actually. Though two stood out to Flynn immediately, one making him reach for his blade.

"A demon…! One that doesn't seem tamed, either." Walter seemed to have noticed as well, moving to stand between his fellow samurai and the demon-boy.

"Wait, t-that's Hallelujah!" Nanashi moved in front of him. "He's a friend, a friend!"

"A-and I'm half-human, anyway… My mom is a human…" Hallelujah put his hands up. "I'm, uh, only like this right now in case we run into any trouble."

"I see…" Walter nodded a bit, turning to look at Navarre. "I'm more concerned about that one, anyway… Is that Navarre…?"

"Navarre, what happened to you?" Jonathan furrowed his brow at Navarre's new, green form.

"Oh no…" Navarre let out a shaky sigh. "I was hoping I was done explaining myself to people…"

Flynn frowned as he regained his posture. This was all going to take a while to figure out...