Multiverse's Holy Right

"Mr. Touma... how much farther do we have to run?"

In a narrow Tokyo alleyway, a young girl in shrine maiden attire sprinted alongside a middle-aged man in his thirties. The two kept glancing back nervously, fearing their pursuers might catch up.

The girl's breathing was ragged—clearly, she wasn't accustomed to such long-distance running.

"Almost there, Yuri. Once we get past this path, reinforcements will be waiting ahead. I'll do my best to draw the pursuers away, and you'll take a car to Haneda Airport. The History Compilation Committee's plane is already there. Just board it and leave Japan."

Amakasu Touma, a descendant of ninjas, had exceptional stamina. Even while running, his breathing remained steady, allowing him to calmly explain the plan to Yuri.

"Is... is it that Campione, the Marquis, back in Tokyo again?"

Yuri's petite frame shuddered as she recalled the events from two years ago when she had been forcibly taken to Eastern Europe as a ritual hime-miko. The brutal Demon King had never cared for her feelings, conscripting her through ruthless means.

During that ritual to summon a Heretic God, Yuri had witnessed countless witches and hime-mikos perish in agony. Even now, their pained expressions and unwilling gazes haunted her dreams.

Because of this, Yuri harbored deep fear, rejection—even outright disgust—toward Campiones.

"This time, it's not just the Marquis. The new King has also come to Tokyo. And both of them are after you."

Amakasu Touma gave a bitter smile. Perhaps this was a case of "a man's wealth is his own ruin." As a small country without a Campione or sufficient mystical means, Japan was easily coveted by others when it possessed a highly talented and powerful hime-miko.

Upon hearing Amakasu Touma's words, Yuri Mariya felt disgusted with her own abilities as a Hime-Miko. If she didn't have these powers, she could have lived an ordinary life as a regular student, rather than constantly living in danger and bringing immense trouble to those around her.

"But... if I leave Tokyo, what if the Marquis and the new King can't find me? Would they do something terrible to Tokyo?"

Yuri suddenly stopped in her tracks, stubbornly insisting, "...I can't leave here, Mr. Touma! If Tokyo suffers because of me, that's absolutely not what I want to see."

Seeing Yuri stop, Amakasu Touma grew impatient and grabbed her hand to keep running. He despised the girl's stubbornness—why couldn't she see reason? The conclusion reached by the History Compilation Committee after extensive deliberation couldn't possibly be abandoned just because of her personal obstinacy. If she stayed in Tokyo, that would be the real disaster!

"Trust me, Mariya! The safest thing is for you to leave Tokyo. Besides, those two Kings are already fighting—by now, an entire district of Tokyo is probably destroyed. Only if you get far away from Tokyo might those two Kings stop their pursuit and cease their battle!"

From the perspective of the History Compilation Committee, the two Campiones were unlikely to easily determine a winner. That was why they had come up with this plan to divert the calamity elsewhere. If the two Kings could settle things quickly, the Committee wouldn't need to be so cautious—they could simply offer Yuri to the victor.

What the History Compilation Committee feared most was a battle between two Campiones, because even the aftermath of their fight could bring catastrophic destruction.

"You dare to flee with this girl, knowing full well that the Kings are searching for her? How audacious!"

Just then, a stern girl's voice rang out behind them.

"Look out, Mr. Touma!"

Yuri's spiritual sight as a hime-miko alerted her to the danger, and she cried out in warning.

As a ninja, Amakasu Touma was also highly alert to danger, but his reaction was still a step too slow.

Thud—

A sharp blade pierced straight through Amakasu Touma's chest. The middle-aged man, who had been running at full speed, suddenly halted. He looked down in shock at the sword tip protruding from his chest, watching as blood dripped from it. A sharp pain shot through his body, and then he lost consciousness completely.

"Mr. Touma! Mr. Touma!"

Yuri caught him, shouting frantically.

"If you call an ambulance now and come with me, there might still be a chance to save him. But if you insist on running, you'll have to watch him die right before your eyes."

Behind the fallen Amakasu Touma stood a beautiful girl. Her silver hair was tied into a single ponytail, draped over her shoulders with a blue and black cape. Beneath her knee-length black dress were slender, elegant legs clad in white stockings. In her hand, she held a longsword still dripping with blood—this was none other than Liliana.

"It's you?! The new King's knight!" exclaimed Yuri upon seeing Liliana.

Not long ago, she had been volunteering at a nearby shrine when this silver-haired girl and a blonde-haired girl suddenly appeared, attempting to kidnap her. Though Yuri was a shrine maiden with formidable spiritual power, she possessed almost no combat ability. Thus, she was swiftly captured by Erica in an instant.

At that moment, over a dozen powerful knights and magicians, resembling the undead, appeared. Their goal was also to capture her. The two groups of kidnappers with the same objective ended up fighting each other first, allowing Yuri to escape in the chaos.

During her escape, she encountered Amakasu Touma. From him, she learned of Marquis Voban and Roy's arrival in Japan, as well as the fact that the two groups who had tried to capture her were subordinates of these two kings. Thus, the earlier scene unfolded.

"That's correct. I am Liliana Kranjcar, a knight serving under King Roy, currently striving to earn the title of his exclusive knight. Yuri, I hope you won't resist and come with me willingly. This will minimize casualties."

Liliana remained courteous even toward her enemy. She was an upright knight, though not rigidly so. As a knight, she strictly followed her king's orders, but she was also kind-hearted. If a mission required it, she would kill without hesitation—just as she had done with Amakasu Touma moments ago. However, if the enemy had already lost the ability to resist, she would show courtesy and try to reduce harm.

"Another Campione..."

Yuri muttered under her breath, her face twisting with anger.

Though Liliana's tone was calm, a closer look would reveal the urgency hidden beneath.

She was worried about Erica.

The corpses she had seen earlier at the shrine—she knew they were servants summoned by Marquis Voban's authority. Each one was a renowned great knight or magician from the past two hundred years, a prodigy of their era. Against just one, both Erica and Liliana could hold their own. But when over a dozen appeared at once, facing them was akin to confronting Marquis Voban's authority directly—a near-certain death sentence.

Yet, to complete the mission Roy had assigned, Erica had resolved to lure those terrifying servants away, engaging them in guerrilla combat while Liliana went to capture Yuri and ensure their objective was fulfilled.

For Liliana, this meant she had to act swiftly. Only by securing Yuri could she signal Erica to disengage. The longer she took, the greater the danger Erica faced.

With this in mind, Liliana abandoned her courtesy. Her concern for her best friend outweighed all else. She took two quick steps forward and seized Yuri's wrist, ignoring the girl's cry of pain.

"Come with me now, Yuri! I apologize for my roughness, but for my friend's sake, I have no choice."

Liliana pulled Yuri along as she spoke, her grip unyielding.

"If your friend is who I think she is, perhaps we can arrange an exchange!"

Suddenly, a gentle female voice rang out ahead. Liliana tensed and looked up to see a high school girl in uniform gripping a katana. In her grasp was Erica—severely wounded.

"…Grandfather said there was trouble in Tokyo and asked me to escort a girl named Mariya Yuri out of Japan. I suppose the trouble he mentioned must be you people."

The girl murmured to herself. Though her refined appearance suggested a well-educated Yamato Nadeshiko, there was an innate wildness subtly woven into her words and actions.

***

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