"I didn't think the Society of Friends of the Night would go this far. Their targets really are the people from Luminous Academy."
"Yeah, and targeting patients in a hospital... there's such a thing as taking a rampage too far."
Yugo had been attacked by Kurotobari only the night before. He had immediately shared that information with Marcos and the others, urging them to stay on high alert.
Because of that preparation, they had been able to react quickly when the members of the Society of Friends of the Night turned into a violent mob. Even so, the current situation had exceeded their worst expectations.
Until yesterday, these people were just ordinary citizens. Now, they had gained the power to transform into Magic Armor Beasts and had begun hunting anyone connected to Luminous Academy. They crushed anyone who tried to stop them, screaming that they were the ones who represented true justice. Their behavior could only be described as absolute madness.
As Yugo contemplated how to handle this state of emergency—where fanatics possessed by such insanity were forming gangs and terrorizing the city—Marcos spoke up.
"These people are amateurs. The Security Force shouldn't have any trouble suppressing them. The real problem is..."
"Numbers. I have no idea how many of them have been granted this power."
The actual combat strength of the Magic Armor Beasts that the cultists transformed into wasn't particularly impressive. To Yugo, who had already brought down Level 2 threats, dealing with these newcomers was child's play.
The true issue was the sheer quantity of people who had been given that strength.
The city was currently facing a crisis where a monster could be lurking around any corner. A person standing right next to you might be a believer of Kurotobari, hiding the same terrifying power within them.
Just as he considered the possibility of such people erupting into violence in the name of justice, the communication device Anhel had entrusted to him began to ring.
"Ryuga? How is it on your end? Have things been settled?"
『"Have things been settled," you say...? Yugo, don't ask me such pointless questions.』
When Yugo posed the question to Ryuga, who had been patrolling the city and fighting off the monsters alongside Sakura, the swordsman gave a reply that was characteristically calm.
Yugo hadn't truly been worried, but he felt a wave of relief knowing that the other group had also successfully suppressed the threat.
『Jinba-san and his team arrived to take the rioters into custody,』 Ryuga continued. 『However, I don't think this is the end of it.』
"Yeah. The only silver lining is that not every single member of the Society of Friends of the Night can transform."
The organization had a massive following. If all of them—numbering well over a hundred—had turned into Magic Armor Beasts at once, the city would have been in ruins by now.
Yugo felt a sense of urgency, knowing that even though the worst-case scenario had been avoided, the city was still in a precarious state. Sensing his friend's tension through the device, Ryuga spoke to calm him down.
『Yugo, I understand how you feel, but there's no point in us getting impatient. We just have to keep doing what we can—like An-san and the others, who are currently working on the long-range attack armaments.』
"...You're right. At any rate, we have to focus on containing the damage first."
After hearing that Yugo had been unable to stop Kurotobari from flying away the previous night, Anhel had immediately begun developing long-range weapon modules.
Using the second Blaster confiscated from the members of the Fifth Dormitory, she was attempting to incorporate new limb-transformation functions into the armor, drawing on the expertise of Melt and Setsuna—both specialists in long-range combat.
It was frustrating to be stuck on the defensive, but they had to make the best possible preparations so they could strike back quickly when the opportunity arose.
Just as Yugo was agreeing with his partner's logic, a sudden commotion erupted within the hospital.
『...Yugo, did something happen? It sounds quite loud over there.』
"Sorry, I'll call you back later."
Yugo ended the call and hurried toward the source of the noise. When he arrived, he found Marcos pinning down the woman from the Society of Friends of the Night who had been captured earlier.
"What's going on, Marcos? Did something happen?"
"This woman suddenly started acting up. More importantly, look at this."
Following Marcos's gaze, Yugo looked down and saw a black feather lying on the floor.
He recognized it instantly as the badge carried by the members of the Society of Friends of the Night. But even as he looked at it, the black feather began to pulse with an eerie, suspicious light.
"Wha—!? What was that!?"
"She only started screaming after seeing that. There's something wrong with that badge."
"Damn it! Let me go! I was chosen by Lord Kurotobari! Get out of my way!!"
The woman was shouting in a state of semi-frenzy until Marcos silenced her with a swift knifehand strike to the back of the neck, rendering her unconscious.
Yugo looked back and forth between the unconscious woman and the black feather Marcos had picked up. Suddenly, a realization struck him. He stared intensely at the badge and muttered:
"Is it this...? Is this thing the source? Is this what's turning the Society of Friends of the Night into Magic Armor Beasts!?"