✞ Dance With Devils ✞ Right Door Chapter 5

Here is the guide I’m using.

Content Warning: blood and violence in this chapter.

All rights belong to Rejet. 

**Do NOT repost or reupload my translations or I will take them down.

Ritsuka’s brother brought her home from the field trip. She’s never seen him so livid. Then he went and locked her up in their own house. “What do you mean, stop going to school?” Ritsuka demands. Lindo means what he said. He can’t always be with her while she’s there. That place is the devils’ den and the chances of her being targeted again are very high. He’s already sent her school a notification. No…! Ritsuka cries.

Lindo ignores her and says he doesn’t know what methods the devils will use to try to get to her, but she’ll be far safer in the house than anywhere else. What’s wrong, nii-san? He’s acting really weird! Lindo doesn’t answer her. Those devils were able to get in contact with her, weren’t they? He grills her. W-well… but nothing happened. “You don’t get it. They’re probably waiting for the moment you lower your guard so they can strike.” Tricking people with honeyed words is a classic trick that devils use. “Listen to yourself,” Ritsuka says. “Those guys aren’t as bad as you say they are!”

“They’ve deluded you!” he roars. Ritsuka flinches. “I’ll stop at nothing to protect you, Ritsuka.” He won’t let anyone take her from him! He doesn’t mind giving her free-roam of the house but she’s not allowed to go outside. W-wait, Nii-san! Nii-san! What should she do? She can’t believe she’s been locked up in her own house. Why, Nii-san? The windows, doors and all the rooms that lead outside have either been barred up or fitted with locks that only her brother can open. Did this happen because she was with the Student Council? No matter how she looks at this, it’s strange. It’s like she’s in a prison. And she’d just promised she’d work with the Student Council to find the Grimoire so she could look for her mom. What should she do now?

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The scene changes to a different dimension where the Head of the Arlond family is speaking to Rem. “My son. You’re telling me that you have yet to find the Forbidden Grimoire?” Yes, says Rem. He’s sincerely sorry. His father asks him why he’s taking so long to find it. Are his pawns so difficult to use? Not at all, Rem says. They’re devoting their all to acquiring information, though they’ve yet to determine the Grimoire’s exact location. “I’ll not hear your excuses!!”

A ring of energy flares toward Rem; he cries out in agony and crumples on the spot. It’s said that whoever obtains the Forbidden Grimoire has enough power to rule the whole world, his father says. The Arlond family is worthy of a power such as that. Rem weakly climbs back to his feet and manages to say, “But of course.” His father demands that no-one else takes it from him. The vampires aren’t the only ones after it. As such, he must keep a close eye on his pawns; even they will some day betray him.

Naturally, he includes his own son in that list of possible turn-coats. Were Rem to take up arms against him, he would receive a fitting punishment in return. Impossible! Rem says, his eyes wide with horror. “I’ve sworn my allegiance to you, Father, and it’s absolute!” But his father only says that betrayal shall be rewarded with death. Rem understands. Everything he does… is for the Arlond family…

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Meanwhile, the other three devils wait around in the third library. Mage frowns and grumbles about how long this lecture seems to be taking. *Rem must’ve lost face. Guess even that all-powerful guy’s got something he’s not good at. Urie says that in times like these, he’s extremely grateful that he’s not the Arlond heir. The Rem he knew never would’ve let something so shameful happen to him. Shiki sighs happily and says that Rem must be suffering right now. Just imagining that composed and princely face of his distorting in pain gives him the chills.

Mage says the old man often does this to his own son. He’s pretty obsessed with the Grimoire. The Grimoire… Urie says, trailing off. What? Mage asks him. Oh nothing. He just thought it sure was a curious thing. It supposedly can give one enough power to control the world. He wonders how much of that is true. Mage grins and says it’s easy. All they gotta do is get the Grimoire and find out. He can do it. Isn’t letting Mage keep it all to himself a bad idea? Shiki speaks up. Won’t he get into trouble with Rem?

Ah, Urie says. Speaking of keeping something all to themselves… What happened to the girl? She didn’t come to school today. Mage says he asked that scary female classmate of hers (Azuna) and she told him that Ritsuka had stayed home because she was sick. A sudden cold? Urie says. He’s going to check. Something’s bothering him. Hey, hey, ain’t Rem gonna yell at him again if he does that? Mage asks. It’s fine, says Urie. A text should suffice. Since when did he exchange contacts with her? Shiki asks. Clever guy, Mage angrily mutters to himself.

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Back at the Tachibana residence, Ritsuka is struggling to get one of the doors open. But it’s no use. They won’t open. Neither the doors or the windows will budge. Why, nii-san? Why did he go to such lengths? She understands he’s doing this for her, but… she’s a little scared. This isn’t like her brother. With a sigh, Ritsuka asks herself what she should do. A bright melody suddenly sounds, and Ritsuka pauses. She got a message? Maybe it’s from Azuna. Huh!? Urie-san!

“Dear Butterfly, I was surprised to hear that you had taken today off. How are you feeling? >< ” He used a kaomoji, Ritsuka notes in shock. He even asked her how she was feeling, but she’s not sick. Nii-san just has her under house-arrest… There’s nothing to worry about, she’s fine, Ritsuka replies. She never could’ve imagined he’d be texting her. She must have really worried him, huh. Her phone chimes again. Oh, she got a reply. Urie tells her to stay warm. He can always come over if she gets sleepy, adding a wink kaomoji for effect.

That was a cute message, Ritsuka says aloud. He’s more feminine than her, she notes self-consciously. Giggling, she wonders what kind of kaomoji she should send him in return. She’s kind of touched. That text was all it took to cheer her up. “Thank you so much, really.”

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In the third library, Urie’s cell chimes with his own ringtone. Shiki perks up and says he got another reply. He asks Urie to let him text her back. “Shut it. Give it to me!” Mage snaps. Urie struggles with the other two devils, saying this is his number so shouldn’t he be the one to respond? So, what did she say? Shiki urges. Let’s see, says Urie as he opens her message and reads it aloud: “Thank you so much for worrying about me. You may be a devil, but you’re very kind.”

“You’re very kind? Did she seriously mean that?” Mage asks, incredulous. Shiki thinks she was sincere because that’s the kind of girl she is. Urie doesn’t know how to reply when she trusts him wholeheartedly. Then how about they stump her? Shiki suggests. He could reply with, “I’d put my life on the line for you,” or something. Tell her something like, “I love you,” Mage says with a grin. He’s good at that sorta stuff, yeah?

Urie sighs in disgust and asks them to please suggest something more appropriate. The Butterfly is a sensitive creature, so he needs to send her a proper text. That said, she is a special girl… Urie murmurs to himself. He thinks it would be fine to tease her a little.

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Ritsuka’s in her bedroom when her phone chimes. Oh, she got another reply. Huh? What’s this? There’s an attachment. A sound file? When she opens it, Urie’s voice sounds. He tells her to sleep well, that he loves her, and that she’s his beloved Butterfly… Ritsuka gasps. Th-that was a surprise. Why’d he go out of his way to send her a recording like that? Geez… She’s well aware that the Student Council are messing with her but… they’ve lifted her spirits. Just a little bit. “Thank you, guys.” She hopes she can get Nii-san to see that there are good devils out there.

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The scene switches to a dark cathedral where Jek is having a pretty bad day himself. He tsks in annoyance when he hears from his subordinate how much trouble those devils are giving them. And she’s sitting inside of a rather pesky barrier? He asks. Yes, says Vampire A. Tachibana Ritsuka is currently confined within her house, which is protected by a barrier. Jek snorts. So they meant to get away from them by covering the house in a barrier? “All you have to do is burn it down.” By burn it down, he means? Vampire A hedges, confused.

Jek tells him to set the house ablaze. She’ll come racing out in a panic. Vampire A nervously says they could accidentally end up roasting the girl alive. It’s not like it’s a prison — it’s a house, Jek says with a note of amusement in his voice. There’s no iron bars or locks trapping her inside. That would be a funny story, but there’s no way someone would be unable to get out of their own house, he adds. Now hurry up and get moving. Yes, sir! Vampire A says.

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Ritsuka sighs. What day is it? Pretty soon nii-san won’t be able to excuse her absence by saying she has a cold. He’s left the house again today. His bag is still here, which means he can’t be at school. Where did he wander off to? She hopes he’s not doing something dangerous, but… There’s a noise at the front door. Huh? What was that?

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She heads down to check. “Nii-san? Are you home?” When no one responds, she wonders if she imagined it. There’s no one here. A crackling noise echoes throughout the house. What? That’s when a corner of the garden bursts into flames. A fire!? Oh no! She needs to call the fire department! Ritsuka taps on her phone, but panics. Why!? Why won’t it go through? Is her signal being jammed? Then it hits her. It can’t be!

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Outside her house, Vampire A remarks on how this is a pretty basic way of going about things, but this may be all it takes for humans. Vampire B agrees and says they won’t use any magic, though a normal fire is pretty unorthodox for them. Vampire A says all they have to do is wait for her to come out. Then they’ll capture her and bring her to Jek-sama.

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Ritsuka notices some weird men loitering outside her house. Could they be vampires? She’ll be captured if she steps outside, but she’ll be caught in the blaze if she stays! She tries to open the door again, but it’s no use. It’s locked. Neither the windows nor the door will open. She’ll be surrounded by the fire at the rate things are going… What should she do? What can she do? Before she knows it, the flames have spread around her house. Despite the fire, she sees no sign of anyone calling for a fire truck.

Was this their doing? She can’t expect anyone to rescue her from this situation, then. Oh God… What should she do!? Ritsuka begins to panic, and in her fluster, the sound of something breaking sounds behind her. She shrieks as the lights suddenly go out. But she never hit them… Something falls to the floor with a gentle tinkling sound, and Ritsuka gasps. Mom’s pendant. Did the chain break? “Mom…” Ritsuka clutches the pendant tightly in her hands. The room begins to fill with smoke and it becomes hard to breathe. Her heated skin starts to hurt.

It’s so hard to breathe… Is she going to die here? Nii-san… Mom… A loud, reverberating sound startles her, and she screams. What was that!? Someone laughs. “Oh, you poor little thing. Roasting in the flames and unable to take even a single step outside…” Huh? Ritsuka raises her head and finds Shiki standing before her. Isn’t this a little bit like torture? He asks her. “Shiki…?” Ritsuka says. “Yeah, I’ve come to save you. You must’ve been scared, huh?”

Why did he come to her rescue? Shiki doesn’t answer her. He just giggles and and says they need to hurry and get out of here or else they’ll be badly burned. Although the pain sounds rather fun… but he doesn’t think she’d be very happy about getting burned. And with that, Shiki beckons her to him. “O-okay…”

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Outside, Vampire A startles when Mage and company appear. Where’d they come from? “That’s my line buddy!” Mage says, before rushing in with a roar. He stabs him with a blade, and the Vampire cries out in agony before turning to ash. His remains fly away on a breeze. Vampire B breathlessly exclaims that he needs to report back to Jek-Sama. Before he can flee, Urie accosts him. His voice is cold and his gaze is hard.

“You hurt the lovely Butterfly. I won’t let you return to your master until I’ve punished you…” Urie brandishes his whip and, with a cry, swings it brutally down on Vampire B. He also turns to ash and is carried away on the wind. “That should be all of ’em,” says Mage. He tsks in disgust. He never thought they’d come by to burn her house down. All that’s left is to find the girl, says Urie, looking around. Ah, looks like she’s unscathed.

“Urie-san, Mage-san…” Ritsuka trails off. Yo, Mage answers. She alright? “Yes, I’m fine,” Shiki says with a smile and Mage glares at him. “I wasn’t asking you.” Urie asks Ritsuka if she’s okay. It looks like the vampires set her house on fire. Ritsuka’s face crumples. So she was right about those men… Relax, Mage tells her. They took care of them all for her. Though it looks like they’d been ordered to leave, he says with a frown. *Nobody else noticed that a fire had started. His gaze flicks back to hers. “That was a close one.”

Yeah… Ritsuka murmurs, inwardly realizing that if they hadn’t swung by she’d already be dead by now. There’s a soft sound, (I’m guessing her legs gave out here) and Shiki is there to catch her. Whoa, he says. Is she okay? It’s alright, he says, encouraging her to hold onto him for support.  S-sorry, she says weakly. He’s hurt too… Shiki tells her that he’s fine. In fact, he couldn’t ask for anything better than burning in the flames. Please don’t hope for that, Ritsuka thinks to herself.

She asks them how they knew her house wasn’t safe, and Shiki smiles and cheekily says they just knew, right? Mage doesn’t entertain him and says it was pure chance. Texting’s boring, so he figured they’d just come by her place and that’s when they saw her house go up in flames. It scared the crap outta him. So that’s what happened…

Urie cuts in to say they should get out of here for a moment. More vampires could be coming. Oh, but, her house! Ritsuka stammers, and Mage calmly tells her that he already put the fire out. Don’t worry about it, he adds. He’ll restore it back to its original state later. Come on, let’s go, says Shiki. Their main priority is calming her down. A-alright…

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“Here’s some cold tea. Can you drink it?” Shiki asks. Ritsuka politely thanks him for the beverage. He says she can press the drink against her skin if it hurts. It should help cool her down. Sure… Ritsuka follows his advice, wincing a bit. It’s cold, but it feels nice… She feels like she’s finally calmed down somewhat… Shiki then changes the subject. He found this in her house, so he’s giving it back to her now. He suggests she put it in her pocket or something and then hands it to her. The delicate sound of a chain pooling into her palms can be heard.

Ah… her pendant… Ritsuka says, inwardly thinking how close of a call it was for her. “Thank you for helping me again… I appreciate it…” Don’t mention it, Mage grumbles. Anyway, it looks like those guys will use every trick in the book, like burning her house down or something. They could be feeling pressed for time, Shiki says. They don’t have any clues leading to the Grimoire, after all. Ritsuka holds her chin in her hand as she thinks. “I never thought they’d attack me in my own home…”

Neither did he, says Urie. They’re using disgusting tactics. “By the way, Butterfly… You weren’t sick?” Uh, well that’s, Ritsuka stammers, trailing off when she can’t explain herself. Urie says he saw that the doors and windows of the house were, oddly enough, fitted with padlocks and bars. He pauses a moment before asking her what happened. Ritsuka hesitates. Can she tell them about her brother? That would be like she was betraying him…

Mage speaks up for her. They’re not gonna make her talk if she doesn’t want to, though he’s got a pretty good idea of what’s going on. Shiki giggles. “That brother of yours locking you up… sure has good taste.”

Th-they got it all wrong! Lindo was just worried about her and… That’s the result of his worry for her? Urie balks. He’s in no position to say this, being a Devil, but her brother is way too overprotective. “You… may be right…” Ritsuka reluctantly admits. But Lindo’s normally very kind. She can’t understand why he’s suddenly being so hard on her. Shiki posits that maybe her brother got angry because they had gotten close to her. Ritsuka doesn’t understand. Still, it’s almost like he’s desperate to protect her…

So desperate, in fact, that she was even a little scared of him. Ritsuka doesn’t say this part out loud though, instead falling silent. In her brother’s eyes, they’re his enemies, Shiki concludes. Enemies? Mage claps a hand to his forehead in disbelief and stares at her. That bro of hers seriously hasn’t told her? About what he is? “I think he wants to hide it from her,” Urie says. He probably doesn’t want to add to her worries. What’s that supposed to mean? Ritsuka wonders.

Shiki chuckles. Poor thing, her own brother’s keeping secrets from her. “Hey… Would you like to know? About your brother’s secret?” His secret? Ritsuka repeats. Well, it’s not fair that only their identities have been exposed, Urie agrees. “Listen well, Butterfly. Your brother is… an exorcist.” An exorcist? She asks. A person with the power to purge demons, Urie explains. In other words, a special individual who fights against vampires and devils. So they’re saying that her brother is one of these exorcists? He can’t be…

Shiki says that the protective barrier meant to ward off evil surrounding her house is proof. It looks like holy water had been sprinkled around it too. Holy Water…? So the small bottle Lindo sprinkled over their garden each morning was actually… holy water? Sure, he’d told her that he was doing that, but… Then this means he really is an exorcist? He never told her about that… Out loud, she wonders why he kept quiet about it. “Beats me,” says Mage. “It’s not like we’d know.”

Yeah… they’re right… What is Lindo hiding? Why won’t he tell her? Ritsuka wonders what’s going on. It’s like Lindo’s suddenly become a stranger… It’s kind of scary. Urie tries to calm her down by saying that all of this is largely conjecture before asking her what she plans to do now. She may be attacked by vampires again if she goes back home. Oh… Ritsuka says. But she has no where else to go, Shiki points out.

She could stay the night at Azuna’s but… she may end up dragging her friend into this whole mess. But she can’t contact Lindo either… What is she going to do? Ritsuka thinks to herself. She doesn’t want to see her brother… “For now, you should should at least stay somewhere safe tonight,” Shiki says. They could look for a place for her if she’d like. What? Ritsuka gasps. Is he sure?

“Of course,” says Urie. That being said, the vampires may be able to track down their house too. Then why don’t they take over a suitable house over in that area, Mage says. T-take over!? Ritsuka exclaims. “… I get it now,” says Urie. That may be a blind spot even for vampires. What? Ritsuka says, thoroughly confused by the sudden turn of events.

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“I never thought they’d book a room for me at a business hotel,” Ritsuka thinks to herself. Are they good on cash? They’re not seriously going to take over this place, are they? “Forgive me. I know it’s a bit cramped,” Urie apologizes, looking upset with himself. They couldn’t get anything extravagant since they’re trying to hide her. “No, no! This is fine!” Ristuka smiles and says she’s sorry they had to arrange a room for her. ”Urie’s very familiar with these kinds of places,” Shiki says knowingly.

There are several places where he’ll lounge about to talk to his butterflies, Urie responds smoothly. So this is fine then? asks Mage. “Think you can spend the night here?” Yes, she’ll be okay. Inwardly, she wonders what she should do if the vampires show up again. She brought her pendant with her, but can she fight off them all by herself?

Shiki tells her not to look so worried. Would she like him to stay with her? What? Ritsuka asks. Well, won’t she be depressed? It must be lonely… being all alone. That’s why he’ll keep her company. It would be reassuring to have him there but wouldn’t that mean he’d have to sleep in the same room as her?

“Hey now, you’re not allowed to get a head start,” Urie tells him. But if that’s the case, he believes he’s the most suited to caring for women. Mage thinks he’s the most reliable if something should happen. Oh, okay then… Ritsuka thinks to herself that it looks like she has no other choice but to sleep alone.

Urie says it would actually be alright if they were all to sleep over, but first they should probably discuss what Rem told them earlier: one of them is to be the Butterfly’s bodyguard; one of them is to report to Rem; and just to err on the side of caution, one of them needs to stand guard and watch her house. Yeah, that’s pretty much it, Mage says. So then who’s gonna stay here? Shiki thinks that should be up to Ritsuka. “Me?” she repeats. Yes, he says. Who would she like to stay with?

Once again, we’ll be choosing Urie to rack up some more affection points. Urie tells Ritsuka that it’s an honored to be chosen by her and he’s delighted to accompany her. Ritsuka smiles and thanks him for his help. Mage volunteers himself to keep watch over her house, which leaves Shiki with the job of reporting to Rem. Shiki’s absolutely thrilled by this because Ren might just scold him.

Ritsuka tells them to be careful. “Yeah, you too,” says Mage. And with that, the two of them leave the room, closing the door behind them. There they go, Ritsuka thinks to herself.  “Finally… it’s just the two of us,” Urie says. What!? Ritsuka blurts. “Wh-what is it?” Urie laughs and says she doesn’t need to be so nervous. How about they take a seat? He’ll go make some tea.

Sure… Ritsuka says, thanking him. She sits down on the bed and as he leaves to prepare their drinks, she tells herself there’s no need to worry. Urie stayed behind because he was worried about her, that’s all. “…Sorry for the wait. Drink it before it gets cold,” Urie says. Ritsuka accepts the drink and thanks him. He notices that she’s still trembling, and she realizes that he’s right. Her hands are shaking around the mug’s handle.

Urie says it’s only natural she’d be shaken up. She was alone when she was attacked in her own home. He leans toward her and says he wishes he could clear away the troubled look on her face. What could he do to help… And here we have another Human vs Devil event. It’s time to watch Ritsuka reject every single one of Urie’s advances because she has no idea what he’s trying to do lol. Smiling, Urie says that in a time like this, they should do something fun and forget about it all. “I don’t feel like it right now,” Ritsuka says.

That’s fine, he says. He can make her feel up for it. Here… Urie pins her down and Ritsuka stares up at him in shock. “How about we enjoy ourselves for a little bit? We’re all alone.” He whispers into her ear. Ritsuka takes a moment to respond, and when she finally does, she apologizes. She’s still not feeling up for it… Urie pulls back from her, stunned. Oh, so that’s a no then? He’s sorry, he thought he could get rid of her worries for her.

“Oh no, thank you very much,” she says. The shock helped change her mood. Inwardly, Ritsuka reflects on how he’s really trying to cheer her up, even if he did surprise her. Urie is a really nice guy. Urie wonders if patting her head would help her feel better since she’s feeling down. “Don’t worry about it,” Ritsuka tells him.

“You don’t need to put on a brave face. I think I have a pretty good idea of the pain you’re dealing with,” he tells her. Urie beckons her to him, saying he’ll do something better than pet her head. He’s gently holding her, Ritsuka quietly observes. Urie tells her to let him spoil her more, to close her eyes and hold onto him. He’ll embrace her, all of her.

Ritsuka wonders why it feels like her mood has lightened after being so down in the dumps. In a louder voice than before, Urie asks her if she’s calmed down a little. Yes, she says, before apologizing for making him worry. Urie frowns and says he doesn’t want her to feel sorry. He flounders for something else he could try before saying this may just be the way to lift her spirits.

What? Ritsuka startles when he moves closer to her. Urie encourages her to lean against him. It’s just the two of them here. No-one will see them. Ritsuka starts to panic, but Urie shushes her, tells her to be quiet and to relax. Wh-what should she do? She can’t help herself out of this when he’s holding her. Urie laughs and says her reaction is adorable, but she doesn’t need to worry. He’s not going to do ｗhatever it is she’s thinking he might do.

Urie asks her to look, then snaps his fingers. Ritsuka gasps. Butterflies!? Except these aren’t real ones. These butterflies appear to be made of colorful lights. “…What do you think?”

They’re very pretty! Ritsuka marvels. Urie is relieved to hear that, and says she finally smiled. Oh… Ritsuka realizes that he did all of this for her, and thanks him. “You’re very welcome,” he says with a laugh, before saying he’d like to stay like this until she’s calmed down. His hand is gentle as it combs through her hair and, gradually, she begins to relax.

Ritsuka says he’s very good at cheering up girls. But of course, especially her, he smoothly says. She giggles and calls him out. “You say that, but you’re sweet to other girls too.” Really? Well, he does like girls. He enjoys cherishing beautiful butterflies… no matter how ugly their innermost desires may be. Ritsuka is understandably confused by this last part, but she says nothing and lets him continue on about how much he loves the way their wings flutter as they fly around.

As he’s speaking, Urie reaches out and crushes one of the light-butterflies in his hand, and she gasps. The light bursts and winks out as Ritsuka stares intently at his palm. After a pause, she asks him if he actually just likes toying with girls. Why would she think that? Oh, she just thought so for some reason… “I’m sorry, I think I did something that upset you. Let’s stop talking about other butterflies.”

Ahh, he suddenly says, as if hit by an epiphany. If she wants him to love her too, he’d be happy to entertain her. What!? Ritsuka exclaims. “N-no… I’m, er, not into that sort of thing…” Urie laughs and says he was only joking. She has the cutest reactions. “A-are you making fun of me? That’s cruel…” Urie swiftly apologizes. She’s just so adorable he couldn’t help it. Ritsuka realizes he said that in an attempt to gloss over the issue, but thanks to him, she’s managed to calmed down somewhat.

A phone rings. It wasn’t hers… “It’s from Mage,” Urie says as he picks up the call and answers. She can’t hear Mage, but Urie immediately knows that something’s happened. He tells Mage he’ll be there soon. He can’t leave the Butterfly by herself, so he’s taking her with him. “See you later,” he says, before hanging up. Urie-san, what just… He explains that they won’t know anything until they get there. And that place… is her house. Her eyes widen. “Let’s go. Hold on tight, we’re going to fly.” S-sure!

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She and Urie meet up with Mage and Shiki once they return to her residence. And the scene before them has Ritsuka lost for words. “N-no…” Jek says she’s late and asks where she went. “And here your brother has been eagerly awaiting your return.” Lindo, covered in his own blood, makes a pained sound. “N…nii-san!”

“Ritsuka…! Thank God you’re… safe…” Lindo struggles to speak, gasping for breath. Urie can’t believe Jek would go so far as to rip him to shreds. “What a horrible thing to say,” Jek smirks. All they did was tell him that his little sister had burned to death in their house. He what…!? Ritsuka gasps. Jeks says it looked like the news sent her brother into shock. He was the one who locked her inside the house, wasn’t he?

*Thanks to him, he chipped his nails. Ritsuka can’t believe what she’s hearing. Mage tsks in disgust and says Jek is a good-for-nothing who uses dirty tricks. This is all her fault… she left without telling Lindo anything and now he’s… Lindo chokes out that Jek lied to him. Jek snorts. “Isn’t it your fault you were fooled in the first place?” But this is how things would be if he came home. To make matters worse, he had no idea where his precious little sister was. And against his better judgement, he even believed the words of a detestable vampire. “Bastard! I’ll never let you get away with this!” Jek looks down at Lindo. “Oh dear, it looks like this one can still talk.” 

“You’re an eyesore, so why don’t you just… die a dog’s death!!” Lindo flinches as Jek lunges for him, fingers curled into claws. That’s when Ritsuka screeches at him to stop and races straight for him. Urie tells her to stop and not to go near him, but she charges ahead. “Hmph, what an idiot,” says Jek. Huh…? Ritsuka screams as Jek snags her arm in a crushing grip.

Did she think he’d be flattered that she threw herself at him? He snarls. Ritsuka gasps in pain as he wrenches her arm up into the air. She can’t help Lindo. To Ritsuka’s horror, her pendant falls off her neck and falls to the ground. Ah, Jek croons. He’d thought he caught scent a protective charm coming from her chest… So this is where she was hiding it. But she can’t very well use it if it’s at her feet. Isn’t that a shame?

Lindo weakly tells Jek not to touch his sister. *“Oh dear, you’re still holding on?” Jek says. This girl must be very important to him. That’s too bad. He’s taking her back with him so he can get information of the Grimoire’s whereabouts out of her. “I’m not letting you go so easily,” Urie tells him in a grave voice. She is very important to all of them. Like hell they’re letting a vampire like him steal her away, Mage snaps.

Hmph, Jek snorts. She may get hurt. Is that really alright with them? Ritsuka can feel Jek’s nails biting into the skin of her neck. Mage asks if he really thinks his threat’s gonna work. “S-stop… Please, don’t,” Lindo implores them. Mage frowns and looks down at him. Nii-san, Ritsuka thinks to herself. Lindo continues to beg that they don’t hurt his little sister, sparking pity even in Shiki. Battered as he is, he’s worried for his sister, Shiki murmurs.

That much is clear even if he weren’t begging them in his condition, Urie says before telling him they won’t let any harm come to her. Lindo gasps in surprise at his words. Mage curses. It pisses him off, but as long as that asshole has a hostage, they can’t lay a hand on him. “You… guys…” Lindo croaks. “Everyone,” Ritsuka thinks to herself.

Jek cackles with delight. Their hands are tied. Oh, this is too good. He gears himself up for an attack. While they can’t move, he’ll shred them all to ribbons! Jek’s long nails make contact with Mage first, then Urie, and Ritsuka cries out in horror for her friends. “Don’t you move!” Jek roars at her. “Hey, it’s your turn now!” Jek attacks Shiki (who doesn’t moan with ecstasy for once lol) and then Lindo.

Ritsuka screams. At this rate, they’re all going to — “Please don’t worry about me! Just take this guy down, quickly!” Lindo asks her what she’s saying. There’s no way he could do something… like that! Shit… Mage says. Don’t get too cocky! Jek smirks. They won’t move. “Try any funny business and I’ll chop off this little girl’s fingers one by one.”

Urie thinks his methods are deplorable. Who on earth was it that boasted about vampires being such noble creatures? Jek won’t fall for those weak provocations. Everything they do is for their Vampire King, Nesta-sama… If he returns with the girl and their corpses in tow, his King will be pleased with him! Jek strikes again, and an arc of blood rises into the air as his nails slice through Urie. Ritsuka screams at him to stop, and Jek rounds on her.

Don’t struggle, he snarls and his grip on her tightens painfully. It hurts… but she can endure this… Rituska begs everyone to please get out of here. “I just told ya we can’t do that!” Mage yells back. They’re going to get her back, Shiki says through the pain. Why… Ritsuka despairs. It’s useless and they’re getting so badly wounded. “… Butterfly…” Urie rasps.

Hmph, how unsightly. It’s insane that devils would be doing all of this for one mere, human girl. He’ll finish them off so they don’t have to degrade their miserable selves any longer. No, don’t! Ritsuka screams. Stop it! Jek draws his arm back and tells them to die. Ritsuka closes her eyes and braces herself. “Everyone!”

“By the Sacred Name, pledge to me…” A voice murmurs. What? Ritsuka opens her eyes and finds Lindo chanting something. “O ye who lurk in the darkness, from here forevermore… begone!”

It happened in an instant. The screen goes white and an emblem briefly flashes across, before Jek gasps and Ritsuka screams. “Kuhh… This is!?” Urie exclaims. What!? What is this? “You bastard!” Jek yells and his grip on Ritsuka’s arm slackens. Urie tells her to come to him and she seizes her chance. Jek roars at her not to run, but before he can catch her, Lindo intercepts him with a sword raised high in the air.

They collide with a metallic clash. An ice weapon!? Jek says, stunned that Lindo can move so well in his battered state. Panting for air, Lindo vows never to hand over his little sister. “Don’t play with me!” Jek snaps before raking him with his nails. Nii-san!? Ritsuka cries. Shiki stops her from running to him. If she goes back to him now, things would be bad. But…!

Between breaths, Lindo addresses the devils. “Take my sister… and run!” He begs them to get her out of there and to protect her at all costs. “You…” Mage says, stunned. Nii-san, Ritsuka murmurs. Jek lunges for Lindo. He’s always getting on his nerves! His hit connects hard with Lindo’s back, and he cries out in agony. Ritsuka loses it and starts screaming for her brother. “No, you mustn’t go to him!” Urie yells. But Lindo’s…. Lindo is!

“Die!” Jek roars, leaping again at Lindo. Ritsuka looks on in horror. He’s… in danger… “Stop,” she croaks, and it’s enough to make Jek pause. “I said stop!” Ritsuka tells him, and something stirs the air. Butterfly!? Urie gasps. Lindo seems to realize what’s happening, whirling around to face her. “…Stop what you’re doing! If you unleash that, you’ll –“ he says, but Ritsuka doesn’t listen to him and belts out a blood-curdling screech at them to stop.

Everything goes white, blindingly so. Jek screams in terror and demands to know what this power is. Mage asks the same thing, while Shiki stares at her in shock as she continues to scream. “Could she…?”

✞———————❖———————✞ 

The scene abruptly changes to the school hallway Ren is currently strolling down. He halts in his tracks. “This is the… Forbidden Grimoire’s power!” 

✞———————❖———————✞ 

As power continues to burst out of Ritsuka, Urie tries to get her to calm down. But she won’t. She’s a monster, Jek says before he takes a step back. Mage instantly notices. “Hey, wait!!” It’s unfortunate, but he must take his leave. He’s finally found it… the Forbidden Grimoire! He never could’ve imagined it was hiding inside that girl. Lindo tsks, looking forlornly down at the floor.

The Forbidden… Grimoire? Ritsuka thinks to herself. Jek starts laughing like a maniac because he can’t believe that’s where it was hiding all along. He’s going to take it and present it to their King, Nesta-sama! That bastard! Mage growls. Don’t go! Ritsuka, meanwhile, is utterly confused. What do they mean, the Grimoire was hiding inside of her? Her mind goes hazy and… she doesn’t understand anything anymore… Ritsuka crumples to the floor.

“Butterfly!? Stay with me!” Urie says. ”Hey, what the hell is going on here? That was definitely the…” Mage trails off, but Shiki finishes his sentence for him. “The Forbidden Grimoire…” Lindo weakly says Ritsuka’s name before collapsing. Mage rushes over to him, telling him to hang on. Urie warns them that they can’t linger here for long. Let’s go back to the third library. All of this is giving Shiki the shivers. They’re in big trouble now.

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Translation Notes

A lot’s been going on in my personal life, so thank you for your patience. I haven’t had much time to study because of this so my skills have gotten rusty. If anything sticks out to you as incorrect please let me know. I’ll need to hit the books again after this chapter. And a huge thank you to all of the amazing translators for the anime because I would not be able to translate Lindo’s exorcist lines in this lifetime 😂 Some of the lines were a little different than the ones in the game, but I was easily able to figure out what he was saying after.

*「レムの野郎も形無しじゃねえか」I believe Mage’s saying that Rem’s reputation was ruined in front of his father.

*「ああ、魔力を使わない。普通の火が相手じゃ結果も型なしだ.」 I don’t understand how 結果も型なし functions here. I found 型にはまらない, which means unorthodox, and a blog entry concerning the two.

**いつっ。。。照明が落ちてきた。。。直撃はしなかったけど。。。。 My understanding is that the lights either went out all of a sudden/crashed to the floor and she’s confused because nothing hit them.

* When Mage is talking about how no one saw the fire consuming Ritsuka’s house, he’s specifically referring to other humans, highlighting once again the differences between them.

*お陰で、私の爪でぐっさり。I’m pretty sure he’s talking about how his nails were broken during his fight with Rem and he’s taking it out on Lindo in this scene. I can’t seem to find much so I’m honestly at a loss. I wouldn’t google image it yourself, but I found lots of broken nails and this seems so much more fitting in this context. Please let me know if I’m wrong, I’d love to improve.

*死に損ない Is an expression for someone who managed to escape death. I did my best to translate it given the context it was in.

とんでもないことになってきたみたい When things have gone horribly wrong, essentially.

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