Huh.
You show up.
Hm?
Why the heck did you just take a photo of me?
Huh?
Um...
Well, you said you were a ghost, didn't you?
True.
That's what I am.
You know, you're way more unique than you look.
I like you!
What's going on?
What the hell is that?!
An idol to an elder god?
Ah, what a spectacular new view!
Landlord?
I hit the jackpot with this block!
Thanks to that new tourist attraction, I'm turning this place into a luxury hotel.
Forcible eviction is in the terms of your contract, so I hope there are no hard feelings.
What?!
You have forty seconds to pack your things and get out.
Or else...
This is the city where reality and fantasy coexist: Hellsalem's Lot.
And we comprise the secret society of superhumans who work in the shadows to preserve the balance of the worlds.
We are Libra.
This is the chronicle of our clandestine activities.
tobira hirakeba nejireta hiru no yoru
Behind the door lies the twisted night of a twisted day
tobira hirakeba nejireta hiru no yoru
kinou dou yatte kaetta? karada dake ga tashika
How did I get home last night? My own body's all I'm sure of
kinou dou yatte kaetta? karada dake ga tashika
ohayou kore kara mata maigo no tsuzuki
I'll be off again tomorrow, losing myself as always
ohayou kore kara mata maigo no tsuzuki
minareta shiranai keshiki no naka de
in this familiar but alien scenery
minareta shiranai keshiki no naka de
mou dame tte omotte kara wari to nandaka yareteru
Once I thought I was done for, things started working out
mou dame tte omotte kara wari to nandaka yareteru
shinikiranai kurai ni joubu nanka chotto hazukashii
It seems like death won't touch me, it's a bit embarrassing really
shinikiranai kurai ni joubu nanka chotto hazukashii
yarubeki koto wa wasuretete mo wakaru
I couldn't forget my duty even if I wanted to
yarubeki koto wa wasuretete mo wakaru
sou shinai to totemo kurushii kara
This pain serves as a constant reminder
sou shinai to totemo kurushii kara
kao wo agete kono yume no hi to
I look up, and the dream that smolders within me
kao wo agete kono yume no hi to
kimi ga mita kara hikari wa umareta
mixes with my memories of you to light me from within
kimi ga mita kara hikari wa umareta
eranda iro de nutta sekai ni kakomarete
When the whole world is painted the colors you chose,
eranda iro de nutta sekai ni kakomarete
erabenai kizu no imi wa doko darou
do the scars inflicted by others hold any meaning?
erabenai kizu no imi wa doko darou
gojibun dake ga hero sekai no mannaka de
I'm the only hero in this story
gojibun dake ga hero sekai no mannaka de
owaru made dezuppari stage no ue
I have to stay on stage until the curtain falls
owaru made dezuppari stage no ue
doushiyou karappo no furi mo dekinai
What should I do? I can't pretend to be hollow anymore
doushiyou karappo no furi mo dekinai
hello doumo boku wa koko
Hello world, here I am
hello doumo boku wa koko
Hello world, here I am
hello doumo boku wa koko
Blood Blockade Battlefront
hello doumo boku wa koko
Blood Blockade Battlefront
What's all this, Gilbert?
It seems his landlord has evicted all his tenants in order to convert the building into a luxury hotel.
Shouldn't we be giving him more for living expenses?
I mean, isn't he sending home most of the money he gets delivering pizzas?
I proposed that very same thing to him,
but it seems he'd rather not accept more than our usual basic pay.
He's pretty scrupulous, huh?
You've got quite a bit of blood on you.
Some strung-out punk picked a fight with me.
He came at me like a madman.
I definitely slashed his carotid artery,
but somehow he didn't die.
Was he human?
Yeah, judging from the way he came apart.
I see.
I've never heard of any drug that can let someone survive near-decapitation, though.
Is that right?
Huh?
A new, state-of-the-art synthetic drug. Temporarily alters human physiology, increasing perceptual sensitization, muscular strength, reflexive agility, and resilience.
This whole thing reeks of money.
Rumor has it that a single gram is going for tens of thousands of zehros.
It's even worse if you can manage to smuggle it to the outside.
Speaking of which,
take a look at this.
Ow!
That was from the outside, wasn't it?
That's correct, shit-monkey.
You don't gotta call me "shit-monkey" all the damn time. That your idea of courtesy?!
This doesn't bode well.
To start with, Chain, you check out the mob angle.
Understood.
Zapp, see what you can find on the dealers.
Got it.
Does that sound good to you, Klaus?
Well done, Yamakawa.
I resign.
You sure love that game, huh?
Huh?
What's up?
Fuck, he ain't breathing!
What do we do, Gilbert?!
Goodness.
Indeed, that was a fine game.
Don't you die on me, Leo!
If you die, it'll be my fault!
Don't die, damn it!
It's all over if you do!
Come on!
All right, then.
Damn it!
Dismissed, everyone.
At least wake up and say it's not my freakin' fault, Leo!
Stay in touch.
A Game between Two Worlds
Although we did our best to search for any information we could,
we couldn't come up with a single clue about the trafficking routes of Angel Scale.
Things are starting to point to someplace deep underground, huh?
There's a pretty good chance they went into hiding, yeah.
After all, that footage of the prez definitely got around in the underworld.
I suppose we'll have to go even deeper, then.
Any deeper, and we'll be in the Otherworld!
K.K.!
My, Klausie!
You certainly kept me waiting!
Are you hurt?
Oh?
You were worried about me? That makes me so happy!
You are truly the only one who worries about me like this, Klausie.
Most of humanity is far weaker than you.
It's no surprise.
Still, no matter how strong you are, you are a lady.
If ever you're in danger, you can count on me.
What are you saying?
There's no place more dangerous than where we're headed right now.
Grandmaster Ulchenko!
What are you doing near this place?
Who are you?
I should have introduced myself first.
I am Klaus von Reinherz.
Who are you?
Please get away from here at once.
This is no place for a normal human like you...
You have the wrong person.
Now excuse me.
You heard him.
This is absurd.
Welcome, my friend.
I am very pleased to see you are in good health, Klaus.
It has been a long time, Don Arlelelle.
Arlelelle Eruca Fulgrouche...
One of the most prominent bosses of the Otherworld.
Under normal circumstances, he'd never grant people like us an audience.
However...
I am impressed you made it this far, my new friend.
Thank you.
Well then, let us begin, my human visitors.
...he is an unparalleled prosfair fan!
Come!
Let us enjoy this miraculous game!
Blood Blockade Battlefront
It really is a beautiful game.
A chess-based board game originating from the Otherworld. Enjoys avid players in both the Otherworld and the human world. Marked by its highly versatile rules, which change to match the skill levels of the competitors. Has also attracted a large number of collectors, due to the artistic value of the pieces themselves.
There is artistry in its endless complexity.
Its intrigue is on par with chess.
However, I've done my fair share of research on prosfair...
all for this day!
Please wait a moment!
Don Arlelelle.
Do you mean to play two matches today?
That's right.
Mr. Ulchenko is an asset to humanity.
If he should happen to lose his mind,
it would be a tremendous loss to our world!
Please dissuade him from—
Whoa, now.
Please stop talking as though I'm not standing right here.
I came here fully aware of the possible outcomes.
So would you kindly cease overstepping your bounds?
Moreover, what makes you assume that I'm going to lose?
I can say this dispassionately and without any vanity:
there is no other human who's as good at this game as I am.
That's what I like to hear.
Mr. Ulchenko!
Enough!
Just one last thing!
I advise you to forget about trying to checkmate him.
Your advice is not to win?
That makes absolutely no sense.
That idiot!
It's like he has no clue what he's gotten into!
If you just wanna play some game, go do it in some café in Paris or whatever!
Tell me...
Are you worried about him, Klausie?
I desire...
nuclear weapons for my country.
Nine hours.
He'll be fine!
He's, like, a chess grandmaster, isn't he?
Your request is worth a game of nine hours.
If you can last that long, force a draw, or of course, defeat me,
then you win.
I'm not trying to show you off here,
but you've come out of there alive four times already, haven't you?
If you win,
I promise to grant your request.
I...
did not once come out of there a winner.
One more thing.
The man and woman from just now...
I'd like you to dispose of them.
It would be a problem if my visit here became public knowledge, you see.
Hmm...
He is not the sort of man who'd tell others of what happens here, though.
All I could do was hold out for the allotted time...
and make it out of there by the skin of my teeth.
But as you wish.
I will include your additional request and extend the time to ten hours.
However, should you lose,
I will take the rest of your life.
In prosfair,
as the competition intensifies, so, too, does the complexity.
Furthermore, as time passes,
the level of difficulty rises exponentially.
Third Rank, complete.
Battle Tower, expand.
When I advised Mr. Ulchenko to forget about checkmate,
it wasn't empty rhetoric.
What's going on?
It's gotten a bit too hot in here...
hasn't it?
What's more, I truly believe...
that when it comes to prosfair,
no human will ever beat him!
Mr. Ulchenko!
Indeed, you came very close.
It's a shame that I checkmated you with only two minutes to go.
Still, I'm grateful.
A chance meeting between our two worlds like this is an event to be welcomed.
Now, as agreed upon,
I shall take the rest of your life.
I ask that you forgive my grave discourtesy.
I have a humble request:
please put off your agreement until after our match!
No chance in hell...
is what I'd say to anyone else,
but you and I are on our own special terms.
Now then, I shouldn't be too unkind,
so...
Ninety-nine hours.
If you entertain me for that long, I'll spare him.
I accept.
Well? What is your other, real request?
I'd like information on the sources and trafficking routes of Angel Scale.
I thought that might be it.
Honestly, why is it that every time you make a request,
it always involves some critical issue of current world affairs?
Sorry about that, my old friend.
Don't mention it.
By now, I consider it a sort of ritual of ours to produce a miraculous game of prosfair with a sense of tension.
Once you play me for ninety-nine hours, I'll fulfill that request as well.
He set him up!
That geezer was really after Klaus from the beginning!
Why hasn't he come out yet?
What a silly question.
Because he hasn't lost, of course.
That monster said it's spent 1,200 years just playing prosfair.
And that man is playing against something like that for ninety-nine hours, without a single break?
What the hell is he?
How is he competing against that monster?
He is Klaus von Reinherz,
our mighty leader,
a gentleman without peer.
He's an almost brutally headstrong man armed with a beast-like vitality.
I raise my Armed Demon to Level 14 and have it take your Corpse Knight.
I put my Shock Troops on Malice Level 55.
No. 19 Apostate turns No. 7 Insurgent into Chaotic Battle formation.
Oath. Rank Phase, complete.
Battlefield, released. Berserker.
It's been a long time since I've had the chance to use this piece.
By my estimation,
my offensive will continue, at the very least, for the next thirty-six hours.
Don't let it break you, Klaus.
Understood.
I shall confront you with everything I have.
This man is an interesting one, all right.
He wagered his own life without the slightest hesitation,
all to protect that guy.
Moreover,
the information he's after is so important that it could very well influence the fate of the entire world.
How can he pile on risk after risk so casually?
It's quite irrational.
I don't understand.
Humans are baffling.
Do you regret doing this?
Not one bit.
Why not?
All I can say is that I made my mind up not to.
Hmm...
Everything has been considered carefully.
Klaus,
you're putting your life on the line to try to save that Ulchenko man...
but in my match with him, he asked me for something without a second thought:
to eliminate you.
It's absolutely ridiculous...
don't you think so, Klaus von Reinherz?
You really want to save someone like that?
People are weak.
Sometimes, because of that weakness, they behave in ways devoid of self-respect.
But so what, my old friend?
Even if I am burdened with a thousand setbacks,
that is no reason for me to debase...
my own way of life!
Klaus!
As agreed upon, I shall tell you the trafficking routes of Angel Scale.
And, Ulchenko, you are free to go.
Raid the following locations, and capture everyone inside!
Hit them with all you've got before they see it coming!
Got it?!
And tell them that if they fuck this up,
I'll kill every last one of them!
As for where Mr. Klaus got that intel,
it seems that even the other members don't know for sure.
When I randomly wondered aloud whether it had something to do with that game,
everyone completely ignored me.
Well, you know...
anything can happen in a world like this one.
"Anything can happen in a world like this one."
It's even possible...
to become friends with a cute girl out of the blue.
You kept this one?
I'm touched!
What is it?
Huh?
Nothing!
Do you like those?
They're not even interesting, though.
They are very interesting.
I've been stuck here for three whole years, you know...
without anything to do.
Just having someone to talk to other than my big brother makes me happy.
I see.
What is it?
Oh, it's nothing.
These photos are great.
You think so?
Thank you.
You must have sharp eyes, huh?
Yeah, actually...
better than 20/10 in both eyes.
I knew it!
choutenpenchii mitai na kyousou ni mo narete
I've gotten used to this cataclysmic competition
konna nichijou wo heiwa to mimachigau
I sometimes mistake these insane days for peace
ranburin kosuta yusaburenagara
As I'm jolted around by this crazy roller coaster
miushinaenai mono wa nan da
I wonder what it was I had to keep my sight set on
byoudousei genrishugi no gainen ni nomarete
Fundamental equalism became the norm for me
kokoro made ga maru de etosetora
Down to my heart, nothing really matters
daikirai daisuki chanto shaberanakya
Love or hate, I've got to spell it out
ningyou to sashite kawaranai shi
Or else I'd be no better than a puppet
yo ni machi wo yuku hito dake ni
For the people who stroll the city at night,
ureshisou dattari sabishisou dattari
sometimes happy, sometimes lonely,
kontorasuto ga gosenpu wo tobimawari
the contrast dances around the score
uta to rizumu ni naru
and turns into rhythm and music
mamaredo no shugasongu
Marmalade sugar song
pinatsu ando bitasuteppu
Peanuts and bitter step
amakute nigakute me ga mawarisou desu
Sometimes sweet, sometimes bitter, it makes your head spin
nannansei wo mezashite paati wo tsuzukeyou
Let's keep partying, headed for south-southwest
sekaijuu wo odorokasete shimau yoru ni naru
We'll make this a night the whole world will remember
i feel joujou rensa ni natte rifurekuto
I feel great! Reflect that smile around like a chain reaction
mamaredo no shugasongu
Marmalade sugar song
pinatsu ando bitasuteppu
Peanuts and bitter step
amakute nigakute me ga mawarisou desu
Sometimes sweet, sometimes bitter, it makes your head spin
nannansei wo mezashite paati wo tsuzukeyou
Let's keep partying, headed for south-southwest
sekaijuu wo odorokasete shimau yoru ni naru
We'll make this a night the whole world will remember
i feel joujou rensa ni natte rifurekushon
I feel great! Reflect that smile around like a chain reaction
douzo ikkyou satte ichinan satte mata ikkyou
Come on! Jump outta the frying pan, into the fire, and back into the pan again!
Where is one's greatest foe?
"The greatest foe lies within."
I bet that's what people think.
But that's all wrong.
The enemy always comes at you from without.
Never let your guard down!
Someone you'd never expect will be coming for you today.
Next time on Blood Blockade Battlefront:
"Bloodline Fever"!
What's the point of introducing myself?
You already know my name, don't you?