Help! I am bound to Aizen!-Chapter 202

Chapter 202

Long chapter again.

--------------

Amid the Shinigami’s excited cheers, several figures used Shunpo to appear at Love’s side.

“Captain Aikawa,” said Kuchiki Sōjun the moment he landed, unrolling a document. “By order of the Captain-Commander, Kaelith of the Second Division is hereby appointed as lead officer in the current Quincy incident. All Shinigami on site are to obey his commands!”

Love blinked, then nodded vigorously. “Got it!”

Lead officer for the Quincy incident…

Typically, events of this scale would be overseen personally by the Captain-Commander. Everyone else would just execute orders, without final authority.

A seemingly simple title, but it carried significant weight behind the scenes.

Nearby, Yamada Seinosuke scanned the area. “Where are the wounded? Take me to them.”

Two Shinigami rushed over to guide him.

Aizen, meanwhile, observed the Quincy from a distance with an unreadable expression.

So these are the Quincy…

He knew Kaelith had spent the past days locked in combat with a Quincy girl. That Kaelith had pushed himself so hard to learn how to fight them showed just how wary he was of them.

Interesting. Let’s see how powerful these Quincy truly are.

Crossing his arms, Aizen thought of his ongoing research into Quincy—how he had discovered their fatal weaknesses—and pictured Kaelith kneeling, begging for details of those breakthroughs.

The sourc𝗲 of this content is freēwēbηovel.c૦m.

He shook his head, banishing the bizarre fantasy. It was just like Kaelith to conjure such ridiculous scenes.

Irritated, Aizen placed his hand on his Zanpakutō’s hilt and headed in Kaelith’s direction.

…

Within minutes, Kaelith had already knocked out seventy or eighty Quincy.

Regardless of whether they used spirit bows or various Gintō spells, none of them could so much as scratch him.

A group of over twenty Quincy charged in with their Seele Schneiders, determined to overwhelm Kaelith in close combat.

Kaelith laughed aloud. Widening his stance, he spun in place.

His twin blades Rixiang Jimie, trailing long chains and wreathed in blue flames, whirled in a deafening roar.

The Quincy cried out, pulled helplessly into the vortex of flames, their screams echoing across the battlefield.

Seeing Kaelith’s fervor intensify, Ishida Sōken finally could not stand idle.

“Please stop!” he shouted, raising his bow and launching an arrow at Kaelith.

Unlike the others, Sōken’s arrow was beyond merely “fast.” It seemed to rip a hole through space, streaking directly for Kaelith’s back. He had infused it with a potent technique, lethal enough in flight, but designed to dissipate upon reaching Kaelith—Sōken still hoped for a peaceful resolution.

Yet as the arrow neared its disappearing point, Sōken gaped in astonishment: Kaelith suddenly spun around and caught the arrow in his palm with a crisp smack.

Sōken’s mind reeled.

He had never seen anyone casually pluck his arrow out of the air. Maybe Haschwalth could do that, but this young Shinigami didn’t look two centuries old. Where on earth did he get such power?

Who is this kid, anyway?

Kaelith glanced at the arrow in his hand and gave a short laugh.

“After all that fuss, at least this arrow’s not bad.”

He crushed the reishi arrow with a casual squeeze, then reeled in his chains with a rattling clang, resting one blade on his shoulder as he eyed the Quincy around him. Finally, his gaze settled on Ishida Sōken.

A grin tugged at Kaelith’s lips.

“Don’t look at me like that.”

“I’m just here for a proper negotiation.”

“If I’d walked in talking about peace, would you have listened this intently?”

A lone Shinigami stood, stripped to the waist, gripping twin blades wreathed in blue flame. He surveyed the field like a sovereign looking down on his subjects.

Hundreds of Quincy found themselves momentarily speechless.

Kaelith felt a twinge of disappointment.

Before coming to the World of the Living, he’d assumed these Quincy—while perhaps weaker than the Wandenreich—would at least show some vestige of the empire’s prowess.

But once the fighting started, it became clear that they were woefully undertrained.

Most of them were no stronger than run-of-the-mill Shinigami troopers, like the sort Ichigo Kurosaki could cut down a dozen at once in the early days. A small portion were “elite,” but only in the sense of being slightly tougher grunts. Barely ten of them reached the level of a low-ranked Seated Officer.

When Kaelith thought it through, though, it made sense.

On the Shinigami side, there was a complete education system, with rigorous training at every level. Even the less talented were molded by this intensive environment, becoming professional warriors.

But the Quincy here lived in a modern society. They held ordinary jobs, they had lives to maintain. Their combat growth and training largely relied on whatever their families managed to pass down.

A grandfather taught a father, a father taught a son. Once the lessons were complete, that was it. They neither had extra time nor the right conditions to hone their skills. It was little wonder so many of them flailed when facing true combat.

Kaelith swept his gaze over the crowd. Of those present, only three could be considered genuine threats: the old man in front of him, and two others lurking among the ranks. Even after all that chaos, those two still hadn’t lifted a finger.

He couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. Kensei—at least he was a Captain—and he’d still been taken down by these novices. How embarrassing.

Under so many watchful eyes, Kaelith gave his Zanpakutō a quick spin, reverting it to its sealed form before sliding it back into its scabbard. Then he raised his voice:

“By order of Captain-Commander Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni! From this day forward, Quincy are strictly prohibited from slaying Hollows unless it’s a true emergency of self-defense! And if you do encounter Hollows, you are to report immediately to the stationed Shinigami in your district!”

Aizen stepped up beside him, picking up where Kaelith left off.

“In addition, the number of newborn children must not exceed the current death rate among your population.”

“All Quincy must abide by these three points,” Kaelith added, clapping his hands together.

“That’s it! If you have any objections, state them now. Otherwise, sign the contract right here and now.”

He cast a quick glance at the crowd. “But let me warn you: if anyone breaks the agreement after signing, we won’t be talking next time—we’ll be destroying.”

At Kaelith’s words, the Quincy all shifted uncomfortably. Ishida Sōken opened his mouth as if to protest but then hesitated.

Considering the disparity in power, these rules—harsh though they sounded—were actually quite lenient.

He turned a wary eye toward his “two teammates,” the ones he feared more than the Shinigami themselves:

Minomura Toshiki and Inoue Shōji.

They were leaders among the Quincy in the World of the Living before Sōken had even fled the Wandenreich for Soul Society. Both had decent strength, and neither had witnessed the real might of the Gotei 13. Their ignorance often led them to make rash decisions.

Sōken braced himself, expecting them to demand an all-out battle. But to his surprise, neither spoke up right away. Instead, they exchanged a glance, and Minomura cleared his throat.

“Shinigami, your strength is undeniable. A drawn-out conflict benefits neither side. Signing a contract may indeed be the best solution.”

“However,” he continued, “before we sign, I’d like to confirm your identity. Do you truly have the right to represent the Soul Society?”

Kaelith didn’t even get a chance to respond before Aizen bristled at the perceived insult.

Shing!

Aizen drew his Zanpakutō in one swift motion, leveling the blade at the Quincy. He stepped forward, placing himself between Kaelith and the crowd.

“How dare you speak so rudely to Kaelith-sama!” Aizen snapped.

“Kaelith-sama is the direct disciple of Captain-Commander Yamamoto and the supreme authority in this incident. By the Captain-Commander’s decree, he has full power over all Quincy in the World of the Living!”

Most of the Quincy, seeing Aizen’s drawn sword, instinctively focused on the glimmering steel. Kaelith, however, felt his heart skip a beat.

Aizen’s movement had been so quick that Kaelith hadn’t even reacted. Had Aizen not stepped in front of him, he might’ve been caught by Kyōka Suigetsu’s hypnotic release.

Kaelith regarded Aizen’s back with a faint grin. As an “advisor,” Aizen had acted cold and distant, seemingly uninterested in his post. But apparently, he did enjoy the position enough to protect Kaelith from friendly fire—if only to maintain appearances.

Seeing neither Minomura nor Inoue speak, Aizen pointed his Zanpakutō elsewhere, adopting a stance that said he would fight for the sake of his commander’s honor if they dared question Kaelith further. Confronted with that silent threat, none of the Quincy uttered a word.

Sensing the tension, Minomura quickly intervened. “No need for that, sir. We only wanted to be certain. If he truly is the prized disciple of the Captain-Commander, then indeed he has the authority to sign a binding contract.”

Kaelith grinned. “Aizen, stand down. Mind your manners.”

“Yes, sir.”

Aizen lowered the blade to his side—though he didn’t sheathe it—and took a place behind Kaelith.

Inoue Shōji smiled faintly. He and Minomura locked eyes again, seeming to share some plan. Then Minomura turned to Kaelith.

“In that case, Kaelith, as you say, let’s go sign this contract.”

With a satisfied nod, Kaelith said, “Great. A wise man knows when to yield. Lead the way!”

Their group moved toward the center of the Quincy encampment, where a few tables had been set up—makeshift desks for the three Quincy leaders. Presumably, this was where they would finalize the signing.

From a distance, Love Aikawa stared in disbelief.

Seriously? After all that standoff, the Quincy are suddenly giving in just because Kaelith beat them up?

If I’d known it was that simple, I’d have used Bankai ages ago… Eh, who am I kidding…

Beside him, Kuchiki Sōjun looked both regretful and relieved. “Kaelith handled a huge crisis with ease, as always. It’s just a shame we didn’t get the chance to fight.”

Unlike them, Yamada Seinosuke furrowed his brow, suspecting something was off. After a few seconds of deliberation, he blurted, “Hey, Kuchiki, does this remind you of the scene the troopers described when Kensei was ambushed?”

Kuchiki Sōjun froze, and Love’s eyes went wide.

Now that Yamada mentioned it… if this were any other Lieutenant or even a Captain negotiating in the middle of the enemy forces, they’d all be on guard. But Kaelith’s sheer confidence had lulled them into assuming nothing could go wrong.

“That’s bad… This could be a trap! Hurry, we have to go help him!”