Seraph of the End 7: Guren Ichinose: Catastrophe at Sixteen

Seraph of the End 7: Guren Ichinose: Catastrophe at Sixteen (終わりのセラフ7 一瀬グレン、16歳の破滅) is the seventh and final book of the prequel Seraph of the End: Guren Ichinose: Catastrophe at Sixteen light novel series and ninth novel overall to Seraph of the End, written by Takaya Kagami and illustrated by Yamato Yamamoto.

Unlike the first six volumes which had two combined into one, it was released on its own, single novel in English instead of omnibus format published by Vertical.

Characters
List of characters in order of appearance:
 * Guren Ichinose
 * Shinya Hīragi
 * Norito Goshi
 * Mito Jūjō
 * Sayuri Hanayori
 * Shigure Yukimi
 * Noya Hienma
 * Shinoa Hīragi
 * Shikama Dōji
 * Saitō
 * Yūichirō Hyakuya
 * Mahiru Hīragi
 * Kureto Hīragi
 * Aoi Sangū
 * Ferid Bathory

Chapter 1 - Kill on Sight
There are two days left until the end of the world. Guren, Shinya, Goshi, Mito, Shigure, and Sayuri are all in a minivan. Guren contemplates what others would do if they knew the world was going to end and wonders how the world will end on Christmas day. With the help of his friends, he hopes to prevent the end of the world and put a stop to Mahiru, as she is playing a large role in what is to come.

He phones Mahiru and agrees to cooperate with her and betray the Hīragis. Mahiru teases Guren and says he is too late, and Guren gets concerned that Mahiru has lost interest in him. They then tell each other they love one another. Mahiru is happy because the call is being tapped, so the Hīragis will be aware of Guren's betrayal- which also means the betrayal of the Ichinose family. Mahiru laughs and tells Guren she loves him. Mahiru figures out that his friends were listening in on the call, which makes her happy because that means Guren's friends also want to betray the Hīragis, so the Goshi and Jūjō clans will also join in the revolt against the Hīragis. Realizing he has been played by her, Guren also becomes aware that some of the information that Mahiru has given them about other clans betraying the Hīragis may or may not be true. The situation with the Hīragi family being betrayed has led to lack of trust, which was not good with a war going on.

Goshi and Mito both get phone calls relating to them possibly betraying the Hīragi family. Guren continues to talk on the phone to Mahiru and tells her he will persuade Goshi and Mito to get their families to join Mahiru. Although he asks to meet up with her, Guren is told Mahiru is busy and it is a secret what she is doing, but it involves killing Kureto. Mahiru says she will contact him once she has killed Kureto then ends the call.

A car chase then ensues with Goshi at the wheel of the minivan and Shinya defending them from twenty enemies behind them. Goshi and Mito keep receiving calls from their families, and Guren tries to reassure them that their families won't be hurt. Goshi says if he wasn't with Guren he would have already stopped the car, and Mito says that the world is going to be destroyed the day after tomorrow anyway. Receiving a phone call from Sayuri's father, Guren is asked if he is really in the rebellion of the Hīragis and what are his orders for the Emperor's Moon. After Guren confirms that it is true, Sayuri's father is happy because the day of revenge has come sooner than he thought. Goshi is directed by Guren to pick up speed as the enemies are gaining on them. Guren hears the battle in Aichi has already begun in the background of his phone call with Sayuri's dad. Hanging up the phone, with Sayuri wanting to know what her father said, Guren replies that he is pleased and Sayuri smiles. The members of the Emperor's Moon can finally take revenge for the death of Sakae Ichinose, Guren's father.

Goshi then drives through a red light on Shinya orders, and Guren protects the unconscious Shinoa with his cursed weapon from an enemy attack. Guren jumps out killing five enemies, still holding Shinoa. The rest of the group follow Guren in leaving the minivan and Goshi carries Shinoa.

Chapter 2 - Shinoa on the Twenty-Third
Shinoa speaks to Shikama Dōji in the world within her heart. Telling her that he will protect her from the destruction of the world, Shikama Doji adds that in eight years she will meet someone to direct her desires at. Accepting him, Shinoa remembers the human experimentation she underwent, and learns that Mahiru took on Shikama Dōji to protect her. He claims that Shinoa can take on as many demons as she wants without being controlled, and that she can build impenetrable walls around her heart, but she refuses to believe him.

It has just turned December 24th when she wakes up to a bloodbath in the real world, then saves Goshi’s life with Shikama Dōji. With her help, the situation improves immensely, and Goshi casts a powerful “Christmas Eve” illusion, causing the soldiers to hallucinate about things like being alone on Christmas, and Santa being their father. Guren gets a message from Mahiru and they retreat. Shinoa, however, decides to stay under the protection of the Order of the Imperial Demons. As Guren and his friends leave, Goshi tells her the reason they are trying so hard when the whole world is against them, is to save the world.

She looks at the bloodied ground and vomits, asking herself, “What are they?”

Chapter 3 - Yu on Christmas Eve
On December 24th, Saitō drives Yūichirō Amane from the Hyakuya Sect lab to the Hyakuya Orphanage. Yu is adamant that he won’t make friends there because he is a demon child, according to his parents. Saitō thinks to himself that it is true, that Yu is indeed a powerful and dangerous demon created by humans, but verbally reassures him otherwise. It is revealed through his thoughts that Yu’s mother was not his real mother.

Suddenly Saitō has a change in attitude, telling Yu that he is, in fact, a demon, and that his life isn’t worth living. He prompts him to jump out of the car if he wants to die, but Yu does not jump. Saitō calls the orphanage director and informs her that Yu will be joining them soon, and refers to him as a demon. Rain begins to fall.

Chapter 4 - His Sister Speaks of Tomorrow
Outside First Shibuya High School, Kureto is battling Mahiru, who had the upper hand the entire fight. Yet Kureto is determined to kill her no matter what. After Kureto is pummelled badly by Mahiru, he uses his cursed gear Raimeiki to heal his wounds. Mahiru figured that he is also stalling for time. Kureto informs Mahiru of Aoi's allegiance to him which disgusts her. She asks him if he is using illusions, which Kureto was using during the whole time, which ticked Mahiru off.

Mahiru was annoyed at Kureto's trickery. He used a signal to his men to fire two hundred cursed bullet like projectiles. Using her vampire blade, Mahiru takes advantage of the incoming shots' impact to propel herself. She then took out more than one hundred illusion based paper talismans from her pocket, and scattered them all around the area to dispel the other illusions that had been cast, revealing only allies on the ground. Kureto resorted to order his troops to kill Mahiru, though also being a Hīragi stops them. Then violently attacking Kureto, severing his arm, Mahiru smiles and laughs. When Kureto asks her if she killed the Nii clan master, she casually nods with a yes.

After Kureto wounds have healed using his demon curse, he keeps asking Mahiru questions on what is she fighting for as he is curious, but she remained silent, only answering that the human world is going to end. Mahiru then told him to treat Guren well then she left. After Aoi treated his wounds, he phones his father. Tenri answers, and knows he lost against Mahiru, yet he does not care. Ordering him to state his business, Kureto asks if there is something he can do, or is his job to keep chasing Mahiru. Merely replying that it is done, Tenri adds it's over. As being a double spy against the Thousand Nights, she played her part perfectly. After their call has ended, he tended to Aoi's leg after she had been shot.

Kureto then plans to to infect as many of his followers with demonic curses, including slaughtering everyone who rebelled in today's confusion. He is informed by Aoi that the Nii clan have turned traitors. The Kuki's have surrendered, and by Mahiru's information the Shijin clan have also turned traitors. Kureto says to crush anyone suspicious. While Aoi informs him about Guren's position, Kureto knows he faked his traitorous facade for Mahiru's side. Kureto states a traitor is a traitor, this includes Goshi and Jūjō who joined him. Meaning to kill Guren first as an Ichinose and make an example of him, he orders Aoi to find their location.

Chapter 5 - Catastrophe at Sixteen
Guren patiently waited for Mahiru, for the day when he could take action against her. Looking at his phone, Guren awaited Mahiru's call and notices it is December 24th at 10:20 PM. In the meantime, Guren and his friends were staying at a neighborhood, and love hotels. In thought, Guren finds it peaceful. Having rented the biggest hotel, as even with Shinya, Mito, Goshi, Sayuri and Shigure inside, it did not feel cramped. Due to their exhaustion of continued fighting, the group slept. Guren, Shinya and Goshi decided to take shift watches in pairs for fifteen minutes per shift.

After everyone had woken up, Guren's phone rang and noticing the time 10:35 PM, he figured it was Mahiru contacting him. Although their location was exposed, all of them managed to escape, with the determination to live and stop the apocalypse. As Goshi started casting illusions, Shinya was using his black demon to escape, then urged Guren to pick up his call while the others dealt with the soldiers. Guren concentrated his demonic curse on his ear, to sharpen the sense of hearing, for the chance to gain information. Answering her, Guren hears Mahiru say that if he loves her, he could find her even if she doesn't tell him where she is. While Guren responds that he is not a psychic, Mahiru says to become one for her. As Mahiru laments by detailing that the world was going to end soon, Guren said that she would have to wait till next time for him to become a psychic.

As Guren was listening to her surroundings, he tells her directly that he betrayed everything for her sake, then added that he was on her side. Even though Mahiru was not that impressed, after questioning if he wants a prize, Guren kept listening to her surrounding noise, still unable to figure where she is. As they both maintained their small talk, Guren was still trying to discover the location Mahiru is in. Picturing that she is in one spacious as a gymnasium, after hearing sounds of a machine rotating, Guren directly asks where Mahiru is, so he can protect her, yet she tells Guren that he cannot do that. Guren questions her call, Mahiru only says that she wanted to hear his voice, as it is too late.

After ending the call, Guren and his friends head to Ginza where he believed Mahiru was at. With Shinya informing Guren that she is at Ikebukuro, they headed there, while slaying their enemies in the way. After a day has passed, it is now December 25th 7:20 PM. They run into Kureto, and his subordinates stop Guren and his friends from advancing any further. While Guren was planning to surrender from the start despite Noya's protests, after clashing blades, Kureto reveals they are being watched. Kureto also reveals to Guren of Mahiru's real location, which is in Shinjuku's underground lab.

Heading to the Shinjuku underground lab, Guren and his friends encounter Mahiru. As they prepare to stop her, Mahiru notices Guren, and seems happy to see him. Despite Mahiru's vampiric state, Guren is still adamant on saving her. In commencing battle, despite the combined attacks of Guren, Shinya, Mito, Sayuri, Goshi and Shigure, they are unable to lay a finger on Mahiru. Able to dodge Shigure's trap where it backfires on her, Mahiru then holds up Shigure's hair so Guren nearly swings his sword at her, but Shinya managed to stop him. Mahiru was angered at Guren when she saw him healing Shigure in front of her. Guren said to Mahiru he intends to save her and his friends. Shinya stood up to Mahiru and lectured her on why does she love Guren so much. Agitating her, Shinya continued that she is jealous as well, which Mahiru does admit. Finally snapped, Mahiru cut his lecture short in her anger at him.

Plunging her arm into Shinya's chest, Mahiru waved his body around where it tortured him. When Guren pleaded with her to stop, he was forced to accept Noya for power. While Mahiru is still torturing Shinya, Guren noticed all of his friends have been decapitated. After the death of all of his friends, Guren's mind went blank and he let out a wide rage scream. Noya uses this opportunity to turn him into a demon, while Guren was still shouting in blind rage.

Barely clinging to life, Shinya managed to bring Guren back to his sanity. After his death, Guren hugged Shinya's lifeless body. When Mahiru asks Guren if he now hates her, which he does and yet he does not want to kill her. Guren then threw away Noya, knowing he cannot beat her with the demon weapon. Informing Guren about the Seraph of the End experiment, Mahiru details what will happen once it is activated and tells Guren all about it. Then picking up the Noya sword, Mahiru stabs herself with it. Integrating with it in her heart, Noya is unable to stop this and he is being dragged in. This gives Guren an answer that she had been cursed so that this would happen to become a demon.

After Noya's voice disappeared, Guren tried to call both Mahiru and Noya out of desperation. Having lost his lover, and his friends, Guren questions himself why is he still alive. Then using the coffins, Guren placed all of his friends there, and finally placed his sword in the slot of it. After Ferid arrived, he found what Guren is doing is amusing. Out of despair, Guren asks Ferid to kill him. Refusing to, Ferid tells him to choose for himself, as it would be more interesting. Just then the Seraph of the End activates, Guren says that he understands, and that it is his sin, as the catastrophe begins.