Return of the Hero

"Return of the Hero" (英雄のキカン) is the forty-sixth chapter of the Seraph of the End: Vampire Reign manga series, written by Takaya Kagami and illustrated by Yamato Yamamoto.

Synopsis
Yu surrenders to Crowey and Ferid until Ferid presents Akane's head in a jar to them, sending Yu's demon out of control and making him attempt to kill Ferid. Mika gets Yu to struggle against the demon temporarily.

Shiho quickly calls a truce with Crowley and Ferid.

Yu begs for more power from Asuramaru, and Yu does not know if he himself is demon or a human anymore. Mika tries to protect Yu from Ferid, but Crowley keeps him occupied.

Ferid says he got this drug from Guren Ichinose and bites Yu's neck, slurping up his blood, before stabbing him in the back with the injection and knocking Yu and his demon unconscious.

When Mika demands to know what Ferid wants, Ferid says he says he wanted to show them how to return Akane to life. He says the name of the experiment is the Seraph of the End.

Characters
List of characters in order of appearance:
 * Yūichirō Hyakuya
 * Mikaela Hyakuya
 * Crowley Eusford
 * Shihō Kimizuki
 * Ferid Bathory
 * Shinoa Hīragi
 * Shūsaku Iwasaki (Flashback)
 * Rika Inoue (Flashback)
 * Akane Hyakuya (Flashback)
 * Mirai Kimizuki (Flashback)
 * Saitō (Flashback)
 * Yoichi Saotome
 * Mitsuba Sangū
 * Asuramaru
 * Mahiru Hīragi (Flashback)
 * Shinya Hīragi (Flashback)
 * Kureto Hīragi (Flashback)
 * Guren Ichinose

Summary
As Kimizuki, Mitsuba, Shinoa, and Yoichi fight Crowley, Yu and Mika agree that they cannot win. Mika advises escaping before they get dragged into whatever Ferid is scheming because there is nothing they can do. Yu wants to stay. He says that every time he runs, his friends and family die. He wants to fight fate. Mika blames himself for doing that once and getting everyone killed, but Yu insists he gave them a future. Yu says they can all make it out alive.

Yu tells Crowley he is surrendering, but Crowley says he is actually not after anything in particular himself.

Ferid appears behind Yu and Mika and nearly drives over them. He jeers that he heard they were being attacked by a dangerous vampire, so he came to their rescue. He says he will save them if they take a ride with him, but Crowley says they already finished that part and surrendered.

Ferid acts shocked and asks when Yu and Mika became so reasonable.

Yu explains why they will cooperate, and Ferid asks if that means he will forget everything Ferid has done to them. When Yu agrees… Ferid pulls Akane’s head from his trunk and asks if Yu can say that to her face.

Yu turns into a demon, screaming that he will kill Ferid and attacks him. Ferid only prances around, asking Crowley to save him because he is only a delicate flower, telling Yu he is being mean, and asking if using this much demon power means Yu will become a demon permanently. Yu never comes close to hitting Ferid, but he manages to slice his fancy foreign car in half.

Mika grabs Yu and tells him to calm down. Yu tells Mika to let go before he kills him. He struggles against his demon, telling it to stop while he keeps muttering about killing.

Shinoa and Mitsuba have enchanted shackles to restrain Yu with, but Makoto warns them that wards will do nothing against a rampaging demon. Yoichi says they must do something. Shiho looks at Crowley and asks for a temporary truce. Crowley says he does not mind, and Ferid agrees.

Ferid mentions that the five humans cannot stop Yu now but he can because he has the right drug. He tells them to beg. When Shinoa begins, he says he was just teasing and came here to be their new friend.

He throws the Akane’s head to Yoichi.

Crowley tells the humans he pities them for having to put up with Ferid's exhausting antics.

Yu struggles against his demon, and Mika orders him to suppress it. Yu tells him to shut up and says he just needs more power. He contacts Asuramaru.

Asuramaru calls Yu a greedy namanari. When Yu asks what that is, Asuramaru explains it and says that this is the third time already. Yu mentions that his memories have been really spotty lately, and Asuramaru says that his human self does not want to deal with the memories of his demon self and hides them away. Asuramaru says that he could take three pills and not die because he is no longer human. Asuramaru asks Yu to let him take over for just an instant. He says he will not kill anybody, but Yu will want to kill all of his friends. Asuramaru says he only needs three seconds.

Yu tells Asuramaru to stop lying to him because he has his own will and knowledge. Yu says he will not become a demon, and Asuramaru asks if that is his human or demon side talking since they are now inseparable. Yu says he does not really care as long as he can protect his friends, but Asuramaru says demons have no friends or family and simply kill everything.

Yu says he supposes he cannot become a demon. When Asuramaru says taking those three pills will make his demon side grow exponentially, Yu shrugs it off, saying it is fine as long as he protects his friends. Asuramaru asks if Yu can hear how much he is contradicting himself.

Asuramaru cuts the conversation short, saying that, this once, Yu will not need the pills because he is about to be rescued by a vampire.

Ferid struts toward Yu and Mika, and Mika gets between them, telling him to stay away. Ferid pulls out a filled syringe and asks if Mika will give Yu that dangerous, unstable drug instead. Mika attacks him, and Crowley intervenes, keeping Mika away from Yu.

Ferid says that Yu has grown cute and calls him an “extra-special guinea pig.” He says this curse-suppressant drug is the same drug Guren Ichinose is using. He says he met Guren before the catastrophe when he was just a high school student and received the drug directly from him. Yu demands answers.

Ferid says he is cute and bites him on the neck, drinking his blood. He then stabs Yu in the back with the needle, suppressing the demon and putting Yu to sleep.

Alarmed, Mika finally leaves Crowley to returns to Yu’s side. He tells Ferid he will never forgive him. Ferid mentions that he just saved Yu’s life as Yu’s blood trickles from his mouth. Mika says they are not going to be part of his plot, and Ferid asks if this is his plot.

Mika asks him what he is trying to do, why he is here, and why he has Akane’s head with him.

Ferid says he thought he might just drop by and show them how to bring Akane back to life. He says the name of the experiment is the Seraph of the End. He says it is a forbidden spell that a group of foolish humans tinkered with eight years ago.

Meanwhile, Guren injects the drug into his forearm while a soldier drives him to Shinjuku. The drug suppresses the demon. Guren mentions having a talk with Shinya once he arrives.

Chapter Notes

 * Chapter 46, along with chapter 57: "Defining a King" and chapter 61: "Who Is More Bored?" use a different feature image to display the name and chapter number between the Japanese and English releases.

Gallery
Manga panels provide a visual overview of the events of chapter 46 with depictions of the characters, Seraph of the End world and scenarios.