Raphael also realized he hadn't paid attention just now and had actually wrapped a piece of women's underwear around his face, but there was no time to change it now.
He stood by the window, raised his index finger, and made a shushing gesture to the stunned family. Then he gestured for them to continue their meal.
The family of four gradually snapped out of their shock. Regardless of whether the intruder was a pervert, he was someone they couldn't afford to provoke. So they obediently continued eating, though their hands trembled slightly.
Raphael scanned the area through the window. He knew well it would be difficult to shake off Ackerman. The most important thing for him now was to buy time.
In Backlund, clashes between Demigods would quickly draw official Beyonder attention. The battle between the Indulgence and Temperance Faction Demigods certainly wouldn't last long.
Using the brief respite from losing the 'Zombie', he had circled back near the original battlefield. He hoped that after the Demigod battle concluded, Sharron or Maric could help him shake off Ackerman's pursuit.
After waiting by the window for a dozen seconds, Raphael saw a rapidly moving figure run past outside. It was the pursuing 'Zombie'.
Being a Sequence higher, 'Zombies' possessed a sense of smell comparable to, if not keener, than 'Werewolves'. So Ackerman naturally followed Raphael's scent.
Seeing the 'Zombie' run past, Raphael immediately climbed out the back window into an alley leading to another street.
By the time the 'Zombie' discovered this, Raphael believed he would have gained some distance...
*Crash!*
In the dark alley where only Raphael's running footsteps had echoed, the sound of a wall being smashed suddenly erupted. His eyes widened. It was his pursuer who had smashed through the wall!
Under normal circumstances, Raphael's plan would have worked. But he had just advanced recently, and his spirituality was highly unstable, allowing Ackerman to quickly pick up his trail.
The distance was close. Raphael quickly realized that continuing to run would get him killed faster!
So he immediately raised his gun and flipped off the safety...
*Rat-a-tat-tat...!!*
Fierce gunfire filled the alley. The dark lane flashed with muzzle flares from the continuous shooting.
Ackerman dodged the bullets, swiftly pouncing toward Raphael.
While this magazine of bullets didn't inflict much damage on the 'Zombie', it bought Raphael time to transform. Only in his 'Werewolf' state did he possess the strength to fight.
Just as the gunfire ended and the two were about to grapple, they suddenly heard a sharp male voice speak in a tone full of surprise: "It's a 'Bizarro Sorcerer'..."
Ackerman recognized the voice as that of Howard's!
They were already very close to the two Demigods' battlefield. However, the 'Shaman King' was no longer using his Full Moon ability, so Ackerman hadn't noticed this. Still, he couldn't afford to think about this now, because the 'Werewolf' before him demanded his full attention!
Raphael certainly understood that in close combat like this, momentum was crucial!
So, with a fierce expression, he collided with the 'Zombie'.
Ackerman, who was much shorter than the werewolf form, possessed immense strength, actually staggering Raphael back a step.
Their fight was straightforward and brutal. Ackerman thrust his nails, which were harder than wolf claws, toward Raphael's chest.
Raphael knocked the hand aside, opened his jaws, and tried to tear at the his opponent's head.
Ackerman didn't dodge. Instead, he stepped forward, grabbing Raphael's neck with even greater speed and slamming him hard against the wall beside them...
*Thud!*
A heavy, muffled impact sounded.
Raphael saw stars from the impact. Shaking his head, he was about to counterattack when Ackerman's fist smashed into his shoulder.
*Crash!*
Under the heavy blow, Raphael crashed straight through the wall, tumbling into a room.
Inside was an elderly man living alone, eating soup. Seeing the creature on the floor, the somewhat dim-sighted old man opened his mouth and said, "Goddess above, whose dog is this..."
Before Raphael could get up, Ackerman had already charged over, extending both arms, intending to drive his hard fingers into Raphael's chest again.
Raphael quickly grabbed the 'Zombie's' wrists, immediately feeling a tremendous force pushing against him. Gnashing his teeth, he redirected the force sideways, causing the other's fingers to stab into the wooden floorboards.
Raphael rolled over, jumped up from the floor, and was about to crash through the wooden door to escape when he noticed his opponent's hands were stuck, unable to pull free.
Ackerman was also somewhat exasperated. This was the first time he'd encountered such a situation.
Raphael paused briefly, immediately realizing this was a rare opportunity. He spun around violently, extended his right hand, letting the wolf claws on it lengthen several more centimeters, and stabbed toward the crouching 'Zombie's' eyes.
Ackerman sneered coldly. Though his hands were stuck, he still had considerable room to maneuver. He tried to dodge to the side, but an accident occurred again.
As his upper body moved, the brick under his foot suddenly slipped. Instead of dodging, he stumbled forward, falling directly toward Raphael's wolf claws.
*Pfft!*
The wolf claws pierced the relatively soft eyeball of the 'Zombie' and penetrated into his brain.
"Aggghhh!!" Ackerman's agonized scream followed.
Raphael was stunned again. He felt as if his battle with this 'Zombie' was being manipulated by something. But since this manipulation favored him, he didn't dwell on it.
He immediately injected his Werewolf venom into his opponent's brain. Unfortunately, the wolf claws were too short to deliver the toxin deep enough into Ackerman's brain.
Even with such a severe injury, Ackerman wasn't dead yet. He jerked his head back, pulling it free, then forcibly broke off his own nails and stumbled out onto the street.
Raphael wasn't in a hurry to pursue. The venom would gradually take effect, so Ackerman couldn't run far.
Unhurriedly, he followed, picked up the gun from the ground, and took out his last magazine from his pocket...
...
After the two left, the dim-sighted old man finally managed to get the spoon into his mouth.
After drinking the soup, he looked at the hole in the wall where Raphael and Ackerman had left, "I don't remember there being a door there."
...
Outside, Raphael had already released the safety on his submachine gun and pulled the trigger, aiming at the back of the 'Zombie's' head...
*Rat-a-tat-tat...!!*
Bullets rained out.
Ackerman's head had already endured one magazine of bullets earlier. Under the assault of the second magazine, his skull finally couldn't sustain the damage and finally gave way.
A chunk of his skull was blown off, his brain mushed by the bullets. He finally collapsed to the ground, convulsing.
At that moment, a figure walked out from the dark corner of the alley, applauding, "The gifts of fate are reserved for the prepared. And you are that prepared person."
This was Klein's Marionette, the 'Winner', Enzo.
Raphael was stunned, sensing that the other was likely another Sequence 5, and probably a member of the organization behind Audrey...
...
{T/N: 'Bizarro Sorcerer' is Sequence 4 of the 'Fool' Pathway. 'Winner' is Sequence 5 of the 'Wheel of Fortune' Pathway...}