"Ghouls…"
Earlier today, Yuuki Asuna had already heard Yoru explain what ghouls were. And honestly… she still didn't know what word fit best.
Monsters? A species? Something in between?
Compared to Devils—who showed up, slaughtered humans openly, and made no effort to hide—ghouls were far more subtle. They looked human, thought like humans, and could blend into society by disguising their identities.
But no matter how well they mimicked people, they couldn't change the truth:
They were predators that fed on humans.
In the darkness, there were sounds—like wind brushing through leaves, yet also like someone whispering close to your ear. Asuna was so tense she could only hear her own heartbeat. Even her vision felt a little blurry and dizzy.
"You nervous?" Yoru asked, amusement in his voice.
Asuna instinctively leaned closer. Her shoulder lightly bumped his arm. She didn't dislike it—if anything, that accidental contact eased her tension a little.
"Of course I'm nervous…"
She tried to make her voice sound brave, but the moment she spoke, she gave herself away. The strain made her voice rasp, turning faintly ridiculous.
"Pfft."
"Hey—aren't you being a little too mean?" Asuna protested, nudging his arm with her shoulder, embarrassed and annoyed. "What's so funny?"
Yoru didn't even try to change the subject. He nodded seriously.
"Because it is funny. After that duck-like quack you just made, anyone who can keep a straight face is a true outlier."
"You jerk—"
"Shh."
Right as Asuna was about to fire back, Yoru raised a finger to his lips and moved her behind him, shielding her with his body. His black eyes swept the roadside woods, swallowed in darkness, and his voice flattened.
"Blood. And chewing."
In that instant, Asuna felt Yoru's entire presence change.
It wasn't the kind of oppressive "danger aura" you could point at.
It was more like he melted into the night itself—dimming his presence to the absolute minimum. If Asuna hadn't been standing directly behind him, seeing his silhouette, she might not have even felt that anyone was there.
"Stay close," he said.
"Okay. I will."
Asuna could be a little tsundere and stubborn in ordinary situations—but when it mattered, she became obedient in an instant. She knew she couldn't help Yoru in a fight.
But at the very least, she could follow instructions and not become a burden.
The two of them moved deeper into the woods. After nearly a hundred meters, Asuna finally caught the strange stench in the air—and faintly heard sounds ahead: snapping, grinding, wet friction.
She stared at Yoru's back, disbelief rising in her eyes.
He could smell blood from a hundred meters away, and even hear ghouls eating?
That kind of sensory acuity—was he really human? This was actual superhuman ability.
A bloodhound.
Of course, "physical enhancement" didn't just mean strength and speed. It included the senses, recovery, stamina, defense—everything.
As long as Ouroboros devoured supernatural beings, all of Yoru's attributes permanently increased.
That was the essence of his ability: Ouroboros.
"Devouring" was the method—how he strengthened himself.
And "infinity" meant there was no upper limit to his growth.
Flesh becoming divine, in the most literal sense.
A few more steps, and the source of the blood and chewing finally came into view—
A nauseating, stomach-turning scene.
A young man in casual clothes and a young woman dressed in a tight skirt, garish and heavily made up, were crouched over "leftovers" on the ground, eating with relish.
Judging from the victim's suit and the heavy alcohol stink in the air, it was likely the female ghoul had lured a drunk target into the woods—then shared the meal with her partner.
"Hm? Humans?" the woman rasped.
The moment Yoru and Asuna appeared, both ghouls stopped eating. They lifted blood-smeared faces, their eyes greedy and undisguised. The female ghoul licked her lips with her tongue, voice husky.
"A young couple… You look delicious."
The male ghoul gave a thin, savage grin and nodded.
"Yeah. Definitely tastier than this drunk, stinking meat."
Asuna's chest tightened with a heavy wave of nausea. She'd thought that after this morning, her mental tolerance must have improved.
But she still couldn't accept this.
The Bat Devil had also eaten people—but it looked like a monster from the start. In comparison, watching creatures with perfectly human faces feeding like this…
felt even more revolting.
Asuna braced for the fight to begin—
and then the next development blindsided her completely.
"R-run!" Yoru's voice turned panicked.
Before hearing it, Asuna couldn't have imagined Yoru was even capable of sounding like that.
But the moment he turned, grabbed her hand, and fled in what looked like frantic desperation, she understood immediately.
Oh. He's baiting them.
She didn't know why he chose this method, but she cooperated at once—though she hardly had to pretend. She really was terrified.
"Tch. Trying to run?" the female ghoul sneered. "That human fear-panic look—no matter how many times I see it, it's still fun."
The male ghoul spoke coolly.
"Go catch them. Three people is a bit much, but we can store the extra and eat it later."
"You dump the annoying work on me every time," the woman complained, then smiled cruelly. "Fine. But I'm eating the pretty little guy. He looks so tasty."
"Do what you want."
Satisfied, the female ghoul's smile twisted. Her eyes darkened into black-and-red kakugan, bloodlust blooming. From her back, something like wings unfurled—her kagune—and she shot through the uneven forest terrain with speed and agility far beyond human limits.
"Found you."
In only a few seconds, she caught up to Yoru and Asuna, who had barely made it a few dozen meters. Her mouth split wide, teeth bared, snapping toward the back of Yoru's neck.
She couldn't wait to taste him.
Then—
the situation flipped.
Yoru suddenly released Asuna's hand, stopped running, and turned around.
There was no fear on his face.
Only a cold, almost indifferent calm.
BOOM!!
A single heavy punch detonated with a sharp, explosive crack, slamming directly into the female ghoul's face. Her midair lunge was blown off course—she flew backward and smashed into a thick tree trunk, her back denting into it.
Asuna turned back, blank with shock.
Her mind held only one thought:
What was that sound?
Was… someone shooting a gun?
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 90)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 95)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 80)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter70)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter70)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter50)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter60)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 20
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 20
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