While the ghoul was still frozen in shock, Yuuki Asuna had already raised the handgun in a textbook two-handed stance, aimed straight at her, and pulled the trigger without hesitation.
The distance between them was roughly thirteen meters. Forget headshots or heart shots—at that range, if the bullet hit anything at all, it would count as luck.
But just like Tokyo's strongest devil hunter had said:
You don't have to shoot accurately.
You just have to make the other side believe you're accurate.
And the ukaku ghoul had swallowed the bait completely.
Asuna's grip looked professional. Her posture looked trained. And in the ghoul's mind, that could only mean one thing:
A CCG investigator. A "White Dove."
How could she possibly dodge gunfire from a trained investigator at this distance?
To minimize the chance of being hit in a vital spot, the ghoul immediately crouched and curled into a tight ball, raising her forearms and folding her remaining wing over her head like a shield.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Hearing the rapid gunshots, the ghoul shuddered, bracing herself for agony—
…But nothing came.
"Huh? Why doesn't it hurt?"
Her first instinct was to doubt her own senses.
It never even occurred to her that Asuna's aim might be the problem.
Because if you don't get hit, of course it doesn't hurt.
Asuna's first shot had kind of stayed on the outline. But after that, recoil and movement made the muzzle climb, and the rounds started wandering all over the place.
Not shooting herself in the process was already a win.
Still, even a magazine of misses wasn't meaningless.
During those few seconds, Asuna had closed the distance.
By the time the ghoul realized something was wrong, the gap between them had shrunk to under five meters.
She felt the pressure from above—heard a sharp edge slicing through the air—
And without even lifting her head, she threw herself backward, almost like a flat fall, kicking away from danger.
Her eyes caught the metal longsword dropping like a guillotine—she'd barely avoided it.
A breath of relief flooded her chest…
…And with it, confidence returned.
The girl's gunplay was garbage. Her physical stats looked completely ordinary—no different from a normal human.
As long as the ghoul kept moving and stayed wary of that metal sword, there was no way she'd be hurt by a mere—
"It's over."
Asuna's calm voice cut through the night.
A thin black line appeared dead center in the ghoul's vision.
Then the world… split.
Her sight—everything she could see—separated into two halves, as if reality itself had been sliced open.
Even with a ghoul's stubborn vitality, she forced her head to turn.
And saw it.
Not far away lay the other half of her body.
"…So that's how it was…"
Only at the very end did she understand what had happened.
Bullets fly straight.
But that metal longsword… could change its path.
She'd been cut vertically, straight down the middle—cleanly into two.
"Ha… I… killed her…"
Asuna stared at the corpse, severed into two pieces.
The sight made her stomach churn, but stronger than nausea was the wave of relief—finally, it was over. She was safe. She'd done it.
"Um…"
She looked toward Hojo Yoru, who had watched everything from a short distance away, and asked carefully:
"How did I do?"
"Pretty good."
"Really? But she was so weak, and I still took forever…"
"You're working with the stats you've got. It is what it is."
He cut her off, walked over, and ruffled her hair with a grin.
"For what you can do right now, that was genuinely solid."
Hearing him praise her in that unusually gentle tone, Asuna couldn't help smiling—bright, sweet, almost proud—
Then, flustered, she slapped his hand away and lifted her chin with a huff.
"Hmph. That's nothing worth praising. If we did it again, even if you hadn't torn off one of her wings, I'm confident I'd finish her faster."
Watching her act tough while clearly delighted, Hojo clicked his tongue.
"When I say you're not good enough, you act tough and stubborn. When I praise you, you suddenly get modest. You're not 'tsundere'—you're just rebellious."
After that, he finally asked the real question.
"So? Do you feel anything? Any change?"
"…I think… a little."
Asuna knew exactly what he meant.
Could her Throne of Swords grow the way his Ouroboros did—through some kind of mechanism that strengthened it over time?
Ideally, it would strengthen her, too.
Technique mattered, sure.
But stats mattered more.
If the enemy's numbers were so far above yours that a single basic attack could one-shot you—no dodging, no breaking defense—then what "skill expression" was left?
She might be confident she could kill that ukaku ghoul faster next time…
…but if the CCG graded it, it probably wouldn't even reach A-rank. At best, it was a kagune-using nobody—barely above cannon fodder.
After weeks of brutal "weighted training" under Hojo Yoru, Asuna wasn't going to be satisfied stopping at this level.
"Ten meters…"
As she spoke, she guided her sword forward through the air.
Before, her control range had capped at five meters.
Now the metal blade flew out to roughly ten meters—clean and stable.
"My control distance and the sword's speed both improved. If I want to keep it responsive and fast, ten meters is the limit for now. As for me…"
She focused, checking her body, her balance, her breathing.
Then she shook her head.
"I'm not sure. It feels like something changed… but it might just be my imagination."
Hojo nodded, looking pleased.
"Got it. Then I'm satisfied."
Asuna was about to assume he was happy because her growth had a clear path—
When he added, completely shamelessly:
"Good. So you don't need to eat to grow. Perfect. Stop stealing my Ouroboros's food. A Pokémon doesn't get to fight its Trainer for the kibble."
Asuna rolled her eyes so hard it almost hurt.
"So after all that… you were just being possessive."
While she spoke, Hojo casually summoned Ouroboros and had it swallow the ukaku ghoul's remains.
Then, as if he were the aggrieved party, he asked righteously:
"'Possessive'? What do you mean, 'possessive'? Whether it's hunting supernatural monsters or eating them, I was here first."
Asuna sighed, the corner of her lips lifting into a soft, helpless smile.
"I feel like you're making references I'll never understand… but whatever. You've always been like this. I guess all I can do is go along with it."
"'Go along with it'?"
Hojo's voice stayed calm—too calm.
Asuna looked up.
And his next line made her spine tighten.
"You didn't think tonight's operation ends here… did you?"
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 135)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 110)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter105)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter100)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter67)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter85)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 60
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 65
From Junkman to Wasteland 50
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 35
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 40
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 37
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