Chapter 36
Some unknown river on the outskirts of Tokyo.
The sun had long set; now only moonlight shimmered and rippled across the water.
A few houses stood near the river, but after the devil incident, they were quickly abandoned.
A little farther away, however, lay several small town streets.
Against the backdrop of the moon in the sky, two figures suddenly dropped onto the pointed top of a water tower.
The blood-red wings gradually softened, contracted, and reformed into two slanted capes hanging down.
After confirming the tower top could support them, Denji finally released Power from his embrace—but kept holding her hand.
Perhaps a habit left over from taking care of kids… whenever he came to a dangerous place, he instinctively paid more attention to the people beside him.
Power rarely had any interest in admiring scenery, but now that she was here, she felt this spot was actually quite suitable for viewing.
Atop the water tower.
While Power casually took in the surrounding landscape, Denji expanded his perception—blanketing almost the entire area.
Soon he locked onto the mission target.
It was a bizarre fish with six arthropod legs at the bottom and two tails.
Completely unrecognizable—what strange "trash-tier" devil was this? Its strength and aura felt oddly disconnected.
Or rather, its overall power was a mixture of two distinct presences.
"Gun Devil fragment, huh~"
Denji briefly memorized that unique aura, then pulled out the glass orb containing the partially melted Gun Devil fragment.
After observing the weird fish for a moment, he noted its unusual movement. It could swim straight from water into the ground. Wherever it passed, the solid earth turned into mud-like sludge—or rather, it first liquefied the ground into mud before gliding smoothly through it.
Interesting… but that's about it.
Denji controlled the blood inside the "trash" devil, carefully sensing its stats.
Speed varied depending on terrain—wide range between upper and lower limits. Strength and durability only slightly above average devil levels.
The only troublesome part was that strange mud. Its property was unique—it could assimilate other objects into mud until the special power ran out.
He wasn't sure if the process was reversible. It looked damaging and quite annoying.
Manipulating the blood inside the "trash" devil, he yanked it out of the ground.
Judging by its direction, it had swum from water to land—probably heading to eat the people in the nearby town.
Daring to eat humans—this devil cannot be spared!
Looking at the "trash" devil now suspended in midair by its own blood.
Denji's thumb and forefinger exerted slight force—crack—the glass orb shattered instantly, leaving only the partially melted, still-unhardened Gun Devil fragment inside.
After a quick aim, Denji swung his arm and hurled the bullet-shaped fragment with force—straight into the "trash" devil's body.
"Gah—!!!"
No idea why a fish made a duck-like quack, but now wasn't the time to care.
After one miserable cry, the "trash" devil flopped limp, looking like a dead fish lying in its own blood—motionless.
But that was just an illusion. Denji didn't even need to sense it—he could already hear the "trash" devil's wildly racing, high-frequency heartbeat!
"It's fusing and assimilating right now. By the time Aki and the others arrive, the assimilation should be just about complete."
With a casual flick, the dead fish was tossed back into the river.
Now all that was left was to watch the show.
Power—who had already found the scenery boring after two glances—was long since wrapped around Denji again, rubbing against him for who-knows-how-long.
Like a cat in heat that simply couldn't stay still.
Denji—helpless—could only soothe her for now while waiting for the main event to start…
…
Night deepened. A black sedan turned from the highway onto a narrow road, smoothly arriving near the mission site.
Interestingly, when the car hit the small road, it didn't slow down—instead it accelerated. At the last moment before braking, it executed a sharp drift-stop.
What's wrong with Aki today? Did something snap?
Himeno felt numb from sitting in the passenger seat. Normally when she wanted to speed, Aki would lecture her until she lost all senpai dignity.
But today—the usually rule-abiding Aki was the one flooring it, and doing it so aggressively.
—I love it~
Himeno mentally made her usual nonsensical joke to amuse herself.
The impatient slam of the driver's door—"bang"—cut off her silly thoughts.
Himeno got out at the same time. Seeing Aki's "terrifying" expression, her playful smile instantly vanished.
That eerie anger, agitation, anxiety, madness… all kinds of negative emotions seemed to have been suppressed for who-knows-how-long, only to suddenly erupt.
They fused together into fuel for revenge—nearly burning away every last shred of Aki's reason.
The moment he stepped out, Aki hurriedly searched for possible locations where the target might appear.
His strides already left afterimages—yet he still wasn't satisfied.
Faster and faster—until he broke into a full sprint, running with zero restraint.
Completely abandoning his usual style of conserving stamina and moving steadily.
With no choice, Himeno could only run to keep up.
Rage—extreme rage—pushed his mind deeper into the abyss of madness.
Aki's vision now was strange. His eyes couldn't see the present—only painful memories.
Every muscle strained. The hatred of revenge—before it could even reach the enemy—first burned him from the inside.
While running, Aki's hand already rested on the Curse Devil's nail sword.
He didn't even want to use the more suitable "Fox Devil." It was as if the devil he was about to kill wasn't some "trash" devil—but the Gun Devil itself.
He had gone completely mad…
…
"So this is the aftereffect… terrifying…"
Denji watched closely, feeling a faint worry.
A normal person enduring this level of backlash would probably collapse into even deeper insanity within a second—then self-destruct in a suicide-like act.
Right after the "brainwashing" was lifted, Aki had already fallen into obvious chaotic confusion.
Acting on instinct, the first thing he felt was memories with Himeno—but those emotions had been suppressed and controlled for too long. The unawakened feelings couldn't fill the void at all.
Only hatred—never suppressed, always there—once all other emotions were stripped away, in this mental chaos…
All it needed was a trigger—like agonizing, despairing memories, deep and hysterical hatred…
And it could explode instantly—complete detonation!
"I hope the plan goes smoothly. This kind of strong medicine comes with risks—but the effect is faster too.
Better a short, sharp pain than long suffering. Hang in there, Aki!"
Power—completely unable to understand what Denji was saying and not really interested in his concern for someone else (especially a guy)…
Wait—no, especially a guy!
Slightly sulky, Power deliberately threw out some nonsense:
"Why are they fighting? Why can't they learn from this great one and live peacefully with the world?"
Different standpoints? No—wait, dummy Power, what nonsense are you spouting?!
And you—of all people—talking about world peace?!
Drawn in by this "Hell-shocking wisdom," Denji couldn't help giving Power a complicated look.
Power didn't care what the look meant—she just liked Denji looking at her~
As long as it wasn't dislike or anything negative, anything else was fine~!
"What does that eyepatch lady do for work?"
"Which one of them is the good guy and which is the bad guy?"
"Denji-sama is so hungry—this great one wants blood~"
"Is Ponytail trying to kill the devil, or is he trying to kill himself? This great one sees him holding the sword like he wants to stab himself."
"Huh? That 'trash' fish seems to be waking up. Can Ponytail spot the 'trash'? Nope! He even stepped straight into the trap! Hahaha, is he donating his head?"
"…"
By the middle, Denji had already tuned out Power's babble. He was now intently watching Aki's side.
…
Exactly as Power said.
The frantic, near-insane Aki—having lost almost all reason—stepped straight into the "trap."
—The mud pit left by the "trash" devil's passage.
The moment Aki fell into the mud and stumbled, the "trash" devil—sensing the abnormal contact—shot toward him at high speed through the sludge.
The mud liquefied the ground in front of Aki. Faint bubbles rose and burst on the surface.
The "trash" devil burst out of the mud pit—lunging straight for Aki, who had fallen and was now stuck in the sludge!
Rows of dense, razor-sharp teeth filled the monster's gaping maw.
And Aki—was about to be swallowed whole…
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