Chapter 162: Stand Arrow! The Infinity Stone of Space!
Inside the cozy clubroom of the Supernatural Research Club, Marin leaned forward conspiratorially, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "Hey, did you guys hear the news?"
"Hear what?" Miko asked, her natural curiosity piqued.
Instead of answering directly, Marin posed a question. "You all know about the news reports of the missing girls from a little while ago, right?"
This immediately caught Yukino's attention. She set down the book she was reading, her brow furrowed in concern. "Are you talking about that case where more than twenty girls went missing in just three days?" As an avid reader of current events, she was well aware of the disturbing case.
Marin's eyes lit up, and she nodded emphatically. "That's the one! Well, just this morning, the police announced that the case has been solved."
"What exactly happened?" Yukino pressed, leaning forward. She didn't use her phone as much as Marin during school hours, so she hadn't seen the latest updates.
Eriri and Megumi also turned their attention to the conversation, their expressions curious. The disappearance of over twenty people sounded like a major incident.
"Was it a kidnapping ring?" Eriri guessed, her artist's mind picturing a shadowy organization.
Marin shook her head dramatically. "You'll never believe it. It was all done by one person."
"One person kidnapped over twenty people in three days?" Megumi murmured, her eyes wide. "How is that even possible?"
How could a single individual commit crimes so frequently without being discovered?
"It's true!" Marin insisted. "They were all found in the basement of a restaurant. The owner of that restaurant was the culprit."
Saying this, Marin wrapped her arms around herself, shivering theatrically. "And get this, the news said there were people chained up down there, and... and corpses hung on iron hooks with their guts spilled out. They think he was selling human organs on the black market!"
"Eek!"
The graphic description immediately painted a horrifying picture in their minds. Miko and Eriri both shuddered. "That's terrifying!"
As the only firsthand witness to the gruesome scene, Ren decided to correct the record. He spoke up calmly, "It wasn't organ trafficking. It was cannibalism."
"Huh?"
Marin stared at Ren, her jaw agape. "W-What? How could you know that?"
Everyone else in the room froze, their attention now laser-focused on him.
Cannibalism... The word hung in the air, heavy and horrifying. Was that man eating people?
Megumi's eyes flickered with understanding, and she ventured a guess. "Ren-kun... could it have been a supernatural anomaly?"
"Megumi, you're brilliant," Ren said, giving her a genuine thumbs-up. "You're spot on. He was a man-eating monster."
After Megumi's prompt, the others made the connection. It wasn't necessarily a human eating other humans. If it was a monster, it made a terrifying kind of sense.
Though Yukino was disgusted by the thought of cannibalism, her curiosity about the truth of the matter was stronger. "Ren, are you saying the restaurant owner was a monster? Or was he feeding people to a monster?"
Ren stated it plainly, "That owner was a man-eating creature known as a Ghoul."
Yukino was taken aback. "You mean the owner was a humanoid monster?"
"A sub-human species would be a more accurate term," Ren explained. "They are beings that have mutated from humans for... certain reasons. They are monsters that can only sustain themselves by eating humans or other Ghouls. Ordinary food is disgusting and indigestible to them."
"Such twisted creatures actually exist?" Eriri's mouth hung open in disbelief. Man-eating monsters that originated from human mutation... it was the stuff of nightmares.
"Ghouls are the definition of twisted," Ren confirmed, his expression grim. From the works he was familiar with, he knew that a Ghoul's affliction wasn't just physiological; it often led to severe psychological distortions as well.
"Is it really okay to just let that... Ghoul... go to a regular prison?" Yukino asked, worried. After all, it was a creature that preyed on humans.
Marin, however, looked confused. She was scrolling through her phone, rereading the news article. "But the news said the owner just went insane. He's constantly screaming, and none of the rescued girls remember what happened. They only recall being kidnapped by him."
"That was my doing," Ren said, tapping the table. A cup of steaming tea materialized before him. He took a leisurely sip before explaining.
"That man was Shizuka-sensei's blind date. Last night, I happened to run into them and discovered his secret."
"I altered the memories of those girls, erasing the bloody, traumatic scenes from their minds."
"As for that Ghoul... I inflicted a punishment on him that is eternal and absolute. He now exists in a state between life and death, destined to experience endless agony for all eternity."
"Shizuka-sensei!" Eriri's eyes widened in realization. "So that's why you stayed at the hotel with her last night?"
"Eh?! You stayed at a hotel with Shizuka-sensei?!" Miko, who had been terrified by the story of the Ghoul, was now completely dumbfounded by this new piece of gossip.
Marin, ever the instigator, leaned her head close to Ren, a wide, teasing grin on her face. "So, Ren-kun~, you didn't do anything... naughty... with Shizuka-sensei, did you? Like, anything at all...?"
Even Yukino's head snapped up, her eyes, usually so calm, were wide with a mixture of... concern? And... something else? The image of Ren and her teacher... together... was something she found herself unable to stop imagining.
Ren's lip twitched. He reached out and smacked Marin lightly on the forehead with a soft 'thwack'. "Don't be ridiculous. Shizuka-sensei was terrified and had been drugged. I simply took her to a hotel so she could rest safely."
"Hiss… Oww! If the answer is no, then just say no! Why hit me?" Marin whined, rubbing her forehead with a wronged expression.
Hearing this explanation, both Miko and Yukino visibly relaxed, letting out a simultaneous quiet sigh of relief.
If something had really happened, Yukino wasn't sure how she would feel... but it was, for now, naturally best that nothing had.
Her thoughts then returned to the more pressing issue. "Are there many Ghouls like him?" she asked with concern.
"Not many. In fact, he was the only one that's appeared in the last few days," Ren said, looking troubled himself.
He had learned from the memories he'd extracted from Vinsuke's mind. Ghouls were different from entities like evil spirits or the Kegare. Vinsuke's memories showed that his entire life had been that of an ordinary human. There were no traces of him being a Ghoul until three days ago.
Then, suddenly, he awakened as a Ghoul, and an entirely new set of memories—the life of a Ghoul—was forcibly implanted in his mind. It was bizarre, like two versions of the same person from different realities had merged into one twisted being.
He had initially suspected it was a factor of the Cognitive Doomsday, but this strange, awakening-style transformation was something new and unsettling.
"I've already done a broad scan of the global consciousness, and I haven't found any other Ghouls," Ren continued, a serious look on his face. "But this means you all need to be careful. Pay attention to the people around you; it seems anyone could mutate at any time."
He looked directly at Miko. "Especially you, Miko. If you ever sense danger, contact any of us immediately."
Miko nodded weakly, her face pale. "I-I understand!"
The girls exchanged worried glances, all understanding the gravity of the situation. This incident was a stark reminder that the Apocalypse was far from simple, and Ren knew he still needed to become much stronger.
He opened the Chat Group's personal interface.
[Human: Ren Kazama]
[Doomsday Points: 7.52 million]
[Apocalypse: (Omitted)]
[Abilities:]
[B-rank: Physical Enhancement (Lv. 4), Five Thunder Rectification - Yin Five Thunder (Lv. 4), Six Styles (Lv. 4), Armament Haki (Lv. 4), Observation Haki (Lv. 4)]
[A-rank: Sixth Sense (Lv. 4)]
[S-rank: Gemstone Vector Manipulation (Lv. 6), Zanpakuto Dominator (Lv. 6), Gluttony (Lv. 6)]
[SS-rank: Ten Thousand Realms Death Perception Eye (Lv. 7), Chaos Wings (Lv. 6)]
He currently had 7.52 million doomsday points. Upgrading his Mystic Eyes of Death Perception to Lv. 8 required a staggering 25 million points, which was currently out of reach.
After some thought, he decided to upgrade one of his other abilities. Chaos Wings was progressing through faith and sin, and it was primarily a support ability for now. That left his S-rank skills. He decided to stick with his old faithful, Vector Manipulation.
[System: Ding! You have consumed 5 million doomsday points to upgrade an ability!]
[System: Gemstone Vector Manipulation has been upgraded to Lv. 7!]
He quickly checked and saw that it could still be upgraded further, which was a relief. The upper limits of S-rank and higher abilities seemed to be in a league of their own.
"...And that leaves 2.52 million. Enough for a few rounds on the roulette."
It was the long-awaited gambling moment! But first, he had an idea.
He gestured for Megumi, Yukino, and Eriri to come closer. Marin and Miko watched curiously.
"What do you want?" Eriri asked, her arms crossed. She was still a little miffed that Ren had stayed out all night, even if it was for a good reason.
"Come on, Eriri, sit on my lap," Ren said, patting his thigh with a grin. "For good luck."
"No way!" she huffed, turning her head away, her cheeks tinged with pink.
"You don't really have a choice in the matter."
Her tsundere act was amusing, but he was on a schedule. Ren simply picked her up and settled her onto his lap, her legs straddling his.
"You jerk!" Eriri muttered, leaning forward and giving his neck a light, angry bite. Her small teeth barely made an impression.
He then pulled Megumi and Yukino close, hugging them with his free arms. The two of them were much more compliant, blushing slightly but settling against him.
"Ren-kun, what are you doing?" Megumi asked, tilting her head in confusion.
"Hehe, absorbing your good luck," Ren explained mysteriously, before activating the roulette.
As expected, the first nine spins were duds—either empty slots or useless trinkets, like a "Soldier Pill" of questionable effect.
Then, on the tenth spin, the guaranteed drop seemed to trigger.
[System: Ding! Congratulations on obtaining the Item: Perfect Float-Float Fruit!]
[Item: Perfect Float-Float Fruit]
[Effect: Upon consumption, the user will acquire the A-rank ability, Perfect Float-Float Fruit.]
Ren's eyes lit up. Unlike the abilities he'd directly fused for Nami and Shinobu, this was a physical item. He didn't need it, but one of his companions could. A very good start.
"Let's go again!"
Another ten spins, mostly junk, and then the guaranteed drop.
[System: Ding! Congratulations on obtaining the Item: Perfect Stand Arrow!]
[Item: Stand Arrow]
[Effect: Using the Perfect Stand Arrow will grant a 100% chance to awaken a Stand with an ability rank from C to A. Single-use item.]
"The Stand Arrow from JoJo!"
It wasn't the original, but a one-time item that guaranteed a Stand. The rank was a bit low for him personally, but it was still an incredible find. "I'll save this for later."
The battle wasn't over. He initiated the third round!
Again, a pile of junk, with only a single Senzu Bean providing some comfort. Finally, the thirtieth spin arrived. The roulette wheel slowed, the clicking sound growing more deliberate until it finally stopped.
A new prompt appeared, glowing with an otherworldly light.
[System: Ding! Congratulations on obtaining the Item: Infinity Stone - The Space Stone!]
[Item: Infinity Stone - Space Stone]
[Effect: A perfect wielder can instantly transport themselves or any object to any location in space. Allows for complete manipulation of space itself.]
"!!!"
Ren was utterly stunned.
An Infinity Stone! The genuine Space Stone from the Marvel universe!
He knew that according to the lore, an Infinity Stone loses its power when it leaves its native universe. But since this was an item from the Doomsday Chat Group, surely that limitation wouldn't apply... right?
[Inorin Note:
If you wish to support me so I can continue to survive and afford proper food, you can join my membership on Patreon [patreon.com/InorinTL]. Be sure to check out "The Dedicated Fan"—a special, limited-time tier that offers all the benefits of "The Plot Uncoverer" at a discounted price! Slots are limited, so grab yours before they run out. Besides membership, you can also donate via Ko-Fi [https://ko-fi.com/inorintl].
I hope I am still worthy of your support. My life truly depends on this... haha, I know I'm so shameless.]