Chapter 48
"That woman named Karuizawa Kei—where is she?"
Ryuuen Santarou picked up the baseball bat again and knocked another boy unconscious.
He spoke viciously to the subordinate beside him.
"President, the team we sent to capture Karuizawa Kei still hasn't returned!"
A man next to him looked at Ryuuen in extreme panic.
"Bring that damn girl Ibuki Mio up here!"
Ibuki, who was currently being held in Ye Yu's arms, trembled violently at the words.
She quickly lifted her head and looked at Ye Yu in panic.
"What do we do? What should we do? You must have a way to get me out of here, right?!"
Seeing Ibuki's full panic, Ye Yu supported her back with his right hand.
Under her terrified gaze, he lifted her legs and placed them around his waist.
Feeling her body rise, Ibuki instinctively clamped her legs tighter and wrapped her arms around Ye Yu's neck.
Her nose tip pressed directly against Ye Yu's face.
But in such an intimate position, she felt no ripples of embarrassment.
Because the men who had captured her were about to reach her corner.
"Hurry—take me away, please…"
Right now, she could only pray that the power Ye Yu had shown earlier could protect her from harm!
She truly couldn't imagine how miserable her fate would be if she fell into their hands.
But to her surprise, the man walked a full circle through the crowd.
Then he ran back to Ryuuen.
"President Ryuuen… that little girl… she's gone!"
Looking at the lowered head of his subordinate, Ryuuen slapped him hard across the face.
"You useless trash! With so many people guarding, how did she still escape?!"
Meanwhile, Kushida—watching from the side—had a flicker of confusion in her eyes.
Just a moment ago she had seen Ibuki sitting on the ground, but now it was as if she had vanished into thin air…
Could it be… Lord Ye Yu?
Yes—it must be Lord Ye Yu. He's definitely watching my performance from somewhere nearby!
Thinking of this, excitement filled Kushida's face.
Then the star-shaped pattern in her palm emitted a faint glow.
In the next second, one of the men standing beside Ryuuen suddenly showed terror on his face.
Because he suddenly felt his body lose control.
His hand slowly moved toward his waist, then slowly drew out a small knife.
Ryuuen—who was still scolding his subordinates—suddenly caught something in the corner of his eye.
One of his men was charging at him in an extremely strange manner.
He instinctively dodged to the side, and then felt a burning pain in his arm.
The knife had slashed across his arm!
Seeing one of his own subordinates attack him, rage and shock flashed across Ryuuen's face.
"You damn brat!"
Ryuuen spun around and kicked the man hard in the chest.
Bang…
The man lost balance and fell heavily to the left.
Clang…
The knife dropped to the ground. The man curled up in pain.
"You bastard—you dare attack the president?!"
The man's older brother saw his subordinate attack Ryuuen. His heart nearly stopped. He hurriedly stepped forward to show loyalty.
But strangely, the men behind showed no reaction.
Instead, they all stared at Ryuuen with eerie, blank expressions.
"Interrogate him properly—see if he's from the Black Dragon Gang! Damn it… could it be they sent people to take little Kakeru?!"
While Ryuuen's face was dark with suspicion, he suddenly felt a heavy impact on his shoulder.
Pain—excruciating pain! He didn't even have time to scream before another whooshing sound came.
From the corner of his eye, he saw a bat swinging straight toward his head.
Bang…
His head took the full blow, sending him crashing to the floor.
He shook his dizzy head with effort.
Then he saw something that filled him with extreme terror.
At some point, all his subordinates behind him had closed in.
And more were gathering— even the ones guarding the door were slowly walking over.
Their faces were expressionless, eyes lifeless, weapons pointed directly at him.
"You bastards… are you rebelling against me?!"
Ryuuen's expression was one of pure shock. He never imagined they would all betray him.
When did this happen?
He felt horrified, but the others were even more terrified than him.
What the hell am I doing—attacking President Ryuuen?!
Under their horrified gazes, their own hands swung weapons fiercely toward him.
At this moment, Kushida watched with a full smile as Ryuuen was hacked until he was barely breathing.
Finally, she controlled one of them to deliver the final stab to his throat.
Watching the blood spray freely, everyone in the room panicked.
"You bastards… why the hell are you betraying me…"
Ryuuen closed his eyes in extreme unwillingness.
And that seemed to be the signal.
The others immediately turned their weapons on each other in a frenzy.
Baseball bats smashed shoulders, knives stabbed necks, fists struck eyes…
They had suddenly turned into wild beasts, beginning a brutal mutual slaughter.
In an instant, the scene descended into utter chaos.
"They've gone mad! Run—RUN!!"
"Help—murder! They're killing people!!"
The kidnapped people saw this scene and immediately fled toward the exit.
At this moment, Ibuki clung to Ye Yu like a frightened kitten, arms wrapped tightly around his neck.
Watching the fleeing crowd, she felt an unprecedented sense of security.
"Since you've been so obedient, I'll help you remove the worm now!"
Ye Yu smiled faintly and immediately took control of the brain worm inside her mind.
Ibuki could clearly feel something locked inside her brain being released.
From the corner of her eye, she saw a centipede-like insect slowly crawling out of her ear, bit by bit.
She felt an extreme sense of relief. The comfort made her eyes grow slightly dazed.
In that moment, she seemed to develop Stockholm syndrome.
The fear toward Ye Yu in her heart transformed into deep admiration.
Ibuki tilted her head back, her eyes gently meeting Ye Yu's.
"Hey… I'll be 21 soon. Would you… like to hold a wedding with me?"
Ye Yu was genuinely stunned.
This change was way too fast.
But looking into her eyes, he suddenly remembered a similar situation from when he used brain worms in the past.
A man had once looked at him with the same expression.
It had caused him physical discomfort, so he'd physically ended the man on the spot.
One of his subordinates had once guessed: it was possible the brain worm accidentally stimulated massive dopamine release.
Ibuki might be experiencing the same thing.
While he was thinking, a clear shout came from the doorway.
"Police! Everyone drop your weapons and squat with your hands on your head! Otherwise we will take coercive measures!"
Following the voice, Ye Yu looked toward the door.
A familiar figure appeared before him.
Golden hair, green eyes, wearing a sharp police uniform.
Holding a handgun, she stared sharply at the chaotic crowd still fighting.
Artoria… as a police officer??
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