The three of them left the area around the school.
A flicker of fear passed across Kana Kimishima's face. "Where are you taking me?"
"No need to be so nervous. We're members of a special task force investigating parasitic organisms," Roy said with a smile.
Kana Kimishima looked puzzled. "Parasitic… organisms?"
Roy replied meaningfully, "Aren't you able to sense the special wavelengths they emit?"
Kana Kimishima was startled. When she focused, she could occasionally perceive a strange signal, but she had never told anyone about this ability.
"Helping us locate those parasitic organisms is your job," Roy said.
In truth, the lie he made was full of holes—if they were really an official agency, there would be no need to block someone at a school gate.
But Kana Kimishima's mind was in turmoil. She had no spare capacity to question their identities.
"Kana!"
Just as the three turned a corner, Shinichi Izumi came running after them, panting, and shouted to stop them.
"Izumi!" Kana Kimishima exclaimed in relief.
Seeing Shinichi Izumi's slightly immature face, Roy roughly grasped the current point in the timeline.
"Who are you people?" Shinichi demanded, about to rush over.
At that moment, a voice rang out in his ear—Migi's voice, filled with strong wariness.
"Wait, Shinichi. Don't get any closer!"
Shinichi stopped in his tracks. It was the first time he had seen Migi react like this. Lowering his voice, he said urgently, "What is it, Migi? Kana's still over there!"
"If your combat power is 10, and mine is 180, then that girl is over 500," Migi said, signaling him to look at Ryuu beside Roy.
The numbers left Shinichi dumbfounded. His anxiety only grew stronger. "A parasitic organism?"
"No. She doesn't have the same wavelength as us, but she's also not an ordinary human. Truly astonishing. Just what are they?" Migi replied.
"No need to be so tense. Since you're here, you might as well join us," Roy said.
Sensing no hostility from Roy or Ryuu, Shinichi and Migi followed them cautiously.
The four of them found a family restaurant.
Kana Kimishima told Shinichi about the fake identity Roy had fabricated, but Shinichi was clearly not as easy to fool as she was—especially with an intelligent parasitic organism living in his right hand, one that could even use a computer.
Roy looked at Shinichi first. "Your parents went on a trip?"
"They left yesterday," Shinichi replied, confused. The topic had suddenly shifted to his parents, and the person asking looked even younger than him.
Roy sighed with exaggerated sympathy. "That's really unfortunate. You should tell them to leave that area immediately."
"Why?"
Roy's expression gave Shinichi a bad feeling. His voice began to tremble slightly.
Recalling the plot, Roy smiled. "There have been murder cases in that area. The news didn't say it outright—so who do you think did it?"
Bang!
Shinichi suddenly stood up, his face twisted with shock. Parasitic organisms!
The loud crash of the chair hitting the floor drew everyone's attention in the restaurant.
"Sorry, I need to make a phone call," Shinichi apologized hurriedly before rushing outside.
"Young people are always so impatient," Roy muttered.
Coming from someone his age, it sounded odd, but both Ryuu and Kana Kimishima tacitly agreed that an old monster seemed to be hiding inside that young body.
"Do you believe us now?" Roy asked Kana Kimishima.
She nodded, lowering her guard. Knowing both her secret and the truth behind the murders reported in the news—only a government organization should have access to that kind of information.
"Then let's go hunt parasitic organisms."
After eating their fill, the three left the family restaurant and began wandering the streets, using Kana Kimishima's special perception to search for traces of Parasytes.
Perhaps it was beginner's luck. In less than half an hour, they actually encountered one.
"That man in the hat," Kana Kimishima said, trembling as she pointed toward a couple ahead of them.
Like Parasytes, Kana Kimishima could emit signals that allowed mutual detection, but the range of her signal was very short. As a result, the Parasyte hadn't noticed her at all—a natural protective shield.
The couple entered an underground parking garage.
Roy and the others followed closely behind. The target seemed too focused on his prey to notice he was being tailed. Keeping a distance of thirty to forty meters, they observed in secret.
"It's so dark here. What are we doing?" the girl asked, unaware that danger was imminent.
"Turning you into my food," the young man replied flatly, no longer bothering to pretend.
"That's such an awful thing to say," the girl pouted, her face flushed.
But the moment she turned around, her face went deathly pale.
Her boyfriend's cheeks split apart, transforming into several long arms that danced in the air. Reflected by the dim lights of the underground garage, the scene was horrifying beyond measure.
"Ahhh—!"
The girl let out a piercing scream.
The tip of one long arm morphed into a sharp blade and slashed toward her at a speed invisible to the naked eye.
A golden figure flashed into existence. A wooden sword swung out, blocking the Parasyte's blade, and a crisp clash of metal rang out.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Weapons were exchanged at high speed. Violent sparks burst forth repeatedly in midair.
"A kindred spirit? No… what exactly are you—?"
The young man showed the same disbelief as Migi. Humans shouldn't possess this kind of power.
It even far exceeded that of Parasytes!
Boom!!
Ryuu used Elf Luminous Gale to sweep away all of the Parasyte's blades, then surged forward like a raging wind. Her small hand seized the man's head and smashed it hard into the wall.
The immense force sent cracks spreading in all directions. His head was completely pulverized.
Leaving the terrified girl behind, Roy and the others quickly withdrew, not wanting to attract police attention.
After this encounter, Kana Kimishima completely believed in the existence of Parasytes—and in Roy's fabricated identity. The elf girl's overwhelming strength and decisive fighting style left an even deeper impression on her.
There were far more Parasytes hidden within human society than expected. After five or six hours of sweeping the area, Roy and the others managed to track down four more.
Most of them were confronted head-on.
One Parasyte, however, was particularly cunning and knew how to hide its identity.
"No! I'm human! What are you trying to do? I'll give you all my money!"
The middle-aged man retreated step by step as Ryuu advanced, desperately trying to argue his case.
But the moment he was attacked, his true form was revealed.
His expression turned blank, his head transforming into a razor-sharp blade.
The outcome was obvious. He was crushed utterly beneath the elf girl's assault.
Ordinary Parasytes were roughly equivalent to LV.2 monsters. Because they possessed some intelligence, they were slightly harder to deal with than regular monsters, but they lacked skills and magic. A seasoned LV.2 adventurer could handle them.
According to Roy's estimation, the dungeon's upper limit being LV.4 was clearly because of that final boss—Gotou.