"Wh… What the hell…"
"This guy…"
"Is he even human?"
"He waved his hand and just deleted the captain. That's terrifying!"
"A monster like him shouldn't even exist in this world!"
"That's right! He deserves to die!"
"Fire! Open fire!"
"Kill him, kill them both!!"
The armed troops, visibly shaken after witnessing the boy's overwhelming display of power, snapped into high alert and prepared to open fire on the spot.
They raised their heavy submachine guns.
Primed.
Loaded.
Pulled the trigger.
"RATATATATAT!"
In a single moment,
A storm of muzzle flashes lit the dim underpass.
Hundreds of bullets burst out from the weapons, streaking through the air in a concentrated volley aimed at Ren and the little girl beside him.
Golden bullet casings clattered to the ground in waves.
The stench of gunpowder grew thick.
"Idiots."
Ren didn't flinch. In fact, he seemed excited.
His lips curled into a smile. He could smell blood.
With a flick of his elegant fingers,
"Kai." (Release.)
Once again, the technique activated.
Ting! Clang! CRACK!
A chaotic burst of sharp metallic impacts filled the air.
Just as the bullets were about to reach them, an invisible slash expanded outward like a net, slicing every bullet in its path into shrapnel midair.
Not a single round made it through.
Worse for the attackers, the slash didn't stop there.
Instead, it accelerated.
"Shlrrk! SHLK! Shrrkk!"
The first wave of soldiers didn't even have time to scream.
They were cut clean in half, torsos separating from legs in eerie symmetry.
Blood sprayed in arcs.
In an instant, the air reeked of metal and meat.
The ground turned crimson.
"Ahahaha…"
"That's it? That's all you've got? Trash talking like you're hot stuff, and this is what you bring to the table?"
Ren chuckled cheerfully.
He took another sip of milk tea to calm his pounding heart, worried he might laugh himself into cardiac arrest.
"Y-You…"
"Did you just… kill them all…?"
The soft voice of the girl behind him trembled.
Unable to see what had happened, Chizuru Akiyama relied on sound and intuition.
"Yup. All gone. And don't worry, they weren't good people. I actually did the world a favor."
Ren admitted casually.
Lying wasn't in his vocabulary.
"I… I see…"
Chizuru replied blankly.
Ren turned to her and crouched down.
One hand supported his chin. The other held his milk tea. He looked amused.
"What? Think I went too far?"
"N-No…"
She shook her head rapidly.
"Really?"
"Mmhm!"
"Hmm… I don't like liars."
With that,
Ren gave a light flick of his hand.
Whoosh,
A chilling gust tore through the air.
In that instant, his invisible slash severed a single lock of Chizuru's hair.
The blade had passed so close to her scalp that she could feel its heat.
She collapsed to the ground, shivering uncontrollably.
Like she'd just stared down the grim reaper.
"Anything else you'd like to say?"
Ren's voice was cold.
There would be no second warning.
"I-I-I…"
She was paralyzed with fear. Her voice wouldn't come out properly.
"Hm?"
"N-No! I mean, no, really! You didn't go too far at all!"
Chizuru forced herself to speak, barely suppressing her terror.
And she meant it. Every word.
"...Hah. Now that's better."
Ren gave her a small smile and gently patted her trembling head.
"Whew… whew…"
Chizuru let out a shaky breath.
She felt like she had just cheated death.
"Call me Onii-chan."
"...Eh?!"
Her brain froze.
Whoosh!
Another wind slice flew past.
"O-Onii-chan!!"
She yelled with perfect clarity.
Ren ruffled her hair, satisfied.
"That's more like it. Good girl~"
"Mhm~"
Chizuru played along with a soft hum.
Who would've guessed that the man she'd randomly latched onto for help would turn out to be this terrifying, and this cruel?
"Got anywhere you want to go? I'm in a decent mood today. I'll grant one wish."
Ren asked offhandedly.
Mostly as an excuse to skip school.
"N-No… nowhere in particular…"
Chizuru shook her head.
She was just a fugitive girl. There was nowhere left to go.
"What about your parents?"
Ren pressed again.
But the only response…
Was silence.
"Ahh~ Got it."
He leaned in with sudden interest.
"Lemme guess. Your parents sold you out, didn't they? Turned you over to those scientists for experimentation."
"H-How did you know…?"
"C'mon. I've been there too."
Ren's tone was light, as if it were just some minor anecdote.
As if it hadn't been his life once.
"You were a victim too?"
"Yeah. Sort of."
"That's… so sad…"
"Oi oi, who said you get to pity me?"
Ren grumbled and pinched her cheek.
He was definitely not someone who needed sympathy.
"S-Sorry! I mean, sumimasen!"
Chizuru quickly bowed 90 degrees in apology.
She nearly forgot, this guy was a certified monster.
"Yo, you're pretty quick on the draw with apologies."
Ren sipped his milk tea and asked lazily,
"So, what now? Got any plans?"
"N-Not really…"
"Then come with me. My place has room for two. Should be easy."
"Eh?! R-Really?!"
Chizuru blinked.
This guy… had a heart of gold after all?!
"What, you think I enjoy wasting breath?"
Ren huffed.
"I… I can't see, remember…"
Chizuru lowered her head.
She said it softly, almost ashamed.
Ren stopped.
"…"
Oh right. He'd forgotten.
She had beautiful heterochromatic eyes, yet couldn't see. What a waste.
Probably a side effect of those damn experiments…
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200 P.S / 1 Extra Chapter