Kazama Rin screamed as well.
His severed arm crackled, the shattered bones reforming under the forced adhesion of some unknown power.
‘I’ll kill you.’ Kazama Rin slowly rose from the ground.
His voice overlapped the clear tone of a young man with a woman’s shriek, sounding eerie and terrifying.
He reached out, grasping at the air.
The kendo sword that had fallen far away let out a whirring cry, flying automatically into his hand.
Cracks began to split across the blade, but at the same time, it radiated a blindingly intense light.
Boom!
A faint blue mist, visible to the naked eye, exploded outward from Kazama Rin as the epicenter.
Long Yin, who was about to leave with the combat suit, stopped in his tracks and turned around, a flicker of emotion appearing for the first time in his eyes behind the mask.
Feng He Shi, even more so, felt an unprecedented chill.
“Putting on a show!”
Feng He Shi roared, trying to dispel the fear in his heart. His massive fist, wrapped in a fierce gale, smashed toward the silver-haired figure.
Kazama Rin didn’t dodge. He just slightly lowered his stance, making a starting motion for a draw-and-slash.
Behind him, the air twisted, as if a woman’s phantom in a white shiro-muku, her face stained with blood and tears, appeared, holding his hand to swing the blade together with him.
“[Dimensional Slash: Absolute]”
At the moment the sound of the drawn blade rang out, Kazama Rin’s form turned into a streak of light, charging forward, then vanished.
Yuki Asahi could only catch a fleeting afterimage; a massive glare flooded his vision.
Space twisted.
Then, a blue blade light that filled the entire space burst forth in an instant, cutting through Long Yin, through Feng He Shi’s massive body, through the seven or eight Semi-Devourers behind him, and even through the indestructible hotel support pillars in the distance, extending all the way to the edge of sight.
[This is POWER!]
[Yeah? Who’s coming?]
[Dimensional Slash Absolute!]
[Dimensional Slash. The word reduces the masterwork, how would you know the dimensional slash without the Cicada Shell?]
[First time seeing such light-polluted moves in an anime]
[Doesn’t this count as not paying copyright fees?]
[My eyes!]
[Flashbang!]
[This is POWER!]
Jiang Jian Yue continued watching the animation on the screen.
Yuki Asahi had been staring at Koji Hattori in silent, absentminded shock ever since he saw him.
It wasn’t until the Blood Wedding ended, facing Kirishima Ren whose emotions had collapsed, that Yuki Asahi finally spoke.
“I’m sorry.”
Kirishima Ren didn’t respond to Yuki Asahi’s apology.
She didn’t even look at him.
Her gaze was hollowly fixed on the direction where Saori Saiyonji had been taken away.
The pure white shiro-muku was already stained with blood splatters, and the heavy cotton hood was askew, revealing her pale half of her face, white as paper.
“I’m sorry.”
Yuki Asahi spoke again, but by then his fists were clenched tight.
The screen flashed to the bound Saori Saiyonji being taken away, and Koji Hattori “dead” before Yuki Asahi.
He slowly stood up. The wound on his abdomen was still bleeding, but his physical pain was drowned out by a greater storm within.
When he looked up again, deep within his golden eyes, the killing intent was like tempered ice, unshakeable.
[Next episode, No Regrets in Killing a Wife!]
[Oh man, are they really going to have a husband-wife fight this season?]
Thud—
A soft knock on the balcony. Jiang Jian Yue knew it was Sasaki and the others returning.
Jiang Jian Yue took off her headphones, drew open the balcony curtains, and looked at Sasaki kneeling behind the glass.
“Head of the Jiang family! I deserve death for losing two combat suits…”
Jiang Jian Yue slid open the glass door, ignoring Sasaki, and looked down at the empty space below the balcony.
There, Beiye and Mizuki Hoshi were still pinning down the severely injured Saori Saiyonji.
“Jiang Jian…” Saori Saiyonji was slightly dazed.
Though she had mentally prepared herself, seeing her in person still brought some surprise.
Her tone was a bit awkward; she was barely rescued by the Dark Crows, but she didn’t understand what they were even trying to do.
“Why? Why bring me here?” Saori Saiyonji stammered.
Jiang Jian Yue didn’t answer immediately. Instead, she looked at Sasaki: “You three, block the Nasal Forms you attracted.”
Saori Saiyonji’s emergent body coming to Seoul inevitably formed new, powerful Nasal Forms in the vicinity.
“Yes!”
The three didn’t ask questions and left directly.
Jiang Jian Yue leaped down from the balcony, her figure landing cross-legged before the prostrate Saori Saiyonji.
“Saori, I need your help with something.”
“Huh? Help?”
Saori Saiyonji was slightly stunned, but years of political career made him stop himself from asking “why didn’t you discuss this with me first?”
He knew Jiang Jian Yue asking for this favor wasn’t just simple help.
Saori Saiyonji fell silent. He knew Jiang Jian Yue could touch corpses. “I need your ability. Your Trading Ability.”
“I can grant you eternal life in my Vision World, or I can create a puppet, stuff your soul into it, and let you return to Japan to reunite with your loved ones. Don’t worry.”
Jiang Jian Yue lowered her eyelids, her voice soft.
“If you could do that, you would have come to talk to me, not like this. What’s your goal?” Saori Saiyonji was silent for a long time before asking. “What is your goal?”
The last glimmer of hope in her heart made her nervous: “I need the Trading Ability to reverse the Oscillation Core’s effect, or directly trade away the existence of the Heart Worms.”
Jiang Jian Yue stated her goal outright, the final hope fading from her heart.
Saori Saiyonji widened his eyes, then said dejectedly, “You can’t do that. That kind of grand goal…”
“I can.”
Jiang Jian Yue cut him off, then pointed to the Bug God’s body in the sky.
“I have access to almost limitless resources for trading. As long as I acquire the Godhood, the places I influence become ‘mine.'”
But Saori Saiyonji still shook his head and sighed, “If it’s for that goal…”
Jiang Jian Yue’s final hope died. A flicker of pain passed through her blood-red eyes. “Why?”
“Same as the worst-case scenario you predicted. I refuse.”
“Forget it…” Jiang Jian Yue thought for a moment, then decided not to listen further.
She had always known.
Regarding human nature, getting espers, especially high-level ones, to give up the convenience and power brought by their superpowers was incredibly difficult.
She wouldn’t force Saori Saiyonji to say something lame like “I’m just power-hungry, so I don’t want superpowers to disappear.”
But unexpectedly, Saori Saiyonji gave an answer that left Jiang Jian Yue momentarily stunned.
Saori Saiyonji struggled to get up, breathing heavily, his face pale.
“Overseer Jiang, you always see yourself as the controlling parental figure, even arranging the future of humankind when facing them?”
“Can’t you trust in the power of humanity?”
“We are creating a new era, one never seen before in history. All the pain, all the sacrifices, are pushing us towards true Ultimate Freedom.”
“Haven’t the traps, resources, economy, and class that have plagued humanity and forced it into cycles of destruction throughout history finally found a possibility to be overcome now?”
“And even if your plan succeeds, wouldn’t returning to a world without Heart Worms be perfect?”
Mid-sentence, Saori Saiyonji suddenly noticed something strange about Jiang Jian Yue’s eyes.
It wasn’t the fury of being refuted, but rather… like the pride of seeing her own child become knowledgeable and learned, and beneath that pride, a domineering disapproval.
Even saying that feels abstract, but Saori Saiyonji felt that was it.
Jiang Jian Yue looked into the distance. “And what about those people hurt by the Heart Worms and supernatural phenomena? The Ultimate Freedom of the new era won’t shine on them, will it?”
A smile appeared on Jiang Jian Yue’s face, softening her already enchanting features. “What you said was good.”
“But… I don’t agree.”
Saori Saiyonji was slightly stunned, then a surge of resentment lodged in his chest. “Then what about the civilians you killed, Overseer Jiang? What did they do wrong?”
“What did they do wrong?”
Compared to his earlier modesty, he was now sharp and forthright.
However, Jiang Jian Yue pursed her lips. Though her face still bore a charming smile,
Saori Saiyonji felt a chill run down his spine.