He had only proposed "reverting the modified humans" to trick Tohno Shiki, hoping to manipulate him into clashing with Roy—preferably even coming to blows. That would have been ideal.
Unexpectedly, Roy saw right through his technique, and Shiki ended up being persuaded by him instead.
Mahito lay on the ground, his empty gaze fixed on the night sky.
After spending so much time in this world, tonight's darkness was as thick as ever.
"No choice..."
"I really didn't want to do this..."
But if things continued like this, he was as good as dead.
He had no choice but to risk it all!
The light in Mahito's pupils gradually dimmed.
For a moment, his presence flickered like a dying ember, frail and unsteady.
Then, in an instant—like a solar flare erupting—his aura exploded with terrifying intensity!
"Hm?"
Roy's eyes suddenly sharpened.
Crack!
A massive hand burst from beneath his feet, lifting him into the air. The enormous palm, larger than his entire body, resembled a slab of rock rising from the earth, effortlessly launching him skyward.
"What is this...?"
Roy adjusted his posture midair, his gaze snapping back to the ground below.
A colossal humanoid monster had risen from the earth.
The creature stood nearly twenty meters tall, its body devoid of any hair. A single one of its hands dwarfed Roy entirely. Its skin had turned a deep, toxin-laced purple, covered in bulbous, pulsating tumors that seemed ready to burst and spew venom at any moment.
With one hand, it had hurled Roy into the sky.
Then, with a single kick, it struck Shiki square in the chest, sending him flying backwards until he crashed into a nearby barrier, shaking the entire structure.
"GRRROOOAAARRR!!"
The monster spread its arms, thrust out its chest, and roared at the heavens.
The sound was so overwhelming it seemed to pierce straight through the chest, making hearts tremble in its wake.
"Such a dense stench of curses... and it feels so familiar...!"
Roy landed atop a nearby high-rise, his nose twitching as he caught the unmistakable scent.
"The Evil of Humanity—this bastard actually absorbed the curses from the wild? Does he have a death wish?"
The overwhelming miasma of curses radiating from the monster was unmistakable—it was the taint of the Evil of Humanity!
During the Great Cataclysm ten years ago, the curses of the Evil of Humanity had spread across the world through the Black Mud, plunging the entire planet into a year-long inferno. Since then, its corruption had seeped into every corner of the globe.
Outside the purified cities, the wilderness was now saturated with the Evil of Humanity's curses. An ordinary person exposed to it would have their mind corrupted within half a day, descending into madness within a matter of days.
Though it was a conceptual curse, its dispersion across the world had diluted its potency.
Even so, few dared to touch it—let alone harness it.
Those who did would end up like Roy—enduring years of torment, their minds constantly on the brink of collapse, one slip away from insanity.
—Except for Cursed Spirits.
Cursed spirits are creatures born from curses.
They are naturally adept at utilizing curses.
This world overflowing with curses is practically their natural habitat.
Mahito had absorbed a considerable amount of wild curses.
But instead of immediately using them to strengthen himself, he stored them within his body.
Because he had discovered something.
Even fish living in water can suffer harm if the water pressure becomes too intense.
The same applied to the "Evil of Humanity."
This conceptual curse was simply too powerful, too vast, too unstoppable. Even for a cursed spirit, attempting to absorb and wield such a curse would affect the mind. If taken in all at once, the sheer weight of malice would overwhelm his sanity.
Even for a special-grade cursed spirit like Mahito, the only way to grow stronger using this curse was to absorb it bit by bit—taking in a small portion each day, fully digesting it before moving on to the next. Only through this slow accumulation could he grow stronger with near-zero side effects.
But Mahito didn't have the luxury of time now.
If he didn't act, he would surely die at Roy's hands.
So he absorbed all the curses stored within his body—in one go.
What would happen as a result? He didn't know.
He might lose himself entirely, becoming a mindless cursed spirit driven only by slaughter. Or the sheer volume of curses might rupture him from within, killing him on the spot. But either outcome was better than dying by Roy's hand.
And now, it seemed—
Mahito's fate was the former.
He had completely lost his sanity, becoming nothing more than a killing machine.
In his mindless state, only one thought remained—to eliminate every enemy that had ever threatened him!
"ROAR!"
Mahito's gaze locked onto Roy, standing atop a distant building.
With a furious bellow, he swung his massive hand toward the structure.
As his palm descended, shockwaves of dust erupted like contrails from a jet.
Roy's eyes narrowed. Despite its enormous size, the hand moved with terrifying speed—far faster than when Mahito had been in his smaller form.
He swiftly dodged, leaping off the rooftop just in time.
BOOM!
Mahito's palm slammed into the building. The entire apartment complex trembled violently before collapsing in a thunderous cascade of debris.
"His power is terrifying… Even without his mind, the strength of the curse is no joke!"
Roy glanced back mid-air. A single strike had leveled an entire high-rise—such power was beyond belief.
Just how much curse energy had he absorbed to reach this level?
The howling wind signaled Mahito's next attack.
His other massive hand shot toward Roy, fingers curling as if to crush him mid-flight. It seemed that after absorbing such an immense amount of curses, even the damage to his soul had been restored—likely an instinctive act, using a burst of curse energy to heal his original wounds.
"You're underestimating me. Did you really think absorbing a few curses would make you my equal?"
Roy smirked, his hand already drawing the activation device from his waist.
The next moment, a massive light blade measuring ten meters in length materialized in his hand. Pitch-black infernal flames spiraled around the blade, transforming the surroundings into a crucible as the temperature abruptly soared.
Shhhhk!
Like a hot knife slicing through butter, the superheated light blade cleaved the extended palm of the cursed spirit into pieces with a single slash.
The instant the hand shattered, the purple pustules covering its skin burst open, spraying their contents like exploding juice.
Roy, still mid-air, kicked against the atmosphere. The air trembled as he propelled himself backward, narrowly avoiding the purple fluid reeking of potent curses—clearly toxic.
"Waver!"
At that moment, a furious roar from Iskandar erupted from the red-brick road below.
Roy steadied himself and glanced downward just in time to see Waver's body stretching like dough, morphing into a long arrow.
The cursed spirit gripped the arrow and hurled it straight at Roy.
Iskandar's eyes burned crimson in an instant.
"Turn to ashes, you damned curse!"
With volcanic fury, he drew his short sword once more.
In that moment, thunder descended from the heavens.