Moonlight like water; night wind like a caress.
Behind his desk, Su Tang watched the three hopping devils, brow faintly furrowed.
Short as their words were, they contained a lot.
The first devil he killed had a background that deep?
The Leg Devil's death had been a turning point in his Tokyo story. He thought it would remain only in memory—and now it jumped back out to punch him.
A trusted vassal of Lord [Shèniè]?
Did that mean the [Shèniè Devil]?
From the name, not someone to cross. Whether East or West, that word was always among the most notorious sins.
Except… the Leg Devil's level… did "trusted vassal" fit?
He doubted it.
And that last line…
He cut off the Mouth Devil's self-satisfied spiel and frowned. "You said you're with the 'Guinea Pigs'?"
Wasn't that a Soviet special unit?
Valon had mentioned three days ago the "Guinea Pigs" were moving—with Tokyo as target… surely not this?
He didn't think so.
It wasn't worth yanking the "Guinea Pigs," District 13, and the Black Hand in succession—two superpowers and a global crime syndicate.
He leaned toward this being a side errand for the "Guinea Pigs," or subordinate grunts freelancing.
"That's right! You've heard the name, no doubt! Not afraid to tell you, Lord [Shèniè] is one of their elders! If you want to live, surrender now!"
Crowing again.
The hand said nothing; the… sphincter couldn't speak.
He chuckled. "In that case, where is your Lord [Shèniè] now?"
That stopped the Mouth Devil cold.
"I—of course, coming any time now! Once the lord arrives, you'll have no chance!"
He laughed.
"If I'm guessing right, [Shèniè] is still in the Soviet Union, isn't he?"
It didn't take thinking.
If the "Guinea Pigs" were strong enough to smuggle devils of this level into another nation's capital unnoticed, war would be over—there'd be one nation left.
He didn't believe Japan had no counter. They might have a terrifying devil hidden away.
"Hmph! Human! So you won't surrender?!" the Mouth Devil barked.
He ignored it and said to Angel, "Walk over to Public Safety, would you? Tell them the situation—maybe they'll be more interested in these things."
Grunts they might be, but still "Guinea Pigs." If Public Safety had ways to interrogate, this could net intel.
"I'll go after you finish them. I am a guard." Angel made a show of duty and leaned on the sofa to watch.
"Human! Ignore us three brothers and you'll regret it!"
The Mouth Devil seethed.
It produced a little abalone-shaped meat shard—about a fingernail, thin—and split it into three.
Su Tang felt a subtle aura and turned back.
"Watch closely! This is 0.01 kg of Lord [Shèniè]'s meat!"
It gulped a piece.
Gave one to the Hand Devil, then hopped down and stuffed the last into the Sphincter Devil.
He watched quietly.
A rare sight—his first time seeing devil meat other than [Gun].
He probed its strength.
Each piece was roughly equal to 0.02 kg of [Gun] meat cut from the Leg Devil's corpse.
What did that mean?
[Shèniè]'s power might even exceed [Gun]!
At first blush, incredible—[Gun Devil]'s terror was world-famous; the slaughter a decade ago still motivated many to hunt devils.
But think: [Gun], however strong, is just a weapon.
In this world, terrors beyond weapons are legion.
[Famine], [War], [Khorne]…
Most simply hadn't rampaged in the world as embodied devils.
[Shèniè] was likely the same.
Rubbing his chin, he thought of the Holy Lord.
If he chipped a sliver off the stone statue, would that count as a [Fire Devil] shard?
He remembered Grandpa doing something like that in the finale.
As he thought, the three devils finished "transforming."
Nothing to see—just bigger and more abstract.
The Sphincter Devil's hole could fit half an Angel Devil.
"Human! Even if you surrender now, we'll—uh…"
The Mouth Devil cut off mid-sentence.
Because Su Tang's cyan claw had closed on its throat of fate.
He closed his eyes to feel the struggling strength—understood.
Stronger than the tiny form—about a fourfold boost. Still limited—because the base was weak.
Having a read, he flicked his arm and slung it into the wall.
The wall didn't move; the devil slid down like mush.
"Impossible! Faulty intel!"
The Hand Devil hopped, five fingers waving. "Wasn't he supposed to be an average doctor?!"
Oh? He turned his arm human again.
So the "Guinea Pigs" hadn't found his fights with the Zombie, Bat, and Leech Devils?
Either they didn't care, or Public Safety scrubbed traces.
He poured himself water and regarded the three standing frozen and trembling—calmly. "I ask, you answer. Fail, and you die."
"First—what can you do?"
He was genuinely curious.
Every devil had a power tied to its name. Like Power, the Blood Fiend, controlling her blood.
But Mouth Devil, Hand Devil, and Sphincter Devil… what could they do?
They looked at each other.
Shameful to be threatened by a human—but the one threatening wasn't exactly human, either. Bending for now seemed… fine?
Mouth Devil took point again.
Swallowing, it stammered:
"I—I can turn into anyone's mouth."
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