The outskirts.
A female fiend with red horns pointed toward an abandoned villa about a hundred meters away.
"There," she said to Braid Girl, her voice shaky, "the devil's in that house. I'm not going any closer. If that thing hears me, it'll eat my voice. It caught my Nyan-ko and is holding it against me."
Hayakawa Aki nodded once, flicked away her cigarette, and then removed a strange charm from around her neck. It looked like a bullet casing but had vein-like patterns and a fleshy texture — a piece of the Gun Devil's flesh.
She held the fragment level, sensing toward the villa.
"There's a reaction," she murmured, frowning, "but it's weak. Fiend, you said the devil inside is the Bat Devil, right?"
"Call me the Great Power," the Blood Fiend corrected, voice stern.
"Yes," Aki continued, her eyes hardening, "the Bat Devil's in there, injured. It's our chance to kill it. Braid Girl, you help me take it down and get Nyan-ko back, and I'll listen to anything you want. East or west, your call."
"You'd better goddamn remember those words," Power said, looking serious for once.
Not long ago, Aki had begged and wheedled until the Fox Devil forgave her, letting her use its power again — a chance she wasn't about to waste. Aki drew her sword and crept toward the villa. A devil at this level should be no problem, she told herself. If she couldn't handle a bat devil, then dreaming of avenging the Gun Devil was just bullshit.
"Yeah! Cheer for me, Braid Girl!" Power called from behind, trying to sound supportive.
But then her expression changed.
She whispered under her breath and sliced her own palm, compressing blood into a massive hammer. Blood manipulation was her trademark.
Suddenly she leapt behind Aki.
"I'm sorry, Braid Girl."
"What?!" Aki turned her head, her focus still on the villa.
Bang!
Power's hammer smashed into her, knocking her out cold.
Power sheathed her weapon and dragged Aki's motionless body into the dark house.
"Bat," Power called into the gloom, "I brought the person as promised. Give me Nyan-ko."
A massive shadow crouched in the villa's corner, muscles bulging beneath grotesque bat-like features. The Bat Devil turned its head, eyes blood-red and chilling.
"Well done, Fiend," it rumbled. "Let me inspect the goods first."
Its massive arm swept aside wreckage and picked up Aki, sniffing her like some fresh snack.
Then, without hesitation, it swallowed her whole.
"Delicious!" the Bat Devil crowed.
With a thunderous burst it smashed a hole in the roof, its wings unfurling as it prepared to take flight.
Power yelled from below, but the Bat Devil barely heard her.
It spotted an iron cage hooked above.
Inside was a fat calico cat — Nyan-ko.
The Bat Devil snatched the cage, and in one gulp devoured both it and the cat.
"No…" Power whispered, stunned, her reason for fighting swallowed whole.
The Bat Devil laughed wildly, crushing Power in one cruel grip before swallowing her too.
Standing unconscious inside the bat's belly, Aki's clothes were already being corroded by stomach acid.
Power, holding the twisted cage, glanced at Aki and whispered through grit, "Nyan-ko… I did this, didn't I? At least… you two go with me…" She drove a blade into her own body and used her bleeding blood to wrap Aki and the cat cage, an act of tragic protection.
Above them, the Bat Devil roared into the sky:
"It's not enough! Humans, you're not nearly enough! I want to eat more of you! Delicious kids for appetizers, unmarried young women for palate cleansers, and strong men for the main course!"
With a mighty flap of wings, it soared toward the distant city.
Tokyo. Dome City Amusement Park.
Cael had already spent 9,000 yen on two one-day passes. After all, how could he let Asa pay for the whole thing?
The two of them stepped off the Thunder Dolphin roller coaster. Around them, tourists were puking and green around the gills, but Cael and Asa stood there cool as cucumbers. Their physiology was just that special — rides ordinary people found thrilling barely registered on them.
"You're pretty brave, Asa," Cael said, arms crossed and smiling. "What do you want to ride next?"
Asa looked up at the giant ferris wheel floating above them, and her voice dropped to a whisper:
"I want to go on the ferris wheel."
She'd read about it in magazines and novels — up high, quiet, just the two of you. The classic confession setting. Yoru also chirped in her head that it was a good strategic spot to maybe glimpse Chainsaw Man's movements, but that wasn't the point here.
Cael looked around. The park was packed with people.
"Sure, but it looks like there's a line for the ferris wheel. You wait here and I'll go buy snacks and ice cream."
"No, no! You wait in line, Cael!" Asa shook her head and took off toward a nearby dessert stand. "I know a shop here that has cheap stuff!"
She didn't want to burden Cael with her money, she told herself.
But she hadn't gone far when she noticed a crowd gathered near the roadside. In the center, a middle-aged man was barking passionately.
"Around me, about twenty people are listening. I want to ask everyone, do you know what the main cause of death for Japanese people is?"
The man ranted, pointing wildly as the crowd watched.
"I know what you're thinking. Oh, I'll just die peacefully of old age, right? But! Out of twenty, only five will die of old age, five of disease, one killed by a vehicle, one murdered, and another suicide. And the remaining seven — the remaining seven will be killed by devils!"
"We need to wake the public up! Devils could kill us anytime!"
He thumped the air and declared with fervor, "This is war! We humans are at war with devils!"
____
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