Stroheim was still going strong with his speech.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, however, had zero intention of sitting through another word of his nonsense.
With a flicker of thought, the Parasyte Zero split into several tentacles that came lashing toward Stroheim!
"Just forcibly slapping Ripple onto the surface, are you..."
Looking at the faint golden Ripple flickering across the surfaces of those tentacles, Stroheim sneered, openly contemptuous.
"Doesn't even understand Ripple conduction and resonance — to think you're nothing more than a half-baked amateur with the barest scrap of knowledge about Ripple!"
Even as he scoffed at his opponent's crudeness, the cautious-by-nature Stroheim still wasn't about to just stand there and take this bizarre attack head-on.
He sidestepped, and at the same time tore his scarf free.
This was a custom-made scarf woven from the intestines of thirty thousand Satiporoja Beetles — capable of diffusing any Ripple it came into contact with, like a lightning rod.
As long as I dispel your Ripple, then the next turn belongs to me...
Stroheim was already busy doing the math in his head.
Unfortunately, he had grievously underestimated the enemy's stats.
A Parasyte's raw speed and combat instincts were already maxed out by default — and once you layered the T-Virus, the Super Soldier Serum, and the boost from the Black Sphere's exclusive Combat Suit on top of that...
"Shrip——!"
Before he could redirect the force and counter, the beetle scarf was simply shredded the instant it made contact!
"What?!"
Stroheim's mouth fell wide open.
Bodily fluids surged frantically toward his eyes, attempting to unleash a copy of Dio's signature "Space Ripper Stingy Eyes" as a desperate counter.
But under that overwhelming wave of absolute speed, he was shredded to ribbons before he could even fire!
And more deadly still — the Parasyte was itself a part of Ayanokoji's body.
There was zero attenuation in the Ripple conduction. Life energy poured directly through the slash wounds — like oil tossed onto a roaring fire!
"GUH AAAAAAH——!!!"
Amid that piercing, agonized shriek.
Stroheim, a Ripple master of his generation, was reduced on the spot to a smoking pile of ash.
Speedwagon, having witnessed every second of this, stood frozen in place for a long while before finally letting out a long, drawn-out sigh:
"Foolish...so utterly foolish."
"Cast aside your dignity as a Ripple Warrior, and what did you get in return? Only this false eternity and a pathetic end...Stroheim, rest in peace."
The old man silently removed his hat. "Don't worry, though — I'll be coming to find you soon enough...and when I do, I'll give you one hell of a punch down in the hereafter!"
Meanwhile, those Vampires that had been avoiding Chris and his group had already caught the scent of fresh humans, and were now swarming Horikita Suzune and the others with snarling roars.
But Ayanokoji, having dealt with Stroheim, didn't go full-throttle the way he had a moment ago.
He simply stood there, quietly.
Only when someone slipped up and genuinely couldn't take down their opponent, or when a Vampire tried to launch a sneak attack, did he step in.
Then he'd toss those crippled, helpless monsters in front of his classmates wielding the Crimson Blade and Black Key.
Since this was a kill-count rotation system.
And given that even the intruders might end up becoming future classmates.
Even Yotsuya Miko, who was trembling with fear, got herself a couple of sips of the soup.
Watching their fellows get slaughtered one-sidedly, the Vampires — creatures that retained the intelligence they'd had in life — naturally caught on that something was very wrong.
"Are these brats actually monsters?!"
"This target's too hot — wind's blowing, scatter!"
The remaining Vampires shrieked and fled into the darkness.
Seeing this, Katsuragi Kohei turned to Speedwagon:
"Old man, these Vampires have had the fight scared right out of them — they won't be launching any more large-scale attacks..."
"But if all of us bunch up and move as one big group, our efficiency is going to be awful. You know this place better than we do — could we ask you to split off and help us collect some of the Stone Masks?"
Katsuragi explained: "Our mission this time is to destroy or collect Stone Masks — and we can also use them to exchange for weapons capable of putting the monsters down. Please."
Speedwagon looked at this group of students.
Having witnessed everything along the way, the old gentleman didn't put up any internal resistance this time.
"Leave it to me."
But before turning to leave, his expression turned grave and he offered a reminder:
"The Pillar Men are the creators of the Stone Masks — they're a hundred times more dangerous than mere Vampires! Now that they've awakened, you absolutely must keep your guard up at all times!"
As Speedwagon turned to leave.
Over in the corner, Yagami Takuya and Housen Kazutomi exchanged a look.
"Let us go with you," Yagami Takuya said with a smile. "Even if we split into two groups, with only you on your own, Uncle Robert, the efficiency would still be too slow..."
Amikura Mako and Karuizawa Kei, hearing this, were just about to open their mouths to issue some kind of warning.
Only to see that Yagami Takuya and Housen Kazutomi had already slashed open their own arms!
"Drip!"
Fresh blood splattered onto the Stone Masks.
Then, in unison, the two of them slapped the masks onto their own faces!
"Crack——!"
Bone spurs erupted outward, piercing into their brains.
Speedwagon went pale with shock and tried to stop them, but it was already too late.
He could only watch, wide-eyed, as two human youths actively chose to fall into Vampirism right in front of him!
But this time, after a moment's hesitation, he ultimately chose not to voice his objection.
After all, this self-styled "Cleaner" crew of youngsters had thrown him too many staggering revelations to count.
Maybe...turning from Vampire back into human wasn't impossible for them either?
That left only Karuizawa Kei and Amikura Mako staring at each other in dismay.
These two had been decisive enough to go this far just to clinch a win in the trial.
Why do you guys look more like the seasoned veterans here?! How are you this bold?!
Kito Hayabusa glanced at Katsuragi Kohei, a flicker of temptation crossing his eyes:
"Katsuragi...should I give it a try too? If I turn into a Vampire, my survival rate'll go way up, right?"
"Don't act on impulse."
Katsuragi Kohei pressed a hand down on Kito's shoulder:
"Steady wins the race — there's no need to take a risk like that."
"Besides, with a mutation that isn't guaranteed by the Black Sphere, nobody knows what'll happen when we take it back to the real world. Let's wait for Chris and the others to get here, get a clear read on the situation, then make the call."
...
Over on Chris's side.
On the way to converge on Ayanokoji's group, they ran into one of their targets for this trial.
As GM, Chris naturally knew the score.
In the eyes of the Pillar Men, all humans and Vampires alike were nothing more than walking rations.
Their only obsession was finding the Super Aja Stone, so they could evolve into the ultimate life form.
But to suddenly wake from their slumber and discover they were inside Santana's ruin was enough to put even the naturally clever Kars on his guard.
So, faced with the two options of searching for the Aja Stone and investigating the truth, Kars made his decision:
Send the youngest, Santana, to uncover the truth, while he took Wamuu and Esidisi out to find the Super Aja Stone.
Except...
In the eyes of Ryuuen Kakeru and the others, this was now a 25-point mini-boss strutting up to them out of his own free will.
A textbook case of the ignorant fearing nothing.
Just as Santana had casually absorbed a fleeing Vampire into his own body, intending to extract information from its brain——
Sakayanagi Arisu had already pulled the trigger on her Y-GUN.
"Zzzt——!"
Three laser cords shimmering with eerie blue light shot out.
Curious about this novel-looking contraption, Santana didn't bother dodging.
With genuine interest, he allowed the cords to bind him, his muscles bulging faintly as he prepared to test the tensile strength of the things.
But Sakayanagi Arisu wasn't about to give him the time to play around.
The instant he was bound, she pulled the trigger again, activating the Y-GUN's teleportation function.
As the teleportation beam descended over Santana's head...
Even though his body felt no actual tugging sensation, Santana noticed that in the eyes of the humans across from him, his own image was being reflected — slowly vanishing from the top of his head down!
What is this bizarre weapon?!
Santana no longer dared to take this lightly.
Discovering he couldn't directly break free of the laser cords, he didn't hesitate to activate the Pillar Men's bone-softening ability, attempting to slip his way out through the gaps between the cords!
Seeing this.
Ichinose and Kamuro Masumi — both well aware that ordinary physical attacks did absolutely nothing to a Pillar Man — could only stand there frustrated, their only supporting tactic being to keep pulling the Y-GUN trigger, trying to stack more bindings on him.
But that was just stalling.
Just as Santana was about to break free, Sakayanagi Arisu raised the Pumpkin Cannon to take aim.
Ryuuen Kakeru and Koenji Rokusuke, one on each side, swept their blades up in unison to meet him.
"Don't go getting cocky on us, monster!"
"Not bad technique..."
Santana, even while marveling at the leap in human technology, extended several rotating ribs from his chest cavity, intending to grind these two reckless humans into mincemeat.
In response, Koenji Rokusuke's expression didn't change in the slightest.
"Beautiful struggling...but completely meaningless."
He drew in a deep breath, and the Black Sphere combat blade coated in dazzling golden Ripple traced a clean arc through the air, severing every single one of those extended ribs in one stroke!
"What?!" Santana cried out in shock.
And Ryuuen Kakeru seized the instant Santana was once again entangled and bound.
"Die, you piece of shit!"
A flash of the blade — and Santana's limbs, twisting and liquefying, were severed clean at the roots!
Immediately after that, working in tandem with Koenji Rokusuke's pinning attack, Ryuuen hacked the half-teleported body to pieces like he was chopping meat for filling!
As he died, watching the chunks of his flesh — sliced apart by Ryuuen Kakeru and losing all cellular activity — Santana's face was etched with disbelief:
"Why...why can't I regenerate?!"
"Your Ripple is so feeble — there's absolutely no way it should be enough to kill me..."
Ryuuen Kakeru flicked the blood off his blade and let out a cold sneer:
"This man can cut your soul to shreds!"
"What does it matter how strong your regeneration is? Or are you telling me your soul can regenerate alongside your body too?! You dumbass!"
As Santana died with eyes full of unwilling fury.
His scattered chunks of flesh swiftly crumbled into ash, leaving behind on the spot a single faintly glowing virtual disc.
"Don't forget the loot."
Chris, who had been concealing himself off to the side using the controller, spoke up with the reminder.
Ryuuen Kakeru nodded, reached out, and snatched the disc into his hand.
Then, lifting his wristwatch, he murmured:
"[Stroheim's Ripple Inheritance]?"
"Who the hell is that? Never heard of him...whatever, let's meet up with Ayanokoji's crew first, then we can scan it with that Horikita woman's catalog and figure it out."
Ichinose Honami holstered her Y-GUN, pursing her lips with a hint of worry:
"I hope Karuizawa-san and the others have already found the Mystery Merchant and bought items that can deal fatal damage to Vampires. Otherwise, if we're relying only on the Y-GUN's teleportation, our efficiency is going to be too slow."
"Plus, our targets this time around are only four Pillar Men. The second they're all down, the exam ends right there. We still need to figure out a way to clear out most of the Vampires in here."
Sakayanagi Arisu, however, looked perfectly composed as she gave a soft laugh:
"Relax, Ichinose-san."
"Even if Karuizawa and the others didn't find the Mystery Merchant, just with the item lineup we currently have, I don't think clearing out trash mobs is going to be all that difficult."
Amanatsu Kazuha stroked her chin and offered up a suggestion:
"How about we let Chris-senpai borrow Ryuuen-kun's [Soul-Release Blade], and combine it with the mobility of [Demon Possession]..."
"I'm sure that in full-burst mode, this absolutely wouldn't be a problem~"
Ryuuen Kakeru let out a cold snort.
Clearly, he wasn't pleased about people casually deciding how to deploy his gear without asking.
But he didn't speak up to argue against it either.
Surviving was what mattered most.
When it actually came down to a moment where every second counted, he naturally wasn't going to be stingy about something this minor.
Chris materialized at just the right moment, smoothing things over:
"Let's give everyone a shot at racking up some points first."
"If we keep concentrating all the points on one person, we'll end up with a major power gap — that's not a good thing for the team as a whole."
Hearing Chris say that, Ryuuen Kakeru's expression finally eased up a bit.
After all, being forced to accept reality and voluntarily lending out after a bit of smoothing-over were two completely different things.
However, what nobody besides Chris realized was——
The conversation and plans they had just been discussing.
Right at this moment, every word of it had already fallen clearly into the ears of Kars and the others — currently stopped at the exit of the ruin, their path blocked by the invisible barrier.
"Hmm~ How interesting."
Kars stroked his chin:
"Who would've thought — after one little nap, humanity's development has come along quite nicely. They can even build a cage capable of trapping us Pillar Men now..."
Beside him, Esidisi was furious upon hearing this:
"Insolent little bastards!"
"Mere humans, daring to defy I, Esidisi!! These ungrateful insects must be burned to ash!!"
Wamuu, as the pure warrior of the trio, simply broke into a grin.
"Since they've turned this place into a hunting ground to hunt us, then let's enjoy ourselves a little first."
"Those who flee from battle have no value as living beings."
Esidisi snorted with contempt: "I'd hope this generation of Ripple Warriors has at least a few that stand out a little more impressively."
Kars glanced at the two of them, but had no intention of spoiling their fun.
After all, they were comrades who had coexisted for thousands of years; he had absolute confidence in both their abilities.
But true to his nature as a researcher, Kars still turned serious.
Whether it was the death-throes wail Santana had let out just before dying, or the "soul-cutting strike" mentioned just now by that human called Ryuuen Kakeru, or even the suspicious behavior of Speedwagon and those two newcomers gathering Stone Masks...
All of it was something he couldn't afford to ignore.
Kars casually extended his arm and grabbed one of the trembling Vampires hiding nearby by the neck.
He swept his gaze across the other Vampires lurking in the shadows around them, and gave his command in a low, weighty voice:
"Go."
"Bring me those Vampires wearing different clothing from yours!"
"Otherwise...this will be your fate."
As Kars' words fell, the Vampire in his grip was rapidly absorbed into Kars' body, like a melting candle.
Witnessing that terrifying scene, the surrounding Vampires didn't dare voice even half a word of objection.
"Ayanokoji."
"Eight people are coming this way. But their heartbeat frequencies — I'm not getting anything similar to Chris."
The Parasyte Zero spoke up suddenly.
Hearing the alert, Ayanokoji raised a hand to signal everyone behind him to stop.
At that, Yotsuya Miko — who had been on edge the whole time because of all the Vampires — suddenly looked like she'd been granted amnesty:
"Chris is here?! Are Chris and the others coming to find us?!"
Beside her, Karuizawa Kei shot Yotsuya Miko a look, brows knitting slightly:
"What are you so happy about?"
Someone walking in cold would think you were his designated parasite!
Yotsuya Miko also realized she'd just come across as a little too excited.
She awkwardly avoided the scrutinizing gazes from Karuizawa Kei and Ayanokoji, and tried to explain with a dry laugh:
"Um...it's just that you guys said earlier — once Chris-kun and the others showed up, we could end the trial..."
"So I was thinking, maybe they've finally arrived, and we can leave this awful place soon?"
Hearing this, Hayasaka Ai took the opportunity to raise her own concern:
"Speaking of which...after the trial ends, what happens to us intruders? Do we have to stay here? Or can we go back to the lives we had before?"
Seeing how worried she looked, Amikura Mako patiently explained:
"According to the Black Sphere, after the settlement phase, you'll be brought back to the school we're enrolled at. As for the specific arrangements after that, I'm not entirely sure myself..."
"But if enrolment isn't made mandatory, then as long as you maintain strict confidentiality and don't leak Black Sphere intel to the outside world, you should be able to go home."
Yotsuya Miko nodded so vigorously her head was practically bobbing, all but raising her hand to swear an oath:
"I'll definitely be careful! Absolutely careful! You could beat me to death and I wouldn't say half a word about it!"
As long as she could get out of this place crawling with evil spirits and monsters — forget confidentiality, she'd happily sign a lifelong indenture contract!
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka swept her with a glance and didn't pay her any further attention.
Even though the Parasyte was telling him internally that Yotsuya Miko's heartbeat had wavered for a moment just now, and Hayasaka Ai's behaviour was obviously not as simple as that of a regular high school girl.
But as long as these two didn't affect the bigger picture.
Ayanokoji couldn't be bothered to dig into the secrets behind them.
Right then.
Katsuragi Kohei, equally unwilling to bother with such trivial matters, had already holstered the Enhancement Rifle in his hand, and was looking toward Ryuuen Kakeru's group approaching from the passage ahead.
Ayanokoji turned and looked over as well.
Sure enough, Ryuuen Kakeru was walking at the very front, casually tossing over that faintly glowing disc.
"Take a look at how this thing works — it's loot dropped by one of our trial targets."
Koenji Rokusuke chimed in from the back at the perfect moment:
"By the way, that target was worth 25 points, Boy."
Ayanokoji caught the disc and raised an eyebrow slightly:
"A new drop mechanic?"
"Or is it that, because we're currently cleaning up anomalies for another world, the Black Sphere added some bonus reward settings?"
Ryuuen Kakeru shrugged, indifferent: "Who knows. Either way, once it's in our hands it's ours."
Ayanokoji nodded:
"Since you all made it, head over to Kushida first and pick up the bonus reward for the top three from last midterm. Don't want anyone running into trouble down the line because of missing gear support."
Hearing that, Ryuuen Kakeru turned and noticed the Crimson Blades held by Amikura Mako and Karuizawa Kei.
He immediately let out a breath of relief and grinned wide:
"Fuck yes — I knew you guys must've found that Mystery Merchant!"
"Kushida! Stop hiding, hurry up and bring this man's reward over to take a look! While you're at it, let me see if there's anything in the shop this round worth me dropping the cash on!"
Horikita Suzune swept the group with a glance and didn't spot Chris's figure.
She knew he was probably using the controller to stay invisible again, providing support from the shadows.
Pulling her attention back, she coolly corrected him:
"The Mystery Merchant this time is me. Kushida is only in charge of distributing the bonus custom-order rewards to the top three of you."
"Apart from the Vampire-specialised damage of [Crimson Blade] and [Black Key], I've got the comprehensive body-boosting [T-Virus], the ability-granting [Devil Fruit], and a pure luck-of-the-draw [Random Mystery Box]."
"As for your rewards..."
Horikita Suzune turned to look at Kushida Kikyo.
Kushida Kikyo quickly trotted forward, producing the two discs she'd already prepared in advance.
As she watched Ryuuen snatch one disc up, the one belonging to Chris hung suspended in mid-air.
Knowing that Chris was currently invisible nearby, Kushida Kikyo even raised her voice a bit:
"The method of use is super simple~"
"Just hold it in the palm of your hand and concentrate on imagining the direction of enhancement you want."
Ryuuen Kakeru gave a sound of acknowledgement.
He closed his eyes.
As two dazzling flashes of golden light passed through the air, the disc vanished.
Ryuuen Kakeru hurried over to Ayanokoji's side, urging him:
"You done looking it over yet? Bring the catalog over here and scan the stuff in my hand already!"
"Mm. I already finished checking. This disc, inserted directly into your body, grants you the full lifetime's worth of Ripple Breathing cultivation of the previous owner."
Ayanokoji tucked the Stroheim disc away:
"As for that Stroheim, he's apparently supposed to be a Ripple master. But based on my impression...his actual combat performance was pretty trash. Treat it as a throw-in extra at best."
Speaking, he pointed the catalog at the two nearest items.
[Beep——]
[Shishigami Youth-Version Modification Card (Inuyashiki)]
[Details: After use, the user will be remade into a mechanical lifeform. Gains immunity to blades and bullets, immunity to nuclear weapons, super-speed regeneration, super strength/speed, plus high-intensity computing power and unlimited long-range energy attack capability. A true mobile humanoid arsenal.]
[Stand Disc · Crazy Diamond]
[Details: Insert into the brain to gain the corresponding Stand. Stand stats: Destructive Power A, Speed A, Range D, Persistence B, Precision B, Growth Potential C.]
[The Stand's ability is restoration. Through physical contact using both hands, it can instantly restore any damaged object or living being to its "complete state". Its essence is the manipulation of material structure, not creation from nothing.]
[Note: The Stand carries a certain degree of compatibility rejection. The user must possess sufficient willpower and soul-affinity to successfully awaken it. Additionally, this ability cannot heal the user themselves.]
____
👻🔥Seek: Walnut-chan🔥👻
🔥 New history: Homelander: Founding the Hero Association
Let's hit these goals:
🎯 100 Powerstones = 1 extra chapter for the public!