"Kobeni is missing!!"
"Could she have been kidnapped by a devil?" Denji asked.
"That's what I'm afraid of. We need to get back to Public Safety headquarters immediately. After all, Kobeni is practically my apprentice too."
With that, the two bid Reze farewell and bolted out of the cafe. Outside, the Nissan car the "Undying Brothers" had arrived in was still sitting there, keys still in the ignition.
"Let's take this one."
"Master, you've got a new car again?"
"Yep, someone gave it to me. It'd be a waste not to take it."
After hopping in, they sped back to headquarters. They found Himeno pacing back and forth in front of the building. As she spotted Arata getting out of the car, she rushed over.
"How's it going? Any contact?" Arata asked the moment they met.
"Her phone just rings; I tried calling from other numbers, but no one answers."
"If she isn't answering, it's highly likely something has happened to Kobeni."
"What should we do now?" Himeno asked, genuinely worried for her subordinate.
"Himeno-senpai, don't panic. Why did Kobeni ask for leave yesterday?" Arata needed to understand the context to deduce her whereabouts.
"I thought she was just traumatized by what happened yesterday, so I approved it without asking for a reason."
"Himeno-senpai! Any news?" Arai ran out of the building, frantic. As Kobeni's partner, he was naturally the most distressed.
"No word yet. Arata is here now; it's all up to him."
"Arata-senpai, please find her! I don't want her to get hurt. She's timid, but she's been trying her best lately."
"Don't worry, I'll find her." Arata patted Arai's shoulder to calm him down. "If we have to guess a reason for her leave, what would it be?"
"She was scared by yesterday's events and needed time to recover," Himeno suggested.
"If that were the case, she shouldn't have gone out so early this morning. She should have stayed home," Arai noted.
"That's true, but Kobeni has no friends—why would she go out?"
"Maybe because it was the day after, she went out early to get her car fixed?" Arata guessed. The realization dawned on them instantly.
"That must be it! Let's check the nearest repair shops."
Guided by Himeno, Arata drove to a shop called "Fujimoto Repair."
"Pull the car forward a bit," the owner signaled, assuming they were customers.
"We're not here to fix a car; we're looking for someone." Arai stepped out and showed the shop owner a photo of Kobeni on his phone. "Have you seen this girl?"
"Oh, her! She was here two hours ago to fix her car. She left right after hearing the price." The owner remembered her clearly—a girl who looked like she wanted to say something but held it back.
"Which direction did she go?" Arata asked.
"That way. She looked pretty anxious when she left; she floored it and took off."
"Thanks."
They hopped back into the car and chased after the direction the owner had indicated.
"If she didn't have the money to fix the car, why would she leave?" Himeno wondered.
"Then why would she drive this way?" Arai asked.
"Himeno-senpai, where does this road lead?"
"Mt. Takao."
"Maybe she was in a bad mood and wanted to go hiking?" Denji suggested.
"Impossible. Kobeni hates exercise. Besides, even if she were hiking, she wouldn't ignore her phone," Arai countered immediately.
"Let's just keep following the road to Mt. Takao. Maybe she got into an accident and can't answer the phone."
The car sped forward, everyone's heart in their throat. Along the way, Himeno kept dialing Kobeni's number. Gradually, the road turned into a narrow mountain pass, lined with "sharp curve" warning signs. Soon, Arata noticed a gap in the guardrail ahead. He slammed on the brakes.
"Arata, you don't think Kobeni crashed through here, do you?"
"No other direction to go. Let's take a look."
Arata inspected the gap. The jagged steel was sharp, showing fresh signs of impact.
"Himeno-senpai, look down there."
Below the guardrail was a long, wide slope choked with weeds, clearly marked by tire tracks.
"Let's go down."
They trekked down the slope. The further down they went, the clearer the evidence became—the crushed plants were still moist, confirming a car had just passed through. Sure enough, not far ahead, a yellow car was smashed against a tree.
"That's Kobeni's car!" Himeno recognized the license plate instantly.
Hope surged, and they charged toward the wreckage. Inside, Kobeni was slumped over the airbag, unconscious. Her hair was dusted with glass shards, and there were lacerations on her face.
"KOBENI!!"
"Arai, don't touch her yet. She's just unconscious, not dead."
Himeno tried the door handle several times, but it was jammed. She turned to Denji. "Denji, cut the door open. We need to get her out."
"Got it." Denji pulled his starter cord, transformed into Chainsaw Man, and sliced the door off. Himeno and Arai carefully lifted Kobeni out.
"Let's get her out of here."
Arai hoisted Kobeni onto his back, and they scrambled back up the slope to the road. But as they reached the top, the lights of Arata's parked car suddenly flickered on.
"What's going on? Arata, didn't you turn the lights off?"
"Not sure. Maybe the car is acting up."
VROOOM!!
Suddenly, the engine roared as if someone had floored the pedal. The car surged forward, charging straight at them. Before they could react, they were knocked off the slope. Arata leaped into the air, landing perfectly on the hood. He peered inside—there was no one behind the wheel.
But the car wasn't done. It threw itself into reverse, jerked the wheel, and threw Arata off before revving up to ram him again. Arata dodged to the side, but the car braked, turned, and charged once more. It drove with terrifying, practiced skill.
HONK HONK HONK!!
Just then, another car came up the mountain. In the chaos, the two cars collided. The driver of the oncoming car was knocked unconscious, and the runaway car sputtered to a halt. Arata moved in to investigate.
"Arata, look out!!"
Arai, who had just climbed back up the slope, screamed. A large cargo truck was barreling down the road behind Arata. The distance was closing fast. Arata was trapped with nowhere to hide.
[Patreon Just got updated dropped chapters till 150 there]
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