Suddenly, Ryuji remembered there was still something he hadn't used yet.
He drew the Shadowless Sword and gathered all his Sword Qi into a single point. At the same time, a red dragon-shaped pattern surfaced on the back of his hand.
Dragon Talisman!
Kyuwoo!!
A golden pillar of light lanced down, striking the Fused Colony's core and shattering it on the spot.
"Yeah!"
Inside the train, the women cheered. Mumei and Ayame scrambled toward the roof hatch, intending to back Ryuji up.
But what unsettled Ryuji was that the Reincarnation Space's notification still hadn't arrived.
"Ryu-kun, what is it?"
Ayame and Mumei popped their heads out of the hatch.
"You two go back down and keep the Kabane from getting in. Something might happen." Ryuji stared solemnly at the Fused Colony — its core pierced in one strike, yet the body still refusing to disperse.
"Then be careful…"
Even though Ayame wanted to stay, Mumei pulled her back inside.
Just then, the Fused Colony's core suddenly ruptured.
A figure burst out and landed on the Kokujō as it barreled forward.
Boom!
The impact left a shallow dent in the armored roof.
"Hm? Isn't that one of Biba's subordinates?"
Ryuji recognized the blue-haired young man immediately — though he didn't know his name.
{T/N: In the original, men could not become the core of a Fused Colony, but the author decided to change it on purpose.}
Blue light burned in the man's eyes. Both hands — up to the cheeks — were wrapped in metal, and a cold blue glow pulsed from the place where his heart should've been.
Roar, roar, ROAR!
Uryū roared and thrust a metal-covered hand at Ryuji.
Ryuji raised the Shadowless Sword and cut.
Clang!
A tremendous force slammed through the collision, and both of them staggered back several steps.
Ryuji glanced at the intact Shadowless Sword.
For the first time in this instance, his G+ blade had met something it couldn't cleave through in a single strike.
But Uryū hadn't come out unscathed either — two metallic talons had been severed cleanly.
Roar!
Realizing it hadn't torn Ryuji apart — and had even lost claws — Uryū bellowed in rage. Purple flames erupted across its body as it swung an arm.
Boom!
A mass of violet fire surged straight toward Ryuji.
Ryuji braced the Shadowless Sword again, preparing to block. Given the angle, dodging would mean the train cars behind him would take the hit — and several potential women were back there.
Ssssss!
Holding the sword against the purple flames' violent repulsive force, Ryuji endured the searing heat. Wisps of smoke rose from the transparent blade.
If an ordinary person were here, even if they weren't scorched by the flames, the tremendous repulsion alone would've blasted them away.
"Tch!" Ryuji clicked his tongue and poured mana into the Shadowless Sword, finally forcing the attack to stop.
Roar!
Seeing its ultimate move blocked again, Uryū's blue eyes bled into red. With a furious roar, it charged.
A gray iron claw shot straight for Ryuji's head.
Ryuji raised the blade, knocked the strike aside, then twisted and slashed toward Uryū's chest, sparks spraying along the path.
Even as a Fused Colony/Wazatori that now knew only slaughter, it still retained fragments of its former combat instinct. Though it couldn't see the blade, the streaking sparks were enough to make it raise its other hand to block.
Ryuji withdrew instantly.
The slash turned into a thrust.
Straight for the chest.
Rip!
Sensing mortal danger, Uryū retreated several steps and covered its heart with one hand. A fresh sword mark ran across the metal plating on its chest.
Roar, roar, ROAR!
Agitated, it roared again and unleashed wave after wave of purple flames.
This time there were no cars behind Ryuji.
He dodged.
"This won't do. The membrane over the heart is too thick. I have to end this quickly."
As Uryū charged again, Ryuji activated ultra-sense.
What had been fast became slow motion.
In a single breath, he unleashed more than a dozen slashes.
Clang! Clang-clang!
At first contact, Uryū's claws were knocked wide. It entered a brief stagger — and the next dozen strikes all landed on its heart.
Steel and invisible blade collided as human and Kabane crossed in a blur.
As Uryū turned, Ryuji suddenly raised a hand.
The sign of the Noble Dragon flared.
Bang!
Uryū lowered its head and stared at the gaping hole punched through its chest. Then it turned to look at Ryuji, disbelief twisting its face.
Despicable — attacking from behind!
〖 Ding! Energy Points +17,000! 〗
〖 Total Energy Points: 57,000! 〗
⤚———————————————————⤙
〖Ding! Hidden Mission [Eliminate the Mutant Fused Colony "Nue"] completed! Reward: 4,000 Reincarnation Points, Kabane Treasure Chest ×1〗
⤚———————————————————⤙
"Tch. If I weren't pressed for time — and if I didn't have to worry about the Kokujō — do you think I'd need a sneak attack to deal with you?"
Ryuji kicked the Kabane's body off the armored train, then casually tossed a basic Fireball spell onto it, letting it burn as it tumbled away.
Before going back inside, he held his breath until his face turned pale.
"Ryu-kun!"
"Ryuji!"
"Lord Ryuji!"
…
Seeing Ryuji descend with a pale face, the women rushed over. When he reached Ayame, he collapsed straight into her arms.
Warm… Soft… Fragrant…
"Breath…"
Ayame wrapped her arms around his neck while the others supported his body. Breathing in the faint fragrance clinging to them, Ryuji's lips curled into a satisfied smile.
✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦
After clinging to Ayame's soft, fragrant body for a while — nearly leaving her parched — and helping her temporarily forget her father's death, Ryuji went to the rear cars.
The dozen-plus women who were compatible with his taste were all quite good-looking. The mother from the pair he'd saved earlier was only a step below secondary characters like Shino and the others. And once the daughter grew up, she would definitely reach that same tier.
As for the women and girls who boarded later, they weren't much to look at.
Ryuji didn't demand much from them — only that they kept themselves and the train clean. After handing out some food, he ignored them.
With the compatible ones' consent, he contracted them one by one and sent them into the Crystal Palace Realm, telling them to build houses first and reclaim some farmland.
✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦
Meanwhile, Biba placed nearly everyone on the Kōtetsujō under house arrest, and Ikoma — the former protagonist of this world — was locked in an iron cage like a beast.
{T/N: For those who didn't understand, Biba had to steal another train, in this case the Kōtetsujō, because his father, the Shōgun, wouldn't allow him entry into the Kongōkaku, which is also the MC's ultimate goal. He's disguising himself so he can arrive by surprise.}
Sukari (the other Steam Smith), as in the original, pretended to betray Ikoma's group while secretly feeding them information.
"Ahahahaha! Success — the heart of the man-made Fused Colony!"
A middle-aged man dressed like a crazed researcher stared at the football-sized, blue-glowing heart in front of him and burst into manic laughter.
"Oh, Dr. Arata — has it succeeded?" Biba walked over and examined the blue heart.
"That's right. This heart can gather over a thousand Kabane — forming a Fused Colony more than forty meters tall… Heh heh heh…"
Soue eagerly explained the invention, while Biba wore a sinister smile.
And just then, the Kōtetsujō's civilians — kept under control — began to rebel.
Biba brought his men to suppress it, but halfway there he was blocked by Ikoma. Ikoma tried to talk his way out, but without the protagonist's halo, he was beaten brutally by Sahari. Even his close friend Takumi was killed right in front of him.
"Keep him alive. That heart will be perfect for use on him."
When Sahari was about to finish Ikoma off, Biba stopped him.
Without Ikoma as commander, even with the powerful bushi Kurusu still present, they were suppressed by the Hunters. Kurusu was nearly crippled.
✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦
The next day, Kongōkaku.
"Announce to my people: the capital's defensive fortress, the Iwato Gate, has been destroyed — and not by Kabane, but by humans. The mastermind is the Hunters' leader — Biba Amatori!"
Shogun Okimasa Amatori's words caused an uproar among the civilians, while the nobles loudly denounced Biba's crimes.
Yet they'd forgotten that ten years ago it was they who personally sent Biba and four hundred thousand radicals to the front lines — then cut off all support.
After that, the Shōgun repeatedly stirred morale, fanning hatred toward the Hunters and toward the Liberators.
"Shogun, should the matter of the Fused Colony be made public?" A staff member — who had received Iwato's distress signal yesterday — came to ask.
"Only you know about the Fused Colony?" Okimasa didn't answer; he asked instead.
"Yes, sir!"
Slash!
"Ugh… Shogun…"
Okimasa pulled the blade free, flicked off the blood, and addressed his trusted aides and nobles, "Too much information only brings fear."
The Kōtetsujō entered Kongōkaku claiming they had captured the criminal responsible for destroying Iwato Station.
As for the absence of the Yomogawa family… the Kōtetsujō had no shortage of cowards. With a little coercion and bribery from Biba, they would cooperate obediently.
"Biba… long time no see." Okimasa sat high above, looking down at his son kneeling below.
"Yes, Father."
Biba lowered his head, eyes filled with… "respect".
"Stop acting. I know what you're plotting. Bring it here."
"Yes, sir!"
A bushi responded, rummaged through the items Biba had brought, and produced an exquisite tantō.
"I found something nostalgic among your belongings." Okimasa took it and walked to Biba, looking down at him.
"Yes. It's the only thing you ever gave me. I wanted to return it to you at the end." Biba raised his head and continued with an earnest expression, "Father, if you have pity on me, then please use this blade to execute me."
After speaking, he closed his eyes.
✦✦✦
T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
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