Today's release count [1/3]
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"Run into the woods. Watch its attack pattern."
Under Migi's guidance, Shinichi dashed into the forest. Branches whipped past his face as he forced himself deeper between the trees. Behind him, Miki's attacks came in relentless waves, sharp and precise.
The only thing keeping him alive was the terrain itself.
"Use the trees as cover. Move constantly. Up, down, left, right. Don't stop. Keep your distance and let it fall into our rhythm."
Migi's combat awareness was terrifying.
With deliberate control, it guided Shinichi's movements, subtly shaping the battlefield. Miki's attacks, once chaotic, gradually narrowed into a predictable pattern. The tentacles began favoring horizontal slashes, sweeping through the forest in clean arcs.
"Controlling two parasites is already pushing him," Migi noted calmly.
"Now."
Shinichi moved.
He burst forward in a sudden acceleration, slipping through the narrow gaps between the incoming blades. For a split second, everything aligned.
One clean strike.
The blade flashed.
Miki's head was severed instantly, flying through the air before crashing into the dirt.
For a moment, silence fell.
The headless body remained standing, then slowly sank to its knees with its back facing Shinichi. Blood poured from the neck in thick streams, soaking into the ground.
It was over.
At least, it should have been.
Migi's voice broke the silence, sharp with disbelief.
"How… that shouldn't be possible."
The corpse moved.
Its right arm lifted stiffly, then began to melt. Flesh collapsed inward like liquid, flowing upward toward the severed neck. The mass gathered there, swelling into a grotesque lump. Its surface twisted and bulged, and then...
Eyes.
Several of them pushed out from the flesh, opening one by one.
A mouth split across the mass.
"Switch."
The tone was calm. Almost casual.
Then it spoke again, this time toward the severed head lying nearby.
"Miki. Come back."
"…My apologies."
The head bounced across the ground like a rubber ball, rolling and hopping until it reached the body. Without hesitation, it reattached, merging seamlessly.
"Pathetic," the creature said coldly. "Stay where you belong. The right hand suits you."
Miki said nothing.
It simply fused back into the arm.
Watching all of this, Migi finally understood.
"…So that's it. Complete control in an instant. That's not three parasites."
Its tone sharpened.
"I'm detecting five distinct consciousnesses inside that body."
"Five?" Shinichi's voice tightened.
"Before, I only sensed three because the others weren't unified. They couldn't synchronize."
"That's correct."
The creature turned slowly.
Gotou.
"Only Miki and I can command the others," he said, his gaze locking onto Shinichi. "But the one who can fully unify them…" A faint pause. "Is me."
For the first time, Migi fell silent.
Then it spoke again, colder than before.
"This isn't something we can analyze mid-fight."
Facing Gotou in his complete form, Shinichi didn't even have the ability to resist.
Just as expected, the forest that had once restricted Miki now became a prison for Shinichi.
Gotou's speed made the environment meaningless.
Within only a few exchanges, fresh wounds opened across Shinichi's body. They weren't deep, but they were enough. Blood seeped through his clothes, and his movements began to slow.
He couldn't keep this up.
There was only one option left.
Run.
Shinichi burst out of the forest and onto the road just as a small pickup truck passed by. Without hesitation, Migi shot forward, extending his arm and grabbing onto the front of the vehicle. With a powerful pull, he dragged Shinichi into the truck bed.
Shinichi collapsed inside, gasping for breath. His stamina was nearly gone.
"Damn it…"
For a brief moment, he thought he had escaped.
Then he saw him.
Gotou.
Running straight toward the truck.
Expressionless.
Closing in fast.
Too fast.
Step by step, Gotou narrowed the distance until he was running alongside the vehicle, perfectly matching its speed.
Migi attacked instantly.
Blades shot out, slashing toward Gotou in rapid succession.
It didn't slow him down.
The impact rattled the truck violently. The driver finally noticed and glanced into the rearview mirror. What he saw made his face go pale.
"This thing is keeping up at sixty kilometers per hour… what the hell is that? A monster?!"
Gritting his teeth, the driver slammed the accelerator to the floor.
The engine roared.
Gotou responded immediately. A tentacle shot out and hooked onto the roadside railing, using it to pull himself forward with even greater speed.
Shinichi's chest tightened.
If Gotou got onto the truck, it was over.
Then—Boom!
A heavy truck came from the opposite direction.
The collision was brutal.
The front of the truck slammed into Gotou, sending him flying off the road.
Shinichi survived.
Barely.
Still shaking, he grabbed his phone and made a call.
"If that thing was sent to kill me… then what about Ivan?"
...
"Gotou showed up after all," Ivan murmured after hearing everything.
"What did you say?"
"I said I'm fine here. You be careful."
He ended the call and walked over to the window.
Outside, the streets felt different.
Quieter.
The flow of people had dropped noticeably, leaving behind an uneasy stillness.
A few days passed.
The parasites' retaliation gradually faded. On the surface, everything seemed to return to normal.
But Tokyo felt suffocating.
Like something massive was about to erupt.
Then Ivan's phone vibrated.
A message from Ryoko Tamiya.
"I've been discovered by the police. Honor your promise."
Ivan stared at the screen, unmoving.
If she truly wanted to escape, the police wouldn't be able to stop her.
This was her decision.
Maybe from the moment the child was born, she had already accepted her fate.
...
At a quiet park, Ryoko Tamiya stood in a white fishtail dress, a sleeping infant in her arms.
Across from her stood Shinichi.
"I brought you here," she said calmly. "There are things I need to tell you. Time is limited, so I'll keep it brief."
"I've killed thirty-eight people. I hunted them for food. But among my kind, that number is considered low."
"I've spent these days studying, thinking. What are we to humans? And what are humans to us?"
"I reached a conclusion."
She paused briefly.
"We are all children of the Earth. We were born because of you. In a sense… you created us. And we are far more fragile than you think."
Shinichi frowned.
"…What are you talking about?"
"Do you know Takeshi Hirokawa?"
Shinichi froze.
The politician.
The one constantly talking about environmental reform.
Everything clicked into place.
"…So that's what you mean."
Ryoko continued.
"The one hunting you is Gotou. Don't fight him. If he had been your opponent from the start… you would already be dead."
"He is one of my experimental results."
A pause.
"But he is also… invincible."
Before Shinichi could respond, the police surrounded them.
"Stop!"
Hirama stepped forward.
"Don't move!"
Ryoko kept walking.
"Open fire!"
Gunshots rang out.
She didn't dodge.
Didn't resist.
Bullets tore through her body, staining her white dress red.
"Stop! The baby is human!"
Shinichi shouted.
"…Cease fire!"
The shooting stopped.
Ryoko walked forward, step by step, until she stood in front of Shinichi.
"I kept wondering why I was born," she said softly. "Each answer only led to another question."
"Maybe none of it matters. Even if you find the answer… it's just 'so that's how it is.'"
She looked down at the child.
"But today, I found one more answer."
"I never used this child for experiments."
"He's just an ordinary human child."
She held the baby out.
"A human child should be raised by humans."
Shinichi accepted him.
"…I promise."
"Thank you."
She smiled.
Then fell.
...
At the gates of West High, Ivan and Shinichi stood in silence.
"She came to see me before this," Ivan said. "Gave me the birth certificate. Asked me to change his identity."
"…Maybe she was tired of living like that," Shinichi said quietly.
He extended his hand.
"My mother will adopt him."
Ivan handed over the certificate with a faint smile.
"…Yeah. That might be the best outcome."
Ryoko Tamiya's death caused no major uproar.
The police operations continued.
Fujita later mentioned they had found someone capable of identifying parasites.
A murderer.
A psychopath.
And now working with the police.
Ivan let out a low chuckle.
"…That's fucking ironic."
Just as he was about to head out for dinner, his phone rang.
Fujita.
They had located the parasite headquarters.
And they wanted Ivan and Shinichi involved in the final operation.
"Three days?"
Ivan smirked slightly.
"I'll be there."
He ended the call and looked out at the city.
The real show was about to begin.
And if things went right… Gotou might just give him something very interesting before he left this world.
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[]~(￣▽￣)~*
Read 12 Advance Chapters—P@t- Captain69