Chapter 20
It was just absurd. This Gundam-like One-Eyed monster wasn't only monstrously strong—it was unbelievably fast as well.
In the blink of an eye, it arrived before the hole in the clinic warehouse.
The Fueguchi family trembled off to the side, not daring to move.
They had no idea why so many monsters had gathered here today.
A Half-Kakuja.
A One-Eyed Kakuja.
And a human-shaped monster.
Any one of them could wipe out their entire family.
After transforming into her One-Eyed form, Takatsuki Sen completely ignored the Fueguchi family. They posed no threat whatsoever.
She immediately jumped into the warehouse, which had already been reduced to ruins.
Inside, Yamori, in his Half-Kakuja state, was struggling to stand.
That casual slap from Takatsuki Sen had nearly beaten him to death.
Hidden within her Kakuja armor, Takatsuki Sen licked her lips, her smile filled with amusement.
"Let's continue."
What followed was nothing short of a massacre.
With her gigantic frame and ever-shifting Kagune, Yamori had absolutely no way to fight back.
The Kagune covering his head and arms was torn off piece by piece.
It looked as though a light rain had begun falling inside the warehouse.
Only this rain was red.
After enduring the relentless assault, Yamori resembled a butchered pig.
Takatsuki Sen's monstrous tongue swept across her bloodstained face, licking it clean.
An ordinary person would probably faint from terror just witnessing the scene.
"Take him back."
Takatsuki Sen glanced indifferently at the motionless Yamori.
"Shouldn't we kill him?"
Tatara stepped forward and asked.
"He's still useful."
Without another word, Takatsuki Sen turned and left the warehouse in her Kakuja form.
Tatara looked after her, then grabbed Yamori by the head and vanished from the scene.
"So that's one problem dealt with."
Ouyang Mofei—Minato—rolled his shoulders.
"Now it's my turn, huh?"
He had never fought a monster this large before.
Every Ghoul he had encountered up until now had roughly been his size.
This was a first.
Inside her Kakuja armor, Takatsuki Sen smiled happily as she watched the nervous Minato.
The editor who always chased her for manuscripts finally looked intimidated.
How satisfying.
Minato frowned.
"What a disgusting expression."
For some reason, the look in that single eye always sent chills down his spine.
Suddenly—
Takatsuki Sen moved.
Her massive body appeared before Minato almost instantly.
Minato immediately raised his guard, preparing to redirect the incoming attack.
He even considered throwing her using leverage like he had done against Yamori.
Instead—
The giant monster abruptly collapsed forward.
"Nani?!"
Caught completely off guard, Minato was pinned beneath the enormous Kakuja body.
Takatsuki Sen chuckled.
She had once promised she'd pin him down and teach him a lesson.
She always kept her promises.
For the first time, Minato found himself staring at a Ghoul—and a One-Eyed Kakuja at that—from point-blank range.
As he looked into that lone kakugan, he realized something strange.
There was no killing intent.
Only amusement.
Teasing.
The exact same look Takatsuki Sen always gave him.
The monster opened its mouth and exhaled.
A wave of foul-smelling air blasted directly into Minato's face.
Although Takatsuki Sen herself was obsessively clean, she clearly had no intention of maintaining this giant monster body.
The smell of rotting corpses nearly made Minato pass out.
As someone with mild germophobia, this was pure torture.
His face twisted in horror.
Then the monster's grim-reaper-like tongue started moving.
Minato's heart sank.
He suddenly had a very bad feeling.
A moment later, something warm, soft, and slimy dragged across his face.
His eyes widened.
"..."
No.
No way.
Slurp.
Another lick.
Minato's soul nearly left his body.
"Ugh!"
He looked like he was about to throw up.
This was far worse than any battle.
Inside the Kakuja, Takatsuki Sen was smiling so hard she could barely contain herself.
She absolutely loved this expression.
Watching Editor Ouyang suffer was one of her favorite hobbies.
Especially when she could gross him out.
"Um... Mom?"
Fueguchi Hinami tugged on her mother's sleeve.
"What are they doing?"
Fueguchi Ryoko stared blankly.
She had no idea either.
"...Maybe she's cleaning her prey?"
---
Chapter 25
Takatsuki Sen left.
Very satisfied.
Leaving Minato behind to question every life choice that had led him to this moment.
Within those few short minutes, he had suffered the greatest humiliation of his life.
He didn't even want to wipe the sticky residue off his face.
Because doing so would dirty his own hands.
At this point, letting it dry naturally seemed like the superior option.
"Um... sir?"
Fueguchi Ryoko carefully offered him a towel.
"Would you like to wipe it off?"
Minato slowly looked up.
Then at the towel.
Then at Fueguchi Ryoko.
Finally, he accepted it.
"Thank you, ma'am."
After saying that, he staggered away like a defeated man.
The events of today had shattered his worldview.
"Mom, what's wrong with that uncle?"
Hinami tugged at Ryoko's clothes curiously.
Ryoko watched Minato's retreating figure sympathetically.
"I think he was scared out of his wits."
After all, he'd abandoned his car and looked completely traumatized.
Anyone threatened by a monster like that would probably be mentally unstable.
Unfortunately, Ryoko had misunderstood.
Minato wasn't traumatized by fear.
He was traumatized by being covered in Ghoul saliva.
Fortunately, his germophobia wasn't severe.
Otherwise, he might have challenged the One-Eyed monster to a death match right then and there.
As for how he got back to the hotel...
And what happened to the car...
Those were problems for later.
---
Hotel
The moment Minato returned to the hotel, he noticed his room door was unlocked.
Walking inside, he immediately spotted Takatsuki Sen.
"Welcome back."
She sat comfortably in a chair, reading a book with a bright smile.
Minato blinked.
"Why are you in my room?"
Takatsuki Sen casually produced a keycard.
His keycard.
"...Why do you have that?!"
Minato hurriedly checked his pocket.
Sure enough, it was gone.
"I stole it this morning."
Takatsuki Sen spun the card between her fingers.
Of course, that was a lie.
She had actually stolen it much earlier—while she was busy tormenting him.
Thinking about Minato's utterly broken expression from earlier nearly made her burst out laughing again.
It had been priceless.
"What are you laughing at?"
Minato narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
"Nothing."
Her smile only widened.
"You're acting weird."
Minato clicked his tongue and headed straight for the bathroom.
The very first thing he needed right now—
Was a shower. Several showers. Probably enough showers to last a lifetime.