Chapter 22: Himeno-senpai
A large bag filled with all sorts of snacks.
A bunch of toys and several video games.
Plus, daily essentials for Denji and Pochita.
Otonashi Chiya had purchased all of this before they headed home. Most of these items were bought specifically for Denji and Pochita; he didn't even have much desire to play the games himself.
In this era, computers and the internet were still in their infancy. If you wanted to play games, it was either handheld consoles or the kind you connected to a TV—not to mention the arcade games commonly found on the streets. Having been used to various mobile and high-end PC games in his previous life, his standards had been raised to a level where he simply couldn't find much interest in these "ancient" titles.
Denji, on the other hand, was fascinated by these things she had never seen before. She couldn't wait to get home and try them out.
"Don't be in such a hurry. Once we get home, you can play to your heart's content," Chiya said. He was currently carrying two large bags as they stepped out of the mall entrance. Denji followed, carrying her new clothes and hugging Pochita.
Among the games they bought, two were for handheld consoles while the rest were for the TV. However, Chiya didn't want Denji to develop the bad habit of playing games while walking down the street, so he didn't take the handhelds out yet.
Suddenly, a commotion broke out among the crowd in the distance ahead.
"Run! A devil has appeared!"
"Help! I don't want to die!"
"Where are the devil hunters? Someone stop that monster!"
"..."
The crowd in front of them was scattering in a panic. Hearing the noise, it was obvious a devil had shown up. Chiya felt a slight spark of joy—wasn't this just free attribute points delivering themselves to his doorstep?
He immediately grabbed Denji's hand to prevent her from being swept away by the chaotic crowd, leading her toward the source of the disturbance. Denji's face flushed slightly at the touch, but knowing a devil was near, she didn't dare to be careless and followed Chiya nii-chan's pace closely.
Soon, Chiya spotted the devil. It appeared to be the Potato Chip Devil.
Its appearance was basically a giant potato chip, though its size was countless times larger than a normal one. In the center of the "chip" grew an incredibly ugly human face, and from the bottom, two-meter-long human-like hands were "running" in a very eerie manner.
It didn't look particularly lethal, but given its massive size, an ordinary human would be half-dead just from being stepped on. It was still a significant threat to the public.
"Denji, stand here and don't run off. I'll end this quickly."
Chiya had Denji stand a safe distance away. He drew the katana from his waist and walked toward the Potato Chip Devil with unhurried steps. He was the first to arrive at the scene; no other civilian hunters would be there to steal his "kill."
Besides, a name like "Potato Chip Devil" sounded weak. It didn't look like it possessed any Gun Devil flesh, so he felt there was no need to waste ocular power on his Kamui technique.
"Mm-hm." Denji nodded obediently. She knew she couldn't help much and figured the least she could do was not be a burden to Chiya nii-chan.
If she hadn't been forced by desperate circumstances before, she wouldn't have wanted to fight dangerous devils herself. Even though she knew Chiya nii-chan was incredibly strong, she couldn't help but say, "Be careful, Chiya nii-chan."
Seeing that the human youth before it wasn't running away—but was actually walking toward it without a trace of fear—the Potato Chip Devil's attention was instantly piqued. Before any ordinary citizens could be killed, it shifted its target and ran toward Otonashi Chiya.
"Oh my, it looks like a civilian devil hunter beat us to the punch."
Just then, a young woman in a special uniform appeared on the roof of a nearby low-rise building. She wore an eyepatch over her right eye and had a cigarette dangling from her mouth.
Immediately after, a handsome young man appeared beside her, wearing the same uniform. He had a lip piercing on the left side of his mouth and a katana strapped to his back. Looking down at the situation, he said flatly, "Judging by his looks, he's just a high schooler, right? The Potato Chip Devil is weak, but he looks so green—I'm not sure he can handle it."
Out of the corner of his eye, Otonashi Chiya spotted the two of them. They were clearly wearing the Tokyo Public Safety uniforms. In fact, he recognized both of them.
The woman was the most familiar: Himeno-senpai, with her short, dark green hair and a heavy smoking habit. He had a slight impression of the other man—he seemed to be the Vice Captain of Special Division 2 who was killed by Reze in the original story. His name was unknown, but his devil power allowed him to summon the head of the Fox Devil. Since the Fox Devil is a "looks-motivated" contractor and this guy was fairly handsome, he enjoyed its favor; otherwise, most people were only allowed to use the Fox Devil's paws.
However, Chiya only gave them a casual glance without any surprise, keeping his focus on the Potato Chip Devil. It made sense they were here; the daily routine for Public Safety Devil Hunters involved patrolling Tokyo, and any devil appearing in a crowd would quickly be spotted by those on duty. It just so happened that Himeno was patrolling the Nerima ward.
"You never know~ I've heard there are some high-potential kids in the civilian sector these days," Himeno said, blowing a smoke ring.
The man shook his head slightly. "We'll see. If it looks like he can't hold on, I'll have the Fox Devil save him."
Since Public Safety hunters aren't allowed to interfere with or steal a kill discovered by a civilian hunter unless they are unable to handle it, the two could only watch from above.
By this time, the Potato Chip Devil had reached Chiya. It looked like it wanted to swallow him whole. Chiya casually swung his blade, severing the two human-like hands the devil used for running, and effortlessly dodged the massive body as it toppled toward him.
With another swift strike, he sliced the entire body in half, sending the Potato Chip Devil straight back to Hell.
[Ding! Host has successfully hunted the "Potato Chip Devil." Gained 5 Attribute Points!]
These points are even fewer than what the Ant Devil gave. It really was weak... Chiya complained inwardly.
Seeing this, the man beside Himeno remarked, "Alright, looks like I misjudged him."
Himeno narrowed her eyes. "Interesting~"
She noticed the boy was still holding a lot back. Just by the way he dodged the devil's falling corpse, she could tell he was no amateur—it was far too easy for him. Throughout the entire fight, his expression hadn't even flickered. Because the Potato Chip Devil was so pathetic, she couldn't gauge the boy's true strength at all.
Himeno crushed and tossed away her cigarette butt. "Let's go down and say hello to the young man."
The roof they were on wasn't high. Using a second-floor balcony as a buffer, they jumped down.
Himeno waved directly at the youth. "Hello there~ young civilian-kun."