THE JAPANESE GOVERNMENT BRIEFING HALL 10;30 PM
Official 1: "Listen to me! The situation has completely slipped through our fingers. We are powerless. We must reveal the truth about the Devils to the entire population of Japan!"
Official 2 slams his fist on the table in a rage. "Are you out of your mind?! If we do that, foreign superpowers will deploy their militaries, turning Japan into a proxy battlefield! No foreign boot will ever step on our soil, do you understand?!"
Official 1: "What you're saying isn't realistic! Countless people are dying in the streets out there because of the Devils. We are backed into a corner—we have to announce the truth!"
"Your real fear is losing control and watching the clans seize absolute power," a heavy voice suddenly interjected.
Every official snapped their head around. Official 2 bolted upright from his chair, yelling, "What the hell are you implying, General Skander?! You're supposed to be on our side!"
General Skander: "And why should I side with a government that can't even govern? Why should I send my men into a meat grinder? Besides, you had your premier tool, the Private Defense Hunter Devils... Where is Amaya in all this chaos? Mark my words: whatever choice you made, the outcome was always going to be catastrophic."
Every eye in the room locked onto the furthest chair with burning fury. A detached, black-haired man stood up, entirely unfazed:
"I don't care what you political hacks decide. I'm here for something else. But the moment we discover the government had a hand in trapping the sorcerers inside the fake world, we will dismantle you. As the official manager and coordinator of Akos Tasaku's missions, I have only one objective: to find him."
The man—Yukito—leaves the hall and gets into his car. "What do you want from me?" he whispers to the two figures waiting in the backseat.
One of them speaks up, "Yukito, right? That's you. Tell us where Akos is."
Yukito replies deadpan, "If I knew, you'd both be corpses by now."
The two figures in the back break into a chuckle. "Relax, idiot, we aren't here to assassinate him. We belong to THE HOLY BLOOD—high-tier assassins—but Akos is our ally. We came to pull him out of the FAKE WORLD."
Yukito: "Ah... you're Vivo and Alas. The two fools he crossed paths with in battle 16 days ago.
"Listen to me," Yukito tells the two assassins. "I don't know what your history with Akos is, but for now, I'll take your help. Only because the sorcerers who are still active haven't made their move yet." He slams his foot on the gas, and the car roars away into the night.
SOUTH OF TOKYO
Jin stumbles down the pavement, clutching his midsection tightly. He wheezes through the pain, "Damn it... where did that psycho girl even come from? I just hope Ronika doesn't die because of her... Ah, screw it, my stomach!"
Suddenly, a faint voice echoes from the shadows: "Help me... please..."
Jin turns his head to investigate, but before he can take a step toward the source, heavy footsteps approach from a nearby alleyway.
A voice, laced with dripping irony and a seductive, playful tone, pierces the quiet:
"Hey, daddy... I missed you so much. I've been looking for you everywhere, everywhere!"
It's Clara. She lets out a twisted giggle, adding, "I honestly thought you got blasted all the way to the moon!"
Jin snaps, "Stay the hell away from me, Clara! I don't know what you want or what your twisted goals are, but I know one thing—anything coming from you is pure evil!"
Jin slashes his arm through the air, sending a razor-sharp wind blade flying toward him. Clara dodges it effortlessly with a smirk. "Ohhh, you're hitting me? But why? I love you, you know!"
Jin recoils. "No way... wtf? What the hell do you want from me?!"
"I love you..."
In a fraction of a millisecond, Clara vanishes. She blurs right into his blind spot, burying a fist deep into his gut while whispering directly into his ear, "...because you make such a perfect punching bag!"
[Fraction 1-2]: She fires a lightning-fast hook into the right side of his abdomen, followed instantly by another brutal blow to his left.
[Fraction 3-4]: She drives an even more devastating punch square into his face, launching his body through the air until he crashes violently into a parked car.
Jin: (Damn... why do her punches hurt this badly?)
Clara leaps onto the crumpled car and drives a savage kick straight into his abdomen, launching him clean off the vehicle. Jin goes flying, crashing hard into a pile of rusted iron beams. Right behind him, the dark ocean waves crash against the shore.
Clara cups her hands around her mouth, shouting with a wide, manic grin, "Booooooooo! You are way too weak! Booooo, I don't love you anymore!"
Jin groans, "Ah, my back... What is wrong with this girl? Why am I completely powerless against her?"
Clara locks her eyes on him, wagging her finger teasingly. "I know exactly why you can't do anything! It's because you have white hair! People with white hair are old geezers, which means you've officially aged out! I should pack you off to an adult daycare center! Hahaha!"
Jin tries to force himself up, his eyes burning with rage, but his body collapses back down.
"Stop trying, you old man!" Clara snaps. She struts over, plants her boot firmly onto his shoulder to pin him down, and leans into his ear. She whispers coldly, "Now tell me... where is Akos?"
Jin spits out some blood. "You're looking for Akos that badly? I have no idea where he is... but you might want to take notes: Akos despises the color blue. If you're trying to make him like you, I'm telling you right now—he's going to reject you."
Clara takes a step back, placing her hand on her chin as she ponders, "Hmm... you have a point. He doesn't like blue; he really prefers red. I've heard that too... But listen to me: I'm not here to go on a date with Akos. I'm here to assassinate every single one of you!"
A faint, defiant smirk cuts through the blood on Jin's face. "My bad, then... But he doesn't like murderers either. So you're not getting anything out of this."
"You're absolutely right; you spoke the truth," Clara replies with a bone-chilling smirk. "I am a murderer. But there's a massive difference between a common killer, a serial killer, and a hunter devil. That's why I go by the name Hunter Devil!"
Her boot digs deeper into Jin's shoulder, grinding him into the metal. Yet, through the agonizing pain, Jin manages to wheeze out:
"If you want... to see real devils... look behind you."
Clara snaps her head around, her eyes widening in sheer disbelief. Emerging from the pitch-black darkness are dozens of Devils, spearheaded by a titanic, biblical monstrosity standing 100 meters tall.
The 100-Meter Devil
Head: Encased in a rigid, rectangular exoskeleton tapering into a sharp, pointed apex at the frontal region. It features two massive, compound eyes with thousands of optical facets, set wide apart, giving it the ominous look of a combat helmet.
Thorax & Appendages: Its body is dorsoventrally flattened (compressed from top to bottom). It crawls on 14 articulated legs (7 pairs). The plates of the 7th hind pair narrow and uniquely curve backward—an anatomical feature entirely unseen in any related species.
Tail (Pleotelson): The rear shield bears 110 large, grey spines curving slightly upward. Densely packed between these spines are countless microscopic, stiff hairs (setae).
"Are you serious right now? What can this thing possibly do to me...?" Clara whispers, her bravado faltering for a split second.
Suddenly, Jin, pinned against the rusted iron, bursts into a manic, breathless laughter.
"Hahahahaha! Hahahahaha!"
Behind the 100-meter titan, 21 more Devils, each standing 59 meters tall, storm forward, ready for carnage.
The 21 Devils (59 Meters Tall):
Head: Two massive black horns protrude from the crest of the head, curving upward and inward. Their eyes glow with an eerie, yellow-orange light, and their jaws are unhinged in a vicious grin packed with razor-sharp teeth.
Torso: The shoulders and chest are clad in a savage, jagged exoskeleton acting as organic armor, complete with sharp spikes on the shoulders. At the center of the chest, a circular emblem radiates an orange glow, pulsing as it gathers energy. The skin has a charred, rough texture, with glowing red veins of lava coursing beneath the surface.
Appendages: A tall, athletic silhouette with lean yet muscular legs planting bare, demonic feet firmly on the ground. Their arms are abnormally long, ending in massive claws with sharp tips and reddish details on the fingers.
Jin summons every ounce of his remaining strength, lunges forward, and throws a heavy punch. Clara, however, catches his fist in mid-air. She shoves him back violently, snapping:
"Don't die on me so easily! Because if these things get any closer, I'm making sure I kill you first!"
Jin gasps for air. "Let them come... Your game is over anyway. I figured out how your ability works. Every single punch you land doubles the power of your next attack... A completely unknown power, until now."
Clara glares at him, her expression turning deadpan and bone-chillingly calm. "Wow... You're so smart, I'm practically dying of laughter on the inside. How much longer are you going to keep talking? The Devils are already here. I'm going to end you anyway, so tell me—what do you prefer? Me... or them?"