Chapter 374: Chaotic Battle |
Outside the abandoned school, where half of the school building had already been reduced to ruins, Asaba Shinichi silently emerged from the shadow of a dead tree near the gates.
He gazed into the distance at the two figures battling in midair above the campus, a look of surprise flashing in his eyes. "Well now, what a coincidence."
He grinned, and a pair of shadow wings as black as ink naturally unfurled from his back. In the next instant, he vanished from his spot like a phantom.
...
The current state of the school building, having lost half of its main structure, could only be described as exceedingly precarious. The group, having just descended to the third floor, could clearly feel the floorboards beneath their feet gradually tilting. Or rather, this remaining half of the building was collapsing.
In the face of the terrifying might of high-level transcendents, the towering architecture that usually stood as steady as a mountain now seemed no different from a toy fortress built of wooden blocks by a child.
With just a gentle poke, it plunged into a state of collapse and ruin. To the destroyer of these blocks, it was an insignificant matter, but to the tiny dolls trapped inside, it was an apocalyptic disaster.
"The building is going to collapse! What do we do...?"
Suzuki Sawami whispered nervously as she followed closely behind Shimizu Yu. Sweat beaded on Shimizu Yu's forehead. What should they do? She wanted to know that herself!
She desperately wanted to escape faster, but the problem was she was already running at full speed...
Rumble!
Another loud crash echoed out. Inside the tilting building, countless structural beams suffered catastrophic failure. The staircase above caved in, completely crushing the stairs directly in front of the group. Flying chunks of debris grazed Shimizu Yu's arm as she led the way, tearing a gash in the sleeve of her tracksuit and leaving a bleeding scratch on her pale skin.
Yet, compared to the dead-end situation they now found themselves in, this minor wound was entirely inconsequential.
"Above us!"
Someone screamed in terror. Shimizu Yu instinctively looked up, only to see the ceiling above them riddled with cracks.
In less than two seconds, a deafening crash resounded as the ceiling plummeted downward. No... it was the entire building buckling under its own weight, disintegrating mid-collapse.
Shimizu Yu's mind went blank, and she squeezed her eyes shut on instinct. However, the anticipated pain and death never arrived.
Perhaps a long time had passed, or perhaps it was only a few seconds. She tentatively opened her eyes, only to freeze in shock.
The ceiling had indeed collapsed, and the building had indeed disintegrated. Even the floor beneath her feet had shattered into numerous chunks that were about to plummet to the level below.
But everything was frozen in the middle of the process.
Chunks of stone from the ceiling hovered in midair, and the crumbling walls nearby floated suspended in space. Everything had been locked in place by an invisible yet terrifying power.
And beyond all this, visible through the exposed exterior of the half-collapsed wall, Hoshino Gen floated quietly in midair, clad in a long black coat.
An overwhelming sense of relief and security surged in her heart. Drained of energy, Shimizu Yu almost slumped to the ground, but failed. Just like the shattered stones and walls, she too was immobilized by that unseen force.
It was not just her; everyone else was in the exact same state. However, unlike Shimizu Yu's profound relief, mostly only one thought occupied the minds of the others: 'What in the world is happening?'
But Hoshino Gen was clearly not the type to care about what others were thinking. He simply looked at Shimizu Yu and pointed toward the two figures engaged in a fierce brawl in the sky outside. "Tell me, what exactly happened here?"
...
Nimbly dodging another one of Tsuchimikado Haruki's attacks, Carole's heart suddenly skipped a beat as alarm bells rang loudly in her head.
She snapped her head around, only to see Asaba Shinichi not far behind her, black wings sprouting from his back. He was floating there with his arms crossed, watching her with a cheerful smile.
Asaba Shinichi, of course, disdained sneak attacks. He waited until Carole looked at him before waving a hand, grinning as he greeted her. "We meet again, little girl. How do you want to die?"
Carole raised an eyebrow. With a flash, she reappeared a hundred meters away. The three of them—herself, Tsuchimikado Haruki, and Asaba Shinichi—now formed a triangular standoff. Her gaze flicked back and forth between the two men, the smile on her exquisite face never wavering.
"No one told me that bosses would call friends and gather companions like this."
Naturally, the two men opposite her could not understand her Italian murmurs. Yet, her tone indicated that she was already considering a retreat. After all, they were all SS-Level. In a one-on-one fight, she was confident her abilities would give her the upper hand, but taking on two of them at once was far too stressful.
This was especially true for the one whose status panel read Asaba Shinichi; he seemed to be an official agent here. Although she desperately wanted to eliminate that annoying guy with abilities so similar to her own, this was clearly not the right time.
At this moment, the insane, murderous smile plastered across Tsuchimikado Haruki's face was enough to fill anyone with anxiety.
But Asaba Shinichi was clearly exempt from the category of 'anyone'.
Even though he was flying in midair, a shadow inexplicably lingered beneath his feet. A moon-white cursed blade rose from this bizarre shadow. Yanking out his Muramasa, he threw an equally cheerful smile toward Tsuchimikado Haruki. "What, do you have a problem with this, you piece of trash?"
Screech—!
Roar—!!
A piercing screech and a deafening roar erupted simultaneously through the air.
The Phantom of the Vermilion Bird materialized and circled behind Tsuchimikado Haruki. Down in the abandoned school's courtyard, the ground was already blanketed in pitch-black ink shadows. A Giant Shadow Snake with a skeletal head breached the Sea of Shadows, unleashing an angry roar that shook the heavens and the earth.
The giant snake unhinged its massive jaws, coalescing deep purple energy. A terrifying energy breath formed a blinding pillar of light that slammed toward Tsuchimikado Haruki, but Tsuchimikado Haruki simply blurred away, darting straight for Asaba Shinichi's main body.
Clang—!
Cursed blade clashed against cursed blade, the sharp hum of vibrating steel echoing across the sky.
Carole watched with a bizarre expression as the two men immediately whipped out their trump cards and went at each other's throats. She had assumed she was about to be ganged up on by two bosses, but to her surprise, they had started fighting each other first. Did that mean she... still needed to retreat?
Blinking her eyes, her figure quietly faded into thin air. Yet in the very next second, two radiant ki blades closed in simultaneously, shattering Carole's hidden sub-space.
"Don't leave yet. Once I finish off this piece of trash, you're next," Asaba Shinichi said with a chuckle, glancing at her sideways. Tsuchimikado Haruki focused solely on frantically attacking Asaba Shinichi, yet one of those two ki blades from just a moment ago had unmistakably been fired by him.
Clearly, he and Asaba Shinichi shared the exact same sentiment.