Japanese Terrorist: What? I'll fight Hellstar!

Amamiya Rin's pupils contracted.

There wasn't enough time to reload!

Without hesitation, he loosened his grip with his left hand, and the heavy modified gun clattered to the ground.

Almost simultaneously, his right hand reached into the inside pocket of his jacket, his fingertips touching the cold cylinder. The familiar touch reassured him.

The grenades made by Tomie Arms were specially prepared for these bulletproof monsters—there's no other way, the bullets from the modified gun barely exceed 100 meters per second. Even a proper handgun, if you're unlucky, can't kill a human with a headshot, let alone this modified gun.

Amamiya Rin immediately pulled out a grenade, pulled the pin, and without aiming, smashed it directly down the slit-mouthed woman at the bottom of the stairs!

"Lower your head!"

Amamiya Rin yelled, grabbed the still-dazed Yusuke by the back of his collar with one hand, and with the other hand he pushed off the stair railing, using the momentum to leap backward and upward, almost dragging Yusuke up to the landing of the stairs.

"What is that...?"

Yusuke only managed to utter a few words.

next moment--

"boom--!!!"

The deafening explosion tore through the darkness of the corridor. The flames suddenly expanded, and the scorching air wave, carrying shattered cement blocks, metal fragments, and billowing smoke, swept in all directions like an invisible giant hammer!

The shockwave, carrying scorching fragments and dust, surged upwards and slammed into the huddled bodies of Amamiya Rin and Yusuke, feeling as if they had been struck hard on the back with a hammer.

The first to be hit, the Slit-Mouthed Woman, only had time to hold the scissors horizontally in front of her before being slammed into the violent shockwave.

She flew backward like a kite with a broken string, crashing heavily into the solid wall behind her with a "bang".

"Cough!"

The slit-mouthed woman spat out a mouthful of foul blood, her body covered in cuts from shrapnel, her tattered coat charred black. She slid down against the wall and sat on the ground, the scissors slipping from her hand and falling to the side.

Tomie was even more unlucky. Unable to move, she was hit by the grenade's explosion. Her already severely injured body was violently thrown up and slammed back against the wall. Blood gushed from multiple new wounds, staining the surrounding area a mess.

She groaned softly, her head drooping limply, and she fell completely still. Only her body continued to twitch slightly, driven by the instinct of Tomie's cells, trying to repair the horrific wounds.

Smoke and dust filled the air, and the pungent smell of gunpowder permeated the nostrils.

At the top of the stairs, Amamiya Rin shook her slightly buzzing head, brushed the dust off her hair, and quickly peered down.

The stairwell was a mess.

A large section of the wall plaster was peeled off, revealing the bricks and twisted electrical wires underneath, and the ground was charred black.

The slit-mouthed woman lay sprawled on the ground, her clothes tattered, her exposed skin covered in scorch marks and tiny wounds, and part of her long hair was also burned off, leaving her in a wretched state.

But she's still alive!

"Heh...heh..."

The slit-mouthed woman made a sound like a broken bellows coming from her throat. She clutched her bloodied and mangled chest with one hand, while her other hand trembled as she tried to support herself on the ground to stand up.

With each exertion, more dark red blood seeped from the wounds on his body.

She looked up, her already terrifying face blackened even more by the explosion, stained with blood. Only the hatred and madness in her eyes burned brighter than the flames, her gaze fixed on Yu Gonglin through her disheveled, blood-stained hair.

"You...must...die...only you! Only you! You must die!"

The Slit-Mouthed Woman's voice was so hoarse it was inhuman, like a curse uttered by a demon from the depths of hell against its enemy.

She dragged her injured body forward, much slower than before, but her reckless madness was even more terrifying.

"So hard?"

Yu Gonglin's expression changed slightly, but he was already mentally prepared.

The Slit-Mouthed Woman is a long-established urban legend, and a supernatural tale with a flesh-based element, so it's not surprising that a homemade grenade couldn't kill her.

But it's okay.

If one shot doesn't kill, then take another.

Amamiya Rin spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, reached into the hidden pocket of his jacket again, took out a second grenade, and pulled out the safety ring.

The slit-mouthed woman rushed a few steps, and when she looked up, she saw the familiar little cylinder in Amamiya Rin's hand, and the fingers holding the safety pin.

In an instant, the crazed grin on the slit-mouthed woman's face froze.

Who would have thought that the exorcist who eliminates ghost stories carries not talismans but grenades and guns, and more than one at that!

The exorcist who attacked her last time wasn't like this!

"goodbye!"

The crisp "click" of the safety ring popping open was unusually clear in the deathly silence of the smoke and dust.

As Amamiya Rin bid a friendly farewell, the second grenade in his hand flew out and accurately struck the Slit-Mouthed Woman.

"you--!"

The slit-mouthed woman's roar was stuck in her throat.

There was no time to think; the instinct for survival overwhelmed everything. Even if they could be resurrected, it would be a long time from now, and...

The Slit-Mouthed Woman abandoned her forward charge. Without the slightest hesitation, she leaned back and jumped directly down the stairs.

He crashed heavily onto the floor of the corridor below, rolling over to dissipate the force. He got up, pushed off the ground with his legs, and with the last of his strength, staggered and ran towards the other end of the corridor.

At the same time, the grenade exploded.

"Boom—!"

The flames suddenly surged below the stairwell, and a shockwave carrying rubble and cement fragments shot upwards, striking Yu Gonglin's curled-up back as if he had been hit on the head with a blunt object.

The smell of gunpowder mixed with dust hit his nostrils, making him cough several times.

Yusuke, who was pinned down by him, let out a scream, then was silenced by the loud explosion.

At the other end of the corridor, Mr. Ando was peering nervously out of the storage room.

When he saw the Slit-Mouthed Woman being blown away, he was startled. When he saw that she was still alive and was rushing towards him, he was terrified.

"Get in! Get in! Close the door!"

Mr. Ando's voice changed tone. He hurriedly pushed the children who were crowding at the door wanting to see Ultraman Leo back, and then shrank back in himself. Without thinking, he locked the door from the inside, and then pushed the table next to him to block the door of the storage room.

The slit-mouthed woman had been shot twice and bombed twice, which greatly reduced her speed. By the time she reached the door of the storeroom, the door was already tightly closed.

She gave it a push instinctively, but feeling resistance from within, she decisively gave up.

With a quick glance, the Slit-Mouthed Woman looked at the Sekiguchi-sensei not far away.

On the other side, as the grenade exploded, Amamiya Rin turned his back. When the explosion ended, he acted without hesitation—glancing at the ground, the modified gun needed a battery, which was inconvenient to carry, so forget it! The slit-mouthed woman, who was severely injured by the explosion, would be fine even with a cane!

Picking up his cane, Amamiya Rin quickly caught up with him in the corridor.

Rushing into the corridor, Amamiya Rin witnessed an unbelievable scene.

The Slit-Mouthed Woman leaned against the wall of the storage room, half of her body charred black, with blood still seeping from the wounds on her scalp and cheeks. She looked wretched, but the madness and resentment in her eyes had not diminished at all.

She actually used Sekiguchi-sensei as a shield, holding him in front of her, her hands gripping his neck, her nails digging into his flesh.

"Are you kidding me?"

Amamiya Rin's eyes widened, revealing a look of astonishment.

Hostages? Is this a hostage situation? How could someone like the Slit-Mouthed Woman, a figure from a ghost story, do something like this? Does she even have the logic to act this way?

Amamiya Rin suddenly realized that her understanding of urban legends seemed to be too superficial.

Urban legends seem to be more complex than I previously thought.