My youth story cannot be a knight war

[But Gadoru, under attack, stood still. Gooma, on the other hand, was knocked back by the recoil. Finally, he stomped his foot hard on the ground. A crisp sound accompanied by several cracks spreading across the ground beneath his feet.]

Gadoru didn't attack Gooma while it was unstable, but stood still and watched it steady itself.

Gooma gasped heavily, blood flowing from the wound on its forehead across its dark skin. Its ten sharp nails slowly clenched into fists, and the muscles in its arms rippled like flowing water. A powerful force gradually flowed through its body, making it more coordinated.

【"Um?"】

A red figure leaped into the factory from the side. Zaimokuza's heart trembled as he looked at the two sides confronting each other not far away, and he chose to quietly watch the next developments.

[“Don’t be so crazy, you bastard!”]

Gooma stared intently at Gadoru, who was silently looking at him. The series of beatings he had just received had completely inflamed his anger, and he spoke with a tone filled with resentment.

[As it spoke, it slapped its belly, which had a scar on it.]

"I have gained the power of Daguba! Soon, I will become stronger than you!"

"Then I will kill you and Daguba together!"

"Daguba?"

[Muzuo, who was watching them from the side, was suddenly stunned, and memories from long ago suddenly flooded back into his mind.]

[That was a memory of him and Kousaka Kyosuke battling the unidentified life form No. 23, which they had coincidentally caught while fishing. It was a sentence that the creature had said to him during a break in the battle.]

“I will definitely be the final winner of Kikiru. No matter you, Kuuga or Daguba, you can’t stop me!”

[Daguba? Is this actually the name of a being? Did Number Three gain its power?]

[Could it be that Daguba is referring to——]

A sudden roar interrupted Zaimokuza's thoughts. Gooma suddenly leaped up and stabbed Gadoru's face with his ten fingers flashing with a cold light.

Gadoru, seeing this, similarly extended his hands, interlocking his fingers once again to neutralize Gooma's attack. Their palms tightly clamped against each other, preventing any further advance.

Suddenly, Gooma raised his head, opened his fang-filled mouth, and aimed it at Gadoru's face.

[This is its true purpose, because only at this distance will Gadoru be unable to dodge its attack!]

【“——!!!!!!!”】

Transparent sound waves erupted from the depths of Gooma's throat, invisible and formless yet vibrating the air. The surrounding scenery was distorted and rippled by these sound waves, like the undulating surface of water.

[Crackling sound——]

[Under this extremely high-frequency sound wave, all the glass in the factory instantly shattered and shattered, spreading in a wider direction.]

[“Ugh!”]

Due to the airtight structure of the factory, the sound waves shattered the glass and then bounced off the walls, reverberating throughout the entire factory like a large sound system, the infernal sound piercing the brain.

Zaimokuza, standing in the distance, felt as if two knives were stabbing into his ears, the blades twitching his brain nerves. Intense pain and a nausea arose from his brain, and he immediately put his hands over his head and groaned in pain.

Even Zaimokuza, who was some distance away, was affected by this. It's hard to imagine what Gadoru, standing directly across from Gooma, must have felt. His rigidity only gave him incredibly strong physical defense, but it couldn't stop this sonic attack, which bordered on magic.

[“——Ugh!?”]

The howling Gooma's voice suddenly turned into a strange, low hum. A hand, through the frequency of the sound waves, fiercely pinched its neck. The five fingers pinched its neck while exerting strong pressure on the throat and vocal cords under the skin, physically suppressing all its sounds.

[“…Is that all?”]

Two streams of blood slowly flowed down Gadoru's face from his purple eye sockets. He seemed completely unaware of the damage he had sustained. He looked at Gooma, who was still struggling despite being strangled by his neck, his tone unchanged.

"Is your little trick over?"

“Ugh…you…!”

Gooma struggled to free himself from the arm that was gripping his neck, but it felt like a steel beam, and no matter how hard he struggled, it was useless.

[Its feet slowly lifted off the ground, and its entire body was lifted up by one hand, staring at Gadoru with bloodshot eyes.]

"It's my turn."

Without waiting for Gooma's response, as soon as he finished speaking, a layer of red suddenly began to spread from the edge of Gadoru's right eye, quickly taking over the entire eye.

[Go-Gadoru-Ba·Strong Body·Power of Fire]

Gadoru slowly raised his right fist. A layer of blazing flames quickly ignited from his fist, quickly enveloping his entire palm. From a distance, it looked like a small burning fireball.

【“!”】

As its right fist was engulfed in flames, a strong sense of danger surged within it, and Gooma began to struggle frantically.

【"--snort!"】

Gadoru shouted coldly and swung his flaming fist, his right fist hitting the raised Gooma in the abdomen.

Like a napalm bomb detonated at close range between the two, a massive fireball erupted from Gadoru's fist, pushing Gooma backwards and smashing everything in its path!

【“!?”】

Just as Zaimokuza was about to break free from the dizziness, a figure flew towards him. He subconsciously took a defensive stance, and then Gooma smashed directly into him.

The next moment, the fireball on Gooma's chest suddenly exploded, and the spreading flames and shockwaves instantly engulfed both of them.

[Two figures screamed as they were blown away from the flames by the shockwave, flying backwards towards two factory buildings at different locations on the same straight line, crashing into them like cannonballs.]

The force of the collision directly destroyed the foundations of the two factory buildings, causing them to collapse in an instant. The falling debris buried everything below. The roar, centered at the factory, spread far and wide throughout the northern district, drawing countless people in astonishment as they looked in the direction of the sound, only to see thick smoke rising into the sky.

Before the dust and smoke had cleared, the ruins of one of the two collapsed factory buildings suddenly exploded again. A figure, enveloped in smoke, leaped up and then crashed not far from Gadoru.

[“Hmm…!”]

A scorching white mist rose from Gooma's body, leaving large burn marks all over its body. Enduring the intense pain, Gooma raised his head and stared at Gadoru, ready to attack again.

But its movements suddenly stiffened, and then a shrill scream came from its throat.

[“Ahhhh!!!”]

Gooma wailed, clutching his abdomen with both hands as he collapsed to the ground, writhing endlessly. His pitch-black Gurongi form twisted and transformed back into his original human form. His previously gloomy expression now had eyes nearly bulging from their sockets, the bloodshot veins covering his eyeballs revealing his current agony.

【Seeing this, Gadoru slowly lowered his raised hand.】

[“You—remember this!”]

Cold sweat poured down from Gooma's forehead, quickly soaking his messy hair. He endured the excruciating pain in his body, clutching his abdomen as he stood up, stumbling towards the still-thick smoke. His figure was quickly engulfed by the smog.

【"……snort."】

Gadoru snorted coldly and turned to walk into the darkness behind him. He had no interest in or habit of chasing those fleeing the battlefield.

【boom--】

Just after Gadoru and Gooma left, a fierce flame suddenly erupted from beneath the ruins of another factory building. The reinforced concrete piled atop it quickly turned to smoke under the intense heat, while the steel turned into red-hot molten iron.

“Uh…ha…!”

[With scorching flames entwined around his body, Zaimokuza, half-crouching between the ruins and the flowing molten iron, gasped violently.]

【Kuga·Almighty Form·Elemental Awakening (Flame)】

The flames quickly dissipated from his body. After so much fighting and training, although he couldn't yet wield the power of the elements with the same ease, Zaimokuza could now open and close with ease, no longer needing to exhaust all his energy to do so like before.

【"hateful!"】

He quickly looked up and scanned his surroundings. After confirming that Gadoru and Gooma were nowhere to be found, Zaimokuza punched the ground in anger, still reeling from the power of the previous blow.

If he hadn't subconsciously activated his elemental awakening mode when the fireball exploded, relying on his control of the fire element to become immune to the incoming flames, he would have at least suffered minor injuries.

Even so, the shockwave that followed the flames knocked Zaimokuza unconscious for a while, and it took him a while to regain consciousness under the rubble.

[Through this indirect confrontation, the newly emerged unidentified life form left a deep and profound impression on Zaimokuza. He had never seen such a powerful Gurongi before.]

[“That’s right, there’s nothing wrong with that…”]

Thinking back to the moment when Gadoru's purple right eye was replaced by red, Zaimokuza felt extremely heavy. He would never mistake that ability.

[That is the power of the fifth element. Unlike the original form, only the fifth element can use the power of one element while superimposing another element, suppressing the repulsive reaction between the different elements while maintaining the original form.]

[Number Three, and this newly emerged unidentified life form. I once thought I was the only one who possessed the fifth element, but in just one day, two individuals who could also use this power appeared. Zaimokuza was even a little dazed for a moment.]

Everything that happened today has left him feeling uneasy, as if something terrible is happening behind the scenes. Although it's only the beginning, the feeling of impending disaster has already enveloped every corner of his heart.

He had never felt this way before. As time passed, it felt like a hand was slowly grasping his heart. The oppression was simply maddening.

Zaimokuza was certain that this premonition didn't come from Number 34 or Number 3, nor from this newly appeared Gurongi. Something must be happening, or had already happened, but he didn't know what it was. He could only feel that uneasy premonition ringing alarm bells in his heart, constantly warning him.

"What happened..."

【boom! 】

A roar from another place caught Zaimokuza's attention. He turned and saw the roof of a distant factory suddenly shatter. A transparent, turquoise arrow shot into the sky and vanished at a rapid speed.

“That’s…!”

Zaimokuza immediately recognized the true form of the attack, having seen it not long ago during his battle with No. 33.

[For some reason, his heart suddenly tightened, and Zaimokuza quickly ran towards the factory building.]

["——Mr. Kosaka!"]

32. "Human Pillar" (4K)

【not long ago. 】

[A transparent whirlwind condensed into an arrow, which flew out from the crossbow's firing port. The invisible swirling airflow left a spiral trail in the air.]

The arrow slashed past Baruba's slender neck, silently severing a strand of hair. It then pierced through several factory walls along its path, its force exhausted before dissipating into thin air.

The arrow missed Baruba, but that wasn't because Kousaka Kyosuke missed. With his shooting prowess, even with a standard police revolver, he could easily hit the bull's-eye of a moving target a hundred meters away. There was no way he couldn't hit Baruba, who was only about thirty meters away.

[He did this for demonstration, showing his fist before the negotiation to make his subsequent words more convincing.]

Kousaka Kyosuke lowered the crossbow's firing port, aiming it at Baruba's plump chest. He spoke in a cold tone, his eyes gleaming with icy thorns.

"If you try to leave or fight, the next arrow will hit your heart."

He controlled the murderous intent surging within him. Although Kousaka Kyousuke truly wanted to shoot an arrow through the opponent's heart, his overall perspective prevented him from releasing his finger from the trigger.

[But a cold murderous aura still emanated from every corner of his body, and Baruba, who was pointed at the gun, was keenly aware of it.]

"Tell me, why did you kill so many of your companions?"

[“Are you number zero?”]

"What is your purpose in killing people all this time?"

[Kousaka Kyosuke spoke word by word, this was the answer he had to know.]

The reappearance of Number Three, the discovery of unidentified life forms slaughtered across the country, and the deaths of all those Gurongi had committed so far... Kousaka Kyousuke, with his keen intuition as a police officer, could see that these events were not isolated, but part of a larger chain of events.

After linking these events one by one, everything points to the only clue that leads directly to the truth - the ultimate goal of this long-running killing game. Everything that is happening now is a chain reaction to achieve this goal.

[In other words, only by understanding the true nature of this killing game called "Kikiru" by the Gurongis can we solve this endless killing. Otherwise, no matter how much effort is made, it will be in vain.]

Otherwise, even if he and Zaimokuza once again eliminated Number 3 and Number 34, it would be useless. These guys would still appear one after another and commit crimes again, just like before. The number of enemies is still unknown. On the human side, the only ones capable of fighting them are Kousaka Kyousuke and Zaimokuza Yoshiki. For ordinary people to fight these monsters is simply a waste of life.

[But there are only two of them. If they continue like this, they will eventually be unable to hold on. These monsters are different from them. They can fail countless times, but if they fail even once, the price they pay is too heavy to bear.]

[Although other things are still unclear, there is one thing that Kousaka Kyousuke is very clear about.]

[——His body was no longer able to sustain the long-term battle he once had, and time had already entered a countdown.]

If he falls, Zaimokuza, having lost his partner, will inevitably be left alone, his chances of defeat or even death greatly increased. If even Zaimokuza falls, then this city, this country, and even all of humanity will be shrouded in the terrifying shadow of the Gurongi clan. The future of the world will be plunged into darkness, and everyone will sink into despair.

After such a long battle, Kousaka Kyosuke knew very well that these Gurongi were really capable of doing this.

Unknowingly, the human world has reached the brink of collapse, and civilization could be overturned at any moment. However, only Kousaka Kyousuke has noticed this, and he cannot even confide in others, so the pressure he is under can be imagined.

Therefore, in the limited time he has left, he must help Zaimokuza eliminate the threat posed by Gurongi to humanity. However, if he continues with his past methods, the chances of success are slim, and the time required is unpredictable.

Therefore, the best way is to directly address the root cause of all this, cutting off the cause of all this disaster like a scalpel!

[“…Rindo has truly changed completely.”]

Baruba ignored Kousaka Kyosuke's obvious threat. She stared at Kousaka Kyosuke's transformed face quietly, a strange expression on her face.

At this moment, her gaze seemed to see through the armor directly, seeing the face of Kousaka Kyosuke hidden beneath, but it was also as if she saw another person through him. Deep in her eyes was melancholy, loneliness, and nostalgia. Countless emotions mixed together like a palette of colors, too complex to describe.

【But among so many emotions, the only emotion that is missing is hostility. 】

These emotions were fleeting, so fleeting that she didn't even notice them. Then the familiar coldness and indifference once again covered those bright eyes.