My youth story cannot be a knight war

Shizuka Hiratsuka looked at the mushroom cloud rising up on the screen of her mobile phone. It was clearly visible even across a kilometer of road. A certain fear hidden in her genes was aroused. Her pupils contracted and she couldn't help but smack her lips.

"The strength of these Gurongis is beyond imagination, especially the squid monster that appeared this time. Apart from other things, its destructive power is unprecedented. It can be said to be a human-shaped missile launcher."

Hayato Hayama also frowned. The horrifying scene before him made him feel a little frightened. He had no idea how to defeat this monster.

"This time, the Gurongi number should be number 21, right? This number 21 is the same as the number 14 and number 6 that appeared before. Their strengths far exceed their own kind."

"According to the information revealed before, the reason why these guys are so powerful seems to be related to the power left in their bodies when the previous Kuuga sealed them. They reached a certain symbiotic relationship with that power while dormant, and turned it into their own strength."

"In other words, the power they use is essentially the same as the source of Kuuga, who was transformed by Zaimokuza. It can be said that they are enemies and we are of the same origin."

Hikigaya Hachiman analyzed everything shown in the previous video, thinking about how both No. 6 and No. 14 were able to increase their strength by changing their own forms, and turn everything they touched into weapons similar to Zaimokuza's various forms, as well as the tattoos that appeared on their chests that were exactly the same as the one Zaimokuza used when he launched his special move. His eyelids sank, covering half of his dead fish eyes, and he looked at the blue-faced Zaimokuza with some sympathy and pity.

"So... all of this is a mess left to me by my 'predecessors'?"

As Zaimokuza listened to Hikigaya Hachiman's analysis, he felt a bitter taste in his mouth, as bitter as if he had drunk a cup of high-concentration black coffee without sugar.

"My dear senior whose name I don't know - you backstabbed my future self so badly!"

[Tokyo City, Sumida River Basin. 】

【12:45 AM 】

【Crash.】

[A hand wearing a white glove lifts the white cloth on the tray, revealing what is underneath.]

[Under the white cloth was a dark hand. Judging from the size and length of the hand, it was a female hand. The skin and flesh of the hand were burned black by the fire. The broken part of the hand was as black as a piece of charcoal. The original light blue nail polish was also burned by half. The silver ring on the middle finger was burnt yellow. The texture of the whole hand looked like a burnt bread. If the color was not too dark, it would give people the illusion of burnt yellow and crispy.]

[This severed hand was the only thing found at the crime scene of No. 21, and the only remaining remains of the two victims.]

【Besides this, there is nothing.】

【“…”】

【Looking at this severed palm whose owner was obviously a high school girl, Kousaka Kyousuke and Zaimokuza Yoshiki fell silent.】

[“Is this the only remains of the victims?”]

[Zaimokuza lowered his eyes and asked in a low voice. The wind blowing from the river surface blew his bangs and covered his eyes at that moment, making it impossible to see the thoughts in his eyes.]

[“This kind of thing…”]

[Kousaka Kyosuke gently covered the severed hand with a white cloth and asked the on-site investigators to take it away. He looked up at the tragic scene and said.]

[“…You can tell without me telling you.”]

Amidst the blaring sirens of police cars, a large number of people gathered on the riverbank. From time to time, camera flashes and the sound of filming could be heard. It was obvious that reporters, mingling with the crowd, had come in search of the headlines.

[But they could only squeeze in the river and could not get up or down. Many police officers and long cordons completely surrounded the river area of ​​at least 200 meters, preventing people from entering.]

[This scene is not surprising at all, because the scene before us is indeed worthy of a blockade of this scale. ]

[——A pitch-black pit with a diameter of nearly 50 meters appeared on this concrete brick road next to the river. A large floor tile in the center of the pit was "hollowed out" by the explosion. The cold water of the Sumida River poured in from the gap created by the explosion, filling the center of the sunken pit.]

[White smoke was looming from the pit, and there were many dark red cracks on the ground outside the pit. Those were all tiny flames that were burning silently and had not yet been extinguished. Many people who were surveying the pit wore gas masks because they did not know whether the smoke rising from the pit contained toxins.]

[Everyone close to the pit could clearly feel that the temperature near the pit was significantly higher than that outside the pit. The residual temperature was still there dozens of minutes after the explosion, which shows how terrifying the power and temperature of the explosion were.]

[This severed hand was found at the edge of the pit. It is incredible that a part of the body could still be left after such a tragic attack.]

[“According to the eyewitness, he happened to witness the entire crime scene while walking his dog on the river. He said that a monster with silver-white skin sprayed something at the two fleeing high school students, and then an explosion occurred in the direction of the two fleeing high school students, causing this tragic scene…”]

[“The Alaskan dog he was walking was so frightened by the explosion that it dragged him for nearly a kilometer, and no matter how hard he tried to pull it back, it wouldn’t stop. It must be said that the dog’s actions helped the witness escape, because the monster then killed several people who were fishing near the river in the same direction as he ran, using the same method, but the power was not as exaggerated as this time.”]

[Kousaka Kyosuke looked back at the river behind him and saw several police cars and policemen setting up a cordon around a small area in the distance.]

[“There is no doubt that the unidentified life form No. 21 has appeared, and its destructive power far exceeds that of all the unidentified life forms that have appeared before. Even the No. 14, which was determined by the police to have the strongest wide-area destructive power, cannot match it.”]

[Talking about the fourteenth person who had pierced his shoulder with a needle, Kousaka Kyosuke couldn't help but cover his right shoulder with his hand, and the wound that had not yet fully healed felt a faint pain. ]

[“But this level of destructive power… Zaimokuza, I’m afraid we have to prepare for the worst. This No. 21 should be the same as the previous No. 6 and No. 14. They all have the power similar to your ability to change form and greatly enhance it.”]

【Zaimokuza nodded silently. He had expected this situation.】

[Besides these few special cases, as the battle progressed, Zaimoku could clearly feel that the strength of these monsters was gradually increasing, from being able to deal with them without activating elemental awakening to being unable to cope with them in their normal form.]

[For example, if the newly acquired purple form was not strong enough when dealing with No. 20 last time, he would have been forced to activate the blue form's elemental awakening mode to deal with the opponent. Each time an elemental awakening is activated, a lot of physical strength is consumed. This is still the case even though Zaimokuza has been specially trained in this regard. According to his inference and experience, he can only activate elemental awakening twice a day at most, and then he will no longer have the extra strength to transform.]

【“I need stronger power.”】

[Zaimokuza clenched his fists while muttering to himself as he looked at the tragic scene in front of him. When he thought about how heartbroken the family of the person whose hand was broken would be when they saw that their daughter only had this one hand left, he could not help but close his eyes and slowly clenched his fists.]

[At this moment, he thought of the blue and green forms that could already activate the element awakening mode, and then thought of the purple form that had not yet been activated and the red form that had been obtained the longest but had not made any progress so far, and each attempt to activate the element awakening ended in failure. His eyes gradually became firm and he made up his mind.]

[I want to become stronger, until I am strong enough to activate all forms of elemental modes at will! ]

[In this way, it should be easier to prevent these tragedies from happening, and protect everyone's smiles from the clutches of unidentified life forms, right? Zaimokuza couldn't help but pray. ]

[Beep, beep, beep—]

[Kousaka Kyosuke's cell phone in his windbreaker rang, and he and Zaimokuza stared at the scene before them, took out his phone, answered it, and put it to his ear.]

[“This is Kousaka Kyousuke, who is this?”]

[The next moment, his face changed drastically and he shouted out loud. What he said made Zaimokuza, who was standing beside him, turn his head suddenly and look at Kousaka Kyousuke with sharp eyes.]

[“What!? Have you found the gathering place of these unidentified life forms?”]

46. ​​The Wail That Resounds Across the Sky

【Tokyo, Shinagawa Warehouse District.】

【More than an hour ago. 】

After Me-Giiga-Gi, the player of this "Kikiru" game, left to play, the remaining Gurongi, who were forbidden from moving or killing according to the rules of the game, stayed in this warehouse, relaxing their stress with their own activities and suppressing their desire to kill. Therefore, apart from the various sounds, no Gurongi spoke, and the atmosphere was filled with dullness.

The warehouse keeper's body had been dragged out and thrown outside by the Gooma, the laborer. Now, in tattered clothes, it sat crouched where the body had been. Its burns had healed thanks to its superhuman recovery ability, but it remained disheveled and silent, its hair disheveled. Its hands were clenched tightly, veins throbbing against its overly pale skin. This indicated that its current state of mind was probably not as gloomy as it appeared.

Baruba remained seated in the same chair. Her posture hadn't changed since last night. She was aloof and distant, aloof from everything. Even her own kind wouldn't pay her any attention. Her purple-manicured hand held a glass of red wine, shaking it and occasionally taking a sip.

None of the Gurongis uttered a single word. Time passed in a dull and boring atmosphere until the news of the success or failure of the Giiga game came. That was when the next contestant would be decided. This was the daily life of the Gurongis.

[Until an unexpected visitor interrupted the dullness and drew all Gurongi's attention to the warehouse door. ]

[Swipe la la la——]

[“Hoo! Hoo! Hoo!”]

[A pair of hands reached in from under the warehouse sliding door, and then the large industrial sliding door was forcibly pulled up by the hands. A heavy gasp accompanied by the sunlight outside the warehouse shone in, causing all the Gurongi to squint their eyes.]

[“Wow, this is truly a distinguished guest whom I haven’t seen for a long time.”]

Me-Garume-Re, formerly of the "ZU" group but recently secretly promoted to "ME" through gaming without anyone noticing, shielded her eyes from the sunlight with one hand. She raised an eyebrow at the burly figure who appeared at the doorway and spoke with interest.

【Snapped! 】

[The man stepped into the warehouse, his footsteps making a dull sound every time he took a step. He was only wearing a short coat, and his expression seemed to be in anger all the time, and his eyes were red.]

[The person who came was none other than Zu-Zain-Da, the long-missing leader of the ZU Group, the Rhino Gurongi who had vanished since their Gurongi were disqualified from the game.]

Its bloodshot eyes scanned the surroundings, and after finding its target, it stepped towards Baruba, who sat in a chair without turning her head. Its tall figure blocked out all light as it approached her, and the shadow cast by the backlight completely obscured the "petite" Baruba.

Zain spoke, his gruff voice filled with urgency as he looked at Baruba, who still hadn't raised his head to look at him.

"Please! Please let me play the screaming game! I want to participate in "Kikiru"!"

After it said this, Baruba still didn't turn around, but she had unconsciously stopped shaking her glass.

[“…Didn’t you understand what I said last time, Zain?”]

[The cold and beautiful woman with a white rose totem on her forehead finally raised her head and looked at the strong man in front of her. There was no trace of fear in her eyes, only her voice was as calm as a well. ]

"You, the ZU, have long since lost your eligibility to continue participating in the game. If you want to daydream, I suggest you find Gooma as a companion."

After Baruba finished speaking, his expressionless face raised a thumb to Gooma, who had been forced to huddle in a dark corner of the warehouse after his leader suddenly opened the door and was exposed to the public. Then he looked down at the red wine in his glass, as if the swaying surface of the wine concealed some secret that scientists had yet to unravel.

Her nonchalant attitude immediately irritated Zain, who, like his tattoos and eccentric demeanor, was already irritable and aggressive. Losing his mind, he immediately reached out and grabbed the collar of the sitting Baruba, pulling her up. The red wine in Baruba's hand fell to the ground due to his sudden action.

[Snap! ]

[“I don’t care! Let me participate in the game! Quick! Otherwise I will kill you, you ■■!”]

Amidst the shattering of wine glasses and the spilling of red wine, Zain's furious roar echoed throughout the warehouse. Many Gurongi immediately revealed expressions of anticipation. Only Me-Garima-Ba, the female "ME" leader like Baruba, raised a brow in displeasure. With a cold look in her eyes, she quickly walked over to stop its barbaric and rude behavior.

[But she stopped just as she took a step, stopped by a slender arm wearing white lace gloves.]

Baruba, who was pulled up by Zain's collar, remained expressionless. She slowly withdrew her arm from holding Garima, showing no sign of anger, even though her actions allowed all the Gurongi to see through her collar, revealing her towering white breasts and delicate butterfly bones, which could not be concealed by her large white bra.

[“…What a pity! I really like this glass of red wine. According to Linduo of this era, this red wine seems to be called Lafite 1982, and it seems to be very expensive.”]

Baruba lowered her gaze towards the spilled red wine on the ground. The sunlight shining on it made the wine's color as bright red as blood. Her long eyelashes drooped as she spoke in a neutral voice.

[“You——Hmm!?”]

Zain saw that Baruba was still so nonchalant, and his anger intensified. He was about to speak again but suddenly stopped.

Because two hands wearing white lace gloves grabbed the hands that were pulling at Baruba’s collar. Obviously, these hands, regardless of skin color or size, were only “tender” compared to Zain’s bronze arms covered with strong muscles, but these arms, which looked like toothpicks that would break at a single bend, actually generated a force far beyond theirs. Even though Zain’s face turned red, he couldn’t stop his hands from being separated by these slender arms that held his wrists.

It was shocked and even felt a sense of absurdity. As the leader of the "ZU" group with unparalleled strength, it was actually not as powerful as a referee who seemed to have nothing special except for being mysterious?

Having accomplished this feat, Baruba slowly raised its graceful neck and looked up at Zain. Its calm eyes now revealed an emotion it was unwilling to admit, flowing from the deepest part of its heart.

[That was an emotion that was very unfamiliar to Gurongi. The name of that emotion was fear.]

[“…Since you chose to attack the referee, I believe you should be prepared to bear the consequences, right?”]

["——Zu-Zain-Da."]

[“Hmm!”]

Zain's eyes widened after she said this. In his pupils, which shrank drastically in contrast to his own, the woman's eyes, as deep and pure as obsidian, turned blood-red. A silver-white devil belt with a few dark gold stripes appeared around her waist, a perfect interpretation of the phrase "a hand's worth."

Then, Baruba’s charming, cold, and exotically beautiful face twisted into something terrifying like a demon, and then a flood of pitch-black vines surged out, enveloping Zain’s face!

【“——————Uooa ...

[The next moment, a shrill scream like the dead falling into the bottomless hell came from the warehouse and echoed throughout the warehouse area, as if it was about to reach the sky.]

[The shrillness of this scream is comparable to the scream made by Janet Leigh in "Psycho" that went down in film history. It is hard to imagine that the one making this scream is not a human, but an unidentified life form that is feared by all people living in Tokyo, and is the leader of one of the groups.]

[“Hehehe…”]

[Curled in a corner, disheveled hair and a bruised face, Gooma witnessed everything unfolding before him. A slender figure with countless tentacles extending from its back and waist, like a pair of broad wings, was held high by vines, casting its shadow on the wall it was leaning against.]

The sturdy figure's thick limbs were entangled by countless vines, then bent one by one in directions impossible for the arm structure to turn, over and over again. Gooma listened to the completely uninterrupted screams in his ears and couldn't help but laugh softly. The laughter was full of distortion and coldness, and there was also a deep fear hidden in it.

All the Gurongi who had been watching the show fell silent as soon as Baruba transformed into his monster form, not daring to utter a single syllable as they watched the incomparably cruel and one-sided ravage before them. Besides Zain's screams, only its laughter echoed, like a demon mocking the suffering mortals.

[Outside the warehouse, a worker who had called the warehouse manager but was worried because the other party didn't answer the phone drove over to check. He covered his mouth with both hands with a look of fear and suppressed the scream that was about to come out. He moved his feet tremblingly and tried his best not to make any sound as he ran out.]

47. Those Black Eyes (8-in- K)

Tokyo City, Shuchiin Academy, Disciplinary Committee Office.

The sound of Zain being brutally tortured by referee Baruba echoed through the television speakers in the discipline committee room where only the two of them were. The shadow of a sturdy figure with his limbs constantly bent by vines was also projected on the wall behind Gooma on the TV. Even though the true appearance of Baruba's Gurongi form was not seen, the horror of this taboo scene was not reduced at all. Gooma's low laughter made it all full of the texture of a horror movie.

"Yako, if you're scared, you don't have to force yourself to continue watching."

Daibutsu Xiaobo pushed up the glasses that concealed most of his true appearance, and said as he looked at his good friend Iino Miko, who was staring at the TV in front of her with a serious expression.

"Xiao Bo, how can you say that? How could I be afraid? The evil behavior of these unidentified life forms only makes me angry! The more I watch, the more righteous anger I feel. I sincerely hope that Mr. Kousaka and Mr. Zaimokuza can represent the vast number of citizens who will be harmed by the unidentified life forms in the future and give them a just judgment!"

Iino Miko said seriously with her childish face, her eyes showing an unremitting pursuit of justice. If she hadn't been wearing a school uniform, her petite body would have been mistaken for a primary school graduate entering junior high school. Now, she was carrying the glory of all the heroes in history who had the courage to move forward in the face of darkness. She inherited their will and would never give up!

In response, Dafo Xiaobo, who was deeply moved, spoke up.

"But even if you say that...your legs are shaking so much that the whole table is vibrating. And even our coffee has spilled."

Dafo Xiaobo gently lifted the hem of her skirt to reveal her snow-white calves in black socks, avoiding the coffee that spread from the vibrating tabletop. At the same time, she looked at her friend's slender legs under the table, which were shaking at a frequency comparable to that of a pile driver, and couldn't help but complain.

"Can you stop shaking? If you keep shaking, the coffee machine will fall to the ground and break. The discipline committee has a limited budget this month. If you keep going like this, we won't even have coffee next month."

"..."

In response to the sharp criticism from Big Buddha and Small Bowl, Iino Miko's face remained serious and she said nothing, but a bright blush had unknowingly spread from her neck to her small earlobes.

[“Okay, we’ll rush over right away. Don’t alarm them before we get there!”]

[Kousaka Kyousuke and Zaimokuza quickly ran from the crime scene on the river to the ground above where the car was parked. Just as they pulled apart the cordon and squeezed through the crowd of onlookers to run to their respective cars, Kousaka Kyousuke, who had just opened the door of the police car and was about to get in, the communication in the car suddenly opened, and a hurried male voice sounded along with the sound of an explosion.]

[“Notice to all! Unidentified life form No. 21 has appeared in the quarry downstream of the Sumida River. We are now fighting it! But the enemy’s firepower is too strong! Nine of the seventeen people have been killed! Please provide support as soon as possible! Please hurry up--Ugh!!!”]

[Before the other party could finish his anxious words, he heard a terrible howl, and then there was a huge explosion. The call for help was finally disconnected in the explosion. Upon hearing the content of the call, Kousaka Kyosuke and Zaimokuza's expressions became very ugly.]