Chapter 296: The Spirit Speaker
“Clang—”
The sound of metal colliding rang out at the young girl’s neck, but instead of a blade tearing through her throat, a large, disgusting head appeared, its sharp, tough teeth blocking the energy-infused blow.
The owner of the long blade, seeing that his attack was ineffective, didn’t linger. With a few swift strikes, he cut down the ghouls trying to intervene, grabbed the prone Asakusa Ryuuya from the ground, and retreated with Saemon Kiyo into the distance.
It was only then that Kazumi could clearly see the appearance of the enemy who had attacked her: beneath the hood of her gray hoodie, half of a young face was dimly visible. Her slender figure possessed a burst of power far greater than the heroes she had fought before. Even with the burden of carrying a person, the speed of her retreat at that moment was beyond Kazumi’s attack.
The long blade in her hand gleamed with a faint white light even in the night. From afar, one could sense the sharpness emanating from the blade.
“They’ve come.”
With one hand gently stroking the head of Little Black on her neck, calming the little one who had become restless due to the attack, Kazumi’s eyes remained fixed on the figures who had left her attack range.
Kazumi didn’t feel regret for not being able to kill Asakusa Ryuuya and the other. Her purpose for being here was never to obtain the flesh and blood of those neighborhood heroes; the previous battle could only be considered an appetizer.
And now, the figure that gradually matched the nickname in her memory of the hero profiles made the young girl’s somewhat dismissive heart gradually become serious.
Because…
The real battle was probably about to begin!
…
Meanwhile, on the other side, Yuz gently placed Asakusa Ryuuya on the ground. The grey-white severed limb embedded deep into his chest made the man’s brow beneath his hood furrow, unable to help but furrow.
Glancing back at Kazumi, who remained motionless in the distance, Yuz’s previously braced posture relaxed slightly, and he began to shift his attention to other parts of the battlefield.
Next, he raised his left hand, and a pale yellow light sphere inscribed with the character “体” (Body) appeared beside him, flying directly into the chest of Saemon Kiyo, who was squatting beside him and gasping for breath.
“Thank… thank you, Lord Yuz.”
As if a new river had flowed into a dried-up riverbed, as the light sphere entered his body, Saemon Kiyo’s depleted stamina, lost due to overexerting his body to use his abilities and the recent intense exercise, recovered at a rapid pace at that moment.
His chest, which had been breathing as violently as a worn-out bellows, slowly calmed down, and he looked at the hero who had arrived at the last moment and said,
“No need. Can you still activate your True Sight?”
“Yes, I still can.”
Yuz’s words and actions were as crisp and neat as ever. Upon receiving Saemon Kiyo’s affirmation, a small grey sphere exploded at their feet, and then dense grey mist began to spread outwards from the area where they were located.
Taking advantage of this opening, Yuz squatted down, grasped the half-arm stuck in Asakusa Ryuuya’s chest, and pulled it out with force.
At the same time, he placed his other hand, carrying green light, directly on the wound. A beam of light imbued with strong life force emerged from between his fingers, and the remaining energy flowed into Asakusa Ryuuya on the ground.
The life force, which was about to dissipate at any moment, stabilized. Perhaps due to the pain of the wound, Asakusa Ryuuya, who had his eyes tightly shut, showed an expression of agony and finally struggled to open his eyes.
“Lord… Lord Yuz?!”
The clear life force within his body made Asakusa Ryuuya feel a sense of abnormality, and the familiar voice before him made him exclaim directly.
“Hmm, what a fool… Uncle Ryuuya.”
Looking at Asakusa Ryuuya in his current state, Yuz shook his head with a hint of helplessness and picked up his long blade again, dancing it in the air to create several dazzling beams of light.
“It’s okay, at least I held on until you got here.”
Listening to Yuz’s slightly reproachful words, Asakusa Ryuuya instead showed a hearty smile, lying weakly on the ground and answering without reservation.
“You…”
Yuz was well aware of the conviction in this senior’s heart. Even if he knew the consequences beforehand, he would likely still choose to do it without hesitation.
Waving his hand, Yuz adjusted his grip on the long blade and prepared to stride forward.
“Lord Yuz!” “Hmm?”
“The enemy is a new opponent from the [Dark] Organization that previously attacked the seal, codenamed [Black Robe]. Their main ability is to summon creatures from the underworld, and psionic energy is very effective against them. The main body’s physical strength is likely a weakness, but it has strong defensive attachments within its body.”
With faint blue light emanating from his eyes, Saemon Kiyo knew the urgency of the current situation and expunged all the previous intelligence and analysis combined with the recent battle in one go.
“Furthermore, their purpose seems to be more than just the seal; it’s as if they are specifically waiting for you to arrive. Lord Yuz, you must be careful!”
“It’s not for the seal?”
Listening to the intelligence provided by Saemon Kiyo, Yuz quickly compared it with the information in his mind and finally nodded.
“Thanks, I’ll borrow your psionic energy for a bit.”
Reaching out and placing a hand on Saemon Kiyo, the colorless small spheres that were floating around him instantly turned into the pale blue of psionic energy, finally inscribed with the character “灵” (Spirit).
“Leave the rest to me.”
…
On the other side of the smoke, Kazumi, who had finally pacified Little Black, sensed something and raised her head. Her eyes hidden beneath her cloak met the brown eyes filled with fighting spirit and anger.
Yuz held his long blade in his right hand, with several pale blue spheres floating around his body as he slowly walked out of the smoke.
Finally, he raised his right hand, pointing directly at Kazumi in the distance, and a surging fighting spirit burst forth from his back.
“Heroes Association, [The Spirit Speaker].”
“Another one of those stiff hero vows? But, it’s quite interesting nonetheless.”
Listening to the opponent’s dueling introduction, a hint of amusement curved the corners of the young girl’s previously indifferent lips.
The Black Coffin, which had been recalled into another dimension, heavily slammed down beside Kazumi again. With one hand resting on the side of the coffin, the terrifying death aura was released entirely from the young girl’s body. Her small head tilted slightly, revealing half of her pure white chin.
“[Dark], [Coffin].”
(ps: The first chapter of the return of updates always feels a bit low quality.)
(ps again: The exam results were not very smooth, and being the best loser is quite tough QAQ. Keep up the good work, at least it’s better than last year.)
(ps yet again: Currently organizing the overall rhythm and correcting typos and some minor plot bugs. Feel free to point out any preceding or subsequent issues. Gratitude!)
