Purple Devil blood covered the floor and walls.
A foul, fishy stench ran rampant through the air, while flashing police sirens pulled a cordon tight outside the door.
Inside the room, police officers and forensic examiners were each busy with their own tasks, doing what needed to be done around the corpse.
They had a lot of work to do.
For example, all those severed legs on the floor—they had to compare them with recent case files and find their original owners.
It was a tedious and complicated job.
Su Tang, meanwhile, silently stared at his ceiling.
At the ruined ceiling that had been smashed open by a single hammer blow, letting cold wind pour endlessly into the room.
Damn it.
My brand-new house.
I just finished renovating it!
Clenching his fist, Su Tang glanced at the woman beside him.
This creature currently looking around in excitement was the owner of that massive blood-red hammer from earlier, and also the chief culprit behind this chaotic scene.
“Public Safety?” Su Tang asked, his tone giving away nothing.
“That’s right!
That’s me!” The woman planted her hands on her hips, raised her head, and declared smugly, “I am the strongest hunter in all of Public Safety!
Human, you must already be fighting the urge to kneel down and call me Lord Power, aren’t you?
Wahahahahaha!”
The woman who called herself Power had long rose-gold hair that swayed through the air along with her laughter.
Strands brushed past her fair, delicate face, setting off her eyes, which faded from gold into red.
To be honest, whether it was her hair color, her eyes, or those jagged teeth, all of them counted as charm points in Su Tang’s book.
Unfortunately, she was an idiot.
Also…
Su Tang looked at the two red horns standing upright on Power’s head, then at the obvious crimson crosses in her pupils.
This girl…
His eyes narrowed.
But before Su Tang could think any further, he heard footsteps approaching from behind him.
Unlike Power’s, these footsteps were neat, even, and unhurried.
Clearly, their owner was a composed person.
This one was probably the real leader of Public Safety’s operation this time.
That guess flashed through his mind.
Su Tang timed it properly, turned around, and said five words to the newcomer.
“I want a lawyer.”
In this world, all losses caused by Devils were classified as force majeure and fell outside the scope of insurance compensation.
In other words, if your personal property was damaged by a Devil, you could only accept your rotten luck and bear the cost yourself.
That was why Su Tang would absolutely never admit that the ruined state of his private clinic had been caused by a Devil.
He had to hold firmly to one point: the current damage had been caused by a Public Safety Devil Hunter’s operational mistake.
Only that way could he receive at least partial compensation.
Of course, he was not an unreasonable person.
He would never twist black into white.
Everything he said was true and backed by facts.
The Leg Devil had already been dead before Public Safety arrived.
Dead cleanly, dead neatly, dead without leaving a speck behind.
Then that Power person had acted on her own and made the whole thing worse.
Not only had she smashed a huge hole in Su Tang’s ceiling, she had also splattered Devil blood everywhere.
The walls and floors would all need to be renovated and repaired.
This was not a small sum.
“I’ve already explained the situation.
I’m sure you have professionals who can determine whether what I said is true.”
Su Tang looked at the young man in front of him, whose hair was tied neatly and whose expression was meticulous.
He continued, “All the various expenses added together should come to around five million yen.
There are records for all of it.”
“That is a reasonable demand.
Public Safety will take responsibility for mistakes made during its work.”
The young man had his hair tied in a topknot, his back held perfectly straight, and he was also very patient.
Only after listening to everything Su Tang had to say did he speak.
“Mister…”
“Su Tang,” Su Tang told him his name.
“Understood.
Mr.
Su Tang.
I’m Aki Hayakawa from Public Safety Devil Extermination Special Division 4.”
The young man took out his ID and showed it to Su Tang, then said, “Normally, Public Safety has dedicated logistics personnel to handle matters like this.
But this case is somewhat special… I need to report it to our section chief first.
I hope you don’t mind.”
“Only natural.”
Su Tang nodded and watched the man named Aki Hayakawa take out a cellphone and dial a number.
Nearby, Power was crouching in front of the Leg Devil’s corpse, circling left and right with a restless air.
Clearly, she had no idea what was about to happen.
“Yes.
Mm.
Understood.”
Aki Hayakawa replied three times, then moved the phone away from his ear and said to Power, “Miss Makima wants to speak with you.”
!
Time seemed to freeze for one second.
Su Tang saw it clearly.
The instant the name “Makima” appeared, that unhinged woman who had looked as if she feared neither heaven nor earth and believed herself number one in the world suddenly stiffened as though struck by lightning.
Even the skin on her face seemed to tremble, and her eyes were filled with wariness and fear.
“Power,” Aki Hayakawa said at just the right time.
“Take the call.
Don’t keep Miss Makima waiting.”
Those words were like a death warrant.
Even though she was unwilling in ten thousand different ways, Power had even less courage to refuse the call.
She could only awkwardly shift her legs and take tiny steps over to Aki Hayakawa’s side.
Watching from nearby, Su Tang found it rather amusing.
As expected, every creature had its natural predator.
He had never imagined that a madwoman like this would actually have someone capable of controlling her, someone she feared this much.
After handing the phone to Power, Aki Hayakawa took the initiative to step away and came over to Su Tang’s side.
Some things had been inconvenient to say earlier, but now that Power could not hear them, there was no problem.
“When you said this case was ‘somewhat special,’ that was because of her, right?” Su Tang asked, looking at Power.
“Yes.
I imagine you have already noticed, Mr.
Su Tang.
Power is not human.
She is a Fiend,” Aki Hayakawa replied.
Su Tang had indeed noticed long ago.
A Fiend, as the name implied, was a Devil that had possessed a human corpse.
Its personality was still fundamentally that of a Devil, and its behavior was entirely driven by a Devil’s nature.
Because of that, Fiends were usually treated the same as Devils—entities that needed to be exterminated.
It was also very easy to distinguish Fiends from normal humans.
You only had to look at the head.
A Fiend’s head would more or less display Devil-like characteristics.
For example, they might have a monster’s head, or Devil-like horns growing from their skull.
“Public Safety actually lets Fiends work as Devil Hunters?”
Su Tang was somewhat curious.
Fiends were very dangerous beings, not only because of their strength, but also because of their logic and way of handling things.
After all, you could not expect a Devil to remain rational at all times.
“Yes.”
Aki Hayakawa nodded, then said, “This was Miss Makima’s proposal.
She believes we can make use of certain Fiends that can still be temporarily controlled, and having them fight Devils will reduce some of the losses among Devil Hunters.”
As he spoke, Aki Hayakawa seemed to think of something, and his expression turned a little lonely.
Oh?
Using Fiends to fight Devils?
Such a wildly imaginative idea was truly…
Bold.
An interested look appeared in Su Tang’s eyes.
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught “Equilibrium”?
l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I’m a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 165)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh!
— Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter220)
“Is this chat group even serious?” (Chapter125)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal!
(Chapter250)
Can Playing Games Save the World?
65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I’m Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 220
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 185
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/20
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 248
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 230
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/40
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 125
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 145
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 120
I Can Copy Unique Skills 115
Summoning an Evil God, but the 75
Supernatural Multiverse 110
My Harem Is Indescribable 100
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 105
“I’m just a Valkyrie passing through.” 67
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 105
Still playing traditional Honk 80
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 85
What Should I Do After Switchi – Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 78
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon?
55
Transmigrated as Sukuna 80
Checking In in Demon Slayer 85
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 100
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 85
My Best Friend Into a Slime?
80
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 90
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero?
75
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 80
Why did they assign me to Uma 75
MYGO Beauties 70
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 70
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 80
Honkai’s Otherworld?
Wait—Who Are You People?!
80
Emiya Shirou, Determined to Slay Every Curse and Evil Spirit 57
The Uma Musume Who Became 55
I’m Definitely Not the King of 60
After Maxing Out Every Class 45
Naruto: I’m Konoha’s Local Men 35
Honkai: World Modulation Mode 34
I, the Elden Sword Saint 27
Dio Brando Is Challenging FGO 24
No One Knows Pokémon Better 18
I, Sakazuki, Won’t Go Down Tha 20
From Trilobites to Titans 10
Chainsaw Man: Contracted with 17
Arknights: Starting Out as a S 27
DanMachi:
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught “Equilibrium”?
l (Chapter 80) Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178) Zenless Zone Zero: I’m a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 165)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 ) TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110) Yu-Gi-Oh!
— Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter220) “Is this chat group even serious?” (Chapter125) I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal!
(Chapter250) Can Playing Games Save the World?
65 Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77 From Junkman to Wasteland 66 Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31 I’m Grinding Proficiency Like 46 From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 220 Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42 Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65 Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 185 From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/20 The Way the Umamusume Look at 68 Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 248 Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65 Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76 Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66 My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65 Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 230 Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154 I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/40 The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 125 Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67 Uma Musume: From Beginner 145 Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85 Uma Musume: I Want All 120 I Can Copy Unique Skills 115 Summoning an Evil God, but the 75 Supernatural Multiverse 110 My Harem Is Indescribable 100 Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 105 “I’m just a Valkyrie passing through.” 67 Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 105 Still playing traditional Honk 80 The Most Filial Son Under Heav 85 What Should I Do After Switchi – Volume2/3 Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 78 Hell-Difficulty Dungeon?
55 Transmigrated as Sukuna 80 Checking In in Demon Slayer 85 The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 100 I Refuse to Become a Heroic 85 My Best Friend Into a Slime?
80 A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 90 What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero?
75 Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 80 Why did they assign me to Uma 75 MYGO Beauties 70 DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 70 The Gacha Merchant Who Started 80 Honkai’s Otherworld?
Wait—Who Are You People?!
80 Emiya Shirou, Determined to Slay Every Curse and Evil Spirit 57 The Uma Musume Who Became 55 I’m Definitely Not the King of 60 After Maxing Out Every Class 45 Naruto: I’m Konoha’s Local Men 35 Honkai: World Modulation Mode 34 I, the Elden Sword Saint 27 Dio Brando Is Challenging FGO 24 No One Knows Pokémon Better 18 I, Sakazuki, Won’t Go Down Tha 20 From Trilobites to Titans 10 Chainsaw Man: Contracted with 17 Arknights: Starting Out as a S 27 DanMachi: