Chapter 35: Growing Silently

Deep in the night, Tamayura Town was shrouded in a thin layer of mist.

The dim streetlights created blurry halos in the fog, making it impossible to see clearly.

This world was too dangerous at night, so few people went out after dark—but that was only for wise background characters who wanted to live long lives.

Every world had people who were hell-bent on courting death.

A young couple, arms wrapped around each other, came walking down some unknown road.

The pungent smell of cigarette smoke mixed with cheap perfume clung to them—one whiff could bring back memories of a past life.

The mist had its advantages here: the smell only surrounded them, unable to travel far.

“Cheng, maybe we should just forget it… I want to go home,” said the punk girl with dyed pink hair, shrinking her neck and glancing uneasily into the depths of the alley.

“Lately, a lot of people have gone missing in the town. The news even said the disappearances might not be caused by magic beasts, but by a serial killer.”

As she said this, she was genuinely scared.

The nose ring and earrings on her face, which she usually used to intimidate others, no longer looked so fierce.

The guy called Cheng let out a disdainful snort, pulled her close by the waist, and started groping her back.

“What’s there to be afraid of? It’s not like we’ll run into a magic beast that easily.”

“Besides, I’m here to protect you. A little magic beast? Let it come. I’ll kill it like a stray dog.”

As he spoke, he pulled out a cigarette pack with his other hand, took one out, and put it between his lips.

The lighter clicked, a flame sprang up, and he lit the cigarette before sticking it in his mouth.

The punk girl knew her man’s abilities all too well.

His words had no effect on her, and she remained terrified.

Her intuition told her it was better to go home now.

“Cheng, don’t joke around. The news said only magical girls can defeat magic beasts. The best we ordinary people can do is stay indoors at night. That’s the safest option.”

Cheng got annoyed.

“Don’t bring that up. The news talks about it every day, but have they ever shown a photo of a magical girl?”

The reason he had brought his girlfriend out was that he didn’t want to stay home.

Their rented apartment was in a terrible location.

Every time they got down to business at a critical moment, the damned train horn would blare.

It startled him every single time, forcing him to withdraw prematurely and end things lamely. It was incredibly frustrating.

If this kept happening a few more times, Cheng suspected he might lose that function entirely.

“No matter what you say today, we’re not going back to that crappy rental. I’m determined to find a place where you can truly enjoy yourself.”

A few days ago, when passing through this area, he had accidentally discovered a secluded alley and even went in to check it out.

The alley had many twists and turns.

A little ways in, no one outside could see anything—a perfect spot for doing things in the dark.

The punk girl wanted to say something more, but it was too late.

Cheng knew her sensitive spots too well.

Soon enough, he had her floating on cloud nine, burning with desire.

All thoughts of danger and serial killers flew out of her mind.

Finding their way in the mist was difficult.

After wandering for a while, they finally located the alley he had scouted earlier.

Filled with urgency, Cheng picked up the punk girl and rushed inside.

Cheng propped her against the wall, leaning her weight on his hips.

He impatiently tore open her collar, breathing heavily.

“Finally here. I’ve been holding back all day.”

Their clothes were half-off, the atmosphere thick with intimacy.

Cheng had his bullet in the chamber, and the punk girl was ready to be shot.

Soon, the quiet alley was filled with muffled cries of “Yamete.”

After they finished, Cheng looked at her dazed expression and suddenly let out a lecherous laugh.

“Do you think a magical girl would be the same as you at a time like this?”

“If only I could have a go with a magical girl. That’d be way more exciting than you.”

The punk girl immediately got jealous.

She shot him a glare and snapped, “If you’re that curious, go find one yourself. I’m not sticking around.”

She started putting on her skirt and made to leave.

Cheng quickly came to his senses and grabbed her arm.

“No, no, I’m sorry, my queen.”

He stopped her before she could storm off.

Actually, the punk girl hadn’t always been like this.

She didn’t used to have all those rings on her face.

And Cheng hadn’t always been called Cheng.

He didn’t smoke before, and was even a model student.

But they had no choice.

Both came from broken homes—fathers who were there, mothers who weren’t.

At school, they were bullied like dogs.

If they didn’t fight back, they couldn’t even survive.

So they learned to protect themselves, slowly turning into what they were now.

They met by chance.

What followed was, in short, a pure love story of a boy meeting a girl.

Not exactly positive, but it was pure love.

Both dropped out of school, left their original homes, and rented a small apartment together to form their own little family.

Work during the day, make love at night.

That was their life, and if nothing unexpected happened, it would continue that way.

Seventeen or eighteen was the most vigorous age.

Cheng quickly recovered and wanted a second round.

The punk girl was also hungry for more.

The second battle was about to begin.

Pinned against the wall, the punk girl caught a glimpse out of the corner of her eye.

Deep in the mist of the alley, a figure appeared.

The figure drew closer, seeming to approach them.

“Look over there! Someone! Someone!”

She screamed, frantically slapping Cheng’s shoulder and pointing into the depths of the alley.

And just like that, the sudden shock made Cheng’s guns misfire again.

Furious, Cheng spat out his cigarette.

“I came all the way here to hide, and someone still has to mess with my fun?!”

It was a young man in a black shirt, with shoulder-length hair and a pair of black-rimmed glasses.

The lenses reflected faint light, making his expression unreadable.

He walked slowly, his footsteps silent.

In his hand, he held an open book, as if he were just passing by.

With that look, he was clearly a bookworm.

At worst, a hipster.

Either way, a pushover—easy to bully.

Cheng was already in a bad mood from having his fun interrupted so many times.

Even after hiding here, it happened again.

Rage surged in his heart, and evil took over.

He buckled his pants, grabbed a loose glass bottle from the ground, and charged.

“You damn four-eyes, I’ll kill you!”

The punk girl tried to stop him, but it was too late.

He had already smashed the bottle over the boy’s head.

Shards of glass flew everywhere.

She screamed again.

But then, something they never expected happened.

The boy, struck on the crown of his head, acted as if nothing had happened.

Even his glasses remained intact.

He brushed his hair back into place, adjusted his glasses, and said coldly, “Damn four-eyes… you seem to have a deep prejudice against people who wear glasses.”

Cheng was stunned.

He had plenty of experience fighting and knew exactly what would happen if you hit someone’s head with the thick-bottomed bottle he’d grabbed.

But the guy stood there unfazed—a true tough guy.

Only the top dogs in the underworld had that kind of resilience.

“N-no, it’s nothing. Sorry, big brother. A misunderstanding. All a misunderstanding.”

“Your glasses suit you perfectly. You look incredibly cool wearing them. Really.”

Cheng walked up and grabbed the boy’s hand.

“May I ask your name, big brother? As long as you’re not angry, I’ll do anything to make it up to you.”

The boy smiled.

“My name? It’s Ito Kyosuke.”

“What a coincidence, big brother! We’re family. I’m an Ito too,” Cheng said.

Ito Kyosuke’s gaze fell on the punk girl, who was leaning against the wall, her clothes in disarray.

“Since you said you’d make it up to me, how about using her?”

Cheng looked at his girl, then back at Ito Kyosuke. It took him a couple of seconds to understand what he meant.

“You son of a—”

At that moment, dozens of dark brown branches and dark green vines burst out from behind Ito Kyosuke, writhing like living creatures.

One vine wrapped around Cheng’s mouth with lightning speed, instantly silencing his curse, leaving him to let out only muffled “mmph” sounds.

Another vine coiled around his wrist and twisted it violently.

The entire hand spun 360 degrees, barely hanging by a few tendons—almost completely severed.

The punk girl was terrified out of her wits.

Before she could run, a thicker vine wrapped around her waist and yanked her over.

She was suspended in midair like a marionette.

“Let me go! Help—!”

As soon as she shouted, her mouth was also covered by a vine, just like Cheng.

The vines tightened, squeezing until she could barely breathe.

Her clothes were shredded inch by inch.

Ito Kyosuke put away his book, took out his phone, and began taking pictures of the girl’s contorting body.

Cheng, his wrist broken, stared with eyes wide open.

With his remaining hand, he grabbed a piece of the broken glass bottle and lunged at Ito Kyosuke with all his might.

But it had no effect.

The toughness of the other’s body was inhuman.

Ito Kyosuke turned his gaze to the struggling Cheng and laughed.

“I won’t kill you yet. I’ll make you watch as I violate her, then watch as I kill her.”

After taking the photos, a dark red seed materialized in Ito Kyosuke’s palm.

Its surface was covered in fine patterns, pulsing like blood vessels.

Countless rootlets, thin as hair, emerged from the seed and spread across her skin through the vines, piercing her clothes and burrowing into her veins.

The punk girl’s struggles ceased abruptly.

Her body began to shrivel at a visible rate.

Her skin lost its luster, becoming like dried tree bark.

Her eyes gradually grew vacant, finally freezing in an expression of terror.

On the other side, Cheng’s struggles also weakened.

His face was filled with terror and despair.

The rootlets from the vines pierced his body.

His skin shriveled, his muscles and fat seemingly drained.

Soon, he became a light, dry corpse.

Ito Kyosuke retracted the vines.

The two corpses fell to the ground with a thud, joining the several other dried corpses already piled in the alley.

Those corpses wore various outfits—students, office workers, housewives.

Judging by the clothes, most of the deceased were female.

Ito Kyosuke looked at the red seed in his palm and spoke.

“Counting these two, you’ve already drained twenty-two people. When will you fully grow? When will you give me true power?”

“What?”

“At least a hundred girls? And they have to be virgins? If they’re not, the number doubles? Are you kidding me?!”

Where was he supposed to find that many virgins these days, let alone a hundred? How long would that take?

If anyone had been watching, they would have seen no one else speaking with Ito Kyosuke.

He was just muttering to himself, talking to the seed in his hand.

“A hundred virgins, or two ordinary magical girls?”

“Fine. I understand.”

The seed in Ito Kyosuke’s palm burrowed back under his skin.

He brushed the dust off his clothes and walked toward the alley’s exit, continuing his search for the next prey.