72 – Episode 72. The Watcher with a Different Name (1)
The guy, who shattered like glass and turned into dust, scattered in the air.
“Uuuhh…!”
Jade screamed and collapsed. The guy, his eyes trembling with anger, struggled to speak.
“You, just who are you…”
“I am the super escape ninja, Robin.”
“What is that…”
“Oh, don’t you know?”
His body slowly disperses. This is the last chance to let you know.
“I am the disciple of Buddha, who defeats evil and protects innocent people from Yasayo.”
“Such childishness…”
Even if this bastard tells me, it’s nonsense.
“Childishness…”
Suddenly, he seemed to have an epiphany, and his eyes widened.
“Ah…”
Unable to continue speaking, Jade disappears.
In the place where he was, there was a round bead placed.
It looked exactly like the bead that was holding the pornography.
It’s such an evil object that I have to deal with it.
“Ninjas, return to your original positions.”
I slashed it with the returning ninja sword.
Black energy flowed out of the cracked bead, and it was absorbed into me.
Unlike when I killed Oyabung Delbanas or slashed the bead of pornography, nothing happened.
I thought I could meet Tenma Hitler again.
“Robin!”
I turned my gaze towards the sound and saw Orpheus and the resistance.
“Nin?!”
Surprised, I blinked my eyes. Something strange had happened.
“What’s going on?”
Orpheus approached, armed with a golden armor and shield.
When did he manage to get matching equipment?
No, that’s not important.
I couldn’t understand what had happened, but there was a will-o’-the-wisp attached to their chests.
It wasn’t just stuck like a piece of gum, it was floating!
Have they been corroded by spirits?
“Don’t come any closer!”
I quickly stopped Orpheus.
“W-what’s going on?”
“Just stay there for now.”
I engaged my brain.
Why are the will-o’-the-wisps attached to their chests?
First possibility. When Jade evolved into the Shogun of Sorrow, he unleashed a strange curse in this area.
Second possibility. The appearance of the will-o’-the-wisps is a reward for defeating the Shogun of Sorrow.
Third possibility. From the moment the beads were split, the mental torture of the Spirit-Torturing Yokai began. So, this place is like a virtual space.
The worst choice would be the last one, of course.
I am a cautious and smart ninja, so I must assume the worst-case scenario.
“What’s the matter?”
A man wearing a white dolphin badge scratches his head and approaches me.
“This bastard!”
“hehehehe!”
I raise my ninja sword, blocking his strategy of “lull and self-destruct.”
I’ve seen this tactic countless times with undead samurais.
“From now on, any moving bastards are yokai!”
I need to confirm whether this is a fake space or not.
“Um, excuse me. Could you at least explain… the clothes!”
First, I snatch Adalli’s thickest goblin fire.
It’s a crime to confuse my judgment while not being a yasayodo and being afraid of me.
If that woman had just explained the situation on the first day, I wouldn’t have doubted Amellia.
“Ebebe…”
Adalli collapses to the ground like a limp doll.
“Comrade!”
“What, what have you done?”
While the resistance is making a fuss, I give a gentle tap on Adalli’s forehead.
Thud!
Her forehead quickly swells up, turning red.
The sense of impact and bodily reactions feel incredibly real, but one must not let their guard down.
It was the same when dealing with the Yokai-Nazi alliance.
“Hmm.”
Is there a way to confirm if this is reality or just an illusion?
“Nin?”
To avoid any interference with her thoughts, Adali threw her Goblin Fire on the ground, and suddenly it swiftly moved and entered her body again.
“What…! Ah…! Uwaaah!”
Adali, who opened her eyes again, touched her forehead and screamed.
It doesn’t seem like tears are flowing, which means it’s not a Yokai.
“You’re being too loud.”
She seized the Goblin Fire once again.
With a vacant expression as if her soul had left, she lay down again.
Wait, soul?!
“Ah…”
My extraordinary brain is getting closer to the answer. But it’s still not certain.
I need to confirm if this is a virtual space.
“Orphe.”
“Uh, what?”
I called her name as she stood there, unable to hide her surprise.
I should try a simple test.
“Treebo said he sensed the aura of a Guardian. He compared it to one of the Great Five Spirits… Did you fight with him?”
She dismissed his words lightly.
“What was the name of the Yakusa Oyabun I killed in Goldon?”
“Did you absorb the soul of another Guardian? Explain what happened.”
“That’s none of your concern.”
“…”
Considering the possibility that it could be a deception by the Guardian disguised as Orphe, like when he used the Clone Technique, she decided to be a bit more aggressive.
Sorry, but there’s no other way.
Orphe, who looked slightly gloomy, spoke again.
“…Delbanas. But why?”
Ah, I asked the wrong question.
Since the so-called Guardians can read my memories, I shouldn’t ask questions that I know the answer to.
“Who was the original owner of the axe Treebo carries?”
From Noble mtl dot com
This should be appropriate.
“It’s Doruni.”
It’s a name I’ve never heard before. But there’s no guarantee that the Guardian can’t lie.
“Tell me what kind of guy he is.”
“What kind of guy?”
“Describe anything that comes to mind.”
“Well… just a moment…”
Orpheus rolls his eyes.
Is it to tell a lie, or to extract a memory?
Either way, it’s a useless effort.
“There were scars on his cheeks, he had a large build, and his eye color was blue. He was wearing armor made of Borelusa leather.”
“You didn’t just see the body, did you? How do you remember all that? Are you a total memory expert?”
“Johanna and Leonard showed me a wanted poster.”
“They did?”
Why can’t I remember? Wasn’t I just a mustached yakuza?
Anyway, it’s typical of Orpheus to describe things in excessive detail.
“I see.”
It’s difficult for an observer to replicate such meticulousness of character.
This confirms it.
I’ve defeated the Shogun of Despair and gained a new ability, like the ninja-radar I obtained before.
That ability is the power to see souls.
Not only can I see them, but I can also steal them, although it’s not a particularly useful skill.
To steal a soul, you have to get close to the chest area, but if you’ve reached that point, it’s better to just throw a punch.
Whether it’s a demon or a samurai, they’re all just creatures made of flesh and blood, bound to die if you hit them.
There’s no need to fuss over stealing souls like picking someone’s pocket.
It’s better to have nothing than to know what might happen.
“Can you tell me now?”
Orpheus stops blushing and approaches, looking at me.
“I’ll explain later. Did you kill the Shadow Sword?”
To be honest, I’m a little tired of explaining.
“…Yeah.”
Orpheus doesn’t look happy, but the plan seems to have succeeded.
“What about Trevo?”
Adalina Bianca and the Enchanted Sword are visible, but I can’t see this pile of scrap metal.
“He’s over there. He says he has something to investigate.”
It seems he’s not dead.
Trevo is sitting under a broken streetlight, touching something.
“What is he doing again?”
[Robin! Orpheus!]
The scrap metal waves at us just in time.
[Can you see this? This is the technology of the Gogmagok tribe. It was created to prevent the intrusion of the Watchers…]
“It’s really interesting. Orpheus will love it. I’ll listen to it later.”
The sadness of the Shogun is stronger than I thought, and my mana has decreased significantly.
The mana consumption of the New Ninja Power Jinn is ridiculously high.
I need to finish the job while I still have energy.
“Where are the Samurai?”
Following the guidance of the White Dolphin combatants, including Adalia, I found the remaining enemies in Neo-Solitron.
You must give the starving ninja, who has not tasted Yasyo’s blood for months, a sense of fullness.
“-You are full of righteousness.”
It’s time for annihilation.
***
Fortunately or unfortunately, the ability to see souls was not always active.
After a few hours, it would turn off on its own, and I had to blink my eyes three times quickly to turn it back on.
After organizing the Neo-Solitron, I headed to Dathiman with my companions and the resistance.
Dathiman. A city abandoned due to the syndrome that makes the body as stiff as a rock. It is also the base of the White Stone Whale.
There are red whale eye towers all over the city, but not here.
“Hello, I’m Lilia Castine.”
A neat-looking grandmother greeted me.
Lilia Castine, the leader of the White Stone Whale.
She was a first-class employee of the Mar Tower, but she realized the Mar Tower’s conspiracy and established the White Stone Whale to prevent it.
They say that the Mar Tower was not the den of evil occupied by mad scientists when she was there.
Well, I guess that means even this grandmother is not a war criminal.
“The syndrome spreading from Dathiman is also because of the Red Whale Mar Tower. They created a secret base in the city’s underground waterways and conducted experiments. Based on the remaining data, it seemed like they were trying to enhance physical abilities by tampering with the human brain.”
“They’ve been conducting such experiments for decades?”
“Yes. I believe everything from the assassination of the royal family to the breath of the whale was planned by them from the beginning.”
Lilia also seemed to be a great talker, as she got along well with Orpheus.
[Robin. Are you listening? The Red Whale Mar Tower was using our Gogmaguk’s technology. And not just any technology, but technology that can harm the Observer. Do you understand what this implies?]
Treebo grabs me again. I tried to quietly slip away when the two women were chattering.
“So, your kind are all demons that need to be killed?”
[…It is not confirmed that Martopju is a Gogmagjuk. There is something more important than that. Besides the equipment of the ancient warrior, there may be a weapon that can deal a fatal blow to you. The Neo-Solitron streetlamp did not detect you, but it could be different in the future.]
“I see. Now that I know that, I have to gather more strength to kill them.”
[How long are you going to fight like that, relying on brute force? It was the same during the Byunggeomgyeong. Perhaps it was because you didn’t accurately assess the opponent’s skill. Of course, if you hadn’t attacked then, he might have become stronger by obtaining one of the great Five Spirits artifacts, but in the end, it’s all hindsight….]
Ah, I’m starting to get angry.
I only needed to know that the enemy has a secret weapon. What else is there to do here?
But there is no sharp countermeasure, and it’s impossible to get rid of the watchers that have infiltrated my body.
“This is the path I chose as an escapee, I will endure it with evil and strength.”
Even after that, Treebo kept babbling, but I ignored it all.
I hope Diana is okay. They said the resistance army is protecting her from afar, but I can’t believe it until I see it myself.
It’s unlikely that she will awaken as a Great Yokai due to post-traumatic stress disorder from this incident.
It’s really heartbreaking, but then I have no choice but to make lizard barbecue.
“Over here.”
Lilia, who ended the chatter, led our group inside.
“We are using the abandoned base that Martop left after repairing it. Everyone who knew the location of this base, except me, is dead, so you can rest assured.”
Are they dead? Or did she kill them?
Her tone is a bit suspicious, like saying, “I took care of everything, so you can relax~.”
“Well then, we can have a proper conversation now. So…”
“Robin~! Ohohohong~!”
A woman interrupted Lilya and approached us.
This annoying laughter… Could it be?
“Muka?”
Why are you here?