The Trembling Predator

Elsewhere, in an alley several kilometers from the battlefield, Masaki Keigo stood in the shadows cast by the towering buildings on either side, facing off against a woman in a leather jacket.

When the monster had appeared, he had actually planned to intervene before the security team was wiped out.

But he had been stopped by a woman—or, more accurately, something wearing a woman's skin.

Her gaze clung to Masaki Keigo, naked and undisguised in its greed, like a hyena that had gone hungry for three days and nights spotting a fresh corpse.

Without a doubt, the woman before him was Bogarl, the early-stage minor boss from the original work—a high-dimensional predatory entity.

A troublesome thing that evolved by devouring other monsters.

Her purpose in appearing here was self-evident.

"Heh~ Am I your prey?"

Faced with the woman's greedy gaze, Masaki Keigo merely smiled.

The next second, without any warning, Bogarl moved.

Cells throughout her body instantly formed dozens of black spikes, which shot out from every part of her body and sealed off every route of retreat.

Faced with the torrential barrage, Masaki Keigo merely raised a hand.

His palm left countless afterimages in the air as it met the spikes head-on.

A dense string of light pa, pa, pa sounds followed, as though someone were calmly dusting off their clothes.

In just one second, all those dozens of spikes—each capable of piercing steel plates—had been caught barehanded by Masaki Keigo.

At the sight, the smile on Bogarl's face froze.

She had intended to treat the man before her as an appetizer before the main course, but this appetizer had unexpectedly bared its fangs at her.

The next second, Masaki Keigo vanished from before her eyes.

This was not high-speed movement. He had simply disappeared from her field of