The Mastermind Behind the Scenes, Starting with *The Fruit of Grisaia*

There was no expected roar of gunpowder; instead, the muzzle emitted a low, humming whine of energy charging.

The blue light strips on both sides of the barrel flickered rapidly, like a rhythmic breath.

"Damn it, there's a delay!"

Even someone as composed as Sakayanagi could not help but lose her color at this moment.

Her pupils constricted as she shouted aloud:

"Everyone! Predict its movements! This thing doesn't fire instantly!"

Before her words had even faded, the muzzle flashed with a blinding light.

But because of that cursed delay, the Parasite's body had already shifted.

The lethal strike originally aimed at its head ended up only hitting its shoulder.

"Bang!"

It was as if it had been struck by an invisible, giant hammer.

A tentacle on the Parasite's left shoulder, along with half of its uniform, instantly exploded, flesh and blood blooming like fireworks.

"...?"

The convenience store clerk's movements stalled for half a second.

It tilted its head, glanced at its severed, twitching shoulder, and its tone revealed surprise.

"This isn't America, is it... Since when can Japanese high school students play with such dangerous things?"

"No choice then."

"I'll have to get serious."

Two tentacles tipped with razor-sharp blades transformed into afterimages, thrusting directly at Sakayanagi Arisu, who was sitting on the ground, and Su Wei, who stood beside Kushida!

The speed was so great that it exceeded the limits of human visual perception.

"You bastard! Stop talking to yourself!"

A furious roar exploded.

Ryuen Kakeru finally recovered from his brush with death.

Perhaps it was his pride as a delinquent being trampled, or perhaps it was an adrenaline overload triggered by fear, but at this moment, his rage eclipsed his reason, leaving him twisted and ferocious.

"If you can bleed, then go to hell!"

"I've still got three lives left anyway, let's see who dies first!"

Ryuen gripped his katana tightly, charging forward instead of retreating. Like an enraged lion, he roared as he lunged toward the Parasite's completely exposed midsection!

If this strike landed...

Even if it meant mutual destruction, he would tear a piece of flesh off this monster!

But the chasm of strength could not be bridged by courage alone.

"So annoying."

The Parasite spoke.

The tentacle that had been thrusting toward Su Wei performed a bizarre, mid-air reversal, coiling around Ryuen's sword-wielding arm like a nimble viper in an instant.

Immediately following, the bone blade swept across.

Ryuen Kakeru's charging momentum came to an abrupt halt.

There was no grand duel; the outcome was decided in a single instant.

"Puchi—"

His upper body continued to fly forward in the posture of his charge, while his lower body collapsed powerlessly to the ground, leaving only the blade in his hand wedged firmly against the curved edge at the tip of the tentacle.

"Ryu... Ryuen-kun?!"

Ichinose Honami wanted to scream, but her throat felt blocked, and she could only emit a hoarse, gasping sound.

Dead?

That arrogant tyrant of Class C, just like that... like a fly swatted away at random, dead?

"Quiet."

The Parasite shook off the black blade stuck to its tentacle, and the other one did not stop, instead using the remaining momentum to thrust toward Sakayanagi Arisu.

Sakayanagi Arisu gritted her teeth, wanting to roll and dodge, but a sudden pain in her heart left her frail body unable to keep up with the speed of her thoughts.

Am I going to die here... when I haven't even had the chance to begin...

This sense of powerlessness reminded her of those days spent sitting on a hospital bed, staring out the window.

Ichinose Honami wanted to help.

But her hands trembled from fear, causing her to miss the timing, and the capture rope fired by the Y-GUN had its own ballistic delay.

She could only watch helplessly as the sharp bone blade closed in on Sakayanagi's throat.

Is it... really going to end like this?

Just when everyone thought the outcome was set in stone.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Three rapid, dull rhythmic sounds abruptly cut into the battlefield.

That was the sound of the X-GUN firing in succession.

As Sakayanagi raised her gun, Su Wei stood in the shadow of a streetlamp, his eyes narrowed slightly.

Invisible psychokinesis spread out like a spiderweb, instantly locking onto the brain core of the Parasite before him.

That's right, it was psychokinesis.

Psychokinetic power honed with the help of the Doraemon gadget, the Superpower Training Box.

Although it wasn't strong enough to tear monsters apart like Tatsumaki, using it to correct trajectories and assist with aiming was more precise than any fire-control radar!

Just kidding.

If he didn't even have this level of insurance, why would he truly let this group of novices go to their deaths?

And what right would Ryuen Kakeru have had to dodge the Parasite's surprise attack?

But since Ryuen had already fulfilled his duty, then now...

"Just right."

Su Wei whispered softly.

One second.

Two seconds.

In the suffocating countdown, the curved long blade had already sliced through silver hair and touched Sakayanagi Arisu's neck.

"Die."

The Parasite issued its declaration of victory.

But the next instant.

Three invisible gravity waves locked down all evasion space for the Parasite's core in a triangular formation.

There was no suspense.

The Parasite, which had intended to usurp the nest and shift its position, felt its head sink.

"Pfft--!!!"

Before it could even let out a scream.

It exploded from the inside out, instantly turning into a rain of blood filling the sky.

That tentacle, which had been only three inches from Sakayanagi Arisu's nose, lost all strength instantly, falling between her legs like a dead snake with a "thud," still twitching neurotically.

[Target eliminated.]

[Mission complete.]

The cold notification sound, accompanied by the sound of Ichinose retching in a breakdown, echoed through the street.

Kushida Kikyo and Sakayanagi Arisu looked at Su Wei in unison.

The former felt relief at having survived the ordeal, while the latter sought a trace of familiarity in his calm, expressionless demeanor.

In this instant, she forgot to breathe.

It wasn't until Su Wei lowered the muzzle, his body swaying slightly as if from exhaustion, that he began to pant heavily.

"Ha... ha... finally, is it dead?"

"Su Wei-kun!!"

Kushida Kikyo lunged forward without a second thought, like a drowning person grabbing a piece of driftwood, clutching Su Wei's arm tightly as tears instantly soaked his sleeve.

"We're still alive!!"

"It's so good... wuwu... it's really so good..."

Beside this touching scene of survivors embracing, Sakayanagi Arisu felt no sense of reality.

She ignored the scratch on her neck, letting a thin trail of crimson blood slide down her collarbone into the abyss.

Her gaze remained fixed on the arm of Su Wei that Kushida was holding.

At that extreme distance, where even a one-millimeter deviation would have slit her throat, he fired three consecutive shots...

If it was luck, then he was God's illegitimate child.

If it wasn't...

"Su Wei-kun."

Sakayanagi extended the tip of her tongue, gently licking the blood from the corner of her mouth, and revealed a heart-stopping, bewitching smile.

"Although your acting is quite good..."

"But your hand doesn't even have the slightest tremor from nervousness."

Note ①-Superpower Training Box: A gadget from Doraemon, primarily used to train the user in mastering three superpowers: psychokinesis, clairvoyance, and teleportation. It requires three hours of practice daily for three consecutive years to master them completely without any wind-up time.

Chapter 5 Parasyte Score

"...Let me guess."

The group had barely managed to calm their nerves upon returning to the Black Sphere Room when they heard the distinct voice of Ryuen Kakeru.

He was leaning against the wall; although cold sweat still clung to his forehead, there was no sign of relief in his eyes from having survived the ordeal.

"With you lot looking half-dead like that, was it a total wipeout, or did you manage to scrape through the mission?"

"Heh."

Sakayanagi Arisu, who was also slumped on the floor, let out a soft chuckle.

However, she paid no further mind to Ryuen Kakeru's provocation, merely raising her hand to gently stroke her neck, which remained as smooth as ever.

No wounds, no bloodstains.

Even the chest tightness and shortness of breath caused by her racing heart during the perilous situation had vanished.

External injury healing confirmed.

Then...

Sakayanagi Arisu's gaze flickered as she braced her hands against the floor, attempting to stand.

Unfortunately, her legs remained heavy; the familiar sense of powerlessness had not changed in the slightest despite the repair of her injuries.

It can even regenerate severed limbs, yet it cannot fix a congenital genetic defect... Or perhaps, does it require additional points?