Rod raised a hand and stroked Kazakiri Hyouka's little head, making her look as comfortable as a cat being petted. He wrapped an arm around the girl's shoulders and led her away to where ITEM was.
No one stopped him. Or perhaps no one dared to. The members of SCHOOL could only watch blankly and fearfully as Rod took Kazakiri Hyouka away.
"D-Damn it! Impossible!? How could this..." Still looking utterly disbelieving, as if his worldview had collapsed, Kakine Teitoku clutched his severed arm as blood continued to pour from the wound.
"What an ugly sight." Watching her sworn enemy in such a miserable state, Mugino Shizuri could not help but feel a trace of pity. That proud and unruly guy had been defeated so effortlessly.
Sure enough, before Lord Rod, Academy City's so-called seven strongest Level 5 espers were not much different from ordinary espers. They were all taken out in a single move.
After escorting Kazakiri Hyouka to safety, Rod walked toward SCHOOL again.
The SCHOOL members seemed frozen. They did not even dare breathe too loudly, afraid that one wrong move would displease Rod and get them killed on the spot.
He approached step by step, each footfall seeming to land upon the hearts of the SCHOOL members, heralding the arrival of the Grim Reaper.
"Who will tell me who inflicted Kiyama Harumi's wound?" Rod's deep voice slowly reached their ears. Instinctively, Kakine Teitoku? and Yumiya Kuroko? looked toward Yobou Banka.
"W-Wait..." Just as Yobou Banka was about to argue, he suddenly felt the world spin around him.
"Huh?" Yobou Banka voiced his confusion, only for his eyes to fall upon...
His headless body.
Spurting blood splashed across his cheeks, while the nauseating stench of blood assaulted his nostrils. He fought back the urge to vomit.
Kakine