Looking at Kagetane Hiruko, who had gone utterly still, Aiki slowly lowered the foot he had pressed against his chest. "Looks like this guy wasn't nearly as tough as he talked!"
"Captain!"
"Aiki!"
The Holy Light Clerics and Rentaro all gathered around. Looking at the robotic face on the ground, they couldn't help sighing.
"Does this guy even count as human anymore? He's modified himself this much!"
"Let's go. They're all just products of a twisted age!"
"Yes, Captain."
Just as they were about to search for the Seven-Star Relic, a violent explosion suddenly rang out. Not far away, a tower shaped like the leaves of a man-eating flower, covered in barbs with its spire pointing straight at the sky, collapsed amid the thunderous blast.
"The Tower of the Ladder."
Rentaro started slightly.
While everyone was still wondering what had happened, a familiar voice suddenly rang out.
"Do you all like the final gift I left you? The moment my heart stops beating is the moment Tokyo's last hope shatters. May you enjoy these final days of despair! Hahahaha!"
A voice recorder on the chest of Kagetane Hiruko's fallen body was playing the arrogant words he had recorded while alive.
"This guy won't give us any peace even in death."
One of the Holy Light Clerics removed the recorder from Kagetane Hiruko's chest and crushed it to pieces.
"Nothing but empty threats."
Suddenly, a strange roar echoed throughout Tokyo.
"What was that?"
Everyone looked up toward the sound. Along Tokyo's coastline, a colossal beast over a hundred meters tall was waving its countless tendrils, churning up wave after wave as it slowly crawled toward Tokyo's giant Stone Tablet. From time to time, it let out a low cry, like a dirge for the age.
"Scorpio, one of the ten great