Just as Asaba Kotone finished showering and was getting ready for bed, his phone suddenly rang.
It had to be either Denji or Aki Hayakawa. They were the only two who knew his number. He and Aki had exchanged numbers over dinner so they could contact each other whenever they needed to as partners.
"Hello?"
"Ah, it went through!"
Denji's voice came from the other end, taking Asaba Kotone a little by surprise. He had assumed it was probably Aki Hayakawa calling about something urgent.
After all, he had been away from Tokyo for less than a day. He hadn't expected Denji to call so soon.
"Denji? Did something happen?"
"No... I just wanted to see if this phone worked."
Denji sounded a little sheepish.
In truth, Denji just wanted to talk to Kotone, but he was worried Kotone would find him a nuisance, so he had made up that excuse.
Asaba Kotone had already picked up on his tone, but he didn't comment on it. "How was your first day at school?"
"Pretty good. The teachers were all really patient with me. I haven't gotten to know many classmates yet, but I think we'll get along."
"That's good. Remember to tell me if you run out of money. And you can call me anytime if anything comes up."
"Okay! Then... that's all. You should get some sleep too, Kotone."
"Yeah. Good night."
After their brief chat, Denji seemed satisfied.
Asaba Kotone wasn't particularly worried about Denji at school. Since he was a Devil Hunter, the teachers would look out for Denji, and no punks would dare bully him.
Even if someone did dare, knowing Denji, he would definitely turn into the Testicle Devil and pay them back.
He would fully support that, too. At worst, he would have to go to the principal's office and have some tea with the principal.
Early the next morning, Aki Hayakawa called just as Asaba Kotone woke up.
"Looks like you're already awake. Have breakfast and hurry over. I just accepted a job, and I'm heading to the site now..."
"Okay."
After getting the location from Aki Hayakawa, Asaba Kotone hung up.
He checked the time. It was only seven in the morning. Aki Hayakawa was taking this grind way too far. He had probably been waiting in the guild hall since sometime after six.
Given the nature of a Private Devil Hunter's work, a devil could appear anywhere at any time, requiring a Private Devil Hunter to deal with it immediately.
That was why the Civilian Devil Hunter Guild stayed open twenty-four hours a day. There were always Devil Hunters who rested during the day and worked exclusively at night waiting in the hall or patrolling outside.
But Aki Hayakawa was pushing himself so hard that he was competing with the night-owl Devil Hunters for jobs.
It showed just how desperately Aki Hayakawa wanted to kill the Gun Devil and get his revenge.
The cruel truth, however, was that Pochita had already taken down the Gun Devil in an instant. It had lost its memories, and the world's major powers had divided up its body. The Gun Devil had become this world's equivalent of nuclear weapons in Asaba Kotone's original world. The percentage of its body a country possessed represented its national strength and deterrent power.
The larger a country's share of the Gun Devil's body, the higher its international standing.
In this world, the Soviet Union ranked first with 28% of the Gun Devil's body. The United States was second with 20%, followed by China with 11%. All the other countries combined held only 4%.
The remaining 37% was held by devils around the world in the form of flesh fragments.
The distinction was that the major powers possessed the Gun Devil's actual body, while the devils possessed Gun Devil Flesh.
Japan, meanwhile, apparently hadn't received any of the Gun Devil's body at all. It was strikingly similar to the Japan of Asaba Kotone's original world.
That was also why Japan's leaders later sought to cultivate Makima, who had only recently arrived in the human world. They were willing to stake their nation's future and offer their citizens as the price of a contract to have her forcibly seize the Gun Devil's body for them. They probably had other plans besides that, but the original story hadn't explained them in detail.
Aki Hayakawa's revenge was therefore doomed to fail. Given the Gun Devil's unique circumstances, he would have to make an enemy of the entire world.
After quickly washing up, Asaba Kotone grabbed a bag of bread and immediately headed out, eating as he went to catch a ride and meet Aki Hayakawa.
On the way, he ate his bread while checking in with Aki Hayakawa again. A devil had appeared at a factory, though its exact identity was still unknown. The guild had estimated the job's difficulty from reports of the devil's destructive power and classified it as a solo assignment.
So only Asaba Kotone and Aki Hayakawa would be handling the job. They were now traveling separately to the factory where the devil had appeared.
Asaba Kotone arrived shortly after Aki Hayakawa.
The police had already cordoned off the factory. All the workers who could escape had made it out and were standing outside, still visibly shaken. Some were sobbing uncontrollably as they spoke to their families on the phone.
There were probably still people inside who hadn't managed to escape, but the police didn't dare enter recklessly. They weren't Devil Hunters and had no way to stand against a devil.
"Sorry for the trouble, as always."
After Asaba Kotone and Aki Hayakawa showed their identification, the police let them through with those words.
Asaba Kotone and Aki Hayakawa immediately entered the factory. The farther they went, the stronger the smell of blood became.
The devil was now visible. Judging by its appearance, it was probably the Steel Plate Devil.
Its body was a withered human form, like a dried-out corpse. A huge, bloody maw lined with countless sharp teeth gaped in its abdomen. Its head was an incredibly sharp steel plate spinning at high speed, while its three eyes sat in its chest rather than its head.
Severed limbs and scraps of flesh littered the floor beside the Steel Plate Devil, with blood everywhere. Clearly, it had already killed several workers.
Asaba Kotone frowned slightly at the sight.
"I'll handle it this time."
Aki Hayakawa nodded. This was exactly the kind of teamwork he wanted. He had acted last time, and now it was Asaba Kotone's turn. That way, he wouldn't overuse the Fox Devil's power and push his body beyond its limits.
As soon as he finished speaking, Asaba Kotone's left eye widened slightly, focusing on the Steel Plate Devil's neck.
Space instantly warped around the Steel Plate Devil's neck. A moment later, its neck seemed to vanish into thin air. The rapidly spinning steel plate that formed its head stopped and crashed heavily to the floor.
The Steel Plate Devil died on the spot. Apparently, the steel plate forming its head was its vital point, and Asaba Kotone had simply twisted off its neck and sucked it into the Kamui Dimension.
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