Blood Demon of the Past Life – Chapter 133

Chapter 133: The Mystery of the Red Zone （5）

A little while ago.

The man named Takashi, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped and lowered his head.

“Takashi?”

“…….”

His colleague showed an ominous sign.

Before they departed, they were warned to report immediately if anyone showed any strange symptoms. But things didn’t always go as planned. Worried, he reached out to check Takashi’s condition, but at that moment, Takashi raised his head and immediately aimed for the back of the rescue team member in front of him.

Puck━!

Blood splattered.

As the ambushed rescue team member’s head flew into the air, a scream filled the space.

Puagh!

“Aaack! Takashi, what are you doing?!”

“You crazy bastard!”

That was the beginning.

Takashi went on a rampage, attacking people, and simultaneously, other rescue team members began to have seizures here and there. In the end, the warned disaster had occurred. Saito Shusuke, the leader of the rescue team, gripped his spear at the series of events.

‘This must be the work of that evil spirit.’

He was sure.

The cause of the repeated failures of the subjugation.

Killing those possessed by the evil spirit was definitely not the solution.

He shouted urgently.

“Priests, use healing magic━!”

“Use healing magic!”

“Cure.”

“Cure.”

Hwaaaack━

The priests obeyed the order.

They used Cure, a mental healing magic, and the bright light enveloped the bodies of those whose eyes had turned. They faltered for a moment. It seemed like there was a brief improvement, but as if shattering hope, they started having seizures again. Breaking through the light of Cure, they attacked their surrounding colleagues indiscriminately.

“Aaack━!”

“It’s not working at all!”

This was a living hell.

Humans attacking humans.

Humans biting and tearing at each other like beasts.

The rescue team, which had been in high spirits just a moment ago, was instantly covered in blood and death.

“……What is this.”

Saito Shusuke’s eyes wavered.

This mission.

He thought it wouldn’t be too difficult.

He believed in his own skills, but hadn’t he brought a large number of priests to counter the potential evil spirit? However, the unresolved problem was not something that could be easily solved. The plan to find Kang San as quickly as possible and get out was the result of a hasty decision driven by public opinion.

“Die━!”

The rescue team members rushed in.

With murderous intent aimed at his heart, Saito Shusuke had no other choice.

Whirr.

Puck━!

He smashed the opponent’s head.

Those driven mad by the evil spirit.

He had no choice but to treat them as enemies.

Saito Shusuke shouted.

“Those who are still sane, cover each other’s backs and retreat! Right now, they are not the people we know…… Huuh.”

His eyes widened.

Suddenly, something unbearable surged in.

『You are falling into the status effect ‘Nightmare’.』

A clear voice penetrated his mind.

Saito Shusuke’s world plunged into the abyss.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

This mission.

Nakamura Genji and his group also volunteered.

As people went berserk and attacked, they showed no mercy, even though they were human.

Flash.

Puck.

He took off a head.

Covered in the spraying blood, Nakamura Genji mercilessly cut down anyone he encountered.

“Shuhei, cover my back!”

“Got it.”

Pat.

Tadadadadack.

They cleared a path.

Nakamura Genji swung his katana like a madman, slaughtering enemies, and Shuhei, wielding a chain with a sickle attached, backed him up. And the Yain-dae followed them. Within the rescue team, about thirty people formed a group, covering each other’s backs and protecting themselves from enemy attacks.

However, not everyone was safe from the evil spirit’s nightmare.

When a member of the Yain-dae had a seizure, Nakamura Genji reacted instantly, as if devoid of emotion.

Slice!

“Think rationally now. Those possessed by the evil spirit are not the people we know.”

He gritted his teeth.

Yain-dae.

A group formed by wanderers without belonging to protect each other.

Emotions surged within him as he cut them down without hesitation, but Nakamura Genji knew better than anyone how dangerous those possessed by the evil spirit were. The past three years. While living in Kitakyushu, he studied past events in detail. The nightmare was a mental attack that was impossible to escape from normally, and that’s why he warned the Yain-dae before entering the Red Zone. If anyone went crazy, he couldn’t save them. But if they died because of this, he promised to take care of their families.

The anticipated disaster had occurred.

As Nakamura Genji was quickly clearing a path, he suddenly raised his sword to block something that was tearing through space.

Kwaang━!

Clatter clatter clatter.

He was pushed back.

Looking up, he saw the situation he had been worried about.

“……This is a bit troublesome.”

Saito Shusuke.

His eyes were bloodshot.

He, who should have been protecting the rescue team, kicked off the ground and attacked Nakamura Genji.

Whirrr.

Kwaang━!

Kwakwakwakwakwakwang!

A tremendous attack exploded.

Dazzling spear strikes, split into dozens, pierced the space, and Nakamura Genji swiftly swung his sword, deflecting them all. Each attack made him feel like his insides were churning. Even though he was an A-rank Hunter, he couldn’t effortlessly block the relentless attacks of an S-rank.

And then.

“One Point.”

Puck━!

“Ugh.”

Even while possessed by the evil spirit, he used a skill.

Nakamura Genji, who barely managed to block it, rolled on the ground, and Saito Shusuke immediately closed the distance.

A critical situation.

“Genji━!”

Kwaang━!

Shuhei’s attack exploded.

For a brief moment.

They secured a moment to breathe, and Shuhei shouted urgently.

“We have to retreat!”

“But…….”

“But what?! This was an impossible mission from the start! If even Saito Shusuke has gone mad, there’s no chance of success in this rescue.”

Shuhei’s words.

They were not wrong.

Saito Shusuke, approaching with a menacing look, was a true disaster, and even if they defeated him, there was no way to deal with the evil spirit beyond the fog. Knowing the current situation, they hadn’t dared to cross the Red Zone before. As time passed, their vigilance faded, and they made the mistake of thinking they might be able to secure enough time to save Kang San. Nakamura Genji, as well as the Japanese government, thought that things might be different now, with Kang San continuously rescuing survivors.

It was a mistake.

A blunder.

Nakamura Genji felt a pang of guilt towards the Yain-dae members who had died because of him.

“……Damn it.”

There was no other way.

Clatter.

He drew another sword.

Dual wielding.

Having finished preparing to fight with all his might, he said, keeping his eyes on Saito Shusuke.

“We retreat as soon as there’s an opening.”

He was truly sorry.

He didn’t have the capacity to save Kang San.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

It was a complete defeat.

Nakamura Genji and the few survivors returned to Kitakyushu in a miserable state.

“Medics! Medics!”

“Quickly, move the injured!”

It was a chaotic scene.

People were busily moving the injured, and the citizens watched with worried eyes.

The series of events.

Councilman Shimizu Hiroshi was present at the scene.

He shouted to the people.

“This is why. While heroes like Kang San are sacrificing themselves for us, the reason we couldn’t hastily choose to rescue him was because we were worried about this very situation. Everyone. There is an unsolved mystery beyond the Red Zone. The evil spirit is an entity that cannot be understood even with the data we have gathered so far, and the only thing we can assume is that its power is great enough to bewitch even an S-rank. Look! Is it the right choice to push more people into the jaws of death to save survivors?! Do you believe that Councilman Ito Kentaro’s press conference was for the sake of this country, not just idealistic armchair theorizing?!”

He raised his voice.

In his mind.

From the beginning, he had prepared two responses for both success and failure.

He expressed his emotions with a grief-stricken face, focusing on the more likely outcome of defeat.

“Everyone. It is time to face reality. The disaster in Kitakyushu is a challenge that Japan cannot solve with its current capabilities. I’m sorry! Please understand my devastated heart, which has to cruelly tell you the truth.”

He broke down.

In front of everyone, he poured out his emotions.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

He came down from the stage.

In a space out of reach of people’s gazes, Shimizu Hiroshi regained his cold expression as if nothing had happened.

“You’ve worked hard.”

“I just did what I had to do.”

Members of the National Assembly.

They looked with worried eyes.

It was flattery toward the powerful and admiration for Shimizu Hiroshi, who had turned the situation around in an instant.

Assemblyman Shimizu Hiroshi said.

“The rescue team’s defeat is a huge loss, but when judged solely as a political issue, it’s actually a result that turns a misfortune into a blessing. Through this incident, the Japanese people have faced reality. If it’s impossible even when the Japanese government and the people of this country work together, if even an S-rank like Saito Shusuke dies, and if such a dangerous enemy exists beyond the Red Zone, then they won’t pressure politicians to solve the problems of the south anymore. Not only that, but because of this incident, Ito Kentaro will be seen not as a politician representing public sentiment, but as a hypocrite who only engages in superficial armchair theorizing.”

“As expected!”

“Amazing.”

Saito Shusuke.

It was a truly fatal loss for Japan.

He sent him knowing that.

He had to.

In a situation where Ito Kentaro was gradually eroding public opinion, Shimizu Hiroshi could never allow the same situation to happen. So he chose the most defensive method possible. He told Saito Shusuke to rescue only Kang San and get out without overdoing it, but unfortunately, the worst situation occurred.

Of course.

He also anticipated that.

If Saito Shusuke were to be defeated, he had already finished devising a plan to gain political advantage from that outcome.

‘…Now the Red Zone will become an absolute no-go zone.’

His mouth tasted bitter.

Even though he had prepared, he couldn’t calmly accept the death of an S-rank Hunter.

It was a huge loss for Japan.

To make up for this loss, the Japanese National Assembly needed to unite as one.

It was then.

Burst.

“You were all here.”

“…Assemblyman Ito Kentaro.”

The loach of the Japanese National Assembly.

He finally came.

As Shimizu Hiroshi openly expressed his displeasure, Ito Kentaro also didn’t hide his feelings.

“This incident. What were you thinking to proceed so recklessly?”

“Recklessly? I just followed public opinion.”

“Yes, that’s right. But you see, Assemblyman, you are someone who could have fully anticipated failure. I hoped to send a rescue team through the press conference, but it was definitely not in such a hasty manner as it is now. Didn’t you know that an evil spirit exists beyond the Red Zone? We have learned through past history how dangerous that existence is, yet you thought it could be solved by simply accompanying a few priests. Wasn’t that a makeshift measure to appease public opinion? We should have had a stronger force. We should have issued a conscription order and sent the best force Japan could prepare.”

This incident.

The two assemblymen’s opinions clashed.

Ito Kentaro anticipated failure and spoke of the best possible preparation.

However, Shimizu Hiroshi, with the backing of the Japanese National Assembly, sent a subjugation team prepared in a single day to the Red Zone.

That intention.

Ito Kentaro knew it.

“Whether the rescue failed or succeeded, the result didn’t matter from the beginning, did it? Do you really think your actions are right for Japan?”

“Assemblyman Ito Kentaro. Don’t be so hypocritical. Is there anyone here who doesn’t know that you are a hypocrite?”

Hypocrite.

It was Ito Kentaro’s nickname.

He always volunteered to win votes.

It was the same with Nakamura Genji.

He took the risk not because he sincerely wanted to save people, but because he knew it would help him win votes. The assemblymen criticized such behavior as hypocrisy. And thanks to that hypocrisy, Ito Kentaro became a big shot in the National Assembly.

Ito Kentaro said.

“My hypocrisy, you see, represents the will of the people, even if it’s to gain votes. Let’s form a new rescue team now. Instead of leaving the south as a forbidden zone, Japan must accept it as a problem that needs to be solved at all costs. Kang San is still alive beyond that point. We must rescue him and stop turning a blind eye to the reality of the south.”

“Pfft.”

Laughter erupted.

Public opinion had shifted.

People perceived Ito Kentaro as a politician who only engaged in armchair theorizing.

Since Assemblyman Shimizu Hiroshi’s intentions had worked, there was no reason to move in Ito Kentaro’s favor.

“Why should I? And speaking of which, Kang San, do you think that person is still alive? An evil spirit has appeared. Even S-ranks are dying, so he must have died too, so stop being stubborn.”

Kang San’s death.

It was a fait accompli.

Considering that there had been no news of rescue for over ten hours, the probability of him being alive was very slim.

It was then.

Burst.

Someone barged into the conference room.

It was an aide.

As everyone’s attention was focused, the aide shouted urgently.

“…J, just now. The survivors rescued by Kang San have arrived!”

“What?”

Beyond the Red Zone.

An evil spirit was rampant.

Despite that, the fact that he had rescued survivors caused the expressions of the assemblymen, including Shimizu Hiroshi, to harden in an instant.