Something was off.
Despite the countless lives lost at the abandoned construction site, Akashi could feel the dense Yin energy lingering in the air. It was thick, oppressive, and unmistakably present. Yet, he found himself unable to absorb even a fraction of it.
On the contrary, waves of resentment gnawed at him, invading his very being.
It dawned on Akashi—the people he had killed would never yield their Yin energy to him. Instead, they left behind nothing but bitterness and rage, a toxic miasma that clung to him like a curse.
"So the system has no shortcuts to be exploited," he mused coldly.
No matter how many lives he took, there would be no Yin energy rewards. Only resentment.
In that case, he decided to focus on what he could do: check in.
A soft *click* echoed in his mind, accompanied by the vivid image of the abandoned factory. Corpses littered the ground, and Yukiko's face, peering from the van, was etched into his memory with grim clarity.
The system registered the scene, logging it as a successful check-in.
Suddenly, the image shattered, morphing into a dazzling purple treasure chest. Streams of light swirled from the chest, surging directly into Akashi's body.
『Ding! Check-in successful. Congratulations to the host for obtaining: Wraith Dispersion Lv1 and Steal Lv2! 』
『Congratulations! Your Steal skill has been upgraded to Lv3! 』
『Steal Lv3: Within a 15-meter range, using this skill on someone of the same gender grants a 20% chance to steal a desired item. Using it on the opposite gender guarantees the theft of an article of undergarment and provides a 20% chance of stealing the desired item. 』
『Wraith Dispersion Lv1: Targets resentful undead spirits harboring hatred against the user. Summons will-o'-the-wisps to annihilate these spirits completely. 』
Akashi's sharp eyes lit up as he read the skill descriptions.
"Not bad," he murmured, his voice as cold as the night air.
Killing those who dared to harm Eri and Yukiko wasn't enough. Extraction and annihilation of their very souls? That would be justice.
Meanwhile, Yukiko shakily opened the van door. What she saw next would forever be etched in her memory.
Little Akashi raised his hand, and an eerie green flame erupted into existence.
The will-o'-the-wisps danced through the air, their glow both mesmerizing and otherworldly.
For Yukiko, the scene was hauntingly beautiful, almost surreal. But Akashi saw far more—ghostly faces writhing within the flames, mouths open in soundless screams.
The resentful spirits wailed in agony, their twisted forms flickering as the green fire consumed them.
They were utterly powerless, reduced to nothingness by the merciless will-o'-wisps.
As the final ghost was burned away, Akashi felt a strange lightness settle over him.
The lingering resentment that had clawed at him moments before vanished completely. It was as though a heavy chain had been broken, freeing him from its grip.
His lips curled into a faint smile.
"This skill is more useful than I imagined," he thought.
It wasn't just a weapon against malevolent spirits—it was a solution to the karmic burden of death itself. He could now cleanse murder scenes of lingering energies without fear of corruption.
Unlike a certain unlucky detective whose presence brought death wherever he went, Akashi had found a way to remain untainted.
Yukiko, still in shock, stared at him with wide, unblinking eyes.
"Akashi..." she whispered, her voice trembling. "Who... who are you?"
It was unbelievable.
A child—how could he possibly have killed so many gangsters? And now, he was summoning flames. Was this sorcery? Or something else entirely?
Akashi didn't bother answering the unspoken questions swirling in Yukiko's mind. Instead, he spoke with urgency:
"Can you still move? We need to leave now."
Yukiko frowned, gingerly testing the sprain in her leg. The pain was sharp, but bearable. She nodded hesitantly.
"I can manage… but Eri…"
Eri was unconscious, and Yukiko, injured herself, could hardly carry her.
Without hesitation, Akashi consumed the last of his power spinach. Immediately, his strength surged to unnatural levels.
He stepped forward, slid his arms around Eri's legs clad in black stockings, and effortlessly hoisted her into the air.
Yukiko froze, her mouth slightly agape.
How could such a young boy possess such immense strength?
"Just support Auntie Eri," Akashi said briskly, snapping her out of her shock.
Nodding, Yukiko adjusted Eri's body for balance and helped stabilize her as they moved out of the car.
The scene outside the van was gruesome—flaming load-bearing pillars, an enormous crater more than ten meters wide, and bloodied bodies with bullet-riddled heads. Yukiko's chest tightened.
Did this child do all of this?
Questions burned in her mind, but now wasn't the time to ask.
Akashi carried Eri, guiding Yukiko as they distanced themselves from the carnage. Once at a safe distance, he stopped, drew a pocket pistol, and took aim.
'Bang! '
The shot hit the van's fuel tank with deadly precision.
The explosion roared through the site, incinerating everything: evidence of their presence, Eri's fingerprint, Scarface's corpse—everything.
Only the departing footprints remained, though they would be nearly impossible to decipher.
Akashi's small footprints, Yukiko's uneven ones—one foot deep and one shallow due to her high heels and sprained leg—were far too chaotic to provide any real clues.
Furthermore, the destructive power left behind—traces resembling sniper rounds, rocket blasts, and howitzer shells—would utterly confuse any investigation.
There would be no connection to Akashi's pocket pistol.
For now, leaving quickly was all that mattered.
Akashi led the two women out of the abandoned site and onto the empty streets. The desolation worked in their favor—no one had witnessed their exit or the chaos inside.
They pressed on, moving two blocks away from the scene. Yukiko, drenched in sweat and hobbling, was clearly at her limit.
Just then, a car appeared, driven by a lone woman.
Akashi stepped forward decisively, raising his hand and casting 『Hypnosis』.
Luck was on their side—the driver wasn't strong-willed.
Her eyes glazed over as the skill took hold. Moments later, she unbuckled her seatbelt, her hands moving as if to undress.
"Stop," Akashi commanded, his voice firm yet calm. "Take us to the nearest hotel."
The driver, entirely under his control, opened the door without hesitation and let the trio inside.
Yukiko sat in stunned silence, her mind reeling.
What had Akashi done? Why did the woman they encountered follow his commands without question?
She glanced at the boy, only to find him clutching his head, his face contorted in pain.
Her heart ached.
He must be paying a steep price for his extraordinary abilities, she thought.
Despite her earlier shock, gratitude filled Yukiko. This child had saved them. Without hesitation, she reached out and gently cradled him.
Her hands softly massaged his temples, trying to alleviate his discomfort.
Akashi's expression relaxed slightly, but not because of her touch. Rather, their close proximity allowed him to absorb some of Yukiko's Yin energy, slowly replenishing his succubus-like constitution.
Still, it was far from enough.
None of them noticed the looming irony.
The hotel Akashi directed the driver to—the nearest one—was the infamous 'Beika Hotel, ' a place where Kudo Yūsaku's plan to end the 'play of kidnapping' with his son.