"Damn it!"
After filtering the drugs out of his system, Asahi leaned tiredly against the wall behind him. He was truly irritated—was it really necessary to play such a dirty trick over a simple meal?
Mixing drugs into the followers' food—what kind of "genius" idea was that? Even if the dosage was minuscule, only causing an effect for a very short time, if the followers ate like this every day, the accumulation would eventually become significant.
Normally, the right thing to do would be to storm into the headquarters of The Path of Peace to demand an explanation, but Asahi felt a bit uncertain.
The reason was the citizens' attitude toward this religious organization. That wasn't something drugs alone could control.
Even those who hadn't joined the faith had a very high opinion of The Path of Peace. It wasn't just them; even Asahi felt the same—after all, it was thanks to the cult's caravan that he had made it here. Moreover, if Asahi had money, he would have rented a carriage and left already, avoiding the drug-laced meal altogether.
"Is this action being carried out secretly by the top leaders, or is it just a faction of the leadership, like that advisor?"
"Or is this just a standard practice of the cult, and I was simply unlucky?"
These three scenarios had very different implications. First, if the top leaders were acting secretly to control the followers, Asahi could simply jump in and sweep through them like a dungeon boss, exposing all their crimes.
If it were only a portion of the high-ranking officials, like that advisor Borick, then he would only need to eliminate him and his cronies. The consequences would be for The Path of Peace to handle internally.
As for the last case, Asahi could only try to reason with them; if all the followers knew and agreed to it, he could only shake his head and walk away. It was their choice, and if he couldn't convince them, there was no other way. As for using force—once he was gone, they would just dive right back in. Does force actually work in such cases?
Therefore, before acting, an investigation was necessary.
"First, I need to fill my stomach."
He rubbed his growling stomach, feeling a bit annoyed. Next time, he would make sure to bring money wherever he went.
The sun had begun to set; it was now twilight. It was also the time for the followers to prepare dinner. In the large kitchen, a masked man sneaked in, taking out a packet of suspicious-looking powder. But as he prepared to mix it into the pot of food, a hand from behind covered his mouth.
It was Asahi.
The hooded man was terrified, but before he could resist, his eyelids grew heavy and the strength drained from his body. This was because Asahi had cut off his airway. He didn't kill the man, just knocked him out for a while due to the lack of oxygen to the brain.
Asahi intended to immediately drag the man outside, but then he saw the large pot of steaming hot food. As a natural reaction, his stomach began to protest again.
"Alright! Just... just a little bit."
Having eaten his fill in a very short time, Asahi dragged the masked man into a deserted alley and slapped him awake.
Just as he was about to interrogate the man, a sense of danger flashed behind him. Asahi immediately dodged to the side, pulling the masked man along without a moment's hesitation.
CRACK!
An arm appeared where he had just been standing, slender like that of a woman. However, its strength was anything but ordinary. Although the wall was made of earth, long-term erosion had made it as tough as brick, yet that arm had easily punched a hole through it.
A girl dressed in samurai-style attire stood there, smiling at Asahi.
"I am Suzuka. But on second thought, why should I introduce myself to a dead man?"
"Why?"
"You interfered with our client's interests, so I am forced to kill you."
Before he could say another word, Suzuka lunged. It was only then that he realized she didn't just have superhuman strength—her fingernails were incredibly sharp.
SHING!
Asahi's skin was sliced through like paper. Blood seeped from the cut, though it was only a superficial wound that didn't hit the bone.
"Quick reflexes."
Suzuka was slightly surprised. Her attack speed was clearly much faster than Asahi's, yet her strike failed to achieve the goal of severing both his arms. Asahi looked at Suzuka calmly.
"We, client, interests... there's quite a lot there, isn't there? No matter, I'll make you spit it all out."
"Wait, you—"
A set of black armor instantly encased Asahi. In the moment Suzuka was caught off guard, he stayed low and moved toward her with extreme speed, delivering a powerful uppercut.
BOOM!
Suzuka gritted her teeth, crossing her arms in front of her chest to block. But her entire body was still lifted into the air by the sheer force of Asahi's punch. This was followed by a knee strike to her abdomen. Suzuka coughed up saliva and tried to counter-attack with her lethal, sharp nails.
However, as those nails grazed his body, only a "skree-skree" sound rang out, like sparks flying. She couldn't cut through Asahi's armor.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Three consecutive punches landed squarely on her stomach, chest, and shoulder. Asahi didn't usually punch multiple times in a single sequence, but each blow was packed with immense weight and power.
"I can't keep this up; I underestimated this guy's combat power."
"Damn it, why did I have to run into a guy like this during my shift!!"
"I have to run!"
Suzuka wanted to flee, but Asahi was "sticky." He made her feel as if this small alley was a cage from which she could not escape.
"Who was it that said they were forced to kill me just now?"
"Haha, it was a misunderstanding, just a misunderstanding."
CRUNCH!
Asahi used a knee strike that sent Suzuka reeling, and he reached out his arm. His five fingers gripped Suzuka's face tightly and slammed it into the ground.
THUD!!
The ground cracked, caving in like a basin. Suzuka spat blood, feeling her internal organs jumbled and tossed about. She no longer had the confident air from before; she was now utterly battered.
"You bastard... don't you know how to treat a lady gently..."
"That depends on who the lady is."
The masked man had been awakened by the commotion of the battle, but he didn't dare run away. He only huddled in a corner, trembling in absolute panic. He knew Suzuka; he knew how powerful she was—even Teigu users had died by her hand. Yet, she was being systematically dismantled by this mysterious warrior in armor. How could he not be afraid?
Suzuka was certainly not weak; she was likely a bit stronger than Tatsumi when equipped with Incursio. She had a tough body and sharp attacks. However, Asahi possessed raw physical strength that even surpassed Esdeath's—it was only her overwhelming ice manipulation that had led to his defeat. Suzuka was simply not on that level; her sharp attacks couldn't pierce his armor, and her body couldn't withstand his punches.
"Now, tell me everything. The 'we,' the client, and the interests. One by one."
Asahi hauled Suzuka up by the collar, his voice dripping with menace.