Hotaru Kouro felt very unlucky today.
After searching for food for a long time outside, she returned to her and her companion's temporary residence with a small amount of food, only to be ambushed.
And those who brought those people were precisely the Cursed Children who should have been her companions.
Hotaru Kouro knew who they were.
IISO...
International Initiators Supervision Organization.
It was an organization that managed and assigned Initiators to Promoters for partnership.
She knew that within this organization, there would be regular allocations of Gastrea virus inhibitors.
But correspondingly, they would also be constrained.
Joining IISO might mean no longer having to worry about food.
But the composition of those so-called Promoters was very complex.
More often, they were belligerent delinquents and criminals.
They mostly used Initiators as tools.
She clearly understood the hatred these people, the plundered generation, held for Cursed Children like them.
So joining IISO was not necessarily a good thing.
And if so, how could IISO have so many Cursed Children to distribute to Promoters worldwide?
Their method was to capture those abandoned Cursed Children in the wild, force them to train, and tame them to obey those Promoters.
They had countless ways to restrict these young powerhouses, the Cursed Children, and place shackles on them.
Just like this time...
So she chose to run away.
Perhaps because her demonstrated combat power was too strong, the weapons used by the staff were no longer just anesthetic darts specially designed to capture Cursed Children, but Promoters-made weapons used to kill Gastrea.
Even so, she still successfully escaped. Although she was later discovered by other Initiators who had joined IISO, she still successfully escaped into the forest, and the other party didn't seem to have pursued her.
Hotaru Kouro had Gastrea factors in her body. Although she didn't know what animal her internal factors originated from, she knew that her regenerative ability was stronger than that of ordinary Cursed Children, and ordinary Promoters-made weapons couldn't seriously injure her.
But even so, those bullets stuck in her body had to be removed for her to recover.
After erasing her tracks, she found a tree hollow and began to treat her wounds.
Just as she endured the pain and dug out the bullets with her bare hands, and had just torn off her clothes to bandage herself, the world around her suddenly changed.
"!!!!"
Hotaru Kouro looked at the young man who suddenly appeared in front of her in shock.
No, not suddenly appearing... but she suddenly found herself in a room for some unknown reason.
"Who are you!"
Like an injured beast, Hotaru Kouro immediately became vigilant. She didn't even bother with the injury on her arm and immediately assumed an attacking stance. The constantly wriggling wound on her arm tore open again with her movements, splattering some fresh blood.
"Don't move."
Facing her vigilance, Takatsuki reached out and grabbed her.
"Don't come over!"
Hotaru Kouro shrieked and threw a punch at Takatsuki. Although she hadn't received systematic training, after so many years of survival, she knew very well how to utilize her own strength.
This punch was aimed directly at a vital point.
She wouldn't strike unless it was a fatal attack.
Thwack!
Hotaru Kouro widened her eyes, staring at her wrist that had been caught.
She knew how strong her own strength and speed were.
She could even punch through some Stage One Gastrea with her bare hands, but facing this young man, she found herself as powerless as an ordinary girl.
"You're still injured, so don't move around carelessly."
Hotaru Kouro stared, watching the other person place his hand on her wound.
The imagined pain did not appear. When the other person released her hand, the torn wound on her arm had already disappeared.
How did he do that!?
Hotaru Kouro's eyes widened.
At this moment, Takatsuki also released her arm.
"I've already healed your injury. You can rest assured here with me. Everyone is eating in the dining hall. Come with me, you must be hungry too."
Hotaru Kouro stared blankly at Takatsuki, who didn't stop and opened the door. It was only then that she had time to observe where she was.
Although she didn't know why she was here, it was clearly not where she had been hiding.
She was standing on a bed covered with soft bedding, and next to the bed was a nightstand. On the other side, there was an empty table.
In terms of size, this place couldn't compare to the sewer she once lived in.
But it was much cleaner and tidier than that filthy sewer.
Takatsuki stood outside the room, not urging the girl.
Because he planned to use this place to accommodate a large number of Cursed Children, the rooms and structure here were designed to resemble a space fortress Bunker.
After standing at the door for a while, Takatsuki saw the chestnut-haired girl he had brought back walk out.
"Where is this place, and who are you?"
It seemed that Takatsuki's overwhelming strength had made the other party realize she was not his match, so this time, she did not immediately resort to violence to escape.
"I am Takatsuki. This is my stronghold. As for the name..."
Takatsuki looked at the corridor, which somewhat resembled a Bunker, and pondered for a moment.
"Let's just call it the Bunker."
"Then why am I here?"
It seemed that Hotaru Kouro noticed Takatsuki didn't refuse to answer her questions, so she continued to ask.
"I brought you here. I found you in the forest."
After answering the question, Takatsuki said again, "I've answered three of your questions. It's time for you to answer one of mine, isn't it? What's your name?"
"..."
Hotaru Kouro stared at Takatsuki for a long time, but seeing his unwavering gaze, she slowly spoke, "Hotaru Kouro."
Hotaru Kouro?!
When Takatsuki heard this name, he suddenly realized who the girl in front of him was.
Takatsuki didn't remember too much of the plot of Black Bullet, but he did have an impression of a few main characters.
Especially those tragic Cursed Children.
He remembered these children not because he was a lolicon; he preferred beautiful young girls with alluring figures.
It was because the experiences of these children were truly too regrettable.
Hotaru Kouro was one of the Initiators who had partnered with the protagonist, Rentaro.
She was originally the Initiator of Rentaro's good friend. Because of her friend's death, Rentaro was framed, so she once tried to assassinate and torture Rentaro, but was later subdued by the protagonist's aura.
This also set the stage for her eventual death protecting Rentaro.
"You know me?"
Hotaru Kouro noticed something from Takatsuki's expression.
"Sort of. I've heard your name."
Takatsuki didn't say anything more: "Let's go. I'll introduce you to your future colleagues. Of course, whether you want to leave or stay is up to you, but before that, let's fill your stomach."
Takatsuki pointedly nodded at Hotaru Kouro's growling stomach, causing the usually cold girl to blush slightly.