"Tch, people really aren't what they used to be."
Walking down the street, Nakamura Takashi, wearing a hood, looked at the forum on his phone. Several popular discussion threads were focused on the fact that he hadn't been imprisoned due to mental illness.
A mocking smile appeared on his face.
"You guys are still discussing it, but I'm already out. It's hilarious."
Since Nakamura Takashi had been secretly released, nobody knew. Otherwise, those damn media outlets would have swarmed him like flies smelling a stench.
"But isn't it a bit cold? And why are there fewer and fewer people?"
Nakamura Takashi shivered, feeling that the surrounding light was getting dimmer and dimmer.
Although it was midsummer, there was no sound of cicadas at night, and the temperature was quite low. Furthermore, he realized that, at some point, there were no pedestrians left around him.
"Damn it, bad luck."
Nakamura Takashi, in an extremely foul mood, cursed under his breath and kicked a discarded aluminum can straight into a nearby alley.
"I was only gone for a few days, and this place is already so run down?"
He was here to seek pleasure, not to stare at empty streets contemplating life.
What Nakamura Takashi didn't know was that shortly after he was incarcerated, all the establishments he frequently visited were raided by the Neon Police following an anonymous tip-off, and all the illicit businesses were shut down.
As for the abnormal ambient temperature and the constant chill surrounding him, he automatically ignored them.
"Are there dirty things around me?"
If Nakamura Takashi harbored such superstitious thoughts, he wouldn't have committed murder, much less used such perverse methods of torture and killing.
"A little further, and we can close the net."
In the area ahead of Nakamura Takashi, Kenmyo Isayama had already instructed the Rupture Worm to bite through the video surveillance wiring, cutting all connections.
It was better to be cautious; Kenmyo Isayama didn't want to end up incarcerated himself.
A live broadcast of Nakamura Takashi's movements appeared in Kenmyo Isayama's mind, a feat accomplished by the Rupture Worm nearby.
Rupture Worm are the lowest-tier creatures of the Tyranids, and Kenmyo Isayama's Norn Queen is still in its "infancy," currently only capable of producing this type of bioform.
This Norn Queen of Kenmyo Isayama possesses the same functions as the Hive Mind, having become a new terminal.
The Rupture Worm can share its vision with the Norn Queen, which then packages all the received information using psychic power and transmits it to Kenmyo Isayama, forming the live broadcast images he sees in his mind.
The Rupture Worm essentially acts as scouts, greatly enhancing Kenmyo Isayama's reconnaissance capabilities.
"Hmm?"
His physical constitution, enhanced by a strength value as high as twelve points, allowed Kenmyo Isayama to leap flexibly and freely between buildings. He finally stopped on a rooftop less than fifty meters away from Nakamura Takashi.
Kenmyo Isayama sensed a Cursed Spirit forcibly tearing through the double barrier he had set up: "Idle Person Dispersion" and "Demon Repulsion." (The former causes ordinary people to actively ignore the area and avoid walking into the street, while the latter eliminates low-level Cursed Spirits that accidentally wander in.)
Everything was ready, except for one small, unexpected complication: the Cursed Spirit that had forcibly broken into his barrier.
Kenmyo Isayama ordered the nearest Rupture Worm to transmit the visual feed.
The recently transmitted image made Kenmyo Isayama slightly stunned.
What did he see?
A humanoid Cursed Spirit dressed in idol attire, holding a three-meter-long steel rebar, was moving rapidly under the moonlight.
The scene was incredibly jarring.
The sudden appearance of the Cursed Spirit had a clear goal, seemingly aligning with Kenmyo Isayama's: it was heading straight for Nakamura Takashi below him.
"Dong."
Nakamura Takashi casually tossed the garbage can he was holding aside. He then retrieved a can of soda from a smoking vending machine that had a large hole smashed into it moments before, opened it, and started drinking.
"Sure enough, things you don't have to pay for taste the best."
At that moment, several streetlights nearby that had been working normally suddenly seemed to malfunction, flickering on and off.
"F*ck! What kind of weather is this?"
"Why is it getting colder and colder?"
Feeling the weather grow increasingly cold and eerie, Nakamura Takashi tightly wrapped his clothing around himself.
But when he happened to glance out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly noticed a person standing not far away.
"Walking for so long without seeing anyone, I thought I was possessed."
Nakamura Takashi's strained nerves immediately relaxed significantly; he was no longer so tense.
When he finally got a clear look at the "person," his eyes lit up sharply.
"Oh, it's a chick."
Her upper body was obscured by the darkness and invisible, but what Nakamura Takashi could see was absolutely stunning.
Beneath the lace-patterned mini-skirt, her two slender, pale legs were truly eye-catching.
Her right leg wore black mesh stockings, the pale skin looking even whiter through the black netting. In contrast, her left leg was bare, just a dazzling white unadorned limb.
Damn, this is the best (Saikō).
Nakamura Takashi recalled his first murder experience. He had accidentally seen a performance by an idol group, and the young girl on stage was shining, just as captivating as the figure before him now.
That was when he conceived the malicious desire to possess her.
But when he found her residence, he discovered that this popular, pure idol already had two children.
Watching the two children call her "Mom" and hide fearfully behind her.
This utterly disgusted Nakamura Takashi, filling him with a sense of furious betrayal!
Sure enough, the pure image she projected on television was fake. Who knew which Neon Zaibatsu or politician's mistress she was in private?
Everything went red before the enraged Nakamura Takashi's eyes. By the time he regained his senses, there were three corpses on the ground and a chaotic accident scene.
Nakamura Takashi had no experience with his first murder. He disposed of the bodies at a construction site, fabricating a scene where death was caused by falling rebar, but he was caught because he was filmed on surveillance.
Nakamura Takashi then became obsessed with the feeling and committed his second murder.
Now, the impulse for a third murder was fiercely burning in his chest.
Nakamura Takashi loved criticizing girls like this. Dressed up like that and standing on the street late at night, her intentions were obvious.
"Hahahahaha, luck has arrived."
Nakamura Takashi let out a loud whistle. The fire of excitement, which surged from his heart towards his other head, instantly dispelled all his displeasure.
Muttering "hehehe," he quickly walked over, skillfully pulling a wad of cash from his pocket—partially as a deposit and partially to show off his wealth.
But unexpectedly, the tactic that had always worked failed this time.
"The one thing I don't lack is money. Serve m—"
Nakamura Takashi choked on his words before he could finish. A chilling sensation spread along his spine, accompanied by a feeling of utter absurdity.
"Impossible, I clearly..."
Because he saw a pair of exceptionally familiar eyes—he was certain they belonged to the first victim who died by his hand, which was why the memory was so vivid.
Those pupils, uniquely hers and as brilliant as stars, were now blood-red, filled with a savage malice that wished to drink his blood and devour his flesh.