I apologize for not updating over the last few days. My Wi-Fi stopped working and it has just been fixed.
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—Swuuuoosh!
At the same time Touka finishes scolding me, a sound occurs as if someone violently struck the water's surface. From the parasite ghoul's back appears a kagune.
The kagune that's released seems to come out from his right shoulder blade and extends rapidly until it completely covers his arm with something that looks like...
"Is that a damn drill?"
The words come out of my mouth aloud.
Parasite ghoul swings his arm covered in that drill with rotating tips directly toward me. But I notice he moves considerably slower than before when he was only using the tentacles from his head.
I jump backward creating distance and position myself near Touka.
She has heard me speak and responds while keeping her eyes fixed on the enemy.
"Yes, it's a drill. It's a Koukaku-type kagune that's released from beneath the shoulder blade. They're known for their defensive capability."
"Eh? Koukaku kagune?"
"You brainless idiot who didn't pay attention when I was explaining in detail the four types of kagune!"
Touka's voice sounds exasperated as she scolds me.
"I told you there were Ukaku, Koukaku, Rinkaku and Bikaku! Didn't you hear anything?"
"..."
I have no defense for that because it's true I wasn't paying attention.
At that moment the parasite ghoul staggers clumsily toward us. His movements are erratic and uncoordinated. The blades coming out of his distorted head shake in all directions. It would really be a shame if he hits us and turns us into meat pulp.
—Swish! Swish! Swish!
Touka leaves a blurred trail in her wake as she launches herself backward to dodge the wild attacks. I do the same, kicking the ground hard to propel myself backward.
At the same time, from the tips of Touka's shining wings materialize structures that look like sharp crystals. They shoot out like projectiles in the direction of the parasite ghoul.
Oh! It reminds me of what mr. ghoul used.
—Fwoosh! Fwoosh! Fwoosh!
But then something unexpected happens.
The parasite ghoul's kagune distorts and changes shape. Rapidly the hard matter flows around his chest and body forming protective armor.
The crystal bullets Touka fired impact against the parasite ghoul's kagune.
—Clang! Clang! Clang!
Her projectiles are completely stopped without causing any damage apart from scratching the armor's surface.
Touka clicks her tongue.
"Damn it..."
She mutters while landing near me.
"I use an Ukaku-type kagune. As its user I can take advantage of superior speed and mobility to shoot down Bikaku-type enemies from afar with ranged attacks. But a Koukaku-type user can easily suppress an Ukaku-type user due to their high defense."
I smile with amusement while looking at her.
"So you're at a disadvantage against this guy?"
Touka seems annoyed by my question as I see her frown under her hood.
"Not exactly. At least not if the fight doesn't last too long."
She explains quickly while keeping her guard up.
"Koukakus are extremely resistant and have the highest defense of all types. But at the same time they're slow because their kagune are incredibly heavy. However..."
She pauses while studying the parasite ghoul with narrowed eyes.
"This ghoul doesn't seem to be a normal Koukaku user. He's lifting and moving that heavy armor and it seems it doesn't cost him any effort. He's much physically stronger than a ghoul should be, even though they're already stronger than humans."
I then observe how the parasite ghoul looks from his distorted eyes that are stuck to the pulsating mass of his head toward his own kagune armor. He tilts his head full of tentacles from side to side.
He seems to be fascinated by his own transformation or something like that.
'From his performance so far, it seems not much time has passed since the space worm took possession of this ghoul.'
I analyze while watching him move clumsily.
That's why he still can't control his eyes correctly and keep them in a fixed position.
And in fact, now that I look more closely, I can see a dark yellow stain on his pants. He definitely peed on himself.
That means he still can't keep all the basic functions of human organs working properly.
That said, it's surprising that although he can't even control his bladder, somehow he found a way to access and activate the ghoul's kagune.
But it makes sense when I think about it.
Parasites have an extremely high adaptability rate. And they have complete access to their host's memories and knowledge stored in the brain.
He probably won't pee on himself in a few more minutes. If we don't kill him first, of course.
"Here he comes."
I warn aloud when the parasite ghoul lunges forward. He aims his arm directly at us. The armor that was covering his torso rapidly retreats and transforms into a massive drill around his right arm.
Both Touka and I separate, dodging in opposite directions. The drill passes between us at a terrifying speed.
—Cruaaash!
It impacts against the concrete wall of the building behind where we were standing just a second ago.
Where his kagune crashes, the concrete is pulverized. Pieces of debris and dust explode and spread until covering the alley. But I can still see since it doesn't obstruct me at all.
"We need to coordinate!"
Touka shouts from her new position on the other side of the alley.
She fires another burst of crystallized projectiles from her wings. This time she aims specifically at the parasite ghoul's legs.
—Fwoosh! Fwoosh! Fwoosh!
Her strategy makes sense. Since before her projectiles had been stopped when she shot at the upper part of his body where he can form his defensive armor, she probably thinks it's better to attack the legs because it will take more time for his kagune to cover that distant part.
"You should distract him while I...!"
But she doesn't finish pronouncing those words.
The parasite ghoul manipulates the tentacles from his head with surprising speed making them move in a dark blur intercepting the crystals trajectory.
—Clang! Clang! Clang!
The sound of crystal impacting against metal is heard. The blades at the tips of the tentacles stop all of Touka's projectiles making them fall to the ground.
"Ugh! A defensive Koukaku is already problematic enough. But now we're also dealing with that senseless thing on his head that can attack and defend simultaneously!"
I shrug with indifference to her frustration.
"It doesn't matter if it makes sense or not to me."
I crack my knuckles one by one.
—Crack! Crack! Crack!
I show a huge smile that reveals all my white teeth making Touka startle and look at me with suspicion.
"It's my time to shine."
Hm? Is this adrenaline I'm feeling? It's the first time I feel this type of emotion, but it's pleasant.
The muscles in my legs bulge a bit and at the same time I fix my eyes forward focusing on my target.
Then I propel myself with all my strength toward the parasite ghoul.
—Craackk!
The already cracked floor of the alley breaks completely under my feet.
I see how many blades head toward me from multiple angles as the parasite ghoul turns to face me. His reactions are indeed quite fast and it doesn't surprise me he can stop Touka's projectiles.
'At least he's much better than Takagi parasite.'
Well, that time it was a parasitized normal human. This time it's a parasitized ghoul.
Ghouls are already naturally several times stronger than humans when using their kagune. So, adding the parasite that somehow managed to successfully parasitize his head, the result is even stronger.
Of course, if this parasite manages to get used to the ghoul's body and master all its functions, it would undoubtedly be extremely dangerous in the future.
'But now?'
I smile while long, sharp blades appear emerging from all my fingers.
—Shiiin! Shiiin! Shiiin!
I deflect each and every tentacle coming toward me making my blades clash against his.
Being blocked, the tentacles are deflected to the sides. That leaves a free and direct path toward the parasite ghoul.
I kick the ground hard again to give myself additional momentum.
"Yup!"
I appear instantly above the parasite ghoul. I twist my body in a rotation while suspended over him.
Then I kick with all my accumulated force.
The ghoul manages to react in the last second. He puts his Koukaku kagune to cover his distorted head.
—Boooom!
A massive explosion sound occurs that resonates throughout the alley and probably several blocks beyond.
Maybe they'll think it's fireworks since it's Christmas? Wait, I think using fireworks is prohibited, right?
The parasite ghoul shoots out. His body cuts through the air leaving only a blurred black trail in its wake.
—Crssss! Crasshhh! Crasshhhh!
He destroys the alley floor repeatedly as he falls and drags several meters before stopping.
Touka's head follows with her eyes the trajectory of the parasite ghoul bouncing and dragging destroying everything in his path. She has a surprised look on her face.
But seeing that the parasite tries to get up again despite the massive damage, she sharpens her eyes with determination. She produces several crystallized projectiles from her wings that shine under the dim light.
Then I tell her what I think in a tone of voice loud enough to hear me.
"Since he's a parasite you can try hitting him in his heart! If its host dies, the parasite will die too!"
"I'm not a fool to not think of that myself!"
Touka shouts back at me with irritation while aiming.
Huh...
The crystallized projectiles shoot out one after another.
—Fwooosh! Fwoosh! Fwoosh! Fwoosh! Fwoosh!
The parasite ghoul is disoriented after my devastating kick. Even his tentacles had retracted until taking on again the superficial appearance of a normal human head, though distorted.
He stands up staggering.
He looks down.
There are several sharp crystals piercing his chest where his heart should be.
Red blood begins to gush from the wounds.
He falls back again with his eyes looking at the dark night sky. His distorted eyes slowly dim losing all brightness. His head gradually withers until only a dry brown mass remains.
Right at that exact moment it starts to snow.
Small white flakes begin to fall softly from the dark sky.
"Oh, so it's finally snowing."
I say while extending my hand to catch some flakes. I can feel them melt in my palm.
"It's a good Christmas night after all."
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20 advanced chapters on Pa-treon.
pa-treon.com/OlwinMoriarty