Chapter 77 : Lazareth

The mysterious man, still standing amid the swirling residual smoke, gave a smile beneath his plague doctor mask.

Mysterious Man: "Not bad..."

Yuki and Salomé remained on guard, their bodies tense like bows. The black and violet mana around the man still undulated like a living poison.

He fixed his gaze on Yuki, his hissing voice resonating beneath the mask:

??? : "You. Who are you? You manipulate atoms... impressive."

Yuki stayed silent, expressionless.

??? : "Alright, let's call a spade a spade. I am Lazareth Umbra, and I am here for a very simple purpose: the Killer Man Eradication Plan."

At these words, Salomé's eyes widened in astonishment. A brutal memory crossed her mind: a red sky, a smoky entity floating in the air, uttering the same words...

Entity (memory): "The eradication plan... of the Killer Man..."

Salomé murmured, first enraged, then screamed:

Salomé: "It's... it's you, the famous Gaius?!"

Yuki quickly turned his head towards her.

Yuki: "What are you talking about? You know him?"

Lazareth laughed, a hoarse and sinister laugh:

Lazareth: "You know Gaius? Well informed, it seems..."

He shifted his attention back to Yuki.

Lazareth: "And you, who are you to this girl? You stand in the way of a divine mission. The eradication of her lineage!"

Yuki: "What are you talking about? This girl is not a Killer Man... unless..."

He slowly turned towards Salomé, staring straight into her eyes.

Yuki: "It's true I don't even know your name... what is your name?"

Salomé: "I am Salomé Satsujin Otoku."

Yuki's eyes widened, stunned.

Yuki (whisper): "I can't believe it... I found her... and I didn't even know."

Salomé (intrigued): "What?"

Yuki: "Do you know Sakolomé Satsujin Otoko?"

She nodded.

Salomé: "Yes. He is my big brother."

A wide smile split Yuki's face.

Yuki: "Damn... I can't believe it... I'm Yuki. Yuki Chimatsuri. One of his friends... the one he made in prison."

Salomé's eyes lit up.

Salomé: "Oh, really? He talked about you! About a certain Yuki... Oh yes. Yuki Chimatsuri... So it's you?!"

Yuki: "Haha, yeah, that's me."

Lazareth (sarcastic): "Hey, you two! I'm still here, in case you forgot."

Yuki fixed him with a challenging look.

Yuki: "Now that I know she's a Killer Man... I have even less desire to let you have her."

He untied the top of his prisoner outfit and tied it around his waist, revealing a dark and complex tattoo on his left shoulder.

Salomé: "I don't understand anymore. You're looking for my brother?"

Yuki: "Yes. And I was also trying to warn you... There is an organization that wants to eradicate your family. This guy is part of it."

Lazareth: "Anyway. You two are obstacles... So I will have to kill you both."

He violently stabbed his cane into the ground. A titanic wave of shadow surged, roaring like a demonic storm toward Salomé and Yuki.

Salomé: "I'm going to sweep that away with my Killer Man PUNCH!!!"

But before she could strike... the wave of shadow abruptly vanished. Lazareth blinked, incredulous. Salomé also tried to understand.

Yuki (coldly):

"Atomic manipulation exists in two forms in my family: basic atomic manipulation... and total atomic destruction."

Lazareth summoned new shadow soldiers — but all evaporated barely summoned, annihilated at the atomic level by the mere pressure of Yuki's aura.

Yuki (serious):

"I hope the message got through."

Salomé, right behind him, stared at him with admiration mixed with bitterness.

Salomé (internally): "He's strong... very strong... Maybe even stronger than me..."

She clenched her fists. "I still have to train."

Yuki threw her a glance.

Yuki: "Let's get out of here. Heading to your brother. And then, we're going to blow up that damn organization. And also—"

He suddenly stopped. His eyes opened wide, blood gushing from his mouth.

Salomé, frozen, looked at her own belly pierced by a shadow blade that had just emerged from her shadow. She spat blood, eyes wide open.

Yuki (shouting): "NO! NO! NOOOOOO!!!"

A figure slowly rose out of Salomé's shadow. He wore a white mask, his eyes as black as night. His black coat rippled like a specter.

New stranger: "You finally attack. Lazareth was getting annoying."

The mysterious stranger, dressed in his long black coat, vanished in a breath of shadow... and immediately reappeared beside Lazareth.

Lazareth: "Good thing you're here now... this Yuki was seriously pissing me off.

Our mission here is almost done. There's only one thing left: eliminate Yuki before he reveals our eradication plan."

The mysterious stranger slowly bowed his head, his voice deep and distant:

— Hm...

(Name of the mysterious stranger: Shirōgane Kurai, nicknamed the Specter of the Void)

Meanwhile...

Yuki is kneeling, hands trembling on Salomé's motionless body.

Yuki: Salomé, can you hear me? Answer me!!

He frantically searches his pockets, pulling out a crumpled handful of bills.

— Look... Madame Yuna's money... Remember? Here, take it... go give it back to her. You're not going to let me go like this, huh?

You don't have the right to do this to me... Salomé... please, say something...

No answer.

Just silence.

Blood on his hands.

Yuki grits his teeth, tears in his eyes. He gently lifts Salomé into his arms.

— A hospital... Fast... I need a damn hospital!!!

He rushes forward, staggering...

But a barrier of shadow suddenly appears in front of him, like a living wall.

Shirōgane Kurai: Where do you think you're going like that?

We're not done playing yet...

Yuki stops dead.

He looks at them.

His gaze is no longer human.

Yuki: You two...

Lazareth chuckles.

— Yeah, us two. So? What are you going to do, kid?

A scarlet red mana swirls around Yuki, like a storm about to explode.

Yuki (deep, calm voice... almost inhuman):

— Get out of my way...

The ground cracks.

The very air seems to twist under the pressure.

And then...

BOOM.

His mana explodes.

A tidal wave of pure energy — an unspeakable atomic disintegration — pulverizes everything.

Lazareth: Damn, this is a joke...

But those were his last words.

His body, along with Shirōgane Kurai's, burns in a scream of shadows.

Everything that composed them — flesh, mind, energy — is erased.

And then...

Nothing.

Silence.

Only Yuki, in the center of a smoking crater, still holds Salomé in his arms, his face twisted by pain and rage.