Episode 329: Balloon Bomb

"Hey, Ran—don't get too far ahead!"

"But I've got Defense, so I can handle it..."

"That's exactly why the 'Nameless' caught you off guard and got the better of you!"

Inside Tokyo Big Mall, buildings were arranged in a circuit-like layout.

It's a fun, exciting design for shopping, but a nightmare when chasing someone who wants to kill. It's an endless game of tag you can never win.

Worse yet, that guy—

『Ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!』

Seemed to be skillfully guiding the "zombies" using a remote-controlled car.

Staggering forward, arms outstretched, four corpses aimed straight for the heads—

"Gotcha!"

"Got him!"

Both swung their golf clubs down with perfect precision.

"Damn it... I should've brought a saber instead..."

The number of enemies defeated—Ran had taken down three, Nanami barely managed to get one.

"Seriously, Nanami-san, don't you have any skills that'd actually help with zombie extermination? You're at least double my level, after all!"

"Idiot. My job is 'Playboy,' 'Playboy.' How could I possibly be strong?"

"Really...?"

Lan hung her head in disappointment.

That said, being a "playboy" doesn't necessarily mean you're weak.

It's just that sometimes, it's a bit too erratic and hard to handle.

"But... are you sure, Mayi-san, that you'll be okay?"

"Hm?"

"You said we should take care of the 'zombies' in the store, aside from rescuing 'Nameless,' right?"

"Yeah... I did say that. Right."

Right now, it was fair to say that the horde of 'zombies' was mostly under enemy control.

If things have come to this, there's no choice but to eliminate as many of the invading "zombies" as possible to ensure the safety of the refugees.

Honestly, it seemed quite reckless. Even if they can come back to life no matter how many times they die...

Just as I was worrying about my friend,

"——Oops!"

The man dashing through the store suddenly came to a complete stop.

The two who had been chasing him at full speed also halted, unable to close the distance any further.

"Whoa, I think I'm being lured by Loko."

"Yeah... "

Looking ahead, they saw a — certain home appliance store.

It wasn't hard for the two of them to sense something ominous about the place.

"Um, what should we do?"

"What do you mean, what should we do? If it's just a fight, Ran's stronger, so you decide."

"Ah, come on. I can't do that. I never liked being the strategist, you know..."

Niiyaan, hey.

I can't think of anyone outside of comedians using that phrase before.

Nanami quickly pulled an electronic cigarette from her pocket and exhaled a puff of smoke.

She would have preferred a real cigarette, but even the slight expenditure of magic power felt too risky in this situation.

For a moment, she filled her lungs with smoke—savoring the warmth that settled within her body.

There's no deeper meaning to it. Since taking on this body, there's no calming effect from nicotine intake.

She's simply playing with the sensation of inhaling smoke.

"……Well, I guess I'll go ahead and make the move……"

Honestly, she didn't really want to fight actively.

She had her reasons for not being able to die.

It was all just a matter of circumstance that she’d ended up in this situation, but if she could finish this shoot without any major mishaps, that would have been ideal.

She never expected to get caught up in such a troublesome incident during her final shoot before retirement.

"Damn it..."

Still muttering under her breath, she steeled herself.

Either way, she couldn’t return without dealing with him.

"For now, let’s buy some time. It’d be better if someone called 'Nameless' took care of him."

"Is that really so? Relying on 'Nameless' for everything... it feels a bit off."

"He wants it that way, you know. He's the committee chair type."

As he spoke, he tightly clenched his right fist, shaping it into a tube, then blew into it with a puff.

The breath transformed as it passed through, giving birth to a vivid yellow balloon.

"Oh wow, the 'Balloon Bomb'!"

While Ran’s eyes widened in astonishment, Nanami continued creating balloons of various colors and shapes.

These balloons contained rusted iron nails inside, each with an invisible tiny air outlet, allowing Nanami to manipulate the trajectory of the balloons.

After producing a dozen or so balloons,

"Alright... here we go."

She gently launched them toward Hamada Kenji.

Colorful balloons slowly advanced toward the electronics store.

"Go... go on, you can do it!"

Despite the tense atmosphere of a deadly confrontation, the pace was unusually slow, and the situation was progressing in a way that was steadily cornering the criminal.

What was slightly odd was that Kensuke seemed completely oblivious to them.

—Why is he not doing anything? Why doesn't he use a drone or something to stop the balloons from approaching?

Or perhaps he's just underestimating us.

It's not impossible. He's a low-level "warrior" paired with a "playboy." Maybe he thinks he can withstand a little attack without any problem.

——This guy...!

The thought ignited a hot surge in Nana Natsu's mind.

She wasn't someone who had never faced a battlefield herself.

『One thing... may I ask?』

"……huh?"

『Was it Nana Natsumi you said?...Why did you come here, anyway?』

『What was that?』

『I think you're the type who's selfish, aren't you? You don't have the qualities befitting a hero. That's why I can't help but feel you're out of place here.』

『You...』

『If you wish, I could let you live. Just turn around and run away right now.』

There was no way to tell whether those words were true, given the calm, emotionless tone in Kenji's voice.

But one thing was clear.

It was somehow apparent that this man truly looked down on Nanami.

"Hmph, you're kidding me...!"

Veins bulged at his temple.

After killing three men with whom he'd shared a night's intimacy, even if only for one night.

But it was only then that he realized the man's long-winded speech was nothing more than basic psychological manipulation (misdirection).

And even that realization came only after Ryō pointed it out beside him—finally.

"Um... Nanami-san, that..."

A balloon, one that had been created by him, floated just below his feet.

Nanami stared in disbelief.

—Why? How come this is here?

The answer to her confusion was obvious.

He had heated the nail embedded inside the balloon using electricity, then pierced a hole in it.

—This guy... he stole one of my "Balloon Bombs"...!

Shock at how skillfully he'd managed such a trick, and

Understanding now why "Nameless" had called this a cheat skill.

"Ku… s-s…!"

There was no way he could dodge this with his own physical ability.

In the next instant, it shot upward like a bullet and burst just in front of Nanami's left eye.

A searing pain surged through his left side.

"Kyaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!"

Ran's scream and,

Yeah. I was lucky they were just weaklings chasing me.

Kensuke's calm voice seemed to come from some distant world—.