HSR: A Passing Crimson

Merris had speculated which Stellaron Hunter he'd meet prior to his meeting with Johan. As far as he knew, there were only four members— excluding the leader— of this faction, and each of them is a specialist that has their own role in the faction.

One was able to manipulate others with just her voice, the other was a hacker that can literally tamper with reality, another was a mecha that could set the seas ablaze, and lastly...

An immortal man hell-bent on revenge.

'I would have preferred it to be someone like Silver Wolf, to be honest...' Facing Blade, who was standing in silence, Merris' face turned pallid, his smile fading. 'But of all people, I just had to meet this nutjob...'

Blade, for the lack of a better word, was insane— literally. His mind is broken and fractured, and his sense of self is constantly shifting between who he is and the monster raging inside of him.

Because, like Merris, he too has a monster waiting to burst out of his body to ravage everything around it.

The only reason he's still sane is because another member of their faction was suppressing that inner monster.

'More than that...' His eyes then glossed Blade's outfit. 'Why is this guy... Looking sharper than usual?'

That insane man— Blade— wore a black turtleneck with a similarly black blazer on top. Complementing it were dark trousers, and, unsurprisingly, a pair of black leather shoes. His outfit gave off a sharp, minimalistic, and sleek aesthetic that enhanced his mysterious and somewhat eerie vibe, completely different from the usual oriental tailcoat he wore.

Save from the bloodstains now covering parts of his outfit, as well as the sword he was wielding, he looked no different from an upper class member of society.

Stunned by his completely different appearance that he had gotten used to in the game, Merris lampooned. 'Aren't you supposed to look edgy?! Why do you look so posh now?!'

Really, he should stop associating the characters he knew with what they looked like in-game.

Just then, while he was in the middle of lampooning, Blade's eyes suddenly landed on him, his sharp gaze piercing right through him.

Instantly, Merris felt shivers run down his spine. Goosebumps appeared on the surface of his skin as his insides churned with agitation. He can't be wrong about it— his body, or rather his instincts, were telling him that the man in front of him was intent on killing him.

He wanted to flee... Such is the first instinct of a predator encountering a much stronger foe.

'This... I need to act quickly...' Seeing as how the situation was now irreversible, he decided to diffuse it somewhat, hoping to buy himself time. Fear clouding his mind, he gulped. 'If I don't... I might really die here...'

Mustering all of his courage, however, he once more put on a façade, desperate to save himself. He spoke, acting composed. "That face of yours... If I'm not wrong, you must be that infamous Stellaron Hunter... Blade, yes? My, it truly is a surprise to see you here. Care to sit down and have a chat, hm?"

"..." At Merris' mention of his name, as well as his attempt at trying to have a conversation, Blade made no reaction and merely continued to gaze at him with his amber-red eyes, ignoring his attempts.

A moment later, instead of replying verbally, he lifted his fractured jian sword and aimed its tip at both Merris and Johan, his deathly silence speaking for him.

Merris, upon seeing how Blade was not willing to talk, panicked slightly. He then immediately tried to placate him. "Hold on—"

However, it was meaningless. In the face of an immortal man with unwavering convictions, any obstacle in his 'script' was irrelevant. All he needed to do was follow his mission and dispose of anything that could hinder its progress.

Blade then raised his jian right next to his head and ran his fingers through its cracks— causing his two fingers to bleed and stain the sword. Shortly after he did that, an unknown power imbued the sword.

Then, with his exceptional speed, he lunged forward, his unknown power surging and coalescing to his jian.

It took him no less than a moment to move across the room, his jian mere moments away from the heads of the two he was planning to kill.

Then, in a split second, he swung his sword two times in quick succession, and instantly, a terrifying energy emanated from it that formed two arcs, directed at the two, intending to decapitate them just as he did earlier to the Administrator.

'Damn it!' Cursing under his breath, Merris' instincts moved faster than his mind, allowing him to evade the destructive slash unleashed by the insane man.

His body lowered inhumanly fast— so much so that if a normal person did it, their femur and spine would fracture or even break at such speed and impact. However, Merris was anything but a normal human, and those injuries were healed in mere moments.

- Boom!

The energy released from Blade's jian shattered the wall behind Merris and Johan, causing dust and debris to scatter everywhere. The former managed to dodge the attack, however, the latter was unfortunate enough to catch it— unaware of what even hit him.

The sword energy touched his face, burning through his skin, before penetrating and piercing through his skull cleanly like a knife to butter.

Instantly, Johan's head shattered and exploded to many pieces, painting the wall surrounding him with his crimson-red blood along with his brain matter and skull fragments. Together, they formed a grotesque, brilliant spectacle of gore.

- Thud...

A brief moment later, Johan's twisting horns fell to the ground, moments before his body fell lifeless, his head missing from its place.

A top Executive died just like that, without even uttering any last words.

'...damn it.' Seeing Johan fall, Merris clenched his teeth. He just saw his first client in his fake job die. 'I'm doomed...'

Looking up at Blade, he saw the immortal man look back at him with no emotion in his eyes. It was as if he was unimpressed by the fact that someone had managed to escape his sword.

Seeing this, Merris frowned.

'If this came to this then... I could only escape!' Seeing as how Blade was not willing to compromise and really was going to kill him, Merris decided to run away.

He was no fool; at his current self, facing someone like Blade was akin to suicide. He hadn't even grown strong enough to face him yet.

However, before he could realize this plan, Blade suddenly moved once more. This time, lunging towards Merris with his jian in hand, he assumed a posture that was about to unleash another devastating slash.

'That's...!' Recognizing the pose Blade assumed, Merris' mind raced. He had seen that pose countless times before to know exactly what was about to happen next. 'His follow-up attack...!'

Knowing what would happen next, his heartbeat stopped in a split second as his mind raced for a solution. Then, with his survival instincts urging him to do so, his arm deformed and quickly changed.

His left arm contorted and changed, forming an irregular shape. Meat tendrils swarmed over and condensed, coalescing into a solid structure that imitated muscles, and aiding in forming a shape.

Then, calcium and other proteins gathered around his arm, placing layers upon layers of teeth around it, forming an ivory carapace.

- Clack

Suddenly, the sound of Blade's metallic jian hitting something hard and brittle reverberated around the room. The sword which was supposed to mutilate the young man fell onto something that blocked it, preventing it from doing its intended purpose.

For a few brief moments after that odd sound, a moment of silence permeated the room.

"...hm." Suddenly, for the first time since he appeared, Blade let out a sound as his gaze remained emotionless— his smooth, husky voice with a hint of rough undertone reaching his opponent's ears clearly. "That is a peculiar sword..."

"...isn't it?" Merris, who successfully blocked the insane man's jian, smiled under the construct he had just made. His voice was rough and he was panting, yet he still spoke with a casual tone. "What do you think of it?"

"..." Blade stayed silent for a few moments, seemingly thinking over whether to entertain his opponent. In the end, however, he spoke, sharing his thoughts.

"Grotesque."

Upon hearing that, the smile on Merris' face grew wider— so much so that his cheeks began to part and split away, causing a ravine of a smile to appear on his face that reached his ears.

Then, poking his head out from his bone blade, his figure appeared in front of Blade.

The other half of Merris' face contorted and malformed, transforming into a grotesque sight. It was as if his skin had been peeled off, revealing the unsightly meat beneath.

Then, slowly, something sprouted from behind him; two thick tendrils arched behind Merris, originating from his back, both of them covered in sharp hook-like teeth.

Together with his thick grotesque blade covered in countless teeth, he looked like a demon that had just crawled out from hell.

"Haha... Isn't it perfect? Won't you praise me so? Yes? Yes?" He then began to mumble erratically as his eyes dilated with elation and his smile widened to a frightening degree. "I did a good job! I did well! Haha!"

A price is always exacted for what is bestowed.

Since Merris spent all of his body's resources to form his grotesque blade and two meat tendrils, his reserves instantly vanished— causing his rationality to instantly plummet. And now, he was beyond what he had known before. He was no longer just hungry— no— what he was feeling right now was beyond that.

He was voraciously gluttonous.

It was an all-consuming, primal urge beyond mere hunger— an instinctual need to consume, not just for survival but as an overwhelming compulsion. It fused starvation, craving, and an insatiable desire to devour anything in his path, driven by both physical necessity and a deeper, more sinister loss of control.

It's a hunger so profound that it transcends the stomach and becomes a maddening, uncontrollable force.

This was the potential of those who walk on the Path of Voracity.

"You liked it! Yes! Yes! I did great!" His eyes erratic, Merris lunged like a wild beast towards Blade, his maddening laugh echoing throughout the room.

Then, with an elated look on his face, he began to relentlessly attack Blade, using every bit of arsenal he had. Each strike was by no means weak, though; they were heavy and full of raw force— yet swift enough to cause a great impact each blow.

Not only that, but his unpredictable and primal movements made it difficult for Blade to predict what he'd do next. He was truly like a wild animal acting purely on instincts.

Blade frowned as he raised his sword and blocked the incoming onslaught of Merris. His swift movements caught up to each blow given by the monstrosity he was facing, but even so, they never stopped nor slowed down.

He then fought back, his fractured jian piercing and slashing the monstrosity, causing it to lose enormous amounts of blood and flesh. However, as he did so, the monster grew more erratic, maniacal, and powerful.

As time passed and the battle grew more bloody and gruesome, the monstrosity managed to even land and injure Blade several times, causing him to bleed. Those wounds meant nothing to Blade, however, when the monster consumed them, it let out gleeful laughs as it regained its lost nutrients.

One must know that the blood of someone with monstrous healing capabilities was quite the benefit to most.

- Tak!

Then, amidst the bloody battle, something baffling happened.

"...you..." Blade stepped back, his eyes narrowing as his frown deepened. "Foul beast..."

The monster meanwhile, laughed. In his mouth was something Blade thought another person would never be able to hold.

It was his arm... In the mouth of the monstrosity.

"Ah... This is it...!" Turning his head over to Blade, the monster laughed. His figure was now even more deformed after their battle, resembling that of a humanoid beast.

Then, opening his maw, he ate Blade's arm in one bite. After doing so, he felt rejuvenated and a distorted, elated laugh came from him. "Haha! You're so delicious! I want more... Will you give me more? Yes? Yes?"

"Blade, Blade, Blade, Blade, Blade!"

It was insanity.

"..." Blade didn't respond. In his silence, his arm that was torn off started regenerating rapidly, and, within a couple of moments, a brand new arm appeared, looking no different from the one that was just torn off.

Looking at the growing monstrosity in front of him, Blade's eyes narrowed as he understood the difficulty that this mission just escalated to.

"...ha." Having had enough, Blade lifted his jian once more, intending to cast another strike.

But this time, something was different. The air grew sickeningly damp and the atmosphere became static, almost as if something ominous was about to happen.

"Show me more, please! You will, yes? Yes!" Meanwhile, the monstrosity that Merris had become was oblivious to what was happening around him. He continued to regenerate the limbs that were torn off from him as he was about to go for another round with Blade. "Give me more, give me more, give more!"

The monstrosity then lunged forward like a wild animal, opening his maw to devour Blade's head in one bite.

But before it could do so, Blade's eyes opened as he finished concentrating.

"May you run rampant in that paradise..."

With those words uttered, Blade instantly blurred and vanished from the monster's sights. A moment of confusion overtook the monster, but it was too late.

...the next thing the monster saw was his own body— without a head.

He had been defeated.

"It's a pity... If you could have actually killed me, I would have just stood still."

Blade's words fell upon the monster, who was slowly drifting away into the darkness. His eyes then looked at the decapitated head, his voice laced with disdain.

"But you were just doing it for your enjoyment... For that, I will send you to the sweet paradise of death that I could never reach."

The monster wasn't able to speak. All he could do was watch as his surroundings grew more dark and watching Blade clean his fractured jian.

His vision was fading, but a silver of rationality was returning. Before the monster could drift into that darkness, he smiled one last time.

'How edgy... Now that's the Blade I know...'

With those last thoughts, his vision darkened, and his consciousness drifted away.