On the streets of Tokyo, hurried people were walking briskly.
The sound of leather boots colliding with the ground, car horns honking, and the chatter of people merged together, creating the noisy atmosphere of Tokyo.
Bright screens on the buildings played colorful advertisements for models, and mascots dressed in cute doll costumes introduced the special features of the day to the pedestrians. Many shops also adorned their signboards with care.
In such a bustling city, every person appeared as ordinary as any other.
After passing by each other, they would quickly be forgotten and not remembered again.
However, there were not a few special people in this world.
When they became special to a certain degree, the ordinary mass of people could no longer hide their colors.
Just like the two who were leisurely walking on the streets at this moment, but were being avoided by all the other pedestrians from a distance.
A girl with golden hair, red eyes, and vibrant horns on her head strutted down the street, humming her self-composed little tune.
At first glance, she seemed like a cute girl cosplaying for Halloween, who should have drawn attention from many people.
But now, nearly all the pedestrians had turned their gaze away, keeping their distance.
Because they all knew that today was not Halloween.
And this girl wasn't some cosplaying beauty, but humanity's greatest enemy—the Devil.
To be more precise, it was a half-human, half-Devil being formed when a Devil about to die took over a human body.
A Devil.
And this Devil, who didn't care at all about the gazes of others and should have been hunted down by human Devil hunters, was actually a blood Devil who had defected to the human side, working as an official Devil hunter for Japan—Power.
"We've been patrolling for so long, and yet we haven't encountered a single Devil," Power sighed deeply, unable to continue humming as she got off key, and shouted out in frustration, "Tokyo's been too peaceful these past couple of days! I haven't even had a drop of blood! If this goes on, I'll be forced to suck some human blood!"
Hearing Power's words, the surrounding people showed horrified expressions.
They had already kept their distance from her, but now, none of them even dared to come closer. They fled in all directions.
Soon, only one person remained by her side—a young man with short golden hair, holding a short metal axe.
Seeing the people scatter, the young man frowned and scolded.
"Hey, you can't just scare people away like that!"
"What's the big deal? I wasn't actually planning to drink their blood."
"Even so, you can't do that."
"Ahhh, it's just a joke! You're so annoying!"
"If they go back and report to the police, and Ms. Makima finds out about this, do you think you'll be the only one getting a lecture?!"
Upon hearing this name, Power shrank her neck a little in fear.
As a blood Devil who feared nothing, Power usually looked down on everyone and every Devil... at least on the surface.
But when faced with Makima, the leader of the Public Security Fourth Division, she had no dignity of a Devil at all and obediently became docile,not daring to show even a hint of resistance, like a cat being grabbed by the scruff of its neck.
Seeing that Power had finally quieted down, the young man clicked his tongue and turned his attention back to the patrol.
The young man's name was Denji. Just Denji.
Being able to work with a Devil hunter affiliated with the police, Denji was also a member of the police force, an officially recognized Devil hunter.
He and Power had been working together as partners on patrols for some time now, and they had come to understand each other, at least to some extent.
Of course, understanding each other didn't mean they necessarily liked each other.
Power had been forcibly assigned to him by his superior, Makima. There was no room for refusal.
To be honest, Denji preferred fighting alone. If not for the police explicitly stating that Devil hunters must operate in pairs, and Power's powerful ability to sense Devil blood as a blood Devil, he wouldn't have teamed up with such a brainless Devil.
"Ugh..."
Suddenly, a strong wind blew through, kicking up dust and sand from the ground.
Denji had to raise his hand and squint his eyes to prevent debris from flying into them.
"This wind is strange."
As he struggled against the strong wind, Denji asked his partner, "Hey, don't you think the weather is a bit odd today?"
"Huh? What did you say?"
Power turned around, her golden hair wildly blowing in the wind, covering her entire face. "The wind's too loud, I can't hear you!"
"I said..."
Denji was about to repeat his question when a stronger gust of wind suddenly swept through.
The wind was several times stronger than before.
On the street, many women's skirts were blown up, revealing glimpses of the beauty underneath.
However, in the face of such a strong wind, no man had the mind to appreciate the lovely sights.
Even Denji was pushed back several steps by the sudden gust, bending his waist and lowering his center of gravity to barely stand firm.
Power, though slightly disheveled, reacted quickly and grabbed a nearby railing before nearly being blown away.
As for the other people, they weren't so lucky.
Without anything to hold on to, elderly people and children fell to the ground. Many shop signs placed outside were smashed, and even the lids of trash cans were blown off and hit the unlucky person's car.
Pedestrians stood frozen in shock, unsure of what had just happened.
Until a piercing alarm rang out.
[Devil attack, Devil attack, all nearby citizens are to evacuate immediately.]
[Repeat: Devil attack, Devil attack, all nearby citizens are to evacuate immediately.]
The official announcement from the Japanese government echoed throughout the district, letting the panicked citizens know what had just occurred.
A Devil had appeared!
"Was that wind... caused by a Devil?"
"I have an important meeting to attend! Damn it!"
"What are you standing there for? Run with me!"
With the sound of the alarm, everyone's expression turned to one of panic.
Every pedestrian on the street began running in the opposite direction of the wind, trying to get as far away as possible from the Devil that had caused the disturbance, running as fast as they could.
Even the people who had just fled from Power no longer feared the blood Devil and brushed past her.
Only the two Devil hunters remained headed in the opposite direction.
They were Devil hunters.
Beings that ordinary people feared, but for them, these creatures were targets to hunt down.
Upon hearing that a Devil had appeared, their faces lit up with excitement, and they immediately rushed toward the source of the alarm.
Unnoticed by them, the sky above had darkened.
The once clear sky was now covered with heavy clouds.
The oppressive layers of dark clouds almost seemed to press down on the ground, creating a suffocating atmosphere that felt like invisible hands choking the people, making it hard to breathe.
In just a few minutes, there were no pedestrians left on the Tokyo streets.
At this time, shops and storefronts quickly closed their doors, lowering their shutters, locking the doors, and keeping the strong winds outside.
In such inclement weather, the only people left outside were likely madmen or fools.
On the top floor of a building, Power stood, her pen trembling as she desperately searched for the smell of blood in the wind.
Denji, growing impatient, tapped his axe on the floor and couldn't help but ask, "Have you found the direction? If we don't move soon, other Devil hunters will get there first!"
"I'm trying! Stop bothering me!" Power glared at her partner and shouted, "The wind here is too chaotic! It's scattering the scent of blood everywhere, making it super difficult to track the source!"
"It's just a matter of ability, huh. Tch, you're useless."
"Huh? If you think it's so easy, then why don't you do it yourself?"
"Well, if I could, I would've done it already."
"Then shut up if you can't!"
Just as they were bickering, a thunderous roar sounded from the distance.
Denji instinctively looked toward the source of the sound and squinted his eyes.
In the distance, he seemed to spot two tiny black dots.
The dots moved erratically in the sky, rising and falling, speeding up and slowing down.
As Denji watched in confusion, the two black dots seemed to synchronize and rushed toward each other.
Boom!
When they collided, another thunderous explosion rang out, and a blinding light erupted in the sky.
"Power, is that the Devil we're looking for?" Denji asked, pointing at the black dots in the east.
"Huh? Wait..."
Power, who had been focusing on her scent tracking, turned toward the direction Denji pointed and took a deep breath.
As a blood Devil, she not only controlled her own blood to stop bleeding or form weapons but could also distinguish the smell of blood from various creatures.
If there was a Devil nearby, she could track its whereabouts by the scent of blood.
However, if the Devil was too far away, or if there were other scents in the air, it became much more difficult to find the target.
"Yes, yes, yes! That's them!" Power exclaimed excitedly. "Let's go, let's go! The blood of those two Devils smells incredibly delicious! We can't let other Devil hunters get there first!"
"That's really far, though."
Looking at the black dots in the distance, Denji's eyes twitched a few times. "By the time we get there, it'll probably be dark."
"It's already dark, isn't it?"
"Well, that actually makes sense," Denji said thoughtfully, nodding. "Okay, no problem. Let's go!"
"Ohhhhhh——!" Power shouted excitedly, her bloodlust rising, and with one leap, she started parkouring between the high buildings.
Denji grabbed his weapon and followed closely behind, moving as fast as possible.
Though he was human, he kept pace with Power, showing no sign of struggle.
It was only natural.
From a young age, Denji had lived as a Devil hunter for money.
In this line of work, where death could be lurking around any corner, only those with strong physical endurance could survive for long.
They both moved at an incredible speed and agility that normal humans couldn't match, jumping between buildings as they headed toward the other side of the city.
After about ten minutes, the two tiny black dots had grown larger, allowing them to barely make out the figures of two blurry human-shaped figures in the sky.
"It looks like I've really picked up speed!" Power said proudly. "I thought it would take another hour to get there, but now it looks like we'll be able to get to them in another 20 minutes!"
"Wait, how are we so fast?"
Although both were reckless, Denji had more common sense than Power.
That's why he felt like something was off.
Yes, they were approaching the black dots too quickly.
They had been running hard for over ten minutes, and though they weren't exhausted, their speed should've slowed down by now.
But the black dots were getting closer much faster than before.
In fact, it seemed like the closer they got, the faster they were approaching.
It almost felt like it wasn't them moving toward the black dots...
But the black dots were moving toward them!
"Stop!"
"We're almost there! I'm not stopping!"
"You idiot, stop now!"
Denji grabbed Power's collar, and with the sudden force, nearly choked her out.
After being forcibly stopped, Power rubbed her neck and started coughing wildly.
Once she felt a little better, she suddenly looked up and jumped onto Denji's back, pinning him down.
"Idiot! What's wrong with you? Don't you know that hurt?!"
"You wouldn't stop when I told you!"
"Why should I stop just because you said so? I'm the strongest blood Devil! I don't listen to a mere human!"
Boom!
Just as they were about to argue again, the collision sound returned, louder and more shocking than before.
Power turned her head, looking toward the direction of the black dots.
"What's going on? Why are those black dots getting closer even though I'm not moving?" She widened her eyes in confusion.
"That's because they're moving toward us!" Denji said, shoving Power off him, grabbing his weapon, and staring intently at the fast-approaching figures.
When the black dots were still far away, Denji hadn't fully realized how fast they were moving.
But now, as the figures came closer, even he couldn't help but swallow nervously.
"Hey, this can't be real," he muttered, "They're moving so fast. How do I even fight them? Wait, are they—?"
He focused on the gradually clearing black figures, only to find that they were two girls who looked human!
And these two girls had stopped directly above him and Power.
Seeing such an opportunity, Denji licked his dry lips.
The question remained: should he go for it or not?