A dark room.
A pale-skinned man with crimson eyes sat quietly.
At his feet lay the corpse of a young woman.
The room was eerily silent, save for the sound of rain pounding against the windows.
Ding ling ling.
Suddenly.
The ringing of a phone shattered the silence.
Muzan Kibutsuji picked up the call.
"The Servant from the Tohsaka family has made his move," a low voice came from the other end.
"We've sent people to delay him."
"Retreat."
Muzan's eyelids twitched, and he said in a deep voice, "What about the thing I asked for?"
"If you can make it out of Tokyo alive."
With that.
The call ended with a dial tone.
Crack!
The phone was crushed in Muzan's hand.
His face was filled with barely suppressed rage.
"Damn it!"
Despite his anger.
Muzan knew full well that he was no match for the Servant from the Tohsaka family. Without hesitation, he leaped into the pouring rain.
But he hadn't gone far.
"Should I split myself to escape?"
Muzan was very confident in his ability to survive.
Though using that ability.
Wouldn't take him long to recover, the person—or people—on the phone seemed to be planning something.
He needed the Blue Spider Lily.
If he could take advantage of the chaos.
Not only might he gain the ability to walk in sunlight.
But he could also become even stronger, evolving into a truly perfect being!
After a brief moment of thought.
Muzan decided against splitting himself.
He was confident in his ability to escape.
Even if the Tohsaka Servant found him now, he was sure he could use his self-splitting ability to escape through Tokyo's complex geography and sewer system.
Moreover.
The other party might not even—
Just then.
Muzan watched as the air in front of him seemed to tear open, and a black-haired, black-eyed youth stepped out of the void.
"So here you are."
Kaito grinned at Muzan, a sunny yet terrifying smile in his eyes.
Danger!!!
The moment he saw Kaito.
A deep, primal fear surged within Muzan.
Without hesitation.
Muzan's body exploded into 1,800 fragments, scattering in all directions, desperately fleeing into buildings and the sewers.
But the next second.
Huu.
A sound, like a breath, echoed.
Strangely clear.
Had the rain stopped?
Muzan looked up at the sky in shock.
The raindrops around him were still there, but...
It wasn't that the rain had stopped.
It was as if time itself had slowed.
Before Muzan could process this, a overwhelming sense of death washed over him.
Boom!
Lightning surged.
The Violent lightning, amplified by the rainy weather.
In an instant.
Reduced 1,799 of Muzan's fragments to ash, leaving only one piece behind.
"Still trying to run?"
Time returned to normal.
The pouring rain continued, and the sounds of the world resumed.
Muzan stopped moving.
With only one fragment left, he "turned" to face the smiling youth, who was holding a phone, seemingly recording or taking a photo.
"I was manipulated by someone."
Muzan no longer felt anger.
The fear of death overwhelmed all other emotions.
Regret, terror.
Why had he given in to temptation?
For the ability to walk in sunlight.
To evolve into a truly perfect being.
He had been lured by the voices on the phone to come to this cursed place, Tokyo.
And at this time?
"I can tell you—"
Before Muzan could finish, lightning struck him.
Kaito, the orchestrator of it all, pressed the stop button on his phone, checked the recording, and then put it away.
He glanced indifferently at the now-dead Muzan.
"You think I care about your secrets?"
"Idiot."
With that.
Kaito turned and stepped back into the void.
Special Anti-Demon Operations Division, Director's Office.
Ubuyashiki Amane stared blankly at the landline on her desk.
Suddenly.
Hurried footsteps echoed outside.
Without even knocking, the office door was thrown open.
"Director Ubuyashiki, great news! Great news!"
"The demons... they've all disappeared!"
Amane's head snapped up, and she saw her subordinate's face flushed with excitement.
"What? The demons are gone?"
"Yes, just now, all our members engaged with demons reported that the demons suddenly let out agonized screams and vanished!"
All "demons" were created by Muzan Kibutsuji. Their simultaneous disappearance.
Could only mean one thing.
Muzan Kibutsuji was dead!
Was it him?
Amane's mind flashed to Kaito's voice.
Even though she had personally requested his help, Amane still found it hard to believe.
This.
Wasn't it a bit too fast?
Hadn't it only been five minutes since she hung up the phone?
"I understand."
Amane took a deep breath, showing little outward reaction.
As her subordinate left, Amane was about to pick up the phone to confirm when.
The space in front of her desk split open, and Kaito stepped out of the void.
Amane's hand instinctively reached for the alarm button under her desk, but she withdrew it when she saw Kaito's face.
"You are... Mr. Sora?"
"Mrs. Ubuyashiki, right?"
Hearing the emphasis on "Mrs.,"
Amane was now certain that this young man, who looked no older than a high school student, was indeed Kaito.
"Thank you so much for killing Muzan."
"It was a fair exchange."
Kaito handed his phone to Amane.
"Though you already know, you might as well take a look."
Amane took the phone.
It was already playing a pre-recorded video.
Though it was just a fragment.
Amane could still sense that it was Muzan Kibutsuji.
Watching the nightmare that had haunted her for so many years being casually killed by Kaito as if he were swatting a stray dog, Amane felt a complex mix of emotions.
"Thank you so much."
Amane didn't know what else to say, bowing deeply.
Kaito placed a hand on her arm and helped her up.
"I've fulfilled my promise."
"Can Mrs. Ubuyashiki fulfill hers?"
Feeling the warmth of his hand on her arm, Amane looked up shyly at Kaito.
Though she was technically a married woman.
Her husband had been killed by Muzan on their wedding night, so to this day, she had never been intimate with a man.
"Yes."
Seeing Amane agree.
Kaito immediately kissed her, activating the "Contract Kiss" ability.
[Condition met, trigger keyword!]
[Congratulations, Host. You have obtained the keyword: Transparent World!]
[Transparent World]: Upon entering the Transparent World, your ability to predict movements and dodge attacks is greatly enhanced. You can also clearly see the muscle contractions and mana flow of your opponent, while your own muscle contractions and mana flow become faster and more vivid.