Chapter 32: A Handy Weapon

The taxi carrying Diablo... no... Tobio slowly drove out of the airport.

The taxi driver looked at Tobio's introverted face in the rearview mirror and unconsciously used a more casual address: "Where are you going, little brother?"

Tobio smiled shyly:

"Just drive toward the coast near Mount Vesuvius."

"I'll tell you the exact location when we get there."

"Oh yeah..."

His tone suddenly became urgent: "Please drive faster."

"My boss has assigned me a very important task. I have to get there as soon as possible."

"clear."

"It's not easy for those who work part-time, so I'll try to drive as fast as possible."

The driver nodded cheerfully, then cooperated by slightly stepping on the accelerator.

The taxi accelerated on the busy city road, and its speed was obviously much faster.

Tobio casually looked out the window at the ever-changing bustling street scene, and muttered to himself nervously:

"My boss asked me to go to that place and find a bald guy...but...what does this bald guy look like?"

"Will the boss contact me again when I get there?"

He was so restless about the important task he was entrusted with that he had no idea that the boss he regarded as a god was actually “himself”.

At this time…

Tobio, who was unconsciously looking out of the car window, unexpectedly saw a strange scene on the street:

"Stone?"

"Why is there a stone next to this street?"

On this bustling street full of life, next to the pedestrians coming and going, there is a spherical stone the size of a pumpkin.

The surface of this stone is rough and unpolished. If you ignore the big word "凶" carved on its surface, it looks like a piece of waste moved from some desolate mountains and wilderness.

It looks a bit out of place just placed in the bustling street market.

Tobio instinctively felt that something was strange, but the taxi was driving very fast and he didn't have time to take a closer look. The strange stone disappeared far away from his sight.

But, about half a minute later, when the taxi drove to another street...

He actually saw another stone here that was exactly the same as the previous one.

"Another stone on the street?"

"Who is so bored as to put such useless stones on the road?"

Tobio felt increasingly strange, and then...

"Beep, beep, beep, beep~"

This pink-haired boy who looked pretty and normal no matter how he looked suddenly became insane... He unconsciously performed ventriloquism to imitate the ringtone of a cell phone while talking to himself:

"Huh?"

"Where is the phone ringing?"

"Beep, beep, beep, beep~"

"Forehead?"

The driver in the front seat was shocked by this weirdness:

"Um...little brother, what's wrong with you?"

"Why, why are you suddenly making such a strange noise?"

Tobio ignored the driver's concerned and fearful greeting.

He fumbled anxiously in his briefcase, but in the end he just picked up a wallet and put it to his ear as if it were a cell phone:

"Hello?"

"Yes, is it the boss?!"

Tobio was talking to his boss Diablo on a phone that didn't even exist.

Although they are the same person, the two personalities of Diablo and Tobio can still communicate with each other in this strange way.

"Tobio."

Diablo's voice appeared directly in my mind:

"You should be careful."

"The enemy is likely near us."

"What?"

Tobio's voice came out of his mouth. From an outsider's perspective, it looked like he was talking to a wallet:

"The enemy is near us?"

"Could it be... the stone we just saw?!"

"That's right."

Diablo in his mind said seriously:

"A stone that is out of place in the surroundings appears on the main road. Anyone would be tempted to take a look, right?"

"But none of the pedestrians passing by on the sidewalk just now noticed it, as if the big rock didn't exist at all."

"Obviously, this is..."

"Stand attack!"

Tobio tightly grasped the wallet in his hand, his face becoming serious:

"Ordinary people can't see the double at all, so I was the only one who noticed the stone!"

“Well, well…”

His tone became flustered:

"what do I do?"

"Boss, will you help me?"

"Of course I will help you, my Tobio."

Diablo soothed his other self with a kind voice, and used him as a tool;

"However, the enemy's identity and location are uncertain at the moment, so it is not convenient for me to show up yet."

"So, for now, you have to deal with this enemy."

“Don’t be afraid…”

"I will lend you my 'Epitaph' that predicts the future. You will be able to solve it yourself."

Tobio's secondary personality is Diablo's last line of defense to hide his true identity.

If he cannot guarantee his safety and ensure that all those who see his true identity are killed, Diablo will never reveal his true face.

So, when this mysterious enemy had not yet appeared, he chose to let Tobio take action on his behalf.

"OK…"

Tobio took the task assigned to him by his boss seriously.

At the same time, a small face that ordinary people could not see slowly emerged from his forehead that was hidden by his pink bangs - this was the characteristic of the Crimson King's "Epitaph" ability being activated.

"Stone... Will that stone appear again?"

Tobio was concentrating on observing the scene outside the car window, being wary of the strange stone appearing again.

Then, the stone really appeared.

But this time it did not appear on the street, but appeared on... a moving taxi.

That's right... Tobio didn't even notice how the stone appeared. The stone was placed silently on the back seat of the car just inches away from him.

“Damn it!”

Looking at the stone that was only half a meter away from him, he was suddenly frightened and felt a chill down his spine.

"Epitaph!"

Tobio activated the only ability he could use without hesitation, detecting the possible moves of the enemy in the next few seconds.

1st second.

The rough and ordinary spherical stone suddenly began to tremble strangely.

2nd second.

The stone moved towards Tobio little by little with a firm and slow movement.

3rd second.

Tobio instinctively kicked at the approaching stone.

4th second.

Tobio is dead.

He died without a sound, like a centenarian who had passed away suddenly.

"this?!"

Both Tobio, who was in control of the body at the moment, and Diablo, who was lurking in his mind, were shocked by this terrifying future scene:

"If I touch this stone, I will die!"

"Must...must stay away from it..."

"Don't come near me!!"

Tobio jumped up from the back seat in surprise like a timid rabbit seeing its natural enemy, and somersaulted onto the front passenger seat.

The driver, who was originally concentrating on driving, was pushed hard by Tobio and almost lost his steering wheel and crashed into the road:

"Hello!"

"Why did you suddenly jump forward? Are you crazy?!"

The driver yelled at Tobio in fear and instinctively stepped on the brakes.

The stone seemed to be unaffected by inertia - it maintained its slow and steady movement even when the taxi braked suddenly, and continued to approach Tobio who had escaped to the front seat.

"Boss, what should I do..."

"If I touch it I will die, so how can I fight back?"

"Want to run away?"

Tobio said to Diablo on the "phone" nervously.

"Don't be afraid."

Diablo said calmly :

"At present, apart from the strange property of 'death upon contact', the destructive power and speed of this stone are not very strong."

"You don't have to run away, just try to destroy it."

"Destroy it?"

"But…"

Tobio looked around for the right tool and said doubtfully:

"I can't touch this stone directly, and I don't have any handy weapons..."