Black Bullet, Vol. 1: Those Who Would Be Gods Read Online Free PDF

things, too.”
    Rentaro felt the blush rising in his cheeks. “I… Idiot! Don’t even say that kind of stuff as a joke! What’ll you do if there are people around who misundersta—”
    Feeling a sudden chill on the back of his neck, he turned and saw Tadashima pull handcuffs from his hip and sidle over.
    “You’ve got some strange tastes, you pig,” said Tadashima.
    Rentaro broke out in a cold sweat. Tadashima continued glaring at him.
    “Recently, there’s been an idiot playing pranks on girls in the area. His physique is about the same as yours, and his weight is about the same as yours, too… What do you think about that?”
    “Y-you’ve gotta be kidding me. It’s a misunderstanding, a false accusation! I plead not guilty!”
    “I’ll hear what you have to say at the station.”
    “Y-you bastard!”
    Rentaro and Tadashima chased after each other around Enju.
    “E-Enju, please! Say something!”
    Enju puffed her chest out as if to tell everyone to listen to her. “We have a deep relationship that cannot be summed up in one word.”
    Tadashima cocked his revolver. What? Was he going to be shot dead?
    “She’s a freeloader!” said Rentaro.
    “He’s always so amazing at night that I can’t sleep,” said Enju.
    “I toss and turn in my sleep!”
    “Our futures are sworn to each other.”
    “No, they’re not!”
    Tadashima looked back and forth from Rentaro to Enju, comparing them. Finally, he put the handcuffs away. “Man, I was gonna put a pair of shiny bracelets on you, too.”
    “P-please stop, Inspector. Your joke’s going too far.”
    Rentaro drew a deep breath as his gaze dropped to Enju’s back. The skin on her back was peeled off, and it was completely red. It must have happened when she took the blow from that thing’s body earlier and scraped her back against the ground.
    “Does it hurt, Enju?” he asked.
    The girl snorted with triumphant eyes and looked at him unwaveringly. “I’m fine. It’ll heal soon. I’m more angry about my clothes being ruined. It even broke one of the straps of my camisole.”
    As if to back up the girl’s words, what she said came to pass. The painful-looking scratches that covered her back got smaller as they all watched. Eventually, the wounds healed as if nothing had happened, and all that was left was the beautiful, smooth skin of a young girl, along with her ripped clothes.
    Looking at Tadashima’s gaping mouth from the corner of his eye, Rentaro thought,
That’s the normal reaction
.
    An ordinary human would first get a scab over the wound, and then the wound would slowly heal over time under that. The fact that she skipped that process when her wound healed emphasized the fact that she was no ordinary human.
    Superhuman powers of healing. That was one of the benefits they had as Initiators—girls who could control the Gastrea virus under certain conditions. The extraordinary muscular strength and agility they possessed also fell into that category. And when she was not using her powers, like now, her eyes were always black.
    Rentaro was a Promoter, someone who supported the Initiators, and he had the responsibility of directing her onto the right path. “Oh yeah, Enju. You talked to the victim before he experienced shape collapse, right? Did he say anything?”
    “Yes, he said to say ‘hi’ to his wife and daughter.”
    “I see…” Rentaro looked at his watch, straightened his back, and gave Tadashima a salute. “On April 28, 2031, at 1630 hours, Initiator Enju Aihara and Promoter Rentaro Satomi eliminated the Gastrea.”
    “Good work, civil officers.”
    Even if it was ritualistic, Rentaro bowed back at the highest-ranking officer on the scene. Exchanging glances with Tadashima, they both let smiles escape.
    At that point, an innocent voice that didn’t understand what it meant to read the situation broke the mood.
    “Hey, more importantly, are you going to make it back in time for the sale?”
    “Huh…? Oh!” Rentaro hurriedly