Chapter 31 — Corrupted Blossoms

Dark cherry blossoms spread throughout the shopping mall, drifting through every hallway, every store, and every floor until the entire building vanished beneath the black petals.

Ryuen immediately sensed that something was wrong.

"Damn it..."

Ryuen cursed. If the girl before him truly possessed Sakura's power, then those blossoms had to carry the same sleeping effect he remembered. Sakura's Cherry Blossoms were imbued with a special form of Stellar Energy capable of inducing a powerful sleep that could completely neutralize multiple enemies. Ryuen immediately reinforced his body with Stellar Energy to protect himself from the effect. He refused to lower his guard.

"...!"

His thoughts were interrupted by a scream.

"AAAAAARGHHH!!"

Ryuen turned and saw the Red Next Generation Braver drop to his knees, clutching his helmet with both hands while violently convulsing as dark cherry blossoms circled around his body.

Another scream echoed through the shopping mall, followed by another, until the Yellow, White, Green, Pink, and Purple Next Generation Bravers all collapsed simultaneously, each of them writhing in agony as the black petals danced around their bodies.

"What's happening?!"

Ryuen shouted.

"Answer me!"

None of them could respond, and they only screamed louder.

Then—

CRRRRACK!!

A wooden branch covered in black cherry blossoms burst through Red's armor, followed by more branches that erupted from his shoulders, arms, and back, forcing their way through the metal as the armor split apart under the pressure.

The same horrifying transformation spread to the others as branches burst from every direction and dark blossoms bloomed across their bodies, sending pieces of Stellar armor shattering onto the floor.

Ryuen stared in disbelief.

"...What the hell... What the hell is this?"

Ryuen's usual confident smile was nowhere to be seen as he watched the horror unfold before him, his expression filled with panic and confusion.

The soldiers' screams slowly changed until their voices merged into a single chant.

"HATE!"

"HATE!"

"HATE!"

Again and again, their bodies continued mutating as their skin hardened into dark bark and twisted branches protruded from their limbs, while their broken helmets exposed faces warped by hatred, with bloodshot eyes and expressions frozen in rage.

Love this novel? Read it on NovelPhoenix to ensure the author gets credit.

The six corrupted Next Generation Bravers slowly stood, no longer looking human.

Wrath silently watched, tears still streaming down her face, but her furious expression never changed.

Around Greed's unconscious body, the dark cherry blossoms gathered gently, and unlike the others, the petals embraced her as the blue Stellar cracks slowly receded and the terrible burns covering half her body gradually began healing.

Wrath said nothing and simply remained beside Greed.

Then—

The six corrupted Bravers turned toward Ryuen, every one of them moving at the same time as mechanical components shifted and their forearms transformed, revealing six massive energy cannons that immediately began charging as they rushed toward him.

"Tch!"

Ryuen immediately moved.

Six energy cannons fired simultaneously.

BOOOOOOM!!

The shopping mall shook violently as six concentrated blasts tore through the space where Ryuen had been standing. He leaped sideways, narrowly avoiding the attack as the floor beneath him exploded. Chunks of concrete flew through the air, and several storefronts collapsed under the impact.

"Hey, bastards! Who the hell do you think you're attacking?!"

The corrupted Bravers didn't answer. They simply raised their cannons again, continuing to scream the same word.

"HATE!"

"HATE!"

"HATE!"

Ryuen's eyes narrowed. It was clear that every trace of humanity they had possessed was now gone.

"Fine."

He clenched his fists and surrounded his body with a dense layer of purple Stellar Energy.

"If you want a fight..."

Ryuen lowered his stance.

"...I'll give you one."

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Inside the military command vehicle, Gero stared at the monitor with a pale face.

"...What..."

His face had turned pale.

"...What the hell is happening?"

He slammed his hand onto a nearby console as one technician frantically typed commands.

"Sir!"

"An unknown wave of corrupted Stellar Energy has penetrated the armor systems!"

Another operator looked up in horror.

"The biometric readings..."

She swallowed nervously.

"...They're no longer human."

SLAM!!

Gero smashed his fist against the control panel.

"Damn it!"

"Damn it!"

"Damn it!"

Then...

His expression twisted into a disturbing smile as he pressed the remaining six buttons on the device attached to his wrist, each corresponding to a different Next Generation Braver.

"If I can't recover them... then they'll die.

His intention was simple: detonate every remaining Stellar Core and destroy the entire shopping mall, the Witches, the corrupted soldiers, and even Ryuen. It didn't matter.

As long as Greed died...

History would remember him as humanity's savior.

He pressed the buttons.

".....!!!????"

Nothing happened.

He pressed them again, then again and again, but still nothing happened.

"...What?"

He frantically mashed every button.

"Why isn't it working?!"

A technician looked over the diagnostics in panic.

"Sir!"

"The corrupted Stellar Energy is interfering with communications!"

"The self-destruct signals can't reach the armor!"

The device had become useless, and Gero slowly fell to his knees, gripping his hair with both hands.

"...Impossible..."

Nearby, Yuki stared silently at the monitor, unable to tear her eyes away from the black cherry blossoms.

She knew that power.

"...Sa..."

Her voice barely escaped.

"...Sakura...?"

A hand rested gently on her shoulder.

It was Endou, whose expression remained calm.

"Yuki."

He looked toward the monitor.

"...Let's go. Ryuen needs our help."

Yuki looked at him, perhaps realizing that he had reached the same conclusion she had.

There would be time for questions later.

Right now, their companion needed their help.

Yuki nodded once, and the two immediately turned toward the exit.

"Where do you think you're going?!"

Gero shouted from behind them.

"I am in command of this operation! You will remain at your assigned positions! If you interfere, I'll personally see both of you court-martialed!"

Neither Endou nor Yuki stopped walking, and they didn't even look back as Gero's furious screams echoed behind them and they broke into a run.

Together, the Blue Braver and the White Braver rushed toward the shopping mall, toward Ryuen, toward the mysterious Witch called Wrath, who possessed a power resembling that of one of their missing companions.