The sharp ringing of a phone shattered the usually calm atmosphere inside the Tokyo Police Department.
"Tokyo Police Department, this is Sonoda speaking," the operator answered, her professional tone carrying a trace of fatigue.
"This is Tokyo Den High School," a panicked voice shouted from the other end. It was the class monitor, Michi. "A terrorist has broken into the campus!"
Sonoda's posture stiffened instantly.
"Two of our classmates are holding him off right now," Michi continued, her voice trembling. "Please send police support immediately!"
Sato jolted upright beside her, fingers flying across the keyboard. "Understood. Please describe the suspect."
"Red hair, about one meter eighty tall," Michi said shakily. "He looks like one of the death row inmates from the recent news."
"What?" Sato's hand clenched around the receiver, his blood running cold.
As a police officer, he knew exactly what those five death row inmates represented. They were not criminals in the normal sense. They were walking disasters.
"Please organize an immediate evacuation," Sato said, forcing his voice to remain steady. "Police units are on the way."
Even as he spoke, he triggered the highest level alert.
A piercing alarm echoed through the entire building.
On the large public screen, red text flashed.
[Emergency Alert: Tokyo Den High School. Suspected death row inmate Doyle has breached campus.]
Matsumoto saw the message and shot to his feet, sweat forming on his brow.
The department erupted into motion.
"Level One Alert!" Matsumoto barked into the intercom as he grabbed his jacket. "All mobile units deploy immediately. Destination, Tokyo Den High School!"
As he rushed out, a familiar image surfaced in his mind. The surveillance footage of a young man overwhelming Spike with terrifying ease.
If that boy was there…
"Confirm immediately whether Sol Mirek is on campus!" Matsumoto shouted into his communicator.
On the school's sports field, Sol landed lightly, his uniform fluttering before settling. He lifted his gaze and spotted Baki facing a tall, thin man with an unsettling calm.
Yanagi Ryuko.
Doyle dropped down beside them moments later, his boots cracking the concrete. He looked Sol up and down like a predator examining prey, licking his lips with interest.
"Two against two," Doyle said cheerfully. "Fair enough."
Sol scratched the back of his head and sighed. "Do death row inmates normally chase people into schools?"
"If we fight here, everyone panics," he added, annoyed. "I was trying to keep a low profile."
His quiet school life had been completely wrecked by the red haired lunatic standing in front of him.
"I'll move the fight," Baki said calmly. He leapt backward, drawing Yanagi toward the wooded hill behind the teaching building.
"Exposed or not, it makes no difference," Doyle sneered. "Strong beasts do not belong with weak insects."
Before his sentence ended, Doyle lunged forward. His fist tore through the air, aimed straight at Sol's face.
"Beasts belong in arenas."
Sol tilted his head slightly. The punch grazed past his temple, the pressure cutting through the air. But the attack did not stop there.
Doyle's pinky twitched.
A blade snapped out from his wrist, slashing toward Sol's throat.
Sol flipped backward, several strands of hair drifting down. Mid flip, he kicked forward with both legs, blasting Doyle away.
Doyle's pupils quivered.
He dodged that?
Impossible. Doyle dismissed the thought quickly. It had to be instinct. Ridiculously sharp instinct.
Sol sighed as he glanced at his shortened hair. If this kept up, he really was going to end up bald.
He focused again. Doyle's body was fully modified, blades, explosives, chemical coatings. The biggest threat was the explosive device embedded in his chest.
Blowing up here would ruin his uniform. The spare one was still drying.
"One punch to the pinky mechanism," Sol thought calmly. "That should do it."
Doyle grinned, eyes gleaming. "Nice reactions, kid."
His figure vanished.
Sol shifted left on instinct.
A cold flash skimmed his neck.
"Fast," Doyle's voice whispered from behind. "But how long can you keep dodging?"
Sol said nothing. His eyes tracked every movement, every muscle contraction.
Doyle was strong, fast, and dangerous. But he was also predictable.
Bang.
Doyle's fist slammed into Sol's abdomen.
Sol did not move.
At the moment of impact, his body rippled, like water disturbed by a stone. The force dispersed instantly.
Doyle's eyes widened. "What kind of trick is that?"
Sol smiled faintly.
A translucent notification flashed before his vision.
[Fighting Genius Evolution Complete]
He had taken the hit on purpose.
A three dimensional projection appeared.
[Select Evolution Option: Hidden Weapons Mastery, Poison Resistance]
Sol clicked his tongue quietly.
Useful, but nothing special.
"Guess I'll wrap this up," he muttered.
Doyle suddenly burst into laughter. Blades erupted from every joint in his body, arms, legs, shoulders, spine.
"Now this," Doyle roared, "is a real deathmatch!"
Silver flashed in the sunlight as he charged, spinning like a living weapon.
Sol inhaled slowly. His muscles tightened, every fiber operating at full efficiency.
The world slowed.
Every movement unfolded in fragments, blade angles, muscle shifts, joint rotations.
Sol stepped aside.
He struck.
A sharp crack echoed as metal twisted violently.
Doyle screamed. His reinforced right arm bent unnaturally, hanging uselessly at his side.
He staggered back, shaking, staring at his broken limb in disbelief.
"Impossible…"
Sol was already in front of him.
Three heavy blows landed almost simultaneously. Shoulder. Knee. Chest.
Metal groaned and failed.
Doyle dropped to one knee, his modified systems collapsing all at once.
"How," he gasped, "do you know my weaknesses?"
Sol flexed his wrist casually. "Your movements give everything away."
Doyle froze.
If death row inmates were beasts, then this student was something far worse.
A monster hiding in plain sight.