Demon City Shinjuku: The Complete Edition by Hideyuki Kikuchi Page A

laughed out loud. Just as quickly, the icy glare returned to his face. He drew closer. “Little brat. Show me your face.”
    With a swipe of his cold fingers, the mask tore away and dropped to the floor.
    â€œHoly crap, that’s a relief.” Kyoya grinned. “I’m better looking than my dad, huh?”
    The Sorcerer grunted in barely concealed admiration. “What I would expect from the scion of Genichiro Izayoi. You’ve got pluck, I will grant you that. Though if you knew the fate that awaited you hence, you would be begging for your life instead.”
    â€œOh, scary! Before the crying fits begin, could you answer me one thing?”
    â€œWhat would that be?”
    â€œThat Nidom thingy stuck in the president’s neck, how about you yank it out?”
    The Sorcerer said with a frigid smile, “Idiot. You think I would agree?”
    â€œWell, no. But I thought I might as well try reason before resorting to violence.”
    â€œYou think you could? The way you are right now? I don’t know what powers your father left you with, but those shackles contain psychokinetic power equal to ten megatons of TNT.”
    â€œI guess the only way to know is to try,” he said drolly.
    Briefly arrested by the lively look in his eyes, like those of a completely different person, the Sorcerer faltered. The kid wasn’t mourning his fate or going down without a fight.
    â€œThen how about this,” Kyoya wisecracked. “This thing you’re trying to summon—even Master Rai doesn’t know what it really is. The last time you tried—and screwed up royally—you turned Shinjuku into this mess. The monster have a name? The Prince of Darkness? Satan?”
    Seeing the look on the Sorcerer’s face stiffen, Kyoya thought he might have struck gold. But then the Sorcerer smiled. “Ha! Satan? That’s what you fools think? The God of the Underworld breaks out of his subterranean prison and brings on the Apocalypse, like in some old-fashioned horror show?”
    The Sorcerer Rebi Ra howled with laughter. “No!” he roared at the top of his lungs. “No! To think I would attempt to beckon from the darkness of the Demon Realm such prosaic stuff of children’s fairy tales!”
    â€œThen what exactly?”
    To Kyoya’s insistent question, the terrifying answer emerged. “The human race knew it once already!”
    â€œKnew what?”
    â€œThat which created the present human race—or rather, that which created this world.”
    The truth came out. Kyoya blanched. “God, you’re talking about God Almighty!”
    â€œRelax. God and the Demon Realm have been enemies since time began.”
    Then what was he babbling about? Kyoya wracked his brains. The bottomless evil of plunging the planet into despair and terror and ultimately turning it into the Demon Realm—humanity knew it once already?
    That made no sense. Then why didn’t the rest of the world look like Shinjuku?
    As if caught in a chance ray of sunlight, a thought glittered at the back of his mind, a fragment of a vaguely formed idea about how evil came into the world. But there was no way—
    â€œSomething occur to you, boy?” said the Sorcerer, examining Kyoya’s astonished expression. “You will die here regardless. You’ll learn the truth then. After I have devoured your soul.”
    â€œFor the right price.”
    â€œHa. You do change moods fast. You could grow on me. If you weren’t Izayoi’s son, I would let you live on as my subordinate and educate you in the ways of evil.”
    â€œNo, really, I’m adopted,” said Kyoya, as straight-faced as a college student taking an oral exam. “I’ll listen to anything you have to say. So how about you untie me? Eh, Boss?”
    The remaining contours of the Sorcerer’s eyes gleamed with loathing and murderous intent. “This is true courage or the