King of Sheep and No Longer Human

With his hands in his pockets, Dazai Osamu strolled slowly over to Tsurumi Kawakami. Looking at the runaway lambs, he turned to Tsurumi and said, "Are you just going to let them go like that? Be careful, the King of Sheep might come knocking on your door."

Tsurumi Kawakami withdrew his gaze from the distance, carrying two large bags of things as he continued walking forward: "The King of Sheep?"

Dazai Osamu slammed his fist into his palm, then turned around and said with a start, "Ah, I forgot that Ryu doesn't know who the King of Sheep is."

After saying that, he explained to Tsurumi Kawa: "The most famous organization in the Rippachi district is called the Sheep because it is made up of a group of young children. The reason why this small group can survive in the Rippachi district is because they have a powerful supernatural ability user, and this person is the king of the Sheep."

Tsurugi Ryu, thinking of the boy named Shirase from earlier, frowned and said unhappily, "Is the King of Sheep the same as those people from before?"

Dazai Osamu lowered his eyelashes, pursed his lips, and said, "Who knows? But he's probably just an arrogant idiot."

Judging from the way those lambs acted just now, it must be more than once or twice that they've robbed others like this, relying on the prestige of the King of Sheep.

Back at the clinic, Tsurumi Kawakami ran into the kitchen with a bag and put vegetables, meat and other ingredients into the refrigerator.

"Dr. Mori, here's the receipt for this trip." After putting his things away, Tsurumi Kawaru handed the receipt to Mori Ougai. "By the way, we were robbed on our way back."

Mori Ougai took the receipt, glanced at it, and stuffed it into his desk drawer. Hearing Tsurumi Kawaru's words, he looked up at Dazai Osamu, who was curled up on the sofa fiddling with a medicine box.

Noticing the gaze fixed on him, Dazai Osamu lazily raised his hand and said, "Ryu wasn't lying, they were a bunch of lambs. But Ryu chased them away."

Mori Ougai glanced at Tsurumi Kawakami with some surprise, but considering his rebounding ability, he realized that the "beating away" mentioned by Dazai Osamu must have been done by the other party.

"I understand. The lambs are no match for us. Only the king of the sheep needs to be watched."

-

On the other side, in Leibo Street, there is the sheep territory.

When Shirase and the others ran back, they ran into the King of Sheep in his territory. The white-haired boy pushed open the door and saw the ochre-haired boy sitting in the chair; his voice immediately rose several octaves.

"Chuuya! That new superpowered guy injured one of our men, go and teach him a lesson!"

Shirase, clutching his hand, ran up to Nakahara Chuuya and looked furious with hatred when he mentioned Tsurumi Kawaru, who had injured them.

The tall, thin man behind him and the man wearing a baseball cap echoed his sentiments, all hurling insults at Tsurumi Kawakuri, without mentioning that they were the ones who had stopped the robbery first.

When Shirase saw Chuuya Nakahara sitting motionless in his chair, he frowned angrily and shouted, "Chuuya! What are you still hesitating for? If it weren't for us, you would have starved to death long ago."

When the matter was brought up again, Chuuya Nakahara finally broke his silence. The boy, with his striking ochre hair, was handsome, and his sapphire-like eyes added to his appeal.

With one hand in his jacket pocket, Chuuya glanced at the injuries on the others before turning his gaze to Shirase in front of him.

Where did you encounter that person with superpowers?

"It's the low alley where we usually go out."

Chuuya Nakahara had made up his mind. He looked at Shirase, who was still urging him on, his lips moving as if he wanted to say something. But after a few seconds of silence, he left the house under the watchful eyes of the others.

After he left, a pink-haired girl pushed open the door and came in. Seeing Shirase, she quickly went over to her.

"Yuzu, you're back." Shirase said to the pink-haired girl while having someone bring over pain-relieving spray and treating her wounds.

The girl called Yuzu responded, clutching her sleeve nervously: "Shirase, Chuuya knows about what happened yesterday."

Shirase paused, his expression shifting. He glared fiercely at Yuzu and said menacingly, "You told him?"

Youxing shook her head repeatedly, her face filled with tension and fear.

Shirase curled his lip upon seeing this: "So what if he knows? If we hadn't taken him in, he would be in this state now. Besides, we're doing this for the sheep's own good. Useless animals don't deserve to be among the sheep. It's a waste of resources, and who knows if they have any infectious diseases?"

His words immediately put Yuuki at ease, and she stepped forward to help Shirase and the others treat their injuries.

-

In Leibo Street, news spreads the fastest. The news that a powerful superhuman had appeared in Leibo Street had already spread within just a few days.

The connection between the powerful superpowered individual and the newly opened clinic was also spread among those seeking medical help. As a result, Chuuya Nakahara found them very quickly without much effort.

Meanwhile, inside the small clinic...

As Tsurumi Ryū saw Mori Ōgai get up and leave to prepare lunch in the kitchen, he secretly handed the hidden can of crab meat to Dazai Osamu: "Dr. Mori said you can't eat too much, so divide the three cans into one for a week, and eat one every two days."

The black-haired, golden-eyed boy lowered his long eyelashes, did some mental calculations, then raised his head and spoke to Dazai Osamu with a serious expression.

Dazai Osamu paused for a moment after taking the cans, then hid two of them in a small wooden cabinet under the medicine cabinet. He then pried open one and started eating. He glanced back at the serious-looking Ryu, and said dismissively, "Why should I listen to you?"

Tsurumi Ryu glanced at the cabinet where Dazai Osamu kept the canned goods and was about to shout loudly when Dazai grabbed his arm to stop him. He sneered unhappily, "Alright, alright, you idiot Ryu always listens to Mori-san. Now you've even learned to tattle."

"No, that's not it." Tsurumi Kawakami retorted, not too happy. "It was Dazai who stole some canned food last time, and he had a stomachache in the middle of the night. His face was pale and he was sweating profusely. It was Dr. Mori who gave you an IV drip and made you feel better."

Mentioning this, Dazai Osamu drooped his eyebrows, turned around, and slumped into the sofa, giving a perfunctory reply to what Ryu had just said. He stared at a small patch of floor reflecting the sunlight in front of him and said listlessly, "So living is meaningless, you can't even eat too much canned food."

After saying that, Dazai Osamu caught a glimpse of a short man with striking ochre hair peeking through the glass door. He paused, then his expression turned strange. He poked Tsurumi Kawaru, who was standing next to him, with his finger while biting his spoon and said, "Look, next time you encounter someone like that, remember to stay far away."

Dazai Osamu: "Speaking of which, Mori-san is really amazing, he actually managed to attract such a pervert."

Tsurumi followed his gaze to the doorway, and upon hearing the last sentence, she couldn't help but defend Dr. Mori: "Perhaps they are patients who came to seek medical treatment."

Dazai Osamu turned his head, a dark glint flashing in his eyes. He smiled and said, "Ryu, do you want to bet with me? I bet the little dwarf at the door isn't a patient looking for Mr. Mori. If I win, Ryu will have to give me a chance to use you."

Tsurumi Kawakami hesitated for a moment, but under Dazai Osamu's provocation, he finally agreed to his bet.

While the two were placing their bets, the people outside noticed them. Nakahara Chuuya, recalling the descriptions of Kokoro's ability and Shirase's appearance, immediately confirmed Tsurumi Kawaru's identity.

He kicked open the glass door, his body enveloped in a dark red light.

Chuuya Nakahara scrutinized Tsurumi Ryuu, a hint of arrogance flashing in his azure eyes. He slightly raised his chin and said arrogantly, "You're the new esper? And the one who injured the sheep's partner?"

Dazai Osamu clenched his fist and excitedly said to Tsurumi Kawakami, "Did you hear that? I won this time!"

Tsurumi lowered his eyelashes sadly, but nodded with great promise: "I won't forget. What does Dazai want me to do?"

Dazai Osamu thought for a few seconds, then said hesitantly, "I'll remember this for now."

Tsurumi Kawakami nodded, indicating that he would keep it in mind.

Ignored by the two, Nakahara Chuuya frowned in annoyance. He clenched his fists and glared at them angrily: "Hey! You two bastards, don't ignore me!"

The enraged King of Sheep slammed his fist into the floorboards by the entrance, the loud noise drawing the attention of those in the kitchen. Mori Ougai, having removed his white coat and donned an apron, emerged with a spatula in hand. Upon seeing the mess and the scene of impending fury, his face immediately fell expressionlessly.

Mori Ougai quickly matched the newcomer with the identity information in his mind. He looked at the dark red light on the King of Sheep and knew that it was the manifestation of the other party's supernatural ability.

Out of the corner of his eye, Mori Ōgai glanced at Tsurumi Kawakami and Dazai Osamu. A calculating glint flashed in his dark red eyes. His elegant, deep voice rang in their ears: "Kawakami, go outside and fight with him. The meat stewing in the pot won't be ready for another half hour."

Upon hearing Mori Ōgai's words, Tsurumi Kawakuri's eyes lit up. He turned around, greeted him, and then led Nakahara Chūya outside.

Dazai Osamu glanced at the two men fighting outside with some disappointment, casually waved to Mori Ougai as he passed by, and then strolled outside to watch.

Chuuya Nakahara felt the gravity applied to his body, his azure eyes blazing with fighting spirit. He stared at Tsurumi Ryu, licked his dry lips, and said, "Is this your ability? Is it copying?"

Tsurumi Kawakami's movements also became somewhat heavy, as he struggled against gravity, and the way he looked at Nakahara Chuuya changed.

As the Shield Hero, his reflect skill is only invincible against physical attacks. When he receives physical damage, he will reflect 100% of the damage back to the attacker; however, when he receives magical damage, he will take 15% of the magical damage himself, and the remaining 75% of the magical damage will be reflected back to the attacker.

When facing spell damage, the farther away the attacker is, the less damage will be reflected back to the attacker, reducing the damage to 25%.

But at this point, another characteristic of Tsurumi Kawakuri becomes apparent. His maxed-out constitution stat not only translates to extremely high defense, but also means that Tsurumi Kawakuri has a significantly higher maximum health than others, which makes him more resistant to magical damage.

The Shield Hero's counterattack skill and Tsurumi Kawakami's abnormally strong resistance became significant in the eyes of those present.

At first, Chuuya Nakahara looked at Tsurumi Kawa with a fierce gaze, but after dozens of rounds, he became puzzled. He was aware of his inhuman identity and had been trying to find out about his origins.

Just as Chuuya Nakahara was beginning to have doubts about Tsurumi Kawaru's identity, the other party seized a fleeting opportunity to get close to him.

Tsurumi Kawaru delivered a powerful punch to Nakahara Chuuya. However, since his strength was only at the level of an ordinary person, the damage caused by this punch was negligible compared to the damage caused by supernatural abilities.

"Wow—!" Dazai Osamu, who was watching, clapped his hands in delight at the punch, and also cheered on Tsurumi Kawaru, "One more punch! Kawaru, give him a punch in the right eye socket, and then it will be perfectly symmetrical. He can apply to be a panda at the zoo."

After recovering from the punch Tsurumi Ryuu received, Nakahara Chuuya glared fiercely at Dazai Osamu when he heard him adding fuel to the fire.

"You bastard! Don't just stand by and watch the show while you cause trouble! I'll remember you!"

"Chuuya Nakahara shouted angrily, and with a wave of his hand, a force of gravity swept a stone from the ground and sent it flying rapidly toward Osamu Dazai."

Tsurumi Kawakami's golden eyes narrowed, and he released his grip on the other's collar, then swiftly and agilely pounced on Dazai Osamu.

Upon discovering his weakness, Chuuya Nakahara grinned maliciously, and the many scattered stones on the ground were manipulated by gravity, pouring down on Dazai Osamu like a meteor shower.

He then caught up with the fast-moving Tsurumi Kawakami, feeling the weight of gravity envelop his entire body. He stomped heavily on the ground, which cracked open like a spider web, and then jumped to catch up.

Arriving just in time, Tsurumi Kawaru shielded Dazai Osamu behind him. With a turn, he faced Nakahara Chuuya, who was being swung at him with a punch that seemed to engulf his entire body by gravity. The black-haired, golden-eyed boy's pupils contracted, but he did not flinch in the slightest.

The black-haired, kite-eyed boy, protected behind him, twitched his fingers slightly at his sides. He lowered his head slightly, his fine black hair obscuring his other eye.

Dazai Osamu glanced at Mori Ougai watching from the wall, then his gaze returned to Tsurumi Kawaru, who was standing in front of him. His eyes darkened, and he looked past Kawaru's shoulder at Nakahara Chuuya, known as the King of Sheep, before finally extending his hand—

"No Longer Human".