El slowly closed his eyelids for a moment. With his hands tightly clenched, he let out a long breath, then deactivated the Rinnegan.
Eyelids open, his eyeballs underwent a change. His purple-colored eyeballs with ripple patterns and six tomoe slowly faded away, replaced by black irises and white sclera.
Furthermore, El deactivated Demon Slayer Mark, suddenly his body experienced extreme fatigue.
The overwhelming power that had previously overflowed in his veins now disappeared, leaving his body hollow and fragile.
Suddenly, El began to cough up blood. Fresh red liquid flowed profusely from his mouth, nose, and ears.
His breathing became heavier and heavier, while his body shook violently, as if he was hit by a giant hammer that crushed every inch of him.
The veins in his body burst, leaving dark bruises spreading across his skin. The gripping pain radiated throughout the body, like a poison that attacked mercilessly.
His vision fogged, blurred by the darkening shadows. "Ugh," El complained while trying to maintain consciousness.
However, every breath felt like carrying a mountain, every step like breaking through a thick, paralyzing fog.
The power that once gave him the upper hand had now turned into a weapon against him, demanding a terrible price.
With the coughing up of blood getting worse, his body began to falter. In desperation, El finally staggered, falling heavily onto the cold ground.
The world around him turned into a blur, sounds became faint, and darkness began to cover everything.
Finally, El closed his eyes, letting the darkness take over. His body drooped on the desolate battlefield, amidst the ruins that bore witness to great destruction.
Silence enveloped everything, leaving only him lying weak, alone in the shadow of tragedy.
From a distance, Yuri appeared in a tiny form, floating gracefully in the air. In both hands, she carried a large brown bag, the zipper slightly open, revealing the contents to be a row of deadly-looking C5 plastic bombs.
A cold and serious aura emanated from her, although her small face held a calm expression.
Arriving near El, who was lying unconscious with a body full of wounds, Yuri mobilized his Yin Qi energy and mental power to perform telekinesis.
Carefully, Yuri lifted El's body into the air, while making sure there was no excessive pressure on his wounds. She carried El away, looking for a safer place for the time being.
After finding a location that felt far enough away, Yuri placed El's body gently on the ground. Then, she returned to the battlefield location to prepare for the next stage.
With the precision of an expert, Yuri planted C5 bombs at several strategic points. Not only that, she attached a special talisman to each bomb, a talisman that had the function of doubling the explosive power up to five times.
After all the bombs were installed, Yuri floated back to El's side. She looked at El's pale face, then took out the remote control from his bag. Without hesitation, she pressed the trigger.
BOOM!
A loud explosion echoed, shaking the ground and erasing the remnants of the battle. Booming sounds were heard periodically, each explosion destroying the surrounding area until the ground collapsed, ensuring that no trace remained.
After the dust settled, Yuri let out a long breath. She glanced at El who was still lying weakly, then said softly, his voice sounding soft but full of irony. "Gosh, you're too focused on your goals. But, not everything goes according to plan."
"So, I had to make sure everything was clean so that people would believe that it was you who killed Aldebaran." Yuri paused for a moment and looked around, "And the rest of Gastrea... with the help of these bombs of course."
Yuri floated closer to El's face, a small smile gracing her tiny face. Ignorantly, she poked El's cheek with her tiny index finger.
Yuri said in a joking tone, "You must have thought about killing Gado Nagamasa, right? It's a good thing you didn't. You know, it would have been more troublesome afterward."
"Though, you could have used the Hypnotic Eye to tamper with their memories." Yuri said smiling even sweeter and said, "My cute, yet troublesome pet... " "
I'm tired," said Yuri, with a sigh and after that, slowly entered El's body again, "I want to rest first, goodnight, my favorite pet..."
Moments later, the sounds of vehicles and footsteps began to be heard in the distance, the medical and relief force units finally arriving.
The troops went to work immediately, taking care of the remnants of the battlefield. They took care of the corpses, helped the wounded, and inspected the blast site.
Meanwhile, El remained lying unconscious, a silent witness to the destruction that had passed, with his body still struggling against the side effects of excessive use of force.
For the time being, the Gastrea would not come to this area due to the ultimate cause of Aldebaran's death.
***
Warm morning rays enveloped Kanto, bringing a new beginning to the previously gloom-stricken area. The flawless blue sky seemed to give hope for a brighter day.
For some time now, the construction of Monolith 32 had been going on unabated, bringing a ray of hope to those who had been plagued by fear and despair.
In front of a large door of a room in the majestic Seintenshi palace, El stood with great dignity. His elegant formal attire exuded a sense of class.
At this moment, El was wearing a white tuxedo paired with black buttons and cufflinks. His white suit was perfectly cut, with neat trousers completing his charming look.
Next to his, Kayo stood in her own elegance. She wore a long-sleeved black dress with three lace trims adorning the skirt, complete with a large ribbon tied around her back.
Kayo's long hair that was usually tied up was now left loose, but neatly arranged, making her look even cuter than usual.
After a few days passed, El finally fully recovered from the side effects of using the Demon Slayer Mark thanks to his VIT attribute which reached 86 points.
The regeneration process of El's body took place naturally, without the need to use Hell Path or Star Crystal, only requiring a few days of recovery time.
Upon hearing the news that El had fully recovered, Seintenshi immediately invited him formally to his residence.
In fact, the formal attire that El and Kayo were wearing that day was both handpicked and ordered by Seintenshi, showing how special this invitation was.
The invitation was specifically given to El and Kayo. Meanwhile, the other Adjuvant members, such as: Rentaro, Kisara, Shoma, Tamaki, Enju, Tina, and Yuzuki.
They have already received invitations and awards based on their contributions. The other Adjuvant groups had also been similarly honored.
However, El's turn was a different moment. He had been seriously injured, allegedly as a result of a brutal battle.
El's actions, although considered risky, managed to kill Peldais, Aldebaran, and the rest of Gastrea by using large-scale bombs.
The decision was seen as foolish and a defiance of Commander Gado Nagamasa's orders.
However, the end result was undeniable, it saved many lives and brought about a great victory.
Because of this, the Seintenshi decided to give El a special award for his outstanding service.
In front of the big door, Kayo stood beside El. She was seen biting her lip lightly, clutching her dress at the waist nervously. "Ugh, I'm really nervous..." she said, her voice almost shaking.
El gave his a glance calmly, then said, "Don't worry. The Seintenshi won't eat you." His words sounded cold, yet clearly without ill intent.
However, in his mind, Yuri's cheerful voice suddenly appeared, making an idle comment. "Eeh... Don't demons in the world of Kimetsu no Yaiba usually eat people?"
Yuri chuckled. "But yeah, there are some that just drink blood, like Tamayo and Yushiro. So... who knows, you get eaten, Adrian gets eaten... "
El sighed softly, choosing to ignore Yuri's chatter that kept interrupting his thoughts. She stared at the large door in front of her, took a deep breath, then opened it slowly.
"Take it easy, Kayo," El said, adding a reassuring tone to his voice.
His steps were steady as they both entered the grand room beyond the door, ready for what awaited them.