From the moment Enya entered the police station, Zuke had been following her closely, concealed within the miasmic shadows of his stand, Blackbird.
After manipulating a hapless police officer to relay false information, Zuke asked him about the police chief's whereabouts, then waited patiently.
Sure enough, Enya appeared, and upon leaving the station, she went directly to Dio's mansion without delay.
This time, Zuke finally located Dio's residence, and once inside, he spotted Terence T. D'Arby guarding the entrance and Kenny G standing in the hall.
Both were stand users from the original manga, serving as guards at Dio's mansion entrance, further confirming that this was indeed Dio's lair.
In the original story, there was also a third guard, Vanilla Ice, but Zuke had already taken care of him in advance.
He then followed Enya all the way to Dio's room, his body hidden in the alternate dimension of Blackbird's miasmic shadows. Unaware of the pursuer behind her, Enya continued on.
However, the miasmic shadows had a drawback: while hiding in the alternate dimension, Zuke couldn't see outside, forcing him to periodically reveal an eye to monitor the situation and ensure he wouldn't lose track of Enya.
When he peeked out, a slight breeze stirred, alerting Terence T. D'Arby at the door, though he ultimately failed to detect Zuke's presence.
Though tempted to take down Terence T. D'Arby and Kenny G's stands then and there, Zuke decided to eliminate Dio first to avoid alarming the rest.
Most of Dio's stand users weren't a real threat; after dealing with Dio, he could take them down one by one, as their stands still held practical utility for him.
With his impatience held in check, Zuke followed Enya up the stairs to Dio's room, where he finally encountered Dio.
From Dio's words, Zuke gathered that Dio had noticed him and thus warned Enya to stay back.
Realizing this, Zuke stopped hiding, emerging from Enya's shadow. Without hesitation, he commanded Blackbird to strike Enya with a punch.
In this task world, Blackbird's power was inherited directly from Zuke; with a 40-point attack, Enya's body crumpled like paper.
Blackbird's punch pierced through Enya's body effortlessly, leading to the current scene.
"How… How did you follow me…"
Enya's eyes widened in disbelief.
She had been vigilant on her return from the police station, even activating her stand, Justice, to observe the area from above.
But she had seen no one following her, not even a hint of suspicion in the smallest shadows.
"That's not something you need to worry about."
Zuke's tone was indifferent; he had no intention of revealing his stand's power.
Although Dio might have glimpsed Zuke stepping from Blackbird's shadow, he would be hard-pressed to deduce that it was akin to Vanilla Ice's "Void Miasma" ability.
After all, the original method for hiding in the "Void Miasma" was grotesque, requiring the user to swallow their own body, whereas Zuke blended seamlessly into Blackbird's shadow, giving the same ability a vastly different appearance.
"Damn it… Kill him! Justice!"
Knowing her heart had been completely pierced and that she wouldn't survive, Enya had initially hoped to learn more about Zuke's stand ability.
But realizing he wouldn't disclose it, her expression twisted with fury.
If she couldn't survive, she wouldn't let Zuke stand before Dio unscathed.
Even in death, she would leave Zuke wounded!
With a furious shout, dense fog erupted from her body.
It looked like an overloaded machine, but Zuke knew this fog wasn't real; if there were ordinary people nearby, they wouldn't even see it.
This "fog" was actually Enya's stand, Justice, a misty stand immune to physical attacks due to its lack of a solid form.
Enya had likely guessed from the punch that pierced her heart that Zuke's stand was a close-range power type, so she hoped to use Justice's misty body to deal a final blow.
"No matter how strong your power is! If you can't hit your enemy, it's worthless!"
Enya's voice was filled with malice, and her breath was weakening quickly, signaling her life was ending.
She raised her head, hoping to see fear on Zuke's face.
Instead, what she saw was a mocking grin.
"Enya, do you think I left your head intact and pierced your chest, giving you a bit more time, for no reason?"
Enya froze.
Indeed, with his stand's power, Zuke could have easily crushed her skull, ending her life immediately.
Instead, he had pierced her chest, leaving her with time to make a final stand.
Unless…he intended for her to use her stand!
"Blackbird!"
The pitch-black humanoid stand raised its hand under Zuke's control, targeting the fog above.
Within the dense mist, a faint skeletal face appeared—the manifestation of Enya's stand, Justice.
In the next moment, a powerful suction emanated from Blackbird's body. The fog poured into Blackbird as if being drawn by a vacuum cleaner.
"My…my stand!"
Enya's face turned pale. She could feel her stand being absorbed; Zuke's Blackbird was devouring her Justice!
In the original story, Enya had faced the protagonist Jotaro Kujo, who used his stand Star Platinum to inhale Justice's mist into his stomach, suffocating Enya.
Here, Zuke had Blackbird absorb Justice, perhaps reaching the same outcome by a different path.
To be continued…
Hand over your Power Stones, Ningen!
Advance 50 chapters are up on my Patreon.
Bocchi as an Underworld Boss?!
4000 power level in real life?!
Found out about it by subscribing to my Patreon!
pat reon.com/ReodAstrea