With a wide, terrifying grin, Retsu lowered the surgical knife under Ayano's terrified eyes.
She wasn't cutting deeply yet, merely testing the sharpness, and with a gentle tap, a thin, perfect red line—a superficial cut—appeared on Ayano's skin just above the estimated position of his kidney.
Ayano struggled against his paralysis, his muscles seizing, tears, snot, and saliva flowing like a grotesque waterfall down his face.
The hundredfold enhancement of his pain sensors made the mere scratch feel like his entire skin was being peeled off his body by dull blades.
"Fufufu~, that was just a light tap. Now, the real surgery begins."
However, just as Retsu was about to deepen the incision, ready to slice through the fascia and muscle tissue, a hand shot out and grabbed her wrist—firmly and steadily, preventing her from moving the knife a single millimeter further.
