other. Despite their initial success enslaving Akiko Kusatsu, repeated failures with the Type-S drug wear heavily upon Manticore. As Kirima Nagi draws close to them with her investigations, Manticore finds itself pushed into a corner. At this point Naoko Kamikishiro stumbles across Manticore and Saotome, looking for Echoes. Manticore kills Kamikishiro and Saotome devises a plan that would free Manticore from its past. He manages to stab Echoes with a mechanical pencil filled with Manticore's poison. Its greatest opponent now weakened, Manticore reveals itself and attacks. About to lose, Echoes transforms himself into light, directing the beam towards Manticore to destroy it. Manticore is saved by Saotome, who is disintegrated. It suffers severe burns to half its body. After losing Saotome, the only tie it had to humanity, it reverted to being a monster. Seeking to use Kei Niitoki as a means to restore itself, Manticore chases her, but is captured by a wire. Boogiepop reveals himself, and tells Shiro Tanaka to shoot an arrow through Manticore's head, finishing it off. In Boogiepop Phantom, remnants of Manticore survived the pillar of light through the electromagnetic field surrounding the city, though the fragments split in two. One part maintained the basic form of Yurihara, but took on the cloak and hat of Boogiepop to become Boogiepop Phantom; the other took the form of Saotome, and survived as Manticore Phantom. Boogiepop Phantom became aware that it would only exist for a short time and used this time to protect the "special children", ones who had evolved after Echoes became the pillar of light. It searches for evolved humans and preserves those it finds under the city, until the day when humanity catches up with them. It chooses, however, to avoid significant exchange with Nagi Kirima and Boogiepop. It also sees Manaka as a threat, but when it tries to kill her, Boogiepop intervenes, explaining that she has lost her powers. Manticore Phantom cares only about its own survival and continues to devour people in the city. After meeting Arito Misuzu, Manticore Phantom attempts to use her as a pawn to draw more food to itself. It also uses Kishida Ichirou in a similar manner, though while it revealed itself to Misuzu, Kishida remained unaware of Manticore Phantom and of what it had used his body to do. It then sees a chance to get revenge on Kirima, whom it still sees as