Kibishi's POV
My consciousness began to reappear. I could feel... something. Waking up from the darkness, I heard the screams and cries of many people around me. And if I remembered correctly, the st thing I saw was myself lying helplessly as my best friend was in danger—
Ba-bump!
"Ngh!"
That st thought triggered something inside me—something I thought I'd lost long ago. As my body grew hotter, I slowly opened my eyes. My vision was blurry. Muffled cries reached my ears as I saw the beast reaching for Tao's unconscious body. Blood stained her mouth, and her body twitched from the horror and pain inflicted by the beast's strength. I could feel my own body crying out, agonizing to move again.
Move.
That single word echoed in my mind as I stared at Tao with dull eyes.
Move.
It repeated. My chest burned hotter than the rest of my body.
If you want to save her, then move.
"Gah!" I groaned instinctively, spitting out blood as I forced myself to push off the ground.
Move your body and save her...
"Argh!" My body shook as my insides felt like they were tearing apart from the pain. Every movement was a struggle, but I kept going.
Spsh!
Like a waterfall, the wound on my chest reopened, pouring out blood. It was like a river streaming down a mountainside. No matter how much it hurt, I refused to stay down.
Fwoossh!!!
"Aaah! Agghh!! Aaahhhh!!!" I screamed as my body begged me to stop. Fmes erupted from my chest, scorching the air with a purple hue before dripping onto the floor.
Stomp!
I stomped my left leg, and more blood dripped from it.
Protect the one who's precious to you...
I wobbled, then dropped to one knee, panting wildly. The air grew thin, my vision blurred further, and my body lost its warmth. My heart raced, my muscles burned, and the noise of the outside world roared in my ears like it was right beside me.
The monster froze, staring at me in shock—no, in fear. It stepped back, searching for an escape.
But I didn't care.
Fwooossshh!!!
"Ah! Ahh! Aaaaaahh!!" I arched my back and screamed at the sky.
Then...
Everything went dark.
Ssh! Gush! Crush! Bash!
. .. .... .......
......Huh?
I slowly opened my eyes again. The pain returned too.
Though my vision was still blurry, I could tell I was alive—still in prison.
Had I bcked out? Had the blood loss dragged me into darkness? Questions piled up in my mind. I gnced around, realizing the prison was silent.
Wait.
Not just silent—empty.
"What's going on?" I whispered, slowly rising from my knees. I dusted myself off—
"Eh?" My voice caught in my throat. That wasn't what I'd meant to say, but I had no time to dwell on it.
What?
Wait, huh?
Ba-bump!
"W-wha..." I whispered in shock. Slowly, I raised my hands and saw "it." That thing that repyed in my mind since Tao was tortured. That "thing" that made me question my morals. That "thing"that made me wonder if I was still sane.
That "thing"...
"It" was...
"What is this... doing on my hand...?" I stared at the liquid coating my palm. Red liquid.
No... no, it couldn't be—
I-I... I couldn't have—!
Static!
"Ah," I gasped as a switch flipped in my head.
Then, everything snapped back to normal—well, as normal as it could be when I saw something unbelievable...
Ba-bump!
Someone stood in front of me.
Ba-bump!
Someone who looked awfully familiar.
Ba-bump!
Someone who was supposed to be unconscious.
Her hands were soaked in the same red liquid I'd just seen. Her breaths were heavy, her shoulders slumped as if weighed down. She gripped her pipe tightly, refusing to let go. The remains of the monster y before her—a deformed skull resembling a mix of a cow and a bat, its horns fused to the skeleton.
Whispers filled the air. Human voices. A relief.
I double-checked—the prisoners stood in the background, stunned by what had just happened.
Whether they were shocked by me or by her, I didn't know.
Back to the scene—the figure wobbled but steadied herself. Yes, it was a girl. She seemed out of it, as if some unseen force drove her actions.
That person...
The one who had just sughtered the monster...
It was none other than my best friend, Tao.
Tao raised her pipe one st time and—
Strike!
Smash!
She shattered the skull beyond recognition, then stabbed the pipe into the ground before turning—
Ba-bump!
"...Ah." Tao's brows lifted in shock when she saw me. Her eyes glowed again. And now that I noticed, mine did too.
"Ki...shi...?" Tao whispered my name softly.
Static!
Sinner...
I closed my eyes, shaking my head. A sharp pain fred at the sight of her, but I ignored it and tried to respond—
Hug!
Tao suddenly wrapped her arms around me, squeezing tightly.
A hug full of compassion, of care. But as she held me, my brain rejected it.
That girl shouldn't exist...
I frowned. What the hell was wrong with me? Thinking like that—about Tao, of all people! I gnced back at the monster's remains, then at Tao. Her cries filled my ears as we both sank to our knees, the weight of everything crashing down at once.
"Kishi! Kishi!" she sobbed.
"T-there, there. I'm okay now..." I hugged her back.
The crowd's murmurs grew louder around us.
"You saw that...?" a girl whispered.
"Yeah, that boy suddenly woke up, and fmes shot out of him, hitting the girl!" a boy added.
Fmes?
"Then that girl got up, saw the boy's body, and freaked out. Next thing you know, she was slicing and beating the monster to death with superhuman strength," another girl said.
"Amazing. They must really care about each other," another boy remarked.
Mm...
It wasn't all bad, but it wasn't good either. Still, Tao kept hugging me, her only concern being my safety—at least, based on what the others said.
I looked up at the prison ceiling, trying to make sense of what was happening to us.
I could accept being the weird, creepy guy with strange... powers, I guessed. But if people thought Tao was a monster too, she might pull away from me. And I couldn't let that happen.
So far, everything was strange.
This whole world was strange. What was causing all of this?
"Kishi..." Tao's voice snapped me back.
I loosened the hug and saw her sad expression, her glowing yellow eyes. The sight nearly shattered me.
"What is it?" I asked softly, smiling.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for being weird..." She looked down. "I'm sorry for causing you trouble... and almost getting you killed!" She buried her face in my ragged clothes, hugging me tighter.
I stayed silent.
There was nothing to say.
Yes, everything about this was strange—but I didn't have time to dwell on that now...
"Forget it. You're safe, and that's all that matters," I said, holding her close, shielding her from the consequences. Tao hadn't done anything wrong. I was the one who'd made her do this. If I hadn't charged in like an idiot, none of this would've happened.
Then again...
She would've died from the beast's attack. Maybe those strange fmes from inside me had saved her.
Ba-bump!
The room darkened, and I saw Tao's fmes—blue mixed with pink and red.
Not only that, but I could hear her thoughts.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"
The words looped in her mind as she slowly regained her sanity after sughtering the monster for my sake.
Well...
It didn't matter how bizarre this was. Tao was safe. That was what counted. The questions could burn in hell alongside that monster. I almost pitied it, but I'd never forgive it for making Tao go through this.
Tap! Tap!
Footsteps approached from behind. Still holding Tao, I turned and saw Riley and David walking toward us—with someone else trailing them.
"Huh?"
"Tao! Kibishi!" Riley waved.
But that wasn't what shocked me.
Behind them, something glinted near the stranger's thigh—a golden object, simir to Tao's... and mine.
The figure wore a sleek bck jacket with an attached shirt. Blue hair, green eyes, fwless skin—clearly a girl. She stepped closer until she was just a foot away, then smiled and giggled at the sight of us.
Something told me there was more to her than met the eye.
For a split second, her eyes glowed yellow.
