“O… Onii-sama…”
The words slipped from her lips, trembling with a mixture of surprise and disbelief, like a faint echo from a distant past. It felt as though countless lifetimes had passed since I last heard her address me with such affection. The name she called out was not just a name—it was a bridge to memories long buried, a connection to a bond that had once meant everything to us both.
Her voice, raw and unguarded, revealed her true emotions before she could conceal them behind the facade she had built over the years.
She hadn’t forgotten me. Even after all this time, even with my face obscured, my appearance altered, and my presence cloaked, she recognized me. The realization hit her like a shockwave, dispelling the threatening aura she had surrounded herself with. Her eyes, wide with astonishment, searched my hidden features as if trying to reconcile the figure before her with the boy she once knew.
There weren’t many who would call her by that name, especially now.
With a steady hand, I invoked the power that had become second nature to me. “Master Rank Magic, Black Pull.” As I clenched my left fist, a dense wave of darkness surged forth, enveloping Akane’s entire body in an instant. The magic worked quickly, siphoning away her mana, leaving her powerless.
She could have resisted—she was strong, stronger than most—but the shock of recognition had weakened her defenses. Her once defiant expression faded, replaced by one of pale disbelief, and she crumbled to her knees before me. Yet, even in her weakened state, her eyes remained locked on mine, pleading silently for understanding.
I gazed down at her coolly, suppressing any emotions. Before I could process the moment further, a sudden blur of motion caught my attention.
“A… Akane!!” Ayaka’s voice cut through the air, her figure darting towards us with terrifying speed. She was like a force of nature, a white katana gleaming with a fierce light in her hand, ready to strike. But I anticipated her move. With a swift leap, I retreated, putting distance between us. The last thing I needed was for this to escalate any further against both of them.
“Akane!! What did you do to her?!” Ayaka’s voice trembled with a mix of anger and fear as she knelt beside her sister, holding her close. Her grip tightened around the hilt of her sword, the light reflecting off its surface flickering like the rage in her eyes.
“Don’t fight,” I warned, my voice as cold as the darkness that surrounded me. “This is my last warning.” I extended my hand towards one of her classmates, a boy.
“Giii!!” A hand of darkness shot out from the shadows, striking the boy in the back with an unforgiving force. He was flung towards me as if pulled by an invisible string. I caught him effortlessly, my fingers wrapping around his throat, lifting him off the ground.
“Guuuuhh!!!” The boy’s struggles were pitiful as he writhed in my grip, his terror manifesting in a stream of urine that soaked his pants. His wide, tear-filled eyes stared at me, pleading for mercy.
“Taketa!!!” A shout rang out from the crowd—one of his friends, desperate and helpless.
“Do you want to die, Taketa?” I asked, my tone devoid of any warmth as I tightened my grip slightly. His head shook sideways frantically, a tearful denial escaping his lips.
“Yet you remained here after my warning. Did you kill any demons?” My question hung in the air like a blade poised to strike.
He shook his head again, this time more vigorously, as if his life depended on it—which, in truth, it did.
“Don’t lie to me.” My words were icy, slicing through his feeble attempts at denial. He flinched and finally, trembling, nodded his head in reluctant admission.
“L… Leave him!!” Ryuuki’s voice, hoarse and desperate, echoed from where he stood, blood trickling down his forehead. He was a mess, but his determination hadn’t wavered.
“I warned you.” My voice cut through the chaos like a razor. “Now watch, all of you.” With a deliberate slowness, I raised my black sword in my free hand, its edge gleaming with an ominous light.
“KILL HIM!!” The command reverberated across the battlefield, and in an instant, the Heroes of Kastoria, along with thousands of knights, charged towards me. Their faces were twisted with a mix of fear and fury, but they knew they couldn’t unleash their magic—not while I held one of their own hostage.
But it was too late.
“Too late,” I whispered, almost to myself.
Taketa’s eyes widened in shock as my sword plunged into his chest. The movement was swift, precise, and final. He gasped, blood bubbling from his lips as he looked at me, confusion and pain mingling in his gaze. His body went limp in my grasp, the life draining from him in mere moments. His hands, once clutching at mine in a desperate attempt to break free, fell lifelessly to his sides.
His eyes, once filled with fear, slowly closed as his heart gave its final beat.
Taketa was dead.
I released my grip on Taketa’s lifeless body, allowing it to slump to the ground with a dull thud. His blood pooled around him, seeping into the earth and staining the once pristine battlefield a deep, ominous red. For a moment, time seemed to stand still. The air was thick with the weight of what had just transpired, and a heavy silence settled over the area.
The shock was palpable, radiating from the Heroes and their allies as they stared in horror at what I had done.
Then, as if the spell of silence had been broken, the screams began.
“KYAAAA!!!”
“NOOOO!!”
“HYAAA!!!”
The voices of the Heroes, now tinged with terror, echoed across the battlefield. Their cries were filled with disbelief and fear as they tried to process the brutal reality that had just unfolded before their eyes. Taketa, their classmate, their friend with whom they had shared countless hours of study and camaraderie, was dead.
His life had been snuffed out right in front of them, and the finality of it was too much for them to bear.
The girls, especially, recoiled in horror, stumbling backward as they tried to distance themselves from the scene. Their faces were pale, their eyes wide with fear, and some clutched their mouths as if to hold back the rising bile. The boys, on the other hand, glared at me with a mixture of fear and powerlessness, their expressions twisted as if they were staring at the embodiment of pure evil.
But their gazes meant nothing to me.
My focus was on Ryuuki.
He stood frozen, his face a mask of disbelief. But slowly, that disbelief morphed into something darker, something far more dangerous—hatred. His features contorted as the realization sank in, and his hands trembled as he tried to form words.
“W…why…” he finally managed to choke out, his voice thick with emotion.
I didn’t respond. There was no point in explaining myself. I had warned them, and they had chosen to ignore that warning. Did they think I was playing some sort of twisted game? That I wasn’t serious? I had given them a chance to walk away, to avoid this bloodshed.
“If you don’t want to lose another classmate, scram and never come back here,” I said, my voice cold and devoid of any emotion.
But Ryuuki didn’t seem to hear me—or perhaps he simply didn’t care. “BASTARD!!!!” he screamed, his voice raw with fury. In a flash, he surged toward me, an explosion of mana erupting from his body. His swords, now glowing with a fierce golden light, crackled with power as he channeled all his strength into his next attack.
He was stronger now, far stronger than he had been moments before, but strength alone wouldn’t save him.
“I WILL KILL YOU!!!”