Aika stood frozen, eyes shut tight, her chest rising and falling slowly.
Yuta took another step.
Ryo remained still, but his body no longer responded as before. Sweat dripped down his temples, and his clenched fists trembled faintly.
Yuta stopped less than a meter away.
"You had time to think. More than you deserved."
Ryo tried to look defiant. His jaw locked. But he didn't take a single step.
"I don't need to kill you."
Yuta's words came cold. Almost lifeless.
"But the System does."
Ryo blinked, confused.
"What?"
Yuta's right hand moved slowly, as if pulling the air around it. A dark, opaque shimmer began to take shape, condensing in his palm with a subtle hiss, like steam escaping under pressure.
The blade formed silently. A curved extension of dense, dark energy, pulsing faintly at the edges as if it breathed. It didn't reflect light. It was like a solid shard of darkness, unstable and razor-sharp.
Ryo stumbled back, eyes wide.
"What… what the hell is that…?"
His voice broke at the end, nearly swallowed by fear.
His legs locked. His body began to shake. This wasn't human. Wasn't normal. Wasn't something from school or a fight between boys.
"You… you're a monster?"
Yuta didn't answer. His expression was neutral, devoid of pity.
Aika, still with her eyes closed, furrowed her brow. The strange sound in the air. The new smell, like iron and smoke. Something in her screamed that something was wrong—and not with Ryo.
'Yuta…'
Aika opened one eye slowly. She saw the blade. Saw his face.
And what she saw wasn't the same boy who'd laughed quietly earlier or kissed her in the hallway.
This was another Yuta.
Colder.
More… distant.
She took a small step forward, unaware.
"Yuta… are you okay?"
Yuta didn't turn. He just took another step.
Ryo staggered back, tripping over his unconscious friend's leg on the ground.
"Don't come near me. Don't come with that thing!"
The blade pulsed faintly. Each of Yuta's steps made the ground feel heavier around him. As if he carried not just the energy, but the intent to kill.
Aika shut her eyes again, her body slightly hunched, shoulders tense. Ryo's heavy breathing cut through the forest's silence.
Yuta didn't hesitate.
His final step echoed sharply among the leaves.
THUMP.
The blade's shadow rose lightly, as if weightless in Yuta's hands.
Ryo tried to crawl back, elbows digging into the dirt, but he didn't get far.
"Please… no…"
SHHK—!
The strike was direct, swift, precise. The blade pierced his chest effortlessly, like cutting through air.
Ryo screamed.
HAAAAAA—AGHHHHH!!
Aika bit her lips hard, her eyes squeezed tighter. That sound tearing through the silence felt like it came from inside her.
"YUTAAAA—ARGHHH—! I DIDN'T—"
GHK!
Another muffled sound. Thick liquid splattered onto the leaves. Ryo's body shuddered for seconds… then nothing.
Just the sound of the blade dissolving into the air, evaporating as if it had never existed.
Aika still trembled. Her breath caught in her chest.
Then she spoke softly, voice shaky:
"Can I… open my eyes now?"
Yuta looked at her, still standing.
Before he could answer, the System cut in with a sharp, metallic chime, more urgent than usual:
DING!
[Main Mission Completed]
Target neutralized successfully.
Rewards unlocked:
[Unlocked Ability] – Bloodlust Aura – Level 1*
(Emits an instinctive, murderous pressure. Can be used to intimidate, paralyze weak targets, and manipulate perceptions of danger.)
[+5% Permanent Cursed Energy]
Yuta exhaled slowly, feeling the blade vanish from his hand like cold smoke. Ryo's body no longer moved. Only the weight of silence remained.
Aika squeezed her eyes tighter, then spoke again, voice trembling:
"Can I… open my eyes now?"
Before Yuta could respond, another chime rang out:
DING!
[Emergency Mission Activated]
Hostile Presence Detected Nearby
Curse Class: Unknown
Objective: Escape the area with the survivor before direct contact
Reward: +10% Permanent Cursed Energy
Status: Critical Time
A loud crack echoed from the forest to the left.
Yuta whipped his head around, body already bracing.
From the darkness between the trees, a creature emerged—its body warped, wolf-like paws mixed with reptilian scales, exposed bone segments, and multiple eyes in places they shouldn't be. Its jaw resembled a boar's but split into four parts.
"Hunger…"
The voice wasn't sound. It was a psychic whisper, echoing repeatedly in the minds of those present.
"Hunger. Hunger. Hunger. Hunger."
Its claws scraped the ground. The creature moved in spasms, as if it didn't belong to this world.
Aika opened her eyes. Shock froze her entire body.
"W-what… what is that?!"
Yuta was already moving.
He reinforced his muscles with cursed energy, the flow surging through his legs, arms, and spine like an invisible electric current. His fingers tensed.
"Don't look. Close your eyes again."
Aika tried to move, but her legs failed. She couldn't tear her eyes from the creature.
"Hunger. Hunger."
The curse sniffed the air. Its eyes turned to the boys' bodies.
First the one on the left.
CRACK.
Its jaw split open.
In a second, the creature lunged.
GRRRHHHHH—THRUNCH!
The sound of crunching bones was loud. A choked scream escaped the boy before it was silenced.
Aika screamed in shock.
Yuta leaped forward, grabbing her waist firmly and lifting her into his arms.
"Don't look!"
Aika didn't react. She just squeezed her eyes shut, her arms wrapping tightly around his neck.
"Hunger."
The second boy stirred. Tried to crawl.
The creature turned its head slowly.
CRRACK—SLURCH—
Another wet sound. Another prey silenced.
Yuta bolted down the opposite path, his legs powered by cursed energy.
The forest blurred past in greens and darks. Branches scratched his arms, leaves burst in dry explosions with each step.
Aika trembled in his arms, her face buried in his shoulder.
"Yuta… what was that?! What's happening?!"
"Stay quiet and hold tight."
His voice was sharp, direct. But there was a strange tension behind it—as if each word was measured between desperation and coldness.
"Trust me. You're not dying today."
BA-DUM BA-DUM BA-DUM
Aika's heart pounded hard. It wasn't just fear. Something in how he said it caught her breath for a second.
She tightened her arms around his neck, saying nothing more.
With each step, the forest's sounds grew fainter, as if the world had narrowed to just two bodies in flight and a hungry thing trailing far behind.
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