His groans slipped from his throat. Slady swirled a glass of wine between his fingers. He brought it to his lips, a single sip, slow, appreciative, and swallowed, the liquid running cold and smooth down his throat to his stomach.
Setting it back on the table, in a simple assessment, Slady declared the wine as "nice."
Raizer nodded with a laugh, commenting that he already knew the answer. That wine was perfect for him.
The cold night winds crossed the tavern. The streets were invisible under the darkness.
Men and women drank, raising their mugs filled with beer and clashing them together.
Elisa adjusted her skirt, picking up drinks and serving people with a practiced smile.
However, as she was about to return to Raizer, she felt a sudden pain from behind. She let out a quiet cry, searching for the culprit. An older man, with a beard reaching his chest, tried to pull her by the waist toward his lap, arguing about her father's distraction.
But the man's wrinkled hand was grabbed by another, mechanical one, followed by a cold voice telling him to let the girl go.
Elisa looked to the side. Slady nodded. She stepped away and went toward Raizer.
Even so, the man stood up, staggering, his size making Slady seem smaller. He demanded that Slady repeat himself, if he was man enough.
The raised tone drew attention. Some men laughed, others frowned. Women murmured about how absurd the situation was, a pervert and someone smaller confronting him.
Raizer, seeing his daughter step away, grabbed a glass bottle and prepared to leave the counter. But when he saw Slady, he hesitated.
The bearded man leaned toward him, mocking his height and delicacy.
He touched his hair.
Compared him to a woman.
And prepared to pull.
But in an instant, the mechanical fist closed and struck his chest. A crack echoed. He fell, clutching his torso. Soon, he was unconscious.
Silence filled the room. The men lost their smiles. Others nodded. Women pressed their lips. Seconds later, applause broke out, their voices becoming noise in Slady's ears.
He walked slowly to Raizer. He saw an empty expression on his friend's face. He touched his shoulder, thanking him, taking responsibility to remove the man from the tavern.
Elisa looked at his face. Asked what had happened. He blinked and said nothing had happened.
Nothing...
It should be nothing...
But why...
Could he no longer feel that man's heartbeat?
***
Leaving an unfamiliar house, Slady held up a photo. That man and his family. There were no smiles, no strong embrace. Nothing real.
He tore the photo apart. Dropped the fragments to the ground.
Walked with his hands in his pockets.
On the street, nothing could be seen. Each step quick.
Suddenly, a low sound. He turned. Someone familiar. He lifted his coat over the sleeping face.
Rin Yuang?
He crouched, placed his hand near her nose. Normal breathing. He looked at her face, deep dark circles under her eyes. In her pocket, slightly full, he reached in and pulled out a packet.
Slady looked at the powder. Without hesitation, he emptied it and threw it away. He went to her, touched her face gently, asking her to wake up, slowly.
She opened her eyes. For a moment, he felt her heart beating fast. He stepped back. She shrank away.
Slady understood why she was afraid, asked for her trust. He would take her home.
She refused. Sat up, tried to stand, but fell directly against his chest.
She apologized, voice muffled. He replied that he was the one who should apologize.
His hand moved through her hair. The officer tried to move, but her mind reacted to the sensation. Within seconds, her body grew heavier.
Slady sighed. Leaned closer and whispered in her ear. He would give her the night she deserved.
***
The next day.
Rin woke up. The bed felt more comfortable. Her mind clearer. She sat up, still dressed. The memories returned, that man...
She grabbed her phone. A message from an unknown contact. It said he had borrowed her snacks.
She could only mutter a curse in response.
***
In the city, holding a bag of clothes at his side, he turned a corner and bumped into a man's chest.
Looking up, the man told him to watch where he was going. Then recognition. Roger. And when Roger recognized him, his eyes widened.
Beside him, a schoolgirl. She looked at Roger, curious about the man. He answered vaguely, just someone he knew.
Slady stood and nodded, apologizing for interrupting their day, turning his back.
Suddenly, a tug. Turning, it was the girl. She asked if he was her brother's friend. Roger tried to stop her, but when Slady agreed, she quickly placed her hands on her hips and even declared Slady her brother from different parents.
The girl smiled, then hugged his legs, asking to be picked up. Roger warned her not to trust strangers, but Slady shrugged and lifted her with his mechanical arm.
Roger froze, watching the girl guide with her fingers. He moved closer, standing beside them, his hand already near his dagger.
When they arrived, Slady set her down. The girl thanked him. Her older brother picked her up, covering her face with kisses. She laughed. A teacher arrived smiling, taking the girl by the hand and leading her away. After she disappeared from view, Roger's smile vanished and he turned, gripping his weapon firmly.
But Slady was no longer there.
***
In the dormitory, Rin Yuang sat cross-legged on the couch, watching the news.
Journalists warned the population about the emergence of a Forest Inferius in one of Libretãnhya's districts. Many Demon Hunters entered. Some Criminal Investigators surrounded the portal.
However, she stood abruptly when she saw someone pass through the portal unnoticed by the investigators.
Slady.
She grabbed her phone, trying to call one of the investigators, eyes still fixed on the screen. But before they could even answer, a wave of reddish smoke burst from the portal and spread across the city.
People ran. Investigators coughed, but were quickly rescued. She went to the dorm window and shut everything.
***
Slady exited the Inferius through the smoke. The place was empty. He reached into the bag. Shaphira's clothes, but also the Renkatas.
He murmured how interesting it was to end a dimension in a single explosion.
In the library, moonlight filled the sky again. Slady watched Shaphira on the bed, wearing a dark and golden kimono. The fabric spread across the bed and her tail moved more softly in that outfit than in any other.
He returned to the living room. On the table, several stacks of Lynes bills. He adjusted and stored them.
Rain hit the roof. He turned off the lights and removed his coat...
But then, two, three, four knocks were heard.
Fast.
Desperate.
He frowned, but opened the door.
A woman.
Blue hair and yellow eyes.
An elegant, heroic dress.
... And a deep wound in her chest.
And a request. No, a plea:
Help.