Joakim and Randy were at the crime scene.
Gene and Liam were behind them, as they watched members of the Rosicrucians take Mandeleine's body away.
"…"
Right now, all suspicions were on Randy Bornman.
After all, his leadership skills made him aware when one of his members died, and the fact that he now seemed just as surprised as the others were by the sudden death was...suspicious.
"Randy, we don't want to be without another leader again...you'd better tell us why you murdered your own right-hand man."
Joakim's voice was authoritarian, as always, harsh.
Randy turned to look at him, and with a depressed look, shook his head. "I didn't do it."
Soon, one of the Rosicrucian members ran after Randy, bringing an agenda with him.
"Excuse me for intruding, but Mr. Randy is right; he has been investigating the magicians who attacked the late Mr. Sherly. That's precisely why he sent Mandeleine here, and according to his alibi, which I have, and the witnesses of even members of the Third Round Sect...It is impossible that Mr. Randy would have committed such an act against someone from his own people."
Joakim turned to look at the member, twisting his mouth, annoyed.
"And how do you explain that he couldn't know he was killed? If he can 'sense' every time a member dies, why not with Mandeleine? And furthermore, why didn't Mandeleine reincarnate if that's his exclusive ability from his sect?"
Gene and Liam looked at each other. Joakim was right, they knew it.
But they knew Randy's alibi didn't fit the facts.
Liam looked at Renato, in his cage.
"Renato was very restless when we arrived; he was always trying to escape from his cage, he wasn't eating, he wasn't drinking water..." Liam emphasized his observation, silencing everyone. "I think that, perhaps, the only one who knows what happened is Renato; anyway, he's always been here with Layla..."
Liam was right.
"So, our only witness is a bird that we can't ask anything?" Joakim said sarcastically, mocking Liam's theory. "The only one who could know what Renato was saying was Layla, and she..."
Layla was still in bed, weak, and dying.
"They knew that Layla was too smart to fall for any of their traps."
Randy commented.
"But when she attacked that girl...she didn't know she would be cursed." Joakim finished.
Gene, silent until now, frowned.
"I doubt what they did to Mandeleine was done by a human, just...look at his wounds! It looks like a wild animal attacked him!"
A body without a heart and scratches, visible violence.
Too cruel to have been made by a human.
"I can't agree with you, Genesis," Randy said, with a conflicted look. "Mandeleine will reincarnate; he never died before, however, he didn't do it immediately...I suppose it's because of some spell, or—"
"I already know who could have done it," Joakim interrupted. "Ji Noo."
They all looked at him, confused.
"W-What?" Liam murmured, truly confused.
"A few days ago a signal from the mana regulator reached my Identifier. He said he detected a high-frequency signal, which means that Ji Noo has become a demon."
He took out his Identifier, and then showed the screen to those present, the date, which matched the date of the incident.
"But Ji Noo and the others went to—" Randy tried to explain, but was interrupted. Again.
"How are we sure?" He put his Identifier in his pants pocket. "I haven't received any reports or any sign of life from my boys. Perhaps he even left there, and when he came here to bring the cure, he went mad instead and killed Mandeleine; when he realized what he had done, he fled."
They all looked at each other, and soon Randy spoke again.
"Why does that sound so forced?" Then, he sighed. "You still blame Ji Noo for what happened? Do you want him to take responsibility for this? What if he didn't do it?"
Liam frowned, angry at the injustice she was hearing.
"How can you think that after he—?!"
But she stopped mid-sentence, when her chest began to light up.
"Liam?" Gene's voice was the last thing she heard before she began screaming in pain, falling to her knees on the ground.
Her glasses fell to the ground, but they didn't care.
What really caught their attention was something new: a shiny chest.
Randy quickly ran towards her, placing his hand on her shoulders, channeling his pure energy into her.
"What's wrong with her?" Joakim said, confused, looking at the worried Gene. "Is she cursed too?"
Gene shook her head several times, while biting her nails. "No, it doesn't feel like a curse...! Or I don't know, I've never seen anything like it before..."
And soon, the brightness faded, along with Liam's screams; however, she had a lost look in her eyes.
Randy got up from the floor, helping Liam to her feet, then turned to look at Gene and Joakim.
"It's not a curse, it's just that impure energy wanted to corrupt his soul."
Gene sighed, but she wasn't completely relieved yet...
"Thank you, Mr. Randy!" Then she ran towards Liam to help her stay on her feet. "And...what would have happened if you hadn't stopped that impure energy?"
Randy thought for a moment, then looked at her.
"The same thing would have happened again," Then he looked out the window, worried. "I've never actually seen anything like that, except in a past life of mine."
"And what happened to the person who possessed that impure energy?" Gene asked, curious.
Randy tried to remember a little, and then he said: "Died."
_
The sun shone brightly.
Of course, today was the day he would get that investigator job at that private agency! Of course! He, Kite, would get it!
He couldn't wait to meet his colleagues, his superiors, solve many cases, and above all, become a hero.
"Well, your resume is perfect, Kite," He said, a man in a suit and smiling, too. "But it's not perfect enough for our private agency."
Huh?
"So, we'll assign you to another agency instead."
Huh?
"Now, you are a member of The ThinG agency. Congratulations."
"WHAT?!"
Ah yes, the day was too beautiful for my dreams to come true.
My name is Halley Kite. We won't talk much about the meanings of the names, I just want to tell you about this misfortune.
In this world, the existence of ghosts is all too common.
That's how the agencies were created; in charge of exorcising spirits, most of them malevolent, of course.
If you were a member of a private agency, that means you were someone powerful, strong...
But if you got into an agency as poor as mine, the agency I had to work for, you're trash.
The ThinG agency. Led by an old man, and of which I was its only member until recently, when the old man died and bequeathed the agency to me.
So, basically, it's just me at this agency, with no cases to solve...and rent arrears to pay...
"Huh…" I know, I sound pathetic. But I haven't given up hope of getting a good case.
An email arrived on my computer.
"WHAT?!" I fell back in my chair when I realized that finally, after a year without a single case, one had arrived; exorcising a ghost that's too troublesome but too easy to call in private agencies. Did God finally hear all my prayers?
I accepted the case, and immediately, I grabbed my sword and ran to get to the scene of the crime on time.
And it was when I got there that I realized why they didn't want to call a private agency.
"We are too poor to afford a private agency...and yet, without money, nobody wants to help us."
Those were the words of the two customers.
And well, I also came here for money, I need to pay the rent, you know? It's not cheap...I need a lot of pounds to cover expenses, you know?!
However, my benevolent heart wouldn't let me say that out loud.
"Don't worry, I'll take care of it."
Halley Kite, you're an idiot, the biggest idiot of all.
That's how I entered the house. A poltergeist greeted me, throwing objects at me, mostly vases.
"Show your face, ghost!" I raised my sword, circled the area, dodging objects. "Reveal yourself so I can exorcise you!"
"It looks like this is your first time doing this, right?"
A voice startled me, but I remained calm and slowly turned around. There were two red eyes staring at me.
"AAAH!" I stepped back, then rubbed my eyes, and noticed a more human face coming through the wall behind me. "Are you the...ghost?"
"Yes. My name is Rei Jiyun. Yours?"
"Halley Kite."
Why am I talking to a ghost?
"Look, I'll leave this family alone if you give me alcohol, got it?"
"…"
ALL THIS DISASTER JUST BECAUSE OF AN ALCOHOLIC DRINK?!
"I can't, I have to exorcise you."
"…"
"I'm serious, ghost."
"I already told you my name, why are you calling me a ghost?" Then, he emerged from the wall, floating up to the ceiling. "Not even in my past life did they treat me like that."
I followed him with my eyes, and then I frowned slightly. "Past life? You mean before you died, right?"
Silence.
And then he answered me.
"No, I'm talking to my life before I was born, to the place where my soul once was..." Then he smiled. That smile terrified me. "But you'll never know, because this part of the story is just a memory from my future self."
"…What? Now you're saying you can break the fourth wall? That's just pathetic, you ghost."
"...I'm not a ghost, I already told you my name."
Then, he put the furniture back in the house.
"Whatever happens, we must continue with this story, while Jeon Kwonoo takes care of his."
This is how the balance works.
"Now you narrate too?! You damned ghost, I'll kill you! I mean...well, I'll exorcise you...understood?!"
It doesn't matter how many memories you see from your past life, or current life, if you won't change anything. Give up.
This is coming from an expert, your past self number 78.
The others? Bah! They're too stupid to know they're just reincarnations of us. After all, we're destined to die again and again. I know you already know that, but they don't.
They?
Ah, yes, I mean you.
You who are reading this.
Rei Jiyun was here, and until the next reincarnation...it will be me.
Now, wake up.
***
My eyes opened.
My ears were ringing with a deafening ringing.
The shouts of 'Jeon Kwonoo' woke me up, and I noticed that Anser was standing in front of me, with a gun, shooting at something…
Slowly, I sat down on the floor, and as everything cleared up, I could see clearly what was happening: The woman who attacked me earlier was fighting against the magician Hyung, while Frederick and Anser were shooting at...
"H-Huh?" I saw that man in my first dream...didn't I?
「"Haven't you gotten to this part of the story yet? My bad."」
"Wait! Don't shoot him!" I quickly got up, and when I saw something similar to ink coming out of the tentacles, I quickly ran towards the man with tentacles. "Stay away from him!"
I charged at him, the poison stopping, but instead, all the poison seeped through the pores of my skin, turning my arms black.
"Jeon!" I heard Anser scream, but the laughter of the tentacle man pulled me out of myself.
A tentacle wrapped around my neck, the bullets that Anser and Frederick were firing increased their speed.
"It seems you had a bad dream; wasn't that memory pleasant?"
Memory?
"N-No, they're not...memories..." I squeezed the tentacle, trying to cut it with my nails, or fingers, with whatever… "They're just drafts I wrote...before this story..."
The man laughed, then raised his hand, one of his tentacles going underground, and then attacked Frederick from below.
Anser ran to help him dodge, while the man...looked at me, amused.
"But they existed," Then he snorted. "After all, this story is simply the fusion of all those drafts in the end, isn't it?" His tentacle tightened around my neck, causing my blood to rush to my head, leaving me without oxygen. "A story cannot be changed, Jeon Kwonoo. In the end, the true ending will always come. Different or not, the ending you don't yet know was actually written from the beginning."
What?
Who is this man?
Perhaps...I created him too?
No, I didn't do it, I don't remember doing it.
Besides, I would never create such a crazy character.
"Anser is getting stronger every day; the fact that you want to protect him from the very dangers you put him in is stupid." And then, he pushed me aside with a sudden movement of his tentacle. "In the end, he will always be the protagonist, and you will be the antagonist hated by everyone, and of course..."
He snapped his fingers. A tentacle darted underground to attack the woman fighting Hyung.
"You will be the one who causes the deaths of all your beloved characters that you created…"
The tentacle pierced the woman's back and chest, her heart falling to the ground.
"NO!"
The scream from Anser echoed.
Hyung's face broke into a satisfied smile.
"I could easily take care of her, Enver."
Enver, is that his name?
"Enver…" I tasted the name in my own mouth, that man, the one who caused Sherly's death, Layla's curse… "You'll pay for this..."
Enver smiled, turning to look at me.
"No, you've never achieved it."
The woman groaned in pain, as the tentacle slowly contracted, retreating underground.
"Anser..." She murmured, while still standing there, bleeding. "Forgive me...I couldn't show you the true power of the Vulpecula Clan…"
Anser gritted his teeth, then ran towards her.
"No...! It's not too late yet! Please!" He was desperate, almost tripping over himself. She was the only one who could tell him if his mother was still alive or not. Sherly told him that perhaps his mother was still alive, that hope... however small...
It was the only thing that was keeping him from breaking down in tears right now.
And now, to lose that too...no, he didn't want to lose it again.
Even I started to get up, to go and help her.
But.
"Star Magic:…" The murmur of the woman's voice echoed. A sudden pressure caused everyone to fall to their knees. Even Enver. Stopping Anser who was about to reach her. "…The death of a star."
The woman opened her wound with both hands, and a blinding light came out of it. Hyung, Anser, Frederick and I watched the scene. The power of women has always been impressive.
She was strong, powerful, and perhaps if she had been there, in the Vulpecula Clan when it was attacked... perhaps Anser would now be part of the Vulpecula Clan, and wouldn't be suffering as he is.
I think that...
…That's my fault too.
"Anser! Stay away from her!" Frederick's scream alerted them all, the trance disappearing. Frederick took a rope, and with what little mana he had left, he moved it towards Anser, the rope tangling around his leg, and pulled him along.
Enver tried to do the same as Frederick, but his tentacles couldn't move under the pressure of power.
And the inevitable happened.
The woman's body exploded, taking Hyung with it, who was trapped in front of her.
Enver shielded himself from the blast with his tentacles, while I could hear him cursing beneath his breath.
And soon, everything became clear.
The crater left by the explosion was deep, revealing below the lower level to which we were standing.
"…Even now, Ellie still bothers me in death."
My ear stopped when I heard the name, Ellie?
Who was she supposed to be?
Soon, Enver stood up, using his tentacles to reach a greater height, and then he let out a hiss.
"Yanshan."
Behind Frederick and Anser, a man appeared with horns, black and half white hair, and his face covered with a mask.
"Got it," He took his hands out and touched both of their backs, leaving them motionless for a moment. "Sealing Magic: Cat Cage."
And soon, a transparent box formed around them, preventing them from escaping.
"What the fuck?!" Frederick began hitting the box with his hand, however, it did not break.
Anser drew his sword, trying to pierce it.
But nothing worked, it was impossible for it to break.
"Damn…" Now it was just me against Enver...
"Yanshan. Retreat."
The same boy nodded, then jumped into the air, walking on invisible blocks, and then, in the sky, raised his hands. "Sealing Magic: Release."
And soon, out of there came a boy, he had horns, and a long black tail, dressed in a tuxedo. He fell to the ground, perhaps unconscious, and then the man with the Sealing magic disappeared.
"July 14 will take care of you," Then, he sighed, turning away and going into the shadows. "But remember, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth..."
And with that, he disappeared into the shadows.
I looked at the boy on the ground, and after making sure he was still unconscious, I ran towards Frederick and Anser.
"Jeon, you'd better get us out of here..." He said, although, he didn't say it in a bad way, just like Anser or me, he was simply scared.
"I'll do it right now, just wait a moment..." Think, Jeon, think...what can help you break the box? "I've got it now!"
Without realizing it, I dodged a fireball that was coming towards me.
I turned around, noticing that the boy was awake.
July 14 said Enver, huh? What kind of name is that?
"Jeon…Kwonoo…" He muttered my name between grunts, then lunged at me. He started punching me with fire, the burns healing quickly.
"Jeon!" Frederick's shout made me turn around. When I looked at him, he pointed to the box.
The fire had burned one side of the box.
I nodded, understanding his message, then I put some distance between July 14 and me.
"Go on! Throw another fireball at me, kid."
And well, he didn't hesitate, launching a fireball even more powerful than the previous one.
I dodged the ball, which hit the box and exploded.
I could see Frederick and Anser fleeing from the box, each emerging from opposite sides.
"Another demon boy? Is it an infection?" Frederick said, in a sarcastic tone, as he reloaded his gun, using his hand and teeth, then moved it around in his hand, getting used to the weight of the weapon.
On the other hand, Anser remained serious, looking at the blade of his sword with melancholy. "…"
Just by looking at him, I knew he was too sad to think about anything else.
"Die now."
The boy's voice drew my attention to him again; now, his entire arm was engulfed in flames. He ran to attack me, but Frederick's bullet struck his eyes, blinding him.
"Let's get out of here before that brat sets the place on fire," He said, reloading his weapon and putting it in his waistband. "Anser, if you're still alive, dig a hole upwards."
Anser looked at him and then nodded.
He gripped his sword with both hands, then raised it upwards. "Vulpecula: Moonlight."
And soon, suddenly, the attack was launched.
It made everyone stagger, even starting to make the ground tremble.
"Huh?" I wasn't the only one confused, Frederick, he took my arm, and then threw me upwards. I took the rope he had previously used with Anser, and then brought him with me to the surface.
Anser was coming up behind us, climbing quickly.
As I propelled myself forward by holding onto the ground, I could tell that Anser's power had...increased, so to speak.
"Perhaps what Anser needed was for that woman to die so that her power would be completely directed towards him, huh?" Frederick commented, though it didn't seem so, lamenting the loss of the powerful warrior we had encountered.
Perhaps Frederick's hypothesis was correct.
Perhaps no one dared to confront the Vulpecula Clan because they were women, and each one possessed a portion of Vulpecula's power. So, when it died out, all that power went to...that woman, instead of Anser.
And now with her successor dead, all that power has gone to…
Anser.
"Energy usage: 45%..." Behind us came July 14, bursting into flames, racing forward to try and take Anser.
However, with his newfound power boost, he kicked him in the face, hard enough to knock him to the ground.
"Don't look back." He warned us.
Shit.
Increase your speed, and when you see that you are almost at the entrance, pull Frederick out first.
Then I entered the tunnel through which we had entered before, and behind us, Anser.
He gasped, somewhat tired, then Anser directed his sword downwards, burying it. "Vulpecula: Gravitational Waves."
And soon, everything began to shake.
"Anser!" I turned to look at him, and noticing his frustrated, depressed, sad expression... "Anser…"
He wanted to cover the hole we came in through, but...with us inside.
"I'll be waiting for you outside!" Frederick shouted, as he pulled out his Identifier, presumably to report what had happened.
Quickly, take Anser's hands, taking them away from his sword.
"Enough!"
And then, I picked him up with all my strength, and quickly, I ran out of the tunnel with him, as debris began to fall.
I dodged a few obstacles, until finally, I could see that Frederick, ahead of me, had reached the forest outside. I ran faster, and when I reached the exit, I tripped, falling face-first, and knocking Anser onto Frederick's back, pulling him down too.
The tunnel eventually collapsed, the rubble left no room for anyone to enter or leave.
"…"
Wow, that's something...
"Astral."
Anser's voice made me turn around; he was standing behind me with his hand raised. His sword emerged from the rubble, returning to him.
Again, he looked at his sword, with melancholy.
Frederick stood up, muttering curses and complaints as he rubbed his back.
"Anser…" I murmured, then got up from the floor.
I tried to grab his arm, but he didn't turn around, his gaze fixed on Astral.
"…"
The silence remained, and for some reason...
…Guilt haunted me.
I had to say something...
"I'm sorry—" Blood came out of my mouth. I could see Anser turn around, and his face filled with worry.
A fiery hand had pierced my chest.
I turned around, and it was...
July 14.
"Jeon!" Frederick yelled, pulling out his gun, and ran towards me.
Anser drew his sword, but stopped when he noticed July 14 raise his hand, still piercing my body.
He took my heart in his hand, and then the flames increased, forcing Frederick and Anser to retreat.
"An immortal heart…" July 14 murmured, with a smile, as he squeezed my heart. "The boss said that if I achieved this... I could be just like you, Jeon Kwonoo."
Frederick snorted, starting to aim for July 14's eyes to distract him, but as soon as the bullet left the barrel, it melted, without even hitting July 14. "Damn...if he breaks Jeon's heart...Raum will come out…"
I could see Anser frown, clutching his sword in his hand.
"Call Liam and Gene," He said, giving his Identifier to Frederick. "Fast."
Frederick nodded, without complaining this time.
And meanwhile…
"Ugh…"
I felt like the number of my deaths was increasing every time July 14 squeezed my heart.
"They were too stupid to think they could catch a demon like me…" Then he smiled, broadly. "Energy usage: 50%."
And soon, the flames intensified even more.
I couldn't help but scream in pain, however, soon, I took his hand, my hand burning and regenerating.
"Usage...energy..." I tried to imitate him, still bleeding and with my vision blurred by all the numbers that were shown to my eyes. "99%..."
And soon, my body exploded.
"JEON!" Anser's scream echoed, shielding himself from the explosion with his forearms.
My whole body was torn to pieces, just like July 14's body.
The mana regulator fell next to Frederick's boot, and then...
A feather fell from the sky.
It wasn't the feather of an angel.
It was black, dark, impure.
It was the feather of a demon, Raum.