A Bag Full of Crystal

Ayami was eating while sitting in front of the portal.

"It's still kind of red, so maybe they are still fighting inside... I hope they are okay in there."

The portal began to lose its red glow just as Ayami noticed figures running out from within. Her face lit up as she stood to welcome them, but her expression quickly turned to shock when she saw a man covering one hand—half of it was cut off—running towards her.

The man noticed her and shouted, "Hey! You... What are you doing here? Never mind—are you a healer, or do you have any potions or something?"

She nodded and hurriedly searched her bag, finding a potion and handing it to him. He drank it all at once.

Ayami sneaked behind him to see that the portal was beginning to close.

“Excuse me... what about the others?” she asked, confused.

He was breathing heavily, his face a mix of anger and defeat. “They... they're all gone. No one is left alive. That damn monster ate everything.”

“Wh-what about...” She tried to ask about Kuro, but hesitated since she did not know his name. Instead, she described him by his features.

“A man with black hair and black eyes, wearing a black jacket... He joined you later, right? Did he survive? He must have survived,” she asked fearfully, hoping for good news.

“If he joined later, I have no idea. But if he was really with you, then forget about him—he’s probably dead too,” he said with a sigh. “I should contact upper management about this. It’s a job for an Upper A-class rank hunter. They’re the only ones who can defeat that thing.”

“But... the portal is closing. That means the boss is defeated, right?” she asked, pointing behind him.

“What are you saying? We haven’t even managed to—” He turned around and saw the portal truly closing.

“What the hell is that?” He muttered, pulling the towel Ayami had given him to cover his wounded hand. As he stood, he hit a bag full of crystals, causing some to fall.

“What is this...” He bent down, picked up a brown crystal, and in his anger, grabbed Ayami by the collar and lifted her off the ground.

“You! You thief! You’re collecting these things while we were dying in there? That’s crazy...” he spat.

Ayami struggled to break free, but his grip was too tight. Her movements slowed, eventually freezing—then he suddenly released her, and she dropped to the ground.

“Be grateful... I’m not going to finish you off right here for using our deaths to collect these things...” He turned, grabbed the entire bag, and began walking away.

She reached out her hand, but her vision blurred.

“Stop... please...” she whispered before falling unconscious.

Moments later, as the portal was about to close, Kuro jumped through, carrying clothes wrapped in a cloth filled with brown crystals.

“Hey! Where are you, Ayami-chan? Look at all these I found...” He looked around nervously, then found her unconscious.

He reached out, placed his hand on her chest, and closed his eyes. “Hmm... She’s just unconscious due to lack of oxygen. Seeing the marks of someone choking her, that’s clear.” He pushed his hand forward, and a green light glowed from it.

Ayami began to wake up, seeing Kuro sitting beside her.

“Ni...San...?” she whispered weakly.

“Yup, that’s me,” he grinned.

“The bag...” she pointed to the empty spot.

“Don’t worry. Consider this a gift from me for helping me collect the crystals. I’ve already called a taxi to take you home, but you’ll have to pay for it... I don’t have any money,” he laughed lightly.

After a pause, he continued, “I have to go somewhere. Take care.” He stood up to leave.

“Wai...t...” she started to say something, but when she blinked, he had vanished.

Running at sonic speed, Kuro took three short jumps, then one big leap to the highest point around.

“Now, let’s see where he is,” Kuro closed his eyes to trace the mana trail from the crystals and found the location.

“He seems to be waiting at the bus stop,” Kuro said as he took another running leap from rooftop to rooftop.

At the bus stop, a man sat alone, tapping his foot impatiently.

“Come on! Why is the bus so late?” he muttered, then heard a sonic boom.

A fast figure suddenly grabbed him and ran without letting him see his face before crashing into a building under construction. The man fell, rolling from the impact.

“Cough! Who dares attack me while I’m off guard?” he coughed, coughing from the cuts caused by the broken glass.

From the shadows, Kuro appeared as the orange-red rays of sunset illuminated his face.

“Well, well... Aren’t you the leader of the this.......” Kuro smiled, pretending to think. “Denji, wasn’t it?”

“You...? I’ve never seen you before. Who are you?” Denji asked, fear creeping into his voice.

Ignoring the question, Kuro pulled out a mobile and searched for him.

“Name: Sato Denji. Age: 34. Guild: Luminous Outriders. Marital Status: Unmarried. Hunter Class: B (Defender). Rank: 79.”

He closed the phone and pocketed it.

“You’re quite famous,” Kuro said with a smile.

“You... What do you want?” Denji asked, panic rising.

“I’m here for this,” Kuro said, pointing to the bag Denji had brought.

“You mean to take everything and just let me go?” Denji asked, raising his hands in surrender.

“I thought the same,” Kuro smiled—but as the sun fully set and the rays disappeared, Denji suddenly realized both his hands were cut off, blood pouring out.

“Wh-aaaah! Ahhh!” He screamed in pain as he tried to stand but fell.

Kuro sat before him, grabbing his hair to pull him up.

“You know, I kind of liked your speech, but it doesn’t suit someone who tried to kill a middle schooler,” Kuro said angrily.

“Please... Spare me...” Denji begged.

Kuro clicked his tongue and continued, “I have a reputation in this country, and I don’t want to ruin it.”

“You asked my name, right? It’s Shinigami.”

Black needles erupted from the ground beneath Denji, stabbing into him repeatedly until he died.

Kuro smiled, then stabbed a finger into his body, drawing a symbol he had drawn after killing every hunter before.

“Perfect... Now...” He stood, grabbed the bags, and vanished.

Somewhere in Tokyo, the doorbell rang.

“Coming...” Ayami opened the door to find the bag Denji had snatched earlier.

“Huh... This bag? Why is it here?” she wondered, confused about who could have brought it to her house.