5 p.m

[The next day]

Seiji woke up violently, as if something had struck him from the inside of his skull.

The sound of the alarm clock was too loud. Too sharp. It pierced through his sleep like needles.

"...Fuck..." he muttered, groping blindly for his phone.

His fingers finally found the cool casing.

The alarm fell silent, but the pain didn't.

Instead, it now throbbed steadily, somewhere behind his eyes, in his temples, at the back of his head.

He pressed his face into the pillow.

"My head hurts..." he murmured. "But I have to get up for work..."

He got up heavily. For a moment, the world tilted slightly. He grabbed the doorframe, clenched his teeth, and waited for the dizziness to pass.

In the bathroom, the light was blinding. Looking in the mirror didn't help — darker than usual circles under his eyes, a tired face, a tense jaw.

'Fucking nomikai...'

When he stepped into the living room, Hideaki was still asleep on the couch. Curled up into a ball, the blanket pulled up under his chin. Quiet, uneven snoring escaped his lips.

Seiji looked at him longer than he had planned to.

"I need to make you something to eat..." he muttered, more to himself than to him.

The fridge was almost empty.

"Great..." he sighed.

From the leftovers, he put together a makeshift bento for himself and something lighter for Hideaki.

He brewed coffee, though after the first sip he already knew it was a bad idea — the headache only intensified.

At the office, it was worse.

He sat at his desk stiffly, almost motionless. The monitor was glaring. Every keyboard sound seemed too loud. Every so often, he massaged his temples, pressed at the bridge of his nose.

The code blurred in front of his eyes.

"Seiji..." Ken said, leaning slightly toward him. "Are you okay? You look bad."

"Hangover." Seiji didn't look up. "It'll pass."

But it didn't.

Around noon, instead of easing, the pain began to grow.

When he stood up, his head spun.

He read the same line of code three times.

He braced his hands on the desk and waited.

'This won't work.'

He checked his watch. Did the math in his head.

After a short conversation with his superior, he got only a dismissive wave of the hand.

"Go home. You look like a corpse."

He didn't argue.

He gathered his things calmly. Without rushing.

Across the street, in a parked car, Tanaka set his notebook aside.

"He's been sitting there a long time," he muttered.

"He'll come out after five," Nakamura replied, glancing at his watch. "Like everyone else."

The radio hummed softly. Someone called.

Tanaka glanced at his phone and scrolled through a report.

They didn't notice when Seiji left the building. Without looking around. He just walked out.

---

When Seiji returned to the apartment, the headache was still there, but stable. He took off his shoes and dropped his bag by the door.

Hideaki was no longer asleep. He was sitting on the couch, a blanket draped over his shoulders. His gaze was fixed on the television. Some anime was playing in the background. Hideaki himself was eating what Seiji had prepared for him that morning.

"You're back early...?" he muttered, turning his eyes away from the screen for a moment and looking at Seiji.

"Migraine," Seiji replied shortly. "In about ten minutes, we're going to the store. The fridge is empty."

"Okay..." Hideaki nodded, then stuffed another portion of food into himself.

Seiji sighed and massaged his temple.

'A sip of water... a quick bathroom break and we go...'

He said it, then grabbed the keys.

After the agreed time passed, both of them were almost ready to head out.

Hideaki was still fastening his hoodie.

Behind them, the door closed quietly.

On the other side of the city, the police were still waiting.

[Meanwhile]

Ichiyo and Izumi walked from the grocery store, their arms laden with bags.

It was second half of August and their summer vacation was getting closer to end.

Their chatter floated through the quiet street — the conversation had begun with school exams, but soon veered into lighter territory — boys.
Ichiyo laughed, cheeks warm, as Izumi teased her about a crush she'd recently mentioned.

Then—

A tall figure began approaching them. Step by step, closing the distance.

The girls instinctively felt something was wrong, but decided to not draw any attention and move away.

But then, the figure was suddenly closer, too close — as if he had skipped distance in a blink.

Izumi gazed behind her, but once she did that — she froze.

She could see him clearly.

He was a young adult man with long black hair, tall and lanky, but something about him screamed trouble. His sloppy blue jeans clung to his legs as if he'd been running for a while, and his dirty-yellow hoodie hung crookedly from his shoulders, wrinkled and tugged out of shape, as though he'd just slipped through too many narrow places.

Despite the warm afternoon air, his pale skin looked strained, faintly flushed, a sheen of sweat catching the light along his jaw and neck. He stood there breathing a little too hard, shoulders tense, eyes darting once — briefly — over his shoulder before settling on the girls.

His black eyes locked onto them with a sharp, restless intensity, not eager but alert, calculating. His lips parted as he exhaled, then curled into a thin, uneasy grin, the kind that didn't reach his eyes — as if he'd just escaped something and wasn't sure yet whether he was safe.

"Hello... girls..."
His voice was low, almost purring, with something sickeningly sweet behind it.

Ichiyo and Izumi felt a chill down their spines.

"G-good e-evening, s-sir... W-we're in a hurry. Please leave us," Ichiyo said, forcing calm into her trembling voice.

His grin widened, twisted and evil — revealing crooked, yellowed teeth.

"Oh? Young and well-behaved..." he murmured with mocking glee, tilting his head. "Great, great..."

The girls exchanged glances and began to walk faster, the sound of their hurried steps echoed around. But the man kept pace, each of his footsteps deliberate and heavy.

"We-we're in such a hurry today... Heheh... Mom is waiting for us with dinner a-and she said to come home quickly," Izumi added, trying to inject normalcy into her nervous words.

"Well... you can tell her you'll be a little late."
The man's hand dipped into his pocket. He slowly pulled out something — the metallic flick of a butterfly knife snapping open was unmistakable.

Ichiyo and Izumi heard the specific metallic click.

They both gulped.

'W-what was that?' Izumi thought panicking.

'He is getting c-closer to us! W-we need to find some escape route!' Ichiyo's eyes darted left and right — a maze of narrow alleyways behind them, but three streets forward... she recognized the turns. They were close to her house.

She reached into her purse and fumbled for her phone.

But the stranger suddenly closed the distance, the sound of it muffled under his quick, silent step.

His face was now inches from hers.
She could smell his rancid breath, like rotting food and blood. Her stomach turned.

"What do you have there, little one?"
His grin stretched wider as he caught sight of the phone in her hand.

"N-nothing, sir..." Ichiyo stammered, trying not to gag.

"Oh, but I see something different... A fancy phone, huh?" His eyes glittered.

"N-no..."

"Oh yes, yes..." His grin widened further. "Who are you calling? Your lovely mommy?" His tone turned grotesquely mocking.
Then—
"Tell her..." he hissed, "...that in a moment, her sweet little daughter will be penetrated by the blade of such a gallant man like me!"

With that, he brandished the butterfly knife, letting the streetlight glint off the slick blade.

Ichiyo's heart pounded so loudly she thought it might explode. 'A real knife...!'

She quickly darted her eyes around,

'Damn it! There's no one around! No cars, no people — the whole damn street's empty! I have to play along... I need to stall—'

"Y-yes..." Ichiyo muttered, her voice almost cracking, "...I wanted to tell her how much I'll be... delighted... when you rip my guts out..."

Even saying the words made her sick, but she forced a hollow smile.

Izumi's breath caught in her throat. 'Ichiyo?!' That didn't sound like her at all. It was terrifying. But then — she saw her friend's eyes.
Wide. Desperate. Pretending.

The man, unnerved and fascinated by Ichiyo's strange compliance, blinked slowly. Then his lips parted into a crooked smile.
"Well well well... someone who enjoys a little fun... That's rare." He chuckled, his eyes gleaming with sick pleasure.

"Hehehe... okay, beautiful. Go on. Call Mommy. She'll love to hear that her little girl chose to be slaughtered in the street, instead of coming home on time!" He laughed maniacally, still gripping the knife.

Ichiyo's hands trembled as she dialed her father's number. The phone barely rang once before he picked up.

"DAD! SAVE US! WE'RE THREE STREETS FROM OUR HOUSE—TO THE CENTER OF— EEEEK!!! NO!! NOO!!! PLEASE STOP—!!!"

The man slapped the phone out of her hands, sending it clattering to the pavement.

"Shut the hell up!"

CRUNCH.
His foot smashed the device, shards of plastic and glass scattering across the sidewalk.

Ichiyo stared blankly at the crushed pieces of her phone. Her only hope was that her father had heard her cry for help, that he was already running — praying he was fast enough.

---

Meanwhile, two people were walking nearby...

And these two people were Seiji and Hideaki.

They were heading back toward the apartment with nets full of food when a sharp, panicked scream rang out from somewhere nearby — just a few streets away. It was a girl's voice, filled with terror. The sound cut through the afternoon air like a blade.

Both men stopped in place.

Hideaki flinched and immediately turned his head toward the direction of the scream, instincts taking over.

"What was that?"

"Probably trouble," Seiji said shortly.

Then, they heard another scream.

Hideaki froze for a brief moment, "That's close," he muttered, narrowing his eyes.

Seiji glanced back at him, his expression cold and resolved. "No. Don't even think about it. It's not our business. Let's just go home."

But Hideaki's attention had already locked onto the direction of the scream.

A thrill flickered inside him, quick and dangerous, like spark in the darkness.

'I wonder who's screaming...'

The thought sent a chill of excitement through him, a familiar dark hunger he barely restrained.

He let out a low, almost inaudible chuckle.

"Hehe... I wanna see what's happening." he muttered, tilting his head.

His fingers twitched slightly, the faint curl of a sadistic smile playing at his lips.

Seiji sighed, rubbing his temples. "I told you, it's not our problem. Stop acting like this. Come on, let's go—"

Before Seiji could say another word, Hideaki bolted toward the source of the scream.

"—home...."

Seiji sighed defeaded.

"It's like a talking to a wall..." he muttered under his breath.

"Hey, idiot, come back!"

He shouted after him, exasperated.

"Damnit! Hideaki!"

He checked around for any people being nearby, but there wasn't any.

"Wait—!" He shouted again, but seeing that Hideaki was completely absorbed by the situation, he clenched his jaw and ran after him, muttering a string of curses under his breath.

---

At the same time, the attacker slapped Ichiyo on the cheek,

"SHUT UP BITCH!" He shouted at her,
"I should have known you were up to something... Pretty girls are always like that...."

Then his gaze slid to the second girl — Izumi.

A sick grin formed on his face.

"But you don't seem like such a bad bitch, do you?"

He left Ichiyo paralyzed and began to crawl upon Izumi.

'P-please don't do it... Please leave her alone! Please!!'
Ichiyo screamed in her mind, but she was too shocked. Too terryfied to take an action.

Izumi's breath caught. Her body tensed as the man started moving toward her — crawling, stalking, like an animal that had found new prey.

Her mind screamed at her to run, to fight, to say something, anything — but the moment wouldn't let her move.
She just stood there, frozen, heart thudding painfully in her chest.

"W-what...?" she whispered, confused, as if reality itself was breaking. "W-what are you doing...?"

She tried to back away instinctively, but stumbled over her own foot.

"I-Ichiyo...?" she gasped, her voice cracking in panic. "What's happening...?"

The man reached her and took in her scent. "You smell of fear... perfect..."

Izumi stepped back in disgust

"I'm not going to let you touch—"

SLAP!

The sharp sound of his palm meeting her cheek cut her off. Her head jerked to the side.

Her legs gave out and she collapsed to her knees, dazed.

Her whole face burned. Her thoughts were scrambled, disoriented.
She didn't understand. Just moments ago they were walking, laughing — and now...

Suddenly, the man leaned in close again. He inhaled slowly, his nose near her skin.

"You're quite brave to stand up to me like that." he said, slightly delighted, "And now..." he added after a while "Let's see if you'll be so brave when I torment you, hehehe..." he chuckled darkly.

Ichiyo watched with great horror and disgust at what the man was doing to Izumi - slapping her in face when she protested, tried to dig his blade into her body...
Ichiyo was so scared that she couldn't move. She wanted to move, to use her Magic Ability, but her body didn't listen to her.

The man started pulling down Izumi's shirt and was going to insert his blade into her chest. Izumi screamed from unbelievable fear she felt in that moment. She wanted it to be a bad dream, she didn't want to receive pain.

Ichiyo at the same time, couldn't stand to look at how her best friend was experiencing pain, how terrified she was.

Tears began to fall from her eyes, as she desperately wanted to run and get her out of the man's hands.

"I-I-Izu-mi-chan!" she shouted her friend's name in horror.

---

Hideaki was standing in shadow of the building.

Observing how the man treated two girls.

Seiji reached to him in short time but when he turned to the corner and saw a man looming over two terrified girls — A familiar faces of Ichiyo and Izumi, now bathed in shock and fear — he understood in an instant:

He hadn't known. But it wasn't 'not their business ' anymore.

"Takahashi-san! Matsuo-san! Hold up there!"

Both of the teenagers heard the voice of their savior in the distance — Seiji, running toward them.

Ichiyo's fear shifted into relief, tears filling her eyes as hope returned.

But then she saw him.

Hideaki who was holding now all the shopping nets.

His red eyes gazed with the sickening emptiness at the whole scene...

On his lips formed a crooked smile, a kind of smile that spoke: beware!

In that moment, time stopped.

She froze.

'T-that facial expression of h-his... If he'll t-team up with that attacker...'

Fragments of memory began flashing before her eyes:

The gleam of bloody blades sliding across her skin.
Her own scream echoing through the neighborhood.

Through the haze, she felt the pain again in the spot where the cut had been the deepest. Though it had long healed physically, the psychological wound tore open anew — ripped wide by today's attack, by the same helplessness, the same fear, the same gut-wrenching certainty that she was about to die.

'It-it's going to happen again!'

Her arms began to tremble. Her heart pounded like mad in her chest.

She couldn't breathe.

She felt like she was about to collapse.

In a single instant, all the strength she had gathered since the festival shattered like a bubble.

Her eyes couldn't look away from Hideaki. From his hands. From his face. From that sinister emptiness still lurking deep behind his smile.

"N-no..." she whispered seeing how he looked at the whole thing. "Please... don't..."

She wanted to stay calm. She told herself: 'S-stay calm. Sekiguchi-san is here! He'll protect us! Nothing will happen!'

But her body wouldn't listen.

Her hands trembled, as if she were freezing despite the warm summer.

The attacker hesitated, distracted by the sudden intrusion, and dropped Izumi to the ground.

Her legs trembled beneath her, and her heart raced uncontrollably. She tried to pull the shredded remains of her clothes over herself, but her hands shook too much.

Seiji's sharp, cold gaze swept the scene. Without hesitation, he spoke low and firm: "Stand down you fucked up scoundrel."

The man sneered, but before he could respond, Seiji's punch landed solidly on his jaw, immediately followed by a kick to his stomach. The attacker crumpled, groaning in pain as his butterfly knife clattered onto the pavement.

Seiji moved quickly, efficient. He handcuffed the man to a nearby pipe — (He kept a disposable handcuffs, just in case if Hideaki would suddenly cause chaos on public)

"You're not touching them again," Seiji said coldly as he secured the cuffs. Then he felt a slight pain in his head again.

'Shit... That damn hangover...'

He gazed at the man's hands.

'I hope that this guy doesn't have any Magic Ability.'

He turned to the girls, who were visibly shaken. He took off his jacket and handed it to Izumi, shielding her from further embarrassment. "You're safe now," he said, his voice steady but soft. "Let's get you out of here."

"S- Sekiguchi... -san," Ichiyo stammered, still in shock seeing as their attacker squirmed, focusing all his attention on getting out of the handcuffs.

"He's restrained. You're no longer in danger," Seiji reassured her. His words were calm, but firm - he knew they needed stability.
"We'll report him once we're in a secure spot. For now, follow me. Don't look back."
He guided them forward with a firm hand at their backs, steering them like a unit under fire — calm, but urgent.

As they moved, Seiji glanced over his shoulder at Hideaki, who with a sly smile in his face, remained near the attacker.

Something about his expression made Seiji uneasy. He knew his nature, and he wasn't comfortable leaving him alone with the criminal.

"Hideaki, we need to go," Seiji called out in his usual direct tone.

Hideaki's body was still, but his mind raced - jumbled thoughts flashing through his mind in quick succession. His breath hitched, and for a moment, he appeared as if he might snap. But then, his lips curled into a small, unsettling smile, one that didn't quite reach his eyes. The tension in his shoulders slowly eased as his gaze turned dark.

He couldn't help it.

The thrill of the impending chaos stirred something inside him, something darker that he struggled to suppress right now. And as the moment stretched, his grin widened, a gleam of twisted sadistic glee sparking in his gaze.

"Hideaki." Seiji said more firm "I said we go."

Suddenly, Hideaki's expression darkened, his voice dripping with aggression. "I'm n-not done here." He said while correcting the fabric of his hoodie. The nets were rustling as he moved.

Seiji's eyes narrowed slightly, "There's no need for anything else. The police will handle him. Let's go."

"I SAID I'M NOT DONE!" Hideaki snapped, his voice cold and volatile, making the girls flinch.

Seiji remained unfazed on the outside, though his mind churned. His focus shifted momentarily to the man slumped against the pipe, then to the girls, whose fear was palpable.

'We don't have time for his impulses.'

Seiji took half a step closer to Hideaki, his voice remaining low and controlled.

"Look at them."

He nodded toward the girls.

"They're barely holding it together."

His gaze returned to Hideaki.

"Whatever you're thinking — it stops now."

A moment of silence.

Hideaki clenched his fists tightly, digging his nails into his palm, but he refused to budge.

"I-I said I wasn't finished yet..." he grumbled through gritted teeth.

Seiji noticed this tension and decided to act.

"Hideaki."

He took a step closer.

"Step away."

His tone was neutral, almost tired.

"Now."

His gaze was hard, unblinking.

"This is not a request."

At that moment, Hideaki turned sharply to him, practically hissing with rage. His hands were shaking, and a red aura suddenly emanated from them. Seiji's nose began to bleed at that moment.

Instinctively, Seiji put his elbow to his nose.

"Sekiguchi-san!" Izumi screamed in fear.

"It's okay... Don't worry," Seiji replied calmly.

'Damn... I can't win against him like that...'

Seiji began calculating.

'And I can't divide my attention. Think logically. First, secure the weak points. Then deal with the unpredictable variable.'

He took a slow, controlled breath.

'I'll get them out. Then come back for him.'

He exhaled, the sound barely audible, and kept his voice steady. "Fine. Do what you have to, but make it quick. And without any unnecessary attention. Got it!?"

Hideaki nodded, looking a bit absent minded. Meantime stopped bleeding from Seiji's nose.

Seiji reached his hands to retrieve the nets from Hideaki.

Hideaki gave them away.

As Seiji collected them, his eyes briefly locked with Hideaki's.

A flicker of something unspoken passing between them, before he turned to the girls.

"Let's go."

As Seiji led them away, Izumi turned to him with a question, her voice shaky. "S-Sekiguchi-san why did Miyahara-san stay back there...?"

Seiji didn't want to deepen their fear but needed to reassure them.

"...He's just... tying up loose ends. He'll be back soon."

He spoke with such calm authority that, for a moment, even he almost convinced himself of the lie.

Ichiyo, though, couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.
'H-he's probably gonna kill that man.'  she thought with a fear.