Powerless Against the Darkness

The nine candidates stepped into the Darkness Zone.

Rei felt it instantly, a tightness in his chest. Not pain. Just a sharp, creeping unease.

The forest swallowed the light behind them, violently, yet quietly.

Too quiet.

It felt like death: No light. No sound. No movement.

Only the fairies showed signs of life.

Trapped inside the lantern, dozens of small lights cut weak lines through the dark. Their glow pulsed unevenly, like tiny hearts still beating.

In this endless darkness, they were like a lighthouse, guiding them forward.

“It’s creepy,” Rei whispered, his chest tightening. “But as long as we’ve got the fairies, we should be fine.”

H scanned the darkness around him, then looked at Lumi.

“Do you know where your queen lost her medallion?”

“Not exactly. But we’ll find it on the way”

She spun lightly, smiling with quiet confidence. Seeing her smile, Rei felt a small weight lift from his chest.

They kept moving forward, silent and careful.

Watching.

Then Lumi floated out of his pocket, her light brushing his face

Rei froze.

“Lumi, what’s wrong?”

The fairy fluttered in place, visibly excited, wings beating faster than usual. Then she turned sharply and pointed into the darkness, off the main path.

“It’s there, I can feel it.”

Inside the lantern, the fairies pressed against the glass, their lights swaying in the same direction.

Rei’s jaw tightened as he lifted the lantern.

“Alright, Let’s take a closer look”

His friends stepped forward as well, ready to follow him.

“Then let’s go.” Itsuki said , calm as usual

Rei raised a hand.

“No. I’ll go alone. I have the most fairies. It’s safer.”

Akira frowned.

“But what if something attacked you?”

“Sarutobi said there nothing here. You don’t have to worry. I’ll be quick, I promise” Rei replied big smiled

Itsuki quiet like he was thinking then,

“Be careful.”

Rei nodded.

He turned toward the deepest part of the forest, Lumi drifting beside him while Akira and Itsuki stayed on the main path.

The lantern at his side glowed steadily, pushing the darkness back. Rei scanned the forest, eyes sharp, searching for the medallion.

Roots, trees, the narrow path ahead—everything lay bare under the light.

But not medallion.

Then, inside the lantern, the fairies flitted to the right, their tiny wings beating fast, lights wobbling with excitement.

“There … it’s there … on the ground”

He stepped forward, careful.

There it lay: a dark metal frame with a green stone, old and worn, pulsing faintly, like it was breathing.

He knelt and lifted it, feeling its weight in his hands.

The fairies burst into chatter, their lights flaring brighter, dancing around him like sparks.

“That’s it! You found it! The Queen’s medallion!”

“Now she can finally be safe!”

Rei let out a small laugh, shoulders loosening.

“That was fast,” he murmured.

He straightened, sliding the medallion into his pocket, adjusting his grip on the lantern.

“Alright, Let’s go back to the main path.”

He turned.

A sudden wall of fire tore through the air.

Rei ducked just in time, feeling the heat brush past where his head had been a heartbeat ago.

The forest lit up in orange for an instant. Then someone stepped out of the fire.

Rei froze, chest hammering, eyes wide.

“You? … Why are you attacking me?” he shouted, his voice trembling.

“Call me Enma, The Flame Demon” the man said, voice filled with pride.

His gaze locked onto Rei, eyes burned with fury.

“You!” he shouted, flames crawling up his arms.

“You humiliated me, you stole my fairies, then catch all of them. I will killed you”

Rei’s legs pumped instinctively, chest tight, fairies trapped in the lantern screaming around him. He pressed it to his chest like a shield, teeth gritted.

“Don’t worry… as I promised… I’ll protect you.”

“Kaitsuki!” Rei shouted.

The rabbit burst out of the hat, launching a burst of fire but honestly, not the smartest move against a fire user!

Enma laughed.

“Fire? Against me?”

Rei switched tactics, flinging his beads with a sharp motion as he sprinted forward but nothing hit.

Fire and smoke fizzled out, useless against Enma.

Light and sound erupted, sparks and flashes dancing for a heartbeat… then vanished, leaving nothing but silence, as if they had never existed.

Rei crashed to the forest floor, chest slamming into the dirt.

Enma loomed over him, a cruel grin spreading across his face.

“Is that all you’ve got?”

One foot pressed into Rei’s back, pinning him, unyielding.

“I don’t even understand how someone like you got this far.”

Rei twisted, struggling, trying to rise but the ground burned against him.

Suddenly, flames erupted from the earth, coiling around his arms and legs like living chains.

He couldn’t move.

A small glow shot out from his pocket. Lumi. She darted forward, a burst of light aimed at the fire mage.

Too slow.

Flames surged around her. Then Enma’s hand snatched her mid-air, eyes blazing with fury.

“All of this, is your fault!” he shouted.

Rei thrashed, chest heaving, voice cracking.

“No! Stop! Don’t hurt her! It’s my fault… I’m sorry!”

“Hum? Hurt? Fairies are tools. Nothing more,” Enma said, cold, calm, cruel.

He leaned down, eyes locked on Rei.

“And you should worry about yourself.”

With a smooth, almost casual motion, Enma snatched Rei’s lantern. The fairies trapped inside screamed, lights flashing wildly, panic spilling through every corner of the glass.

“Let’s see how you’ll get out without your precious fairies” he sneered.

Then he melted into the shadows, lantern in hand, leaving Rei alone in the dark.

A moment later, the chains around Rei dissolved.

He pushed himself up, chest pounding, legs shaking and sprinted after the lantern.

But with every step, the forest grew darker, swallowing the path ahead, until only blackness surrounded him.

He stopped, pressing his back against a tree.

“It’s okay… I have a flashlight,” he whispered, trying to steady his breathing.

Click.

Light burst out … then flickered.

Once.

Twice.

And died.

Rei frowned, shaking it, tapping it lightly against his palm.

Click.

Nothing.

The darkness didn’t change.

“That’s weird… it should have been charged,” Rei muttered, brow furrowed.

He exhaled slowly, forcing calm.

“Okay. No problem. I have a lighter”

But the same thing happened , the flame flickered… then vanished.

“Seriously? Why all my stuff stops working NOW?”

He slid on his VR goggles, tiny lamps blinking on either side.

“Kaitsuki, guide me.” he said, voice firm,

Static.

“Sorry, Master,” the rabbit stuttered, voice glitching, “I can’t see anything. I can’t…”

Silence

“Kaitsuki… Kaitsuki, are you still there?” Rei’s voice cracked, rising in panic.

But nothing. Just silence.

His stomach twisted as he realized he was alone in the darkness, powerless.

“Without the fairies and my gadgets, It’s hopeless.”

He pressed his back against a tree, trying to catch his breath.

No. Wait. Panic won’t help. He forced himself to breathe, to calm down, and think.

Every problem has a solution, he just had to find it.

Then a thought struck him. If he couldn’t use his gadgets… he’d have to rely on his senses.

Hands out, he traced the rough bark of the tree, feeling his way forward.

Okay… okay. I can do this. Just… follow the trees and walk straight.

He strained his ears, trying to catch the faintest sound of the others.

Nothing.

“I’m probably still too far,” he whispered. “I just need to keep moving.”

But the deeper he went, the heavier the darkness pressed around him.

Slowly, the ground beneath him felt wrong, shifting under his steps. Roots seemed to vanish. The bark of trees grew distant under his fingers.

Even the air thinned, fading around him, as if the forest itself were dissolving.

This wasn’t normal darkness.

It swallowed him, alive, like the zone itself was a creature, a yokai that devours everything in its path.

Light. Sound. Even technology. Nothing survived its mouth.

The thought hit him cold.

The fairies weren’t just lights, they were guides. Without them… he had no chance.

Rei clenched his jaw.

This was just a shortcut, a bonus trial. He should’ve waited, chosen the safer path.

Regret rose, but he crushed it immediately. After all, regret wouldn’t save him. Fear wouldn’t either.

He forced his legs forward.

But it was too late. The ground vanished beneath him, his balance betrayed. The air vanished too, even his heartbeat felt distant.

The only thing left were his thoughts… and they scattered like leaves in a storm.

Where am I going?

Even if the crystal was right in front of me… I wouldn’t see it.

His breathing tightened, then Rei stumbled or fell. He couldn’t tell .

Eyes open? Closed? Standing? Lying?

Now, he couldn’t feel anything.

No light. No sound. No touch.

Am I… dead?

Tears came, even if he didn’t feel them. Then thoughts splintered, drifting like whispers.

I… I was so arrogant… thinking I could win a magic tournament, with gadgets alone…

Apologies tumbled out, broken, scattered:

Mom… I’m sorry. I couldn’t save you.

The fairies… I failed you…

Enshin… sorry… I wasn’t the hero you wanted…

Akira…

Itsuki…

I…

…

Words dissolved. Energy drained.

The Darkness swallowed everything… even the last fragments of his mind.