The parasyte among us

Pov- Natsuki 

"I slowed the flow of time for twenty-four seconds, so move instead of just standing there!"

Kuroyuki's voice rang through my mind with such force that a wave of pain shot through my skull. She was right. I couldn't stay frozen while my life hung by a thread. Taking advantage of this suspended world, I stepped swiftly to the left and wrenched the knife from my attacker's hand.

The moment my fingers closed around the weapon, time resumed its frantic course.
The attacker, carried by his own momentum, slammed into the wall with brutal force.

 Okina let out a long sigh of relief.

"How did you do that?" she murmured, scratching her head in disbelief. "It looked like you were moving at superhuman speed."

I said nothing, aware that it was a visual effect of Kuroyuki's power. But the reprieve was short-lived. The stranger charged again, fist raised. I leveled the knife at him, arm steady.

"Listen! We're just investigating Fukuda — nothing else!"

He froze, fixing me with obvious contempt before letting out a bitter laugh.

"And why would I believe you, huh?"
My hands were sweating. I pulled out my phone and hurriedly launched the Sakkaku app.

"Look! There's no need to kill each other — I'm Inspector rank."

The attacker crossed his arms, his bloodshot eyes staring at the screen with disdain.

"A phone? You think I'm an idiot? Anyone can pick up a dead man's phone and impersonate a high-ranking officer. That's how Fukuda got played... He believed some girl just because she called herself an Inspector. He went up to that roof and never came back down."

A drop of sweat ran down my temple. I shot a desperate glance at Okina.
(Hey, do your job... I'm completely hopeless at lying!)

Okina sighed, tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and stepped forward with a nonchalant air. 

A confident, almost infuriating smile spread across her lips.

"Such mistrust... You're making a fatal mistake, big guy. Do you really think the Sakkaku System is just an app?"

She twirled her camera between her fingers with fascinating dexterity.

"Natsuki doesn't need to show you his screen. Look at his eyes when he activates his Inspector permissions. Don't you see that bluish reflection? Oh, right... only another ranked officer can see it."She closed the distance until he was visibly uncomfortable.

"I'm the official photographer of the Sakkaku World. If you lay a single finger on this Inspector, your face will be sent on 'Priority Red' to Erisvelle herself."
I stood there, pale, watching her performance.

 (What a professional liar...)

She then pulled a photo from her pocket — a blurry image of the staircase leading to the roof — and waved it under his nose.

"And this — what do you make of it?"

"Are you messing with me?" he growled.

Okina burst out laughing, clutching her side slightly before regaining her composure.
"Look carefully at the left side of the staircase..."

The man narrowed his eyes. Suddenly, they widened.
"Wait... those are my shoes."
"Bingo," Okina murmured.

Just then, a flood of students poured out of the classroom, drawn by the commotion. Around twenty shocked faces surrounded us.
"HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE? HE WAS WITH US!" they cried in unison.
The man sighed, shooting Okina a withering look.

"I only went to check if he was okay!"
"Who's to say you didn't have time to kill him?"

 I cut in — then fell immediately silent under Okina's threatening glare.

"I suppose we'll hear your alibi, then..." she began.

"My name is Tobe Kunio," he said with a sigh. 

"After P.E., Hoiri was summoned by Vice President Bloom Kagayaku. That's when everything happened. We didn't know what to do if our classmate had become a Parasite..."

He clenched his fists, his voice trembling with emotion.

"There was this girl Fukuda always talked about. He wanted to confess his feelings to her. He had this blissful smile, like he was about to accomplish something great. Once he went up there, I followed... and I saw her — that girl with her Youkai mask."

Silence fell over the hallway. I closed my eyes, the puzzle pieces assembling in my mind.

"Wait a moment!" I exclaimed. 

"That girl... it's Preacher Lapis-Lazuli, isn't it?"

Tobe lowered his eyes, a quiet rage radiating from him.

"Yes. That's her... The Absolute Supremacy."

"It seems you know nothing about that title," Okina sighed, noticing my puzzled expression. 

"The system assigns titles linked to our 'Aura.' The higher the title, the greater the impact on others."

I clapped my hands to refocus the discussion.

"Back to the subject. Tobe, you were all in P.E. class — is that right?"

Everyone nodded.

"So what?" asked one of the students.

"So... there's a major contradiction with Okina's photo."
Okina crossed her arms, stung.

"And where exactly is this so-called contradiction?"
I sighed inwardly. 

(She really doesn't see the signals...)

"Okina, think back to the photo you took of Hoiri earlier. What was on his shoes?"

Her eyes widened. She snapped her fingers.
"Gym chalk..."

"Exactly. And yet the shoes in the rooftop photo are spotless. A little too clean for someone who just came back from an intense P.E. session, don't you think?"

A murmur rippled through the crowd. Tobe added in a low voice:
"We were all in P.E."
"Except Kaede and Ogino. They were both absent today."

Why would either of them hate Fukuda enough to kill him? Were they also in love with the mysterious Preacher Lapis-Lazuli? The questions piled up in my mind faster than the answers. 

I had the uncomfortable feeling of having become the protagonist of a crime novel whose rules I didn't know.

"Well, Natsuki, it seems we have two new suspects," Okina said.

The sound of unhurried footsteps cut our reflection short. Takano was walking toward us, a white paper bag in hand and his usual detached air.

"I got what you asked for," he said quietly.
The other students eyed the bag with obvious suspicion. I didn't give them time to ask questions.

"Good. Let's go. Okina, I'll meet you later at the school entrance."

She acknowledged with a simple nod. I followed Takano, feeling the weight of the students' stares pressing on our backs until we reached the rooftop. 

Once there, he tossed me an apple with a fluid gesture.

"Finally, I needed that... Wait, what's this color?" 

I asked, examining the fruit.

The apple bore an unnatural violet hue, identical to the Sakkaku System's interface.

"It's the best I could find," he replied with a shrug.

A cool breeze picked up, making our hair dance. The pool of blood had disappeared, and Fukuda's body with it, leaving the rooftop strangely empty.

"By the way, why did you suspect me this morning?" he asked suddenly.

I leaned against the wall, crossing my arms.
"I didn't really suspect you..."

"What?!"

I fixed him with a penetrating look.
"We've known each other since childhood, Takano. I know your reactions by heart. So tell me: what was there between you and her?"

He let out a bitter laugh, eyes fixed on the horizon as he nervously scratched the back of his neck.

"You really are sharp — that almost surprises me coming from you... To answer your question, she was a very old friend. After you, of course."

"I see. So you had feelings for Hoiri..."

He didn't deny it, simply nodding in silence toward the city skyline.

"You're not the only one," I said gently.

 "Fukuda also had a crush on a girl. His expression went from a blissful smile to a horrified face the moment he was found."

Takano remained thoughtful, a long sigh escaping his lips as I finished my apple. I then climbed up onto the railing, overlooking the void below.

"Aren't you afraid of falling?" he asked with concern.

"The clothes made by Erisvelle are supposed to physically reinforce us, right?"
He grunted slightly, a look of mild irritation crossing his face.

"So it seems... Feelings have become deadly weapons in this new world."

I said nothing, because he was right. Glancing down, I spotted Okina's silhouette impatiently pacing at the school's main entrance.

"I think she's waiting for you," Takano noted.

"Yeah, I'm going!"
I leapt into the void without hesitation. The impact on the ground was barely perceptible, absorbed by the fibers of my outfit. So this was the effectiveness of the equipment in this world...

"You took your time..." Okina said, placing her hands on her hips, her camera swaying with her impatient steps.

"Sorry. Where are the others?" I asked, falling into step beside her.

She twirled a strand of hair, visibly annoyed.

"While you were taking a lunch break, I was busy restoring enough courage to the group so they could go home without having a panic attack."

"I see. Where are we with the clues?"

She shot me a look of absolute condescension, as though the answer were written on my forehead.

"Check the app, Natsuki. I'm tired of having to remind you."

I rubbed the back of my head, a little sheepish.

"Well... I suppose there's nothing more for us to do here for now."

We began walking back toward our respective homes. Around us, life continued its strange course. Passersby went about their daily quests amid the deafening noise of cars.

 Despite the chaos of the Sakkaku System, everyone was striving to maintain some semblance of normalcy.

"By the way, Natsuki..." she began, her voice turning suddenly low and honeyed.

 "You still haven't explained how you suddenly became so fast on the rooftop."

"You know that Erisvelle's clothes boost our abilities, right?" I tried to deflect.

"Oh, do they~?"

That soft tone... those eyes curved in a smile... it was the alarm signal. Okina was about to strike. She pulled out her camera and turned the screen toward me. My eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"When did you take that..." I stammered.

"Your reaction makes you even more suspicious, Inspector. What are you hiding behind your collar?"

On the screen, my profile was displayed with all my stats — but an anomaly was blinking just above my shoulder. A sort of second presence that even Okina's lens couldn't stabilize. A label simply read: [ ??? ].
Silence fell, heavy. I knew Okina wouldn't settle for a clumsy lie. I had to strike where it hurt: her equipment.

"Okina, you're the official photographer, aren't you? Then you should know the basics of security protocol,"

 I began in an icy tone.

She frowned, caught off guard by my sudden confidence.

"I'm Inspector rank," I continued, stepping closer to look down at her. 

"The system encrypts my data to prevent Parasites from hacking my abilities. What you're seeing is my biometric firewall."

I paused, letting the threat hang in the air.

"A word of advice: don't try to force-render that image. If the system detects an intrusion attempt on a high-ranking officer, your camera will be fried by Erisvelle before you can even say 'cheese.' Are you ready to lose your equipment just to satisfy a curiosity that's none of your business?"

Okina stayed still, her finger frozen on the shutter. For a few seconds, time seemed to stop. Then, she finally tucked her precious camera back into its case with a small, nervous laugh.

"You've got nerve, threatening me... I'll give you the benefit of the doubt this time. But don't think I'll stop watching you."

(Wait... she actually swallowed all of that?)

She began heading home, then stopped for a moment and tossed me a smile.

"Oh, by the way — the fact that you tried to bluff to protect that secret just proves how important it is. So be careful with it..."

(Of course she didn't buy it...)

And with that, she went on her way, leaving me alone in the middle of the passersby, who had been watching us with puzzled looks throughout the entire exchange.

(I can't believe she had me completely flustered...!)

I didn't respond and continued on my way, back drenched in sweat, feeling Kuroyuki wriggling in the shadow of my collar.

I walked with my hands in my pockets, gaze lost on the pavement. I had nothing left to do at the crime scene. Arriving home, the silence of the apartment greeted me. I closed the door behind me and let out a long sigh of relief, as though I had just escaped an execution.

"You really are a terrible liar, Natsuki..." said a familiar voice.

Kuroyuki slipped out from my collar and instantly returned to her full size. She hovered a few centimetres above the floor, arrogantly defying the laws of gravity.

 Behind her, the enormous pocket watch that never left her side resumed its metronomic ticking.

"I'm just a sincere human being, that's all," I replied simply, heading to the kitchen to calm my nerves.

She followed me, her Blue eyes glimmering with a mocking light. She crossed her slender arms over her chest.

"Humans have been liars since their very first breath — ever since they were separated from the Celestial."

"What do you know about it? You've only been here for a week," I grumbled, opening the fridge.

"I simply know things you don't!"

I spun around abruptly, irritation getting the better of me:
"Oh, of course — all-knowing Celestial Lady! Then why, with all that knowledge, couldn't you contain Erisvelle, HUH?"

Kuroyuki froze. She ground her teeth, her aura shimmering nervously.

"Simply because I was deceived! Unlike you, who accept your fate like common pawns!"

"Oh really?! And what exactly have you done to help us avoid that fate? Nothing at all! You only act occasionally — the rest of the time you're as silent as a rock!"

It was the first time we had argued with such intensity. Kuroyuki clenched her fists, her voice dropping a notch, laden with a bitterness I had never heard from her before.

"It's not for lack of wanting, Natsuki... It's just that I'm incapable of maintaining my form full-time."

She stared at the palms of her hands with a kind of infinite sadness.

"The Sakkaku System drains my energy with every breath I take in this sealed world."

I stood speechless. She was truly not good at admitting her weaknesses, but what she had just said was terrifying. She was literally depleting herself to remain by my side.

"But... how are you still maintaining your power, then?" I asked, my anger having evaporated.

She gave me a look of almost reassuring condescension.

"I am a Celestial. I am made of pure energy. I lose energy, but I don't drain instantly. However, if I were to reach absolute zero... I would simply cease to exist."

Just as I was about to ask her about her origins, she froze abruptly. Her expression changed completely.

"Do you hear that...?"
"Huh? What?"
"There's a sort of snoring coming from your bedroom."
A shiver ran down my spine.

"That's impossible — I came home alone!"

Kuroyuki didn't even bother answering and glided toward my bedroom. I followed close behind, heart pounding. Stepping inside, I froze. On my bed, a human shape was outlined beneath the sheets. Someone was there, fast asleep in my own sanctuary.
Had I been followed? Or was the nightmare only just beginning?