Broken Vow

"Help... Please, help...!" Taiyori cried out.

It was no more than a mere four hours ago since I last saw her. I explicitly remember her wearing a fancy blouse with a skirt and a nice jacket to top it off. Definitely suits her taste.

However, she was now stumbling towards me, her usual confidence having been shattered entirely. The jacket she wore before was gone, so all she had on was her blouse, which... was ripped in some areas, and a skirt, also torn to the point where it revealed a little too much skin.

"P-please..." she gasped as she tripped.

"Taiyori!" I shouted.

I quickly dashed over and caught her before she fell. She weakly opened her eyes to look at me, but the hostility from before wasn't there. Her breath reeks of alcohol, and her cheeks were red all over.

"God, how much did you drink to end up in such a pitiful state?" I muttered.

"Tsuki... That's you, isn't it? Take me... home..." she mumbled.

"What's this? You... Do you know how crazy you look right now?"

She didn't answer. Is she even sober enough to understand my words? One thing's for sure, she isn't sober enough to remember all the things she said to me just a couple of hours ago. Otherwise, she'd be kicking and screaming at me for even laying a finger on her.

That's right. She's drunk right now, which is the only reason that I'm allowed to be this close. Once she sobers up, we'll go back to being 'less than strangers.' For now, I should try distancing myself.

"I would take you home myself, but I'm busy right now," I said. "The dorms are up ahead."

"N-no!" she screamed as she further latched herself onto me. "Don't leave me!"

"What in the world are you doing?!"

"Please. I'm scared. I'm... I'm scared..."

I felt her body shaking intensely as she buried her head in my chest.

"Taiyori...?" I muttered.

Despite her unusual behavior, I couldn't help but think rationally. For her to do this, especially to me... Something's wrong—incredibly wrong.

Taiyori is known to be ruthless, surrendering to nobody, not even to me despite knowing that I'm an assassin. I saw it firsthand. I truly believe that apart from her natural beauty and popular status, her confident disposition is one of the main reasons why she was given such a grandiose title. The 'Belle.'

If anything, people are supposed to fear her, yet her eyes were instilled with that very same fear. No... It was much worse than that. What could possibly force her into such a state? Who would be bold enough? And for what reason?

"Oh, there she is," an unfamiliar voice said.

I tilted my head to see a group of boys trailing down the path. They were all dressed pretty nicely. Did they also come from the Christmas party?

"Ayaka," the guy in the front called out, ignoring my presence. "Come back. Everyone's worried about you after you stormed off like that."

However, Taiyori refused to release her hold on me. Instead, she held me even tighter than before, clawing into my shirt as if refusing to let go.

"Tsuki..." she whispered. "D-don't... Don't leave me... with them..."

"Hey, man!" the boy called for me. "Can you pass her over here?"

"What's your name?" I asked, uninterested in anything more than his identity, for it would be a circumstantial piece of information if he had anything to do with Taiyori's current state.

"Me? I'm Kurobe, Ayaka's friend. Now that you know, let her go so she can come with us."

"Sorry, but I don't think Taiyori is in the best condition to go back to the party."

"That's fine. If she wants, we'll take her back to her dorm room."

"No, I can do that."

I gently pulled Taiyori back, just enough to get a clear look at her face. Despite my earlier resolve to let go, I couldn't just walk away after seeing her like this—drained, worn down, as if the life had been sucked out of her. This didn't happen simply because she had one too many to drink, no... I find that hard to believe. Something else happened to her.

In truth, I have a pretty good idea of what it might be. The way she's acting, the sudden appearance of these guys, and her desperate refusal to go with them... It's hard not to assume the worst. But I'm hoping—praying—that for once... I'm wrong.

"Hey, I take it back. I'll guide you to your dorm room," I said. "Are you ready to go?"

After a few seconds of hesitation, she slowly nodded her head.

"Okay," I whispered gently. "Easy, now."

"Hold up," Kurobe spoke again.

This time, the atmosphere was charged with tension. Their body language had shifted dramatically; they stood with squared shoulders and clenched fists, as if bracing for a confrontation. The expressions on their faces revealed a steely determination, signaling that they weren't going to let us slip away so easily.

"Didn't you hear what I just said?" Kurobe asked. "We're her friends. She asked us to take care of her in case she got drunk."

"Taiyori would never ask someone for a favor," I said. "She's too proud to do something like that, much less carelessly intoxicate herself to this extent. If you truly are her friend as you claim to be, you would know that."

He sighed annoyingly in response. "Look, man. Our relationship is none of your business. Just hand her over, and we'll go our separate ways with no problem."

"I refuse."

"Tch... And here I was thinking we were gonna have a nice and fun night. Finally had her right in front of me, only for some prick to show up and ruin everything. Don't blame me for what's about to happen, buddy. You did this to yourself."

It was then that my suspicions crystallized into a grim reality. Once again, Taiyori was on the verge of enduring something horrendous yet again.

I like to think of myself as one of the more merciful souls among the agents of the Hunt. Yet, the atrocities I've witnessed at the hands of those underworld bastards... It broke me. I've come to realize that I stand among the few in this godforsaken world who recognize the divide between what is unequivocally wrong and what some dismiss as inconsequential.

I've lost control countless times in the past—moments where reason vanished, leaving only a singular, primal urge... to spill blood.

This... this is one of those moments.

"Taiyori," I said sternly as I let her go. "You were very brave. Just relax now. I'll take care of you."

I took a step forward, and the group of boys did the same.

There are six of them, all average height with normal body builds for people their age. They don't look to be carrying concealed weapons, and the overconfident postures were indicative that they have little combat experience.

An empty path, a quiet night. Beneath the darkness of the sky, and no witnesses in sight—a fine night for the Hunt.

"Hey... Kurobe," one of the boys mumbled. "Something doesn't seem right about this guy."

"What are you on about?" Kurobe replied.

"Look, man... His eyes. He's looking at us... like he's genuinely gonna kill us."

"What... You a pussy or something, Taro? He's just trying to act tough. Let's just get this over with so we can get back to the party."

Once upon a time, seven of us stood upon a sea of corpses beneath a blood moon. Some were enemies. Some... were civilians. Among the innocent were fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters. It was on that night when we, assassins who were trained and raised by the Hunt, made a vow to each other.

I took a step forward.

"Never will we endanger the lives of the common people," I whispered.

I took another step forward.

"Never will we involve them in our affairs."

I unrolled the bandage on my left arm.

"Never... will we stain this Earth with the blood of those who are undeserving of our wrath...

And finally, I rolled up the sleeves of my right arm, revealing the scythe tattoo.

"...For the sins of the few outweigh the sins of the many."

We are assassins. What corrupted darkness lies beneath the guise of the light, we pierce by the blade of the Hunt. We are not 'monsters.' We are hunters who seek the lives of those deemed as monsters, but by no means are we to ever hurt the innocent.

The innocent, huh...?

Even the innocent are capable of being monsters, and that was proven just now. White suits or plain shirts, dignified or vulgar, a saint who has sinned is a sinner nonetheless.

That is why tonight, I, Tsuki no Ran of the Hunt, will break that vow. Upon this quiet, elegant night, I will rid this world of the sinners who stand before me.

"Saku, Megumi, Mujihina, Higeki, Ai, Nemui..." I muttered under my breath. "Forgive me."