Kairo's eyes darted frantically from side to side.
His breathing came in shallow bursts as he struggled to make sense of the world around him. The crimson sky loomed overhead like an endless ocean of blood, casting everything beneath it in an eerie scarlet glow. The trees stood perfectly still. No wind stirred the leaves. No birds sang. Even the air itself felt lifeless.
His heart pounded "What is this...?" the silence was unbearable; he slowly raised a trembling hand and pressed it against his chest his heartbeat was real; his breathing was real. The rough bark of a nearby tree scraped against his fingertips "...Am I dead?" he whispered the words disappeared into the empty world without an echo. Kairo swallowed hard. No... this didn't feel like death his senses told him otherwise.
The ground beneath his feet was solid. The cold air brushed against his skin. Every sound of his own breathing rang painfully clear inside his ears.
This is real, or at least... it felt real, his thoughts raced.
"How did I get here?" he forced himself to calm down.
Think... he closed his eyes for only a second, retracing every memory he could, he remembered walking beneath the trees, Rina had been laughing at something Zai had said, he had been following behind them; then... His eyes snapped open.
The voice... someone had called his name.
"Kairo..."
A sharp pain shot through his head "Urgh..." he staggered back, clutching his temple, the memory ended there, before he could gather another thought...
Crunch.
A footstep, Kairo's head whipped toward the sound, someone was approaching.
A lone figure emerged from between the motionless trees, he wore a black, tattered cloak that swayed gently despite the windless forest. Dark hair, tied neatly behind his head, spilled over his shoulders. His face remained hidden beneath layers of cloth, revealing almost nothing except an unsettling calm.
Step.
Step.
Step.
He continued walking toward Kairo without hesitation, every instinct in Kairo's body screamed danger, his muscles tensed as he slowly backed away "W-Was it you?" Kairo called out.
No response.
"Did you bring me here?"
Silence.
"Who are you?"
The man continued walking; not fast, not slow, just... closer.
Kairo planted one foot behind the other, unconsciously lowering his center of gravity. His fists rose instinctively, every nerve in his body urged him to prepare.
The cloaked man finally spoke; his voice was calm, almost bored "...I wonder." he tilted his head slightly "If I torture you a little...will he finally show himself?"
Kairo frowned "What are you talking about?"
"Who are you talking about?"
The man answered with action instead, his hand slipped beneath his cloak, steel slid free with a low metallic rasp, Kairo's pupils shrank.
A sword.
Unlike anything he had ever seen, its blade twisted into jagged zigzag patterns, resembling a bolt of lightning frozen into solid steel, the weapon looked unnaturally Wrong. The cloaked man lowered himself into a stance, one foot shifted, the blade angled toward Kairo.
Silence swallowed the forest, Kairo's eyes instinctively dropped to the man's feet.
Something felt... Off,
Then, the ground exploded beneath the man's step.
He vanished.
"What?!"
Kairo's instincts took over, without thinking, he threw himself sideways.
SHRAAAK!!
The zigzag blade tore through the massive tree where he had been standing only a heartbeat earlier, the trunk split cleanly in half, for a brief moment, nothing happened.
Then...
CRAAACK...
The enormous tree slowly leaned before crashing into the earth with a deafening roar, dust erupted into the air, Kairo lay frozen on the ground, his breathing stopped, his eyes widened as they followed the fallen tree.
"If I hadn't moved..." his body trembled "I'd be dead."
The cloaked man glanced at the fallen tree before casually inspecting his sword "...Nice instincts." his voice carried no excitement, only mild curiosity. Kairo slowly pushed himself backward, his heartbeat thundered inside his ears.
The man moved again, this time Kairo saw it, a slight shift of his shoulder, the tightening of his grip.
He jumped.
BOOM!!
The sword slammed into the earth, the impact alone unleashed a violent shockwave, Kairo was thrown through the air before he even understood what had happened.
"GAH!"
His back slammed into another tree, the force knocked the air from his lungs, he collapsed onto one knee, coughing violently, pain spread through his spine, his vision blurred, the cloaked man didn't pursue immediately, he simply watched.
Almost...patiently.
Back in the real world...
"Kairo!" Rina's voice trembled as she shook the unconscious boy, "Kairo! Wake up!" there was no response, tis breathing remained steady, this heartbeat continued. Yet his body refused to move, Zai stepped beside her, his expression unusually grim "He's not dead."
Rina looked up hopefully.
"...At least not yet." the hope vanished from her face.
"What do you mean?"
Zai knelt beside Kairo, placing two fingers lightly against the boy's neck "...He's in a suspended unconscious state." his eyes narrowed "I know only one person capable of doing this."
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Rina's breathing quickened "What's happening to him?"
"We're running out of time." Zai stood as he spoke, he began unbuttoning his shirt "We have to move before it gets worse."
Rina stared at him in confusion "Move? Zai... what is going on?"
Without answering immediately, he removed his shirt completely, revealing countless scars etched across his back and shoulders "Kairo's soul..." his voice was quiet "...has been dragged into Dreamhell."
Rina blinked "...Dreamhell?"
"It is a forbidden technique." he picked up his shirt and wrapped it around his waist "A sound-based technique.... If the user calls their victim's name
...and the victim responds or turns toward the voice..."
"...their soul is dragged into Dreamhell."
Rina's face paled "But...why Kairo?... Why would anyone target him?"
For the first time— Zai hesitated, then he looked directly into her eyes"...They didn't."
Silence.
"Kairo isn't the target."
Rina's lips parted "What...?"
"He's bait." Zai's voice remained calm "He's trying to draw me out."
The words struck harder than any blade, Rina's shoulders trembled "So... this happened because of you?"
Zai slowly closed his eyes"...Yes."
Tears welled in Rina's eyes
"But I swear to you..." he looked back at the unconscious boy "...I'll bring him back."
Back in dreamhell
Kairo sprinted through the crimson forest, branches whipped past his face, his breathing had become ragged, sweat dripped from his forehead "What is wrong with this place?!" he darted behind another tree and pressed his back against the trunk; his chest rose and fell rapidly
"This is the last time I ever travel with Big Sis..."
"First the train attack... Now I've got some psychopath trying to kill me." he cautiously leaned around the tree Where is he...?
Nothing.
Only endless crimson trees, Kairo exhaled quietly "...Maybe I lost"
"Looking for someone?" the voice came from above.
Kairo froze, his heart nearly stopped, very slowly... he lifted his head, the cloaked man sat casually atop a thick branch directly above him, one leg dangled lazily over the side.
His sword rested across his shoulders, though most of his face remained hidden beneath cloth, Kairo could feel the faint smile beneath it, for a heartbeat, neither of them moved.
Then instinct screamed.
RUN.
Kairo spun around and bolted into the forest, he didn't dare look back, the trees blurred together as panic overtook him, then... far ahead, something emerged between the crimson trunks, stone steps, ancient gates... A weathered shrine stood alone beneath the blood-red sky, hope flickered inside Kairo's chest, without slowing down...he ran straight toward...
The forest fell silent once more.
Back in the real world....
Zai knelt beside Kairo's unconscious body, without a word, he reached down and traced symbols into the dirt with his fingertips. The lines curved and intersected with practiced precision, forming an intricate circular diagram unlike any language Rina had ever seen, he carefully lifted Kairo and laid him in the center, the final line completed the circle.
Zai lowered himself opposite Kairo and crossed his legs. Bringing his hands together, he pressed his index fingers against one another in a solemn prayer.
Rina stood several steps away, her eyes red with tears "...Zai."
He opened one eye "Watch over our bodies."
"Our... bodies?"
"Whatever happens," he said calmly, "don't let either of us leave this diagram."
Rina stared at him "What are you going to do?"
Zai closed his eyes once more "There are things you need to understand." his voice remained steady despite the urgency.
"Once Dreamhell takes hold, the victim's soul is pulled out through an artificial Soul Gate while the body falls into a deathlike sleep." he glanced toward Kairo.
"Their consciousness remains alive inside Dreamhell. Every wound suffered there is inflicted directly upon the soul."
Silence followed.
"If the soul dies inside that realm.... the body here will never wake again."
Rina's breathing caught.
Zai slowly inhaled "I'm going after him."
Her eyes widened "W-What? How?"
"Once I complete this ritual, I'll force my own soul from my body and pass through the Soul Gates." he rested a hand against his chest.
"From the Interspiritual Plane, my Seikon Thread will guide me to the Dreamhell Gate."
His expression remained composed "Once I enter..."
"...my body here will collapse... but my soul will fight beside Kairo's."
Rina's lips trembled "...Is it dangerous?"
"The longer I remain inside Dreamhell...the more the realm attempts to trap my soul." His gaze settled upon the unconscious boy "If I fail to bring him back quickly..."
"...neither of us will return."
The weight of those words struck Rina harder than she expected, she lowered her head.
"...I understand."
A faint smile crossed Zai's face "Thank you."
He raised his hand to his mouth, without hesitation— He bit the tip of his finger, blood welled from the wound, one crimson drop fell onto the center of the diagram, the instant it touched, the blood raced through every carved line like liquid fire. The entire pattern ignited, a deafening rumble shook the ground, sand burst upward around the circle, spiraling violently into the air.
"NOW!" Zai shouted.
Rina instinctively stepped backward as the whirlwind of sand swallowed both Kairo and Zai from the waist down.
The storm intensified, the symbols glowed brilliantly.
Then—
Everything stopped, the sand fell quietly back to the earth, the light disappeared. Silence returned, Zai's body slumped forward, completely lifeless.
Back in Dreamhell.
Kairo crouched behind the weathered fence surrounding the shrine, his breathing refused to slow, sweat dripped from his chin onto the crimson soil below, he cautiously peeked through a narrow gap, the cloaked man emerged from between the trees.
Each step echoed across the empty shrine grounds "...Looks like he isn't coming."
His voice carried effortlessly through the silence "I was beginning to think he'd appear by now."
He stopped several meters away; a sigh escaped beneath the cloth covering his face
"...Perhaps I haven't hurt you enough."
Kairo's heart pounded "What...?"
The man slowly lifted his sword; the twisted blade reflected the crimson sky, he raised his free hand and gently slid his fingers across the steel as though greeting an old companion, his voice became almost ceremonial.
His fingertips reached the base of the blade.
"...Ėki." the moment the name left his lips, an eye opened; a human eye, it emerged directly from the surface of the sword near the hilt, blinking once before fixing its unsettling gaze ahead.
Kairo's blood ran cold "What... is that...?"
Instinct screamed.
He immediately backed away from the fence and sprinted toward another section of the shrine, the cloaked man merely watched.
Then.....
He swung, a single slash cut through empty air, the blade never reached Kairo, it didn't have to.
BOOOOOOM!!
A colossal shockwave exploded forward, the shrine fence disintegrated instantly, wood shattered into countless splinters, the ground cracked beneath the force. Kairo threw himself aside just before the blast swallowed his hiding place, the shockwave hurled debris across the shrine grounds, he crashed behind another broken section of fencing, coughing violently.
"...Damn it..." his entire body shook "I'm... not dying here." his fists tightened.
"There has to be a way out..." Slowly... Carefully... He lifted his head, the cloaked man continued walking toward him; unhurried, unstoppable.
Kairo swallowed "What do you even want from me?!"
No answer.
"You attack people for no reason?"
The man finally stopped "...I'm waiting."
Kairo frowned. "...Waiting?"
"...For him."
Confusion filled Kairo's face "Him...?"
Elsewhere... Between existence and death.
Zai opened his eyes within the endless darkness of the Interspiritual Plane.
There was no sky. No ground. Only silence stretching into the dark
He slowly closed his eyes once more.
"Third Eye..."
He opened them once more; the black of his irises had vanished, in their place remained only a pair of pale white eyes, glowing faintly within the darkness. As his Third Eye awakened, the endless void transformed. Hidden spiritual currents emerged, and countless threads of light stretched across the Interspiritual Plane, revealing paths that ordinary sight could never perceive.
Countless streams of spiritual light appeared before him, weaving through the void like invisible pathways. Among them, a single silver Seikon Thread extended from his soul, leading toward Kairo's Soul Gates, without hesitation, Zai followed it, no sky, no earth.
Three enormous gates stood suspended within the darkness, the first radiated absolute stillness, the Gate of Final Death, beyond it lay the afterlife, the second glowed with gentle warmth, the Gate of Return, the path back to the living world, between them...A third gate pulsed with an unnatural crimson light.
Dreamhell.
Unlike the others, chains wrapped tightly around its frame, binding it shut as though imprisoning an entire world beyond its doors.
Zai's Seikon Thread stretched directly toward it.
"...Found you." He stepped forward, the moment his hand reached toward the chained gate
Zai's soul felt another presence in the interspiritual plane, it was not the first, second or the third gate, it wasn't evil.
Evil was a word created by humans; Small enough to be understood.
This was something beyond it.
The instant of its presence every instinct begged for death rather than awareness.
Thoughts fractured. heartbeat forgot its rhythm.
Even breathing felt like an act of defiance against something that existed far above life itself.
Its eyes remained wide open, staring directly into the soul.
An indescribable presence descended upon him.
It was beyond evil, beyond fear.
Every instinct begged for death over existing beneath its gaze.
It never moved.
It simply watched, making one truth painfully clear...
It was an existence forever beyond mortal reach. In short; it was like gazing into an endless abyss that gazed back.
Zai's body felt a violent chill raced through him.
Every instinct screamed that whatever stood gazing above this interspiritual plane was not something a human was ever meant to witness, before that unbearable gaze could consume him, his Seikon Thread suddenly pulled him forward, he chained crimson gate burst open, darkness swallowed him whole.
Zai entered Dreamhell.