twst novel. ( episode i: the crimson tyrant ) pg. 1-32

[mandytl]

Ah, my loveliest highness… 

Dignified in all your nobility, a most wicked flower.

You are truly the fairest of them all.

──Mirror, mirror on the wall, reveal this to me.

Of all this world, who is… 

A curl of smoke as thick as storm clouds rose from a mountain of rubble,  drowning out the sky.

 

Everything had either been consumed by fire or had collapsed in the tempest. All that remained amidst the ruins were the iron-framed windows, dangling about lifelessly like withered stems. Countless fine cracks ran from the trees through to the foundation below. For this place no longer held any semblance of its former majesty; anything that had ever been was merely an illusion. In truth, it had been a wasteland from the very start. 

 

The devastation was much easier to accept having said that.

 

As ash and smoke went roaring past, the wind whipped up pebbles and shards of glass that nicked my skin all over. My eyes tried to shut against it, but I forced them open and looked ahead.

 

The first thing I saw were those azure flames, scattering sparks and flecks of flaming ash as they swayed and licked at the air.

 

As I peered deeper into the fire, a pair of flashing eyes stared back at me. A nose jut out and gave a heavy puff before a fang the size of my face appeared. The beast before me was so gigantic that I couldn’t take it all in even if I tilted my head back far enough to snap my neck. 

 

That’s when my face contorted in horror and I screamed. 

 

“GYAAAAAAAH!”

 

Something moved in my peripheral vision. A person, but not alone. Several people in black robes stood in every direction upon the scorched earth, hoods covering their faces as they urgently shouted who knows what. 

 

I couldn't hear a single word. The beast opened its gaping maw and my legs threatened to give way once more, but not even its earth-shaking howl could reach me.

 

Someone was whispering more profoundly in the back of my mind.

 

For me. For them. For yourself.

We all have very little time left.

So keep that grip steady, and never let go──

 

 

PROLOGUE　　Welcome to the Villains' world

 

 

“… !” 

 

A robed figure reached towards me.

 

I had to take their hand. I felt it before I even understood why. So why was it that I couldn’t seem to move a single finger?

 

The beast before me just grinned.

 

 

“Nyahah.”

 

Kuroki Yuuya realized right away that something was wrong. What was that noise?  

 

“Nyahah, nyahahaha! Now, eeny, meeny, miny, moe…” 

 

Whoever they were, they sounded merry enough — if not a little dense — with the way they were obviously humming to themself with a smile. Listening to their carefree tune was exhausting. Even worse, Yuuya’s whole body felt like death warmed over.

 

There wasn’t a sense of tension whatsoever. Yuuya contemplated how the mood had done a total reversal from earlier, where, you know, just a moment ago— … uh. What had happened again?

 

Something dreadful. Something miserable. He could remember the sensations, but not quite what  all of it meant. The more he tried to trail his fingers through the details, the more everything blurred together like a sand castle crumbling beneath the incoming tide. Everything was forgotten in an instant.

 

Dreams were usually like that, right? Right. Now and then were both dreams.

 

The voice drew ever closer.

 

“I got my mind made up. This here’s the one!”

 

“If I’m dreaming,” he thought, “then could you keep it down?” He didn’t want to get out of bed just yet. Here, in this cozy, warm place, it felt like someone or something was holding him tight. Just keeping his eyes closed brought a certain sense of comfort. He’d never had a chance to get a deep night’s sleep like this before, and if he slept now, surely he’d have the most beautiful dreams of all.

 

As Yuuya began to doze off, a jolt shook him awake.

 

──What the?!

 

Opening his eyes brought another surprise—no visibility whatsoever. Though he was looking, he couldn’t see.

 

There was only complete and total darkness; The sort that wouldn’t diminish no matter how keen your vision was.

 

It was impossible to tell whether he was standing, sitting, or even lying down. He couldn’t move around to get a better sense of the situation, either. His knees bumped against something even if he only just bent them slightly. Both his head and hands suffered a similar fate.

 

It seemed he was crammed tight somewhere, and it was a very narrow space at that. 

 

That warm embrace suddenly transformed into a heavy restraint, and grew more and more terrifying by the moment. Yuuya’s palms began to sweat. The mysterious voice echoed once more.

 

“Hnghhh. This lid’s so freakin’ hard. Maybe it’ll crack if I smash it against the wall.”

 

There was clattering all around as the shaking started, and the force of it knocked his head around as it intensified.

 

What the heck was going on here?

 

“No good, huh. But I ain’t gonna throw in the towel just yet."

 

What was about to happen to him next?

 

“Fnyaaah!”

 

He needed to get out of here now!

 

Yuuya thrust out his hands at the same moment he heard a shout.

 

“Ow!”

 

He slammed into something hard with a grunt—the floor, he realized—sick to his stomach with how his head kept spinning from the inside. Bracing himself with both hands, he staggered to his feet.

 

Muttering, “Where am I?” out loud was strange in such a wide open space. For now, just being able to move both hands and legs again brought a sense of relief.

 

From that pitch-black world, he found himself in a place so dim, he could barely see at all. When did it get dark out?. 

 

When Yuuya looked up there were, as he expected, stars. Stars that seemed a little strange in how violently they rocked back and forth. Although upon closer inspection, they were neither stars nor the moon, but the lights from a chandelier. The glow from its tiny candles seemed almost whimsical and made the embellishments shimmer like opals. It was a very subtle glow for a structure so large, and he nearly lost heart at the sight of its dwindling light.

 

He took a careful look around with help from the lights. It seemed he was standing in a narrow passageway. The darkness made it hard to see what lay ahead further in, but black boxes were lined up against either side. There must’ve been hundreds of them.

 

“Are those… coffins?”

 

The boxes were long and hexagonal, rectangular sides appearing to have been stretched horizontally—exactly what you’d imagine a coffin to be, in other words. The glossy black lacquer of each lid was decorated with a gold keyhole. All of them looked heavy and were definitely big enough to hold a person inside. They all sat neatly together, bordering symmetrically within both sides of the passage.

 

Was this a cemetery, then? But that would mean… Yuuya twisted his head around. Each and every coffin was gently swaying up and down, as if they were actually enjoying themselves. He could have almost sworn they were dancing as he stared at them. He wasn’t sure what kept them floating, but if they contained the necessary “contents,” then he could safely call this in poor taste.

 

Yuuya noticed something odd while he questioned their dubious mobility—one of the coffins had a lid missing.

 

The container was completely empty, with its black sewn interior looking damp and ever-so-soft. Not that he wanted to touch it or anything. But where had the lid gone, then? Well, straight to the floor at Yuuya’s feet.

 

Did that mean he was the one who'd emerged from this coffin?

 

He couldn’t say for sure, but its interior was completely hollow, as if someone had literally just fallen out. In fact, it was reasonable to assume so given this viewpoint and his current circumstances. But then why in the world had he been inside of it?

 

Yuuya shuddered. What was this place?

 

He didn’t want to believe this was a cemetery, but he’d never even seen somewhere like this before. Nothing here made sense.

 

For starters, he’d been at—yes, if memory served him correctly— he’d been at school. Yuuya rubbed his aching head as he traced his blurry memory for the truth. He’d left his sixth-period Japanese literature class as soon as it finished, casting a sidelong glance at his classmates as well as their upperclassmen busy with club work before rushing home like always. Following that, he’d passed through the school’s gate, and then—

 

“Hey, you!”

 

Right around then, someone shouted at Yuuya.

 

It was the same voice he'd heard in the dark earlier, but when he looked around in a panic, nobody was there.

 

"Down here, kid. C’mon!"

 

He lowered his gaze, following the sound of the voice.

 

"A... stuffed toy?"

 

A relatively large ash gray plush sat right in front of him, big enough to reach Yuuya's knees or thighs if it stood on its hind legs; The perfect size to be loved on by a child. Perhaps it belonged to someone, what with the striped ribbon tied around its neck.

 

Its eyes and the inside of its ears shone with a dull blue light. Its chest, a pure white fluff.

 

What sort of creature did they model it after? He'd never seen something like this before.

 

Its face was too round for a dog, and its body too chubby for a cat, which, by process of elimination meant... it was likely—

 

“A tanuki.”

 

“Who’re you callin’ a tanuki? I’m the great Grim-sama!”

 

“Whoa. You can talk?!”

 

The stuffed toy was suddenly snarling at him, fury in its eyes as it hopped with boundless energy, ready to lunge at any moment over his "cheeky" behavior. 

 

"... Is this thing battery-powered, or?" 

 

The removable compartment should be somewhere around the back or the butt. However when he reached down in an attempt to investigate, it quickly slipped away, fork-tipped tail smacking the back of his hand in retaliation.

 

It clearly had a mind of its own.

 

"If you're not stuffed, then... are you alive? Not like that could explain why you can talk!"

 

"I said I'm no freakin' tanuki!"

 

Grim-sama, or so he was called, clucked his tongue.

 

"Great. My plan to snatch 'em off ya just went up in flames... " He held out a paw like a person, wiggling his pink paw pads. "Whatever. Hand over what you got on."

 

"You mean my... clothes?"

 

Yuuya bent his head forward to look down at his midriff and gave a startled cry.

 

"What am I wearing?!"

 

The very last thing he'd perceived himself in was his uniform: black slacks and a white shirt embroidered with the school’s emblem. Just a simple, ordinary, everyday school uniform.

 

So why was he swathed from head-to-toe in a dark, ebony robe he had no recollection of changing into? The sleeves were richly embroidered with gold thread, and the base, made of a lustrous fabric, extended well over his knees.

 

He impulsively held up the train of his robe to take a long, hard look. The silky-sleek texture not only looked soft, but felt great to the touch. Furthermore, while he hadn’t been paying attention to his surroundings, a second look had him realize that nothing he was wearing was his own, from the clothes to the shoes.

 

“Why am I…? When did I…?”

 

”Ugh, you’re tickin’ me off. I ain’t got time, so hand ‘em over already!”

 

”Whoa!”

 

He just barely managed to avoid Grim’s sudden onslaught.

 

“Grrh… You’re one cocky guy, thinkin’ you stand a chance against me.”

 

“T-This monster’s trying to eat me!”

 

Yuuya jumped to his feet and made a beeline for a door at the top of the stairs.

 

A dark passageway, a long staircase, eerie green lighting, and paintings lining the walls that chattered incessantly with their, “It’s to the right if you’re on the run,” and, “No, no, to the left,”.

 

Where was this place, and why were these pictures talking to him? Yuuya, on the verge of tears, kept running through the unfamiliar landscape of these buildings. But no matter how hard he tried to hide, Grim would come after him, nose twitching.

 

He tried shrinking inside one of the endless doors during his escape, but all of them were locked, and nary a single soul was in sight. The passageway grew narrower and narrower still all the while, complicated and bewildering in design and eventually, he came to a dead end.
 

Up upon a wall was the tiniest window. He could see a gigantic moon through the dusty glass pane, so big it almost seemed fabricated. This time, at least, the sky was real. A look below revealed another moon, flickering off the water's surface. That could only mean there was either a river or an ocean below, and he wasn't about to break the window and leap out of it only to discover its depths.
 

“Hee hee hee. Take it easy,” Grim cackled maliciously.
 

“Get away from me!”
 

The teeth peeking out of his mouth were so gruesomely sharp that they’d strip the flesh from his bones if he was bitten. Grim's tail flicked impatiently as he crept closer and closer towards the frightened Yuuya.
 

“I’m gonna put those clothes on, and then---”
 

“Why, there you are! I've finally found you at last!”
 

Grim looked back, ready to leap, while Yuuya glanced up in confusion.
 

"Now, now. You can't just go running off on your own."
 

There stood a man with a painfully eccentric appearance.
 

His style was very eye-catching, with a silk hat that added to his stature together with a long coat. But what stood out the most was the black mask, covering roughly half of his pale face from forehead to just below the eyes, with a pointed nose shaped much like a bird’s beak. 
 

Brilliantly golden eyes twinkled beneath the mask.
 

"I arrived at the Mirror Chamber to a door wide open, and upon a closer look, found it absolutely and completely vacant! I was shocked, to put it mildly. Emerging from the casket all on your own, without my unlocking it, is virtually unheard of. How’d you even manage such a feat?"
 

“Help me, please!” 
 

Yuuya interrupted the man's leisurely conversation with a shout.
 

“I’m being attacked by this monster!”
 

"You got some nerve, tryin' to stop me." Grim said as he faced the man. "I'll just take both of ya down at the same—"

A shadow passed over them with a smack.

 

“Wha—?!”

 

A long, black material wove its way around Grim, binding both limbs and torso together in a flash. It stretched and shrunk as if it were alive.
 

"Ngh! What's with this string?!"
 

The man pointed the tip of his cane straight at Grim. "This is no mere string, it's my Lash of Love. You just unleashed your magic, didn't you? Running amok in such a narrow place, it turns out, is a bit of a problem."
 

"All I've gotta do is, rngh—"
 

"Trying to use our magic again, are we? It's no use."
 

Grim hopped on his feet as the sash gradually snaked around not only his body, but his mouth as well. Whenever the man waved his key-shaped cane, the "Lash of Love" would squeeze around him even tighter, like a snake swallowing a frog.
 

Yuuya, stunned from shock, received a mere, "goodness me" in response.
 

"Is this your familiar that's spiraled completely out of control? Feral creatures like that aren’t allowed on campus, I’m afraid."
 

“Familiar?”
 

“That you would abandon the Mirror Chamber to go summon a familiar and explore our campus… I suppose one shouldn’t judge solely by appearances.”

 

“Uhm, I don’t… understand what you're saying. Where am I?”

 

“At the very top of the academy's furthest east tower, which is used for storage.”

 

Nothing had made sense for some time now. When he asked, “academy?”, the man simply nodded as if the situation was self-evident, Grim still tucked neatly underneath an arm. No matter how much he fumed, this gentleman didn’t seem to care one bit.

 

“Now, let’s be on our way. The entrance ceremony commenced ages ago.”

 

“Entrance, uhm… ceremony?”

 

“Indeed, and I’m sure you’re much looking forward to our time-honored tradition.“

 

The man grew somewhat silent at the suspicious lack of response. 

 

“... Could it be you’ve no inkling of what’s going on?”

 

“Yes! Yes, that’s… that’s exactly it.”

 

Yuuya was awash with relief after finally getting through to someone. Ever since he had awoken, he’d been surrounded by such awful things, as if this were some kind of nightmare. Questions that had nowhere to go suddenly came spilling out.

 

“Where is this place, and what’re those coffins for? What sort of animal is that? When did I end up here?”

 

“Hmm. Perhaps your memory became a tad muddled while traveling inside your gate. It happens from time to time.”

 

The man just smiled nonchalantly with a, “there’s no need to fret!” as the boy bombarded him with a rainstorm of questions.

 

“I shall explain to you as we walk, for I am immeasurably gracious!”

 

He extended an arm to the puzzled Yuuya, reminiscent of a bird gracefully spreading its wings in a salute to the sky—although again, Grim remained struggling under the opposite arm. 

 

A looming sound devoured the air as candelabras along the wall lit up, flames kindling one after another as though someone invisible were dashing down the corridor as a means to light them. The dark room brightened up in an instant.

 

“This is Night Raven College, a prestigious mage training academy in Twisted Wonderland, where a chosen few with exceptional magical talent gather from all over the world. And I am Dire Crowley, serving as headmaster after being entrusted with this academy’s care by the chairman.”

 

──Oh, I see.

 

This wasn’t just some nightmare. This was a dream he was stuck in.

 

Those are the thoughts Yuuya had while watching the man chuckling right in front of him. This was a dream. Absolutely, positively, without a doubt, a dream.

 

Because every word being said to him seemed not one single bit real.

 

“You’re one of our new students who’ve enrolled, an aspiring mage.”

 

That day, Yuuya was walking home from school alone when a light that rarely ever turned red caught him. It’d already been half a year since he entered high school, but this was the first time he’d ever stopped at this crosswalk. Bicycles and cars rarely, if ever, flew along the unfrequented road for how narrow it was. He remembered thinking about how it seemed unusual.

 

When the light turned green, he stepped forward, only to hear the strangest sound.

 

A clacking or rattling sound closely followed by something heavy dragging along the pavement.

 

“What’s that noise… it’s getting louder?”

 

“Whinyyy.”

 

He heard another sound, like a shaky breath escaping someone’s lips.

 

Everything beyond that was a blur.

 

“That was the carriage coming to meet you, of course.”, Crowley said matter-of-factly to Yuuya after hearing out his story.

 

“A black carriage bearing a gate serves to receive our students and summon them to this campus. Our honorable academy sticks to historically conventional methods for these special occasions, you see.” He looked over his shoulder, several steps ahead. “Well? Positively phenomenal, isn’t it? A bit of panache and prestige, no?”

 

There were still many things Yuuya wanted to ask, but since this was all just a dream, he figured stressing over the finer details was a waste of time.

 

Questioning what a gate was only prompted the answer, “what you came out of.” 

 

“So those coffins are called ‘gates’?” 

 

“That they are. Those who enroll undergo transformational change into respectable mages—a fitting path for our youths full of such brilliant promise, as it were.”

 

“Mmffh!”

 

Grim glared resentfully at the two of them, even now still tucked away under an arm. Yuuya pretended not to notice as he simply floated along in Crowley’s wake. 

 

Only when they descended down countless stairways to finally reach a door did he realize how far he'd run when trying to escape.

 

“Here we are, back at the Mirror Chamber. I spent ages searching for you, and now it’s finally time to take part in your dormitory sorting.” Thus, Crowley cut off his contrived speech.

 

When Yuuya looked up at him next, a smirk played across Crowley’s bright-blue lips.

 

“Oh, this is sure to be a pleasure!”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“I’m simply teeming with curiosity as to which dorm you’ll be assigned.”, Crowley fidgeted, wringing his hands together with glee, “It’s not every day that we’re handed a student who can emerge from a gate all by themselves. The bar has been raised significantly, as it were.”

 

“Th-The bar?”

 

Yuuya was taken aback by words he’d never dreamed of hearing.

 

“Hold on a minute, I’m—”

 

“Gentlemeeen!”

 

An untouched door swung open with great force.

 

“I’ve brought our rumored new face along, and with that, we’ve gathered together the entire student body.”

 

Everywhere he looked, there were people.

 

Hundreds of individuals lined up in place of the coffins that’d been here when he’d first awoken. All eyes turned to face Yuuya, who’d just entered the room. Although before he could turn heel and run, the door slammed shut behind him.

 

“Eek…”

 

When he looked upon the room this time, there was something there that wasn’t there before – warm lights lighting up every column. All the people standing around him were wearing identical raven black robes from head to toe.

 

There were, still, those who stood out among the crowd. They alone were the only ones sitting in an open area at the end of the hallway facing the rest.

 

“You’re finally back, Headmaster! We were trying to figure out what to do next now that the sorting’s over.”

 

A boy with white hair and a decorative band wrapped around his head cheerily called out to the pair  before anyone else spoke. ”You were so late I thought you’d got a tummy ache or something,” he chattered, laughing with joy. Yuuya was a little relieved to see someone so energetic.

 

“That’s our guy? The one who broke out on his own? Hah. Huge, if true.”

 

The tall, muscular man snorted, ears drawn back—the ears of a beast—atop a head of lustrous hair. Yuuya stared at him mindlessly for a minute before glancing away from a spine-chilling glare directed at him. The gleam in those eyes was like that of a large predator.

 

“I’ve never heard of such nonsense. How’s that even possible? Through force, or perhaps, magic?” 

 

Next came someone with their golden hair swept up, glaring down at him in a challenging sort of way. However, Yuuya was too busy being captivated by their charming appearance. From the sound of their voice they were a man, but either gender would’ve come as no surprise—theirs was a beauty beyond measure.

 

“Then perhaps they wield considerable power. If so, I’d be honored to have you in our dormitory.”

 

A man in glasses with a gentle smile and silver hair spoke straight at Yuuya, and though he felt himself softened by that tender expression, he saw narrowed eyes behind those frames that shone with intelligence. Everything about this one seemed impeccably calculated.

 

“Has this whole school been reading too many LNs with OP AF protagonists or what?”

 

The tablet floating in between them flickered, which apparently was where that voice came from. Yuuya couldn’t quite catch all of his rapid-fire words, but based on how his tone was so dense that it stuck to the floor, he got the sense none of it was intended to be heard by mankind.

 

“We’re already three minutes past the scheduled cut-off time,” A red-haired boy declared flatly in conclusion. “We ought to settle his assignment as quickly as possible, according to the rules.”

 

His steady and unwavering tone implied any further wasting of time wouldn’t be tolerated. Everyone who’d been whispering to each other about the newcomer went silent instantly.

 

Still, Yuuya had heard what they’d been talking about, whether he wanted to or not.

 

──The Headmaster’s dumping a newbie on us? Sooo, that mean he’s talented, or?

──Wow. We’ve got guys just going for it already. 

──Hmph. Things are taking a turn for the interesting.

──Maybe he’s unique… somehow?

──I detest these boorish humans!

 

Everyone present had a strange fascination with Yuuya. 

 

They were waiting for someone special.

 

“No! I’m not… I’m not like that at all!”, He shouted with all his might so as to wake swiftly from this nightmare, but their gazes only grew more intense. He felt crushed by the countless eyes swarming him, staring.
 

Crowley gave Yuuya a jovial push from behind when he tried to shuffle backwards. Repeated shakes of the head in denial were to no avail as he was driven further and further down the aisle.
 

“Now, now, everyone’s waiting! Do us the honors in front of the Dark Mirror.”
 

“The Dark Mirror?”
 

He realized what that meant in a heartbeat. 
 

At the end of the hallway hung a mirror.
 

It was immensely round and luxurious, framed by a dull golden glow. A crown with writhing snake carvings encircling it from below adorned its top. It floated in the air, not unlike the "gates" from before. Yuuya peered into the mirror centered neatly in the chamber as prompted.
 

All that emerged from its reflection was a boy with short black hair.
 

Eyebrows, nose, mouth, ears: each a piece of a puzzle he'd seen somewhere before, and none of it all that memorable.

His most distinguishing characteristic were eyes that were a little rounder than most. But even then, it blended so harmoniously with the rest of him, that fact would undoubtedly vanish from someone’s mind in an instant.
 

On one hand, he looked likable and approachable, but on the other he seemed average. Ordinary. Run-of-the-mill. The sort of guy you'd meet in the morning and completely forget about by the time night rolled around. Just Yuuya, a face you could find literally anywhere. 
 

But why show him all of that now?
 

When he opened his mouth next to ask Crowley, the mirror shone, and upon looking back instinctively, its surface had been engulfed in a green flame. Though nothing reflected on it, the fire remained burning from within.
 

A white face suddenly appeared, as though to quell it.
 

He wasn't sure of whether it was a mask, a puppet, or a person. Only that it was a face.
 

Then that someone in the mirror talked, to Yuuya's complete surprise. The voice belonged to a man.
 

──State thy name.
 

“My name? It’s, ah… Kuroki Yuuya.”
 

──Kuroki Yuuya.
 

A strange, tickling sensation emerged, as if something were clawing at his ribs from inside his chest.
 

The man inside the mirror had no eyes, only vacant sockets. It was hard to tell where it was looking, hence why it felt like every inch of him was under surveillance, right down to his mind.
 

──Thy soul is…
 

“Fnyaah!”
 

The man in the mirror was drowned out by a shout. Yuuya swung around just in time to witness Grim pop swiftly out of Crowley's grasp.
 

"Oh, for crying—I was caught up in the moment!"
 

"You're dead wrong if ya think y'can keep me down!"
 

Grim flipped mid-air, only to land safely on two legs, chest puffed out in pride.
 

"Fnyah~!"
 

A sea of fire spread before Yuuya's eyes. Grim could spit flames from his mouth!

 

With a long exhale that greatly betrayed his size, the area was quickly enveloped in a bluish-white fire that matched Grim’s eyes. Yuuya hid his face from the dazzling heat with his arms without a second thought.

 

──It's hot.
 

Fire. All you had to do was touch it to know it's hot.
 

But for Yuuya, it came as a sudden shock.

 

──You mean this wasn’t a dream?!

"Think ya can just show off in front of me? You're outta your league!"
 

Yuuya found himself alone with Grim, encircled in the smallest ring of fire.
 

“Hey, you! Fight me!”

 

“You want me to fight… you?!”

 

“You betcha. My plan t’swap places with some dozed-off dumbo went up in smoke, but they’re bound to free up a space on campus if I beat ya in one-on-one combat and show off my awesome skill.”

 

His mouth curled back from his teeth, fangs glistening. 

 

“I’ll get to attend the academy! Nyahahah. I’m the greatest, the smartest---a verified genius!”

 

“But we don’t have to fight, I mean, you can just fill in for me in the ceremony or whatever!”

 

The tearful Yuuya stooped low, gesturing with both hands for the creature to please, go right ahead, but Grim merely stuck out his chest further in retaliation.

 

Trying to run would only get his back seared.

 

“If you’re not gonna make a move, then I will.”
 

"W-Wait, wait a minute! I surrender!"
 

"Let’s go!"
 

“Don’t—”

 

A high-pitched crackling sound reached Yuuya’s ears as he squeezed his eyes shut tightly. Then it fell completely silent. Not even the roar of flames could be heard.

 

He opened his eyes timidly for a peek—only to discover the surrounding blaze now frozen in place; A moment trapped in time as if they still seemed poised to devour the pair of them, small sparks collapsing to the floor as shards of ice.

 

“Now, then.”

 

The cracking of ice being trampled underfoot resounded throughout the room.

 

“You’ve gone far enough with these self-indulgent hijinks.”

 

A red-haired boy stepped forth from amongst the grandeur of the ice blocks.

 

The one who’d been so concerned about their punctuality. Now he seemed to tower over everyone else despite his seemingly smaller stature. The hostility was overwhelming.

 

He snapped at them, face contorted with rage. 

 

“I won’t tolerate anymore nonsense.”

 

“Gnggh. Here comes another guy wantin’ to stand in my way.”

 

Although the boy had struck fear into the heart of the cowering Yuuya, Grim just simply stood his ground and glared back confidently. Yuuya wasn’t sure whether he was especially dense, or maybe really just that tough.

 

A huge pillar of ice arose from where Grim once stood, and he ran upon it on all fours with a shrill laugh.

 

“Get an eyeful of how I’m ‘bout to blast these guys sky-high with my awesome magic! Provin’, that I, the great Grim-sama, am—”

 

──”Are you ready for your sentence?”

 

“Huh?”

 

Something was off, and Grim felt it too. Both of them stared intently at the boy who had his right arm raised.

 

──”The verdict will come afterwards. Prepare yourself.”

 

A tremendous force—no, power—flitted around the red-haired youth. It was an overwhelming “something” beyond description, detached from heat, cold, light, and wind.  

 

Yuuya just stood there, not bolting away because he couldn’t afford to, but because he wasn’t sure what to do in the face of such enormous strength. He was terrified of moving even an inch and having something literally explode in front of his face.

 

As if on cue, the boy swung his right arm directly at  Grim.

 

──Off With Your Head!
 

A sliver of light went sailing straight towards Grim at the same time as the voiced incantation, only to transform into a black and red pillory in the blink of an eye.
 

Latches on either side came down heavy with a clank, trapping him the instant it touched his neck.
 

"What the—?!" Grim shook his head vigorously, but it wouldn't budge.
 

"...Heh. Your puny attempt at magic's annoyin’, but it don't itch and it don't hurt. I'm gonna roast it right off!"
 

This time, Yuuya made sure to cover his face the right way: with both hands. All he heard shortly after was a weak puff of air.
 

"H-Huh?"
 

When the fearful Yuuya opened his eyes next, Grim was blowing onto both hands as if to make sure of something.

 

 ◆ next ≫