(Carina's Pov)
"Bound by blood does not mean bound for life."
Darkness was everywhere.
It clung to my skin, even when I looked down, I could barely see our hands anymore.
Only the warmth of contact.
The warmth of his hand.
Ki-Moon.
I squeezed it a little tighter, just a little to make sure he was still there.
To make sure he doesn't disappear, that he doesn't forget me like on the island, like everyone else.
Forever.
The sound of footsteps we had heard a few seconds earlier had disappeared.
I just got rid of it.
In this place, sounds seemed to travel in all directions.
I swallowed with difficulty.
Then I lowered my eyes.
A small, luminous window floated discreetly on the front of my watch.
He doesn't seem to have noticed.
[AFTER THIS ORDEAL, COME HOME]
I immediately looked away and turned off my watch.
As if the message didn't exist.
A few seconds later:
[ CARINA ]
I sighed.
Again.
Always.
Since my arrival.
From the beginning.
He wouldn't stop; under the guise of giving advice, he forced me to follow his orders.
Always some indications.
He deigns to see me now that I seem a little more useful in his eyes.
Progenitor.
I made the window disappear.
Without answering.
But a new one appeared immediately.
[PAY THIS TRIAL, HURRY UP.]
I rolled my eyes.
Then I erased it as well.
I didn't want to talk to him.
It's so difficult to understand.
Ki-Moon suddenly pulls me next to him.
I tightened my fingers around his hand.
He turned his head slightly.
– Do you think it's going to be okay?
he murmured in the corner of my ear
– No, I'm a little afraid of the dark.
Lie.
I didn't have it, yes, terribly.
But not for the reasons he imagined.
I was scared.
Fear that he will discover the truth.
I'm afraid he'll hate me.
I was afraid that one day he would decide that I was no longer of any use.
I'm afraid he'll leave me behind.
So I would be so indispensable to him that even if I held a knife to his throat, he would forgive me and wouldn't be able to get rid of me.
I lowered my eyes.
The notification finally appeared.
She had found him, no matter the price.
I smile slightly and without hesitation, I confirm the purchase.
Some coins disappeared immediately.
Then a fine, translucent dust covered our clothes.
Camouflage.
I was already familiar with this object; it was not for sale since it was given to the "revolutionary".
The hunter would have a much harder time spotting us.
I discreetly raised my head.
Ki-Moon hadn't noticed anything.
So much the better.
For now, I don't want him to know.
A new vibration.
[ CARINA ]
I didn't know yet.
[YOU'RE WASTING YOUR COINS]
Ignored.
[PAY FOR THE TEST DIRECTLY AND SKIP IT]
I felt a smile appear involuntarily.
That must have annoyed him.
A lot.
And that idea pleased me.
For once I could choose.
I could decide.
Not him.
Not "mother".
Just me.
In front of us, my second purchase,
A faint glimmer appeared.
Barely visible.
Small fluorescent arrows stuck to the wall.
I smile discreetly.
A few more pieces gone.
But it was worth it.
– This way.
He immediately turned his head.
– Do you see anything?
- Yes.
– what ?
I think for a second.
– there are arrows.
He stared at me for a long time and then finally patted me gently on the head.
"I trust you," he said with a big smile.
I can barely suppress my sigh of relief.
I guided him hand in hand.
Guided by this discreet light.
I could feel its rhythm.
In breathing.
The way he slowed down when he was thinking.
The way his fingers clenched when he stared at me.
I know him so well, not a lot, but enough.
More than he imagined.
A strange pain shot through my chest.
I still remembered the day I first heard about him.
For the first time.
She spoke of him as a demon, but a young and naive demon.
I didn't know why she was so rude
But this story had made me angry.
Terribly.
Because he didn't understand, he didn't know what it was like to be alone.
To wait for.
To have hope in someone.
My fingers tightened around my chest and I crossed my tongue.
Ki-Moon slows down.
– Are you feeling unwell?
– Ah.
I released it immediately.
- Sorry.
– It's nothing.
His tone was calm.
Simple.
And yet...
I felt my heart beat a little faster.
Why did such a banal phrase make me happy?
I thanked the darkness for allowing me to make this face.
The fluorescent arrows multiply and turn sharply to the left.
Then to the right.
Then go down a staircase.
The dungeon was getting colder.
Getting colder and colder.
As if something was waiting for us underneath.
But a faint light reached us.
CLACK ! .
A noise rang out, I automatically checked my watch.
I shot Ki-Moon too
– run!!!!!
I whispered a little louder
CLACK! CLACK! CLACK! .
Like wood against stone.
I immediately felt my blood run cold.
The stick.
Had someone found their stick?
Ki-Moon also seems to have understood this.
I felt his muscles tense and his strength pull me.
Then a light dazzles us for a single second before disappearing.
HAAAAA AHAAAAAAAAAAA!
A scream.
Short
Followed by an even more disturbing silence.
I felt my stomach clench.
Someone had just been hit or something.
I kept looking back during our class; I didn't know if it was me or if it was real.
– AAHHHH, THERE'S SOMETHING FOLLOWING US HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!