Day Nine
The day was unusually calm, as if the world had taken a deep breath to rest from everything that had happened—and everything yet to come. Raizen sprawled across the couch in their small apartment, stretching lazily as he muttered with boredom:
Raizen: "What a dull day… nothing but rest and more rest."
Rento leaned back as well, trying to find a more comfortable position, and replied with a confident tone:
Rento: "Just relax… we might get a tough mission tomorrow. Save your strength."
But while the two chatted, Falen sat cross-legged on the floor, his eyes half-closed… sinking deep inside himself.
He kept repeating silently:
Falen (internally): "Focus… on every nerve… feel it… deeper… deeper…"
His teammates called out to him several times, but their voices never reached him. It was as if he had slipped into another world entirely.
Raizen: "FALEN! Hey!… Can you hear me?! This idiot drowned in the nerve world again!"
No response.
The two exchanged a glance. Then Raizen suddenly said:
Raizen: "If the first mission needs a leader… who's it gonna be?"
Rento raised his eyebrow sharply.
Rento: "Me? No thanks. I don't want anyone restricting me. Fighting requires absolute freedom."
They all turned toward Falen, who finally snapped out of his deep focus.
Falen: "I… don't know."
Raizen: "Then I'm the leader."
Rento shot him a mocking stare.
Rento: "We don't want a foolish leader. I suggest Falen. When things get critical, he reacts faster than any of us."
Falen paused. A heavy sense of responsibility crept onto his shoulders.
Falen: "If you want me to… I'll do it."
Raizen: "Great! How about we take a walk?"
Falen: "No. I'm sleeping until tomorrow."
Rento: "Same."
Raizen grumbled:
Raizen: "Fine, I'll go alone."
He stepped out into the small garden outside the building. The air was cool, and the dim city lights made the night feel calm… calmer than it should be.
Raizen stood there, hands folded behind his head, muttering sarcastically:
Raizen: "Guess we should say goodbye to this peaceful life… We're entering the mission world at last."
— Suddenly —
A voice came from behind him. Soft… yet carrying a terrifying depth beneath it.
Barinta: "The organization is not a hell…"
Raizen froze.
A shiver crawled up from his feet to his neck.
Then she appeared beside him—so silently, she might as well have been a ghost.
Barinta: "…unless you're weak."
Raizen turned his head slowly… afraid that turning too fast might shatter his spirit.
Barinta: "Will the three of you stay weak… forever?"
He didn't know why, but her voice pierced through his pride like an arrow.
Raizen: "Of course not."
She smiled faintly—a mix of amusement and mockery.
Barinta: "Then… cheer up."
And before he could thank her… she vanished.
Raizen: "Huh? Where did she go?! Did she just—leave?! Super rude!"
He sighed deeply.
Raizen: "Whatever… I'm getting sleepy. Sleep, here I come."
He returned to the apartment and passed out immediately.
---
Day Ten
The three gathered at the park in the morning. The sun was bright, and the villagers moved calmly, shaking off the quiet of the night.
Falen: "So… what now? Head to the HQ or wait here?"
Suddenly, Falen's phone rang.
Unknown number.
Rento: "Answer! Maybe it's the organization."
Raizen grabbed the phone instantly.
Raizen: "I'll handle this."
Caller: "Hello… this is the organization's messenger."
Raizen: "What's your name?"
Caller: "I can't disclose that. Villains might be listening."
Rento: "They really are cautious…"
Messenger: "Your mission will arrive by mail."
All three: "Understood."
Ten minutes later…
They were playing on the children's playground without a shred of embarrassment.
Rento: "Idiots! The mission is here."
They opened the paper:
Mission: "Go to the nearest restaurant. You will find a man in formal attire. Follow him."
Falen: "How do they know our location?"
Raizen: "Why do you love asking pointless questions? Let's go!"
They reached the restaurant and spotted the man immediately.
The man: "To the car. No time to waste."
They obeyed without question.
Rento: "Where are we going?"
Man: "Tsushiya Village. Multiple reports of severed human fingers appearing on the ground. Your task is to investigate… and if you encounter the culprit, you have permission to kill."
A cold silence filled the car.
Raizen: "I thought our first mission would be finding missing cats…"
Rento: "Now I'm getting excited."
Falen: "Do we need disguises?"
Man: "Only if you want."
Rento: "We need black cloaks."
Raizen: "When we arrive."
---
In Tsushiya Village
The village looked ancient—wooden houses, a rural atmosphere… like time had stopped a hundred years ago.
They bought their black cloaks.
Man: "From here on, the mission is in your hands."
He left.
Rento: "It's five o'clock… we need a place to stay."
Falen: "We won't find a hotel in a village like this."
Suddenly—an elderly woman appeared.
Old woman: "You're from outside the village, aren't you? Allow me to host you."
Rento smiled strangely warmly.
Rento: "We would appreciate that."
Falen whispered to Raizen:
Falen: "This is the first time I see him act polite…"
Rento: "Shut up."
She led them to her wooden, oddly warm house.
Old woman: "This is the living room… there's the kitchen… and over there the bedroom. Since there's only one room, I'll lay out bedding here for you."
Falen: "Of course… take your time."
She sat in front of them.
Old woman: "Let me tell you what's happening in this village."
Raizen: "Wait… you knew we were from the organization? Did we disguise that badly?!"
She smiled softly.
Old woman: "I'm the one who sent the reports."
Their expressions tightened.
Old woman: "Every day, twenty children disappear. The victims are always children. And all we ever find are severed fingers. No bodies. No blood. Just… fingers."
A heavy silence swallowed the room.
A chilling fear slipped between them.
Old woman: "I'll go prepare dinner."
She left.
Falen: "Why… children specifically?"
Raizen: "Stop with the creepy questions…"
Rento: "Maybe someone doesn't want the village to have a future."
Raizen: "Or the children refused to play with him!"
Falen: "Highly unlikely."
The old woman returned with curry ingredients.
Old woman: "Do you like curry?"
All: "Yes."
Falen whispered:
Falen: "Eat slowly. Don't embarrass her… we don't want her going out to buy ingredients at night."
Rento: "Interesting."
Raizen: "Old advice… but the caveman only knows his sword."
Rento: "I'll—"
Falen: "Quiet."
She served them dinner.
Old woman: "Here it is—the best curry ever!"
Falen and Rento froze.
The smell was… vile.
Enough to turn the stomach of even the strongest fighter.
But the old woman smiled with such innocent pride.
Falen & Rento: "Mmm… delicious."
She laid out their bedding.
Old woman: "Good night."
Raizen: "Thanks, grandma."
They settled down.
Raizen: "I can't sleep without a bedtime story…"
Rento: "Get away from me."
Falen: "Both of you… shut up."
Hours passed…
Midnight.
While the others slept…
Falen's eyes snapped open.
He felt something.
A sound—
Soft… slow… like something dragging against wood.
But it wasn't a door.
Not footsteps.
The sound was heavy… as if something large was crawling… or sliding… or moving with the pulse of something alive.
Falen rose silently, his breathing slowing, every muscle tightening.
He looked toward the source…
It came from behind the old wooden storage door at the end of the hallway.
But the terrifying part was—
The sound didn't feel like it came from behind the door.
It felt like it came from inside the walls.
As if the wall were breathing.
As if something within it was trying to push its way out.
As if someone…
or something…
was waiting for the moment someone leaned in and opened the door.