Chapter 4
Ren crossed his arms, still trying to make sense of the guy in front of him. Hood up, ceepy vibes and Midnight lurking.
"Well… what else am I supposed to call someone creeping around like that?"
Then it hit him.
Yuji.....
Every single year one day after Ren's birthday, Yuji pulled some dumb prank. It was tradition at this point.
Ren paused… then actually laughed.
"Hold up, wait don't tell me…" He pointed at the hooded guy. "Did Yuji put you up to this?"
The guy's face went dark for a moment
"You know… you have a pretty lousy mouth for someone who's about to die," he said, voice ice-cold.
Then, quieter: "…Are all Kuroōkami like this?"
But Ren was still laughing. He even started walking closer, because if this was Yuji's friend, the bit was already dead.
"Look, if Yuji pulled you into this, I hate to disappoint you…"
He raised a hand, super casual.
"…but this prank is kinda trash."
He never finished the sentence.
Whoosh!!
Claws. Real claws. Tearing through the air where Ren's head was a half second ago.
Ren moved. He didn't think as his instinct kicked in
He slid back, eyes wide. "…He's fast… I almost didn't see that coming."
The hooded guy froze. Just for a second.
"…Impossible…" he muttered. "He dodged my attack?"
Another strike came in a little faster this time.
Ren moved again Like his body knew what to do before his brain did.
"…Impossible. A second time?" the guy said, voice tighter now.
Ren jumped back, putting distance between them but a thin line of red opened up on his cheek.
A cut. From the first swipe.
Ren touched his face. "…Tch."
He looked at the blood on his fingers.
"…What was that just now…?" he murmured. And then he felt "It's like I felt it for a split second he had pure murderous intent. He really was going to kill me."
The grin dropped off Ren's face this isn't a prank anymore, the joke was over.
"…I would have died easily from that just now," he said, quietly
Across from him, the hooded guy's whole mood shifted.
"…How did you dodge that?" His voice was tight now. Accusatory. "From point-blank range? Not once, but twice. You're just a newborn. Not even a newborn can do that without proper training."
Ren's face went hard. His brain was sprinting.
This is bad. I can feel it. His murderous intent is leaking out of his body.
This isn't a prank. That means…
He said it out loud.
"…Who are you?" His eyes darkened. "…What are you?" Are you seriously telling me that vampires are real?"
The guy made this annoyed grunt. "For the last time… I'm not a vampire, you idiot."
He took a step forward.
"Well, I don't need to tell you what I am because you're going to die anyway."
And then he was gone.
Ren's eyes went wide. "…What…?!"
BAM…!
Something slammed into Ren's stomach.
"..GHHK!!"
All the air left his body at once. His feet actually left the ground for a second before he folded and collapsed forward
He's even faster his mind screamed impossible, I didn't even feel the movement…
He didn't get time to process it.
CRACK…
A second hit crashed into his side.
"Gah..!!"
Ren was airborne. He hit the street and skidded, stone cracking, dust exploding around him like smoke.
For a second, everything was silent.
Then...
Clap… clap… clap…..
Slow claps. Echoing down the empty street.
"…Haha. Pathetic," the guy said, walking up like he was bored. Like Ren wasn't worth the effort.
Ren coughed, hard, clutching his stomach. "Ghh… what the hell… it's a good thing Uncle Ben taught me about stamina when I was little, but…"
His vision swam. His ears rang.
I didn't even see him move…..
The guy stopped a few feet away, hands in his pockets.
"You really thought this was a prank?" He tilted his head. "Or are you just that naive?"
Ren gritted his teeth. "Shut up…"
The guy smiled wider.
Ren tried to get up
WHAM…!
A foot drove into his back, slamming him face-first into the concrete.
"AGH—!!"
Dust exploded. The pressure was insane, pinning him down.
"Stay down you fool," the guy said, lazy. "You're making this harder than it needs to be."
"But…" Ren's voice shook, but he forced it out. "I'm not done yet…"
The foot pressed harder. He heard something in his ribs ..creak... before he managed to twist and break free.
"…where's the fun in that?" the guy said.
Ren's teeth were clenched so tight he thought they'd crack.
This guy… he's beyond human level. He's something else entirely.
_WHOOSH…!_
A sudden kick hit ren's ribs
"AAAGH—!!"
Ren flew again crashing on the ground
His arm gave out when he tried to push up collapsed
Blood dripped from his mouth.
The guy just stood there. Watching. Like Ren was a science experiment
"…Too weak," he said, flat
Ren's fingers clawed at the ground. "Damn it…"
His vision shook. His thoughts were scattered. Move… get up… just move…
But his body said no.
The guy sighed. "I expected more from a Kuroōkami... the so called legendary lines"
Ren's eyes flickered. "Kuroōkami…?" he rasped. "What the hell are you talking about…"
No answer.
The guy vanished.
Ren's eyes widened, but it was too late.
A hand grabbed his face
"You're going to be my new toy." and drove him straight into the ground.
BOOM…
The street cracked Dust went everywhere as ren's vision whited out for a second.
"…Ghh…"
His body twitched. Blood pooled under him.
The hooded guy dragged him up by the throat.
Ren clawed at the hand. Nails scraping, but doing nothing
"Let… me .... go…" he choked.
The guy chuckled. "You still have voice left? Impressive."
Ren fought. But his strength was gone.
The guy started laughing now. Full-on laughing.
"Hahaha… he really thought he could hide you from me…"
"Hide… me…?" Ren wheezed.
The guy ignored him. He lifted his free hand.
Aimed right at Ren's chest.
"…It's over," he said, cold. "This ends here."
Ren's eyes widened. The hand drove forward
SLICK…
But something was wrong.
"…What?"
The guy's eyes narrowed. His hand didn't pierce Ren's chest.
Because his arms were gone.
Both of them. Clean and perfectly severed
"…Huh…?"
BOOM…!
A kick thunderous slammed into the guy's face. He went flying, body tumbling across the street before skidding to a stop.
Ren dropped.
But he didn't hit the ground.
A hand caught him before hitting the ground his vision was a mess as everything felt distant and fuzzy
Through it all, he saw another hooded figure holding him up.
"…I'm sorry I'm late, Ren-sama."