TAKUMI SUMINO (G’ie Ver.)

This spot sucked.

You stood in the middle of the storage closet, surrounded by narrow rows of shelves crammed with containers, discarded supplies, and various odds and ends that had seemingly been forgotten. Some things had been left scattered across the shelves, never properly put away, while a thin layer of dust coated nearly every surface. The only light came from the narrow gap between the double doors, barely enough to illuminate the space around you.

It wasn’t exactly an ideal hiding place, but when you’d stumbled into the First Floor Classroom in a panic, all you’d been looking for was somewhere to disappear. Four walls, a door you could close, and at least the illusion of being somewhere safe. That had been enough.

You shifted, trying to find a more comfortable position, only for the fabric of your clothes to brush against the wooden shelving behind you. You flinched at the sound. It was ridiculous how loud everything seemed in here. The distant hum of the ventilation, the occasional creak somewhere in the building, even the steady thumping of your own heartbeat. Every little noise felt amplified in the confined space, as though the silence itself were waiting for something to disturb it.

It was uncomfortable, but that was preferable to being caught by the person roaming the academy.

Takumi.

He was responsible for everything. The grief, the fear, the countless lives lost over the course of these past few days. The killer you’d spent so long searching for hadn’t been some masked stranger lurking in the shadows. It had been someone you’d known, someone you’d fought alongside and trusted. Takumi Sumino, the Team Leader of the Special Defense Unit. The person who was supposed to keep everyone together, who you’d once believed you could rely on without hesitation.

And now, he was the one hunting you.

Was any of it genuine? Had the person you’d known all this time ever really existed? You had no answers, and whatever explanation might eventually come to light wouldn’t change what he’d done. Your friends were dead. You’d seen the truth with your own eyes, and there was no going back to the way things had been.

You could still remember the moment everything fell apart. The realization, the horror, the frantic scramble to get away from him. There hadn’t been time to process any of it properly, much less make sense of what you’d witnessed.

And then there was Nozomi.

After Takumi had chased the two of you down the stairs, you’d split up, hoping that putting some distance between you would make it harder for him to corner you both at once. It had seemed like the only sensible decision at the time. If you went in separate directions, perhaps at least one of you would manage to get away.

But now, with the immediate danger temporarily out of sight, that reasoning was beginning to feel a lot less reassuring.

Was she all right? Had she found somewhere to hide? Was she still running, just as you had been?

Or had Takumi already caught up with her?

Your eyes squeezed shut, as though that alone might keep the thought from taking shape. You couldn’t assume the worst. Not when you hadn’t even seen her, not when there was still a chance she’d managed to get somewhere safe. Maybe she was hiding in another classroom, or tucked away somewhere else in the academy, waiting for the right moment to move. She could still be alive. You had to believe that.

But even if she was, what if she’d been hurt? What if she was alone, unable to defend herself, with nobody around to help?

You couldn’t stay tucked away in this miserable little closet and hope everything would work out. Leaving meant risking the safety you’d managed to find, but staying meant doing nothing while Nozomi was potentially in danger.

Eventually, your concern outweighed your fear.

You drew in a slow breath, trying to steady yourself. For a moment, you simply listened, straining to catch any indication of movement beyond the doors. Nothing. No footsteps, no voices, not even the faintest suggestion that someone was nearby. After a few more seconds, you cautiously reached for one of the doors and pressed your palm against the wood.

It creaked faintly as you eased it open. You paused, peering through the gap and scanning the classroom beyond. Nothing seemed out of place. Once you were reasonably certain the room was empty, you pushed the door open a little farther and slipped out of the closet.

Your attention shifted toward the classroom’s entrance. There was no reason to linger. You crossed the room quietly, reached for the doorknob, and hesitated for just a moment before turning it.

You had to find Nozomi. You only hoped it wasn’t already too late.

—

The hallway was just as empty as you’d expected, though that offered little comfort. You looked down both ends before cautiously stepping outside, keeping your movements measured and your ears open for anything that might signal someone’s approach. The decorative vines strung along the walls did little to make the place feel normal. Their shadows stretched across the dimly lit corridor, while the muted green lighting overhead gave the otherwise familiar surroundings an oddly oppressive atmosphere.

You continued along the hallway, slowing whenever you passed an open doorway to peer inside. Classroom after classroom offered nothing but abandoned furniture and silence. There was no sign of Nozomi, nor any indication that she’d passed through recently. Each empty room chipped away at the little hope you’d managed to hold onto, but you forced yourself to keep going. There were still other places to check. She could be anywhere.

Eventually, you found yourself approaching the Garage. Your steps slowed as you neared the entrance, your attention fixed on the open doorway. You were just about to move past it when a voice drifted out from inside.

“Now, now. Don’t be difficult, Takumi.”

A pause followed.

“You know there’s no point in struggling. You’ve already lost.”

Another brief silence, then a soft, amused chuckle.

“Ahaha… Still trying? How persistent.”

You froze. You recognized that voice immediately. There was no mistaking it.

Takumi.

Every instinct screamed at you to turn around and run, but instead, you pressed yourself against the wall beside the entrance. You didn’t know what he was doing in there, and you certainly didn’t want to give away your presence without knowing whether he’d noticed you yet. After a moment spent gathering what little courage you could, you carefully leaned toward the doorway and peered inside.

Your view was partially obstructed, but you could make out his figure standing a short distance away, his back turned slightly toward you. He was wearing the same clear raincoat you’d seen him in before, its hood pulled over his head and the transparent plastic hanging loosely over his usual clothes. You could hear him speaking again, though his words were too quiet to make out. From where you stood, it almost looked as though he were having a conversation with someone.

Except there was nobody else there.

Your brow furrowed in confusion. What was he doing? Why was he talking as though someone were standing right in front of him?

The question barely had time to form before your attention shifted downward.

Blood.

A dark pool had gathered around his shoes, spreading across the concrete beneath him. Your stomach dropped. A horrible suspicion began to take shape, and you leaned a little farther around the doorframe, just enough to see what lay beyond him. And then you saw her.

Nozomi.

For a bit, your mind simply refused to process what you were looking at. She was lying motionless on the floor, her body marked by several brutal gashes. Her usually pale skin had taken on a lifeless pallor, and the blood surrounding her made the scene almost impossible to comprehend. There was no movement, no sign that she might still be breathing. Nothing.

Whatever hope you’d carried with you through the academy shattered in an instant.

You hadn’t even realized you’d moved until the sole of your shoe scraped against the floor. It was a small, involuntary shift backward, barely more than a reflex, but in the silence of the Garage, the noise might as well have been a gunshot.

The voice stopped.

For a moment, nothing moved. Then Takumi slowly turned his head toward the doorway.

His gaze found you almost immediately.

“Oh?” A smile spread across his face, bright and strangely genuine. His crimson eyes settled on you, their pale pupils catching the dim light as he regarded you with unmistakable delight.

“Well, look who’s here.” There was something horribly cheerful about the way he greeted you, as though you’d simply arrived at an unexpected gathering rather than stumbled upon the aftermath of a murder. He turned fully, and the sight of him made your breath catch.

The front of his raincoat was splattered with blood, uneven red stains streaking the clear plastic. A few flecks had reached his face, too, standing out starkly against his skin. Your gaze dropped to his hands. He was still holding the power saw, it’s silver blade angled toward the floor. Fresh blood clung to the teeth, dripping intermittently onto the concrete below.

He noticed your attention lingering on it. “Oh, this?” He glanced down at the weapon, then gave a small, almost dismissive shrug. “I wouldn’t worry about that.”

His eyes briefly wandered toward the body behind him. “Though I suppose you’ve already noticed our little complication.”

He looked back at you, his smile never quite fading. “Your friend was rather unfortunate, I’m afraid. She got in the way, and I couldn’t very well let her wander off after everything, could I?” His head tilted slightly. “Such a shame. She really did make things more difficult than they needed to be.”

A soft laugh escaped him before he seemed to arrive at another thought. “Wait… Is that why you’re here?” His expression brightened with renewed interest. “You came looking for her?”

He glanced over his shoulder at Nozomi, then back at you. “Ahaha! How sweet. You were worried about your poor friend.” His voice took on a mockingly sympathetic lilt. “I imagine you were hoping to find her somewhere safe, perhaps waiting for you to come along and rescue her.”

He paused, letting the thought linger. “Well, I’m afraid you’re a little late for that.” His smile widened. “She stopped being a problem some time ago.”

The casualness with which he said it made the words all the more sickening. He wasn’t even trying to justify himself. There was no guilt, no hesitation, not so much as a flicker of remorse. He spoke as though Nozomi’s death were an inconsequential detail, something barely worth mentioning.

Then his attention returned fully to you. “But enough about her. I’ve been wondering where you’d gotten to.” His fingers shifted around the handle of the power saw. “You two were so considerate to separate earlier. Saved me quite a bit of trouble, actually.”

He took a leisurely step forward. “Though I suppose that means I have you all to myself now.” His expression softened into something almost fond, the smile lingering a little too long. “How fortunate.”

Another step.

“Well, then. Shall we—” His words abruptly caught in his throat.

A sharp, strangled sound escaped him, and his entire body stiffened. The hand holding the power saw jerked, its blade dipping toward the floor as his other hand flew to his head. “Ngh—!”

His shoulders drew tight. For a moment, he seemed to struggle against something invisible, his expression twisting as though an unbearable pain had seized him. The crimson in his eyes flickered, the unnatural white pupils momentarily disappearing as their color shifted back toward sapphire.

Then he looked at you. The smile was gone.

His eyes widened, his breathing suddenly uneven. Whatever amusement had been there moments ago had vanished, replaced by an expression of raw alarm. His grip on the saw trembled, and for the first time since you’d found him, he looked genuinely afraid.

“{{user}}?!” His voice sounded different. It was still Takumi’s, but the familiar steadiness was gone, replaced by something strained and desperate.

“Run!” He lurched forward, as though trying to reach you, though the power saw remained clenched in his hand. “Get away from me! Get the hell away from—”

A violent jerk cut him off.

His head snapped to the side, and a strained gasp forced its way past his lips. The sapphire in his eyes flickered once, then twice, before crimson flooded back into his irises. The change was almost instantaneous. His shoulders gradually relaxed, the tension draining from his posture as his breathing settled into something slow and measured.

For a few seconds, he didn’t move.

Then his head tilted.

“Heheh…” A quiet laugh slipped from his throat. The faint smile returned, slowly curling across his lips as he looked at you again. Whatever had happened moments ago seemed to have passed, leaving no trace of the panic that had briefly overtaken his expression.

“Well, that was awfully rude.” He gave a small shake of his head, as though recovering from a minor inconvenience. “Forgive me. It seems I was interrupted.” His gaze drifted briefly toward the power saw before settling on you once more. The amusement in his expression deepened. “Now, where were we?”

He took another unhurried step forward. “Ah, that’s right.” His smile widened. “I was going to give you a head start.”

He paused, watching you with an almost eager curiosity. “Go on. Run.”