SAI SHINU
The bar was quiet except for the crackle of a low fire. Yosuke's golden eyes were fixed on me, searching, waiting. My chest felt like it was burning, the weight of the truth pressing harder the longer I stayed silent.
Slowly, I pulled at the collar of my shirt, baring my chest. There it was—the mark. The moon. But not whole anymore. Just a third of it remained, shining faintly over my heart.
Yosuke froze.
"…Sai. That's different. It wasn't like this before."
I nodded, my throat tight. "It changed. The moon used to be full… then my father died. A third vanished that night."
The memory cut into me as sharp as the gunshot itself.
"I see it every night, Yosuke. Him standing there, strong as ever… until the sound. A pistol. The bullet tearing into his chest. He falls, and I fall with him. I can feel the pain, the blood spilling out of me even though it isn't my body. I wake up shaking, screaming—but it doesn't matter. Because the curse makes me live it again, night after night."
My hand pressed against the mark. It was faintly warm, like an ember that never went out.
"For years it stayed that way. Two-thirds left. I thought I'd grown used to it. That maybe I could endure it forever if I had to. But then…" My voice cracked. "…then my mother was taken. She didn't even leave a body behind. Just… absence. And with her, another third vanished."
I looked down at the single fragment of moon left etched into my skin.
"Now it's just this. A third of a moon for what remains. For me. The last piece of my family still alive."
Yosuke clenched his fists, his face tight with anger—but I kept speaking, the words spilling before I could stop them.
"When that being saved me from the mages, it told me salvation came with a curse. I didn't understand then. But now I do. The curse isn't just pain—it's a reminder. A brand on my soul that eats away at me, piece by piece, as the ones I love die."
I forced a bitter laugh.
"When the last part of this moon disappears… when the final light goes out… so will I."
The silence weighed heavy. My chest rose and fell with uneven breaths, the air in the bar too thick, too stifling. And though Yosuke was right in front of me, I had never felt more alone.
Yosuke's eyes never left the mark on my chest. His voice was low, almost careful.
"Sai… after it became a third. Have you seen them? Any dreams? Any of the visions?"
I swallowed, shaking my head. "No. Nothing. Since the mark changed, it's been silent."
For a moment, relief flickered across his face, but it was thin, forced—like a man grasping at threads of hope.
"Alright," he said firmly. "Then tonight, we're going back to the village. We'll figure this out, together."
I nodded once, quietly. But before the silence could swallow us again, another thought pierced through me.
"What about Namae?" I asked, my voice softer this time. "Where is she?"
Yosuke's golden eyes softened at the name.
"She's safe. I made sure of it. She left with Jiro and a girl—they're heading toward Yasu. She wanted to keep going like you told her, but she's waiting for you. That's why I stayed behind."
My hands tightened against the table. A strange mix of relief and guilt twisted inside me. She had followed my words, trusted me even when everything around us was collapsing—and still, I had left her to carry that burden alone.
"I see…" I whispered. "She trusted me enough to keep going."
I could almost picture her in that moment: sitting upright on the chariot, the child beside her, keeping her head high even with her heart weighed down by fear. She was strong—but she shouldn't have had to be.
"I need to see her," I said finally, my tone firmer now. "Before anything else, I need to see her with my own eyes."
Yosuke gave me a small nod, one that carried both reassurance and unspoken urgency.
"And you will. But first…" He glanced once more at the glowing mark on my chest. "We have to deal with this. Before it takes more than just your dreams."