Veyle slowly awoke, pulling his cloak around himself as he sat up. He glanced over at Seren, who was sitting quietly in a chair beside him.
"Wait for me outside, a sec." Seren left the room, but not before signing "okay!" With a smile.
Once he was in his shirt and trousers. Halrun knocked and entered the room, with seren. He gave a small, knowing smile. "I heard you looked in that mirror yesterday," he said.
Veyle's eyes hardened slightly. "What does it matter to you?" veyle replied, his tone cool.
"Hahaha reflections are dangerous y'know." Halrun's expression grew more serious. "...Also you mentioned you'd explain what happened when you couldn't breathe the other day."
Veyle sighed, a bit of tension in his voice. "I just remembered something and got a little shock…" veyle had lied through his teeth.
Halrun sighed. "Is that really it?! Damn here i thought it was a cytoli!"
"Cy-tol-what-now?" Veyle asked, a frown forming.
"It's basically reawakening your abilities." When veyle didnt understand still, halrun looked at him weirdly.
"...losing eight seals y'know." Halrun explained.
Veyle shook his head, confusion clear on his face. "I'm still so confused!!!"
Halrun's tone grew darker, more intense. "Can I ask you something?"
"Sure, what is it?" Veyle replied, still trying to understand.
"Japan," Halrun said, his eyes narrowing.
The moment Veyle's eyes flickered with recognition, ready to speak, the scene shifted. In an instant, an axe swung forward, striking deep into Veyle's neck. Blood spurted, painting the walls and floor red.
Seren gasped, her eyes wide with horror, unable to look away as the room filled with the grim sound of the attack. Veyle's hand reached out, a futile gesture, before his strength faded and he collapsed, the room echoing with the weight of the sudden violence.
Veyle's body slipped off the axe with a sickening schlk.
He hit the floor hard, cheek smearing through his own blood. Warm, sticky—too much of it already pooling around him.
He tried to move.
He couldn't.
Tried to scream.
But his throat only gurgled.
His vision blurred red.
And through it, he saw—
Seren.
Her chair clattered as she lunged forward without hesitation, Just terror in her eyes.
Her eyes wide and shining.
She ran at Halrun like a blade herself, fingers curled, teeth gritted in silent fury.
He didn't flinch.
Didn't blink.
Just pivoted.
And brought his axe up in a cruel, clean arc.
SLICK—
Her head separated from her shoulders like paper tearing.
The force of the swing sent it spinning—
It bounced off the edge of the bed.
Hit the wall with a wet knock and thudded to the floor.
Her body crumpled mid-step, blood gushing from her neck like a geyser. It sprayed the walls. Splashed across Veyle's face. Painted her kimono a deep, dripping crimson.
She twitched once.
Then went still.
Her head landed near Veyle, eyes open.
Still looking at him.
Her mouth slightly open in some last, voiceless scream.
Veyle's hand reached out instinctively. Useless. Drenched in blood. His fingers brushed her hair.
He couldn't stop shaking.
He wanted to scream. To move. To do anything.
But all he could do was lie there.
Soaked in red.
Dying slow.
While the monster stood above them…
Polishing his blade.
Not even smiling.
Veyle's body lay motionless on the cold stone floor, drenched in his own blood.
His chest rose and fell with shallow, labored breaths, each one a struggle against the overwhelming pain.
His limbs twitched weakly, his fingers barely able to move as the blood pooled around him.
Suddenly, Halrun's boot came down on Veyle's ribs with a sickening crunch.
The sound echoed in the room like thunder.
Veyle's body jerked violently from the impact, his vision spinning as a sharp, searing pain shot through him.
A strangled gasp escaped his throat, but it was more a gurgle than anything intelligible.
Veyle's body was broken, unable to respond.
Halrun stepped back, looking down at Veyle with cold, detached amusement.
The axe in his hand gleamed with crimson as he raised it, taking his time.
Each slow, deliberate movement felt like a mocking dance to Veyle's broken, fading consciousness.
Veyle could barely lift his head to see, but his eyes locked onto the weapon.
The realization hit him in a wave of panic.
He couldn't move. He couldn't stop what was coming.
The axe came down.
With brutal force, it sank into Veyle's side, the blade cutting deep through muscle and bone.
Blood sprayed everywhere, splattering across the floor and the walls in a grotesque shower.
Veyle's mouth opened in a silent scream, but no sound came out.
Only the sickening gurgle of blood in his throat as his life force began to slip away.
His body spasmed, but it was a helpless, futile attempt to escape the agony.
Veyle's vision blurred with blood and pain.
His hand twitched toward the axe lodged in his side, but it was a desperate gesture—he couldn't reach it.
His strength had left him.
Halrun stepped back, admiring his work as Veyle's body twitched and writhed beneath him.
Then, with a cruel smirk, Halrun placed his boot on Veyle's ribs and pressed down.
CRUNCH.
Another sickening sound.
Another blow that stole the breath from Veyle's lungs.
His chest caved in further, the force of Halrun's foot crushing him deeper into the floor.
The room spun, and Veyle's consciousness flickered.
Every breath was harder to take, his body shutting down more with each passing second.
Halrun stepped away, his cold eyes never leaving Veyle's broken form.
He grabbed Veyle by the hair, lifting his head up just enough to slam it back down onto the stone floor with a sickening crack.
CRACK.
The world went dark.
Blood poured from Veyle's nose, staining his lips and the floor beneath him.
His head felt heavy, like a weight he could no longer carry.
Through the fog of pain, Veyle's eyes flickered to the side.
Seren's headless body lay in a pool of blood, her kimono a horrific shade of crimson.
Her eyes were still open, still staring, forever fixed on him.
Veyle's hand twitched, but it was pointless.
His body wouldn't respond.
He couldn't stop shaking, his mind too clouded to think straight.
The life drained from him, leaving nothing but the agony of his broken form.
Halrun stood above him, silent.
He made no move, no gesture of finality.
He was just watching.
Veyle's fingers twitched once more, a final, futile attempt to reach for anything.
But there was nothing left.
Then, the darkness took him completely.
Halrun's tone grew darker, more intense.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Sure, what is it?" Veyle replied, still trying to understand.
"Japan," Halrun said, his eyes narrowing.
A flood of memories crashed into his mind, the slaughter, the blood, the agony. His chest tightened, breath caught in his throat as everything from the last loop came rushing back.
The screams, the carnage, the feeling of helplessness... it was all there, overwhelming him.
Veyle's eyes widened, his pulse hammering in his ears.
"No—!" he screamed, the terror bursting free, ripping through him like wildfire.
The memory of his death was still fresh, the last loop's slaughter replaying vividly.
With a desperate cry, Veyle kicked out, his foot connecting with Halrun's chest, sending him stumbling back. He jumped back, eyes wild and panicked, his hand instinctively grabbing for his blade.
His fingers wrapped around the hilt, and he swung it in a wide arc, the blade flashing in the dim light.
Veyle's scream echoed through the air, the sound primal and desperate, like a soul fighting against its inevitable end.
The pain and fear he had felt in his final moments surged back, burning through his chest like wildfire.
Halrun, unmoved, simply clicked his tongue, a faint sound of disappointment."Tch."
With a casual motion, Halrun swung his axe in a wide arc, the blade gleaming in the dim light.
Veyle barely had time to react, still reeling from the shock of his sudden return. His limbs felt heavy, uncoordinated, as if his body hadn't fully adjusted to being yanked back into the world of the living.
Before he could even gather his strength, Halrun's axe came down with terrifying precision, cutting through the air like a blade through silk.
Veyle's body jerked, his scream still caught in his throat as the axe met its target.
The world went silent for a split second before the sickening sound of flesh parting from bone rang out.
Halrun stood tall, his expression a cold mask, watching as Veyle's head fell to the ground with a dull thud.
Blood sprayed outward, staining the stone floor in a crimson tide.
Veyle's body crumpled, lifeless, falling backward in a heap.
His vision faded as his head rolled to the side, eyes wide and unseeing.
And then, just as quickly as it had all begun, everything went dark.
Halrun stood over him, his gaze unshaken, the axe dripping with blood.