Akira stood in the centre of his dimly lit room, the red light of the system floating before his eyes like a digital ghost.
He looked at Rina, who was finally breathing deeply and steadily. The frost around her was gone, replaced by a light sheen of sweat. His own heart was pounding in his chest, reminding him of the energy he had just siphoned into his own veins.
"Option C is suicide," Akira decided. "If that thing matures into a High Alpha, the entire city becomes a buffet. I won't be able to protect anyone then, let alone this apartment. But if I leave and Mia finds out... if she opens that door and finds the bed empty..."
Ai's voice hummed in his mind. "She's a ticking time bomb, darling. A yandere's love is built on the illusion of total possession. If you shatter that illusion, she might not just break… she might hunt you herself. However, the Parasite is currently vulnerable. Its feeding cycle is the only time its hide softens."
