Morning came, yet the school was unusually quiet.
Whispers spread faster than the bell ever could.
“They say there was a massacre in the lower district.”
“Four people. Their bodies were pinned with nails.”
“The police said it wasn’t any ordinary weapon.”
I kept my head down at my desk.
The world in my vision was broken.
My left side drowned in fractured fog—shadows lagged behind, colors arrived too late. Every time the iron around me trembled faintly, I held my breath, as if it were reminding me of what I had done.
-------------------
“Rinne.”
Iych sat down in front of me, her expression far more serious than usual.
“They’ve started giving it a name.”
“A name…?”
“In the internal security network,” she said quietly. “An unidentified perpetrator. A temporary codename.”
I swallowed. “What is it?”
“Iron Wailer.”
My blood ran cold.
“Witnesses reported hearing screams before the metal moved,” she continued. “And every wound… was metal-based.”
I clenched my fists. “That isn’t me.”
Iych looked at me for a long moment.
“Names aren’t about truth,” she said at last. “They’re about fear.”
-------------------
At home, Father shut off the holo-screen the moment I stepped inside.
The news vanished.
A crimson headline lingered in my mind.
IRON MONSTER TERRORIZES THE LOWER DISTRICT
“Get some rest,” Father said shortly.
Mother didn’t look at me. Her hands trembled as she poured the tea.
I wanted to say something.
Confess.
Apologize.
But the spoon quivered slightly.
I stayed silent.
-------------------
Night fell.
I stood before the mirror.
My left eye was dull.
Fine cracks—like metal fibers—seemed to shimmer within the iris. Or perhaps it was only my imagination.
YOU HEAR IT, DON’T YOU?
The voice whispered.
“They’re calling me a monster,” I murmured.
NAMES ARE TOOLS.
“For what?”
TO SEPARATE HUMANS FROM WHAT THEY FEAR.
I exhaled slowly. “Then… what’s your name?”
Silence.
Then—
I AM THE ANSWER WHEN YOU SCREAM.
I stared at my reflection.
“If the world gives me a name,” I said, my voice shaking but firm,
“then I’ll choose how to carry it.”
The iron around me whispered softly.
SOMETHING HAS BEGUN.