…Huh? What is this?
Who is this woman carrying me? Where is she taking me?
Wait… who am I?
As these questions spun wildly in my head, the woman spoke without slowing her pace.
"Hey, I know you're quick when it comes to assassinations, but isn't it a little reckless to approach the target in broad daylight?"
Assassi…nation?
What? Why? Me?
I tried to replay every moment since I arrived in this world: the girl who looked exactly like the one from my dream, my body moving on its own toward her, the guards surrounding her, this woman's sudden rescue, and now… assassination?
Okay. Calm down. Let's think logically.
I'm in another world.
I saw a girl identical to the one in my dream.
My body moved toward her without permission.
Guards were protecting her.
This woman thinks I'm an assassin and helped me escape.
Which means… she's probably connected to whoever wants that girl dead.
And that girl… she has to be someone important. A princess, maybe?
I still had no idea why any of this was happening to me, but one thing felt painfully clear: I was about to get dragged into something very, very dangerous.
I decided—for now—to go with the flow.
After several minutes of being carried at frightening speed, she finally slowed and set me down in a narrow, dimly lit alley.
"Okay, we're here."
"Uh… oh," I managed.
"Hurry up and get inside." She grabbed my wrist again and pulled me through a low door.
The place was a bar tucked deep in a backstreet subway district. Inside, the air was thick with smoke and strange smells. Almost no one looked fully human. Beastkin with fox ears and bushy tails, lizard-scaled arms, a bear-headed man nursing a tankard, bird-like people with feathered crests—every patron was some kind of demi-human hybrid. Not a single normal human face in sight.
"Hey! Come this way," she called.
I followed her past the main floor to a narrow staircase leading down. I hesitated for half a second, then descended.
The basement was even darker. One single oil lamp hung from the ceiling, throwing weak, flickering shadows. As soon as my foot hit the bottom step, voices erupted from the gloom.
"Hey, where the hell have you been?"
"Who's that with you?"
"Vinala, who did you drag in here?"
The woman—Vinala—answered casually.
"Huh? This is the assassin we contracted to kill the Flame Girl."
A stunned silence. Then someone barked a laugh.
"What are you talking about? The real assassin arrived here maybe ten minutes ago."
Vinala froze.
"…What?"
She spun toward me, eyes wide.
"Uh… oh," I said weakly. "Hey, I think there's been some kind of misunderstanding—"
The room exploded into shouts.
"You brought a random kid here?!"
"What the hell were you thinking, Vinala?"
"We're supposed to be lying low! If they trace him back to this place, we're all dead!"
Vinala's voice cracked as she yelled back.
"How was I supposed to know what he looks like?! When I pulled him out of that mess he looked like a guy—now he looks like this! And he used Shadow Step to get right up to her—stopped three meters away because of that damn knight. I swore it was our guy! I swear to the Goddess, I didn't know!"
Before anyone could answer, a new voice cut through the chaos—shifting pitch unnaturally between man, woman, and child.
"Okay, okay, okay—chill. All of you. Why are you making this so hard for me to stay quiet? Or do you want to die?"
The voices died instantly.
A figure stepped into the dim lamplight. A woman, maybe twenty-four to twenty-six, dressed in a flowing black robe. Long black hair, pitch-black eyes, and a smile that didn't reach them. No—a smile that promised violence. A murderer's smile.
She tilted her head at Vinala.
"So. You helped him escape the guards because you mistook him for me, right?"
"Y-yes, ma'am," Vinala stammered.
"Ohhh, that's great." The woman's smile widened. "You risked your life for a stranger. You only escaped because you were trying to help him, not hurt the girl. You know your limits after all. Oh, girl—you're awesome."
Then her gaze slid to me.
"And you." Her voice dropped to something soft and deadly. "Who are you? And how can you use Shadow Step? Tell me quickly, and I might consider letting you live."
"What…?" I croaked. "I—I don't know what Shadow Step is. And… I don't even know who I am."
She studied me for a long second.
"Is that so…?" she murmured. "Unfortunate. If you're useless, then you must die."
She vanished.
In the next heartbeat she was in front of me.
I tried to react—too late.
Something slammed into my chest like a battering ram. My body flew backward, crashing into the stone wall. Pain exploded through my ribs. I tasted copper. Blood sprayed from my mouth.
I looked down.
My chest was caved inward. Ribs shattered inward. Every breath was fire. Every heartbeat was agony.
I screamed—and the scream tore something worse inside me.
She crouched in front of me, smiling that same wicked smile.
"Oh my, my… I'm so sorry. I didn't realize you were this weak. I only meant to give you a little pain so you'd answer honestly. But it seems you can't even speak anymore. Guess I'll just let you die like this."
She laughed softly, almost tenderly.
"So? How does it feel? The pain. Is it really painful?"
Behind her, Vinala and the others watched like this was just another Tuesday.
My vision darkened. Strength bled out of my limbs. My eyes fluttered shut.
The last thing I saw was her—the girl from my dream—floating above the crowd behind Vinala. Flames curled around her like living serpents.
And then I heard her voice, cold and clear.
"Flame Execution."
…
…
[The sound of blades of fire tearing through flesh and bone]
…
Moments—or hours—later, voices drifted in.
"Your Majesty, why do you always rush into these situations without telling us?"
"I know what I'm doing. Stop worrying and start administering the medicine. We need answers from him."
"Besides, I have my knight to protect me. Isn't that right?"
"Yes, my lady. I will always remain by your side to protect you."
I tried to open my eyes.
When they finally obeyed, the world was wrong.
Nothing but thick white fog in every direction.
I stood up. Looked down at my chest.
…Normal. No blood. No crushed ribs.
Am I dead?
Before I could decide, voices echoed from the mist.
"Oh… you finally showed up, huh?"
"Yeah, great. Another moron."
"Don't get your hopes up. He's probably another failure."
I spun around. Blurry silhouettes flickered in and out of the fog.
"Okay then," one voice said cheerfully. "Since he's finally here, why don't we start the conference?"
Murmurs of agreement.
The fog abruptly vanished.
Seven figures stood in a loose circle around me—each one staring with a strange mixture of confusion, joy, concern, and fragile hope.
"I don't know why," I whispered, "but I have a really bad feeling I'm about to get into huge trouble."
My heart hammered. My body shivered. That same icy chill from the park crawled up my spine again.
One of the figures—a tall man with sharp features—glanced past me.
"Oh. She's here too, huh…"
I swallowed hard and slowly turned around.
…
…
…
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH——