A wordless night passed swiftly.
Dawn’s light banished the darkness cloaking the earth as the sun rose…
Watching the gloom outside the window fade…
My foggy mind finally cleared a little…
Thanks to that girl yesterday, I’d barely slept a wink.
My head buzzed with thoughts of today…
Learning that person might be someone I deeply respected left me tangled in conflicting emotions.
Like a storm of unspoken feelings churning inside…
By eight o’clock, I’d already drifted unconsciously to the front gate…
Kyuubi stood beside it, as if waiting for me.
Seeing me stifle a small yawn…
“You’re up? Not going back to sleep?”
Kyuubi asked, concern in its voice at my weary state.
“No. I won’t sleep until this is settled.”
I shook my head at its worry.
If I didn’t uncover that girl’s identity…
I doubted…
I’d ever rest peacefully again…
“I see. Alright then.”
Kyuubi dropped the subject when I refused.
“Let’s go.”
I shook my head to clear the haze and gestured to Kyuubi.
Then I pushed open the gate.
“Mhm. Let’s go.”
Kyuubi hopped onto my shoulder at my words.
“I hope it’s not the worst outcome…”
I sighed with a bitter smile and headed toward Guanghai Normal University of Technology.
…
“K-Kyuubi… what do you make of this?”
The school before me wasn’t its usual lively self.
Instead…
A deathly still campus stood empty, devoid of any movement…
It wasn’t a holiday. No closure notices had reached me.
The guard booth stood vacant.
Sensing something deeply wrong, I turned to Kyuubi for answers.
“All I can say is—it’s bad. They’re aiming for mutual destruction…”
Kyuubi’s gaze hardened as it stared at the sunlit yet lifeless campus. It felt like a silent graveyard, chillingly empty…
And…
Passersby seemed oblivious to the anomaly, walking past the gates as if nothing were amiss.
The sight reminded me of the Fallen World…
“But why don’t others notice the school’s strangeness?”
Spotting the unnatural reactions of pedestrians, I frowned at Kyuubi.
“Space here is warped. I suspect a powerful Bonesoul has appeared…”
Kyuubi’s expression turned grave as it studied the campus.
As if facing something truly dire.
“So you mean…”
“The Bonesoul behind that woman must be exceptionally strong. Strong enough to twist reality itself…”
Kyuubi answered before I could finish, as if reading my thoughts.
“Aren’t all Bonesouls capable of warping space?”
I knew they could—but I didn’t grasp Kyuubi’s point.
“No. This isn’t like before, merely tearing a rift. This Bonesoul has dragged your entire school into its domain. That’s why outsiders ignore it.”
Kyuubi shook its head, correcting my misunderstanding.
It explained why the world overlooked the campus: a mighty Bonesoul had sealed it within its realm!
“What about the people inside?”
“If we rush in now, we might still save some. The domain is young. With luck, a few could be alive…”
“And without luck?”
“They won’t just die. The Bonesoul will devour them to grow stronger. A domain this vast? I doubt its hunger is small…”
Kyuubi’s tone suggested I’d underestimated the horror.
These people wouldn’t merely perish—they’d become fuel for the Bonesoul’s power.
If unchecked…
The catastrophe would escalate!
“No time to lose!”
Grasping the urgency, I exchanged a look with Kyuubi and sprinted toward the school gates.
Ready to force my way in!
But…
“Huh?”
The moment I stepped through the gate, my vision blurred…
When it cleared…
I stood frozen in place, the gate still looming ahead.
This ghostly barrier stunned me.
“It’s rejecting us. No choice then…”
Kyuubi leaped off my shoulder as I stumbled back.
“Now it’s up to you… the one my master chose…”
On the ground, Kyuubi fixed me with a solemn, weighty stare.
“What are you planning, Kyuubi?”
Sensing its resolve, I asked warily.
“Don’t worry. It’s only one life. You must complete your mission~”
Kyuubi shook its head with a faint smile, as if preparing for something irreversible…
Its casual “only one life” hinted at its intent.
“You’re going to—?”
“Mhm…”
“Isn’t there another way?”
“I’ve seen your efforts. For your sake, I’ll do this much. Don’t grieve… this is my fate…”
“But…”
“I told you—I don’t truly die. If I fall, I’ll simply find a new vessel. Don’t mourn or worry. I *will* return to you~”
“Kyu…ubi…”
“Don’t waste this one chance!”
Though we’d only known each other half a month…
Something ached in my chest at Kyuubi’s resolve…
Even knowing it would return, that budding sorrow wouldn’t fade…
“You *have* to come back!”
My voice trembled as I called after Kyuubi’s retreating form, eyes stinging…
“No need to grieve for me~”
Leaving a hero’s silhouette, Kyuubi charged without hesitation toward the school gates!
“The rest is yours…”
Just before reaching the gate, Kyuubi’s final words echoed. Its body erupted into a pale blue comet, slamming into the barrier!
Thanks to Kyuubi’s sacrifice…
A deep crimson crack split where the light struck…
“Thank you…”
I bowed my head toward Kyuubi’s fading light, whispering my gratitude…
Then I approached the crack, pressing my hand against it.
I knew this fracture was Kyuubi’s life-gifted opportunity…
The moment my fingers touched it, a powerful suction gripped me—
Yanking me inward!
I didn’t resist.
Surrendering to the pull, I finally crossed the threshold into the school.
But…
The scene inside defied the outside world!
Guanghai Normal University of Technology had been bathed in sunlight beyond the gate.
Here, a suffocating crimson sky pressed down, whispering despair. Death’s shadow loomed. The clock on the tower ticked… tocked… like a countdown to doom.
“I hope I’m not too late…”
Glancing up at the teaching building, I rushed inside.
At this hour, most should be in classrooms.
Seeing no one outside, I assumed everyone was within…
Inside, silence reigned. No signs of life.
“Could classes not have started yet?”
I paused, stroking my chin in thought.
“No—this is lecture time. Even if students were absent, guards should be here!”
I dismissed the idea instantly.
This emptiness was impossible!
With the guard post deserted too…
Had I arrived too late?
Heart pounding, I hurried upstairs.
I’d already checked the first floor—
Nothing but eerie stillness.
Reaching the second floor…
“Hey! Are you alright?”
A man lay slumped at the stairwell!
Around thirty, his pained expression hinted at a struggle before he passed out.
Relief washed over me—his breathing was steady. Just unconscious.
I knelt, patting his back to rouse him.
“…”
No response. His eyes stayed shut.
“If one person’s here, then others must be too…”
I propped him against the wall, then resumed my search.
His presence meant survivors likely remained.
I scoured every corner of the second floor.
“Wake up! Please!”
Each classroom held gray-faced students slumped over desks, lifeless as corpses.
But their steady breaths proved they lived—
Trapped in unnatural slumber.
Surely… that woman’s doing?
