Reiki let go of Uragiru’s hair as he dropped to the ground creating a soft thud. Uragiru placed a hand on his cheek that had the skin peeled by the heated knife as he flinched from the pain. He glanced at his hand which had some pieces of burnt skin along with some blood, Uragiru said. “I… Never did anything to you that deserved this.” He turned his head and looked up to him. Reiki was staring back at him as Uragiru saw his dead and hollow eyes piercing through him. Uragiru felt a chill down his spine and quickly turned his head to break off eye contact.

 

Blood from the ripped skin of his cheek that exposed red muscle kept bleeding from the edge as Uragiru used the tip of his fingers to feel his wound. He flinched from the sharp pain and thought. Why isn’t the talisman running out yet? Reiki reached for the cleaver on the stove while the human flesh stuck on one side of it was half burnt filling the kitchen with a putrid stench. Uragiru let out a gag as the potent stench started to reach the floor, he thought. What is that smell?! It’s completely rancid!

 

Reiki picked up the cleaver and glanced at Uragiru from the corner of his eye. Reiki said. “Catch.” He gently threw the cleaver at him while Uragiru saw it coming closer to him. Uragiru caught the cleaver by the spine as he felt the heat from the blade.

 

[System: User has dealt 39 Damage.]

 

Uragiru instantly let go of the cleaver as it dropped onto the floor, he stared at the tip of his fingers and the palm of his hands which had a few layers of skin burnt off along with some hints of charred skin. Reiki used his left leg to kick Uragiru’s face.

 

[System: User has dealt 26 Damage.]

 

The back of Uragiru’s head hit the floor creating an audible thud. He pressed his hands on the floor but felt pain from having exposed skin touch the tiles. Uragiru grits his teeth as blood starts to seep out from his gums, he thought. I didn’t want to do this… Uragiru’s eyes started watering as he let out a sniffle while Reiki made his way toward him. Uragiru continued his train of thought. If I need to cry to get out of this alive then I’ll-. Reiki positioned his right foot above Uragiru’s face and placed it on top of his face.

 

[System: User has dealt 3 Damage.]

 

Reiki started to rub the sole of his shoe against Uragiru’s face that was filled with blisters and burnt patches of skin.

 

[System: User has dealt 5 Damage.]

 

[System: User has dealt 7 Damage.]

 

[System: User has dealt 9 Damage.]

 

……

 

Uragiru let out deafening screams while Reiki slowly and firmly rubbed the bottom of his shoe all over his wounded face. Reiki used the heel of the shoe to apply pressure on Uragiru’s cheek that had some skin peeled off.

 

[System: User has dealt 14 Damage.]

 

[System: User has dealt 19 Damage.]

 

…

 

Uragiru’s screams got louder while Reiki slowly applied more force on the exposed red muscle on his cheek as he scraped some blood with his shoe. Reiki moved his foot away from his face as Uragiru started to hyperventilate. Uragiru said. “Y-You’re not Akihito. That coward can’t even-.” Reiki kicked his face before he could continue his sentence.

 

[System: User has dealt 29 Damage.]

 

Uragiru’s head snapped to the left as a couple of teeth flew out from his mouth. He used the back of his fingers to learn he lost one of his canines along with a molar. Reiki made his way to the stove and turned it off while Uragiru started to use his forearms to crawl on the floor. Uragiru thought. I need to get out of here! Reiki picked up one of the knives sprawled around the countertop and threw it at Uragiru who was trying to escape. The knife flew a few inches past Uragiru’s face and bounced off the tile floor.

 

Uragiru stopped crawling while Reiki made his way to him. He sat on top of Uragiru’s back and placed his hands just below Uragiru’s left elbow and left shoulder. Uragiru had a panicked look on his face, he said. “W-What are you doing?” Reiki started to angle his elbow and in one swift motion, he dislocated Uragiru’s shoulder. Uragiru screamed at the top of his lungs while pressing his forehead against the floor. He grits his teeth as more blood oozes out of his gums, Uragiru thought. Why is this happening to me? Why? Why?! Why! He said. “I don’t know-.” He stopped as Reiki grabbed his earlobe and started to pull on it.

 

[System: User has dealt 5 Damage.]

 

Uragiru stretched his neck closer to the direction in which it was being tugged, he said. “What-.” He only got a single word out as Reiki ripped his ear off in one go.

 

[System: User has dealt 50 Damage.]

 

Reiki threw Uragiru’s ear to the ground as he stared at it in disbelief while blood started pouring out from his new injury. Uragiru quickly placed his hand over the area of his torn ear while Reiki stared at him and said. “That single spell you used on the chairs… Is that all you’re capable of?” Reiki thought. Seeing how he's still alive after everything I did to him. I expected-. Uragiru’s right hand was enveloped with a thin layer of mana, with a subtle wave of his hand the frying pan on the ground flew towards Reiki hitting him in the back of the head.

 

[System: User has received 33 Damage.]

 

Reiki leaned forward from the blow as his vision slightly blurred while Uragiru managed to get him off of his back. Reiki sat up on the ground and rubbed the back of his head, he thought. It hit me in the same spot when I was at the sink. Uragiru pulled himself up with the help of the counter as his nails started to crack from the weight. Reiki stared at Uragiru’s unstable legs as he used his foot as a hook to pull on his ankle. 

 

[System: User has dealt 4 Damage.]

 

Uragiru lost his grip on the counter as he fell onto the ground while Reiki stood up and dusted off some dirt on his clothes. Reiki made his way to the counter and picked up a chef’s knife, he examined the knife's quality and thought. … Japanese brand, not something I would use let alone steal. He turned his head to the side and saw Uragiru using the door of a cabinet to pull himself up. Uragiru thought. Any second now, that talisman is going to run out of mana any moment. I just need to survive until then… Reiki made his way toward him and kicked Uragiru in his ribs.

 

[System: User has dealt 24 Damage.]

 

Uragiru felt the air in his lungs escape, he thought. Can’t breathe-. He gripped the door of the cabinet harder as Reiki kicked him in the ribs again.

 

[System: User has dealt 22 Damage.]

 

Uragiru’s grip slipped from the cabinet’s door as Reiki grabbed him by the shirt of his collar and positioned him to sit on the ground while leaning on the cabinets. Uragiru saw the knife Reiki was holding as he let out a mocking chuckle that made him wince in pain. Uragiru said. “Let me guess, you’re going to cook that knife too?” He spat at Reiki’s face as the thick saliva mixed with some blood landed on his forehead. Reiki casually wiped the spit on his forehead with his hand and wiped it clean on his shirt.

 

Uragiru forced out a laugh as he gritted his teeth to hide the pain. Reiki placed the tip of the knife on Uragiru’s forehead and barely applied any pressure.

 

[System: User has dealt 1 Damage.]

 

In one swift motion, Reiki made a diagonal movement with the knife as Uragiru had a deep enough wound on his left eye to blind him.

 

[System: User has dealt 65 Damage.]

 

Uragiru felt a sharp pain on his face as he reflexively used his right hand to cover his eye. He glanced at the knife Reiki was holding and saw a drop of blood fall from the tip of the knife onto the floor. Uragiru slowly moved his hand away from his eye and saw a large amount of blood covering his entire palm as he let out a scream. Reiki stared at Uragiru’s face which was covered in blisters and burnt skin along with one of his cheeks skin being peeled off revealing red muscle.

 

The wound on Uragiru’s eye kept bleeding as he quickly placed his hand back on it to apply pressure, he said. “That’s right! Keep giving me wounds! It’ll only serve as proof for-!” Before he could finish his sentence Reiki used the knife to slice off a small tip of Uragiru’s nose.

 

[System: User has dealt 9 Damage.]

 

Uragiru felt a split second of pain in his nose as he screamed which was interrupted by hacking and coughing, he thought. My voice. He felt something sharp slicing on his left forearm and turned his head to look.

 

[System: User has dealt 9 Damage.]

 

[System: User has dealt 12 Damage.]

 

[System: User has dealt 11 Damage.]

 

……

 

Uragiru saw Reiki using the knife to repeatedly write the kanji word death on his forearm. Uragiru tried to scream but his voice didn’t even produce any sound while trying to move his dislocated arm.

 

[System: User has dealt 8 Damage.]

 

[System: User has dealt 10 Damage.]

 

Reiki stopped in the middle of writing the fourth kanji, he said, “Stop moving, you're messing up my writing.” Uragiru leaned his head back and headbutted Reiki on the forehead.

 

[System: User has received 19 Damage.]

 

[System: User has dealt 5 Damage.]

 

Uragiru slowly opened his eyes and saw Reiki rubbing the spot on his forehead where he was hit. Reiki grabbed Uragiru’s forehead and shoved it against the cabinet door.

 

[System: User has dealt 38 Damage.]

 

The cabinet door cracked slightly while Reiki let go of Uragiru’s head and added the last couple of lines of the kanji word for death on his forearm.

 

[System: User has dealt 7 Damage.]

 

[System: User has dealt 10 Damage.]

 

Reiki thought. Done. He stared at the neat row of kanji on Uragiru’s forearm and was about to let go of him. From the corner of Reiki’s eye, he saw a frying pan smash toward the side of his face.

 

[System: User has received 23 Damage.]

 

Reiki used his tongue to feel the inside of his mouth, he thought. I got a cut on the inside of my cheek. He moved his gaze onto Uragiru who was glaring at him between the gaps in his fingers. Reiki slowly stabbed half of the knife into Uragiru’s thigh as he violently shook from the pain while letting out soft hoarse screams.

 

[System: User has dealt 44 Damage.]

 

Reiki let go of the handle of the knife while Uragiru’s breathing was ragged and heavy. Reiki grabbed Uragiru’s wrist that was holding onto the frying pan as he used his other hand to dislocate the tip of Uragiru’s pinky which made him let go of it.

 

[System: User has dealt 3 Damage.]

 

The pan fell onto the floor as it bounced once while Reiki let go of his wrist. Uragiru placed his arm against his chest, he thought. You fuck! That hurts! Reiki picked up the pan by the handle as he noticed some blood on the bottom of it and searched the back of his head with his other hand. He saw some blood on the tip of his fingers and thought. This pan hit me harder than I thought. Uragiru was gasping for breath as he watched Reiki wind up the frying pan.

 

Reiki swung the pan at Uragiru’s face as he closed his eyes and gritted his teeth in anticipation of the blow. A few seconds passed as Uragiru didn’t feel anything and slowly opened his eyes as he saw Reiki use the pan to hammer down the knife stuck in his thigh.

 

[System: User has dealt 99 Damage.]

 

The knife went deeper into Uragiru’s thigh, he violently shivered from the pain while letting out soft throaty screams. Reiki threw the frying pan over his shoulder while tears started to form in Uragiru’s eyes. Reiki squatted down and reached for the knife lodged into Uragiru’s thigh as he felt the glare coming from him. Uragiru spoke with a hoarse voice as he could barely speak, he said. “I-I”m… Going t-to... Watch m-my… Brother… Kill… Y-You…” Reiki stared at him as his mouth slowly curled into a plain smile, he said. “Which one?”

 

A hint of shock appeared in Uragiru’s eyes while Reiki continued. “The one trying to get into politics? Or the one who's currently an errand boy for the yakuza?” Uragiru’s eyes widened, he forced himself to speak and said. “How d-do-.” Reiki placed a finger on the handle of the knife that was stuck in Uragiru’s thigh and slightly moved the handle sideways which made him lean forward in pain. 

 

[System: User has dealt 6 Damage.]

 

Reiki said. “Don’t worry, I’ll kill them after you.” Reiki tried to pull the knife out of Uragiru’s thigh but noticed it was stuck. Reiki thought. The tip of the knife is buried in the tile. Uragiru ignored the sharp pain in his thigh, he thought. … He’s going to kill me?... I-I’m going to die?... Reiki reached for the knife while Uragiru let out a sniffle and said. “I… My b-brothers… Can pay… Triple of whatever… Reiki… Promised… Y-You…” Reiki let out a chuckle as he used his nail to scrape the exposed muscle on Uragiru’s cheek.

 

[System: User has dealt 3 Damage.]

 

[System: User has dealt 4 Damage.]

 

[System: User has dealt 7 Damage.]

 

Some blood got stuck in Reiki’s fingernail while he stared at Uragiru and said. “You know I don’t have the money for anything.” Uragiru ignored the pain on his cheek as he couldn’t move his gaze away from Reiki’s hollow and dead eyes. Uragiru had disbelief all over his face and spoke in a hoarse voice, he said. “R-Reiki?...” The plain smile on Reiki’s face grew bigger, he said. “Same one.” He grabbed the handle of the knife and forcefully removed it.

 

[System: User has dealt 76 Damage.]

 

Uragiru leaned forward in pain as the nasty wound on his face spilled some blood on his pants. He placed his hand on his thigh to apply pressure. Reiki skillfully twirled the knife between his fingers as some blood spilled onto the floor. Uragiru stared at the damp patch on his pants that was slowly growing, after a few seconds passed he let out a long exhale and said. “W-We’re friends… Right?...” Reiki lazily threw the knife onto the ground.

 

He shook his head sideways as he spoke in a blunt tone, Reiki said. “No.” Uragiru had a hint of realization in his eyes, he said. “M-Money… I have a p-.” Before he could finish his sentence he saw Reiki take out a familiar leather pouch from his own pocket. Reiki showed him the pouch and said. “This one?” Uragiru’s eyes widened, he thought. When did he steal that from me?! Reiki placed his hand inside the pouch as he took out a vial with red liquid in it, he said. “You have another potion?”

 

Uragiru quickly moved his hand away from the wound on his thigh and tried to take the potion Reiki was holding. He missed as Reiki stood up from his squatting position, he said. “You don’t mind, right?” He took the cork of the vial off and drank the potion, Reiki said. “This tastes terrible.”

 

[System: User has been healed for 1,000.]

 

Uragiru stared at him in disbelief as he quickly placed his hand back on his thigh. He said. “W-What did-.” Reiki made his way to the sink and spat in it, he thought. It tastes like a test product a food company is making. Uragiru grit his teeth in anger, he said. “Thief!” He started coughing while Reiki placed the cork in the leather pouch, he said. “You can have this back.” He threw the glass vial as it spun in the air while Uragiru’s attention was on it. Reiki raised his right foot, he thought. Right… There. The glass vial was perfectly aligned with his target as Reiki kicked it into Uragiru’s face, shattering the vial.

 

[System: User has dealt 49 Damage.]

 

Reiki placed his foot back on the ground as Uragiru’s face had shards of glass all over it. Uragiru thought. There’s something in my nose. He moved his hand away from his thigh and blew some blood out of his nose. Uragiru placed his hand back to apply pressure on his thigh as he watched Reiki take something out of his leather pouch. Reiki took out a leather wallet, unfolded it, and saw ten thousand yen bills in it. He said. “Why do you have two hundred thousand yen on you?”

 

Reiki took the cash from the wallet and placed it in his pocket while Uragiru gritted his teeth as blood seeped out from his gums, he said. “Why… won't you l-listen to me?” Reiki threw the empty wallet at his face and said. “You’ve never listened to me.” He placed his hand inside the pouch while Uragiru turned his face to the side as the wallet hit his hair. The wallet dropped to the ground while a hint of panic appeared on his face, Uragiru thought. The only thing left in that is-! Before he could finish his train of thought Reiki pulled out four stacks of ten thousand yen bills wrapped around a currency strap. Reiki thought. Are these even real? 

 

He threw the leather pouch on the ground and took one ten thousand yen bill from the strap. Reiki held the ten thousand yen bill against the light, he thought. Bar pattern… He moved the bill away from the light and tilted it at a certain angle, Reiki continued his train of thought. Latent image... Reiki placed the bill back in the currency strap and said. “Stole some funds your older brother was going to use for a political campaign? Glad to see you’ve learned how to embezzle money from him.”

 

Reiki took out a tattered pouch from his pocket while Uragiru kept glaring at him while adding too much pressure on the wound on his thigh causing it to bleed. Reiki placed the four stacks of ten thousand yen bills in the pouch, he said. “But I doubt he would notice a million yen missing from the amount of transactions he’s trying to keep under wraps.” Uragiru took a raspy deep breath and said. “Give… B-Back… My… Money…” He started coughing while Reiki stared at him with his hollow and dead eyes.

 

Reiki thought. Q, can you pick up the knife I threw on the ground? He made his way toward Uragiru while multiple black tendrils started to grow on Reiki’s lower back as it escaped from the gaps in his shirt. Uragiru stared at the tendrils in horror that were coming from the inside of Reiki’s shirt as it slowly made its way to the chef’s knife on the floor. Reiki took out the ten thousand yen neatly folded in half from his pocket while Q handed him the knife. Reiki nodded at the black tendril, he took the knife and said. “Thanks, Q.”

 

The tendril gently tapped Reiki on the cheek a couple of times as it returned into his clothes, he thought. What a waste of ten thousand yen. Reiki stabbed one of the ten thousand yen bills on the tip of the knife and pocketed the rest, he placed his left hand on Uragiru’s head to make sure it stayed in place. Reiki said. “Here’s your money.” He aimed the tip of the knife at Uragiru as he tried to turn his head while Reiki aimed for his mouth.

 

[System: User has dealt 21 Damage.]

 

The knife was stopped by Uragiru’s front teeth as his upper lip got cut. He felt the knife placing pressure on his tooth along with the bill pressing against his mouth. Uragiru looked up at Reiki as he saw him with a small smile on his face paired with his hollow and dead eyes. Reiki angled the knife downward as it managed to slip into his mouth stabbing Uragiru’s tongue.

 

[System: User has dealt 51 Damage.]

 

Reiki used two fingers to shove the ten thousand yen bill into Uragiru’s mouth as he moved the knife out from his mouth.

 

[System: User has dealt 32 Damage.]

 

Uragiru turned his upper body to the side and spat out a mouthful of blood along with the bill.