Joey opened his eyes to a bizarre pink face.
The owner of that face had upright, cat-like ears, pink skin, and pink eyes with vertical white pupils—anything but normal.
But Joey wasn't surprised.
After all, he had coexisted in soul form with this strange person's master for years.
He knew this being's name and abilities all too well.
A Stand.
Killer Queen.
And its master—Kira Yoshikage, whose soul Joey had spent years devouring.
Everything became clear.
---
Years ago, Joey had fallen asleep to a strange pull on his soul, accompanied by a sharp, melodic cry. When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in a soul-like state.
He couldn't explain what that state was, but he instinctively understood one thing:
If he didn't eliminate the other soul sharing his body, he would die—permanently.
So the two souls attacked each other almost simultaneously.
However, unlike Joey's direct lunge, another figure instantly appeared beside his opponent.
It was a humanoid figure with pink skin, a muscular build, and something resembling a belt around its waist.
The moment Joey saw the creature—and the man standing behind it with black-and-white hair styled in neat, hand-like curls—he immediately recognized them.
Kira Yoshikage.
A character from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, Part 4's main antagonist—a man obsessed with living a quiet life, yet hiding terrifying power.
And his Stand… Killer Queen.
The realization sent a chill through Joey.
As an ordinary person, how could he possibly fight a Stand user?
But he had no time to think.
His forward momentum didn't stop. He saw Killer Queen raise its hand, aiming directly at him. Joey knew that if they made contact, the outcome would be decided instantly.
And the one who would lose… would definitely be him.
His mind raced, searching for a way out—but found nothing.
Just as despair began to consume him—
Killer Queen suddenly vanished.
Joey's body surged forward uncontrollably, crashing straight into Kira Yoshikage, who stood behind his Stand, equally stunned.
In the next instant, Joey felt it—
Kira Yoshikage's weakness.
Without hesitation, Joey realized something crucial: in terms of raw soul strength and stability, his own soul far surpassed Kira Yoshikage's.
As their souls collided, Joey felt power being continuously drawn from Kira Yoshikage and absorbed into himself.
The transfer was rapid—overwhelming.
Then, just as suddenly as it had begun, the strange insect-like chirping that had filled the unknown space ceased.
A heavy drowsiness overtook him.
His vision blurred.
And he fell unconscious.
---
Just before losing awareness, he caught one last glimpse—
Killer Queen.
But this time, it stood in a grassy field, facing a starving wolf.
---
When Joey opened his eyes again, everything had changed.
The wolf, the Stand, the field—gone.
Instead, there was only a simple house… and his own hands, busily cooking.
Before he could make sense of it, darkness took him again.
---
This cycle repeated many times.
Each time he woke, he could only remain conscious for a few moments before slipping back into sleep.
But through those fragments, he began to understand his situation.
His soul was still absorbing Kira Yoshikage's.
And not only that—there was another soul as well.
Weaker.
Much weaker.
Joey guessed it belonged to the original owner of this body.
Unlike Joey, who drifted in and out of consciousness, Kira Yoshikage's soul seemed to continue controlling the body—acting as if nothing was wrong, as if unaware that his soul was slowly being consumed.
---
This continued for nearly five years.
Until today.
When Joey opened his eyes again, fully awake, fully present—
He realized something.
Kira Yoshikage's soul was gone.
Completely devoured.
From this moment on, in this unknown world…
There was no more Kira Yoshikage.
Only Joey remained.
---
And yet—
Killer Queen did not disappear.
It remained.
Inherited by Joey, as a result of absorbing its original master.
Unfortunately, though, Joey hadn't gained Kira Yoshikage's memories.
He couldn't help but wonder:
Had Kira experienced the same scream before arriving in this body?
How much had he learned about this world during those five years?
There were no answers.
---
Still, Joey had managed to gather some basic understanding.
This place appeared to be a remote, primitive mountain village.
During his brief awakenings, he had never seen any signs of advanced technology. The houses, the tools—everything felt old, simple, almost archaic.
At the same time, his mind was filled with scattered fragments of knowledge.
Language.
Basic survival skills.
The village layout.
Even vague impressions of some villagers.
He guessed these memories belonged to the original owner of the body.
But something puzzled him—
Why had those memories remained…
While Kira Yoshikage's had completely vanished?
---
Joey shook his head.
That didn't matter right now.
What mattered was his current situation.
---
For example—
On the table in front of him…
Was a severed hand.
A woman's hand.
Slender. Pale. Beautiful.
Even drained of blood, its delicate fingers still carried a strange, fragile elegance. Droplets of water clung to its surface, making it appear almost… fresh.
Like a peeled scallion.
Joey swallowed.
Slowly, he reached out.
His fingers brushed against it.
Cold.
Dry.
Unpleasant.
The texture was wrong—lifeless, deteriorating. Whatever beauty it once had was now hollow, meaningless.
A wave of disgust rose in his chest.
With a shudder, Joey flung the hand away just as it neared his face.
It hit the ground, rolling several times before coming to a stop.
Joey's face turned pale.
---
Before he could process anything further—
BANG! BANG! BANG!
A loud knock slammed against the door.
Startled, Joey glanced once more at the severed hand—
Then immediately gave an order.
Killer Queen stepped forward and touched it.
Its index finger pressed lightly…
Then its thumb clicked down.
In an instant—
The hand vanished.
Silently.
Without a trace.
---
Joey exhaled slightly.
At least Killer Queen's ability still worked.
That meant he wasn't defenseless.
---
"Kira Yoshikage! I know you're inside!"
A man's furious voice roared from outside the door.
"Open up now—or we're breaking in!"
___________________________
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