The time is unknown.
Anas is still sitting on his bed, perplexed, staring at the girl in front of him.
He tilts his head to the side, thinking: 'Who is this to call me "my dear"? Should I kill—'
"Are you going to kill me? Do you really want to kill me? You can do it," the girl interrupts, smiling without breaking it.
'How did she know I wanted to kill her? I'm certain that—' Anas thinks, only to be interrupted again as the girl says, "You're sure you didn't show any intent to kill, yet you tilted your head like a questioning, hesitant person, ready to strike without me noticing." She places her hands over her heart, closes her eyes, and continues: "This is my dear… clever, extremely clever, hehe~"
Anas stares at her with eyes like someone who just woke from sleep.
He then gets off the bed, walks toward the girl, grabs her dress, points his finger at her right eye, and says: "You say you'll let me kill you? Then go ahead—poke your eye with my finger yourself."
The moment he finishes speaking, the girl thrusts her head toward Anas' finger.
But Anas pushes her away with his fist gripping her dress before his finger can enter her eye.
Now only a few breaths separate them.
At this distance, Anas notices her long, white eyelashes, as pale as her hair.
Suddenly, her breathing falters and quickens.
Her heart feels as if it will leap from her chest as she thinks: 'Finally! Finally! He sees me, touches me, and talks to me. I can't believe this! What should I do? What must I do?'
Anas tilts his head: "Now I understand. Your thoughts bark inside my head, and thus my thoughts bark inside yours as well. Why do we share thoughts?"
The girl speaks in broken breaths: "Because we (inhales) are the same person. Or… let's say I belong to you, only you. I'm the only one who belongs to you. You have to choose me!"
Anas' eyes widen as he lets go of her, placing his index finger on his lips and thumb under his chin, muttering: "You… belong to me? As far as I know, every girl thinks I'm crazy, or a weak, skinny fool. How does a little girl like you come and say she belongs to me? And why am I the same height as you? You—" Before he can finish, the girl pulls his hand toward the bed, making him sit on the edge, then sits opposite him.
She begins speaking, staring directly into his eyes: "I know you have many questions, but I can't answer them all because our time here is limited. Your body is still critical and may die if nothing is done. And for your information, this place is inside your mind. I chose for us to meet in your room. (Her tone softens to almost a whisper.) Because you always ignored me here, even when I begged you to look at me."
Anas stares at her hand pressing slightly on his, then returns to meet her gaze: "But I don't remember you at all. You weren't there."
"No. I've been with you since the moment of your birth. You just didn't see me because you didn't want to. I'm simply one of the paths of your fate."
She pauses for a moment, takes a deep breath, adjusts her posture, stares at Anas, and continues firmly: "You've read about embodiment and know its principles. You are in the diagnostic category. But… you won't have a special ability like the diagnosticians with extraordinary powers. You now face five options, and you must choose."
Anas glares at her like a killer: "You vile thing. If I am a diagnostician, why must I choose?"
The girl sighs and places Anas' hand over her heart.
Anas feels her strong heartbeat under his palm but keeps his eyes on her: "I'd rather die than choose some stupid, cursed power. Why am I always exceptional only in filth? Is my luck really this bad?"
"No!" the girl suddenly shouts, then says: "I just don't want you to die. I beg you, don't die now. Just pick one option. Will you stop using your brain and let your emotions decide at such a critical moment, you fool?!"
Anas presses his fist hard over her heart, nails digging into her skin.
The girl groans silently but does not move his hand or scream. She only keeps eye contact with him.
Suddenly… Anas relaxes his hand, trying to pull away, but the girl places it back on her small chest and smiles tiredly: "Finally, you've returned to your senses? Luckily, I brought you back in your body at ten, otherwise I'd have been hurt much more."
From the corners of the dark room, four forms emerge:
The first is a blazing black fire.
The second is a field where everything appears slower.
The third is a demonic beast with twisted horns, sharp teeth, and a muscular build.
The fourth is a black book with a single yellow eye moving incessantly.
The girl finally lets go of Anas' hand, steps off the bed, and stands with the five entities.
Then they begin to speak:
The Black Fire: "I am Amateras. You can release me and manipulate me; I possess unique properties like burning, healing, and more, but I will not affect you positively or negatively. I look forward to living with you."
The Field: "I am Silence of the Hunter! With me, you can make everything in your range slower or even freeze. I separate the intention of what enters me from the body; the body freezes or slows based on the strength of the will! We will make a great duo!"
The Beast: "I… will protect you from anything. Nothing is stronger than Flok! I'll bring you the heads of all your enemies in an instant. But I am hungry, hungry!"
The Book: Its eye fixes on Anas, then it flies toward him and opens to blank white pages, which begin filling with text: "I am the Abyss Tome. I will grant you many abilities to survive. With your mind and my powers, no one can stand in your way." The book then closes and returns to its place.
Finally, the girl speaks in a soft voice: "I am Priscilla. As I said, I belong to you—"
"Shut up, you filthy thing. You are the worst here. Don't claim yourself better than us," the three entities interrupt, but Priscilla continues: "I have never belonged to anyone but you. I don't know my powers yet, but they are tied to you. I live with you, evolve with you, and die with you. I will be what you want when you want. But there's a price. Nothing is free. The first price is that if you choose me and later reject or kill me, your power disappears and you remain ordinary for life. The second is that my bond with you will strengthen over time, but you can set conditions to limit it. The last is that I need your blood to stay alive; you will feel some weakness as I draw it, but I cannot live without you. I am of you. Therefore, I need you to live. (She lowers her head, her eyes moist at the edges, voice hoarse.) I wish you the best no matter your choice, but I want you to choose me. I…" Then she falls silent.
'The field is good, but limited. The beast is brutal and hard to hide and weak against something like the field. The book and Amateras are the best. Priscilla is trash; I hate her, especially since she demands a price for weak power. So the choice is between Amateras and the book. Amateras is better because I control her release timing, giving me surprise, unlike the book. Yes, Amateras is best—'
"Please, (soft sob) choose me," a faint voice pierces Anas' thoughts.
Suddenly, a chain bursts from nowhere, binding Priscilla's neck and limbs, squeezing her until she screams in pain: "Aaah! It… hurts. Anas, help me."
The four entities laugh at her:
"Ha, foolish."
"You shouldn't have revealed your usage price."
"And she's asking for help from the one she's supposed to aid, hehe."
The book writes: "How humiliating and pathetic."
Anas tilts his head, voice flat: "As I suspected, you all have a price for usage as well. That makes you dirtier than Priscilla. (His tone drops further.) Speak ill of her again, and I'll crush you."
Silence falls after Anas' words, except for Priscilla's soft moans, though now she gives a faint smile: "Anas."
Suddenly, Anas feels a sharp headache and holds his head.
He sees things…
A person holding the same floating book leading an army.
The black fire is wielded by a red-haired man, burning someone.
The beast devours a corpse at the command of a noble-dressed person.
The field is used by a muscular man, crushing all his enemies.
Then… suddenly, visions flow that don't hurt his head but reduce the pain.
He sees himself in a street with children.
He is smaller, thinner.
He approaches a bird, observing it, and one child says: "Look at him, he watches birds like girls do. Hehe."
Anas thinks: 'What? I remember this. It's a memory from the past.'
But there is something else in this memory.
A small girl of the same age as Anas rushes in, standing between him and the children, shouting: "Damn you! He sees how this bird hides from the eagle. Stop mocking it! It hurts!"
No one reacts to her words.
But she doesn't care for them, instead turning to embrace Anas but passes through him like a phantom, crying: "Ah-ha, you are not alone, won't be alone. I will play with you, stay with you until the end, my dear."
Without realizing it, he is back from those memories.
He tries to stand, wobbling slightly, but his eyes never leave Priscilla.
Finally standing, he looks at her and speaks in a calm, determined voice: "Priscilla, I choose you."
The moment Anas utters these words, time stops.
All previous entities vanish like illusions, leaving only Priscilla, whose chains begin to release her.
Once freed, she rushes forward, hugging Anas tightly, crying bitterly, burying her small face in his chest.
Anas does nothing but stare at her in astonishment.
After Priscilla calms slightly, she raises her tear-streaked face, gasping softly: "Fine, we'll postpone your questions for later. Now we must save you. I can accelerate your healing process by twice the normal rate, but you need a specialist doctor to treat you properly when you awaken. Now, farewell… but we will meet again. Make sure you stay alive; you now carry both our lives. Understood, my dear?"
After Priscilla's words, Anas begins to feel dizzy and loses consciousness. Darkness engulfs him.
Outside Anas' mind, time continues.
The sky is filled with smoke.
The ground soaked with blood.
Not far from there,
The dark-skinned, massive man who had stood on the rooftop finally descends, walking toward the corpse of the huge monster Anas killed.
He tears off everything that can be sold or made into a weapon, then moves toward Anas and the unconscious girls, muttering: "Sorry, my friend, but saving you won't benefit me. Saving the girls, however, will earn me money and fame. And I only have two hands."
The man slings the bag dripping with the black monster's blood over his back, then lifts Bianca and the girl from the Hunter's Guild, running off, leaving Anas alone.
On the other side of the Vingard colony,
far from Anas' unconscious body amid the ruins,
A bald, fat man emerges from a shelter, dragging a small girl with pink eyes and black hair streaked with pink.
Behind him, guards carry money bags, with a well-dressed man in his fifties walking ahead.
As they march, a pack of dog-like monsters rushes to block their path.
The fat man releases the girl and flees behind the guards, shouting: "C-Cris, didn't you clear these bastards?"
Cris glares at him: "Did you forget the hole in the wall hasn't been closed yet? Are you really that stupid, John?"
Cris readies himself for the monsters, drawing his silver sword with blue-edged hilts. It is sharp on both sides.
But… while everyone is distracted, the small girl slips away, fleeing through narrow alleys and rubble.
Cris dashes, tearing through the dogs with wide, sweeping strikes of his sword, killing them all within three consecutive hits.
John applauds: "As expected from a general like you, Mr. Cris. But that rat escaped. Let's catch her."
The soldiers begin running, tracking the girl.
She runs at full speed through the wreckage, blood, and scattered remains.
The guards lose her and have no desire to continue searching for trash amid danger.
The girl keeps running.
Suddenly, she trips and falls.
As she lifts herself to get up, she sees a boy covered in black fluid mixing with red.
The girl mutters: "What happened to you, poor thing? Are you even alive?"