Kenzii had barely stepped inside his condo when his two cousins intercepted him. They looked haggard, their eyes bloodshot from a lack of sleep and a restless, gnawing anxiety.
"Are you okay, cuz?" Alas blurted out, immediately grabbing Kenzii's arm to pull him toward the couch. Kenzii didn't resist; he simply set his bag down, his gaze shifting to Sota, who was staring at him with an unnerving, predatory intensity.
"Do you have any idea what you did?" Sota asked, his voice low and dangerous, his eyes locked onto Kenzii's.
Kenzii sighed and looked away, the weight in his chest tightening. He knows what's about to happen, and his older cousin will not make him slip.
"Can you please speak up for once?" Sota snapped, his patience finally breaking.
"Hey, don't shout at him. Let him breathe for a second," Alas intervened softly, even though he doesn't know what's happening his natural reaction is always to protect his baby cousin.
"He can't rest until he gives me an answer," Sota insisted, his resolve unyielding. Kenzii rubbed his temples, he hesitated for a moment but ended up responding.
"I do... and I don't," Kenzii whispered, leaning back against the cushions. He stared at the ceiling as if the answers were written in the cold plaster.
"Can you give us a straight answer for once, please?" Sota pleaded, his voice thick with frustration.
"I'm telling the truth." Kenzii took a deep breath. "I know that I did it, but I don't know why I did."
"What are you two even talking about? Why are you so worked up, Sota?" Alas asked, looking between them. Instead of answering, Sota grabbed his laptop, typed furiously, and spun the screen around on the glass table.
"This is what I'm talking about. Kenzii just killed three innocent people at random on the street. They were students, for God's sake!" Sota massaged his forehead, glaring at Kenzii, who was now staring at the screen with a furrowed brow.
"Is that... is that really you, Kenzii?" Alas asked, his voice trembling as he looked from the laptop to his cousin.
"Of course it's him. He's the only one capable of that, and it happened right near the hotel where he was staying. And to be sure, I also breached the CCTV of the hotel room he stayed in, and it's definitely him. " Sota replied, causing Alas to pale and cover his mouth in shock. "Now, tell us what really happened."
"I don't know. But my hands... they aren't mine anymore," Kenzii said simply, looking down at his left hand. His mind felt hollow, a tangled mess of a life that had been spiraling long before this moment.
Once Kenzii finished recounting the terrifying events from his hotel room in the U.S., a heavy silence fell over the room. His cousins sat frozen, trying to process the impossible.
"So that's why," Sota muttered, his brow darkening. He turned back to the laptop. "Look at the crime scene. Look at the bodies."
Alas and Kenzii leaned in. The victims were barely recognizable; their faces had been shredded, sliced open as if by a jagged, supernatural blade. The scene was a chaotic sea of red, dotted with yellow evidence markers.
"That's the CCTV feed I pulled from the LAPD server," Sota explained. "I couldn't get everything because a team arrived at the office that night and I had to kill the connection. I'm not sure if you left anything behind that could burn you, but luckily, your face and the 'hand' weren't seen on the footage. I wiped their local copies, but there's always a risk of personal backups. I've already manipulated the hotel's CCTV. Even if they check the footage, they won't find a trace of him. Our only problem now is the crime scene itself."
Sota turned to Alas. "You need to review this case from the inside. I'll gather more data and dump it to you. Find out what they still have." Alas nodded solemnly. Finally, Sota looked at Kenzii. "And you... you're coming to the mansion this Sunday for the weekly dinner. I know you hate it, but we need answers. Talk to the Elders. Find out what's happening to your hand. Bring the cursed book. We have to find a way to fix this."
Sota stood up and tucked his laptop under his arm. He walked toward the door but paused before exiting. "I'm sorry I raised my voice," he said softly, not looking back. "I just... I don't want you to become like them. You're indeed a killer, Kenzii, but you're not heartless."
*
When Kenzii arrived at the ancestral Monteriel mansion, the staff greeted him with deep, practiced bows before escorting him to the dining hall. Inside, a massive square table dominated the room, featuring a hollow center where two custom Japanese server robots stood. The family didn't trust outsiders to overhear their secrets, not even the helpers. Every seat was filled with the faces of his kin.
"Look who decided to show up," his third cousin, Nikko, sneered. "It's been a while. How's the killing going?"
Kenzii offered a formal bow to his grandfather at the head of the table before turning his deadened eyes toward Nikko. "Fine. I wouldn't mind killing a hundred more if it meant I can take yours." he replied flatly, taking his designated seat.
"You—".
"Shut it, Nikko," Sota barked from five seats down to Kenzii, positioned closer to the Elders. "If you have nothing useful to say, stay silent."
The seating was strictly hierarchical, based on age. At the center sat the three patriarchs: Don Hidalgo, the eldest and head of the family, flanked by his younger brothers, Don Sebastian and Don Gustavo. To the right sat their children, and to the left sat the grandchildren, including Kenzii. No one without Monteriel blood was permitted at the table; even spouses were strictly excluded from these gatherings.
"Learn some manners, Nikko. Kenzii is still your senior," Don Sebastian added from Hidalgo's side.
"But Don Sebastian—".
"Do you not understand?" Hidalgo's voice cut through the air like a blade. Nikko went stiff, catching his mother's eye across the table; she mouthed a silent command for him to be quiet.
Dinner proceeded in a suffocating silence, broken only by talk of corporate ventures. For Kenzii, the food didn't nourish; it made him nauseous.
Once the plates were cleared, Kenzii followed Hidalgo into his private study, along with Sebastian and Gustavo.
"So, why the visit? You aren't the type to show up just for a meal. What do you need?" The three brothers sat behind a massive desk, facing their grandsons.
"Don Hidalgo, we have a grave problem," Sota spoke up, his voice steady despite his nerves. "Kenzii's left hand... it's acting on its own."
Shock flickered across the faces of the three old men. "What do you mean?" Hidalgo asked, his eyes snapping to Kenzii.
Sota signaled his cousins to sit. He opened his laptop to show the video while Alas prepared the investigative files. The three brothers watched the footage in grim silence.
"We've already taken care of it. There's no need to worry." Sota said.
"So, it's finally happening," Don Gustavo remarked calmly commented. The cousins exchanged confused glances. Hidalgo sighed heavily and leaned forward.
"This is normal for your state, Kenzii," the patriarch began.
"Normal?!" Alas exploded, standing up. "He's killing innocent people! That devil's hand is dragging my cousin into the dirt!" Sota grabbed Alas's hand to calm him down, though his own eyes remained fixed on his grandfather.
"Please, explain it to us," Sota requested. "We can't keep operating in the dark."
"It is written in the Ledger that accompanies the cursed book—the record kept by every firstborn heir of our line." Hidalgo leaned back, never breaking eye contact with Kenzii. "You know the history. Our ancestors made a pact for wealth and power in exchange for the lives of every firstborn. When a generation refuses to sacrifice the child, the debt must be paid in blood. For every Monteriel soul born since the pact, an equal number of lives must be taken. The firstborn who was not sacrificed is the one who must pay that debt. But as the count nears its end, the demon within the hand begins to wake."
"What are you saying?" Alas asked, his eyes wide. Kenzii sat in a trance, while Sota looked at him with profound pity. "Are you saying the demon will just take over? It's going to control Kenzii's body and ruin him? Is that it, Grandfather?!"
"Silence, Alas!" Don Sebastian shouted. "Even as the most powerful family in this country, there are things beyond our control. This is the contract. There is no remedy in our books. This was the path set the moment Roman chose to let his son live."
"Once the mission is complete, the demon will vanish from your hand," Hidalgo added, looking at Kenzii. "Remember this: the demon is the reason our family is blessed, but it will also be the very cause of our rot. You must endure until the final kill." Hidalgo seriously said as he looked straight into Kenzii's eyes.
"For now, understand this: as long as we are bound to the debt, your left hand does not belong to you. You belong to the hand…"