The spider screamed.
A distorted, metallic roar echoed through the jungle.
Its massive body twitched violently as blue slashes glowed across its surface.
But instead of collapsing—
It changed.
Cracks opened across its body.
And from those cracks—
Dark red pixels began to leak out.
Kay narrowed his eyes.
"…That's not normal."
The girl beside him tightened her grip on her bow.
"Something's wrong…"
The blood-like pixels didn't fall to the ground.
They floated.
Glitching.
Reforming.
And then—
They moved.
Dozens of small spider-like creatures formed from the floating blood.
Their red eyes lit up all at once.
Kay exhaled slowly.
"…So that's your ability."
The girl smirked.
"Great. Now there's more of them."
The swarm rushed forward.
FAST.
"Stay back!"
Kay dashed ahead.
PHANTOM DASH.
His body blurred—
SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!
Multiple small spiders shattered into pixels.
But more kept forming.
"Damn it… they keep multiplying!"
An arrow shot past him.
SHOOT!
Three spiders pierced at once.
The girl stepped forward.
Her orange hair flowed behind her.
Her pink glowing cape flickered with energy.
"Then stop letting them multiply."
Kay glanced at her.
"…Got a plan?"
She smiled slightly.
"Yeah."
"Don't let that thing bleed."
For a second—
Silence.
Then Kay smirked.
"…Got it."
The main spider roared again.
Its body swelled.
More cracks.
More blood.
"Too late," the girl whispered.
"Move!"
Kay disappeared.
PHANTOM DASH.
He appeared right above the spider.
The girl pulled back her bow.
Energy gathered into a single glowing arrow.
"Now!"
Kay slashed downward—
A precise strike.
Not cutting—
But sealing.
The spider froze for a split second.
The cracks stopped spreading.
"Do it!"
The arrow released.
A streak of light pierced straight through the spider's core.
BOOM!
The entire body glitched violently.
The blood particles scattered—
And then—
Everything collapsed into pixels.
Silence returned.
Only the faint sound of wind remained.
Kay landed on the ground.
Breathing steady.
The girl lowered her bow.
For a moment—
Neither of them spoke.
They just looked at each other.
Carefully.
Observing.
Analyzing.
Kay's eyes narrowed slightly.
"…Kushi?"
The girl blinked.
Surprised.
"You know me?"
Kay stepped closer.
"You're Kushi Sau."
"National Rank 2."
"Top student… AI special batch."
A small smile formed on her lips.
"And you're Kay Basal."
"The guy who shows up in individual AI classes…"
"…but never pays attention."
Kay shrugged.
"Still score higher than most."
She crossed her arms.
A teasing look in her eyes.
"I thought you only cared about hacks and software."
"Didn't expect you to notice some girls too."
Kay looked at her.
Calm.
Unchanging.
Then—
He said it.
"I love you."
Silence.
The jungle froze.
Even the air felt still.
Chapter 5 end