The room was still.
Everything frozen in place.
And yet, something changed.
The pressure inside the testing chamber deepened, sinking into Rei's chest like an invisible weight. The air thickened, no longer empty space but something dense… fluid.
It flowed.
Ripples spread through the chamber as if reality itself had been disturbed, bending and folding like water under unseen hands.
It was happening again.
Rei lifted his head slowly.
His eyes, once deep blue, bled into a dark, luminous purple light flickering within them as his gaze locked onto the creature before him.
There was no panic now.
No hesitation.
Rei raised a hand.
Just a small motion. Almost gentle.
The air answered.
A roaring tide of water burst into existence, slamming into the demon's side with devastating force. The impact sent the massive body hurtling across the chamber, crashing into the far wall as concrete shattered beneath it.
Then,
Time snapped back into motion.
Sound rushed in all at once. Alarms screamed. Dust and debris rained down as gravity reclaimed the suspended fragments in the air.
Behind the observation glass, holographic screens erupted with activity.
Energy readings spiked violently.
Neural output surged beyond recorded limits.
Brainwave patterns fractured, overlapped then stabilized into something entirely new.
For the first time since the evaluation began…
Rei wasn't just surviving.
He was manifesting.
---
Behind the observation glass, chaos erupted.
Researchers scrambled between holographic screens as streams of unfamiliar data flooded in.
"This is... this is unprecedented,"
One of them shouted, fingers flying across a console.
"Energy output still rising!"
Another added.
"It's already peaking at Level 12!"
Dr. Mirai stared at the numbers, disbelief flickering across his face.
Then he laughed.
A quiet, breathless chuckle.
"…Who is this kid?"
Beside him, Captain Aoyuki narrowed her eyes. For the first time, the mask she wore cracked, just slightly.
She was smiling.
In the chamber, Rei straightened.
He rolled his shoulders slowly, cracking his neck as if shaking off stiffness.
"This body is weak,"
He said calmly.
"It can't even regulate its own output."
The voice wasn't Rei's.
It was deeper. Heavier. Laced with disdain.
The Prince of Sloth had surfaced.
The demon staggered upright, lifting its head toward Rei,
And froze.
An unseen pressure crushed down on the chamber as Rei's body began to radiate a shifting aura of sickly green and deep violet. Behind him, a massive shadow stretched across the walls, too wrong to belong to a human form.
The Prince laughed.
"Pathetic,"
It sneered.
"You should be afraid."
Its gaze burned into the creature.
"When an insignificant mare ant dares to stand before absolute power."
Across the control room, alarms screamed.
CITY-LEVEL THREAT DETECTED
The words flashed violently across multiple screens.
Mirai's breath caught.
"That's… impossible,"
He whispered.
In the chamber, Rei raised his palm.
Water didn't flow.
It collapsed inward.
Moisture ripped from the air, condensing violently into a chaotic, rotating sphere, unstable and screaming with pressure. The Prince flicked Rei's wrist forward.
The sphere launched.
The demon didn't even have time to scream.
Its flesh unraveled on contact. Bone shattered. Form disintegrated as the condensed force tore it apart at a molecular level. A distorted roar echoed once, then nothing.
The chamber fell silent.
The pressure vanished.
The air thinned, reality snapping back into place as if released from a clenched fist.
The Prince looked down.
Rei's body was broken.
Deep wounds tore through his abdomen, blood pooling beneath him.
"…Tch."
Green light flared.
The Prince closed its eyes.
Muscle reknit. Flesh fused. Bone restored itself in moments as Rei's body glowed softly, wounds sealing as if they had never existed.
Slowly, the purple light in Rei's eyes faded.
Blue returned.
The Prince exhaled.
"My time is up,"
It said quietly.
"It was… enjoyable, inhabiting this vessal."
The presence withdrew.
Rei's knees buckled.
His body collapsed to the floor, consciousness slipping away under the strain of manifestation, possession, and terror.
Behind the glass, no one spoke.
Because they all understood now.
This wasn't an evaluation anymore.
They had just awakened something they could no longer control.
---
Rei opened his eyes.
But he wasn't in the testing chamber anymore.
He stood atop a vast sea of people, countless figures packed together, their bodies overlapping, their faces twisted in agony. Screams layered over one another, a deafening chorus of pain and despair that crawled into his skull.
A chill ran down his spine.
The ground beneath him pulsed, not solid, but alive.
Then,
A shadow rose before him.
Tall. Still. Watching.
The Prince of Sloth.
Its silhouette cracked into a slow, knowing smile.
"Devour."
The word echoed not through sound, but through Rei's very being.
The world folded in on itself.
Darkness collapsed.
---
Rei gasped awake.
Cold restraints bit into his wrists and ankles as reality snapped back into place. He was seated in the investigation room once more, breath ragged, sweat soaking through his clothes.
Captain Tsukishiro Aoyuki sat across from him, posture perfect as ever.
Dr. Aoyama Mirai leaned against the desk beside her, arms crossed, eyes sharp with interest.
"Morning, sunshine,"
Mirai said lightly.
"Sleep well?"
Rei swallowed, chest heaving.
"A nightmare?"
Mirai added, tilting his head.
Aoyuki stepped forward and dropped a thick stack of papers onto the table in front of Rei. The sound was heavy. Final.
"If you want your freedom,"
She said calmly,
"you will sign this contract."
Rei stared at the documents, hands trembling.
"Or,"
She continued, her voice flat,
"you will die here."
Silence stretched.
"These terms are permanent,"
Aoyuki added.
"Non-negotiable."
Rei forced himself to look down, scanning the pages as fast as he could.
His throat tightened.
"But…"
His voice shook.
"This… this sounds like slavery."
Mirai chuckled softly, pushing himself upright.
"Yeah,"
He admitted.
"It kind of does."
Then he smiled.
"But it has benefits."
Rei's heart pounded as his thoughts spiraled.
Hanami.
Alone at home.
Waiting.
His parents' faces surfaced in his mind, warm smiles, gentle voices.
Live.
Tears slipped down his cheeks.
"…I'll sign."
Mirai's grin widened.
"Good choice."
The restraints released with a mechanical click. Rei barely had time to steady himself before Mirai slid the contract back in front of him, pointing.
"Right there."
Rei signed.
Mirai collected the papers, satisfied.
"Welcome aboard,"
He said.
"You're officially one of us now."
He gestured toward Aoyuki.
"Meet your new captain Tsukishiro Aoyuki."
Then to himself.
"And I'm Aoyama Mirai. Head of research. Second Lieutenant. Nice to meet you."
Aoyuki studied Rei closely.
"You'll be relocated to a training facility,"
she said.
"From this point forward,"
Her eyes locked onto his.
"You belong to us."
---
The facility was massive.
Cold steel corridors stretched endlessly as soldiers in black armored suits escorted Rei forward. He wasn't restrained this time but the weight of their presence made that feel meaningless.
They stopped at a door.
C-145
Inside was a lecture hall, wide, tiered seating like a university classroom. About twenty-five young people sat scattered throughout, each dressed differently, each carrying an air of unease… or confidence.
All eyes turned toward the door.
The moment Rei stepped inside,
Pressure rippled outward.
The air grew heavy.
Several students stiffened, faces tightening.
A soldier smacked the back of Rei's head.
"Knock it off."
Rei winced, rubbing his neck.
"What did I do?"
A pink-haired girl tilted her head, studying him with curiosity.
"Well,"
She said softly,
"he's interesting."
A boy with crimson-red hair scoffed.
"Who's this tough guy?"
At the very top of the room sat two figures apart from the rest a white-haired girl and a white-haired boy. Calm. Unbothered.
The girl's gaze sharpened.
"He's going to be a problem."
The boy smiled faintly.
"Then we'll crush him."
Rei stood there, surrounded by strangers, power pressing in from every direction.
This was a world he didn't understand.
A battlefield he never chose.
But even so,
He clenched his fists.
And stepped forward.
---