I was seven when my parents passed away. I can't remember how they died—only that they named me Hiro. After that, I lived in poverty, haunted by hunger, fear, and crushing loneliness.
It was by the lake that I first encountered the strange creature. It looked like a dog, but with tiny horns, jet-black fur, and pale white eyes. My first instinct was to run in terror… until I saw the deep, gashing wound in its chest. Without thinking twice, I carried it back to my shabby home.
"I don't know what kind of being you are," I whispered, carefully cleaning the wound, "but I'll help you." I wrapped bandages around its torn flesh; the creature seemed exhausted, its breathing shallow. I fetched what little food and water I had left and set it before it.
"You're… pretty weird-looking. Kinda scary too," I mumbled, sitting down beside it. Then again—I'm not exactly normal myself. My body never seems to stay wounded for long. It's almost like I can't die.
The creature began to eat, and color slowly returned to its form. Even with dried blood still caked on its fur, it looked better already. Over time, we grew close, and I named it Hachi. We found ways to scrape by together, working to earn enough to survive. But there was always the man in black—he'd come around demanding money for debts my father had left behind, making our lives even harder.
By the time I turned fifteen, I was drowning in that debt.
But Hachi had an incredible gift: when I needed tools to work, or even a weapon, it could shape-shift—as if it could bring my thoughts of what I needed into reality.
Little did I know, that meeting would lead me straight to a demon.
"How much more do I owe for my father's debt, old man?" I growled.
"About two million," he replied flatly.
"Damned fools…" I cursed under my breath.
The man grinned coldly. "You know, Hiro—there's a faster way to clear your father's debt."
"Oh? And how's that?"
"I could just kill you."
I tensed. Before I could react, he pointed his finger like a gun and snapped his thumb—pow.
Something sharp tore through my chest. The pain was searing, but the wound began to knit itself shut almost instantly. Hachi shifted into the form of a sword in my hand.
"Are you insane?!" I shouted, lunging at him. "You shot me point-blank in the heart—did you think my clothes would stop it?!"
He caught the blade with nothing but his bare finger, halting my strike dead. My blood ran cold.
"Who… who are you?"
"Me?" He tilted his head, a twisted smile on his lips. "I suppose I forgot to mention—I devoured a demon some time ago. Now I wear its power like a second skin."
Cursing under my breath, I grabbed Hachi and ran. But it was useless—the man's body began to swell, his arms stretching impossibly long to reach for us.
"Aaaah!" The blow sent us crashing to the ground, our bodies torn and broken. "I'm sorry, Hachi… I couldn't protect you…"
Tears streamed down my face as I felt my wounds healing once more. Then, I watched in shock as Hachi's form started to merge with my body.
"Aaaaaa—! It hurts… Hachi…"
"Hiro…"
I froze. That voice—it was Hachi's.
"You can talk?"
"Use my power…" the voice echoed in my mind, growing faint. "Become strong… fulfill our dreams… Just wait for me, Hiro…"
The demon turned back, laughing. "Still alive? You're not human, are you?"
"Heh… Looks like my luck's holding out," I said, pushing myself to my feet.
I focused my mind, picturing a single strike powerful enough to end this. With a roar, I swung—BOOM. The impact shook the air around us.
The demon's eyes widened in terror. "Impossible—!"
"Where do you think you're going?" I said calmly, as his head tumbled to the floor, still twitching. "Doom…" I imagined my power shattering what remained of him completely.
"Hachi… I'll make our dreams come true," I whispered, looking down at my blood-soaked clothes. "First though… I really need to find some new ones."