- At night, after dinner Retsu is clearing the table -

  - Ryusui is sitting in a chair. His right elbow is on the table, and his chin rests on his right palm -

  - Retsu stares at Ryusui's face, and notices that he is lost in deep thought -

  Retsu: "Ryusui, is something bothering you?"

  - Ryusui snaps out of his thoughts as he hears Retsu's voice -

  Ryusui: "Huh?! Nothi—nothing!"

  Retsu: "Then why does it look like you're lost in deep thought?"

  Ryusui: "Retsu, I want to talk about something."

  - Retsu sits on a chair -

  Retsu: "What is it?"

  Ryusui: "Today... I saw an unknown shadow."

  Retsu: "A shadow?! Please, tell me exactly what happened!"

  Ryusui: "Today, I entered the market, and bought some vegetables, after that I started looking for a meat shop. Before I could find a meat shop, I noticed a strange shop. But as soon as I saw the shop, it started to rain, and when I looked around I didn't see any shops. Finding no other way, I rushed toward the shop to take refuge from the rain. After I reached closer to the shop, I realized it was a sword shop."

  - Retsu's eyes widen as fear flashes across her face -

  Retsu: "Wh—what? A sword shop?! What do you mean by there were no shops around?!"

  Ryusui: "I don't know what exactly happened in that moment, but it might be my hallucination."

  Retsu: "...!"

  Ryusui: "For some reason, when I saw that shop up close, I had a little headache."

  - She gets up from the chair. As her eyes narrow, her face tightens with concern -

  Retsu: "You had a headache again! Are you okay now?!"

  Ryusui: "Yeah, I'm completely fine now."

  - As she hears he is okay, a look of relief flashes across her face; she puts her right hand on the left side of her chest, takes a deep breath, and sits back down on the chair -

  Retsu: "Thank God! You're okay. Did anything happen after that?"

  Ryusui: "Yeah. To avoid the rain I entered the shop. But there was no one in the shop. So, I looked around the shop. After I looked around for a minute, I noticed a sword inside a box made of glass."

  - Retsu's hands are beneath the table as she rubs her palms together -

  Ryusui: "The sword caught my eye, so I approached it. When I saw it up close, I was lost in its beauty. But suddenly, my headache returned—this time, it was far more painful than the previous one. It felt like my head was going to explode."

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Retsu: "What?! Your headache came back again!"

  Ryusui: "Yeah... the moment my headache started, a shadow wielding a sword appeared in front of me. It tried to reach out to me but couldn't. From where he was standing, he spoke to me:"

  - Ryusui tells Retsu everything the shadow said -

  - A wind of concern passes through Retsu, but she doesn't let it show on her face. She remains calm, and tries to dismiss the subject -

  Retsu: "O—oh! You must be hallucinating. You've been working hard these days. You might be tired. You need some rest. It's late; you should go to sleep."

  Ryusui: "I think you're right. I need some rest. But don't forget about yourself. You should also get some rest, otherwise you'll get sick."

  Retsu: "Yeah. Now go to bed; we can talk tomorrow."

  Ryusui: "Got it, good night."

  Retsu: "Good night."

  - Ryusui approaches his room -

  - Retsu is still in the hall. As soon as Ryusui leaves, her calmness fades away, and her face is etched with sorrow; she bites her lower lip, and her eyes soften -

  Retsu: "Why?! Why is this happening?! Why?! Why?!"

  Retsu: "Wh—what am I supposed to do?! I want to protect him from his hellish past memories... I want to live a peaceful life together, far away from those memories."

  Retsu: "If he remembers them, he may have to go through the same fate again! I can't let this happen!"

  - Retsu goes to her room -

  - In the middle of the night, while everyone is asleep and owls sing in the silence of the dark, a sound of humming drifts from Ryusui's room -

  - Inside the room, Ryusui is grasped by a dream; he finds himself standing in a place where silence and darkness conquer everything, and no path to escape can be found -

  Ryusui: "Where—where am I?!"

  - Suddenly, unknown shadows emerge from the ground in front of him -

  - Fresh scars and burn marks are scattered across their bodies; blood drips from their wounds and matted hair. The withered skin is torn back, revealing the raw, exposed flesh of their faces. Their crimson eyes are thirsty for blood as they slowly approach Ryusui -

  - The moment Ryusui sees them, fear instantly grasps him. He breathes heavily, his heart racing as his eyes widen. His feet tremble, losing the strength to move even an inch -

  Ryusui: "Huf! Huf! Who—who are you all?!! Don't—don't come near me!!"

  - As the shadows approaches him they screams -

  "Aaaaaaahhhhhhh!"

  "Ry—, why didn't you help us?!"

  "Ray—, we died a painful death because you were weak!"

  Ryusui: "No—no, don't—don't come near me!!"

  "Why?! Why did you let us die?!"

  "Master, you could have saved us!"

  Ryusui: "I don't—don't understand!!"

  "Master, help me! I can't take this anymore. Help me!"

  "Help, help!"

  "Loser, loser!"

  Ryusui: "I don't—don't know any of you!!"

  "Master, please free us from this unbearable suffering!"

  "Ry—, I'm drowning in hell, please save me!"

  "Ry—! Our curse will always haunt you!"

  Ryusui: "No...!"

  - A shadow without any wounds, rushes toward him from a distance as it rushes toward him it says something, but the shadow's voice isn't reaching Ryusui -

  Unknown shadow: "They have no right to criticize you. You are not a loser, you are a hero!"

  - They grab Ryusui from all sides, and he lets out a fearful scream -

  Ryusui: "Aaaaahhhhh! Who—who are you all?! What do you want from me?! What have I done to you?! Forgive me... I wasn't able to help you! I'm sorry... I was weak. Sorry... I was a loser!"

  - Suddenly, hands emerge from the ground beneath him; they grab his ankles and start dragging him underground -

  - As soon as Retsu hears Ryusui's scream, concern tightens her face and she rushes to his room -

  - She enters the room and quickly begins to wake Ryusui up -

  Retsu: "Ryusui, Ryusui! Hey, what—what happened?! Wake up, wake up!"

  - Retsu's voice wakes Ryusui up -

  - The fear of nightmare is visible in his pale face -

  Ryusui: "Huf! Huf! Retsu, I saw some creepy shadows in my dream!"

  Retsu: "What?! Shadows?!"

  Ryusui: "They were calling me Ry!"

  - Instantly, Retsu's eyes widen, and a deep concern lurks around her face -

  Retsu: "What?! Ry?! Did they say anything else?!"

  - Ryusui tells Retsu everything what the shadows told him -

  - Retsu quickly pushes away her concern, softening her tone and face to comfort Ryusui. She sits beside him, and gently rubs his back with a smile -

  - She stares at Ryusui's face -

  Retsu: (In her mind: "It's ironic to think they ever called you a loser.") "I think you're just exhausted, Ryusui; that's why those things appeared in your dream. You need proper sleep. I'll stay by your side all night if you want."

  Ryusui: "Please! Please! Stay by my side!"

  Retsu: "You don't have to worry now; I'm here for you. You can sleep now." (In mind: "His past memories are turning into nightmares! What should I do to stop them?!")

  - Keeping her word, she stays by his side the entire night, remaining wide awake while holding his hand. Only as the sun begins to rise, she finally lets go of his hand and quietly slips out of the room -

  - Retsu takes a broom and heads outside. A gentle breeze passes through, rustling her hair, while birds sing from the branches above -

  - As she is tidying up the yard, a figure slowly emerges from the woods and stands before her -

  - Without a word, he drops to one knee, and bows his head low, slowly placing his right hand over his heart -

  Unknown: "It's been a long time, My Lady."

  Retsu: "Stand up, Katetsu."

  - Katetsu stands up -

  Retsu: "Why are you here? What do you want?"

  Katetsu: "I am here to meet Master Ryuma."

  [ The memories that have been lost in the depths of the dark have started to take shape ]