Since yesterday, an uncomfortable feeling has been haunting Zeyn without any relief. His heart feels pierced by a cold air as if blown by the wind. It has been three days since he dealt with his sister, and the effect has not gone away.
In fact, it feels worse.
"Yo! MusangKing!"
The familiar voice snapped him from his haze.
Zeyn lifted his head weakly and saw the blonde guy waving from across the corridor.
Kriss slowed as he approached, immediately noticing something was off.
"Still sick?" he asked, frowning.
"..."
The morning air in Grimoir was always cool, but this wasn't normal. Zeyn was visibly trembling, his face pale, his steps unsteady as he leaned against the wall for support.
"Whoa, dude. You look like you're about to faint. What can I do to help?"
"I uhh…"
"Nevermind. Let me take you to the Medical Room, we're near building D anyway-."
"No... need," Zeyn muttered, forcing his legs to move.
He tried to get back up and act normal despite feeling a bit troubled. His walk was still unsteady, but the journey towards their classes had to continue.
Kriss watched him in disbelief. "Are you serious right now? You look worse than yesterday."
"I... I'm fine."
Without being ordered, the blonde guy eventually helped him to walk by putting his arm around him.
"I'm helping. Deal with it."
In the end, he gave up and allowed himself to be helped to walk. Besides, there was nothing wrong with accepting help from someone whom he had started to know well.
"…Thanks"
"Meh. Don't mention it."
Unfortunately, this moment did not last long. Suddenly, Zeyn stopped and just stood there.
"Huh? Why did you stop?"
"…"
No meaningful answer was given, except for a change in expression from lethargic to panicked, filled with deep fear.
It might be difficult to define what Zeyn was doing from the perspective of a normal person. Especially since only he could see something in front of him now while Kriss couldn't.
Beside them stood classroom D13. And in front of the door… was her.
A woman with jet-black hair wearing a dark cheongsam with royal ornaments, her form half-faded like a mirage. Her snake-like eyes stared calmly inside the classroom.
"Sister!?"
"Huh?" Kriss turned toward where Zeyn was looking, but saw nothing.
The demon turned slowly towards her sibling and smiled widely. It was a gentle and calming smile, but it seemed to contain a hint of a smirk.
Then she vanished.
Zeyn suddenly felt a sense of danger. He quickly disentangled himself from Kriss and checked what was happening inside the classroom.
"Wait, huh?!"
Inside, there was nothing unusual. Just students chatting, laughing, preparing for class. A few looked up, surprised by the abrupt entrance.
"Oi Zeyn! What's going on? What's gotten into you?!"
"This cold sensation…" He immediately walked into the classroom.
"Hey, wait! Where are you going?!" Kriss is getting more and more panicked.
Right there, was a girl with a short brown hair. She was still busy chatting with her friends and hadn't realized Zeyn's arrival a few seconds earlier. It was only now that she noticed someone approaching her. She was suddenly confused and looked at him in surprise.
"Uh... Can I help you? W-who are you?" asked the girl politely, initiating the conversation.
Actually, Zeyn didn't know who this girl was, where she came from, or what kind of student she was. He only knew that there was some kind of curse written in Sanskrit with a snake motif that wrapped around her body.
Like a moving tattoo.
Unfortunately, only he could see these letters and no one else could. The curse wasn't ordinary. It was advanced. Intentionally lethal.
"A soul tether..." Zeyn muttered, trembling. "She's… marked for death."
The problem is, this isn't a typical curse spell. Judging from the high level of energy, it's a spell intended for those whose lives will be forcibly taken away.
The cold sensation that has been piercing him since yesterday, the strange object implanted in his heart, and the presence of his sister in front of this room, which he believed was also to see the condition of the girl earlier... all lead to one conclusion.
"Excuse me," he said, walking toward her. "Can I know your name?"
She blinked. "Eh? Uh… Who are you?"
The classroom stirred. Whispers spread. A tall guy stood from his seat, placing himself between Zeyn and the girl.
"Back off. What do you want with her? She's my girl." he growled.
"Kayan, chill! He didn't do anything," the girl intervened.
Kriss finally caught up and quickly stepped in to defuse the tension. "Okay, okay—let's calm down, everyone. He's just… having a rough morning."
But Zeyn's focus didn't budge.
"Your name," he said again, softer this time.
The same question was still being asked. As it seemed like a simple question, there was no harm in answering it. Right?
The girl hesitated, then answered with a small nod. "…Azalea. Azalea Asha."
Zeyn's gaze fell to the floor. A bitter ache gripped his chest.
Why her?
Why this girl?
Why now?
His hands clenched. He wanted to scream. To rip the curse away. But he couldn't.
He couldn't do anything.
"Huh? Why bother dealing with a strange person like this?" said the young man named Kayan.
"Well, why not? He just wants to know my name."
After knowing her name, Zeyn appeared to bow his head slightly, as if regretful. His teary eyes were filled with sadness. He felt guilty for not being able to do anything about the curse that bound the girl, while at the same time, he was the cause of it all.
That was the price his sisters demanded. For the souls he saved in Vasukih Forest. And this girl… was part of that payment.
He could only feel angry and regretful.
'Why? This girl isn't your friend, is she? Why should you care?
She appeared again, tapping Azalea's shoulder from behind and looking at Zeyn with a melancholic expression. No one could see her presence in the classroom.
'Don't forget that you still owe us two lives. Fair enough, right? We took it by force,' Ayu whispered.
Zeyn's hand clenched tightly as he felt that it was all unfair.
"Who… are you really?" Azalea asked, confused by his expression.
"…Zeyn Tendou," he answered, voice heavy. "And I'm… sorry."
Without any further comment, he immediately turned around and headed for the classroom door. He still didn't care about the many confused voices around him due to his actions.
"What's with this guy? Cringe!" Kayan muttered.
Kriss followed after him. "Hey! Zeyn! Where are you going?!"
Finally, they both left the classroom. The blonde followed his steps, but it seemed like they were getting further away from their original destination. They were supposed to go left, but Zeyn went right instead.
"Where are you going?!"
"…"
"You're going the wrong way!" Kriss called. "Class is that way!"
"Sorry Kriss, you go ahead to the class. I have something I need to take care of."
"Eh?"
"I'm going home."
Without looking back, he kept walking. When Kriss tried to tap his shoulder, he realized that his body was really trembling. He also knew that Zeyn was still crying behind that angry expression.
"It seems like you do have some unfinished business, huh?"
"…They're going too far this time."
"...Zeyn?"
"I'm sorry. I'll see you later."
Actually, Kriss didn't really understand, but he chose to respect his decision.
Occasionally, he looked back and saw Zeyn's back still moving further away. From the expression of regret and anger on his face, it could be inferred that he was feeling hurt, but Kriss, didn't quite understand what it was all about.
On the other hand, Zeyn intended to go home, or more precisely, he wanted to go to the Vasukih forest to settle the score with his sister. He couldn't let them act as they pleased by taking innocent lives as offerings.
He didn't care about his academic matters at the moment, someone's life was at stake here.
"Sisters, I'm coming for you!"
* * * *