After school, Shion stopped by the bookstore and picked up the latest issue of Shroud Line as usual. On his way home, he popped his earphones in and played Bloody Stream again. The song had him completely hyped, and while listening, he opened Mizushiro's fend account to see what everyone was discussing. Immediately, he filtered the posts to only see threads about Bloody Stream. He didn't want to risk spoilers for the new chapters:
"The visuals of Bloody Stream are incredible, the horn section is just perfect."
"Honestly, I think this is the best opening of the year. None of the current anime even come close to it. Again from Fullmetal was amazing, but Bloody Stream takes it up another level."
"Alright then, which OP deserves Opening of the Year? 1. Again, 2. Bloody Stream?"
"It's such a unique OP. The art style, the music, everything just feels so hyped."
Smiling at the online reaction, Shion finally reached home. After freshening up, he opened Shroud Line and dove straight into the new chapters.
He started with JoJo's. After reading JoJo,
He turned to Fullmetal Alchemist. In the previous chapter, Ed and Al had returned from Liore after exposing the priest, and now they were delving into the world of chimeras. Colonel Roy Mustang had introduced them to Shou Tucker, the Sewing-Life Alchemist.
Tucker welcomed the brothers into his home, where they met his four-year-old daughter Nina and their dog Alexander. He generously gave Ed and Al access to his library for their research, and by evening, military officials arrived to pick up Ed and Al and also to remind Tucker of his annual assessment. Nina, overhearing, innocently asked what that meant. Tucker explained softly that State Alchemists had to report the results of their experiments each year. He admitted he hadn't achieved good results last year. If he failed again, he might lose his title as a State Alchemist altogether.
As Shion opened today's Fullmetal Alchemist chapter with a smile,
Ed and Al had been visiting Tucker's house daily, reading from his library, training, and taking breaks to play with Nina and Alexander. Nina, cheerful as always, had said that "Daddy's been busy lately," so Ed and Al took extra time to play with her and the dog.
Shou Tucker sat at his desk, watching them. For a moment, he smiled, hearing his daughter's laughter fill the house. Then, turning back to his research, he muttered to himself:
"Shou, you can do it. There isn't much time left before the assessment."
That evening, as Ed and Al prepared to leave, Tucker knelt beside his daughter.
"Nina, do you want to play with Daddy tonight? We haven't played together in a while."
Reading that scene, Shion smiled faintly. What a caring father. Even with his assessment so close, he still makes time for his daughter.
But the next morning, Ed and Al arrived at the Tucker residence, Al calling out:
"Good morning, Mr. Tucker! We'll be using your library again today."
Silence.
They pushed open the study door. Alphonse spotted him first.
"Oh, you're here, Mr. Tucker."
Tucker turned.
"It's complete," he said. "The finished product. A chimera that understands human language."
The panel revealed it, a four-legged creature, long-haired, white-furred. Something in its features was painfully familiar.
Shion froze. Wait… it looks like Alexander.
And then it spoke:
"Ed… ward."
Edward's eyes went wide.
"It really spoke…" he whispered, crouching down to its level.
The chimera repeated, stumbling over words.
"Ed… ward… Oni…chan."
Shion's blood ran cold. His face drained of color. He stared at the panel in silence, then immediately slammed the magazine shut. His mind reeled, trying to process what he had just seen.
No. No way. He didn't… he couldn't have… Nina and Alexander…
The happy day he'd been having, the music, the laughter, the reading, collapsed in a single panel. His chest felt heavy. He didn't want to keep going, but at the same time, he needed to see Tucker get beaten up.
Reluctantly, he opened the pages again, though he avoided the panels where the chimera appeared. Still, fragments of its face crept into his vision.
Edward pressed Tucker:
"When did you earn your State qualification?"
"Two years ago."
"And when did your wife leave you?"
"…Two years ago."
Shion's hatred for Tucker exploded. His blood boiled with every word Tucker spoke.
Edward snapped too, grabbing him by the collar and slamming him against the wall.
"What's there to get so angry about?" Tucker asked calmly, almost smug.
Shion's fist clenched. What's there to be angry about? EVERYTHING!
Tucker droned on, talking about how alchemists advanced by crossing lines of taboo, how human experimentation was inevitable. Edward couldn't take it anymore. He punched him, over and over.
Then Nina's small voice broke the silence.
"Da…ddy, does it hurt?"
Edward froze. Letting go, he staggered back, shaken beyond words.
Later, Mustang's men took Tucker into custody, leaving guards behind. Nina sat beside him.
Then Scar appeared in front of them.
With cold eyes, he killed Tucker instantly.
Shion exhaled sharply, feeling a strange sense of relief. Good. He deserved worse than death.
But then Nina crawled toward Tucker's corpse.
"Daddy… Daddy…" she whimpered.
Scar knelt beside her, his expression grim.
"In this state… there's no way to return you to normal. At least let me give you peace."
The chapter ended with his hand reaching out.
Shion sat frozen, the echo of the final panel burned into his mind. He picked up his phone and played Fullmetal's opening. For the first time, the lyrics hit him fully:
"What do you want to run from? It's called reality."
Now he understood.
He opened Mizushiro's fend account immediately, to see how others were reacting to the chapter that had just shattered his heart.
Scrolling through the comments felt like wading through a battlefield. Dozens of threads stacked on top of each other: "Mizushiro, you monster," "RIP Nina," "I can't even sleep." Some posts were just walls of crying emojis, others full of angry rants.
"That chapter… I don't even know how to feel."
"Same. I feel sick. Can't believe Mizushiro did this."
"We were having such a fun arc. Nina was adorable. I was enjoying the lighthearted break… WHY."
"I think I'm gonna need a break after this…"
"Sensei, are you all right?"
"How did you even come up with something like this?"
"Mizushiro, we gave you the nickname 'heartbreaker' as a joke, doesn't mean you had to actually break our hearts in every manga you draw!"
Others tried to deflect the pain with humor:
"Ladies, if you're crying too, hit me up. I don't have therapy money, but I do have strong shoulders and emotional availability."
"I thought listening to Bloody Stream would help me recover. Turns out, it just made my emotional whiplash funkier."
Then came the late readers, still catching up:
"What's happening in Fullmetal? Why are there so many angry reactions? Did Mizushiro drop another heartbreak chapter again?"
Some tried to warn them:
"Calling it heartbreak is putting it lightly. He crushed our hearts into powder. Honestly, don't read Fullmetal Alchemist if you value your sanity."
But others who had been through it before encouraged them to experience it for themselves:
"Don't listen to that guy. It's not that serious. Just a major plot twist, nothing more."
A short time later, the same user returned:
"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?! Why did you make me read this? Do you even know the meaning of Compassion?!"
(TL:- if you want even more content, check out p-a-t-r-e-o-n.com/Alioth23 for 60+ advanced chapters)