It had started with Ryo. He had been quiet for the last few days, but there was something darker in his demeanor now. Takumi had sensed it the moment they stepped into the city. Something in Ryo's eyes—a hardness, a distant look that hadn't been there before.
"It's not over, is it?" Ryo's voice broke the silence. He had been staring ahead, eyes narrowed.
Takumi frowned. "What do you mean? We're free. The Maze is gone."
Ryo shook his head slowly. "No, it's not. The Maze isn't just a place, Takumi. It's part of us now. It's inside us. We can't run from it, and we can't escape what we've seen." He looked down at his hands. "I thought we were free. But we're not. We're just…" His voice trailed off as he clenched his fists.
"Ryo…" Haruka started, but her voice faltered. Takumi saw it then—the same thing he'd seen in Ryo's eyes earlier. Despair. It was creeping in, pulling him under.
The group had been walking for hours now, and Takumi's unease was growing stronger. They needed to get answers. They couldn't just stand here, drowning in their own fear. But as they rounded a corner of the city, Ryo stopped suddenly, his gaze fixed on something in the distance.
"Ryo?" Takumi called, but it was too late.
Without another word, Ryo turned sharply, sprinting towards the edge of the city. Takumi shouted after him, but he didn't look back. Panic surged in Takumi's chest. This wasn't right.