Aozora: "Alright Itsuki, we're here. Hello, Master! I've brought a guest—his name is Itsuki."
Itsuki bows, shaking nervously.
Itsuki: "Pleasure to meet you, sir!"
Master: "No need to bow so low, Itsuki. You can call me Aelric."
Itsuki: "Ah! Right, sorry!"
Aozora: "Master, if I may…"
Aelric: "Go ahead."
Itsuki shivers in the background.
Aozora: "Itsuki is looking for somewhere to stay, and I was wondering if he might be allowed to stay the night here. Would that be a problem, Master?"
Aelric: "Not at all! I love visitors. He can stay as long as he needs!"
Itsuki visibly relaxes, wiping the sweat from his face. He bows again, still dripping.
Itsuki: "Thank you very much, sir! I will pay you back!"
Aelric: "No need! You can stay as long as you want, free of charge."
Aelric: "Aozora, can you show Itsuki to his room, please?"
Aozora: "Yes, Master! Follow me, Itsuki."
Itsuki: "Alright."
Itsuki and Aozora leave the tent. The dirt is muddy from the rain that had stopped about twenty minutes ago, and Itsuki's feet are wet and covered in mud. After a long walk of twenty to thirty minutes, they arrive at his room.
Aozora: "Alright, we're here."
Itsuki looked at the modest, middle-sized tent.
Itsuki bowed, secretly excited to finally get some sleep.Itsuki: "Thank you very much!"
He stepped inside. The tent had a small bed, a tiny kitchen with a stove, a table, and some dishes. The air smelled faintly of rain. Itsuki sighed in relief and collapsed onto the bed.
Itsuki: "Finally… I can rest…"
Within moments, he was fast asleep.
Three hours later, Itsuki awoke to screaming. A harsh light seared through the canvas, and the acrid stench of smoke filled his lungs. His eyes shot open—his tent was on fire. Heart pounding, he scrambled to his feet and burst outside.
"Aelric!" Itsuki shouted, coughing as he sprinted toward his companion's tent. "Aelric! Where are you?!"
Through the smoke, he spotted a figure sprawled on the ground. Itsuki rushed over, dropping to his knees.
"Aelric? Hey—say something!" His hands shook as he reached for a pulse, but the skin was cold, unyielding. No beat. No warmth.
Itsuki's breath hitched. His vision blurred as the truth slammed into him—Aelric was gone.
"I thought… this was supposed to be a fantasy world," Itsuki whispered, his voice cracking. "Why are people getting hurt like this?"
He looked down at his trembling hands. The skin was raw, blistered from the fire. Pain throbbed through his fingers, but it was nothing compared to the hollow ache swelling inside his chest.
Itsuki clamped a hand over his mouth, but bile surged up anyway. He doubled over, retching onto the dirt floor. The bitter taste burned his throat, mixing with the acrid smoke still clinging to his tongue.
He wiped his mouth with his sleeve, shaking. Tears blurred his vision, dripping hot against his scorched skin.
Itsuki froze, staring at Aelric's still form. The world felt hollow, like the air itself had been sucked out of the camp. His hands trembled, the raw burns from the fire stinging, but it barely registered.
Aozora's arms wrapped around him from behind.
Aozora (softly): "It's okay. You're not alone."
Itsuki's chest heaved. The sound of his own sobs shocked him. He tried to speak but only managed a broken gasp. Tears blurred his vision, dripping onto Aozora's shoulders.
Every muscle in his body shook. He pressed himself into her warmth, as if it could shield him from the impossible reality.
Aozora held him tighter, whispering nothing—just letting him lean on her. And for the first time since the fire, Itsuki could breathe… a little.
Itsuki: "I couldn't save him, I-I'm Sorry."
Aozora: "Shh, it's okay. You couldn't have done anything to change this. It's not your fault—it's the bandits'."
Itsuki's eyes widened in shock. His grip on Aozora tightened, his stomach churning with anger and frustration.
Itsuki: "b-bandits?"
Aozora: "Itsuki, t-that hurts."
His grip faltered, fingers loosening as reality crashed down on him.They weren't just characters in some story.They were real. Living, breathing people—with lives that could be taken away.
Itsuki's throat tightened, his voice trembling.Itsuki: "I… I'm sorry for what I'm about to do, Aozora."
He gently let her go and forced himself upright. Mud squelched under his feet, soaking through his shoes, hands still stinging as if aflame. Each step left a dark trail behind him as he stepped out of the tent, heart pounding
Ahead, a cart rattled, and his eyes widened—bandits were tying up the villagers, hands bound, fear etched on every face.
Itsuki: "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
The bandits spun around at the shout, eyes locking on him. His burned arm hung tight against his side, but his glare burned hotter than the fire ever could.
Bandit 1: "Kid… what do you think you're doing?"
Itsuki: "Let those p-people go!"
Bandit 2: "Why would we do that?"
The bandits laughed, a cruel, echoing sound that made Itsuki's blood boil.
Itsuki clenched his burned arm and slammed his other hand onto the mud-streaked ground. The IDE materialized before him, glowing with a soft, pulsating light.
Itsuki's eyes darted across the documentation, the pages flipping almost at the speed of light.
Itsuki muttered under his breath: "To give myself a speed boost… I just need speedboost(duration, speed)."
He typed quickly:
[
speedboost(15, 100);
]
He slammed the Run button.
In an instant, Itsuki vanished from his original spot, reappearing behind the bandits before they even realized it. One swung a blade wildly—catching Itsuki's hand—but he grabbed it with a jolt of pain.
In the blink of an eye, he zipped back to his starting position. Another bandit screamed as his arm dislocated from the force of Itsuki's lightning-fast maneuver.
Bandit 2: "AHH, DUDE!"
Itsuki looked at his cut hand—blistered, bleeding—his fingers trembling uncontrollably, each throb of pain shooting up his arm like fire.
He threw the bandit's knife aside.
Bandit 1 roared: "You stupid kid! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE!?"
The bandit charged at Itsuki, blade aimed straight for him. Itsuki's eyes caught his reflection in the steel as he closed in.
Instinctively, Itsuki grabbed the bandit's arm and twisted. A sickening pop rang out—the bandit dropped his blade. Blood ran down his arm, which now dangled like a broken noodle.
Itsuki froze, eyes wide at his own strength. He stumbled backward and fell into the mud, clothes soaked and smeared with filth, the wet earth reeking around him. Blood covered his hands, trembling, each throb of pain firing up his arm like a torch.
His mind spun with questions he had no answer for.
Itsuki (whispering, voice cracking): "Why… Why did I do this? Why do I keep hurting people? Why… why is it that wherever I go, pain follows?"
He buried his face in his arms, shivering, as if curling into himself could make the world disappear. Around him, the chaos of the camp continued, but for the first time, Itsuki felt the weight of reality—pain, guilt, and the stark truth that people weren't characters in a story. They were real.
The bandits froze, eyes wide with fear. Before Itsuki could react further, they scrambled into their cart, yanking the reins, and sped off with the bound villagers.
Itsuki's chest pounded. Without hesitation, he activated his speedboost again. In a blur of motion, he closed the distance in seconds, leaping onto the moving cart.
Hands gripping the ropes and arms of the frightened villagers, he tore them free one by one. The cart skidded in the dirt, but Itsuki didn't slow—he moved with precision and speed, leaving the bandits and their wagon far behind in a cloud of dust.
Itsuki: "Are you guys okay?"
Villager 1, voice trembling: "Y-yeah… Th-thank you for s-saving us…"
The rest of the villagers sobbed quietly, some clutching each other for comfort. Itsuki's eyes fell on a small child, still bound by ropes, tears streaking down their face. His heart ached at the sight.
Itsuki's eyes welled with tears, threatening to spill, but he held them back. He clutched his chest tightly, bracing himself—he wasn't ready to feel this kind of pain again.