When I woke up, I was in a prison cell.
There were no windows in the cell, and the only light came from a torch on the wall outside.
My hands and feet were bound with rope. I tried to untie them, but they were so tight that I couldn't loosen them at all.
Though my limbs were tied, my mouth wasn't, so I could still speak.
I took a deep breath, ready to shout and call for someone, but a bad feeling stopped me.
Why am I even locked in this dark cell?
It seems I don't have time to think about it.
Click... clack...
Footsteps echoed in the dark space. Someone was coming.
It sounded like two or three people. I could hear them getting closer.
The people making the footsteps appeared in front of me.
It was two men, wearing what looked like a uniform. They both wore similar clothes.
One was short and had a stocky build, which was distinctive, but the other man made a stronger impression on me.
He was tall and slender, but what caught my eye was the thick, bushy brown beard covering the lower half of his face.
It was so dense that I couldn't see anything below his nose.
What a beard! I marveled at it while the men stared at me.
The men saw me and started talking to each other.
They seemed to be whispering, as I couldn't hear what they were saying from inside the cell.
Still, I held onto the hope that they might know something about my situation, and I nervously called out to them.
"Um, excuse me. Where am I?"
My voice was small and weak with tension.
Did they even hear me? My worry was answered in the next moment.
The men turned to face me.
They looked at each other, nodded simultaneously.
Then, the man with the massive beard opened the cell door and walked toward me.
Even with half his face covered, I could tell he had a fierce expression as he glared at me and approached.
I gulped and said,
"Oh, and could you please take this rope off? It's a bit hard to move. Haha."
For now, I asked them to release me from my restraints.
I figured it would be difficult to talk to them with my hands and feet tied up.
The tense atmosphere made me let out a strained laugh as I spoke.
But the bearded man, who was looking at me as if I were trash, stopped and finally opened his mouth and said—
"@¥#〒○€!〒☆%々〆$♪＊+>×!!"
...Huh?
I didn't understand a single word.
It wasn't a matter of slurred speech or a fast pace; it was a completely different language.
He was speaking a language other than the Japanese I was used to.
I couldn't guess what language it was.
It didn't sound like English or Chinese.
Still, by looking at his expression, I could tell what he wanted to say.
He was filled with anger and a hint of fear toward me.
He was probably trying to express those feelings.
I had no idea why he was so emotional toward me, but he kept talking.
The words were all incomprehensible, and I started to get frustrated.
After being subjected to an endless stream of words I couldn't understand and being hit with angry emotions for no reason, I finally snapped...
"Shut up! Don't talk to me like that when I can't understand you!"
I yelled.
At that moment, the man stopped talking, walked closer, and stood in front of me, looking down at me as our eyes met.
The man and I stared at each other in silence.
Then, without a word, he raised his right hand.
That hand was covered in countless scars.
But what also caught my eye was a beautiful ring with a purple gemstone on his index finger.
As I looked at the ring, another strange, inexplicable thing happened.
A light shone from the gem, and in the next moment, a long, thin object materialized in the man's empty right hand.
It was a long stick with a sharp, pointed metal blade at the end. It looked like a spear.
The man walked even closer, until he was right in front of me.
My brain was trying to process what I was seeing and was filled with questions, but they were all instantly forgotten.
A searing pain shot through my right leg.
Terrified, I looked down at my right leg.
The spear the man had created was embedded in my leg, and dark red blood was flowing from the wound.
The man pulled the spear out of my leg.
Blood gushed from the wound and wouldn't stop.
"A-A-A-A-A-A-A-A-H-H-H-H!!!"
My scream echoed through the cell.
It hurts, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts!
The pain in the wound was so intense it felt like it was burning.
He's going to kill me. This man is going to kill me...
Why? Why is this happening to me?
No, I don't want to die. I don't want to die without ever being useful to anyone!
I haven't atoned for anything yet!!
I can't die yet!
I took a breath and tried to get words out.
They wouldn't understand... but I had to fight until the very end.
My leg hurt so badly... but I endured the pain, glared at the man in front of me, and opened my mouth.
"M-my name is Shindo Yuto! I'm not a suspicious person! Please, just listen to me!"
I desperately gathered all the words in my head and shouted.
But it seemed to be the opposite of what the man wanted...
He flinched at my shout and took a step back, but then he gripped the spear tightly with both hands, raised it, and pointed it at me.
He stepped forward and thrust the spear straight at my head.
Ah, is this the end?
Just as I closed my eyes, I heard it.
"&々€○♪×."
A clear, beautiful voice.
Unlike the men's voices, this was a gentle, soothing woman's voice.
Footsteps echoed in the silent space, just as they had when the men arrived.
I slowly opened my eyes.
Right in front of my face was the tip of the spear, which had been aimed at me but was now stopped just inches from my face.
I looked at the man.
He was frozen in place, trembling, his face completely white. He looked terrified of something.
He immediately pulled the spear back and scurried to the corner of the cell.
Finally, the owner of the voice appeared.
It was two men in slightly different clothing from the others, and a beautiful woman with long blonde hair and emerald eyes.