Eternal Elysium

Dragging itself off the floor, something moved through the corridors of the pristine white mansion.

The milky white ropes raised one of their ends to look at the door above, then slipped through the open end and entered the room in silence. A hissing sound followed as it started to topple itself and saw the dimly lighted room in disappointment.

As the snake-like creature again moved, camouflaging itself with the noble-looking room with golden and white crystal flooring. At the center was a bed, beside which stood two lavish tables and round lamps over them.

Toppling itself over to take the form of a short man with dark brown hair and a sharp gaze, he moved his hand toward the figure sleeping sweetly under the blankets, unaware of the danger lurking near him.

"Goodbye, Ains." The short man whispered.

Just as he was about to grab the grey-haired boy's neck, he stopped.

And then—

A sudden crash! The quiet of the night was shattered as a figure wearing a faceless mask and a black cloak covering his entire body burst through the bedroom window. Glass flew everywhere, catching the moonlight as it scattered across the gleaming floor. The short man, caught off guard, yelped and jumped back, his hand recoiling from Ains' neck.

But the masked figure didn't stop just there; in the blink of an eye, he crossed half the room, came in front of Sina, and raised his sword, ready to strike her down.

"Crap!" Sina yelled, abandoning her form and falling down like water on the floor.

The masked man took a step forward and changed the sword trajectory mid-motion, bringing it down like lightning.

The sword missed and hit the floor, along with the axis of the table kept behind, slicing it instantly.

The puddle of mass once again moved toward the bed and—

Bang!

A gunshot echoed in the room, freezing everyone in their spot.

"Well, well. Look who my uncle has sent here." Ains said calmly and walked from behind the bookshelf.

The puddle of mass rose from the ground, taking the form of the short man once again.

"So, you were never on the bed, huh? That's why I don't like kids like you." Sina muttered under her breath.

"And you are the guy who previously attacked me in the alley, aren't you?!"

The short man said, pointing his finger at the masked figure.

The masked figure nodded once, the gleaming blade in his hand never wavering. "Indeed, I am. But that is not important right now. What is important is that you are no longer a threat to Ains." His voice was firm and authoritative, leaving no room for argument.

The young boy with grey hair gripped the revolver tightly, his gaze moving between the two intruders. "And who are you, mister? No, maybe I do know you. Reaper, that's what they call you, right?"

The masked figure kept his silence and glanced at the dark-haired man.

"Leave or die." He said calmly.

*****

This was a total mess.

I had arrived here as early as possible, burning down my reserves of essence in the process. While I could recover fast, my abilities were equally fast in depleting me of strength.

'A monster-hunting revolver… probably the same model I had used.'

My eyes gazed at Ains as his eyes looked at us in strain; seeing such a young child holding a gun in his hand and not even trembling was a sight worth noting.

"Reaper, what a strange name… Don't tell me you thought of this yourself."

I raised my sword and again pointed it in the man's direction, my lips twitching behind the mask.

'If not for being afraid of unexpected situations, I would have used [Static] already!'

"I said leave or die. Can you not comprehend such a simple command?" I said coldly, making sure my killing intent was directed solely at her.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

"Yes, I indeed heard you, but I see no reason to follow it. You can try to kill me." He said, sticking his tongue out.

"Sir Reaper, don't be hasty; even though I had fired a shot, no one has come here yet. Something has gone terribly wrong downstairs." Ains said calmly, his eyes reflecting an eerie calmness not appropriate for his age.

Ains eyes continued to shift from one place to the other. His young mind was racing with ways to come out unscathed. At the age where children play around, he was holding a gun in hand, ready to strike anyone who made the move first. The whole world seems to be his enemy. That was the visage he currently gave.

This calmness was getting on my nerves, giving me the creeps. But currently his words made sense.

I had also noticed the strangeness here, but since I came here and broke the window, everything went astray for me to notice in a hurry.

"I know…" I whispered as my voice echoed in the room where even the sound of a feather falling can lead to some undesirable outcome.

"Hey, hey, how come you two teamed up so suddenly?!"

We tensed up as two blades appeared in his hands.

"Bad for you. But unlike you, Reaper, I only need to kill one person." Shutting his eyes closed, the man took a deep breath and shuddered before whispering under his breath. "I am not going to fail… not again."

And—

Cling!

In the next moment our swords clashed just as the blade was about to reach Ains's neck.

His eyes widened as Ains raised his gun and again fired, staggering back.

The dark-haired man's limbs snapped back like taut rubber, dragging his blades across the floor—sparks burst forth in a blinding cascade.

"Shit!"

Ains, who couldn't follow such ridiculous movements, stood still with his eyes wide open. I rushed to his side and grabbed his collar, throwing him back.

The blades came from both directions as the man's limbs again stretched like rubber, pulling the daggers like a catapult incarnate. My eyes watched them come near me as the world had slowed down to a crawl.

Even if I can see them, stopping them at the same time is entirely a different matter.

So, instead of stopping them, I leaped forward at full speed as my sword cracked, splitting into a deadly blade whip, and twisted to attack him.

Not to my surprise, the man's limbs clashed together, making me jump up; the dark-haired man simultaneously moved to the side, dodging the strike by a hair's breadth. The purple poison left by the sword whip strike made the floor crumble as the man retreated his limbs instantly.

Just as some space was made between us, the gun in Ains hand again fired, but the man didn't dodge. I stopped letting white streaks of bullets move past me.

Cling!

But the bullets bounced back as they hit the man, changing their trajectory, and came right back at me.

"Ouch! That hurts! Ow, ow!! Seriously, what are you made of? Did you just strike the bullet with your sword?!" He wailed and started rubbing his chest where the bullet had just hit.

Ignoring his words, I took a step back.

"Ains, guns are of no use. His body seems to be made of rubber itself." I said.

Ains gulped and nodded. His hands finally trembled slightly even though there was no major change in his expression. Ains's gaze remained fixed with cold killing intent.

"A stray shot can kill me." Anis whispered.

"Don't shoot; let me handle it."

"I will count on you then, Mr. Reaper."

"Hey, don't ignore me!"

Raising his hand like a tentacle, he shifted the dagger in his hand and shot it forward; the blade, glistening in the moonlight, reached me at an unimaginable speed.

Even faster than I was moving.

Dodging to the side, I raised my sword and tried to cut his hand off only to be met with a swift counter. His body, swift and precise, was simply sublime and held the grace of a dancer.

We moved at a speed not possible to be noticed by naked eyes, yet undoubtedly I was faster. I knew that. But how was he keeping up with me?

No, he simply wasn't attacking me—he attacked everywhere he could feel the gap.

As our blade cashed, I noticed his face was empty; it held nothing but a blank page.

Raising my sword, I made a large arc as the sword whip moved in circles, creating the much-needed space between us once more.

"What happened to your face? Did you lose it somewhere?"

"How rude! I was just looking around since your face was so boring!!"

Pop!

Like a stretched band, the man's face popped out.

"Creepy…" I muttered and glanced back to see Ains standing beside some kind of cabinet.

"Yo—"

'Got you!'

The man froze mid-sentence, and his time stopped.

I had been trying to use [Static] on him for a while now, but since his shape kept changing in between, it was hard to concentrate on what I wanted to target. While it did slow him down, he was able to break free swiftly after. But now it was different—he was still and had a shape I could follow.

Following that, my legs hit the ground, and I leaped forward, raising my sword in hand. His neck was out in the open, just a second away from being cut off.

The time seemed to have slowed down as I could hear my heart beating inside my chest.

Ba… thump!

Time had slowed to a crawl, not because of an adrenaline rush, but because I had changed my perception of the world. Just as I was about to reach the enemy, my vision caught something behind me.

A spark ignited behind me, and Ains stood just ahead of it.

Forcefully pressing my foot on the ground, I twisted my body and leaped back toward Ains.

"Dammit!"

BOOOM—!

The wall behind us exploded. Smoke swallowed the room—blinding us once more.

Bleeding through my arm, I shielded Ains. Pain surged through me—hot, sharp, and deep.

"Cough! Cough! W-What just happened?!"

'It… hurts.'

Taking the direct impact of the blast felt as if my bones were crushed under the train itself. Raising my head, I saw the smoke clear briefly as it flew out of the broken wall as the gentle radiance of the moon reflected on our irises.

"Huff—fuck, that hurts!" I mumbled and stood up, staggering on my feet.

"Kyaaa! When did this happen?!" Sina shouted, seeing the sudden smoke and charred room.

To her it must have felt like a piece of her memory had been taken away, as the last scene of the room, even though broken during their fight, was not left in this condition.

"Well, you must have fallen asleep." I tried to distract the man as he gave us a confused look.

But luck was not on my side.

"Sina, he can stop your movements; be careful."

A hoarse voice echoed in the terrorized room. It was like a sharp blade passing through the forest, only telling what was expected.