The night air clung to us as the maze remained silent, save for the soft rustling of the wind. Inaya stood alone, her dark silhouette barely visible under the starlit sky. Her eyes were fixed on the heavens above, staring at the sprawling galaxy as though seeking answers within its void. She hadn't moved a muscle since the last kill—her face impassive, her body still. There was no emotion in her expression, only a deep emptiness that seemed to swallow the world around her. The distant stars reflected in her brown almond eyes, but there was no warmth in them. No spark of life.
She wasn't the Inaya I knew. Not anymore.
The last of the unit 2 detectives had fallen, and now Inaya, standing there in the middle of the chaos she had created, seemed detached from it all. As though the brutality she had unleashed meant nothing. As if everything she had done had no weight at all. She was a hollow shell of the person she had been before, and it made my chest tighten painfully.
My feet moved forward almost instinctively, my heart is pounding .
"Inaya!" I called out, my voice cutting through the quiet like a knife. The word seemed to echo against the dark walls of the maze. My voice held a trace of urgency, fear even, as I called her name again. "Inaya!"
Her head turned slowly, almost too slowly, like she was waking up from a deep slumber. When she met my gaze, it was as though a veil had been lifted. For a brief moment, her eyes seemed to flicker back to life. The cold, lifeless stare melted away, replaced by the familiar spark I knew so well.
Before I could even react, she threw herself at him. Her hand shot up to her face, pulling the black scarf away from her mouth as she dashed toward me with a speed I wasn't prepared for.
"Shin!" Her voice rang out like a melody, as warm and familiar as the sun breaking through the clouds.
I barely had time to react before she collided with me, her arms wrapping around me tightly in a desperate, almost frantic embrace.
Brother Cheng Hao, standing a few feet away, couldn't hide his surprise. "Ehhh??" His voice cracked as he looked at them, bewildered. "What the hell just happened?"
I froze, my arms still around Inaya, unsure of what to make of the sudden shift in her demeanor. She had just killed without hesitation, without emotion, yet now she clung to me as though she hadn't just taken lives mere moments ago. The stark contrast shook me to my core.
Inaya pulled away slightly .There was no trace of the detached killer from before. She smiled, a genuine, relieved smile that seemed to light up her features.
"Are you guys okay? I thought I wouldn't see any of our teammates until the game ends..." Her voice was soft, almost playful, as if the brutal killing had never even happened. "Ahh… It's great that you came. Were you guys looking for me?"
I was still trying to process everything, 𝘯𝘰𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘥. I didn't know what to say at first. My thoughts were scattered, the moment still too overwhelming. "Well…" I swallowed hard. "I thought we should accompany you about finding Unit 1 now. And we've been looking for Ryu and Riku as well."
Brother Cheng Hao, looking between the two of them with confusion, shook his head in disbelief.
"Man… I really don't get it. You're all good now, right?" He rubbed his forehead, still unsure about everything he had witnessed. "What the hell just happened to you, Inaya?"
Inaya tilted her head, her bright brown eyes softening. There was something different about her now. Something almost vulnerable.
"Of course I'm fine," she said, her voice light, but there was still a subtle edge to it. "I'm just glad to see you guys. I've been…" She trailed off, glancing back at the battlefield behind them, but quickly shaking off the thought. "Well, it doesn't matter. Let's just finish this. We've got work to do."
Inaya's smile remained, but there was a flicker of something deeper hiding behind it. Was it guilt? Remorse? Or something else entirely? I wasn't sure, but the shift in her demeanor left me with more questions than answers. I wanted to ask her what had happened, what she had felt in that moment when she killed, but the words stuck in my throat.
Instead, I nodded, "Alright. The game's not over yet. Let's find Ryu and Riku, and then we can take care of the rest."
Inaya's eyes sparkled again, and with a small laugh, she turned away from me, leading the way through the maze. The coldness from before seemed to have disappeared entirely, replaced by the team leader they all knew—the Inaya who was strong, reliable, and full of life.
But I couldn't shake the feeling that this game was far from over. And there were still so many things left unsaid.
After reuniting with Inaya, I and Brother Cheng Hao continued deeper into the maze, our steps light but alert. Not long after, we encountered Riku and Ryu—silent shadows moving with practiced ease through the dark corridors.
Word of Unit 2's downfall had already begun to spread. The remaining detectives, once confident in their numbers and strategy, now moved with a sharpened caution. But their fear was palpable. Whispers ran through their ranks—tales of a single girl who, in less than an hour, dismantled an entire squad of elite detectives.
Inaya's name was now more than a threat—it was a legend unfolding in real time. Her precision, her calm ruthlessness, the eerie quiet she left in her wake—it unsettled even the most seasoned among them. Rather than retaliate with force, the detectives hesitated. They tightened their patrols, changed their routes, second-guessed every move. Caution replaced confidence. Fear replaced strategy.
And in the shadows, the killers—led by Satoru, with Inaya at the center—were gaining ground.