— How could you let them take Mamoru? Which one of you was responsible for protecting him?
— It's m…
Before the sentence could finish, footsteps echoed.
— I'll take responsibility, Sir Kades.
— No, Danme-sama, it's m—
— Stop, Selemen. You've only recently joined us. I shouldn't have given you such a responsibility.
The voices rattled Shinji's eardrums, and a sharp pain throbbed in his head.
— It looks like he's waking up. What should we do now, Sir Kadesh?
— Take him to Okami, Clay. She'll look after him until he's ready.
— Yes, sir. What about the blade?
A tense silence followed the question.
— Take it too and leave it by his bedside at the door. Okami, like me, knows it belongs to him… She'll understand.
Before Shinji could open his eyes, a scent overwhelmed him, lulling him back to sleep.
The pain lingered when Shinji woke again. Cold gnawed at his skin despite the blanket draped over him. The thin fabric barely covered his frail body, and the wooden bed beneath him creaked with every breath.
He finally opened his eyes, greeted by a cracked ceiling. A soft light bathed his face, filtered through dusty curtains to his right. The air, the curtains—
Everything here reminded him, in some way, of his room, the one where he faced who he'd been.
Though he didn't know this place, he felt… safe.
— Where am I? he whispered to himself.
— You're finally awake.
The words, spoken in a gentle, calm voice, startled him. He propped himself up halfway, panicked. How could he not be after everything he'd been through? He couldn't afford to trust anyone anymore.
His eyes settled on a figure seated at his bedside. A young girl with gray hair and serene features.
Everyone he'd met in this world so far seemed to hide something dark in their gaze, but this girl didn't inspire fear. For the first time, he didn't feel hated.
— Someone like her, in this world? he murmured.
— She's got to be hiding something. That's the only explanation. This world and everyone in it despises me, after all, he thought.
[Activation of the Third Eye]
— What's that?
— Don't worry, she continued. You're safe here. You should avoid moving; lie back down, some of your wounds are still open.
Her voice, despite Shinji's suspicions, managed to soothe him. He let it wash over him. Nothing forced him to comply, especially not now, but he did so without resistance.
[Subject shows no harmful intent]
[Subject does not seek to kill the host]
[Subject does not envy the host]
— What's this voice in my head? he thought.
He lay back down and stopped moving. He scanned the room, quickly noting its poor condition. The walls were cracked, the wardrobe in the far-right corner was as dusty as the curtains, and a table to his left held bandages.
He concluded that the room served as a makeshift infirmary, though its deplorable state could easily aggravate the condition of any injured person who ended up here—like himself.
— Why am I here? he asked, his eyes returning to the girl.
— You don't remember?
Despite his wariness, he hesitated to reveal everything—his amnesia, the girl at the market, the cellar, the Zephyr, the men in black robes… that dream. The last time he was honest, it didn't end well.
He swallowed his words, deciding he couldn't afford to repeat that mistake.
— No… sorry.
His voice trembled. He couldn't meet her eyes. She sensed he was hiding something but didn't press further.
— That's a shame. To be honest, we found you unconscious outside the refuge's doors, lying on the ground. You looked… in bad shape.
— In bad shape, huh? he thought, chuckling inwardly.
— They didn't hold back. And for what? A blade I don't even remember, an identity I have nothing left of but these filthy clothes, he thought bitterly.
He gripped the blanket tightly without realizing it.
— Was anyone with me? he asked. When… you found me?
— Now that you mention it… There was someone. A figure walking away from the refuge when we came out. Too far to make out their face.
— I see.
— Oh, and there was also…
Shinji sat up abruptly. Any clue about himself was welcome. Even a face, any scrap of information, could ease the torment gnawing inside him.
— Careful! she urged, rushing to steady him.
— You're still injured, you idiot.
— S-sorry…
The young girl took a bandage from the table and began wrapping it around a wound on Shinji's left hand. She did so with a gentleness that touched Shinji.
He felt she wasn't just tending to his wound but also healing a part of something within him he didn't understand.
Then, once she'd ensured the bandage was secure, she added:
— There was a cat with you.
Shinji's heart raced. He flashed back to the moment Neko was crushed. Sweat beaded on his forehead.
— A cat…?
She pointed to a corner of the room.
— He just woke up too.
Shinji turned slowly and saw it—the cat from the alley. The white cat that had been his first interaction in this world.
— Neko…
His breath caught, his breathing grew labored, and he felt like vomiting.
— —Are you okay? Are you bleeding again? the young girl asked, concerned.
But Shinji's gaze was fixed on the cat, the cat that was gone when he'd escaped the cellar, when he'd needed him most. That gaze—the same as the rat's, the same as… Neko's.
It was as if he were staring at a ghost.
She approached and took his hand to calm him.
— Neko, right? You kept repeating that name in your sleep. You said you had to save him.
— So it wasn't just a nightmare… he murmured.
But he knew she wasn't lying. He'd already lived that scene, where he had to save him before he died and left him alone to face the world.
— So how is he here… and me? he thought.
A moment of silence passed, as if the world had slowed around them. Shinji caught his breath, his eyes still locked on the cat grooming itself.
The young girl's voice gently pulled him back to reality.
— I'm sorry… I forgot to ask your name.
— I… don't know, he replied.
Though he suspected her for reasons he couldn't explain, the words he'd overheard earlier reassured him.
[Subject has no harmful intent]
— I see. How about Shinji? she suggested.
— Shinji? he murmured.
The word rang in him like a bell. He had no name, none that he could recall, yet this name felt so right in his ears that he didn't argue.
Barely had he processed the name when a loud thud echoed. Someone had pounded on the door and flung it open without waiting for a response.
— You could've been quieter, Yoru, the young girl said.
A young man appeared in the doorway, his gaze dark—but not like the others Shinji had seen. No. This darkness wasn't fueled by resentment or envy like those he'd encountered before.
Something else lurked in it, something Shinji couldn't pinpoint.
— Tsk. So, the stranger's finally awake, huh…
He was tall, strongly built, with broad shoulders, a clenched jaw, and short black hair.
His mere presence put Shinji on edge. Just being there made Shinji want to flee.
— You can get lost now. We don't need someone like you here.
The words struck Shinji to the core, shattering the fleeting calm the young girl had given him.
[Subject has no harmful intent]
[Subject does not seek to kill the host]
[Subject envies the host]
— The subject envies me? Shinji thought. Someone envying me? What next?
— I don't understand this world yet, but this voice is starting to annoy me. How do I make it stop? he wondered.
[Deactivation of the Third Eye]
— Deactivation? What's happening to me now? he thought.
The man approached closer, his footsteps echoing through the room, but the young girl intervened.
— Calm down, Yoru. He's only just woken up.
He ignored her, his eyes never leaving Shinji. He grabbed Shinji by the collar, just like the butcher had before Shinji lost consciousness at the market.
— And you? How can you trust him, Haruka, after what happened?
— What did I do to him too? Shinji thought, glancing at the young girl.
— So her name's Haruka… Why does that name feel so familiar? he wondered.
She stepped between them, gently pushing Yoru back.
— That's enough. Yelling won't get us anywhere.
Then, a charismatic yet distinctly feminine voice came from the doorway Yoru had nearly broken earlier.
— What's going on here?
A woman entered, far older than Shinji or the two he'd just met. She commanded respect, and Shinji noticed it quickly enough.
Yoru calmed down the moment she ordered him to, though his eyes never left Shinji.
— He's awake, he replied curtly. He can leave now.
— That doesn't mean you need to scare him the moment he wakes. Step away from him.
He clenched his fists but finally released Shinji and stepped back.
— Tsk… Sorry, he muttered, clearly insincere.
The woman turned to Shinji. She took a few steps forward and bowed slightly.
— I'm Okami, the elder of this refuge.
— A refuge…? Shinji repeated softly.
She nodded, then looked at Haruka.
— Can he stand?
— I've redone his bandages. He'll need to take it easy, but yes.
— Perfect. Help him get ready. I'll show him around.
Shinji felt his heart ease a little. For the first time in ages, someone was offering help without strings attached. No threats. No price. Just… a hand extended.