Jace turned around and looked at that person with fear, but it quickly faded because it was not one of those kids. In fact, that person seemed to be the same age as his older brother.
"W-who are you?"
"Hello, Jace. My name is Julius."
"H-how do you know my name?"
"Your brother told me."
"Is he here?" Jace's face lit up in an instant.
"Of course, he's looking for you."
Jace sighed but shook when he heard the other kids' voices outside. The door was open, and they were sure Jace was inside. They walked through the door one by one.
"Found you, chicken...who are you?"
"It is unnecessary to know my name because you will not recognize me. Are you his friends?"
"Ha hahaha, friends? Yeah, we're friends. Isn't it true, Jace?"
Jace kept his head lowered and hesitated. Miller became enraged because of his quietness.
"What's wrong? Are you saying we're not your friends?"
"...no."
"What did you just say?"
"No! You guys are not my friends! Do you think I would keep quiet and listen to your nonsense all day?! What the hell do you think I am? I had enough!"
Miller tilted his head to the side as he approached, snapping his fingers. Jace exhaled deeply after letting go of his entire burden. When Miller got close enough, he raised his hand and threw his fist forward, but Solus easily stopped him by grabbing his forearm.
"You are still young. Chase what benefits you. Do not waste your valuable time doing nonsense." His voice was calm as if he were a monk who had overcome anger.
"How dare you stop me!"
He punched Solus in the arm, but the impact nearly broke his fingers. It felt like he had just punched a steel beam.
"Wicked kid, you need to learn manners."
Solus drew Miller's hand closer to him, grabbing one finger before snapping it completely back.
"AAGGHHH!" he yelled, his body trembling from the pain. He was still young and had no idea what real pain was. Even breaking a single finger exceeded his pain tolerance.
"You fuc–AAGGHH!"
He screamed once more as Solus snapped another finger. The two fingers had turned purple and red, and they were touching the back of the hand.
The other kids remained silent from their positions. They had a gut feeling that Solus was dangerous, despite his emotionless appearance. When Miller could no longer stand still, Solus let him go. Miller dropped to the floor and groaned in pain.
Jace was also stunned by the cruel act. He had not expected Solus to turn out like that. But he also felt relieved after seeing them in that state. They deserved it after all those years of doing what they did.
"Umm, excuse me...are you a friend of my big brother?"
Solus looked at Jace and gave him a faint smile. "Yes."
After hearing that, Jace smiled brightly. However, he was also aware that if they stayed any longer, they would face consequences.
"We should leave as soon as possible. This place is dangerous."
"Of course, but I must teach this boy some manners."
Solus placed his hands on Jace's shoulder, preventing him from leaving. Following a snapping sound, the body went limp and fell to the ground in front of Miller.
Silence.
The others were stunned. Their eyes widened in horror as they continued to stare at the lifeless body. Their hands shook and their chests felt heavy as they dashed to the door.
"Call the teachers!"
The chaos only lasted a few seconds before everything went silent again. Muller remained on the floor near the corpse, his eyes widened.
"What is your name, kid?
"M-M-Miller..."
"Why are you so afraid? Isn't this what you wanted? Do you hate your own wish?"
"N-no..."
"Fear not. I will not harm you.""
After a while, an old teacher in a brown suit rushed in through the door but stopped when he saw the corpse on the floor.
"What is all of this?! Who are you?!"
"Why are you getting mad, sir? You can clearly see that he has died."
"You-how dare you do such a thing at this school?!"
"Sir, how can you accuse me with no evidence? I happened to be the boy's guardian, and we had just met. He had many enemies, and this could be their fault."
"Do you think I have lost my brain like my hair? How could a child kill someone else?!"
"The world is vast, sir. They clearly have the ability to kill others at their age."
"The other teachers had already contacted the police! Murdering chi…" he paused before continuing, "Do you think you can get away with such a heinous crime?"
"Then what were you doing while this boy was being bullied?"
"Don't you dare question me! You are nothing but a criminal who deserves to die!"
"...sir, I have remained calm, but you continue to accuse me without providing any evidence. And how dare you raise your voice against mine?"
Solus put one hand on the teacher's shoulder to steady him and shoved the other straight into the teacher's abdomen. He immediately pulled his hand out before shoving it back in again with the same force. Then again. And again. And again. And again.
He did it a total of 22 times before finally stopping. The teacher had died long ago, and when Solus finally let go of his body, it collapsed to the ground.
He took a crumpled tissue from his pocket, which was already dirty from previous use, and used it to carefully wipe his arms clean, moving in slow, precise motions to remove every visible trace. When he was finished, he casually tucked the tissue back into his pocket to not leave any evidence behind.
Miller had been completely traumatized by the scene and couldn't move an inch; his entire body was frozen in place, paralyzed from shock and fear. His large eyes stared blankly ahead, his arms limp at his sides, and he stayed like a lifeless statue, as though his soul had already left his body. He only snapped out of it when Solus turned his head toward him, and asked in a calm voice,
"Why did you kill him?"
Miller was immediately taken aback, his breath hitching at the absurd, pointless accusation.
"W-what do you mean? Y-you killed him..."
"Me?" Solus tilted his head slightly. "I was never here."
"B-but you did it right in front of me... I saw you kill–"
"Shhhh." Solus raised a finger to his lips, lowering his voice to a whisper. "No one will believe you."
The sound of hurried footsteps and muffled voices came from outside, becoming louder with each passing second. A moment later, several teachers and uniformed officers rushed in, but they all froze when they saw the gruesome scene. The middle-aged principal, his face pale with shock, was stunned into silence for a while before eventually stammering out,
"M-Miller... did you do all of that?"
"N-no! Sir, what are you saying? He did this..." Miller turned frantically to point at Solus, but the space beside him was empty—no one was present. Desperate, he turned his head back toward the door, his eyes filled with terrified tears.
"Sir, please, trust me! He was right here! I didn't do anything!"
"Then why are you holding a knife?"
Miller's gaze dropped to his own trembling hand, where a bloodied knife gleamed, crimson droplets falling to the floor. He threw it away as if it was on fire and stumbled back. He had no idea where it came from.
"Sir, I swear I don't know where it came from! You have to trust me! I didn't do anything!"
"We will see after the investigation," said an officer as he stepped forward and raised his hand. "Take him away."