Chapter 9 - Bloodstained

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꧁ 3 hours later ꧂

Kazuki takes Rei to various places, tourist spots, and local convenience stores.

After walking for several hours, the two decide to rest and check out the variety of products at a shopping center nearby, located near the Thinner square.

During the walk, Kazuki notices that Rei is actually very handsome.

Wherever they go, people always look at him with curiosity, affection, and attention.

His eye color is rare and unique, and aside from his color, it's a perfect shade, which, combined with his clothes, makes him stand out and draws attention to his features.

(P.S: The passive skill "Beauty"helps improve how people view him, especially in terms of appearance.)

…

As they walk through the local marketplace, still talking about everything they see, Kazuki's attention is drawn to a small booth.

At this booth, a necklace is hanging among many others. The necklace has an amber color, which reminds Kazuki of someone close to him.

He approaches the booth and buys the necklace for 1 silver coin and 28 bronze coins.

— Here — he hands the necklace to Rei.

— This necklace made me think of the color of your eyes.

— You're not going to refuse it, are you? — Kazuki asks with a sad expression, his ears drooping… He really looks like a sulking dog.

— N-no…

— Thanks for the... present? — Rei says hesitantly, blushing as he tries to avoid eye contact.

"There's no way I can refuse... How does he manage to make a face like that?"

— Could you put it on me? I can't reach the back. — A lie.

Rei just wanted Kazuki to put the necklace on him.

— Can I? — Kazuki asks, moving behind him and slowly putting the necklace on.

Before he can fasten it, two people quickly snatch the necklace from Rei's neck and run off, stealing from others in their path.

Without thinking, Rei immediately turns toward the thieves and, using his legs for momentum, runs after them.

He passes the market stalls, knocking into people on the way, but he doesn't care. His focus is solely on the thieves.

He keeps running, nearly catching up with them.

After a few seconds of running...

Close enough, Rei lands a single punch, knocking out one of the thieves on the side.

The thief is thrown into a nearby wooden stall, knocking it over and destroying all its goods.

Having lost momentum from the punch, Rei continues to chase the second thief, who is now out of his line of sight.

Still, Rei keeps running.

…

It takes a few more seconds to catch up.

Using the speed from his running, he uses both legs as weapons.

He brings his feet together and jumps forward, propelled by his body weight.

His feet, along with his weight, slam into the thief's back.

The thief is knocked out and crashes into a nearby supplement stall.

Still conscious but lying on the ground, the thief sees Rei approaching and, not realizing Rei knows he's still awake, pulls out a knife from his waist.

Desperately, the thief tries to attack the boy, who seems vulnerable.

Rei easily dodges, grabs the thief's arm, and breaks his hand that's holding the knife—just by using his thumbs.

The thief falls to the ground in agony, screaming in pain as his bones break.

Rei then climbs on top of him and starts punching him hard... He pulls his hands back and strikes with one fist, followed by the other.

He repeats this process over and over.

"Who the hell do you think you are, trying to rob me? You ruined a perfect moment."

Rei thinks, with an indifferent expression on his face, as he vents his anger into his punches.

…

"I miss... my fights from the past..."

As the man is punched... like a punching bag, a lot of blood splatters and spills out.

All that blood covers Rei's clothes and face.

People around them watch in surprise at the scene of a boy punching a man lying on the ground, but no one tries to stop him. On the contrary… they just watch.

— Haa… — Rei lets out a sigh, pushing his hair back.

As he stands up, the boy notices Kazuki among the crowd, staring intently at him.

Then, Kazuki, squeezing past people, manages to slip through and approach the boy.

He removes his shirt.

As he takes it off, his biceps and muscles are visible, followed by his well-defined abdomen… (❤ ω ❤)

Kazuki, now close to Rei, begins to wipe the blood off his face with the shirt.

He rubs the cloth gently on his face, removing the excess blood.

Kazuki hears Rei's labored breathing as he stares directly into his eyes.

…

Taking advantage of the situation, Rei rests his head on the shirt in Kazuki's hands and looks into his eyes after smiling.

No one had ever affected him like this before, the way Rei did.

And Kazuki can't understand why.

Is it his appearance? His attitude? His power? He can't figure out his irrational reaction.

Kazuki blushes, frozen in place, his tail wagging non-stop.

In that moment, as the man stands petrified like a statue...

The completely beaten thief, lying on the ground in a pool of blood from his wounds, is looted by Rei, who takes his necklace back and turns toward Kazuki's house.

— Yo, Kazuki, don't just stand there, it was just a joke, let's go — Rei says, laughing at the man as he regains consciousness after hearing his voice.

Rei walks away from the scene with an indifferent expression, not caring how the people perceive him.

Behind him, Kazuki follows the boy, who is bathed in the strong late sunlight.

...

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꧁ 5 days later ꧂

Reiji stays at Kazuki's place for a few days until, one early morning, he is awoken by screams and shouting.

— REI, WE NEED TO ESCAPE — the beast-man yells at the boy lying down.

Abruptly waking up, still groggy and confused, Rei asks sleepily:

— What's going on?

To be continued…