"My God, what kind of place is this?! There are even ghost stories happening on campus!"
Wrapped tightly in a blanket, Subaru Natsuki huddled in the corner, shivering.
He desperately wanted to fling open the door and call for help, but the rules had already warned him that someone might knock at night.
If he ran outside and happened to run into the so-called evil spirit, then what difference would there be between that and throwing his life away?
"Calm down, Subaru Natsuki. You need to calm down!"
Subaru slapped both cheeks hard with his hands, trying to keep hold of what little reason he had left.
"Why should I trust a mirror? Isn't this just some kind of prank from Ram?"
At that moment, Subaru truly felt as though his intelligence had reached its peak.
He swore the last time he had used his brain this hard was back in Galaga.
"No, wait. Thinking about it carefully, even if Ram's personality is terrible, she wouldn't go this far just to mess with someone as insignificant as me. Damn it, this is a real emergency!"
Shhk… shhk…
From the far end of the corridor came the eerie sound of chains dragging across the floor.
It grew louder as it approached, striking Subaru's fragile nerves like a funeral bell.
"There really is a chain sound!"
Subaru lost it on the spot.
He scrambled up and shoved the desk against the door to block it.
Outside, a small figure holding a morningstar moved soundlessly through the corridor.
She first stopped at Grin's room and pressed her ear against the door, listening closely.
Only after hearing the slow, even rhythm of breathing inside did she quietly step back.
The wind stirred, rustling the greenery outside the mansion and swallowing the girl's already light footsteps into the darkness.
Bang bang bang.
Someone knocked on Subaru Natsuki's door.
Has the evil spirit arrived?
Subaru thought wildly to himself that he did not even have a weapon in hand. If something happened now, he would be meeting death empty-handed.
"W-Who's there?!"
His voice came out low and shaky.
"It's Rem, Subaru."
"Ah—it's Rem!"
The crushing weight pressing on Subaru's chest lifted all at once the moment he heard her voice.
He rushed toward the door as though he had finally found a lifeline.
But at that exact moment, the mirror's warning surfaced in his mind again.
If someone knocks at the door at night, remain calm. If you hear the sound of chains, do not open the door.
Subaru's outstretched hand froze in midair.
After hesitating for only a moment, he not only refused to open the door, he even fastened the security chain.
When death loomed close enough, this idiot always seemed to produce one sudden flash of brilliance.
"You're lying! You can't be Rem! You're a demon!"
Subaru shouted hysterically, as if the volume alone might make him braver.
Rem, standing outside, frowned slightly.
Who else could she be if not Rem?
Her original plan had been simple—knock Subaru unconscious the moment he opened the door, then drag him to the back mountain for questioning.
But things became troublesome if Subaru refused to open up.
Rem cast a brief glance toward Grin's door, as though worried Subaru's screaming might wake him.
But after waiting a while, Grin's room remained quiet.
Only then did Rem let out a small breath and knock again.
"Subaru, it really is Rem. Thieves have entered the mansion. I need to make sure you're safe."
On the other side, Grin stood with his ear against the door, quietly watching the show unfold.
He clicked his tongue and muttered to himself,
"That brat's even learned to lie now."
Inside, Subaru swallowed hard.
After hesitating for a very long time, he finally answered,
"If you really are Rem, then step back a little. I need to check through the crack in the door."
Grin's face filled with disappointment.
This guy really did not fear death enough.
A flicker of killing intent flashed through Rem's eyes, but she crushed it down with sheer force of will and turned to walk away.
"Of course, Subaru. Rem has already moved back to a safe distance."
Subaru listened closely to the sound of her retreating footsteps.
Only after confirming it several times did he slowly pull the desk away from the door.
Creak—
The door opened.
But the security chain still held it partly shut, leaving only enough space for half of Subaru's face to show through.
"Ha… so it really is Rem…"
Ding. Ding.
Several ice spears suddenly formed in midair, their sharp tips aimed directly at Subaru's eyes.
Whoosh!
The spears shot forward in a burst of cold.
Subaru's pupils shrank.
He threw himself backward with all his strength.
"Ahhh!"
The ice spears grazed across his face, tearing a deep wound so savage that bone showed beneath it.
Blood burst out at once, soaking his face until he looked like a man skinned alive.
"Rem? Rem! You really are a demon!"
Subaru rolled on the floor in agony, clenching his teeth and trying to endure the pain while desperately dragging the door shut.
"Why? Why can't you just die quietly? Do you have to gather an audience before you're willing to die?"
Moonlight cut through the stained-glass windows of the mansion like a cold blade, falling across Rem's blue hair.
Her lowered lashes trembled almost imperceptibly, as though someone behind a curtain had just blown out a candle.
When she lifted her eyes again, her pupils had narrowed to pinpoints.
The clear blue was swallowed by a web of red veins.
And at the center of her forehead, a bright oni horn tore through the skin with a hiss, like red-hot iron punching out of white porcelain.
No blood flowed from the split flesh.
Only wisps of indigo steam curled up from the wound, as though what was evaporating was not blood, but reason itself.
Unable to hold herself back any longer, Rem activated her oni transformation.
She had decided to kill Subaru Natsuki on the spot, whether she was discovered or not.
Rem raised her right hand and placed it on the lock.
With only a slight squeeze, the metal core crumpled apart like soft tofu.
"Rem has endured this every minute, every second, you Witch Cultist! Watching you strut around in front of my sister, Rem has barely been able to suppress the unease and fury inside her."
"The one who brought disaster to my sister—or someone tied to that disaster—has been living freely inside the home Rem and her sister treasure most. Even knowing that my sister was only pretending to care for you, only pretending to be close to you, Rem can no longer tolerate it!"
Her voice shook with rage.
By the end, it had become outright condemnation.
"What… what are you talking about?! Witch Cultist? As far as I know, nobody in my family has been religious for generations!"
Subaru retreated in despair as the damaged wooden door shook and splintered.
Death was right there.
Close enough to touch.
Then one of the mirror's warnings flashed through his mind.
Hiding behind a mirror grants temporary invisibility. If someone attacks you, move away from the mirror.
Realizing that, Subaru scrambled behind the mirror and used it like a shield.
The mirror released a wash of colored light.
The surrounding light twisted, bent, and merged—
And in the next instant, Subaru Natsuki's figure vanished from sight.
Bang!
Rem kicked the door apart, reducing what remained of it to flying wood splinters.
The girl who was usually quiet and cute now looked no different from a ghost of vengeance.
In the dim corridor, murder shone from her eyes with a frightening light.
She moved like a wolf hidden inside the dark.
"Damn it… where did he hide?!"