I've been feeling guilty lately.
I did ask the question—following Rosemilla's advice—about whether I could just close my eyes and kill her once a year, but I was completely shocked when Urr agreed so easily.
It was maddening.
The way she comforted me, telling me not to feel sorry as if I was the one who needed consolation, only intensified my guilt.
I regretted bringing it up. I hadn't wanted her consideration, but receiving it for something like this felt strange. Isn't it odd for someone who's going to die to worry about the person who's killing them?
It felt so wrong that I couldn't bear it.
So today I was repeating my research, thinking maybe I didn't know everything, when I heard a scream from somewhere.
"Kyaaaaaaah!"
What are they doing near the Research Building? I was about to ignore it, but the voice sounded unusual, so I found myself pushing back my chair and standing up.
I opened the window and looked outside. Nothing was visible from here—it must be in a blind spot. Unable to figure out what was happening, I tilted my head and turned back when the landline on my desk started ringing.
Wondering what was going on, I picked up the receiver.
"Hello, Professor Yuria of the Research Building speaking."
"—Professor Yuria, you said it was safe, so what is this situation now? How can you just stay in your laboratory without handling this? Do you think this is acceptable?"
It was the voice of an older professor who worked under the Academy Dean. Before I could even wonder why he was calling, he was already scolding me, making my brow furrow.
"What are you talking about?"
I had no idea what was supposedly safe or what I needed to handle, so I tilted my head in confusion.
The person on the other end raised his voice as if I was the one being difficult.
"The Demon God! I'm talking about the Demon God! I know about your achievements, Professor Yuria. I admire how incredibly strong and capable you are at such a young age! But isn't this clearly your responsibility? We allowed it to stay at the Academy as Supplies because you said it wouldn't cause harm, but if this is how things are going, we'll have no choice but to dispose of it!"
"...The Demon God? You mean Urr?"
"Is there any other Demon God? Right now it's wandering around inside the Academy emitting Aura, and students leaving school are being harmed. If you don't want to shorten the students' lifespans further, either kill it quickly or return it to its original state! I'll deal with your responsibility later!"
Click.
The angry voice was cut off. He had done everything—getting angry and hanging up.
The disconnected phone made a long beep sound. I put down the receiver and looked for my phone.
Why Urr? Urr said she was going to a Study Group with the kids, so this couldn't be happening.
I called Urr. I thought she would answer quickly since she had her phone. But the call didn't connect. It suddenly cut off in the middle.
When I tried calling again, I only got a signal that the device was turned off. She must have turned off her phone completely. Or maybe she had broken it.
That thought sent a chill through me.
I shifted my trembling gaze. I put on my coat and grabbed my ring. Then I quickly left the laboratory and ran out of the Research Building.
"Urr, where is Urr...?"
I tapped on my phone.
"Hello...? Professor?"
The next person I called was Sera. I had called one of the students from the Study Group where Urr should have been until recently. Among them, she was relatively older, so I asked her desperately.
"Hey, Sera. Do you know where Urr is? Wasn't she with you?"
"—Ah, I'm walking home with Aria. Urr left with a second-year student who wanted to join the Study Group. She said she'd take him to you, Professor."
"A second-year student?"
The first person who came to mind was the blue-haired female student who was always next to Urr during second-year lectures.
"Was it a female student?"
"No, a male student. I think he had dull silver hair..."
"Ah, thank you."
I thanked her, but I couldn't picture who it might be. I frowned, thinking it must be a student without distinctive features.
I turned my head, trying to figure out where Urr might have gone. Just as I was thinking about following the path to the club room, I heard sirens in the distance.
Police and ambulance sirens mixed together, disorienting my ears.
Since it was in the direction I was planning to go, I turned my steps that way. At the entrance to the alley leading to the building with the club rooms, I could see someone collapsed.
"What happened?"
"Ah, are you a professor? ...We found a student here with a knife in their body—"
As the police officer was explaining the situation, something seemed off.
"Why are the bloodstains like this...? Is the student dead?"
"No, there was a knife in their side, so we put them in the ambulance, but why do you ask?"
At my mention of bloodstains, the officer closed his mouth and looked at what I was seeing from beside me.
"Then whose bloodstains are these?"
I could tell blood had dripped. But who did all that blood belong to, soaking the alley so thoroughly?
The blood hadn't fallen statically. It looked like it had been splattered wildly. Moreover, judging by the amount, it wouldn't be strange if someone had died.
"Can I see the color of the uniform the student was wearing?!"
The keyword "second-year" flashed through my mind, and I asked urgently. The officer shook his head.
"Please calm down first. The ambulance had to leave, so I can't show you, but it was definitely a pure white uniform with red accents."
"—Red."
My eyes widened.
I couldn't understand why they had been stabbed in the side. Maybe to claim self-defense? But Urr wouldn't do something like that.
More importantly, if this blood belonged to Urr, that was a problem in itself. It was already delicate to kill her once, but if she had died more than once or twice, that would explain the angry phone call from the faculty member earlier.
"Urr, Urr..."
My head was spinning. I couldn't think clearly. I staggered away from the scene quickly.
If Urr had died and another persona had emerged, there would be no point in going to the club room.
I moved toward the commotion. I walked forward, anxiously wondering where I needed to go to find Urr.
Then I spotted a woman sitting in front of the Academy's main gate.
Students couldn't approach the Demon God blocking the way. "What is that?" they wondered, but it wasn't something they could just pass by. Just getting close enough to touch the Aura made them back away—it was such a strange Demon God.
Everyone just stood back, fidgeting nervously, unable to approach the main gate because of the unsettling sensation.
I clenched my teeth, realizing my fears had come true, and furrowed my brow.
With trembling hands, I took out my ring and put it on. My mind was in turmoil. I pondered for a long time about what to do.
I wondered what expression Urr had made when she died from someone's malice—after telling me she was fine with dying anytime to accommodate me—and my heart ached so much I didn't want to know.
When I put the ring on my finger, I felt a slight drain of Mana from my body. This was because it temporarily created a vessel like a Demon God's, emitting Aura around me.
This acted as a barrier. It had none of the harmful effects of a Demon God, only the benefit of being able to hold more Mana and protecting against the negative influence of a Demon God's Aura.
As I approached, Urr—no, the other Demon God—looked at me with an expression that suggested everything was boring.
"—Urr."
When I called out that name, the Demon God blinked and quietly asked:
"Is that my name? I didn't define myself that way."
The expression was that of someone bored. Though the face looked disinterested, somehow the atmosphere felt overwhelming.
Is this how prey feels when facing a predator?
Among all the Demon Gods I had met, none had been like this one. I wondered if this was how it felt to meet a Demon God who had reached the level of Sword Master.
"It's that look again."
The Demon God murmured softly.
That gaze was directed not at the Academy but at me.
"Eyes that fear me."
"So you remember that time."
"Of course I remember. It was my last memory."
The Demon God didn't take any action, seemingly wanting to talk with me.
If so, I thought I might be able to satisfy my curiosity as well.
"What are you? Do you know about the existence of 'Urr' I'm talking about?"
"Not exactly. I just know there's something different from me."
There were many types of dissociative identity disorder. Starting from whether the personalities were aware of each other to whether they shared memories—considering various factors, there clearly wasn't just one or two types.
This one was aware. I also knew they didn't share memories. I could confirm that Urr and this Demon God were separate personalities.
Urr had always said she needed to wear large clothes because she never knew when she might grow, but seeing the uniform that perfectly fit the Demon God's body made my lips tremble.
And the red blood staining the pure white shirt beneath made my heart quiver.
"..."
"So."
While I couldn't say anything, the Demon God looked at me with an expressionless gaze.
"Are you going to kill me this time too?"
At that emotionless voice, my heart sank heavily.