A chill ran down Shizo's spine.
In the next instant, Seirito awakened his artifact and lunged forward.
Shizo's heart pounded violently. His body trembled.
Instinct screamed—fight, kill, survive.
He dodged the first strike and caught the spear—
—and the moment he touched it, a wave hit him.
Despair.
Rage.
Pain.
Foreign emotions crashed into his mind, suffocating.
"…what is this…?"
He jerked his hand back and released the weapon as if it burned him.
No time to think.
Blood surged from his body, forming a shield—
—but Seirito was already moving.
The blade cut straight through it.
No pause.
No hesitation.
Shizo clenched his other hand—blood instantly shaped into a blade.
One step.
One strike.
Silence.
Seirito froze.
Then collapsed.
It ended in less than a second.
Shizo stood there, breathing heavily.
And then—
it came back.
Hunger.
Deep.
Dark.
Endless.
His body moved before his mind could stop it.
Step.
Lean.
Flesh.
Blood.
…
When it was over, he stood in the kitchen, breathing unevenly.
Too quiet.
He slowly looked down at his hands.
Covered in blood.
Everything was.
"…I…"
His voice trembled.
"…I'm not human…"
He turned his head toward Seirito's body.
No life.
No expression.
"…You tried to kill me…"
Silence answered.
His gaze shifted.
The spear.
"…what is this…?"
He picked it up—
—and the emotions struck again.
"AAH—!"
He gripped his head, barely holding onto it.
"…It's the same…"
His breathing was heavy.
"…This isn't just a weapon…"
A pause.
"…These are… someone's feelings…?"
His eyes slowly moved to the wall.
A photo.
Seirito… and a girl.
Smiling.
Alive.
Happy.
"…her…"
His gaze dropped.
Blood.
"…that was her…"
The pieces connected.
"…Weapons… and death…"
He clenched the photo.
"…They're connected…"
He closed his eyes.
"…The stronger the bond… the stronger the power…?"
He looked at the spear again.
"…So you got this… because of her…?"
Silence.
But he already knew.
Then—
he froze.
Something was wrong.
Too calm.
Too… empty.
"…Why don't I feel anything…?"
He touched his chest.
Steady heartbeat.
"…I just…"
He looked at the body.
"…killed him…"
Pause.
"…and ate him…"
Silence.
"…but I'm calm…"
His hand clenched.
"…like I just ate after starving…"
A chill ran down his spine.
"…This isn't normal…"
But his body didn't react.
No panic.
No disgust.
Only… lightness.
And a faint hunger still buried deep inside.
Shizo looked at the spear.
Then at the photo.
"…I need to understand…"
His voice hardened.
"…What these artifacts are…
Why people are dying…
And…"
A pause.
"…what I've become."
He gave one last look at Seirito's body.
"…Sorry…"
Quietly.
"…if you even had a choice."
Shizo turned away.
And walked forward.