[Warning~ Gore~]

Pain.

Takumi Kodagachi had never felt such pain before. In his previous life, the worst pain that he had suffered had been fracturing his arm as a child, when he had fallen from a tree.

The pain that he was currently experiencing was far worse. His ribcage had been crushed, and at some places the fragmented bones pierced through his chest. His body had been completely separated into three sections: his head, his legs, and his torso. His genitals had been crushed, and his legs smashed to a bloody pulp. Organs littered the arena like some gruesome display of art. Takumi’s arms had been burned off, and his beating heart lay in a puddle of blood beside his head. One of his eyes lay a few feet away. It had been frozen before it was torn out of his skull.

Thrice he had tried to access the power of the Hollow World during the fight- no, during the one-sided beatdown. Each time, the power had come slowly, reluctantly; almost as if it were afraid of coming to his aid. And then, his channeling would be interrupted as his tormentor began another round of brutal thrashing. He was completely unable to retaliate. His katana, which he had been so proud of, lay shattered into a thousand pieces on the ground. His scalp had been torn off, and his ears severed from his head. His nose was just a pile of minced meat, along with his tongue.

*crack*

And now, his teeth had been smashed in.

Takumi’s head wasn’t connected to his lungs anymore, but even if it had been his throat would be too sore for him to scream. However, his eyes rolled in his head; the pain would have rendered him unconscious long ago if not for the skill.

And then, his torturer spoke.

“Next time you look at Yerin with such disgusting eyes, you will suffer pain a thousand times worse. Am I understood?”

The voice seemed to completely dispel the fog of fear and pain that clouded Takumi’s mind. He hurriedly nodded his head- at least, he tried to. With his head completely separated from his body, he obviously found the feat rather difficult to accomplish, to say the least. However, it seemed that his tormentor sensed his acknowledgement, and nodded in return.

Then, a golden glow surrounded Takumi’s various scattered parts and his body reformed from the pieces.

Then he collapsed, gasping for breath. Then, the ‘girl’ leaned over and whispered into his ear.

“Don’t tell anyone what occured here. It wouldn’t be convenient for either of us.”

Takumi caught a glimpse of the face under the hood, and he froze, as if stunned by its beauty.