Rein stopped running. When he looked back he couldn't see Albert house anymore.

He opened his phone and asked Friede if her father was in the hospital. He planned to go there, but were afraid of their father.

He waited for a while, but she didn't answer. He tried to call her but there was no signal, which was strange since he was still in the middle of the city.

He noticed it now, there were no car passing the street and there was no one walking, even if the sun was still shining. The house around there also looked empty, the whole area was devoid of human.

Uneasiness filled his heart, someone was watching him, followed him, stalked him.

He moved his feet, slow at first, but increased his pace with each passing step. Maybe it was a baseless fear, a paranoia, but his instinct told him that something was wrong and he should run.

He ran and he ran, without noticing where he went, what turn he had taken, what building he had passed. He just ran anywhere he could, but no matter how far he ran, no matter how fast, the sense of danger didn't vanish, it was getting stronger in fact.

After running for a long time he stopped, his lung couldn't take it anymore, he almost vomited. Chill crept to his skin, he looked back, no one was there, but the dreaded feeling was getting stronger. He frantically turned his head around, searching for the source of this feeling.

He noticed a park in the corner of his vision. A small park, with a swing and slide in it.

There was no logical sense behind it, if he went to the park he met a dead end, unable to run anymore, but in his heart he felt that that park was his only salvation.

He felt something crawled on his back, pulling his jacket.

His eyes widen in terror. Dead bodies crawled the street, chasing him, some even already reached him and grabbed his jacket.He ran to that park.

Five step before he reached it, one of the dead grabbed at his feet, sending his body to the ground. With his body on the ground they swarmed him.

They crawled all around him, he could felt their skin melting as he touched it. The stench of rotting flesh stuffed his nose and his throat, making him unable to breath.

He screamed all of his lung as they dragged his feet. He fight back but it's useless, their sheer number overwhelmed him.

'This is a dream right, this must be a dream, it can't be real'

"Mister, Want a lollipop?"

The dead bodies exploded into a black smoke. The stench and feeling of melting skin all but gone.

A little girl, 10 years old at most, was staring at him with a blank expression. Her arm extended froward, handing him a lollipop.

He was hesitant, but slowly took the lollipop and put it in his mouth.

"T-thank you." He said. The girl doesn’t react, her face was stiff without any expression, her voice was neutral and her crimson eyes felt like it was able to pierce his soul.

"You shouldn't cry mister."

"O-oh yeah!" He wiped tear from his eyes. It was embarrassing, but it was better than the fear he just experienced. "W-what did you do to them?"

"Them? What do you mean mister? You were running and lashing your hand at the air. I thought you were a mad man." She asked.

Rein took a deep breath. Was It was just a hallucination? he wasn't convinced. The girl knew more than she let out.

"I-is that so? I'm sorry if i scared you. By the way, my name is Rein, Rein Constantine. You can call me Rein." He offered his hand, asking for a handshake. The girl ignored it.

"I'm Elizabeth."

"So, what were you doing here all alone?" He put one hand on his knee, trying to get up.

"LIZIIIIIII!" Someone shouted. They both looked to the sound.

A man was running with a grocery bag in his hand while shouting her name.

From his looks, he was around the same age as Rein, with the similar height and build, maybe a little bit younger. He buttoned his shirt until the neck, the glasses he wore was covered in dirt and his black hair was covering part of his face making him looked geeky.

"Lizi, how many time must i tell you? Don't go anywhere without me. I have been searching for you everywhere." His chest heaved rapidly with heavy panting.

"You're slow Luci." there was a slight emotion in her voice now.

'Luci? That's a strange name for a guy.' Rein thought.

"Ummm, who are you?" His brow raised as he looked Rein.

"I'm Rein. I met Elizabeth by chance while i was running around." Luci narrowed his eyes.

"By chance? Impossible!" His voice cold. His chest that was heaving now stopped like he wasn’t tired at all in the first place. Elizabeth tugged his shirt. He let out a long sigh."Fine! Lizy seems to take interest in you. So i let you go this time."

"Uhhhh, What?" Rein was confused. Luci tapped his own neck at the same spot as Rein scar. The scar on his neck was bleeding and starting to ache.

Suddenly a booming sound, something black flew to his head with blinding speed. Rein could only see it for a fraction of a second before he blacked out.

When he woke up, the moon was already shining above his head. His neck does not hurt anymore, but his head was ringing like it had been hit by something.

He checked his phone and noticed that it was already 10 PM, well past the time limit the announcement mentioned.

He placed his hand on a steel bar near him, trying to stand up. He looked at his surrounding,

he was in a park, but it was different than the one from before.

‘Ah! Elizabeth and Luci.’ He remembered. Elizabeth and Luci was nowhere to be found. No one was there, even the road was empty.

No building in the downtown had their light turned on, making the only light source to be the moon and the streetlamp.

He looked around to find a place he could recognize so that he could find a way back home. The shortest way to his house from the park was through the city square so he walked there.

The closer he got to the square, the colder and thicker the air became. Even using his jacket he could felt the cold air even without any wind.

He heard sound coming from the square.

'Huh? Why are there still sound, there wasn't supposed to be any activity tonight' he thought. His instinct told him that something wasn't right and he should get away. But his head was far too clouded to think straight.

He saw a lot of people in the square. All of them turned toward his direction. He still doesn't get what was happening.

"REIN! RUN!" He heard someone told him to run.

Instinctively, he ran.

He still doesn't get it, why he had to run, and why he himself was running. As he ran, two person wearing a cloak started chasing him. Only then he realized what he's getting into as he felt a murderous intent from the two.

He's running with all his might through the main street, but it was futile. He noticed that an arrow was heading to his head. He ducked with all his might. He used too much energy that he end up rolling instead of ducking. When he stood up the person that was chasing him was standing there drawing the bow. He looked at his side and noticed that he was in the park that he woke up. He doesn't realize how far he ran.

He ran through the park, making a zigzag movement to avoid the arrow.

"Foolish." He heard it. It was without a doubt a girl voice.

He screamed. Blood was gushing out from his knee that was pierced by arrow.

The cloaked girl who chased him walked slowly while drawing her bow.

He forced his injured leg to move. He ignore the numbing pain in his leg and ran in fear for his life, but he ran into a dead end.

He saw it, dark alley in the corner of his eye. He ran there, thinking that was the only way out.

The alley was darker than the first time he looked, there was no light at all there. He could barely see the wall, or any obstacle for that matter.

‘The alley… felt off somehow.’

Something caught his attention. There in the middle of the alley, blocking his way, stood a woman in a pitch black dress. The dress was even darker than the alley itself making him able to see her.

"Get out of my way!" He screamed. the woman didn't move.

'Whatever, if she stand in my way i just pushed her aside' he though. He speed up his pace. He ducked trying to avoid the woman.

His head throbbed, he fell backward. Blood flowed from his head into his eyes, hurting and blinding his eye.

'What was that?' he thought. It felt like he ran straight to a concrete wall, but there was no wall there.

The woman before stood before his body and smiled.

"Such a shame, for a handsome boy like you to die in the first night."

A zapping sound, like the sound of laser in popular movie echoed the small alley.

Rein coughed blood. There was a hole in his chest, but he doesn't feel any pain. It was pleasant actually, all his pain and worries now gone. Any strength he has left after running all gone now.

The woman that shot him was displeased though, he should have died instantly, but somehow he doesn't. A miracle happened and the shot missed a few milimeter, severing his arteries instead of outright killing him.

He tried to stand up, but he couldn't muster any strength at all.

He heard the sound of metal clashing against stone.

---------

Aldwin jumped down from one of the rooftop, slashing his sword at the cloaked girl as he touched the ground. The loud sound of metal could be heard from far away.

The girl jumped back, evading it. Realized she doesn’t have a chance in such small alley she ran away.

Aldwin turned his face to the woman in dress, she smiled.

“Who are you?” Aldwin asked. His voice cold and serious.

“Just a woman. I was strolling in the night when this boy suddenly attacked me. In my self defense i shot him in the heart, too bad since i like his face.” She answered with a smirk.

“I don’t have time for your jest woman.”

“I take my leave then…. Handsome.” She bowed courteously.

She waved her dress and melt into the darkness of night. She was gone, teleported, even Aldwin with his skill couldn’t see her anymore.

“Assassin… and a troublesome one no less.”

----------

the sound of someone yelling, then a running sound. Then there's a sound of someone speaking, but his mind was too hazy to understand what they were saying.

Heat left him and numbness assaulted him, starting from fingertips and slowly moving to his chest. His muscle became stiff, and his flesh harden.

Maybe this is the end for him, the end of the cursed child. 'Heh! Not too bad of an ending i guess' he chuckled at his own thought.

He closed his eyes and he smiled. It was ironic, for the first time in his life he wanted to live, but the world spat on his eyes and killed him. He smiled at the realization of it.

The reason he wanted to live.. he thought about it for what felt like an eternity. He searched in every corner of his mind, what made him wanted to live.

'Iris!'

Yes, he can't give up now, Iris was still in coma and he promised her, he'll be there when she woke up.

He opened his eyes again, trying to stay conscious with every ounce of strength he had left.

A black 'thing' appeared before him, floating above his cold, dying body.

His eyes that was blinded somehow able to see it. It was a black ball with multiple tentacle coming from it, in the center there were a pair of red eye staring at him.

"Do you still want to live boy?" Strange, that.. thing spoke directly into his mind.

He had a bad feeling that answering was not going to end well, like making a deal with the devil…. or something even worse.

Inside his heart he chuckled, It doesn't matter to him be it devil or god, be it monster or human, for the first time in his life he wanted to keep living. With the pool of blood that was his mouth, he answered.

"Yes!" He answered promptly. Even with all his power he could only whisper.

"Goooood." It replied with a delighted voices.

It started to expand. The tentacle started to cover his limb. It felt like he was covered in mud. The black thing slowly crept up his body, until he couldn't see anything, covered by that…. thing…...