Chapter 22: Honkai Tusks

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-"normal speech"
-'thoughts'
-[Sealed being speaking]
-"Possessed being speaking"
-"past thoughts"
........................................................................

After the sun set to bring way for the night, the High School campus fell silent in the quiet dusk of night. The usually bustling halls and corridors of St. Freya High School became eerily quiet at night as the students rested in their respective living quarters, tired after a long day of reviewing notes and intense training sessions.

However, this quiet night brought dreams that weren't even a least bit of pleasant for a certain male student.

........

Why...? Why am I dreaming of this again...?

It has already been 6 years since that incident...since the tragedy at Tsukumo.... I thought it was all past me now...so why...

"No matter what form we take we'll forever be friends, right?! Shi?!"

"There was...some meaning....to our existence...right? In the end...I couldn't beat you at anything...Shi..."

"I don't wanna die! I wanna live, Shi!! I wanna grow up with you!!"

"Rather than living as an unsightly ********...I would rather be cleansed by you, Shi..."

Stop....

Why was I the only one...? Why was it me who didn't turn into a fallen one and made the 'power' my own...? In the end...I turned out to be the experimental result that 'he' wanted...

"Kegare no Okami, Orimasu Shimasu!!"

"What I am aiming for is something that you can never comprehend, Shi. You had the path right in front of you, the open door to becoming something more..."

"What I am aiming for is something that can possess both the power of light and darkness. A lofty, supreme existence...in other words, a "true ********".

I wonder....

Since when....

Did you become this messed up...

...Yuu...?

...........

"Shirou? Shirou, are you alright?"

Her soft and gentle voice snapped me out of my stupor. It felt like all the pain inside me just melted away from hearing her voice. I squint my eyes as I see Mei looking at me worriedly.

"You've been zoning out since morning. I was worried that something was wrong. What happened?"

Should I tell her about my dream? My friends already know my interdimensional origin, but maybe I'm not ready to share my past yet. At least until...I am able to remember it without feeling any pain. This guilt feels like several maggots trying to eat me away from the inside. With a shake of my head, I smile at her.

"Hmm, there's nothing to worry about. Just a bad dream. I'll tell you about it later."

Mei looked relieved at this when Kiana chimed in out of nowhere in the assembly.

"Not fair! How come Mei Senpai comforts Dragonmaru of his bad dreams but not me?"

"You had a bad dream as well, Kiana?"

Kiana looked down at her feet at my inquiry. Mei looked interested too. Then, Kiana spoke up.

"I did...in the dream, you and Mei Senpai, along with everyone were being mean to me...saying things that hurt me...especially you, Shirou. You said that you never wanted a friend like me..."

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