The eye blinked for the first time.
I didn't move.
I simply watched.
The alley fell into an uncomfortable silence.
Heavy.
Almost tangible.
The monster still lay motionless on the ground, impaled by the balloon sword.
But something…
Was wrong.
The purple eye slowly opened again.
And then I understood.
Inside the eye…
The corpse was being reflected.
—…
The monster's purple flesh began moving again.
Small spasms.
As if something was trying to reconnect it.
I clicked my tongue.
—Annoying.
I swung the balloon sword.
Clean cut.
The head flew off and rolled across the wet ground.
But—
The corpse moved.
Far too fast.
The headless body tried dragging itself toward the puddle of tears beneath the purple eye.
—Tch.
I vanished.
Appearing directly in front of the corpse.
Another cut.
Perfect.
The body split in half.
Without stopping, I raised my hand.
Dark flames exploded over the remains.
The flesh began burning violently.
The smell of scorched flesh filled the alley, thick and sickly sweet.
I watched the flames for a few seconds.
Waiting.
But then—
The tears from the eye began falling faster.
One.
Two.
Dozens.
The purple puddle slowly began expanding.
As if it were alive.
My eyes narrowed.
And in front of me…
The burned remains began floating.
Charred pieces.
Bones.
Melted flesh.
Everything was dragged toward the puddle.
And slowly…
It sank inside.
Silence.
The flames vanished.
—…
I smiled beneath the mask.
—Ah…
—Now you're becoming interesting.
The purple eye continued watching me.
Still.
But the tears wouldn't stop.
As if it were feeding something.
As if it were rebuilding it.
I tilted my head.
—No.
—Not this time.
The air exploded.
I shot toward the purple eye.
But this time…
I wasn't playing around.
The pressure surrounding my body distorted the air itself.
The pavement beneath me shattered.
And in an instant—
I was already in front of the eye.
I raised the sword.
And slashed.
Space trembled.
A purple barrier appeared in front of the eye.
Thin.
Transparent.
But filled with monstrous pressure.
My smile widened.
—Is that all?
The balloon sword pierced through the barrier.
Crack.
The purple surface began shattering like glass.
And then—
I cut the eye apart.
Silence.
The enormous purple eye split cleanly in half.
Slowly.
The two halves began drifting apart.
Purple tears fell to the ground.
The entire alley trembled slightly.
I extended my hand toward the floating halves.
My eyes glowed beneath the mask.
—Sacrifice.
The two halves of the eye began crumbling apart.
Purple particles.
Tiny floating lights.
Dark.
Beautiful.
I smiled.
The particles were absorbed into my hand.
And then—
My body tensed.
Shock.
A brutal pressure surged through my entire body.
Like electricity running through my bones.
My eyes widened slightly.
—…Oh.
The world around me distorted for a brief moment.
I heard whispers.
Voices.
Laughter.
Crying.
Something tried to enter my mind.
Fragments of images appeared.
Streets.
Shadows.
People staring upward.
Purple eyes floating above entire cities.
Mountains of deformed flesh.
And in the middle of everything—
A figure.
Sitting.
Watching.
I couldn't see it clearly.
But I felt something.
That thing…
Was staring directly at me.
I smiled slowly.
—Jajajaja…
The pressure vanished instantly.
The alley returned to normal.
I slowly lowered my hand.
My breathing remained calm.
But…
I could feel something new inside me.
A strange energy.
Cold.
Deep.
I lifted my gaze toward the puddle of tears.
Silence.
Ripples spread across the purple liquid.
Once.
Twice.
And then—
Something emerged.
First a hand.
Then another.
The liquid surface twisted violently.
And the monster slowly rose from the puddle.
But…
It wasn't the same anymore.
The purple flesh had partially disappeared.
Now its body was darker.
More stable.
More human.
But far more terrifying.
Its eyes…
Completely black.
No pupils.
No emotion.
And worst of all…
It no longer roared.
It no longer screamed.
Now…
It was calm.
The monster slowly raised its head.
And spoke with a completely different voice.
A calm voice.
Deep.
—Interesting.
Silence.
My smile slowly widened.
—Ah…
I tilted my head.
—So now you've finally come in person.
The creature stared at me.
Without emotion.
Without rage.
Without madness.
And for the first time that night…
I felt that thing was truly looking at me.
The wind blew between the empty buildings.
The silence in the alley became heavy.
Unstable.
Then the entity spoke again.
—I didn't expect another supernatural entity to be here…
Its voice was strange.
Calm.
But every word seemed to crawl directly into the mind.
—And even less… one this strong.
My eyes glowed beneath the mask.
One green.
The other yellow.
The smile on my face slowly twisted wider.
—Oh?
I tilted my head.
—Was that a compliment?
The entity didn't react.
Its black eyes remained completely still.
Empty.
—What a shame…
The darkness around it began distorting slightly.
—That we met this soon.
The air became heavy.
The pressure increased.
—Because only one of us will remain standing in the end.
Silence.
And then—
I laughed.
A low laugh.
Unstable.
Monstrous.
—Jajajaja…
Slowly, I raised the balloon sword.
Its tip pointed directly at the creature.
—Well…
—You chose to come out in person.
My eyes glowed brighter.
—But I think you're pushing yourself too hard.
The dark aura around me began expanding violently.
Nearby windows trembled.
The ground started cracking.
—You're still not fully awake…
I took a step forward.
—And yet you still came here…
The smile beneath the mask widened even more.
—Just so I could beat the hell out of you.
The creature watched me silently.
But then—
It smiled.
A small smile.
Cold.
Artificial.
And that only made my own smile grow wider.
—Besides…
I slowly spread my arms.
—You're in my territory.
A monstrous pressure exploded from my body.
Wind blasted outward in every direction.
The darkness around the alley began twisting as if it were alive.
—So you'll have to die for invading what belongs to me.
The clown's green and yellow eyes glowed intensely in the darkness.
The entity remained motionless.
Calm.
As if that pressure meant absolutely nothing to it.
Then it spoke.
—How arrogant.
The temperature in the alley suddenly dropped.
The shadows around the creature slowly began moving.
—But in the world of supernatural entities…
The darkness behind it slowly began opening.
Like a crack.
Like an abyss breathing.
—Only the strongest can do whatever they want.
Silence.
My smile grew wider.
More insane.
More dangerous.
—Perfect.
I tightened my grip on the balloon sword.
The air exploded beneath my feet.
—Then prove it.