Before long, Tokiya Shingen found a large hall. It had originally been used for events at the orphanage, yet its location had clearly not been here before. In this twisted, unnatural environment, however, it now stood right in front of him.
After rushing inside, Shingen quickly scanned his surroundings and identified possible escape routes, bracing himself for whatever was coming next.
It didn't take long.
The eerie sounds rapidly drew closer.
With a creaking groan, the door was pushed open, and a mass of grotesque shapes surged into the hall.
Taking a closer look, Shingen recognized them—they were the same small monsters he had encountered earlier.
Only this time…
There were far more of them.
These twisted creatures let out incomprehensible, chilling cries as they scrambled toward him, their writhing numbers enough to make his scalp tingle.
Although he could enhance his body with telekinetic energy, his stamina was still limited—and at the end of the day, Tokiya Shingen was still just a child.
Handling this many enemies at once would be extremely difficult.
"Let's try to eliminate as many as possible first… There's no way out of this place anyway. If my stamina starts to give out, I'll have to find somewhere to hide."
After taking down more than a dozen of them, Shingen decisively chose to retreat.
These things just kept coming.
How was he supposed to fight endlessly?
As the world around him suddenly slowed to a standstill, he slipped past the frozen, statue-like creatures and dashed out of the hall.
By the time they resumed movement, Tokiya Shingen was already gone.
After a brief moment of chaotic wandering, the creatures returned to aimless roaming.
"Hm? What was that?"
Carefully advancing, Shingen thought he heard something—but when he focused, the sound vanished.
Then—
A sharp, thunderous crash echoed through the air.
It sounded like a building collapsing.
"And… it's close."
He hesitated.
Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't take such a risk.
But right now, he had no idea how to escape this place.
He had no choice but to investigate every possible lead.
At the very least, he was confident in his ability to escape quickly if things went wrong.
With that in mind, he cautiously made his way toward the source of the sound.
What he saw next nearly made him curse out loud.
A massive figure moved within his field of vision.
It was a grotesque infant-like monster, magnified countless times over.
Its eyes were empty black voids. Its mouth was stitched shut with dark, blood-colored thread—yet it still emitted low, unsettling whimpers.
The creature stood nearly three stories tall, crawling toward a small building.
"…There's someone there?"
From a distance, Shingen spotted a figure inside the building, desperately trying to escape.
After a brief moment of thought, he decided to approach.
This massive creature was very likely the source of everything.
If he destroyed it… would he be able to escape?
The giant curse reached the building quickly.
With just a few movements, it tore the structure apart.
When it withdrew its hand, it held a person.
A young woman.
She screamed in terror as she was dragged toward the gaping maw in its abdomen.
"That's—"
Shingen recognized her.
Her name was Koharu Kyoko, a staff member of the orphanage.
She was kind, warm, and genuinely cared for the children—treating everyone equally.
She was deeply loved and respected.
"Let her go!"
Still some distance away, Shingen bent down, grabbed a chunk of broken debris, and hurled it at the monster.
The stone struck—but did absolutely nothing.
All he could do was watch—
As Koharu Kyoko was swallowed whole.
Rage exploded within him.
At that moment, he wanted nothing more than the power to kill this monster.
But the difference in size was overwhelming.
Even with his speed—
What could his fists possibly do against something like that?
As countless negative emotions surged at once, something inside him changed.
His telekinetic energy began to roar violently—
So much so that, for a moment, he couldn't even sense its limits.
Then a thought struck him.
His physical attacks worked because they were enhanced by his power.
So—
What if he used that power directly?
He had tried projecting his energy outward before, but its effect had always been limited.
Still…
This might be his only chance.
Gritting his teeth, Shingen locked his gaze onto the monster, now turning its attention toward him.
He focused everything he had, forcing his energy to move.
The massive creature advanced, seemingly slow—but in reality, closing the distance rapidly.
Then—
He felt it.
The energy within him responded.
He guided it into his right hand with everything he had.
Extending his arm, palm facing forward, he grabbed his wrist with his left hand to steady it.
"Die!"
With a childish roar—
A flash of blue light shot forward.
The monster froze.
Then—
Half its body shattered.
The wound was smooth, almost perfectly circular.
Even the building behind it was pierced through, leaving a massive hole—as if an invisible pillar had torn through both the creature and the structure in an instant.
From the collapsing body, a figure fell.
Koharu Kyoko.
From the outside, she didn't seem severely injured—but she was unconscious.
Her fate was uncertain.
Shingen staggered, nearly collapsing as exhaustion overwhelmed him.
The monster crashed to the ground.
Even as it lay there, missing multiple limbs, it tried to move—
But it couldn't.
Strangely, his energy began recovering at an unnatural speed.
Steadying himself, Shingen walked toward the fallen creature.
Something felt… off.
His anger surged violently—almost unnaturally so.
Yet deep within, he remained calm.
It was a strange contradiction.
Opposing states that somehow coexisted in perfect harmony.
Like trying to draw a circle with one hand and a square with the other—impossible at first, but effortless once mastered.
That was how it felt.
He knew something about his state wasn't right.
And yet—
These emotions were undeniably his own.
Fortunately, a fragment of clarity remained, preventing him from losing control.
The monster writhed weakly, still trying to crawl toward him.
"Kill it."
The thought echoed endlessly in his mind.
Unstoppable.
Shingen stepped closer.
Energy gathered in his clenched fist.
At a glance, his hand seemed engulfed in a dense blue flame.
The monster was already falling apart—
But Shingen didn't care.
All he wanted was to strike.
To pour every ounce of rage into a single blow.
And end it.
He raised his small fist.
To an ordinary person, it might have looked almost harmless.
But to those who could perceive it—
The energy surrounding it was terrifying.
As he swung—
Time slowed once more.
And he saw it clearly.
The blue energy… was turning black.
A profound sensation filled him.
He could feel every movement of his power—
Flowing, pulsing, synchronizing with his body.
Like breathing.
Yes—
Like breathing itself.
At that moment, his power and his body became one.
No effort was required.
Everything moved in perfect harmony.
His fist struck.
The black energy tore through everything effortlessly.
A deafening roar erupted.
He watched as the monster's body disintegrated piece by piece under the destructive force.
The ground beneath it collapsed, crushed by the shockwave.
As the creature finally vanished, his emotions gradually settled.
His power dissipated.
And in its place—
Overwhelming exhaustion.
He collapsed onto the ground.
His right hand throbbed with intense pain, making him grimace.
"…Tap… tap…"
The sound of footsteps echoed.
Shingen immediately became alert.
From the darkness, a graceful figure emerged.
Long white hair, tied in a ponytail.
A black uniform that couldn't hide her elegant figure.
Seeing that it was a person—not one of those grotesque monsters—Shingen let out a small breath of relief.
But…
Why did she seem familiar?
Before he could think further, the beautiful white-haired woman approached, her expression filled with shock and curiosity.
Her voice was smooth, slightly magnetic—perfectly matching her appearance.
"You can call me Mei Mei," she said gently. "Little boy… why are you here? Have you seen anyone else?"