Surviving / Madman

Surviving

[Drip]

[Drip]

[Drip]

Just after pushing open the inn door, Wang Xiaoming—so tired he was a little dazed—heard the faint but rhythmic sound of water droplets hitting the floor. He had no idea where it was coming from.

"Miss, there's a leak in your inn."

"..."

The proprietress didn't respond to Wang Xiaoming. She kept her head lowered behind the counter, doing who knew what.

Seeing that she wasn't going to answer, Wang Xiaoming didn't press the issue. He shrugged and headed upstairs. All he wanted now was a good night's sleep.

[Whoosh—]

Perhaps he'd deliberately wanted to make the proprietress do something for him for once, because Wang Xiaoming actually forgot to close the door as he entered. The autumn night wind forced its way into the inn, sweeping through the entire lobby.

[Thud—]

A heavy object hit the floor. Fortunately, Wang Xiaoming had already gone upstairs and didn't see what happened.

The floor behind the counter had become a pool of blood. The proprietress, long since dead, lay in it with her stomach completely cut open. The sight was enough to warrant a screen full of mosaic censorship.

Wang Xiaoming seemed to be either too tired or too overwhelmed by the potent flavor of that mapo tofu. He hadn't caught the faint smell of blood lingering in the lobby.

Perhaps he'd mistaken it for the smell of rust.

And Wang Xiaoming, already upstairs, wasn't faring any better.

"Time for bed, time for bed~"

Humming to himself, Wang Xiaoming took out his key. Just as he was about to enter his room, he suddenly heard something behind him.

He turned around and saw someone standing in the hallway!

"Huh, Ryunosuke?"

The moonlight shining through the hallway window revealed that it was none other than the cheerful young man he'd met earlier—Ryunosuke Uryu.

"Wang-san, I finally found you." The moment he saw Wang Xiaoming, Ryunosuke Uryu smiled.

"What do you want?" Wang Xiaoming couldn't very well keep acting lazy in front of someone else, so he forced himself to stay awake and asked Ryunosuke Uryu.

"I came to invite you to a [Grand Feast]."

"Uh... Sorry. I'm really tired tonight." Faced with Ryunosuke Uryu's enthusiastic invitation, Wang Xiaoming was tempted, but still turned him down.

"Huh? Why not?"

Seeing the cheerful young man's disappointed expression made Wang Xiaoming feel a little bad. He tried to comfort him. "If we can't make it this time, we can go another time."

"No, there's only one chance." Ryunosuke Uryu scratched his head anxiously, then his eyes lit up. "Then let's do this!"

"What do you mean?" Wang Xiaoming had barely finished asking when he saw Ryunosuke Uryu walking toward him.

And then...

Ryunosuke Uryu casually grabbed a vase from the hallway and smashed it hard against Wang Xiaoming's head. Wang Xiaoming didn't even have time to react. His eyes rolled back, and he passed out in one swift move.

Critical hit!

"Guess I'm still not very good at inviting people."

Those were the last words Wang Xiaoming heard before losing consciousness.

Hiss—

Pain woke him. When Wang Xiaoming opened his eyes again, his head was still groggy. It was probably a side effect of getting his head bashed in.

Why the hell had that bastard attacked me?

Wang Xiaoming was still a little dazed. What kind of person attacked someone without warning?

The most important thing was to figure out what was going on.

Though the dizziness in his head still lingered, Wang Xiaoming had regained enough of his senses to look around.

The room wasn't especially spacious. Curtains completely covered every window in the walls, and the moonlight filtering through a partly drawn curtain was probably the only source of light. Wang Xiaoming struggled up from the floor and went to the window. One glance down told him that the room was at least three or four stories up.

He turned to take a quick look at the room's furnishings and figured he was in a bedroom.

"Oh, Wang-san, you're awake!"

The sudden sound of a door opening made Wang Xiaoming tense all over. The voice that followed eased his nerves a little.

It was Ryunosuke Uryu.

Wang Xiaoming turned around, ready to demand an explanation for Ryunosuke Uryu's behavior, but stopped short a second later. It was as if someone had clamped a hand around his throat. His mouth hung open, but he couldn't make a sound.

There was only one reason: Ryunosuke Uryu's appearance had terrified him.

He was still wearing those purple clothes, but now they were soaked in blood. Every so often, a few drops fell onto the floor.

"You... What on earth..." Wang Xiaoming pointed at Ryunosuke Uryu, his voice trembling.

"Oh, this?" Ryunosuke Uryu glanced down at his clothes and suddenly understood. He scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed. "This family put up a bit too much of a fight, so I got a little carried away in the heat of the moment..."

"Fight?" Hearing what Ryunosuke Uryu said, Wang Xiaoming suddenly had a bad feeling.

"But I'm fine!" Ryunosuke Uryu spun around to show that he was completely unharmed.

"This stuff... it's all someone else's blood~"

If Wang Xiaoming still couldn't guess Ryunosuke Uryu's real identity, he might as well smash his head against the wall and kill himself.

Ryunosuke Uryu was the serial killer he'd been assigned to investigate.

"What a coincidence." Wang Xiaoming gave a bitter smile, almost feeling as if he'd hit the jackpot. How else could he describe it? Out of all the people in the world, the first person he'd happened to pick up was the very man he was investigating.

It sounded absurd, but it had really happened to him. What was going to happen to him now? Remembering the photographs of the victims' bodies in the files, Wang Xiaoming broke out in goosebumps.

I should just run...

"Wang-san, Wang-san..."

Ryunosuke Uryu's voice interrupted Wang Xiaoming's thoughts. Seeing Ryunosuke Uryu standing right in front of him, he instinctively took a few steps back.

Ryunosuke Uryu didn't mind. Instead, he excitedly asked Wang Xiaoming, "Wang-san, do you remember that [Grand Feast] I mentioned earlier?"

What the hell do I care about your Grand Feast? Looking at the mad serial killer before him, Wang Xiaoming felt a pain in his... well, you know. Coming from a killer like this, even Wang Xiaoming could figure out what the word meant without using his brain.

"You don't mean the Grand Feast is..." Wang Xiaoming had already cursed Ryunosuke Uryu a thousand times in his head, but he still had to play along.

As he spoke, Wang Xiaoming used the corner of his eye to survey the dim space, hoping to find a way out.

Then Wang Xiaoming sadly realized that, aside from the window he'd just looked out of, the only exit was completely blocked by Ryunosuke Uryu.

With no other choice, Wang Xiaoming could only reassure himself: Ryunosuke Uryu hadn't tied him up, so maybe there was still room to negotiate.

The most important thing now was to stay alive.

Madman

"Come to think of it, I have you to thank for the inspiration, Wang-san."

Wait, why was I getting blamed for this?

Ryunosuke Uryu's words caught Wang Xiaoming's attention.

"Before I met you, Wang-san, I just wanted to leave this town I'd gotten tired of playing in. But after I met you!"

Ryunosuke suddenly turned toward Wang Xiaoming. The feverish look in his eyes made Wang Xiaoming shiver with revulsion.

"Thanks to you, my inspiration came flowing back~"

His low voice sent a chill through Wang Xiaoming.

Ryunosuke kept talking to himself. "Wang-san, do you know? I've tried all kinds of methods: beheading, dismemberment, the electric chair... I've also had all kinds of test subjects: homeless people, salarymen, married women, and children~"

Ryunosuke had only made it halfway through when he noticed Wang Xiaoming's ashen face and stopped. In a deeply regretful tone, he said, "Looks like you can't quite accept my [Art of Death], Wang-san."

"You... You deserve to die!"

Thinking of the victims' gruesome fates in those files, how could he stomach this monster using such cruel methods on children?

"Deserve to die?"

"Deserve to die."

"Deserve to die!"

Ryunosuke burst into wild laughter. "Great art always demands sacrifice during its pursuit! They merely gave their lives for the sake of great art!"

Turning his back to Wang Xiaoming, Ryunosuke spread his arms and spoke in a declamatory tone. "Death is just like a flower. It's only in the moment it blooms that it becomes the most beautiful thing in its life!"

[Psychopath]

Other than psychopath, Wang Xiaoming couldn't find a single word to describe Ryunosuke's madness.

"Enough. The party is about to begin. The guest of honor isn't Wang-san, but I still hope you'll demonstrate your professionalism and faithfully record the party to come. So..."

Ryunosuke snapped his fingers.

"Let's party!"

As soon as Wang Xiaoming entered the living room, a wave of blood stench hit him. His face pale, he finally managed to catch his breath, but when he looked up and saw the scene inside, he couldn't help doubling over and retching in the corner.

The living room had become a scene straight out of hell. Even though Wang Xiaoming had prepared himself, the double assault on his senses and his mind proved too much to bear.

"Wang-san, you really can't handle this~"

Ryunosuke spoke in a flippant tone. Wang Xiaoming looked at him coldly, his expression utterly unchanged. "What do you want me to do?"

"I just said..." Ryunosuke took a camera from who knew where and tossed it to Wang Xiaoming. Wang Xiaoming caught it and realized it was the very camera he'd left in his room at the inn.

"I just need you to do your job, Wang-san, and faithfully record this [Grand Feast]!"

Ryunosuke then pulled a very old book from the pocket at the back of his pants. It was also the reason he had come to this Far East Town.

A book that could summon a [Demon]. The moment Ryunosuke understood its contents, he'd been sent into a frenzy.

What a Cool thing to do!!!

So Ryunosuke had traveled a long way, finally making it to Fuyuki City, the [Spirit Vein Land] written about in the book.

As soon as he arrived, Ryunosuke could no longer contain his excitement and began committing murders in a frenzy.

Unfortunately...

The [experiments] he'd conducted before had all ended in failure, and Ryunosuke had started to doubt whether the book was genuine.

Disheartened, Ryunosuke had originally planned to hitch a ride out of Fuyuki, but he hadn't expected to meet Wang Xiaoming. Wang Xiaoming's profession reignited Ryunosuke's interest, and he decided to record the experiment in full.

Now!

The stage, the cast, and the documentarian!

Everything was finally ready!

All that remained was for the Grand Feast to begin!

Ryunosuke carried two buckets of blood out of a corner of the living room and began drawing the Demon's Summoning Circle according to the instructions in the book. He was so excited he even began humming an unfamiliar tune.

Wang Xiaoming watched coldly, mechanically raising his camera to photograph the horrific scene in the living room and the man responsible for it.

Time slowly passed amid the click of the camera shutter and the tune Ryunosuke hummed.

"Aw, what?"

Ryunosuke stared in dismay at the blood already drying in the buckets, then looked at the Summoning Circle, which still needed a few more strokes to be completed. "How could this happen?"

"..."