The scene before him shook violently. Threads of blood-red spread inward from the edges of his vision, mingling with the mist until they formed a dense haze.
Fluttering prayer ribbons swirled around him. Scrawled words refreshed frantically, embedding themselves in his eyes like streaks of blood.
[You killed Reiko.] [You killed Reiko.] [You killed Reiko.]
There was no loop notification, no ending narration. It was as though a sudden malfunction had forced him out, or a triggered bug had crashed the game.
The scene of Rabbit God Town was washed away by a torrent of blood. The blood thinned into a filmy layer, then vanished without a trace in a gust of wind.
Qi Si sat in an empty classroom. The scene was frozen, its colors dim, and gray-white mist filled his surroundings.
A pitch-black figure charged out of the mist, bringing a heavy stench of blood. He clamped his hands around Qi Si's throat. "You killed Reiko... You actually killed Reiko..."
The hands of the Pocket Watch of Fate ticked steadily. The outline of a clock reflected in Qi Si's eyes, and a phantom image of blood-red leaves flashed through them.
He quietly watched the figure, feeling those icy fingers sink into his flesh and suffocation spread through his chest. He never struggled.
The grip on his neck gradually slackened. The figure backed away several steps, revealing a face crisscrossed with bloody wounds and twisted, bent limbs beneath it, like a corpse that had been shredded into chunks and pieced back together.
"You should have saved her... But you killed her..." the figure muttered, his voice sounding as though he were crying.
Qi Si raised a hand and gently wiped the blood and grime from his neck. Dark bruises ringed his flesh like a vicious chain, bearing