A Little Experiment

It was Mahito.

Feeling the utterly cold hand on his shoulder, Rihito was instantly engulfed by overwhelming terror.

But within two seconds, he suppressed the turmoil inside him.

"Nothing that matters."

He had long since prepared himself for this situation.

This was a crisis, but also an opportunity.

"Ah, and here I thought it was something interesting." Disappointment colored Mahito's voice as he removed his hand from Rihito's shoulder.

But a moment later, Mahito pressed right up against him, sniffing here and touching there as though he had discovered something novel.

"Your soul... smells so strange." He tilted his head, as if examining a toy he had never seen before.

"Why? Why does it smell like this? Strange, so strange..."

He pressed his hand against Rihito's chest, as though trying to reach through his skin and touch what lay inside.

My gamble paid off.

Though fear had almost consumed him, a sharp gleam flashed in Rihito's eyes.

As long as Mahito was interested in his soul, he would not readily harm him.

Of course, this was only the first step.

"Uh... um... could you let go of me?"

After hearing Rihito speak, Mahito took quite a while to reluctantly pull away from him.

Rihito moved his arms and legs, then picked up the flashlight he had dropped.

With a soft click, the beam came back on, much dimmer than before, illuminating their surroundings.

Only then did Mahito's appearance come fully into view.

Winding, twisted stitches crawled across his human face, as though a pile of severed body parts had been forcibly sewn together, stitch by stitch.

The special grade cursed spirit, Mahito.

"Hey, can you tell me why your soul is so strange?" Mahito crouched on the ground, resting his chin in his hands, his voice brimming with curiosity.

"Would you believe me if I said I wasn't from this world?" Rihito spoke casually, looking Mahito straight in the eyes.

"Not from this world?" Mahito paused, the interest on his face deepening.

"You really are an interesting person. But you've come here three times now. Were you looking for me?"

Here it comes.

Rihito steadied himself, forcing every trace of unease deep down, and said with a serious expression, "Yes. I was looking for you."

Mahito rose from the ground, his smile growing more pronounced.

He stared at Rihito and slowly approached.

"Looks like you know what I am. Give me a reason, or else... I'll kill you."

Mahito wore an innocent expression, yet the words coming out of his mouth were utterly cruel.

As Mahito drew closer, Rihito showed no panic. Instead, he let just the right hint of resentment surface in his eyes.

He knew perfectly well that Mahito did not want a boring answer like "I want to live."

He wanted an interesting soul, a toy with emotions.

Then I'll give him what he wants.

"I know what you are. I've seen you kill people."

"Oh?" Mahito stopped and pressed a hand to his forehead in apparent dismay. "Looks like someone caught me by accident."

Rihito continued, resentment and loathing mingling in his voice.

"I... I want power. Power like yours."

Mahito abruptly raised his head, smiling as he waited for more.

"Those so-called officials, those so-called leaders-what gives them the right to lord over us? What gives them the right to treat us as less than human? If I hadn't seen you that day, I might have spent my whole life at the bottom of society, an utterly insignificant scrap."

Rihito gave a self-mocking smile. "Do you know what it feels like to watch that scum do whatever they want every day? Do you know what it feels like to be trampled underfoot when you haven't done anything wrong? I've had enough. If I could be like you, killing whoever I wanted, crushing whoever I wanted-"

Toward the end, his voice rose involuntarily.

His anger and resentment echoed through the dim sewer, lingering long after he finished.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

"Wonderful! You're more interesting than anyone I've ever met!"

Mahito kept clapping, his grin stretching almost to his ears.

He stepped forward and stood before Rihito. "In that case, I'll give you power."

Gulp.

Looking at Mahito right in front of him, Rihito swallowed. "R-really?"

"Haha, of course. But..." Mahito smiled, then said with an air of mystery, "We'll have to do a little experiment."

Rihito's heart shuddered, and a tangled surge of fear and anticipation burst through his chest.

He was afraid because he knew better than anyone what Mahito's "experiments" meant.

Those humans transformed beyond recognition, those things left with nothing but organs and suffering.

But his anticipation was real, too.

This was his only chance to survive.

He forced down both his fear and his anticipation.

It's too early to celebrate.

Every step he took now was like walking a tightrope at the edge of a cliff. One wrong move, and he would be beyond saving.

"An experiment?" Rihito looked confused, but wisely refrained from asking more.

"Come with me." Mahito turned and headed in another direction through the sewer.

Rihito hurried after him.

The concrete beneath his feet was still wet, each step making a faint, sticky sound.

As they went deeper, the light actually grew less dim, but the stench of decay in the air became increasingly strong.

After about five minutes, transfigured humans began appearing along the passage.

The first lay curled up at a pipe junction, both legs twisted together, its face buried in its knees.

The second hung halfway up a wall, like a coat carelessly draped over the back of a chair, a stark white section of spine jutting out through its lower back.

The grotesque, horrifying sights battered Rihito's sanity.

But he did not linger over them. He drew his gaze back and fixed it firmly on the back of Mahito's head.

That disgusting line of stitches ran from the top of his head down into his collar, shifting slightly with his steps like a centipede struggling endlessly.

Seemingly noticing his unease, Mahito spread his hands and said casually, "Don't be afraid. These are just failed test subjects. With you, I'll be absolutely, absolutely serious."

He turned his head and smiled at Rihito, the smile looking particularly pure in the dim light.

If not for

the stitches on his face, it could even have been called "innocent."

Rihito said nothing, but the coldness in his eyes deepened.

He knew perfectly well that he was nothing more than a toy Mahito liked.

Mahito would not readily break a toy he liked.

So this should... work, right?

After another few minutes of walking, their surroundings began to change.

The floor grew dry, the putrid smell in the air faded, and the twisted transfigured humans disappeared.

At the end of the passage stood an iron door. Most of its paint had peeled away, exposing the rusty red metal beneath.

Mahito pushed the door open, stepped aside, and gestured for him to enter.

Rihito hesitated, then walked inside.

The room was small, only a dozen or so square meters.

A stone chair stood in the center, with iron restraints welded to its back and armrests. Yellowed leather lined the inside of the restraints.

The floor beneath the chair was darker than elsewhere, as though some liquid had soaked into it and dried repeatedly.

White tiles covered all four walls. Several had cracked, with dark brown material lodged in the gaps.

"A-are we starting now?" Rihito looked around, appearing a little nervous.

Then, as though remembering something, he said apologetically, "Sorry, my name is Rihito Sato. You can just call me Rihito."

"Hmm... Rihito. A nice name."

Mahito smiled in reply, guiding Rihito into the chair beside him. "Don't be nervous. It might hurt a little, but you'll be fine after some sleep."

Seeing the anticipation in Mahito's eyes, Rihito's heart pounded.

"Okay."

There's no backing out now.

There's no point regretting anything anymore.

Let's begin.

Then Mahito raised his hands and placed them over Rihito's temples.

"Sleep. You'll be fine after some sleep."

As the words faded, Rihito felt a profound drowsiness wash over him.

Gradually, his consciousness began to sink, as though someone had pushed him from a great height. A sense of weightlessness spread from his chest to his limbs.

Instinctively, he tried to grab something, but he could not move.

Dimly, he thought he heard Mahito laughing.

"Wow, your soul... really is completely different from everyone else's!"