As time passed, Kurayami stopped feeling disgusted by eating his own flesh.
What once made him sick became routine. At first, he did it out of necessity; later, out of habit. And in the end, out of twisted comfort. Chewing the torn pieces of his own body had become his only way of feeling alive. In every bite, he found a small proof that he still existed—that he could still feel.
Disgust turned into pleasure… and pleasure into resignation.
The voice that used to speak to him inside his head—
that creation of his mind which once protected him from madness—was gone.
No one was left within him to offer comfort.
His world had become an endless echo of screams and chains, of blows that marked the passing of time.
In that nameless abyss, even hope had forgotten him.
The woman who tortured him descended the stairs.
Her steps were light, almost playful, as if she were dancing upon them. She carried a small cage draped in a black silk cloth. Her lips curved into a smile that didn't belong to any human being—it was the kind of smile that comes before something worse than death.
She stopped in front of him. Kurayami, chained, lifted his head with effort. His body was in ruins—skin hanging in shreds, dried blood cracking across his chest.
And yet, his eyes still shone with something the woman despised: the light of someone who refused to surrender.
—You know, Kurayami? —she said in a honeyed tone that clashed with the stench of the dungeon— Sometimes I think you don't feel anything anymore… and that bores me.
With that, she removed the cloth.
Inside the cage was only a crow.
The bird cawed weakly, its black feathers glinting under the faint light of a torch. Kurayami stared, confused.
What did that mean? A new game? A new form of torture?
The woman said nothing. She opened the cage with a click and let the crow out.
The bird flew calmly, circling them, then perched on a wooden post.
A chill ran down Kurayami's spine. His battered body reacted as though it recognized an ancient danger, an instinct buried deep in the bones.
Then she lunged forward, grabbed his face, and forced his eyelids open.
—Look closely, Kurayami… —she whispered.
The crow descended slowly, wings beating with eerie grace until it landed on his forehead.
It tilted its head and gazed at him with those round, black, endless eyes.
—Do you know the saying…? —she murmured mockingly, brushing her lips against his ear— "Raise crows… and they'll peck out your eyes."
Kurayami tried to move, but the chains dug deeper into his flesh.
The crow opened its beak.
A shriek cut through the air, followed by a wet, nauseating sound.
The bird began to peck at his eyes with fury, tearing through flesh and eyeball like it was devouring rotten fruit. Kurayami screamed—a raw, animal cry born from absolute pain.
He tried to close his eyelids, but there were no eyelids left to close.
His world exploded in red light… and then, darkness.
The woman watched, unblinking, fascinated by the sight. When the crow finished its feast, she simply smiled.
—What a beautiful sound you make when you suffer —she whispered, and then cracked her whip.
It whistled through the air. Once, twice, ten, twenty times.
Each strike was a heartbeat. Each heartbeat, a broken promise that pain would ever end.
Kurayami stopped counting. All he could hear was his own breathing and the creaking of his bones.
Finally, he lost consciousness.
When he woke, silence surrounded him.
The ground was cold. His skin burned as if fire lived beneath it.
But something was different.
He could no longer see…
And what had once been agony was now emptiness.
—Why… do I have to suffer so much? —he murmured in a trembling voice— I just wanted to go home… play with my brothers, with Mom… like we always did…
His words drowned in the darkness.
And then, like lightning through the night, broken memories struck his mind.
—I remember… —he whispered through sobs— I remember that day… when we swore…
From his mutilated eyes flowed tears of blood—a crimson red that gleamed like a sick sunrise.
Each drop was a lament.
—We swore —he continued, his voice cracking— to help everyone we could, no matter the time, no matter the reason… we swore to be heroes…
But that's what led to their deaths.
That's what killed them…
His breathing quickened.
—Daichi! You swore you wouldn't die… you swore you wouldn't leave me alone… but you did! You liar! —he screamed, pounding the ground with his fists.
Sorrow engulfed him like a heavy cloak.
But then, something changed.
For the first time in ages, he didn't feel the weight of the chains.
He touched his wrists—free.
His legs—free.
His neck—free.
No shackles, no immediate pain.
—What… is happening…? —he whispered.
He stood up clumsily and took a few hesitant steps through the void.
Only the sound of his breath and the echo of his heartbeat kept him company.
—I just want to hear their voices… —he murmured desperately— Mom, Dad, Daichi… why don't you answer? Why did you abandon me?
I… I didn't do anything wrong… did I?
Silence seemed to answer him.
But then… a voice rose before him.
—Kurayami… you will never be alone.
Kurayami froze.
That voice… he knew it. He had heard it a thousand times before—in dreams, in laughter, in days that no longer existed.
—Brother…? —he whispered— Daichi, is that you? Where are you?
—I'm here, with you. —The voice was calm, like a breeze through the trees.
Kurayami turned blindly, reaching out into nothing.
—It can't be… —he said, his voice breaking.
Another voice joined in—soft, sweet:
—It's okay, brother.
It was Mei.
His little sister.
Kurayami fell to his knees, soul shattered.
One by one, the voices of those he loved began to surround him like a chorus in the dark.
—You are strong, Kurayami —said Aiko, firm, with the determination of someone who still believes in miracles—. I know you can overcome every evil.
Kurayami wept, trembling.
—I'm not strong… I'm not… I need to be stronger! —he roared, burying his face in his bloodstained hands.
—Yes, you are —the voices replied as one—. You are.
Their words embraced him.
Inside his chest, something ignited—a spark. A breath of faith.
And through his tears, Kurayami smiled for the first time in months.
But then…
a new voice arose.
Warmer. Deeper. More beloved than all the others.
—You're a good person, my son… —it whispered—. Your smile is the most beautiful I've ever seen.
Keep smiling.
Never stop.
The world stood still.
Kurayami froze, his soul suspended.
It was his mother.
That voice was his refuge, his home, his lost past.
And for a moment, the pain ceased to exist.
His body relaxed. His mind cleared of shadows.
And then—
His eyes regenerated.
Two new orbs, clear as freshly born water, replaced those he had lost.
And in the mental darkness that enveloped him, he saw a figure—blurry, trembling… but unmistakably her.
His mother.
Smiling.
Kurayami reached out a hand toward her.
But the miracle didn't last.
A sword pierced his stomach without warning.
The metallic sound sliced through the moment like blasphemy.
Kurayami gasped, unbelieving.
In front of him, his torturer watched him with a crooked smile, her hand gripping the hilt buried in his abdomen.
As blood cascaded down, she pulled out a small glass vial filled with red liquid. She drank, and without warning, leaned in and kissed him.
Her lips pressed hard against his, forcing him to swallow some of the liquid.
It was hot, thick, bitter.
A fire ignited inside his chest, as if something within him were being branded.
—Sweet dreams, Kurayami… —she whispered, caressing his cheek with a finger—. I enjoyed playing with you all this time… but if I don't end it today, he will find out you're still alive. And I don't want trouble.
Her voice was as gentle as the edge of death.
Kurayami's body began to harden.
From the wound, petrification spread slowly, devouring his flesh.
First his legs, then his torso.
He tried to move—but he couldn't.
And somehow, the place changed.
He was no longer in the dungeon.
The air was different.
It smelled of forest, of damp earth, of freedom… and yet, his fate remained sealed.
A mechanical voice echoed in his mind like divine judgment:
"Curses activated.
Stone Seal… in progress.
Ten seconds to completion."
Kurayami looked around helplessly.
The world filled with mist. The trees seemed to watch him.
The wind blew, carrying away his last human breath.
Before him, the woman looked on in satisfaction.
She bent down, kissed his forehead with false tenderness, and whispered:
—Goodbye, my little experiment.
And with one last defiant smile, Kurayami turned to stone.
His body, now gray rock, remained with his face lifted toward the sky, as if still searching for his mother among the clouds.
But it wasn't a mere statue—it was cursed.
Inside the stone, his soul remained awake, trapped, aware.
The forest fell silent.
The crow returned, perched on his shoulder, and let out a caw that echoed through the woods.
Arc I – The Fall of Humanity
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End.