Chapter 18 — The Message That Echoed
Aira's thumb hovered over the glowing screen.
The message was still there.
"Stay inside tonight."
No name. No timestamp. Just those four words pulsing faintly against the glass — like the phone itself was breathing.
She bit her lip.
Part of her wanted to believe it was just Rimuru — her usual, unpredictable self — being dramatic again. But the way the message appeared… it didn't feel like her. Rimuru's messages were always teasing, full of that strange humor that made even warnings sound like jokes.
This one felt cold. Empty.
Aira slipped the phone into her pocket and glanced out the window. The evening sky had already shifted — the gold had drained out, replaced by deep indigo clouds that rolled too fast, too low. Streetlights flickered in and out, uncertain.
A chill ran through her.
Still, she grabbed her bag.
"Just a quick walk," she told herself. "Clear your head, nothing weird."
She wasn't sure if she was trying to convince herself or the air around her.
---
The neighborhood was quiet — unnaturally quiet.
Even the crickets had stopped.
Aira walked slowly, shoes scuffing against the pavement. The familiar houses on her street looked… different somehow. Slightly off in shape or shade. Like someone had redrawn them from memory.
She took a deep breath and exhaled a shaky laugh.
"You're overthinking again, Aira. Totally fine. Totally normal."
Her phone buzzed.
One new message.
"Turn back."
Her heart jumped. She stopped walking and pulled the phone closer.
The sender field was still blank — no number, no contact, not even an ID tag.
Another message came through, this time accompanied by a faint distortion sound.
"It's not me."
Aira's blood ran cold.
"…Rimuru?" she whispered.
No response — but her reflection on the phone screen shifted. For just a heartbeat, she saw another face behind her — faint, pale, with mismatched glowing eyes.
She spun around.
Empty street.
---
Lightning cracked in the distance.
The air buzzed like static.
Aira turned the corner — and that's when she saw him.
Ren.
Standing under the flickering streetlight. His uniform jacket fluttered slightly, though the air was still.
He looked calm. Too calm.
"Ren?" she called out cautiously. "What are you doing here?"
He tilted his head, expression unreadable.
"I could ask you the same, Aira."
There was something in his tone — too smooth, too deliberate.
Aira took a step back. "You got that message too?"
Ren blinked. "Message?"
Before she could answer, the streetlight above them sparked — a sudden burst of blue and red. The same colors she'd seen in the reflection earlier that day.
Ren's eyes flicked toward it, narrowing. "So it's started again…" he murmured.
"Started? What's started?"
He looked at her then — really looked — and for a split second, his irises flickered silver.
"You should've stayed inside," he said softly.
Aira's breath caught. "Why? What are you—"
The world shifted.
The air rippled like water, and suddenly, everything around them — the houses, the trees, even the street — looked like it was being erased and redrawn in real time.
Ren reached out, grabbing her wrist. His touch was ice-cold.
"Don't panic," he said. "You're bleeding through."
"Bleeding—what?"
Then she saw it.
The shadows on the ground weren't matching their movements.
And behind her own, another figure stood — same shape, same outline — but with glowing eyes.
It smiled.
---
Aira stumbled backward, heart racing.
Ren stepped in front of her, eyes now fully silver.
"Stay behind me," he said quietly.
She could barely speak. "What is that thing?"
He didn't answer. He just raised his hand — and the air split with a sharp crack of light. The shadow screamed, its form rippling, twisting… and vanishing.
When it was over, silence fell again.
Aira's legs gave out. She collapsed to her knees, staring at the spot where it disappeared.
"What… what was that?"
Ren exhaled slowly, lowering his hand. His eyes dimmed back to pale green.
"Something that shouldn't exist outside her influence," he said.
"Her?"
He looked down at her, gaze softening.
"Rimuru."
---
Aira's heart pounded in her chest.
"Where is she?" she asked, voice trembling.
Ren hesitated, then offered her a hand. "Where she always is. Between what's real and what's left of it."
Aira took his hand slowly, her grip cold and unsteady.
And in that moment — just faintly — she heard Rimuru's voice in her mind.
> "Told you not to go outside, didn't I?"
It was teasing. Warm. But beneath the laughter… there was fear.