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: ̗̀➛ SERENDIPITY
Occurrence of fortunate events unexpectedly.
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↻ 𝙇𝙤𝙖𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜. ↻
↻ 𝙇𝙤𝙖𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜.. ↻
↻ 𝙇𝙤𝙖𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜... ↻
──⇌• WELCOME •⇋──
◄ KANAE KOCHOU ►
It was hard to believe how quickly it all ended.
It wasn't even a proper fight, just an encounter between two enemies whose powers were on vastly different levels. It's a miracle she made it out alive in the first place, limbs all intact, but it didn't make it any less agonizing.
The pain was unlike anything she had felt before, searing, scorching, biting with such ferocious coldness that her lungs were close to shriveling. His aim was flawless and attacks efficient; even with her sword ready to deflect it, he successfully managed to slash her from her right shoulder all the way down to her left hip, a clean, diagonal cut that broke her sword along with any chance of a counterattack.
What made her defeat all the more bitter was that the demon didn't even use his abilities to their fullest extent. She knew it. Even with the powdered ice and miniature dolls, he was holding back, allowing kind words to fall from his lips while the smile that graced his pale face made it seem like they were old friends chatting. Eyebrows hitched up, eyes wide and unblinking, and irises tinted in breathtaking shades of every color, but even they didn't help his eyes to glimmer. They were hollow, empty.
He was polite introducing himself, a pair of golden fans in his hands that glinted with his every move, catching and reflecting the moonlight. He had even purposefully angled his closed fan under his eye, and she knew it was to taunt her by directing her focus on the kanji and daiji written in his pupils. Black ink splashed onto a colorful canvas would always draw attention to itself. To appear more prominent, more noticeable. More Important.
Upper Rank Two.
She didn't let her guard down, didn't let her hopes shatter, didn't think about anything but her survival, and watched him disappear when the first rays of the sun emerged with exhausted relief. His presence faded away like a small, passing breeze, and it was only then that she allowed her knees to hit the ground, tears clouding her vision and blood clogging her throat.
Her body spasmed uncontrollably, fingers digging into the ground as she tried to regulate her breathing in an attempt to clot and stop the bleeding. A minute was enough time for her to conclude that it would be futile to waste her energy on trying to do something that won't work.
It seemed a bit strange that she doesn't grow angered when she thinks about their duel, nor does she hold any resentment towards him for her defeat. If anything, no matter how unfathomable it sounds, she's more sorry for him than she is for herself.
Isn't that just cruel, living without being able to feel anything? His face didn't flush when he recalled a pleasant memory, nor did it pale when he told her how pitiful humans were. He displayed his acts so perfectly it almost fooled Kanae with how honest they seemed. It further implied just how much stranger and more unpredictably powerful demons were compared to regular ones.
A cough lodges itself in her throat, her chest heaving in an agonizing effort to breathe before it finally breaks free along with a broken sob and fresh burst of blood. Her hands were barely able to support her trembling weight when she heard frantic footsteps drawing closer. She knows who it is, could never mistake it, but her heart thumped like she was in danger again and lost her balance.
Shinobu came into view just as Kanae's cheek kissed the ground.
Every moment after began to blend together, like the world was rewriting itself right in front of her eyes, but she felt safe. Warm in her sister's arms as the throbs along her body gradually numbed to nothing. Kanae managed to slow the bleeding, but it didn't stop, with crimson rivulets running down along her skin; her clothes were soaked to the point they weren't able to absorb blood anymore.
Her body's shifted so that she's resting with more of her weight on Shinobu, her hand holding Kanae's. She's stopped talking, saving her energy to savor the final few moments, but Shinobu's taking in her favor now. Assurances after assurances falling from the younger girl's lips. Soft. Comforting. Unrealistic.
"You're doing great; just hang on, okay? You'll—You'll be fine."
"I'm here; I'll always be here, always. I won't ever leave, never ever ever."
The despair emitting from Shinobu was almost palpable, her hair messy, lips trembling, cheeks flushed, eyes puffy and red, and a stream of tears running down her face, and in those purple irises, Kanae saw the last thing she ever wished to see again.
The same hopelessness and terror Shinobu wore when their parents died.
A lump forms in her throat, breathing grows tedious by the passing second, and it's then that tears land on the back of her hand cradling Shinobu's cheek. The younger girl held it back with such firmness that Kanae wished she would never let go.
She knew the dangers of fighting in the front lines, and she accepted those when she joined the Corps, but she wished, truly wished, she could've at least seen a glimpse of her dream coming true. For humans and demons to—
Another wet cough rattles her frame, the metallic tang on her tongue growing pungent as her ears buzz for a moment. Black spots dance in her vision, and she lets her gaze drift down to the ground, then towards her sword, and with her blurry vision, Kanae sees that—the blade is intact?
No, no, it broke in the fight; it shouldn't. She's overthinking; maybe blood loss is causing hallucinations. That must be it. But why is she growing paranoid even after the sun has risen?
The panic blooming steadily in her chest doesn't pause; instead, it builds up to such a point of uncertainty between what's real and what isn't that she's reaching out to grab the turquoise and orange handle. Her vision flickers white, once and so quickly it looked close to never happening. Then, she's hearing voices. Loud and lots of them.
Kanae's eyes dart up; Shinobu's face isn't there anymore, the morning sky isn't there anymore, and she's staring into a high ceiling. Her eyes scan the surroundings like it was muscle memory. She's in a room, dark, illuminated by candles, carrying a whiff of something unmistakably ancient, and she's encompassed with a presence so suffocatingly overpowering that it causes a breath to lodge in her throat in fear.
It must be the demons' stronghold, a place where they creep in to seek shelter during the day, maybe even where the Demon King resides—
Her fingers brush against the handle of her sword, wrapping them around the cords as she flips back onto her feet. Her vision's all over the place, colors merging and blending into one another, and she doesn't even need to see to know that it's demons. So many that she couldn't even pinpoint exactly how many there were to be able to emit such an otherworldly presence.
The dread pooling in her stomach quadruples when she sees around five demons at her through her smudged vision.
Only five demons with a presence this pressing?
A sharp gasp ripples out over the voices, and they hush so suddenly it's almost deafening. Her skin prickles with unprecedented horror as she musters up the courage to raise her sword. The handle grows damp under her grip; her nails dig into her palm as she raises her head. She isn't able to even meet any of them eye-to-eye before her body jerks forward and a mouthful of blood spills through clenched teeth.
Her shoulder spikes with strain at the sudden movement, skin growing warmer as more crimson seeps out from her shoulder and melts bits of frost along the edges of the wound before pooling around her feet at an alarming rate. Her eyes get misty as she lifts her non-dominant hand from her handle to press onto her shoulder, staining her fingers through her already soiled clothes.
Five demons, various heights, with the tallest being over six feet. Have a considerably human complexion despite the odd set of hair colors and are dressed in stylish outfits. They don't have slit pupils or kanji to indicate their ranks, but with an aura so empowering, they must have the ability to conceal their appearances to an extraordinary degree—
Kanae stumbles back, just barely catching her footing as lightheadedness washes over her. Heartbeat increasing to a concerningly fast rate, she notices that her toes have started to go numb. Outrunning them won't be a viable option if she waits around for too long.
"Kanae—"
If her heartbeat was racing before, she can't even begin to explain how it feels like it would explode now. Her eyes blow open, her expression morphing to unanticipated astonishment, and she instantly points her blade towards the red-haired demon who had spoken up.
Immediately the black-haired demon beside him steps forward, not exactly shielding the other male but standing with a stance that displayed he wouldn't tolerate any sort of disrespect or needless disruption.
"Lower your weapon; we won't hurt you." His voice is a little deep, and Kanae has a feeling he's used to commanding absolute authority.
"Ha—How d—do you?" Her words were barely coherent, her throat closing up so that her voice rose to an awkward pitch. Seeing movement from the corner of her eyes, she directs her sword in the other direction, the pink blade gleaming with purpose.
"How about putting your sword away first, hmm? None of us have any intentions of harming you, sweetheart." It's the demon with champagne, light pink-colored hair who speaks up, and from the pitch and loudness of his voice, Kanae concludes he must be the one who gasped in the beginning.
"You'll only bring yourself closer to death if you keep moving with injuries so severe." The one beside him adds on, voice matter-of-fact as his green eyes narrow at her. The demon with orange hair, and the tallest among all of them, just blankly kept staring at her.
"He's right, so how about you just look at me and relax, okay, hon? We'll help you." The previous one continues, just barely able to conceal the grimace on his face with a wobbly smile.
Trusting demons while she's vulnerable is the last thing she should be doing in this situation, but a small part of her tells her to listen, to comply. So she does.
Kanae looks into his eyes, a pretty shade of pink with a hint of yellow, and seeing no trace of animosity or malice swirling in them, she still couldn't muster up the strength to let her shoulders loosen up. Her eyelids droop, and overcome with fatigue, she lets her head tip forward, her gaze landing on the pristine floor now sullied in her blood. The demon pauses as soon as she breaks eye contact.
"How can I—trust you demons?" Her vocal cords were screaming in agony, and she was barely able to hear the words herself.
"Seeing the condition you're in, you don't really have a choice in that matter." The black-haired demon states, and in a split second he's right in front of her. Kanae doesn't even have a moment to comprehend what was unfolding before her sword is snatched from her with such ease it makes her breath hitch in apprehension.
"Since you're already aware of us being demons, I think we both know if we were to kill you, we would've already done so." His words sound muffled and distant but don't lack their sharpness. Her eyes flutter, lashes brushing against her cheek as she glances to the side. Her legs have gone numb, but Kanae's ready to make a run for it.
If she's to die in the hands of a demon, it'll be while trying to escape.
"No, you're not going anywhere." His words were final; a resolute hand rests on her unharmed shoulder with shocking gentleness his voice lacked, but they were firm, and she couldn't rip herself from his hold. Kanae lifts her head up and looks right into his black eyes that glisten with the same red painting her, ready to argue while she can. The words freeze on the tip of her tongue when she suddenly feels a palpable shift in the air.
Her head snaps towards the orange-haired demon, the one who has yet to say anything, who's been quietly staring at her; only now that gaze wasn't blank, it carried something different. Something intense. Kanae's been acquainted with that same expression more times than she could count, yet it still causes her spine to straighten.
Hunger.
Raw, insatiable, inexorable hunger.
"Beel... How about we go and grab something to eat?" The champagne-pink-haired demon says, attention now solely on the taller demon. The blonde one also draws in, faint traces of consternation stitched on his face. "I'm sure Lord Diavolo won't mind if we excuse ourselves for a while."
"Of course not," Diavolo, presumably, announces. It sounds like they're all talking in secret codes Kanae can't decipher. "Get going while we sort everything out."
"Come on, let's go." He tugs on the orange-haired demon's arm, but he doesn't move. Doesn't even blink as his stomach erupts like an untamed beast, loud and savage. Daring enough to make Kanae wrap her bloodied hand around the wrist resting on her shoulder without a thought.
She had half a mind to realize she's trembling.
Beel doesn't listen; he keeps staring and staring, amethyst irises thinning as his pupils dilate, breathing heavily y as his muscles tense up. Kanae was sure he was thrumming on the spot with the merciless urge to pounce, like every demon ever did. His fingers folded into tight, trembling fists before he relaxed them again, his throat bobbing with an audible gulp.
The next moment, he transforms. Maybe some kind of Blood Demon Art that causes physical alterations. His outfit changes, horns stick out and curl up from his skull, wings manifest and buzz wildly behind him, and several black markings appear on his neck. The look in his eyes grows even more desperate, if that were possible.
"I'm hungry..." His voice was tame compared to the look in his eyes, like he saw first-grade food served on a silver platter for the first time. Kanae knows he was just short of salivating and reaches out for her sword, but he was fast. Faster than she could predict.
"Beel—No!—" The blond demon moves, arm reached out to stop him, to hold him, perhaps, but Kanae was fated to never find out because he disappears from the champagne-haired demon's grasp and bridges the gap between them so quickly that their noses brush against each other.
He bared his teeth like a starved animal, fangs peeking from under his lips as a clawed hand reached for her. It's intercepted by the gloved hand that was gripping her shoulder. The black-haired demon also changes as Kanae stumbles back from the loss of support; great, black wings flutter in her vision as the other two also join in keeping the taller one physically restrained.
The air's charged with something different now. Powerful, intense, almost tangible enough for her to feel it in her bones. She tries to keep herself upright, but the next moment was like a light bulb flickering. Her mind goes blank, muscles loosen up as every bit of exhausting tension leaves her body, eyes roll back, and legs give out beneath her. Her fall is cushioned by a pair of arms catching her before she slams her head on the floor, and she's lifted up.
"Barbatos!!"
The last thing Kanae remembers before blacking out is that a sixth demon might've appeared.
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