Gojo lazily poked Subaru's cheek, sitting cross-legged with one elbow propped on his knee, chin resting in his palm. His fingers moved with the absentminded rhythm of someone desperately fighting off sleep.
The space around them was cloaked in darkness—timeless, still, and suffocating in its silence. He had no idea how long they'd been here.
All he knew was that he was incredibly bored.
And Subaru was still out cold.
With a sigh, Gojo retracted his hand and tilted his head, staring blankly at the boy's sleeping face.
If I had to guess… based on what that shopkeeper said, maybe Infinity screwed with that 'Sand Time' phenomenon. Warping space, distorting time... I mean, it did feel like the world snapped in half.
Or maybe that was just crazy old-man superstition.
"Subaruuu... get up..." he muttered flatly, dragging out the name in a deadpan whine.
Still no response.
Gojo raised his hand again, this time aiming slightly higher.
"Hey, wake up—wanna forehead flick?"
That did it, funnily enough.
Subaru jolted upright with a sharp, panicked gasp, eyes flying open as if waking from a nightmare still clawing at his mind. His breathing was ragged, chest heaving as he looked around wildly—until his gaze locked onto Gojo.
And froze.
Gojo blinked.
Subaru's hands clenched the ground like a lifeline, knuckles whitening, fingernails scraping against the dirt. There was fear in his eyes—raw, trembling, real—and it took him several seconds to stammer out a breath.
"I—I'm...?"
Gojo tilted his head further.
"You're awake. That's what."
"G-Gojo...? Y-You..."
Gojo opened his mouth to say something—something smug, probably—but stopped.
The look on Subaru's face confused him.
No. It unnerved him.
Subaru looked… terrified. Not startled. Not shaken. Terrified.
The boy shivered violently, trying to calm himself, but his body betrayed him. He gagged suddenly and cupped his hand over his mouth, suppressing the urge to vomit.
"Hey—hey, dude?" Gojo stood and moved toward him quickly, reaching out to steady him by the shoulder.
"DON'T—urk... touch me, right now!"
Subaru's voice cracked with desperation, his face buried toward the ground, one arm shielding his head like he expected a blow.
Gojo froze mid-step, hand still outstretched.
"…Right. Sure." He slowly retracted his hand and backed away, several steps, until he was standing still, watching in silence.
What the hell was that...?
Gojo's mind spun. He knew Subaru. Knew the guy didn't spook easily—not like this. Waking up disoriented didn't explain that. And with his Six Eyes, even suppressed behind the blindfold, he could see it all—the micro-tensions in Subaru's muscles, the shallow breaths, the way his entire posture screamed fear.
Gojo didn't need to be a mind reader.
He knew that look.
Subaru wasn't just scared.
Subaru was terrified of him.
Gojo let the silence stretch.
Then, with a breath, he moved—crouching beside Subaru and giving him a firm, steady pat on the back.
"…Sooo—"
"No—ugh, I'm… I'm fine…" Subaru cut him off, wiping his mouth with a shaky hand. His voice wavered, like he was forcing stability into his throat.
"Just a… a dream. It wasn't real…" he added, more to himself than anyone.
Gojo didn't respond right away, simply watching as Subaru slowly stood and exhaled.
"You sure?" he asked, stepping back just enough to give him space.
Subaru nodded, albeit too quickly.
"I'm a little confused how I got here—wherever here is—but I guess there've been weirder days.." Gojo muttered, placing his hands on his hips and turning his attention to the surroundings. "Still… this place has serious haunted-house energy."
He wanted to say more—wanted to press—but something about Subaru's posture stopped him.
Subaru didn't answer, instead walking forward without hesitation, as if drawn by instinct. Gojo blinked, then followed. The darkness thickened around them, oppressive and unnatural.
They walked in silence.
"Subaru…" Gojo started, keeping his tone gentle, "are you—?"
"I'm just a bit paranoid…" Subaru interrupted. "Can't really explain, though."
They stopped.
A fork in the path.
Gojo sniffed the air and made a face.
"Ugh… that's either a really bad barbecue on the left, or something's very dead. Straight ahead just smells like a crap-ton of the witch's miasma."
Subaru's breath caught for just a second. Even knowing Gojo would never truly harm him… the memory still twisted inside his chest.
"We'll go left." he muttered.
Gojo nodded, and they did.
"Soo Subaru…" he said, trying to lighten the mood, "You have any idea at all where we are? Because I for one actually don't have a clue."
"I don't have a definite answer." Subaru replied quietly. "But if I had to guess… probably the Watchtower? Or maybe just under the desert."
Gojo groaned, scratching the side of his head. "Of course it would be."
He tried teleporting again—no dice. Whatever this space was, it cut off his usual toolkit.
He sighed, his voice turning more serious.
"…Also, I'm pretty sure what I'm smelling isn't roast beef but burning flesh if that wasn't obvious, which is way more unpleasant! Be ready for anything."
He raised a hand, halting as they reached the end of the passage.
"It's especially gross this way. You smell it too, right?"
Subaru gave a short nod.
"Yeah."
They stepped into a vast, cave-like chamber glowing with blistering red light. The incline ahead was steep, but both slid down it with practiced ease.
When they landed—
Gojo immediately grimaced.
"Well, isn't this just appetizing…"
All around them were the scorched remains of beasts—charred, blackened carcasses strewn across the stone. Dozens. Maybe hundreds. Wisps of flame danced in the air like wandering souls.
Gojo's hand shot to Subaru's shoulder.
Even if unnecessary, he wasn't taking chances. With Infinity active, he could keep the heat at bay for both of them—but the longer they stayed, the worse it'd get.
Then the roar hit.
No—a screech, shrill and piercing, like steel screaming against steel. It echoed off the cavern walls, digging into their skulls.
Subaru's eyes went wide.
Even Gojo's narrowed in alert.
Then they saw it.
A towering monstrosity burst from the shadows—its lower half like a massive horse, while its upper body was humanoid… vaguely. No head. Just a neck ending in a jagged, singular horn. And where a chest should be, a wide, gaping maw lined with grotesque, razor-sharp teeth, twitching with unnatural hunger.
Gojo blinked, brows slanted in disgust.
"…What the hell is that?"
"A monster…" Subaru said under his breath.
Gojo raised a hand. "Mmm… Nickname? Let's call it a Centaur!"
Subaru's expression didn't shift. He simply stepped back, even with Infinity protecting him thanks to Gojo's hold on his shoulder.
"Gojo…" he said quietly, "Can you… let me fight this one?"
Gojo's lips pressed into a thin line. He glanced at Subaru, then at the beast. His Six Eyes flickered beneath the blindfold.
"…Fine." he said at last. "But if you're about to die, I'm jumping in."
Subaru nodded, already stepping forward.
—————————————————————————
Subaru POV
Gojo retreated, leaping back up the incline to gain elevation. Subaru clenched his fists tight, breathing deep.
I'm not here to be protected. I'm here to prove I'm more than just baggage!
The cursed energy flowed through him like a stream, and while his reinforcement could only last a minute in this heat, he could sustain it. Over and over.
He had a nearly infinite well to draw from. That was his blessing—and his burden.
He stepped forward.
It doesn't have eyes… so maybe it's like a mole?
Sound, then. It had to rely on sound.
He crouched, grabbed one of the charred limbs scattered around, and hurled it toward the far wall with all the strength he could muster.
The dismembered limb struck with a heavy thud.
The Centaur shrieked, its entire form twisting violently as it galloped straight toward the sound. It slammed into the wall like a cannon, sand erupting in every direction. Then it thrashed, screeching, smashing the broken limb again and again.
Flames erupted from its body, incinerating the remains in seconds.
It didn't stop until the limb was nothing but bubbling, blackened paste.
Then, satisfied, it turned away.
Subaru didn't move. He just watched.
One breath. Two. Then three.
Okay, I have its attention span figured out.
Now I just need to figure out how to kill it.
He repeated the process—another scorched limb hurled toward the wall. The thud echoed, the Centaur twisted, shrieked, and pounced like before, flattening the distraction into cinders.
But this time—Subaru moved.
He launched forward, body tearing through the heat-warped air, fist cocked beside his head. In an instant—
CRACK!
His blow connected, slamming into the beast's ashen ribcage. The impact was brutal—bone buckled and caved with an audible crunch.
Subaru landed in a hard slide, grit kicking up beneath his feet. His cursed energy reinforcement flared wildly around his body, seconds from flickering out from the oppressive heat before enveloping his body once again. The Centaur wheeled around, its screech deafening, homing in on the thud of Subaru's landing.
Without hesitation, it reached into its flaming mane and tore out a seething chunk of fire—hurling it forward like a meteor.
The air screamed with heat.
Subaru's instincts roared louder. He bent his knees, threw his weight sideways, and skidded across the ground just as the fireball exploded behind him, molten air licking at his heels.
He glanced up—eyes narrowing.
"…Regeneration?!"
The cratered dent he'd just made was already smoothing over, tendons snapping into place, bone reknitting. Faster than Gojo's—unnaturally fast.
Another fireball blazed toward him—bigger, hotter.
Subaru leapt skyward, the blast grazing beneath his feet as he twisted midair, raising his hand high.
"No time to hold back then…"
Black energy flooded through his veins like acid and lightning. His entire arm turned pitch black, muscles writhing with cursed power. In his grip, a spear of pure, concentrated darkness formed—
With a sharp breath, he hurled it down with everything he had.
The Centaur reached up again, preparing another fireball—
—but the spear punched through the gaping maw in its chest before it could react. Its jagged teeth clamped down too late, snapping over the shaft with a crack and swallowing it.
Subaru suddenly clenched his raised fist.
"Now, BURST!"
The spear detonated inside the beast.
Black spikes exploded outward from within, impaling the Centaur's entire torso—ripping through its sides, limbs, and spine. Shadow burst from its back and ribs like an eruption of thorns.
The monster wailed in agony, swiping at itself in blind panic—clawing at the spears that tore through its body.
Then, like a candle relit—it healed.
Everything.
Gone in a flash.
Subaru clicked his tongue.
"Tsck-!"
The beast turned. It heard that.
It reared up with a roar, then swept its hand once more into its blazing mane. But this time, the fire condensed into a spear—longer than the last. Blazing. Deadlier.
Subaru was already sprinting in.
Low stance. Controlled breathing. Feet gliding across the floor. The Centaur thrust its fiery weapon toward him—again, and again—each strike like a comet's tail ripping through the cavern.
Subaru weaved around the attacks, slipping between arcs of flame with narrow, reckless precision. He ducked low, stone and ash scraping against his skin, then slid beneath the Centaur's entire bulk, sliding toward its flank.
Almost there—!
WHAM-!
The Centaur's hind legs lashed out as he emerged from beneath it, faster than he'd ever expected.
They crashed into Subaru's side like twin hammers, launching him backward like a ragdoll. He hit the ground hard—bounced once, twice, three times—before flipping mid-roll and slamming down in a crouch, breathing ragged.
Pain exploded through his ribs. Something was cracked, maybe broken.
But he didn't stop.
More like he couldn't.
The Centaur hurled the fiery spear like a javelin. Subaru twisted, the heat grazing his ribs as the spear slammed into the wall behind him with a thunderous boom, molten rock spraying out from the impact.
Subaru gritted his teeth.
In a battle of attrition—even with near-limitless cursed energy—he'd lose. The Centaur's regeneration was monstrous. Unless there was a limit to it, which… didn't seem likely.
Then I have to break it faster than it can fix itself.
He charged.
Cursed energy surged through his arm as he formed an ebony longsword, darkness writhing across the blade like smoke under pressure.
The Centaur responded. Fire gathered in its hand, swelling outward before shaping itself into a colossal great axe, then brought it crashing down as Subaru approached—
BOOOOOOM-!
The cave shook violently. Rock shattered from the ceiling. Dust filled the air.
But the beast recoiled in pain—deep gashes suddenly carved into its arm that gripped the great axe.
Subaru had already moved, slipping past the weapon in a flicker and dragging his blade across the Centaur's flesh. Fire exploded in retaliation, a living detonation radiating out from its body.
Subaru stomped down—twisting.
A wall of pure shadow burst up around him, absorbing the wave of flame in a spiraling torrent.
But it came at a cost.
"Urgh…!!"
Blood spewed from his mouth, crimson streaking down his chin. His Authority was strained—but he wasn't done. Not yet.
He roared and charged again.
Cursed Energy burned through his limbs as he gripped the longsword in both hands and met the Centaur's axe in a monumental clash.
CRACK—!!
The ground split beneath him—craters spider-webbing out in every direction.
For a second, their strengths were equal.
Then came the Authority of Pride.
A new surge flooded Subaru's body—his blade erupted with visible arcs of darkness, spiraling upward and branching like veins through the air. With a savage yell, he brought the sword across—splitting the axe in half, along with part of the beast's massive arm.
The Centaur shrieked and recoiled, but wasted no time. In its hand, fire condensed once more—forming into a massive blazing sword longer than its own body.
But Subaru was already moving—slipping past the vertical swing that crashed into the stone floor like a meteor—and drove his black blade into the beast's throat.
He twisted his grip on the hilt.
Then yanked downward.
The sword tore through the Centaur's neck, cleaving downward until it lodged in the toothed mouth embedded in its chest.
The teeth snapped at his weapon, but—
"HYAAAAGH—!!"
Subaru roared with all of his might, before suddenly, a massive black spike exploded up from the earth—impaling the Centaur from below. It roared in agony, lifted multiple meters off the ground, legs flailing, voice a high-pitched, piercing screech that echoed across the walls.
Subaru brought his hands together.
Darkness burst forth a heartbeat later—thousands of spikes lancing through every inch of the monster's body, turning it into a grotesque pincushion.
Subaru staggered, legs quivering beneath him like scaffolding in a heavy storm.
Then, with the last of his strength drained, he dropped to one knee and violently vomited blood onto the stone floor, the sound wet and raw, echoing off the smoldering cavern walls.
Every muscle in his body screamed in protest, nerves flaring with relentless pain—an all-consuming throb that seared through his skull like hot needles burrowing deeper and deeper.
His vision flickered.
But still—he forced himself to keep his eyes open, to lift his head.
He needed to see it.
He needed to know that the fight hadn't been for nothing.
That the monster was dead.
That it was over.
But just as the smoke cleared and the final remnants of shadow peeled back into the void, his heart dropped.
Because standing in the haze, still very much alive—
Was the Centaur.
Whole. Roaring. Unbroken.
Its body pulsed with fire, grotesquely perfect, as if the thousands of attacks it had sustained were nothing more than illusions. Flame surged along its limbs, flesh knitting together in an instant, and with a renewed scream of fury, it raised its massive, burning sword high above its head for a final, killing blow.
Subaru tried to move, to lift his arm, to crawl—anything. But his limbs wouldn't answer. His strength had left him completely, his body a hollow vessel, heavy with pain and ash and defeat.
And yet... he didn't need to move.
Because the blade never landed.
A hand—familiar in its calm strength, steady in a way that felt like gravity itself had returned—clasped his shoulder with a grounding grip.
Gojo.
"You did good, Subaru!" Gojo said lightly, his voice calm but tinged with pride as his gaze shifted toward the blazing behemoth, "Just had a bit of an annoying opponent this time around. Even I can admit that."
He stepped forward, posture loose, confident as ever, lips drawn into a tight line, his arm rising in a gesture that should have soon meant obliteration for the creature.
But then he stopped mid-motion.
His brows drew together. His head turned sharply, as though responding to a frequency only he could hear—eyes narrowing beneath the white bandages concealing them.
And in the next moment—
A blinding white light tore through the cavern like a sword from the gods, splitting the Centaur clean in half from its waist in a single instant. Its screech of pain came immediately, visceral and enraged, as its body desperately began to reform, limbs and muscle reconnecting with unnatural speed—
But the onslaught had only just begun.
BOOM—! BOOM—! BOOM—!
Each explosion of light that followed struck with terrifying precision and rhythm, lances of radiant destruction raining down from all angles like divine artillery. They came faster than the eye could follow, faster than the creature could regenerate, and with each successive blast, more of it was ripped away.
An arm—gone.
A leg—obliterated.
Its chest—eviscerated, again and again.
It tried to retaliate—screaming, convulsing, hurling bursts of incandescent fire in every direction in one final act of rage.
But the light was simply faster. Far faster.
Every flare of fire was erased the moment it was born—swallowed by piercing beams of annihilation that cut through heat and stone and sound alike.
Again.
And again. And again. And again. And again.
So many beams that time itself seemed to tremble with each impact.
The cavern became an infernal storm of flickering flame and blinding radiance, of fire met with light, of chaos devoured by overwhelming force—
Until finally.
It ended.
The beams stopped falling. The echoes faded.
There was nothing left of the monster.
Not even a wisp of ash.
Not even a shadow where it had stood.
The Centaur—just moments before had been an unstoppable, regenerating nightmare—had been utterly erased from existence, not a single particle remaining in its place, merely a crater.
"...H-huh… urghk…"
Subaru staggered. Blood spilled from his lips again as he fought to stay conscious.
Then he saw her.
From the edge of his vision, through the clearing smoke and dancing light, a figure emerged.
A woman.
Tight black short-shorts barely concealed anything, and an orange-and-black cloak fluttered dramatically behind her. Her brown hair was tied in a high ponytail, swaying with each step.
Her smile was wide. Too wide.
She walked forward, boots crunching over scorched stone.
"I found you."
Subaru blinked, struggling to focus.
Then, he collapsed.
—————————————————————————
Somewhere? Anywhere? Nowhere?
Soon enough, consciousness returned.
But not in any form Subaru had ever known—at least, not in a way that should have felt real.
There was no pain. No sensation. No heartbeat. No breath.
Only an endless black void.
He floated—if floating could even describe it—in a void that seemed to stretch forever in all directions. Not a room. Not a dream. Not even a space. Just absence. Emptiness so complete that it pressed in from all sides like water in the deepest trench, devoid of sound, color, or reason.
And yet...
The darkness wasn't whole.
All across the infinite plane were fractures—cracks in the void itself, like spiderweb fissures running through glass. Thin veins of silvery-white light split the skyless realm in a thousand directions, glowing faintly, humming like distant stars trying to push their way into a world they were never meant to see.
Subaru couldn't feel his body.
No arms. No legs. No breath. No heartbeat.
Just thought.
Awareness without presence.
He tried to move. To speak. To blink.
Nothing.
It was disorienting. It was wrong.
But worst of all—was the feeling.
He couldn't describe it properly, but it surged through every non-existent fiber of his being—an overwhelming sensation that crawled over his skinless self like silk... thick, gentle, horrifyingly intimate. It was LOVE.
Or... at least something like it. A deep, cloying love that felt undeserved, alien—and all-consuming.
Then came the voice.
"Ahhhhhh~! Welcome, welcome, welcome! The one of dissonance finally arrives in his very own scape-of-the-mind! Though clearly not in high... SPIRITS, wouldn't you say?!"
It came from everywhere and nowhere. From behind him. Above him. Inside him.
Betelgeuse Romanée-Conti.
Subaru would have shivered—had he a body to do so.
That voice. That slurred, theatrical cadence. That mixture of devotion and madness.
He could never forget it.
Rem. The villagers. The pain. The terror.
Why was he here?
He should be dead. He should be GONE.
"Nrrhhhh... such questions~ how diligent, truly—" Betelgeuse cooed again, the word unraveling across the infinite space with no end. "Yes—yes! Of course that is diligence! For what else would it be but that, my dear, my BLESSED boy...?!"
But then the voice changed. Shifted—subtly. Quieter. Anxious.
"Yet... it seems that he is not here... slothful... yes, yes, most slothful... He gave us a regimen—a holy pattern to follow which involved eternal torment! And yet... he does not appear... this hasn't happened before, he has been gone for... many days... many days perhaps?"
Subaru felt the pull of something—a compulsion without command.
And so, without moving, his perspective tilted upward toward the sky above.
The blackness cracked open wider.
More fractures appeared across the void—like something above was pressing in from another side, trying to break through. Whatever held this place together was failing. The seams of reality were tearing apart.
"Now I understand~ But of course. YES. YES–YES–YES!!"
The voice rose to a fever pitch, bouncing and echoing like it was thrilled to come apart.
"You... you, Natsuki Subaru..."
Betelgeuse's tone dropped, slow and deliberate now—softer, almost reverent.
"You are not whole, are you...?"
It wasn't a question. It was an answer.
And Subaru felt it—like a dagger of truth buried in the space where his chest should have been. He wasn't whole. Something fundamental was missing, broken—torn free from the inside out.
Rage surged in him then, irrational and blazing.
He couldn't see Betelgeuse's face, couldn't touch him, couldn't strangle the grotesque Archbishop for what he'd done—but the sound of that voice alone made his formless mind itch, as if it were being scratched raw with a fork dragged across chalkboard.
Was he talking about Pride? About the version of himself that had vanished?
Was he mocking him?
Subaru tried to speak. Tried to scream.
Nothing.
No voice. No lungs. No body.
Just silence.
Until something changed.
The air didn't thicken—but it did grow heavier. Not like danger, but like pressure.
Like a presence had entered this place that was meant to be empty.
She appeared.
A silhouette. A shadow darker than the void itself—impossibly black. Walking where there was no ground. Moving through a space that had no dimensions. Cloaked in an absence so profound it blotted out even the light from the cracks above.
He knew that form.
He knew those steps.
He knew her.
The Witch.
Sometimes she had killed him.
Sometimes she had killed the people he loved.
Sometimes she had done both.
But why—why couldn't he bring himself to hate her, or even just loathe her?
Why, even now, with every reason in the world to fear her, did his chest fill with that familiar, terrible, beautiful warmth?
Her presence wasn't just oppressive—it was close. Closer than it had ever been.
She stepped forward, arms slowly rising from beneath the folds of her cloak.
In one hand, she held a sphere—a softly pulsing orb of violet light, dim and warm, like a heartbeat pressed into crystal.
She said nothing.
Simply approached.
And pressed her palm—still holding the orb—gently against where his chest would have been.
The moment it touched, the light melted into him, disappearing beneath the skin he didn't have.
He felt it lodge deep inside him—a strange sensation.
Then, at last, she spoke.
Softly.
Quietly.
Tender.
"You may... tell him... if you.. wish.."
Subaru's nonexistent eyes widened.
Her hands rose again—cupping his face.
Even here, where he was no more than spirit, he felt the pressure of her touch. Real. Warm.
"I love you." she whispered.
Thus, Subaru made a vow. Why? He didn't know, it simply felt right.
I will save you...
Darkness engulfed his vision.
—————————————————————————
Once more, consciousness returned—rushing in like a tidal wave, as though Subaru had been pulled violently from the crushing depths of the ocean, only to breach the surface gasping for air. But this time, it felt... familiar. Human. His own.
"You're finally awake, eh?"
A voice—sharp, casual, unmistakable.
Gojo.
"Ugh... where am I...?"
Subaru's voice rasped out, his throat dry and every syllable heavier than it should've been. He forced the words through clenched teeth, mostly because the moment his senses settled, he realized something strange—everything around him had changed.
The darkness from before? Gone.
Instead, there was light. Warm, soft, steady. Sunlight streamed through a tall window, casting slow, golden rays across stone walls. The chill of sand beneath his body? Also gone—replaced by the unfamiliar, blessed softness of something he hadn't felt in what felt like an eternity.
A pillow.
"Ahh... you are—"
"—In a bed..." Subaru muttered, finishing the sentence himself.
Gojo grinned, clearly pleased at the assist.
"Bingo. Not bad, considering how close you were to being dead."
Subaru blinked blearily, trying to sit up.
"How long was I out?"
"Two days," Gojo said casually, leaning back into the wooden chair he'd clearly been planted in for a while. "Two very, very boring days, I might add. You're not exactly good company when you're unconscious."
"Two days?!"
Subaru jerked upright, instinctively bolting into a seated position as the thin blanket draped over him slid to his waist. Despite the motion, he found the bed... weirdly comfortable. Like, obnoxiously so.
"Yup. You've got some serious explaining to do, by the way." Gojo's voice turned vaguely amused, like he was half-joking but still expecting something good. "What the hell was that black stuff back there? Because I know for a fact I didn't teach you that. You sell your soul to a demon or something?"
Subaru sighed, dragging a hand across his face.
"Obviously not... It's just a power I figured out I had a... few weeks ago, that should be right..."
Gojo raised a brow.
"You don't really sound sure about that."
"Because I'm not..." Subaru replied flatly. "Time's been... weird lately. Honestly, I don't even know how long I've been doing this anymore."
Gojo simply shrugged, as if to say 'fair enough,' before stretching his arms lazily behind his head.
"Well, whatever. I was just about to leave you to your beauty sleep, but hey—the timing worked out!"
Subaru tilted his head slightly.
"I'm not even gonna ask what you mean by that. But... more seriously—where actually are we?"
That familiar, cocky smirk tugged at Gojo's lips again as he stood, stretching with all the dramatic flair of someone who hadn't spent the last two days babysitting a dying man. He looked down at Subaru, the cloth bandages covering his eyes catching the light.
"—The Pleiades Watchtower!" he said simply.
Subaru froze.
His breath hitched.
The name rang through his mind like a bell tolling over a battlefield.
He'd made it.
After everything—the deaths, the resets, the failures, the running—he'd finally reached the Watchtower. The place he'd been clawing toward for so long. The path that had always seemed just barely out of reach was now under his feet.
But despite that, he didn't feel victorious.
Because the truth was... he hadn't made it here alone.
He failed.
He lost.
And he would've died again if Gojo hadn't stepped in when he did.
And that light, it was familiar to say the least.
Subaru's eyes narrowed slightly.
"...That reminds me.." he said slowly, voice edged with curiosity—and shame. "That light. All that... insane light. I swear I saw someone—just before I blacked out. A person."
He clenched his fists beneath the covers.
Gojo nodded, the grin fading slightly as his tone grew more thoughtful.
"Yeah. That's what I meant earlier—by 'great timing.' She showed up right when things were turning real nasty, for you at least."
"She?" Subaru echoed.
Gojo's hand rested on the doorknob, but he paused before opening it, tilting his head slightly over his shoulder.
"Yeah. But anyway, it's a weird place, this tower. We're stuck here, for now. Even I can't leave. But she's... something else. And for whatever reason..." He pulled the door open with a lazy motion, then stepped halfway out.
"That weird person reaaaaally wants to meet you..."
He turned, giving Subaru a wink that was somehow visible even behind the bandages.
"Get changed and come out whenever. Don't keep her waiting too long, yeah?"
And with that, Gojo slipped through the doorway, letting it close softly behind him—leaving Subaru alone in the quiet, warm light of the room.
Alone... but awake.
Alive.
—————————————————————————
Subaru approached the long stone stairs of the tower, each step echoing into silence. His guard was up—Gojo was somewhere ahead, probably lounging or waiting with that usual smug confidence. But Subaru felt it in his gut.
Something was coming.
"—Um?!"
His instincts flared.
A suffocating pressure slammed down from above, sudden and crushing—so immense he couldn't tell if it was spiritual, magical, or sheer physical force. A moment later, a violent shockwave ripped down the corridor like a bomb detonating. Dust, sand, and air exploded backward, forcing Subaru into a wide slide as he gritted his teeth and anchored himself to the ground.
From within the swirling cloud of smoke and shattered stone, a figure burst backward—Gojo, landing in a crouch beside him.
Subaru blinked. Gojo was… serious.
That was never a good sign.
"Gojo—!?" he shouted, instantly dropping into a combat stance. His fists were raised, breath tight in his lungs.
But Gojo didn't answer immediately. His usual smirk was gone. In its place was a grimace… no, something close to revulsion.
Before Subaru could ask again, the smoke shifted. A silhouette emerged, walking slowly into view.
A woman.
Tall. Graceful. Unnervingly calm.
She stepped through the haze like it parted for her—long brown hair trailing behind her, eyes locked onto Subaru like he was prey and salvation both. Her gaze crawled over his entire body, scanning him top to bottom. Again. And again.
She didn't speak.
Not until she bent her knees slightly, soles of her feet applying greater pressure against the ground.
Subaru's heart jumped. His body tensed instinctively.
"W-Wait, hold on—!"
Then she moved.
A blur.
Subaru braced for impact—but Gojo, of all people, stepped back in retreat, giving Subaru a helpless shove forward as if offering him up to fate.
She didn't strike.
Instead—
"Maaaasteeeer~!"
She tackled Subaru, throwing her entire weight into him like a human missile. He hit the ground with a solid whump, the breath knocked from his lungs. She landed atop him, arms wrapped around his torso like chains.
"Y-You—?! What—?!" Subaru choked, trying to squirm free.
"I waited sooo~ long! You said you'd come back! And then you didn't! So I had to keep shoooooting people forever and ever and—mmmn, you smell like burning again, master~"
She nuzzled into his chest shamelessly.
Subaru's face turned beet red. He froze, flustered, confused—and borderline panicked.
"'M-Master'?! Wha—Huh?!"
She pulled back just enough to beam down at him, still straddling his chest. "Yep yep~! Your cute apprentice Shaaaula~! You told me to guard the Watchtower! That means you're my adorable, strong, mysteriously sexy master~!"
Subaru twitched. "Mysteriously sexy what—?! No, wait, that's not the point!"
He shoved at her shoulders—nothing. She didn't budge an inch. It was like pushing against reinforced steel. She just clung tighter.
"Huuuh~? Are you trying to escape from me~? What a naughty master… after all this time~!" Her voice dripped with teasing affection.
"I waited forever. For you. Even kept count! Nine hundred... thirty-seven people I had to vaporize. Pew-pew~!"
Subaru gaped. "Y-You what—?!"
She tilted her head innocently. "You told me to keep people away, remember~? So I did! Good apprentice, riiight~?"
"THAT'S NOT WHAT I—!"
From several meters back, Gojo cleared his throat. Subaru's head snapped toward him with desperate eyes.
"Gojoooo!! Help me out here, man! I'm being attacked!"
Gojo just raised both hands and backed up further. His expression was unreadable—but his eye twitched once beneath the blindfold.
"Yeah… no. That woman is weird. You're on your own…"