A Dangerous Shortcut
On the way home, a group of five girls walked together, laughing and talking as they moved down the street.
Suddenly, one of them stopped.
"Ah—I completely forgot! I still have some work to finish today."
To avoid being late, she decided to take a shortcut.
She looked to the left—a dark, narrow alley that would lead her home faster.
"Okay, I'll go from here. Bye!" she said.
Her friends waved as she turned and entered the alley alone.
The moment she stepped inside, the atmosphere changed.
The path grew tighter.
The noise of the street disappeared.
No people.
No footsteps.
Only silence.
After taking steps few moments passed —
But suddenly.
Her instincts screamed.
Someone was behind her.
Her eyes widened.
Her breath caught in her throat.
She turned, ready to run—
And the scene cut.
Saino's Route Home
After parting ways with Yagami and Rue, Saino walked home alone.
Halfway there, he stopped.
"…I think I didn't have groceries for today's meal. I should go to market first ."
He thought.
" If he returned home without them, he wouldn't eat tonight."
With a quiet sigh, he changed direction and headed toward the market.
To save time, he chose a shortcut.
A narrow, silent alley.
The same one the girl had entered earlier but from different direction.
As he stepped inside the alley, the air felt unnaturally still.
Then—
A sound.
Muffled.
Like someone trying to scream while their mouth was being covered.
Saino stopped.
Without hesitation, he followed the noise, moving quietly through the alley.
When he peeked around a corner, he saw everything.
Three loafers.
One of them had his hand tightly clamped over a girl's mouth.
Her eyes were wide with terror, tears forming as she struggled.
The men were smiling.
Disgusting, twisted smiles.
They were clearly planning something horrible.
Saino stayed hidden for a moment, observing calmly.
His thoughts were cold.
Looks like.
Another group of dogs had grown tails… thinking they can do anything.
Should I save her…?
But by seeing
the situation becoming worsened, he stepped out.
Saino's Warning
"Hey," Saino said calmly.
The men turned.
"I took a photo of all of you."
They froze.
"If you let the girl go now, I'll delete it.
If not, I'll show it to the police.
Should I call them right now?"
Panic spread across their faces.
One of them whispered to the leader,
"Hey… he's just a small boy. Kill him. This place is less known by peoples —no one will know."
Another grinned cruelly.
"Sorry, kid. Looks like I have to finsh you.
But before that, let me teach you a lesson.
You should not vo ne in others matter.
He stepped forward and threw a punch.
Saino blocked it easily with his one hand.
While blocking, Saino thought calmly:
I hoped to settle this with the police…
but it seems that won't happen.
Suddenly.
His eyes changed.
Like a predator is meeting with his prey.
The man stepped back instinctively.
These eyes… what is he?
Few.
Moments later—
All three loafers lay on the ground.
Bones broken.
Bodies twisted.
Unconscious.
Thrown aside like trash.
Saino stood among them, blood dripping from his hand.
His face was completely emotionless as he looked up at the sky.
So… it all ends here.
A silent, deadly calm surrounded him.
The girl stared at him—
And trembled even more.she was standing by keeping her both hands on her mouth with fearfully eyes. She was thinking how can someone be like this " he is too brutal '. "Is he is that yamahasi whom we all know as a calm and peace full guy ?
Saino looked at her.
For a brief moment, something crossed his mind.
Is she my one of classmate?
A flicker of shock appeared on his face—but vanished instantly.
His expression darkened instead.
He stepped slightly closer and spoke in a cold, flat voice:
Hey
"If you tell anyone about what happened here today.....
I'll kill you."
Her breath stopped.
She turned and ran.
Running with fear.
With despair.
With shaking legs.
Away from the alley.
Away from Saino.
Aftermath
Later that night, Saino stood under the shower.
Water poured down, but his mind replayed the earlier events.
So she couldn't protect herself… just because she was a girl?
He exhaled slowly, irritation flashing in his eyes.
How boring.
Blood from his hands and face mixed with the water and disappeared down the drain.
The scene shifted.
Saino now stood in his kitchen, clean and changed into fresh clothes.
All traces of blood were gone.
Because of what happened, he hadn't gone to the grocery store.
So instead of cooking, he ordered food.
A few hours later, he ate quietly.
Then he opened his books.
And immediately stopped.
"I've already completed the entire syllabus more than five times…" he muttered.
"What should I do now?"
His gaze moved to the bookshelf.
Maybe something different.
He stood, walked over, and pulled out a book titled Human Civilization.
As he opened it—
The scene shifted.
Meanwhile — Rue's House
A grand mansion stood under the night sky.
Rue's home.
Inside his room, Rue sat comfortably, solving a complex math problem.
Within seconds, it was finished.
This wasn't ordinary intelligence—it was deep, sharp, overwhelming.
He closed the book and leaned back.
"Saino… you always come first," he whispered, adjusting his glasses.
"Not just in our class… but in the entire school."
A confident smile appeared.
"But this time, I'll defeat you."
After a pause, his smile softened slightly.
"No matter what… we'll still be friends."
Then his eyes sharpened again.
Defeating someone like you will be uncomfortable… irritating.
I'll defeat you at what you're best at.
I'll break you from the inside and see the emotions you always hide.
At that moment, a gentle knock echoed.
"Master Rue, may I come in?" a maid asked.
"Yes," Rue replied.
She entered and bowed.
"Sir, some guests have arrived to meet you."
Rue sighed.
"Again? Another business meeting?"
He stood up slowly, already bored.
"…This is going to be tiring."