"You are asking the wrong guy. I don't do that kind of stuff, like, at all. Go scram!"

  The Seventh Judge walks past the girl casually, but the girl suddenly jumps onto his back.

  "I BEG YOU! NO ONE PAYS ATTENTION TO ME, LET ALONE MY REQUEST! YOU'RE THE LAST HOPE I'VE GOT!"

  The girl wraps her hands around the Seventh Judge's neck forcefully as she's dangling around in the air, choking him in the process.

  "L-let go. . .! Let go!!" said the Seventh Judge as he's almost out of breath.

  The girl lets go of her hold and lands on the ground.

  *pant pant*

  "You brat! *pant pant*"

  "First of all, my name is not brat! I am Luna Eriniva. Nice to meet you! What's your name?"

  The girl introduces herself as she leans her head towards him, trying to act cute.

  "Tsk! Quroe, with Q. Sedahashi Quroe."

  "Woah, you're Japanese?"

  "Half. Now, speak! Give me the details!"

  "EH? DOES THIS MEAN YOU ACCEPT MY PROPOSAL?!"

  "Just give me the damn details or I'm leaving!"

  "WAIT WAIT! I'll tell you!"

  Luna takes a deep breath. After a long exhale, she starts.

  "I am being chased by an organization that runs in the underworld."

  "Underworld? A kid like you knows about the underworld? Who are you really?"

  "Uuh, I'm just some unfortunate girl who got washed up here and there, and this is where I ended up. Heheh!"

  "Why did you choose me specifically? Do you know who I am?"

  "I kinda know. You're a Judge, right?"

  "Hooo, you know that term? You know what we're doing?"

  "Uuh, no. I heard that term from your mouth, actually. I've been following you for quite some time."

  "*sigh* So I’ve noticed."

  "I’ve noticed how strong you are. I've been observing your Faith power, but I still have no idea exactly what it is."

  "You're saying the one who chases you is strong as well? You know their Faith power? How many are there?"

  "The organization only sent one chaser at a time, but I've managed to always slip by using my Faith power."

  "You're a Believer yourself? Surprising. Why don't you fight them yourself?"

  "Well, my Faith power isn't exactly suited for combat. . ." said Luna as she twiddles her fingers.

  "I'll give you props for escaping every time until today. What's your Faith power?"

  "Rather than explaining it, can I just show you?"

  "Sure."

  "Okay, but please forgive me in advance if you experience something so horrible that you never ever want to go through it ever again."

  The girl closes her eyes.

  "Please look at my eyes!"

  Quroe focuses his sight on her eyes. The girl opens her eyes, and they have changed. The inner of her iris has a blue ring in it, her sclera turns green on the top and the bottom part, and yellow color in between the green parts with a big red ring circling the iris on the sclera as well. The skin around her eyes also turns pitch black. The appearance in her eyes came straight out of nightmares.

  ". . . . ."

  They look at each other for a few seconds.

  "Something is supposed to happen when your eyes change?"

  "Uuuuurrgghh. . . GWAAAAH!!"

  Luna got tired of staring too hard.

  "Why didn't it work? It worked on pretty much everyone else. . ."

  Luna's eyes returned to normal.

  "What was supposed to happen?"

  "My Faith power is called Fear Gazes. It induces an illusion in someone who is looking directly at my transformed eyes. The illusions differ from person to person, as they will reflect the person's biggest fear inside their head, hence the name. Anyone who got caught in the illusion cannot move their body in real-time until either they get over their own fear or five entire minutes have passed. It is a Special type Faith power."

  "I see. Based on how to utilize it, it can be a great supporting Faith power. And I already have the best possible idea to utilize your Faith power to synergize with mine. I'm intrigued. Tell me the Faith power of your chaser."

  "You know about the app, right? Brawliever?"

  "Yeah, so you're saying a high-ranking Believer is after you?"

  "Apparently, this guy is ranked 13th in the ranking. He's a Fire elemental type Believer. I personally haven't met this guy either, but an elemental type is not an easy target for my Faith power; moreover, someone that ranks that high."

  "Correct. You'll be dead the moment you meet him."

  "Wha-? Don't just say that I'm dying so casually!!!"

  "So, is he chasing you now?"

  "Ugh, I would appreciate it if you respond to my reactions a lot more."

  "Just answer the damn question!"

  "No, he isn't. In fact, he hasn't chased me for a whole week. The organization hasn't even sent anyone to me. That's why I even had the luxury to follow you for a while."

  "Now hold on, you never met this guy, but he's been chasing you for a while? Your story contradicts itself. Tell me the truth!!"

  "Ah, sorry, I forgot to tell you about how I escaped from the previous chaser, and he told me that the 13th Strongest Believer will come after me next. I was just so paranoid I messed up the story. I apologize!"

  "I see. By the way, what's in it for me?"

  "Huh? You mean the payment?"

  "I don't do this stuff for free. In fact, I don't do this stuff, like, at all. I want compensation."

  "Uuuhhhhh. . . I don't have anything. I don't own anything to offer you. So. . . How about a kiss on the cheek?" Luna offers with an innocent smile.

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  "I'm leaving."

  Quroe was already walking away the moment Luna blurted out her silly joke.

  "W-WAIT WAIT!! I'M JOKING! IT WAS A JOKE! IT WAS A JOKE!" said Luna as she pulled Quroe's shirt.

  "*Sigh* Whatever, I'll think of one. You'll have to do whatever I ask you afterward."

  "Uuum, just so you know, I'm fine with anything. My life depends on this deal anyway."

  "Tsk! I have to go! Stick with me!"

  Luna was so surprised. She has been alone for most of her life. Having someone to count on is something she's been longing for a long time.

  "Yes, sir!" Luna answers happily.

  Quroe and Luna start walking away to exit the alleyway as a pact of relationship between them has been forged.

  "Please wait a moment!"

  But before they even left, suddenly they heard a woman's voice in the alleyway. The voice sounds more refined and mature than that of Luna.

  "Hm?" Quroe turns around to see the person behind the voice.

  "You're the one!"

  A woman in her 20s appeared before them. The woman is 170cm tall and weighs around 74kg. She has long, dark blue hair tied up into a ponytail with a pair of dark blue eyes. The woman is wearing a butler's outfit strangely. Her bust size is D-cup.

  "Who is this clown?" said Quroe.

  "Sedahashi-san, are you a womanizer who throws away women who bore you after you toyed with them after a while?"

  Quroe looks at Luna with a terrifying, murderous glare.

  "S-S-SORRY! I WAS JOKING AGAIN!" Luna apologizes as she bows her head.

  "Scram! Go hide somewhere! I don't care where, just keep your distance."

  "O-Okay!"

  Luna immediately runs away from the two of them.

  "So, what do you want?"

  "Vengeance!"

  "Huh?"

  "You were the one who killed the boss at the mansion, weren't you?"

  "Boss? That piece of shit was someone that important?"

  "I will not let you mock the boss any further!"

  The woman has a sheathed sword at her waist. She's holding the sheathed katana like a samurai.

  "An Armament? Haven't seen one in person."

  "I am a master of Iai technique. Do you know what an Iai is?"

  "I don't know how to put it in words, but sure, I've heard of it. What of it?" said Quroe with a threatening tone.

  "You'll regret taking this so lightly. GO SUFFER IN HELL!"

  The woman suddenly enters her battle stance. She immediately runs towards Quroe. She runs pretty fast that her steps are invisible to the eyes of a regular human.

  "IAI SLASH!"

  *CLANK*

  The woman passes through Quroe without swinging her sword. She slides on the ground for a bit and stops.

  ". . . ."

  "(W-Wha. . .? What happened? He should've been cut in two. But what I felt was my sword was blocked and it flew off of my hand.)"

  The woman slashed Quroe very fast that regular human eyes cannot follow; however, somehow Quroe blocks her slash without moving his body even an inch.

  "Impossible! No ordinary person would've even seen it coming. You're just a lowly murderer. How could you. . .?

  "Aaaah, you must be confused. You were charging blindly at a Believer without finding out what their Faith power was first. You must be pretty confident, huh?"

  "SHUT UP!"

  The woman recalls her sword, and it reappears in her hand.

  "HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"

  The woman charges towards Quroe for a second time.

  "Geez, you're doing it again."

  *CLANK*

  Again, her sword was parried by something invisible.

  "(Khh! What was it? I didn't see anything. He didn't even move or doing any weird body movement. Does he possess a kind of Faith power that he can use without any physical coordination at all?)"

  The woman jumps backward to keep their distance.

  "Tch! What is it? What is your Faith power?"

  "Normally, I wouldn't answer that, but for you, I'll give you a service."

  "What?"

  "You should be honored. After all, the one and only serial killer within the ranks of the Judges is willing to give you free information about himself!"

  "I don't understand even one word from your sentence."

  "Didn't expect you to! Because after all, you don't understand what you're doing right now either!" said Quroe with a menacing expression.

  Quroe walks closer towards the woman.

  "You're basically throwing away your life."

  The woman takes a step back without even realizing it.

  "Your eyes say it all!"

  Quroe takes another step forward while the woman takes another step back.

  "You're not a murderer." said Quroe.

  "H-Huh?"

  "You don't have the guts to commit murder!"

  "What are you saying? I should've killed you with that first slash if it wasn't blocked!"

  "You didn't even realize?"

  "What?"

  "Your first slash didn't even connect. I still parried your sword away anyway."

  "W-WHAT?"

  "Vengeance was it?"

  Quroe walks closer and closer towards the woman. Her entire body is shaking violently without her realizing it.

  "(Khh! What is this? Why am I shaking so much? Am I actually afraid of this man? WHAT ARE YOU DOING, ME?! YOU'VE MADE YOUR MIND! I touched the boss's cold body. The savior of my life was murdered! Why am I shaking now? MAKE UP YOUR MIND, KASUMI COLDHART!)" the woman talks to herself inside her head.

  The woman pulls out a survival knife from one of her pockets and stabs herself in her left palm. The knife pierces through it, and she immediately pulls it out. The pain in her palm stops her body from shaking.

  "Not bad for an amateur."

  "HHRRAAAAAAAAAA!!"

  The woman yells to psych herself up. She resummons her sword for the third time after throwing the survival knife away. She closes her eyes and takes proper breathing to calm herself down.

  "(Focus! Concentrate! The Iai technique only requires one strike. That's all I need. I'll give my everything on this single strike!)"

  The woman opens her eyes. She activates her Vein Armor and holds her sword forward. She no longer looks like the same person from a few seconds ago.

  "That's a good eye. You've held on to your determination." praises Quroe.

  "Here I come!"

  The woman pulls back her sword to the back of her waist, and the veins across her entire body lit up in purple, signaling the activation of Vein Armor. She takes a stance and is ready to slash Quroe. Quroe is directly in front of her. There's only a 50cm distance between them. Her sword suddenly lit up. Purple electric currents are running across its blade.

  "(Oh? So, her Armament does have an ability.)" said Quroe to himself as he observed the girl's sword.

  "LIGHTING IAI SLASH!"

  The girl slashes Quroe so quickly, she doesn't even look like she swings her sword towards him.

  *CLANK*

  Her sword got parried yet again and flew away from her hand. It stabs and lands on the ground behind her.

  "(. . .even after all that, I still. . .)"

  "My Faith power is called Ethereal Blades, a Special type. Those invisible slashes were simply the "slash" of a sword, though I don't use any sword. My Faith power specifically lets me produce the "blade" of a sword without the hilt or the grip. My "Blade" has three different forms. One is the invisible slashes that I've been using; it is only the 'slashes' of a sword. The second form is this."

  From Quroe's hand, his "blade" materialized. It was a red and black aura that took the shape of the blade of a sword. The red was only on the thin outline, while the entire blade was black.

  "My Faith can cut things in two. However, unlike physical swords or any cutting tools, my blade simply cuts and splits them, so there's no friction whatsoever. But it looks like it cannot cut your armament, as per the rules of Faith power. For the third form of my blade, it's--"

  "I give up. . ."

  The woman interrupts Quroe mid-explanation as she's giving up. She falls to her knees. Quroe's blade disappears from his hand.

  "Your eyes. They haven't gone yet."

  "What do you mean? Are you going to gouge them out and torture me to death?"

  "Not what I meant. I was talking about the light in your eyes."

  The woman was quite surprised to hear that from Quroe.

  "Aren't you going to kill me? You sounded like you're trying to give me a lecture!"

  "*Sigh* I don't usually care about this stuff."

  Quroe leans downwards and looks at the woman's eyes.

  "You aren't fit to be a murderer, to be a piece of shit human being. Your eyes are far too innocent."

  "What's the point of saying that to me?"

  "You were just caught up in emotions. You almost killed your innocence. Committing murder will always rob somebody of their innocence in life. To be frank, you aren't fit to live in this side of the world."

  "My life was saved by the boss. I will do whatever it takes to pay him back!"

  "Seems like a garbage scum like him has done a little bit of kindness even in that side of the world."

  "Stop mocking my life savior!"

  "Do you have any idea of the things he's done? Do you know how much he has hurt other people? He did it because he was bored! He was too tired of having a luxurious life where everything he asked for had been granted. He has tortured people for fun. He toyed with his own maids to his liking. He even sold his own wife and daughter to a brothel. All I did was something that needed to be done."

  ". . . ."

  The woman cannot answer Quroe.

  "He may be a lifesaver from your eyes, but to me, he's just yet another scumbag that I have to rid of off this world."

  Quroe stands up.

  "You were his guardian, weren't you? You felt guilty because you weren't there when he was murdered. You felt like you had to do something to face your own guilt."

  ". . . ."

  Again, the woman cannot answer Quroe.

  "You are a kind girl. That Iai technique isn't something that anyone can just learn. Use your swordsmanship for something else. Something that benefits other people is a preferable choice for you."

  Quroe walks past the girl. His footsteps are fading away little by little. The woman was frozen still while she was on her knees. He left the woman in the alleyway.

  "W-Wow, you're quite the motivator!" said Luna, who suddenly comes out of a cardboard box near the exit of the alleyway.

  "Motivator? Me? You've gotta be joking!"

  Quroe walks away right after he answers Luna.

  "W-Wait up!"

  Luna catches up with Quroe.

  "So, is that what a Judge does?"

  "What?"

  "Well, I've seen you multiple times before. You were only murdering anyone you came across, so I thought a Judge is like an executioner or something."

  "You're not exactly far off. That is my duty as a Judge after all."

  "If killing people was your duty, then why didn't you kill that woman?"

  "You'll understand it when you're older."

  "Uuh, you're right! No matter how much I think of it, I can't come up with the right reasoning for your actions in regards to your duty."

  "Don't think too much about it. Just follow me and don't slow me down!"

  "Ah! Yes, sir!"

  “How old are you, by the way? I don’t recall you ever telling me.”

  “I’m 15!”

  “Hmm, so you’re just that short then?”

  “Yes, but please don’t start calling me with my height or something. By the way, how old are you, Quroe-san?”

  “Four years older than you.”

  “OH? Wow, what an antique. That back of yours must be pretty stiff and heavy, huh?”

  “. . . .”

  Quroe stares silently at Luna’s attempt to make a joke.

  “I apologize!”

  Quroe proceeds to walk faster ahead of her.

  “AAHH!!! WAIITTT!!! I’M SORRRYY!!!”

  Luna is saying sorry as she runs to catch up with him. They left the scene together as they walked side by side across the street.