Najun: “What am I doing here? I was in the hospital.”

  Mister Mysterium: “You seem to have forgotten that this is an immaterial place. Your body is still in the hospital, but your mind is not.”

  Najun: “But… Mamoru removed that hand from my face. How can you communicate with me without it?”

  Mister Mysterium: “The terror hand was firmly connected to your brain. Just because it was pulled out doesn’t mean no remnants were left behind.”

  Najun doesn’t fully understand the explanation, but he doesn’t ask any further questions. He tries to examine his surroundings, but the dark fog makes it difficult.

  Once again, Mister Mysterium speaks to Najun, but he can’t hear anything. His mouth moves again without his consent. They shake hands, and Najun is pulled out of this gloomy place. He flies through a tunnel of mist toward a white light.

  He wakes up from his second sleep. He is lying on the back of a large man. His forehead hurts because during his sleep it was pressed against the hard back the entire time. He is tightly bound to the man’s back. He sees a person walking in front of the large man carrying him. She has long, dark brown hair and a narrow face. She appears to be a young woman.

  Najun: “[I’m slowly remembering. The woman took me and… what was his name again?]”

  Najun raises his head slightly and sees another person directly in front of the large man. A young man in a green ranger uniform with slightly longer greenish-gray hair.

  Najun: “[Mamoru. His name is Mamoru. What happened before I fell asleep?]”

  Najun tries to think, but the memories feel erased. He moves a bit too much, causing the person carrying him to turn their head. He quickly closes his eyes and pretends to be unconscious.

  He instinctively decides it’s better if the others think he’s still asleep. He has a strange feeling that the situation will turn painful the moment they realize he’s awake.

  Najun: “[Is he still staring? I can’t risk it. I have to keep my eyes closed.]”

  He feels a gaze directly on his face. He forces himself not to start sweating or trembling. He tenses his tongue and, after what feels like several minutes, slightly opens his eyes. Luckily, Necromar—the other one of his captors—has turned his head back forward.

  Najun: “[Phew, thank goodness. They mustn’t notice I’m awake. But how do I get out of here? How can I escape with Mamoru?]”

  They continue walking, unaware that Najun can hear everything.

  Shime: “So you really can’t tell me what’s wrong with your friend?”

  Mamoru: “How many times do I have to say it? I don’t know why that happened.”

  Shime: “Somehow I don’t trust you. It’s best if the Princess judges your statement. She’s a genius, you know. Until then, we’ll let him live—but the moment he wakes up, it’ll be hell on earth for him.”

  Mamoru doesn’t answer and listens as Shime praises the little girl in a high-pitched tone.

  Shime: “Even though she’s so young, she’s so mature and intelligent. I’ve never seen a child like her. Especially her hobbies and interests—they’re wonderful.”

  She takes a short breath and continues.

  Shime: “She loves torturing and killing small animals. She knows so much about the anatomy of these little creatures that you’d think she used to be one herself. She learns quickly and is so caring toward the others. What’s especially great is—”

  Najun: “[Can’t she ever shut up? She just keeps rambling about that little devil.]”

  Suddenly, they hear noises coming from the walls or adjacent rooms. They stop and look around. Najun opens his eyes slightly but doesn’t see anyone either.

  Shime: “Who’s there?!”

  She pulls out a rope and a knife, ties the rope to the knife’s handle, and spins it over her head, waiting for something to move.

  Shime: “[I can’t use my ability if I can’t see the opponent—or if Necromar is here. On top of that, the Princess might be nearby.]”

  Mamoru: “That sounds like someone fast.”

  Shime: “No shit, genius. If you see something, tackle it.”

  Mamoru internally says no, but outwardly takes a half-ready combat stance. Necromar continues holding Najun, his gaze fixed on the sounds. He raises his right arm and releases a small cloud of poison. Unlike the massive cloud he used earlier, this one is controlled.

  A shadow appears behind a chair. Shime immediately throws her knife at it. The knife pierces the floor and is instantly pulled back by the rope. She catches it and spins it again.

  Shime: “Necromar. Get closer and release your poison smoke.”

  He moves forward with Najun still on his back and stretches out his right arm. Slowly, the poisonous smoke escapes and spreads through the hallway.

  In a brief moment when Shime isn’t paying attention, Mamoru could swear he saw Najun blink. He looks at the supposedly unconscious Najun and sees his hand move slightly. Slowly, Mamoru moves behind Necromar as if trying to look through the smoke. He tugs on Najun’s finger.

  Mamoru: “Psst. I know you’re awake. Open your eyes for a moment so I know you can hear me.”

  Najun briefly opens his eyes, signaling Mamoru to speak. Mamoru has realized through observation that Necromar can’t speak well—if at all—and also doesn’t hear very well.

  Mamoru: “This might be our only chance to escape. We have to take it.”

  He glances back to make sure Shime isn’t suspicious. She has moved further ahead and can’t fully see him.

  Mamoru: “As soon as I give the signal, jump off his back and flail your arms and legs toward the smoke. You know, I briefly saw what the person we’re fighting looks like. It’s—”

  Najun nods slightly and gestures with his hand to match Mamoru’s cut-off sentence.

  Mamoru steps a bit farther away from Najun and Necromar, dangerously close to the fog.

  Shime: “Are you trying to kill yourself, Ranger? Get away from the smoke.”

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  She swings her knife three more times into the fog, but all miss. Slowly, she starts doubting that what they’re fighting is even human.

  Shime: “Necromar, I authorize you to use your magical abilities. Use them to kill our enemy.”

  Necromar obeys and, for the first time in the hospital, raises his left arm. With his right hand, he presses Najun firmly against his back. Before he can activate his magic, the mysterious figure rushes forward and stops directly in front of him.

  Mamoru: “Now, Najun!”

  Najun has already loosened the knots of the rope and jumps off Necromar’s back. As he stumbles, he flails his arms and legs just like Mamoru told him. He also screams loudly.

  The figure in the fog straightens up and turns toward Najun. Necromar tries to grab Najun again, but a blade pierces him straight through—to the hilt. The figure leaps over Necromar and pulls the blade out. Many more sword slashes and punches follow, aimed at Necromar’s face, as if the attacker hates him deeply and wants him dead. When Necromar stops moving, the figure turns to Najun.

  It’s a woman with a sword that has no guard. She wears a dirty kimono and a disturbing rabbit mask.

  Shime: “Who do you think you are?!”

  The rabbit woman already swings her sword, but Mamoru shoves Najun out of the way and grabs his hand. Together, they run. The rabbit woman picks up her sword and chases after them. Shime pauses to process the situation and looks at Necromar.

  Shime: “Are you okay, Necromar? It’ll be fine. You’re not allowed to die. The Princess didn’t permit us to die on this mission, so we won’t.”

  Necromar doesn’t actually die, but his injuries are severe. He can endure a lot of damage, but he’s never faced this many attacks at once. Shime sheds a tear, lays him to the side, and then joins the pursuit.

  Mamoru: “We have to hurry. We have more pursuers than before.”

  Najun: “B-But where can we hide?”

  They reach the stairwell and hesitate between going up or down. Mamoru wants to go down, closer to the exit. Najun wants to go up and hide—he still believes they’re missing something important if they leave now.

  They remember how they almost fought about this before being captured. If that happened again now, their pursuers would definitely catch them. Both are aware of this, but neither mentions it.

  Najun: “Uh, so we should—”

  Mamoru: “I know. We have to split up. If we go together, your safety is too low for me to approve it. You go up and hide. I’ll go down and draw their attention.”

  Najun looks surprised—and dissatisfied.

  Najun: “No. I can’t allow that. You’re not risking your life for me.”

  Mamoru pulls out his book. He convinced Shime and Necromar that it was vital for him, so he was allowed to keep it.

  Mamoru: “Read.”

  Najun reads the page he’s shown. There are only two sentences:

  “You are never the priority when it comes to survival. You are a phoenix.”

  Mamoru: “I always put my survival last, and that’s why I’ll always rise from the ashes like a phoenix and be reborn. Don’t worry. This book has never disappointed me, and it won’t now.”

  They slap hands and run—Najun upward, Mamoru downward. Before separating, Mamoru wraps Najun in his bloody bandages and smears some of his blood into Najun’s hair. He hopes the rabbit woman tracks by scent, since her mask should limit her vision.

  Mamoru: “Najun, let’s hurry to the exit. Yeah, we’ve definitely shaken them. Slow down a bit.”

  Mamoru talks to himself loudly to further convince the pursuers they went down together.

  The rabbit woman is the first to reach the stairwell. She sniffs the steps and decides to follow the scent of Najun’s blood and Mamoru’s calls—until she hears a deep exhale from above.

  Purely on instinct, she decides to go up. She sprints up the stairs, surprisingly quietly. Najun pauses briefly and suddenly hears her footsteps. He looks through the middle and panics, running further up until he reaches a door. He throws it open and stumbles down the hallway as the door opens again behind him.

  Shortly after the rabbit woman runs upstairs, Shime arrives at the stairwell.

  Shime: “That Ranger, that perverted boy, and that insane rabbit woman will all be hanged by me—but not killed. I’ll make them suffer until the Princess arrives, and then she’ll make them suffer even more.”

  She considers activating her ability, but without knowing Liko’s location, she fears accidentally harming her. Logically, she follows Mamoru’s calls—but in a very different way than expected.

  Mamoru: “Najun, relax. They’ll never catch us. The rabbit woman is too stupid, and the other one is way too weak to do anything to us.”

  Mamoru enjoys his loud statements and even slows down.

  Mamoru: “[Did they really not catch us, or did they maybe go upstairs? No, with my shouting and the scent, they should come down. I also didn’t hear anyone go up, so everything should be fine.]”

  Something suddenly blocks the light. A person jumps down from the upper stairs, landing directly on Mamoru’s face.

  Shime: “Who’s weak here?”

  She strangles Mamoru with her rope while he lies face-down on the floor. He gasps for air, his mouth wide open, his face slowly turning blue.

  Shime: “Don’t worry. I’m not going to kill you. I’m just warming you up for the Princess.”

  She pulls the rope tighter, completely cutting off his air. His eyes start tearing up.

  With the last of his strength, Mamoru kicks her in the backside with his heel, knocking her over. He gasps for air and needs a moment to recover.

  Shime gets back up immediately and attacks again. This time, Mamoru protects his neck and prevents the rope from tightening around it.

  She throws a punch, but Mamoru dodges and her fist slams into the wall. He expects her hand to break—or at least to hurt—but instead, her punch destroys the wall. Debris flies everywhere, and she stands there as if nothing happened.

  Mamoru: “What kind of monstrous strength do you have?!”

  Shime laughs devilishly and knocks Mamoru out with her next blow.

  Meanwhile, Najun runs for his life. The rabbit woman has nearly hit him with her sword several times, but each time he barely manages to duck or roll away.

  Rabbit Woman: “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!”

  In desperation, he spots several elevators. He rushes to them and presses all the buttons, but nothing happens. The rabbit woman gets closer.

  Najun: “Shit! Shit, what am I supposed to do?!”

  Suddenly, one elevator door opens. Najun approaches, relieved—until he sees there’s no elevator car, just an empty, dark, cold shaft. Two more steps and he would have fallen several floors down.

  The rabbit woman’s blade slices off a few strands of Najun’s hair. He collapses to the floor, pinned against the middle elevator. Too afraid to turn around and face his death.

  He hears the blade scraping across the floor, then being raised. Just before she can almost kill him, Najun falls forward. His eyes are still closed, but he hears spraying sounds.

  Rabbit Woman: “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!”

  He opens his eyes and sees a man standing in front of him, holding a gun. Judging by the sound, it’s a water gun.

  The rabbit woman is repeatedly “shot” with the water gun. She staggers back, screaming wildly.

  ???: “Wouldn’t you like to come in?”

  Najun stands up and slowly enters the elevator. Surprisingly, it’s extremely futuristic and clean. The man presses a button, and the doors close.

  Najun hears the rabbit woman screaming and pounding outside. He has escaped his would-be killer once again—but still doesn’t know why she’s fixated only on him.

  Najun: “[If the rabbit woman followed me, that means Mamoru only had one pursuer. I hope he managed to escape her. But how are we supposed to find each other again?]”

  Lost in thought, Najun realizes he has entered the elevator of a complete stranger. The man wears a typical lab coat, has short blond hair, and hypnotizing eyes. He presses a few more buttons, then turns to Najun.

  ???: “You look very tired and injured. Let’s go to my laboratory. I have everything there to properly take care of you.”

  Suddenly, the elevator stops—and moves sideways.

  Najun: “What was that just now?”

  ???: “This elevator can also move horizontally. It travels through the many large cavities of the hospital.”

  Najun: “Cavities?”

  At the same time, in the entrance hall:

  Liko: “Hey guys, there you finally are.”

  She hugs Shime and the injured Necromar. Shime has the also-injured Mamoru behind her. After her last blow, she tied him up and woke him again, since she didn’t feel like carrying him around the whole time.

  Kogiri: “Where is Najun?”

  Shime: “If you mean the other boy, then my answer is: no idea. He either abandoned the Ranger or enabled him to escape.”

  Liko: “A much more important question is who did this to Necromar. You know he’s very sensitive and fragile.”

  Shime: “Some insane woman with a rabbit mask attacked us. I suspect she’s an accomplice of the two targets, but I’m not completely sure.”

  Kogiri: “I don’t think so. When we entered the forest, there were five of us. There was no one with a rabbit mask. And that Ranger is responsible for the forest anyway, so it’s obvious he’s somewhere in the forest.”

  Kogiri rubs his chin.

  Kogiri: “[There’s a hidden resident in the hospital? Father or Liko never mentioned that. Although she does seem a bit surprised by this story too.]”

  Shime: “I suggest we retreat and take this Ranger as a consolation prize.”

  Kogiri: “Unfortunately, I agree. Let’s go.”

  Liko curiously approaches Shime and whispers something into her ear.

  Shime: “Of course you may.”

  She walks over to Mamoru and sticks a thick needle into his upper arm.

  Mamoru: “W-What i-is th-that?”

  Liko: “I want to see what you feel like. Torture is only fun when torturer and victim truly understand each other, so I want to see if we match. Unfortunately for you, the answer is yes.”

  Shime pulls on the rope and drags him along behind her.

  Shime: “If you thought I could cause pain, then your stay with us will be hell. The Society of the Winged Mud.”