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MP: 126 Bizarre Adventure
🕑 Added 2025-01-17 16:00:01 +0000 UTC"Back again, are we, murderer?"
A striking figure with golden hair blocked Shiki Tohno's path on his way home, her piercing presence halting him in his tracks.
Everything that mysterious person had warned him about was coming true. Once again, he found himself face-to-face with this beautiful blonde woman.
"A blonde woman… No, it can't be!!"
The instant Shiki caught sight of Arcueid, his face turned pale. A sinking feeling clawed its way into his chest.
"What… what is going on here?"
Noticing Shiki's expression darken, Arcueid smiled faintly, her crimson eyes locking onto him like a predator cornering its prey.
"So, you do remember me, murderer."
Though her lips curved into a smile, her words dripped with an unmasked fury.
"You're Shiki Tohno, aren't you?"
Shiki felt like he was dreaming. Though he recognized her the moment their eyes met, the memory was too fragmented, too surreal. He kept telling himself it was just a dream.
But Arcueid would never forget the agony of being cut into seventeen pieces just days ago. Not only had she died, but she'd lost a significant portion of her power. If it weren't for Roy nursing her back to health, she wouldn't have recovered for a long time... if ever.
Worse yet, her weakened state could've left her vulnerable to Roa or Nrvnqsr Chaos. Had they found her, it would've been the end.
The hatred between them was now irreconcilable. So when Roy located Shiki for her, she wasted no time intercepting him on his way home.
She had only one goal: to teach this murderer a lesson.
He would pay. She would carve him into seventeen pieces, just as he had done to her.
Arcueid's murderous intent was palpable.
Shiki, meanwhile, still clung to the notion that this was some kind of nightmare.
The moment he caught a glimpse of her from afar, that familiar silhouette sent chills down his spine. But the notion was too absurd, too implausible for him to accept. It wasn't until her face came into full view that he realized the horrifying truth.
This was no dream.
This was the same woman he had killed. The one he'd sliced into seventeen pieces.
How could she be here?
Was she immortal?
"This… this can't be real."
A monster…
Faced with the sheer impossibility of the situation, Shiki froze. Beads of sweat trickled down his forehead as Arcueid slowly closed the distance between them, her steps deliberate and unyielding.
Driven by instinct, Shiki made the only choice his humanity could muster: he ran.
There was no reasoning with someone whose eyes glowed a malevolent crimson, not when they were someone he'd killed with his own hands. Her tone alone betrayed the wrath she harbored toward him.
It was a wrath drenched in murderous intent.
Shiki could understand why she despised him so deeply. But that didn't mean he could face her.
He couldn't do it... not when the person before him was someone he'd already killed once.
He could feel her gaze searing into his back, a gaze that seemed capable of slicing him to ribbons. If looks could kill, he would have been eviscerated on the spot.
There was no point in trying to explain himself.
"Aaahhh!"
In his panic, Shiki flung his school bag aside to lighten his load, then bolted down the path as fast as his legs could carry him.
He had to escape.
If he didn't, he'd be killed.
Just as the mysterious person had warned him, today was indeed a fateful day. But instead of a destined encounter, it was the kind that spelled his doom.
"Murderer!"
"Somebody! Help me!"
As he fled, Arcueid's lips curled into a scornful smirk.
A murderer begging for help? How ironic.
No matter who showed up... be it the Church's Executors or the local leyline guardians... he wouldn't escape her judgment today.
"You're not getting away!"
With a swift motion, Arcueid hefted a massive rock into the air and hurled it like a missile. It flew through the air with terrifying speed, smashing into Shiki's back with a resounding thud.
The impact sent him sprawling, his body tumbling several times before finally coming to a stop.
Arcueid's strike had been merciless.
Shiki lay prone on the ground, every fiber of his being screaming in pain.
The force he'd just endured... what was it? It felt as though he'd been hit by a truck.
They would've been dead on the spot if it had been an ordinary person. Yet somehow, Shiki staggered back to his feet, his body trembling. Most of the rock's momentum had been absorbed as he rolled across the ground, but the sheer agony still threatened to overwhelm him.
Was it sheer luck? Or some primal survival instinct?
Arcueid found herself slightly taken aback by the scene before her.
Despite the extent of her attack, the boy hadn't retaliated with his Mystic Eyes of Death Perception.
What was going on?
This pitifully fragile figure was a far cry from the man who had mercilessly dismembered her.
If it weren't for the unmistakable familiarity of his face and the aura surrounding him, she might have doubted whether Roy had led her to the wrong person.
Watching Shiki Tohno's stumbling silhouette retreat into the distance, Arcueid raised her hand, hesitated for a moment, and then let it fall back to her side.
"I'll spare your life for now."
Roy had explicitly instructed her to teach this brat who had sliced her into seventeen pieces a lesson... but to leave him alive.
Though her fury toward this murderer roared within her like an unquenchable fire, she suppressed it, opting to heed Roy's words.
She wasn't entirely sure what Roy had planned, but it didn't matter.
He wouldn't escape her grasp.
...
Run.
Keep running.
Run until every ounce of strength is gone.
"Huff... huff... huff..."
"She's... not following me."
After what felt like an eternity of running, Shiki Tohno, battered and exhausted, finally stumbled into a small park. He leaned heavily against a bench, his chest heaving as he gasped for air. Every so often, his wary eyes darted around, terrified that the golden-haired figure might suddenly reappear and end his life.
Afraid of dragging his family into this nightmare, Shiki hadn't dared run toward the Tohno mansion. Instead, he'd chosen to hide alone in the park.
A place like this should be safe enough, right?
But even he wasn't entirely convinced.
After all, the woman chasing him was clearly no ordinary human... her glowing crimson eyes and her ability to hurl massive boulders with ease made that abundantly clear.
To be hunted by someone, or something, like that...
This time, he really was in deep trouble.
Yet, as much as he acknowledged his own fault in all of this, how was he supposed to calm her fury?
Shiki frowned, his mind weighed down by the enormity of his predicament.
A sudden movement caught his eye... a blue butterfly flitted past him before landing gently nearby.
"What's this...?"
Instinctively, he extended his hand, letting the butterfly perch on his fingertip.
And then, a voice spoke.
"Well, well, kid. Glad to see you're still alive."
Startled, Shiki whipped his head around. A man had appeared on the other end of the bench, pulling back his hood to reveal his face.
"Wha-?!"
Already strung out from fear and exhaustion, Shiki flinched so violently at the stranger's sudden presence that his weak legs almost gave out, sending him teetering off the bench.
"Careful there, kid."
Snap.
The man casually snapped his fingers, and an inexplicable gust of wind surged upward from the ground, catching Shiki mid-fall and gently setting him back onto the bench.
A sudden wind?
"Uh... thanks." Shiki muttered, still bewildered. He finally got a clear look at the man's face and exclaimed, "You're that mysterious guy from earlier today!"
"That's me." The man replied with a grin. "So, kid, looks like you've run into some trouble, huh?"
Shiki hesitated but eventually nodded. "Yeah... I met a golden-haired woman. She chased me down and nearly killed me."
"A golden-haired woman, huh?" The man chuckled softly. "Sounds rough. Let me guess, she didn't hold back and didn't give you a chance to explain yourself?"
"Exactly." Shiki sighed, slumping against the bench. "The moment she saw me, she was filled with rage. If I hadn't run fast enough, I'd probably be dead right now."
Roy shook his head, his thoughts wandering. You're overestimating yourself, kid. If Arcueid truly intended to kill you, she wouldn't have settled for throwing a rock.
"Well." Roy said aloud, "I assume you know why that woman is so intent on coming after you, don't you?"
"..."
Shiki remained silent, but his expression said it all.
Seeing the guilt etched on the boy's face, Roy sighed. "I get it. You messed up, and now she's out for revenge. But you're at a loss on how to fix things, aren't you?"
Shiki's shoulders slumped further. "Yeah... it's my fault. Something I did to her... it's unforgivable. But... I don't even know where to start. And if I go back now, she'll kill me for sure."
"Guilt and fear, huh?" Roy mused, observing the boy closely. "You've got a remarkable pair of eyes, but at the end of the day, you're just an ordinary high schooler."
"Wait... how do you know about my eyes?" Shiki asked, his voice tinged with both confusion and caution.
Roy's smile widened. "Oh, I know a little about them. Even with those specialized Mystic Eye Killers you're wearing, it's hard to fully suppress their power. I happen to know someone with the same kind of eyes as yours."
He leaned in slightly, his tone dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "You used those eyes to kill that woman, didn't you? The one who's after you now. And those eyes of yours... they have a very distinct name..."
Roy's voice grew deliberate.
"They're called the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception."
"The Mystic Eyes... of Death Perception?" Shiki repeated, the name rolling awkwardly off his tongue.
"It's a powerful gift. With those eyes, you can see the death of nearly anything as cracks or lines on their surface. All it takes is a sharp blade tracing along one of those lines, and the damage you inflict is absolute... unhealable and irreversible."
"Those glasses you're wearing are called Mystic Eye Killers. They're specially designed to suppress the power of your eyes. Surely you've figured that out by now?"
"So that's what they're called... Mystic Eye Killers..."
Hearing Roy so effortlessly unveil his secret, Shiki's breath hitched.
These eyes had terrified him as a child. They revealed an unbearable world of fractures and seams, where everything appeared as though it was on the verge of falling apart. Worse yet, he had discovered that by running a blade along those lines, he could destroy anything with ease.
But the weight of that power had been too much for a boy to bear.
No one had believed him when he spoke of the lines. Instead, they had dismissed him with scoldings and ridicule.
Until... she had appeared.
The woman with hair like flames.
She had taught him how to live with his eyes. How to respect life. And she had given him the very glasses that now protected him.
"Miss Aoko..."
The memories stirred something deep within him, and Shiki murmured her name as if in a trance.
Soon enough, Roy's soft cough pulled Shiki Tohno back to reality from his moment of nostalgia.
Although Shiki had already realized that the mysterious man before him was no ordinary individual, the ease with which Roy revealed his secrets left Shiki deeply unsettled. His left hand had instinctively slipped into his pocket, gripping the small knife his father had left him.
Roy, noticing Shiki's guarded expression, said nothing. He merely shook his head slightly.
Because the person truly involved in this matter had arrived.
"Yes, it's because of those monstrous eyes of yours that I was killed." A familiar voice said, sending a jolt of fear through Shiki.
He turned his head in alarm, only to see Arcueid approaching from a distance.
Run!
The thought screamed in his mind. But before Shiki could act, Roy's firm hand pressed down on his shoulder.
Reacting on instinct, Shiki drew the sharp knife from his pocket and slashed at Roy, hoping to free himself.
But Roy effortlessly caught the blade between two fingers.
It was then that Roy's gaze lingered on the engraved characters on the knife: Nanaya.
So that's it.
"Sit down, kid."
"Running away won't solve anything. As a man, you should take responsibility for your actions."
"I…"
Shiki, unable to resist the force of Roy's grip, had no choice but to comply. The knife, a memento from his father, was taken from him, leaving him powerless. He sat back down, his eyes fixed anxiously on Arcueid as she drew closer.
When Arcueid reached Roy's side, she leaned over to face Shiki. Her expression was composed, but her tone was sharp and accusatory.
"So, I've finally caught you, you murderer!"
"Do you remember? The ambush at the apartment entrance? The ruthless seventeen dissections?!"
"You… You're…"
Shiki froze as the bloody memories surged back into his mind.
"Ah, so you do remember." Arcueid said, her voice chillingly calm. "In that case, let's discuss your seventeen dissections. Where should I start on you?"
"I'm sorry! Please forgive me!"
Shiki shouted, bowing his head in desperation as Arcueid advanced on him.
"Stop scaring him, Arcueid."
He understood that Shiki's actions weren't entirely his own doing. As the protagonist of Tsukihime, Shiki Tohno wasn't the type to commit atrocities willingly. Roy initially suspected the influence of the demonic bloodline of the Tohno family. However, his earlier examination using the butterfly revealed no such traits in Shiki's blood. Instead, there was a unique power that felt oddly familiar to Roy.
That knife... its craftsmanship and the engraved name... added further weight to his suspicions.
It was clear to Roy that Shiki's actions were not of his own volition. This realization was why he stopped Arcueid from taking things too far.
"Relax, kid. She won't hurt you. I'm here because there's something I need to discuss with you."
Shiki hesitated, his trust wavering. "What… What do you want to talk about?"
"First, compensation. And then, we'll visit your family."
"Compensation? My family?!"
"What do you intend to do to them?"
"Talk, you don't think you can kill someone and walk away without consequences, do you? As for visiting your family, it's just business... nothing more."
"I…"
Shiki was at a loss for words, unable to argue but unwilling to relent.
"Not willing to cooperate? That's fine, I can find your house with or without your help. The Tohno estate isn't exactly inconspicuous."
He leaned closer, his voice calm yet firm.
"And kid, if I wanted to hurt you, you wouldn't even have the chance to sit here and argue with me."
Roy's confidence left Shiki speechless.
"Besides, if you keep resisting, I'll leave you alone with her."
He gestured toward Arcueid, whose expression immediately lit up with mischievous glee.
"Great idea, Roy! Let me handle him. I'll carve him up... slice, slice, slice... into seventeen perfect pieces!"
Arcueid's playful swipes at the air sent sharp gusts of wind slashing toward a nearby lamppost, which was swiftly cut in half.
Seeing this, Shiki paled.
"I'll cooperate!!"
"Good. Now we're getting somewhere. Pleasure working with you, kid."
