Chapter 59 - Eiji HoshinoHollow Night, PresentWhatever this thing was, it was on another level entirely. Junko and I’d been fighting at a level we hadn’t even known we were capable of, pushing our abilities as far as they’d go and then some.

  It felt like with every barely-dodged stab, elbow, or kick, I was forcibly dredging up new parts of myself, salvaging them from some kind of endless bag of effort. I guess desperation tended to have that effect.

  A raucous taunt sauntered from our opponent.

  “Come on, girls!” The entity cheered after effortlessly weaving below the heavy swing of my hammer, its hair dancing from the resulting windage. “Don’t tell me that’s all you have?”

  An unease was sweeping over me every time this thing talked. Noise weren’t meant to do that. Sure, some of them seemed more self-aware than others, like that Samurai one from st night, but that was as far as the simirities went between us and them. I much preferred it that way.

  Emotions only ever served to make things more and more difficult, a truth I’d readily admit - even if it sounded far too much like something my father would say.

  A groan of shock escaped from my mouth as I felt an impact sm into my stomach, sending me skidding backwards across the tarmac, just barely hanging onto my bance. My abdomen ached in pain under the cover of my free hand, and I was inwardly pleading for my legs to not give way.

  Looking up, Junko had materialized like fsh behind the Noise now, as one of its legs was still extended from having just kicked the shit out of me. Junko drew back her ōdachi, which was practically glowing with a blue energetic force.

  “Try this on for size!” Junko called as she extended her arms like a catapult and swung, aiming directly for the creature’s neck. The sliver of hope that had graced over my chest dissipated as quickly as it came once I met our assaint’s eyes.

  They gleamed a faint violet, as if betraying some kind of unsettling intelligence, but that wasn’t what had set arm bells off in my head. No, it was the smug, almost imperceptible smirk that was pying out on its thin lips.

  Not moving an inch, the creature’s one standing leg was suddenly dragged into the ground, as if it had just sank into the tarmac, like it’d done many times already since our fight started. Junko’s bde careened through the instantly empty space with reckless abandon, and that moment there caused the arm bells to evolve into full on disaster sirens.

  No choice. I decided then and there to take a gamble on a little hypothesis of mine I’d derived from watching this little miscreant scramble around.

  But before Junko’s sword had even finished its travel path, a sinister purple glow shot out from the bubbling pool of darkness brewing beneath her. I quickly recognized the illumination’s sharp, pointed edges – it had summoned its weapon, some kind of dagger.

  It didn’t take a genius to figure out what they were pnning to do, and if Junko’s widened, desperate eyes were any indication, she knew exactly what was coming next too.

  It might have taken a genius, however, to do what I was about to. That is, to figure out how this thing was pulling this party trick of sinking in and out of the floors.

  And boy, how lucky we were to be in possession of one such genius.

  With my hammer aimed straight at the ebony pool, I let loose a bright, concentrated beam of light. The effect was almost instant. Like a panicked insect, the arm rapidly retreated back into the ground as my bst rushed into the ground, sending small shards of debris tumbling into the air.

  Junko didn’t miss a beat, and used her momentum to leap in my direction, getting some distance.

  “What the heck did you do?” She huffed between pants. “I thought I was a goner there.”

  I lowered my hammer slowly, eyes never leaving the point of contact.

  “I figured out how it keeps doing that disappearing act,” I stated matter-of-factly, gncing at Junko.

  “Listen, stay away from – “

  Unfortunately, that simple, fleeting gnce was the opening a certain other enemy had been waiting for. A sound like the cp of thunder erupted through the air.

  Judging from the direction and assumed angle of the sound’s origin, there was no clean way out of this one. My brain immediately started making split-second pleas and rationalizations, trying to convince my body to stop what it had reflexively began to do, but to no avail. I inhaled.

  This was going to hurt.

  Throwing my hammer to the floor, I pushed forward in a reckless shoulder charge, like I was trying to tackle some invisible enemy. In truth, I was just offering up the right part of my body — a hand or forearm wouldn’t cut it, but I couldn’t risk a more vital spot either.

  Each second dragged into eternity as I gritted my teeth and braced myself, my heart pounding louder than the thunderous crack of the sniper round.

  Much to my dismay, the experience of getting shot wasn’t something I could ever really prepare for.

  The impact was like a sledgehammer smming into the meat of my right shoulder. A searing, blinding pain shot through the top of my bicep, ripping a scream from my lungs. It was like someone had driven a hot needle straight into my muscle and then twisted it for good measure. My legs buckled, and I dropped at Junko’s feet, gasping and writhing on the ground as the world narrowed to that single point of agony.

  Jesus Christ, it hurt like a bitch and then some. If I gritted my teeth any harder, they would’ve shattered into pieces. I barely heard the ctter of something metallic hitting the floor beside me, lost in the haze of ringing ears and the constant, unbearable throbbing in my shoulder.

  Junko’s hands found my back, but I couldn’t tell if she was saying anything—my mind was too lost in the white-hot sting that burned through every inch of my arm. She carefully pulled me onto my back, her hands surprisingly gentle as she cradled my head with one hand and pressed her palm over my shoulder wound with the other. I could feel the warmth of my blood seeping between her fingers, but despite the pain, a strange sense of relief washed over me.

  At least she was safe.

  The ringing in my ears began to fade, and the world slowly returned to focus. Junko's face hovered above mine, her brows furrowed in concern. Her usually icy blue eyes had softened, betraying a vulnerability I hadn’t seen before. I tried to speak, to crack a joke or tell her I was fine, but my throat was too dry and the pain was still too fresh. I grimaced, sucking in a breath.

  "…Why the hell did you do that?" Junko's voice broke the silence. It wasn’t angry, not really. More... confused. Her fingers hovered hesitantly above the wound, shaking, unsure of what to do now.

  "You didn’t have to—"

  "I did," I croaked, my voice barely above a whisper. My arm throbbed in protest as I tried to shift. "Light form wasn’t an option. Bullet would’ve hit you. So… I jumped. Didn’t think about it... just did. Guess that makes me kind of an idiot, huh?"

  Junko blinked, and for a second, I actually thought she might ugh. But instead she just sighed, shaking her head.

  "That’s exactly what you are…dumbass."

  There was a pause, and I could feel her eyes tracing the red runnels meandering down my arm, her expression tight with something like guilt. It hit me then—how many people had been risking themselves like this for her? How many times had she almost seen her sister or friend almost die for her sake, just tonight?

  "Don’t get all weepy on me now," I tried to joke, though it came out as more of a wheeze than anything else. "I’ll be fine. It’s not like I took a bullet to the chest or anything."

  "Still... you didn’t have to do that," she murmured again, her voice softer this time, like she was trying to convince herself of it. "You don’t even know me that well."

  "Knowing you…doesn’t change a damn thing. I saw you in danger, and I…I did what anyone would do," I managed, trying to meet her gaze despite the dizziness creeping in. "I’m not heartless, you know. And besides..."

  I gave her a weak grin. "Someone’s gotta have your back."

  The words left my mouth long before I recognized that they weren’t mine.

  “It’s what an old friend of mine would’ve wanted me to do.”

  Junko just stared at me then, a tinge of sadness spreading over her visage. A wave of sorrow overtook me then too. I blinked back the tears that threatened below my eyes as a pain far greater than the gunshot wound threatened to resurface.

  But, to my surprise, her lips soon curved into the faintest smile. It wasn’t the cocky smirk I’d grown used to seeing from her. This was different—softer, more genuine.

  She tightened her grip on my good arm.

  "I owe you," she admitted quietly, her voice barely above a whisper. "Both of you, for this. I’m not someone who forgets a debt."

  Before I could respond, a slow, mocking cp echoed through the street, shattering the fragile moment between us. Both of our heads snapped toward the sound, where a figure was stepping out.

  It was that same Noise again, evidently having decided to burrow back out of the shadows.

  They strolled toward us with an air of casual arrogance, gloved hands cpping together in slow, deliberate beats. They raised the back of their hand in the direction the sniper shot came from, and the subtle but shiny gleam emanating from that direction ceased immediately.

  Then, there was an almost unnoticeable shift in the darkness up there, as if something was taking its leave. A tinge of cautious relief swept over my bated breath – that was one less enemy to worry about – but why dismiss it in the first pce? Where was it heading to now?

  And, perhaps most importantly - what was this thing pnning to do to us?

  “Well, well, well,” It drawled, voice ced with amusement. “Hoshino, is it? I’ll say, that was quite the cutesy dispy. There aren’t many people who’d literally take a bullet for a friend like that, you know.”

  They paused, taking us in.

  ”Yep! Pretty admirable, if I do say so myself. “ They turned back to meet my eyes. “But tell me, was it worth it?"

  Junko tensed beside me, her hand tightening on my shoulder as she slowly rose to her feet, positioning herself between me and the assassin. I could see the fire returning to her eyes, the fierce determination that had never quite left. But as for me, I wasn’t so sure I had the strength to stand up just yet.

  "You think this is a joke?" Junko snapped, her voice ice-cold.

  The enigma’s grin only widened. They csped their hands behind their back in strange gesture that usually would have exuded some kind of shyness, but here, I could tell they were doing it on purpose.

  "No, not at all.” They replied matter-of-factly. ”I find it inspiring. Not to mention you were quick to figure out how I kept disappearing…hmm.”

  They tucked a finger underneath their chin, and tilted their head to the left, as if pondering something.

  “You might be just the type of person we’re looking for, actually."

  The words sent a chill down my spine, despite the pain in my arm.

  Junko, who had previously been gring daggers at them, froze, her brow furrowing. I could practically see her mind racing behind those blue eyes. I felt the same rising dread creeping through me.

  We?

  Junko took a step forward, her body tense and coiled like a spring ready to snap.

  “What the hell are you talking about?” she demanded, voice low but steady. “Who’s ‘we’? It’s just Juno running this show, right?”

  Their grin widened, a glint of amusement in their dark eyes.

  “Is that really what you think? That Juno’s the only one with a say in all this?”

  A knot formed in my stomach as realization dawned on me. My head was still spinning from the blood loss, but I forced myself to focus on their words. If that was true, then…then this thing was never a Noise to begin with, was it?

  …No. The conclusion that had been silently biding its time in the back of my mind, slowly eating away at me had finally been dragged into the limelight.

  This entire time, Junko and I had been fighting another human being.

  That one fact alone put everything into context, like the st piece of a jigsaw puzzle. I took in this newcomer’s appearance as if looking at her for the very first time.

  From the second she appeared, this girl moved like liquid shadow, her body a blur of fluid, calcuted motion – in other words, she had a level of control that was lightyears beyond any Noise we’d encountered thus far.

  I recalled moments of stillness, just before striking, where her breath hitched in a way that made her seem alive—as if there was more than just instinct driving her.

  She wore a sleek, skin-tight bck bodysuit, not too dissimir from mine; some kind of hybrid between an assassin’s garb and a high-tech combat suit. The fabric shimmered faintly in the dim light, absorbing her into the environment as if the darkness itself was her cover. But even the suit showed clear signs of intentional design. It was reinforced with thin, crisscrossing straps of armor pting at her shoulders, forearms, and legs, designed for mobility but protection where it mattered.

  Still, her hair was a striking contrast—long and silvery white, tumbling down her back in a chaotic yet strikingly elegant wave, streaked with bck highlights that matched the darkness she slipped in and out of so easily. Despite the chaos of our battle, not a single strand seemed out of pce.

  Then there were her eyes, faintly violet, still glimmering impishly with equal parts pyfulness and condescension.

  In those same eyes, I could tell she was toying with us, holding back like she clearly had been during our fight. The way she said it, though, like there was this whole bigger picture we hadn’t even glimpsed yet - it made my skin crawl.

  “So there’s more of you?” I croaked out, struggling to sit up. Junko didn’t turn to look at me, but I could tell she was hanging onto every word too, likely having come to the same conclusion as me. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion.

  “Other humans who can come here… like us?”

  The assassin chuckled, her voice dripping with condescension.

  “Humans, sure. If that’s what you want to call us.” She let the sentence hang in the air, twisting the ambiguity like a knife. “But you’re right. There are others. I imagine you’ll meet them soon enough – if you survive that long, anyhow.”

  Junko’s fists tightened at her sides.

  “Bullshit,” she hissed, but the slight tremble in her intonation betrayed the resolve she was desperately trying to dredge up.

  “No one…no one else is supposed to be able to do what we do.”

  The assassin tilted her head, eyes gleaming with mock sympathy.

  “Aww, poor wittle snowfke.” She mocked.” Is that what Juno told you? That you’re special? How quaint. This world’s been keeping secrets from you, sweetheart. You’re barely scratching the surface.”

  Junko’s jaw clenched, her anger clearly bubbling up. But she was just about holding it back. We didn’t know enough. If there were others like us... if this whole thing was bigger than just Juno and the Hollow Night, we needed information. Not just another fight.

  I finally managed to push myself upright, despite the burning throb in my shoulder, and gred at our informant.

  “You’re pying games. Why don’t you quit the cryptic crap and tell us what’s really going on?”

  She giggled again, sounding almost delighted.

  “Oh, I could, but where’s the fun in that? Like I said, I think you’ll find out soon enough either way. I only hope the two of you end up picking the same side – it would be such a shame to see diamonds as pretty as you on opposite teams.”

  “…Pick the same side?” Junko echoed, her voice ced with disbelief. “What are you—?”

  Junko was suddenly given a frighteningly razor-sharp gre, cutting her off. Even though it wasn’t directed at me, just witnessing that made my internal temperature take one hell of a nosedive.

  “We’re watching all of you very closely. Some of us are more... forgiving than others.” She warned, her demeanour having undergone a complete 180 faster than I could even blink. ”But make no mistake, girls, you and your friends will have to choose where you stand.”

  Her grin was icy now, all vestiges of humor long gone.

  “And you’ll have to live with the consequences.”

  A cold wave of dread washed over me as her words sank in. Choose a side? Between who? Between what? The thought of there having been a whole other conflict raging in the background of our desperate struggle for survival -

  I didn’t like the sound of it one bit.

  Junko’s voice was hard as steel. “Argh! Again, who the hell is ‘we’? Who do you work for?” she demanded, stepping closer again, her gaze burning with frustration. “And what do you want with us?!”

  The girl opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. Instead, a guttural sound like a roar shook the ground and split through the night air, causing all three of us to recoil in surprise. A sinking feeling made itself known in my chest, and I had this horrible sense – almost like a foreshadowing – of what was to come.

  I looked back to the mysterious figure, expecting to see another smug reaction. But she was staring off in the direction of the sound with a furrowed brow and focused eyes, a frown fixed on her lips. Whatever that was, if it got even this girl to ditch that carefree air of hers, then what the hell were we dealing with now?

  “…All in good time, my precious little diamonds.” She responded absentmindedly without moving her head away from that strange sound’s origin. For a moment I wished I could see whatever it was that she was seeing, but considering that the frown on her face was only deepening by the second, I quickly decided against it.

  “At any rate, your roles in all this are just getting started. Keep your eyes wide open, darlings. Toodles!”

  And with that, she melted into the ground like smoke, disappearing completely into the shadows below. The silence that followed was suffocating, broken only by the shake of distant tremors and the heavy beat of my heart in my chest.

  Junko stood there, fists clenched, gring at the spot where the girl had vanished. Her breathing was ragged, not from the fight, but from something worse—uncertainty. She hated not knowing. And right now, we didn’t know anything anymore.

  “Junko…” I started, wincing as I shifted. She didn’t respond at first, her eyes still fixed on the shadows. Eventually, she exhaled slowly and knelt back down beside me, her anger still simmering beneath the surface. I could feel it.

  “We need to find out what’s going on,” she muttered, exasperated. “This whole thing... it’s bigger than we thought.”

  “No kidding,” I groaned, the sting in my shoulder intensifying as the adrenaline wore off. “What do you think she meant by ‘others’? You think there’s more EXS users like us? Or worse?”

  Junko didn’t answer right away. She just stared off into the distance, her eyes dark with thought.

  “I don’t know. But whatever it is, we’re not completely alone in this anymore. Juno is hiding things about this whole pce from us. I guess we've always suspected it, but having it confirmed...that… that changes a lot.”

  Her words hung in the air like a looming threat, heavy with implication. We weren’t alone. The idea was unsettling. The Hollow Night was supposed to be this twisted little arena with its own set of rules — we were supposed to be able to figure those rules out, fight, survive, and end this nightmare. But now...

  Now it felt like the nightmare was only just beginning.

  And worse yet, we didn’t know who we could trust. Juno had to have been watching that exchange we’d just had. What was going through their head? Would they bring it up?

  I was entertaining the idea of calling Juno out right then and there. I wanted something, anything to alleviate the debilitating anxiety steadily wrapping itself around my chest, when another howl thundered through the empty night alleyways and crashed against our ears with force.

  “There’s that damned racket again,” I groaned, covering my left ear. “What is it now?”

  “…I guess we’re about to find out.” Junko sighed, helping me to my feet.

  “Come on, let’s move.”