Noel's breath hitched.
His body stiffened as he stared at the girl standing before him.
She shouldn't be here.
No one should be here.
And yet, there she was—alive.
"Are, isn't it 12?"
A playful, sing-song voice rang out, light and teasing.
Almost too cute.
Almost too innocent.
She looked exactly as he remembered—short black hair, neatly cut, framing her delicate face.
Two dull gold decorations rested around her forelocks, subtly catching the dim light.
Her large, deep blue eyes shimmered, reflecting an almost childlike curiosity.
But that innocence was a lie.
She wore an oversized beige hoodie, the sleeves far too long, swallowing her hands, and a pleated blue short skirt that barely swayed with her subtle movements.
But despite the softness of her tone, despite her delicate appearance—
Noel heard nothing but an eerie hum, a discordant static pressing against his ears.
His heartbeat quickened.
His palms dampened.
Shione.
Subject No. 92.
A devil from the Glasya-Labolas Family.
Final Glimpse
A single glance is all it takes.
Noel had read her file before.
How did she sur—
Riiing—
A phone buzzed from the pocket of her hoodie, snapping the moment's tension.
She blinked, seemingly caught off guard, then let out a small giggle before pulling the device out.
"Ehhh~ Ahhh, okay, hehe. I accidentally met a senior."
A short pause.
"Yes, yes. Okay, I'm going."
Beep.
The call ended with a soft, artificial click.
Then, she turned back to him with a tilt of her head.
"Hehe, I need to go now. Kaa-san just called, asking where I am."
A slight pout formed on her lips.
"I guess I've been out for a while, huh?"
She lifted her gaze—just slightly. Just enough.
Noel froze.
"Hehe~ I wonder if a kind senior would help this pitiful junior and take her home. It's already quite late, after all."
She smiled.
A sweet, innocent smile.
Noel felt a chill crawl up his spine.
"Eh?"
——————✗—————
The cold night air carried a crisp stillness, broken only by the soft hum of distant traffic.
Japan's signature lamp posts bathed the streets in a muted orange glow, their light flickering over empty sidewalks and casting long, wavering shadows.
The benches lining the path looked cold, untouched—remnants of a world asleep.
Noel walked in silence.
Beside him, Shione balanced on the raised safety bumps of the roadside, arms outstretched, her oversized hoodie swaying slightly as she moved.
She looked innocent—playful, even—like any other middle school girl entertaining herself on the way home.
Isn't she literally from that war devil clan?
He had accepted it now.
He couldn't run.
Even if he wanted to, there was no getting away from her.
That realization didn't bring courage, just a strange kind of resignation—a creeping nihilism that settled deep in his bones.
He might as well ask.
Looking at the girl teetering along the road, he exhaled slowly.
Finally, he voiced the thought clawing at the back of his mind.
"How'd you survive back there?"
Shione paused mid-step, her foot hovering over the next bump.
Then, slowly, she turned her head toward him.
For a moment, Noel's instincts screamed.
His body tensed, his breath caught—but his mind forcibly calmed him down.
"Hehe~ I'm quite light, after all. Light as a feather~"
Her voice was sing-song, airy, as if she had said something completely ordinary.
Light?
What the hell was that supposed to mean?
Before he could ask, she twirled on her heel and tilted her head at him.
"What about senpai? Could it be that you were outside when the explosion happened?"
Noel gave a nonchalant shrug.
"Well, yeah. Hisame asked me for something."
Shione giggled.
"Hehe~, senpai's such a liar~"
Something about the way she said it sent a chill through him.
His throat tightened, words catching for just a second.
"Why do you say so?"
Shione didn't answer immediately.
Instead, she took a few slow, deliberate steps, the soles of her shoes clicking faintly against the pavement.
Then, in a voice too casual for the weight of her words, she said:
"Whether directly or indirectly, Hisame never saved a soul in his entire life."
Noel frowned.
"I never thought you had that view of him."
Shione giggled again, but this time, it didn't reach her eyes.
"No~, it's not just my view."
Before he could press further, she suddenly perked up, her finger pointing ahead.
"Ohh~, look! That's my house, senpai!"
Shione's house was nothing extravagant—just a simple, well-kept home tucked neatly between two others in a quiet residential street.
The dark wooden gate creaked softly as she pushed it open, revealing a small, warmly lit entrance.
A modest garden lined the side, a ceramic tanuki statue peeking from behind a potted plant.
"Kaa-saan~"
She hurried inside, her voice light, affectionate.
A woman stepped out of the doorway.
She had the same short black hair, though hers was tied back loosely.
Her round face carried the softness of someone who had spent years tending to a home—gentle, a little chubby, yet nothing out of the ordinary.
The mother's gaze lifted to Noel.
"You must be Shione's senior. Thank you for taking your time to bring her home. Would you like to stay for dinner?"
Noel hesitated, then shook his head. "Ah, no, it's fine. It's already quite late."
The woman nodded. "Alright, be careful on your way home."
"Senpai~, be careful!"
Shione giggled as she waved, her sleeves flopping slightly from the oversized hoodie.
She looked so normal in that moment—just another middle school girl saying goodbye to an upperclassman.
The front door closed.
Noel turned on his heel, hands stuffed into his pockets as he walked away.
But then… his body stopped.
A dull, gnawing feeling sat at the edge of his awareness, the kind of unease that didn't fully take shape until it was too late.
His breath misted in the cold air as he exhaled, brow furrowing.
Something was wrong.
Something had been wrong from the very start.
His mind replayed the conversation, each line falling into place like puzzle pieces—pieces that didn't fit.
"Human world?"
Why did she say it like that?
"Why is she here?"
No reason.
There was no reason for her to be here.
"Kaa-san?"
Her mother.
A human mother?
She didn't have one.
At least, not a human one.
Not someone without demonic power.
...Magic? Memory Alteration?
Shione shouldn't know it.
I didn't even feel a shred of—
No demonic power.
…No demonic power.
A sudden, gut-wrenching realization crashed down on him like a tidal wave, ripping through his thoughts with sickening clarity.
His breath hitched.
His pulse pounded in his ears.
Slowly, as if drawn by some unseen force, he turned back toward the now-empty street.
The house was still there, its windows glowing with warm, inviting light.
But all Noel could see was the darkness beyond it.
His fingers curled into his palm, his nails digging into his skin.
Shione.
You—
A human?