To Realize One's True Self

Night had risen in turn with the insurrection of my emotions. Tonight was the night I would confront Pulchra, and I wouldn't be so brash to do it as recklessly as last time. Using my knowledge of Pulchra and how she reacts in certain situations, I have meticulously planned an unbeatable strategy. I will get her out of whatever kind of depression she was going through, even if I had to use less than savory means... such as kidnapping.

Snap.

The sound of a branch snapping due to it being stepped on verberated throughout the still jungle, but I wasn't worried. This just meant that she arrived, just on time too.

"So you are here... I assume you have brought the goods, right Capcis?" I didn't turn around to say this, as I already knew who was right behind me. It was Capcis, the girl that is my assistant in this crime.

"Don't make it sound so... scandalous. I'm doing this to help a friend, nothing else." Her voice was still as soundless as a whisper, but she was speaking more confidently than ever before. She had come a long way in just two weeks.

"But you do have her, correct?"

"If you would stop acting like a higher-up of the Underground, then maybe you could turn around and take a look for yourself." She was growing impatient with how I was acting, so I decided to heed her words and drop the act. I turned around and there she was.

Attached to my accomplice's hand was the arm of a certain girl that had been avoiding both me and everyone around her. It was Pulchra, the victim of tonight. But it was necessary if I wanted her to hear me out. She would probably just say something crude and then leave me if I approached her normally... but like this, she would want to listen to me.

"Good, you may leave now. You can trust that I won't do anything to her without her well-being in mind."

Capcis seemed a bit hesitant to leave Pulchra with me, but in the end, decided to walk away. If not for that apology of Pulchra's, then I don't think Capcis would have walked away so easily. I would thank her for that once she regained sense.

After Capcis was out of sight, I took a moment to appreciate the girl in front of me. Her stomach was facing the night sky, allowing me to see her subtle breathing with the small rise of her chest that moved the crest on her robe to the sky. Her hair wasn't brushed like it normally was at school, instead loose strands of hair could be seen flowing down her face and poking out of clumps of her hair. I committed this image to memory, because if this went wrong, then it could be the last I ever see of her.

A breath in... and a breath out. I took deep long breaths to calm my nerves, and soon a burst of motivation made its way through my body. It was time to bring back this depressed girl!

I sat down next to the peacefully sleeping Pulchra and nudged her to wake up. After being dragged into the middle of the campus jungle, she wasn't sleeping too deeply and promptly awoke.

She sat up and stretched her arms with a yawn before taking a look around her.

"Huh? I'm not in my bedroom... and Quis...? What are you doing here? No wait? What am I doing here!?"

She started to freak out and suddenly stood up, but I just looked at her calmly and said, "What do you mean, "What am I doing here"? We were on our way to the World Tree when you suddenly fell asleep, so I waited for you to wake up and here we are now. So are you going to leave me hanging, or are we going to make a special night visit?"

She was staggard by my reply and took a step back, "I-I thought I made it very clear with you before. I want nothing to do with you!"

She said this with an explosive temper, which I just shrugged at, "Are you trying to imitate Telferr or something? You never said such a thing, so are you going to stop joking around and walk with me to the World Tree or not?"

She was even more confused at this reply, but then suddenly started loudly mumbling to herself, "Wait... I fell asleep in my bed and woke up out here in the jungle. Such things don't make sense unless I was moved in my sleep, but the only person who could do that would be Capcis, and I know she wouldn't do that. That means that this has to be... Just in case though, I'll pinch my cheek-"

"Come on! Let's go already!" I grabbed Pulchra's hand just as she was about to pinch her cheek and began to run toward the World Tree. I already caught the fish so I couldn't just let it swim away with a little pinch. I didn't let her have any free time to injure herself as we ran together, and it wasn't much longer until we arrived at the World Tree.

It was a beautiful sight to look at during the day, but at night it was just as, if not more enchanting. You weren't able to see more than an outline of emerald and russet with the meager moonlight, but this gave it the feeling of a hidden gem, not willing to show itself so easily. And it was at this shadow of the World Tree that I laid down with Pulchra next to me. She didn't seem to want to pinch herself anymore, so I decided to start a conversation.

"So, what caused you to be so tired that you passed out in the middle of our walk?" She still looked bewildered by the whole situation, but she was able to reply to my question.

"...I'm not sure. I guess I haven't been getting the most... fulfilling sleeping sessions lately... What about you? Why didn't you just wake me up earlier?"

I shook my hand and said with a tone of avoidance, "Next question please."

She turned her head at me in worry, "Hey hey! What does that mean?! Don't tell me you didn't wake me up because you were busy doing other things to me..." It looked like she was getting into it now. It was a while since our last meeting and I had a bucket load of comebacks to attack her with. I wouldn't put an end to this anytime soon.

And so deep into the night, our voices could be heard talking, whispering, screaming, and laughing.

___________________________________________________________________________

"Hey, Quis... this isn't a dream is it." She didn't look at me while she said this. It had been an hour since we began talking to each other like everything was normal, so it was about time she figured things out.

"...Yea, it isn't a dream Pulchra."

I could see her shoulders shrink a little as I said this, "So... you still remember what I said to you a couple of weeks ago." She said this in a cloggy way, as though she had something stuck in her throat.

"... I do. And Pulchra, before you get up and walk away... I want to ask you something. Could you please tell me what is bothering you? Everyone, me especially is worried about you... So please, let me listen to your problems."

"..." She was completely silent. I did something wrong again. Stategies weren't omnipotent, so that was understandable, but then why... why do I feel such shame? Or rather, why did I feel so disappointed in myself for making this mistake?

Just as I was bracing myself for her to stand up, say something crass, then walk away, she turned to meet my face.

"P-Pulchra..." Her smile from before had formed into a twitching frown as a liquid excreted from her eyes. She was crying. I should go to her and hug her, or at least do something to comfort her. I knew I should do this, yet I couldn't move my body. It was the same as the last time, but this time I wasn't emotionless. I had emotions running through me. Emotions that were so intense that even the Meditation Technique couldn't suppress them.

As I was stunned and unable to move or make a sound, Pulchra spoke to me, her words choking on her tears, "Q-Quis, please forgive me. It was wrong of me to act too rudely before... so please, forgive me... No," She wiped her tears with the sleeve of her robe and looked at me with deep eyes, "Quis, follow me."

She stood up and took my hand. I was too deep in thought to react to her sudden movements, resulting in me being forced to follow behind her.

She didn't talk as she walked, only looking back at me to make sure I was still there even though her grip on my arm hadn't loosened in the least. It wasn't long until a high wooden fence was in front of us.

"Hey, Pulchra... you don't mean to leave campus, do you?" It was the first word spoken between us in a while, but it didn't feel awkward. Pulchra shared my feelings as she responded in a cool and collected manner, "Yes, I do." After she said this, she went up to the fence, knocked it 3 times, and said, "The fairy blooms in the flames of the phoenix."

Just as I was about to question her actions, the wood she knocked on began moving. In the shape of a round door, a piece of wood rotated 90 degrees, making two holes in the fence. With confusion written on my face, Pulchra was able to infer and said, "This is a hidden passage that the L'Amour family developed a while ago. It was made to make sure that even members trapped behind the fence of the campus are able to return for family meetings and such."

As she sated my curiosity, we walked out of the hole that was just made, and with the sound of the door closing behind us, I took in the scenery. It was an open field. Nothing special about it, but to see something other than a jungle for once was a refreshing view.

"Come on then, we aren't there yet." Pulchra grabbed my hand and continued our trek forward.

In a short time, we reached the outskirts of the open field, and the familiar sight of the jungle greeted us once more. But this wasn't the same jungle as the one on the campus. This was the open jungle of the Jungle Region. There wouldn't be any Wild Beasts or Plants so close to the field, but you could hear the song of the crickets. It was more refreshing than you could imagine, to hear a bug commonly labeled as annoying.

"Huh? Pulchra? What are you doing? I think we've gone far enough. Even if the jungle near the sect was free of Wild Beasts and such, that doesn't mean there couldn't be an outlier..."

She grabbed my hand tighter, showing her unwillingness to heed my advice, and said, "It's not far enough. So, please, keep on following me a bit longer." She said this without looking at me, probably because she was embarrassed. I decided to just go along with it. If this was what it took for her to talk to me, then so be it.

I followed her farther into the jungle, and after walking for about 5 minutes, she came to a stop, "This should be enough."

I let go of her hand and then stretched my arms a bit, "Well, I think it's about time you tell me what this is all about. If it was something you wanted to say, then you could have just said it at the World Tree."

She shook her head while still facing away from me, "No, It's not just something I want to say, but something I want to do." As she said this her arm slipped out of the robe's sleeve, causing it to lose balance and expose her entire left side. It wasn't long before she did the same with her right arm and the robe dropped to the floor, covering it in dirt. She would have been completely exposed to the elements if it weren't for her undergarments.

I was shell-shocked. Just what was going through this girl's mind? Had she gone mad? It was just the other day she ran away from a kiss on her hand, and now she was suggesting such a thing. What the hell happened to her for her to become so rash? "Hey... Pulchra. It's not that I don't like you... but this is moving way too fast. Shouldn't we start with words, and then develop into actions?" I said this calmly, but on the inside, I was a mess.

Emotions I didn't even know to be possible stirred inside of me. It probably was the hormones of this pubescent boy I inhabited, but I was not only reacting strongly to her actions emotionally... I had certain physical reactions as well. She turned around and looked me in the eyes with a blush like no other blooming across her face, and said, "You may be right Quis... but I can't do that. I've never felt emotions so intense before now. I know that if I can't be with you I will go insane, and the only way for me to do that is to get passed my grandfather. He would normally not allow a relationship between me and you... but if we had something more physical connecting us, a baby for example, then he would have to accept you."

I was in no shape to dismantle her flawed thinking as she got closer to me. My breathing was a mess, some short, some long, and my thoughts weren't much better assuming you could even call them thoughts at that point. I was unable to say any words to defend myself and she got so close to me that I could feel her warm breath on my chin. She looked up to me with eyes filled with passion, not the passion of a kid discovering a new toy, nor the passion of a teacher helping a student, but the passion of a lover, and said, "You are right though, I should start with words. How about these... Quis, I love you."

Time seemed to slow down. My breathing grew more sporadic than ever before, and my heartbeat reached heights I never thought it could reach. My eyes bulged open in remembrance as those words repeated in my head over and over, each rendition more distorted than the last.

Quis, I love you.

Qui-i-is, I l0-ve uo.

Is, I lllouave uuu.

Isho, I louve ou.

Ikusho, I love you

___________________________________________________________________________

"Ikusho, I love you."

She lay on my shoulder as we overlooked the beautiful scenery of the sleeping village she called home. My heart was beating thunderously, each beat like a bass drum being struck inside my body. This person I loved so deeply just said these words to me, so how could I react calmly? Her long strands of blonde hair fell down my back and I could see her closing her eyes, content in my embrace. She awaited my next words.

"Uruhato... No. Hato, I... I love you too."

She breathed what seemed like a sigh of relief and her head fell onto my lap, her beautiful blue eyes meeting mine, "Ikusho, has anyone ever told you how magnificent your eyes are? It was the first thing I noticed about you. Yes, they are an interesting color, but I mean something more than that. I noticed from your eyes that you were someone I could spend a lot of time with, and it looks like I was right."

This tugged my heart even more. I have always been self-conscious of my crimson-red eyes, but she found them magnificent.

She turned her head around to look at the village below the hill we rested on, "I hope every day can be like this one. I wish for us to live a carefree life, one where we have children that can run around without worry. One where we can live the rest of our days peacefully, together."

I put my hand on her head and stroked her hair, "I couldn't agree more." I was truly content in this moment. Nothing else mattered besides the woman who lay in my lap.

Nothing.

___________________________________________________________________________

"H-Hato? W-What are you doing?"

I said this even though it was obvious what she was doing. If the cold feeling of steel in my stomach wasn't evidence enough, there was also the sword sticking into my belly and out of my back. But I couldn't feel any physical pain, only a striking pain in my heart. I couldn't see myself, but I already knew my eyes were filled with anguish. 'Why had it turned out like this?' I wondered to myself while on the brink of death.

"I'm sorry Ikusho, I really am, but it has to be this way. I don't want to do this anymore than you want it to happen to you."

'Yea right. You say that, yet why can't I see the same anguish I feel in your eyes? I have always been good at looking into the soul from the eyes, and yours tell me something else than what you say.'

Cough.

I cough out some blood as my life flashes before my eyes. The good times when I was laughing with friends, and the bad times when I was crying, all alone. She got rid of those negatives, turning them into positives, even the times when I cried. And I did the same. I felt anger when she was treated badly, I felt sad when I saw her frown, I felt afraid for her when she was in danger, and I felt happy when she smiled. Yet this was how she treated me after all of that?

I wasn't angry, quite the contrary actually. I was calm, scarily calm. So calm that even Hato seemed to feel uncomfortable. I didn't care though. I reached out my hand to her cheek and rubbed it before saying with blood escaping my mouth, "I'm sorry Hato. I'm sorry it had to come to this."

I grabbed the sword that perforated my body and pulled it out, cutting my innards and the palms of my hands along the way. Blood spilled from the open wound, and I peeled the sword out of Hato's stunned grasp. I positioned the sword's blade to face her neck.

"Wait, Ikusho! We can talk about this. I only did that because he was forcing me-"

And I swung.

___________________________________________________________________________

"Quis, I love you."

She hugged my body, greeting me with a tight embrace, but I didn't respond. That feeling of forgetting something important was gone, instead, realization washed over my body, 'Just what the hell have I been doing for the past month? Was I trying to star in a romance play? No... I know what happened. In the chaos of intense emotions, new personalities, hormones, and a new environment, I forgot myself. I am not Quis. I am not the Demon King. I am Ikusho, Ikusho Shin'in.'

I looked at Pulchra who hugged me tightly, awaiting my next words, 'This girl was a big problem, and if I let her stay here, I risk losing myself again. What I have to do is simple then.'

I put my hand around Pulchra's neck and said, "I'm sorry Pulchra, but this has to end here."

She looked up at me in confusion because of my words that were contradictory to my earlier actions, but it didn't matter. Power was manifesting through my body. First, it started in my core, then it went to my right arm, before finally resting in my hand that grasped her neck. She was about to say something to me when her eyes widened in shock. She put her hand on the side of her neck only to see it stained with blood. As if her body finally registered the gaping hole in her neck, it flopped over, blood pooling beneath her body.

The moon parted through the clouds that covered it before, lighting up the scene. In front of me lay a pink-haired girl with beautiful violet eyes. Her every facial feature seemed to be sculpted by a master artist, and her body wasn't lacking either. It should have been a sad scene, to see such a girl laying dead on the ground, dirt slightly covering her.

In the windless jungle, bushes could be heard rustling.

On the cold ground, warmth in the form of blood could be felt.

And in the dark sky, a bright moon could be seen.

I looked up to the moon and sighed, "It's too bad it had to come to this, now I have to find a way to clean this all up."

End of Part One: The Rebirth and Death of the Demon King