Chapter 20

As Kai surged forward, motivated by a desperate need for vengeance, he saw he couldn't equal the Yomigaeri's strength and speed. No matter how hard he pushed himself or how passionately he struck, the creature's motions were like a lethal dance, constantly keeping one step ahead of him.

Its mocking smile widened, and its eyes gleamed with delight as it observed Kai's frantic desperation. The Yomigaeri surged forward unexpectedly, its claws slashing across Kai's chest, tearing through the fabric of his shirt and leaving deep gashes in its wake.

Kai could feel his strength fading with each passing instant. His vision blurred, and his breath came in gasping, rapid breaths as he struggled to remain conscious and fight.

Sato, seeing his comrade helpless before the Yomigaeri, rushed forward, his knife held high. But he was too slow and the Yomigaeri dodged the attack and seized his arm, its eyes widening as it noticed the markings that adorned his skin.

"Interesting," it hissed, the hunger in its voice almost palpable. "More powerful than the others."

The Yomigaeri plunged its hand deep into Sato's abdomen, gripping his solar plexus with cruel ferocity.

Sato screamed in agony as the Yomigaeri severed his solar plexus, and his body went motionless as his life force diminished.

As Sato's lifeless body crumpled to the ground, Arumi's heart seemed to shatter into a million pieces. For a moment, she stood frozen, her eyes wide and disbelieving as the realization of his death washed over her like a cold wave. Her breath caught in her throat, her chest constricting with a pain so profound that it threatened to consume her whole.

Arumi's shock gave way to a grief so powerful that it left her shaking, her knees giving out beneath her as she sank to the ground.

The Yomigaeri turned to face the remaining survivors, its eyes gleaming with heinous pleasure and its voice a frightening whisper. "More."

One by one, the Yomigaeri fell upon the survivors, their screams echoing through the room as they met their gruesome ends, their solar plexuses torn out and devoured with inhuman savagery.

Arumi's cries resonated throughout the storage area, a melody of pain that blended with the cries of the other survivors as they met their own horrific deaths.

She barely registered the Yomigaeri's approach, her head still reeling from the unthinkable reality of Sato's death.

"Sato," she muttered, her voice breaking on each syllable. "Sato, why?"

The Yomigaeri, who appeared to take twisted delight in Arumi's anguish, hissed in glee as it approached her.

Arumi, her eyes blurred by tears, lifted her head, her gaze falling upon the approaching Yomigaeri with a dawning terror. She struggled to her feet, her body trembling with fury and grief, as she quickly grabbed a knife that was close by and held it out with a shaky hand

"Stay away from me," she growled, her voice trembling with a determination that was rapidly eclipsed by the certainty of her fate. "Stay away from me, you monster."

The Yomigaeri merely smiled, its eyes glinting with a cruel hunger as it advanced.

As the Yomigaeri closed the distance between them, Arumi swung the knife, her movements fueled by rage and fear. But the creature surged forward, evading her strike and knocking the weapon from her hand.

"No!" Arumi screamed, her voice raw with fury. "You can't have me."

But the Yomigaeri was implacable, its hand reaching out with a sickening swiftness, seizing her throat in a cruel grip.

Arumi battled against the creature's grip, clawing at its wrist as she fought for breath. But the Yomigaeri was unrelenting, its hold firm.

As Arumi's eyesight blurred, a single idea raced across her mind: a final recollection that appeared to glow with a golden light.

Sato smiled at her in the dim light of the storage room, his eyes shining with a warmth that made her heart sing.

"Sato," she said quietly, her voice little more than a raspy breath.

As Arumi's dying seconds passed, the room seemed to glitter, and her senses were overwhelmed with one last glimpse of beauty: a ray of sunshine pouring through the cracks in the  room ceiling, creating a sheen over Sato's dead figure.

Arumi's body went limp  with a quivering sigh, her essence wrenched away with a terrible rend as the Yomigaeri devoured her solar plexus.

The other survivors, their screams silenced, lay spread throughout the room, their bodies twisted and disfigured by the Yomigaeri's terrible attack.

As the carnage came to a standstill, Kaori remained fixed in shock, her gaze stuck on the Yomigaeri, which hovered over Sato's body, its claws still dripping with Arumi's life energy.

But the scar on the back of its neck, a jagged line that was all too familiar, caught her interest.

"Shota," she said quietly, her voice scarcely audible. "Shota, is that you?"

The Yomigaeri turned as it heard the name, its eyes shining with human recognition.

Kai lay on the floor, sore and injured, his thoughts racing with questions. He saw Kaori stare at the Yomigaeri, her face betraying confusion and anguish, her voice shaking with uncertainty.

"Kaori," Kai rasped, his breath coming in quick, shallow spurts. "What is going on?" "What are you calling that?"

Kaori did not respond, her gaze fixed on the thing before her, her face filled with desperate hope and terror.

As Kai struggled to make sense of the situation, Kaori took a hesitant step forward, her voice shaking as she addressed the Yomigaeri.

The tension in the room was thick enough to slice with a blade. Kai, exhausted and wounded, watched with wide eyes as Kaori took another shaky step towards the yomigaeri.

"Shota," she repeated, her voice a mere whisper.

The Yomigaeri's gaze lingered on Kaori, its twisted smile deepening with a malevolent satisfaction.

"Kaori," it purred, its voice low and chilling, "my dear, sweet sister. It has been far too long."

As its voice washed over her like a cold wave, Kaori's body tensed with fear and dread, her mind racing as she realized the horror of the truth.