Hayato Kourai 

Some violence, including eye trauma in episode 10.

Demons.
Some call them "yokai," others, "ghosts."

We hunted them here in Shinjuku. Me, and my one and only friend. As usual, he arrived at our base humming idly.

"Hmm~ hmm hmmmm~ ♪ Oh—you're still asleep, Hayato. Let's get over there already!"

Subaru started shaking my body. I was getting some nice sleep—why'd he have to bother me?

"Hey, up and at 'em. It'll be dawn if we don't hurry!"

"Subaru, lemme sleep a little longer..." I muttered.

He paid no mind to how sleepy I was and peered closer, smiling. "Nope, sorry, Hayato. We're heading out, so you better get ready!"

"Is it my power to hear voices of the dead you need? Or this?"

I grasped the sword lying near my bed in my hands. Hyakki—One Hundred Demons. It was part of my power; a blade that sucked the blood of demons. I couldn't hunt them without it.

"Aw, grumpy 'cause I interrupted your sleep? I need all of you, not just your power, you know. ♪"

"Flattery will get you nowhere."

"Come on, get ready! I'll find a way to thank you for it."

"Yeah, yeah..."

"All righty, where to today~? ♪"

Subaru looked at the map on my phone, trying to decide today's destination.

"Okay, let's go here!" he declared.

"If that's your choice, let's leave quickly. If we gather info at the scene, the sun really will rise."

I grabbed a jacket from nearby, and we left the base.

"Is that annoying god 'Adras' still sleeping?" I asked.

"Yep. But he'll wake up any minute now. We've gotta feed him a demon, fast."

If we let him run wild again, Subaru would get hurt.

"...Okay. Let's hurry."

"Right. Let's do this, partner."

"Haaaaaah!"

My slash lopped off the demon's limbs, and it collapsed to the ground, powerless.

"Nice one, partner! Amazing swordplay as always."

"Just eat it before it disappears."

"Will do."

When Subaru held his hand up to the demon, a black mist appeared, absorbing it into his body.

"Okay, all done."

Subaru—no, Adras—absorbed the power of demons and transformed it into his own. He claimed to need that power to get revenge on the onmyoji who sealed him away. Truthfully, it was dangerous to feed him, but if we didn't, he would go on a rampage.

"What do you look so worried for?" Subaru asked. "It's fine. If I run wild, you'll just kill me, right?"

"Yeah, I'm not so sure."

"Ah, bullying me again, I see. The two of us made a promise—you'd better keep it."

"Yeah, yeah."

I could never tell if this guy was kidding.

"Oh, while it's still cold—here," he continued. "A thank-you for helping me out. What is it, you may ask~? A new product released today!"

Subaru cheerily handed me a can of soda.

"You don't have to thank me."

"It's fine! I'm doing it because I want to," he said, starting to drink his own soda.

Well, my throat was parched from the fight, so it actually worked out. I followed his lead and took a sip, the sweet flavor spreading through my mouth.

"...Looks like your soda's really good," Subaru said. "Lemme have a sip."

"Why didn't you just buy the same kind?"

"I didn't think so when I bought it, but the way you drink it, it looks like it tastes good."

I stopped myself from asking if he bought me something he thought would be bad. "Yeah, okay. Here, just a sip."

"Thanks! Here I go!"

Subaru Mikage. We've been friends since childhood, and he saved my life...but he has a secret. He's half-human, half demon, possessed by the ancient god Adras. Because of Adras's objectives, he's forced to put up with him. If he doesn't consume demons, Adras rampages in Subaru's body. We can't let that happen, so I decided to use my own power to hunt demons for him. Demon or human, I would cut down anyone for Subaru's sake. I owe my life to him, after all—

It was a long time ago.

"Hayato-kun, c'mere!"

"Wait up!"

Coming and going to school with classmates. Having childish conversations. Back then, I was just an ordinary elementary schooler. Well, maybe there was one unusual thing—

"Help...me...hurts..."

The noise I heard every day. Voices of the dead who were no longer in this world. Voices of the dead that only I could hear. I didn't remember when I first started hearing them, and it didn't really matter.

"What's up, Hayato-kun?"

"Oh, nothing! If you're too slow, I'll leave you behind!"

"Hey, no fair!"

Thinking back on it now, I was blessed by my environment. That's why, out of a desire not to destroy the place, I got better and better at lying.

"Where...going...stop..."

I heard it again, but I wasn't scared. They would disappear on their own with enough time.

"Oh yeah, on TV yesterday—"

When I turned around, my classmates were gone. I felt a sudden chill in the air.

"Hey, where'd you go? Oh, is it hide and seek? Let's do rock-paper-scissors for who's 'it'!"

No one replied or showed themselves. I panicked and ran, finding that I wasn't on the familiar way home anymore.

"W-What do I do? I gotta get home!"

I kept running through the darkness, but there wasn't a single person in sight. 

I'm scared, I'm scared, I'm scared, I'm scared—Someone, anyone, come out!

I rounded the corner and smacked into a wall of some kind.

"Ow! What was—"

I looked up to see a monster standing in front of me. It was so sudden, I couldn't even speak. It was the first time I had laid eyes on a demon so grotesque and so powerful, with such a solid presence. It fixed its great big eyes on me and howled.

"Some...one...help..." I pleaded, crying. If I couldn't even speak properly, who was going to come save me? Even so, I desperately tried to rasp the words out. But my struggle was in vain. The monster raised its arm and swung it down toward me—

"Waaaaaah!"

I choked out one last scream. I cowered, shielding my face with my arms. The next moment, lukewarm liquid splashed onto my body.

"I'm...not...hurt...?"

What just happened? When I looked up, that same black liquid that had dripped onto me was gushing from the monster's body like a fountain.

"Ah... ah..."

As I stood unable to comprehend the situation, the liquid fell into my gaping mouth. I turned my head to spit it out, and saw a boy about my age standing there.

"Y-You did that...?"

"I—I just—waaah!"

He suddenly burst into tears. Maybe he was just lost, too. Even though I was terrified and didn't know what was going on, when I saw the boy crying, strangely enough, I found myself holding his hand.

"You really saved me. Thank you."

"Huh? Y-You're...?"

"I'm Hayato Kourai. What's your name?"

He gripped my hand back. "Subaru Mikage..."

"Okay, Subaru-kun! Hey, let's have some soda together!"

I still remember Subaru's face as he nodded bashfully. That was how I met Subaru, and how our story began. After getting home safe, we started meeting up often. We played together every day, and before long he started coming over to my house. My parents showered affection on Subaru, who didn't really want to go home...

"Just like brothers."

It was my dad who said that, or maybe my mom. It's true; our relationship went beyond friendship—I still believe that strongly now. That's why, despite knowing everything about him, I would never think to abandon him.

"Oops! Drank a little too much. You can have mine, so forgive me, 'kay? ♪"

"Yeah, yeah..."

What I can do now is keep hunting those monsters—those demons—and quickly set Subaru free. That's all I can do.

The ancient god Adras—a loathsome god that possessed Subaru. Apparently, he was sealed away by a powerful onmyoji, losing his power and becoming a mere spirit. Right...I think he said he survived by attaching himself to closely related descendants. It's thanks to that that Subaru got caught up in this mess. It's fine when he's sleeping inside Subaru's body, but it's a pain in the ass when he wakes up. That's why I was searching for a way to rip him out of there, but...

"No luck today, huh..."

I was completely stuck. The onmyoji who sealed Adras had long since disappeared, leaving no clues.

"Heheh, fancy meeting you here. What're you up to?"

Before I knew it, Subaru stood in front of me. He acted like it was a coincidence, but knowing him, I'm sure he had been looking for me.

"It's a secret," I said.

"Aww, no fair. Keeping secrets just makes me more curious!"

"Anyway, I got some info from the dead. Let's go there today."

I left Subaru there and walked quickly away.

"Hey! Don't leave me behind!"

As we approached the area, there was a noise. It was unmistakable.

"Subaru, it sounds like someone's fighting up ahead. Don't use Adras's power unless I say it's okay."

"Yep, I gotcha."

Subaru had no fighting strength. When fighting demons, he had to draw on Adras's power instead. I wanted to avoid that as much as possible.

"I'll go ahead and check. Stay right there."

I went on ahead and quietly observed the situation from the shadows. There was one—no, three people. A young man accompanied by two children was fighting a huge demon, a sword in his hand.

"Raaah!"

He swung the sword down at the demon, but the cut was too shallow.

"Looks like you're having trouble—let me help!"

I caught the demon unawares, slicing through it with Hyakki.

"Wh-Who're you!?"

"Just know I'm not your enemy. We'd better focus on beating the ones that are enemies first," I said.

"Uh, right!"

"Hokuto, don't get careless just because there's one more person!"

"I know that, Genbu-sama!"

I took the lead, swinging Hyakki at the demon, and the guy called Hokuto slashed at it after me. The demon struck back, grazing my cheek. Our opponent was too big and too strong for the two of us to defeat it ourselves. Just then, someone sent the demon flying.

"What was that!?"

"You're always trying so hard on your own. Didn't we decide we'd fight together?"

"Subaru!?"

Subaru had come up behind us unnoticed. His hand was raised toward the demon. Had he used Adras's power...? The fallen demon slowly got to its feet.

"Is that your friend? Let's work together then!" Hokuto asked, slashing at the demon.

"Don't do anything reckless, Subaru!"

"Yep, I hear ya!"

A few minutes later...

The demon's huge body slowly toppled to the ground.

"We finally did it. Subaru, are you all—"

I started to call out to him, but he was approaching the fallen demon. Hokuto watched him curiously.

"Hey, what's he doing?" he asked.

"...Just watch."

A black mist appeared from Subaru's outstretched hand, absorbing the demon into his body.

"What's happening?"

"He's absorbing the demon's power."

That kid next to Hokuto had said that—I think he was called Genbu. He could tell just by looking.

"Ugh..."

"Subaru!?"

I hurried to grab him before he could fall.

"Ahaha, guess I overdid it... The rest is up to you, partner..."

After saying those words, Subaru passed out. It hadn't been very long at all—he must have used more of Adras's power than I thought. But he was still Subaru for now. The day I'd fulfill our promise was still far off.

"Is that guy okay?" Hokuto asked.

"Just sleeping. He'll be fine. I want to let him rest, so I'm gonna head back."

"Yeah. You really saved me today—I owe you one."

"We've got our own reasons to fight. You really don't need to do anything."

"No, it's okay; I want to pay you back. You can always ask if you're in trouble—we're always around in Nakano."

I picked up Subaru and stood up to leave.

"You two are an interesting pair," Genbu added. "It's surprising you'd work together."

"What do you mean?"

"You're really trying to save him?"

My face stiffened involuntarily at his words. Why would this kid say that?

"If you are, you should give up now. There's nothing you can do."

At a shopping arcade in Nakano...

The guy from yesterday, Hokuto, said he would be here. From the voices of the dead, he seemed to be pretty famous, so I was able to find him in just a few minutes.

"You didn't bring your partner," he remarked.

"I asked, but he said no."

It was rare for Subaru to turn me down, but I had something more important to check right now.

"So, anything we can do for you?" Hokuto asked.

"There's something I wanna ask about yesterday. Not you, but the turtle."

I pointed at Genbu, who Hokuto had brought along, and he transformed from turtle form to human.

"You told me to give up on saving Subaru," I continued. "What do you mean by that?"

"Exactly what it sounds like. If you continue on, you won't be able to save him."

"Then...are you saying there's another way to free him?"

"Free him? Impossible. Not even God could free him."

I couldn't understand how Genbu could say that so definitively. How could I believe that?

"It'll be terrible if there's no way to save him!"

"I told you—"

"Subaru... Subaru is my best friend... I have to save him..."

"Hey, Genbu-sama," Hokuto cut in, "Is there really no way?"

"If you're that determined, why not check it out for yourself?" Genbu asked.

"Check what out?"

Genbu wrote something on a piece of paper and passed it to me. It looked like some kind of map, but to where...?

"You'll find books related to onmyoji here. If you're not going to give up, you should give them a look."

"Then I'll definitely do that!"

"Well, good luck out there!"

It was a faint light in the midst of my despair. If we could learn about the onmyoji who sealed Adras, we could pull him out of Subaru.

The location on the map was an old shrine. I told the priest I was studying history, and he let me read the books inside.

"There must be a clue in here..."

I read every book piled up before me cover to cover, making sure not to miss a thing. Suddenly, I spotted a familiar word.

"Hyakki...? Why is that name in a book about onmyoji?"

I checked the other books again, and found similar accounts of Hyakki.

"Hyakki has something to do with the onmyoji? ...Shit, they didn't write many details."

Still, I learned that Hyakki had a connection. Until now, I had been pursuing information on the onmyoji and Adras. If I tried to learn more about Hyakki, I might find something new.

"I should get Subaru to help. It's a pain reading all these books on my own."

I called Subaru with my cellphone. The call tone kept ringing, with no sign of him picking up.

"He'd usually pick up right away. Maybe it's just a bad time..."

I thought about calling again, but I turned back to the books. Maybe I should have paid more attention to Subaru at the time. If I had, that might not have happened...

Several days had passed since I started looking into Hyakki. I tried to invite Subaru out several times since then, but his answer was always the same:

"I really wanna go with you, buuut, sorry, I've got some business to take care of!" he would say, declining my invitation. If it were the usual Subaru, he'd say something like, "I'm so happy you asked me out on a date~!"

Maybe he just wasn't feeling well because of Adras. Anyway, now was the time to focus on the book in front of me. I was so close to learning more about Hyakki.

"...What's that mean?"

As I read through the book, I arrived at an answer. It was written in every book.

"Hyakki can only be wielded by onmyoji?"

I couldn't hide my shock and disorientation. The answer I'd gotten so sick of searching for was right in front of me. If Hyakki could only be wielded by onmyoji, then the descendant of the onmyoji Adras had hated for a thousand years was—

"It was...me."

In other words, I was the only person who could do something about Adras. I didn't know what Subaru would do if he found out I was the enemy onmyoji. Adras would try to seek revenge. If Adras rampages, then I might have to fight Subaru as his host.

"No way. I won't let that happen."

Subaru would probably take action before that. He'd always had good intuition. If he found out our connection—

"...Don't tell me!"

I had a bad feeling and ran as fast as I could to the base, where Subaru would be waiting. I kept telling myself it wasn't possible; it was just my imagination, but I couldn't stop my anxiety.

"Subaru!"

When I reached the door, Subaru was nowhere to be found. I thought he must have stepped out, but those feelings were shattered by a small piece of paper.

Thanks for everything, Hayato. Be well.

I walked the streets of Shinjuku alone. Subaru, who had always been at my side, was gone. I think it was about ten days since he had left the base. I gathered information from both the living and the dead, but I still hadn't heard any news about him.

"This is...the place that god was sealed, huh?"

There was nowhere left to search. I knew I wouldn't find him just by walking around, but I couldn't do nothing. And so, I came here. This was the one place in those books I couldn't fully understand. I didn't think the place behind this shrine was really where that god had been sealed away so long ago. I passed through an overgrown path, arriving at the frame of an old, abandoned shrine.

"This is the old shrine the priest mentioned?"

Inside the shrine was a large stone, the writing on it worn and illegible. Apparently, this used to be the main hall until it deteriorated and a new hall was built. As I approached the stone, I heard a high-pitched ringing.

"What was that?"

I looked around and noticed that Hyakki was glowing at my waist.

"...I was having a wonderful nap. I never expected to be woken in such a form."

At that unnatural-sounding voice, I looked up, thinking I was hearing voices of the dead again. There, I saw a man in a hunting robe.

"You're...the onmyoji?"

"How insolent, boy. Indeed, I am the onmyoji who sealed away that loathsome god."

I never expected to meet the man himself. This was my chance. I might be able to ask him how to save Subaru.

"Let me get straight to the point," I said. "Subaru...the person Adras resides in... I want to free him. Tell me how to do it."

"Not a shred of consideration in you, truly. You would free Adras?"

The onmyoji laughed at my words. What was so funny about that? It was more important to me than my own life.

"There is no such way."

"Everyone always says the same thing. So I—"

So what? You can say it's impossible, but I wouldn't give up. There's no way I could.

"I'm gonna find a way!"

"Haha, to think my descendant would be such a fool! Listen to my tale for a moment, boy."

I listened with my back turned to him.

"There is no way to seal a god itself. If I could do so, I would have long ago. Even with my strength, I could not seal away that soul. A god is such a troublesome thing."

"So what? It's impossible, so I should just give up?"

"Don't speak hastily. Suppose you released the god from this Subaru—the freed god would only bring disaster to everyone."

"But just because..."

What's important to me wasn't a bunch of strangers. It was my irreplaceable partner, Subaru.

"However, you must do this. The god's power within him is regaining strength near to what it once was when he was sealed. Before he returns to full strength, you must seal the god and the vessel together."

"What!? I'm not sealing Subaru!"

In response to my shout, the onmyoji continued speaking plainly, pity in his voice. "You hear voices of the dead, but do not see them, correct?"

"Yeah, I can't see them. It's weird that I can see you."

"The onmyoji blood in your veins must have been rather diluted across the generations."

"Then, onmyoji used to be able to see the dead?"

"Indeed. I know there is only so much you are capable of as an onmyoji—thus, you must choose."

"Choose what?"

"Your friend's life is precious to you, but you must weigh his life against the lives of many innocents."

There was no need to worry about that. I would—

"You must ask yourself once more. This friend you are trying to save—would he find happiness in a life built upon sacrifice?"

I left the onmyoji and headed back. I never thought the day would come when I had to weigh Subaru's life against so many others. I'd decided on my answer a long time ago. But what about Subaru? If I tried to save his life, would he still greet me with the same smile?

"Subaru, what would you do...?"

I felt ashamed for asking such a meaningless question. The one who had to choose was the onmyoji who wielded Hyakki. And that was me. With a deep sigh, I reached our base, and noticed the door was ajar.

"Subaru...?"

Instead of a reply, I heard a familiar song—

"Hmm, hm hmm~♪"

"That song...!"

Thinking Subaru had come back, I went to rush inside, but the doorknob was totally broken. Jeez, Subaru...he didn't bring the key, so he broke it and forced his way in? I put my hand on the open door and went in.

"Subaru, you here?"

I didn't even have to look around—Subaru stood alone in the center of the room. I tried to get closer and call out to him, but I sensed intuitively that something about him was wrong, and stopped in my tracks.

"Are you really Su—"

I tried calling out again, but his fist flew at my face the next moment.

"Wha—!?"

I was so shocked at the speed of his sudden attack that I fell backwards right there. But that was a good thing. Subaru's fist had grazed the top of my head and hit the wall behind me. The wall crumbled, cracking all the way down to the floor. When Subaru looked at me, collapsed on the floor, what I saw was not his usual smile, but a warped and wicked grin.

"Heh heh heh, how lucky for you, boy."

"Don't tell me...Adras!?"

This was where Subaru and I spent our time together. We laughed, cried, and even fought sometimes. No one could get between us here. It was a place just for the two of us. And yet...

"Running away? Heh. Hahahaha! Not bad—entertain me more!"

Adras laughed loudly as he destroyed our base.

"Shit!"

The building was crumbling bit by bit from his attacks. Try as I might to stop his fists, I could only dodge them. I didn't have the courage to draw Hyakki right now. On top of that, if I stayed here, I'd just go out with the collapsing building. Even so, if I lured Adras outside, the damage would be even worse. What should I do...?

"What's wrong—is that sword at your waist just for decoration? Then get ready for a thousand years of torment!"

"You realized, then...that I'm an onmyoji."

"That's right. It was your little friend who told me!"

"Friend...? ...What have you done to Subaru!?"

"Heheh, you only just noticed? A little slow on the uptake, aren't you, boy?"

Adras was incomparably more powerful than the last time we fought. That told me one thing. That "Subaru" was no longer there.

"...! Give him back!"

I remembered those words from before.

"Your friend's life is precious to you, but you must weigh his life against the lives of many innocents."

Adras swung his fist down, finally breaking through the floor. I lost my balance, caught in the collapsing foundation.

"Oh no—!?"

"Hahahaha! One blow to begin!"

I blocked Adras's fist at once, but a mind-boggling pain burst through my arm. I heard a cracking sound as the blow smashed me through the window in intense pain.

"Whoa, what!? A boy fell from the sky!"

"Hey, you okay?"

People gathered around me where I had been thrown outside. This was bad—

"Run away now!"

I had probably broken some bones in my arm. I endured the pain and pleaded with the people around me to leave, but they wouldn't.

"I'm not done tormenting you yet!"

It was clear where Adras was aiming as he fell from above.

"Get away!"

I pushed back the people swarming me and wrenched myself free.

"What are you doing—"

Those words were lost in the sound of Adras's feet pounding the ground.

"Hey, quit dodging me!"

"Wh-Wha...!?"

No one could move as they witnessed this shocking event.

"Run, he'll kill you!"

People shrieked and ran in response to my scream. Good. If they ran, they wouldn't get caught up in this.

"Heh heh heh, how kindhearted of you! Why don't I take care of them first?"

I unconsciously reached out to Hyakki. I might really be able to stop him if I used it. But that also meant...

"Subaru..."

It was unmistakably Adras who stood before me. But he looked just like Subaru. Even so, he was no different from the demons I had defeated thus far. In my head, I knew he was just an opponent to be defeated, but my body wouldn't listen to me.

"Coward—you can't even fight!"

His words took me by surprise, but it was already too late. Adras's fist once again collided with my body.

"Gack—!?"

The sound was different from before. It felt like the sound of my entire body shattering. I went flying backwards, hammered into the wall of a building. The impact made me hack up everything in my stomach.

"Ahaha, look at you, boy, covered in vomit and dirt!"

I heard his laughter from far away. I tried to move my body, but the pain was too strong. My limbs were leaden, my vision wavering.

"I've still got lots more to do, so don't you drop dead on me yet!"

In my blurry vision, I saw him approach me. Then, he reached out to strangle me...

How pathetic... I couldn't save Subaru. Would it end without me being able to make my own decision? Through the pain, I gritted my teeth in frustration. As I started to lose consciousness, what spilled out of my lips was—

"—Subaru."

...

His hands stopped before my eyes.

"Hayato..."

And there he was, gently calling my name—Subaru.

He's always been like that. Subaru was always the one to suggest new places to go and things to do.

"Okay, let's go explore that forest next. Come on, Hayato!"

"Yeah!"

Now that I think about it, I probably chased after him quite a lot back then. I think there was one time we were going to jump into the river together, but I couldn't do it. That was when Subaru said to me—

I snapped back to consciousness.

"Suba—"

Before I could say his name, Subaru took my trembling hands in his and made me hold Hyakki. I saw his hand as he touched Hyakki and watched as it was covered in severe burns. I tried to tell him to stop, but when I looked from his hand to his eyes, I saw a serious expression I had never seen on his face before. I couldn't find the words to say. Subaru had already made up his mind. But, there's no way I could do th—

"...Keep your promise, okay?"

Words I never wanted to hear him say. But when I heard his words accepting everything, I had to make a decision. Whenever I wavered and couldn't come to a decision, it was your words that always gave me the push I needed. Just like Subaru back then...

"Show me your cool side, Hayato."

"...Okay."

I threw away my doubts and answered Subaru with determination. But at that moment, his body leapt back away from me.

"That boy, always doing things he shouldn't! Agh, damn! My right hand!"

Subaru—Adras looked at me with rage while protecting his now unusable right hand.

"Boy, are you—!?"

I met his gaze head on. No more hesitation. I gripped Hyakki with my remaining good arm.

Adras—an evil god who had tormented not just Subaru and me, but countless others. But I would put an end to that today with my own hands!

"You brat!"

Adras roared and swung his fist at me with all his might. For some reason, I wasn't scared. In the face of the huge threat standing before me, my head felt incredibly clear, the pain I felt until now no longer barring my thoughts.

"I'll cut off your left hand."

Adras's fist moved as if in slow motion. So lightly, as if I had grown wings, I dodged his fist and moved within his grasp.

"What—!?"

Apparently shocked that I had avoided him, Adras tried to protect his left hand. Naturally, since I declared I would cut off his left hand, that's how he moved. That's how I could read ahead.

A flash. I swung Hyakki and slashed through both of his eyes, spattering fresh blood.

"Gaaaaaah!? My—My eyes! You wont...get away with that! I won't let youuu!"

Guarding his slashed eyes with his left hand, he aimed his fist squarely at me. The motion was minimal, and he had little strength left. That was why he had to wait for the best moment to deal a finishing blow.

"Useless! I can still sense your presence as if I held you in my palm!"

A fearless smile crossed Adras's face as he swung wide with his right hand. Was he trying to destroy the whole area in one strike? If so, the moment he swung it down would create an opening—that was my biggest chance.

My mind was strangely clear. A clear world where I heard nothing, not even the people's screams, the helicopter flying overhead, or Adras's angry roar.

"Diiieee!"

Adras's fist approached me slowly, like a stop-motion film. I got ready to dodge...but it stopped. For a brief moment, not even a second, Adras's fist had definitely stopped.

That's right. Subaru lent me his strength... Now, that moment felt like an eternity to me. And so, I had to kill him in one strike. Now, with all the strength I could muster, I would strike Adras's heart—Subaru's heart—with Hyakki!

"—ah?"

Hyakki pierced straight through Subaru's heart. Fresh blood whirled before my eyes as hellfire engulfed his body.

I had brought an end to it.

Subaru's...life.

A sense of weight suddenly returned to my mind and body. I wasn't sure if it was the weight of my guilt—I could only stare at the sight of Subaru's burning body. Slowly, the flames enveloping him faded away. Hyakki must have burned away Adras's soul. I pulled Subaru's body close to me.

"It's...all over..."

Subaru lay there, never to reply again...or so I thought.

"Hayato..."

I heard his voice, faintly. Hurriedly, I looked at his face to see him smiling his usual smile. "Subaru, Subaru...!"

Tears spilled from my eyes like a dam overflowing. It was the joy of seeing a face I thought I'd never see again, and the sorrow of our approaching farewell. I know I had made up my mind, but here I was, sobbing and showing my uncool side. I gripped Subaru's hand as he touched my cheek.

"Hey, Hayato... We'll always be partners, won't we...?"

"Yeah...yeah, of course we will! We'll always be... Hey, Subaru?"

He didn't respond, his eyes closed as if he had fallen asleep.

"Subaru, answer me... I never got that thank-you..."

 Amidst the helicopter above and the people screaming in the streets, the space around us was wrapped in silence. There, I made a new decision.

"I'll come back for you no matter what... So until then, don't go off on your own..."

Ever since that day, my daily routine changed a bit. As always, I walked through the city at night, lending an ear to the voices of the dead and hunting the demons that ran rampant in the darkness. The biggest difference was that my partner was no longer at my side.

"I'm getting thirsty..."

There was no one to buy me a weird drink as a thank-you. I walked once again throught the city at night, drinking the alcohol I had bought earlier. How long had it been since that day...? I'd heard thousands of voices from the dead, but I still hadn't found the one I was looking for. Still, I kept on searching. No matter how many years or decades it took, I was determined to come back for him.

"Finally..."

But that would all end today. I'd finally made it.

"Hmm~ hmm hmmmm~ ♪"

An old familiar tune floated faintly on the wind.

"It sure took a while..."

I couldn't see him, but I was sure he was there. There was so much I wanted to talk about.

I came back for you at last.

Wordlessly, I closed my eyes and kept listening to that song, imagining my partner's smile that I could no longer see.

The term I chose to translate as "demons" here is a bit unusual—妖魔 (youma) can also mean "ghost" or "monster," but the story's intro presents the term side-by-side with 妖怪 (youkai, spirits in Japanese folklore), and 悪魔 (akuma, specifically referring to a devil or demon of the evil variety), so I went for something roughly in-between. There are other Relation Label characters in the same setting (such as Hokuto, who cameos here) who also fight these beings under different names!

Historically, onmyoji in Japan practiced divination and magic to ward off evil or prevent natural disasters. Modern depictions of onmyoji typically lean heavily into the magic aspect, as seen here. The "hunting robe" worn by Hayato's ancestor is a kariginu, a robe worn by Heian-era nobles that is nowadays seen primarily as ritual attire for priests.

The terms Hayato and Subaru use for each other are 親友 (shinyuu, "best friend" or "close friend") and 相棒 (aibou, "partner"). While the former implies emotional closeness, the latter implies mutual reliance. Subaru's last words use the kanji for shinyuu, but the reading of aibou, finally bringing both meanings together.