In a certain Enforcer Prison…
Gray was utterly fed up with the relentless chatter.
"SHUT UP! I'm trying to think!"
"Y-You, you can hear us?!"
That's when they appeared, things that looked like ghosts, albeit VERY transparent. It was as if they were more memories than real souls. He sighed…
"I swear, you guys are louder than my wife's neighbor when her Pilate Teacher visits! Now, either can it, or help me get out of here. Which will it be?" He asked them.
"Escape? Weren't you listening? Not even the Headmaster could!"
"Why do you think we're still in this shitty place?"
"Just wait till the trial, kid. A week, maybe?"
A trial? A week? He'd be royally screwed! As for the souls? They had already given up! They couldn't even be bothered to entertain him, simply floating around him as they gossiped.
They might have given up, but he sure hadn't!
"Alright, let's play the 'tell me about this place' game. Best info wins! As for the reward? Hehe, freedom! I'll bring the winning soul out when I leave!"
"Humph— Don't try to trick us, human. You wouldn't even be able to touch us, much less— SMACK!" Before it could even finish, Gray slapped the hell out of the poor soul!
Seeing the flattened Soul get back up and shining in excitement, Gray grinned:
"Now, tell me EVERYTHING!"
Turns out, this place really was an illusion:
The asteroid? → The floor of the real-world prison
The void all around him? → That was the path to the actual exit
The very concept of gravity? → The shackles keeping him stuck in the illusion
Every time he'd jump, he'd be mercilessly slammed back down. Still, whereas others saw despair, he saw opportunity instead:
"So you're telling me that as long as I fly away, I can exit this place? What about the gravity? Is it real? How does that work?"
"It's a mental attack! As long as one has a mind, then it will affect them and prevent them from leav—" The poor soul stopped. The human was… laughing?!
"Hehe. As long as one has a mind, eh? Good!" Without saying anything, Gray grabbed the poor soul, and suddenly…. Jumped?! A second later, he hid in the Library Realm!
As for the result…
The "Gravity" engulfed his body, reached for his mind, and— Why was it blank?! It seemed like Gray had been right. The Library Realm was too mighty for it!
As a result, the "Gravity" magic simply failed to activate…
As another result, Gray's body was sent flying across the illusory void as if a comet until it finally burst through the illusion just like a bubble!
As the last goddamn result, he woke up, unaffected by the spell anymore. As for his surroundings, they seemed like a small metallic underground bunker? A single cell.
Next to him was a shellshocked soul
"H-How?! You were there and then… you weren't?!"
"Pfft— A magician never reveals his secrets. Now, where's the exit?"
Ah, there was a metallic ladder that went to the surface. But Gray had barely put his feet on the first step when the soul rushed past him, screaming multiple times in ecstasy!
"Freeeeedommmm!"
"AHHHH! The light, it burns!!"
"Noooo! I wanna go back! I wanna go ba—"
Then, there was only silence.
'Note to self: never let a disappearing Soul see the light of day.'
Exiting the bunker, Gray found himself right next to… the Medical Facilities?! What kind of sick fuck would put the most vulnerable next to a jail! Ah, probably the confident kind.
"Wait, Medical Facilities?" Where would he bring a patient in a dead-looking coma if he was Old Red? The Medical Facilities, for sure! But he couldn't exactly go like this…
The following scene would have terrified the poor Soul had it still been alive. Gray rolled himself on the ground, sullying his entire being in dirt.
Then, he grabbed a certain Pet Rock from his Soul. It was merely that, a pebble, but it had a surprisingly sharp edge. Using it, he slashed his palm wide open, rubbing himself!
Grime and blood masked his entire being. By now, he looked more dead than alive, and that's when he made his move! Soon, at the Medical Facility…
"Quick, someone get a Healer!"
"A student collapsed by the entrance!"
"What happened?! Never mind, just get him a bed!!"
Jackpot! All the way to the bed, Gray whimpered like a dog getting put down. Then, a teary-eyed Nurse attended him, her hands glowing the soothing green of healing magic!
"Don't you die on me!"
"T-The light, it's so soothing and pretty…"
"Stay away from the light! A Healer's coming—Uh?!"
The near-death patient? He wasn't anymore! Gray had suddenly stood up, grabbed the Nurse's hands, and was now profusely thanking her for saving his life.
At this moment, she felt cheated. W-What?! Didn't that mean that all his injuries had been superficial at best?! Yet she cheered up, seeing how genuinely thankful he was.
"It's alright. Don't worry, you'll be fine."
"T-That, can I rest a couple of minutes before going?"
"No worries, wait here for the magic tingle to go away."
Sighing in relief, she left him to his own device, Gray jumping to his feet as soon as she was gone. 'Sera, just wait for me. If you're here, I'll definitely find you!'
Then, before long, in a private room…
A lavish room, refreshing magical incense, a fluffy-looking bed, but Gray's sight only went to the girl in it. Sera, his student, peaceful like a slumbering snow white.
He came close to her…
Approached her red lips and…
No air. She really wasn't breathing.
"Dead or Alive? We'll know soon enough." Gray grabbed an item from his Soul. [Death's Note] With this, he'd know for sure! His hands trembling, he wrote her name.
𝕾𝖊𝖗𝖆 𝕭𝖑𝖆𝖐𝖊...
𝕾𝖊𝖗𝖆 𝕭𝖑𝖆𝖐𝖊~ 𝕬𝖑𝖎𝖛𝖊!
"A-Alive! She's alive! She's freaking alive! This is the best! This is—?!" He was so freaking happy that he spun around in joy. That's when he froze.
He didn't just freeze. He started sweating as he saw someone.
Red-Robe. Sadistic grin. Terrifying.
"Hello, Gray~"
This was the very Enforcer who had brought him to the Blood Realm back then! The one with a status seemingly equal to the Headmaster. The one who—
Never mind that. The latter was already chuckling:
"206 bones, 600 muscles, billions of capillaries, and a trillion—"
"A trillion reasons why this isn't what it looks like! I'm here to save a life. She's not dead, I swear! I can't explain it, but…"
The Head Enforcer stopped him, gesturing toward the Death's Note. "Is it because of this? How interesting. It's related to that Ancient Power of yours, right?"
Seeing the curiosity in the man's eyes, Gray feared for his life. But just as he was inwardly about to shit himself:
"Weren't you about to save a life? Go on…"
"S-Sure! Right away, Great Enforcer, Sir!"
"Sir? Now, who's having mood swings…"
Gray focused. Save her? He had no idea how to! But, he did know one thing. That state of hers, it had to be related to her curse, right? At that moment, he didn't hesitate.
He leaned over her and passionately intertwined his… Mana with hers! That's when the world changed around him. Hospital room? Not anymore.
"Don't tell me?! How's this possible?!"
He was inside her…