Aylin stepped forward, her fingers closing around Jiang's hand with a firm grip. "You're coming with me," she said, her tone leaving no room for argument. She moved closer, almost pressing against him, her eyes locking onto his. "We're going to free my world. That's what this is about."
Jiang's body stiffened at the sudden closeness, but he didn't pull away. "Aylin, we've got another problem right now," he said, keeping his voice steady. "There's something out there—something that's been following me ever since all of this started. We can't just ignore it."
Aylin raised an eyebrow, stepping in even closer. Her body was nearly brushing his, her hand still gripping his, and there was a teasing glint in her eyes. "You're talking about the shadow creature from before, aren't you?" She leaned in, her voice low. "I told you... it feeds on spiritual energy. It won't stop until it gets what it wants."
Jiang swallowed, trying to keep his focus. "I need something to fight it... I can't keep running. What about a priest's shrine rod? Something that can force it to reveal its true form."
Aylin's brow furrowed, and she stared at him for a moment. "A priest's shrine rod? What... What the hell are you talking about? Why do you think that would work?"
Jiang blinked, caught off guard by the question. "I... I don't know. It just feels like it's what we need." He rubbed his temple, the words coming out before he could think them through. "It was just... there, in my mind. I don't know how I know, but it feels right."
Aylin crossed her arms, clearly skeptical. "Feels right? I've been running from these things for a while, and I've never heard of a 'shrine rod' that could stop them." She narrowed her eyes. "How are you so sure? You think some random idea you can't explain is the answer?"
Jiang shifted under her scrutiny, his frustration rising. "I don't know, okay? It's like... something deep down. The system, or whatever it is, put the idea there. I just know we need to find it."
Aylin stared at him, her expression unreadable for a moment before she let out a sigh. "You've got to understand how weird this sounds, right? You're asking me to chase after some weapon that I've never heard of, and you can't even explain where it came from."
Aylin's expression hardened, and her grip on Jiang's hand tightened. "You want to go hunting for items while my people are being slaughtered?" Her voice was sharp, frustration boiling over. "This creature isn't my problem. I've been running from things like this for years. Do you think a 'shrine rod' is going to fix that?"
Jiang's mouth opened to respond, but Aylin cut him off, stepping closer, her hand still gripping his. "I'm sorry, Jiang. I've been running from monsters like this for so long. All we can do is run. You tried to fight it in the sewers, didn't you? It just got back up. It took on a new form, more suited to the environment. My magic—magic strong enough to put holes in mountains—did nothing. These things... they can't be killed. Not right now."
Jiang's frustration boiled over. "Then what do you want me to do? Just keep running? Hide until we get lucky?"
Aylin shook her head, her voice rising. "I don't know! I was told to find someone like you—someone who can hit full sync—and bring you back to my world. That's it. My father, the king... he'd know what to do. I'm just the retriever, alright?"
She grabbed his wrist, pulling him toward her. "Now get dressed. We're leaving. We need to move before that thing finds us again. And honestly? It'll probably follow us back to my world anyway. What's one more fucked-up creature to deal with?"
Jiang was about to argue when a loud DING! echoed in his mind, followed by the cold, detached voice of the system.
New Mission: Kill Yokai Gredudande. Time Limit: 72 hours. Punishment for Failure: Aylin Dies. Mission starting now. Special display given to Aylin.
Aylin stopped dead, her face paling as she looked down at her wrist. Her fingers trembled as she saw the faint glow of a timer burning into her skin. The seconds ticked away, and the reality of the situation hit her like a punch to the gut.
"Wh-what is this?" she stammered, her voice barely above a whisper.
Jiang's face turned grim as he stood, letting the blanket fall to the floor. His heart pounded, the weight of the mission pressing down on him. "The system... it's telling me to kill that thing. It called him Gredudande."
Aylin's eyes widened as she glanced between Jiang and the timer on her wrist. "Kill the unkillable?"
Jiang grabbed a pair of pants from the dresser, pulling them on quickly. "Yeah," he muttered. "And if we fail... you die."
The words hung in the air for a moment before Jiang squared his shoulders. "We need to find that shrine rod. I know it's our best chance."
Another timer blinked into his vision. Human Time Remaining: 45 minutes. Revert to Penguin Form. Sync: 99.99%.
Jiang's stomach churned, but he didn't let it show. He turned to Aylin, grabbing his shirt from the dresser and pulling it over his head. "Let's move. We don't have much time."