Makima made her decision. If everything she had planned in those few seconds worked, she would have a loyal servant without them even realizing the one-sided nature of the deal. Quickly, she approached the dying body of Rika, who lay in Yuta's arms. Without saying a word, she pushed Yuta aside with a swift motion and handed him a paper with an inscribed symbol.
"Leave," she said coldly.
Yuta, still in shock, looked at Makima. Her eyes, cold as steel, seemed like those of a demon.
"It's an order," she added.
Without knowing why, Yuta's body obeyed, slowly walking away from the scene, unable to resist the invisible force that dominated him. His feet moved against his will, while his mind still struggled to comprehend what was happening.
Makima wasted no time, clasping her hands together and murmuring a command. Golden chains appeared from thin air, extending and connecting to the people who had witnessed the tragedy.
"Forget this and go on as if we never existed," she ordered, and all the witnesses obeyed, their minds erasing the memory of what had just occurred. The incident no longer existed for them.
Makima then knelt beside Rika, whose lifeless eyes showed there was little life left in her. She placed her left hand on the girl's bloodied head, closing her eyes for a moment as the pact formed in her mind.
"Rika Orimoto," she said softly. "Your body is dying, but your soul can still be restored. I offer to heal it, to bring you back to life. In return, you will serve me. Loyal, faithful to me above anyone else in this world—even more than to yourself."
Rika's soul, confused and frightened, could barely understand what was happening, but clinging to the last thread of existence, she whispered weakly:
"I accept..."
As soon as the word was spoken, Makima felt a surge of cursed energy violently flow through her body. The chains of the pact tightened around Rika, and Makima felt her vast reserves of energy draining like never before. She had been called a monster for the amount of cursed energy she possessed, but this time... this time she felt weak. Her body trembled, momentarily losing control due to the magnitude of the drain.
Rika began to heal slowly before her eyes. Her wounds closed, and the light in her eyes returned, but the cost had been steep. Makima, gasping, staggered, barely able to stand. Still weak, she picked up Rika's unconscious body and slung her over her shoulder.
She knew there was no time to waste. The massive use of cursed energy would not go unnoticed by nearby sorcerers. They would soon come to investigate. Scanning her surroundings quickly, she slipped into a nearby alley, moving as fast as possible away from the scene. She knew the sorcerers would come, but she had to make sure no one noticed Rika.
As she disappeared into the darkness of the alley, she felt a disturbance in her energy: Yuta. Makima felt a pang of discomfort. Despite having physically pushed Yuta away, his emotional bond with Rika was too strong to break easily. Such a deep connection, born of love and desperation, was beyond what mere manipulation of bodies and wills could erase.
Makima, still weak from the excessive use of cursed energy, paused for a moment to catch her breath. The girl in her arms was no ordinary child; Rika's energy since her death and resurrection was dangerous, chaotic, and most importantly, deeply tied to Yuta. Makima had underestimated what that bond meant. The pact she had just formed would not fully complete as long as that connection persisted. A part of Rika would still belong to Yuta, and that unsettled her.
"Tsk... how disgusting," Makima muttered, considering her options. Rika had impressed her, her energy more promising than expected, but divided loyalty was something she could not afford. Not if she wanted to use Rika for her own benefit.
With Rika in her arms, Makima felt Yuta's presence getting closer. Although his body had obeyed the initial order, the bond with Rika was pulling him back, completely ignoring the physical barriers she had imposed. Yuta was desperate, and his emotional connection to Rika was so strong that not even the force of her domination technique could completely sever it.
"Rika!" Yuta's voice echoed behind her, trembling with desperation. "What are you going to do to her? Let me help her! She needs to go to a hospital!"
Makima stopped and turned her head slightly, her expression remained impassive, cold. She knew she couldn't afford to raise suspicion at that moment. She needed Yuta calm, emotionally subdued, but without directly confronting him. She slowly turned to face him, ensuring her voice sounded calm and controlled, almost maternal.
"There's no time for a hospital, Yuta. Rika is on the verge of death; she can't wait. But I can save her," she said, locking eyes with Yuta. The newly awakened sorcerer was still shaken, but the certainty in Makima's words made him hesitate for a moment.
"S-save her?" Yuta took a step forward, fear and hope warring in his mind. "How... how will you do it?"
Makima, wasting no time, seized upon the doubt in his gaze. "I have abilities that can help her, Yuta. I can heal her right here, right now. But I need you to trust me and not interfere."
Yuta's eyes filled with tears. He knew he was losing Rika, and at that moment, any option that offered a spark of hope seemed right. Yet his instincts told him something was wrong. Something about Makima's coldness, her calculating gaze, sent a shiver down his spine. But what else could he do?
"Can you really save her?" he asked, his voice breaking.
Makima knelt again beside Rika, placing one hand on the girl's head as her wounds continued to heal at the cost of Makima's cursed energy and the other over her own chest, as if channeling the little energy she had left. Her expression remained unchanged, but her voice softened even more, almost as if she were speaking to a small child.
"Yuta, I want you to know this isn't easy, and this will drain much of my energy. But Rika... she's special. She has a strength most people don't possess. If you keep interfering, that connection between the two of you could complicate things. I need focus."
Yuta, unsure and afraid, stood still, watching Makima with clenched lips. He knew something was wrong, but he was paralyzed by hope and fear. If she could save Rika, if there was even the slightest chance...
Makima seized his indecision and began chanting softly, as if invoking a healing spell. However, what she was really doing was reinforcing her pact with Rika, binding her soul to her forever. The girl's healing accelerated as the cursed energy twisted in the air around them.
"Yuta, you must stay away from this process," Makima added without looking at him. "If you want to save her, trust me. I'll do whatever it takes to bring her back."
Yuta stepped back but kept his eyes fixed on Rika. Makima had momentarily deceived him, making him believe he was witnessing some form of treatment. Yet, deep down, something screamed at him that this wasn't what it seemed.
"Rika... please, hold on a little longer..." Yuta murmured to himself, unable to imagine that his beloved bond with her was already being erased by Makima's cold hands.
Makima continued her work in silence, her eyes reflecting a sinister glint as Rika's essence became more and more tied to her. She knew Yuta still had no idea what was truly happening, but that was only the first step in her plan.
As Makima carried on with the ritual, her gaze remained fixed on Rika's body, but her mind wandered through dark places. The pact was being successfully sealed, and although her face didn't show it, a repulsive sensation began to coil in her chest.
"Sharing... what a disgusting concept," she thought, her lips curling into an almost imperceptible sneer. The idea that something belonging to her could have a connection with another being, whether object or person, was revolting. Nothing and no one should have the privilege of touching, using, or getting close to what she had claimed. The very notion of shared ownership made her nauseous.
"Why should I share what's mine?" she repeated to herself, feeling her stomach turn at the mere thought. If someone touched something that belonged to her, if they tried to claim or influence it, it became tainted, defective. Everything had to be hers alone, unreachable for anyone else, without concessions or exceptions.
The bond between Yuta and Rika was the worst of all. "Pathetic," she thought, despising the affection and dependence Yuta felt for the girl's spirit. That bond now belonged to her, and the simple fact that Yuta still believed he had any right over Rika was as irritating as it was unacceptable.
Her control had to be absolute. In her world, there was no room for sharing anything. Not objects, not people, not fates. Everything and everyone under her command existed solely for her, and the mere possibility that anyone else could interfere with her property filled her with a deep, almost visceral disgust.
"There's no room for two. There never will be," she told herself as she tightened the chains of the pact around Rika's soul.