The ride back to the lab had been silent. No music. No chatter. Only the low hum of the road beneath the wheels and the unspoken heaviness in the air between them.
When Kazou, Rose, and Akane stepped through the front doors of the Zenkai Quantum Institute, the place felt… wrong. Too still. Too quiet. As they moved deeper inside, toward the bedroom wing, they could hear faint voices—whispers, like wind through hollow walls. The children's room was just ahead. The door was open. Inside, soft light spilled from a lamp in the corner. Two children—Experiment 6 and Experiment 8—sat curled up on the bedding, wrapped in blankets. Their eyes were wide, glassy. Neither had been crying. That's what unsettled Rose the most. Dr. Hanasaki sat between them, gently running her fingers through 8's short hair, her expression a careful blend of calm and worry. Her white coat was wrinkled, shoes still damp from the night before. When Rose saw the children, her composure shattered. She rushed forward.
"Six! Eight!"
The children looked up. Rose fell to her knees and wrapped her arms around them. Six didn't move—but Eight melted into her, gripping Rose with all the force of a child trying not to drown. Rose held them tighter, her voice cracking.
"You're safe. You're safe now. I'm here."
Kazou stayed near the door at first, his shoulders hunched, hands shoved into the pockets of his coat. His eyes flicked around the room—at the blankets, at the uneaten crackers on the nightstand, at the drawings on the walls. Then his gaze settled on Experiment 6. She was sitting cross-legged, her hands in her lap. Her brown curly hair fell in tangled strands over her face, but her eyes were visible. And she was staring at him. Kazou stepped forward slowly and knelt beside her, keeping his voice low and gentle.
"Six," he said. "It's okay now. You're safe. You're home."
She blinked once. Her lips parted. She leaned closer, just enough that only he could hear her.
"The devil came."
Kazou froze. The words weren't loud. They weren't frantic. They were calm. Like a fact. He stared at her, unsure if he'd heard right.
"What did you say?"
Her eyes didn't blink this time.
"He came, it was a familiar shadow," she repeated, softer. "I don't know who it was."
Kazou felt his heart drop into his stomach. Dr. Hanasaki looked over from where she sat with Eight, her expression darkening with quiet concern.
"Both have been saying strange things all morning," she said softly.
Akane glanced at Kazou. Rose looked up sharply. She stood slowly, her hands falling away from Eight's shoulders. Kazou felt the hairs rise on the back of his neck.
"It wasn't entirely human." Eight said, his eyes widening.
Thus concludes our prologue.
This was all just the beginning of an intriguing serial murder case.
Thank you for staying around.