Caren took a deep breath.
His hands began to tremble.
He didn’t move a single muscle.
“Who are you?”
Caren turned his head and looked at the person who was speaking.
His eyes softened with relief.
A girl?
A girl was standing there.
She had blue eyes and long white hair that almost reached her waist.
But she had nothing in her hands.
She was wearing a black shirt and pants.
There was dirt on her clothes and body.
She looked kind of broken, but at the same time…
full of energy.
“I’m Caren.”
The girl started laughing, clearly amused.
“J…
just kidding.
You can move.”
Caren raised his eyebrows and turned to face the girl.
He barely managed a smile, confused about what was even funny about it.
“Um, yeah.
That was funny.”
The girl stopped laughing and looked at Caren, surprised by something.
“You didn’t run into that monster in the jungle?
That’s really strange.
How?”
Caren’s face twisted, unsure how to explain himself.
He didn’t want to look dumb; it was the worst thing that could happen right now.
“I…
I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
The girl smiled, an interested look on her face.
“Oh, so you’re the luckiest person I’ve ever seen.
There was only a nineteen percent chance you could run into it.”
Caren shrugged and then looked around.
He couldn’t tell her the truth.
If that girl found out that he could cheat death…
she could just ask him to use his ability every time they were in trouble.
He had to change the subject.
“By the way, um, what’s your name?”
The girl smirked at Caren.
“Since you asked so nicely, my name is Ren.”
Then she stepped closer.
“What are you doing here?
Are you stuck here too?”
Caren frowned slightly and sighed.
“Yeah.
I don’t know how to leave.”
He hesitated, unsure if he could handle a no.
“I was wondering if…
I mean, do you know how to get out of here?”
Ren’s face went blank for a second, then was replaced by a wide smile.
“Yeah, of course I know.
If you find the structure, you can leave.”
Caren’s eyes widened.
He had just found a way out so easily!
Was she joking?
“A structure?”
Ren nodded without hesitation.
“Yeah, a structure.”
Caren paused.
It was too good to be true, but…
“Then why are you still here?
If you know how to leave here, why didn’t you use it?”
Ren raised her eyebrows, then answered casually.
“It’s obvious.
I had to travel to reach that structure.
I was way too far from where I am now.”
Caren tightened his grip on the knife handle.
“Oh, is there anyone else with you?”
Ren looked at the knife, then shook her head.
“No, I’m alone.
Actually, I was.
Now that I’ve met you, I’m not alone anymore.”
Caren stared at her, unsure what to do.
Finally, he nodded.
“Um, okay…
Then I guess we can try to reach that structure together.”
Ren stared at him, then smiled.
“Yeah, we can do that.”
When Caren saw her smile, he felt something in his chest.
It was annoying.
Something was weird about Ren.
“Yeah, but it’s getting late.
Let’s just rest for tonight.”
Ren’s eyes lit up.
“Sure.
I wanted to ask, but you beat me to it.”
Caren narrowed his eyes.
This girl was acting like a kid.
He just hoped she wasn’t going to act like one all the time, or else Caren was cooked.
Ren sat down on the ground, then spoke in a playful voice.
“I’ll sleep first.
Is that okay?”
Caren opened his mouth to argue, but then let out a soft sigh.
“Okay, you can sleep first.
I’ll keep watch.”
Ren didn’t answer.
She just closed her eyes.
A yawn escaped her.
Caren wanted to look away, but his eyes remained fixed on her.
There was something on Ren’s shirt.
It was red, kind of like…
blood?
Caren frowned.
There was no sign that she was hurt or anything like that.
So where was the blood from?
Caren’s breath hitched.
How could he not have noticed it at first?
There was more blood on her pants, even on her hands.
They were all covered in red.
Caren took a step closer, making sure not to make a sound.
Then he gently placed his hand on Ren’s shirt.
There was no mistake.
That was blood.
It was still kind of fresh, maybe from an hour ago?
Caren’s eyes widened.
Of course.
It was her.
She was the one who had killed that boy.
Caren had been in the jungle when he found that boy.
Ren had also mentioned the jungle when she was talking.
So?
It It was obvious that she had seen that boy.
Also…
there was the way she had looked at the knife in Caren’s hand.
Caren stared at the girl, wondering how harmless she looked while she was asleep.
It almost made him think that maybe he was wrong.
But for now, he couldn’t prove it, and he didn’t want to hurt her until he was sure.
He could wait a little longer.
If he even had enough time to wait!
He wanted to step back, but Ren opened her eyes.
When she noticed Caren, her eyes narrowed.
“What are you doing?”
Caren’s breathing became ragged.
He wasn’t sure how to answer.
“Um, nothing…
I just…
you were bleeding, so I thought maybe I should…”
Ren stared at him, then looked at him expressionlessly.
She didn’t make a move, but the look in her eyes made Caren’s face go blank.
Ren spoke softly.
“That’s it?
You were checking me for that?”
Caren took a step back.
His voice was shaking slightly.
“What do you mean by that?”
Ren sneered, her voice dry.
“I mean, come on.
You know I’m not bleeding, and that’s not my blood.
It’s so obvious.”
Caren struggled to find an answer.
But then he let out a breath.
“Hey, who are you?”
Ren smiled.
She wasn’t even nervous.
“Didn’t I tell you?
I’m Ren.”
Caren tightened his grip on the knife, ready to use it.
But then he felt something.
His stomach felt cold.
He heard something tearing.
He looked down.
A large hand…
shaped like a knife.
It was red, like a piece of raw meat.
The hand had pierced through his stomach.
Caren turned his head and saw the creature.
It looked like the one in the jungle.
But this time…
it was red.
Caren didn’t feel any pain.
Was it because everything had happened so suddenly?
Because the hand was still inside his stomach, blocking the blood from rushing out?
He didn’t know, but…
he turned his gaze toward Ren and looked directly at her.
She was shaking her head.
“I didn’t want to do this.
At least not now.
But…
you were too curious.”