"Die, faker."
The axe came down.
There was no pain, just a tearing flash. Her world split in two. She could see her own body coming apart, blood blooming like a grotesque flower across the white frost of the forest floor. Her mind went silent, the world went quiet, and her last thought—fleeting, absurd—was not again—
Darkness.
Then, a blink.
And she was back.
Standing.
Breathing.
The trees were still. The air was cold. The boy—still lying there.
Exactly the same.
Subaru's mouth fell open. "Oh, you've gotta be kidding me…"
Her hands were shaking so violently she almost dropped the axe. The memory of being split in half—of watching her own blood soak the earth—was burned into her bones. And yet, here she was, whole. Alive. Again.
Her heart raced so loud she could hear it.
"What the fuck is happening to me…" she whispered.
The boy groaned faintly. That same sound. The same motion. The same way his hand reached for the axe.
No. No way.
This wasn't déjà vu anymore. This was a trap. A loop. A nightmare stuck on replay.
She took a step back, trembling, her mind spinning.
So when I die… I go back here?
The thought lodged itself in her brain, cold and terrifying. Her throat tightened.
The boy sat up again, slow, deliberate. Blood smeared his face as his dull eyes lifted toward her.
"Demons…"
Subaru's breath hitched.
"…you must die."
The exact same words. Same tone. Same moment.
She laughed—a short, hysterical sound. "Oh, come on! Again?!" She threw her hands up, shaking. "Look, if this is your thing, fine, but can't you at least explain first before chopping me into mincemeat?!"
No response. Just the dull glint of steel as he gripped the axe.
Her legs twitched with the urge to flee. But something else—something colder—settled inside her.
This wasn't just coincidence. Whatever was happening, she was stuck. Every time she died, she came back here. That meant—if she didn't figure out why, she'd just keep dying. Over and over.
She gritted her teeth. "Okay, Subaru… think. You're the protagonist now, right? Yeah, sure, of course you are. Classic isekai bullshit. So, what's the play? You can't fight him. You can't run far. And you sure as hell can't keep dying."
The boy started to rise.
"Shit—okay, no time for the smart plan!"
She turned and sprinted again, every step awkward and desperate, boots slamming against the dirt. Her lungs burned. Her body—this body—was weak, unfamiliar, but her will to survive was the same as ever.
She dodged between trees, ducked under branches, swung her axe behind her in panicked arcs.
"Stop chasing me, you psycho lumberjack!"
But the forest echoed with his footsteps, steady, relentless. He wasn't even running—just walking, yet somehow keeping pace.
Subaru's mind reeled.
How do you kill someone who already killed you twice?
Her legs faltered. Her vision blurred. Her breathing turned ragged.
She looked back—nothing. No sight of him.
Then a shadow moved.
He stepped out from the side of a tree, axe in hand, eyes hollow.
The moment stretched. She barely had time to curse.
"Wait, wait, WAIT—!"
The axe arced again.
And the world went black.
Then she blinked.
She was back.
Again.
The wind whispered through the forest again, soft and cold. The smell of pine. The crunch of frost beneath her boots.
And the boy, lying on the ground. Bleeding. Red hair. Red jacket. The same damned scene.
Subaru didn't move at first. She just stood there, staring. Her heart pounded like a drum, but her mind felt… hollow. The silence pressed against her ears, thick and heavy.
Then it hit her all at once.
Her knees gave out. She dropped to the ground, axe clattering beside her.
"No…" she breathed. "No, no, no—this isn't real. It can't be real."
Her voice cracked, the sound trembling through the empty forest. She pressed her shaking hands to her face, nails digging into her skin. Her whole body trembled, cold sweat sliding down her neck.
"I died… I died… twice—" She looked up, eyes wide, unfocused. "And I'm back again? Why? How?! What did I even do?!"
Her words fell apart into broken sobs.
It wasn't just fear—it was disbelief. The kind of madness that gnawed at your sanity, slow and quiet, until you couldn't tell if you were awake anymore.
A cough. Wet. Familiar.
Subaru's head snapped up.
The boy. The same boy. Lifting his head, blood dripping down his chin. His breath was ragged, his eyes dull with fury and confusion.
"Demons…" he rasped, voice trembling. "You must die…"
Subaru stumbled backward, shaking her head, eyes brimming with tears. "No! No, don't—you don't understand! I'm not a demon! I'm not even— I didn't even want this!" Her voice broke into a desperate yell. "Do you even remember me?! You killed me! Twice! You split me in half, you cut off my head! How the hell do you not remember?!"
He said nothing.
He just reached for his axe again.
Her breath hitched, her heart plummeting into her stomach.
"Please…" she whispered, voice trembling. "Please don't do this again…"
He lunged.
Her legs moved before she could think, instincts screaming for her to run. She turned and fled, tears blurring her vision. The trees warped around her as she sprinted, lungs burning, body shaking.
The sound of footsteps—closer, heavier.
"Stop following me!" she screamed, swinging her axe wildly behind her. "I don't even know what's happening!"
The tears wouldn't stop. They streaked her cheeks, hot and stinging, mixing with the cold air that cut against her skin.
Every step hurt. Every sound made her flinch.
She stumbled over a root, crashing to the ground, dirt smearing across her palms. She gasped for breath, curling in on herself.
"This isn't fair…" she choked out. "Why me? I didn't ask for this… I just wanted to— I just wanted to understand where I was…"
The crunch of boots drew near.
She lifted her head, eyes wide with terror.
He stood there again. His silhouette framed against the dim light cutting through the trees. The axe gleamed dully in his hands.
"Your acting won't fool me," he said, voice low and distant, like he wasn't even there. "Die, faker."
Her lips quivered. "Please don't—"
The axe came down.
Her world split open.
Pain burst like fire through her chest. Her mouth opened in a scream, but no sound came out. The world dimmed. Her fingers twitched. The smell of blood filled her nose. Her sight cracked apart, fading into black.
Not again… please…
Darkness swallowed her.
She blinked.
Cold air. The same trees. The same ground. The same boy.
Everything the same.
Again.
"No…" she whimpered, voice breaking. "No, not again… please not again…"
Her body shook violently as she clutched her head, the tears spilling freely now.
"I can't— I can't keep doing this—"
Her thoughts tangled in panic and despair. Her heart felt too big for her chest, beating against her ribs like it wanted to break free.
The boy coughed again, and the sound tore through her like a knife.
She looked up, wide-eyed. He was moving again, repeating the same motion, the same sick rhythm as before.
"Demons…"
Subaru's mind screamed stop, but her body wouldn't move.
He reached for his axe.
"Demons must die."
"No!" she screamed, backing away on trembling legs. "I can't do this anymore!"
But he rose to his feet anyway, staggering forward.
Her breath came in ragged gasps. The world blurred through tears. She swung her axe again, weakly, wildly.
"Just—just stay away! Please!"
He advanced, slow, inevitable.
Her arms gave out. She fell back against a tree, chest heaving, tears running down her cheeks in hot rivers.
"I don't even know who I am anymore…" she whispered, voice breaking between sobs. "I didn't mean to take this body… I didn't even want to be here… I just—"
He was in front of her.
"Your acting won't fool me."
Her breath hitched. Her fingers tightened weakly around the axe. "Please…"
"Die, faker."
The blade flashed.
Cold. Pain. Blackness.
Then nothing.
When Subaru opened her eyes again, she didn't scream.
She just stood there. Still. Silent.
Her eyes were dull now, the tears dried but her expression hollow. She turned her head slowly toward the boy's prone figure, lying in the dirt again.
Her voice came out hoarse, cracked. "So this is it, huh…? My personal hell."
Her hand trembled as she reached for the axe, not even sure why. Maybe to fight. Maybe to end it faster. Maybe because she didn't know what else to do.
She laughed—a quiet, broken laugh that didn't sound human anymore. "How many times am I gonna die before I lose it completely, huh?"
The forest didn't answer.
But she already knew.
The boy stirred again.
And Subaru began to cry all over, soft and hopeless, because she knew exactly what would come next.
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