The night didn’t change.
The stars stayed frozen above, watching like indifferent gods.
And every time Subaru opened her eyes, she found herself standing again, same dirt underfoot, same bloody boy lying ahead.
Her fingers tightened around the axe. Her lips quivered. She didn’t want to speak—didn’t want to move—but the silence pressed so hard against her chest it hurt.
Maybe… maybe words could work this time.
“Hey,” she said softly, voice trembling. “You’re hurt… I don’t wanna fight. I’m not— I’m not a demon, okay? I’m just confused. I don’t even know where I am.”
He lifted his head, eyes barely open.
“Demons…” he whispered.
Subaru swallowed. “Please… no, listen, I’m not—”
He coughed blood, fingers clutching his weapon. “Must die.”
Her heart sank. “No, no, no, wait—just listen!”
The axe swung.
And she died again.
Pain, then dark.
When she opened her eyes again, her throat was already sore from screaming. She didn’t scream this time. She just stared. The same moon. The same forest.
She took one step forward, voice shaking. “Please… please just listen this time, okay? I don’t want to fight. I don’t even know you.”
“Demons…”
Subaru’s eyes watered. “Stop saying that. I’m not a demon! Look at me!”
He rose, trembling, bleeding, but still lifted that damned axe.
“Die…”
Her legs failed her. “Why? Why won’t you—”
Steel met flesh.
Darkness again.
Third time.
She knelt by him instead. Didn’t even hold the axe this time. Maybe he just needed kindness.
“Hey, hey,” she said, voice hoarse. “I’m not your enemy, okay? I just wanna help.”
He stirred, coughed again.
“Demons…”
She gritted her teeth. “No, not demons! Human! Or—whatever this is, I’m still me!”
The sound of metal.
Subaru tried to dodge but wasn’t fast enough.
The world spun. Her vision went red, then black.
Fourth time.
She woke up sobbing, clawing the dirt. “I don’t wanna do this anymore!”
She sat there until she heard his voice again.
“Demons…”
Subaru forced a smile. “Yeah, yeah, demons. Sure. Whatever. But you don’t have to kill me. You could just… y’know, not?”
He stumbled to his feet. “Die…”
She lifted her arms weakly. “I give up, okay? I surrender—”
The axe fell.
Darkness again.
Fifth.
“Please stop,” she begged, tears streaming down her face. “Please. I just want to go home. You don’t even know me!”
“Demons…”
Her grip tightened. “You’re not even listening, are you?”
He swung.
She screamed until she couldn’t.
Sixth.
She tried shouting before he could even move.
“HEY, RED-HAIR! DON’T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!”
He twitched, startled. For a moment, she thought—maybe this time—
Then: “Demons must die.”
Her laughter cracked as she stumbled back. “Of course. Of course that’s what you’d say.”
She swung back out of reflex, their axes clashing—his strength overwhelming hers.
The impact threw her down. The second blow silenced her.
Seventh.
Subaru just sat cross-legged, watching him.
He stirred.
She didn’t move.
“Demons…”
“Yeah, yeah,” she muttered. “Go ahead. I’ll be here.”
He rose, limping, bloody, but still raised that stupid weapon.
She didn’t flinch when it hit.
Eighth.
She woke with bloodshot eyes, laughter spilling from her lips before she could stop it. “Oh, this is rich! You’re my personal tutorial, aren’t you? My respawn boss!”
Her laugh turned manic.
He moved again.
“Demons…”
She snorted. “Say something new, damn it!”
He didn’t.
He killed her again.
Ninth.
Her hands shook violently now. She crawled away before he could rise. Maybe if she hid—
The forest went quiet.
Her breath hitched.
And then he was behind her.
“You must die.”
“No—!”
Pain tore her in two.
Tenth.
Her throat burned from crying. She slapped her cheeks hard, leaving red marks. “Okay, Subaru. Okay. Think. Think, idiot. You can figure this out. You’ve done worse. You can—”
“Demons…”
Her stomach twisted. “Oh god, not again.”
She ran.
Didn’t even look back.
He caught up.
He always caught up.
Eleventh.
Subaru screamed before he even spoke. “STOP SAYING THAT!”
Her voice echoed through the forest. “STOP CALLING ME THAT! I’M NOT A DEMON! I’M NOT!”
He didn’t stop.
When he lifted the axe, she didn’t resist this time.
“Fine,” she whispered. “Go ahead. I’ll just come back anyway.”
She smiled through tears as the blade fell.
Twelfth.
She woke up humming. The tune cracked halfway through. “La-la-la… murder forest, round twelve… can’t wait to die again…”
Her laughter was hollow.
The boy stirred.
“Demons…”
Her smile faltered. “Yeah, I know the script.”
He swung.
She welcomed it.
Thirteenth.
Her hands were trembling uncontrollably now. Every breath felt sharp.
“Maybe I am a demon,” she muttered to herself. “Maybe that’s why this keeps happening. Maybe I deserve it.”
She looked up. “Hey, Red. You ever think maybe you’re the one who’s wrong?”
He didn’t answer.
He cut her throat open.
Fourteenth.
When Subaru came back, she just lay there. Didn’t move. Didn’t breathe. Just stared up at the stars.
When he stirred, she whispered, “I hate you.”
He said, “Demons must die.”
She smiled weakly. “Yeah, I figured.”
He didn’t hesitate.
Fifteenth.
Subaru laughed so hard she cried. “Okay, okay, fine, you win. Let’s make it quick this time.”
She waved at him like an old friend. “Come on, don’t be shy. Same move, right? Overhead swing, maybe a decapitation?”
He lunged.
She didn’t even try to dodge.
Sixteenth.
When she opened her eyes again, her smile was gone.
Her face was blank.
Her eyes dull.
She looked at the boy, still bleeding, still alive in that cursed loop.
Her voice was barely a whisper. “You’re not real, are you?”
He lifted his head. “Demons…”
Subaru tilted her head slightly, expression numb. “Right.”
When he raised his axe again, she didn’t even watch. She just closed her eyes, let the sound of the blade coming closer mix with the sound of her heartbeat.
And when it struck, she didn’t scream. She just sighed.
Darkness again.
And again.
And again.
I will be posting chapters every day. Big chapters will be broken into 3 or 4 chapters, you can read it ahead by checking out the tips in my bio.