Chapter Twenty Four

At first everybody was unsure of what to do. Everyone slowly got to their feet, looking for some form of leadership. The people they had looked up to were now all dead.

The game was cleared.

The game that had become our life was over.

Nothing we knew was applicable anymore.

Everything was just...over.

I stared blankly at everyone, in shock. Everyone just stood there. The first one to move was Katsu.

"Okay." He said, breathing deeply. "Okay. The game is cleared. I assume everything is just going to start fading, sending us home one by one. Everybody, stay calm."

Nobody reacted. We were all in shock still.

"Alright, now pull yourselves together!" Katsu snapped, "We have all dealt with worse! Start taking inventory of who all is still alive! Help the wounded!"

Katsu continued to bark out orders, sending us all into motion. I watched him as he ordered everyone around. He was born a natural leader.

"Rikimaru." I whispered.

I felt fear choke me once again. He was missing. I raced around doing my best to find him, my fear fueling me.

I couldn't lose him.

I admit we didn't get off on the right foot. In fact, I had hated his guts. But life was funny and I fell in love with him.

I loved Rikimaru.

Funny how people always realized these things too late.

"Rikimaru!" I screamed, shoving past people.

"Harumi!"

I turned, hopeful, but it was only Katsu. Tears spilled from my eyes as he hurried over. He grabbed my shoulders and shook me slightly.

"What are you doing?!" He exclaimed, "You're scaring the other players."

I couldn't care less about the other players at this moment.

"Rikimaru." I choked, "Rikimaru is missing."

Katsu's face hardened, his eyes narrowing in determination. He shook me again, a bit gentler.

"Send Kuro and Gurē to look for them." He ordered, "You need to sit down. It will not help anybody if you are running around screaming."

I opened my mouth to protest, but he cut me off, saying, "No. You are going to sit down. You are scaring the other players. Do you even realize how much they look up to you?"

I paused, staring at him through my tears. My heart was clenching and unclenching.

"Let's just say they have respect for you." He said, lowering his voice.

"Why?"

"Why?!" He repeated in disbelief, "Harumi, you have defied all the odds! You tamed 2 wild wolves, something unheard of; You became a master of a scythe, making you one of a kind; You defeated one of the strongest bosses we've heard of by yourself. Yeah, it's complete idiocy that they respect you!"

I turned my face away, not wanting to meet his eyes.

"You have to stay together for them."

He gestured towards the dozens of players watching us anxiously. They were all so young. They were scared. I could see it on their faces.

It was ironic.

When the game started, none of us wanted to be here, and now that it was over, we were terrified to leave.

"Rikimaru..."

"We'll find him." He promised, pulling me into a hug.

Neither of us said what we were both thinking.

If he's dead, we won't even have a body to find.

I nodded, pulling away. I moved to sit down on the floor. The wolves ran up to me, checking me to make sure I was okay, before backing away.

I was relieved to see they were all okay. They had a couple of scratches, but the boss hadn't been aiming for them, so they got away easy.

"Go find Rikimaru." I whispered hoarsly.

They nudged me with their noses before racing off into the crowd. Katsu continued to gather and reorganize everyone. A small girl came over and joined me, holding her injured side.

"I'm Aiko." She introduced, holding out her free hand to shake.

I nodded, reaching over to shake her outstretched hand. She smiled at me, leaning back on her elbows. She looked younger than me, and I couldn't help but feel sad. She had to deal with this so young, and she will never be the same because of it.

"How'd you come to be here?" I asked, trying to get my mind off of Rikimaru.

"You, actually."

I looked down at her, confused. She laughed at my expression and I marveled at her ability to be this happy.

"I spent my whole time here hearing stories about you. You've done so much."

"I was just trying to stay alive. Just like everyone else." I told her, shaking my head.

"You didn't just survive." She told me, "You flourished."

I watched her. I wasn't sure what expression was on my face, but she seemed unsettled by it, looking away from me. She didn't know what to say, and I was on the same boat.

I looked down at my hands. I had started bandaging my wrists and palms, because it helped get a good grip on my scythe.

I looked down at my weapon, jumping slightly when I saw it fading. The metal was slowly growing clear. The game was cleared and it was taking its creations with it.

I don't know what I expected. I knew I wouldn't be able to bring this stuff to the real world, but it had been all I had for so long. I was sad to watch it go.

I was snapped out of my thoughts when a howl rang up into the room, echoing off the walls. I leaped to my feet, my heart kicking into high gear.

Kuro shoved through the crowd racing towards me. He took the end of my cloak into his teeth, pulling me in the direction he came in.

I raced ahead. He picked up his pace, leading after Gurē's howls. I broke into a sprint when I saw Gurē standing over a bundle in the dark corner. My heart rose up into my throat.

"Rikimaru..."

I raced over, sliding on the floor when I reached the body. I pulled Rikimaru's head onto my lap, looking down at his pale face.

"Rikimaru..."