Carter woke up to a piercing scream across the house, startled and confused by the sudden occurrence. Slowly rubbing his eyes, he sat up straight as he wiped his forehead with the back of his palm. "What the hell was that?" He groaned, massaging his throbbing temple, trying to ease himself from the headache.
For a moment, he probably thought it was nothing more than his imagination. He would've gone back to sleep and ignored the whole thing altogether. However, Carter is not that kind of person, as he knows better than anyone that ignoring something like this can be dangerous.
Getting up from his bed, he took a glance at the nearby window only to see the perturbing darkness outside. "Why would she scream at this time?" He questioned himself, scratching his head while thinking about the possibilities of the girl's actions.
She's probably having a nightmare or something; it happens to anyone. Or maybe she was just being paranoid and was probably scared of the dark. "That must be it," he said to himself, nodding in agreement with his own statement. "I guess I should check up on her later."
Feeling too lazy to check whatever the hell was going on, he went back to bed, his head resting on the soft pillow as the relaxing scent of his bed filled his senses. Allowing him another chance to close his eyes and not worry about anything else other than sleeping.
There shouldn't be much to worry about; nothing else can surprise him anymore after the display his servant had made previously. She was strong and fast, that is for sure; she is capable of handling any danger on her own. Where the odds would be clearly in her favor.
So everything is just going to be fine. All he has to do now is sleep and let his mind wander back into the darkness; nothing else is important right now, especially the situation outside his room. He will figure it out when the morning arrives.
But that was not the case for the billionaire, as continued gunshots and screams reverberated from downstairs. All of it made Carter fully awake and sit up in alert. His eyes widened, and his mouth hung slightly open; a chill stuck in his throat.
This wasn't coming from her; this was the sound of people breaking in and getting into conflict with Yumi. Fearing the worst, he didn't waste any more time getting up from his bed and heading to the door. As he reached the knob, it took him a moment to realize his only option was to call for help and to stay in his room and not risk getting himself into danger.
What should he do in this situation? Call the cops and wait for the threats to go away. What about her? Will she be safe while he hides in a safe spot, cowardly awaiting the authorities to solve the problem at hand? This isn't helping; he just needs to stay calm and think things through clearly.
The longer he waited, the worse things might escalate. Carter had no choice but to find Yumi. He might not have the combat skills or weapon proficiency like her, but he still has his mind and mouth to rely on. He can think of ways to get her to safety and prevent the conflict from continuing.
Sweat pours down all over his face, fear pounding inside his chest as he questions himself about whether he should play hero and stop this ongoing madness once and for all. Carter hadn't forgotten about losing those he cared about, and seeing that again pains him deeply.
With a loud sigh of release, he gently turned the knob and slowly creaked the door open. "Come on, Carter," he whispered to himself, "you can do this," telling himself to not waver and push forward. "You have to face them," determination surged throughout his body, "for the people you love."
He had faced worse, far worse than this, but his fear of death always prevented him from taking action. To many, he was seen as nothing but a weak coward who is always hiding from the dangers because he doesn't want to imagine dying again and going to hell.
Being tortured for his life in hell had traumatized him deeply, but he would not allow his fear and weakness to win. So, this time, he won't allow himself to die. He will overcome the terrors within his mind, and he will protect those he cares about no matter what.
Just as he cautiously exited his room, the gunshots and loud yelling were replaced with eerie, dead silence. All he can hear right now is the loud thumping of his heart echoing in his ears and the sound of his blood rushing as he gets nervous in the quiet atmosphere.
Those shouts were male, no doubt about that. It's a good thing that it wasn't Yumi's voice because she would have been obviously killed by now. It's worrying how the situation was handled in an instant. Whoever these people were, he had a strong feeling they came here to steal any valuables they could find.
Regardless of this situation, Carter carefully takes a couple of steps forward from the growing tension this house has become. Suddenly, his legs failed to support his emotional instability, causing him to fall face first on the ground. "Ow," the young man groaned, wincing from the pain he felt.
"Crap," he mumbled to himself as he slowly stood up straight with his back while rubbing his aching head. "That hurts," Carter muttered, sighing in relief that nobody was around to witness him fall like a fool. "I need to remind myself to control my emotions again," he told himself.
He must be careful and not allow his fear to get the better of him. He can't allow it to happen—not now, not ever. He has to keep his composure and stay calm. "I need to find her," Carter reminded himself, and when I do, I'll make sure to get us both out of here safely."
Carter is a coward, and he knows that all too well, but that doesn't mean he will allow his fear to win. He will overcome it; he will fight back against the terrors in his mind and protect those he cares about, as stated before. "I'm not going to die," he stated, "not today or Yumi."
The billionaire continued on with his path, taking cautious steps while being alert to any possible threats that may come his way. Darkness surrounds him from all directions; the only light source in this place is the moonlight that shines through the windows, allowing him to see a little bit of what's around him.
He had forgotten to bring a flashlight or anything he could use in order to light his way, but he didn't have to use it in the first place. Having lived in this house for years, he knows every inch and corner of it like the back of his hand.
If he just learned to use his gifted plot powers, then maybe he could've used them to see through the darkness and find Yumi without any trouble. But that is not possible for him, unfortunately, since he hasn't understood how to use it properly.
Stopping in his tracks, Carter took a moment before moving next to the wall as he sat and let his back rest on it, thinking thoroughly about what to do in a situation like this. He can either go back to his room and wait for the morning to come or continue on with his mission.
The latter is obviously the better choice because he's not going to be a coward anymore. Yumi, his childhood friend and loyal friend, took care of him and stayed by his side through thick and thin. She was there for him when nobody else was; she had done so much for him, and he would repay the favor by saving her life.
He will not let her die because he is simply scared. For god's sake, he is the commissioner of the police force, the leader of every law enforcement agency in Japan. He has to do this; he must do this. "I have no other choice," Carter whispered to himself. "I have to find her."
Carter has to keep fighting himself over and over again, no matter how much it hurts him. He will not allow his fear of death and demons to win. This time, he will fight back with all his strength and overcome the terrors within his mind.
He took a deep breath, exhaling loudly, before getting up from the ground and continuing on with his path. "I can do this," Carter told himself. "I have to do this." He muttered in determination, needing to see this through to the end. Continuing on with his path until he reached the stairs, but before he could take another step forward. He heard a different scream coming from below, causing him to stop and look down at the darkness that awaited him.
"It's...coming from the kitchen?" Quietly whispering to himself, thinking if he should head there first before going anywhere else, "maybe she's there," Carter muttered, "but why would that person scream instead of her? Wouldn't Yumi be afraid in a situation like this?" Nothing is making any sense; what's going on?
There's only one way to find out: by checking the source of this sound. That's all Carter has to do. Wasting no time, he went downstairs to see what was going on. A bad feeling of what was beyond the darkness had crept inside him, like the feeling of something being very, very wrong.
Reaching down the lower floor, Carter's eyes gazed through the hallways ahead, dark, cold, and quiet; there was nothing to see or hear except the constant beating of his heart as fear and anxiety pounded inside his chest. Knowing one wrong move can lead to his being sent back to hell, where he has to endure that terrible torture all over again,
In his previous life, he understood that everything will come to an end and that mortality is part of life. But now his view on it is switched, for himself anyway. Should he die, he would go back to hell every moment of his life until being reborn over and over again.
Seeing and enduring all of the suffering and torment all over again was the last thing he wanted. That place is not a place for him to endure in his never-ending days, for beyond dying, there is a fate worse than death for him, and Carter wouldn't mind becoming one if given the chance.
Taking a few deep breaths, he exhaled loudly, closing his eyes as he relaxed his nerves before slowly opening them back in realization. "I have to go to the kitchen," the young man muttered, recalling his plan, "whoever is inside the kitchen will either be seeing Yumi injured or worse, dead from defending herself." stating the possibilities, he had a difficult time accepting it, but there's nothing else to do. "This isn't going to look good.
Nearing his destination, he stopped in realization of seeing the lights already turned on. His heart rate rose even more, and sweat started to form on his head as his anxiety increased even further. Even though he had expected to find something shocking beyond those walls, part of him wished he had never gone down here at all.
Gulping hard, he pushed himself to continue onward, entering the entrance that had no door as he finally saw the whole scene. There, scattered around the bloody floor, were disfigured corpses. The horrific display sent chills up his spine and caused him to clench his mouth in horror.
Taking a couple of steps forward, he felt sick to the stomach upon seeing the countless bodies and gore that was splattered all around the area. There was so much blood and viscera. There wasn't a single recognizable face to be seen among the slaughter.
Their bodies were fresh and the clothing was all black, presumably burglars or intruders, either way. Carter is glad the threat has been dealt with, but at the same time, he doesn't have any good feelings about the situation, seeing the amount of blood and corpses.
As he moved around to look at the bodies, noticing some stab wounds on their bodies, a decapitated head caught his attention, causing him to approach and hold it up. "Takashi..." Having remembered the face, he gazed intently at it, staring at its horrified expression, to get a better understanding of the reason for breaking into his home.
Looking straight at his eyes, he managed to piece the puzzle together from simple analyze: "This guy really had a family," Carter stated, the head staring at him as if looking into his soul; "he was trying to support them," he continued, putting the head back down on the floor with a sad expression on his face; "now he's dead."
Despite how selfish and cruel criminals are, there are some who do it for the sake of their family or to make their lives better. There's a fine line between doing the right thing and doing the wrong thing. However, he can still tell this man was greedy nonetheless.
This is the reason why he is hesitant to take his life because there is still a glimmer of hope in most people; the possibility for them to change and repent from their past actions is something he truly believes. And seeing this was really disheartening.
Sighing, Carter gently closed his eyes as he dropped the head without much thought, exhaling before taking a quick and deep inhale. But before he could do anything else, he heard a menacing sweet voice from behind, causing his eyes to widen from the realization of her presence. "I love you," Yumi says mirthfully, "every breath you take," and his head slowly turned around inch by inch.
"Every move you make," her honeyed voice echoed around him, "every bond you break," the words alone were enough to make his heart stop, "every step you take," it took him a moment to turn around, "every smile you create," Carter's face paled upon seeing her form splattered with crimson blood.
"I'll be always watching you."
