Masachika slowly opened his eyes.
A weight on his shoulder. A quiet warmth resting there, like a memory still alive.
Masachika slowly opened his eyes.
Yuki was asleep against him.
Her head rested on his shoulder, her calm breathing gently shifting the fabric of his jacket. Her arms were folded across herself, curled up without realizing it, as if seeking a bit of safety in a world with no bearings.
He didn't move right away.
He just watched her sleep. Her face was relaxed, almost peaceful, despite the dark circles under her eyes. A lock of hair had fallen over her forehead.
It was an image he knew. One he had forgotten.
Slowly, he moved his arm.
With the caution of a tightrope walker, he slid his hand between them, gently took her by the shoulders, and eased her forward. He laid her across the table in front of them, where she could keep sleeping without waking, without losing that warmth.
She didn't stir. She slid naturally onto the cold surface, her cheek coming to rest against the metal.
She remained like that — peaceful, fragile in the silence.
Masachika watched her for a moment longer. Then, slowly, he sat up, running a hand through her hair to clear it from her eyes, almost without thinking.
He rose without a sound, walking toward the water bucket set in the corner.
It had been filled while he slept.
By Yuki, probably.
He crouched down, dipped his hands in, and drank straight from his palms.
The water had no taste. No presence.
But it wasn't bad.
And that was enough.
Then he returned to sit, a bit further away, in an old, battered armchair.
And at last, he let his thoughts come back.
He sat there for a long time —
his back slumped into the chair, eyes lost in some invisible point on the ceiling.
He wasn't thinking about Alya anymore.
Nor Subaru.
Nor Masha.
The world had faded away.
There was only this room, this silent machine, that half-empty bucket.
And the silence. A silence almost comfortable. Almost soft.
He was lost in thought.
Or maybe he wasn't thinking at all.
Just… there. Waiting. Letting time flow past like a warm trickle at the bottom of a world with no bearings.
An hour, maybe. Or ten minutes.
Impossible to say.
Then — a rustle. Light.
Yuki moved.
She slowly sat up, eyes still half-closed, distant.
She blinked a few times, yawned without restraint, then turned her head toward him with the slow grace of a child waking from a hazy dream.
— "Mmmh... you haven't moved, huh?"
Her voice was soft. Almost unreal in this place.
Masachika glanced at the water bucket, then back at his sister.
He murmured, not very convincingly:
— "Thanks… for the water."
Yuki gave a small, drowsy smile.
— "See? I might've saved your liver."
He nodded, looking into the bottom of the bucket as if it held more than just bland water.
Then, after a short pause:
— "And Subaru… what do you make of him?"
Yuki raised an eyebrow, surprised.
Masachika continued, lower:
— "He annoyed me at first. Really.
But now… I don't know. He's kind of like… a little brother. Clumsy, but sincere."
He sighed.
— "It's not usually my thing, but… I just can't stay mad at him."
Yuki let out a quiet laugh — teasing, but not cruel.
— "You say that now, but wait till he steals Alya from you."
Masachika blushed, looked away.
— "Tch…"
— "There it is. You're blushing. I win."
She nudged him playfully with her shoulder.
— "And once he wins her over, you'll only have me left to take care of."
He looked at her but didn't respond.
She was still smiling, but her eyes were tired.
He smiled too — more softly.
This world had no room for jealousy.
Not yet.
Then suddenly — sounds.
Far down the hallway. Muffled. Uneven.
Almost like… laughter.
Masachika and Yuki exchanged a quick glance and stood up together.
Yuki opened the door without haste.
But it wasn't laughter.
Not really.
Or maybe… the laughter of exhaustion.
Of what comes after.
Of a moment too heavy to digest.
The second group had just returned.
Alya in front, straight-backed, silent.
Behind her, Subaru walked slowly, eyes cast down.
Masha brought up the rear, her gaze empty.
There was nothing on their faces.
Nothing human, nothing familiar.
Closed-off expressions. Silences that carried too much.
Alya met Masachika's eyes.
She gave a slight nod, like a military salute. Not a word.
Subaru didn't even look up. He passed Yuki without seeing her.
Masha forced a smile — but it died instantly.
They each returned to their usual spots.
Alya's chair. Subaru's wall. Masha's corner.
They found their places again, but nothing was the same.
A strange void hung in the room.
Something had broken, or shifted.
Something that didn't want to be spoken.
Masachika felt the silence press too hard.
It wasn't meant to last — not with them.
So, without preamble, he spoke.
— "We found a facility. A massive one. Something abandoned for centuries."
No reaction. So he added, more lightly:
— "But more importantly… a machine. A purifier. Drinkable water. Not good, but drinkable."
At those words, the closed-off faces cracked a little.
Subaru suddenly looked up, eyes wide.
He spotted the bucket on the floor, half-filled with clear, scentless liquid.
He rushed toward it without thinking.
He grabbed the container, brought it to his lips — but stopped.
His eyes turned to Alya.
She hadn't moved.
Then, with an awkward, almost ashamed gesture, he held the jug out to her.
— "You first… sorry."
She looked at him for a moment, then took it wordlessly.
She drank slowly, cautiously.
Then passed it to Masha.
She drank in deep gulps, eyes closed.
Subaru followed.
The water had no taste.
But it gave them breath.
Just a breath.
And that was already a lot.
Alya set the bucket back on the floor, then slowly sat down against the wall, back straight.
The silence was no longer suffocating.
It had been rinsed away, at least in part, by the water.
By that simple human act: drinking.
She ran a hand through her hair, then looked up at Masachika and Yuki.
— "We found a passage. A ladder. It goes up, far up. Too far to see the top."
Her voice was calm. Neutral.
Like a doctor delivering a diagnosis without emotion.
— "It's fixed into the wall. Like a vertical shaft. It leads somewhere, definitely."
She didn't mention the chill at her neck.
Or the sound.
Or the thing.
Masachika nodded, arms crossed.
— "Did you climb it?"
Alya shook her head slowly.
— "No. Not yet. Too many unknowns… and we were exhausted."
Subaru hadn't moved.
He stared at the floor as if he could disappear into it.
His face was frozen. Silent. Locked like a sealed box.
It was Masha who broke the quiet.
— "There was something."
Her voice was sharper. Tense.
As if she still refused to admit what she had seen, what she had heard.
— "We got closer and then… there was a noise. A sound we couldn't make sense of. Far away at first, but getting louder. Like something sliding. Dragging something behind it."
Yuki frowned, focused.
Masha went on:
— "We got scared. All three of us. Real fear. I… I fell, Alya picked me up, and Subaru pulled us into a room nearby. No light. No exit. Just a hiding spot."
She paused. Her hands trembled slightly.
— "That thing stopped right at the ladder. It hit the walls, like it was searching. Then it climbed."
Masachika and Yuki exchanged a glance.
Masha continued, a little calmer:
— "We didn't move. Stayed hidden for… I don't know how long. A long time. Subaru was by himself. Alya and I were together."
She glanced at her sister.
Alya remained still, arms crossed, gaze vacant.
— "It wasn't human. Not an animal either. It was… mechanical. Or… I don't know. We never saw it. But the sound…"
She closed her eyes for a second, then smiled despite it all.
— "But now we know. There's a path. And even if that thing exists, it means there's something else up there.
Maybe… another level. Another world."
She folded her arms, her smile more genuine.
— "And I don't want to stay here waiting for it to come back."
Silence returned.
But it was no longer the same.
It wasn't fear anymore.
It was decision.
Yuki stood tall, arms crossed, like a command line come to life.
Her gaze passed briefly over Subaru — his shut-off face, his stiffened body.
He wasn't the same.
Something in him had broken.
But she hadn't seen it happen.
She hadn't felt it.
She inhaled slowly.
— "We'll vote."
Silence fell again, thick, raw.
— "We still haven't eaten. We're holding on thanks to the water, but that won't last.
If we do nothing, we'll die here. Slowly. Stupidly. So we vote."
No one reacted.
Yuki stepped forward, walked around the metal table, her steps faintly echoing on the dusty floor.
— "The ladder is there. It's real.
Maybe it's dangerous.
But it's a way out. A direction. An answer. And I say yes."
She raised her hand. Firm.
No one answered.
Subaru stood, slowly. He was staggering almost.
His lips pale, forehead slick with cold sweat.
He hadn't slept. Not really.
— "I… I can't go."
His voice was low, broken.
He wasn't begging.
He wasn't pleading.
He was stating.
— "I don't want to go back. I can't."
No one judged.
No one said a word.
Masha stood as well.
She walked to him gently, without a sound, and held him.
No sudden move. No tears.
Just a silent embrace, in the dim light.
She held him like a wounded brother.
Like a memory one refuses to let fade.
Then she turned to Yuki.
— "I vote yes too."
Her voice trembled, but it was firm.
— "Even if I'm scared. Even if I don't want to.
We can't stay here. We have to move.
We have to keep hoping."
Yuki nodded slowly. She didn't smile. But she understood.
Masachika didn't move.
He wasn't looking at Subaru, or Masha, or Yuki.
He was staring at a point farther ahead.
Alya.
She was standing slightly apart, arms crossed, eyes fixed.
When she felt his gaze on her, she stepped forward.
Not fast. Not loud. Just enough.
She looked back at him.
— "We have to move forward."
Her voice was clear. Firm. Unshakable.
— "We can't stay here."
Masachika didn't respond.
He didn't need to.
The vote was done.
Three for. One against.
Him… he no longer needed to choose.
He simply nodded, slowly.
Then he turned to Subaru.
His gaze was heavy. Fraternal.
— "Come with us."
A pause.
— "We can't leave you behind."
Subaru didn't reply.
But his fists clenched.
He knew.
Even fear couldn't erase the need to belong.
And right now, they were five.
Still five.
"Ok, it's the end of arc 1 of Roshidere x Subaru x 40k. We're going to wait a little bit before arc 2 — I need to finish things up. Normally, we're going to level up the universe, take it up a notch. And that's it, let's say the next part will come out before the end of the month? Anyway, that was the author. Ciao!"