Chapter 22

On the other side of the ring, Kierra was flung back—again. They looked rough, covered in scratches, but not a single drop of blood. The crowd roared.

The girl lunged at Kierra. Just as she was about to throw another punch, Kierra raised their hand. “I forfeit.”

The girl’s punch stopped midair. Her eyes widened slightly. Across from her, Kierra smiled in satisfaction.

The crowd groaned in disappointment but still broke into respectful applause.

Kierra looked at the girl in front of them and smiled. “Are you disappointed?”

The girl jolted, stepping back awkwardly. Her face turned a little red. Kierra noticed and giggled.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to tease you. Anyway, my name is Kierra! Nice to meet you!” they said, stretching out a hand.

The girl didn’t reply, but she shook Kierra’s hand.

“Oof, we’re still in the ring. Let’s get out of here, shall we?”

The girl didn’t respond, but she followed Kierra anyway.

A click sounded as Kierra popped open a soda can in front of a vending machine.

“I didn’t know there were machines that could do this! Is this a human invention?” Kierra asked curiously.

The girl just nodded. She clearly knew how vending machines worked and managed to get both of them a drink.

“Wahh! That was so cool!” Kierra beamed.

No response, silence between them.

“Soo… what’s your name?” Kierra asked, trying to start a conversation.

The girl didn’t answer. The awkward pause stretched, until finally she murmured,

“…I don’t have one.”

Kierra blinked, surprised, then fell silent too.

Suddenly, an idea struck. “Then… how about we decide one now?”

The girl turned to face them. Then shook her head.

“Hmm… what about Kaira?”

“…Sure,” the girl said quietly.

“Alright then—Kaira! Nice to meet you!” Kierra said brightly. “I’m—AH! I forgot!”

They jumped to their feet. “I should get back to my twins!”

Just as quickly, they turned around and grabbed Kaira’s hand “you should come with me!”

“Remooon! Leooo!!” Kierra shouted, dragging Kaira around.

“Oh, there they are!”

“Kierra, where the hell were you?! Did you find the object yet??” Remon asked.

“Nope! But—” Kierra began.

Kaira peeked from behind Kierra’s shoulder.

“Oh! Hello there! Who’s this?” Leo asked, friendly as ever.

“This is Kaira! I met her in a duel!”

“A duel…?” Remon raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, also she didn’t have a name, so I suggested ‘Kaira’ and she agreed!”

“Ohh? But why ‘Kaira’? It sounds similar to yours,” Remon said, sounding skeptical.

“I dunno. It just popped into my head!”

“Of course it did…” Remon sighed.

“Well! Nice to meet you, Kaira! I’m Leo, and she’s Remon. Kierra’s one of our clock people, and we’re Void Travelers!”

“I know,” Kaira said softly, eyes on the clock hanging around Kierra’s neck. Then she turned and showed a clock tucked behind one of her twin tails.

“Whoa! You’re a clock person too?” Everyone looked surprised.

“…Yeah.”

“But where are your twins?”

“…They finished their task. I’m free to wander now.”

“I see… Well, wanna stick around?” Kierra offered.

“Not a bad idea, actually! We always welcome new people,” Leo added.

Kaira was quiet for a moment, then gave a small nod.

“Yaaay! Welcome to the party, Kaira!” Kierra cheered.

-On Remon’s Place-

It was Sunday when Mallory decided to visit Remon.

“Remon, you look more tired every day. I’m…” Mallory trailed off, staring at Remon still glued to the screen.

“Let’s take a break for now! Let’s go to the mall!”

“…What?”

“What do you mean what? You look like you haven’t slept for days!”

“…If that’s the case, what I need right now is rest, no?”

“Well, yeah, but… come onnn.” Mallory gave her a pleading look.

“…Urg.” Remon looked conflicted.

“Pleaseeee.”

Remon sighed, then finally gave in. “Fine… let me finish this first.” She typed a few things, synced her tabs from laptop to phone, then stood. “Let’s go.”

“…Are you seriously going like that?”

“With what?”

“Do you even own clothes other than t-shirts and hoodies?” Mallory asked, pulling open the closet.

Inside were rows of plain t-shirts, shorts, hoodies, and school uniforms. Mallory stared, bewildered. Remon just shrugged.

“Hm. We can work with this, actually!”

“What are you going to—” Before she could finish, Mallory had already dragged her over and picked something out: a hoodie with the sleeves folded halfway, shorts, and a t-shirt underneath.

“Okay! Let’s go!” Mallory cheered, shoving her out the door.

-In the Mall-

As they walked to the nearby mall, Remon muttered, “…Why are we here, anyway? I still need to find the culprit.”

“You’ve been working too hard. You deserve this break! Let’s buy you some real clothes, so you have something to wear when you actually go out.”

“I never go out except for school. Why would I need—”

“Shhh. You’ll need them someday, trust me.”

Remon sighed but let Mallory drag her along.

In the clothing section, Mallory dove into the racks, pulling out pieces she thought would fit Remon. Meanwhile, Remon stood behind her, scrolling her phone to check for updates on Malvine.

“Remon! What about this one?”

“…Sure.” Remon gave a flat stare and a short reply.

Mallory huffed, then went digging again. “Oooh! This one’s good! Try it on!” She shoved the outfit into Remon’s hands and pushed her into a fitting room.

When Remon came out, she wore a light green shirt as an outer layer, a dark turtleneck inside, and neat black pants tied with a belt.

“Yesss! Perfect fit!” Mallory grinned.

Remon stared at her reflection silently, then muttered, “…Sure. Whatever.” She walked straight to the cashier, paid, and wore the outfit immediately.

Afterward, they wandered into the crowded mall. People bustled everywhere—shopping, eating, living. The place felt full of life.

“Okay, what’s next?” Mallory asked. Remon tilted her head.

“Is there anywhere you want to go?”

“Home.”

“Nooo! Come on. Is there a place you’d like?”

“…Why don’t you decide for me. Too lazy to think.”

“Are you serious? Ugh..wanna grab something?”

“Sure.”

“Food court it is!”

At the food court, Mallory ordered for both of them since Remon “wasn’t hungry.”

“You should decide for yourself sometimes.”

“I said I’m not hungry.”

“You literally eat instant noodles every day. Aren’t you bored?”

“…Not really?”

“I can’t with you.” Mallory sighed.

They ate quietly—until Remon set her phone on the table, watching Malvine’s feed as she chewed.

“Remon… you can check later. Enjoy your food now.”

“No.”

“You’re so stubborn, huh?”

But suddenly, Remon froze. Her hand stopped halfway.

“W-what happened?” Mallory whispered.

“…Malvine… is dead?”

Mallory shot up in shock, “What do you mean? WHAT DO YOU MEAN?!” drawing stares, then quickly sat back down.

Remon showed her phone. On the screen, Malvine lay motionless on the floor, blood pooling around him.

“What the hell happened?!” Mallory whispered urgently.

“I don’t know! I just opened the feed and saw him like this—I didn’t catch what happened before!”

“What should we do?”

“Go to his place?”

“Err.. I don’t know..”

“Call the cops?”

“How do we prove he’s dead if we’ve never been there ourselves?”

“Right… they’d suspect us.”

“…Should we just leave it?”

“I don’t know! Isn’t that a crime?”

They sat in silence, the mall’s background noise blurring around them.

“…Maybe we can go there first, then call the police. That way, we’ll have a reason to report it,” Remon suggested.

“…Okay…”

Remon started to stand, but Mallory grabbed her arm.

“Wait. If Malvine’s dead… does that mean he wasn’t the culprit?”

Remon froze, panic and confusion flashing across her face. She clenched her teeth but said nothing.

Without finishing their meals, they left the food court and headed for Malvine’s place.