“A series of murders occurs in a row, and today marks the twelfth victim already?!

Once again, another body presumed to have been murdered last night has been discovered. Recently, there have been twelve similar incidents, but the security forces have yet to grasp who the perpetrator of these ongoing murders is. Citizens, please refrain from wandering the streets at night for your safety…”

“…What on earth is happening?”

A man reading the newspaper muttered with a sigh as he pondered the article’s content. A serial murder case? What a horrific turn of events in what was supposed to be a peaceful city.

He exhaled a deep breath and spoke to his daughter, who was dining with him, with a worried glance.

“Do you understand? It’s dangerous, so don’t go wandering around alone at night, not ever.”

“Don’t worry. You know I haven’t been going out of my room much at night lately,” she replied with a mischievous grin.

“Right, right. I’m just too worried for my own good.”

His daughter had recently become immersed in a script she was writing, spending most of her time alone in her room except for when working on it.

Perhaps feeling a bit shy, she never revealed what the script was about to him.

“Well, I’ve finished my meal, so I’m going back to my room now.”

“Sure, but don’t stay up too late writing your script.”

Is it really that enjoyable to write scripts?

Watching his daughter scurry back to her room right after dinner made him smile, but then he glanced back at the newspaper he had just been reading, wiping the smile off his face as he muttered.

“…By the way, what kind of lunatic would commit such a heinous act? Whoever it is, they need to be caught as soon as possible.”

Little did he know that the culprit could very well be his daughter, the one he had just spoken with.

*

“Heheh♪~”

Sitting at her desk, Auria hummed a tune.

Next to her were stacks of thick manuscript sheets, all of them scripts she had written about tragedies.

At first, it was one script a month. Carefully selected protagonists and meticulously crafted tragedies.

She thought she would be satisfied with the sweet taste of the endings after putting in so much effort.

At least, that’s how it was at first.

Still humming, Auria picked a piece of candy from a large jar on her desk and popped it into her mouth.

As the candy slowly melted, a sweet flavor spread throughout her mouth.

She chuckled, murmuring,

“To think I’ve been holding back, how ridiculous.”

It was true that savoring the ‘end’ after all that effort was incredibly sweet. Yet, Auria realized something.

The ‘end’ was already sweet enough without any need for excessive effort or waiting.

Even if she didn’t abstain for long, the candy wouldn’t lose its sweetness.

Moreover, the ‘end’ wasn’t a sweetness that would tire you out like overeating candy.

And yet, her restraint came not from herself but rather from external pressures.

Tasting a person’s ‘end’ was a perilous act, requiring some sort of preparation to avoid being caught doing so.

Thus, the frequency of her actions ended up being roughly once a month.

In other words, as long as she could manage to not get caught, Auria wouldn’t need to hold back.

So, if she gained the ability to carry out her actions without being detected, it would undoubtedly lead to an increase in frequency.

Once a month could easily become a fortnight.

A fortnight could turn into a week.

A week could become four days, then two days, and finally, a day.

Auria set down her pen and locked her door with a click, pulling a dark hood from her closet and putting it on, smiling as she muttered.

“Shall I go out tonight?”

In the next moment, she was already out in the night.

 

“Hey, bartender, another round here!”

“Give me some booze, booze!!”

With the recent string of murders, most shops were closing early these days, but there were still some establishments that thrived in such situations.

The woman roamed around one such shop and noticed a drunken patron stumbling out, approaching him.

“Ugh, I’m getting tipsy. Huh? Who are you?”

The intoxicated man showed signs of caution as the hooded woman came near him.

Even though he was drunk and wandering around at this hour, the recent murders made him wary of someone dressed suspiciously.

“Hey there, if you have some time, would you like to play for a bit?”

“Eh?!”

But his cautious demeanor evaporated the moment she gently lifted the hood that obscured her face to speak with him.

Her beauty and voice were more than enough to captivate a drunken man.

“Play? Su-sure!”

“Then follow me. It’s a bit too crowded for a man and a woman to be seen playing together at night, don’t you think?”

“Uh, heh heh…”

Under her seemingly tempting words, the intoxicated man was completely enchanted and eagerly followed her.

Finally, they arrived in a dark alley, well away from the watchful eyes of the guards that had been patrolling the streets these past few days.

“Gulp… Now that we’re here, it’s time to…”

“True, now that we’re here, we should start. But, did you never learn this when you were a kid?”

Having led him deep into the alley, the woman smiled brightly as she spoke.

“Don’t go following strangers blindly.”

At that moment,

-■■■■■■!!!

Something with wings suddenly cast a shadow over the dark alley.

“…Huh, huh?!”

The scream of the drunkard echoed after a brief moment as he caught sight of the bat-like monster that appeared out of nowhere.

With sharp teeth and glistening claws, the terrifying visage of the creature made the man remember the morning newspaper he had read.

Some of the victims in the murder cases were found in horrendous states, as if they had been attacked by monsters.

In a panic, the man turned to flee, but the woman behind him, accompanied by the creature, said,

“Now, let’s start a game of tag~ If you get caught, you’ll die, so you better run fast!”

“Eek!!”

Desperate to escape her, he turned and ran for his life.

Just a bit more until he reached the main street, where patrolling guards were present.

If he could just make it there, he believed he would certainly survive.

“Haah, haah… Just a little more, a little more…!”

As he ran frantically, he realized he was almost out of the alley.

Just one more step and he’d be safe. Relief washed over his face when, at that moment,

“What, what is this?!”

A black wall suddenly appeared in front of him, blocking his way.

“A-aah…!!!”

With his only escape route blocked, panic set in, and he desperately began banging against the wall with all his might.

Hoping for survival, he pounded violently until his bones ached.

But in the midst of his desperate struggle, he suddenly realized something.

“W-wait….”

He distinctly heard footsteps right behind him.

“Took you for granted, did you? How does it feel knowing your hope is slipping away?”

Slowly turning around at the woman’s voice, the despair on his face brought a delighted smile to hers.

“Haha, I love that expression the most.”

*

“Hmph, is this enough?”

Auria smiled broadly as she punctuated her manuscript with a period.

Lying lifeless at her feet was the nameless drunken man, the protagonist she had just written about.

The reason Auria was able to carry out these acts so boldly was due to a newfound ability she had developed one day.

From a certain point on, she found herself capable of freely transporting to desired locations or casting barriers preventing anything around her from escaping.

When Auria awakened her powers, it felt like they suited her perfectly.

It wasn’t merely useful for committing perfect crimes; it seemed like the embodiment of her desire to see the ‘end’ of everything and hoard it for herself, not wanting to share with anyone else.

-■■■■■■■■!

Except for the monstrous bat that had emerged from the energy radiating from her body, of course.

Regardless, it was evident that neither her abilities were normal nor were things occurring around her typical for a human.

Yet, Auria didn’t find it strange that she had gained such powers.

After all, wasn’t she always someone far from ordinary?

Having more differences from others would only help her realize that being different was precisely why she was special.

“Already on the thirteenth piece with a similar theme, and I’m not bored at all.”

In any case, utilizing that ability, Auria tasted the ‘end’ of a person every day.

It was now the thirteenth time, a string of similar crimes deemed serial murders by the public, yet Auria found it utterly thrilling.

Each time was fresh and enjoyable, to the point that if her heart desired, she could indulge every single day.

“Still, I crave something a bit more stimulating.”

However, this didn’t mean she was completely satisfied.

Auria felt a growing desire within her every single day.

She had tasted the ends of items.

She had savored the end of a person.

So, what was next…?

As soon as she closed her eyes and opened them again, she stood atop the tallest building in the city.

From that vantage point, she gazed down at the city, wondering aloud,

“What might the ‘end’ of this city taste like….”

Licking her lips in anticipation, Auria’s eyes gleamed with excitement.