Chapter 57: Suppressed Emotions

Raive stared at Khamish’s face.

It was no longer the middle-aged balding man from before. His mask, hair included, had come off with such ease it was strange he hadn’t noticed it sooner.

"You... I thought you’d be ugly under the mask, but you’re pretty good-looking." Raive muttered casually. "Why wear a skin mask, then?"

"Do I even need to answer?"

Khamish sighed, running a hand through his black hair.

"You already got what you wanted once I took the mask off. Asking for more is just asking for trouble." He said.

"Really? I don’t think I’d be troubled, though."

"I’m talking about trouble for myself!"

His mood had clearly soured. His pride had taken a hit after Raive figured him out. He sighed, removing the colored contacts he wore, revealing a pair of beautiful heterochromatic eyes—pale blue on the right, hazel brown on the left.

"...Before the trials appeared, I was quite famous, you know?" Khamish sighed as he sat down, sounding like he’d already given up on hiding his identity.

After all, if he wanted to stay with Raive and the others, he owed them at least that much honesty. He pointed a thumb at himself and continued.

"I was known as the Great Thief, Hundred Faces! How’s that? Even you know of me, don’t you?!"

"Hundred Faces...?"

Raive just tilted his head, puzzled.

"The only Great Thief I know of is Lupin. This is the first I’ve heard of you."

"W-What... Seriously...?"

Khamish’s pride took another hit. He was sure his name had been all over the news at some point, so hearing Raive admit he’d never even heard of it stung more than he expected.

"Shit... Bro, you’re too much." Khamish cursed, sniffling.

Though it was true that Hundred Faces was famous—ask anyone else and they’d have recognized the name instantly. It was just Raive who was too eccentric to bother with local news at all.

"Alright, alright, I get it." Raive sighed, waving a hand. "You’re the Great Thief Hundred Faces, and you’re famous. Sorry for not knowing."

Then he pulled his blanket over himself, turning the other way. "Now, go to sleep. We still have a long day ahead of us." He said.

Khamish just stared at his back, feeling bitter and hollow all of a sudden.

And then, the night passed peacefully.

Until around midnight, when Raive woke to the sound of footsteps approaching.

He didn’t open his eyes. Instead, he sharpened his other senses and listened.

’I’m alone in the room.’

That was the first thing he noticed.

Khamish, who should’ve been sleeping in the same room, was nowhere to be found.

’Did he slip out without alerting me?’ He thought, mildly impressed.

With his +1000 stats, even a dropped pin could be loud enough to wake him. That Khamish had managed to leave the room without tripping his senses was worth some praise.

But that wasn’t what mattered right now.

The footsteps drew closer—careful, quiet, almost aimless, the kind of walk someone light on their feet made without meaning to be noticed.

They came closer and closer, until Raive could place them.

’This is... Shymine?’

The one sneaking up on him was the little ice lady. He had no idea why she’d visit his room this late, so he kept pretending to sleep a while longer.

Once she was close enough to touch the bed, she stood there for a moment.

From the warm, stinging sensation on the back of his head, she had to be glaring daggers at him. Raive kept his body loose, ready to react to anything.

Shift!

"...!"

But beyond his expectations, Shymine didn’t backstab him, nor did she try to smother him with a pillow. Unlike his paranoid guess, she hadn’t come to kill him at all.

Instead, Raive felt a warm embrace from behind.

Something soft pressed against his back, scattering every thought he’d had a moment ago. ’T-This is...!’

His body tensed again—for an entirely different reason.

But before he could turn around—

"Raive... Are my parents really dead now?" Shymine whispered, her voice thin, almost breaking.

Only then did he realize she hadn’t come for "that" sort of thing. He let out a deep breath, easing his nerves, and answered.

"Unfortunately, yes."

Raive had never actually seen her parents himself—he only knew what Shymine had told him—so there might be some inaccuracy, but the core facts held.

Her parents were dead, and going there now would be far too dangerous.

"..."

Shymine stayed quiet. Her arms tightened around him instead, just a little more.

Raive heard soft sobs, felt something wet press against his back, and didn’t dare turn around. He just stayed still, letting her get it out.

He had no idea why Khamish had left the room, or why Shymine had chosen to come to him instead of Hazel, who shared her room.

All he could do was accept it as it was.

About twenty minutes later, the sobbing faded into soft, even breathing. Raive turned around gently and found Shymine asleep.

Her eyes were red and swollen from crying.

"She must’ve cried herself out."

Afterward, Raive carried her back to her room, where Hazel sat by the bed as if she’d been waiting for exactly this.

He laid Shymine down carefully and pulled the blanket over her. Then he turned to Hazel, who nodded in understanding.

After leaving, Raive didn’t go back to his room.

Instead, he went outside for a walk.

In this world, death was everywhere. Hazel was lucky her whole family had made it out safe, but the same couldn’t be said for everyone.

Raive knew none of it was his fault, but knowing there was nothing he could do about it—just like with Hershey’s parents—left a strange weight of guilt in his chest.

"Is this a twisted hero complex budding inside me?" Raive sighed, letting the cold night air cool his overheated mind.

He wasn’t sure, even about himself.

He looked up at the countdown timer that never stopped, and pressed his lips together.

Just like when he’d faced the infallible monster trying to save Shymine, Raive wasn’t Superman. He’d been too full of himself, acting as if the world belonged to him.

But now that he’d caught the thought sitting unconscious inside him, he could only smile wryly.

"Forget it." He scoffed. "All we need to do right now is survive until the end."

The first day had ended, and the second was about to begin.

And now, Raive was ahead of the previous loops by a mile.