Armed men stood in the square. Almost all of them were either soldiers or scientists. Only two boys and one girl were there who were neither. Both boys were seriously injured. One of them lay helplessly on the ground, and the other was no longer on his feet either. The girl did nothing, merely stared in despair at the boy kneeling on the ground.
According to the scientists' instruments, the level of radioactive radiation inside the building was steadily increasing.
"Hurry up! Just kill him already and let's get out of here!" said one of the armed men to the other.
"Wait!" an old scientist in a white lab coat interrupted with a mocking grimace. "The young man just said something rather interesting. Would you mind repeating it?" he continued, his gaze fixed on the boy who had since stood up.
"I said, I want to join you," the boy replied, then slowly began walking toward the man.
"Kagayaki! You bastard... What the hell are you doing?" groaned the other boy, eyes bloodshot, still lying on the ground.
"Ryūta, what are you saying?" the girl finally spoke up in terror.
But the boy ignored them and kept walking. When he reached the man, he took his outstretched pistol from him with exactly one bullet, just enough to complete the task.
"You would really betray your friends?" the man asked, doubtful.
"I no longer have any use for them," Ryūta replied coldly and with conviction.
He then cocked the weapon and aimed it at the girl, who, with tear-filled eyes, smiled one last time:
"It's okay. Maybe it's meant to be this way. I don't regret anything. I'm glad I met you, and I love you very much."
The gun fired, and the girl collapsed. A few minutes later, the ground shook with a massive explosion. Yet there were no signs of destruction, except for one building, which was reduced to rubble. And amidst the ruins, a blond-haired boy, his body covered in severe wounds, and a white-haired girl in his arms.