And here we are with Chapter 2! I have to admit, I was not expecting such a positive response!
Some shameless plugging, much to my chagrin. My financial situation isn't doing too great. I can still pay bills and such, but I barely have enough money for groceries these days. If you crazy people are willing to lend a helping hand, please consider becoming a Supporter on (Pa)treon\SkyRig or checking out my book Chase Ryder and the City of Lost Memories over on Amazon.
Okay, shamepless plugs out of the way! On with the show!
Chapter 2:
Why You Always Play Fair
The Red Prince wasn't happy. Not that his mood was anything new to the inhabitants of the castle. The residents of the King's Acre sensed his mood and stayed as far from the castle as possible while the soldiers, guards, and pawns were on edge.
He was never like this, however. In the past, the Prince was the Red King. Back then, he was beloved and ruled justly and fairly. The soldiers and the people adored him, often hosting grand celebrations and festivals in his name. That all changed when a strange being called a human appeared. No one could remember how and why the human came to engage in a match with the Red King, but they remembered the aftermath. Although the king often took his losses with grace, his match with the human left him enraged. His shouts could be heard across the other acres.
The Curious Cat arrived and offered a piece of his heart, giving the Red King a chance to Ascend to better fulfill his 'role'. So it was the King abdicated, and returned as the Red Prince.
Within the first few days, the contrast between the king and the prince was known. The Prince punished his soldiers and guards for the slightest problems or failures, sometimes beheading them out of boredom. His moods changed so frequently it made keeping up with his demands difficult. The pawns were a frequent target of his abuses whenever he fancied playing a game, either with a resident of King's Acre or against some imaginary opponent. There was a popular belief among the toy soldiers that the Red Prince's imaginary opponent was the opponent who defeated the Red King long ago.
As to why the Red Prince was in a foul mood, it had to do with the fact that someone intruded in his castle. Uninvited at that.
"Your Highness," the Curious Cat purred, sitting atop the head of some…thing. For some reason, the Red Prince thought it was a human(?), but the eyes gave it away. It was something else. Something abhorrent. It made him nauseous just looking at it. "A pleasure to see you again."
The Prince regarded the Cat with apprehension. The last time they met was shortly after the Red Prince's Ascension. Although he lacked the memories of his previous incarnation, the Prince felt as if he knew who he was. Though their meeting was brief, the Cat left a strong impression on his 'heart'. Their meetings up to this point were sparse and brief, but the Prince allowed the Cat to come and go across King's Acre without issue. Having said that, the Prince couldn't help but feel there was something…off…about the Curious Cat. Enough so that he ordered his Toy Soldiers to report any unusual activity back to him.
"Are you here for the Harvest Festival?" the Prince asked. "If so, you've come at the absolute worst time. Can't you see we aren't even remotely ready?"
The Cat chuckled. "Oh, pay me no mind. I simply suggested my companion come here and give you some proper greetings. She's a recent arrival here, after all."
The Prince directed his gaze at the creature. It stared back with curiosity and mild disinterest, something that upset him. A stranger to the Ever After it might be, it was inconceivable that it did not show him the proper respect! He overlooked it for the moment since it was the Curious Cat's guest and companion, but unless it changed its tune, well… Off with her head!
"Truth be told, we do have another reason. Another creature similar to itself has found its way here in our humble Ever After. We hoped you or one of your many subjects may have seen it."
The Prince huffed. "As if I would pay attention to every little person who comes and goes into my acre!"
"So, you haven't seen anyone…unusual?" the creature asked him. "He's taller than me, he's got this dopey look, and he's wearing a black jacket."
"As I said, I pay no attention to that sort of meaningless stuff," he retorted. "Now that you've spoken up, however, I find it most rude that you haven't introduced yourself to me!"
"Oh, sorry. I'm Nayuta."
The Prince hummed. "Nayuta…" The name rolled off his tongue roughly. It sounded…foreign. Strange. He took another look at the creature's clothing and frowned. It wore such drab clothes, he had half a mind to think they were some sort of peasant. Where did it come from? What even was it?
…could it alleviate his boredom?
The moment the thought crossed his mind, the Red Prince cracked a smile. The moment it appeared on his face, the guards grew nervous. The Curious Cat, meanwhile, narrowed his eyes.
"Tell me, Nayuta," he began. "Do you enjoy 'games'?"
Nayuta cocked her head to the side. "Depends on the game. Why do you ask, Your Highness?"
"I'm a fan of games, you see. They help pass the time, and I get bored oh so easily. There's just so little to do around here! I rarely ever have to do anything when there's no fun to be had. The Harvest Festival is so very close, but the preparations won't begin until next week. Until then, I'm left to my devices…and oh so very bored." He sat up from his throne and looked the creature in the eye. "And I hate being bored. So, what do you say, hm? Care to play with your king for a while? You are a guest here…for the time being."
Nayuta stared at the Red Prince, eyes boring into his. For a brief moment, the Prince grew worried. He felt something stir in the back of his head, an emotion he could not comprehend. Something about the creature disturbed him, frightened him almost. He did not understand why. It did not make sense. What did he have to fear from this…this…plebian?
His anxiety slowly increased the longer the tense silence dragged on. His patience similarly tired out. Just as he was about to force the creature, Nayuta gave a nod. "Alright, why the hell not? It ain't like I got anything better to do."
"Excellent!" The Prince hopped off his throne and swung his arms at his Toy Soldiers. "Prepare the board! And tell the Whites to hurry up! A new game is about to begin!"
Internally, the Red Prince sneered at Nayuta, unaware of the sheer anticipation within the Curious Cat over what was about to happen or the sheer indifference the Devil had about the whole affair.
Neither Afteran had any idea what they just got themselves into.
Denji had to admit, the scene in front of him was quite surreal. Which was saying something, considering he lived in a world where the strange was part of everyday life as far as Devils were concerned.
"Come on, you lazy bums! These vines won't eat themselves! Tie them up and cart 'em! HEY! What do you think yer doin', kid?! No slacking off! We're eatin' good this month with all these vines! Come on, hurry up! And see if you can't find any fruits laying around! No dish of ours is complete with some fruit!"
The battle-worn mouse barked orders and shouted at the mice frantically moving about the forest floor. They were of varying colors and sizes and shapes, but they listened to the black mouse with rapt attention and followed his orders down to the letter. It reminded him of those stereotypical military generals he saw on TV, albeit in mouse form. They were tying up the vines he chopped with thin strips of rope, collecting them into piles and then dumping them in a small wooden cart. The rest of the mice scoured the bushes and lush greenery in search of fruit, or what Denji assumed was fruit. Some of the things he saw them carrying over their heads was weird.
"Why the fuck is that shaped like a dick?" Denji pointed to the obscenely shaped dark orange fruit being carried by four mice.
The leader of the mice gave him a flat stare. "Pal, either you help with the mess you made, or get goin'."
"Alright, alright, sheesh…"
The hybrid rolled his eyes and sat up from the log, moving to help the mice secure the rest of the vines. He didn't understand why they seemed obsessed with the vines, though. They didn't taste good, did they? Or was it because the mice were scavengers who snatched up anything edible from the forest floor? Now that he thought about it, were vines supposed to bleed green stuff?
Denji kneeled and grabbed a handful of vines. "Where'd these things even come from, anyway?" he asked as he wrapped them into a bundle. "They just showed up out of nowhere. Is this place alive?"
"It depends on your definition of alive," the mouse by his feet said. It had brown-and-white fur and large round eyes. "The forest gives and takes. It protects us when we treat it well. It gives safety from…"
The mouse trailed off, its fur standing on end and shuddering. Denji recognized the look. He saw similar expressions when people spoke of Devil encounters. Power's reaction was arguably the worst, though Denji couldn't blame her. When had he felt so hopeless, so out of his league, so…useless…against such a monster? He fought all kinds of Devils at that point, yet the difference was too great. He was weakened, sure, but deep down, Denji knew fighting that thing again was off the table.
Hopefully I won't have to see that fucking thing's ugly mug for a while, Denji thought.
"So, uh, you got a name, little dude?"
The mouse looked up. "Little?"
"Well, yeah. You're kinda small," Denji pointed out.
The mouse tilted its head. "How does one be little or small?"
"Oh, er…" Wait, was this some kind of philosophical talk? Why would a mouse know that? Was…was it smarter than him? That was…kind of depressing. And he thought he was doing well at school, too!
"Hey, enough jabbering!" the leader of mice shouted. "Come on, load the vines and fruits into the carts already!"
"Sheesh, man, what's your problem?" Denji huffed. He picked up the bundles of vines and threw them into the small wooden carts. "You expecting trouble or something?"
The scarred mouse scowled in his direction. "Of course I am! We can protect ourselves just fine from the bugs, but when it comes to—"
A dull, metallic groan echoed through the otherwise still air. At once, the mice's furs stood on end, freezing on the spot. All eyes turned to the direction of the noise, accompanied by the sounds of something scraping against the barks of the trees. Denji narrowed his eyes and dug his hand into his shirt. His finger slipped through the hole of the chord.
"Oh no…" the little mouse whimpered. "Oh no oh no oh no!"
"Seeking… Searching… Scouting…"
A pale yellow hand emerged from the shade of a thick patch of trees. The rest of the body emerged afterward. A purple muscular body with a twitching metal head and sporting a crown of four yellow-and-purple horns.
"A Devil?" Denji murmured as he stared at the strange monster. "But… What kind of Devil is it?"
"Searching… Seeking… Scouting…"
The Devil Hunter frowned at its choice of words before looking back at the mice, all of whom stared at the monster fearfully. It seemed this thing was what they were worried about finding them.
In that case—
"Hey! Freakshow!"
The monster stared at him. Denji pulled on the chord. Within seconds, chainsaws cut through his arms and a cool liquid slithered around his head, changing shape into the familiar fanged and ferocious visage of the infamous Chainsaw Man.
"How about you pick on someone your own size?!"
A second passed. Two, then three.
The monster screeched. "DANGER! DEATH!" It lunged at him, swiping a huge claw his way. Denji responded in kind and swung his arm at the claw. Sharp talons met chainsaws.
"You're goddamn right I'm dangerous!" Denji cackled. "Actually, you showed up at a good time! I was getting freaking bored! I'm supposed to be finding Nayuta, buuut…!" He kicked the monster away before pouncing on it, his tongue flapping in the wind as he prepared to carve the monster into bloody chunks. "I think she'll forgive me if I cut up some shitty Devil! Now lemme hear you SCREAM!"
The sounds of battle filled the air, accompanied by the metallic shrills of the Jabberwalker as it faced a most unexpected opponent…
The Curious Cat couldn't help but look on with anticipation and excitement. It had been a long time since he last watched the Red Prince suggest a game. Before those humans came to the Ever After, the Cat often came by King's Acre to watch the 'late' Red King bring his subjects to his Crimson Castle, offering to play games with them. Win or lose, he always wore a smile at the end.
A shame he wore no such smile in his last defeat, the Cat thought, recalling how distraught the Red King was when he found him. Yet another aberration and abhorrent act by Alyx.
It disappointed him to see how disgraceful the Red Prince was in comparison to his prior incarnation, but he supposed it could not be helped. The process of Ascension was the same as rolling a die; you never know what you might become. The sole factor was the lingering impression left behind by the Red King, the scar of his defeat. That scar lingered on with the Red Prince, signified by his cracked façade and bratty attitude.
In any case, it was a treat to watch the game unfold. Nayuta stood sat in a chair on one side of the board while the Red Prince sat in his throne on the other side. The former commanded the white Toy Pawns while the latter commanded their red counterparts. Toy Soldiers stood at attention in case Nayuta played foul, and the Toy Guards stood on either side of the Red Prince, ready to defend him in the worst case.
"What are you, exactly?" the Red Prince asked, nonplussed by the defeat his pawn seconds ago. "You look…human…but you seem to be anything but."
Nayuta tilted its head. "Humans have come here?" she asked.
"They have," the Curious Cat answered her in place of the Prince. "Though to the best of my knowledge, only two have ever come to our humble home. One met a gruesome fate, the other returned home."
"How?" It flicked a finger. The White Pawn countered and demolished the Prince's.
The Red Prince scoffed. "With the help of the Tree, of course! Have you told this thing nothing?"
"It's quite picky about her questions and answers, Your Highness."
Nayuta pouted. "Not my fault you ask about boring stuff." Its pout deepened when it lost one of her White Pawns.
"You still haven't answered my question," the Red Prince said.
"I'm a Devil. I'm sort of the most 'normal' looking among my kind. We're born from humanity's fears. Some fear stupid stuff like tomatoes and chickens. Others are more…ingrained, I guess."
"Such as?"
Nayuta smiled in a way that sent shivers down the Curious Cat's spine. "Like what you might find in the dark." Two red pawns flanked hers, destroying it in a pincer strike. Nayuta blinked, surprised by the motion before frowning. A strange glint formed in her eyes.
The Curious Cat also noticed the act and glanced in the Red Prince's direction. He still sat in his throne leisurely, though his smile dimmed. It took a more dim, aggrieved hint. Although the Cat knew of Nayuta's strange relationship with humanity, the Prince was hearing it for the first time. The cracks in his porcelain face grew a few inches. He wasn't happy, but did not make a public display of his offense.
Such restraint was surprising, given the Red Prince's vocal dislike of humans.
"That wasn't fair," Nayuta complained.
The Red Prince scoffed dismissively. "You can always give up."
The Devil narrowed its eyes. The game continued.
The Curious Cat observed the ongoing match, wondering who would win. The Red Prince's cheating wasn't totally obvious, but Nayuta was sharp enough to see it. Not enough to accuse him, of course. In spite of that, though, the being calling itself a Devil proved itself to be quite the tactician when it came to a game it never played. If the opportunity presented itself, Nayuta took full advantage and struck without prejudice. The Red Prince would retaliate, sometimes fairly and with some disgraceful moves. Each time, Nayuta would respond with vicious brutality.
It was a game of back and forth, one that neared its end. The Pawns continued to suffer and crack from their respective player's abuse. It looked to be anyone's game, albeit one in the Red Prince's favor at the moment.
What fear do you represent for your kind, I wonder?
The question plagued the Curious Cat's mind since he learned what sort of being Nayuta was. It refused to elaborate which fear it represented. He made a few educated guesses, but it never gave an affirmative answer or a hint. It had been a long time since anyone made him work toward an answer. It was refreshing, more so because it was something new. Having been in the Ever After for so long, the Curious Cat was almost certain he knew everything about his home and its inhabitants, barring those who recently underwent Ascension and became something else. He once made a guessing game of what they might become, but the game grew stale when he began figuring out the answers. What their new roles might be became an easy answer once he knew who they were and what their role was.
From a certain point of view, he thought the same of the Devils. Nayuta claimed Devils were born from humanity and were an active threat. Stranger still, Devils were apparently immortal. When they died, they would be reborn in Hell. If they died in Hell, they would be reborn again on Earth. An endless cycle. For what purpose, though? What was the true nature of Devils? Why were they so hostile toward mankind? What sort of fears did they embody? Was it possible to overcome these fears? Conquer them? So many questions, and Nayuta either could not or refused to answer.
Another constant question that drove him mad was humanity's existence on Earth at all. From the sounds of it, Earth was very different from Remnant, but why?
"HAH! SUCK IT!"
The Devil's joyous and crude shouting removed the cat from his thoughts. The game reached its conclusion. To his surprise, Nayuta's White Pawns were victorious. Bloody, beaten, bruised, but ultimately unbowed. The same could not be said about the Prince's Red Pawns, which all laid in crumpled, cracked heaps. The young monarch himself was gaping in disbelief, eyes so wide the cat thought they might pop out.
"Y'know, this is actually kind of fun," Nayuta commented with a toothy grin, oblivious to the Red Prince's mounting anger. "You must play this game a lot, huh? Still, these guys could be a bit bigger. Hey, can we do that? Make the pieces bigger? You know, make this game really fun."
"Oh dear…" The cat was not sure which of the Toy Guards said that, though he understood why they were concerned. The Red Prince's cracks grew bigger. His smile was twitching madly. "This is not going to end well, is it?"
There was a tense, charged moment of silence. Nayuta continued to smile despite clearly recognizing the danger she was in. The Red Prince was not like the Red King. When he lost, he got vocal. He got angry.
"…alright," the Red Prince said after a moment, his voice strangely calm. The Curious Cat flinched, feeling the dripping hate from the words. The Devil remained oblivious. "Yes, we'll play again. We'll change up the rules, even! And we're not stopping until I UTTERLY CRUSH YOU!"
"Bring it, shorty."
The prince's screams were so loud, a mechanical woman wielding an anvil ceased her movements, turning her head toward King's Acre.
"What in the world was that…?"
"STAND STILL YOU SHITTY DEVIL!"
"RETREAT! FIGHT! DEFEND!"
Credit where it's due, this bastard's quick on his feet!
Denji snarled in frustration as he chased after the strange Devil, rotating between attacking and pursuing it. It defended itself, went on the offensive for a while, then made a beeline elsewhere. This strange game of cat-and-mouse went on for quite a while, yet never once had either managed to venture out of the forest's embrace and bounty. Thankfully, no vines attempted to stop Denji or impede him.
The Devil itself proved a surprisingly spry challenge. It could defend itself well enough against his chainsaws, was agile enough to evade him when he got too close, and it could jump. Just when he thought he had it cornered, it leaped into the air, latched on to one of the branches, then used it as a launching pad to put some distance between them. The only reason it failed was because Denji used the chains of his chainsaws to latch onto it and close the gap within seconds.
Needless to say, Denji was getting fed up. He thought this would have been easy, but the Devil proved increasingly slippery to keep pinned and cut apart. He could not afford to waste time here. The longer he stayed, the chances of something happening around Nayuta increased. Whether it was of Nayuta's own making or not didn't matter. He needed to be there in case she got in over her head.
The Devil evaded his attack, leaning back and standing on its arm before twisting its body around and delivering a kick to his face. Its talons barely scratched his armored head. He didn't even feel the blow at all. Denji returned the favor by slashing at its metal face. Sparks flew as his chainsaw grinded and slashed at the Devil's "head". The blow even managed to knock it off balance and land on its stomach. He went in for the kill and reared his arm back to impale the Devil from the back, only for it to suddenly bend its back so far its feet snatched him by the shoulders and lifted him up in the air.
"WHA-HEY! LEGGO OF ME YOU LITTLE—"
It flung him mid-sentence, knocking him through several branches before he found himself stuck and impaled on one of the thicker branches of a tree. Red spewed from his chest, staining his shirt and blazer.
"Oh, come on! I got this thing dry-cleaned, like, yesterday!" Denji complained. "D'you know how much that crap costs?!"
The Devil showed up quickly, hopping from one branch to another. It's head was twitching madly while glaring at him intently. "ABERRANT. DIFFERENT. DANGER. DEATH. DIE!"
"You first, asshole!" Denji snarled in defiance, retracting his chainsaws and literally punching himself off the tree he was impaled on, taking the tree branch stuck in his chest. The Devil lunged toward him with its claws outstretched. Denji did not bring out his chainsaws and instead opted to grab the Devil just as it reached him, grabbing its wrists and throwing it to the ground.
A chainsaw burst from his left leg, ready to cut open the Devil's head. It cocked its head to the side, just barely dodging the revving foot. Not losing momentum, Denji went to slice it from the shoulder down and kicked. Once again, the Devil was faster and evaded his chainsaw leg. It got on all fours and jumped away, latching on top of a tree branch. Not about to let it get away again, Denji sent out another saw chain and whipped it around one of its legs. The Devil growled in confusion, not understanding what happened until Denji yanked it toward him.
A chainsaw burst from his arm as he went for a right straight. The blow connected. His chainsaw screeched like a banshee as its fangs grinded against the metal "head" of the Devil, who in turn screamed in agony. It flailed against him and dug its claws and talons into his flesh. Denji ignored it, finally happy to get his hands on the damned Devil and pushed his chainsaw arm further. It sank an inch deep before—
SHUNK!
Pitch black blood spewed from the opening. The Devil's screams intensified as Denji laughed like a madman. Ebony fluid sprayed all across his face and clothes and paid it no mind whatsoever. The chainsaw was halfway in before Denji finally tore it out with a violent yank and kicked the fresh corpse in the abdomen. Its body flailed like a ragdoll and bounced along the earth before it rolled to a stop. It laid next to a tree, unmoving and limp. Black liquid oozed from the opening in its metal head.
"Hearing you bastards scream never gets old," Denji sighed blissfully. "You were a goddamn pain in the ass, though. Seriously, what kind of Devil are you anyway? And since when do Devils have black blood?" Curious, Denji dabbed his finger in one of the many black oozing spots on his school blazer, then brought it to his tongue and licked the black substance off it. He immediately regretted his decision. His taste buds burned and his tongue felt like it had cottonmouth. "Pft! Ack! Oh, god, that is disgusting!"
Denji furiously wiped the black stuff off his hands and tried to rub the taste off his tongue. He started walking away, ignoring the Devil's corpse while making his way back to where the mice were. He still needed their help getting out of this place, seeing as how they called it home and whatnot. If anyone knew how to get out of it and where he could find Nayuta, it'd be them.
It really is freaking weird, having to rely on a bunch of talking mice, Denji thought. And I thought life in general was weird, but this really does…
"…death…decay…despair…defeat…destroy…"
"…oh, you have got to be kidding me."
Denji slowly turned around. Despite getting a literal chainsaw lobotomy not ten seconds ago, the purple Devil was back on its feet. It was swaying slightly, obviously weakened from the fight. The open hole in its metal head was closed up, almost as if Denji never cut it open in the first place. It stared at him, its head not twitching at all. It made no moves to flee or attack. It just stood there, watching and waiting.
I know I fucked up this guy's brain, so how the hell is he still standing?! Denji thought incredulously. Seriously, what Devil is he?! Does he have some kind of power up, like that asshole from the hotel who ate a piece of the Gun Devil?
"Okay, if screwing your brain won't kill ya," Denji scoffed and readied his chainsaws for round two. "Then I guess I'll just have to cut ya up into nice, itty bitty teeny tiny pieces."
The Devil hissed. "Danger… Threat… Monster… Stranger… Creature…"
"You looked in a mirror lately, pal?"
"…Retreat."
"Eh?"
Denji blinked. The Devil jumped up into the large thicket of tree branches, hanging there just long enough to stare at him one last time before it took off like a bullet. He was so dumbfounded, Denji did not even register the Devil was getting away until it was out of sight. When he realized what had happened, he scowled and spat. He was angry that he did not get a chance to kill the Devil, but it was no concern to him at the moment. If it was smart enough to flee, it would likely not try to attack him again. Not when it knew he could kick its ass.
Satisfied and a little annoyed that his prey got away from him, Denji returned to where the mice were. Surprisingly, they hadn't left. They hid among the bushes and inside the small holes in the trees, but they never left the spot where he last saw them. They stared at him in a mix of shock and awe, bug-eyed and everything.
"I'm back," Denji greeted them lamely. "What did I miss? …uh, guys? You all okay here?"
The mice didn't say anything. They just stared at him. It was starting to make him uncomfortable. Just as he was about to speak again, maybe snap his fingers and get their attention, the Mouse Leader emerged from his hiding place among the bushes and scampered up to a nearby log to get a better look at Denji.
"You… Y-you drove away the Jabberwalker…"
Denji tilted his head. "Jabba-what-now? Oh, you mean that weird Devil-looking thing. I didn't kill it, but yeah, I kicked it's ass."
"I-I don't…" the mouse stammered. "How… W-who in the world are you?"
He opened his mouth, about to re-introduce himself properly…only to pause, think for a moment, then smirk.
"I am…" Denji jabbed his thumb into his chest. "Chainsaw Man."
A moment of silence. Then—
"THREE CHEERS FOR CHAINSAW MAN! HIP HIP HOORAY!"
"HIP HIP HOORAY!"
"HIP HIP HOORAY!"
"HIP HIP HOORAY!"
The Devil Hunter laughed. Even in a strange place such as this, there was not a chance in Hell he would pass up having his name praised.
"CHEATER!"
Well, that took a lot longer than I thought it would, the Curious Cat thought lazily. The Red Prince's hysterical shouting actually woke him up. The repeated back and forth matches between Nayuta and the monarch bored him so much he actually dozed off for a short while. Not much time seemed to have passed as the Toy Guards and Soldiers hadn't changed rotations. The White Pawns looked no worse for wear, albeit quite roughed up.
The Red Prince's porcelain face was utterly covered in cracks. Unless it was a trick of the light, his red eyes were actually glowing with indignation and pure fury. Glass marbles spilled from the corners of his eyes. That Nayuta drove him to such fury was actually quite impressive.
The Devil harumphed, leaning back in its seat and crossed her arms. "I didn't cheat! You did!" it shot back, words full of heat. "And guess what, I still kicked your scrawny ass! Which means you're a cheater and a loser!"
"RAAAAAAAAAAAAGH! SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUP!"
The Curious Cat blinked. Oh.
This… Oh, this was not good. This was very much not good. While the Red Prince had tantrums before, this was far worse than anything he's seen. He could physically feel the broiling hate and rage rolling off the Red Prince in waves. It was suffocating. The Toy Soldiers and Guards weren't faring much better, squirming in their boots and shaking like leaves in stormy weather. They could barely keep a firm grip on their weapons.
"YOUR JUST LIKE THOSE STUPID HUMANS!" the Red Prince screamed. "I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU SO MUCH! YOU'RE ALL THE SAME! SELFISH, GREEDY, LYING CHEATERS! I HATE YOU SO MUCH IT HURTS! I'LL HAVE YOUR HEAD, DO YOU HEAR ME?! YOU AND THAT FRIEND OF YOURS! I'LL HANG YOUR HEADS FOR ALL THE EVER AFTER TO SEE!"
The Curious Cat stood up. "N-now, hang on a moment, Your Highness!" He couldn't afford to let this happen. There was still so much he wanted to know about Nayuta and Devils. About Earth. If it died, he would never get the answers he craved. More than that… "Aren't you overreacting just a tad? You're upset, I understand. But you can't simply let yourself be ruled by your emotions like this. It's unbecoming. Let's take a moment and…"
Wait, what was that noise? It sounded like…chains rattling? Why would that—
"Shut up."
The Crimson Castle went dead silent. Not only the frantic sounds, but the castle itself. Even the noise outside from the town beyond the walls fell quieted. The Toys ceased all movement, no longer shaking and trembling. The Red Prince, still frothing full of rage, suddenly found himself frozen stiff.
The Curious Cat did not understand what happened. Not until he turned and looked at…at that thing sitting across from the Red Prince. It did not resemble a little girl, not at that moment. Rather, the cat felt as if he stared at something else. Something incomprehensible. Beyond understanding. Beyond fathoming. It sat there with a face of annoyance. It was not angry, it was not furious, it was annoyed. The threats did not infuriate it so much as irritate it.
"I like to think of myself as a calm and reasonable person," the Devil began. "Do you know why? Because every six days, I wake up early in the morning, brush my teeth, eat breakfast, and go to school. I have to listen to a bunch of kids scream my ears off trying to get a teacher's attention or see who can scream the loudest. I have to sit and pretend I'm the nice girl and restrain myself from interrupting the adults when they make mistakes. Why? Because Denji wants me to have an education. He wants me to go to college and live a normal, ordinary life. I put up with all kinds of stupid crap because I want to make Denji happy."
Slowly, the Devil rose from its chair. The chains floating around it twisted and jingled as the Toys started moving. It was only now the Curious Cat realized the chains had impaled the Toy Soldiers and Guards, forcing them to move and act as though they were more puppets than toys.
"I can forgive a lot of things…but do you know what pisses me off? More than some stupid floozy who has the gall to swap spit with Denji right in front of me?"
"W-w-what do you think you're—"
That was as far as the Red Prince got before one of his own Toy Guards smacked him across the face. A chunk of his porcelain flesh shattered and broke off, clattering to the floor. The Prince was knocked off his throne, bouncing almost comically before landing on his rear. As he gingerly and shakily touched the missing pieces of his face, he looked up and stared fearfully at the Devil and his enchained Toys, all of whom stood behind her with all weapons aimed at him.
"Threatening my property." The Devil glared at him, still looking irritated as though she found it tiresome to even go through these acts just to prove a point. "Here is what's going to happen, you brat. We're going to play again. Best two out of three. You win, you do whatever you want. I win, me and Cheshire leave and you don't cause anymore trouble for me or Denji if he passes through. We play normally. No big guys or weapons. Just pieces. That's it."
The Devil turned sharply on its heels. The Toys snapped into a salute and allowed her to pause.
"Oh, and Your Highness?" it called out over its shoulder, gold and red eyes staring down his sniveling red ones. "No cheating this time. I fucking hate cheaters."
Oh my…
The Curious Cat gulped. He was starting to understand the metaphor Alyx once told him. 'Curiosity killed the cat.'
This…is going to be oh so very interesting…
For those of you who have never read Chainsaw Man… Yeeeaaah, this is Nayuta in a nutshell. In simple terms, don't piss her off. Like, ever.
I'm not very satisfied with how the Jabberwalker fight turned out. It feels too short, but I didn't want it to overstay its welcome at the same time. You may also notice that it's actually somewhat stronger here…not that it wasn't already. It put up a decent fight against Team RWBY, but the Jabberwalker knows when it's facing down a fight it can't win and will run in the other direction. Here, the Jabberwalker can give Denji something of a fight. Not enough to actually pose a real threat to him, surpise him maybe, but enough to keep Denji on his toes.
Then again, I'm of the opinion it isn't a matter of strength that wins a fight. It's that and having the brains to outmaneuver your opponent.
By the way, the Red Prince vs Nayuta scene? Easily the best parts of this chapter I've had the pleasure of writing.