You're Not The One, a re:zero fanfic

…

"You're not the one."

"A pleasure doing business with you, I believe now would be a good time to finish?" Elsa clasped the insignia and put it somewhere deep inside her robe, Shinji believed it to be magic the way he didn't know where she hid it.

"Yep, thanks for the trade! No idea why my client thinks it's so valuable… but I ain't complaining!" Felt greedily took a hold of the bag of coins, forming a big grin on her face as she did.

So supply and demand really is the same here too, huh? Damn, why did I even come here in the first place…!

Shinji had been free loading at the loothouse, using the excuse that he was new to the slums to laze around here. Even so, now that he at least got a better grasp on etiquette and rules, life should allow him to blend in easier now.

He dusted his legs, "I should be on my way too–"

"You are not going anywhere without giving back what you have stolen."

Everyone turned to the doorway as a third party's voice, one belonging to a silver-haired girl, interrupted the farewell.

Who's this…? Wait a minute…

"Stolen? Wait, so you really were a thief after all?!" Shinji glanced at Felt, feeling betrayed.

"Don't give me that look! Ya gotta do what ya gotta do around these parts, bro." Felt refuted.

That damned brat! I was already playing it risky as is, but now I'm totally gonna get in trouble!

The silver-haired girl stepped into the building, confronting Felt directly, "So you DID steal it? Return it to me, and I will not use any drastic measures."

The girl's pressure suffocated Felt, and she started meekly walking back towards Rom.

"Look, miss, we don't want any trouble. If you must know, Felt here is no longer the one you should concern yourself with." Rom boldly stated.

The silver-haired girl blankly stared up at Rom, not believing his words.

…I really shouldn't be here right now. Maybe if I just–

"He's right, you know," yet another third party had— no, this was Elsa.

A reflection moved at blinding speeds, before blood splattered across the forms of Felt, Rom and Shinji… the source coming from the sliced belly of the unaware silver-haired girl.

"Ah, aaaahhh? Ahhh!?" Shinji yelped as the girl fell to the ground unceremoniously, holding her stomach instinctively in confusion.

"Oh dear, I can't risk having any witnesses, it would go against my client's wishes after all~,"

Elsa licked her lips, something that somehow grossed Shinji more than the act of… killing.

She's… dead. She's dead. She's dead she's dead dead dead she's she'sdead deadeadeaddeaddeadead.

This was dangerous, actually dangerous. Elsa would gut all of them, kill them, make them bleed out the same way as the girl still coughing up her own blood on the–

"Uuuurraaaggh!" a ferocious growl lets loose alongside the swinging of a giant club, demolishing the shabby planks all of them once stood on.

"Ah, this is my first time battling to the death with a giant~!" Elsa playfully dived away from each swing that was delivered.

"Quiet, little freak! I'll grind you down and feed you to the rats!" Rom continued to pursue her, each hit causing shelves to collapse under the impacts.

No, why is this happening? What the fuck what the fuck, I need to get out of here, fuck this fucking place what the fuck!

Shinji took a look at Felt, who was gritting her teeth, and the dying girl, who looked as if the idea of death wasn't even a possibility for her.

And so, he sprinted for the door—

"Did you perhaps mishear me? I cannot let that happen~."

He was running a minute ago, but was now upside down and moving- no, he was flying. Vertigo setting in, he had forgotten any concept of bracing himself.

The world slowed down, giving him enough time to collide with a wooden counter—

"—Hukh!"

The wind was blown right out of his lungs and his shoulders made excruciating popping noises.

Now fallen upright, his spinal discs grinded against each other as he attempted to move his head, causing further pangs to ripple across his entire body.

The pain seared him, telling him to stop resisting. The more he moved, the more it hurt. It occupied every part of his consciousness, but he had to at least see what caused him this suffering.

What… happened…? I… I can't feel…

"You … just… leave…?! What…!"

He could vaguely recognize the voice of a girl, but did not bother to guess who it was.

"...kid… this!"

He saw the silhouette of a giant holding a club, before the club formed into two and fell lopsided onto the floor.

His ears slowly fought through the ringing, but he wished he never let that happen-

"Thanks for the milk." Elsa smiled as Rom toppled over like bricks.

"You bitch! I'll fucking kill you!" Felt wiped her tears, having already pulled her dagger out since the silver-haired girl's demise.

In an instant, Felt darted out of vision, leaving a trail of dust where she once stood.

"Divine Protection of Wind…" Elsa side stepped randomly, that is, if Felt wasn't—

"How wonderful, I can see you are loved by this world. I envy you!"

Elsa dodged a strike in the blink of an eye, as the speed Felt carried with her had dug herself deeper into the held out kukri, lodging itself into her throat, before Elsa sliced it downwards.

Blood coated the interior of the loothouse, leaving a paralyzed Shinji to soak in its iron smell, ever so potent.

Am I going to die…? Why me…?

"Well, I guess that leaves only you, then." Elsa slowly stepped towards his body, ignoring that the silver-haired girl was still gurgling on her own innards.

Elsa licked her lips, "I was curious as to why a noble looking man as yourself wanders the slums."

His eyes met with death, though he no longer paid attention to its words as he spotted the sharp glint of metal aimed directly at him.

No, no, no please, no, no, no, no, no no no no no NO NO NO NO NONONONONONO

His body contorted itself to avoid it, like an animal being caught on its hind legs. But the little strength he received from adrenaline wasn't enough, and his stomach was—

"—GAAAAAKKGHHH!"

His body ripped as if it was made of fabric, a striking resemblance to his jeans, having only left thin layers of skin and muscle to hold him together.

"But I am even more curious to see your colors…"

His parched throat rehydrated from rising acidic fluid, the shock never setting in as it burnt.

It hurts, there was no other way to describe it.

"Ahh~, as I expected… you were worth it after all."

He wanted to scream, but a mix of bile and blood continued to clog his airways, choking him.

It. Hurts.

His teary eyes began to ever so slightly close, the cold embrace ever longing for his warmth, a heat reminiscent of the one he feels in his abdomen.

"Do you feel it? Do you wish for it? Slowly, ever slowly, slowly, slowly, slowly, slowly…"

It… Hurts…

He wanted to beg for mercy, but made no gesture of indication.

Hurts…

"..."

He no longer remembered what he was looking for, or what he was holding on to, or why he was scared.

hurt…

The beating of a heart was all he could hear… but even that was so distant… it was… so…

…

Shinji Suzuki was killed.

…

"You're not the one."

Watchful eyes scanned his face for any indication of a trick.

"This ones tough, Lia. Maybe he hit his head on a rock or something?" The floating kitty scowled before flying back into Lia's hair.

Scoffing at that remark, Hiroshi stood up, "I'm telling you, I am not crazy- I come from a different world, and I'm assuming you're the reason why I'm here? I mean, look at you, you look like a powerful princess heroine!"

Lia lightly flustered at being called a princess, but quickly re-composed herself.

"I thought you might have had some information of who stole my insignia, but now I see this has been a waste of my time. I am sorry, but I must leave." She declares before turning around to leave-

"Hold up! Where the hell are you going?" Hiroshi shouted.

She halted, finally sparing to glance at him, "My name is Satella."

A brief silence.

"Ok? I thought it was Lia, not Satella? Whatever, Satella-san, what's up with this world anyway?"

Satella's frown quickly turned into a bemused gape.

"M-my name is Satella! Aren't you afraid of elves? …The Witch of Envy?" Satella turned to him again and stared into his eyes as if this was a sick joke.

"...Like I said, I have no idea what the hell that is. Can you just take me somewhere I can get some starting gear? I mean, I hope I can come back home, but I wasn't doing anything this weekend anyway…" Hiroshi raised an eyebrow before walking up to her—

"What do you think you're doing?"

The voice almost reverberated inside his own skull, unsure of what the source was.

The voice continues, "You will not accompany Lia anywhere, leave."

Hiroshi blinked many times before realizing it came from the once silly cat.

"What… I have nowhere to go! What the fuck do you want me to do?!" His teeth grit as he asked.

He was transported to this world against his will, and now he won't get any help?

"I do not know what deluded you to think that. Although you're human, don't expect me to go easy on you," the floating cat stated.

Was that it? No, of course not, he never let things like this slide.

"I don't care, you're coming with me." He brushed the threat aside.

"Eh?" Satella winced.

What's a cat gonna do anyway? Hiroshi walked towards Satella, aiming to grab her wrist—

"—Hk!"

"I have warned you, I will not allow anyone to harm my daughter." The cat coldly stated, in a way that matched the icy dagger to his throat.

Hiroshi gulped and prodded the icicle away from himself, "Y-you… you're not kidding… huh?"

The cat did not respond, and only continued to stare at him.

"P-Puck! Don't scare him like that, he must be confused." Satella scolded the cat.

Puck turned away from Hiroshi, pleading to Satella now, "Lia… This man is dangerous, maybe I should dispose of him so he won't be a threat later—"

"No! We won't harm anyone for this!"

A small back and forth, but that was all Hiroshi needed.

Take his life? No, he's the main character, right? And these ones are just NPCs, right?

"Here we go!" Hiroshi shouted as he rammed his hand towards Puck.

Puck flew towards the wall, a relatively slow crash, maybe even a weak one… did he even damage it…?

"Human, I can tell you do not value your life."

The air around him turned cold, and he felt weak.

This sensation… What was this? Why was it so tiring? Why… did it sting so badly?

"Puck!" Satella cried out, but Puck closed the distance between Hiroshi, his fur and eyes taking on the look of a predator.

He was summoned here with powers, right? He's strong, right? He won't die, right?

"I'm… Please…" Hiroshi pleaded, only for the world to close in around him.

His skin cracked, for he was struck the minute he laid contact upon the cat.

"F-Fu… ck… Y.. ou… Sat..ell…a…."

That was all he could say, spitting in the face of unfairness.

…

And with that, Hiroshi Watanabe was impaled.

…

"You're not the one."

"Please refrain from making too much noise, we will get someone to investigate your background tomorrow."

"But I'm not supposed to be here! I wanna go home!"

That guard is just going to walk away from you? Honestly, this was all your fault.

Hm? You think running around and disturbing the peace just because you're confused and pathetic is fine? Don't make me laugh.

You're pacing, trying to remember how you even arrived here in the first place.

Did you lose your consciousness? Are you dreaming? What the hell is up with any of this?

You're probably going to get scolded by your parents for being absent from class today as well, even if you promised them to attend the first lesson.

Was this punishment from god? Possibly, you've been fucking around for god knows how many years now, sometimes begging your friends to share some—

Bang, bang, bang.

The brick wall next to you slams, shaking you out of your stupor.

"Oi! Shut ta fuck up!"

The rough voice of a woman shouts to you, reminding you that you've gone back to shaking the jail cellar.

What are you going to do then? Leave it to fate?

Useless. Idiot. Scum. That's all you are.

You let out a sigh as you sit down on a rough stone platform in hopes of resting.

You haven't realized it yet, but you've been exerting yourself for a while now, haven't you?

Getting some shut eye would do you some good.

Goodnight…

…

Your parents squeeze your hands, assuring as ever, always too good for you… But they squeeze harder, and harder.

They dig into your skin, latching on and never letting go.

"Stop…"

These are not your parents, it's a bog of rot, tethering to your very soul.

"Stop."

There's no use, cold maggots crawl alongside your forearms, and freezing ants bite their way up your calves.

"Stop!"

…

You're so cold, the room around you taking on a tint of blue whilst your breath condensates into mist.

"W-what…"

You are so unbelievably cold, your uniform is stuck against the wall as you struggle.

"Is… anyone there…?"

Your voice comes out weak, your tongue lacking the moisture to compile proper sentences.

You shuffle towards the front of the cellar, hoping to get a better grasp of the situation. But it's so cold. Your fingers are numb, and your eyes no longer stay open.

One step, two steps, two and a half steps, two and three quarters of a step.

You feel… warm, again. Your body is elated, like you could run the world several times over.

This is fine, you're fine.

Six steps.

In one go, you took a leap… but your legs never moved. You fell, and shattered into a million identical pieces of the same pathetic excuse of a person.

Were you ever sorry? Perhaps. You were never really violent, but you were too slothful.

Yes, this was all your fault.

…

Everything goes dark, and you die, leaving nothing but fragments of Dame Ishikawa behind.

…

"You're not the one."

"We're almost there, Nakajima-san, please get up." Otto wakes Tatsuya out of his stupor, shouting at him from the rhines.

He groaned and sat upright, "Mmph, is there a reason why you're so fuckin' gay man?"

Otto let out a gasp and tried to defend his manly pride, which only made him look funnier every time he tries. This constant back and forth had been… a welcome distraction, to say the least.

"You complain a lot, Otto." Tatsuya rubs his nose, mimicking a mustache, "But you keep letting me get away with it anyway, you a tsundere?"

"I don't even know what that means!" Otto shouts again, but then softens his tone, "You're the one that saved my life, so I'm in your debt now."

Those things, "Mabeasts", would have killed him had Otto not been there. But he's not gonna admit that.

"I don't think I could have done it with just the… Nevermind." Otto shied away, almost like he was gonna reveal some embarrassing secret.

"I really almost lost my hand, y'know? If you do my chores for ten years then I might consider us to be on equal footing," Tatsuya smirks before laying down on the carriage bench.

"So long?! Why do you think that's normal!" Otto shrilled, exasperated, "But maybe I do deserve something like that… I've been unusually lucky as of late."

Lucky? He couldn't help but agree.

This whole isekai adventure consisted of back to back close calls, to the point that he was certain his existence here was divinely protected.

The Capital froze, and some strange beam shot to the sky whilst he was in the forest, most likely the cause of some magical disaster… He then stumbled upon some rabid dogs, happened to find some extremely approachable merchant, right before telling him to get the fuck out of here.

The air was cold, but the carriage shielded him from it. Actually, he was sure that it protected him from more than just the wind, since the ground didn't seem to buckle as much as it's supposed to.

They're apparently close to his brother's home, so Tatsuya decided to clap Otto on the back and thank him for all his work once they arrived.

However, he heard a very bizarre slitting noise, and the carriage seemed to divert from its natural path…

In that instance, the wind blew both of them in various directions. Otto flew right off the rhines and Tatsuya crashed against the wooden poles inside.

After a while of thrashing and screaming, the carriage finally halted, mounted onto a tree.

"Hk—!"

He felt sore all over, just lifting his neck was deemed more challenging than climbing a steep mountain.

Tatsuya's shoulder popped out as well, but if nothing was broken, then he was wasting precious time to check up on his companion—

Footsteps sounded around him, like hundreds of animals were circling in.

"Otto? Hey, Otto! You okay?! Talk to me, man!" Tatsuya shouted for any sign that his friend was still in the carriage, but he was alone.

He instead threw himself out of the carriage opening, holding onto his dislocated shoulder as the footsteps continued to approach them.

It could very well have been those same "Mabeasts" from before… but they were humanoids, moving in, robed and tightening their grips on cross shaped daggers.

"You… you guys didn't do this to us, right…?" He raised himself up and looked blankly into each of their masks, one after another, all stationary.

"F-Ffrruu…foo…?" The delirious, yet faint voice of Otto was heard from way behind Tatsuya.

He looked back and tried to pry Otto for confirmation, "Hey! Otto! Who are these—?!"

"Frufoo..!" Otto cried in the distance, tensing everyone in the vicinity.

He turned again just to be met with the sharp end of—

…

Tatsuya Nakajima did not catch up to reality.

…

"You're not the one."

"Live strong, bro."

"T-thanks…"

He meekly looked into the man's before the man walked back into his shed, now done helping some random kid.

Kazuo rubbed his arms, the temperature lowering as the last remnants of the sun barely lit up the surface.

He hoped this "Rom" guy would be kind enough to be hospitable, and maybe even take what he's selling, and if not, he'd just double down and become a forest dweller. It's not going to be ideal, but he had been lucky enough to be fascinated by survival demonstration videos.

He did wonder if this other world had dangerous wildlife however, but he would just have to go around and ask the inhabitants for more information before things got bad.

Walking for a while, he noticed how it got colder. Rapidly, even.

He brushed the absurdity of a massive climate change in the moment and kept walking, only for his shirt to tighten onto his skin as the air brushed against him at harrowing speeds.

"What the hell?"

He looked up to the sky, noticing that it's turning gray, clouds circling the direction he was headed towards.

It seemed to be a natural disaster, and Kazuo would be colliding directly with whatever came next if he stuck around for too long.

"Nope!"

He bolted the opposite direction, maybe the guy in the shed would take him in for protection, although the thing looked like it would deconstruct if you even so breathed on it…

So he instead ran for the capital again, resolved to just settle until the storm disappeared, contempt to just find a merchant and trade with them directly instead of risking himself for some extra coin.

It was steady progress at first, but each foot he sat down took longer than the last.

…

"W-what is that…?!"

He decided to take one last look at the clouds when the air started pushing him backwards, but then quickly regretted it.

He saw it, towering, staring out into the sky, almost like it was soaking in the world's energy.

Actually, that might be… what it was doing..

He started running, feeling the difficulty of… even breathing.

He continued jogging… walking… and turned around to…

The beast was… folding in on… itself…

It… turned big aga—

…

At that moment, Kazuo Nakamura had been vaporized.

…

"You're not the one."

"Nee-chan, who is that weird man?"

"Probably some noble, just look at him, staring at us lower class like he thinks we're beneath him…" Jurie replied with disdain.

Anno took a closer look at the strange man with black hair, "Nee-chan, isn't that normal for… volak.. ia?"

"Vollachia, and yes. I don't know what such a strange boy like him is doing here, but… Oh?"

The strange Vollachian man looked distressed, and started walking directly across the road, trajectory slightly off from their location.

"What's he doing…?" Jurie stared suspiciously, before realizing he wasn't even looking to his sides.

"H-hey! What are you—!?"

Before she could ask, a ground dragon and its carriage blew him away, shattering his frame at the intense speed.

"Aaaahh!" Anno screamed, and Jurie, on cue, shielded her sister's eyes from the gruesome sight.

The man was… dead. His neck bent into an unnatural state, blood dripping from his nose.

"This is…" She had no words to describe… much of anything.

It brought a sense of dread to everyone.

Anno stopped screaming, and they both felt their fur stand up in defense, trying to make themselves look bigger and threatening.

The atmosphere felt… wrong. It was not just them, everyone bared their teeth, fangs, hands, claws, raised their tails, brought forth their weapons, killed, slaughtered, splained—

None of that happened, nothing happened. The world was not here, nor there, nor anywhere.

Death does not exist in a world that cannot be conceptualized.

…

Kaito Ito made sure of that.

…

"You're not the one."

Looting done, time to sell… somewhere.

This whole thing would be impossible in Japan, but this shit's just too easy here… Actual honest to god NPCs.

So any merchant should be interested in this haul, right?

Careful… don't get caught, no jail time for this guy.

Would anyone else do this? Eh, whatever! Whole new crisis for tomorrow.

Now that I'm looking, the sun's already out. I wonder where I can shelf all this?

What a drag… It's gotten cold too.

Honestly, it's too cold.

…

That bar… not legal yet but I could probably just hide somewhere, since it's REALLY cold.

…

They're all shivering too, huh?

I mean, yeah, I feel like it got colder the minute I got here… maybe the upper regions of this place would have been warmer?

…

This is… scary. I'm scared.

…

Why… why am I so… cold…?

I'm… I'm dy… ing… Help… someone…

M… om… I… so…

…

Kenta Noguchi felt nothing anymore.

…

"You're not the one."

"This is… the end…"

Rats chewed at his feet, but he couldn't even try to swat them away.

Those three had broken him in body and spirit, bringing the worst pain he had ever felt in all his seventeen years.

The stone floor in the alleyway was cold, and his limbs turned numb.

Dark red liquid oozed from the open wounds, from the bite marks, with grime mixing its way in.

His powerlessness would get him killed, survival very slim from the dirty knife that stabbed its way into his lungs.

They were amateurs, but he was the same.

His body ceased all movement, as a light shined brightly into his vision.

…

Yasuo Honda finally bled out.

…

"You're not the one."

He was too slow, ankles twisted in ways it shouldn't, shooting electric pain throughout his entire body.

Facing sideways on the dirt, a moist breath came uncomfortably close on top of him.

Even after struggling, an Ulgram bit down on his face, tearing chunks of flesh, teeth, gums and veins.

He was still pinned by an uncountable number of others, all feasting upon what little sustenance he provided.

Has it been hours? Days? Weeks? Did it even matter how long he stayed in this world? It's all the same.

…

Nothing remained of Masashi Kobayashi.

…

"You're not the one."

"I told you to stay the fuck away! What the fuck is wrong with you!?" The golden-haired girl sheathed her stained dagger and dashed away.

His voice gargled, yet he still reached out to her, the only hope he had left.

But even that was a truly fleeting one.

…

Yusuke Matsumoto could no longer breathe.

…

"You're not the one."

His organs shut down, no longer being provided with the warmth that was once there a while ago.

All five senses fizzled out, one by one.

…

Sota Hori was frozen in time.

…

"You're not the one."

"This taste… these experiences… You were so uniquely gourmet~! Thank you for this meal, tsu~!" The robed child licked his teeth and smiled.

…

Something had been eaten.

…

"You're not the one."

The last thing he saw was the wind fly towards him.

…

Masato Fujimoto was split in two.

…

"You're not the one."

Hiroki Ono stopped holding on.

…

"You're not the one."

Shota Yamaguchi was scorched to ash.

…

"You're not the one."

Nobuhiro Takahashi drowned.

…

"You're not the one."

Ryohei Kimura freezed to death.

"You're not the one."

He was crushed.

"You're not the one."

Dead.

"You're not the one."

"You're not the one."

"You're not the one."

"You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one. You're not the one."

…

You're not the one.

The black-haired boy looked around frantically, "Am I hallucinating?"

He pinched his arm, rubbed his eyes and slapped his cheeks.

"I need to get out of here…"

The boy, Yoshiaki Shibata, began his search for a place out of reach, ignoring the weird looks he's receiving.

…