Title: Unconscious of Blue Bird
Kumamoto was hanging upside down on a cliff rock.
"Where… where am I?" he murmured. "Is the battle over? Then… why does my body hurt so much?"
A voice echoed from above.
"You're awake, bloody monster."
Kumamoto blinked slowly. "ME HAWK…? What do you mean, bloody monster…? What happened?"
ME HAWK stood above, arms crossed, face cold.
"You went from your conscious mind… into your unconscious one."
Kumamoto frowned. "What are you talking about?"
"Even in that unconscious state, you kept fighting. You were alive… but not you. That's the problem. And if you keep going like that, you'll end up killing your own teammates."
Kumamoto scowled. "Get lost."
He turned his face away and passed out again.
---
Later, Kumamoto opened his eyes. His teammates were around. ELF was healing him gently.
"You fight like a demon," she said softly. "Have you always been like this… or did you become like this recently?"
Kumamoto looked away. "I don't know. Just leave me alone."
Suddenly, ME HAWK showed up, tossing him an apple.
"You're up. Let's go."
Kumamoto caught the apple, sat up slowly.
"I'll listen. But seriously… why the hell are you bathing out here, completely naked?!"
ME HAWK shrugged with a smirk.
"What can I say? I'm a creature of habit."
Kumamoto looked at the sky. "You ever feel like you don't want to get up when you regain consciousness?"
"I do. But I always get back up," ME HAWK replied.
Kumamoto sighed. "Whenever I try to wake up… I see myself grabbing someone… or attacking from above… like Gora. And that soldier I fought… who was he?"
ME HAWK leaned against a tree.
"He was from the East Kingdom. A royal soldier. You took him down. He also knew about the Vampire Kingdom."
Hearing that, Kumamoto stood up and hurled the apple at ME HAWK's face. It hit him dead on.
He followed it with a punch.
"YOU BASTARD!"
He launched another attack, but ME HAWK caught his arm, swept his legs, and slammed him to the ground.
ME HAWK pinned him, fist after fist landing on Kumamoto's face.
Kumamoto started losing consciousness again.
Just then—ME HAWK's words echoed in his head:
"If you start to black out… don't. Fight it."
Kumamoto's foot shot up, kicking ME HAWK back.
ME HAWK stumbled, but smirked and pulled out a mirror, placing it in front of Kumamoto.
"Look. Your eyes—they're red. And you're bleeding."
Kumamoto stared at the mirror, horrified.
"How… what's happening to me?!"
Before he could stand—his legs gave out. He fell again.
His vision turned dark. Once again, he slipped from conscious to unconscious.
ME HAWK stepped up behind him, struck his neck clean.
"Still not ready. Guess you need… more time."
Title: Controlling Consciousness
Kumamoto's body trembled with frustration.
He had tried at least twenty times… but still failed.
"Why… why can't I control it?!"
His voice echoed off the stone walls.
He glared at ME HAWK.
"If you've mastered unconsciousness… then how the hell do you know how to control it so perfectly?!"
ME HAWK, arms folded, leaned casually against the wall.
"Because I was once unconscious too."
He looked up at the ceiling.
"Whenever it happened… my eyes turned blue. Wings grew from my back—blue wings."
Kumamoto's eyes narrowed.
"If you've already gained control over it, then why don't you use it anymore?"
ME HAWK chuckled faintly.
"I got used to sleeping. It's been eight years since I used that power. I've almost forgotten how."
Kumamoto thrashed against the chains.
"Then why the hell am I locked up? Open these, you bastard!"
ME HAWK turned, his eyes sleepy.
"Tomorrow. It's late."
Kumamoto growled.
"There's only one season in this cursed place, and you're talking about night?!"
"I'm still sleepy," ME HAWK replied, waving his hand lazily.
"Unlock it now, or I swear I'll rip your throat out tomorrow!!"
---
Suddenly, a memory broke through Kumamoto's mind.
Vampire Queens… in a dark room.
"Where's the child?" one of them demanded, her tone cold.
"That bloody child… if he's in this mansion, kill him. We don't need humans."
Inside a wooden cabinet, a trembling woman—Kumamoto's mother—held him tight.
"Stay quiet," she whispered. "Don't make a sound."
The vampires searched, their shadows dancing across the walls.
A cruel voice echoed:
"If you hadn't been so weak, you could've saved her."
"It's all your fault."
"All of it."
"Your curse."
"You couldn't even save your own mother."
Kumamoto jolted awake, screaming:
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"
ME HAWK rushed in.
"Oi, what the hell?! You crazy or what?"
Kumamoto, panting heavily:
"Just a nightmare… a bad one."
ME HAWK sighed.
"Get ready. We've got a fight today."
---
On their way to the battlefield, Kumamoto noticed a girl.
She had flowing black hair, soft delicate features, a slim nose, and small pointed ears. She was beautiful.
His heart skipped.
"H-Hey… ME HAWK… w-who is that girl?"
ME HAWK didn't stop walking.
"She just joined yesterday. Same as you—she's human."
Kumamoto turned away quickly, trying to hide his interest.
---
They arrived at the frontlines.
Opposite them stood the Order of Magical Night—an elite enemy squad.
ME HAWK stepped forward and spoke with authority:
"Listen up, everyone! These bastards use high-level magic. Only COOK+S class fighters should step forward. The rest of you—fall back and cover."
He pointed at a figure in black robes wielding a glowing staff.
"And Kumamoto… the guy in black isn't human. He's a demon. Their leader. You're fighting him."
He looked Kumamoto dead in the eyes.
"And remember what I said… If you feel yourself going unconscious—wake up. No matter what."
---
The battle began.
A COOK+S warrior pierced through the magical barrier. Kumamoto followed close behind.
The demon leader faced him. Kumamoto darted in, wrapped his chain around the demon's neck and pulled hard.
But the demon vanished—reappearing behind him. Two dark arms seized Kumamoto and started to crush his ribs.
Grunting, Kumamoto pulled his gun and fired backward.
Bang!
The grip loosened.
He slashed with his sword, aiming at the stomach—but the blade passed through like mist.
The demon summoned a massive wave of fire.
Kumamoto reacted fast—Bang!—shooting the flame and breaking its core.
But it reformed. The demon absorbed it again.
"Fire… that's his power…" Kumamoto realized.
Suddenly, the demon trapped him in a water bubble—he was drowning.
His vision faded—
No.
He remembered ME HAWK's voice.
"If you feel yourself going unconscious—wake up."
He roared, cutting through the bubble and leaping out.
Another fire wave came.
Kumamoto didn't run.
Instead, he let the fire flow into his blade.
His sword ignited.
With one flash—
SLASH!
The demon's head flew.
Kumamoto stood still, breath heavy.
He didn't even realize he'd won.
---
The demon's head rolled to ME HAWK's feet.
Kumamoto stood there… eyes glowing red.
ME HAWK grinned.
"Well done, Kumamoto."
"That's exactly what I expected… from you."