Kenji released me, his smirk widening as he walked toward the trays, a noticeable bounce in his step. He picked one up, balancing it with ease and giving me a playful lift of his eyebrows before turning his attention forward.
Reina raised an air horn and let it blare. Kenji moved along the floor with deliberate precision, but instead of heading straight to a table, his steps looked as if he were tracing an invisible map. Four steps forward, stop. Turn right, two more steps, turn left. Suddenly, a large flame erupted from the floor exactly where he turned left, nearly engulfing him.
The twist in the challenge had revealed itself.
Timed bursts of fire shot out of the floor like it was a splash pad in a park. Only this wasn’t a theatrical dance of water. The explosions were violent, powerful, and the heat stung even from where I stood. Kenji had learned how to navigate a maze of fire. His steps were confident and deliberate as he avoided the timed fiery blasts.
“Akiko, he’s counting!” Jiro’s voice broke through the haze of my panic. “It’s a pattern. Remember it!”
I watched Kenji place the first tray down and retrace his steps, narrowly avoiding the fiery eruption. The realization hit me like a freight train. This was a death trap, one for which Kenji had been preparing for who knew how long. One misstep or slight hesitation could mean being burned alive. How could I possibly navigate this maze?
When Kenji finished delivering all his orders, Reina clapped gleefully like a proud parent watching her child sing off-key during a school play. She turned to me. “Akiko, take your position.”
My legs refused to move, weighed down by the daunting reality I faced. “I can’t do this,” I whispered, barely audible.
“Akiko!” Reina barked. “Take your position!”
The room spun, and my breaths grew shallow. My heart pounded violently, each beat reverberating in my ears like a drum.
“Stop!” Jiro’s voice cracked.
I turned to him, his eyes glassy and face tight with desperation, as he struggled against the men holding him.
“Take me instead!” He turned to Reina. “Sacrifice me, not her. Please. I beg you.”
Reina tilted her head, amusement flickering in her eyes. “And why should I spare her?”
“Because I love her.” His eyes flicked to mine. “I’ve always loved you, Akiko. I’d gladly live a thousand lifetimes of suffering if it meant you’d have one without pain. Please, Reina, let me face the dance of fire instead.”
His words hit me like a tidal wave, crashing into me with years of emotion I hadn’t allowed myself to feel. My body stiffened, and my breath caught in my throat as I stared at him, the man who would throw everything away for me. Tears streamed down his face, and I felt something deep and aching awaken inside me. Memories of his arms around me, his warmth at night, his love, which had once made me feel safe in a way no one else ever had.
I realized then that Jiro had truly risked his life coming here to protect me. If he understood the dangers ahead, knowing his father’s power ended at the gates…only someone driven by true love would willingly do something so reckless, so foolish.
Jiro hadn’t been right for me the first time. But the tears in his eyes, the broken desperation in his voice…they told me he was now. And I wanted that chance, that life with him. A life we never finished. A life we never truly started. But how could I let him do this? How could I ask him to die for me?
I took a step toward the table.
“No, Akiko. Stop!” Jiro pleaded. He fought to free himself from the men holding him, his body jerking and twisting as he tried to reach me. “You don’t have to do this! Let me be the one!”
I steadied my head, refusing to look back, and I forced my legs to carry me forward. My hands gripped the table’s edge, braced myself; then I picked up a tray.
“You can be something great, Akiko!” Jiro frantically cried out. “You have the most to gain! Let me do the challenge! Please, just let me!”
The sharp blare of the air horn cut Jiro off, and I stepped onto the floor. My heart thundered in my chest as I tried to remember Kenji’s pattern, knowing deep down it was hopeless. The first flame shot up beside me, the heat scorching my skin, and I turned sharply, barely avoiding another burst. Each step felt like it could be my last, the air thick with smoke and the acrid stench of burning fuel.
“Akiko!” Jiro’s cries echoed behind me, but I couldn’t look back. I couldn’t lose focus. My life depended on it.
A roar erupted, followed by a deafening crash. I turned just in time to see Jiro break free, throwing one of the masked men into a burst of flame. The fire engulfed the man instantly, his screams cutting through the chaos. I staggered back as another flame erupted before me, blocking my path. Panic took over, freezing me in place.
Jiro wrestled the remaining man to the ground, and their bodies rolled across the floor. Then the flames erupted, engulfing them both, and I screamed as they disappeared in the inferno. The masked man’s body bore the brunt of the blast, allowing Jiro to leap away, his clothes singed.
“Akiko, you can’t stay still!” he shouted. “Move! Now!”
I took a shaky step, and a burst of fire erupted where I’d just been standing. My heart pounded, my breaths shallow as I tried to find a path forward. But I was clueless.
“Don’t just stand there. Kill him!” Reina commanded Kenji as she pointed at Jiro, her eyes filled with hate. “Kill him now!”
Kenji moved like a predator, lunging toward Jiro and tackling him to the ground. I watched as they grappled, their bodies rolling dangerously close to another burst of flames. They popped up to their feet, exchanging punishing blows, each one landing with brutal precision.
