Villain Rehabilitator

"Ignore them."

Lucy's voice echoed through the stage, bringing a sense of comfort to the group. However, his next words crushed that comfort:

"We have to throw the bridegroom off the stage."

Without hesitation, Lucy rushed towards the bridegroom, aiming to strike him by surprise. But the bridegroom was not caught off guard. His ten extra arms punched Lucy simultaneously, sending him flying to the end of the stage.

Shoji followed Lucy's reckless plan and suffered the same fate. The girls, however, remained frozen in shock, their insides churning at the gruesome sight. Mikino, unable to see, tried to familiarize herself with the situation using her other senses.

Meanwhile, the bridegroom continued his slow, menacing approach towards his stationary bride. Lucy regained his footing and made another move, this time targeting the bride. As soon as he touched her, the groom let out a fierce, donkey-like roar, and the two engaged in a frantic game of cat and mouse.

The groom's speed increased, leaving Lucy with little room for escape. In a swift move, Lucy abandoned the bride, throwing her towards the end of the stage.

The groom, now fixated on his bride, charged towards her, catching her near the edge. Tsukino and Sora watched in horror as the groom feasted on the bride's delicate body.

Mikino tried to ignore the gruesome sounds, sighing deeply.

"After he's done with her, he'll come for us." Tsukino whispered, her gaze fixed on Shoji as he approached Lucy.

Shoji knelt beside Lucy, saying something inaudible, but Lucy's response was clear:

"I only have one sidekick, and that's enough."

Tsukino overheard Shoji's heartfelt cry, which made her eyes wide open in surprise:

"I know what you're aiming for, and that's something that can't be done with just two people! Even though I'm not as strong and determined as you, I could be a good meatshield in the future!"

Lucy sighed, looking at the six items in his hands, and turned his back on the group.

"Do you even know yourself?" He asked, his voice laced with disdain.

"You don't. You just want to be in a place where you can blame someone for your reckless actions."

Lucy fixed his gaze on the judges' panel, "If you want someone to be loyal to, then go follow my sidekick and be her sidekick. If someone wants to follow me, then that person must be your sidekick."

Shoji looked at Lucy in awe, impressed by his plan to solve conflicts within the group, complimenting in his mind;

'One can only have a master and follower. The person your master follows is obviously a rank above you.'

Shoji quickly approached Sora, but she composed herself before casting a disdainful glare at him.

"If you want to be my sidekick, bow thirty times on the ground while calling me 'empress' each time."

Shoji's complexion darkened, but Sora's expression was even darker.

"Our goal is to take down the biggest villain organization in the world by becoming the biggest villain organization ourselves."

Tsukino chimed in, "Won't joining the righteous organizations be the right thing to do?"

Sora scoffed, "Because, unlike them, we're honest, just like Lucy-san. In this world, a good person is only a baby who doesn't kill. Those who call themselves good people are just biased, hiding their murderous intent behind closed doors."

Sora's cold gaze locked onto Shoji, a teasing smile spreading across her face.

"Do you still want to be loyal to me?"

Shoji didn't hesitate, beginning to bow to Sora as she laughed inwardly at how easily she was manipulating him.

Lucy walked over to the group, and Mikino approached him, smiling;

"You don't look tired despite killing many people today."

Lucy replied honestly, "I don't get tired when I'm killing. Sometimes, I even feel stronger."

Mikino raised an eyebrow, intrigued by Lucy's unusual response, "Don't you find that weird?"

Lucy shrugged. "I do, but there's no one to explain it to me, so I just shrug it off."

Mikino nodded, setting the matter aside, and focused on her original reason for approaching Lucy.

Her expression turned cold, "You took the fingers from the bride, right?"

Lucy nodded. Mikino heaved a sigh of relief before her face turned even colder. "I have some people I want to kill, related to your mother's family. Why don't we form an alliance and take care of them together?"

Lucy narrowed his eyes lightly, 'It's not like there's a choice; the scene wants five people to live.'

He nodded, "Sure thing... only if you don't question what I tell you."

Mikino's, however, flared up in rage, "Ridiculous! We're talking about destroying the strongest clans in Kurenai village, if not the whole island. We're just mortals who will die from a single blow from a Tama-Artist!"

She shifted to a more pressing topic, "How do we even get out of this place?! If you can do that, I'll listen to you without question!"

Lucy removed his icy gaze from her, thinking she was being sentimental about useless things. He walked towards the gathered group, asking, "Do you know why Sora is discussing my future goals with those two?"

Mikino shrugged, "I don't."

Lucy tossed the axe he had stolen from the groom's head during their initial clash in Sora's direction, saying, "We are no longer mortals."

Before Sora could comprehend his words, she instinctively understood his intentions and hurled the axe at the groom, decapitating him. The groom's headless body fell off the stage, still clutching the half-eaten bride.

In the next instant, Mikino felt the stage sinking to the ground, or perhaps the ground was rising up. Everything turned dark once more.

'Did Lucy make the right decision? What if we needed to save the bride to...?' Mikino's thoughts trailed off as her senses went numb, as if she had died again.

'No! No! This can't be true! I haven't taken everything they took away from my parents!'

Mikino's panicked thoughts were interrupted by a voice that sounded like it was screaming in agony, coming from the five-panel judges.

"You have proven your courage, but we will set another task for you to carry out,"

The voice shifting into the sound of a rooster.

"From today onwards, you shall fill the coffin with blood."

The voice announced. "If one of you dies before the coffin is filled, you are ours for the taking. Also, as the five brave soldiers you are, you are not allowed to save anyone else besides yourselves."

The bleeding fingers in Lucy's hand suddenly snapped into the air, transforming into five pillars of light that enveloped the group. The voice shifted into the sound of a male being choked.

"We'll give you each a coat to wear during this time. If you want to bathe, the coat will adapt to your needs."

Five fire-black trench armored-coats with red ends materialized above the mortals.

The voice of an old lady on her last breath echoed through the space, her words laced with a hint of desperation.

"The choice is yours: take the coats and fill the coffin, or have your life back and remain a worm that cowers under the feet of others."