Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"Hey, look! Isn't it that kid who always sits alone?"

"Yeah. Ignore him; he looks content being alone."

…

As I got home, I always say to myself, why? Why does anyone never notice me? Why do people ignore me? Why am I even here?

I decided all my questions would be answered by looking at a mirror. Turns out I was right.

I look hideous. Someone who looks like that surely can't make friends and be an outcast. Surely life would be better if I cast my face away? Right?

No.

How come everyone else who has faces gets married, has friends, and is popular at the same time? Disgusting. They don't deserve to have faces. Actually, nobody deserves to have faces. I will cast aside my face and everyone else’s. It's the only way for everyone to co-exist.

As I say that, I felt something surge over my face. I feel it being taken away. My wish is surely coming true. I can sense it.

But alas, someone without a face can't co-exist according to the laws of nature, and my lifeless body is slumped over, without a face. Not like anyone cares anyway.

I feel my soul exiting out of my lifeless body. Looks like I have become a spirit. I could use this newfound power to possess someone. Or maybe take their face away. Ah, all the ideas are endless. This is really going to be a beautiful show.

——————————————

A young man with uneven, choppy, purple hair with two cyan streaks and to top it off, with a really funky outfit, is currently working in a factory. A factory that produces your run-of-the-mill cargo.

He sighed. Another hard day for him. He looked at his nametag. 'Rui Kamishiro'.

"Psst, hey, hi. Do you think you can open this box for me?"

Rui looked around for the owner of this voice.

"It must be my imagination.." He mumbled.

“I’m inside this box."

"Oh? And how can a human fit inside a very small box?" Rui decided to play along. He was bored out of his mind anyway.

"Here's the thing. I'm not human. I'm a spirit."

"How can I trust you on being a spirit? Talking spirits aren't real."

"How about this? I'll promise a very good fortune if you open it. You won't even have to work here for the rest of your days!"

Rui went up to the box and opened  it. He just wanted to get what he thought was his mind playing tricks over again.

Chapter Text

In the land of SEKAI, capitals included, people lived in harmony, and conflicts were minor.

…That is, until everyone was unaware of the darkness approaching.

Well, not really— only some of it right now. It wasn't around the world yet. Of course, the average Joe would find it silly if someone's been running around telling people that faceless humans are roaming in SEKAI.

…Well, here we are now, with a wanderer wandering around. A girl with grayish-green hair and purple eyes named Nene Kusanagi.

Nene stretched and sent out a yawn. Today was a sleepy and peaceful day. Maybe a nap by a tree won’t hurt…

And plus there were some Rock Moths fluttering around to make the scenery more mesmerizing. A perfect spot to nap at to regain her energy.

Nene had always lived life like this. She decided to venture out in the open with her beautiful singing when she became an adult. She also took part-time jobs for some gold to buy food and a room.

But right now, Nene was unaware of what was going to happen in the next few seconds.

…Why do I hear boss music?

Nene thought this to herself as a pair of eyes descended from the sky.

…Wait, a pair of eyes?

Nene lightly slapped herself to see if she was imagining things. That failed.

The pair of eyes descended on one of the Rock Moths, and it went hostile. It tried to attack her.

Screw sleeping— she got her energy back in cold sweat and bolted to the town in Greenhorne.

After a few minutes of running, she made it to the entrance of town, leaning on a nearby pole and catching her breath. The town was peaceful as ever. There was a very carefree guide, a cheery old lady selling her dishes, a worried mother and her energetic son, a lovey-dovey couple who were smothering each other with love without a care in the world, and a sarcastic guy who didn't care. Nene was in awe to the point that she was unaware of the mayor approaching her.

"Oh, are you okay? Don't worry. Greenhorne is a safe place," the mayor said. Nene wanted to tell him about what she just saw, but she knew he wouldn’t believe her.

"Thank you. I'll stay here for a bit," Nene responded.

The mayor nodded and left. Well, all Nene could do now was rest up here and probably take a job. She also believed that the Rock Moth was an illusion.

Nene rested up in the town, chatting with the fellow residents despite her shyness. Everyone was patient with her. Thats a good thing. Apparently, she learned about that there is a girl similar her age here. Honami Mochizuki. She's an aspiring chef who is following the footsteps of the cheery grandma. Nene has never seen her in person yet though.

After her social battery being drained by talking, the girl went to sit down somewhere.

"Oh? What do we have here?" An unknown yet familiar voice appeared.

Nene turned around. It was a man with purple hair with three cyan streaks. One part of his hair covered his eye. And he was wearing an oversized hat that contained some flowers at the top and a gold ribbon tied into a bow. His outfit consisted of a purple cape and an outfit that was really hard to describe oh my lord and some black gloves.

And that man was Nene's childhood friend.

"Who's that? And what is he wearing?" A lot of townspeople muttered between themselves.

"It seems that everyone's confused. For I am Dark Lord Rui," he said before doing a laugh.

“…Seriously, Rui? You dress like that and cause a scene? I know you have a big imagination, but this is—“ Nene said.

"Oh, but I'm not joking, my dear Nene," Rui interrupted.

"W-wait, what?!" Nene was shocked.

"I'm here to cause some terror in this little world. And for that, say goodbye to your faces!" He laughed before starting a spell from his hand.

And in a blink, the guide, the old lady, the kid, and one part of the lovey-dovey couple's faces were taken away. Gone. Their faces surrounded Rui.

"I have spared some of you. May this suffering of your loved ones cause you despair!" He laughed before disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

Nene could only look down as the town was drained out of its color. She could only think why Rui, her childhood friend, the guy who hated veggies, would do this.

Suddenly, footsteps came up to her. It was the mother of the now faceless child.

"You seem to have a connection to this so-called 'Dark Lord,' Miss. Can you rescue my child's face? You must be a traveler, and maybe with some convincing, you can get his face back! Please! He's my only son!" The mother said.

"Uh, I don't think I can do this, but I'll try.." Are you serious, Nene? You're falling into a death trap right here. Nene internally thought after speaking.

"Oh, thank you! Actually.." The mother ran through her pockets. "Take this, it's a good luck charm and a family heirloom passed down from generations." It looked to be a necklace with a closed eye.

"O-oh! Are you sure? It's a family heirloom passed down.."

"I insist, kind traveler!"

"O-okay.."

Nene hesitantly took the necklace and made her way out of town. Rui shouldn't have gone that far.

Looks like she was right, he was right in front of her, mumbling to himself before turning around and saw Nene behind him.

"Oh? Want something from me, Nene?" Rui started speaking.

"Rui.. Please give the child's face back. I thought you didn't like ruining kids’ dreams." It was awkward to talk to a childhood friend after a few years passed, but she never expected it to be like this.

"Fufu~ I can give his face back.." Rui pulled out his arm, and the kid's face appeared. With another hand, he summoned a slime. "If you can fight." He smiled before he forced the kid's face on the slime.

"See you, Nene." He said before disappearing.

That slime was taunting her. Nene just stood there.

Time seemed to stop when the slime lunged forward at her. But did she see some hesitation? Maybe the face is doing this against their will.

No time to wonder, she's literally about to be attacked.

As she braced her arms for impact— which will probably fail—she felt the inside of her hand that is clenched up into a first glow. And it's the hand where she held the family heirloom. In a second, Nene was blinded by white light, and it seemed to send her into a very weird area.

"Nene…"

"Nene, can you hear me?" Nene froze. Who is even talking to her? Why is she here? Why do they know her name? There are so many questions in her head.

"U-uh, yeah?" She responded.

"Ho ho! Good! Now, you must be in a bit of a pickle, it seems, my child?"

Nene nodded. More than a pickle, and I'm 23. She thought.

"Well, you look confused. You may think your eyes are playing tricks, but I'm actually a guardian spirit." The voice said.

"…HUH?!" Now Nene was even more confused. At this point, she's going to start a world record of how much confusion she radiated. ..And now she knew why they called her a child..

"Please.. Just listen to me."

"Alright.."

"I can provide some help to defeat this slime. And it looks like you needed it."

"Help? How..? O-oh! I'm not defying you by any means.."

"Ho ho! Don't worry, my child! I can give you some of my power to use. Don't worry, it won’t mess little ol’ me."

..You're starting to sound like Santa Claus.. Nene thought.

"*Ahem* Anyway, here goes.. It's been a while since I last used my power. HURRGH.. HAAA!"

..Why do I hear holy music? Nene needs to stop thinking.

Suddenly, in a flash, she felt her clothes change. She was now donning a white dress containing a blue ribbon with a blue-green coat with copper accents over it. She had a witch’s hat that was the same color as her coat. She also had white stockings with black overtones, and her shoes changed to a pair of brown boots. Finally, she had a brown satchel containing a book of spells over her right shoulder. She also didn't realize she was carrying a wand now.

"Now go forth, Nene the mage!"

In a flash, Nene was teleported to reality. Apparently, the sudden events were real; she still had her new appearance and wand. She's going to need to get used to the hat though.

And what was looking at her was the slime again. It was standing there idly. Like a NPC.

Right, she got divine powers. She’s going to fight.

She grabbed her wand and attempted to make a spell.

..It didn't work.

So, very suddenly, plan B: bash the slime with the wand.

That did some damage. Let's just do that instead.

Eventually, she defeated the slime. Not with some faint bruises, though. The kid's face came out of the monster and flew back to the town. That must be Nene's cue to head back!

"Oh, traveler! Thank you!" She was greeted by the mother and the mayor when she headed back.

"Oh! What happened to your appearance, kind traveler?" The mayor asked while looking up and down at Nene.

"Uh, miss, about that heirloom you gave me…" She held out the necklace. "I kind of awakened some guardian spirit and gained some powers…" She said to the mother.

"There's a guardian spirit in there? I didn't realize that. Well, you may keep it then. Maybe pass it down when you get a family of your own!"

Nene's cheeks turned into a shade of crimson. "A-ah, thank you."

"Mommy, mommy! I'm a dragon!" A child's voice from afar was heard.

"Denny!" She quickly turned to the duo. "Sorry, gotta go!"

The mother hurried back to her child who was pretending to be a dragon.

"*Ahem*" The mayor coughed. "If this is too much, could you help get the other faces back?"

"Sure." And maybe I'll find out what happened to Rui… Nene thought.

"Thank you! I don't know how I can repay you!" The mayor enthusiastically said.

Nene gave a soft smile to the mayor and exited the town. With a new journey in hand and a way to try and save Rui, Nene is prepared for what is to come.

Chapter Text

After relaxing, Nene took out the spellbook from her satchel. She didn't get a good time to take a good look at the book; now is a perfect time while standing on guard.

Monsters obviously roamed at night, turning SEKAI into a place where everyone is confined like the plague.

..But, having your face stolen won’t save you even if confined. Plague or not.

Moving on— Nene skimmed through the book. There were a lot of spells like 'Tower of Flame', or 'Explosion', but those seemed out of her league right now.

Eventually, she settled on a basic spell 'Fire'. It seemed like a beginner-friendly spell. There are also step-by-step instructions on how to conjure it. Pretty neat. The hard part is finding a test dummy to use it on and not cause a forest fire.

…On cue, her campfire lit out; well, there's the test dummy.

All she has to do is just say 'Fire!' and do some moves with her wand. Easy, right? She wasn't a band kid, but she feels like a conductor conducting an orchestra.

She sighed and got to work. She needs something other than bashing monsters to defend herself anyway.

————————

And soon, dawn, dawned. Another new day in this dark-filled land. Blame Rui.

Name-calling aside— Nene got out of her makeshift bed and yawned. Today's going to be another long day. But hey— at least she successfully made a fire …using magic from the gods.

"Ho ho, Nene! Another new day it seems!" Speak of the devil, the guardian spirit suddenly spoke.

Nene practically jumped. That was unexpected.

"Wh-what?!" Nene managed to stammer out.

"Oh, did I startle you, my dear child?"

"Absolutely." Nene deadpanned.

"Anyway, how about I tell you more about this place? It would be good to know."

..If Nene had to pick between going to a library with a closing time to learn about the history of SEKAI or have a literal god say it to you for free with no closing time— she would go for the latter.

"Yes, please, go ahead." Nene spoke.

"Alright… Where should I start.." They were thinking. "Aha! What about the Great Sage?"

"The great who?"

"Ah, their name is Mizuki Akiyama. They like to wander just like you and spread their teachings. If you ever come across them, they have pink hair and two horns— one broken."

Nene almost wanted to ask about the broken horn but decided not to.

"Anyway, Mizuki also made an oath of immortality by our six gods."

"The six being, Miku, Rin, Len, Luka, Meiko, and Kaito, right?" Nene questioned.

"Correct! Ho ho! Unfortunately, I do not know why the oath was caused… They don't disclose such information to measly gods like me."

Nene nodded.

"Moving on, have you heard about Greenhorne Castle?"

"The rumor of Princess Minori Hanasato is that she is into girls? Oh, and the dark knights too if that counts."

"Yes! Well, about the dark knights, that is. You see, the dark knights and the knights at Greenhorne Castle once worked together to protect the generations of royal families. However, somebody from the dark knights was a traitor. They did something to the family that the entire group was banished from the land of Greenhorne."

"And, what happened to the ones that were loyal?"

"They had to be tested for their loyalty to the king. Also— after those events, Greenhorne Castle is closed off to everyone who is not part of the high class or has not gotten a letter of recommendation."

"But… what about the remaining dark knights?"

"Oh? Them? They fled to who knows where and made a base."

You're a god, aren't you supposed to be all-knowing? Nene thought.

Nene continued walking in silence, pendant around her neck.

"..Nene! Watch out!"

"..!" Nene swiftly turned back, there was a goblin with some… unique eyes coming straight at her.

No hesitation… Just like you rehearsed back then… "Fire!"

Making a circular motion with her wand pointing at the goblin, Nene summoned a flame below the goblin causing a small fire to erupt. This knocked out the goblin, with its face spiriting away to the person it originally belonged to.

…However, there was no moment to celebrate.

Reinforcements came. One by one, Nene was surrounded. She’d definitely lose all her MP if she fought them all one by one. The only two things she could do were look around for an exit or accept her fate here for this short journey.

Screw you, Rui. Nene internally cursed while trying to find an exit.

She couldn't.

The only thing she could do now was fight some of them off for an exit or accept her fate. The latter was a better choice since Nene was still getting used to this mage business. She would quickly get overwhelmed.

Suddenly, Nene heard something— or rather someone— come by. Maybe she wasn’t doomed.

That person swiftly used what she could see was a greatsword and quickly made run for all the enemies surrounding her. And with all of the faces coming out of the defeated monsters.

After that, while still standing in shock, Nene could see what his appearance was.

He had black armor with gold undertones. There was a brooch in the shape of a rose on his chest, which connected to the red cape on his back. He had two shades of hair, both being dark and light shades of blue, respectively, and the dark part of his hair unevenly transitioned to the lighter shade. He also had gray irises and a sharp eye shape which could mistake people for a stoic, unexpressive person. And to top it off, he had a small, red earring on his left ear.

Nene calmed down a little after her mind kept replaying what just happened. She came into contact with the guy.

It wasn't until the mysterious man broke the silence.

"Who are you?"

Chapter Text

The words that just came out of his mouth echoed in Nene's head. How does she respond to that? She can't just say that she's here to defeat the Dark Lord! That's childish! And probably sounds like a play she and Rui would conduct back then as children.

"I'm… Nene Kusanagi.." She said shyly. Geez, 23 years and she still acts shy when meeting new people?

"Toya Aoyagi. It's a pleasure to meet you Nene." He bowed after saying that.

"Er.. What brings you here?" Nene internally cringed at herself for being awkward.

"When I was… patrolling the area I saw monsters surrounding someone." He chose his words carefully it seems.

"I see.. Thank you for saving me." Nene smiled softly.

"..I also felt like I was called here. A voice in my head was telling me to save you to put it in other words."

"Oh?"

"That would be my doing. Of course."

"..!"

"Where is this voice coming from..!" With a sudden change of tone, Toya almost withdrew his sword.

"T-Toya! Calm down! The voice is inside this pendant!" Nene stammered out.

"Pendant?" Toya was dumbfounded.

"…And that pretty much sums it up. Ho ho!"

"I see.. Thank you for telling me this."

"…The sun is going down."

"Right. We should probably make camp."

Nene could only nod as the spirit summoned a tent. Toya could only look dumbfounded while Nene went searching for firewood and probably fighting some baddies hiding.

…Toya eventually did step out of his trance and helped.

Eventually, the fire was set. Thankfully no manual fire was needed, though Toya had to be reminded of that. They both sat down on the ground, eating some grub that monsters dropped?

SEKAI has its own laws. To be exact.

Nene took the time to look more closely at his appearance. The black armor, gold highlights, piercing expression, almost like a..

Oh.

Oh.

"Dark knight.."

"Huh?"

Nene covered her mouth. Did she seriously say that out loud!? She has got to think of an apology-

"Congratulations on finding out, Nene." Toya asked.

"Wait- huh?"

"I come from the family of dark knights. Though… I don't support them at all."

"I see.." Nene thought for a moment. "How did your parents react?"

"…" Why is Toya so silent and his expression slightly faltering about the mention of family? Did Nene accidentally hit a weak spot?

"Oh, y-you don't have to mention them.. N-no idea what came-"

"My father is the commander of the dark knights. My mother just stays at home."

"A-ah, thank you."

Mental note: don't mention family.

"You still haven't explained why you're here, Nene."

"R-Right." Nene cleared her throat. "So to begin.."

She began, ignoring whatever advice a mysterious speaker gave her earlier.

"I see, so the Dark Lord was a friend of yours? And you're trying to save the faces of the residents in our town?"

Nene nodded.

"Let me join you." He declared.

"H-Huh?! Why?"

"..Did I sound too demanding..?"

To be fair, your facial expression never changed except for the mention of family… Nene did not have the heart to say this out loud.

"No.. You can join me in my journey though."

"Thank you. I will not disappoint, Nene."

"Ho ho! Seems like you got a new party member!"

The two of them flinched. The spirit likes appearing at the most random times..!

"Ah, Toya. You're gonna have to get used to this…" Nene sighed.

Toya can only nod.

"The sky's dark.." Nene mumbled to herself.

"Right. And it's not safe out here.. I'll keep watch."

Nene had no room for argument. A yawn escaped her lips proved her point that she's not fit to take guard so she crawled into the tent.

———————-

It was dawn. Nene got up and crawled out of the tent. She met a sight of toya putting his armor on.

…Nene, don't stare. Be glad your hair covers your ears.

"Good morning." Damn. This guy is oblivious.

"Morning.." Nene tiredly said.

She then proceeded to do her hair and put her hat on. The guardian spirit put the tent up and the fire was left for a random traveler. Or monsters.

"Now then, shall we find the other faces of the residents?" Toya offered.

Nene could smile and nod as the three of them set off.