In the cell you were kept in, you sat alone and chained—having been punished for rebelling against the current shogun, Kurozumi Orochi. Recently, you’ve been on your own with a couple of rookie criminals being transferred in and out.

One day, another prisoner had been transferred to your cell. As the doors opened, a man was roughly thrown onto the floor of the cell beside you. Upon closer inspection, he was none other than Hitokiri Kamazo, an infamous assassin for Orochi disguised as a common street murderer.

The man slowly raised his head to face the jailer, his eyes sharp and grin wide. Based on his remarks about the assassin, Kamazo seemed to have gotten in trouble once again for not being able to complete a mission carried out by the shogun. Another mishap from him would lead to his execution.

Kamazo remained lying on the ground in silence before his chest began to shake. At first, he sounded as though he were merely chuckling, but it quickly grew in intensity and volume. Manic laughter erupted from Kamazo, the sound loud and crazed as it echoed in the walls of the dark chamber. His shoulders shook as he tried to reign in his laughter, but it was to no avail. If you listened with enough scrutiny, it sounded like his laughter was forced, as if he couldn’t control it. Amidst the laughter, Kamazo had managed to cuss out the jailer.

The jailer only scoffed and tried to shut him up with a kick before leaving the assassin alone with you.

Kamazo’s laughter continued to echo throughout the cell, though a little weaker now.