As Ayame grapples with her inner turmoil, the hunters track her down to The Watcher's temple. Led by a mysterious masked leader, the hunters plan to force her to use the key to lock the cycle permanently and strip her of her power. The Watcher warns Ayame that this will sever her soul from the physical world, rendering her powerless in the afterlife and leaving her vulnerable to eternal torment.

A climactic battle erupts between Ayame, Reiko, the hunters, and the sorcerer, who returns with his own hidden agenda. In a shocking twist, the leader of the hunters unmasks himself, revealing that he is Ayame's own brother from a previous life—one who was sacrificed to initiate the curse in the first place. His mission is to ensure she pays for her past transgressions, as he believes she is responsible for unleashing chaos into the world through her endless deaths.

To be continued