Part 132

"------"
I wake up and see it is past ten o'clock.
"...... That's right, today's a holiday."
I lift my body from bed.

Unable to contain it, I go into the hallway in my pajamas.

I run to the bathroom and throw up in the sink.
"Uughuuhuuk! ah!"
I empty the contents of my stomach, but I still feel sick.
Last night's dream.
In a sense, it's worse than my dreams of being a killer. It's much, much worse.

"Ha----gaa, ah---"
In my dreams, I don't just violate Akiha, but even Hisui and Kohaku-san.
That dream.
Dreaming I violated a girl that looked like Hisui or Kohaku-san all night.
"......... Aa............ ach."
Not having anything left to throw up, my convulsions start to diminish.

I go out in the lobby and see Hisui taking care of something.
She might be doing some rearranging, as I see her carrying a chair towards the lobby.

This chair?

"............... Ku."
I feel dizzy.
Right now---I can't bring myself to look at her face.
But I can't bear to go back to my room without saying anything.
If Hisui tried to wake me up as usual---I think this sickness would have been a bit better.

Music: play track 1

"...... No, there's no need for you to apologize. I didn't wake up at the usual time, so it's my fault. It's better if you complain to me a bit."
...... If you do that, I'd feel a little better.

"Shiki-sama......?"
But, that's just my selfish thoughts.
Like right now, my words are making her feel bad.

"It's nothing, forget about it. ...... More importantly, I'm kinda' hungry; is breakfast ready?"

"...... Nee-san went outside. Your breakfast is ready in the dining room."
"Oh. In that case, I'll go have some food. Sorry to bother you while you were working."
After saying a quick goodbye, I head towards the dining room.

Music: stop

Music: play track 1

I arrive at the lobby.
For some reason, I aimlessly wander around the mansion to confirm my childhood memories.

Oh. Hello, scene. Haven't seen you in awhile.

"...... Here."
On the handrail by the stairs is carved the name SHIKI.
It was probably because of these games that my old man forbade us from playing inside the mansion.
Anyway, if I look closely, I can see both mine and Akiha's name all over the place.

"...... Perhaps her personality stems from those times?"
She might have suppressed herself in front of the old man.

Sexist.

"......... There's a clearing there......?"
Tilting my head to the side, I try to remember, but for some reason, my memory is a bit vague.
In the forest of the mansion, I can see a clearing as if the trees were cut there.

---No, "can see" is not quite right.
If you walked by normally, you probably would never notice it.
If Kohaku-san didn't walk there, hidden enough by the surrounding trees as it is, I would never have noticed even if I lived here all my life.

"...... That's odd. I don't remember a clearing ever being here."
To say the least, I don't remember ever playing with Akiha in the clearing.

----I feel like I've never, been there, before.

"............"
After thinking for a bit, I decide to go into the clearing.

Isn't it about time for the sound of cicadas? Get it over with already.

Music: stop

The voice of the cicadas.
And the strong, summer sunshine that feels like it could dissolve------

Ah, there we go. Now we just need that goddamn picture.

Chiiirp. Chirp Chirp.
Chiiirp. Chirp Chirp.
Chiiirp. Chirp Chirp-----

----From somewhere, I can hear the voice of cicadas.

But, it's autumn now.

----The summer sunshine that bathes everything in white.

The columns of summer clouds in the far off sky.
I can practically see the voices.
At my feet, there are the discarded shells of cicadas.
Discarded shell. Someone's--discarded shell.

"------------.................."

My wound opens.
My chest becomes painted a dark crimson; black vermillion soaks both my hands-----

I guess this one'll do, too.

Chiiirp. Chirp Chirp.
Chiiirp. Chirp Chirp.

---Ah. Voices which try to pierce my eardrums,
voices of the cicadas.

---What is this?
My wound, it hasn't healed at all.

That's... a little different this time.

Music: play track 1

...... I can hear voices talking.

"Akiha-sama, are you not going to call for a doctor?"
"Don't be stupid, Hisui.
There's no way I could do that, since Nii-san's wound isn't normal......!"

...... Akiha and Hisui are talking.
This is SHIKI's room.



It looks like I am sleeping in the bed.
I planned to say "Yo!" and get out of bed, but I can't move at all.
My chest doesn't hurt anymore, but my body feels as heavy as lead.
All I can move are my eyes and mouth.

Completely different from her usual manner, Akiha gives full vent to her anger.
In comparison, Hisui is accepting the scolding, looking down silently.

"What about Kohaku? Didn't I give her orders too? Not to let Nii-san out of her sight?"
"Nee-san--is not here."
"Not here...... what do you mean by that?"

Hisui doesn't answer.
Akiha grinds her teeth.

---Not here?
What is she saying? Kohaku-san was in the rear courtyard right now---

"Akiha-sama. We should stop doing this."
"---Hisui."
"He is different. He is a different person. This mansion, it is not good for him. So, we should stop doing this."
"I don't want to hear those words!"

"No, that is why I must say them. You realize it, too. At this rate, Shiki-sama will really become a killer."

"...... Are you saying his Tohno blood is awakened in this mansion? That's ridiculous. It's impossible for that to happen to Nii-san."
"...... You are right. He is just like us, with Makihisa-sama's choice---"

In that instant.
Smack! The sound of a cheek being slapped echoes throughout the room.

Son of a bitch. Of all the times we stopped Akiha from smacking Hisui, the one time we can't stop it is on Hisui's path

"Ugh."
Somehow, I manage to shift my body.

"...... Hisui, I leave the rest to you. If Nii-san wakes, take care of what he needs."

"Akiha-sama, are you okay with this?"
"Yes. If I'm here, Nii-san will just get weaker."

Akiha leaves the room with an extremely painful smile on her face.

"..............."
Well, what should I do now?
Maybe it's better if I just pretend that I haven't woke up yet--

"Shiki-sama, I think it is safe now for you to open your eyes."
"...... Oh, you knew, Hisui."

"Yes, Akiha-sama did not realize it but...... Ever since a long time ago, she has never been good at being able to see through someone who is acting."
Hisui speaks reluctantly.

"...... Is that so? But you are pretty perceptive."

Because she wubs you!

"...... I do not know. Since I cannot understand the heart of the person I want to know the most about, I do not think I am very perceptive."

...

"I see..."
Nodding, I somehow get the feeling she's talking about Kohaku-san.

"I... I love you... I want to know so much more about you... please, tell me you feel the same way about me. Please!" "Saaaaay... you got a sister, don'tcha? Where's she at?"

"Shiki-sama, are you not pushing yourself?"
"...... To tell the truth, I feel extremely sluggish. Just what in the world happened to me?"
"...... Shiki-sama, we found you collapsed in the rear courtyard. It did not seem like your normal anemia, so we contacted Akiha-sama and brought you to your room."

...... Collapsed.
In the rear courtyard.
The white summer sunshine, and the voice of cicadas.

"----I remember. I was standing, and then I got real dizzy. Geez, I haven't had it this bad since elementary school."
"...... I thought that I should call the doctor, but Akiha-sama wanted us to wait and see."
"...... Yeah, Akiha's right. This is more like a mental thing, so calling the doctor wouldn't have helped. How long was I out?"
"...... I found you after noon, so approximately twelve hours."
"Th---that long!?"
Surprised, I look at the clock.
But, my body doesn't move.

"It is now midnight. I will watch over you tonight, so please, if you need anything, do not hesitate to ask."
"O...... okay. I appreciate it."
---I was unconscious for half a day, I haven't done that since that accident.
Furthermore, after sleeping for so long, my body is still wanting more sleep.

Music: stop

Music: play track 9

It was a dark night.
In the middle of the night, I thought I heard a noise and I woke up.
The tatami room was otherwise empty.
It seems at some point, all the adults went outside.
I was a little uneasy all by myself.
I went outside to the garden to see where they went.

The night itself feels frozen by the winter cold.
My breath hangs white in the air.
The garden is cold, but at the same time, the sky was beautiful.
The expression "freezing cold" seems to have been made up just for this winter night.
The cold stars. The deep darkness.
Illuminating this world is the lifeless moonlight.

His internal monologue is pretty poetic for a child.

For a child like myself, the mansion's garden is too big.
A dense forest encloses the garden.
The mansion is deep in the mountains, and to be honest, is no place for anyone to live.

The mansion is in the very heart of a dark forest.
It is...
like the light of a luminescent fish at the bottom of the ocean.

The darkness of the forest swells deeply.
The trees are like a black curtain trying to reach for the moon.
I heard a noise, and was convinced the adults must have gone into the forest.
I enter the forest.

Not even a single ray of light exists in this darkness.
Unable to even see my own body, I walk towards the sound.
It's just cold.
Even my eyes become numb.
I feel as if someone is calling my name.

The trees part into a clearing.
There, the scattered corpses of all the adults are littered all over the ground.
The dark ground is bathed in poisonous red, as if the entire world was bleeding.

------That is.

In the middle of the bleeding earth, the enemy that slaughtered the adults is standing there.

------The very first nightmare.

------Blood splatters onto my face.

In the middle of this frigid night.
That warmth.

------The first hated color.

The claws of the enemy pierce my chest.
Maybe I was numb from the coldness.
I didn't really feel much pain.

------I look up at the heavens.

The whole world starts to melt away.
There, the unchanging, pale darkness.

------How beautiful.

The ephemeral glass moon.

Tonight,

The moon is so----beautiful-----

Music: stop

Coming when I feel like it: Part 3 of 6.