I was scared.
I was terrified that Dad had disappeared, and terrified of what might have happened to him.
For a moment, I remembered a nameless woman who had once shown me a kindness that reminded me of my father's affection, and how she had died.
Driven by the fear that the same absurd concept—death—might swallow my father, I sprinted through the streets.
Death is the act of having a precious loved one stolen away by an irresistible current of the world.
It means never being able to talk again, never being able to laugh or cry together, and never again feeling each other's warmth.
I hate it. I hate it. I hate it.
I don't want him to be taken.
Dad. He is my dad.
I won't let anyone take him.
Don't take him away. If you do, I will never forgive you.
I won't forgive anyone. No matter who they are.
Don't take Dad from me. If you do, I'll become something far more terrifying than death itself.
I'll become a monster more frightening than death and unleash my rage. I'll pour out everything boiling inside my chest and smash it all to pieces.
I will hold every single thing responsible for failing to prevent his death.
I'll break it. I'll break it. I'll break it. I'll break it. I'll break it.
I'll destroy everything until nothing is left in this world.
So don't take him. Give him back.
Dad! Where are you? Give me back my dad!
Dad.
Dad.
Dad.
Da—
"E-Eto!?"
The magma surging through my mind like a violent torrent finally settled at the sound of a single voice.
My vision was blurry. Not because of the darkness, but because of the transparent tears that had pooled in my eyes. I hadn't realized it because I had been relying on my sense of smell rather than my sight to find him.
As I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand, Dad finally came into focus. He looked shocked to see me, his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open.
He looked like he'd been through hell; blood streamed from a gash on his forehead, and there wasn't a single part of him that seemed unscathed. But he was alive. He was alive!
"Dad! Daaaaaaaad!!!"
I lunged forward!
I ran with everything I had and threw my arms around him in a crushing embrace. I completely forgot his warnings about my strength being greater than others and the need to control it.
In that moment, I only wanted to feel, with every fiber of my being, that he was actually alive. The force of my impact was so great that Dad's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
After a moment, Dad regained his senses and began to soothe me, but my sobbing wouldn't stop.
Then, it happened. Without warning, Dad wrapped his arms around me and threw us both sideways.
KWA-BOOOOM!!!
"Ghhk...!!"
"Dad?!"
The relief of our reunion was instantly erased by his pained groan and the sudden intrusion of a repulsive presence.
Ignoring the wounds on his arm—which had only worsened as he scraped against the bare ground to shield me—Dad pushed himself up. He stepped in front of me, shielding me with his back, and glared at the man who had leaped down from the building above the alley.
The man was wearing a police uniform, the kind I often saw on TV.
His clothes were torn and stained with blood. The moment I realized some of that blood belonged to my father, something hot began to surge through my mind once again.
The man's eyes were burning a dark, crimson-black—the [Kakugan] that proved he was a Ghoul. It was the first time I had ever seen another Ghoul besides myself.
However, the man's gaze held no warmth for a fellow member of his species. Instead, it was filled with mockery and contempt.
"Your dad? I thought the idea of someone raising a Ghoul was bad enough, but seeing it in person is even more pathetic."
"Say one more word about Eto, and I'll kill you."
Dad's voice was terrifyingly sharp.
I had never seen him this angry before. But the Ghoul didn't seem intimidated in the least; a sneer deepened on his face.
"Kill me? You got lucky and caught me off guard a few times, and now you've forgotten your place?"
WHAM!!!
"?!!"
My world shifted in an instant.
Dad was suddenly shoved backward, knocking me onto my backside. In the blink of an eye, he was gone from my sight.
I whipped my head around to find him. I saw Dad being slammed into a wall, the Ghoul's hand clamped tightly around the back of his neck.
Once again, a magma-like blaze erupted in my brain.
***
KWAANG!!!
"Guh...!!"
A brutal hand choked off my breath and blood flow simultaneously, followed by the merciless impact of a concrete wall slamming into my back.
The air in my lungs screamed to be released, but because my throat was crushed, nothing could escape. It felt as though my internal organs, lungs included, were about to burst.
"This is what they mean by a rat in a trap. You're not even a Ghoul Investigator, yet I hope you're the last human who makes killing this much of a chore."
"Kkh...!!"
I tried to pry the bastard's hand off with both of mine, but he didn't budge an inch. Desperate, I shifted my grip and stabbed my fingers toward his eyes.
SNATCH!
That effort was equally futile; my wrist was caught in an instant. His smile widened, certain that I had no more tricks left.
"Feel it. This is what a 'Ghoul' is, and this is what a 'human' is."
CRACK!!
For a second, I didn't even know where the sound had come from.
It was a short, dry noise, like a dead branch snapping. Then I realized my wrist, still held in his grip, was bent in a direction it was never meant to go.
My right wrist was broken.
It happened so effortlessly that I wondered if my body had always been this fragile.
"......!! ......!!"
I couldn't even scream.
As the oxygen supply to my brain was cut off, darkness began to encroach upon my vision. The pain faded as I slipped away, but I knew this was no mercy.
"Humans and Ghouls are different. A human cannot raise a Ghoul. Even if they try, that Ghoul will only ever live in a world tailored for humans. I've seen a few like that before—Ghouls taken in by human pity, who learned the weak ways of their saviors before stepping out into the world. What do you think happened to them?"
The darkness continued to devour everything.
Yet, the bastard's voice reached my ears with agonizing clarity.
I was furious that I had to listen to him in such a helpless state, but I couldn't even express that rage.
"They all died. A bird raised in a cage cannot survive a single moment once it leaves the bars. Do you really think you're protecting that child? Don't be delusional. You're nothing but a cage. If that child ever fails to fly, it will be your fault and yours alone."
I wanted to argue.
I couldn't.
Was it because my throat was crushed? Because my consciousness was flickering out? Or was it because a part of me believed he was right?
It was the one question that had haunted me relentlessly while raising Eto.
Am I really raising this child properly?
I could never be sure.
If it had been Mr. Kuzen, perhaps he could have done a better job.
If I weren't so weak, Eto wouldn't have to carry such a burden of responsibility, nor would she have to endure the contemptuous words and gazes of this Ghoul.
The world is cruel. It does not allow happiness to be bought with 'affection' alone.
I am weak. I lack even the minimum strength required to protect her from the tides of this world.
I cannot fly. Far from flying, I was nothing more than a cage, rusting away day by day, eaten alive by anxiety and an obsession with death.
In such a state, there was no rebuttal to be found.
I couldn't even manage a final curse as a last act of defiance.
All that remained was a pathetic death, steeped in helplessness...
CRUNCH!!
"Kkh?!"
Suddenly, the Ghoul let out a short shriek, and his grip loosened instantly.
My breath returned in a rush, and oxygen flooded back into my brain.
Gasping for air, my heart hammered against my ribs. By reflex, I swung my leg and kicked the Ghoul square in the nose.
The Ghoul reeled from the impact and tumbled backward.
Clinging to his calf was Eto. Her face was twisted in fury, her right [Kakugan] blazing as she tore into the Ghoul's flesh like a small, savage beast.
"Eto...?"
As I pushed the fallen Ghoul away and stared in a daze, Eto stepped in front of me, her small body shielding mine, and screamed,
"Don't you dare touch my dad!!!"
Comments (0)
Please log in to leave a comment. Login or Register