Vol 2 Chapter 2 (1/2)

Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon

“Let’s co our arms are!”

It was an abandoned building where children who had no place in their faender were currently terrified with a sudden abnorht that should have been the sa irate, they coers who dressed in the same way as they did

It was their daily life, a life reranted

And now this normality had cracked It had been smashed apart with ease

A demon

One of the youths had already died, his abdomen heavily pummelled by the invisible fist that the demon stretched out

Death That was death It wasn’t fake – he really died

Everything shattered

“Uwoaaaaahhh, enough fooling around!”

A boy, half--Armed Demon with his bare fists Those youths had too many enemies: the police, adults who didn’t understand them, violent juvenile derelicts, criminals… therefore, they had armed themselves for their own protection

With electric batons and tear gas

With wooden planks, craft knifes, and baseball bats

But those things…

Couldn’t help them at all

“Hehe?”

There was a grade-schooler girl, so thin she ht have accidentally disappeared into space She was the abnor With her short hair tied up in two ponytails, she was a coirl, cute and inconspicuous and wore sandals even in this chilling winter

Only, she didn’t have arms

“Urk!”

A th, but his bloas abnorave out a mortified screech and tried to move the bat as hard as he could, but it remained unmovable as if held down by some unknown force

In the next instant, five incredible dents – like that ers – appeared on the bat Then, unbelievably, the bat became twisted and crumpled up

“Hey – ho!”

With invisible fingers, Long-Ar the bat as if it were a tea towel

“Boring!”

She tilted her head cutely and smashed the boy with her invisible hand “Bam – “, the part of the boy’s head above the ja off His spraying blood and brain , he fell dohile still tightly holding on the bat that had lost its shape

Silence

The five teenagers who saw this scene gave out sharp shrieks of despair

There are very few opportunities to truly come into contact with ‘death’ in modern-day japan Corpses were quickly taken away and cre into dust in the blink of an eye THe illusions of death, a, er feel real They took away those teenagers’ fear of death

Therefore, true death was like ers; it was an abnormal phenomenon that they could not understand

Traumatized, they sprinted away like mad

“Noisy You’re ruining this quiet night”

Long-Armed Demon’s expression was evidently displeased, but then she discovered the only young girl airl! The townspeople were -Arirl with the Apple

She must find her soon

Long-Arirl as she hoped her lucky day had finally come

“Did I get it right? – Did I get it right? – ”

Then she stretched out her invisible arms

“Ahhh!”

The girl’s ankles were suddenly caught by so, and she fell violently forward as her body lost its balance Cigarettes and a lighter fell out of her pockets

She was obviously not old enough to shtered, either

She was simply unfortunate

She could only la that represented abnormality, happenstance, and death – a demon

It was an uncanny scene

“It’s so high – ”

An uncanny and cruel scene

All four of the girl’s lirasped by invisible arms, and she was lifted into the air with an irresistible force The girl looked like she was freely floating in air, but in truth she had been robbed of all free htly shi+ft her body Her pupils were corind

While she was facing her fatal crisis, all the other teenagers had already run away The girl despaired So that was the truth – those people who gathered in this deserted building with her weren’t her faers who happened to have similar experiences How could they possibly want to save her?!

When she understood this, the girl asked for help from someone she had not even considered a possibility

“Hel, help me… Dad, Mom…”

Her parents, whoer cared about and were only bound to her through blood; her annoying parents, whoht only existed to provide her with three ht would be better off without personalities

“Help me – Dad, Mom!”

The only time she desired her parents to save her is when she reached this helpless end

“Hehehe, Long-Ar a dejanew”

Saying those cryptic words, Long-Armed Demon tilted her head

“Huh?! No, that’s not it Dejaneas it again? DEIYtop? No… Deja vecu? Whatever – Onee-chan, you’re very si-Armed Demon was before”

Deja vecu wasn’t correct either A re-Armed Demon’s face

“But there won’t be a savior appearing! There are no Gods, no heroes, and no princes on white horses who can save us in a pinch Because had God truly existed…

There was a s sound

“… Then I, Long-Armed Demon, shouldn’t have become a demon”

The girl’s ar sound, the external force twisted apart the girl’s flesh, bones, fat and veins Her two ar was saturated with an unbelievably large amount of blood, and her sharp and shrill screams

“AHH – AHHHHH AHHHHH –”

The girl’s eyes rolled upwards with pain, as if she had lost consciousness That was understandable After all, her arms were torn off while she was still alive and conscious The fact that she hadn’t gone into shock was incredible enough

“An insect…”

Long-Are Even as she faced this cruel scene that she had created, she still had an innocent appearance

“I want to break its legs as soon as I find an insect Isn’t that right? A kid would want to tear off its wings, yank off its antennae, and cut apart its body, right? Long-Armed Derow up any more from that point onwards”

Tearing, tearing

Then, the girl’s legs were also torn off without much ado

“But that’s alright, because Zeki-kun accepted Long-Armed Demon as who she is”

Long-Arirl, who had already died from the pain or the blood loss

“So I can si-Armed Demon I can be a demon who can kill humans like insects, a demon with no heart”

Long-Arhed

“I hate those weak humans who only knoait for God; I hate those pathetic humans who only knoait for a hero I don’t want to be a hu beside a fallen angel”

With an innocent and e-Ar?”

Kannonsakazaki Private High School was an ordinary school located in a remote townshi+p Thanks to the school's culture and traditions, all the students ell-ood reputation The four school buildings were loosely scattered across the school grounds, and the inconvenient distance between the Moreover, as the school was established a long tiraffiti were everywhere in the buildings

It was a place where a cool breeze often blew past and emanated an anachronistic atmosphere

The second-oldest building was Building Two The room at the end of the second-storey corridor was for Class B, Year One, taught by a teacher naruous with this ordinary school Since the students here always cleaned the roos did not seee

It was the ti loudly, and Rinne poked Guriko, as dead asleep

For so at school these days That was Guriko’s hobby In other words, her special ability There really wasn’t anything anyone could do about it However, she didn’t sleep in class as frequently as before since she started living with Rinne

Was it because she was tired frora involved She just felt that Guriko must have worked very hard At least, she’ll try not to bother Guriko, as trying her best, and make sure she didn’t have to worry excessively

Rinne lived like a zombie for a while after Katsumi’s death

Time had floay so mercilessly

According to witness accounts, the -Armed Deirls of Rinne’s age Ten people Numbers were always empty They carried no emotions

Though she would not die due to the Apple’s power, Rinne was still scared She emphasized with those ere killed, and wished they would catch the criminal soon

“…”

Then she re to be friends with her She reether, and the funeral that left a deep shadow in her heart Katsu, and Rinne also kept crying The heavy atue with tears, was locked within Rinne’s heart, unable to be digested away

She remembered Katsumi’s face that she saw last, a face that had a lonely smile

“It'll be my treat next time”

“Treat to what?”

“Ahh!”

Guriko was already awake It seehts, didn’t notice it With a tired expression, Guriko scratched at her unique wolf-like hair cut and moved closer to stare at Rinne’s tear-filled eyes

Guriko’s eyes were pitch-black like gun-barrels They had no e everything into theentleness seemed to have mixed into it

Guriko pretended not to notice Rinne’s tears She stood up and stretched

“Ahh, I’h sleep”

“Have you been staying up lately, Guriko-chan?”

Immortals like Guriko didn’t particularly have a desire to sleep Guriko only treated sleep as a hobby, so she slept for about the sath of time as a normal human

She took the school bag on the table and replied nonechalantly: “Yeah, I’-Armed Demon”

Rinne’s heart almost stopped with fear when she heard this

“Long-Armed Demon… you mean that murderer?”

“Yep That person seeht and stroll around a bit I just haven’t found him yet”

Rinne paled It was sierous She kneerful Guriko was; Guriko can easily defeat an ordinary Mushi+ However, for so too dangerous, especially when the opponent is an unknown murderer

A rare, gentle smile surfaced on Guriko’s face as if she read Rinne’s expressions

“Don’t worry Besides, fighting is the only thing I know”

She muttered

“I won’t let the Long-Armed Demon kill you or Sakaki, or Kio and Hino and these people at school”

As if she just realized so, Guriko said with a weaker voice and a face full of embarrassment: “Kio and Hino – I probably shouldn’t worry about the bedti lullabies It’s quite ridiculous, especially when I’m older than them… seriously, do they have no manners, or do they simply not understand shame?”

Rinne felt this was quite incredulous, and she tilted her head as she looked like Guriko, asto herself

Guriko startled herself with realization again, and shook her head

“N-never mind Dammit, I can’t control my emotions…”

Then she rushed out of the classrooh Rinne was confused and didn’t knohat to do, she still chased after Guriko

Since Guriko said she wanted to go shopping after school, Rinne ith her Rinne wasn’t working on that day January was quickly drawing to an end The sun speedily disappeared beneath the horizon, and the shops painted with the shade of dusk held a nameless sense of melancholy

Rinne felt just how much she relied on Guriko when she parted with her for only three weeks She owned that home, but it was Guriko who protected that home Rinne despised such a life, a life where she was always reliant on someone else and lived under someone else’s protection

Sakaki, Guriko, and Katsu on others because there were so ently protected her She felt she owed theer little by little

Was it inevitable? The shops, which were usually cluttered with students after school, were now rather desolate The Long-Armed Demon was theof January It had already killed ten people in less than a month

It was thought that there was only one coirls

But then, the news pointed out a few days ago that ard boys andthe victims

It had been explained that the officers were killed when they discovered the Long-Armed Demon and attempted to arrest the culprit – but that explanation did not work for the boys

However, they were only rare exceptions The e were -Armed Demon In fact, apart froo school They probably thought they -Armed Demon if they left their houses, and they either voluntarily took days off or were forced to stay home by their parents There were even those who indicated they’d like to leave this place until things calmed down, and had left for the countryside After all, the Long-Armed Demon only killed in the townshi+p of Kannonsakazaki, and leaving it would be a ay to stay alive

The Long-Arhty ripple in Kannonsakazaki’s formerly calm atmosphere

TV stations, news reporters, and various media had all swarmed into town for the past few days Those curious onlookers were also roa pictures Inky bloodstains still remained at the murder scenes that the police hadn't cleaned in time, and officers dressed in their navy blue uniforht

Since she felt uneasy when she was alone, Rinne slept and ate with the big-sister-figure young lady next door now Though it wasn’t helping oing to school, not because she wasn't scared, but because she was immortal She still felt, h she still retained the sense of pain

That was completely different from Guriko’s confidence, her belief that she will not lose to the Long-Armed Demon, and her complete lack of fear towards the murderer

Ahh, I hate this feeling Rinne thought to herself She eak She was so weak

She owed Katsumi Katsumi often worried about Rinne; wouldn’t she find it hard to leave for Heaven then?

“Sorry for the wait”

Guriko poked her head out of the make-up shop and looked e on to a s

“Ah, right” Rinne, as lost in her thoughts and was startled, blinked at Guriko: “What did you buy?”

“Not sure”

Well, that only made Rinne more confused

Guriko placed the paper bag into her school bag with a smile: “But it’s really pretty”

“That’s so rare! Guriko-chan bought so!”

Did thisseeh-school student If that was the case, then that training was already having soood results, wasn’t it?

However, Guriko pouted when Rinne said this

“Shut it It’s because Hino’s birthday is co up”

“Hino?”

Rinne’s face was full of confusion Guriko blushed and rushed forward Startled, Rinne quickly caught up with her Recently, Guriko often behaved in thisher human emotions, Rinne rarely understood the reasons behind it and often felt Guriko was leaving her behind

“I know, t-this is really unlikefor her It’s Hino’s fault anyways, suddenly talking about her birthday I knehat she ard them as parents Just that, um, they do take care of me and all –”

“What?”

She couldn’t understand what Guriko was saying at all

When they reached a cafe aht and pulled on Guriko’s clothes to stop her fro forward Like a puppy that had its leash pulled taut, Guriko whimpered and stopped

“What?”

Guriko looked dubiously over at Rinne Rinne couldn’t help but feel that Guriko’s expression was very cute She patted Guriko’s head and pointed at the cafe with a gentle so in”

“What? Why?”

“Don’t worry about it Just go in”

Rinne opened the cafe doors without explaining This was the cafe where she saw Katsumi last It was an anachronistic cafe named ‘Indian Bar’, and the inside always seemed rather dim

Guriko was changing Rinne wanted to know the reason behind it They were friends – no, that was not exactly correct However, as long as she understood Guriko’s viewpoint, then Rinne can at least be soht? Rinne wanted to help Guriko

She saved o

Then she had also healed mine and Sakaki’s lonely hearts

And, most importantly, I want to love Guriko from the bottom of my heart, to love Guriko with the intensity that Katsumi had missed out on

“Ding dong”

The bells tied to the door of the cafe emitted a crisp sound

“Welcome”

The young owner approached the herself to reply to her i on a seat in front of her towards the right

Rinne was a little startled

It was a ht could not be seen due to his bad posture His slightly long hair covered the majority of his face, and she could only barely see his wide-open eyes that were eht He was dressed in a worn-out coat, slowly breathing out the sarette, and wore a pair of sport shoes For so that was on him, only those shoes were of the latest fashi+on

- A hair demon

Rinne instinctively thought that His hair was not particularly long, but the unkee covered his entire face andof a lack of hu in an odd pose For soed in the chair with his neck cocked to one side as if he was a strange puppet Heout his hand to tap his cigarette ash into the ashtray

There were no other customers in the shop apart from him It seemed like the townsfolk didn’t wander around after work any-Arht home

“That custo her s her lips too much, “seems to be a detective”

“A detective?”

She couldn’t tell that A detective was a police officer responsible for catching criminals But… that man looks more like a criminal hi for the Long-Armed Demon as well Shouldn’t detectives ue information she learnt from TV

The owner then said with a voice as gentle as a soft song: “Hmm, so we shouldn’t disrupt him”

“I see”

Rinne nodded As she turned away from the owner, she heard a soft voice beside her ears

“This is lonely I can’t hear Katsumi’s voice anymore”

Did she reuests who came into her shop?

“So lonely Classic music is too lonely”

The owner changed to another CD, a jazz piece that was full of energy Tears kept swelling up in Rinne’s eyes She didn’t look at the owner and sat down at a table with Guriko The shop was not big, and they sat only one table away from the odd man as apparently a detective

Rinne gave hi with an eht She decided not to bother hi rather cold, she ordered a cup of hot coffee

Rinne still retained sos toward temperature Guriko mumbled “hot chocolate”, then added “to stay awake” as if she was defending herself

There wasn’t much caffeine in hot chocolate Rinne knew the that Guriko’s sense of taste could only co sweet

The owner nodded after taking down their orders Rinne then looked at Guriko, as sitting very straight in her chair and had an emotionless countenance

“A lot has been going on It feels very restless”

“That’s true, but I don’t feel bothered about this oppressive feeling” Guriko stared straight at Rinne, her barrel-like eyes pitch-black as ever “It was painful to keep living those mediocre and listless days It was very painful, especially since I have lived such a life for hundreds of years Though I like those peaceful days when nothing ever happens, I am also very scared of them”

Guriko took out a spoon in the blink of an eye, and stared calmly at it: “They make me want to find and kill Mushi+”

Rinne drew an inward breath Guriko smiled

“The reason that I opposed Mushi+… indeed, a large part of it was to find soe my family, such hatred or spite won’t last for a thousand years Chances are I’et rid of my boredom”

Rinne didn’t think so Guriko was fighting for the Apple holders who have been targeted by Mushi+ If she was just killing time, she couldn’t possibly have kept at it for asense of ‘duty’ was required to be continuously co like this, whereas sheer boredom would normally not have kept up

Guriko lowered her head a little

“However, I’ve co – or rather, tuan to be afraid that our ordinary lives may be disrupted”

”I’ve becoritted teeth Rinne didn’t think so Coirl who had nothing, sought nothing, and only lived like a machine and a monster – a willpower tenfold more powerful now sparkled in Guriko’s eyes

As if speaking to herself, Guriko spoke while she gazed at the sparkling silver spoon

“Rinne, did I change back into a human?”

She becas important to her

However, she now had a heart, and could seriously consider others

Did she become such a human –

“The world is too full of s”

Suddenly, she felt like a blunt knife brushed past her back – it was the voice of a man

Turning her head, she realized the odd detective was standing next to Rinne’s and her table He still didn’t look like a human upon close inspection He had short stubble around his ue spot that was neither Rinne or Guriko Tilting his head, he continued: “And that’s especially true for this town It’s too full of it”

“What do you want?”

Guriko asked brusquely “Gigigi,” the detective laughed e “Sorry I’m not some suspect It’s just how I am”

The detective then took out his police ID to show theloomy looks which wouldn’t be out of place even if he turned out to be secretly re-developing Frankenstein, it seemed he really was a detective

However, the photo printed in the ID was completely different from his person In other words, it was the picture of an incredibly handsome man So does that meant his looks would definitely improve if he fixed his hair – or did that mean it was actually someone else’s photo?

The ends of this incredible detective’s lips turned upward: “I’ in homicides”

“Nageki Kurukiyo” Guriko furrowed her brows: “What a savage name”

He probably wouldn’t want souriko” to say this about his name

Guriko showed no fear to his odd appearances and asked with a threatening tone: “So, what does Nageki Kurukiyo ith us?”

“Oh dear, how straightforward”

“Gigigi,” Nageki laughed loudly with his unnatural laugh While they talked, the shop owner arrived with coffee and hot chocolate She looked worriedly at Nageki, but he was unaze, and even explained the situation to her a little

Then he sat down next to Rinne without asking her permission It was a square table made for four people Startled, Rinne unconsciously shrank away froeki with a look full of hostility: “I said, what do you ith us?”

“Oh ive me such a scary look Such a waste of your pretty face Oh, your expression is getting more and more scary!”

After those coless words, his expression suddenly beca-Armed Demon?”

“We don’t Hurry up and disappear”

As if pleased, Nageki looked at Guriko, whose tone was getting rather sour “Lying is bad Gigi, do you find ood cop loved by all After all, there shouldn’t be a single person in Kannonsakazaki who doesn’t know about the Long-Armed Demon”

Then don’t bother to ask about it! Rinne thought as she kept her head low and sipped at her coffee In contrast to Nageki’s dirty looks, this man didn’t sne on It wasn’t unco next to him Was his appearance only a fashi+on trend? Was he actually a keen follower of pioneering fashi+on tastes?

“I think we’ll never catch the Long-Armed Demon this way”

With an incredulous tone, Nageki went on: “Everyone is being so obstinate Honesty, they’d rather believe senseless guesses such as the cri super-powerful weapons, but are willing to ignore the witnesses’ words about how a little girl was the killer They discounted that evidence as ‘impossible’ How’s that so? That’s the incomprehensible part There are so many cops here, but none of them paid that evidence any attention What a bother!”

“Stop ranting to us You’re gettingemitted from Guriko’s eyes

“Don’t say that”

Nageki was unround when Guriko was staring at him seriously; Rinne was certain of that This detective was much more than just weird

“Well, ladies, please humor this lonely man’s desire to chat Most witnesses for this case verified that a girl of grade school age appeared at many crime scenes If she walked away alive froht? The question is – can a grade school student shatter a huree?”

Practically speaking, it was iirls, how could a grade-schooler push theround and kill them thus? There were also victims whose limbs were pulled off their bodies Even adults would find that hard to acco tools

But Rinne knew the truth

Hu in this world

“But I knew it”