Vol 2 Chapter 4 (1/2)

Night 4: I Can't Hear the Bells

It was over quickly

The Long-Arainst Mina; she was not even good enough to be the other woman's opponent

Her legs were broken, her shoulders were crushed, and her heart was filled with fear Thatresistance! No, she wasn't allowed to

Since Rinne couldn't understand everything, she began thinking about what had just happened

Long-Arainst Mina as preparing to speak to the Meat Doll; she probably planned to use those strong, invisible fists to beat Mina down

But her movements were easily foiled

Mina's expressions were graceful as she turned slightly and dodged the fist and pressed the spray can in her hand -- a silver mist was released with a sound of ”Shhhh”

Long-Ared in that instant

She showed shock and, as if putting all her effort into one single action, screamed

But there was still no movement

Mina leisurely walked in front of her and fiercely stoht on her body That was it, probably That was it

Her abdo-Armed Demon flipped over and fell on the bumpy road where she rolled a few ti and possibly unconscious

Long-Ar-Armed Demon who killed ten people She was a monstrous existence with superhuman abilities

But she was silenced effortlessly by Mina, who didn't so much as bat an eyelid

”Seeing invisible things is soood at” Only Saibara Mina's eyes were s-Arer a threat Actually, I wanted to leave you be for a while while I investigate a few things, but it seems I can't do that anyway”

Mina once again turned toward the Meat Doll after she finished saying so incomprehensible

The fragender, which was destroyed by the Long-Armed Demon, had already completely recovered Mina's expression was inored Rinne, as lying by her feet and shi+vering with fear, and spoke to the Meat Doll: ”Alright, Meat Doll, let ard awa Rinne? Based on your response, I will -- no, haha, you should know even if don't say it, right?”

Her words brought immeasurable fear to the Meat Doll The Meat Doll startled with fright, and surprisingly responded with human speech

”My reason was, since the Long-Arht be taken away if I do not first eli-Armed Demon”

”Oh?” Mina showed a look of surprise ”She was after the Frags? It seeain -- ments' function?”

Mina seemed to accept the Meat Doll's words Perhaps fro to herself

”I thought the Meat Doll malfunctioned, but it see's just a pile of flesh How could it possibly have thoughts of protecting others?”

””

The Meat Doll was silent Was she being too suspicious? Its features see as pain wrecked Rinne's train of thought She wanted to puke This inco over her body

And fear

The extreme fear she held toward the woman before her made her nauseous

”So,” Mina ended her pondering and sneered at Rinne, ”why hello Thanks for lendingyou, but I couldn't see any phones nearby At the end, I couldn't just watch and showed myself However, since I ensured you can be eliood outcome”

”Fshuu--” The sound of breathing could be heard from Mina's mouth every time she took a breath

She's like an alien species, Rinne thought Her body, her thought processes, they were all coer than the Meat Doll beside her

Why didn't Rinne notice this abnorht?

She was -- extreerous

More dangerous than Snake, erous than just about anybody

Saibara Mina asked Rinne with a s If you answer honestly, you'll live a bit longer”

She was definitely not lying She should able to kill Rinne without batting an eye Even with i an Apple, Rinne would be easily disposed of

Mina ithout doubt, that type of being

”What is it?”

”Tell ered and asked with a calo?”

Sakaki Guriko

The faces of these important people flashed before Rinne's mind

Ah She would never see theo back

I just had to meet her

Aizawa Uirl whose hands weren't skilled

When she cooked, she would scorch the bottoer When she tried arts and crafts, she could never finish properly, ht blow

What were these fingers doing?!

She was always miserable

To eliiven her--

”In--the--clear--night--”

With the singing voice came a robber with an abnormal expression Just a robber Even if it otten within a week; it was a normal case the likes of which occurred all the tiotten addicted to killing, he decided to slowly torture the surviving girl to death He pushed her down and lifted his bloody kitchen knife He cut, starting froertips, and Ume lost consciousness numerous times

She was not forgiven no matter how she cried and screamed No one came to save her

In quick succession, her fingers, then hands, then arround

Her arms were cut off from the shoulder

Ah--

She couldn't remember what happened afterward

When she caained those omnipotent arms

She ecstatically tore the robber into pieces, then fell unconscious

Upon wakening, an unfamiliar man said: ”Welcome to our world!”

At that moment, she understood beyond doubt

She could not go back

”Ah”

When she was fully awake, the sunlight was slanted and a cri-Ar if she was defeated yet again As she started to get up --

”Huh?”

She couldn't get up

How strange She wanted to use her arms to pull herself back up

She felt nothing

Coain

”Hey, hey, I need to stand up, I can't keep lying down like this Ooh, if I don't get up I can't go back”

She felt nothing

She felt nothing

She felt nothing

”Hey, ho back”

Her arms

”Back to Zeki-kun”

Her arone

Long-Ar

”Waahh”

Tears flooded from her eyes and dripped from her cheeks

”My arms, my arms, my arms”

No, I really don't want this Ar and powerful ar the weak and clumsy Aizawa Ume

And then she would be abandoned by Zekiguchi

”No! No no no!”

With desperation filling her, Long-Ar

”No”

Zekiguchi, who gave her a haven despite her transformation into a monster, who accepted and praised her, who said said ”Let's keep living on together” Zekiguchi Nashi+nori

I wanna go back to him

Go back and be praised by him

Until now it had always been like this; it was Long-Arreatest joy

However --

These ar quietly rejected her

-- Arms

”My arone”

Long-Arround And somewhere on the uneven road in the direction of her head

”Thump”, a footstep

”Zeki-kun?”

Long-Armed Deht

No

No no no no

If she were to be abandoned by Zekiguchi now She would rather just die Her greatest fear was for him to say, ”I don't need you”

Long-Ar, catastrophic fear

”I'm sorry, I”m sorry, don't abandon me, please don't abandon me”

”This world --”

Suddenly

Because the voice was not one she had heard before, Long-Armed Demon opened her eyes

”Huh?”

Looking at the person, it seemed to be soe made his face see

”-- Really has too s”

”You --”

Even though she called out to hi his na-Armed Demon, can you really not use your arms now?”

”Ah”

Struck at her weak point, Long-Arritted her teeth and pushed back tears But she couldn't hold the

Seeing her like this, theand spoke formally into his phone ”Ah -- hello, sorry to trouble you I'ht, I'll tell you the place now, so please coh it's probably already too late”

Long-Armed Demon understood

He seehtest fear toward any policemen and never paid any attention to them But she would definitely be arrested under the current circumstances

So it will end like this, Long-Arht

Zekiguchi would never save her now that she had lost her ability

Just as she began to lose spirit, Nageki said so as if it were natural

”Ah, right, dead, one little girl”

”Eh?” Dead? She wasn't dead yet, so who died?

”Right, it looks like -- her arms were snapped off, and her shoulders were crushed”

Who was --

”She washer heart torn out”

-- That?

The night was filled with night asleep was impossible

Ever since she started living separately frohtmares Sometimes it was the faces of those she had killed, so about Though there were no definite ies, it was still so painful

It was during a night like this, a night when sleep was impossible

Gankyū Eguriko woke up in her dark rooether with the Itsuwara couple Her bed was soft, and she used a sky-patterned quilt She glanced at the clock with spoons as its hands; it pointed at 2:00am

””

Covered in cold sweat and feeling nauseous, Guriko decided to bathe Thinking that she shouldn't wake Hino and Kio, she quietly walked toward the door

Those two are seriously naive They're so innocent that I loweredthem my parents Now that I think about it, even now I don't really understand what parents are

If I ask theh and say it's easy

”-- These ”parents”, that's us”

They were truly idiots without common sense Since it was too ridiculous, Guriko decided to stop thinking about it and just learn, bit by bit Living with them wouldn't be unpleasant

It was a night when she was prepared to accept the current situation

She noticed the room

The voices were filled with sorrow, completely unlike the frenzied excitement from before They seemed to be sad

”-- I can't do it, I can't stand it anymore”

That was Hino's voice Was taking care of Guriko, a child as both huht it over, and an e that even she could not understand assaulted her heart

”-- But

”-- I can't kill her”

Hino murmured, and Kio replied

”-- Hino, that won't do If we refuse to kill her, ill be killed by that person”

”-- Being killed is fine; either way, Kio, you definitely can't kill Guriko-chan either You obviously care about her more than I do”

Hino's voice sounded al

”-- Besides, you say we'll be killed, but for a long time we've already --”

Then, she woke up

It seemed like a scene concocted in a dreahthts kept floating in her mind and she felt terrible Like in her dream, Guriko woke in the darkness

Her mind was heavy

That conversation -- that night, what did that couple's conversationkilled -- I don't understand it In short, feeling an indescribable nausea, Guriko unhappily stared at the ceiling

She didn't go to school and even refused to pick up the phone when Rinne called

She merely shut herself in her room like a recluse

Ignoring Hino or Kio's concern, she did not leave even when called for meals

”Ah, what's the proble”

There was a choice before her

That choice was between the options that the uchi Nashi+nori outlined

Keep on living as a human like this?

Or to live as a monster?

Rinne, Hino, Sakaki, Kio if she wanted to protect those important to her

”My being near theer?”

I kno cruel I a-Armed Demon who killed ten people In fact, I am worse than her I have a twisted heart that wants to hurt others' bodies My true identity is that of an eyeball-gouging monster

There's no way I can talk about this with people like Rinne; if they knew these things, they would despise ed out is probably even greater than what they ever iined

Rinne

”I am a monster”

Guriko crawled out of her bed and leaned her head against the wall As if groaning, she rew tired of living, abandoned my human restraint and went on a wild e, infants eren't old enough to speak, and couples who loved each other I gouged out thatmonster”

A single tear flew from Guriko's eye

”How could I deserve any sort of happiness”

Someone had decided to be ”the person o But I don't deserve to be with them I have taken so much on o berserk again and target Rinne's eyeballs

”Rinne, Sakaki”

I will travel

”I like you”

Go so here is too painful This happy world is suffocating me School, home, all this happiness of a normal life --It's too painful for a monster like me

I can't depend on them

Go somewhere far away

Sakaki will definitely protect Rinne He doesn't needthem misfortune

”If only I depart, it'll be fine”

Huether

She was a monster

The sa-Armed Demon

””

Upon that resolution, she calmed down

At this moment, Guriko's heart made the decision

Therefore, Gankyū Eguriko would choose that option

Her only necessities would be spoons She would once again walk that old path Wandering fro them far away from Mushi+ --

Drunk with self-satisfaction, she would gradually cease to think

That would be good Only that would be acceptable, I'ain

Opening the door, she found no one in the darkness Perfect Though she felt sorry toward Hino and Kio, she took this opportunity to leave An ending like this would be a bit cold or perhaps hurt the was impossible from the start

Guriko apologized in her heart Thinking that ”I'll at least leave a note so they won't worry”, she reached out to the notepad next to the telephone

It was then that she finally noticed Hino collapsed on the floor

”Hino?”

No response Guriko approached and shook the woman in an apron She was still alive, but what happened? Last tiazed toward the ceiling

What do I do? What do I do? Aahh, I can't think straight

”Right, call an ambulance”

When soency, just call an ambulance and they'll take the person to the hospital for free Hino taught me that

Guriko nodded and headed for the phone

She punched the keys harshly, telling herself that this was the last tioodbye after this

The ambulance arrived a while later and she went in with Hino

Guriko would face the worst possible truth soon in the hospital

Sakaki had e this news He destroyed the phone that delivered the news and rushed out of the school at a speed above hu his extraordinary skill to beat up the educational director who tried to stop hi before his as done, he forcibly waved over a car that was passing by Since his gun was eun itself to knock down the driver and hijacked the car before speeding to the hospital that contacted him

Everything that happened afteras gone from his memory

His mind was blank and the whole world turned white Uncontrollable anger emanated from his entire body If he didn't control himself, he would have indiscri all traffic laws, he arrived at the hospital and pushed his way to the hospital room he was directed to

Total darkness

It was a completely black room

Sakaki didn't need to think He could understand just by looking at the scene in front of hi hospital bed, an absence of medical equip wo on the bed with a deathly pallor This was a true death

”Sakaki”

A small voice came from behind him

As if frozen in place, Sakaki turned around expressionlessly

There stood a person In the background, the fullthe person's appearance But he kneas not God Since it was not God, then that person could not save Usagawa Rinne

”Move”

The shadow spoke curtly

Sakaki stayed standing by the prone Rinne's feet, un, unable to respond