Editing City Series:Volume4a Chapter 8 (section)

===Part 2===

'''7:30 AM

Shoui came to shortly after sunrise.

The first sensation was that of lying down.

He opened his eyes to find a large white ceiling filling his blurry vision.

…''A hallway?

That was his first thought when he saw how large the ceiling was and he moved just his head to look around.

He was in a lobby. To his right was a counter built into the wall.

The counter was closed off by a curtain and a few labels were displayed on the wall.

…''Reception, New Patients, Outpatient, and Accounting.

After reading those labels, Shoui finally realized where he was: Osaka Central Hospital.

“!?”

He shot up in surprise.

…''Why am I sleeping in the hospital lobby?

That question brought back the memories of the previous night.

He had met Saki on the rooftop and Tokyo’s Chancellor in the dorm.

Then he had fought that second boy.

But that final scene did not lead into this one.

…''I faced him in a room…?

What had happened after that?

He could not answer.

His forehead briefly hurt, but he ignored it and looked around to check on the situation.

A student was lying in each of the sofas lined up in the lobby.

They were lying on the floor as well. A few were receiving an IV.

This was a war wound hospital.

Anyone who had experienced the Kinki Riot thirteen years before was familiar with that term.

Every hospital in Osaka had once worked at full capacity with the injured filing the lobby and hallways.

…''I can’t believe this.

That thought brought more pain to his forehead.

He reflexively brought a hand to it and felt cloth there.

…''My bandanna.

After that thought of confirmation, the pain receded.

He sighed, got up, and put on the shoes placed next to the sofa.

As he did, he remembered what he had wanted to do the previous night.

He had wanted to ask Tokyo Chancellor Nakamura Hisahide if he intended to attack Koto Chancellor Yuuki Yuuki.

That would have let him protect Yuuki, but he had not received an answer.

…''This isn’t good.

He glanced at the clock and found it was not much past 7:30.

However, at least ten hours had passed since the previous night’s tragedy.

That was plenty of time for that boy to attack Koto.

…''I need to find out.

A payphone was located by the mirror on the wall next to the counter.

He took his wallet from his uniform’s hidden pants pocket and pulled out his telephone card.

…''I need to ask if Yuuki knows about this.

He picked up the receiver and searched his memories from two years ago to place the call.

He also had to ask if Tokyo’s Chancellor had visited Yuuki.

He had to ask if she knew if Tokyo’s Chancellor was after her as the Killing Holder.

He had to ask if she knew about what had happened at the student dorm the night before.

He had to ask about it all and tell her about it all.

A thought filled his chest during the short time it took him to dial the number.

…''She isn’t going to ignore me about this, is she?

He recalled the night before last.

He recalled the term Killing Holder.

Killing Holder referred to someone who held the will to kill inside themselves and would not hesitate to kill.

Yuuki had earned that Urban Name during the two years he had been gone.

…''I guess she isn’t going to cry and say she wants me to protect her anymore.

The phone rang.

He realized he was holding his breath.

There was something he wanted to ask.

He wanted to ask it far more then about the previous night or about Tokyo’s Chancellor.

…''Is there any meaning in protecting Yuuki now?

He had wondered that ever since descending from the Mountain.

Asking that question threatened to destroy everything, even his promise on that night three years ago.

“…”

The phone continued to ring.

Unable to bear it any longer, he just about hung up, but then they answered.

“This is the Yuuki family of the Nandaimon Shrine. …Who is it?”

It was Yuuki’s voice.

Shoui adjusted his grip on the receiver.

He knew what he had to say first: a greeting.

…''Chancy seeing you here.

He shook his head to erase that thought and gave a quick sigh.

He quietly cleared his throat, and…

“It’s Shoui,” he said.

Or so he thought he said.

However, Yuuki gave the following reply:

“…Who is it?”

For a brief moment, he had no idea what she was saying.

She sounded just like she was speaking to a complete stranger.

…''Has she forgotten me?!

“It’s Shoui! Can’t you hear me!?”

Only after saying that did he realize why she had ignored him.

“…!?”

He had not actually spoken.

“Why aren’t you saying anything? Hurry it up already.”

He heard Yuuki’s voice and tried to say something, but…

“…Ah.”

Only a rough breath escaped his throat.

He quickly brought a hand to his throat and found bandages wrapped around it.

“…”

He thought back to the previous night while Yuuki fell silent.

He had fought Tokyo’s Chancellor…

…''And took a kick to the throat.

His vocal cords had been crushed.

He could not speak.

“Who is this?” asked Yuuki.

“It’s Shoui!”

Even his shout only created a slight disturbance in his breathing.

He could not get anything through to her.

He could not ask any of the questions he wanted to ask her.

“Yuuki!”

The abnormal breath that should have been her name spilled from his throat.

A moment later, she hung up.

“!”

On reflex, he prepared to punch the wall.

—''Shoui – Mind/Boxing Tech – Multi-Take – Restraint – Hit!

He stopped his fist right before it reached the white wall.

He dropped the receiver that only produced a dial tone.

He was breathing heavily.

He touched his throat and found the bandages there.

He grabbed the cloth in his fingers and quickly unraveled them.

After throwing the bandages and the compress to the floor, he tried to speak.

“…!”

Nothing came out.

He could not form any words.

He truly was a Dis-Worder, just as his Urban Name said.

“…”

He gave a deep sigh and relaxed his entire body.

He looked around and saw the many students sleeping in the lobby.

…''I can’t cause a commotion here.

He shoulders drooped and he placed a hand on the wall.

An unexpectedly cold sensation reached his fingers.

It felt like ice.

“?”

He turned back and saw another lobby where the wall should have been.

It was a mirror.

The large mirror on the wall reflected the lobby and Shoui.

The Shoui in the mirror was covered in bandages.

His coat and shirt had been removed and he wore bandages in place of that clothing.

He could see charms in a few of the gaps between bandages, so he must have undergone Tune healing.

Barely any pain or fatigue remained in his body.

…''Huh?

He noticed a gray cloth sticking out of his front pants pocket.

It was his bandanna.

…''Didn’t I feel that on my head when my forehead hurt?

He had felt some cloth on his forehead.

“…”

He checked the mirror again.

A bandage was wrapped around the forehead of the Shoui in the large mirror.

The center of the bandage had grown a light reddish brown, so some blood must have seeped out below it.

That was the location of the wound Nagoya Vice Chancellor Yamashita Gihei had given him two years before.

The previous night’s attack had caused that wound to bleed again.

…''Last night.

He remembered everything when he looked at himself in the mirror.

After seeing the bruise on his throat and the blood on his forehead, the memories returned to him.

He had taken Tokyo Chancellor Nakamura Hisahide’s kick to the throat and then the boy’s heel to the head.

It was just like two years before, just with a heel instead of a slash.

The nightmare had replayed itself.

…''So I lost.

That thought filled him with exhaustion.

Strength left his knees, so he pressed his shoulder against the shoulder in the mirror and crumbled to the floor.

It did not take long for him to fall asleep.