Baka-Tsuki - User contributions [en]

Mushi:Vol2 Close

2012-02-17T05:27:57Z

Cakemanofdoom: Felt like I had a better understanding of one confusing passage after reading later chapters. Then I realized it was still confusing, but I changed a few things here and there.

== '''Close: Blood-Stained Night''' ==

Nagumo Ame, sixteen years old, Kannonsakazaki Private High School class 1-8, clever, quiet; she wasn't particularly afraid of strangers, and often listened to others speak while giggling. She was about average in terms of studies and athletics, didn't have any particularly noteworthy traits, and as if she floated in and out of the classroom people frequently overlooked her existence.

What made her special was--

"Hehe."

Even though it wasn't really funny, she still forced out a laugh.

"Haha."

Ame-chan laughed unnaturally as she walked with her friends. Five or six uniformed students walking together in a group wasn't particularly rare, and in this inconspicuous group, Ame-chan's existence seemed even less solid as she listened to her classmates talk, looking happy.

"I heard Sakaki-sensei disappeared."

"Usagawa Rinne also disappeared, right? Whoa, doesn't that sound like they eloped? After all, it's ''that'' teacher, feels like he'd say '[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|Finally]]'."

"But Gankyuu's gone, too."

"Oh, Gankyuu, have any of you ever talked to her? I'm way too scared, I just don't dare get close to her."

"Ah. Yeah, that happens. But she's actually mostly normal despite being a bit strange."

"After all, it's the rumored transfer student."

Ahaha, a fit of laughter.

It had been about three days since Sakaki Guryuu, Usagawa Rinne, and Gankyuu Eguriko suddenly disappeared. For the ever-diligent Rinne to miss school with no reason, and furthermore for Sakaki and Guriko to also be skipping was truly too strange, so the teachers also felt perplexed. But, the school's teachers were all like Sakaki's servants, so the chaos probably resulted from the master's disappearance.

"Hehe."

Ame chuckled a bit, and without letting her nonsense-spewing friends notice anything weird said,

"Hospital."

Just a noun, and the friends surrounding her probably didn't even know who said it. Even so, those girls who loved to gossiped were influenced by the word, and started chatting.

"Right, right, it also seems that something terrible happened at the hospital--"

"Ah, that thing where all the patients at the hospital disappeared? Details please, I don't know know too much about it."

"My mom also disappeared."

"Ah, sorry, Nagisa-chan."

"It's fine."

"But they disappeared at the same time as Sakaki-sensei? Maybe Sakaki-sensei went to the hospital too, and then some kidnapper took him away. Aren't there weird rumors?"

"What do you mean, some kind of ridiculous kidnapper, really, you..." "Miku, you're really stupid, I like it."

"Thanks, wait... do you want to be smacked?"

"Sorry."

"Please don't hit me using an idiot's strength."

"What a weird rumor."

Suddenly, a voice redirected the conversation back on topic.

While laughing "Hehe, Ame stealthy added to the girls' conversation.

[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|The girl]] always called "Idiot" by her friends had a satisfied look on her face.

"That's true. After the disappearing incident, there have been all sorts of weird rumors circulating the hospital. I heard that if your even near the hospital you can hear a moaning, female voice -- Though no one knows who it is."

"You... where'd you hear something like that?"

"Miku, your info's always interesting. Well, let's not worry about that, is that it? I'd like some more details."

"Eh? Nagisa-chan's interesting in this kind of weird talk?"

"That's not it, I just thought I might find some clues about my mom."

"Sorry, Nagisa-chan."

"It's fine."

"Let's get back on topic, Kae, you pressed too many buttons you shouldn't have."

"Basically, it's a weird rumor, but there's actually only this much. It should be behind the hospital. Well, the hospital's sealed off now, so we can't go."

"You went?"

"Miku's really an idiot."

"Because she cares about stuff like this. Well, it seems that there've been a lot of annoying things lately -- there was Long-Armed Demon, and there was this incident, ah, how annoying... Eh? Ame-chan?"

A girl looked all around her, but could fine no trace of Nagumo Ame.

"Did she go back? Although, I don't know where she lives."

"Whatever, let's call out to her and then go."

"Then again, Ame's sort of like... how should I say it, it's like it's comforting just to have her there."

"Sort of like those 'My lucky doll' things?"

"I'm the lucky one! Me, me I tell ya!"

"Shut up, stupid Miku."

Confirming it was at the hospital was enough, the next part was simple. There was no need to wait for nightfall, the policeman guarding it were human, and the people working in the hospital were likely the Sakaki Organization's men, there only to handle the aftermath. So, the back of the building where the kidnapping incidents occured should be empty.

After going up the mountain behind the hospital and climbing the tallest tree there, the hospital that had been the site of the battle two days earlier could be seen. There were about six people working outside -- thankfully, none of them were behind the building, and the rest of the workers were probably inside.

Behind the building, there was an easily-traversible road, and the person who heard the female voice was probably walking through there. Nagumo Ame considered going in through there, but since people passed by it would be dangerous.

It's not like being seen would be incovenient, it's just that she wanted to do things peacefully if possible.

"Let's fly."

Ame muttered to herself, and jumped from the top of the tree without hesitation. She instantly grew dragon wings, which pierced through her uniform. Gliding high up in the air, she wasn't seen by anyone as she landed behind the hospital, and then her wings retracted back into her body.

"It's been so long since I last flew, mmm, that went pretty smoothly."

She talked to herself, and looked around her. The Sakaki Organization's men and the police weren't exactly idiots; they should have investigated this place, though normal people wouldn't be able to see any strange beings. They would only be able to hear them. It was an extremely feeble, seemingly imaginary sound.

After the incident, Nagumo Ame checked whether Sakaki Guryuu, Usagawa Rinne, and Gankyuu Eguriko were alive or dead.

The three of them had brought some random belongings and were living in Usagawa Rinne's apartment.

Then -- in this hospital that became a graveyard, the thing that remained and cried in anguish was --

Ame checked with her vision that unlike a normal person's could detect monsters not part of this world.

Blood, splattered everywhere.

It was spilled over the hospital's outer wall, and it flowed through the ground leaving crimson traces.

In the middle of it all, was a woman who lay down and groaned in pain.

"Sterilization Disinfection."

Hearing the voice, the woman abruptly looked over.

Her skin and pure white hair were dirtied with mud and blood, and, possibly having trouble breathing, she did not wear her mask. This woman who had blood spilling from her chest, and was sweating constantly was called Sterilization Disinfection.

She looked at Ame as if asking, "You can see me?" Ame laughingly said, "[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|So]] the largest fragment of the heart has been pierced. The sensory organ is damaged, and the soul is collapsing -- In fact, you already can't use power on the level of the seven great fragments. Hehe, but... before that you still took away Usagawa Rinne's soul, but it was because at that point the heart -- the sensory organ was already filled, so you had no choice but to construct a new sensory organ somewhere else, and also because you hid a fragment and restored a life -- That's right, isn't it? But the emergency vessel had a serious reaction, right?"

Ame talked without pause, and then sneered. Mina gritted her teeth while seeming confused, looking at the smile that seemed to be saying, "Your abilities are only at this level?"

She probably wanted to hide here for a while, and wait for her body to restore to a level suitable for the sensory organ. However --

''Everything ends today, who told you to get found by me.''

"Heeheeheehee," Ame laughed.

"Who are you?"

Sterilization Disinfection struggled to force her voice out.

Smiling, Ame placed her hand on her face.

"You don't know? Sterilization Disinfection, you've become weak. I'd heard that you used up all your power in that [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|incident]], but you can't even recognize me? What, if you're down to this level there wasn't a need to be cautious and run off to antagonize Gankyuu Eguriko. Whatever, I only just realized that." Her hand moved down, and her eyes, nose, mouth, and eyebrows all disappeared. Sterilization Disinfection stiffened. Ame who did not have a mouth laughed joyfully, "Heehee. Right, it's me, not anyone else, it's me."

"Ultimate Shield -- You traitor..."

She stood up with lines of blood running over her eyes, shakily glaring at Ame. This body already could not fight, this was something that should have been clearer to Sterilization Disinfection than to anyone else.

Even so, she absolutely must kill Ultimate Shield.

"I thought it was annoying, since only your 'Genocide Justice' and Single Room are dangerous to me. Therefore, I will kill both of you to become a truly weakness-free, shield unparalleled in strength."

Ame stretched out her arms, and said with happiness from the bottom of her heart, "And then I will rule this world. With an existence like this, but still not putting the goal first, now that's idiotic. Hey, my sisters, won't you die for me? Since it's so painful, just let yourselves dissolve and die! You'll never be able to restore the complete body anyways, it's useless, isn't it meaningless to preserve such a life?"

"What kind of joke is this!?"

Sterilization Disinfection clenched her fists, and even though she had already lost the ability to form her spray cay, she still slowly reachered her arm down.

How scary -- Ultimate Shield laughed, and her spread out arms --

Took the form of giant sickles.

"You also regret it, right? Because if you die here, you won't be able to see my wonderful new world."

"Stop pretending to be God, you blemish!"

That word --

Was one she frequently used to mock herself with in the past.

Ame sneered, and used her sickle arms to cut her down.

Neat and swift.

Saibara Mina's head flew.

Because Sakaki refused to trust the moving company, and instead chose to inconspicuously move into Rinne's home, Guriko helped out until it was dark.

Deep in the night when even the plants slept. Guriko carefully avoided making noise as she exited Rinne's room.

She carried no bags.

She had no destination.

She just felt she couldn't stay at this place.

That was the choice the man with wolf-like eyes had forcefully pointed out to her before her fight with Sterilization Disinfection. To live as a human, or to live as a monster? She who chose to live as a human, received nothing but painful defeat.

That was enough.

That was enough, Guriko thought.

"Sakaki's protecting Rinne's body, so I'm not needed here."

Letting her wolf-like hair that could never blend into the the night flutter in the air, the single-armed girl wearing black looked back at the apartment.

Along with the almost two months of happy laughter with Rinne in this apartment, there were the events from a thousand years ago that she should have forgotten.

''Shining brightly, and ever so lovable, I liked [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|her]].

''So, Rinne.

''I must return her kindness."

''Even if this body is broken to pieces."

Throwing off her reluctance to leave, Guriko turned her back to the building with her head lowered. The right arm that was completely annihilated by Sterilization Disinfection could not be returned even with an Apple's power. For all her numerous years -- those maddeningly long years -- she had lived using both her arms, and with only one left she could not balance herself well.

Rinne and Sakaki were the same. Now, without Rinne, if she stayed here she didn't think she could live properly.

She might as well be alone; without causing problems for others she should just live in the darkness.

"Are you trying to become a monster again?"

Gazing at the uneven road's surface, Guriko felt something cold in the back of her head, was it a gun?

Her intuition told her that, and she silently nodded without turning around.

"Then, for the safety of humans like me, I need to kill the monster in front of me."

The voice held killing intent, and that gun was definitely loaded.

Standing behind her was Sakaki Guryuu, no problem -- Guriko coldly smiled.

"Shoot if you want, kill if you want. Sakaki, that's actually what I want."

Guriko lowered her head, looking at her barely existing single arm.

"I've killed a lot of people, and I've taken so much, the amount's so large that this single life can't take enough punishment. Will you free me from that burden? Are you that kind a man?"

He did not respond to the question.

There was already nothing more to say.

So Guriko closed her eyes and said something insignificant.

"You've gotten good at hiding your presence, compared to when I first met you you're completely unrecognizable; have you been constantly working hard? You must have always been like this. It's not some prodigious talent, or some inherited gene, just constant, hard work that got you to your strength today. You... will definitely become stronger, much stronger than me."

"I--"

Finally, a response.

That voice was filled with sorrow. For that superhuman, such a weak voice was exceedingly rare.

"Am very weak."

"Yup, you're really weak, even though you'll become strong you're still weak right now. I'm also very weak, so I couldn't protect Rinne."

Guriko naturally turned her head, and the gun that had not moved was pointed at her forehead. Stars danced in the night sky, and Sakaki in front of her was covered in hazy shadow while insect cries could be clearly heard from all directions.

She merely looked Sakaki straight in the eyes.

"So Sakaki, become strong! Help me protect Rinne."

Guriko reached into her pocket, and took out a spoon for Sakaki to see. It was an expensive, valuable spoon that Hino and Kio had bought for her. This piece of tableware covered with decorations only reflected the night, dark and faint.

"Hino and Kio -- " She looked at the spoon, and continued, "Maybe they were actually Sterilization Disinfection's Meat Dolls, maybe their real personalities had already completely disintegrated, but they didn't kill me, and that time they even saved me. Plus, Kio and Hino both turned back into humans as they were dying. Meat Dolls, those things must have some kind of secret. Perhaps Rinne will return to how she was before, becoming the Rinne that we love."

The moon that was previously covered by clouds appeared and lit up Sakaki's expression. It was one that majestically shined with spirit, without the slightest weakness.

"I want to search for a way."

She gripped her spoon, and said to Sakaki's face, "Sakaki, you said that to me in the hospital, didn't you? You gave hope to the me who had given up on everything, didn't you? Rinne hasn't died yet, so, Sakaki, help me protect her. Though I don't know how long it will take, I will without doubt find a way to return Rinne to how she was and then come back."

To return Rinne to how she was before.

To bring back the everyday life that Long-Armed Demon and Sterilization Disinfection destroyed.

"And then, let's go to school together, with the three of us."

This was Guriko's resolution. At first she only wanted to escape from this human world with nothing but pain, but now it was different. During the fight with Sterilization Disinfection Sakaki had embraced, and then she felt with even greater conviction that she did not wish to separate from them.

So, for the sake of returning to that period of happiness Guriko would go on a journey. She wouldn't completely revert into a monster, she only needed to search for a way to recover Rinne by herself.

That was something that definitely could not be achieved while staying here to protect Rinne. She would need to go to the outside world, or into an even darker world where Mushi and monsters swarmed in order to find it.

Before she met Rinne, that had been Guriko's world.

Just a return to life two months ago. There would be a day, she would definitely meet Rinne and Sakaki again.

*Creak* The door opened.

Rinne stood there. She who had become a Meat Doll, showed eyes twinkling with firm determination, and sped over to Sakaki who was pointing a gun at Guriko.

"You can't."

Naive and innocent, it was a voice like that of a young child.

"Fight."

That appearance of hers, that expression as she spoke earnestly for some reason.

Sakaki and Guriko simultaneously loosened up, and their expressions became gentle.

"I apologize. Aah, Your Majesty, do not worry, we weren't fighting."

"Right. This guy pointed a gun at me all on his, it's not a fight, it's a one-sided assault."

"You can't, Sensei."

Rinne truly believed that, with hands at her waist while she stuck out her chest, her face completely serious as she stared at Sakaki. There was a time when she made that expression whenever Guriko and Sakaki fought. Right, since it was like this, definitely --

"You must communicate properly!"

After making a slightly angry face, she should scrunch her eyebrows, and not knowing what to do, return to a kind, tender face.

Seeing her like this, Sakaki couldn't hold back his tears. A tear flowed down the cheek of his handsome face.

Guriko forced out an exaggerated laugh, "Haha, Sakaki you idiot, you still cry at that age, how shameful."

"What? Huh, why am I crying? And, Guriko."

Sakaki looked over with a face of incredulity, and said in a low voice, "Why are you also crying?"

Guriko brought up her hand to feel her cheek, and noticed that there was a warm liquid. Tears, these were -- tears, as she realized that, she felt that she couldn't stop --

Guriko silently weeped, and then cried out in frustration. Sakaki was quiet, yet it seemed that his tears could not stop either, and he continued to incredulously tilt his head.

In a rather remote place in Japan, there was a town called Kannonsakazaki. In it lived a girl called Usagawa Rinne. That girl didn't really stand out in anything; normal people like her could be found anywhere, and she just happened to be decent at cooking.

Yet she completely changed the standardized life of Sakaki.

She saved a monster who had been swallowed by darkness for a millenium.

Even though she became a Meat Doll, Rinne would never change, she would like always look hurt whenever Sakaki and Guriko argued with each other, with an expression showing that she hated seeing their tears.

Rinne calmly pulled the two next to her, embracing them; she was extremely weak, and she didn't feel real compared to before, but Sakaki and Guriko couldn't resist as they were pulled to her thin body.

"Don't worry."

Rinne quietly spoke. "Don't worry. Don't worry."

She was also crying as she said that. And so, three people cried together, feeling each others' warmth under the dark, frigid night.

One was the heir to an enormous corporation, a man who had always walked on a pre-programmed route.

One could not find a reason to live, a girl who had thrown herself into the sea.

One gouged out eyeballs, a girl who lived in the darkness as a monster.

The three met by chance, definitely only by chance. In this world where God had broken into fragments, perhaps the things known as miracles had long ceased to exist.

But, Sakaki pledged to always protect Rinne.

Guriko would search for a way to recover Rinne.

And Rinne, would embrace the two of them like this.

So there's no need to worry. Rinne's words were right, though she didn't have anything to base it on, Guriko felt she didn't have to worry.

The night was about to end, and they needed to wake from this nightmare. Because after experiencing the blackest, darkest, desperation, people should be able to hope for a happier future..

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| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch5|Final Night: Start of Disinfection ]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_AN|Author's Notes ]]
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|}
</noinclude>

Mushi:Vol3 Ch1

2012-02-15T00:09:32Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat ==

(Preface) -- Earlier, we discussed how many of the myths and tales in this world share similarities, and the universal ideas hidden within. Here, I want to again emphathize that the similarity and common ideas between those myths comes from the fact that basic human psychology (the subconscious, or you could say the original me) is the same for everyone.

People need to spend but a day being human, and they will share those universal ideas (that is, what I have from the past up to today called "God"). Those universal ideas, obviously, are inseperable from the common human body developments; from being born, to growing up, to becoming old and dying.

Thought and body. Unable to escape maturation and deterioration, people created "God", and "myths" grew prevalent. As long as we are human, despite a few differences, they will all be basically the same.

For proof, and to clarify, I organized the "Seven Fragments of God" that I just discussed, that can also be called the "Seven Universal Items of Myths". Even though these are used in every type of myth, considering how difficult it is to understand, let's use the Bible that every knows about as an example.

1. Single Room/Creation of Heaven and Earth. (God creates, the birth of the world.)

2. Sterilization Disinfection/The legend of Noah's flood. (God is lost, failure in creating the world → Reconstruction.)

3. Poison/Tower of Bable. (God's lesson, paradise lost.)

4. Unpleasant Countercurrent/Angel. Sodom and Gomorrah. (God's conviction, karmic retribution, humanity's suffering.)

5. Melodia Noise/Moses and the Ten Commandments. The Savior. (Commandment, enlightenment, miracles, prophet.)

6. Ultimate Shield/Devil. False prophet. (Neither a lesson nor a conviction, God's attack on humanity.)

7. God Insect Emperor/Mark of the beast. Armageddon. (The final battle, end of the world.)

Every "myth" can be classified as one of the above. These seven categories represent God's different personas as he rules this world, sometimes kind, sometimes harsh.

But, the part of this that I fear is that these seven existences act as "God's personas", not "God". Earth has long ago lost the conscious being known as "God". We merely see a ghost of "God" through those seven personas.

Eternal life, salvation of mankind, or miracles wrought by individuals; none of these things exist anymore. We have no recourse, no way to escape fate's waves -- (Postface)

-- "The Identical Structure of God and Me" Akutagawa Shirayuki [[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|*]]

"So annoying."

Takamikado Mitaka -- this peculiar name belonged to an average high school student in society, who wore the uniform of Kannonsakazaki Private High School and had no outstanding traits.

That was clear -- at least, it should have been this way.

"Mitaka did you get the notice? I will also be studying at this school starting in April."

It was lunch break, in the dark area behind Kannonsakazaki Private High School. Just as Mitaka decided to eat in this deserted place, a girl said so to him.

Her clothes stood out in this place covered with graffiti and moss. Kannonsakazaki High School required students to wear its uniform, yet she wore everyday clothes in disregard of this rule. A black western-style dress, a black ribbon; gorgeous clothes and a cute, childish face didn't quite go together.

"Surprisingly, you have not come to pay your respects to me, the black dragon. Mitaka, have you not self-consciousness as an underling?"

She should have been --

"Mitaka" tried to remember, and recalled the name of the black-clothed girl who stood patiently.

"Kuroki Tatsue."

"Oh my, how arrogant, you dare call me directly by name?"

Kuroki Tatsue frowned, and held her black fan over her mouth. "Even considering that you are my childhood friend, and that you are older than I am, I would never permit you to address me by name! The Takamikado family works under the Kuroki family, have you forgotten that you have always been my servant? Mitaka, I am outraged!"

"Mitaka" remained silent, pulled out the raw egg from a convenience store that was his lunch, and put it in his mouth without even breaking it open. "Crack", even though it broke in his mouth, he calmly swallowed the thick liquid as well as the eggshell.

He thought back while eating his meal. No -- it was more like flipping through a book, reading through Takamikado Mitaka whom he had eaten -- through the memories of this young man. His childhood memories. Being badly injured after Tatsue kicked him down the stairs, being forced to do homework, and in the name of playing doctor having his stomach cut open by Tatsue who was never fazed.

But they weren't all hateful memories that would send chills through people.

Saying "The little bird I raised is dead", Tatsue had cried in Mitaka's chest; she ha snuck into Mitaka's servant room in the wealthy Kurokis' home and acted like a spoiled child, "I can't sleep after seeing a scary movie"; and she had said to him with an innocent smile, "Mom praised me for my grades" --

By that girl's side, he watched her mature while growing a sense of inferiority due to his own unchanging self. He was jealous of Tatsue, he felt so inferior, and he loved her deeply, his feelings a disgusting mix of love and hatred.

This young man named Takamikado Mitaka seemed to gloomily love Kuroki Tatsue, and reading his daily thoughts that were hard to classify between curses and loving thoughts, "Mitaka" sighed.

Because... was it because while eating the physical body, he had also consumed the soul? It was extremely troublesome, and he was also affected by Mitaka's memories -- he had kept those special feelings toward Tatsue.

"Kuroki Tatsue."

He called out, and Tatsue immediately turned red and angrily replied, "You again address me by --"

"You should stop associating with me."

"Mitaka's" eyes shined with golden light.

Just like a reptile's.

"I am not the Takamikado Mitaka that you know."

"What... do you mean?" Kuroki Tatsue showed her bewilderment.

As the eldest daughter of the Kuroki family, branch family of the Sakaki Organization that controlled the world with its wealth, she had not once been disobeyed by the lowly servant Mitaka. That childhood friend who wasn't manly in the least, who had neither confidence nor decisiveness and was always trembling in fear, should not have had this kind of courage.

But, Tatsue had always waited for this. From the past up to the present, she had waited for this boy named Takamikado Mitaka. For Tatsue who spent her life being prepared in the giant Kuroki household, he -- was her only companion.

-- Mitaka, you must marry me one day.

-- Right, Tatsue, I will become an amazing man and marry you.

They had made such an innocent promise. That was when they were younger, before they understood anything. For Tatsue back then, the Kuroki household was her entire world, and the only male her age in that narrow world was Mitaka.

Girls remember past events more clearly than boys. No matter what, Tatsue could not forget that precocious promise, and thought that he was the same.

The result was betrayal.

She was betrayed over and over again.

''Mitaka's such a liar, what was that about becoming an amazing man from so long ago? He's just becoming more and more useless and addicted to video games and otaku manga. His grades aren't good, he's physically completely inept, and even his face is incredibly average.''

Because of this, Tatsue would frequently take out her anger on Mitaka, hoping for him to react by working to improve himself. But it was meaningless, she was just betrayed again. Like this, she kept being betrayed.

Tatsue quickly shook off these kinds of feelings, and stopped putting hope in him.

That's how it should have been.

"Mitaka."

Tatsue noticed her rising heartbeat as she looked at the childhood friend [[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|whom she finally, properly met again]]. The him in her memories -- had messy hair, dressed weirdly, wore glasses that old people wore and was always downcast.

But the him in front of her -- didn't seem quite the same. How should she put it, this... how should she put it.

Handsome?

"Don't make jokes like that --"

With how things had been, how could she have feelings for Mitaka again. This was a mistake, a trap for her to be betrayed yet again.

But, but --

Perhaps he dyed his straight hair, as the light color was quite beautiful. With a bit of gold color, his strange eyes were bewitching. He looked straight over without any timidity, and speaking quietly as if he were whispering, he was captivating.

Tatsue couldn't stop her face from turning red, and she shook her head. What was she thinking?

"You are too arrogant, Mitaka! In front of I, the Black Dragon who will one day defeat Brother and control the world, what kind of expression is that? Those rebellious eyes! And those kinds of words!"

"That's why I said --" Mitaka sighed in exasperation, not fearing Tatsue's threatening attitide in the least. "Man, didn't you understandt me? Really -- it's because of things like this that I think humans are annoying. Stuff like interpersonal relationships is too much for me."

He mumbled those confusing words, as he looked over with vertical-slitted eyes.

"Tatsue, I doubt I can explain this well, so I won't talk too much. You, you're really better off cutting off contact with me. This world domination, black dragon stuff, no matter how much you brag you're just a normal human. A normal person shouldn't get associated with the world where I live."

"Eh --"

Because of these profound words, Tatsue was red up to her ears. What was the matter? [[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|It hit the nail on the head]], or perhaps it was more accurate to say the mood was getting dangerous. What was with this fascinating behavior, completely unlike his past self?

"Wh-what do you mean?"

''What's this, not wanting to see me injured because of Mitaka? He's worrying about me, treating me as something precious? Wh-why?''

Tatsue's mind fell into a chaotic mess incapable of clear thought.

''I'm being weird today, it's all Mitaka's fault.''

She needed to defeat her brother Sakaki Guryuu and learn the requirements for succeeding the Sakaki Organization; for this, Tatsue would, starting in spring, attend the Sakaki-controlled Kannonsakazaki High School. Tatsue had long known that Mitaka was a student at this school, and though she was sure that no miracle could have occured, she called him out to check his growth.

And now Tatsue was bewildered.

Her confusion was caused by Mitaka's astonishing change.

"Do you get it?" Mitaka held his hand to his chest, speaking sincerely, "Takamikado Mitaka truly cares about you. If you were to be harmed, even I'd feel his pain."

"Ah. Ah --"

Thanks to these love-confession-like words, Tatsue giddily stepped backwards.

Was it a dream? Or reality? Her hopeless childhood friend had become so impressive, and even said he value her -- what was going on? Was it some kind of trap?

Tatsue looked around her, turning suspicious.

Mitaka watched this Tatsue without saying a word. Tatsue wasn't accustomed to and couldn't stand that kind of tense atmosphere, and pointed at him with her fan, "D-don't look down on others, al-alright?"

She was too disturbed to even speak properly Tatsue knocked on her head and seriously looked at Mitaka.''How can I be disturbed by a small thing like this? I will one day control the world. Stay calm, stay calm..."

Haa, huu, after breathing deeply, Tatsue opened her fan with a fwap. "I hope you will refrain from dishonoring me, Mitaka. To be honest, I still cannot understand what you were saying, but --"

Tatsue hastily used formal language to hide her loss of calm, and narrowed her eyes, "I am not a weak woman who requires your protection! No -- I can prove it to you right here!"

''More accurately, I want to prove it.''

''I want to show my strong side, and make him who's being expressionless for some reason smile and praise me.'' Upon noticing where her thoughts were going, Tatsue again turned red. She thought: What in the world is wrong with me today? She shook her head.

Had those words reached Mitaka? Maybe he was on some sort of health regiment, swallowing that egg whole, and he was currently looking hungrily at a small bird perched on a nearby tree.

"What is it?" His expression kept seeming inhuman, perhaps 'reptilian' was the best way to describe it. But thinking about that could come later.

"Mitaka, look." Kuroki Tatsue had recently discovered this ability.

After watching something on television, she had decided it would be fun to try using her mind to lift up her teddy bear. A few attempts later she felt foolish, and in the end waved her fan and shouted, "Fly!", and --

It flew.

The teddy bear was blown upward.

The brother who was not related to Tatsue by blood, and whom she needed to defeat, was a perfect being. Though Tatsue herself had a certain amount of artistic skill and studying ability, her brother was on a completely different level. With a PhD, Olympic gold, and fame throughout the artistic world, his talent eclipsed hers by incomparable degrees.

Naturally, he was the successor to the Sakaki Organization, while Tatsue was merely a "spare part". Just as Tatsue started to despair over this, her ability awakened.

''Brother definitely can't do something like this -- this is my only advantage over him.''

Though, she wasn't sure how her ability worked, nor did she know why she suddenly gained it.

But, for the current Tatsue, that ability was the only thing with which she could prove her existence to the world. "Mitaka, I don't know what you're so worried about, but even if someone becomes your enemy or if something is about to happen, this Black Dragon will magnificently help you to triumph!"

''So -- watch carefully, and praise me.

Recognize me.''

And as her feelings were about to burst, Tatsue rapidly fanned herself.

"Like so!"

Her long black hair rose, and instantly -- a cyclone appeared in front of Tatsue.

This caused Mitaka to finally pay attention, as he stared at Tatsue with eyes wide open. Seeing that poker face finally crack a little, Tatsue smugly smiled. "Ohohoho! Look at this mystery! This power! This is the mighty breath of a dragon!"

In front of Tatsue, the cyclone picked up fallen leaves as it advanced directly toward the giant tree planted behind the school.

Struck by the wind, its branches and leaves rustled and shook, while the thick trunk cracked. Even the ground rumbled firecely.

Suddenly.

"Whooaa --" came a sharp voice. "Crash --" Something fell down.

"Huh?"

Tatsue, who was starting to get full of herself, came back to her senses thanks to the unexpected event. She stared at the dazed girl who had fallen. [[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|*]]

A girl, it was a girl. Behind the tree which Tatsue had assaulted using wind without warning, a small, buglike girl had fallen.

"Waaah. It hurts, it really hurts! Why?"

The girl suddenly crawled up. She wore a conspicuous hat with ears attached and a curled up tail. With tears in her eyes she started complaining. "Why? Why, why? What just happened? My afternoon nap was so peaceful, so why'd you bother me? Waaaahh, myuh."

Tatsue noticed that her right foot was bent in an unnatural direction. However, with a "crack" she twisted it back in place and easily stood up.

"Wah... Mmm? Who are you guys?"

The girl was startled. Her eyes opened wide, she seemed to be contemplating something. Perhaps unable to understand, she properly stated her name.

"Known as the speed demon, dundundundun ~ I am the unparalleled Unpleasant Counter-Current -- Saibara Mitsuki."

"..."

"..."

In front of the girl holding a perfect pose, Tatsue and Mitaka were speechless.

They had no clue what she was saying.

There really were too many incomprehensible things, "Mitaka" sighed inwardly. He thought Takamikado Mitaka was just an ordinary student, so how could there be so much weirdness surrounding him?

And -- as "Mitaka" worried, could the world itself be losing its order?

"Mitaka" thought back to when he became "Mitaka".

It happened about a week before.

It was a coincidental opportunity.

"Mitaka" liked the night. It was tranquil, and more importantly, there were very few people.

For being like "Mitaka", humans were merely food; however, about half a year ago -- after being tortured by that person, "Mitaka" tried to avoid contact with people.

"Mitaka's" original form was that of a black snake.

Just as he was skulking in the darkness, enjoying a late-night walk -- her heard a sharp scream. A human. "Mitaka" didn't care if a human was about to die, or if someone suffered pain. But when humans approached death, it was likely for them to obtain an "Apple" that granted immortality.

And it was rather easy to snatch "Apples" away from humans who had just gained them. If he was lucky -- "Mitaka" thought like this, and in the end his greed carried him over to look.

He should have ignored that scream.

There was a monster, and a boy.

The monster glowed with silver; it was an ominous being. Generally, it took a form similar to humans, but its body was not made of flesh; rather, it was formed of sharp blades. Only its fiery tongue looked organic as it stuck out, covered with saliva.

Recently, more and more beings called monsters had come to the town, and "Mitaka" knew this. Compared to humans or ordinary snakes, "Mitaka" was an existence much more similar to monsters. He knew that occasionally, beings from the other world invisible to humans would stupidly appear, and cause trouble for or endanger humans. Things like that seemed to be happening more frequently. Though he wasn't particularly interested, the chance of humans being should have increased.

The boy was one of those poor victims.

"Mitaka" at the time still did not know that the boy's name was Takamikado Mitaka.

"Grrr, sssssssss."

Maybe the silver monster was satisfied with its kill, as it made an interesting sound and left.

But it didn't eat him, merely leaving him dead.

This was rare for monsters, and it was more akin to human crime, but at the time "Mitaka" didn't find it strange.

"Mitaka" climbed onto a lamppost, and stared steadily at the teeager.

"I don't want to die..." He moaned, and sobbed with grief. "Mitaka" perfectly understood that sentiment, but his wounds reached his internal organs, and he would die for sure.

"I don't wanna die, I don't wanna die..." He struggled in pain.

"Why?"

"Mitaka" couldn't help asking. "Mitaka" also wanted to deny death, but why? Why did he want to live forever? Half a year ago that frightening girl had asked him that, yet "Mitaka" had no answer. From then on, he had constantly felt lost.

Why did he seek eternal life?

Was it just as the girl said -- did he only want to fulfill his ancestors' dying wish, and gain the respect of them in Heaven.?

It seemed the slowly-dying boy did not know the reason, either. He kept on enduring the pain, and then died.

Till the end, it seemed he was unable to understand why he wanted to live.

He was not gifted with a miraculous Apple, and he left behind only an unmoving corpse. "Mitaka" who watched his final moments found him pitiable.

Not understanding his reason for living, and not knowing why he didn't want to die; just like that, he died in pain.

In that boy, "Mitaka" -- saw his own self.

Anger and confusion rose within him.

And so, "Mitaka" ate the boy's corpse.

By consuming every bit of flesh, "Mitaka" transformed into Mitaka.

Taking the form of eaten humans was an ability carried throughout "Mitaka's" bloodline. Using that ability to repeatedly deceive humanity, each successive generation sought "Apple"s to the extent of their ability --

The clan of the Original Sin. The last snake was "Mitaka".

Was it for the final wishes of his ancestors who desired immortality? Was it to prevail over the words of that girl who denied him completely? Was it for the boy who pitifully died without understanding why he lived? Even "Mitaka" himself wasn't sure.

"I will find the meaning of living, for you as well."

"Mitaka" murmured to himself, and his transformation was complete. He also gained Takamikado Mitaka's thoughts and memories.

His goal to find immortality did not change. Though he would encounter countless amounts of cruelty, this was "Mitaka's" instinct, his dearest wish. There was no way it could change.

But, why did he want eternity? Why did he wish to push death aside?

The answer to this -- became "Mitaka's" objective.

And now.

Before achieving that goal, "Mitaka" couldn't even deal with expected situations.

That was because a two incomprehensible beings had appeared at the same time.

One was was the object of this body -- Takamikado Mitaka's -- twisted yet deep love, Kuroki Tatsue.

It seemed the body would react to her slightest frustration, cry, or injury, making him suffer too. And there was her ability to manipulate wind. Even "Mitaka" did not understand the basis of that ability.

As for the other one, how should he put it, it was a girl who seemed seemed to transcend this mortal world --

"It hurts." She lifted her right arm and made a pose.

"It hurts a lot."

Then she raised her left hand, and with full-faced smile shouted enigmatically, "Fly away -"

The girl with the eared hat, a curled tail, and brown hair tied into pigtails remained unmoving in that pose. She wore Kannonsakazaki High School's slightly mundane uniform, and she gave off an air that seemed to clash with her childish voice and movements.

She clapped together her hands that wore giant gloves, and looked over, "Mm, the pain flew away ...Wait? Huh?"

Then she stared at "Mitaka" and Tatsue, and turned red for no apparent reason.

"Aaahh, a boy and a girl behind the school, this I LOVE YOU scenario -- I-I, interupted it. I'm leaving."

Like a panicking caged bird, the girl ran into the wall and then the tree, trying to escape while saying strange things.

But, after walking a bit she suddenly stopped and ran over the backpack that was probably hers, which had fallen next to her.

The girl picked it up, and seemed embarrassed. "Aah, I forgot. Sis, sis are you okay? Are you hurt?

She said so as she nonchalantly took out a head.

From the bag.

She took out a head.

"Wh-"

"Mitaka" gasped, and Tatsue turned pale.

It was the head of a young woman with tied, beautiful white hair. Wearing her gloves, the girl delicately stroked the head, and her eyebrows dropped as tears started to appear. "Are you alright, sis? Do you need me to make the pain fly away?"

"This --" Suddenly, and unbelievably, the head opened its eyes and looked over. They were cold eyes showing neither emotion nor mercy.

The head muttered, "Whatever, my situation isn't important."

She monotonically said those words ominously.

"Over there, there's a guy who's similar to a monster, and -- though it's incomplete, there's someone with Melodia Noise's powers."

The female head looked at "Mitaka" and Tatsue, and hatred twisted her face. "A dirty monster and the trator Melodia Noise, today's meeting is the first in a hundred years -- no, it's been longer right?"

Then she raised her eyes to the girl holding her, and calmly ordered, "Mitsuki, God's conviction and angel. Use your compassionless excretory organ -- your Unpleasant Countercurrent persona, and cleanse these two."

"Eh?" Under that command, the girl turned with confusion.

And with a frightful, emotionless voice completely different from her earlier innocence, "Since sis said so, I will obey."

The girl named Saibara Mitsuki instantly disappeared.

At least, that was what Tatsue saw.

Only flying dust and Mitsuki's afterimage remained.

"Pa, papapapa."

The sudden fierce noise made Tatsue look upward, and her eyes widened. How was that possible? She didn't understand.

Mitsuki was running up the vertical school wall covered with vulgar words and graffiti with unclear meanings. She ran at an incredible speed as if she were on the ground.

"Wh -- what."

Tatsue was frightened to immobility. She merely watched that superhuman action without knowing its destination.

The windows scattered all over the wall were broken under Mitsuki's mad sprint. It no illusion -- then, in this situation, what was going on with movement like this?

"Haa --" With a battle cry, she neared the roof with a single step and then turned to unhesitatingly jump down.

"No way!"

Facing Mitsuki's string of strange actions, Tatsue was completely unable to respond. Tatsue was great at studying, and she had no shortage of artistic talent, and she was decent even in athletics.

But she had never received any training for when an overwhelming opponent took such strange actions.

Saibara Mitsuki spread her arms, and fell with a smile on her face. "You'll be crushed flat as a pancake."

Jumping from that height that defied reason? But she couldn't be deceived by that action that seemed like a child's frolicking. Though she didn't know how much Mitsuki weighed, upon thinking about several dozen kilograms of flesh falling from the fourth floor Tatsue's quick mind could understand the amount of force involved.

"What --" She'd be flattened.

"What kind of joke is this --" She would be flattened, just as Mitsuki said. Tatsue imagined her and Mitsuki's bodies mixed together in pieces on the ground, and turned white.

Yet her legs were already paralyzed, unable to move.

In this absurd situation, she was infuriatingly unable to move her body properly.

"Tatsue, stop spacing out!"

Suddenly, she was knocked from the side. Tatsue realized that Mitaka had forcefully rammed her, and the two rolled on the moss-covered ground.

It hurt, and --

"Please don't just touch me as you with." Tatsue turned faintly red, and scolded Mitaka who was currently right in front of her.

Her mind fell into chaos.

"Wow, you dodged it?" As Tatsue was becoming shy, a body with the appearance of a girl plummeted down.

-- "Splat."

An unrealistic, manga-like sound. The ground shook, and a dark red liquid flew everywhere. Tatsue screamed.

Though she was unharmed thanks to Mitaka's help, the scene of the girl who fell from the roof hitting the ground seemed to have been mentally scarring.

"Ahaha, I lost."

Saibara Mina, who had become a devastated mess thanks to that fall, laughed open-heartedly.

"Hee." She got up as if nothing happened. Pieces of her flesh [[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|were pierced with bloody bones]], and her face was also deformed.

"Since I took away my sense of pain I can still fight, ah, what do we do now?"

With that face that was unbearable to look at, Mitsuki smiled. "Why so afraid?"

Then, she dragged her broken leg and walked over. That appearance was a bit dull compared to what one could see in horror movies developed with recent technology, but the feeling of reality was something movies could never replicate.

"Ah... ee -- Aaaaahhhh!" Tatsue collapsed on the spot from fear.

Upon seeing Tatsue like that, Mitaka immediatly stood up and proffered his hand, "Tatsue, let's go!"

"Eh -- what?"

Tatsue could not respond quickly; her preparation was insufficient for an abnormal situation like this. In the human life she had been living, she stayed distant from these strange affairs as she should have --

Mitaka grabbed Tatsue's hand, and spoke seriously. "Falling from such a height yet still still surviving, how could that girl possibly be a normal person? My body's only that of a human, and it doesn't seem like you know how to fight... gyah! Just hurry up and go --"

"That's right." A tranquil, female voice suddenly chimed in.

"Mitsuki, you are truly unsuitable for battle."

Tatsue looked over and saw the head which had rolled out from the bag that should have fallen with Mitsuki. But, probably due to Mitsuki's protection, it was unharmed. "Don't I always say this? You must think everything through, like a cat on the hunt, for the smallest actions decide results."

"I'm not a cat."

Like a mouse who had only ever been hunted, now that she was the hunter Mitsuki tilted her head with perplexion, and walked over. "Sis, this time I'll beat them up directly."

"Tatsue, get up! She's coming!"

Though Mitaka was shouting at her, her limp body couldn't easily be put back into action. Tatsue tried to push herself from the ground using her arms, but she comically slipped on the moss and fell.

"Uuh --"

Looking at the slowly approaching Mitsuki, Mitaka began spewing foul words. "What the hell is this, Takamikado Mitaka. You're a worthless coward, a weakling with no sense of courage."

He spread his arms, and stood as if protecting Tatsue. "Why? Why can't I abandon this person and escape by myself..."

Tatsue watched the Mitaka who shook as he protected her, and words slipped out. "Mitaka-chan."

She had once addressed her beloved childhood friend this way. Though he had started falling in depravity later, leading her to lose hope --

That was how it should have been.

''Why is he protecting me now? He's clearly frightened, but he's willing to stand up straight and save me.''

"Bang --" That would normally be a sound made by some innocent child. Mitsuki's pose with clenched fists lacked any sense of coherence. She just swung downwards with her hands spread wide open. If a professional martial artist -- like, say, a karate master -- say this, he wouldn't be able to stand looking at the mistake-riddled movements.

However, her fist's destructive power belied its clumsy appearance.

Mitsuki swung her gloved hand and struck Mitaka directly. He flew like a playground ball and hit the school wall, and then fell down.

"Mitaka!" Tatsue screamed, and, unsteady both in thoughts and movements, crawled up. She thought: Just standing up is so difficult... while adjusting her position.

Mitsuki looked into backpack she carried, still without showing the slightest malice.

"How was that, sis? Did I -- punch well?"

"Why would you use so little force? You're in the middle of a battle... Don't go easy, mercilessly beat down your enemies until they can no longer draw breath!"

''It seems like the head in the backback is giving Mitsuki advice. I don't know whose head it is, but maybe I can gain an advantage if I separate it from her.''

"Actually --" From behind Tatsue whose entire body was shaking as she gripped her fain, the woman's head looked at Mitaka. She said, "It seems we have gained something unexpected from this. Mitsuki -- That monster is Snake. Look carefully!"

"Snake?"

Mitsuki stared at Mitaka's bloody face, and Tatsue also turned to look. Mitaka trembled with his knees on the ground, trying to stand up.

His uniform was blown apart at his stomach where Mitsuki punched him, revealing his black skin. To hide the skin that resembled reptilian scales, human skin gradually covered the black skin.

"What?" Tatsue looked on with a deathly pale face.

She couldn't understand. What was going on?

Though she may have simply seen wrong, it seemed too implausible that she only missaw this one part of her ridiculous situation. Was there skin like black scales under Mitaka's human skin?

"The ones who scattered the Seven Great Fragments, who cast all humanity into damnation, the ultimate sinners on the earth -- Snake."

The head smiled in delight, and said to Mitsuki who did not understand, "Kill him! Mitsuki, execute him! It was because of his ancestors that our bodies have become like this!"

Mitsuki looked at her own bloodied body. "Ah --"

She looked at the monster-like body that would not die no matter how badly it was injured, "His crime is really serious..."

And then, she continued to watch Mitaka with those empty yet bright eyes.

He'd be killed, Tatsue could feel Mitaka's impending death.

How scary. This girl with ovewhelming attack power and an immortal body was terribly scary. It was indeed enough to make one think of fleeing.

But, sooner or later she needed to surpass her brother and become the most powerful person in the world. How could she possibly do that if she ran away here, unable to save even one person?

Besides, Mitaka was injured from protecting her.

"S-slow down!" Tatsue pointed her fan at Mitsuki, and gave a resounding order.

"If you want to kill Mitaka, you'll have to cross over my dead body!"

"Tatsue!" Mitaka stood up with a pained expression, and shouted at Tatsue's back.

"Stop that, hurry up and go! Don't you know that you'll only get killed?'

"You're too loud for a subordinate."

Tatsue imagined the wind. Flying throughout the world, the wind was a symbol of freedom.

She had longed for the wind, in awe at its unrestrained might.

''So please, at least for now, wind -- lend me your power.''

[[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|With her shivering fingers she grabbed at the air]], and blew at Mitsuki.

The breath of a dragon.

Tatsue still didn't understand the magnitude or source of this power, but it probably wasn't lethal. With good luck, though, she should at least be able to blow Mitsuki away. She would blow her far away, and the escape to a safe place with Mitaka.

"Aha." Mitsuki innocently smiled.

"You can't hit me with an attack this weak."

She spread her arms, looking at the wind that flew over while picking up dust and leaves. "Even divine punishment would be deflected, and nuclear weapons can't harm me. If God himself wishes me harm, I'd just kill him. With no rival in this world, that's me, the unparalleled Unpleasant Countercurrent!"

Mitsuki fluidly stretched her arm forward.

Her palm covered by her glove was hit by a blast of wind --

"Get you!"

And she grabbed it.

[[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|Bok leaves?]]

She grabbed the wind, and rolled it together like she was kneading dough. She took the destructive power of invisible wind -- and rolled it into a ball.

"Begin!" Then, unbelievably, a hole opened in Mitsuki's stomach.

Fierce, sharp teeth tore through her uniform, and showed her true form. Dripping with saliva, the teeth clattered. Mitsuki put the dragon's breath that she had rolled into a ball between the teeth.

"Kakakakzizki."

It ate the wind.

"What the..."

Tatsue was shocked into silence, only able to describe the action as "eating". The second, large mouth on Mitsuki's stomach that had bitten through her uniform forcefully wolfed down Tatsue's power.

"Ahaha."

Mitsuki seemed dazed as she put her hands on her cheeks and wiggled.

"Mm, mm, mm -- There just isn't enough malice, but it's pure, and so tasty."

The change took only an instant.

The injuries that Mitsuki's body had sustained from dropping from the roof disappeared, like time was rewinding. Wounds closed, bones reentered her body, and the scattered blood rushed back into her body.

After a few seconds, Mitsuki's body had been completely restored.

"Bang -- Mitsuki's*Great*Revival."

Unbelievable.

Tatsue stood idly, her face pale, and lost her will to keep attacking. Victory was not possible against such a ridiculous opponent -- this monstrous enemy with an unknown identity.

As Tatsue trembled in fear, Mitsuki smiled brilliantly. "It's not over."

She muttered to herself, and pried open the mouth on her stomach. "Karmic retribution, and the angel of retribution; that's Unpleasant Countercurrent's 'persona'."

Mitsuki spoke with a smile, her voice truly seeming as innocent as an angel's.

"Pretty much any religion includes 'judgement on sinners,' -- Karmic retribution, or punishment of humans based on the severity of their crimes. You guys watch closely, history's cities holding the greatest degree of sin, 'Sodom and Gomorrah', were wiped out by Unpleasant Counter-Current's power!"

And instantly, a bullet filled with destructive power shot out from Mitsuki's stomach.

This attack contained all the force from the wind Tatsue created, and its sole purpose was to strike down enemies.

Apparently to protect her, Mitaka rushed over, but he was too late. Tatsue's entire body tensed in preparation for dodging the bullet, but because everything happened too quickly she was unable to move.

Easily reflecting all of Tatsue's power, Unpleasant Counter-Current's attack --

"Bang."

"Huh?"

Brushed past Tatsue, merely lifting her long black hair.

That was all.

Mitsuki made an inane sound. Tatsue, shaking in fear, felt around herself, but she was completely unharmed -- she couldn't even feel any pain.

Tatsue found it strange, and looked at Mitsuki. Mitsuki was hugging herself and seemed to be contemplating.

And then, Mitsuki looked to her backpack -- with a deep sigh, she mumbled, "Seems like it really won't work."

Her expression softened, and she approached Tatsue. Though Tatsue took a few steps back, she was too slow and couldn't help but allow her to get near.

Tatsue had no experience whatsoever being beat up or trampled, and her fear rose. But --

The hand with which Mitsuki reached out was a request for a handshake.

"You refuse?"

Seeming disturbed, Mitsuki gripped Tatsue's hand. She could feel the glove's softness. Tatsue looked at Mitsuki with confusion, and Mitsuki said, "I can only fight against evil."

"Wait, what?"

Tatsue asked, and Mitsuki replied with puffed cheeks. "Basically, I'm Unpleasant Counter-Current -- If my enemy doesn't think 'I want to kill this person', or 'HATE HATE HATE', or "I hate her so much', or 'So disgusting, it's way too disgusting', or other things along those lines, I can't fight. That's my 'persona'."

Mitsuki unhappily turned with a large motion.

And then with a shake of her pigtails, she stared at Tatsue over her shoulder. "Why'd you two only care about protecting each other. Attacks that only have physical force, that only have pure feelings, it's useless for me to regurgitate them. There's nothing I can do, so I won't fight anymore."

"Wait -- Mitsuki?" From her backback came the head's voice.

"What are saying all on your own? If you can't beat them with Unpleasant Counter-Current, you can just eliminate them with your bare hands. With your physical strength it would be easy to take them out. "

"I don't want to do that." Mitsuki murmured, in absolute rejection. "These two don't seem to be Gankyuu or Ultimate Shield; and besides, I just want to be Unpleasant Counter-Current, not Sterilization Disinfection like sis. I can't and don't want to kill people who aren't evil."

And with that pledge, the absurd girl who called herself Unpleasant Counter-Current smiled. "Then, excuse me."

"Wait -- Mitsuki! Stop!"

It seemed that voice was still angrily shouting something, but Mitsuki ran away without listening to it. Mitaka fell into silence, and Tatsue also did not speak.

Once they could no longer see Mitsuki's back -- a bell finally signalled the end of lunch.

"There's a spirit of death living in an abandoned factory on the outskirts of town."

"[[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|Kara,]] what's that idiot Miku talking about now?

"Heehee.

"Three days ago, didn't a factory close down due to recession or something? I don't know which factory it was, but it's said that a spirit of death started living there at one point."

"Oh, that's cool."

"Miku's always bursting with pointless rumors, I like it!"

"You should just die!"

"You i-idiot. Stop dragging me."

"Plus, that spirit of death actually fights for justice. Every night it goes to exerminate the monsters wreaking havoc in town."

"The monsters you're talking about... eh? The one in the rumors lately -- what was it called again?"

"Ah, I think I saw it in the newspaper."

"Right, I heard about it too, it seems a lot of people have been seeing weird beings recently. What a pain, Long-Armed Demon is finally gone, but monsters are coming to kill people in its place. Man, this world is so weird!"

"Don't just ignore me and chat happily!"

"Kara, the idiot got lonely and she's saying disgusting things."

"Why do you have to consult me whenever Miku does something?"

"Hehe."

This silver monster was the embodiment of a blade. It's basic shape was the same as ahuman's, but no one would have confused its body made of blades which cut with every touch for a human.

"Clank, tssss."

The monster walked in the abandoned factory while making a sound like rubbing metal.

What was this factory? Was it a building that had, after being shut down for some reason, become corpse-like and uncared for? The monster was not sure, and it did not care either.

"Clank, tssss."

It may have felt excited, as thick saliva dripped from its outstretched tongue.

There was a wide, covered-up hole in the factory's wall. That person used it as an entrance and lived here.

The monster wanted to kill that person.

"Tssss, clank."

There were unmoving conveyer belts, piles of cardboard boxes, fine machinery with unknown purpose, a workstation that was slightly dirty. Sand and dust accumulated on the ground like snow, and small footprints imprinted on top led further in.

The monster looked inward, and gave a crooked smile.

There were no eyes on its face, only a mouth cluttered with sharp teeth. Its tongue hung outside its mouth, sliding across its face. It walked forward while keeping its body low.

It silenced its footsteps, and held its breath.

"Ggii, huhu."

Yet, it still made excited breathing sounds, and its voice sounded different because of its joy.

There was a wall of cardboard boxes in front of it, and though it couldn't see clearly from its current position, there was something shining deeper in.

[[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|A lamp?]] Or a flashlight? The dim light couldn't sufficiently light up the gloomy factory, but -- it could sense that that person was here.

"Nn --" The monster walked over, and heard a voice. It was like a young boy's, but listening carefully, it could tell that the speaker was actually female. In a guilt-free voice, "Ah, man. This thing's so -- what's the word, novel? [[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|Is it konnyaku or jello?]] Mmm, what a novelty... I need to try eating every once in a while."

She seemed to be eating, what with the clanking of cups and plates and that contemplating voice.

The monster noiselessly approached the voice that kept going "What a novelty", and, standing in front of the wall of cardboard boxes, it raised its blade arms --

It grinned in joy.

"Who is it?" The girl suddenly shouted, noticing its movements. But it was too late.

"Ooohhhh!"

With a giant roar, the monster spun its body and tore down the cardboard wall. It raised its blade arms and swung as it stepped forward, one foot after another. It spun forward, cutting through the cardboard boxes. Right arm, left arm, right leg, left leg.

"Right arm, left arm, right leg, left leg, right arm, left arm, right leg --" Suddenly, from above the monster's head, where pieces of cardboard it had chopped were sent flying, came a voice. "Slicing while spinning -- just like a top."

After hearing that, the monster shook with surprise -- and it slowed down.

"In other words, if your head is grabbed, the rest of your body will follow suit and stop."

With a thump to its head, it was forced to a standstill.

"Once you stop... it's easy to strike you down."

As that voice came from its back, the monster was knocked into the cardboard pieces it had cut up. It stopped with a violent thud on the wall -- and turned to look at the enemy who had struck him from behind.

Still in her kicking position, a girl coldly looked over. "What -- it was a monster."

She had emotionless eyes like the barrel of a gun, and bizzare, wolf-like hair. She wore jeans and a jacket that for some reason had the words "rock'n roll" printed on it.

"Then, let's go." The enemy who had struck the monster -- Gankyuu Eguriko, thus declared.

As Guriko faced the silver monster, she thought of the days after she separated with Rinne and Sakaki.

Time had rapidly flown past Guriko whose thousand-year-old body had long since lost feeling.

Half a year, it had been half a year.

Rinne had been turned into a Meat Doll by Sterilization Disinfection, and Guriko had spent that much time wandering the world, searching in vain for a way to turn her back. Despair started to fill her thoughts, almost driving her mad at times.

But her emperiled sanity was supported by --

The days, though incomparably short compared to her own life, that she spent in happiness with Rinne and Sakaki.

''It's like our time together's all coming back. As long as I succeed, I don't care what I need to do.''

Guriko thus pledged to herself; though weakness was growing within her heart, she continued to press on.

"I thought I could find something just by coming here."

"And then? Did you find what you were looking for, Yono?"

Far away from Kannonsakazaki, it was the road she had long ago walked with companions who had given her their Apples and then disappeared -- Kudan and Kirigirisu. Guriko thought, if she traced her journey with those two who had known so much more than herself, something would come out of it. But, she didn't find anything noteworthy. In the end, she came to the place where she died, where a gloomy man awaited her.

"Zekiguchi Nashinori."

"Hehe. I am honored that you remember."

His black hair was tied intricately, and, standing exceptionally tall, he had eyes resembling a wolf's.

He was a man with both a priest's air of holiness and a beast's fierce aura.

A thousand years ago -- back when Guriko was still called Yono, this man had killed her.

"Zekiguchi... what's going on?" Guriko took out her spoons, and looked at him, her voice shaking.

"Why is there nothing here?"

Guriko shouted, the entire area had nothing. It was a flat wasteland that was difficult to describe. Without even a weed, the barren plain stretched to the horizon.

A millenium ago, Guriko and her adoptive parents lived here with their tribe.

Those natural stone homes that they would surely have [[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|shut themselves]] in during the plague.

Even the waterfall from which she had fallen to her death was no longer there.

She had considered that the landscape changed over a thousand years. But even so, no matter how she thought about it, it was impossible for her home from a thousand years ago to disappear without a trace.

"Hehe." Zekuguchi gave an unsuitingly innocent laugh, and calmly spoke to the rattled Guriko.

"This time. You've gained suspicion." For some reason, those unclear words rang in her heart.

"Does my hometown really exist? Was I really picked up by those parents, living in that impoverished tribe? Did I really die falling from that waterfall? Are my memories accurate?"

Facing the cheerfully sneering Zekuguchi, Guriko shouted, "What do you know!"

She rapidly threw her spoon.

"Talk! What do you know about me? If you lie I'll gouge out your eyeballs!" Guriko pointed at the spoon sticking out by Zekiguchi's feet, and glared at him.

"That was my last warning. Now talk!"

"Eyeballs?" Zekiguchi, for the first time, withdrew his smile and put on an unreadable expression.

"I never taught you that, where'd you learn that. Oh well, do as you wish, gouge them out if you so desire."

As he spoke, on his cheeks, his forhead, his chin -- even outside his face, on his neck, his shoulders, and palms, countless eyeballs appeared.

"Wh-what..."

All of his eyes simultaneously looked at Guriko, and Zekiguchi smiled leisurely. "My ability is to transform my body. Well -- that isn't important."

Zekiguchi looked at Guriko with a sincere expression, and said with a deep voice, "If you want to know the truth, then go back to Kannonsakazaki."

Kannonsakazaki, where Sakaki and Rinne lived. The town where Guriko's hope and despair coalesced -- the truth was there?

"What's going on?"

Guriko asked, but Zekiguchi smiled with answering.

In the end, he merely looked at Guriko with kindly eyes. "Investigating the past is useless. In this world, only the present exists."

He said those baffling words, and then disappeared like an evening cloud.

After that Guriko thought it over, suspecting a trap, but in the end she followed Zekiguchi's words.

And after a few weeks, she returned to the town.

"Again --" She quickly noticed the town's unusual atmosphere.

There were too many monsters.

"Monsters."

Monsters -- they normally hid in another dimension, popping in from time to time to eat humans. They were beings only at that level. Their breed was a mess of oddities, and there were many mysteries about them. For example, they did not leave corpses after they died, disappearing into the air instead, and there were many other unclear things.

Because of Guriko's resolution, she would not return to Rinne's place before finding a cure for her. As a result, for the time being, she decided to hide and secretly eliminate monsters that threatened Rinne's safety.

She didn't know why this abnormality with monsters was occuring.

But, she felt, unless she found and eradicated its source, she could not set out on another journey with peace of mind.

"Clack, clack, tsss."

The silver monster made a shuddering noise that she couldn't tell was laughter or scraping metal as it stood there. Its entire body was inorganic, save for the red tongue hanging outside that seemed particularly disgusting. Guriko frowned, and took out a spoon to throw at it.

"Clank."

The monster didn't even budge, as the stainless steel spoon bounced off of its solid body and fell to the ground.

"Speaking of which, this guy doesn't also doesn't have eyeballs. How troublesome."

Guriko mumbled to herself, watching the smiling monster that was unmoving save for its tongue. Guriko was only armed with spoons. Actually, she had a last resort, but that would squander her Apple's power, so she couldn't overuse it. Plus, a few months back she had lost an arm to the enemy known called Sterilization Disinfection, and though her immortality provided her with regenerative ability, it did not seem able to restore that arm which had been completely dissolved.

Then, how should she proceed.

"The most vile crime that can be committed -- what do you think it is?"

Suddenly, a voice came from somewhere. It clearly sounded like an old person's raspy voice, yet somehow it resounded within her mind.

Who was talking?

It wasn't the monster in front of her. As she thought that the voice seemed to come from the abandoned factory's ceiling, it suddenly came again, this time from behind her.

"Murder? That's definitely heinous. Corruption? Newspapers target that all the time. Imprisonment? Suddenly taking away a person's freedom, that's excessive without a doubt. Deceit? Even elementary schoolers know not to lie."

The voice seemed like it was playing with Guriko who had raised her guard, as it unhurriedly continued.

"Then. After make a list of crimes like this. It can be seen that a single factor links them all together. That is, to take something from others without heed to rules or principles -- that is crime. The act of breaking the law for self gain is known as crime, and one will be punished as a result."

"Who are you?" Guriko shouted, aiming spoons in every direction in preparation for striking. But, it seemed -- the only ones in the factory were herself and the monster in front of her. Could it have been something like a pre-prepared recording? Or was this monster in front of her speaking with some mysterious method?

"Taking money, taking lives, taking hearts, taking trust. Stealing, nothing but stealing. What are crimes like that called? What is the ultimate crime that covers every type of crime? Hmm, you should know -- '[[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Berobouchou|Berobouchou]]'?"

The monster that was called Berobouchou spat out its red tongue, and while laughing it replied to the voice: "Robbery!"

Demonstrating a human-like behavior, Berobouchou clankily rubbed its hands together and sliced cardboard boxes apart for no special reason.

"That's right. It's robbery. You over there. This monster's original name was Shigure Benimaru, and he committed the ultimate crime, robbery, for a living. He took lives, he took money, he took jewels, and he took dignity. The evil Ultimate Shield liked that about him, and changed him into this."

With a tone like that of a movie announcer, the voice spoke to the surprised Guriko.

"Ahh, no response. Is this person like your siblings?

These unintelligible words made Guriko's expression change.

"What are you talking about. Who are you! Just how much do you know about me?"

"Me? I am Melodia Noise. I do savior-esque things."

It gave its name as if making a joking, but each word came from a different place, and like before it was impossible to locate.

"Ahh. You do not be so worried about me. I am a timid coward who cries a lot, and that is why I am called [[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes#Melodia Noise|Melodia Noise]]."

In that string of unexplained terms, Guriko recognized a few words. That is -- a few months back, Sterilization Disinfection had said those words. God Insect Emperor, Unpleasant Countercurrent, Single Room, Ultimate Shield, Poison, Melodia Noise.

"Are you the same as Sterilization Disinfection?" Guriko thought of that fearsome woman, and held onto her shoulder to which no arm was attached.

Melodia Noise unhappily raised her voice. "I'm terribly sorry. The Seven Great Fragments are all separate individuals. It would bother me if you considered us all companions. But, you seem like you do not know anything, so I cannot blame you for misunderstanding."

The voice concentrated on this point, and gently said, " Mmm, is there anything you wish to know?"

Guriko's expression fell from her face.

''There are things I want to know that I would trade for with my life. I want to know how to cure Rinne who turned into a Meat Doll because of me --''

Possibly realizing something from Guriko's face, Melodia Noise cheerfully spoke.

"There's something you want to know, correct? You should be fine with me telling you, right? I, the savior Melodia Noise, show the way to lost lambs. Guiding toward the proper path -- that is my 'persona'... and this."

After thinking for a short while, the voice muttered, like a demon, "One piece, or five pieces."

Just as Guriko scrunched her eyebrows, Melodia Noise coldly stated her request.

"So, what I was saying was -- I will tell you what you wish to know. So you must pay an appropriate price... this, it'll take five of the small fragments you call 'Apples'. Or, one of the Great Fragments that act as God's personas."

The savior asking for equal payment calmly said, "Sterilization Disinfection's goal seems to be collecting all of the pieces, and restore 'God's existence. This goal is quite different from mine or Ultimate Shield's. After all, no matter how many fragments you collect it will not be enough. Why? I am currently the omniscient Melodia Noise. So as long as you pay with fragments, I can answer virtually any question you have."

Faced with this offer, Guriko thought for a while. Melodia Noise might have been the same kind of being as Sterilization Disinfection, and getting favors from such a being made her feel uncomfortable; she even felt a sense of danger. But Guriko had made an oath, that even if she had to sell her soul to the Devil -- she would let Rinne recover.

"Fine." Determination shone in Guriko's eyes as she lifted her head and faced the emptiness. "I don't know what you're trying, but as long as you get the information I want I'm fine with it. Five Apples, or a Great Fragment. I currently do not have that, so I will go collect them."

"Mmm. I have heard that you have fought with Sterilization Disinfection. Her heart that you took, that is a Great Fragment!"

Hearing Melodia Noise's surprised voice, Guriko coldly sneered.

"That's your goal? Too bad, I help you there. I lost that thing long ago, back when I killed that person.”

“Oh –” The intriguing voice reverberated throughout the abandoned factory.

“That’s fine. It’s fine as long as I receive the fragments. I await your struggles… Berobouchou, let’s go back.”

“Gyah!”

With a roar, Berobouchou charged at Guriko like a wild animal. Though Guriko responded quickly, some of her hair was sliced off.

“Ugh, what are you doing!”

Guriko pulled out her spoons and prepared to fight, yet Melodia Noise’s admonishment stayed her actions.

“Hey! Berobouchou, do not move without permission!”

“Clank, tssss, Katsssss.”

Berobouchou made a metallic rubbing noise as it wriggled its tongue, laughing as it jumped around in provocation.And then, it turned and turned in a destructive tornado, bringing ruin to the factory’s equipment.

“Aagh, this person’s unstable right now. Losing Long-Armed Demon was indeed a big loss. She was easy to order around… That vile Ultimate Shield, dumping on me such a troublesome subordinate!”

“!”

Experiencing some force, Berobouchou shrieked “Wuah?” like a whipped dog and ran out of the factory as if fearing something. Apparently Melodia Noise did something – but what exactly was done was unclear. Guriko didn’t see anything, but her hair was blown by wind.

Melodia Noise seemed to have calmed down for the time being, and continued speaking with the same tone as before. “Then – Gankyuu Eguriko, I await your good news. I am the all-knowing sensory organ – if you need anything you may call for me.”

Upon finishing that statement, the echoes of Melodia Noise’s voice disappeared.

Guriko subconsciously gazed over the wrecked factory for a while, and then sighed and stared at the spoon she tightly held. “Steal Apples from people – and then find out the means of curing Rinne through a deal with Melodia Noise.”

She muttered to herself, and feebly lowered her eyes.

“This isn’t wrong, is it? I didn’t make another mistake, did I? Rinne, Sakaki – mom, dad.”

She thought of those important people who were not by her side, and whom she may never see again.

Tear out the heart, or take after dealing pain – those were the primary methods of taking Apples. Yet Guriko could not imagine herself doing such things to humans she did not know.

But…

“I’ve already decided to become a monster.”

Guriko, alone, quietly murmured.

<noinclude>
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| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol3_Ch2|Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love ]]
|-
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</noinclude>

Mushi:Vol3 TLnotes

2012-02-14T06:59:10Z

Cakemanofdoom:

<center>Translator's Notes and References for

蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ

Mushi and Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait</center>

== Start ==

=== Questionable translations ===

*I probably need better onomatopoeia in general.

-Need better onomatopoeia for whatever noise this girl's making, I think.

-squinted her eyes: Is this a typo? 夏子心想，一边醚起眼睛望着正在吃巧克力圣代的少女。

-I'd like to pay: I get the feeling that this isn't what you're supposed to say, but unfortunately, I basically never eat at restaurants and the like, so I have no clue...

-Cooking utensils: 大碗公、长筷、免洗筷这类餐具，已经先从纸箱里拿出来了。Not sure what each of them are, but they all seem to be cooking utensils.

-*: Also says the bowl was placed on 免洗筷, and I don't know what that is.

-After cutting off her sense of touch: 少女在切断自己意识上的感官后，敲了位在公寓三楼的隔壁房间的门。

-Girls in prison must praise: 监禁绝赞少女中

== Night 1 ==

=== Beroubouchou ===
Lit. tongue blade.

=== Melodia Noise ===
Written as "Song of Tears". Except, the voice actually says "Melodia Noise", so Guriko wouldn't have any clue what it's talking about. On a side note, Melodia Noise uses archaic language, but I decided not to use archaic English.

=== Night 1 Questionable translations ===

-"The Identical Structure of God and Me": Shirayuki's in class 1-D of 县立香条菱高中. Also, title = 上帝与我的一致构造. Plus all sorts of random uncertainties throughout, like whatever the stuff I had as "preface" and "postface" actually are since those don't make sense, though I won't post the entire thing.

-Tatsue "meeting" Mitaka again: 一边凝视着久违重逢的青梅竹马

-Hit the nail on the head: Pretty literal translation because I have no clue what it's supposed to mean. 该说是一针见血，还是气氛危险，他这种不同于以往的迷人言行是怎么回事?

-Tatsue going to Kannonsakazaki High School: 为了知道具有贤木财团继承资格，自己必须打败的大哥——贤木愚龙的事，龙惠从这个春天起，便进入贤木任职的观音逆咲高中就读。

-The girl who fell down: Skipped a description because I had no clue what it meant. 身体呈大字形. And, like the previous chapter, I think the sounds she make need to be fixed, especially some that I basically made up. Oh and I think what I used for her "nickname" sounds horrible.

-2nd line after "Mitaka" forms his goal: “御贵”却连出乎意料之外的状态也应付不了

-Mitsuki after her fall: 肉碎得稀烂，淌血，数根骨头外突，脸也溃不成形。

-The phrase right before Tatsue blows at Mitsuki: 她用颤抖的指尖缠绕住风，使出全力吹向蜜姬。

-Bok leaves: 叶卜么? ..? Google translate from Japanese gave me this.

-"Kara" - Tossing the Chinese character (丽) into http://www.kawa.net/works/ajax/romanize/japanese-e.html didn't work, so I had Google translate it into Japanese and used that. Highly suspect method, and I'm not sure that’s even a name. Also not sure about something else in the conversation, except I just realized that my poor choice of a word processor cut off everything after this point (back to MS Word for me), and I don’t feel like digging it up again from the text.

-The rest of my uncertain translations will be put back in at a to-be-determined date. It’s getting late and I wanna finish translating the chapter tonight.

<noinclude>
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| Return to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

MTM:Registration Page

2012-02-14T06:57:55Z

Cakemanofdoom:

To re-iterate the registration procedure:

*"First Come, First Served": please register your intended chapters here

*The maximum number of chapters you are recommended to work on is no more then half of any given volume

*Maximum number of Translators per volume is two

*Maximum number of volumes you may be active on is one

*This is not some Binding Contract of "I must do the work I put down here". Choices put down here are negotiable between translators (including their own selves who signed up for it).

*Contact [[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]] if you need Chinese RAWs.

== List ==

== Mushi to Medama Series by Akira (日日日), Illustrated by Mitsuki Mausu ==

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear '' / 蟲と眼球とテディベア ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Night 1: Usarin-sama's Daily Edict - [[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 2: The 15th November Incident - [[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]] - '''Completed''' by [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]]
::*Night 3: The girl who died a thousand years ago - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 4: Loneliness ← Kodoku → Insect Poison - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Final Night: "Don't Look" - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Guriko's Offering - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Author's Notes - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection '' / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒 ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Open: Clock of Endless Nights - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 1: A Series of Misfortune - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed
::*Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-armed ghost - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 3: Boudoir - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 4: I can't hear the bells - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Final Night: Start of Disinfection - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
::*Close: Blood-stained Night - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Author's Notes - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait '' / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Start: Lady with a Helmet - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]]
::*Night 3: Distancing happiness
::*Night 4: Temporary halt?
::*Night 5: Vomit
::*End: You and Chocolate Sunday
::*Author's Notes

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love '' / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌 ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Overture: 700
::*Symphony 1: Unable to transmit via songs alone
::*Symphony 2: Whom does the Song of Love belong to?
::*Symphony 3: Crybaby Joker
::*Symphony 4: The Adventures of Vegetable Juice and Tomato Juice
::*Final Symphony: Unable to save based on love alone
::*Requiem: 666
::*Author's Notes

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White '' / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫 ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*PROLOGUE 02: The Jealous Queen
::*EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
::*EPILOGUE 06: The Hunter
::*EPILOGUE 09: The Seven Dwarfs
::*EPILOGUE 11: The Witch
::*EPILOGUE 14: Poison & Apple & Kiss
::*EPILOGUE 19: Snow White
::*Author's Notes

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Damage Hair '' / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Ragnarok 00: Ruined hair of a place no one knows
::*Ragnarok 01: 19-year-old Useless Repeat-year-student, Hobby is video gaming
::*Ragnarok 02: Marionette of blood and flesh and bone
::*Ragnarok 03: Peaceful, Everyday Heaven
::*Ragnarok 04: 29 year old bachelor, Bored every day
::*Ragnarok 05: Production-orientated Loner
::*Ragnarok 06: Final God Mode: 3000 Worlds
::*Ragnarok xx: The twilight of the aftermath...
::*Author's Notes

[[Category:Registration Page]]

Mushi to Medama

2012-02-14T06:57:28Z

Cakemanofdoom:

[[Image:mtm_main.jpg|200px|thumb|Cover for the 1st novel]]

Sakaki Guryuu is a multi-talented genius who, despite being gifted and wealthy, decides to teach in the countryside to be together with his lover, Usagawa Rinne, who also happens to be his student. Their peaceful lives are shattered one day when Rinne is killed, in front of Sakaki's eyes, by a girl named "Gankyuu Eguriko", who gouged her eyes out with a spoon. Things take an even stranger turn when Rinne suddenly wakes up as if nothing had happened, and something called an "Eden's Apple" is thrown into the mix.

Mushi to Medama won the award for the "Best Newcomer" category in the MF Literary Awards.

== [[MTM:Registration Page|Registration]] ==
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

=== Format Standards ===
*[[Format_guideline|General Format/Style Guideline]]

== Updates ==

[[Mushi:Updates|Older updates]]

*January 15, 2012
**Volume 2 Night 3 complete

*January 19, 2012
**Volume 2 Night 4 complete

*January 20, 2012
**Volume 2 Close, Author's Notes complete

*February 1, 2012
**Volume 3 Start complete

*February 13, 2012
**Volume 3 Night 1 complete

== Project Staff ==

*Project Administrator: [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
*Project Supervisor:

=== Translators ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
::*[[User:Cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]]

Those who wish to contribute are asked to first notify a supervisor beforehand. [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] has Chinese RAWs available for those who wish to help.
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]]

=== Editors ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:RoadBuster|RoadBuster]]
::*[[User:Chaos Greyblood|Chaos Greyblood]]
::*[[User:dell19930|dell19930]]
::*[[User:AlfheimWanderer|AlfheimWanderer]]

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:TheGiftedMonkey|TheGiftedMonkey]]

== Mushi to Medama Series by Akira (日日日), Illustrated by Mitsuki Mausu ==

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear '' / 蟲と眼球とテディベア ([[Mushi:Vol1|Full Text]] - [http://www.mediafire.com/?fz7iq8c6zriib36 PDF for e-Reader]) ===
[[Image:Mtm_main.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 1 Cover: Gankyuu Egoriko]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch1|Night 1: Usarin-kakka's Daily Edict]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch2|Night 2: The 15th November Incident]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch3|Night 3: The Girl who died a Thousand years ago]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch4|Night 4: Loneliness ← Kodoku → Insect Poison]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch5|Final Night: "Don't Look"]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Epilogue|Guriko's Offering]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Author's_Notes|Author's Notes]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection '' / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒 ===
[[Image:Mtm2_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 2 Cover: Usagawa Rinne]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Open|Open: Clock of Endless Nights]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch1|Night 1: A Series of Misfortune]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch2|Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch3|Night 3: Boudoir]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch4|Night 4: I can't hear the bells]] (100%)
::*Final Night: Start of Disinfection
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Close|Close: Blood-stained Night]] (100%)
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_AN|Author's Notes]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait '' / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ ===
[[Image:Mtm3_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 3 Cover]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Prologue|Start: Lady with a Helmet]] (100%)
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Ch1|Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat]] (100%)
::*Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love
::*Night 3: Distancing happiness
::*Night 4: Temporary halt?
::*Night 5: Vomit
::*End: You and Chocolate Sunday
::*Author's Notes
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love '' / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol4_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Overture: 700
::*Symphony 1: Unable to transmit via songs alone
::*Symphony 2: Whom does the Song of Love belong to?
::*Symphony 3: Crybaby Joker
::*Symphony 4: The Adventures of Vegetable Juice and Tomato Juice
::*Final Symphony: Unable to save based on love alone
::*Requiem: 666
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White '' / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol5_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*PROLOGUE 02: The Jealous Queen
::*EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
::*EPILOGUE 06: The Hunter
::*EPILOGUE 09: The Seven Dwarfs
::*EPILOGUE 11: The Witch
::*EPILOGUE 14: Poison & Apple & Kiss
::*EPILOGUE 19: Snow White
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair '' / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol6_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Ragnarok 00: Ruined hair of a place no one knows
::*Ragnarok 01: 19-year-old Useless Repeat-year-student, Hobby is video gaming
::*Ragnarok 02: Marionette of blood and flesh and bone
::*Ragnarok 03: Peaceful, Everyday Heaven
::*Ragnarok 04: 29 year old bachelor, Bored every day
::*Ragnarok 05: Production-orientated Loner
::*Ragnarok 06: Final God Mode: 3000 Worlds
::*Ragnarok xx: The twilight of the aftermath...
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

== Series Overview ==
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear / 蟲と眼球とテディベア　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1273-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1470-7)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ (ISBN 978-4-8401-1532-2)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1593-3)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1765-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア (ISBN 978-4-8401-1858-3)

Mushi:Vol3 TLnotes

2012-02-14T06:56:24Z

Cakemanofdoom:

<center>Translator's Notes and References for

蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ

Mushi and Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait</center>

== Start ==

=== Questionable translations ===

-Need better onomatopoeia for whatever noise this girl's making, I think.

-squinted her eyes: Is this a typo? 夏子心想，一边醚起眼睛望着正在吃巧克力圣代的少女。

-I'd like to pay: I get the feeling that this isn't what you're supposed to say, but unfortunately, I basically never eat at restaurants and the like, so I have no clue...

-Cooking utensils: 大碗公、长筷、免洗筷这类餐具，已经先从纸箱里拿出来了。Not sure what each of them are, but they all seem to be cooking utensils.

-*: Also says the bowl was placed on 免洗筷, and I don't know what that is.

-After cutting off her sense of touch: 少女在切断自己意识上的感官后，敲了位在公寓三楼的隔壁房间的门。

-Girls in prison must praise: 监禁绝赞少女中

== Night 1 ==

=== Beroubouchou ===
Lit. tongue blade.

=== Melodia Noise ===
Written as "Song of Tears". Except, the voice actually says "Melodia Noise", so Guriko wouldn't have any clue what it's talking about. On a side note, Melodia Noise uses archaic language, but I decided not to use archaic English.

=== Night 1 Questionable translations ===

-"The Identical Structure of God and Me": Shirayuki's in class 1-D of 县立香条菱高中. Also, title = 上帝与我的一致构造. Plus all sorts of random uncertainties throughout, like whatever the stuff I had as "preface" and "postface" actually are since those don't make sense, though I won't post the entire thing.

-Tatsue "meeting" Mitaka again: 一边凝视着久违重逢的青梅竹马

-Hit the nail on the head: Pretty literal translation because I have no clue what it's supposed to mean. 该说是一针见血，还是气氛危险，他这种不同于以往的迷人言行是怎么回事?

-Tatsue going to Kannonsakazaki High School: 为了知道具有贤木财团继承资格，自己必须打败的大哥——贤木愚龙的事，龙惠从这个春天起，便进入贤木任职的观音逆咲高中就读。

-The girl who fell down: Skipped a description because I had no clue what it meant. 身体呈大字形. And, like the previous chapter, I think the sounds she make need to be fixed, especially some that I basically made up. Oh and I think what I used for her "nickname" sounds horrible.

-2nd line after "Mitaka" forms his goal: “御贵”却连出乎意料之外的状态也应付不了

-Mitsuki after her fall: 肉碎得稀烂，淌血，数根骨头外突，脸也溃不成形。

-The phrase right before Tatsue blows at Mitsuki: 她用颤抖的指尖缠绕住风，使出全力吹向蜜姬。

-Bok leaves: 叶卜么? ..? Google translate from Japanese gave me this.

-"Kara" - Tossing the Chinese character (丽) into http://www.kawa.net/works/ajax/romanize/japanese-e.html didn't work, so I had Google translate it into Japanese and used that. Highly suspect method, and I'm not sure that’s even a name. Also not sure about something else in the conversation, except I just realized that my poor choice of a word processor cut off everything after this point (back to MS Word for me), and I don’t feel like digging it up again from the text.

-The rest of my uncertain translations will be put back in at a to-be-determined date. It’s getting late and I wanna finish translating the chapter tonight.

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</noinclude>

Mushi:Vol3 Ch1

2012-02-14T06:56:16Z

Cakemanofdoom: Created page with "== '''Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat == (Preface) -- Earlier, we discussed how many of the myths and tales in this world share similarities, and the universal ideas..."

== '''Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat ==

(Preface) -- Earlier, we discussed how many of the myths and tales in this world share similarities, and the universal ideas hidden within. Here, I want to again emphathize that the similarity and common ideas between those myths comes from the fact that basic human psychology (the subconscious, or you could say the original me) is the same for everyone.

People need to spend but a day being human, and they will share those universal ideas (that is, what I have from the past up to today called "God"). Those universal ideas, obviously, are inseperable from the common human body developments; from being born, to growing up, to becoming old and dying.

Thought and body. Unable to escape maturation and deterioration, people created "God", and "myths" grew prevalent. As long as we are human, despite a few differences, they will all be basically the same.

For proof, and to clarify, I organized the "Seven Fragments of God" that I just discussed, that can also be called the "Seven Universal Items of Myths". Even though these are used in every type of myth, considering how difficult it is to understand, let's use the Bible that every knows about as an example.

1. Single Room/Creation of Heaven and Earth. (God creates, the birth of the world.)

2. Sterilization Disinfection/The legend of Noah's flood. (God is lost, failure in creating the world → Reconstruction.)

3. Poison/Tower of Bable. (God's lesson, paradise lost.)

4. Unpleasant Countercurrent/Angel. Sodom and Gomorrah. (God's conviction, karmic retribution, humanity's suffering.)

5. Melodia Noise/Moses and the Ten Commandments. The Savior. (Commandment, enlightenment, miracles, prophet.)

6. Ultimate Shield/Devil. False prophet. (Neither a lesson nor a conviction, God's attack on humanity.)

7. God Insect Emperor/Mark of the beast. Armageddon. (The final battle, end of the world.)

Every "myth" can be classified as one of the above. These seven categories represent God's different personas as he rules this world, sometimes kind, sometimes harsh.

But, the part of this that I fear is that these seven existences act as "God's personas", not "God". Earth has long ago lost the conscious being known as "God". We merely see a ghost of "God" through those seven personas.

Eternal life, salvation of mankind, or miracles wrought by individuals; none of these things exist anymore. We have no recourse, no way to escape fate's waves -- (Postface)

-- "The Identical Structure of God and Me" Akutagawa Shirayuki [[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|*]]

"So annoying."

Takamikado Mitaka -- this peculiar name belonged to an average high school student in society, who wore the uniform of Kannonsakazaki Private High School and had no outstanding traits.

That was clear -- at least, it should have been this way.

"Mitaka did you get the notice? I will also be studying at this school starting in April."

It was lunch break, in the dark area behind Kannonsakazaki Private High School. Just as Mitaka decided to eat in this deserted place, a girl said so to him.

Her clothes stood out in this place covered with graffiti and moss. Kannonsakazaki High School required students to wear its uniform, yet she wore everyday clothes in disregard of this rule. A black western-style dress, a black ribbon; gorgeous clothes and a cute, childish face didn't quite go together.

"Surprisingly, you have not come to pay your respects to me, the black dragon. Mitaka, have you not self-consciousness as an underling?"

She should have been --

"Mitaka" tried to remember, and recalled the name of the black-clothed girl who stood patiently.

"Kuroki Tatsue."

"Oh my, how arrogant, you dare call me directly by name?"

Kuroki Tatsue frowned, and held her black fan over her mouth. "Even considering that you are my childhood friend, and that you are older than I am, I would never permit you to address me by name! The Takamikado family works under the Kuroki family, have you forgotten that you have always been my servant? Mitaka, I am outraged!"

"Mitaka" remained silent, pulled out the raw egg from a convenience store that was his lunch, and put it in his mouth without even breaking it open. "Crack", even though it broke in his mouth, he calmly swallowed the thick liquid as well as the eggshell.

He thought back while eating his meal. No -- it was more like flipping through a book, reading through Takamikado Mitaka whom he had eaten -- through the memories of this young man. His childhood memories. Being badly injured after Tatsue kicked him down the stairs, being forced to do homework, and in the name of playing doctor having his stomach cut open by Tatsue who was never fazed.

But they weren't all hateful memories that would send chills through people.

Saying "The little bird I raised is dead", Tatsue had cried in Mitaka's chest; she ha snuck into Mitaka's servant room in the wealthy Kurokis' home and acted like a spoiled child, "I can't sleep after seeing a scary movie"; and she had said to him with an innocent smile, "Mom praised me for my grades" --

By that girl's side, he watched her mature while growing a sense of inferiority due to his own unchanging self. He was jealous of Tatsue, he felt so inferior, and he loved her deeply, his feelings a disgusting mix of love and hatred.

This young man named Takamikado Mitaka seemed to gloomily love Kuroki Tatsue, and reading his daily thoughts that were hard to classify between curses and loving thoughts, "Mitaka" sighed.

Because... was it because while eating the physical body, he had also consumed the soul? It was extremely troublesome, and he was also affected by Mitaka's memories -- he had kept those special feelings toward Tatsue.

"Kuroki Tatsue."

He called out, and Tatsue immediately turned red and angrily replied, "You again address me by --"

"You should stop associating with me."

"Mitaka's" eyes shined with golden light.

Just like a reptile's.

"I am not the Takamikado Mitaka that you know."

"What... do you mean?" Kuroki Tatsue showed her bewilderment.

As the eldest daughter of the Kuroki family, branch family of the Sakaki Organization that controlled the world with its wealth, she had not once been disobeyed by the lowly servant Mitaka. That childhood friend who wasn't manly in the least, who had neither confidence nor decisiveness and was always trembling in fear, should not have had this kind of courage.

But, Tatsue had always waited for this. From the past up to the present, she had waited for this boy named Takamikado Mitaka. For Tatsue who spent her life being prepared in the giant Kuroki household, he -- was her only companion.

-- Mitaka, you must marry me one day.

-- Right, Tatsue, I will become an amazing man and marry you.

They had made such an innocent promise. That was when they were younger, before they understood anything. For Tatsue back then, the Kuroki household was her entire world, and the only male her age in that narrow world was Mitaka.

Girls remember past events more clearly than boys. No matter what, Tatsue could not forget that precocious promise, and thought that he was the same.

The result was betrayal.

She was betrayed over and over again.

''Mitaka's such a liar, what was that about becoming an amazing man from so long ago? He's just becoming more and more useless and addicted to video games and otaku manga. His grades aren't good, he's physically completely inept, and even his face is incredibly average.''

Because of this, Tatsue would frequently take out her anger on Mitaka, hoping for him to react by working to improve himself. But it was meaningless, she was just betrayed again. Like this, she kept being betrayed.

Tatsue quickly shook off these kinds of feelings, and stopped putting hope in him.

That's how it should have been.

"Mitaka."

Tatsue noticed her rising heartbeat as she looked at the childhood friend [[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|whom she finally, properly met again]]. The him in her memories -- had messy hair, dressed weirdly, wore glasses that old people wore and was always downcast.

But the him in front of her -- didn't seem quite the same. How should she put it, this... how should she put it.

Handsome?

"Don't make jokes like that --"

With how things had been, how could she have feelings for Mitaka again. This was a mistake, a trap for her to be betrayed yet again.

But, but --

Perhaps he dyed his straight hair, as the light color was quite beautiful. With a bit of gold color, his strange eyes were bewitching. He looked straight over without any timidity, and speaking quietly as if he were whispering, he was captivating.

Tatsue couldn't stop her face from turning red, and she shook her head. What was she thinking?

"You are too arrogant, Mitaka! In front of I, the Black Dragon who will one day defeat Brother and control the world, what kind of expression is that? Those rebellious eyes! And those kinds of words!"

"That's why I said --" Mitaka sighed in exasperation, not fearing Tatsue's threatening attitide in the least. "Man, didn't you understandt me? Really -- it's because of things like this that I think humans are annoying. Stuff like interpersonal relationships is too much for me."

He mumbled those confusing words, as he looked over with vertical-slitted eyes.

"Tatsue, I doubt I can explain this well, so I won't talk too much. You, you're really better off cutting off contact with me. This world domination, black dragon stuff, no matter how much you brag you're just a normal human. A normal person shouldn't get associated with the world where I live."

"Eh --"

Because of these profound words, Tatsue was red up to her ears. What was the matter? [[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|It hit the nail on the head]], or perhaps it was more accurate to say the mood was getting dangerous. What was with this fascinating behavior, completely unlike his past self?

"Wh-what do you mean?"

''What's this, not wanting to see me injured because of Mitaka? He's worrying about me, treating me as something precious? Wh-why?''

Tatsue's mind fell into a chaotic mess incapable of clear thought.

''I'm being weird today, it's all Mitaka's fault.''

She needed to defeat her brother Sakaki Guryuu and learn the requirements for succeeding the Sakaki Organization; for this, Tatsue would, starting in spring, attend the Sakaki-controlled Kannonsakazaki High School. Tatsue had long known that Mitaka was a student at this school, and though she was sure that no miracle could have occured, she called him out to check his growth.

And now Tatsue was bewildered.

Her confusion was caused by Mitaka's astonishing change.

"Do you get it?" Mitaka held his hand to his chest, speaking sincerely, "Takamikado Mitaka truly cares about you. If you were to be harmed, even I'd feel his pain."

"Ah. Ah --"

Thanks to these love-confession-like words, Tatsue giddily stepped backwards.

Was it a dream? Or reality? Her hopeless childhood friend had become so impressive, and even said he value her -- what was going on? Was it some kind of trap?

Tatsue looked around her, turning suspicious.

Mitaka watched this Tatsue without saying a word. Tatsue wasn't accustomed to and couldn't stand that kind of tense atmosphere, and pointed at him with her fan, "D-don't look down on others, al-alright?"

She was too disturbed to even speak properly Tatsue knocked on her head and seriously looked at Mitaka.''How can I be disturbed by a small thing like this? I will one day control the world. Stay calm, stay calm..."

Haa, huu, after breathing deeply, Tatsue opened her fan with a fwap. "I hope you will refrain from dishonoring me, Mitaka. To be honest, I still cannot understand what you were saying, but --"

Tatsue hastily used formal language to hide her loss of calm, and narrowed her eyes, "I am not a weak woman who requires your protection! No -- I can prove it to you right here!"

''More accurately, I want to prove it.''

''I want to show my strong side, and make him who's being expressionless for some reason smile and praise me.'' Upon noticing where her thoughts were going, Tatsue again turned red. She thought: What in the world is wrong with me today? She shook her head.

Had those words reached Mitaka? Maybe he was on some sort of health regiment, swallowing that egg whole, and he was currently looking hungrily at a small bird perched on a nearby tree.

"What is it?" His expression kept seeming inhuman, perhaps 'reptilian' was the best way to describe it. But thinking about that could come later.

"Mitaka, look." Kuroki Tatsue had recently discovered this ability.

After watching something on television, she had decided it would be fun to try using her mind to lift up her teddy bear. A few attempts later she felt foolish, and in the end waved her fan and shouted, "Fly!", and --

It flew.

The teddy bear was blown upward.

The brother who was not related to Tatsue by blood, and whom she needed to defeat, was a perfect being. Though Tatsue herself had a certain amount of artistic skill and studying ability, her brother was on a completely different level. With a PhD, Olympic gold, and fame throughout the artistic world, his talent eclipsed hers by incomparable degrees.

Naturally, he was the successor to the Sakaki Organization, while Tatsue was merely a "spare part". Just as Tatsue started to despair over this, her ability awakened.

''Brother definitely can't do something like this -- this is my only advantage over him.''

Though, she wasn't sure how her ability worked, nor did she know why she suddenly gained it.

But, for the current Tatsue, that ability was the only thing with which she could prove her existence to the world. "Mitaka, I don't know what you're so worried about, but even if someone becomes your enemy or if something is about to happen, this Black Dragon will magnificently help you to triumph!"

''So -- watch carefully, and praise me.

Recognize me.''

And as her feelings were about to burst, Tatsue rapidly fanned herself.

"Like so!"

Her long black hair rose, and instantly -- a cyclone appeared in front of Tatsue.

This caused Mitaka to finally pay attention, as he stared at Tatsue with eyes wide open. Seeing that poker face finally crack a little, Tatsue smugly smiled. "Ohohoho! Look at this mystery! This power! This is the mighty breath of a dragon!"

In front of Tatsue, the cyclone picked up fallen leaves as it advanced directly toward the giant tree planted behind the school.

Struck by the wind, its branches and leaves rustled and shook, while the thick trunk cracked. Even the ground rumbled firecely.

Suddenly.

"Whooaa --" came a sharp voice. "Crash --" Something fell down.

"Huh?"

Tatsue, who was starting to get full of herself, came back to her senses thanks to the unexpected event. She stared at the dazed girl who had fallen. [[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|*]]

A girl, it was a girl. Behind the tree which Tatsue had assaulted using wind without warning, a small, buglike girl had fallen.

"Waaah. It hurts, it really hurts! Why?"

The girl suddenly crawled up. She wore a conspicuous hat with ears attached and a curled up tail. With tears in her eyes she started complaining. "Why? Why, why? What just happened? My afternoon nap was so peaceful, so why'd you bother me? Waaaahh, myuh."

Tatsue noticed that her right foot was bent in an unnatural direction. However, with a "crack" she twisted it back in place and easily stood up.

"Wah... Mmm? Who are you guys?"

The girl was startled. Her eyes opened wide, she seemed to be contemplating something. Perhaps unable to understand, she properly stated her name.

"Known as the speed demon, dundundundun ~ I am the unparalleled Unpleasant Counter-Current -- Saibara Mitsuki."

"..."

"..."

In front of the girl holding a perfect pose, Tatsue and Mitaka were speechless.

They had no clue what she was saying.

There really were too many incomprehensible things, "Mitaka" sighed inwardly. He thought Takamikado Mitaka was just an ordinary student, so how could there be so much weirdness surrounding him?

And -- as "Mitaka" worried, could the world itself be losing its order?

"Mitaka" thought back to when he became "Mitaka".

It happened about a week before.

It was a coincidental opportunity.

"Mitaka" liked the night. It was tranquil, and more importantly, there were very few people.

For being like "Mitaka", humans were merely food; however, about half a year ago -- after being tortured by that person, "Mitaka" tried to avoid contact with people.

"Mitaka's" original form was that of a black snake.

Just as he was skulking in the darkness, enjoying a late-night walk -- her heard a sharp scream. A human. "Mitaka" didn't care if a human was about to die, or if someone suffered pain. But when humans approached death, it was likely for them to obtain an "Apple" that granted immortality.

And it was rather easy to snatch "Apples" away from humans who had just gained them. If he was lucky -- "Mitaka" thought like this, and in the end his greed carried him over to look.

He should have ignored that scream.

There was a monster, and a boy.

The monster glowed with silver; it was an ominous being. Generally, it took a form similar to humans, but its body was not made of flesh; rather, it was formed of sharp blades. Only its fiery tongue looked organic as it stuck out, covered with saliva.

Recently, more and more beings called monsters had come to the town, and "Mitaka" knew this. Compared to humans or ordinary snakes, "Mitaka" was an existence much more similar to monsters. He knew that occasionally, beings from the other world invisible to humans would stupidly appear, and cause trouble for or endanger humans. Things like that seemed to be happening more frequently. Though he wasn't particularly interested, the chance of humans being should have increased.

The boy was one of those poor victims.

"Mitaka" at the time still did not know that the boy's name was Takamikado Mitaka.

"Grrr, sssssssss."

Maybe the silver monster was satisfied with its kill, as it made an interesting sound and left.

But it didn't eat him, merely leaving him dead.

This was rare for monsters, and it was more akin to human crime, but at the time "Mitaka" didn't find it strange.

"Mitaka" climbed onto a lamppost, and stared steadily at the teeager.

"I don't want to die..." He moaned, and sobbed with grief. "Mitaka" perfectly understood that sentiment, but his wounds reached his internal organs, and he would die for sure.

"I don't wanna die, I don't wanna die..." He struggled in pain.

"Why?"

"Mitaka" couldn't help asking. "Mitaka" also wanted to deny death, but why? Why did he want to live forever? Half a year ago that frightening girl had asked him that, yet "Mitaka" had no answer. From then on, he had constantly felt lost.

Why did he seek eternal life?

Was it just as the girl said -- did he only want to fulfill his ancestors' dying wish, and gain the respect of them in Heaven.?

It seemed the slowly-dying boy did not know the reason, either. He kept on enduring the pain, and then died.

Till the end, it seemed he was unable to understand why he wanted to live.

He was not gifted with a miraculous Apple, and he left behind only an unmoving corpse. "Mitaka" who watched his final moments found him pitiable.

Not understanding his reason for living, and not knowing why he didn't want to die; just like that, he died in pain.

In that boy, "Mitaka" -- saw his own self.

Anger and confusion rose within him.

And so, "Mitaka" ate the boy's corpse.

By consuming every bit of flesh, "Mitaka" transformed into Mitaka.

Taking the form of eaten humans was an ability carried throughout "Mitaka's" bloodline. Using that ability to repeatedly deceive humanity, each successive generation sought "Apple"s to the extent of their ability --

The clan of the Original Sin. The last snake was "Mitaka".

Was it for the final wishes of his ancestors who desired immortality? Was it to prevail over the words of that girl who denied him completely? Was it for the boy who pitifully died without understanding why he lived? Even "Mitaka" himself wasn't sure.

"I will find the meaning of living, for you as well."

"Mitaka" murmured to himself, and his transformation was complete. He also gained Takamikado Mitaka's thoughts and memories.

His goal to find immortality did not change. Though he would encounter countless amounts of cruelty, this was "Mitaka's" instinct, his dearest wish. There was no way it could change.

But, why did he want eternity? Why did he wish to push death aside?

The answer to this -- became "Mitaka's" objective.

And now.

Before achieving that goal, "Mitaka" couldn't even deal with expected situations.

That was because a two incomprehensible beings had appeared at the same time.

One was was the object of this body -- Takamikado Mitaka's -- twisted yet deep love, Kuroki Tatsue.

It seemed the body would react to her slightest frustration, cry, or injury, making him suffer too. And there was her ability to manipulate wind. Even "Mitaka" did not understand the basis of that ability.

As for the other one, how should he put it, it was a girl who seemed seemed to transcend this mortal world --

"It hurts." She lifted her right arm and made a pose.

"It hurts a lot."

Then she raised her left hand, and with full-faced smile shouted enigmatically, "Fly away -"

The girl with the eared hat, a curled tail, and brown hair tied into pigtails remained unmoving in that pose. She wore Kannonsakazaki High School's slightly mundane uniform, and she gave off an air that seemed to clash with her childish voice and movements.

She clapped together her hands that wore giant gloves, and looked over, "Mm, the pain flew away ...Wait? Huh?"

Then she stared at "Mitaka" and Tatsue, and turned red for no apparent reason.

"Aaahh, a boy and a girl behind the school, this I LOVE YOU scenario -- I-I, interupted it. I'm leaving."

Like a panicking caged bird, the girl ran into the wall and then the tree, trying to escape while saying strange things.

But, after walking a bit she suddenly stopped and ran over the backpack that was probably hers, which had fallen next to her.

The girl picked it up, and seemed embarrassed. "Aah, I forgot. Sis, sis are you okay? Are you hurt?

She said so as she nonchalantly took out a head.

From the bag.

She took out a head.

"Wh-"

"Mitaka" gasped, and Tatsue turned pale.

It was the head of a young woman with tied, beautiful white hair. Wearing her gloves, the girl delicately stroked the head, and her eyebrows dropped as tears started to appear. "Are you alright, sis? Do you need me to make the pain fly away?"

"This --" Suddenly, and unbelievably, the head opened its eyes and looked over. They were cold eyes showing neither emotion nor mercy.

The head muttered, "Whatever, my situation isn't important."

She monotonically said those words ominously.

"Over there, there's a guy who's similar to a monster, and -- though it's incomplete, there's someone with Melodia Noise's powers."

The female head looked at "Mitaka" and Tatsue, and hatred twisted her face. "A dirty monster and the trator Melodia Noise, today's meeting is the first in a hundred years -- no, it's been longer right?"

Then she raised her eyes to the girl holding her, and calmly ordered, "Mitsuki, God's conviction and angel. Use your compassionless excretory organ -- your Unpleasant Countercurrent persona, and cleanse these two."

"Eh?" Under that command, the girl turned with confusion.

And with a frightful, emotionless voice completely different from her earlier innocence, "Since sis said so, I will obey."

The girl named Saibara Mitsuki instantly disappeared.

At least, that was what Tatsue saw.

Only flying dust and Mitsuki's afterimage remained.

"Pa, papapapa."

The sudden fierce noise made Tatsue look upward, and her eyes widened. How was that possible? She didn't understand.

Mitsuki was running up the vertical school wall covered with vulgar words and graffiti with unclear meanings. She ran at an incredible speed as if she were on the ground.

"Wh -- what."

Tatsue was frightened to immobility. She merely watched that superhuman action without knowing its destination.

The windows scattered all over the wall were broken under Mitsuki's mad sprint. It no illusion -- then, in this situation, what was going on with movement like this?

"Haa --" With a battle cry, she neared the roof with a single step and then turned to unhesitatingly jump down.

"No way!"

Facing Mitsuki's string of strange actions, Tatsue was completely unable to respond. Tatsue was great at studying, and she had no shortage of artistic talent, and she was decent even in athletics.

But she had never received any training for when an overwhelming opponent took such strange actions.

Saibara Mitsuki spread her arms, and fell with a smile on her face. "You'll be crushed flat as a pancake."

Jumping from that height that defied reason? But she couldn't be deceived by that action that seemed like a child's frolicking. Though she didn't know how much Mitsuki weighed, upon thinking about several dozen kilograms of flesh falling from the fourth floor Tatsue's quick mind could understand the amount of force involved.

"What --" She'd be flattened.

"What kind of joke is this --" She would be flattened, just as Mitsuki said. Tatsue imagined her and Mitsuki's bodies mixed together in pieces on the ground, and turned white.

Yet her legs were already paralyzed, unable to move.

In this absurd situation, she was infuriatingly unable to move her body properly.

"Tatsue, stop spacing out!"

Suddenly, she was knocked from the side. Tatsue realized that Mitaka had forcefully rammed her, and the two rolled on the moss-covered ground.

It hurt, and --

"Please don't just touch me as you with." Tatsue turned faintly red, and scolded Mitaka who was currently right in front of her.

Her mind fell into chaos.

"Wow, you dodged it?" As Tatsue was becoming shy, a body with the appearance of a girl plummeted down.

-- "Splat."

An unrealistic, manga-like sound. The ground shook, and a dark red liquid flew everywhere. Tatsue screamed.

Though she was unharmed thanks to Mitaka's help, the scene of the girl who fell from the roof hitting the ground seemed to have been mentally scarring.

"Ahaha, I lost."

Saibara Mina, who had become a devastated mess thanks to that fall, laughed open-heartedly.

"Hee." She got up as if nothing happened. Pieces of her flesh [[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|were pierced with bloody bones]], and her face was also deformed.

"Since I took away my sense of pain I can still fight, ah, what do we do now?"

With that face that was unbearable to look at, Mitsuki smiled. "Why so afraid?"

Then, she dragged her broken leg and walked over. That appearance was a bit dull compared to what one could see in horror movies developed with recent technology, but the feeling of reality was something movies could never replicate.

"Ah... ee -- Aaaaahhhh!" Tatsue collapsed on the spot from fear.

Upon seeing Tatsue like that, Mitaka immediatly stood up and proffered his hand, "Tatsue, let's go!"

"Eh -- what?"

Tatsue could not respond quickly; her preparation was insufficient for an abnormal situation like this. In the human life she had been living, she stayed distant from these strange affairs as she should have --

Mitaka grabbed Tatsue's hand, and spoke seriously. "Falling from such a height yet still still surviving, how could that girl possibly be a normal person? My body's only that of a human, and it doesn't seem like you know how to fight... gyah! Just hurry up and go --"

"That's right." A tranquil, female voice suddenly chimed in.

"Mitsuki, you are truly unsuitable for battle."

Tatsue looked over and saw the head which had rolled out from the bag that should have fallen with Mitsuki. But, probably due to Mitsuki's protection, it was unharmed. "Don't I always say this? You must think everything through, like a cat on the hunt, for the smallest actions decide results."

"I'm not a cat."

Like a mouse who had only ever been hunted, now that she was the hunter Mitsuki tilted her head with perplexion, and walked over. "Sis, this time I'll beat them up directly."

"Tatsue, get up! She's coming!"

Though Mitaka was shouting at her, her limp body couldn't easily be put back into action. Tatsue tried to push herself from the ground using her arms, but she comically slipped on the moss and fell.

"Uuh --"

Looking at the slowly approaching Mitsuki, Mitaka began spewing foul words. "What the hell is this, Takamikado Mitaka. You're a worthless coward, a weakling with no sense of courage."

He spread his arms, and stood as if protecting Tatsue. "Why? Why can't I abandon this person and escape by myself..."

Tatsue watched the Mitaka who shook as he protected her, and words slipped out. "Mitaka-chan."

She had once addressed her beloved childhood friend this way. Though he had started falling in depravity later, leading her to lose hope --

That was how it should have been.

''Why is he protecting me now? He's clearly frightened, but he's willing to stand up straight and save me.''

"Bang --" That would normally be a sound made by some innocent child. Mitsuki's pose with clenched fists lacked any sense of coherence. She just swung downwards with her hands spread wide open. If a professional martial artist -- like, say, a karate master -- say this, he wouldn't be able to stand looking at the mistake-riddled movements.

However, her fist's destructive power belied its clumsy appearance.

Mitsuki swung her gloved hand and struck Mitaka directly. He flew like a playground ball and hit the school wall, and then fell down.

"Mitaka!" Tatsue screamed, and, unsteady both in thoughts and movements, crawled up. She thought: Just standing up is so difficult... while adjusting her position.

Mitsuki looked into backpack she carried, still without showing the slightest malice.

"How was that, sis? Did I -- punch well?"

"Why would you use so little force? You're in the middle of a battle... Don't go easy, mercilessly beat down your enemies until they can no longer draw breath!"

''It seems like the head in the backback is giving Mitsuki advice. I don't know whose head it is, but maybe I can gain an advantage if I separate it from her.''

"Actually --" From behind Tatsue whose entire body was shaking as she gripped her fain, the woman's head looked at Mitaka. She said, "It seems we have gained something unexpected from this. Mitsuki -- That monster is Snake. Look carefully!"

"Snake?"

Mitsuki stared at Mitaka's bloody face, and Tatsue also turned to look. Mitaka trembled with his knees on the ground, trying to stand up.

His uniform was blown apart at his stomach where Mitsuki punched him, revealing his black skin. To hide the skin that resembled reptilian scales, human skin gradually covered the black skin.

"What?" Tatsue looked on with a deathly pale face.

She couldn't understand. What was going on?

Though she may have simply seen wrong, it seemed too implausible that she only missaw this one part of her ridiculous situation. Was there skin like black scales under Mitaka's human skin?

"The ones who scattered the Seven Great Fragments, who cast all humanity into damnation, the ultimate sinners on the earth -- Snake."

The head smiled in delight, and said to Mitsuki who did not understand, "Kill him! Mitsuki, execute him! It was because of his ancestors that our bodies have become like this!"

Mitsuki looked at her own bloodied body. "Ah --"

She looked at the monster-like body that would not die no matter how badly it was injured, "His crime is really serious..."

And then, she continued to watch Mitaka with those empty yet bright eyes.

He'd be killed, Tatsue could feel Mitaka's impending death.

How scary. This girl with ovewhelming attack power and an immortal body was terribly scary. It was indeed enough to make one think of fleeing.

But, sooner or later she needed to surpass her brother and become the most powerful person in the world. How could she possibly do that if she ran away here, unable to save even one person?

Besides, Mitaka was injured from protecting her.

"S-slow down!" Tatsue pointed her fan at Mitsuki, and gave a resounding order.

"If you want to kill Mitaka, you'll have to cross over my dead body!"

"Tatsue!" Mitaka stood up with a pained expression, and shouted at Tatsue's back.

"Stop that, hurry up and go! Don't you know that you'll only get killed?'

"You're too loud for a subordinate."

Tatsue imagined the wind. Flying throughout the world, the wind was a symbol of freedom.

She had longed for the wind, in awe at its unrestrained might.

''So please, at least for now, wind -- lend me your power.''

[[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|With her shivering fingers she grabbed at the air]], and blew at Mitsuki.

The breath of a dragon.

Tatsue still didn't understand the magnitude or source of this power, but it probably wasn't lethal. With good luck, though, she should at least be able to blow Mitsuki away. She would blow her far away, and the escape to a safe place with Mitaka.

"Aha." Mitsuki innocently smiled.

"You can't hit me with an attack this weak."

She spread her arms, looking at the wind that flew over while picking up dust and leaves. "Even divine punishment would be deflected, and nuclear weapons can't harm me. If God himself wishes me harm, I'd just kill him. With no rival in this world, that's me, the unparalleled Unpleasant Countercurrent!"

Mitsuki fluidly stretched her arm forward.

Her palm covered by her glove was hit by a blast of wind --

"Get you!"

And she grabbed it.

[[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|Bok leaves?]]

She grabbed the wind, and rolled it together like she was kneading dough. She took the destructive power of invisible wind -- and rolled it into a ball.

"Begin!" Then, unbelievably, a hole opened in Mitsuki's stomach.

Fierce, sharp teeth tore through her uniform, and showed her true form. Dripping with saliva, the teeth clattered. Mitsuki put the dragon's breath that she had rolled into a ball between the teeth.

"Kakakakzizki."

It ate the wind.

"What the..."

Tatsue was shocked into silence, only able to describe the action as "eating". The second, large mouth on Mitsuki's stomach that had bitten through her uniform forcefully wolfed down Tatsue's power.

"Ahaha."

Mitsuki seemed dazed as she put her hands on her cheeks and wiggled.

"Mm, mm, mm -- There just isn't enough malice, but it's pure, and so tasty."

The change took only an instant.

The injuries that Mitsuki's body had sustained from dropping from the roof disappeared, like time was rewinding. Wounds closed, bones reentered her body, and the scattered blood rushed back into her body.

After a few seconds, Mitsuki's body had been completely restored.

"Bang -- Mitsuki's*Great*Revival."

Unbelievable.

Tatsue stood idly, her face pale, and lost her will to keep attacking. Victory was not possible against such a ridiculous opponent -- this monstrous enemy with an unknown identity.

As Tatsue trembled in fear, Mitsuki smiled brilliantly. "It's not over."

She muttered to herself, and pried open the mouth on her stomach. "Karmic retribution, and the angel of retribution; that's Unpleasant Countercurrent's 'persona'."

Mitsuki spoke with a smile, her voice truly seeming as innocent as an angel's.

"Pretty much any religion includes 'judgement on sinners,' -- Karmic retribution, or punishment of humans based on the severity of their crimes. You guys watch closely, history's cities holding the greatest degree of sin, 'Sodom and Gomorrah', were wiped out by Unpleasant Counter-Current's power!"

And instantly, a bullet filled with destructive power shot out from Mitsuki's stomach.

This attack contained all the force from the wind Tatsue created, and its sole purpose was to strike down enemies.

Apparently to protect her, Mitaka rushed over, but he was too late. Tatsue's entire body tensed in preparation for dodging the bullet, but because everything happened too quickly she was unable to move.

Easily reflecting all of Tatsue's power, Unpleasant Counter-Current's attack --

"Bang."

"Huh?"

Brushed past Tatsue, merely lifting her long black hair.

That was all.

Mitsuki made an inane sound. Tatsue, shaking in fear, felt around herself, but she was completely unharmed -- she couldn't even feel any pain.

Tatsue found it strange, and looked at Mitsuki. Mitsuki was hugging herself and seemed to be contemplating.

And then, Mitsuki looked to her backpack -- with a deep sigh, she mumbled, "Seems like it really won't work."

Her expression softened, and she approached Tatsue. Though Tatsue took a few steps back, she was too slow and couldn't help but allow her to get near.

Tatsue had no experience whatsoever being beat up or trampled, and her fear rose. But --

The hand with which Mitsuki reached out was a request for a handshake.

"You refuse?"

Seeming disturbed, Mitsuki gripped Tatsue's hand. She could feel the glove's softness. Tatsue looked at Mitsuki with confusion, and Mitsuki said, "I can only fight against evil."

"Wait, what?"

Tatsue asked, and Mitsuki replied with puffed cheeks. "Basically, I'm Unpleasant Counter-Current -- If my enemy doesn't think 'I want to kill this person', or 'HATE HATE HATE', or "I hate her so much', or 'So disgusting, it's way too disgusting', or other things along those lines, I can't fight. That's my 'persona'."

Mitsuki unhappily turned with a large motion.

And then with a shake of her pigtails, she stared at Tatsue over her shoulder. "Why'd you two only care about protecting each other. Attacks that only have physical force, that only have pure feelings, it's useless for me to regurgitate them. There's nothing I can do, so I won't fight anymore."

"Wait -- Mitsuki?" From her backback came the head's voice.

"What are saying all on your own? If you can't beat them with Unpleasant Counter-Current, you can just eliminate them with your bare hands. With your physical strength it would be easy to take them out. "

"I don't want to do that." Mitsuki murmured, in absolute rejection. "These two don't seem to be Gankyuu or Ultimate Shield; and besides, I just want to be Unpleasant Counter-Current, not Sterilization Disinfection like sis. I can't and don't want to kill people who aren't evil."

And with that pledge, the absurd girl who called herself Unpleasant Counter-Current smiled. "Then, excuse me."

"Wait -- Mitsuki! Stop!"

It seemed that voice was still angrily shouting something, but Mitsuki ran away without listening to it. Mitaka fell into silence, and Tatsue also did not speak.

Once they could no longer see Mitsuki's back -- a bell finally signalled the end of lunch.

"There's a spirit of death living in an abandoned factory on the outskirts of town."

"[[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|Kara,]] what's that idiot Miku talking about now?

"Heehee.

"Three days ago, didn't a factory close down due to recession or something? I don't know which factory it was, but it's said that a spirit of death started living there at one point."

"Oh, that's cool."

"Miku's always bursting with pointless rumors, I like it!"

"You should just die!"

"You i-idiot. Stop dragging me."

"Plus, that spirit of death actually fights for justice. Every night it goes to exerminate the monsters wreaking havoc in town."

"The monsters you're talking about... eh? The one in the rumors lately -- what was it called again?"

"Ah, I think I saw it in the newspaper."

"Right, I heard about it too, it seems a lot of people have been seeing weird beings recently. What a pain, Long-Armed Demon is finally gone, but monsters are coming to kill people in its place. Man, this world is so weird!"

"Don't just ignore me and chat happily!"

"Kara, the idiot got lonely and she's saying disgusting things."

"Why do you have to consult me whenever Miku does something?"

"Hehe."

This silver monster was the embodiment of a blade. It's basic shape was the same as ahuman's, but no one would have confused its body made of blades which cut with every touch for a human.

"Clank, tssss."

The monster walked in the abandoned factory while making a sound like rubbing metal.

What was this factory? Was it a building that had, after being shut down for some reason, become corpse-like and uncared for? The monster was not sure, and it did not care either.

"Clank, tssss."

It may have felt excited, as thick saliva dripped from its outstretched tongue.

There was a wide, covered-up hole in the factory's wall. That person used it as an entrance and lived here.

The monster wanted to kill that person.

"Tssss, clank."

There were unmoving conveyer belts, piles of cardboard boxes, fine machinery with unknown purpose, a workstation that was slightly dirty. Sand and dust accumulated on the ground like snow, and small footprints imprinted on top led further in.

The monster looked inward, and gave a crooked smile.

There were no eyes on its face, only a mouth cluttered with sharp teeth. Its tongue hung outside its mouth, sliding across its face. It walked forward while keeping its body low.

It silenced its footsteps, and held its breath.

"Ggii, huhu."

Yet, it still made excited breathing sounds, and its voice sounded different because of its joy.

There was a wall of cardboard boxes in front of it, and though it couldn't see clearly from its current position, there was something shining deeper in.

[[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|A lamp?]] Or a flashlight? The dim light couldn't sufficiently light up the gloomy factory, but -- it could sense that that person was here.

"Nn --" The monster walked over, and heard a voice. It was like a young boy's, but listening carefully, it could tell that the speaker was actually female. In a guilt-free voice, "Ah, man. This thing's so -- what's the word, novel? [[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|Is it konnyaku or jello?]] Mmm, what a novelty... I need to try eating every once in a while."

She seemed to be eating, what with the clanking of cups and plates and that contemplating voice.

The monster noiselessly approached the voice that kept going "What a novelty", and, standing in front of the wall of cardboard boxes, it raised its blade arms --

It grinned in joy.

"Who is it?" The girl suddenly shouted, noticing its movements. But it was too late.

"Ooohhhh!"

With a giant roar, the monster spun its body and tore down the cardboard wall. It raised its blade arms and swung as it stepped forward, one foot after another. It spun forward, cutting through the cardboard boxes. Right arm, left arm, right leg, left leg.

"Right arm, left arm, right leg, left leg, right arm, left arm, right leg --" Suddenly, from above the monster's head, where pieces of cardboard it had chopped were sent flying, came a voice. "Slicing while spinning -- just like a top."

After hearing that, the monster shook with surprise -- and it slowed down.

"In other words, if your head is grabbed, the rest of your body will follow suit and stop."

With a thump to its head, it was forced to a standstill.

"Once you stop... it's easy to strike you down."

As that voice came from its back, the monster was knocked into the cardboard pieces it had cut up. It stopped with a violent thud on the wall -- and turned to look at the enemy who had struck him from behind.

Still in her kicking position, a girl coldly looked over. "What -- it was a monster."

She had emotionless eyes like the barrel of a gun, and bizzare, wolf-like hair. She wore jeans and a jacket that for some reason had the words "rock'n roll" printed on it.

"Then, let's go." The enemy who had struck the monster -- Gankyuu Eguriko, thus declared.

As Guriko faced the silver monster, she thought of the days after she separated with Rinne and Sakaki.

Time had rapidly flown past Guriko whose thousand-year-old body had long since lost feeling.

Half a year, it had been half a year.

Rinne had been turned into a Meat Doll by Sterilization Disinfection, and Guriko had spent that much time wandering the world, searching in vain for a way to turn her back. Despair started to fill her thoughts, almost driving her mad at times.

But her emperiled sanity was supported by --

The days, though incomparably short compared to her own life, that she spent in happiness with Rinne and Sakaki.

''It's like our time together's all coming back. As long as I succeed, I don't care what I need to do.''

Guriko thus pledged to herself; though weakness was growing within her heart, she continued to press on.

"I thought I could find something just by coming here."

"And then? Did you find what you were looking for, Yono?"

Far away from Kannonsakazaki, it was the road she had long ago walked with companions who had given her their Apples and then disappeared -- Kudan and Kirigirisu. Guriko thought, if she traced her journey with those two who had known so much more than herself, something would come out of it. But, she didn't find anything noteworthy. In the end, she came to the place where she died, where a gloomy man awaited her.

"Zekiguchi Nashinori."

"Hehe. I am honored that you remember."

His black hair was tied intricately, and, standing exceptionally tall, he had eyes resembling a wolf's.

He was a man with both a priest's air of holiness and a beast's fierce aura.

A thousand years ago -- back when Guriko was still called Yono, this man had killed her.

"Zekiguchi... what's going on?" Guriko took out her spoons, and looked at him, her voice shaking.

"Why is there nothing here?"

Guriko shouted, the entire area had nothing. It was a flat wasteland that was difficult to describe. Without even a weed, the barren plain stretched to the horizon.

A millenium ago, Guriko and her adoptive parents lived here with their tribe.

Those natural stone homes that they would surely have [[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Night 1 Questionable translations|shut themselves]] in during the plague.

Even the waterfall from which she had fallen to her death was no longer there.

She had considered that the landscape changed over a thousand years. But even so, no matter how she thought about it, it was impossible for her home from a thousand years ago to disappear without a trace.

"Hehe." Zekuguchi gave an unsuitingly innocent laugh, and calmly spoke to the rattled Guriko.

"This time. You've gained suspicion." For some reason, those unclear words rang in her heart.

"Does my hometown really exist? Was I really picked up by those parents, living in that impoverished tribe? Did I really die falling from that waterfall? Are my memories accurate?"

Facing the cheerfully sneering Zekuguchi, Guriko shouted, "What do you know!"

She rapidly threw her spoon.

"Talk! What do you know about me? If you lie I'll gouge out your eyeballs!" Guriko pointed at the spoon sticking out by Zekiguchi's feet, and glared at him.

"That was my last warning. Now talk!"

"Eyeballs?" Zekiguchi, for the first time, withdrew his smile and put on an unreadable expression.

"I never taught you that, where'd you learn that. Oh well, do as you wish, gouge them out if you so desire."

As he spoke, on his cheeks, his forhead, his chin -- even outside his face, on his neck, his shoulders, and palms, countless eyeballs appeared.

"Wh-what..."

All of his eyes simultaneously looked at Guriko, and Zekiguchi smiled leisurely. "My ability is to transform my body. Well -- that isn't important."

Zekiguchi looked at Guriko with a sincere expression, and said with a deep voice, "If you want to know the truth, then go back to Kannonsakazaki."

Kannonsakazaki, where Sakaki and Rinne lived. The town where Guriko's hope and despair coalesced -- the truth was there?

"What's going on?"

Guriko asked, but Zekiguchi smiled with answering.

In the end, he merely looked at Guriko with kindly eyes. "Investigating the past is useless. In this world, only the present exists."

He said those baffling words, and then disappeared like an evening cloud.

After that Guriko thought it over, suspecting a trap, but in the end she followed Zekiguchi's words.

And after a few weeks, she returned to the town.

"Again --" She quickly noticed the town's unusual atmosphere.

There were too many monsters.

"Monsters."

Monsters -- they normally hid in another dimension, popping in from time to time to eat humans. They were beings only at that level. Their breed was a mess of oddities, and there were many mysteries about them. For example, they did not leave corpses after they died, disappearing into the air instead, and there were many other unclear things.

Because of Guriko's resolution, she would not return to Rinne's place before finding a cure for her. As a result, for the time being, she decided to hide and secretly eliminate monsters that threatened Rinne's safety.

She didn't know why this abnormality with monsters was occuring.

But, she felt, unless she found and eradicated its source, she could not set out on another journey with peace of mind.

"Clack, clack, tsss."

The silver monster made a shuddering noise that she couldn't tell was laughter or scraping metal as it stood there. Its entire body was inorganic, save for the red tongue hanging outside that seemed particularly disgusting. Guriko frowned, and took out a spoon to throw at it.

"Clank."

The monster didn't even budge, as the stainless steel spoon bounced off of its solid body and fell to the ground.

"Speaking of which, this guy doesn't also doesn't have eyeballs. How troublesome."

Guriko mumbled to herself, watching the smiling monster that was unmoving save for its tongue. Guriko was only armed with spoons. Actually, she had a last resort, but that would squander her Apple's power, so she couldn't overuse it. Plus, a few months back she had lost an arm to the enemy known called Sterilization Disinfection, and though her immortality provided her with regenerative ability, it did not seem able to restore that arm which had been completely dissolved.

Then, how should she proceed.

"The most vile crime that can be committed -- what do you think it is?"

Suddenly, a voice came from somewhere. It clearly sounded like an old person's raspy voice, yet somehow it resounded within her mind.

Who was talking?

It wasn't the monster in front of her. As she thought that the voice seemed to come from the abandoned factory's ceiling, it suddenly came again, this time from behind her.

"Murder? That's definitely heinous. Corruption? Newspapers target that all the time. Imprisonment? Suddenly taking away a person's freedom, that's excessive without a doubt. Deceit? Even elementary schoolers know not to lie."

The voice seemed like it was playing with Guriko who had raised her guard, as it unhurriedly continued.

"Then. After make a list of crimes like this. It can be seen that a single factor links them all together. That is, to take something from others without heed to rules or principles -- that is crime. The act of breaking the law for self gain is known as crime, and one will be punished as a result."

"Who are you?" Guriko shouted, aiming spoons in every direction in preparation for striking. But, it seemed -- the only ones in the factory were herself and the monster in front of her. Could it have been something like a pre-prepared recording? Or was this monster in front of her speaking with some mysterious method?

"Taking money, taking lives, taking hearts, taking trust. Stealing, nothing but stealing. What are crimes like that called? What is the ultimate crime that covers every type of crime? Hmm, you should know -- '[[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Berobouchou|Berobouchou]]'?"

The monster that was called Berobouchou spat out its red tongue, and while laughing it replied to the voice: "Robbery!"

Demonstrating a human-like behavior, Berobouchou clankily rubbed its hands together and sliced cardboard boxes apart for no special reason.

"That's right. It's robbery. You over there. This monster's original name was Shigure Benimaru, and he committed the ultimate crime, robbery, for a living. He took lives, he took money, he took jewels, and he took dignity. The evil Ultimate Shield liked that about him, and changed him into this."

With a tone like that of a movie announcer, the voice spoke to the surprised Guriko.

"Ahh, no response. Is this person like your siblings?

These unintelligible words made Guriko's expression change.

"What are you talking about. Who are you! Just how much do you know about me?"

"Me? I am Melodia Noise. I do savior-esque things."

It gave its name as if making a joking, but each word came from a different place, and like before it was impossible to locate.

"Ahh. You do not be so worried about me. I am a timid coward who cries a lot, and that is why I am called [[Mushi_Vol3TLnotes#Melodia Noise|Melodia Noise]]."

In that string of unexplained terms, Guriko recognized a few words. That is -- a few months back, Sterilization Disinfection had said those words. God Insect Emperor, Unpleasant Countercurrent, Single Room, Ultimate Shield, Poison, Melodia Noise.

"Are you the same as Sterilization Disinfection?" Guriko thought of that fearsome woman, and held onto her shoulder to which no arm was attached.

Melodia Noise unhappily raised her voice. "I'm terribly sorry. The Seven Great Fragments are all separate individuals. It would bother me if you considered us all companions. But, you seem like you do not know anything, so I cannot blame you for misunderstanding."

The voice concentrated on this point, and gently said, " Mmm, is there anything you wish to know?"

Guriko's expression fell from her face.

''There are things I want to know that I would trade for with my life. I want to know how to cure Rinne who turned into a Meat Doll because of me --''

Possibly realizing something from Guriko's face, Melodia Noise cheerfully spoke.

"There's something you want to know, correct? You should be fine with me telling you, right? I, the savior Melodia Noise, show the way to lost lambs. Guiding toward the proper path -- that is my 'persona'... and this."

After thinking for a short while, the voice muttered, like a demon, "One piece, or five pieces."

Just as Guriko scrunched her eyebrows, Melodia Noise coldly stated her request.

"So, what I was saying was -- I will tell you what you wish to know. So you must pay an appropriate price... this, it'll take five of the small fragments you call 'Apples'. Or, one of the Great Fragments that act as God's personas."

The savior asking for equal payment calmly said, "Sterilization Disinfection's goal seems to be collecting all of the pieces, and restore 'God's existence. This goal is quite different from mine or Ultimate Shield's. After all, no matter how many fragments you collect it will not be enough. Why? I am currently the omniscient Melodia Noise. So as long as you pay with fragments, I can answer virtually any question you have."

Faced with this offer, Guriko thought for a while. Melodia Noise might have been the same kind of being as Sterilization Disinfection, and getting favors from such a being made her feel uncomfortable; she even felt a sense of danger. But Guriko had made an oath, that even if she had to sell her soul to the Devil -- she would let Rinne recover.

"Fine." Determination shone in Guriko's eyes as she lifted her head and faced the emptiness. "I don't know what you're trying, but as long as you get the information I want I'm fine with it. Five Apples, or a Great Fragment. I currently do not have that, so I will go collect them."

"Mmm. I have heard that you have fought with Sterilization Disinfection. Her heart that you took, that is a Great Fragment!"

Hearing Melodia Noise's surprised voice, Guriko coldly sneered.

"That's your goal? Too bad, I help you there. I lost that thing long ago, back when I killed that person.”

“Oh –” The intriguing voice reverberated throughout the abandoned factory.

“That’s fine. It’s fine as long as I receive the fragments. I await your struggles… Berobouchou, let’s go back.”

“Gyah!”

With a roar, Berobouchou charged at Guriko like a wild animal. Though Guriko responded quickly, some of her hair was sliced off.

“Ugh, what are you doing!”

Guriko pulled out her spoons and prepared to fight, yet Melodia Noise’s admonishment stayed her actions.

“Hey! Berobouchou, do not move without permission!”

“Clank, tssss, Katsssss.”

Berobouchou made a metallic rubbing noise as it wriggled its tongue, laughing as it jumped around in provocation.And then, it turned and turned in a destructive tornado, bringing ruin to the factory’s equipment.

“Aagh, this person’s unstable right now. Losing Long-Armed Demon was indeed a big loss. She was easy to order around… That vile Ultimate Shield, dumping on me such a troublesome subordinate!”

“!”

Experiencing some force, Berobouchou shrieked “Wuah?” like a whipped dog and ran out of the factory as if fearing something. Apparently Melodia Noise did something – but what exactly was done was unclear. Guriko didn’t see anything, but her hair was blown by wind.

Melodia Noise seemed to have calmed down for the time being, and continued speaking with the same tone as before. “Then – Gankyuu Eguriko, I await your good news. I am the all-knowing sensory organ – if you need anything you may call for me.”

Upon finishing that statement, the echoes of Melodia Noise’s voice disappeared.

Guriko subconsciously gazed over the wrecked factory for a while, and then sighed and stared at the spoon she tightly held. “Steal Apples from people – and then find out the means of curing Rinne through a deal with Melodia Noise.”

She muttered to herself, and feebly lowered her eyes.

“This isn’t wrong, is it? I didn’t make another mistake, did I? Rinne, Sakaki – mom, dad.”

She thought of those important people who were not by her side, and whom she may never see again.

Tear out the heart, or take after dealing pain – those were the primary methods of taking Apples. Yet Guriko could not imagine herself doing such things to humans she did not know.

But…

“I’ve already decided to become a monster.”

Guriko, alone, quietly murmured.

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| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol3_Ch2|Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love ]]
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</noinclude>

Mushi:Vol2 Close

2012-02-11T23:20:35Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Close: Blood-Stained Night''' ==

Nagumo Ame, sixteen years old, Kannonsakazaki Private High School class 1-8, clever, quiet; she wasn't particularly afraid of strangers, and often listened to others speak while giggling. She was about average in terms of studies and athletics, didn't have any particularly noteworthy traits, and as if she floated in and out of the classroom people frequently overlooked her existence.

What made her special was--

"Hehe."

Even though it wasn't really funny, she still forced out a laugh.

"Haha."

Ame-chan laughed unnaturally as she walked with her friends. Five or six uniformed students walking together in a group wasn't particularly rare, and in this inconspicuous group, Ame-chan's existence seemed even less solid as she listened to her classmates talk, looking happy.

"I heard Sakaki-sensei disappeared."

"Usagawa Rinne also disappeared, right? Whoa, doesn't that sound like they eloped? After all, it's ''that'' teacher, feels like he'd say '[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|Finally]]'."

"But Gankyuu's gone, too."

"Oh, Gankyuu, have any of you ever talked to her? I'm way too scared, I just don't dare get close to her."

"Ah. Yeah, that happens. But she's actually mostly normal despite being a bit strange."

"After all, it's the rumored transfer student."

Ahaha, a fit of laughter.

It had been about three days since Sakaki Guryuu, Usagawa Rinne, and Gankyuu Eguriko suddenly disappeared. For the ever-diligent Rinne to miss school with no reason, and furthermore for Sakaki and Guriko to also be skipping was truly too strange, so the teachers also felt perplexed. But, the school's teachers were all like Sakaki's servants, so the chaos probably resulted from the master's disappearance.

"Hehe."

Ame chuckled a bit, and without letting her nonsense-spewing friends notice anything weird said,

"Hospital."

Just a noun, and the friends surrounding her probably didn't even know who said it. Even so, those girls who loved to gossiped were influenced by the word, and started chatting.

"Right, right, it also seems that something terrible happened at the hospital--"

"Ah, that thing where all the patients at the hospital disappeared? Details please, I don't know know too much about it."

"My mom also disappeared."

"Ah, sorry, Nagisa-chan."

"It's fine."

"But they disappeared at the same time as Sakaki-sensei? Maybe Sakaki-sensei went to the hospital too, and then some kidnapper took him away. Aren't there weird rumors?"

"What do you mean, some kind of ridiculous kidnapper, really, you..." "Miku, you're really stupid, I like it."

"Thanks, wait... do you want to be smacked?"

"Sorry."

"Please don't hit me using an idiot's strength."

"What a weird rumor."

Suddenly, a voice redirected the conversation back on topic.

While laughing "Hehe, Ame stealthy added to the girls' conversation.

[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|The girl]] always called "Idiot" by her friends had a satisfied look on her face.

"That's true. After the disappearing incident, there have been all sorts of weird rumors circulating the hospital. I heard that if your even near the hospital you can hear a moaning, female voice -- Though no one knows who it is."

"You... where'd you hear something like that?"

"Miku, your info's always interesting. Well, let's not worry about that, is that it? I'd like some more details."

"Eh? Nagisa-chan's interesting in this kind of weird talk?"

"That's not it, I just thought I might find some clues about my mom."

"Sorry, Nagisa-chan."

"It's fine."

"Let's get back on topic, Kae, you pressed too many buttons you shouldn't have."

"Basically, it's a weird rumor, but there's actually only this much. It should be behind the hospital. Well, the hospital's sealed off now, so we can't go."

"You went?"

"Miku's really an idiot."

"Because she cares about stuff like this. Well, it seems that there've been a lot of annoying things lately -- there was Long-Armed Demon, and there was this incident, ah, how annoying... Eh? Ame-chan?"

A girl looked all around her, but could fine no trace of Nagumo Ame.

"Did she go back? Although, I don't know where she lives."

"Whatever, let's call out to her and then go."

"Then again, Ame's sort of like... how should I say it, it's like it's comforting just to have her there."

"Sort of like those 'My lucky doll' things?"

"I'm the lucky one! Me, me I tell ya!"

"Shut up, stupid Miku."

Confirming it was at the hospital was enough, the next part was simple. There was no need to wait for nightfall, the policeman guarding it were human, and the people working in the hospital were likely the Sakaki Organization's men, there only to handle the aftermath. So, the back of the building where the kidnapping incidents occured should be empty.

After going up the mountain behind the hospital and climbing the tallest tree there, the hospital that had been the site of the battle two days earlier could be seen. There were about six people working outside -- thankfully, none of them were behind the building, and the rest of the workers were probably inside.

Behind the building, there was an easily-traversible road, and the person who heard the female voice was probably walking through there. Nagumo Ame considered going in through there, but since people passed by it would be dangerous.

It's not like being seen would be incovenient, it's just that she wanted to do things peacefully if possible.

"Let's fly."

Ame muttered to herself, and jumped from the top of the tree without hesitation. She instantly grew dragon wings, which pierced through her uniform. Gliding high up in the air, she wasn't seen by anyone as she landed behind the hospital, and then her wings retracted back into her body.

"It's been so long since I last flew, mmm, that went pretty smoothly."

She talked to herself, and looked around her. The Sakaki Organization's men and the police weren't exactly idiots; they should have investigated this place, though normal people wouldn't be able to see any strange beings. They would only be able to hear them. It was an extremely feeble, seemingly imaginary sound.

After the incident, Nagumo Ame checked whether Sakaki Guryuu, Usagawa Rinne, and Gankyuu Eguriko were alive or dead.

The three of them took some random belongings and were living in Usagawa Rinne's apartment.

Then -- in this hospital that became a graveyard, the thing that remained and cried in anguish was --

Ame used her vision, that unlike a normal person's could detect monsters not part of this world, to check.

Blood, a large amount of blood.

It was spilled over the hospital's outer wall, and flowed through the ground leaving crimson traces.

In the middle of it all, was a woman who lay down and made pained groans.

"Sterilization Disinfection."

Hearing the voice, the woman abruptly looked over.

Her skin and pure white hair were dirtied with mud and blood, and possibly having trouble breathing, even her mask was off. Blood spilling from her chest, and sweating constantly, this woman was called Sterilization Disinfection.

She looked at Ame as if asking, "You can see me?" Ame laughingly said, "[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|So]] the largest fragment of the heart has been pierced. The sensory organ is damaged, and the soul is collapsing -- In fact, you already can't use power on the level of the seven great fragments. Hehe, but... before that you still took away Usagawa Rinne's soul, but it was because at that point the heart -- the sensory organ was already filled, so had no choice but to construct a new sensory organ somewhere else, and also because you hid a fragment and restored a life -- That's right, isn't it? But the emergency vessel had a serious reaction, right?"

Ame talked without pause, and then sneered. Mina gritted her teeth while seeming confused, looking at the smile face that seemed to be saying, "Your abilities are only at this level?"

She probably wanted to hide here for a while, and wait for her body to restore to a level suitable for the sensory organ. However --

''Everything ends today, who told you to get found by me.''

"Heeheeheehee," Ame laughed.

"Who are you?"

Sterilization Disinfection struggled to force her voice out.

Smiling, Ame placed her hand on her face.

"You don't know? Sterilization Disinfection, you've become weak. I'd heard that you used up all your power in that [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|incident]], but you can't even recognize me? What, if you're down to this level there wasn't a need to be cautious and run off to antagonize Gankyuu Eguriko. Whatever, I only just realized that." Her hand moved down, and her eyes, nose, mouth, and eyebrows all disappeared. Sterilization Disinfection stiffened. Ame who did not have a mouth laughed joyfully, "Heehee. Right, it's me, not anyone else, it's me."

"Ultimate Shield -- You traitor..."

She stood up with lines of blood running over her eyes, shakily glaring at Ame. This body already could not fight, this was something that should have been clearer to Sterilization Disinfection than to anyone else.

Even so, she absolutely must kill Ultimate Shield.

"I thought it was annoying, since only your 'Genocide Justice' and Single Room are dangerous to me. Therefore, I will kill both of you to become a truly weakness-free, shield unparalleled in strength."

Ame stretched out her arms, and said with happiness from the bottom of her heart, "And then I will rule this world. With an existence like this, but still not putting the goal first, now that's idiotic. Hey, my sisters, won't you die for me? Since it's so painful, just let yourselves dissolve and die! You'll never be able to restore the complete body anyways, it's useless, isn't it meaningless to preserve such a life?"

"What kind of joke is this!?"

Sterilization Disinfection clenched her fists, and even though she had already lost the ability to form her spray cay, she still slowly reachered her arm down.

How scary -- Ultimate Shield laughed, and her spread out arms --

Took the form of giant sickles.

"You also regret it, right? Because if you die here, you won't be able to the see my wonderful new world."

"Stop thinking you're God, you blemish!"

That word --

Was one she frequently used to mock herself with in the past.

Ame sneered, and used her sickle arms to cut her down.

Neat and swift.

Saibara Mina's head flew.

Because Sakaki refused to trust the moving company, and instead chose to inconspicuously move into Rinne's home, Guriko helped out until it was dark.

Deep in the night when even the plants slept. Guriko carefully avoided making noise as she exited Rinne's room.

She carried no bags.

She had no destination.

She just felt she couldn't stay at this place.

That was the choice the man with wolf-like eyes had forcefully pointed out to her before her fight with Sterilization Disinfection. To live as a human, or to live as a monster? She who chose to live as a human, received nothing but painful defeat.

That's enough.

That's enough, Guriko thought.

"Sakaki's protecting Rinne's body, so I'm not needed here."

Letting her wolf-like hair that could never blend into the the night flutter in the air, the single-armed girl wearing black looked back at the apartment.

Along with the almost two months of happy laughter with Rinne in this apartment, there were the events from a thousand years ago that she should have forgotten.

''Shining brightly, and ever so lovable, I liked [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|her]].

''So, Rinne.

''I must return her kindness."

''Even if this body is broken to pieces."

Throwing off her reluctance to leave, Guriko turned her back to the building with her head lowered. The right arm that was completely annihilated by Sterilization Disinfection could not be returned even with an Apple's power. For all her numerous years -- those were maddengly long years -- she had lived using both her arms, and with only one left she could not balance herself well.

Rinne and Sakaki were the same. Now, without Rinne, if she stayed here she didn't think she could live properly.

She might as well be alone, without causing problems for others she should just live in the darkness.

"Are you trying to become a monster again?"

Gazing at the uneven road's surface, Guriko felt something cold in the back of her head, was it a gun?

Her intuition told her that, and she silently nodded without turning around.

"Then, for the safety of humans like me, I need to kill the monster in front of me."

The voice held killing intent, and that gun was definitely loaded.

Standing behind her was Sakaki Guryuu, no problem -- Guriko coldly smiled.

"Shoot if you want, kill if you want. Sakaki, that's actually what I want."

Guriko lowered her head, looking at her barely existing single arm.

"I've killed a lot of people, and I've taken so much, the amount's so large that this single life can't take enough punishment. Will you free me from that burden? Are you that kind a man?"

He did not respond to the question.

There was already nothing more to say.

So Guriko closed her eyes and said something insignificant.

"You've gotten good at hiding your presence, compared to when I first met you you're completely unrecognizable; have you been constantly working hard? You must have always been like this. It's not some prodigious talent, or some inherited gene, just constant, hard work that got you to your strength today. You... will definitely become stronger, much stronger than me."

"I--"

Finally, a response.

That voice was filled with sorrow. For that superhuman, such a weak voice was exceedingly rare.

"Am very weak."

"Yup, you're really weak, even though you'll become strong you're still weak right now. I'm also very weak, so I couldn't protect Rinne."

Guriko naturally turned her head, and the gun that had not moved was pointed at her forehead. Stars danced in the night sky, and Sakaki in front of her was covered in hazy shadow while insect cries could be clearly heard from all directions.

She merely looked Sakaki straight in the eyes.

"So Sakaki, become strong! Help me protect Rinne."

Guriko reached into her pocket, and took out a spoon for Sakaki to see. It was an expensive, valuable spoon that Hino and Kio had bought for her. This piece of tableware covered with decorations only reflected the night, dark and faint.

"Hino and Kio -- " She looked at the spoon, and continued, "Maybe they were actually Sterilization Disinfection's Meat Dolls, maybe their real personalities had already completely disintegrated, but they didn't kill me, and that time they even saved me. Plus, Kio and Hino both turned back into humans as they were dying. Meat Dolls, those things must have some kind of secret. Perhaps Rinne will return to how she was before, becoming the Rinne that we love."

The moon that was previously covered by clouds appeared and lit up Sakaki's expression. It was one that majestically shined with spirit, without the slightest weakness.

"I want to search for a way."

She gripped her spoon, and said to Sakaki's face, "Sakaki, you said that to me in the hospital, didn't you? You gave hope to the me who had given up on everything, didn't you? Rinne hasn't died yet, so, Sakaki, help me protect her. Though I don't know how long it will take, I will without doubt find a way to return Rinne to how she was and then come back."

To return Rinne to how she was before.

To bring back the everyday life that Long-Armed Demon and Sterilization Disinfection destroyed.

"And then, let's go to school together, with the three of us."

This was Guriko's resolution. At first she only wanted to escape from this human world with nothing but pain, but now it was different. During the fight with Sterilization Disinfection Sakaki had embraced, and then she felt with even greater conviction that she did not wish to separate from them.

So, for the sake of returning to that period of happiness Guriko would go on a journey. She wouldn't completely revert into a monster, she only needed to search for a way to recover Rinne by herself.

That was something that definitely could not be achieved while staying here to protect Rinne. She would need to go to the outside world, or into an even darker world where Mushi and monsters swarmed in order to find it.

Before she met Rinne, that had been Guriko's world.

Just a return to life two months ago. There would be a day, she would definitely meet Rinne and Sakaki again.

*Creak* The door opened.

Rinne stood there. She who had become a Meat Doll, showed eyes twinkling with firm determination, and sped over to Sakaki who was pointing a gun at Guriko.

"You can't."

Naive and innocent, it was a voice like that of a young child.

"Fight."

That appearance of hers, that expression as she spoke earnestly for some reason.

Sakaki and Guriko simultaneously loosened up, and their expressions became gentle.

"I apologize. Aah, Your Majesty, do not worry, we weren't fighting."

"Right. This guy pointed a gun at me all on his, it's not a fight, it's a one-sided assault."

"You can't, Sensei."

Rinne truly believed that, with hands at her waist while she stuck out her chest, her face completely serious as she stared at Sakaki. There was a time when she made that expression whenever Guriko and Sakaki fought. Right, since it was like this, definitely --

"You must communicate properly!"

After making a slightly angry face, she should scrunch her eyebrows, and not knowing what to do, return to a kind, tender face.

Seeing her like this, Sakaki couldn't hold back his tears. A tear flowed down the cheek of his handsome face.

Guriko forced out an exaggerated laugh, "Haha, Sakaki you idiot, you still cry at that age, how shameful."

"What? Huh, why am I crying? And, Guriko."

Sakaki looked over with a face of incredulity, and said in a low voice, "Why are you also crying?"

Guriko brought up her hand to feel her cheek, and noticed that there was a warm liquid. Tears, these were -- tears, as she realized that, she felt that she couldn't stop --

Guriko silently weeped, and then cried out in frustration. Sakaki was quiet, yet it seemed that his tears could not stop either, and he continued to incredulously tilt his head.

In a rather remote place in Japan, there was a town called Kannonsakazaki. In it lived a girl called Usagawa Rinne. That girl didn't really stand out in anything; normal people like her could be found anywhere, and she just happened to be decent at cooking.

Yet she completely changed the standardized life of Sakaki.

She saved a monster who had been swallowed by darkness for a millenium.

Even though she became a Meat Doll, Rinne would never change, she would like always look hurt whenever Sakaki and Guriko argued with each other, with an expression showing that she hated seeing their tears.

Rinne calmly pulled the two next to her, embracing them; she was extremely weak, and she didn't feel real compared to before, but Sakaki and Guriko couldn't resist as they were pulled to her thin body.

"Don't worry."

Rinne quietly spoke. "Don't worry. Don't worry."

She was also crying as she said that. And so, three people cried together, feeling each others' warmth under the dark, frigid night.

One was the heir to an enormous corporation, a man who had always walked on a pre-programmed route.

One could not find a reason to live, a girl who had thrown herself into the sea.

One gouged out eyeballs, a girl who lived in the darkness as a monster.

The three met by chance, definitely only by chance. In this world where God had broken into fragments, perhaps the things known as miracles had long ceased to exist.

But, Sakaki pledged to always protect Rinne.

Guriko would search for a way to recover Rinne.

And Rinne, would embrace the two of them like this.

So there's no need to worry. Rinne's words were right, though she didn't have anything to base it on, Guriko felt she didn't have to worry.

The night was about to end, and they needed to wake from this nightmare. Because after experiencing the blackest, darkest, desperation, people should be able to hope for a happier future..

<noinclude>
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| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch5|Final Night: Start of Disinfection ]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_AN|Author's Notes ]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Mushi:Vol2 Ch1

2012-02-05T06:54:22Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Night 1: A Series of Misfortune''' ==

<pre>From ★ Usarin
To ★ Sensei
Subject ★ Edict
Body ★ Hello——this is Usarin. Did you think I’d say that? You weirdo, go die! So where are you strolling around now? With your
personality you should’ve already left school to come see Rinne. So we didn’t contact you. Then—we ended up waiting until noon! I
didn’t think you were this half-hearted with your love. You keep proclaiming your love for her. Is that just something you say?
Whatever. Rinne has me, Guriko, to comfort her. You can die somewhere in the street.</pre>

<pre>From ★ Sensei
To ★ Usarin-kakka
Subject ★ Re: Edict
Body ★ Hey—what makes you think you can just use Her Majesty's cell phone like that. No matter how you look at it, it’s best if you
just died. Your harassment will someday give me a heart attack. Stop using her cell phone. Cell phones record phone numbers. So
caller ID identifies that phone as “Usarin”. This crap you’re pulling will make me think Her Majesty suddenly changed. On another note,
since when did you know how to use a cell phone?</pre>

<pre>From ★ Usarin
To ★ Sensei
Subject ★ From Gankyuu Eguriko
Body ★ So much talk. Look. I wrote my name. Does that satisfy your demands? Go die now. Though it’s a bit too much talk, where
are you right now, Sakaki? Rinne’s friend died so she’s depressed. How can you not be at her side at a time like this? There’s
more. You small, unworthy person. I’ve lived fifty times longer than you. Our level of experience can’t be compared. I can learn
something like cell phone operation in an instant. Don’t underestimate me!</pre>

<pre>From ★ Sensei
To ★ Usarin-kakka
Subject ★ Re: From Gankyuu Eguriko
Body ★ Any grade-schooler can learn something like using a cell phone. Ah——my bad, wait a minute. You should know that as soon
as I learned about Her Majesty’s condition I came running over. But even before I arrive, you take what little you know and form conjectures
about me. You idiot.</pre>

<pre>From ★ Usarin
To ★ Sensei
Subject ★ Re: Re: From Gankyuu Eguriko
Body ★ …You're seriously infuriating. Whatever. Just get over here quickly. If you’re slow, I’ll gouge out your eyeballs.</pre>

“…”

The handsome man with golden hair and blue eyes——Sakaki Guryuu, closed his cell phone with a “Thap”. He sighed deeply. This man, humanity’s pinnacle of intelligence, financial resources, appearance and athletic ability, was Usagawa Rinne’s lover as well as her Japanese History teacher at Kannonsakazaki High School.

A year earlier, Sakaki fell in love with Rinne due to a certain incident, and abandoned the giant company controlling Japan from the shadows——the Sakaki Organization. He had forsaken his position as its heir, as well as all his higher education, and became a high school teacher all in order to stay by Usagawa Rinne’s side. He felt that she was the only worthwhile existence in his life. That was the man named Sakaki Guryuu.

Sakaki, unhappiness dominating his face, surveyed his surroundings while watching all four sides surrounding him. People dressed in black were blatantly displaying illegal firearms.

“You see, one of my dear students has threatened me with eyeball gouging. She can easily carry out her threat, so you guys can get lost! I’d like to reject that eyeball gouging——if I don’t hurry to Her Majesty’s home, I’ll lose these blue eyes I inherited from my mother!”

Rinne was absent from school that day. As soon as Sakaki knew this, he immediately stopped his class and ditched the staff meeting to go see her, but he was ambushed. It was around eight o’clock when he rushed out of class, and math shows that he had been fighting for four hours. He kicked aside some of the black-suit flock, but was immediately surrounded again. Fighting them down one by one didn’t tire him out, but it started to frustrate him.

Rinne, he thought of Usagawa Rinne.

The one who gave Sakaki’s life meaning, the most important person in the world, was currently suffering. Yet these people in black suits obstructed his path, which implied suicidal tendencies——but who exactly were these enemies? If this continued blood would probably start to spill.

“Are you ‘Mushi’?”

No response.

“Mushi”, were the mysterious beings searching for the “Apples”——also called “Apples of Eden”, the forbidden fruit which allowed humans who ate them to become immortal——and they attacked humans to do so. Their true objectives remained a riddle, though someone who called himself Snake described them as beings similar to angels or demons.

When Sakaki fought against Snake the previous month, he happened to eat an Apple, and had since met multiple “Mushi” seeking to kill him. Thus, he assumed that this incident was the same, but——

If they were “Mushi”, they should have unhesitatingly tried to kill him as fast as possible. But these black-suited people surrounding him showed no sign of using their guns. The tell-tale sign of the “Mushi”, eyes that shone with red light, could not be verified due to concealment by sunglasses.

“Even when there are guns pointed at you, that cell phone still takes priority, brother?”

Suddenly, he heard a female voice that tried to hide mediocrity with an air of elegance. That was a familiar voice——Sakaki’s patience ended as he turned to the source.

Behind the still wall of black-suited men, a girl stood.

“People that I, the [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes# Black Dragon | Black Dragon]], can stand the least are people like you who act as though everything lacked difficulty.”

From her black dress that was completely incongruous with this street in a small, rural town to the ribbon on her head, all of her clothes were black. Aside from her skin, teeth and the whites of her eyes, it was as if her entire body was buried under black. She was one of the backup step-siblings prepared in case something happened to Sakaki.

"Kuroki -- Tatsue? Sakaki mumbled her name as he put his cell phone in his pocket and looked at the black-suited men surrounding him. "So, you're Sakaki Organization's men. How pointless. Bothering me is a waste of time. Hey -- I've already memorized your faces. Since you've pointed guns at the heir to the Sakaki Organization and committed the crime of preventing him from going to his destination, you'll all be thrown out into the street."

"Brother, you are still ignoring me?" Tatsue nervously raised her eyebrows as she spoke unhappily, holding onto a scarlet teddy bear that added an alien color to her monochrome look.

Should we say she was still too cautious, or is it more accurate to say that she was simply too petty?

Sakaki shifted his sight away from the black-suited men who didn't know what to do as they lowered their guns, and looked toward his step-sister. "You’re just a spare part, what did you come find me for? Back to the main topic, it's been a long time, Tatsue. How many years has it been? Nine? You've grown so much. Last time I saw you, you were still crying 'I didn't wet the bed! I didn't!' Ah, good times."

"D-d-do not speak of that!" Tatsue's face turned red. She waved her arms at the whispering black-suited men in front of her as she said this while on the verge of tears, "It's because you're so arrogant and ill-hearted that I cannot stand you."

"Oh, and there's that pretentious speech pattern you like to use. Don't talk like that, you seem even more pathetic. In fact--"

Sakaki silently watched Tatsue. No, more accurately, he watched the scarlet teddy bear she held. It was something that could be bought anywhere, yet impossible to sell. Rather than looking cute, it horrified people with a blood-stained appearance that made it useless for consolation --

"Father." Sakaki mumbled, crossing his arms as he sternly said, "You're communicating with us like that again. How distrusting of your own son."

"Eh?"

The surprised one was Tatsue. She was frightened enough to almost drop the teddy bear, and quickly tried to steady herself. As cold sweat ran down her face, her cute bluffing expression completely disappeared.

"F-f-father?"

It was the current president of the organization with more power than a nation -- Sakaki Ganhou. He likely feared assassination, as not even Sakaki had seen his face before. This led to Sakaki thinking: Is my father even alive?

"......"

The scarlet teddy bear casually made a sound.

"Hey, Gu-kun, it's dad."

A clear, disarming synthetic voice came from the stuffed animal with a unique echo. Then again, with this type of voice, the speaker generally wants to avoid allowing his actual voice to be recognized. Sakaki nodded, and said casually, "What do you mean 'It's dad', you idiot father. What do you want? I need to visit Her Majesty. If it's just some pointless little thing, then just leave!"

"B-b-brother! How could you speak like that to father!"

Sakaki paid no attention to Tatsue's noisy shouting. No matter whose voice came out of it, that thing was just a stuffed animal that deserved no respect. Besides, Sakaki never respected his father who forcefully molded him into an ideal heir. With study and training that was practically infused inro his blood, this person destroyed Sakaki's childhood.

Without moving, the teddy bear laughed in a poorly synthesized voice.

"Hahaha! You're still so frightening. Dad's heartbroken! Mmm -- actually, there isn't really anything too serious. I just wanted to see my cute son that I haven't seen in a long time."

"Good bye."

Sakaki ignored Tatsue and the teddy bear and walked toward his destination. Running to Rinne's home from there would take about ten minutes. So much time had been wasted!

"Wait up, wait up, wait up, Gu-kun! Tatsue, chase him!"

The teddy bear said so nonchalantly, and Tatsue desperately followed its orders with a pale face. Too bad, it seems like this time she would only be used as a convenient transporter.

As Sakaki thought this, the teddy bear issued a cruel order.

"Ah, what a pain. He's trying to escape. Alright, you goons, shoot him in the thigh! Then he'll stop, right? Don't worry, even if Gu-kun gets injured he'll quickly recover, so there's no need to hold back."

Those words...

Sakaki suddenly turned around, and looked angrily at the teddy bear held by the pale-faced Tatsue.

"Father, where did you find out about that?"

His injuries would recover. In other words, he knew that Sakaki ate an Apple and became immortal, with the superhuman ability to resurrect.

Speaking of that, a monster had wrecked the town a month earlier, and after that Sakaki had asked his father to pretend that nothing happened. The incident was reported to be a result of an earthquake, and eyewitnesses were forced to keep silent. Needless to say, the hidden truth should have gone straight to the man behind the cover-up----the father.

However, only Sakaki, Rinne, and of course the "Mushi" and Snake as well as Guriko should have known about the Apples.

"Who do you think I am?" The teddy bear naturally continued, "Of course I know more than you do! I just don't tell you because I don't want you to sink deeper into this business. All in all there's nothing worthwhile there, and the knowledge would just be disgusting. Do you understand?"

He used an unnerving, emotionless voice to talk to the silent Sakaki.

"Last month." The teddy bear's words still sounded natural. "An immensely large monster----a Dream World Beast rampaged, right? Who do you think killed it? Or... How was it killed? Do you really think a few bombs dropped from a plane would be enough?"

That voice mocked Sakaki rather than questioned him.

"Whether with explosives or firebombs, did you think it was possible to soundlessly kill such a large monster? Not only that----to exterminate a monster with extraordinary life force gained from an Apple, that can easily cause so much destruction? Can a weapon that incredible really exist?"

That was a joyful and delighted voice.

"If you just think about last month's events, so many things don't make sense. Gu-kun, you didn't know anything. You misunderstood the whole situation despite having overcome that conflict. The Apple, the clock, the 'Mushi'! You barely understand any of them! ----But you don't need to understand them either since you're my cute, adorable successor."

These words pierced Sakaki's ears and made his eyebrows furl.

After overcoming that and passing through a period of peace, he finally felt secure----but now, it all became undone. What was going on? He felt horribly uneasy. His doubts suddenly layered up, and he began to feel disgusted by the Apple taking root in his soul.

"You, what are you trying to get at?"

"Ah? I'm just worrying like any normal father over his child's life. Basically, I want you to inherit the Sakaki Organization like a good boy while I do my best to keep you away from danger. Watch out for the names Melodia Noise, Poison, Ultimate Shield, Unpleasant Counter-Current, Single Room, God Insect Emperor, and Sterilization Disinfection. It's just as their names imply. If you involve yourself with them you die.”

Mindlessly saying these unclear words, the head of the Sakaki Organization----Sakaki Ganhou laughed gloomily with his synthesized voice. Tatsue felt very afraid and looked at the stuffed animal in alarm.

Mushi, eyeball, and a teddy bear.

Not showing up in the previous month's events, hiding in the darkness, the third person who stayed out of sight while acting----he was here. Sakaki Ganhou: what did he know, what did he want? The horrifying teddy bear merely spoke cheerfully to Sakaki, yet it seemed accusing.

"Mmm, I need to pick something to say. Since I'm pretty busy, I only wanted to say this one thing, but it got dragged out so long. Ah, that's right, I almost forgot."

The teddy bear suddenly moved and clapped its hands. It probably carried this function. "Waah!" Tatsue made a strange sound.

"Usagawa Rinne is your girlfriend right? These few months----I sent people to thoroughly investigate her. Honestly, I don't know why you like her so much."

Its head tilted.

Sakaki's expression turned cold as he glared at the teddy bear.

"Father, since you insulted Her Majesty, you will pay with your life!"

"How frightening. How frightening. See, even Tatsue's scared.”

Actually, Tatsue was afraid of her father.

"Whatever, let's move on. Me, I don't care who you take as your wife. Your mother actually came from a slum in America, and besides, the organization isn't run by wives. But, as it is now, no one would stay quiet. They'd say the Sakaki family's situation is questionable since the head's wife has questionable status."

"Just eliminate those fools, father!"

"No way, that would be too troublesome. Since most of those idiots are famous, I'd have a lot of problems dealing with the aftermath!"

Hearing these negative words, Tatsue secretly sighed at another direction. Sakaki acted as if he didn't notice and glared at the ground, seeming to be in the mood for a fight.

"So what? You----would have me leave Her Magesty? I'll tell you now, if I have to choose between this company and her, I'd pick her without any hesitation."

"How stupid, to even give up your inheritance for a woman..." Tatsue probably didn't understand what was going on, and took Sakaki's rant as truth, "Th-then, Brother's decision to not inherit the company is exactly what I've wanted!"

"Tatsue, stop acting tough. Your knees are shaking." Sakaki quietly looked downward.

"......Oh."

Tatsue's back was stiff with fear, and she gritted her teeth. The Sakaki Organizaion held enormous power, and inheriting its might would take far more ability and willpower than that possessed by a normal person. Tatsue had only recently turned fifteen. She was only in high school, and definitely did not hold such a level of tolerance or calmness. "Okay, in short". The teddy bear----Ganhou ---- nonchalantly gave his conclusion in the frightening monotonic synthetic voice.

"You say you can only love Usagawa Rinne, and the people around me say she's not good enough. Then isn't it easy? Yup. Just make Usagawa mature. Turn her into a woman acceptable as the lady of the Sakaki. For this, I've prepared a lot. And since you two want to marry as soon as she graduates, have her use her time in school to improve in every aspect."

After hearing these words, Sakaki was forced to remember his own hellish upbringing, and frowned.

Forcing Rinne to change like that----that would be exceedingly harsh, and the mere thought of it disgusted Sakaki.

Her close friend just died. She was in an unstable mood; what would happen if she were to suffer even more?

"Father."

Sakaki showed a grave face. He serenely said, "If you subject Her Majesty to that sort of inhuman preparation, I would not hesitate to overthrow you. Do not forget, that moment will be the moment when you and I part ways."

The teddy bear did not respond, possibly having said all that it wanted, and beckoned Tatsue to leave. The men in black followed, saluting Sakaki before disappearing down the road.

Tatsue looked back one last time.

For the first time, she showed a human expression filled with worry. "Brother, be careful."

Sakaki did not respond as he turned toward Rinne's home, walking over the poorly paved road.

"No problem, no problem, Guriko-chan worries too much. It's fine, because I'm really good at cooking and using this knife. Ah... mmmhmm, hahaha."

"Blood! Wait, Rinne, you're slicing your own finger! Blood, blood... Calm down, don't force yourself to try to cook, since Sakaki and I don't need to eat anyway. If you weren't immortal, you'd be in a lot of trouble from cutting off your fingers!"

Guriko was truly at a loss for what to do。

Near Kannonsakazaki Private High School which Rinne and Guriko attended and where Sakaki worked, past the shopping district and a small, bumpy road – stood the apartment building where Rinne lived.

With walls that seemed like they would collapse with a light knock, this shabby building had an extraordinarily cheap rent. She lived in a apartment with – counting the bathroom – 7.5 square meters of space, and next to her lived a self-proclaimed musician, an older girl whose face reflected tough times.

Ever since Katou Katsumi was murdered for unclear reasons, Rinne holed up inside this room without taking a single step outside.

As one would expect, the shadow of a murder grievously damaged her heart. For immortal people, the mind was a place of weakness. When physical harm removes relationships, they would be even more hurt than normal people.

That's right, three days ago, a dreadful murder had occurred for the first time in Kannonsakazaki town. The victim's name was Katou Katsumi. Like Rinne and Guriko, she was a student at Kannonsakazaki Private High School, who had formed an unbreakable bond with Rinne since middle school.

This person. After walking away from Rinne in front of a coffee shop, she was immediately murdered by someone. What's more, the method was quite merciless; she had been violently slammed against a stone wall and ground. Guriko didn't care so much since she was already used to death and corpses. The one who suffered was Rinne. As the last person to have seen Katsumi, she was thoroughly questioned. Over and over again, the fact that Katsumi died was shoved at her.

What kind of feelings did she hold?

Rinne in this state, at first glance, appeared no different from how she was before. She smiled like before, and though her voice trembled a bit it still seemed far from insane. But those were obviously only her attempts at stoicism. Not only were her actions more sluggish, her expression was also fixed at a barely sustainable fake smile. As if insisting there's nothing wrong, she cooked, but only created worthless products of failure that caused problems for Guriko.

People who had eaten an Apple slowly lost their sense of taste. Any sort of feeling from an empty stomach would also disappear. So, Rinne's actions were completely meaningless. But, Guriko thought, this could at least help turn her mood around, and wordlessly accepted the behavior.

And so, Rinne stopped preparing a dish out of her fingers without losing that small smile, but as soon as she began to rest, the doorbell rang.

"Sakaki?"

Guriko mumbled to herself, staying cautious as she walked over to open the door.

"Guriko, is Her Majesty alright?"

As expected, there stood a handsome man with blue eyes and blond hair who seemed more like art. He had grabbed Guriko's shoulders and forcefully shook her, while she sighed with her eyes half closed.

"What do you mean 'Is she alright?', it's not like she'll die. Stop panicking and calm down. And stop shaking me, I feel like throwing up. Really, as soon as anything involves Rinne, you immediately lose all common sense."

Guriko called at Rinne, but when she turned to look, she noticed that Rinne had suddenly collapsed.

"Rinne?" Sakaki's eyes widened, with an expression appropriate for the apocalypse. "Ah, ah----Your Majesty! Her Majesty died!"

"She didn't die, calm down! And, stop shaking me or I'll gouge out your eyes, idiot!"

As Gankyuu Eguriko endured the shaking, she prepared her spoons.

"She's definitely extremely tired."

With a head of her distinguishing wolf-like hair, eyes deep like the barrel of a gun that seemed to tell people off, and with the brutal name "Gankyuu Eguriko", this immortal girl had lived for over a thousand years. Once, due to some random event, she had changed her name to True • Gankyuu Eguriko, but, actually giving the reason that it was too hard to pronounce, she reinstated her original name.

This uncute girl who lived with Rinne for some reason placed the collapsed girl on prepared bedding, and started talking, "If you feel stressed, your body reacts accordingly. You would get a stomach ache, vomit, or get a headache. However, people who have eaten an Apple won't feel those. So, they push themselves to their limit, until they can't take it anymore and collapse. Really, if your friend dies isn't it alright to bawl your eyes out? No one would blame her."

Guriko looked at Sakaki, who just walked in, and silently held the shoulders of the fast-asleep Rinne and gave her to Sakaki. He wasn't sure what to do and just held her, feeling that her powerless form was exceptionally vulnerable.

"Guriko?"

"I don't understand friendship or love."

Guriko showed a pained expression, and she began to clean the blood-splattered simple kitchen. Probably trained by Rinne, Guriko had gained the ability to clean and do laundry. Yet a thousand years' emptiness had, in the end, erased from her any form of emotion or common sense.

As if reciting text, Guriko nonchalantly said, "I don't understand, I forgot. So there's no way I can comfort Rinne, which is frustrating......All I can do is annihilate Rinne's enemies. I definitely can't cure the scars carved in Rinne's heart."

She then turned toward Sakaki with those lonely eyes that, according to Rinne, seemed to be very similar to Sakaki. "So, I'm a bit jealous of you."

Was he really similar to her? Compared to Guriko, who admitted that she could only defeat Rinne's enemies but could not heal her pain, wasn't he only able to comfort Rinne without any way to fend against Rinne's enemies? Sakaki pondered this.

Helpless, Sakaki held Rinne tightly, and Guriko looked at them with concern. Rinne's closed eyes brimmed with tears; was he unable to save her, even in her dreams? Her face looked devoid of blood, and her fingertips were abnormally cold. To warm her up, Sakaki held her even closer.

Sakaki instinctively spat out insults.

"How repulsive, just who was it that killed Katou?!"

"How would I know?"

As she washed the cutting board with dishwashing liquid, Guriko crooked her head and said, "Although, just by looking at the facts, the culprit shouldn't be a normal person. Possibly some super-strong man or an animal. Or it's--"

She turned on the faucet.

"A monster."

Monsters, those things that quietly lived outside the world of people like Sakaki that overstepped the boundary of normality. During the events in the month before, Sakaki encountered quite a few monsters. The most powerful of them was large enough to flatten buildings with each step.

Katsumi's tragic death truly didn't seem to be caused by humans.

Sakaki's mood worsened, but he still said uneasily, "Anyways, it's best to stay cautious; after all, we haven't confirmed the culprit. Hopefully it's some criminal that the police can handle... Guriko?"

He carelessly looked over, and noticed Guriko's grim gaze toward the entrance. Her expression was strange, as if she was shocked, staring at the door with stiff face.

"What is it?"

"Someone's here."

Guriko replied curtly.

Sakaki's eyebrows scrunched together. "Could it be the mailman? Or... the murderer?"

Even though he felt it was unlikely, he couldn't deny the possibility. Guriko firmly gripped her three spoons; whether in the past or now, her weapon of choice had always been spoons.

"I don't know. Don't talk, someone will hear you. Although, I don't think it's a monster."

Possibly listening for activity, Guriko's face turned beastlike, instinctively searching out enemies and avoiding danger. That was the first-rate caution developed over a millennium.

"Humans, two of them."

Guriko was incredulous. Humans; and since there were two, it probably wasn't that self-proclaimed musician woman who lived next door. And it shouldn’t be Rinne’s friends since students had already been instructed to avoid going out without good reason.

And Guriko definitely did not have anything that could be considered even similar to a friend--

As Sakaki thought this, the doorbell rang. After an eye signal from Guriko, he cautiously walked toward the entrance. They planned so that even if Sakaki was knocked down by a surprise attack, Guriko could repel the intruders. That is to say, Sakaki was bait--"living sacrifice" might also be accurate. He tried to put on a calm voice as he asked, "Excuse me, who is this?"

"We're with the Sakaki Group."

"Please leave," Sakaki immediately declared, turning his back to the door as he shrugged his shoulders and sighed to Guriko, "No need to be so careful, they aren't people who matter."

"I see." Guriko naively set down her spoons.

At that moment, the door was suddenly forced open. Although, the door wasn't locked to begin with.

The pair standing on the other side of the door solemnly saluted.

"Though it was quite rude, please forgive my rudeness."

"Hino. You're talking weird."

"I'm [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes# Itsuwara | Itsuwara]] Hino."

"My name is Itsuwara Kio."

Standing there were--an exceedingly normal man and woman of about forty years of age, wearing a gray suit and a milky white outfit respectively. They were people who didn't stand out, people the likes of whom one would probably brush past while walking in the city.

"What do you want?"

Sakaki looked at them with barely-concealed disgust. Since they were men of the Sakaki Organization, they must have been his father's men. There was no way he could trust them.

The two people smiled tenderly, so much that they seemed unnatural. "Nice to meet you, Guryuu-san."

"You're in a good mood as always, it seems. Anyway--"

The man calling himself Kio smoothly pointed at Guriko.

"Today we have business with that young lady..."

Guriko was bewildered.

"..."

A wild flurry of colors. In simpler terms, toys with many different colors. For some reason, it seemed like a child's toy with purely primary colors, and it was painfully dazzling. The confusing red, blue, and yellow made one dizzy.

This was the shopping center called Chaos Zen Q -- an underground street where all sorts of specialty shops and peddlers gathered. Probably since it was a holiday, customers were abundant, and Guriko almost got lost multiple times.

She had no interest in shopping, nor did she enjoy it, and she wanted to get as far away from this overcrowded place as possible. Plus, since Rinne had such a low income, she couldn't go shopping often, and had never deliberately taken the bus to come three stations to this shopping center. This place seemed to Guriko like a different, miniature world.

The activity now all seemed like normal, human life, which made Guriko feel like she fit into modern Japanese society. Yet in this "Chaos Zen Q", there were too many things she had never seen. Was it really Japan, just like Kannonsakazaki?

For example, Guriko was standing in "Witch's Torture" for some reason, a specialty toy store with a name sounding like a finishing move, but completely she lacked knowledge on the toys arranged there. She tentatively picked up a nearby teddy bear. "So this is what they call a teddy bear?" And she sighed deeply.

"Ah, Guriko-chan, you like that teddy bear?" "Then everyone in the family can get a teddy bear. Wow, Guriko, you picked a teddy bear that's just as cute as you are. Then I'll pick a teddy bear that looks as serious as I do, and Hino should a torture bear that's like Hino's deformed body!"

"Really, you idiot Kio , that was unnecessary!"

"Hahaha."

"....."

'What's going on now? These people have made enough noise, she really wanted to slaughter them.' The Itsuwara couple, Hino and Kio, smiled gently behind the grimacing Guriko, and one would find the excessive smiling somehow strange. With no reservation, they brightly said to Guriko, "Guriko-chan. You don't have to be so polite, because we'll be your parents. Just tell us if there's anything you want, and talk with us if anything's troubling you."

'’...My worries all stem from you two.''

Facing the stiffened-up Guriko, Kio tried to talk again, "Guriko, girls usually name their teddy bear. Wanna try it out? Since common sense and normal societal ethics develop through things like this."

Common sense and normal societal ethics, huh?

Guriko refused to recognize those things. But, even so...

"A name? Yono."

With a serious face, Guriko looked at a teddy bear that looked like a delinquent acting cool. Hino smiled, saying some meaningless words of praise -- Oh, what an excellent name. Truly worthy of Guriko-chan --

What was going on now? Guriko pondered.

The Itsuwara couple Hino and Kio suddenly appeared, claiming to be sent by the Sakaki Organization. Since they had identification, they probably weren't lying. In this country, if someone tried to con others using the Sakaki Organization's name, he'd suffer more than if he were arrested on the spot. The Sakaki name had that kind of power; conversely, by associating oneself with the Sakaki Organization, one's position in life was as good as guaranteed.

Guriko set the still-unconscious Rinne on the futon and let Hino and Kio sit down.

Even though they claimed to have business with her -- Guriko eyed them suspiciously. She was sure she had never seen them before.

The narrow, 7.5-square-meter room was filled with the scent of food. Since the kitchen was part of the room, it was impossible to eliminate the smell even if air freshener is sprayed every once in a while. Rinne was quite a meticulous and neat person, but it was impossible to deny that the undersized room would easily appear cluttered and messy. Between the wardrobe, T.V., textbooks and the like, and the kotatsu, even walking around was difficult.

"Common sense and normal societal ethics training?" Sakaki was bewildered.

"What did you say?" Guriko didn't understand.

Hino smiled with happiness that almost seemed fake, as if saying "This is really great". With hands folded she continued, "Right, common sense and standard societal ethics training. That's what it's called, it's like someone's trying to act smart by using hard words."

"Yup, though it sounds like a legal term it's actually pretty simple."

Kio forcefully interjected with a cheerful voice. This couple thought quite similarly.

"In simple terms -- no, using the most obvious and clear terms, it's 'Have Guriko-chan understand common sense' or ‘The Sakaki Organization won't be able to help you either if you never live a normal life'. So... That's how it is."

His words made Sakaki's expression change as the teacher disgustedly looked at Guriko.

"Guriko, what the hell did you do?" "No clue."

She really had no idea what they're talking about. After all she had only been living according to her own beliefs.

Plus, with that giant smile, Hino was saying stuff that really shouldn't be said smiling.

"Guriko-chan isn't someone who should be living with Miss Usagawa Rinne."

Hearing this, Guriko's eyebrow twitched a little. She was someone who shouldn't live with Usagawa Rinne?

''I don't need others to tell me some like that, even I know that. From the start we only lived together out of practicality, since I had nowhere else to stay.

But, I don't want some outsider who doesn't understand anything to tell that to me.''

Guriko glared at them. Kio, completely unfazed, looked toward Sakaki.

"Guryuu-san. Ganhou-san believes it is most important to begin fixing Miss Usagawa's surroundings. A person's behavior will be greatly affected by her environment. If the environment is filled with trash, the stench will permeate the person, and if she is surrounded by people using vulgar language, she will inevitably start speaking the same way."

"So we need to clean up her surroundings. By thoroughly fixing the things around Miss Usagawa Rinne's, it will be possible for her to mature in a sound environment." Hino picked up where Kio left off, making it seem as though they planned it in advance.

Sakaki's face stiffened, contemptuously glaring at them. "Basically, Guriko's a hindrance?"

Hino and Kio spoke together. "You are correct, Guryuu-san."

"Why..."

Guriko couldn't ignore this, and banged her fist on the kotatsu with flaming eyes. She made a loud noise, but Guriko still took care not to break it.

The teacups set on the table rattled and fell.

Guriko released the anger she held: "You... How am I a hindrance? Aren't you saying that I'm a bad influence on R-Rinne?"

The words lacked her usual sharpness. Guriko vaguely felt that she had brought Rinne into an abnormal world. Granted, even if she did not appear, Rinne would have eventually noticed her Apple's power. But in the end, it was Guriko who made this happen faster.

But, even so...

''I don't want Rinne to say she doesn't need me or, even worse, think of me as a nuisance.''

Yet Kio naturally said, "Yes, you're quite a hindrance and a poor influence."

Toward this formality that was like defining simple English words, Guriko didn't know whether to feel enraged or hurt. She looked toward Sakaki, whose face showed a rare expression as he remained silent.

"But," Sakaki spoke with weight and earnestness in his deep voice, "Her Majesty was saved thanks to Guriko. You cannot deny that."

"True, we know that."

"But right now, her influence is undesirable in many ways."

Hino shot a glance at Kio, who rapidly set onto the table several documents from a bag. Guriko couldn't resist looking at them, but the convoluted text filled with complicated words made her head spin.

Hino explained with a bitter laugh: "These are the recent records of Guriko-chan causing injuries, breaking things, attempting murder, etc. Mmm, there's really too much. Even though these incidents won't be investigated since Ganhou-san's handling them, if you don't consider the fact that she's a minor, this is truly too terrible."

"Guriko isn't a minor." Guriko nodded in consent with Sakaki's words.

The Itsuwara couple were shocked, looking at each other as if asking "What's going on?"

That's right, Guriko was about a thousand years old. Even though she couldn't remember the exact number, she should probably be the elder of every human on this lump of land. At events like [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes# Shichi-Go-San | Shichi-Go-San]] people would eat thousand-year candies; the makers probably never imagined that someone would actually be that old. Though this isn't relevant to what Hino was saying, it's still true.

Normally, beating someone up or attempting murder would result in punishment; that is justice. It's something that's obvious with a little bit of thought. Yet from the start, one shouldn't expect Guriko, who had wandered for a thousand years, to have this kind of common sense or belief.

Guriko looked at Hino, who nodded her head as if understanding Guriko's feelings.

"Right, developing common sense and normal societal ethics is the goal, so that Guriko-chan will stop doing that kind of stuff and become a normal person. You've been committing crimes for too long. Ganhou-san has decided that living with a person like that will definitely hamper Miss Usagawa's development."

''To be honest, this makes a lot of sense.''

''And if possible, I don't want to trouble Rinne.''

As if to let her relax, Kio gently smiled. "Obviously, you'll be able to return immediately after the training finishes. When you can fit into society without upsetting the sense of normalcy that an average person develops throughout life, and it is decided that you no longer threaten Miss Usagawa's development, the training will end."

"..."

Guriko thought about it: ''So it's like this. I can understand. But the problem is, I want to stay be Rinne's side. I don't want to leave her --Even though I understand the logic.''

Guriko looked at Rinne who was sleeping, curled in the futon.

''I can't make problems for her.''

"Alright, I accept."

Guriko made her resolution; it shouldn't take too long anyway, and time itself isn't limited. There's no rush, nothing's wrong with accepting their common sense and normal societal ethics training! Guriko thought this way.

Astonished, Sakaki turned toward her. "Is that alright? Guriko, if you really don't want to do it, I can think of something."

"You're too nosy. You have nothing to do with this. In short, I don't want to trouble Rinne."

Hino and Kio's faces lightened into unrestrained smiles.

"Wah, thanks. Guriko, I'm really happy!"

"I, I, I'll strive to become a superb mother!"

"I'll also become a dependable father! Let's go, it'll get busy starting today!"

Guriko noticed something weird, looking without understanding at the two people who got incredibly happy on their own.

"Wh-what? What's the meaning of this? What mother, father?"

"What?"

Kio, who was elated to shivers while embracing Hino, spoke of something absurd with an indignant tone: "Common sense and normal societal ethics training consists of Guriko living with us as our daughter! The plan is to slowly teach common sense and ethics through cohabitation!"

"There is much to teach, Guriko-chan! From today onward you are Itsuwara Eguriko! Waahhhh----"

''Isn't it a bit early to decide that?''

Gankyuu Eguriko--correction, Itsuwara Eguriko sighed.

"That said, who is Itsuwara Eguriko?"

Things have gotten crappy; Guriko thought this as she sat in an Italian restaurant on a restaurant-filled street eating spaghetti. In fact, not only did Guriko have no appetite, she didn't even need food, so what she did was meaningless. But to prevent the Itsuwara couple, who knew nothing, from getting suspicious, it was best for the time being to act like she was hungry and let the food flow into her stomach. Back before she became immortal, she never thought stuffing down alien substances could be so disgusting.

"Wah, Hino, this pizza's on the level of national treasures! Call the chef over!"

"That pizza was definitely frozen! But it's so good!"

"Guriko. It's good, right?" "Guriko-chan, don't you also think it's good?"

They were also strange.

Their affection -- strange.

Swallowing it was a bit disgusting.

"..."

''That's right, to me these should meaningless, unrelated people. They're a couple that I didn't know yesterday. Their names are Itsuwara Hino and Itsuwara Kio, but aside from the fact that their personalities are ridiculous and over-the-top, they aren't anything special, just a man and woman that can be found anywhere.''

Guriko agreed to take the common sense and normal societal ethics training with that overly long name, and after entrusting the unconscious Rinne to Sakaki came along with these people. What followed was nothing but a series of new irritants. Was this normalcy? Guriko could not understand.

--It's alright as long only you are unhappy--

Guriko recalled that time when she was still called Yono. A thousand years ago, when Guriko was genuinely human, without anything like immortality.

Guriko had been taken into a household, and received cold treatment from the family members. She thought this was alright, since they gave her food to eat and at night time they helped prepare bedding for her. When her older brother was in a good mood he would even play with her. But she often felt an indescribable loneliness, and when she noticed she was by herself.

Over and over again her parents would say to her, it's alright as long as you are unhappy. Though Guriko felt hurt, she still accepted it completely, and she felt that this was the normal relationship between parent and child. The parental relationships that Guriko knew, that remained in her memory, were dry and without feeling, like the relationships between a pack of beasts.

But--

Guriko lightly stroked the teddy bear on her leg, that one called Yono. ''Rinne seemed to have said before that she wanted a teddy bear. But I never thought the day would come when I would get one.''

Even though she didn't particularly want one.

For some reason, she didn’t want to throw it away either.

Toy stores, clothing stores, stationary stores; they went to every type of store and bought everything they needed. Guriko bought three shirts, shoes, and things which she had always wanted but never thought to buy: high quality spoons that didn't come from a dollar store.

She never expected a day to come when she didn't need to steal and could obtain her own things legally. This teddy bear was Guriko's, and Guriko's alone.

Thinking like this, her mood suddenly improved.

So--

"Ugh."

While suppressing her urge to vomit, Guriko forked down her spaghetti. Giant bite after giant bite, she ate expressionlessly, and then politely said, "It's not bad."

Just this much was enough for them to heartily laugh.

"Wah! Guriko seems to like it too!"

"This restaurant really is the best! Even though it's a chain restaurant!"

"Call the chef over! Call the chef over!"

''Really, why are they so idiotic, I've had enough. I don't accept them as my family. But... This doesn't really feel bad."''

''Can I find a way to treat them as my parents? No, that's impossible. There's no way today, but maybe one day I'll be tricked by this irredeemable, ridiculous kind of atmosphere. I can't be sure if I will one day form some illusions from this.''

"Yono died a thousand years ago."

She stroked the teddy bear as she spoke softly.

"Ever since then, I've always been Gankyuu Eguriko. I... can I already stop using that freakish name? I don't know... Do I want to? I can't figure it out."

Guriko's reflections didn't produce results, so she just decided to leave her worries for tomorrow; her time won't run out, anyways. Back to the present. It's enough to go along with this situation that can only be described as disastrous.

Kio looked at Guriko, whose head was lowered, and his expression was like he stuck gold. "Wah, Guriko! There's sauce stuck on the corner of your mouth! I'll wipe it off for you!"

"That's my job, Kio! Move!"

"--Let's get wiping together!"

And so Guriko ended up in this doubly-being-wiped situation, becoming aware of the peculiarity in the corner of her mouth as her muscles moved a little. Unable to believe it, she pushed aside the napkin pressed to her and placed her fingers on the corner of her lips.

She understood. And as a result felt somewhat surprised.

"I'm... smiling."

Guriko smiled very faintly. Such a rare occurrence, and in front of people she met for the first time today to boot.

Apparently, she actually was enjoying herself.

"Whoa, Guriko smiled! It's so cute, I'm gonna collapse!"

"Same here! Ah--Guriko LOVE, LOVE! Mmmmmmmm...."

After finishing their weird noises the two pretended to faint, causing nervous murmurs from the other customers.

Even though this wasn't her desire at all, Guriko seemed to feel a little joy.

That night.

"Art."

In an empty park.

"Art--Yeah, what is called misery, when taken to the limit will be called beautiful art."

A ball abandoned by children after they finish playing, sad-looking playground equipment that seemed to absorb the silent desolation. A messy sandpit. Inside this slightly small park, the bench in front of the water fountain.

"Obscene, vulgar, base, filthy--this corpse that normal people hate without reason, shines as art. Hahaha. It's true, the beautiful human corpse is beautifully artistic. Lavish and wonderful, miserable and wonderful, cruel and wonderful. Man, what's going on, why is the heartless me unable to suppress my excitement and shuddering body!"

Sitting there was a female.

"How about a toast to this beauteous night? The full moon and stars are all so beautiful, so how about sweet wine? Let’s use death of the highest quality to make people shiver."

Around her were the flesh pieces of humans.

Under the lamppost that struggled to keep shining, without speaking to anyone in particular, the woman weaved words in a honey-sweet voice. Signs of life were completely gone in this playground in the residential area after sundown and no one noticed this bloody, brutal scene. Flesh and blood surrounded the woman on the bench; only these two things were scattered around. Just what kind of flesh was it? It was impossible to tell by looking at the pieces, but that glossy red flesh was still fresh, steaming in the chilly winter air.

With some light from the moon, stars, and lamppost the flesh looked a bit brown, and the blood lying all around had turned completely black while seeping into the ground. This was a scene that lacked a sense of reality, leaving only a ruthless stillness.

As if appreciating a famous painting, the woman merely sat silently, watching.

“I really want to keep –”

She sighed.

"Looking at this--Ah, I made something awesome! No wait, that's too arrogant. The creators of this work are none other than you who have become corpses. I am only the lucky one who can appreciate the art before it rots."

Truly, how many wonders are hidden within this Earth? She can’t see this entire world no matter how long she lives. Simply, this woman loved this wondrous world.

The only things that could be heard were the horn of a distant car, the wind, and the rustling of the leaves on the park's trees. The only thing that could be seen was the darkness-covered world that seemed a bit mysterious.

There was only the shadow of a building, mixing with the park's gravel ground, and a group of moths attracted by the scent of blood.

“Moths -- ah."

The woman sighed again. Every time she did so, a sound would come from her mouth similar to the sound of a teapot releasing steam.

That would be expected, because a mask was covering her mouth. It was not for blocking colds or allergies; rather, the clear purpose was to block dust or toxic gas. The unusually-shaped hard mask seemed especially out of place on her graceful appearance.

Thanks to a mask, it was hard to see her expression, and her age was uncertain though she seemed to be between 25 and 29. Slim yet dangerous, she reminded one of a sharpened blade. Over her thin, tender body, she wore extremely revealing clothes.

A tank top with angel wings printed on the back hid a girl-like body that belied her outer appearance. It was winter now, but her snow white skin was completely free of goosebumps. The only thing barely covering her waist area was a pair of jeans shorts that stopped at her thighs.

A head of flawlessly pure white hair, untainted by anything; it was the color of fresh snow. The waist-length hair was tied into a ponytail. On her wrists she wore all sorts of bracelets and colourful strips of cloth.

This strange looking woman's eyes turned sinister, and she spoke into the darkness as she crossed her legs as if pondering something. She had a habit of speaking out loud to organize her thoughts, feeling that doing this let her sort out important points.

"Mushi... Ah, Mushi. That group of Mushi acted strange last month, and though it quickly became peaceful again I don't know what happened in the first place."

A breeze brushed past her hair.

"It is believed that the one responsible is an Apple holder living in this town. The four confirmed individuals are Usagawa Rinne, Sakaki Guryuu, Gankyuu Eguriko, and--"

As she spoke, she seemed to think about something.

"The one who tried to steal their Apples by pretending to be and manipulating 'Mushi'. Honestly. I didn't think that clan still existed! This is ominous; Adam, Eve, and the Snake. The humans descended from Adam and Eve reproduced far too quickly to eliminate, but if the last descendant of the Snake causes trouble I can exterminate him."

The woman stared forward with a grave expression.

"I'll start by taking Apples away from their owners. If that works, I can ask about what happened at that time. Really, why do I have to do this kind of annoying thing? I'm just a digestive organ. Seeking out truth is God Insect Emperor's job."

The others were just too lazy; it felt like she was doing all the work.

"This is so annoying. I'm going to tremble."

The woman's body shook, and then she hugged herself as if to protect herself. This was something she did without any particular meaning.

With a "Fshuu--Fshuu--" breathing sound coming from the mask, she muttered to herself, "Basically, it doesn't matter which of those four. I'll start by taking the Apples."

Then she looked at the pieces of flesh scattered in front of her, thinking, thinking, and thought through all the main points.

"-Then, I really will need these pieces of flesh. Even though I don't want to use these pieces of art on anything--"

"Wh-Whooa?"

A scream?

The woman's expression instantly became alert as she turned toward the sound. The rapid movement made her hair swish high. In her line of sight was--

"Eh, umm. These are corpses... Waahhh!"

The woman calmly watched this person. He was a blue uniformed police officer, male, without any distinctive features, and didn't seem to be an excellent cop. Shuddering, he pointed at the hands and guts and other body parts on the ground, and screamed before collapsing on the ground as his mouth opened and closed.

Did the police notice? Of course police officers patrolled residential areas. Chances were Long-Armed Demon acted on her own too much, so the police had been especially alert recently.

"Long-Armed Demon, Apple holders, police----" The woman sighed with a "Fshuuu", and seemed to be exhausted as she shrugged her shoulders. "So troublesome."

Then she got up and turned to the policeman sitting paralyzed on the ground. He seemed to have just noticed her, and let out a stiff shout as he scooted backward.

"Don't... Don't tell me! Are you the L-long Armed Demon?"

"Ugh."

The woman scrunched her eyebrows, slowly walking next to the man. "I'm not one of those changed children. Now, my name is [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes# Saibara Mina | Saibara Mina]], I really hate this name because--it's not cute."

After that, she took a spray can from somewhere and pointed it at the policeman. It was an extremely common spray can, simple and unlabeled. On the outside it didn't look different from insecticide or deodorant that gets sold.

"Hmm."

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhh"

The woman shook it while remaining still, shaking in a way that didn't look special.

"If you want address me, please call me Sterilization Disinfection."

With a face like he'd seen a ghost, the police officer screamed loudly and frantically tried to crawl up and escape.

He kneeled, screaming as he tried to get up, but his legs didn't listen to his commands and he collapsed again. He seemed so scared that he couldn't even control himself anymore.

"Fshuu"--Mina sighed in resignation.

"What an unbearable policeman. No courage at all, he's contaminating my field of view."

The policeman could not understand Mina's words, screaming as he stood up.

"S-Senpai! Save me! Nageki-senpai!" Did he have companions? It would be troublesome if he called over too many people.

Mina quickly made her decision.

"Save me! L-Long Armed Demon, she's the Long Armed Demon!" ''I’ve told you I’m not that person. ''

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" Mina shook her spray can, and slowly turned it to the man.

"Let's sterilize and disinfect."

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_Open|Open: Clock of Endless Nights]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch2|Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Mushi:Vol2 Ch1

2012-02-05T06:43:51Z

Cakemanofdoom: Changed a few things I saw here and there, this edit was by no means comprehensive.

–—== '''Night 1: A Series of Misfortune''' ==

<pre>From ★ Usarin
To ★ Sensei
Subject ★ Edict
Body ★ Hello——this is Usarin. Did you think I’d say that? You weirdo, go die! So where are you strolling around now? With your
personality you should’ve already left school to come see Rinne. So we didn’t contact you. Then—we ended up waiting until noon! I
didn’t think you were this half-hearted with your love. You keep proclaiming your love for her. Is that just something you say?
Whatever. Rinne has me, Guriko, to comfort her. You can die somewhere in the street.</pre>

<pre>From ★ Sensei
To ★ Usarin-kakka
Subject ★ Re: Edict
Body ★ Hey—what makes you think you can just use Her Majesty's cell phone like that. No matter how you look at it, it’s best if you
just died. Your harassment will someday give me a heart attack. Stop using her cell phone. Cell phones record phone numbers. So
caller ID identifies that phone as “Usarin”. This crap you’re pulling will make me think Her Majesty suddenly changed. On another note,
since when did you know how to use a cell phone?</pre>

<pre>From ★ Usarin
To ★ Sensei
Subject ★ From Gankyuu Eguriko
Body ★ So much talk. Look. I wrote my name. Does that satisfy your demands? Go die now. Though it’s a bit too much talk, where
are you right now, Sakaki? Rinne’s friend died so she’s depressed. How can you not be at her side at a time like this? There’s
more. You small, unworthy person. I’ve lived fifty times longer than you. Our level of experience can’t be compared. I can learn
something like cell phone operation in an instant. Don’t underestimate me!</pre>

<pre>From ★ Sensei
To ★ Usarin-kakka
Subject ★ Re: From Gankyuu Eguriko
Body ★ Any grade-schooler can learn something like using a cell phone. Ah——my bad, wait a minute. You should know that as soon
as I learned about Her Majesty’s condition I came running over. But even before I arrive, you take what little you know and form conjectures
about me. You idiot.</pre>

<pre>From ★ Usarin
To ★ Sensei
Subject ★ Re: Re: From Gankyuu Eguriko
Body ★ …You're seriously infuriating. Whatever. Just get over here quickly. If you’re slow, I’ll gouge out your eyeballs.</pre>

“…”

The handsome man with golden hair and blue eyes——Sakaki Guryuu, closed his cell phone with a “Thap”. He sighed deeply. This man, humanity’s pinnacle of intelligence, financial resources, appearance and athletic ability, was Usagawa Rinne’s lover as well as her Japanese History teacher at Kannonsakazaki High School.

A year earlier, Sakaki fell in love with Rinne due to a certain incident, and abandoned the giant company controlling Japan from the shadows——the Sakaki Organization. He had forsaken his position as its heir, as well as all his higher education, and became a high school teacher all in order to stay by Usagawa Rinne’s side. He felt that she was the only worthwhile existence in his life. That was the man named Sakaki Guryuu.

Sakaki, unhappiness dominating his face, surveyed his surroundings while watching all four sides surrounding him. People dressed in black were blatantly displaying illegal firearms.

“You see, one of my dear students has threatened me with eyeball gouging. She can easily carry out her threat, so you guys can get lost! I’d like to reject that eyeball gouging——if I don’t hurry to Her Majesty’s home, I’ll lose these blue eyes I inherited from my mother!”

Rinne was absent from school that day. As soon as Sakaki knew this, he immediately stopped his class and ditched the staff meeting to go see her, but he was ambushed. It was around eight o’clock when he rushed out of class, and math shows that he had been fighting for four hours. He kicked aside some of the black-suit flock, but was immediately surrounded again. Fighting them down one by one didn’t tire him out, but it started to frustrate him.

Rinne, he thought of Usagawa Rinne.

The one who gave Sakaki’s life meaning, the most important person in the world, was currently suffering. Yet these people in black suits obstructed his path, which implied suicidal tendencies——but who exactly were these enemies? If this continued blood would probably start to spill.

“Are you ‘Mushi’?”

No response.

“Mushi”, were the mysterious beings searching for the “Apples”——also called “Apples of Eden”, the forbidden fruit which allowed humans who ate them to become immortal——and they attacked humans to do so. Their true objectives remained a riddle, though someone who called himself Snake described them as beings similar to angels or demons.

When Sakaki fought against Snake the previous month, he happened to eat an Apple, and had since met multiple “Mushi” seeking to kill him. Thus, he assumed that this incident was the same, but——

If they were “Mushi”, they should have unhesitatingly tried to kill him as fast as possible. But these black-suited people surrounding him showed no sign of using their guns. The tell-tale sign of the “Mushi”, eyes that shone with red light, could not be verified due to concealment by sunglasses.

“Even when there are guns pointed at you, that cell phone still takes priority, brother?”

Suddenly, he heard a female voice that tried to hide mediocrity with an air of elegance. That was a familiar voice——Sakaki’s patience ended as he turned to the source.

Behind the still wall of black-suited men, a girl stood.

“People that I, the [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes# Black Dragon | Black Dragon]], can stand the least are people like you who act as though everything lacked difficulty.”

From her black dress that was completely incongruous with this street in a small, rural town to the ribbon on her head, all of her clothes were black. Aside from her skin, teeth and the whites of her eyes, it was as if her entire body was buried under black. She was one of the backup step-siblings prepared in case something happened to Sakaki.

"Kuroki -- Tatsue? Sakaki mumbled her name as he put his cell phone in his pocket and looked at the black-suited men surrounding him. "So, you're Sakaki Organization's men. How pointless. Bothering me is a waste of time. Hey -- I've already memorized your faces. Since you've pointed guns at the heir to the Sakaki Organization and committed the crime of preventing him from going to his destination, you'll all be thrown out into the street."

"Brother, you are still ignoring me?" Tatsue nervously raised her eyebrows as she spoke unhappily, holding onto a scarlet teddy bear that added an alien color to her monochrome look.

Should we say she was still too cautious, or is it more accurate to say that she was simply too petty?

Sakaki shifted his sight away from the black-suited men who didn't know what to do as they lowered their guns, and looked toward his step-sister. "You’re just a spare part, what did you come find me for? Back to the main topic, it's been a long time, Tatsue. How many years has it been? Nine? You've grown so much. Last time I saw you, you were still crying 'I didn't wet the bed! I didn't!' Ah, good times."

"D-d-do not speak of that!" Tatsue's face turned red. She waved her arms at the whispering black-suited men in front of her as she said this while on the verge of tears, "It's because you're so arrogant and ill-hearted that I cannot stand you."

"Oh, and there's that pretentious speech pattern you like to use. Don't talk like that, you seem even more pathetic. In fact--"

Sakaki silently watched Tatsue. No, more accurately, he watched the scarlet teddy bear she held. It was something that could be bought anywhere, yet impossible to sell. Rather than looking cute, it horrified people with a blood-stained appearance that made it useless for consolation --

"Father." Sakaki mumbled, crossing his arms as he sternly said, "You're communicating with us like that again. How distrusting of your own son."

"Eh?"

The surprised one was Tatsue. She was frightened enough to almost drop the teddy bear, and quickly tried to steady herself. As cold sweat ran down her face, her cute bluffing expression completely disappeared.

"F-f-father?"

It was the current president of the organization with more power than a nation -- Sakaki Ganhou. He likely feared assassination, as not even Sakaki had seen his face before. This led to Sakaki thinking: Is my father even alive?

"......"

The scarlet teddy bear casually made a sound.

"Hey, Gu-kun, it's dad."

A clear, disarming synthetic voice came from the stuffed animal with a unique echo. Then again, with this type of voice, the speaker generally wants to avoid allowing his actual voice to be recognized. Sakaki nodded, and said casually, "What do you mean 'It's dad', you idiot father. What do you want? I need to visit Her Majesty. If it's just some pointless little thing, then just leave!"

"B-b-brother! How could you speak like that to father!"

Sakaki paid no attention to Tatsue's noisy shouting. No matter whose voice came out of it, that thing was just a stuffed animal that deserved no respect. Besides, Sakaki never respected his father who forcefully molded him into an ideal heir. With study and training that was practically infused inro his blood, this person destroyed Sakaki's childhood.

Without moving, the teddy bear laughed in a poorly synthesized voice.

"Hahaha! You're still so frightening. Dad's heartbroken! Mmm -- actually, there isn't really anything too serious. I just wanted to see my cute son that I haven't seen in a long time."

"Good bye."

Sakaki ignored Tatsue and the teddy bear and walked toward his destination. Running to Rinne's home from there would take about ten minutes. So much time had been wasted!

"Wait up, wait up, wait up, Gu-kun! Tatsue, chase him!"

The teddy bear said so nonchalantly, and Tatsue desperately followed its orders with a pale face. Too bad, it seems like this time she would only be used as a convenient transporter.

As Sakaki thought this, the teddy bear issued a cruel order.

"Ah, what a pain. He's trying to escape. Alright, you goons, shoot him in the thigh! Then he'll stop, right? Don't worry, even if Gu-kun gets injured he'll quickly recover, so there's no need to hold back."

Those words...

Sakaki suddenly turned around, and looked angrily at the teddy bear held by the pale-faced Tatsue.

"Father, where did you find out about that?"

His injuries would recover. In other words, he knew that Sakaki ate an Apple and became immortal, with the superhuman ability to resurrect.

Speaking of that, a monster had wrecked the town a month earlier, and after that Sakaki had asked his father to pretend that nothing happened. The incident was reported to be a result of an earthquake, and eyewitnesses were forced to keep silent. Needless to say, the hidden truth should have gone straight to the man behind the cover-up----the father.

However, only Sakaki, Rinne, and of course the "Mushi" and Snake as well as Guriko should have known about the Apples.

"Who do you think I am?" The teddy bear naturally continued, "Of course I know more than you do! I just don't tell you because I don't want you to sink deeper into this business. All in all there's nothing worthwhile there, and the knowledge would just be disgusting. Do you understand?"

He used an unnerving, emotionless voice to talk to the silent Sakaki.

"Last month." The teddy bear's words still sounded natural. "An immensely large monster----a Dream World Beast rampaged, right? Who do you think killed it? Or... How was it killed? Do you really think a few bombs dropped from a plane would be enough?"

That voice mocked Sakaki rather than questioned him.

"Whether with explosives or firebombs, did you think it was possible to soundlessly kill such a large monster? Not only that----to exterminate a monster with extraordinary life force gained from an Apple, that can easily cause so much destruction? Can a weapon that incredible really exist?"

That was a joyful and delighted voice.

"If you just think about last month's events, so many things don't make sense. Gu-kun, you didn't know anything. You misunderstood the whole situation despite having overcome that conflict. The Apple, the clock, the 'Mushi'! You barely understand any of them! ----But you don't need to understand them either since you're my cute, adorable successor."

These words pierced Sakaki's ears and made his eyebrows furl.

After overcoming that and passing through a period of peace, he finally felt secure----but now, it all became undone. What was going on? He felt horribly uneasy. His doubts suddenly layered up, and he began to feel disgusted by the Apple taking root in his soul.

"You, what are you trying to get at?"

"Ah? I'm just worrying like any normal father over his child's life. Basically, I want you to inherit the Sakaki Organization like a good boy while I do my best to keep you away from danger. Watch out for the names Melodia Noise, Poison, Ultimate Shield, Unpleasant Counter-Current, Single Room, God Insect Emperor, and Sterilization Disinfection. It's just as their names imply. If you involve yourself with them you die.”

Mindlessly saying these unclear words, the head of the Sakaki Organization----Sakaki Ganhou laughed gloomily with his synthesized voice. Tatsue felt very afraid and looked at the stuffed animal in alarm.

Mushi, eyeball, and a teddy bear.

Not showing up in the previous month's events, hiding in the darkness, the third person who stayed out of sight while acting----he was here. Sakaki Ganhou: what did he know, what did he want? The horrifying teddy bear merely spoke cheerfully to Sakaki, yet it seemed accusing.

"Mmm, I need to pick something to say. Since I'm pretty busy, I only wanted to say this one thing, but it got dragged out so long. Ah, that's right, I almost forgot."

The teddy bear suddenly moved and clapped its hands. It probably carried this function. "Waah!" Tatsue made a strange sound.

"Usagawa Rinne is your girlfriend right? These few months----I sent people to thoroughly investigate her. Honestly, I don't know why you like her so much."

Its head tilted.

Sakaki's expression turned cold as he glared at the teddy bear.

"Father, since you insulted Her Majesty, you will pay with your life!"

"How frightening. How frightening. See, even Tatsue's scared.”

Actually, Tatsue was afraid of her father.

"Whatever, let's move on. Me, I don't care who you take as your wife. Your mother actually came from a slum in America, and besides, the organization isn't run by wives. But, as it is now, no one would stay quiet. They'd say the Sakaki family's situation is questionable since the head's wife has questionable status."

"Just eliminate those fools, father!"

"No way, that would be too troublesome. Since most of those idiots are famous, I'd have a lot of problems dealing with the aftermath!"

Hearing these negative words, Tatsue secretly sighed at another direction. Sakaki acted as if he didn't notice and glared at the ground, seeming to be in the mood for a fight.

"So what? You----would have me leave Her Magesty? I'll tell you now, if I have to choose between this company and her, I'd pick her without any hesitation."

"How stupid, to even give up your inheritance for a woman..." Tatsue probably didn't understand what was going on, and took Sakaki's rant as truth, "Th-then, Brother's decision to not inherit the company is exactly what I've wanted!"

"Tatsue, stop acting tough. Your knees are shaking." Sakaki quietly looked downward.

"......Oh."

Tatsue's back was stiff with fear, and she gritted her teeth. The Sakaki Organizaion held enormous power, and inheriting its might would take far more ability and willpower than that possessed by a normal person. Tatsue had only recently turned fifteen. She was only in high school, and definitely did not hold such a level of tolerance or calmness. "Okay, in short". The teddy bear----Ganhou ---- nonchalantly gave his conclusion in the frightening monotonic synthetic voice.

"You say you can only love Usagawa Rinne, and the people around me say she's not good enough. Then isn't it easy? Yup. Just make Usagawa mature. Turn her into a woman acceptable as the lady of the Sakaki. For this, I've prepared a lot. And since you two want to marry as soon as she graduates, have her use her time in school to improve in every aspect."

After hearing these words, Sakaki was forced to remember his own hellish upbringing, and frowned.

Forcing Rinne to change like that----that would be exceedingly harsh, and the mere thought of it disgusted Sakaki.

Her close friend just died. She was in an unstable mood; what would happen if she were to suffer even more?

"Father."

Sakaki showed a grave face. He serenely said, "If you subject Her Majesty to that sort of inhuman preparation, I would not hesitate to overthrow you. Do not forget, that moment will be the moment when you and I part ways."

The teddy bear did not respond, possibly having said all that it wanted, and beckoned Tatsue to leave. The men in black followed, saluting Sakaki before disappearing down the road.

Tatsue looked back one last time.

For the first time, she showed a human expression filled with worry. "Brother, be careful."

Sakaki did not respond as he turned toward Rinne's home, walking over the poorly paved road.

"No problem, no problem, Guriko-chan worries too much. It's fine, because I'm really good at cooking and using this knife. Ah... mmmhmm, hahaha."

"Blood! Wait, Rinne, you're slicing your own finger! Blood, blood... Calm down, don't force yourself to try to cook, since Sakaki and I don't need to eat anyway. If you weren't immortal, you'd be in a lot of trouble from cutting off your fingers!"

Guriko was truly at a loss for what to do。

Near Kannonsakazaki Private High School which Rinne and Guriko attended and where Sakaki worked, past the shopping district and a small, bumpy road – stood the apartment building where Rinne lived.

With walls that seemed like they would collapse with a light knock, this shabby building had an extraordinarily cheap rent. She lived in a apartment with – counting the bathroom – 7.5 square meters of space, and next to her lived a self-proclaimed musician, an older girl whose face reflected tough times.

Ever since Katou Katsumi was murdered for unclear reasons, Rinne holed up inside this room without taking a single step outside.

As one would expect, the shadow of a murder grievously damaged her heart. For immortal people, the mind was a place of weakness. When physical harm removes relationships, they would be even more hurt than normal people.

That's right, three days ago, a dreadful murder had occurred for the first time in Kannonsakazaki town. The victim's name was Katou Katsumi. Like Rinne and Guriko, she was a student at Kannonsakazaki Private High School, who had formed an unbreakable bond with Rinne since middle school.

This person. After walking away from Rinne in front of a coffee shop, she was immediately murdered by someone. What's more, the method was quite merciless; she had been violently slammed against a stone wall and ground. Guriko didn't care so much since she was already used to death and corpses. The one who suffered was Rinne. As the last person to have seen Katsumi, she was thoroughly questioned. Over and over again, the fact that Katsumi died was shoved at her.

What kind of feelings did she hold?

Rinne in this state, at first glance, appeared no different from how she was before. She smiled like before, and though her voice trembled a bit it still seemed far from insane. But those were obviously only her attempts at stoicism. Not only were her actions more sluggish, her expression was also fixed at a barely sustainable fake smile. As if insisting there's nothing wrong, she cooked, but only created worthless products of failure that caused problems for Guriko.

People who had eaten an Apple slowly lost their sense of taste. Any sort of feeling from an empty stomach would also disappear. So, Rinne's actions were completely meaningless. But, Guriko thought, this could at least help turn her mood around, and wordlessly accepted the behavior.

And so, Rinne stopped preparing a dish out of her fingers without losing that small smile, but as soon as she began to rest, the doorbell rang.

"Sakaki?"

Guriko mumbled to herself, staying cautious as she walked over to open the door.

"Guriko, is Her Majesty alright?"

As expected, there stood a handsome man with blue eyes and blond hair who seemed more like art. He had grabbed Guriko's shoulders and forcefully shook her, while she sighed with her eyes half closed.

"What do you mean 'Is she alright?', it's not like she'll die. Stop panicking and calm down. And stop shaking me, I feel like throwing up. Really, as soon as anything involves Rinne, you immediately lose all common sense."

Guriko called at Rinne, but when she turned to look, she noticed that Rinne had suddenly collapsed.

"Rinne?" Sakaki's eyes widened, with an expression appropriate for the apocalypse. "Ah, ah----Your Majesty! Her Majesty died!"

"She didn't die, calm down! And, stop shaking me or I'll gouge out your eyes, idiot!"

As Gankyuu Eguriko endured the shaking, she prepared her spoons.

"She's definitely extremely tired."

With a head of her distinguishing wolf-like hair, eyes deep like the barrel of a gun that seemed to tell people off, and with the brutal name "Gankyuu Eguriko", this immortal girl had lived for over a thousand years. Once, due to some random event, she had changed her name to True • Gankyuu Eguriko, but, actually giving the reason that it was too hard to pronounce, she reinstated her original name.

This uncute girl who lived with Rinne for some reason placed the collapsed girl on prepared bedding, and started talking, "If you feel stressed, your body reacts accordingly. You would get a stomach ache, vomit, or get a headache. However, people who have eaten an Apple won't feel those. So, they push themselves to their limit, until they can't take it anymore and collapse. Really, if your friend dies isn't it alright to bawl your eyes out? No one would blame her."

Guriko looked at Sakaki, who just walked in, and silently held the shoulders of the fast-asleep Rinne and gave her to Sakaki. He wasn't sure what to do and just held her, feeling that her powerless form was exceptionally vulnerable.

"Guriko?"

"I don't understand friendship or love."

Guriko showed a pained expression, and she began to clean the blood-splattered simple kitchen. Probably trained by Rinne, Guriko had gained the ability to clean and do laundry. Yet a thousand years' emptiness had, in the end, erased from her any form of emotion or common sense.

As if reciting text, Guriko nonchalantly said, "I don't understand, I forgot. So there's no way I can comfort Rinne, which is frustrating......All I can do is annihilate Rinne's enemies. I definitely can't cure the scars carved in Rinne's heart."

She then turned toward Sakaki with those lonely eyes that, according to Rinne, seemed to be very similar to Sakaki. "So, I'm a bit jealous of you."

Was he really similar to her? Compared to Guriko, who admitted that she could only defeat Rinne's enemies but could not heal her pain, wasn't he only able to comfort Rinne without any way to fend against Rinne's enemies? Sakaki pondered this.

Helpless, Sakaki held Rinne tightly, and Guriko looked at them with concern. Rinne's closed eyes brimmed with tears; was he unable to save her, even in her dreams? Her face looked devoid of blood, and her fingertips were abnormally cold. To warm her up, Sakaki held her even closer.

Sakaki instinctively spat out insults.

"How repulsive, just who was it that killed Katou?!"

"How would I know?"

As she washed the cutting board with dishwashing liquid, Guriko crooked her head and said, "Although, just by looking at the facts, the culprit shouldn't be a normal person. Possibly some super-strong man or an animal. Or it's--"

She turned on the faucet.

"A monster."

Monsters, those things that quietly lived outside the world of people like Sakaki that overstepped the boundary of normality. During the events in the month before, Sakaki encountered quite a few monsters. The most powerful of them was large enough to flatten buildings with each step.

Katsumi's tragic death truly didn't seem to be caused by humans.

Sakaki's mood worsened, but he still said uneasily, "Anyways, it's best to stay cautious; after all, we haven't confirmed the culprit. Hopefully it's some criminal that the police can handle... Guriko?"

He carelessly looked over, and noticed Guriko's grim gaze toward the entrance. Her expression was strange, as if she was shocked, staring at the door with stiff face.

"What is it?"

"Someone's here."

Guriko replied curtly.

Sakaki's eyebrows scrunched together. "Could it be the mailman? Or... the murderer?"

Even though he felt it was unlikely, he couldn't deny the possibility. Guriko firmly gripped her three spoons; whether in the past or now, her weapon of choice had always been spoons.

"I don't know. Don't talk, someone will hear you. Although, I don't think it's a monster."

Possibly listening for activity, Guriko's face turned beastlike, instinctively searching out enemies and avoiding danger. That was the first-rate caution developed over a millennium.

"Humans, two of them."

Guriko was incredulous. Humans; and since there were two, it probably wasn't that self-proclaimed musician woman who lived next door. And it shouldn’t be Rinne’s friends since students had already been instructed to avoid going out without good reason.

And Guriko definitely did not have anything that could be considered even similar to a friend--

As Sakaki thought this, the doorbell rang. After an eye signal from Guriko, he cautiously walked toward the entrance. They planned so that even if Sakaki was knocked down by a surprise attack, Guriko could repel the intruders. That is to say, Sakaki was bait--"living sacrifice" might also be accurate. He tried to put on a calm voice as he asked, "Excuse me, who is this?"

"We're with the Sakaki Group."

"Please leave," Sakaki immediately declared, turning his back to the door as he shrugged his shoulders and sighed to Guriko, "No need to be so careful, they aren't people who matter."

"I see." Guriko naively set down her spoons.

At that moment, the door was suddenly forced open. Although, the door wasn't locked to begin with.

The pair standing on the other side of the door solemnly saluted.

"Though it was quite rude, please forgive my rudeness."

"Hino. You're talking weird."

"I'm [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes# Itsuwara | Itsuwara]] Hino."

"My name is Itsuwara Kio."

Standing there were--an exceedingly normal man and woman of about forty years of age, wearing a gray suit and a milky white outfit respectively. They were people who didn't stand out, people the likes of whom one would probably brush past while walking in the city.

"What do you want?"

Sakaki looked at them with barely-concealed disgust. Since they were men of the Sakaki Organization, they must have been his father's men. There was no way he could trust them.

The two people smiled tenderly, so much that they seemed unnatural. "Nice to meet you, Guryuu-san."

"You're in a good mood as always, it seems. Anyway--"

The man calling himself Kio smoothly pointed at Guriko.

"Today we have business with that young lady..."

Guriko was bewildered.

"..."

A wild flurry of colors. In simpler terms, toys with many different colors. For some reason, it seemed like a child's toy with purely primary colors, and it was painfully dazzling. The confusing red, blue, and yellow made one dizzy.

This was the shopping center called Chaos Zen Q -- an underground street where all sorts of specialty shops and peddlers gathered. Probably since it was a holiday, customers were abundant, and Guriko almost got lost multiple times.

She had no interest in shopping, nor did she enjoy it, and she wanted to get as far away from this overcrowded place as possible. Plus, since Rinne had such a low income, she couldn't go shopping often, and had never deliberately taken the bus to come three stations to this shopping center. This place seemed to Guriko like a different, miniature world.

The activity now all seemed like normal, human life, which made Guriko feel like she fit into modern Japanese society. Yet in this "Chaos Zen Q", there were too many things she had never seen. Was it really Japan, just like Kannonsakazaki?

For example, Guriko was standing in "Witch's Torture" for some reason, a specialty toy store with a name sounding like a finishing move, but completely she lacked knowledge on the toys arranged there. She tentatively picked up a nearby teddy bear. "So this is what they call a teddy bear?" And she sighed deeply.

"Ah, Guriko-chan, you like that teddy bear?" "Then everyone in the family can get a teddy bear. Wow, Guriko, you picked a teddy bear that's just as cute as you are. Then I'll pick a teddy bear that looks as serious as I do, and Hino should a torture bear that's like Hino's deformed body!"

"Really, you idiot Kio , that was unnecessary!"

"Hahaha."

"....."

'What's going on now? These people have made enough noise, she really wanted to slaughter them.' The Itsuwara couple, Hino and Kio, smiled gently behind the grimacing Guriko, and one would find the excessive smiling somehow strange. With no reservation, they brightly said to Guriko, "Guriko-chan. You don't have to be so polite, because we'll be your parents. Just tell us if there's anything you want, and talk with us if anything's troubling you."

'’...My worries all stem from you two.''

Facing the stiffened-up Guriko, Kio tried to talk again, "Guriko, girls usually name their teddy bear. Wanna try it out? Since common sense and normal societal ethics develop through things like this."

Common sense and normal societal ethics, huh?

Guriko refused to recognize those things. But, even so...

"A name? Yono."

With a serious face, Guriko looked at a teddy bear that looked like a delinquent acting cool. Hino smiled, saying some meaningless words of praise -- Oh, what an excellent name. Truly worthy of Guriko-chan --

What was going on now? Guriko pondered.

The Itsuwara couple Hino and Kio suddenly appeared, claiming to be sent by the Sakaki Organization. Since they had identification, they probably weren't lying. In this country, if someone tried to con others using the Sakaki Organization's name, he'd suffer more than if he were arrested on the spot. The Sakaki name had that kind of power; conversely, by associating oneself with the Sakaki Organization, one's position in life was as good as guaranteed.

Guriko set the still-unconscious Rinne on the futon and let Hino and Kio sit down.

Even though they claimed to have business with her -- Guriko eyed them suspiciously. She was sure she had never seen them before.

The narrow, 7.5-square-meter room was filled with the scent of food. Since the kitchen was part of the room, it was impossible to eliminate the smell even if air freshener is sprayed every once in a while. Rinne was quite a meticulous and neat person, but it was impossible to deny that the undersized room would easily appear cluttered and messy. Between the wardrobe, T.V., textbooks and the like, and the kotatsu, even walking around was difficult.

"Common sense and normal societal ethics training?" Sakaki was bewildered.

"What did you say?" Guriko didn't understand.

Hino smiled with happiness that almost seemed fake, as if saying "This is really great". With hands folded she continued, "Right, common sense and standard societal ethics training. That's what it's called, it's like someone's trying to act smart by using hard words."

"Yup, though it sounds like a legal term it's actually pretty simple."

Kio forcefully interjected with a cheerful voice. This couple thought quite similarly.

"In simple terms -- no, using the most obvious and clear terms, it's 'Have Guriko-chan understand common sense' or ‘The Sakaki Organization won't be able to help you either if you never live a normal life'. So... That's how it is."

His words made Sakaki's expression change as the teacher disgustedly looked at Guriko.

"Guriko, what the hell did you do?" "No clue."

She really had no idea what they're talking about. After all she had only been living according to her own beliefs.

Plus, with that giant smile, Hino was saying stuff that really shouldn't be said smiling.

"Guriko-chan isn't someone who should be living with Miss Usagawa Rinne."

Hearing this, Guriko's eyebrow twitched a little. She was someone who shouldn't live with Usagawa Rinne?

''I don't need others to tell me some like that, even I know that. From the start we only lived together out of practicality, since I had nowhere else to stay.

But, I don't want some outsider who doesn't understand anything to tell that to me.''

Guriko glared at them. Kio, completely unfazed, looked toward Sakaki.

"Guryuu-san. Ganhou-san believes it is most important to begin fixing Miss Usagawa's surroundings. A person's behavior will be greatly affected by her environment. If the environment is filled with trash, the stench will permeate the person, and if she is surrounded by people using vulgar language, she will inevitably start speaking the same way."

"So we need to clean up her surroundings. By thoroughly fixing the things around Miss Usagawa Rinne's, it will be possible for her to mature in a sound environment." Hino picked up where Kio left off, making it seem as though they planned it in advance.

Sakaki's face stiffened, contemptuously glaring at them. "Basically, Guriko's a hindrance?"

Hino and Kio spoke together. "You are correct, Guryuu-san."

"Why..."

Guriko couldn't ignore this, and banged her fist on the kotatsu with flaming eyes. She made a loud noise, but Guriko still took care not to break it.

The teacups set on the table rattled and fell.

Guriko released the anger she held: "You... How am I a hindrance? Aren't you saying that I'm a bad influence on R-Rinne?"

The words lacked her usual sharpness. Guriko vaguely felt that she had brought Rinne into an abnormal world. Granted, even if she did not appear, Rinne would have eventually noticed her Apple's power. But in the end, it was Guriko who made this happen faster.

But, even so...

''I don't want Rinne to say she doesn't need me or, even worse, think of me as a nuisance.''

Yet Kio naturally said, "Yes, you're quite a hindrance and a poor influence."

Toward this formality that was like defining simple English words, Guriko didn't know whether to feel enraged or hurt. She looked toward Sakaki, whose face showed a rare expression as he remained silent.

"But," Sakaki spoke with weight and earnestness in his deep voice, "Her Majesty was saved thanks to Guriko. You cannot deny that."

"True, we know that."

"But right now, her influence is undesirable in many ways."

Hino shot a glance at Kio, who rapidly set onto the table several documents from a bag. Guriko couldn't resist looking at them, but the convoluted text filled with complicated words made her head spin.

Hino explained with a bitter laugh: "These are the recent records of Guriko-chan causing injuries, breaking things, attempting murder, etc. Mmm, there's really too much. Even though these incidents won't be investigated since Ganhou-san's handling them, if you don't consider the fact that she's a minor, this is truly too terrible."

"Guriko isn't a minor." Guriko nodded in consent with Sakaki's words.

The Itsuwara couple were shocked, looking at each other as if asking "What's going on?"

That's right, Guriko was about a thousand years old. Even though she couldn't remember the exact number, she should probably be the elder of every human on this lump of land. At events like [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes# Shichi-Go-San | Shichi-Go-San]] people would eat thousand-year candies; the makers probably never imagined that someone would actually be that old. Though this isn't relevant to what Hino was saying, it's still true.

Normally, beating someone up or attempting murder would result in punishment; that is justice. It's something that's obvious with a little bit of thought. Yet from the start, one shouldn't expect Guriko, who had wandered for a thousand years, to have this kind of common sense or belief.

Guriko looked at Hino, who nodded her head as if understanding Guriko's feelings.

"Right, developing common sense and normal societal ethics is the goal, so that Guriko-chan will stop doing that kind of stuff and become a normal person. You've been committing crimes for too long. Ganhou-san has decided that living with a person like that will definitely hamper Miss Usagawa's development."

''To be honest, this makes a lot of sense.''

''And if possible, I don't want to trouble Rinne.''

As if to let her relax, Kio gently smiled. "Obviously, you'll be able to return immediately after the training finishes. When you can fit into society without upsetting the sense of normalcy that an average person develops throughout life, and it is decided that you no longer threaten Miss Usagawa's development, the training will end."

"..."

Guriko thought about it: ''So it's like this. I can understand. But the problem is, I want to stay be Rinne's side. I don't want to leave her --Even though I understand the logic.''

Guriko looked at Rinne who was sleeping, curled in the futon.

''I can't make problems for her.''

"Alright, I accept."

Guriko made her resolution; it shouldn't take too long anyway, and time itself isn't limited. There's no rush, nothing's wrong with accepting their common sense and normal societal ethics training! Guriko thought this way.

Astonished, Sakaki turned toward her. "Is that alright? Guriko, if you really don't want to do it, I can think of something."

"You're too nosy. You have nothing to do with this. In short, I don't want to trouble Rinne."

Hino and Kio's faces lightened into unrestrained smiles.

"Wah, thanks. Guriko, I'm really happy!"

"I, I, I'll strive to become a superb mother!"

"I'll also become a dependable father! Let's go, it'll get busy starting today!"

Guriko noticed something weird, looking without understanding at the two people who got incredibly happy on their own.

"Wh-what? What's the meaning of this? What mother, father?"

"What?"

Kio, who was elated to shivers while embracing Hino, spoke of something absurd with an indignant tone: "Common sense and normal societal ethics training consists of Guriko living with us as our daughter! The plan is to slowly teach common sense and ethics through cohabitation!"

"There is much to teach, Guriko-chan! From today onward you are Itsuwara Eguriko! Waahhhh----"

''Isn't it a bit early to decide that?''

Gankyuu Eguriko--correction, Itsuwara Eguriko sighed.

"That said, who is Itsuwara Eguriko?"

Things have gotten crappy; Guriko thought this as she sat in an Italian restaurant on a restaurant-filled street eating spaghetti. In fact, not only did Guriko have no appetite, she didn't even need food, so what she did was meaningless. But to prevent the Itsuwara couple, who knew nothing, from getting suspicious, it was best for the time being to act like she was hungry and let the food flow into her stomach. Back before she became immortal, she never thought stuffing down alien substances could be so disgusting.

"Wah, Hino, this pizza's on the level of national treasures! Call the chef over!"

"That pizza was definitely frozen! But it's so good!"

"Guriko. It's good, right?" "Guriko-chan, don't you also think it's good?"

They were also strange.

Their affection -- strange.

Swallowing it was a bit disgusting.

"..."

''That's right, to me these should meaningless, unrelated people. They're a couple that I didn't know yesterday. Their names are Itsuwara Hino and Itsuwara Kio, but aside from the fact that their personalities are ridiculous and over-the-top, they aren't anything special, just a man and woman that can be found anywhere.''

Guriko agreed to take the common sense and normal societal ethics training with that overly long name, and after entrusting the unconscious Rinne to Sakaki came along with these people. What followed was nothing but a series of new irritants. Was this normalcy? Guriko could not understand.

--It's alright as long only you are unhappy--

Guriko recalled that time when she was still called Yono. A thousand years ago, when Guriko was genuinely human, without anything like immortality.

Guriko had been taken into a household, and received cold treatment from the family members. She thought this was alright, since they gave her food to eat and at night time they helped prepare bedding for her. When her older brother was in a good mood he would even play with her. But she often felt an indescribable loneliness, and when she noticed she was by herself.

Over and over again her parents would say to her, it's alright as long as you are unhappy. Though Guriko felt hurt, she still accepted it completely, and she felt that this was the normal relationship between parent and child. The parental relationships that Guriko knew, that remained in her memory, were dry and without feeling, like the relationships between a pack of beasts.

But--

Guriko lightly stroked the teddy bear on her leg, that one called Yono. ''Rinne seemed to have said before that she wanted a teddy bear. But I never thought the day would come when I would get one.''

Even though she didn't particularly want one.

For some reason, she didn’t want to throw it away either.

Toy stores, clothing stores, stationary stores; they went to every type of store and bought everything they needed. Guriko bought three shirts, shoes, and things which she had always wanted but never thought to buy: high quality spoons that didn't come from a dollar store.

She never expected a day to come when she didn't need to steal and could obtain her own things legally. This teddy bear was Guriko's, and Guriko's alone.

Thinking like this, her mood suddenly improved.

So--

"Ugh."

While suppressing her urge to vomit, Guriko forked down her spaghetti. Giant bite after giant bite, she ate expressionlessly, and then politely said, "It's not bad."

Just this much was enough for them to heartily laugh.

"Wah! Guriko seems to like it too!"

"This restaurant really is the best! Even though it's a chain restaurant!"

"Call the chef over! Call the chef over!"

''Really, why are they so idiotic, I've had enough. I don't accept them as my family. But... This doesn't really feel bad."''

''Can I find a way to treat them as my parents? No, that's impossible. There's no way today, but maybe one day I'll be tricked by this irredeemable, ridiculous kind of atmosphere. I can't be sure if I will one day form some illusions from this.''

"Yono died a thousand years ago."

She stroked the teddy bear as she spoke softly.

"Ever since then, I've always been Gankyuu Eguriko. I... can I already stop using that freakish name? I don't know... Do I want to? I can't figure it out."

Guriko's reflections didn't produce results, so she just decided to leave her worries for tomorrow; her time won't run out, anyways. Back to the present. It's enough to go along with this situation that can only be described as disastrous.

Kio looked at Guriko, whose head was lowered, and his expression was like he stuck gold. "Wah, Guriko! There's sauce stuck on the corner of your mouth! I'll wipe it off for you!"

"That's my job, Kio! Move!"

"--Let's get wiping together!"

And so Guriko ended up in this doubly-being-wiped situation, becoming aware of the peculiarity in the corner of her mouth as her muscles moved a little. Unable to believe it, she pushed aside the napkin pressed to her and placed her fingers on the corner of her lips.

She understood. And as a result felt somewhat surprised.

"I'm... smiling."

Guriko smiled very faintly. Such a rare occurrence, and in front of people she met for the first time today to boot.

Apparently, she actually was enjoying herself.

"Whoa, Guriko smiled! It's so cute, I'm gonna collapse!"

"Same here! Ah--Guriko LOVE, LOVE! Mmmmmmmm...."

After finishing their weird noises the two pretended to faint, causing nervous murmurs from the other customers.

Even though this wasn't her desire at all, Guriko seemed to feel a little joy.

That night.

"Art."

In an empty park.

"Art--Yeah, what is called misery, when taken to the limit will be called beautiful art."

A ball abandoned by children after they finish playing, sad-looking playground equipment that seemed to absorb the silent desolation. A messy sandpit. Inside this slightly small park, the bench in front of the water fountain.

"Obscene, vulgar, base, filthy--this corpse that normal people hate without reason, shines as art. Hahaha. It's true, the beautiful human corpse is beautifully artistic. Lavish and wonderful, miserable and wonderful, cruel and wonderful. Man, what's going on, why is the heartless me unable to suppress my excitement and shuddering body!"

Sitting there was a female.

"How about a toast to this beauteous night? The full moon and stars are all so beautiful, so how about sweet wine? Let’s use death of the highest quality to make people shiver."

Around her were the flesh pieces of humans.

Under the lamppost that struggled to keep shining, without speaking to anyone in particular, the woman weaved words in a honey-sweet voice. Signs of life were completely gone in this playground in the residential area after sundown and no one noticed this bloody, brutal scene. Flesh and blood surrounded the woman on the bench; only these two things were scattered around. Just what kind of flesh was it? It was impossible to tell by looking at the pieces, but that glossy red flesh was still fresh, steaming in the chilly winter air.

With some light from the moon, stars, and lamppost the flesh looked a bit brown, and the blood lying all around had turned completely black while seeping into the ground. This was a scene that lacked a sense of reality, leaving only a ruthless stillness.

As if appreciating a famous painting, the woman merely sat silently, watching.

“I really want to keep –”

She sighed.

"Looking at this--Ah, I made something awesome! No wait, that's too arrogant. The creators of this work are none other than you who have become corpses. I am only the lucky one who can appreciate the art before it rots."

Truly, how many wonders are hidden within this Earth? She can’t see this entire world no matter how long she lives. Simply, this woman loved this wondrous world.

The only things that could be heard were the horn of a distant car, the wind, and the rustling of the leaves on the park's trees. The only thing that could be seen was the darkness-covered world that seemed a bit mysterious.

There was only the shadow of a building, mixing with the park's gravel ground, and a group of moths attracted by the scent of blood.

“Moths -- ah."

The woman sighed again. Every time she did so, a sound would come from her mouth similar to the sound of a teapot releasing steam.

That would be expected, because a mask was covering her mouth. It was not for blocking colds or allergies; rather, the clear purpose was to block dust or toxic gas. The unusually-shaped hard mask seemed especially out of place on her graceful appearance.

Thanks to a mask, it was hard to see her expression, and her age was uncertain though she seemed to be between 25 and 29. Slim yet dangerous, she reminded one of a sharpened blade. Over her thin, tender body, she wore extremely revealing clothes.

A tank top with angel wings printed on the back hid a girl-like body that belied her outer appearance. It was winter now, but her snow white skin was completely free of goosebumps. The only thing barely covering her waist area was a pair of jeans shorts that stopped at her thighs.

A head of flawlessly pure white hair, untainted by anything; it was the color of fresh snow. The waist-length hair was tied into a ponytail. On her wrists she wore all sorts of bracelets and colourful strips of cloth.

This strange looking woman's eyes turned sinister, and she spoke into the darkness as she crossed her legs as if pondering something. She had a habit of speaking out loud to organize her thoughts, feeling that doing this let her sort out important points.

"Mushi... Ah, Mushi. That group of Mushi acted strange last month, and though it quickly became peaceful again I don't know what happened in the first place."

A breeze brushed past her hair.

"It is believed that the one responsible is an Apple holder living in this town. The four confirmed individuals are Usagawa Rinne, Sakaki Guryuu, Gankyuu Eguriko, and--"

As she spoke, she seemed to think about something.

"The one who tried to steal their Apples by pretending to be and manipulating 'Mushi'. Honestly. I didn't think that clan still existed! This is ominous; Adam, Eve, and the Snake. The humans descended from Adam and Eve reproduced far too quickly to eliminate, but if the last descendant of the Snake causes trouble I can exterminate him."

The woman stared forward with a grave expression.

"I'll start by taking Apples away from their owners. If that works, I can ask about what happened at that time. Really, why do I have to do this kind of annoying thing? I'm just a digestive organ. Seeking out truth is God Insect Emperor's job."

The others were just too lazy; it felt like she was doing all the work.

"This is so annoying. I'm going to tremble."

The woman's body shook, and then she hugged herself as if to protect herself. This was something she did without any particular meaning.

With a "Fshuu--Fshuu--" breathing sound coming from the mask, she muttered to herself, "Basically, it doesn't matter which of those four. I'll start by taking the Apples."

Then she looked at the pieces of flesh scattered in front of her, thinking, thinking, and thought through all the main points.

"-Then, I really will need these pieces of flesh. Even though I don't want to use these pieces of art on anything--"

"Wh-Whooa?"

A scream?

The woman's expression instantly became alert as she turned toward the sound. The rapid movement made her hair swish high. In her line of sight was--

"Eh, umm. These are corpses... Waahhh!"

The woman calmly watched this person. He was a blue uniformed police officer, male, without any distinctive features, and didn't seem to be an excellent cop. Shuddering, he pointed at the hands and guts and other body parts on the ground, and screamed before collapsing on the ground as his mouth opened and closed.

Did the police notice? Of course police officers patrolled residential areas. Chances were Long-Armed Demon acted on her own too much, so the police had been especially alert recently.

"Long-Armed Demon, Apple holders, police----" The woman sighed with a "Fshuuu", and seemed to be exhausted as she shrugged her shoulders. "So troublesome."

Then she got up and turned to the policeman sitting paralyzed on the ground. He seemed to have just noticed her, and let out a stiff shout as he scooted backward.

"Don't... Don't tell me! Are you the L-long Armed Demon?"

"Ugh."

The woman scrunched her eyebrows, slowly walking next to the man. "I'm not one of those changed children. Now, my name is [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes# Saibara Mina | Saibara Mina]], I really hate this name because--it's not cute."

After that, she took a spray can from somewhere and pointed it at the policeman. It was an extremely common spray can, simple and unlabeled. On the outside it didn't look different from insecticide or deodorant that gets sold.

"Hmm."

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhh"

The woman shook it while remaining still, shaking in a way that didn't look special.

"If you want address me, please call me Sterilization Disinfection."

With a face like he'd seen a ghost, the police officer screamed loudly and frantically tried to crawl up and escape.

He kneeled, screaming as he tried to get up, but his legs didn't listen to his commands and he collapsed again. He seemed so scared that he couldn't even control himself anymore.

"Fshuu"--Mina sighed in resignation.

"What an unbearable policeman. No courage at all, he's contaminating my field of view."

The policeman could not understand Mina's words, screaming as he stood up.

"S-Senpai! Save me! Nageki-senpai!" Did he have companions? It would be troublesome if he called over too many people.

Mina quickly made her decision.

"Save me! L-Long Armed Demon, she's the Long Armed Demon!" ''I’ve told you I’m not that person. ''

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" Mina shook her spray can, and slowly turned it to the man.

"Let's sterilize and disinfect."

<noinclude>
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|-
| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_Open|Open: Clock of Endless Nights]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch2|Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Mushi:Vol1 Ch2

2012-02-04T07:50:38Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Night 2: The 15th November Incident''' ==

'''PLEASE read Translator's Notes in this chapter. There are layers of hidden meanings that we have been unable to present accurately into English''' - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]

There was nothing that was important to her.

Maybe there had been, but that was in the past; she didn’t remember anything like that.

A millennium – far too long a time to live, yet too short a time to go insane. Happy memories - joy, hopes, dreams; all of these warm and gentle feelings had been gradually stolen by the passage of time, till the only thing left was a cold and empty void. Empty – all she could do was store the Apples of her friends in the void that was her flesh. There was no reason for her to go on. She didn't even know why she was alive. Someone like her, who only lived for the sake of living, beginning to lose her grasp on her humanity - had she become a monster?

She couldn’t smile.

She couldn’t find a single happy or treasured memory.

Something that did not smile and didn’t have anything important in life – could that really be called a ‘human’?

“Who are you? What are you planning to do?”

- As usual, whenever that question was asked, she choked on her own words.

Her shoelaces were messily bundled together. That was to be expected – after all, it had been a long time since she engaged in such a delicate activity. Thus it was that Gankyuu Eguriko was sitting on the wooden floor in front of the dimly lit shoe closet at Kannonsakazaki Private High School, trying in vain to tie a butterfly knot. But after trying for ten full minutes, she still couldn’t get it right. She could vaguely remember being good at it once, but that memory was long gone now.

The only memories she had of her past were those filled with terrible pain and a feeling of helplessness so powerful it was crushing. That was the reason she never tried very hard to remember.

There was still quite some time before school began, and even the stairways were vacant, for Guriko made it a point to get to school early in order to practice tying her shoelaces. Despite that, she hadn’t been able to produce anything that didn’t look like a bunch of wet noodles, dragging her deeper into despair.

She didn’t even realize that “he” was standing before her.

Focused on tying her shoelaces with her head bowed, it wasn’t until she was engulfed by his shadow that she realized someone was standing in front of her, and so slowly raised her head.

It was a tall man, with a handsome face. Guriko had never seen such a good looking human, though she felt nothing as he stared right at her. Being an immortal, things like attraction and love meant nothing to her - those feelings had withered away to the point of no return.

Despite that, she felt herself shiver involuntarily.

She had no idea why.

“… Are you waiting for me?” Guriko asked quietly.

It was such an un-cute reaction.

She had left all her cute, innocent, Usagawa Rinne-like reactions behind a long, long time ago.

“I never thought I’d see you here this early. Having trouble with your shoelaces?”

The man, Sakaki Guryuu, shifted his gaze down to Guriko’s messed up shoelaces. Approaching her nonchalantly, he knelt down and swiftly untangled the mess of strings, gracefully fashioning a perfect butterfly knot out of them.

With that, he looked up at Guriko, who was now sitting up straight, and bluntly said, “Don’t you even know something as simple as that?”

“S-shut up! What are you doing here?”

''Dammit!'', Guriko thought. She never would have imagined this guy helping her out. There was even a tinge of happiness inside her from it. Still, she knew that being nice to him wouldn’t do her any good.

She knew she couldn’t be friends with him. That would be impossible.

Feelings like that just weren’t going to happen, no matter how hard she wished for it.

This was something Guriko knew very well.

Guriko shifted her gaze from Sakaki’s face, which was inches from her own, and bowed her head. Sakaki immediately stood up and took an arrogant pose. He glared down upon her from above.

“Like I said earlier, I want to know who you really are, your motives, and just what you’re after here.”

It was a calm, clear, and loud voice. It was a voice of authority.

Guriko didn’t feel intimidated in the slightest, however.

“You don’t need to know.”

“That doesn’t matter. Now talk. I don’t want to use force, but I will if I have to.”

“You think you stand a chance against me?”

Oh boy, what a bother.

''Why did I say something like that?''

In her sailor uniform, Guriko rose up slowly to her full height, looking up at the taller man. Sakaki returned her glare with an intense and fiery stare from his emerald eyes.

People with beautiful eyes were always beautiful in the end...

Guriko again averted her gaze and picked up her bag from the floor.

“…Why do you want to know? Are you curious? Or just intrigued?”

“Neither. I’m doing this out of love.”

“…You’re worried about Usagawa Rinne?”

“That’s right.”

“Hmm…”

What resolve! How could he answer without hesitation?

...did he really love her that much?

Guriko gave him a small smile.

“…How admirable. For both you and Usagawa.”

“What?”

“Nothing. Just talking to myself.”

With that, Guriko looked at him and said honestly, “Instead of suspecting me, why don’t you look out for ‘Mushi’ instead? I didn’t manage to kill Usagawa, and won’t ever try it again. Those ‘Mushi’, on the other hand… they won’t give up on that Apple so easily.”

“Mushi…”

“Yes.”

Mushi – the name of the enemy.

Guriko put on a stern face and stared at Sakaki, as if trying to burn a hole through him with her gaze.

“Those guys were ‘Mushi’ – And not only are they everywhere, but they will stop at nothing to achieve their goal.”

''Don’t let your guard down,'' she thought silently.

Out of all the teachers in Kannonsakazaki High School, the one in charge of Class 1-B, Sakaki Guryuu, stood out above the others. His mannerisms were dignified and elegant, [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#Pan An| a total Prince Charming even in looks.]] To top it off, he was quite the unique teacher, maybe even the best in the world. However, there was something weird about his teaching. Despite technically being a History teacher, he actually taught his class all subjects.

“Are we back in elementary school or something?” Sakaki’s students didn't approve of this matter at all.

The answer to this riddle was Usagawa Rinne. Sakaki wanted to spend as much time as he possibly could with her. Thus, no matter if it was Biology, P.E., or Music, he indiscriminately taught everything. Not only that, but he did so flawlessly. There were no imperfections in his teaching style. Class 1-B’s steady rise in grades was easy to see. In addition to his handsome features and artistic talent (which were mostly wasted in his teaching profession), he had earned the students' approval as he was generally kind despite his somewhat cold personality. Therefore, he was truly unique. Gossiping co-workers called him [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#Neptune King|Neptune King]], lord of the perfect ones, out of jealousy; although, the students who grew up in a later generation usually had no idea what they were talking about.

Yet, this superhuman called Sakaki Guryuu had a problem one wouldn’t expect from someone like him. That problem was his ‘religion’ of “worship-Usagawa-Rinne-above-all-else.” In other words, his obsession with Usarin-kakka and the notion that the world revolved around her. That love for the girl in Class 1-B was unrivaled and in fact was the very reason he had gotten a teaching license in the first place. This love was already common knowledge at Kannonsakazaki High School, and since he was the type to do whatever it took to achieve his goals, he got that license through force, influence, and authority.

And naturally, he would appear in 1-B’s classroom during lunch break because he wanted to eat lunch with Usagawa Rinne. Honestly, he was shameless. What was it about Usagawa Rinne that engrossed such a perfect man to this level of obsession? Does she have some sort of relation to [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#Yang Guifei|Helen of Troy in ancient Greece]]!? It was a common topic for gossip among the students.

One ordinary day, at lunchtime in this classroom—

Something unique happened. It was known as “The November 15th Incident” from then on.

Hurry up.

''What’s taking Sensei so long?'' Usagawa Rinne thought to herself.

The date was Monday, November 15th. Luckily, the classroom that day was quite warm. Rinne calmly smiled and put two lunchboxes on her desk as she waited for Sakaki Guryuu.

During lunch, Sakaki always ignored the normal school lunch and came to eat and chat with Rinne. She loved to cook, so it was never a problem to cook for two. Still, she couldn’t help but feel a bit odd at times because of their rather unnatural relationship. Sakaki grew up sheltered in an incredibly wealthy household, and sometimes the resulting lack of common sense would cause clashes with others.

Secretly, though, she found this cute. It might not have been lady-like, but seeing that even the perfect Sakaki can sometimes act strange relieved her a bit. Sakaki Guryuu was still a human, just like her. Because it gave her that reassurance, she couldn’t deny that she liked that part of him to a degree.

‘Like’ — Rinne liked Sakaki. Sakaki was a teacher, and she was his student. Despite this difference in status, this wall between them, the two loved each other. That was their trust, and their mutual understanding. Because of that, they would be able to find happiness.

Usagawa Rinne was happy.

Sure, she’d get worried from time to time.

But she was undoubtedly happy.

It was noisy. Even though Kannonsakazaki High School was prestigious enough to house only the most obedient of students, lunchtime was still rowdy. The school was old, so the floors and walls were worn and there were random scribbles here and there from past students. Although it probably bothered the neat freaks, Rinne actually liked it. She felt it paid homage to the history of the room, and gave some hints of those who occupied it before.

A cold breeze blew in, causing the curtains to flutter inward. Despite some remaining warmth, Rinne knew the transition to winter had already begun.

At this point, Sakaki Guryuu finally arrived.

Sakaki’s hair was a bit messy, probably since he’d rushed here.

As soon as he opened the door, Sakaki shouted, “Sorry I’m late…” even before walking into the room.

“It’s not a problem. I don’t mind.”

Rinne smiled as she gave her gentle response. Despite how much it actually had bothered her, she let none of it show. Still wearing that apologetic face, Sakaki passed through the students who had hushed at the appearance of their teacher and walked over to Rinne’s desk. He pulled up a chair and sat down.

“I’m truly sorry, Your Majestry. Someone popped in at the worst time. It was some old man that looked like he could croak at any moment from the Education Committee or something. He kept going on and on without getting anywhere. I think the Director of Education probably dumped him on me.”

Sakaki thought nothing of saying the harsh words he used and sighed.

“Ugh! Why on Earth did they have to send him to me? And during my precious lunch break, too! The office is trying to punish me, I tell you.”

Rinne held back a laugh, and covered her mouth with her hands.

Sakaki’s confused expression was just too cute.

“Sensei, maybe it’s best if you don’t look at it like someone is wanting to punish you or that’ll make you paranoid to the point that just thinking about it will bother you!”

“That is true… What you say does make sense. Haha, I can’t tell who’s the teacher and who’s the student here, Usarin-kakka.”

She honestly didn’t know why he insisted on calling her “Usarin-kakka.” “Usarin” was an abbreviation of her name “Usagawa Rinne,” but why Japanese people love to shorten all proper nouns was a mystery to her. [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#"Like pocket bells, personal computers", sexual harassment, or convenience stores|Like pocket bells, personal computers, sexual harassment, or convenience stores]]. “Guriko” was another example of this.

Rinne thought of the mysterious transfer student called Guriko who had killed her, although Rinne barely remembered what happened that night. She had been watching TV when her door was suddenly busted open. When she turned around, something pierced her eye, and she passed out. When she had woken up, Sakaki was by her side and her room was filled with blood. Beyond that, she remembered nothing.

What had she gotten herself into? Just who exactly was that Guriko girl? Rinne did not understand what had happened at all, not that she particularly wanted to delve deeper into the matter. Only when something threatened her future with Sakaki did she get upset. If Guriko had actually wanted to kill her, then that would really be scary. Rinne understood far too well the pain of death.

Yet, it would be silly to feel terrified just because of a possibility, and Guriko hadn’t shown any signs of acting again. Therefore, Rinne wasn’t particularly on guard despite the fact that it had only been a few days since the girl transferred here.

Besides, no matter what happened, Sakaki would protect her. That was the way it was.

With a cheerful expression, Rinne opened a lunchbox and idly chatted with Sakaki. She was poor, so her lunches weren’t anything luxurious, but Sakaki still seemed satisfied. He looked like a young child with clasped hands when he exclaimed, “Itadakimasu!” Seeing that, she couldn’t help but smile.

This calm scene was the way they passed their time.

While stuffing his face with green beans, Sakaki happily asked, “By the way, how’s that wall that got blood splattered all over it? Did you find a way to get it cleaned up yet?”

Rinne poured some barley tea and downed it in one gulp. She then answered, “Well, there were bits of flesh with it too, so washing it with only water wouldn’t work. Even scrubbing it with a rag probably wouldn’t have worked, so I put new wallpaper over it.”

“Wasn’t that expensive?”

“Yup, I used up all my savings. Since the tatami was also soaked, I had to swap that out too. That was expensive too. For a poor student, that kind of spending is deadly.”

“I’ll never forgive that Guriko. But back to the main point, why don’t you get her to pay you back?”

In front of Sakaki, who seemed honestly angry, Rinne merely shrugged.

“It was you who shot that gun! Besides — Guriko probably has it worse than me. I think she’s homeless, and besides, she told me that she can’t even afford stationery.”

“…Do you two talk often?”

“We sit next to each other. She doesn’t seem to have anything to do after class, so I talk to her.”

Rinne’s naivety nearly caused Sakaki to faint.

“Your lack of concern for your personal safety never ceases to baffle me, Your Majesty! Didn’t I tell you not to talk to her? That talking to her will get your eyes gouged out?”

“I’ll gouge your eyes out!”

That was actually a death threat.

But still, Rinne was not afraid.

“Something like that's obviously a joke. I know for sure she’s just scared of being alone. She avoids other people since she doesn’t want to hurt them. I can see that since that’s how I used to be. I think Guriko actually wants to interact with people more.”

Rinne told him how she honestly felt, but he seemed less than impressed.

He sighed while looking up at the ceiling.

“Look… I know you’re naïve… But you should realize the reason why I don’t think she’s kidding is because she’s already gouged your eyes out once!”

“I suppose that’s true.”

Rinne, defeated, smiled and set her cup down with a “clank.” Sakaki seemed to have a grudge against Guriko, but Rinne didn’t think she was all that bad. She decided Guriko must have had good reason for removing her eyes.

“Aren’t you going to eat, Your Majesty? You’ve only been drinking tea so far.”

Sakaki was confused. Not only was Rinne’s food untouched, her lunchbox hadn’t even been opened. His question was a valid one.

Rinne stayed silent for a while.

“…I-I don’t know why, but I haven’t felt hungry or thirsty ever since Guriko almost killed me. To be honest, I haven’t eaten anything in about four days.”

“What..?”

Sakaki felt his voice crack as he spoke.

“Even so, I’m still not hungry. Hmm… is that weird?”

As she looked to him, she saw his face had gone white as a sheet.

Sakaki had already told Rinne about her immediate resurrection after her eyes had been gouged out. But with this loss of appetite, this — wasn’t this extraordinary!? It was proof she wasn’t human anymore.

After noticing she no longer had a need to eat, she had constantly run into the bathroom to look at herself. She had been making sure she hadn’t turned into some sort of monster.

If that happened, she’d lose Sakaki, and that was a fate worse than death for her. So Rinne had kept her lack of appetite hidden until then.

“Sensei…”

Rinne looked at Sakaki, who had yet to respond.

Rinne understood that there were some things even Sakaki had trouble understanding, but even so, she longed for him to tell her, “That’s okay,” or “Don’t worry,” or anything like that. If only she could get that reassurance, she could go on.

But—

The door slid open.

Guriko stood there. Her wolf-like hair looked like it had been styled by a typhoon. She had on a bored and impatient expression, but her eyes were the type that made you feel like you were staring down the barrel of a gun. This was the transfer student — Gankyuu Eguriko.

Her gaze fell upon the couple that sat across from each other in the center of the classroom — Sakaki Guryuu and Usagawa Rinne. Right then, her face turned to one of surprise. For Guriko, whose face usually revealed no expression whatsoever, showing a genuine emotion like shock was quite a rare occurrence.

Upon noticing the school’s well known lovers, this transfer student who had recently dominated the school’s discussions strode over and glared at Sakaki. She gave him a glare as if she were interrogating him and bluntly asked, “Have you eaten?”

“…Huh?”

“I asked you a question. Did you eat this bento?”

Guriko’s expression was extremely focused. And thanks to her loud voice, the entire class had turned to look. All of them thought, ‘Ho boy, what’s that transfer student doing now?’ Very quickly, the classroom became silent. Despite how odd it was, Sakaki decided to indulge Guriko in her question.

“Yes, I ate it.”

“Really?”

She muttered mostly to herself.

Guriko suddenly lowered her head and pressed her lips against those of Sakaki Guryuu.

“Eh…” “Whoa…”

Sakaki’s eyes opened wide. Rinne’s face was shocked. The class fell into uproar.

“Ugh…”

“Um… Ugh…”

Guriko held Sakaki’s head, and locked lips with him. Put plainly, she kissed him forcefully. In the middle of lunch. In front of the entire class. What the heck was she thinking?? This mysterious transfer known as Gankyuu Eguriko had stolen a kiss from the teacher just after having been there for only two days. Not only that, she even did in front of that teacher’s lover. Her motives didn’t matter. To the student body, this was clearly a declaration of war against Rinne. There was no other way for them to see it, but Guriko’s next action provided only added fuel to the fire.

“Clang—”

Of all the things that could happen!

Guriko flipped the lunchbox Sakaki had been eating from and dumped out all the food that Rinne had lovingly prepared. Then, she took Rinne’s lunchbox and dumped it out as well before driving her foot into the spilled food. After she had destroyed the lunches she declared, “Don’t eat this woman’s food!”

And because of this—

What was there to be done? There was nothing that could explain this. Without another word, Guriko walked off with pride, leaving the stunned Sakaki and pale Rinne behind. Within moments, any student that had a cell phone began to text and call their friends. Messages like: “Usagawa Rinne’s rival in love appears!” “On just her second day after transferring, Gankyu Eguriko kissed Sakaki Guryuu, threw down the lunch Rinne made for him, and declared, “Don’t eat that woman’s food!”” and “This will definitely be very interesting!” began to flood forth.

That was the “November 15th Incident.” It has lived in infamy ever since.

For those living an ordinary high-school life, this had been quite the event.

“What splendid entertainment!”

The voice sounded both male and female. It was something that lacked distinction.

“What are you planning —‘Mushi’?”

That pure and innocent voice seemed to cut through the previous one.

They were in front of classroom 1-B in Kannonsakazaki High School. Despite being outside the chaos of the classroom, there were always the echoing sounds of students in the hallway. The two of them faced off there, and despite them both having human appearance, neither of them were human at all. One was a “Mushi” taking on the form of a human, and the other had once been human, but had since become some creature that was only human-like — Gankyuu Eguriko. The “Mushi” wore a sailor uniform, had short hair, and wore a friendly expression. She looked completely normal, save for her red eyes.

The “Mushi,” still emotionless, made an intriguing noise.

“This was just a confirmation! After all, there’s no way for ‘us’ to lose. We simply believed it important to check whether or not Usagawa Rinne’s Apple has taken root in her soul. You should already know there’s nothing we won’t do in order to achieve our objectives.”

“…After death, the soul separates itself from the physical body. Apples reside in the soul, so — death is the only requirement for taking the soul, correct? Unfortunately for you, Usagawa Rinne’s Apple has already taken root in her soul. I confirmed this myself.”

“But ‘we’ have not! We do not trust anyone besides ourselves, especially not you!”

The “Mushi” replied in a dull and terrible voice. They had no individuality, and thus did not have emotions.

They were an exterminating machine that moved in hordes — that was “Mushi”.

“Even if you’re willing to do anything, you should have some discretion — did you plan on killing Sakaki Guryuu?”

“Since we did not know which lunchbox Usagawa Rinne would eat from, we poisoned both of them. Mmm, that was a necessary sacrifice! We ‘Mushi’ aren’t hampered with your romantic ideals. As long as we obtain the Apple, it doesn’t matter what happens to others.”

Guriko grit her teeth and said, “That’s why I despise you.”

“That may be, but we don’t particularly want you to hold feelings of affection toward us anyway.”

The aura emitted between the two non-humans grew unbearably intense. Its strength caused the windows in the hallway to begin to rattle.

Guriko crossed her arms and glared at the “Mushi”.

“But you have already lost. Usagawa Rinne's appetite is already gone, so the poison wouldn’t have worked on her anyway. Only Sakaki would have died. But I’m not going to let even that happen. You won’t have your way if I have anything to say about it.”

“Haha!” the “Mushi” laughed.

For the emotionless “Mushi”, laughter had only one purpose — to provoke.

“That was certainly an interesting way of removing the poison from that man’s mouth. You seem to be turning into quite the rebel. Where did you learn something like that?”

“You talk too much! Because of you, I had to create a big disturbance in class. There was no choice… Why does my reputation always have to suffer?!”

“Because your attitude is normally terrible, anyway. Something like this just adds to it.”

“It’s probably-”

Guriko closed her eyes and then murmured as if in a trance, “-because God hates me.”

She then pulled a spoon from her skirt pocket and threw it at the “Mushi” with speed too great for the naked eye to detect. The spoon cleanly pierced the eye of the fake schoolgirl “Mushi”. However, that wasn’t enough to stop its inertia. The spoon shot traveled through the eye socket, through the brain, and out the back of the skull. Obviously, this wasn’t something a human could pull off. The “Mushi” gave a small final smile before its ruined body collapsed. Right before it hit the floor, it broke down and disappeared.

The blood-stained spoon fell to the ground with a gentle metallic sound.

“It doesn’t matter anyway. I’m used to being hated.”

And so, Guriko skipped class and went up to the roof for an afternoon nap.

After school ended that day, Usagawa Rinne staggered home with an air of frustration and defeat. Her thoughts were plagued with what had happened at lunch. Guriko had kissed Sakaki Guryuu and told him to stop eating Rinne’s food. It made her heart pound. What was this uneasy feeling? Why did she feel so nauseous?

“Why…”

Why did Guriko kiss Sakaki? What kind of reason could she have to do this? Rinne smiled bitterly. Why was she so upset? Sakaki had kissed someone else, but why did seeing that annoy her so much?

“So annoying…”

Rinne noticed her jealousy of Guriko, and felt a bit disgusted by it. Was this what it felt like to have that which you value most threatened? This was the first time Rinne felt something like this, so it was hard to describe. “Jealousy” was the most accurate word, she figured. Rinne loved Sakaki, and seeing him kiss another girl was incredibly painful. So painful that for the time being she didn’t even want to talk to Sakaki.

Even though Sakaki’s feelings hadn’t changed and he didn’t hate Rinne, she still felt dejected. Noticing her own unreasonably poor mood, Rinne worried herself into a deeper depression. Rinne decided it was a bit like saving a cookie to enjoy later, only for someone else to eat it. She and Sakaki had only kissed once, on Sakaki’s birthday. Rinne thought of that as a bond between them, something that only she had.

However, that was no longer true. Right in front of Rinne, Guriko had kissed Sakaki.

“I’m so useless…”

She wanted to cry. She was already almost crying. It felt weak to be so bothered by this. She was still a weak human who trembled over such a trivial fact. Even if her body lost the ability to die, her heart was still so weak. So fragile. So powerless. So pathetic!

Realizing that obsessing over this was only going to make her feel worse, she decided not to dwell on it any longer. That’s it! Even if she avoided Sakaki today, she would greet him with a smile tomorrow! After that resolution, she felt a bit better.

Passing the bustling market, she then walked upon a rough path. It was always deserted here. Only the weeds were present, and not even a parking lot or the like could be seen. Rinne blankly gazed at the unchanging scenery where she used to frequently get lost as she walked, her thoughts jumbled.

“Hey, young lady over there.”

A voice. Rinne turned to look. In the space that had just been empty, a small, mysterious stand had appeared. Or maybe it was a shop? At least, it was covered with a plastic tarp like a tent. Inside the violet tent was a crystal ball, and sitting behind that was a robe-wearing man who gave off a strange vibe. There was a sign out front that read, “Fortune telling, 100 yen”.

“Hey, the young lady over there.”

Rinne couldn’t help but stop and turn to look at the perplexing little shop.

She was sure it hadn’t been there that morning.

The mysterious fortune teller spread out his hands and said in an ambiguous voice, “That’s right, this is fortune telling. Good luck, ill fortune, fated events, and romantic matches are all revealed. A young lady of your age should at least know about horoscopes or blood type fortunes! Besides those, there is fortune telling with Tarot cards, normal cards, flowers, or even with water flow. Your face, hands, clothes, and even the layout of your home are also taken into consideration. Just tell me your name, and I can read your fortune for you!”

Should she give it a go? — He just kept rambling on. Did he really have nothing else to do?

The price wasn’t that bad, and it’d be kind of pathetic if the Fortune Teller got ignored despite all his promoting, so Rinne carelessly walked into the tent. The inside was flooded with an odd, hazy light. The fortune teller gazed intently at Rinne and then his crystal ball before announcing, “Oh, ah… this is bad!”

“What…”

''I haven’t even said anything yet…'' she thought. The fortune teller lifted up his crystal ball and gleefully repeated, “Bad! Bad!”

“This is ominous! Usagawa Rinne-san, your fortune is doomed. It’s hellishly evil luck. The movements of the stars are terrible!”

“My name—”

''Did I tell him my name? No, I didn’t.''

The fortune teller didn’t seem to notice her confusion as he blathered on, “Life is like a star. Sometimes it grows dim, while other times it shines brightly. Unfortunately, though, smaller stars are attracted to larger ones, and when they collide the smaller stars are smashed to pieces.”

He looked at Rinne with his eyes that he had been hiding behind a hood. They were red.

“Some great existences cannot be approached. A star too small will only end up crushed if it reaches for something greater. It needs to know its limits if it is to remain safe. The gravity of a giant star is great, and draws in many small stars that only end up destroyed. Only by living carefully will they live long enough to achieve a death with blinding radiance.”

“That—"

Rinne stood up, staring at the cross-legged fortune teller. “That’s—”

“Make no mistake, it is you I speak of!”

The fortune teller wearing a violet robe gloomily addressed her in an androgynous voice, “Should you not reach out and stay your distance, you shall have an even more brilliant death.”

She realized this Fortune Teller was dangerous, but there were questions she had to get answered first.

“You’re saying the large star is Sensei? And the small star is me? I… can’t be with sensei?”

After hearing Rinne’s soft, almost-crying voice, the fortune teller lips curled up in a smile.

“You seem to misunderstand.”

The so-called large star—

“Is, of course, the Apple of Eden.”

The voice came from behind.

Rinne slowly turned her head, and saw about ten people behind her, all with those same red eyes.

It was a bizarre scene. When she wasn’t paying attention, these emotionless and insect-like people had gathered behind her. Their appearances ranged all over the place. There were children, adults, an old lady with a crooked back, a lady who seemed to have been on her way home after shopping, and a uniformed high school student. They seemed to lack a sense of self, as if they were all one. Judging by their looks alone, though, it was hard to see any correlation.

Rinne cried out softly, taking a step back. She was terrified. Just what did these people want? She had not heard from Sakaki about his encounter with a fortune teller called “Mushi”, and this was her first experience with something like this. It had become quickly apparent she had been thrust into some sort of bizarre world normal humans never saw. What could she do in such a world?

Rinne shuddered as the fortune teller behind her said in a bored tone, “I don’t think resistance is going to get you anywhere. Though we 'Mushi’ do not have superhuman strength, we are not weaker than humans either. You are no match for us!”

“What are you planning to do to me?”

“We would like you to die.”

The “Mushi” in front of her that looked like an office worker responded in an identical voice. That cruel response shocked Rinne. ''I’m going to be killed! I’m going to be killed!'' Terror filled her body.

“In other words, we will use every method we can think of to kill you, Usagawa Rinne. Strangulation, beating, poisoning, assassination, shooting you to make you bleed out, or perhaps even drowning or burning you. If you still will not die… we’ll just think of something else! We’ll start with these.”

Her first thought was to ask Sakaki for help. She had his number stored in her phone, she just needed about 30 seconds to get ahold of him.

However, it didn’t seem like these things were interested in giving her those 30 seconds.

The fortune teller “Mushi” seemed to read her mind, and harshly told her, “I won’t let you call for help. Besides, the bodyguards Sakaki Guryuu secretly sent to protect you should have already been taken care of by other “Mushi.” No matter how you look at it, nothing will save you. How sad—“

A mountain of terror fell upon her and she let out a hoarse scream.

The office worker “Mushi” wrapped his hand around Rinne’s slim neck. She had frozen in fear. Dry, flat fingers began to squeeze painfully into her throat.

“First we’ll strangle you. Ah, it seems like you can still feel pain. How unfortunate...”

A “Mushi” continued, “This will hurt!”

The incredible strength of the choking gave new definition to the word “pain.” She felt like her neck was going to break in two.

She didn’t have the strength to resist and the pain had robbed her of the ability to think straight. All she could do was cry out with ear-piercing shrieks.

“…We’re just getting started. Carry the guilt of your crime to your death!”

''Crime?''

''I committed… a crime?''

''That’s why I must suffer like this and die such a brutal death?''

''If that was the case — what crime did I commit?''

Her vision became blurry and she got dizzy. At this point, she wasn’t even sure if she was still conscious. Her neck made a creaking sound. It hurt. It hurt so much.

Usagawa Rinne naturally thought of Sakaki Guryuu. All she could do was think of her feelings for him and pray he could hear them — then, she could die.

Then—

A flash.

A dazzling flash shot into the back of the head of the “Mushi” strangling her. With violent force, the impact covered the inside of the tent with blood. In an instant, the “Mushi” disappeared as if it had blown up. Rinne was suddenly released, and fell to the ground in a coughing fit. She had a hard time believing the retching sounds were coming from her own throat. Wiping off the saliva from her mouth she desperately tried to get a grasp on her surroundings. The thing in front of her—

Was spinning.

A blood-stained spoon fell to the ground.

The flash that had killed the “Mushi” and saved Rinne was—

—A spoon.

“…How many times do I have to say it before you blockheads get it? Killing Usagawa Rinne is pointless.”

The “Mushi” all turned to look at the source of the voice, and so did Rinne. The voice came from the entrance to the lot where they were.

Standing there was Gankyuu Eguriko.

Her steeled face clearly showed unhappiness. Her wolf-like hair was even more of a mess and her uniform was dirty. It seemed pretty obvious she’d just woken up from a nap. With piercing eyes and armed with several spoons, Gankyuu Eguriko of class 1-B seat eleven shouted with her pure voice, “I can’t be too careful. Even an afternoon nap is a no go, now. And I was sleeping so comfortably, too. Well, have you said your prayers yet?”

At that moment—

Whoosh.

Just when Rinne thought she saw Guriko’s hand move, three spoons were already streaking for the eyes of three of the “Mushi”. The “Mushi” died just like the one before, instantly bursting before disappearing. Rinne absent-mindedly thought that they kind of resembled popping balloons.

As she was thinking that, the bruises on her neck and the pain she felt disappeared as if they had never happened at all. The Fortune Teller “Mushi” clicked his tongue and confirmed it.

“Really — you won’t die. How troublesome!”

“I’m out of spoons.”

Guriko ignored the “Mushi’s” words, and with a grim expression said in a low voice, “…So from now on it’s going to be hand-to-hand combat. Fists aren’t like spoons, they can’t kill with a single hit. It’s gonna hurt. A lot. If you ‘Mushi’ don’t want to be pummeled, then you’d better duck your tail between your legs and scram!”

The words were thick with malice. It was a voice filled with total confidence backed by powerful murderous intent that caused Rinne to stiffen in fear.

“Unfortunately —“

But the “Mushi” were not intimidated at all.

“—Pain and suffering are not obstacles to our goals!”

“I know. Then — I’ll just wipe you all out.”

And so Guriko charged forward.

Rinne shut her eyes in fear.

Leaving the public baths, Usagawa Rinne returned home feeling warm and refreshed. She tossed her towel and old clothes in the washing machine in front of her apartment. It had been left there by the previous tenant, and though it didn’t work right too often, it was still rather durable. Rinne picked up the key hidden under it and opened the door to her apartment. Inside it was pitch black and obviously empty. She turned on the light and let out a sigh of relief. The fear of an ambush waiting for her gradually fled from her mind. She unconsciously touched her neck that had long since stopped hurting.

“Ah…”

She stood there for a while feeling slight helplessness before she shook it off. She pulled out a comforter from the closet as well as a pillow, and then looked at her cell phone to check the time. 10:02 PM. Sakaki had bought her the phone, and he paid the bill, as well. She always felt guilty about using it. After today, though, she really wanted to call him. Rinne stared at the phone, hesitating... Should she call, or not? It was embarrassing to call this late at night.

As she stood there, the doorbell rang. At first, she just stared at it, a bit stunned. The only reason this apartment had a doorbell at all was because the previous tenant had installed one. With a small apartment like that, it served no real purpose. Knocking would have worked just as well.

Who could it be?

The events of that day started to haunt her again and she shuddered. The horrifying fortune teller, the man who strangled her, the transfer student who killed them without a second thought, and those people called “Mushi” who exploded before they died. She couldn’t begin to understand any of it and she didn’t want to, either. The fortune teller’s words cryptically repeated in her head: Some things couldn’t be touched or even approached.

Now there was knocking on the door. Rinne slowly got up while thinking, ‘Who is it?’ She wondered if it might be the self-proclaimed musician who lived next door to her, coming again to borrow some rice.

The door opened. That’s right, it wasn’t even locked.

The one silently standing at the open door was—

“Guriko… chan.”

“You didn't need to add a 'chan'.”

Gankyuu Eguriko spoke in a sharp tone, and had an extremely dissatisfied expression plastered on her face.

Even though she was bewildered by the unexpected visitor, Rinne still remembered that Guriko had saved her earlier that day. For that, she relaxed and loosened herself up a bit.

“What are you doing here at this hour…?”

“It’s cold outside.”

“Eh?”

“Let me live here.”

“…er, huh?"

The outlandish and selfish request took her by complete surprise. Guriko didn’t seem interested in waiting for an answer as she walked in, tossed off her dirty shoes, and sat down on the floor.

“…Um… Then, Guriko, what’s going on here?”

“Ugh…”

For a while, it looked like she was thinking about what to say. Guriko then sighed and expressionlessly pulled her cheek, saying in her clear voice, “Agh, I’m horrible at lying, so I’ll just tell the truth. I came here to protect you, Usagawa Rinne. The ‘Mushi’ seem to have made your Apple their goal. There’re possibly other goals, but I don’t know anything about that. There are too many of them, and since things are so dangerous I can’t help but worry. In order to observe the situation and protect you, I think living here is the best idea. If you think I’m in the way, just pretend I don’t exist. And so, I’ll be making this place my home.”

How selfish.

Rinne was shocked by Guriko, who sat there staring at her, and then shyly smiled. None of it made any sense, but one thing was clear. Saying anything more would be pointless.

“What did you mean when you said ‘It’s cold outside’ at the beginning?”

“I planned to use that as an excuse to live here, but I can’t just lie my way through life. It’s actually not cold to me at all. I haven’t felt temperature for a long time. Even if I slept at the South Pole, I wouldn’t die, and I wouldn’t feel the cold, either. But… telling the truth… is a bit embarrassing, too.”

‘For the sake of protecting you’ sure wasn’t Guriko’s style. Though, the more Rinne thought about it, the more she smiled.

Guriko blankly looked at Rinne who tried to hide her smile.

“What are you smiling for… Ah, whatever, I’m sure you’re confused, but please be patient. Once I figure out what the ‘Mushi’ want and exterminate them, I’ll leave… eh?”

Guriko said all that in a single breath, but suddenly turned to look toward the corner of the room. There was a giant egg wrapped with a soft cloth. It was covered with a geometric design, and seemed man-made.

Rinne glanced at the suddenly-silent Guriko with fear in her eyes and asked, “Um, what is it, Guriko-chan?”

“…Nothing.”

Guriko scratched her head.

“The egg of a Dream World Beast. That’s weird. Well, it shouldn’t be dangerous since it’s not an evil beast.”

After saying those cryptic words, she got up and walked back and forth across the room.

“In short, those ‘Mushi’ are going to be hard to deal with, and solving that problem is gonna take a while. Until I’m done, I’ll just stay in this closet here.”

Guriko opened the closet and laid down. She wasn't [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#Doraemon|Doraemon]]! That place wasn’t for a girl to sleep.

Rinne dreamt up ways to convince Guriko out of the closet so they could both sleep on the futon. There was only one futon in the room, so Rinne would give the pillow to Guriko and use a cushion instead. Guriko resisted at first, but soon gave up in the face of Rinne’s stubbornness. She curled up and quickly fell asleep.

Rinne still wasn’t sure what was going on. Guriko had killed her once, and that morning had forcefully kissed the person most important to her. Despite this, for some reason Rinne never felt she was a bad person. Gently patting the sweetly sleeping Guriko on the head, Rinne felt strangely at ease.

Then Rinne thought of something, and picked up the cell phone by the pillow to text Sakaki. Then, she closed her eyes, basked in Guriko’s warmth, and fell asleep.

<pre>From: Usarin
To: Sensei
Subject: Edict
Body: Sorry for bothering you so late. This is Usarin. Sensei, something extremely scary happened today. I was attacked by a
group of “Mushi” with red eyes, although I didn’t know what they were at the time. I was strangled and almost killed, making
that the third time I almost died. Is that good luck? Or bad? I’m still alive after coming close to death so many times. Since I
lived, it’s only right for me to keep living on. Sensei, I’ll do my best to stay alive.

About that incident at lunch, I think Guriko must have had some reason for doing that. I don’t know what the class thinks, but I
think Guriko isn’t the type of person who would commit horrible crimes, so tomorrow I’ll ask her about the details. I know you
told me to avoid talking to Guriko, but I want to keep talking to her.

Sensei, I don’t know what’s going on around us. It feels like there’s always some sort of terrible conspiracy, but I won’t
despair because I have you. As long as Sensei is here, I’ll keep on hoping for the best. That was our promise. I love you,
Sensei.

P.S. I got a new family member. A person, not a cat. Who do you think it is, Sensei? I’ll tell you tomorrow. I think you’ll
be shocked though!</pre>

And that’s it.

<noinclude>
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|-
| Back to [[Mushi:Vol1_Ch1|Night 1:Usarin-kakka's Daily Edict]]
| Return to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol1_Ch3|Night 3: The Girl who died a Thousand years ago]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Mushi:Vol1 Ch2

2012-02-04T07:49:59Z

Cakemanofdoom: Read through and changed a few things on whims, not even sure that they're improvements... And why were there random double spaces between words..?

== '''Night 2: The 15th November Incident''' ==

'''PLEASE read Translator's Notes in this chapter. There are layers of hidden meanings that we have been unable to present accurately into English''' - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]

There was nothing that was important to her.

Maybe there had been, but that was in the past; she didn’t remember anything like that.

A millennium – far too long a time to live, yet too short a time to go insane. Happy memories - joy, hopes, dreams; all of these warm and gentle feelings had been gradually stolen by the passage of time, till the only thing left was a cold and empty void. Empty – all she could do was store the Apples of her friends in the void that was her flesh. There was no reason for her to go on. She didn't even know why she was alive. Someone like her, who only lived for the sake of living, beginning to lose her grasp on her humanity - had she become a monster?

She couldn’t smile.

She couldn’t find a single happy or treasured memory.

Something that did not smile and didn’t have anything important in life – could that really be called a ‘human’?

“Who are you? What are you planning to do?”

- As usual, whenever that question was asked, she choked on her own words.

Her shoelaces were messily bundled together. That was to be expected – after all, it had been a long time since she engaged in such a delicate activity. Thus it was that Gankyuu Eguriko was sitting on the wooden floor in front of the dimly lit shoe closet at Kannonsakazaki Private High School, trying in vain to tie a butterfly knot. But after trying for ten full minutes, she still couldn’t get it right. She could vaguely remember being good at it once, but that memory was long gone now.

The only memories she had of her past were those filled with terrible pain and a feeling of helplessness so powerful it was crushing. That was the reason she never tried very hard to remember.

There was still quite some time before school began, and even the stairways were vacant, for Guriko made it a point to get to school early in order to practice tying her shoelaces. Despite that, she hadn’t been able to produce anything that didn’t look like a bunch of wet noodles, dragging her deeper into despair.

She didn’t even realize that “he” was standing before her.

Focused on tying her shoelaces with her head bowed, it wasn’t until she was engulfed by his shadow that she realized someone was standing in front of her, and so slowly raised her head.

It was a tall man, with a handsome face. Guriko had never seen such a good looking human, though she felt nothing as he stared right at her. Being an immortal, things like attraction and love meant nothing to her - those feelings had withered away to the point of no return.

Despite that, she felt herself shiver involuntarily.

She had no idea why.

“… Are you waiting for me?” Guriko asked quietly.

It was such an un-cute reaction.

She had left all her cute, innocent, Usagawa Rinne-like reactions behind a long, long time ago.

“I never thought I’d see you here this early. Having trouble with your shoelaces?”

The man, Sakaki Guryuu, shifted his gaze down to Guriko’s messed up shoelaces. Approaching her nonchalantly, he knelt down and swiftly untangled the mess of strings, gracefully fashioning a perfect butterfly knot out of them.

With that, he looked up at Guriko, who was now sitting up straight, and bluntly said, “Don’t you even know something as simple as that?”

“S-shut up! What are you doing here?”

''Dammit!'', Guriko thought. She never would have imagined this guy helping her out. There was even a tinge of happiness inside her from it. Still, she knew that being nice to him wouldn’t do her any good.

She knew she couldn’t be friends with him. That would be impossible.

Feelings like that just weren’t going to happen, no matter how hard she wished for it.

This was something Guriko knew very well.

Guriko shifted her gaze from Sakaki’s face, which was inches from her own, and bowed her head. Sakaki immediately stood up and took an arrogant pose. He glared down upon her from above.

“Like I said earlier, I want to know who you really are, your motives, and just what you’re after here.”

It was a calm, clear, and loud voice. It was a voice of authority.

Guriko didn’t feel intimidated in the slightest, however.

“You don’t need to know.”

“That doesn’t matter. Now talk. I don’t want to use force, but I will if I have to.”

“You think you stand a chance against me?”

Oh boy, what a bother.

''Why did I say something like that?''

In her sailor uniform, Guriko rose up slowly to her full height, looking up at the taller man. Sakaki returned her glare with an intense and fiery stare from his emerald eyes.

People with beautiful eyes were always beautiful in the end...

Guriko again averted her gaze and picked up her bag from the floor.

“…Why do you want to know? Are you curious? Or just intrigued?”

“Neither. I’m doing this out of love.”

“…You’re worried about Usagawa Rinne?”

“That’s right.”

“Hmm…”

What resolve! How could he answer without hesitation?

...did he really love her that much?

Guriko gave him a small smile.

“…How admirable. For both you and Usagawa.”

“What?”

“Nothing. Just talking to myself.”

With that, Guriko looked at him and said honestly, “Instead of suspecting me, why don’t you look out for ‘Mushi’ instead? I didn’t manage to kill Usagawa, and won’t ever try it again. Those ‘Mushi’, on the other hand… they won’t give up on that Apple so easily.”

“Mushi…”

“Yes.”

Mushi – the name of the enemy.

Guriko put on a stern face and stared at Sakaki, as if trying to burn a hole through him with her gaze.

“Those guys were ‘Mushi’ – And not only are they everywhere, but they will stop at nothing to achieve their goal.”

''Don’t let your guard down,'' she thought silently.

Out of all the teachers in Kannonsakazaki High School, the one in charge of Class 1-B, Sakaki Guryuu, stood out above the others. His mannerisms were dignified and elegant, [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#Pan An| a total Prince Charming even in looks.]] To top it off, he was quite the unique teacher, maybe even the best in the world. However, there was something weird about his teaching. Despite being a History teacher by trade, h actually taught his class all subjects.

“Are we back in elementary school or something?” Sakaki’s students didn't approve of this matter at all.

The answer to this riddle was Usagawa Rinne. Sakaki wanted to spend as much time as he possibly could with her. Thus, no matter if it was Biology, P.E., or Music, he indiscriminately taught everything. Not only that, but he did so flawlessly. There were no imperfections in his teaching style. Class 1-B’s steady rise in grades was easy to see. In addition to his handsome features and artistic talent (which were mostly wasted in his teaching profession), he had earned the students' approval as he was generally kind despite his somewhat cold personality. Therefore, he was truly unique. Gossiping co-workers called him [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#Neptune King|Neptune King]], lord of the perfect ones, out of jealousy; although, the students who grew up in a later generation usually had no idea what they were talking about.

Yet, this superhuman called Sakaki Guryuu had a problem one wouldn’t expect from someone like him. That problem was his ‘religion’ of “worship-Usagawa-Rinne-above-all-else.” In other words, his obsession with Usarin-kakka and the notion that the world revolved around her. That love for the girl in Class 1-B was unrivaled and in fact was the very reason he had gotten a teaching license in the first place. This love was already common knowledge at Kannonsakazaki High School, and since he was the type to do whatever it took to achieve his goals, he got that license through force, influence, and authority.

And naturally, he would appear in 1-B’s classroom during lunch break because he wanted to eat lunch with Usagawa Rinne. Honestly, he was shameless. What was it about Usagawa Rinne that engrossed such a perfect man to this level of obsession? Does she have some sort of relation to [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#Yang Guifei|Helen of Troy in ancient Greece]]!? It was a common topic for gossip among the students.

One ordinary day, at lunchtime in this classroom—

Something unique happened. It was known as “The November 15th Incident” from then on.

Hurry up.

''What’s taking Sensei so long?'' Usagawa Rinne thought to herself.

The date was Monday, November 15th. Luckily, the classroom that day was quite warm. Rinne calmly smiled and put two lunchboxes on her desk as she waited for Sakaki Guryuu.

During lunch, Sakaki always ignored the normal school lunch and came to eat and chat with Rinne. She loved to cook, so it was never a problem to cook for two. Still, she couldn’t help but feel a bit odd at times because of their rather unnatural relationship. Sakaki grew up sheltered in an incredibly wealthy household, and sometimes the resulting lack of common sense would cause clashes with others.

Secretly, though, she found this cute. It might not have been lady-like, but seeing that even the perfect Sakaki can sometimes act strange relieved her a bit. Sakaki Guryuu was still a human, just like her. Because it gave her that reassurance, she couldn’t deny that she liked that part of him to a degree.

‘Like’ — Rinne liked Sakaki. Sakaki was a teacher, and she was his student. Despite this difference in status, this wall between them, the two loved each other. That was their trust, and their mutual understanding. Because of that, they would be able to find happiness.

Usagawa Rinne was happy.

Sure, she’d get worried from time to time.

But she was undoubtedly happy.

It was noisy. Even though Kannonsakazaki High School was prestigious enough to house only the most obedient of students, lunchtime was still rowdy. The school was old, so the floors and walls were worn and there were random scribbles here and there from past students. Although it probably bothered the neat freaks, Rinne actually liked it. She felt it paid homage to the history of the room, and gave some hints of those who occupied it before.

A cold breeze blew in, causing the curtains to flutter inward. Despite some remaining warmth, Rinne knew the transition to winter had already begun.

At this point, Sakaki Guryuu finally arrived.

Sakaki’s hair was a bit messy, probably since he’d rushed here.

As soon as he opened the door, Sakaki shouted, “Sorry I’m late…” even before walking into the room.

“It’s not a problem. I don’t mind.”

Rinne smiled as she gave her gentle response. Despite how much it actually had bothered her, she let none of it show. Still wearing that apologetic face, Sakaki passed through the students who had hushed at the appearance of their teacher and walked over to Rinne’s desk. He pulled up a chair and sat down.

“I’m truly sorry, Your Majestry. Someone popped in at the worst time. It was some old man that looked like he could croak at any moment from the Education Committee or something. He kept going on and on without getting anywhere. I think the Director of Education probably dumped him on me.”

Sakaki thought nothing of saying the harsh words he used and sighed.

“Ugh! Why on Earth did they have to send him to me? And during my precious lunch break, too! The office is trying to punish me, I tell you.”

Rinne held back a laugh, and covered her mouth with her hands.

Sakaki’s confused expression was just too cute.

“Sensei, maybe it’s best if you don’t look at it like someone is wanting to punish you or that’ll make you paranoid to the point that just thinking about it will bother you!”

“That is true… What you say does make sense. Haha, I can’t tell who’s the teacher and who’s the student here, Usarin-kakka.”

She honestly didn’t know why he insisted on calling her “Usarin-kakka.” “Usarin” was an abbreviation of her name “Usagawa Rinne,” but why Japanese people love to shorten all proper nouns was a mystery to her. [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#"Like pocket bells, personal computers", sexual harassment, or convenience stores|Like pocket bells, personal computers, sexual harassment, or convenience stores]]. “Guriko” was another example of this.

Rinne thought of the mysterious transfer student called Guriko who had killed her, although Rinne barely remembered what happened that night. She had been watching TV when her door was suddenly busted open. When she turned around, something pierced her eye, and she passed out. When she had woken up, Sakaki was by her side and her room was filled with blood. Beyond that, she remembered nothing.

What had she gotten herself into? Just who exactly was that Guriko girl? Rinne did not understand what had happened at all, not that she particularly wanted to delve deeper into the matter. Only when something threatened her future with Sakaki did she get upset. If Guriko had actually wanted to kill her, then that would really be scary. Rinne understood far too well the pain of death.

Yet, it would be silly to feel terrified just because of a possibility, and Guriko hadn’t shown any signs of acting again. Therefore, Rinne wasn’t particularly on guard despite the fact that it had only been a few days since the girl transferred here.

Besides, no matter what happened, Sakaki would protect her. That was the way it was.

With a cheerful expression, Rinne opened a lunchbox and idly chatted with Sakaki. She was poor, so her lunches weren’t anything luxurious, but Sakaki still seemed satisfied. He looked like a young child with clasped hands when he exclaimed, “Itadakimasu!” Seeing that, she couldn’t help but smile.

This calm scene was the way they passed their time.

While stuffing his face with green beans, Sakaki happily asked, “By the way, how’s that wall that got blood splattered all over it? Did you find a way to get it cleaned up yet?”

Rinne poured some barley tea and downed it in one gulp. She then answered, “Well, there were bits of flesh with it too, so washing it with only water wouldn’t work. Even scrubbing it with a rag probably wouldn’t have worked, so I put new wallpaper over it.”

“Wasn’t that expensive?”

“Yup, I used up all my savings. Since the tatami was also soaked, I had to swap that out too. That was expensive too. For a poor student, that kind of spending is deadly.”

“I’ll never forgive that Guriko. But back to the main point, why don’t you get her to pay you back?”

In front of Sakaki, who seemed honestly angry, Rinne merely shrugged.

“It was you who shot that gun! Besides — Guriko probably has it worse than me. I think she’s homeless, and besides, she told me that she can’t even afford stationery.”

“…Do you two talk often?”

“We sit next to each other. She doesn’t seem to have anything to do after class, so I talk to her.”

Rinne’s naivety nearly caused Sakaki to faint.

“Your lack of concern for your personal safety never ceases to baffle me, Your Majesty! Didn’t I tell you not to talk to her? That talking to her will get your eyes gouged out?”

“I’ll gouge your eyes out!”

That was actually a death threat.

But still, Rinne was not afraid.

“Something like that's obviously a joke. I know for sure she’s just scared of being alone. She avoids other people since she doesn’t want to hurt them. I can see that since that’s how I used to be. I think Guriko actually wants to interact with people more.”

Rinne told him how she honestly felt, but he seemed less than impressed.

He sighed while looking up at the ceiling.

“Look… I know you’re naïve… But you should realize the reason why I don’t think she’s kidding is because she’s already gouged your eyes out once!”

“I suppose that’s true.”

Rinne, defeated, smiled and set her cup down with a “clank.” Sakaki seemed to have a grudge against Guriko, but Rinne didn’t think she was all that bad. She decided Guriko must have had good reason for removing her eyes.

“Aren’t you going to eat, Your Majesty? You’ve only been drinking tea so far.”

Sakaki was confused. Not only was Rinne’s food untouched, her lunchbox hadn’t even been opened. His question was a valid one.

Rinne stayed silent for a while.

“…I-I don’t know why, but I haven’t felt hungry or thirsty ever since Guriko almost killed me. To be honest, I haven’t eaten anything in about four days.”

“What..?”

Sakaki felt his voice crack as he spoke.

“Even so, I’m still not hungry. Hmm… is that weird?”

As she looked to him, she saw his face had gone white as a sheet.

Sakaki had already told Rinne about her immediate resurrection after her eyes had been gouged out. But with this loss of appetite, this — wasn’t this extraordinary!? It was proof she wasn’t human anymore.

After noticing she no longer had a need to eat, she had constantly run into the bathroom to look at herself. She had been making sure she hadn’t turned into some sort of monster.

If that happened, she’d lose Sakaki, and that was a fate worse than death for her. So Rinne had kept her lack of appetite hidden until then.

“Sensei…”

Rinne looked at Sakaki, who had yet to respond.

Rinne understood that there were some things even Sakaki had trouble understanding, but even so, she longed for him to tell her, “That’s okay,” or “Don’t worry,” or anything like that. If only she could get that reassurance, she could go on.

But—

The door slid open.

Guriko stood there. Her wolf-like hair looked like it had been styled by a typhoon. She had on a bored and impatient expression, but her eyes were the type that made you feel like you were staring down the barrel of a gun. This was the transfer student — Gankyuu Eguriko.

Her gaze fell upon the couple that sat across from each other in the center of the classroom — Sakaki Guryuu and Usagawa Rinne. Right then, her face turned to one of surprise. For Guriko, whose face usually revealed no expression whatsoever, showing a genuine emotion like shock was quite a rare occurrence.

Upon noticing the school’s well known lovers, this transfer student who had recently dominated the school’s discussions strode over and glared at Sakaki. She gave him a glare as if she were interrogating him and bluntly asked, “Have you eaten?”

“…Huh?”

“I asked you a question. Did you eat this bento?”

Guriko’s expression was extremely focused. And thanks to her loud voice, the entire class had turned to look. All of them thought, ‘Ho boy, what’s that transfer student doing now?’ Very quickly, the classroom became silent. Despite how odd it was, Sakaki decided to indulge Guriko in her question.

“Yes, I ate it.”

“Really?”

She muttered mostly to herself.

Guriko suddenly lowered her head and pressed her lips against those of Sakaki Guryuu.

“Eh…” “Whoa…”

Sakaki’s eyes opened wide. Rinne’s face was shocked. The class fell into uproar.

“Ugh…”

“Um… Ugh…”

Guriko held Sakaki’s head, and locked lips with him. Put plainly, she kissed him forcefully. In the middle of lunch. In front of the entire class. What the heck was she thinking?? This mysterious transfer known as Gankyuu Eguriko had stolen a kiss from the teacher just after having been there for only two days. Not only that, she even did in front of that teacher’s lover. Her motives didn’t matter. To the student body, this was clearly a declaration of war against Rinne. There was no other way for them to see it, but Guriko’s next action provided only added fuel to the fire.

“Clang—”

Of all the things that could happen!

Guriko flipped the lunchbox Sakaki had been eating from and dumped out all the food that Rinne had lovingly prepared. Then, she took Rinne’s lunchbox and dumped it out as well before driving her foot into the spilled food. After she had destroyed the lunches she declared, “Don’t eat this woman’s food!”

And because of this—

What was there to be done? There was nothing that could explain this. Without another word, Guriko walked off with pride, leaving the stunned Sakaki and pale Rinne behind. Within moments, any student that had a cell phone began to text and call their friends. Messages like: “Usagawa Rinne’s rival in love appears!” “On just her second day after transferring, Gankyu Eguriko kissed Sakaki Guryuu, threw down the lunch Rinne made for him, and declared, “Don’t eat that woman’s food!”” and “This will definitely be very interesting!” began to flood forth.

That was the “November 15th Incident.” It has lived in infamy ever since.

For those living an ordinary high-school life, this had been quite the event.

“What splendid entertainment!”

The voice sounded both male and female. It was something that lacked distinction.

“What are you planning —‘Mushi’?”

That pure and innocent voice seemed to cut through the previous one.

They were in front of classroom 1-B in Kannonsakazaki High School. Despite being outside the chaos of the classroom, there were always the echoing sounds of students in the hallway. The two of them faced off there, and despite them both having human appearance, neither of them were human at all. One was a “Mushi” taking on the form of a human, and the other had once been human, but had since become some creature that was only human-like — Gankyuu Eguriko. The “Mushi” wore a sailor uniform, had short hair, and wore a friendly expression. She looked completely normal, save for her red eyes.

The “Mushi,” still emotionless, made an intriguing noise.

“This was just a confirmation! After all, there’s no way for ‘us’ to lose. We simply believed it important to check whether or not Usagawa Rinne’s Apple has taken root in her soul. You should already know there’s nothing we won’t do in order to achieve our objectives.”

“…After death, the soul separates itself from the physical body. Apples reside in the soul, so — death is the only requirement for taking the soul, correct? Unfortunately for you, Usagawa Rinne’s Apple has already taken root in her soul. I confirmed this myself.”

“But ‘we’ have not! We do not trust anyone besides ourselves, especially not you!”

The “Mushi” replied in a dull and terrible voice. They had no individuality, and thus did not have emotions.

They were an exterminating machine that moved in hordes — that was “Mushi”.

“Even if you’re willing to do anything, you should have some discretion — did you plan on killing Sakaki Guryuu?”

“Since we did not know which lunchbox Usagawa Rinne would eat from, we poisoned both of them. Mmm, that was a necessary sacrifice! We ‘Mushi’ aren’t hampered with your romantic ideals. As long as we obtain the Apple, it doesn’t matter what happens to others.”

Guriko grit her teeth and said, “That’s why I despise you.”

“That may be, but we don’t particularly want you to hold feelings of affection toward us anyway.”

The aura emitted between the two non-humans grew unbearably intense. Its strength caused the windows in the hallway to begin to rattle.

Guriko crossed her arms and glared at the “Mushi”.

“But you have already lost. Usagawa Rinne's appetite is already gone, so the poison wouldn’t have worked on her anyway. Only Sakaki would have died. But I’m not going to let even that happen. You won’t have your way if I have anything to say about it.”

“Haha!” the “Mushi” laughed.

For the emotionless “Mushi”, laughter had only one purpose — to provoke.

“That was certainly an interesting way of removing the poison from that man’s mouth. You seem to be turning into quite the rebel. Where did you learn something like that?”

“You talk too much! Because of you, I had to create a big disturbance in class. There was no choice… Why does my reputation always have to suffer?!”

“Because your attitude is normally terrible, anyway. Something like this just adds to it.”

“It’s probably-”

Guriko closed her eyes and then murmured as if in a trance, “-because God hates me.”

She then pulled a spoon from her skirt pocket and threw it at the “Mushi” with speed too great for the naked eye to detect. The spoon cleanly pierced the eye of the fake schoolgirl “Mushi”. However, that wasn’t enough to stop its inertia. The spoon shot traveled through the eye socket, through the brain, and out the back of the skull. Obviously, this wasn’t something a human could pull off. The “Mushi” gave a small final smile before its ruined body collapsed. Right before it hit the floor, it broke down and disappeared.

The blood-stained spoon fell to the ground with a gentle metallic sound.

“It doesn’t matter anyway. I’m used to being hated.”

And so, Guriko skipped class and went up to the roof for an afternoon nap.

After school ended that day, Usagawa Rinne staggered home with an air of frustration and defeat. Her thoughts were plagued with what had happened at lunch. Guriko had kissed Sakaki Guryuu and told him to stop eating Rinne’s food. It made her heart pound. What was this uneasy feeling? Why did she feel so nauseous?

“Why…”

Why did Guriko kiss Sakaki? What kind of reason could she have to do this? Rinne smiled bitterly. Why was she so upset? Sakaki had kissed someone else, but why did seeing that annoy her so much?

“So annoying…”

Rinne noticed her jealousy of Guriko, and felt a bit disgusted by it. Was this what it felt like to have that which you value most threatened? This was the first time Rinne felt something like this, so it was hard to describe. “Jealousy” was the most accurate word, she figured. Rinne loved Sakaki, and seeing him kiss another girl was incredibly painful. So painful that for the time being she didn’t even want to talk to Sakaki.

Even though Sakaki’s feelings hadn’t changed and he didn’t hate Rinne, she still felt dejected. Noticing her own unreasonably poor mood, Rinne worried herself into a deeper depression. Rinne decided it was a bit like saving a cookie to enjoy later, only for someone else to eat it. She and Sakaki had only kissed once, on Sakaki’s birthday. Rinne thought of that as a bond between them, something that only she had.

However, that was no longer true. Right in front of Rinne, Guriko had kissed Sakaki.

“I’m so useless…”

She wanted to cry. She was already almost crying. It felt weak to be so bothered by this. She was still a weak human who trembled over such a trivial fact. Even if her body lost the ability to die, her heart was still so weak. So fragile. So powerless. So pathetic!

Realizing that obsessing over this was only going to make her feel worse, she decided not to dwell on it any longer. That’s it! Even if she avoided Sakaki today, she would greet him with a smile tomorrow! After that resolution, she felt a bit better.

Passing the bustling market, she then walked upon a rough path. It was always deserted here. Only the weeds were present, and not even a parking lot or the like could be seen. Rinne blankly gazed at the unchanging scenery where she used to frequently get lost as she walked, her thoughts jumbled.

“Hey, young lady over there.”

A voice. Rinne turned to look. In the space that had just been empty, a small, mysterious stand had appeared. Or maybe it was a shop? At least, it was covered with a plastic tarp like a tent. Inside the violet tent was a crystal ball, and sitting behind that was a robe-wearing man who gave off a strange vibe. There was a sign out front that read, “Fortune telling, 100 yen”.

“Hey, the young lady over there.”

Rinne couldn’t help but stop and turn to look at the perplexing little shop.

She was sure it hadn’t been there that morning.

The mysterious fortune teller spread out his hands and said in an ambiguous voice, “That’s right, this is fortune telling. Good luck, ill fortune, fated events, and romantic matches are all revealed. A young lady of your age should at least know about horoscopes or blood type fortunes! Besides those, there is fortune telling with Tarot cards, normal cards, flowers, or even with water flow. Your face, hands, clothes, and even the layout of your home are also taken into consideration. Just tell me your name, and I can read your fortune for you!”

Should she give it a go? — He just kept rambling on. Did he really have nothing else to do?

The price wasn’t that bad, and it’d be kind of pathetic if the Fortune Teller got ignored despite all his promoting, so Rinne carelessly walked into the tent. The inside was flooded with an odd, hazy light. The fortune teller gazed intently at Rinne and then his crystal ball before announcing, “Oh, ah… this is bad!”

“What…”

''I haven’t even said anything yet…'' she thought. The fortune teller lifted up his crystal ball and gleefully repeated, “Bad! Bad!”

“This is ominous! Usagawa Rinne-san, your fortune is doomed. It’s hellishly evil luck. The movements of the stars are terrible!”

“My name—”

''Did I tell him my name? No, I didn’t.''

The fortune teller didn’t seem to notice her confusion as he blathered on, “Life is like a star. Sometimes it grows dim, while other times it shines brightly. Unfortunately, though, smaller stars are attracted to larger ones, and when they collide the smaller stars are smashed to pieces.”

He looked at Rinne with his eyes that he had been hiding behind a hood. They were red.

“Some great existences cannot be approached. A star too small will only end up crushed if it reaches for something greater. It needs to know its limits if it is to remain safe. The gravity of a giant star is great, and draws in many small stars that only end up destroyed. Only by living carefully will they live long enough to achieve a death with blinding radiance.”

“That—"

Rinne stood up, staring at the cross-legged fortune teller. “That’s—”

“Make no mistake, it is you I speak of!”

The fortune teller wearing a violet robe gloomily addressed her in an androgynous voice, “Should you not reach out and stay your distance, you shall have an even more brilliant death.”

She realized this Fortune Teller was dangerous, but there were questions she had to get answered first.

“You’re saying the large star is Sensei? And the small star is me? I… can’t be with sensei?”

After hearing Rinne’s soft, almost-crying voice, the fortune teller lips curled up in a smile.

“You seem to misunderstand.”

The so-called large star—

“Is, of course, the Apple of Eden.”

The voice came from behind.

Rinne slowly turned her head, and saw about ten people behind her, all with those same red eyes.

It was a bizarre scene. When she wasn’t paying attention, these emotionless and insect-like people had gathered behind her. Their appearances ranged all over the place. There were children, adults, an old lady with a crooked back, a lady who seemed to have been on her way home after shopping, and a uniformed high school student. They seemed to lack a sense of self, as if they were all one. Judging by their looks alone, though, it was hard to see any correlation.

Rinne cried out softly, taking a step back. She was terrified. Just what did these people want? She had not heard from Sakaki about his encounter with a fortune teller called “Mushi”, and this was her first experience with something like this. It had become quickly apparent she had been thrust into some sort of bizarre world normal humans never saw. What could she do in such a world?

Rinne shuddered as the fortune teller behind her said in a bored tone, “I don’t think resistance is going to get you anywhere. Though we 'Mushi’ do not have superhuman strength, we are not weaker than humans either. You are no match for us!”

“What are you planning to do to me?”

“We would like you to die.”

The “Mushi” in front of her that looked like an office worker responded in an identical voice. That cruel response shocked Rinne. ''I’m going to be killed! I’m going to be killed!'' Terror filled her body.

“In other words, we will use every method we can think of to kill you, Usagawa Rinne. Strangulation, beating, poisoning, assassination, shooting you to make you bleed out, or perhaps even drowning or burning you. If you still will not die… we’ll just think of something else! We’ll start with these.”

Her first thought was to ask Sakaki for help. She had his number stored in her phone, she just needed about 30 seconds to get ahold of him.

However, it didn’t seem like these things were interested in giving her those 30 seconds.

The fortune teller “Mushi” seemed to read her mind, and harshly told her, “I won’t let you call for help. Besides, the bodyguards Sakaki Guryuu secretly sent to protect you should have already been taken care of by other “Mushi.” No matter how you look at it, nothing will save you. How sad—“

A mountain of terror fell upon her and she let out a hoarse scream.

The office worker “Mushi” wrapped his hand around Rinne’s slim neck. She had frozen in fear. Dry, flat fingers began to squeeze painfully into her throat.

“First we’ll strangle you. Ah, it seems like you can still feel pain. How unfortunate...”

A “Mushi” continued, “This will hurt!”

The incredible strength of the choking gave new definition to the word “pain.” She felt like her neck was going to break in two.

She didn’t have the strength to resist and the pain had robbed her of the ability to think straight. All she could do was cry out with ear-piercing shrieks.

“…We’re just getting started. Carry the guilt of your crime to your death!”

''Crime?''

''I committed… a crime?''

''That’s why I must suffer like this and die such a brutal death?''

''If that was the case — what crime did I commit?''

Her vision became blurry and she got dizzy. At this point, she wasn’t even sure if she was still conscious. Her neck made a creaking sound. It hurt. It hurt so much.

Usagawa Rinne naturally thought of Sakaki Guryuu. All she could do was think of her feelings for him and pray he could hear them — then, she could die.

Then—

A flash.

A dazzling flash shot into the back of the head of the “Mushi” strangling her. With violent force, the impact covered the inside of the tent with blood. In an instant, the “Mushi” disappeared as if it had blown up. Rinne was suddenly released, and fell to the ground in a coughing fit. She had a hard time believing the retching sounds were coming from her own throat. Wiping off the saliva from her mouth she desperately tried to get a grasp on her surroundings. The thing in front of her—

Was spinning.

A blood-stained spoon fell to the ground.

The flash that had killed the “Mushi” and saved Rinne was—

—A spoon.

“…How many times do I have to say it before you blockheads get it? Killing Usagawa Rinne is pointless.”

The “Mushi” all turned to look at the source of the voice, and so did Rinne. The voice came from the entrance to the lot where they were.

Standing there was Gankyuu Eguriko.

Her steeled face clearly showed unhappiness. Her wolf-like hair was even more of a mess and her uniform was dirty. It seemed pretty obvious she’d just woken up from a nap. With piercing eyes and armed with several spoons, Gankyuu Eguriko of class 1-B seat eleven shouted with her pure voice, “I can’t be too careful. Even an afternoon nap is a no go, now. And I was sleeping so comfortably, too. Well, have you said your prayers yet?”

At that moment—

Whoosh.

Just when Rinne thought she saw Guriko’s hand move, three spoons were already streaking for the eyes of three of the “Mushi”. The “Mushi” died just like the one before, instantly bursting before disappearing. Rinne absent-mindedly thought that they kind of resembled popping balloons.

As she was thinking that, the bruises on her neck and the pain she felt disappeared as if they had never happened at all. The Fortune Teller “Mushi” clicked his tongue and confirmed it.

“Really — you won’t die. How troublesome!”

“I’m out of spoons.”

Guriko ignored the “Mushi’s” words, and with a grim expression said in a low voice, “…So from now on it’s going to be hand-to-hand combat. Fists aren’t like spoons, they can’t kill with a single hit. It’s gonna hurt. A lot. If you ‘Mushi’ don’t want to be pummeled, then you’d better duck your tail between your legs and scram!”

The words were thick with malice. It was a voice filled with total confidence backed by powerful murderous intent that caused Rinne to stiffen in fear.

“Unfortunately —“

But the “Mushi” were not intimidated at all.

“—Pain and suffering are not obstacles to our goals!”

“I know. Then — I’ll just wipe you all out.”

And so Guriko charged forward.

Rinne shut her eyes in fear.

Leaving the public baths, Usagawa Rinne returned home feeling warm and refreshed. She tossed her towel and old clothes in the washing machine in front of her apartment. It had been left there by the previous tenant, and though it didn’t work right too often, it was still rather durable. Rinne picked up the key hidden under it and opened the door to her apartment. Inside it was pitch black and obviously empty. She turned on the light and let out a sigh of relief. The fear of an ambush waiting for her gradually fled from her mind. She unconsciously touched her neck that had long since stopped hurting.

“Ah…”

She stood there for a while feeling slight helplessness before she shook it off. She pulled out a comforter from the closet as well as a pillow, and then looked at her cell phone to check the time. 10:02 PM. Sakaki had bought her the phone, and he paid the bill, as well. She always felt guilty about using it. After today, though, she really wanted to call him. Rinne stared at the phone, hesitating... Should she call, or not? It was embarrassing to call this late at night.

As she stood there, the doorbell rang. At first, she just stared at it, a bit stunned. The only reason this apartment had a doorbell at all was because the previous tenant had installed one. With a small apartment like that, it served no real purpose. Knocking would have worked just as well.

Who could it be?

The events of that day started to haunt her again and she shuddered. The horrifying fortune teller, the man who strangled her, the transfer student who killed them without a second thought, and those people called “Mushi” who exploded before they died. She couldn’t begin to understand any of it and she didn’t want to, either. The fortune teller’s words cryptically repeated in her head: Some things couldn’t be touched or even approached.

Now there was knocking on the door. Rinne slowly got up while thinking, ‘Who is it?’ She wondered if it might be the self-proclaimed musician who lived next door to her, coming again to borrow some rice.

The door opened. That’s right, it wasn’t even locked.

The one silently standing at the open door was—

“Guriko… chan.”

“You didn't need to add a 'chan'.”

Gankyuu Eguriko spoke in a sharp tone, and had an extremely dissatisfied expression plastered on her face.

Even though she was bewildered by the unexpected visitor, Rinne still remembered that Guriko had saved her earlier that day. For that, she relaxed and loosened herself up a bit.

“What are you doing here at this hour…?”

“It’s cold outside.”

“Eh?”

“Let me live here.”

“…er, huh?"

The outlandish and selfish request took her by complete surprise. Guriko didn’t seem interested in waiting for an answer as she walked in, tossed off her dirty shoes, and sat down on the floor.

“…Um… Then, Guriko, what’s going on here?”

“Ugh…”

For a while, it looked like she was thinking about what to say. Guriko then sighed and expressionlessly pulled her cheek, saying in her clear voice, “Agh, I’m horrible at lying, so I’ll just tell the truth. I came here to protect you, Usagawa Rinne. The ‘Mushi’ seem to have made your Apple their goal. There’re possibly other goals, but I don’t know anything about that. There are too many of them, and since things are so dangerous I can’t help but worry. In order to observe the situation and protect you, I think living here is the best idea. If you think I’m in the way, just pretend I don’t exist. And so, I’ll be making this place my home.”

How selfish.

Rinne was shocked by Guriko, who sat there staring at her, and then shyly smiled. None of it made any sense, but one thing was clear. Saying anything more would be pointless.

“What did you mean when you said ‘It’s cold outside’ at the beginning?”

“I planned to use that as an excuse to live here, but I can’t just lie my way through life. It’s actually not cold to me at all. I haven’t felt temperature for a long time. Even if I slept at the South Pole, I wouldn’t die, and I wouldn’t feel the cold, either. But… telling the truth… is a bit embarrassing, too.”

‘For the sake of protecting you’ sure wasn’t Guriko’s style. Though, the more Rinne thought about it, the more she smiled.

Guriko blankly looked at Rinne who tried to hide her smile.

“What are you smiling for… Ah, whatever, I’m sure you’re confused, but please be patient. Once I figure out what the ‘Mushi’ want and exterminate them, I’ll leave… eh?”

Guriko said all that in a single breath, but suddenly turned to look toward the corner of the room. There was a giant egg wrapped with a soft cloth. It was covered with a geometric design, and seemed man-made.

Rinne glanced at the suddenly-silent Guriko with fear in her eyes and asked, “Um, what is it, Guriko-chan?”

“…Nothing.”

Guriko scratched her head.

“The egg of a Dream World Beast. That’s weird. Well, it shouldn’t be dangerous since it’s not an evil beast.”

After saying those cryptic words, she got up and walked back and forth across the room.

“In short, those ‘Mushi’ are going to be hard to deal with, and solving that problem is gonna take a while. Until I’m done, I’ll just stay in this closet here.”

Guriko opened the closet and laid down. She wasn't [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#Doraemon|Doraemon]]! That place wasn’t for a girl to sleep.

Rinne dreamt up ways to convince Guriko out of the closet so they could both sleep on the futon. There was only one futon in the room, so Rinne would give the pillow to Guriko and use a cushion instead. Guriko resisted at first, but soon gave up in the face of Rinne’s stubbornness. She curled up and quickly fell asleep.

Rinne still wasn’t sure what was going on. Guriko had killed her once, and that morning had forcefully kissed the person most important to her. Despite this, for some reason Rinne never felt she was a bad person. Gently patting the sweetly sleeping Guriko on the head, Rinne felt strangely at ease.

Then Rinne thought of something, and picked up the cell phone by the pillow to text Sakaki. Then, she closed her eyes, basked in Guriko’s warmth, and fell asleep.

<pre>From: Usarin
To: Sensei
Subject: Edict
Body: Sorry for bothering you so late. This is Usarin. Sensei, something extremely scary happened today. I was attacked by a
group of “Mushi” with red eyes, although I didn’t know what they were at the time. I was strangled and almost killed, making
that the third time I almost died. Is that good luck? Or bad? I’m still alive after coming close to death so many times. Since I
lived, it’s only right for me to keep living on. Sensei, I’ll do my best to stay alive.

About that incident at lunch, I think Guriko must have had some reason for doing that. I don’t know what the class thinks, but I
think Guriko isn’t the type of person who would commit horrible crimes, so tomorrow I’ll ask her about the details. I know you
told me to avoid talking to Guriko, but I want to keep talking to her.

Sensei, I don’t know what’s going on around us. It feels like there’s always some sort of terrible conspiracy, but I won’t
despair because I have you. As long as Sensei is here, I’ll keep on hoping for the best. That was our promise. I love you,
Sensei.

P.S. I got a new family member. A person, not a cat. Who do you think it is, Sensei? I’ll tell you tomorrow. I think you’ll
be shocked though!</pre>

And that’s it.

<noinclude>
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|-
| Back to [[Mushi:Vol1_Ch1|Night 1:Usarin-kakka's Daily Edict]]
| Return to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol1_Ch3|Night 3: The Girl who died a Thousand years ago]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Mushi:Vol3 Prologue

2012-02-03T01:21:14Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Start: Lady with a Helmet''' ==

Minazuki Natsuko, 28 years old, was was the owner of the cafe "Indian Bar" in the shopping district. She opened this cafe three years ago, and possibly due to the gloomy atmosphere, despite the few regulars the place was almost always completely deserted. However, remaining expressionless and silent to the point where people began to think that she was a decorative doll in the shop, Natsuko continued with this unprofitable business, and furthermore --

"Heehee."

No one could tell what she was happy about, but every small thing would make her laugh.

Spring is a time when people assimilate into society, when students assimilate into school; it's a time when people can begin a new life.

Everything about the season comes too abruptly, leaving people with no time to prepare, coming as if in defiance to humanity's will. Sometimes, there are people who cannot keep up and try to confirm their own existences through odd actions.

Basically, "There are weird people", "Oh, that's because it's spring", that kind of thing.

She was also one of the people who turned strange because of spring's witchcraft.

Natsuko thought so as she looked at the girl who had been in the cafe for two hours already.

"[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations| Auuu, hrum... mmph]]"

She was probably a high school student. She acted and felt more childish than she appeared, and even her clothes were childish, so it was hard to determine her actual age. Furthermore, she wore a bizarre outfit.

The most prominent of which was the giant-eared hat she wore. Her brown hair was tied into two short pigtails, and a curled tail could be seen behind her.

Though it's warm in early spring, her clothes were still too thin, and her belly and thighs were showing. She also wore needlessly large, out-of-place gloves. This truly was a strange outfit, that seemed like cosplay.

"Waaaah..."

For some unknown reason, this girl made noises while she gleefully ate "Indian Bar's" infamously sweet chocolate sundae. This chocolate sundae was one that made even dessert-loving high school girls surrender halfway through. However, the girl already had three empty cups in front of her.

"Aahm."

With an angelic smile, the girl brought her spoon to her mouth, and making that same noise she put the chocolate sundae in her mouth. Afterward, with a slight shake, she lowered her head for a while before quickly raising her face, red with excitement, and enthusiastically shouting, "Mmm--"

"Bang, bang bang", she noisily knocked on the table.

"Mmm, mm! Mmm -- it's so awesome! DELICIOUS! It's sweet and it tastes so good!"

"Ahm", "Mmmum", with joy on her face she ate one bite after another.

"Aah, the cherries are round, the cornflakes are crispy, the thick chocolate flavoring makes an unbelievable taste -- Was it God? Angels? Who made food this wonderful--"

The girl stroked her cheeks with hands in giant gloves, and turned, "It's no good, if I eat this my brain will melt."

If she just ate and ate until she collapsed it would have been fine, but she kept making strange sounds to herself; such a troublesome customer. But, there weren't any other customers, and she only made noises without causing trouble, it might be okay to leave her be.

Natsuko thought to herself, [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|squinting]] as she looked at the girl who was eating a chocolate sundae.

Speaking of which, she could actually eat that much of something like that.

That thing was triple the size and sweetness of anything found in a normal cafe, and was placed on the menu half as a joke. Yet, a girl that slim was eating it non-stop, and even non-doctors would be worried. Had she lost her sense of taste? It wouldn't be odd to get diabetes after a single cup of that stuff.

Furthermore, she would make a strange gesture every once in a while.

Sometimes, she would take her spoon with ice cream or chocolate, and put it to her stomach rather than her mouth.

A place like that obviously would not have a mouth; normally, she would just be getting herself dirty. But when she brought back her spoon, the ice cream in it would mysteriously have disappeared.

That wasn't all, she would occasionally reach out and put the spoon in her backpack, which she had placed on the seat next to hers.

"Mmm, sis, you wanna try some? It's a new taste, a new flavor, a new experience for you to enjoy."

Her spoon swayed as she said those words that explained no details. Unlike with her stomach, the spoon's ice cream did not disappear this time.

The girl puffed her cheeks and unhappily put the spoon in her mouth.

"Really, you're like this every time, if you're so picky you'll never taste anything good."

Suddenly, Natsuko noticed that while the girl innocently mumbled to herself someone seemed to respond.

"Mitsuki, I'm not like you, I've long since lost any enjoyment in eating. Besides, if I ate that thing that I can tell is too sweet just by looking at it, I'd get sick. Mmm... although, even if I get sick, this body would immediately restore itself."

"Then you want some?"

The girl smiled and laughed, and dug her spoon in. But. A cold voice rejected her.

"Who'd want that! I have been freed from activities like eating and drinking that allow so many impurities to enter my body -- for that, I am thankful from the bottom of my heart. And again, Mitsuki, didn't I tell you to not talk to me outside? I hate disobedient children."

Hearing those words, the girl's face suddenly turned white, and she desperately shook her head. Tears appeared in the corners of her eyes.

"No, no... Sis, don't hate me. I'm sorry, I just wanted you to eat something tasty."

"I know. Mitsuki, you're a considerate child."

Those were whispers that could not be detected by a normal person's sense of hearing. But Natsuko heard them, and she furrowed her eyebrows.

This voice was...

"Actually, our luggage still isn't ready, right? Stop indulging in food, and let's hurry up and go home!"

"Alright, sis. Just one more bite -- Aahm."

The girl scooped up the remainder of the ice cream and sent it down her mouth with an enchanted smile.

"Ah -- this is great. The moment it's in my mouth, it's like being in heaven. Mm, I want to come again."

The girl spoke to herself, and stood up in high spirits. Then, like a small animal she ran to Natuko who silently watched her. Placing her hand on the counter, she giggled as she said, "[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|I'd like to pay.]]"

Natsuko nodded, took out the bill and smoothly tapped at the register. Extra-large chocolate sundaes were rather expensive, and the girl had four, so the price would obviously be extremely high.

"In total, 5400 yen."

"Whoa..." The girl's eyes opened wide, and she poked her head.

"I ate too much, I need to reflect a bit... is this enough?"

With a rustle the girl searched in her backpack. She was probably looking for her wallet, and Natsuko tried not to look in; but, in that situation it was impossible to hide.

Natsuko looked at the bag, and gasped after seeing what was inside.

"..."

A head.

It was a human head.

A female head. The bone-chilling head was turned backward, so its face could not be seen. But Natsuko knew, she understood, and she went on guard.

This head, this woman was --

"Ooh, I found it!" The girl slapped a bundle of paper money on the counter, seeming to not notice Natsuko's state.

A bundle of money?

"Keep the change."

Saying so, the girl bluntly turned around. If those were 10,000 yen bills, then there would have been a hundred thousand, or possibly even a million yen. Natsuko calmly picked up the thick bundle of money and inspected it.

The top and bottom were bills worth a thousand yen.

Everything else was folded up newspaper.

"..."

"..."

As Natsuko looked at the stack of newspaper, the girl stopped walking. Probably realizing that she had been caught, she once again searched in her bag and took out a cute wallet, and she pulled out three thousand-yen bills and some change.

"Sorry."

Natsuko did not respond, and operated the register with a "Ding".

"I always thought you were a foolish child, but Mitsuki, you're really an idiot. What was that back there? Don't embarass me, okay?"

"It was because... because, I wanted to try it out. I wanted to try acting like a rich person."

The girl cried and wailed in her home, as she whined. It was a room in a lonely old apartment reached by crossing the street from "Indian Bar" and going all the way down the poorly maintained road.

The narrow room lacked anything of interest, and there was basically no furniture. Probably due to a recent move in, unopened cardboard boxes were spread all around.

As she used the room's stove to cook hotpot, the girl pouted. Though she was inside, she did not remove her hat or gloves. "Because I'm a girl, sometimes I wanna pretend to be rich."

"I can't understand you at all. Whatever, we can worry about that later. Why did you want to move into this apartment?"

Like before, the voice came from the backpack placed to the side. The girl turned to look at the backpack that rolled on the ground, giving an angelic smile.

"Well obviously, it's too look for Sis's body, and also the great fragment that was stolen."

The girl tossed the noodles she just bought from a convenience into the boiling water, and stirred with long chopsticks. The [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|cooking utensils]] had been taken out of the cardboard boxes first.

"Sis had it tough, if I didn't find you at the hospital you would've been killed by Ultimate Shield. Since I'm a horrible match for Ultimate Shield I escaped -- But, next time, I'll take her head-on and take back your fragment."

"That's too dangerous." That concerned voice said, "Mitsuki, Ultimate Shield is cunning. Even if you're the mighty Unpleasant Counter-Current --"

The girl smiled, and beat eggs into the pot. "Really sis, you keep treating me like a little kid. No problem, I'll be careful. Just wait like they guys who went on Noah's Ark."

"That analogy's rather disturbing."

The girl smiled with a sigh, and put the finished noodles into a large bowl. She covered it with plastic wrap,[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|*]] and picked it up with gloved hands.

"Besides -- we have plenty of time. I think Ultimate Shield's only good at running away. It won't be easy to find her, so I decided to move into this apartment to look for the one who attack you... was it Gankyuu?"

"Gankyuu Eguriko?"

"Right, I wanna find that Gankyuu person. She was the one who gouged out sis's heart and took away the great fragment. Even if she doesn't doesn't know where your body is, we'll at least be able to find the fragment."

The girl smiled, and with unsteady steps brought out the steaming bowl.

"To achieve this goal, I decided to infiltrate Gankyuu's school as a student. Though I've been classified as dead a long time ago and don't have any documentation -- that kind of thing is simple, I can just use the fragment's power to twist reality a little."

Inside this girl resided power that was called a "Fragment of God", and so she could do things like this.

But, this didn't really make the girl special; whether it was a great fragment or one of the small fragments known as "Apples", pretty much anyone with a fragment could do things like this.

Those with fragments had the world's blessing.

If one wished so, infiltrating a school or company would be easy. As for the reason, even the girl wasn't too sure.

It was like -- one only needed to go to someone important in the school and say, "I want to attend this school starting tomorrow", and it would be treated with standard enrollment procedure.

That girl with an incomprehensible name, Gankyuu Eguriko, probably used this ability of the fragments, too, to enter school.

The girl, thinking while making sure not to spill the bowl, opened the door. From the backpack left behind came a worried voice.

"Wait, Mitsuki, where are you going?"

"I'm bringing noodles to go greet our neighbors. It's Japan's wonderful custom."

"Heehee", she laughed and closed the door with her giant gloves.

Though it was spring, it was still cold at night.

After cutting off her [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|sense of touch]], the girl knocked on the door of the third-floor apartment next to hers. "Nageki" was written on the nameplate, while the strange words "[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|Girls in prison must praise]]" underneath.

"Excuse me -- " She knocked on the door while holding onto the bowl. She felt a human prescence behind the door, but no one came to answer her, as if pretending to be out. The girl was confused, and after deciding to meet this neighbor later she went down a floor. If she didn't hurry the noodles would get cold.

This building had three floors, with two apartments each. The second floor seemed to have at one point been an office for some business, and now it was empty with a "Bankrupt" sign on the door.

"'Bankrupt'... They should've used a more tactful term."

The girl mumbled to herself, and went down a floor. The rooms on the first floor should be occupied. The floor had room A and room 8. The nameplate on room 8 said "Breaksun=Hanselmine". The girl knocked --

Another one pretending to be out! Why didn't anyone want to answer the door? How annoying, the girl frowned.

Floor one room A was her last hope.

She walked to the door with a nameplate simply saying "Usagawa" while the old washing machine next to her clanked and rumbled rather loudly.

"Hello -- "

She pressed the doorbell that her own room did not have, resulting in a "Dong -- " like a clock's chime. The bell's sound pierced the dusk, and birds resting on power cords were frightened away by the noise.

After a while, the door was leisurely opened.

"Ah -- "

Out came a girl who seemed lost. Her beautiful pink hair was adorned with a cute butterfly knot, while her slightly disorderly clothes showed her collarbone.

Did she just get up? The girl looked ahead of her, thinking.

"Ooh..."

Looking closely, the girl made a moaning noise as she mechanically tilted her head.

Seeing that, the girl wearing a giant-eared hat frowned slightly.

"Meat... doll."

"Who is it?"

Suddenly, a tall youth appeared behind the girl.

His handsome appearance was breathtaking. With blond hair and blue eyes, his features seemed to be a work of art. But the dark rings under his eyes diminished his looks, and a short, out-of-place beard had grown.

This haggard-looking man looked out the door with suspicion.

The girl was perplexed and stepped back slightly, and then introduced herself while holding out the bowl.

"I just moved over, and I came to introduce myself. These are superior noodles."

"I see..."

Seeming like he recalled something, the youth calmly received the bowl. He pulled back his hand and put on a shelf an object resembling a pistol, and his expression softened.

"The landlord told us, are you the one who moved to the third floor? I was only cautious because of that name... but she's not that person? No, I still can't be careless."

"Eh?"

As this incompresible monologue confused the girl, the youth sincerely introduced himself. "My name is Sakaki Guryuu, and due to some circumstances I've moved into her -- Usagawa Rinne's home. As you can see, she's a bit sick, and might act a bit strange, but please don't mind her. Hey, your majesty, greet her."

"Greet her."

The girl who was called "your majesty" repeated the words like a child, and imitated a smile. "Hello."

"Say 'Nice to meet you'."

"Nice to meet you -- "

Though she already figured out the truth about the girl from her movements, she pretended not to notice and nodded. "Please take good care of me, Sakaki-san, Rinne."

Then she bowed deeply, and stated her name.

Her tail swayed with her body, and her hair also fluttered.

"My name is Saibara Mitsuki."

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_AN|Volume 2, Author's Notes]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol3_Ch1|Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Mushi:Vol3 Prologue

2012-02-02T03:50:35Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Start: Lady with a Helmet''' ==

Minazuki Natsuko, 28 years old, was was the owner of the cafe "Indian Bar" in the shopping district. She opened this cafe three years ago, and possibly due to the gloomy atmosphere, despite the few regulars the place was almost always completely deserted. However, remaining expressionless and silent to the point where people began to think that she was a decorative doll in the shop, Natsuko continued with this unprofitable business, and furthermore --

"Heehee."

No one could tell what she was happy about, but every small thing would make her laugh.

Spring is a time when people assimilate into society, when students assimilate into school; it's a time when people can begin a new life.

Everything about the season comes too abruptly, leaving people with no time to prepare, coming as if in defiance to humanity's will. Sometimes, there are people who cannot keep up and try to confirm their own existences through odd actions.

Basically, "There are weird people", "Oh, that's because it's spring", that kind of thing.

She was also one of the people who turned strange because of spring's witchcraft.

Natsuko thought so as she looked at the girl who had been in the cafe for two hours already.

"[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations| Auuu, hrum... mmph]]"

She was probably a high school student. She acted and felt more childish than she appeared, and even her clothes were childish, so it was hard to determine her actual age. Furthermore, she wore a bizarre outfit.

The most prominent of which was the giant-eared hat she wore. Her brown hair was tied into two short pigtails, and a curled tail could be seen behind her.

Though it's warm in early spring, her clothes were still too thin, and her belly and thighs were showing. She also wore needlessly large, out-of-place gloves. This truly was a strange outfit, that seemed like cosplay.

"Waaaah..."

For some unknown reason, this girl made noises while she gleefully ate "Indian Bar's" infamously sweet chocolate sundae. This chocolate sundae was one that made even dessert-loving high school girls surrender halfway through. However, the girl already had three empty cups in front of her.

"Aahm."

With an angelic smile, the girl brought her spoon to her mouth, and making that same noise she put the chocolate sundae in her mouth. Afterward, with a slight shake, she lowered her head for a while before quickly raising her face, red with excitement, and enthusiastically shouting, "Mmm--"

"Bang, bang bang", she noisily knocked on the table.

"Mmm, mm! Mmm -- it's so awesome! DELICIOUS! It's sweet and it tastes so good!"

"Ahm", "Mmmum", with joy on her face she ate one bite after another.

"Aah, the cherries are round, the cornflakes are crispy, the thick chocolate flavoring makes an unbelievable taste -- Was it God? Angels? Who made food this wonderful--"

The girl stroked her cheeks with hands in giant gloves, and turned, "It's no good, if I eat this my brain will melt."

If she just ate and ate until she collapsed it would have been fine, but she kept making strange sounds to herself; such a troublesome customer. But, there weren't any other customers, and she only made noises without causing trouble, it might be okay to leave her be.

Natsuko thought to herself, [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|squinting]] as she looked at the girl who was eating a chocolate sundae.

Speaking of which, she could actually eat that much of something like that.

That thing was triple the size and sweetness of anything found in a normal cafe, and was placed on the menu half as a joke. Yet, a girl that slim was eating it non-stop, and even non-doctors would be worried. Had she lost her sense of taste? It wouldn't be odd to get diabetes after a single cup of that stuff.

Furthermore, she would make a strange gesture every once in a while.

Sometimes, she would take her spoon with ice cream or chocolate, and put it to her stomach rather than her mouth.

A place like that obviously would not have a mouth; normally, she would just be getting herself dirty. But when she brought back her spoon, the ice cream in it would mysteriously have disappeared.

That wasn't all, she would occasionally reach out and put the spoon in her backpack, which she had placed on the seat next to hers.

"Mmm, sis, you wanna try some? It's a new taste, a new flavor, a new experience for you to enjoy."

Her spoon swayed as she said those words that explained no details. Unlike with her stomach, the spoon's ice cream did not disappear this time.

The girl puffed her cheeks and unhappily put the spoon in her mouth.

"Really, you're like this every time, if you're so picky you'll never taste anything good."

Suddenly, Natsuko noticed that while the girl innocently mumbled to herself someone seemed to respond.

"Mitsuki, I'm not like you, I've long since lost any enjoyment in eating. Besides, if I ate that thing that I can tell is too sweet just by looking at it, I'd get sick. Mmm... although, even if I get sick, this body would immediately restore itself."

"Then you want some?"

The girl smiled and laughed, and dug her spoon in. But. A cold voice rejected her.

"Who'd want that! I have been freed from activities like eating and drinking that allow so many impurities to enter my body -- for that, I am thankful from the bottom of my heart. And again, Mitsuki, didn't I tell you to not talk to me outside? I hate disobedient children."

Hearing those words, the girl's face suddenly turned white, and she desperately shook her head. Tears appeared in the corners of her eyes.

"No, no... Sis, don't hate me. I'm sorry, I just wanted you to eat something tasty."

"I know. Mitsuki, you're a considerate child."

Those were whispers that could not be detected by a normal person's sense of hearing. But Natsuko heard them, and she furrowed her eyebrows.

This voice was...

"Actually, our luggage still isn't ready, right? Stop indulging in food, and let's hurry up and go home!"

"Alright, sis. Just one more bite -- Aahm."

The girl scooped up the remainder of the ice cream and sent it down her mouth with an enchanted smile.

"Ah -- this is great. The moment it's in my mouth, it's like being in heaven. Mm, I want to come again."

The girl spoke to herself, and stood up in high spirits. Then, like a small animal she ran to Natuko who silently watched her. Placing her hand on the counter, she giggled as she said, "[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|I'd like to pay.]]"

Natsuko nodded, took out the bill and smoothly tapped at the register. Extra-large chocolate sundaes were rather expensive, and the girl had four, so the price would obviously be extremely high.

"In total, 5400 yen."

"Whoa..." The girl's eyes opened wide, and she poked her head.

"I ate too much, I need to reflect a bit... is this enough?"

With a rustle the girl searched in her backpack. She was probably looking for her wallet, and Natsuko tried not to look in; but, in that situation it was impossible to hide.

Natsuko looked at the bag, and gasped after seeing what was inside.

"..."

A head.

It was a human head.

A female head. The bone-chilling head was turned backward, so its face could not be seen. But Natsuko knew, she understood, and she went on guard.

This head, this woman was --

"Ooh, I found it!" The girl slapped a bundle of paper money on the counter, seeming to not notice Natsuko's state.

A bundle of money?

"Keep the change."

Saying so, the girl bluntly turned around. If those were 10,000 yen bills, then there would have been a hundred thousand, or possibly even a million yen. Natsuko calmly picked up the thick bundle of money and inspected it.

The top and bottom were bills worth a thousand yen.

Everything else was folded up newspaper.

"..."

"..."

As Natsuko looked at the stack of newspaper, the girl stopped walking. Probably realizing that she had been caught, she once again searched in her bag and took out a cute wallet, and she pulled out three thousand-yen bills and some change.

"Sorry."

Natsuko did not respond, and operated the register with a "Ding".

"I always thought you were a foolish child, but Mitsuki, you're really an idiot. What was that back there? Don't embarass me, okay?"

"It was because... because, I wanted to try it out. I wanted to try acting like a rich person."

The girl cried and wailed in her home, as she whined. It was a room in a lonely old apartment reached by crossing the street from "Indian Bar" and going all the way down the poorly maintained road.

The narrow room lacked anything of interest, and there was basically no furniture. Probably due to a recent move in, unopened cardboard boxes were spread all around.

As she used the room's stove to cook hotpot, the girl pouted. Though she was inside, she did not remove her hat or gloves. "Because I'm a girl, sometimes I wanna pretend to be rich."

"I can't understand you at all. Whatever, we can worry about that later. Why did you want to move into this apartment?"

Like before, the voice came from the backpack placed to the side. The girl turned to look at the backpack that rolled on the ground, giving an angelic smile.

"Well obviously, it's too look for Sis's body, and also the great shard that was stolen."

The girl tossed the noodles she just bought from a convenience into the boiling water, and stirred with long chopsticks. The [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|cooking utensils]] had been taken out of the cardboard boxes first.

"Sis had it tough, if I didn't find you at the hospital you would've been killed by Ultimate Shield. Since I'm a horrible match for Ultimate Shield I escaped -- But, next time, I'll take her head-on and take back your shard."

"That's too dangerous." That concerned voice said, "Mitsuki, Ultimate Shield is cunning. Even if you're the mighty Unpleasant Counter-Current --"

The girl smiled, and beat eggs into the pot. "Really sis, you keep treating me like a little kid. No problem, I'll be careful. Just wait like they guys who went on Noah's Ark."

"That analogy's rather disturbing."

The girl smiled with a sigh, and put the finished noodles into a large bowl. She covered it with plastic wrap,[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|*]] and picked it up with gloved hands.

"Besides -- we have plenty of time. I think Ultimate Shield's only good at running away. It won't be easy to find her, so I decided to move into this apartment to look for the one who attack you... was it Gankyuu?"

"Gankyuu Eguriko?"

"Right, I wanna find that Gankyuu person. She was the one who gouged out sis's heart and took away the great shard. Even if she doesn't doesn't know where your body is, we'll at least be able to find the shard."

The girl smiled, and with unsteady steps brought out the steaming bowl.

"To achieve this goal, I decided to infiltrate Gankyuu's school as a student. Though I've been classified as dead a long time ago and don't have any documentation -- that kind of thing is simple, I can just use the shard's power to twist reality a little."

Inside this girl resided power that was called a "Shard of God", and so she could do things like this.

But, this didn't really make the girl special; whether it was a great shard or one of the small shards known as "Apples", pretty much anyone with a shard could do things like this.

Those with shards had the world's blessing.

If one wished so, infiltrating a school or company would be easy. As for the reason, even the girl wasn't too sure.

It was like -- one only needed to go to someone important in the school and say, "I want to attend this school starting tomorrow", and it would be treated with standard enrollment procedure.

That girl with an incomprehensible name, Gankyuu Eguriko, probably used this ability of the shards, too, to enter school.

The girl, thinking while making sure not to spill the bowl, opened the door. From the backpack left behind came a worried voice.

"Wait, Mitsuki, where are you going?"

"I'm bringing noodles to go greet our neighbors. It's Japan's wonderful custom."

"Heehee", she laughed and closed the door with her giant gloves.

Though it was spring, it was still cold at night.

After cutting off her [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|sense of touch]], the girl knocked on the door of the third-floor apartment next to hers. "Nageki" was written on the nameplate, while the strange words "[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|Girls in prison must praise]]" underneath.

"Excuse me -- " She knocked on the door while holding onto the bowl. She felt a human prescence behind the door, but no one came to answer her, as if pretending to be out. The girl was confused, and after deciding to meet this neighbor later she went down a floor. If she didn't hurry the noodles would get cold.

This building had three floors, with two apartments each. The second floor seemed to have at one point been an office for some business, and now it was empty with a "Bankrupt" sign on the door.

"'Bankrupt'... They should've used a more tactful term."

The girl mumbled to herself, and went down a floor. The rooms on the first floor should be occupied. The floor had room A and room 8. The nameplate on room 8 said "Breaksun=Hanselmine". The girl knocked --

Another one pretending to be out! Why didn't anyone want to answer the door? How annoying, the girl frowned.

Floor one room A was her last hope.

She walked to the door with a nameplate simply saying "Usagawa" while the old washing machine next to her clanked and rumbled rather loudly.

"Hello -- "

She pressed the doorbell that her own room did not have, resulting in a "Dong -- " like a clock's chime. The bell's sound pierced the dusk, and birds resting on power cords were frightened away by the noise.

After a while, the door was leisurely opened.

"Ah -- "

Out came a girl who seemed lost. Her beautiful pink hair was adorned with a cute butterfly knot, while her slightly disorderly clothes showed her collarbone.

Did she just get up? The girl looked ahead of her, thinking.

"Ooh..."

Looking closely, the girl made a moaning noise as she mechanically tilted her head.

Seeing that, the girl wearing a giant-eared hat frowned slightly.

"Meat... doll."

"Who is it?"

Suddenly, a tall youth appeared behind the girl.

His handsome appearance was breathtaking. With blond hair and blue eyes, his features seemed to be a work of art. But the dark rings under his eyes diminished his looks, and a short, out-of-place beard had grown.

This haggard-looking man looked out the door with suspicion.

The girl was perplexed and stepped back slightly, and then introduced herself while holding out the bowl.

"I just moved over, and I came to introduce myself. These are superior noodles."

"I see..."

Seeming like he recalled something, the youth calmly received the bowl. He pulled back his hand and put on a shelf an object resembling a pistol, and his expression softened.

"The landlord told us, are you the one who moved to the third floor? I was only cautious because of that name... but she's not that person? No, I still can't be careless."

"Eh?"

As this incompresible monologue confused the girl, the youth sincerely introduced himself. "My name is Sakaki Guryuu, and due to some circumstances I've moved into her -- Usagawa Rinne's home. As you can see, she's a bit sick, and might act a bit strange, but please don't mind her. Hey, your majesty, greet her."

"Greet her."

The girl who was called "your majesty" repeated the words like a child, and imitated a smile. "Hello."

"Say 'Nice to meet you'."

"Nice to meet you -- "

Though she already figured out the truth about the girl from her movements, she pretended not to notice and nodded. "Please take good care of me, Sakaki-san, Rinne."

Then she bowed deeply, and stated her name.

Her tail swayed with her body, and her hair also fluttered.

"My name is Saibara Mitsuki."

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_AN|Volume 2, Author's Notes]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol3_Ch1|Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Mushi:Vol2 Close

2012-02-02T03:38:17Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Close: Blood-Stained Night''' ==

Nagumo Ame, sixteen years old, Kannonsakazaki Private High School class 1-8, clever, quiet; she wasn't particularly afraid of strangers, and often listened to others speak while giggling. She was about average in terms of studies and athletics, didn't have any particularly noteworthy traits, and as if she floated in and out of the classroom people frequently overlooked her existence.

What made her special was--

"Hehe."

Even though it wasn't really funny, she still forced out a laugh.

"Haha."

Ame-chan laughed unnaturally as she walked with her friends. Five or six uniformed students walking together in a group wasn't particularly rare, and in this inconspicuous group, Ame-chan's existence seemed even less solid as she listened to her classmates talk, looking happy.

"I heard Sakaki-sensei disappeared."

"Usagawa Rinne also disappeared, right? Whoa, doesn't that sound like they eloped? After all, it's ''that'' teacher, feels like he'd say '[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|Finally]]'."

"But Gankyuu's gone, too."

"Oh, Gankyuu, have any of you ever talked to her? I'm way too scared, I just don't dare get close to her."

"Ah. Yeah, that happens. But she's actually mostly normal despite being a bit strange."

"After all, it's the rumored transfer student."

Ahaha, a fit of laughter.

Since Sakaki Guryuu, Usagawa Rinne, and Gankyuu Eguriko suddenly disappeared, it had been about three days. For the ever-diligent Rinne to miss school with no reason, and furthermore for Sakaki and Guriko to also be skipping was truly too strange, so the teachers also felt perplexed. But, the school's teachers were all like Sakaki's servants, so the chaos probably resulted from the master's disappearance.

"Hehe."

Ame chuckled a bit, and without letting her nonsense-spewing friends notice anything weird said,

"Hospital."

Just a noun, and the friends surrounding her probably didn't even know who said it. Even so, those girls who loved to gossiped were influenced by the word, and started chatting.

"Right, right, it also seems that something terrible happened at the hospital--"

"Ah, that thing where all the patients at the hospital disappeared? Details please, I don't know know too much about it."

"My mom also disappeared."

"Ah, sorry, Nagisa-chan."

"It's fine."

"But they disappeared at the same time as Sakaki-sensei? Maybe Sakaki-sensei went to the hospital too, and then some kidnapper took him away. Aren't there weird rumors?"

"What do you mean, some kind of ridiculous kidnapper, really, you..." "Miku, you're really stupid, I like."

"Thanks, wait... do you want to be smacked?"

"Sorry."

"Please don't hit me using an idiot's strength."

"What a weird rumor."

Suddenly, a voice redirected the conversation back on topic.

While laughing "Hehe, Ame stealthy added to the girls' conversation.

[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|The girl]] always called "Idiot" by her friends had a satisfied look on her face.

"That's true. After the disappearing incident, there have been all sorts of weird rumors circulating the hospital. I heard that if your even near the hospital you can hear a moaning, female voice -- Though no one knows who it is."

"You... where'd you hear something like that?"

"Miku, your info's always interesting. Well, let's not worry about that, is that it? I'd like some more details."

"Eh? Nagisa-chan's interesting in this kind of weird talk?"

"That's not it, I just thought I might find some clues about my mom."

"Sorry, Nagisa-chan."

"It's fine."

"Let's get back on topic, Kae, you pressed too many buttons you shouldn't have."

"Basically, it's a weird rumor, but there's actually only this much. It should be behind the hospital. Well, the hospital's sealed off now, so we can't go."

"You went?"

"Miku's really an idiot."

"Because she cares about stuff like this. Well, it seems that there've been a lot of annoying things lately -- there was Long-Armed Demon, and there was this incident, ah, how annoying... Eh? Ame-chan?"

A girl looked all around her, but could fine no trace of Nagumo Ame.

"Did she go back? Although, I don't know where she lives."

"Whatever, let's call out to her and then go."

"Then again, Ame's sort of like... how should I say it, it's like it's comforting just to have her there."

"Sort of like those 'My lucky doll' things?"

"I'm the lucky one! Me, me I tell ya!"

"Shut up, stupid Miku."

Confirming it was at the hospital was enough, the next part was simple. There was no need to wait for nightfall, the policeman guarding it were human, and the people working in the hospital were likely the Sakaki Organization's men, there only to handle the aftermath. So, the back of the building where the kidnapping incidents occured should be empty.

After going up the mountain behind the hospital and climbing the tallest tree there, the hospital that had been the site of the battle two days earlier could be seen. There were about six people working outside -- thankfully, none of them were behind the building, and the rest of the workers were probably inside.

Behind the building, there was an easily-traversible road, and the person who heard the female voice was probably walking through there. Nagumo Ame considered going in through there, but since people passed by it would be dangerous.

It's not like being seen would be incovenient, it's just that she wanted to do things peacefully if possible.

"Let's fly."

Ame muttered to herself, and jumped from the top of the tree without hesitation. She instantly grew dragon wings, which pierced through her uniform. Gliding high up in the air, she wasn't seen by anyone as she landed behind the hospital, and then her wings retracted back into her body.

"It's been so long since I last flew, mmm, that went pretty smoothly."

She talked to herself, and looked around her. The Sakaki Organization's men and the police weren't exactly idiots; they should have investigated this place, though normal people wouldn't be able to see any strange beings. They would only be able to hear them. It was an extremely feeble, seemingly imaginary sound.

After the incident, Nagumo Ame checked whether Sakaki Guryuu, Usagawa Rinne, and Gankyuu Eguriko were alive or dead.

The three of them took some random belongings and were living in Usagawa Rinne's apartment.

Then -- in this hospital that became a graveyard, the thing that remained and cried in anguish was --

Ame used her vision, that unlike a normal person's could detect monsters not part of this world, to check.

Blood, a large amount of blood.

It was spilled over the hospital's outer wall, and flowed through the ground leaving crimson traces.

In the middle of it all, was a woman who lay down and made pained groans.

"Sterilization Disinfection."

Hearing the voice, the woman abruptly looked over.

Her skin and pure white hair were dirtied with mud and blood, and possibly having trouble breathing, even her mask was off. Blood spilling from her chest, and sweating constantly, this woman was called Sterilization Disinfection.

She looked at Ame as if asking, "You can see me?" Ame laughingly said, "[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|So]] the largest fragment of the heart has been pierced. The sensory organ is damaged, and the soul is collapsing -- In fact, you already can't use power on the level of the seven great fragments. Hehe, but... before that you still took away Usagawa Rinne's soul, but it was because at that point the heart -- the sensory organ was already filled, so had no choice but to construct a new sensory organ somewhere else, and also because you hid a fragment and restored a life -- That's right, isn't it? But the emergency vessel had a serious reaction, right?"

Ame talked without pause, and then sneered. Mina gritted her teeth while seeming confused, looking at the smile face that seemed to be saying, "Your abilities are only at this level?"

She probably wanted to hide here for a while, and wait for her body to restore to a level suitable for the sensory organ. However --

''Everything ends today, who told you to get found by me.''

"Heeheeheehee," Ame laughed.

"Who are you?"

Sterilization Disinfection struggled to force her voice out.

Smiling, Ame placed her hand on her face.

"You don't know? Sterilization Disinfection, you've become weak. I'd heard that you used up all your power in that [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|incident]], but you can't even recognize me? What, if you're down to this level there wasn't a need to be cautious and run off to antagonize Gankyuu Eguriko. Whatever, I only just realized that." Her hand moved down, and her eyes, nose, mouth, and eyebrows all disappeared. Sterilization Disinfection stiffened. Ame who did not have a mouth laughed joyfully, "Heehee. Right, it's me, not anyone else, it's me."

"Ultimate Shield -- You traitor..."

She stood up with lines of blood running over her eyes, shakily glaring at Ame. This body already could not fight, this was something that should have been clearer to Sterilization Disinfection than to anyone else.

Even so, she absolutely must kill Ultimate Shield.

"I thought it was annoying, since only your 'Genocide Justice' and Single Room are dangerous to me. Therefore, I will kill both of you to become a truly weakness-free, shield unparalleled in strength."

Ame stretched out her arms, and said with happiness from the bottom of her heart, "And then I will rule this world. With an existence like this, but still not putting the goal first, now that's idiotic. Hey, my sisters, won't you die for me? Since it's so painful, just let yourselves dissolve and die! You'll never be able to restore the complete body anyways, it's useless, isn't it meaningless to preserve such a life?"

"What kind of joke is this!?"

Sterilization Disinfection clenched her fists, and even though she had already lost the ability to form her spray cay, she still slowly reachered her arm down.

How scary -- Ultimate Shield laughed, and her spread out arms --

Took the form of giant sickles.

"You also regret it, right? Because if you die here, you won't be able to the see my wonderful new world."

"Stop thinking you're God, you blemish!"

That word --

Was one she frequently used to mock herself with in the past.

Ame sneered, and used her sickle arms to cut her down.

Neat and swift.

Saibara Mina's head flew.

Because Sakaki refused to trust the moving company, and instead chose to inconspicuously move into Rinne's home, Guriko helped out until it was dark.

Deep in the night when even the plants slept. Guriko carefully avoided making noise as she exited Rinne's room.

She carried no bags.

She had no destination.

She just felt she couldn't stay at this place.

That was the choice the man with wolf-like eyes had forcefully pointed out to her before her fight with Sterilization Disinfection. To live as a human, or to live as a monster? She who chose to live as a human, received nothing but painful defeat.

That's enough.

That's enough, Guriko thought.

"Sakaki's protecting Rinne's body, so I'm not needed here."

Letting her wolf-like hair that could never blend into the the night flutter in the air, the single-armed girl wearing black looked back at the apartment.

Along with the almost two months of happy laughter with Rinne in this apartment, there were the events from a thousand years ago that she should have forgotten.

''Shining brightly, and ever so lovable, I liked [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|her]].

''So, Rinne.

''I must return her kindness."

''Even if this body is broken to pieces."

Throwing off her reluctance to leave, Guriko turned her back to the building with her head lowered. The right arm that was completely annihilated by Sterilization Disinfection could not be returned even with an Apple's power. For all her numerous years -- those were maddengly long years -- she had lived using both her arms, and with only one left she could not balance herself well.

Rinne and Sakaki were the same. Now, without Rinne, if she stayed here she didn't think she could live properly.

She might as well be alone, without causing problems for others she should just live in the darkness.

"Are you trying to become a monster again?"

Gazing at the uneven road's surface, Guriko felt something cold in the back of her head, was it a gun?

Her intuition told her that, and she silently nodded without turning around.

"Then, for the safety of humans like me, I need to kill the monster in front of me."

The voice held killing intent, and that gun was definitely loaded.

Standing behind her was Sakaki Guryuu, no problem -- Guriko coldly smiled.

"Shoot if you want, kill if you want. Sakaki, that's actually what I want."

Guriko lowered her head, looking at her barely existing single arm.

"I've killed a lot of people, and I've taken so much, the amount's so large that this single life can't take enough punishment. Will you free me from that burden? Are you that kind a man?"

He did not respond to the question.

There was already nothing more to say.

So Guriko closed her eyes and said something insignificant.

"You've gotten good at hiding your presence, compared to when I first met you you're completely unrecognizable; have you been constantly working hard? You must have always been like this. It's not some prodigious talent, or some inherited gene, just constant, hard work that got you to your strength today. You... will definitely become stronger, much stronger than me."

"I--"

Finally, a response.

That voice was filled with sorrow. For that superhuman, such a weak voice was exceedingly rare.

"Am very weak."

"Yup, you're really weak, even though you'll become strong you're still weak right now. I'm also very weak, so I couldn't protect Rinne."

Guriko naturally turned her head, and the gun that had not moved was pointed at her forehead. Stars danced in the night sky, and Sakaki in front of her was covered in hazy shadow while insect cries could be clearly heard from all directions.

She merely looked Sakaki straight in the eyes.

"So Sakaki, become strong! Help me protect Rinne."

Guriko reached into her pocket, and took out a spoon for Sakaki to see. It was an expensive, valuable spoon that Hino and Kio had bought for her. This piece of tableware covered with decorations only reflected the night, dark and faint.

"Hino and Kio -- " She looked at the spoon, and continued, "Maybe they were actually Sterilization Disinfection's Meat Dolls, maybe their real personalities had already completely disintegrated, but they didn't kill me, and that time they even saved me. Plus, Kio and Hino both turned back into humans as they were dying. Meat Dolls, those things must have some kind of secret. Perhaps Rinne will return to how she was before, becoming the Rinne that we love."

The moon that was previously covered by clouds appeared and lit up Sakaki's expression. It was one that majestically shined with spirit, without the slightest weakness.

"I want to search for a way."

She gripped her spoon, and said to Sakaki's face, "Sakaki, you said that to me in the hospital, didn't you? You gave hope to the me who had given up on everything, didn't you? Rinne hasn't died yet, so, Sakaki, help me protect her. Though I don't know how long it will take, I will without doubt find a way to return Rinne to how she was and then come back."

To return Rinne to how she was before.

To bring back the everyday life that Long-Armed Demon and Sterilization Disinfection destroyed.

"And then, let's go to school together, with the three of us."

This was Guriko's resolution. At first she only wanted to escape from this human world with nothing but pain, but now it was different. During the fight with Sterilization Disinfection Sakaki had embraced, and then she felt with even greater conviction that she did not wish to separate from them.

So, for the sake of returning to that period of happiness Guriko would go on a journey. She wouldn't completely revert into a monster, she only needed to search for a way to recover Rinne by herself.

That was something that definitely could not be achieved while staying here to protect Rinne. She would need to go to the outside world, or into an even darker world where Mushi and monsters swarmed in order to find it.

Before she met Rinne, that had been Guriko's world.

Just a return to life two months ago. There would be a day, she would definitely meet Rinne and Sakaki again.

*Creak* The door opened.

Rinne stood there. She who had become a Meat Doll, showed eyes twinkling with firm determination, and sped over to Sakaki who was pointing a gun at Guriko.

"You can't."

Naive and innocent, it was a voice like that of a young child.

"Fight."

That appearance of hers, that expression as she spoke earnestly for some reason.

Sakaki and Guriko simultaneously loosened up, and their expressions became gentle.

"I apologize. Aah, Your Majesty, do not worry, we weren't fighting."

"Right. This guy pointed a gun at me all on his, it's not a fight, it's a one-sided assault."

"You can't, Sensei."

Rinne truly believed that, with hands at her waist while she stuck out her chest, her face completely serious as she stared at Sakaki. There was a time when she made that expression whenever Guriko and Sakaki fought. Right, since it was like this, definitely --

"You must communicate properly!"

After making a slightly angry face, she should scrunch her eyebrows, and not knowing what to do, return to a kind, tender face.

Seeing her like this, Sakaki couldn't hold back his tears. A tear flowed down the cheek of his handsome face.

Guriko forced out an exaggerated laugh, "Haha, Sakaki you idiot, you still cry at that age, how shameful."

"What? Huh, why am I crying? And, Guriko."

Sakaki looked over with a face of incredulity, and said in a low voice, "Why are you also crying?"

Guriko brought up her hand to feel her cheek, and noticed that there was a warm liquid. Tears, these were -- tears, as she realized that, she felt that she couldn't stop --

Guriko silently weeped, and then cried out in frustration. Sakaki was quiet, yet it seemed that his tears could not stop either, and he continued to incredulously tilt his head.

In a rather remote place in Japan, there was a town called Kannonsakazaki. In it lived a girl called Usagawa Rinne. That girl didn't really stand out in anything; normal people like her could be found anywhere, and she just happened to be decent at cooking.

Yet she completely changed the standardized life of Sakaki.

She saved a monster who had been swallowed by darkness for a millenium.

Even though she became a Meat Doll, Rinne would never change, she would like always look hurt whenever Sakaki and Guriko argued with each other, with an expression showing that she hated seeing their tears.

Rinne calmly pulled the two next to her, embracing them; she was extremely weak, and she didn't feel real compared to before, but Sakaki and Guriko couldn't resist as they were pulled to her thin body.

"Don't worry."

Rinne quietly spoke. "Don't worry. Don't worry."

She was also crying as she said that. And so, three people cried together, feeling each others' warmth under the dark, frigid night.

One was the heir to an enormous corporation, a man who had always walked on a pre-programmed route.

One could not find a reason to live, a girl who had thrown herself into the sea.

One gouged out eyeballs, a girl who lived in the darkness as a monster.

The three met by chance, definitely only by chance. In this world where God had broken into fragments, perhaps the things known as miracles had long ceased to exist.

But, Sakaki pledged to always protect Rinne.

Guriko would search for a way to recover Rinne.

And Rinne, would embrace the two of them like this.

So there's no need to worry. Rinne's words were right, though she didn't have anything to base it on, Guriko felt she didn't have to worry.

The night was about to end, and they needed to wake from this nightmare. Because after experiencing the blackest, darkest, desperation, people should be able to have hope for a happier future..

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch5|Final Night: Start of Disinfection ]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_AN|Author's Notes ]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

MTM:Registration Page

2012-02-02T02:28:20Z

Cakemanofdoom:

To re-iterate the registration procedure:

*"First Come, First Served": please register your intended chapters here

*The maximum number of chapters you are recommended to work on is no more then half of any given volume

*Maximum number of Translators per volume is two

*Maximum number of volumes you may be active on is one

*This is not some Binding Contract of "I must do the work I put down here". Choices put down here are negotiable between translators (including their own selves who signed up for it).

*Contact [[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]] if you need Chinese RAWs.

== List ==

== Mushi to Medama Series by Akira (日日日), Illustrated by Mitsuki Mausu ==

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear '' / 蟲と眼球とテディベア ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Night 1: Usarin-sama's Daily Edict - [[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 2: The 15th November Incident - [[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]] - '''Completed''' by [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]]
::*Night 3: The girl who died a thousand years ago - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 4: Loneliness ← Kodoku → Insect Poison - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Final Night: "Don't Look" - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Guriko's Offering - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Author's Notes - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection '' / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒 ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Open: Clock of Endless Nights - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 1: A Series of Misfortune - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed
::*Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-armed ghost - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 3: Boudoir - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 4: I can't hear the bells - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Final Night: Start of Disinfection - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
::*Close: Blood-stained Night - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Author's Notes - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait '' / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Start: Lady with a Helmet - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]]
::*Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love
::*Night 3: Distancing happiness
::*Night 4: Temporary halt?
::*Night 5: Vomit
::*End: You and Chocolate Sunday
::*Author's Notes

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love '' / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌 ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Overture: 700
::*Symphony 1: Unable to transmit via songs alone
::*Symphony 2: Whom does the Song of Love belong to?
::*Symphony 3: Crybaby Joker
::*Symphony 4: The Adventures of Vegetable Juice and Tomato Juice
::*Final Symphony: Unable to save based on love alone
::*Requiem: 666
::*Author's Notes

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White '' / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫 ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*PROLOGUE 02: The Jealous Queen
::*EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
::*EPILOGUE 06: The Hunter
::*EPILOGUE 09: The Seven Dwarfs
::*EPILOGUE 11: The Witch
::*EPILOGUE 14: Poison & Apple & Kiss
::*EPILOGUE 19: Snow White
::*Author's Notes

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Damage Hair '' / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Ragnarok 00: Ruined hair of a place no one knows
::*Ragnarok 01: 19-year-old Useless Repeat-year-student, Hobby is video gaming
::*Ragnarok 02: Marionette of blood and flesh and bone
::*Ragnarok 03: Peaceful, Everyday Heaven
::*Ragnarok 04: 29 year old bachelor, Bored every day
::*Ragnarok 05: Production-orientated Loner
::*Ragnarok 06: Final God Mode: 3000 Worlds
::*Ragnarok xx: The twilight of the aftermath...
::*Author's Notes

[[Category:Registration Page]]

Mushi:Updates

2012-02-02T02:26:23Z

Cakemanofdoom: Created page with "=== Older Updates for Mushi to Medama === *October 17, 2008 ** Project Officially Started *September 8, 2009 ** Volume 1 Chapter 3 complete *May 11, 2010 ** Volume 1 Chapter 4 ..."

=== Older Updates for Mushi to Medama ===
*October 17, 2008
** Project Officially Started

*September 8, 2009
** Volume 1 Chapter 3 complete

*May 11, 2010
** Volume 1 Chapter 4 complete

*March 13, 2011
** Volume 1 Chapter 2 complete

*March 26, 2011
**Volume 2 Open complete

*April 14, 2011
**Volume 1 Epilogue complete

*April 22, 2011
**Volume 1 Chapter 5 complete
**Volume 1 complete

*November 27, 2011
**Volume 2 Night 2 complete

Mushi to Medama

2012-02-02T02:25:03Z

Cakemanofdoom:

[[Image:mtm_main.jpg|200px|thumb|Cover for the 1st novel]]

Sakaki Guryuu is a multi-talented genius who, despite being gifted and wealthy, decides to teach in the countryside to be together with his lover, Usagawa Rinne, who also happens to be his student. Their peaceful lives are shattered one day when Rinne is killed, in front of Sakaki's eyes, by a girl named "Gankyuu Eguriko", who gouged her eyes out with a spoon. Things take an even stranger turn when Rinne suddenly wakes up as if nothing had happened, and something called an "Eden's Apple" is thrown into the mix.

Mushi to Medama won the award for the "Best Newcomer" category in the MF Literary Awards.

== [[MTM:Registration Page|Registration]] ==
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

=== Format Standards ===
*[[Format_guideline|General Format/Style Guideline]]

== Updates ==

[[Mushi:Updates|Older updates]]

*January 15, 2012
**Volume 2 Night 3 complete

*January 19, 2012
**Volume 2 Night 4 complete

*January 20, 2012
**Volume 2 Close, Author's Notes complete

*February 1, 2012
**Volume 3 Start complete

== Project Staff ==

*Project Administrator: [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
*Project Supervisor:

=== Translators ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
Those who wish to contribute are asked to first notify a supervisor beforehand. [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] has Chinese RAWs available for those who wish to help.
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

'''INACTIVE
::*[[User:Cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]]

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]]

=== Editors ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:RoadBuster|RoadBuster]]
::*[[User:Chaos Greyblood|Chaos Greyblood]]
::*[[User:dell19930|dell19930]]
::*[[User:AlfheimWanderer|AlfheimWanderer]]

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:TheGiftedMonkey|TheGiftedMonkey]]

== Mushi to Medama Series by Akira (日日日), Illustrated by Mitsuki Mausu ==

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear '' / 蟲と眼球とテディベア ([[Mushi:Vol1|Full Text]] - [http://www.mediafire.com/?fz7iq8c6zriib36 PDF for e-Reader]) ===
[[Image:Mtm_main.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 1 Cover: Gankyuu Egoriko]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch1|Night 1: Usarin-kakka's Daily Edict]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch2|Night 2: The 15th November Incident]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch3|Night 3: The Girl who died a Thousand years ago]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch4|Night 4: Loneliness ← Kodoku → Insect Poison]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch5|Final Night: "Don't Look"]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Epilogue|Guriko's Offering]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Author's_Notes|Author's Notes]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection '' / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒 ===
[[Image:Mtm2_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 2 Cover: Usagawa Rinne]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Open|Open: Clock of Endless Nights]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch1|Night 1: A Series of Misfortune]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch2|Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch3|Night 3: Boudoir]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch4|Night 4: I can't hear the bells]] (100%)
::*Final Night: Start of Disinfection
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Close|Close: Blood-stained Night]] (100%)
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_AN|Author's Notes]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait '' / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ ===
[[Image:Mtm3_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 3 Cover]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Prologue|Start: Lady with a Helmet]] (100%)
::*Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat
::*Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love
::*Night 3: Distancing happiness
::*Night 4: Temporary halt?
::*Night 5: Vomit
::*End: You and Chocolate Sunday
::*Author's Notes
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love '' / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol4_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Overture: 700
::*Symphony 1: Unable to transmit via songs alone
::*Symphony 2: Whom does the Song of Love belong to?
::*Symphony 3: Crybaby Joker
::*Symphony 4: The Adventures of Vegetable Juice and Tomato Juice
::*Final Symphony: Unable to save based on love alone
::*Requiem: 666
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White '' / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol5_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*PROLOGUE 02: The Jealous Queen
::*EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
::*EPILOGUE 06: The Hunter
::*EPILOGUE 09: The Seven Dwarfs
::*EPILOGUE 11: The Witch
::*EPILOGUE 14: Poison & Apple & Kiss
::*EPILOGUE 19: Snow White
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair '' / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol6_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Ragnarok 00: Ruined hair of a place no one knows
::*Ragnarok 01: 19-year-old Useless Repeat-year-student, Hobby is video gaming
::*Ragnarok 02: Marionette of blood and flesh and bone
::*Ragnarok 03: Peaceful, Everyday Heaven
::*Ragnarok 04: 29 year old bachelor, Bored every day
::*Ragnarok 05: Production-orientated Loner
::*Ragnarok 06: Final God Mode: 3000 Worlds
::*Ragnarok xx: The twilight of the aftermath...
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

== Series Overview ==
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear / 蟲と眼球とテディベア　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1273-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1470-7)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ (ISBN 978-4-8401-1532-2)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1593-3)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1765-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア (ISBN 978-4-8401-1858-3)

Mushi:Vol3 TLnotes

2012-02-02T02:22:31Z

Cakemanofdoom: Created page with "<center>Translator's Notes and References for 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ Mushi and Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait</center> == Start == === Questionable t..."

Mushi:Vol3 Prologue

2012-02-02T02:22:24Z

Cakemanofdoom: Created page with "== '''Start: Lady with a Helmet''' == Minazuki Natsuko, 28 years old, was was the owner of the cafe "Indian Bar" in the shopping district. She opened this cafe three years ago,..."

== '''Start: Lady with a Helmet''' ==

Minazuki Natsuko, 28 years old, was was the owner of the cafe "Indian Bar" in the shopping district. She opened this cafe three years ago, and possibly due to the gloomy atmosphere, despite the few regulars the place was almost always completely deserted. However, remaining expressionless and silent to the point where people began to think that she was a decorative doll in the shop, Natsuko continued with this unprofitable business, and furthermore --

"Heehee."

No one could tell what she was happy about, but every small thing would make her laugh.

Spring is a time when people assimilate into society, when students assimilate into school; it's a time when people can begin a new life.

Everything about the season comes too abruptly, leaving people with no time to prepare, coming as if in defiance to humanity's will. Sometimes, there are people who cannot keep up and try to confirm their own existences through odd actions.

Basically, "There are weird people", "Oh, that's because it's spring", that kind of thing.

She was also one of the people who turned strange because of spring's witchcraft.

Natsuko thought so as she looked at the girl who had been in the cafe for two hours already.

"[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations| Auuu, hrum... mmph]]"

She was probably a high school student. She acted and felt more childish than she appeared, and even her clothes were childish, so it was hard to determine her actual age. Furthermore, she wore a bizarre outfit.

The most prominent of which was the giant-eared hat she wore. Her brown hair was tied into two short pigtails, and a curled tail could be seen behind her.

Though it's warm in early spring, her clothes were still too thin, and her belly and thighs were showing. She also wore needlessly large, out-of-place gloves. This truly was a strange outfit, that seemed like cosplay.

"Waaaah..."

For some unknown reason, this girl made noises while she gleefully ate "Indian Bar's" infamously sweet chocolate sundae. This chocolate sundae was one that made even dessert-loving high school girls surrender halfway through. However, the girl already had three empty cups in front of her.

"Aahm."

With an angelic smile, the girl brought her spoon to her mouth, and making that same noise she put the chocolate sundae in her mouth. Afterward, with a slight shake, she lowered her head for a while before quickly raising her face, red with excitement, and enthusiastically shouting, "Mmm--"

"Bang, bang bang", she noisily knocked on the table.

"Mmm, mm! Mmm -- it's so awesome! DELICIOUS! It's sweet and it tastes so good!"

"Ahm", "Mmmum", with joy on her face she ate one bite after another.

"Aah, the cherries are round, the cornflakes are crispy, the thick chocolate flavoring makes an unbelievable taste -- Was it God? Angels? Who made food this wonderful--"

The girl stroked her cheeks with hands in giant gloves, and turned, "It's no good, if I eat this my brain will melt."

If she just ate and ate until she collapsed it would have been fine, but she kept making strange sounds to herself; such a troublesome customer. But, there weren't any other customers, and she only made noises without causing trouble, it might be okay to leave her be.

Natsuko thought to herself, [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|squinting]] as she looked at the girl who was eating a chocolate sundae.

Speaking of which, she could actually eat that much of something like that.

That thing was triple the size and sweetness of anything found in a normal cafe, and was placed on the menu half as a joke. Yet, a girl that slim was eating it non-stop, and even non-doctors would be worried. Had she lost her sense of taste? It wouldn't be odd to get diabetes after a single cup of that stuff.

Furthermore, she would make a strange gesture every once in a while.

Sometimes, she would take her spoon with ice cream or chocolate, and put it to her stomach rather than her mouth.

A place like that obviously would not have a mouth; normally, she would just be getting herself dirty. But when she brought back her spoon, the ice cream in it would mysteriously have disappeared.

That wasn't all, she would occasionally reach out and put the spoon in her backpack, which she had placed on the seat next to hers.

"Mmm, sis, you wanna try some? It's a new taste, a new flavor, a new experience for you to enjoy."

Her spoon swayed as she said those words that explained no details. Unlike with her stomach, the spoon's ice cream did not disappear this time.

The girl puffed her cheeks and unhappily put the spoon in her mouth.

"Really, you're like this every time, if you're so picky you'll never taste anything good."

Suddenly, Natsuko noticed that while the girl innocently mumbled to herself someone seemed to respond.

"Mitsuki, I'm not like you, I've long since lost any enjoyment in eating. Besides, if I ate that thing that I can tell is too sweet just by looking at it, I'd get sick. Mmm... although, even if I get sick, this body would immediately restore itself."

"Then you want some?"

The girl smiled and laughed, and dug her spoon in. But. A cold voice rejected her.

"Who'd want that! I have been freed from activities like eating and drinking that allow so many impurities to enter my body -- for that, I am thankful from the bottom of my heart. And again, Mitsuki, didn't I tell you to not talk to me outside? I hate disobedient children."

Hearing those words, the girl's face suddenly turned white, and she desperately shook her head. Tears appeared in the corners of her eyes.

"No, no... Sis, don't hate me. I'm sorry, I just wanted you to eat something tasty."

"I know. Mitsuki, you're a considerate child."

Those were whispers that could not be detected by a normal person's sense of hearing. But Natsuko heard them, and she furrowed her eyebrows.

This voice was...

"Actually, our luggage still isn't ready, right? Stop indulging in food, and let's hurry up and go home!"

"Alright, sis. Just one more bite -- Aahm."

The girl scooped up the remainder of the ice cream and sent it down her mouth with an enchanted smile.

"Ah -- this is great. The moment it's in my mouth, it's like being in heaven. Mm, I want to come again."

The girl spoke to herself, and stood up in high spirits. Then, like a small animal she ran to Natuko who silently watched her. Placing her hand on the counter, she giggled as she said, "[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|I'd like to pay.]]"

Natsuko nodded, took out the bill and smoothly tapped at the register. Extra-large chocolate sundaes were rather expensive, and the girl had four, so the price would obviously be extremely high.

"In total, 5400 yen."

"Whoa..." The girl's eyes opened wide, and she poked her head.

"I ate too much, I need to reflect a bit... is this enough?"

With a rustle the girl searched in her backpack. She was probably looking for her wallet, and Natsuko tried not to look in; but, in that situation it was impossible to hide.

Natsuko looked at the bag, and gasped after seeing what was inside.

"..."

A head.

It was a human head.

A female head. The bone-chilling head was turned backward, so its face could not be seen. But Natsuko knew, she understood, and she went on guard.

This head, this woman was --

"Ooh, I found it!" The girl slapped a bundle of paper money on the counter, seeming to not notice Natsuko's state.

A bundle of money?

"Keep the change."

Saying so, the girl bluntly turned around. If those were 10,000 yen bills, then there would have been a hundred thousand, or possibly even a million yen. Natsuko calmly picked up the thick bundle of money and inspected it.

The top and bottom were bills worth a thousand yen.

Everything else was folded up newspaper.

"..."

"..."

As Natsuko looked at the stack of newspaper, the girl stopped walking. Probably realizing that she had been caught, she once again searched in her bag and took out a cute wallet, and she pulled out three thousand-yen bills and some change.

"Sorry."

Natsuko did not respond, and operated the register with a "Ding".

"I always thought you were a foolish child, but Mitsuki, you're really an idiot. What was that back there? Don't embarass me, okay?"

"Because... Because, I wanted to try it out. I wanted to try acting like a rich person."

The girl cried and wailed in her home, as she whined. It was a room in a lonely old apartment reached by crossing the street from "Indian Bar" and going all the way down the poorly maintained road.

The narrow room lacked anything of interest, and there was basically no furniture. Probably due to a recent move in, unopened cardboard boxes were spread all around.

As she used the room's stove to cook hotpot, the girl pouted. Though she was inside, she did not remove her hat or gloves. "Because I'm a girl, sometimes I wanna pretend to be rich."

"I can't understand you at all. Whatever, we can worry about that later. Why did you want to move into this apartment?"

Like before, the voice came from the backpack placed to the side. The girl turned to look at the backpack that rolled on the ground, giving an angelic smile.

"Well obviously, it's too look for Sis's body, and also the great shard that was stolen."

The girl tossed the noodles she just bought from a convenience into the boiling water, and stirred with long chopsticks. The [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|cooking utensils]] had been taken out of the cardboard boxes first.

"Sis had it tough, if I didn't find you at the hospital you would've been killed by Ultimate Shield. Since I'm a horrible match for Ultimate Shield I escaped -- But, next time, I'll take her head-on and take back your shard."

"That's too dangerous." That concerned voice said, "Mitsuki, Ultimate Shield is cunning. Even if you're the mighty Unpleasant Counter-Current --"

The girl smiled, and beat eggs into the pot. "Really sis, you keep treating me like a little kid. No problem, I'll be careful. Just wait like they guys who went on Noah's Ark."

"That analogy's rather disturbing."

The girl smiled with a sigh, and put the finished noodles into a large bowl. She covered it with plastic wrap,[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|*]] and picked it up with gloved hands.

"Besides -- we have plenty of time. I think Ultimate Shield's only good at running away. It won't be easy to find her, so I decided to move into this apartment to look for the one who attack you... was it Gankyuu?"

"Gankyuu Eguriko?"

"Right, I wanna find that Gankyuu person. She was the one who gouged out sis's heart and took away the great shard. Even if she doesn't doesn't know where your body is, we'll at least be able to find the shard."

The girl smiled, and with unsteady steps brought out the steaming bowl.

"To achieve this goal, I decided to infiltrate Gankyuu's school as a student. Though I've been classified as dead a long time ago and don't have any documentation -- that kind of thing is simple, I can just use the shard's power to twist reality a little."

Inside this girl resided power that was called a "Shard of God", and so she could do things like this.

But, this didn't really make the girl special; whether it was a great shard or one of the small shards known as "Apples", pretty much anyone with a shard could do things like this.

Those with shards had the world's blessing.

If one wished so, infiltrating a school or company would be easy. As for the reason, even the girl wasn't too sure.

It was like -- one only needed to go to someone important in the school and say, "I want to attend this school starting tomorrow", and it would be treated with standard enrollment procedure.

That girl with an incomprehensible name, Gankyuu Eguriko, probably used this ability of the shards, too, to enter school.

The girl, thinking while making sure not to spill the bowl, opened the door. From the backpack left behind came a worried voice.

"Wait, Mitsuki, where are you going?"

"I'm bringing noodles to go greet our neighbors. It's Japan's wonderful custom."

"Heehee", she laughed and closed the door with her giant gloves.

Though it was spring, it was still cold at night.

After cutting off her [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|sense of touch]], the girl knocked on the door of the third-floor apartment next to hers. "Nageki" was written on the nameplate, while the strange words "[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|Girls in prison must praise]]" underneath.

"Excuse me -- " She knocked on the door while holding onto the bowl. She felt a human prescence behind the door, but no one came to answer her, as if pretending to be out. The girl was confused, and after deciding to meet this neighbor later she went down a floor. If she didn't hurry the noodles would get cold.

This building had three floors, with two apartments each. The second floor seemed to have at one point been an office for some business, and now it was empty with a "Bankrupt" sign on the door.

"'Bankrupt'... They should've used a more tactful term."

The girl mumbled to herself, and went down a floor. The rooms on the first floor should be occupied. The floor had room A and room 8. The nameplate on room 8 said "Breaksun=Hanselmine". The girl knocked --

Another one pretending to be out! Why didn't anyone want to answer the door? How annoying, the girl frowned.

Floor one room A was her last hope.

She walked to the door with a nameplate simply saying "Usagawa" while the old washing machine next to her clanked and rumbled rather loudly.

"Hello -- "

She pressed the doorbell that her own room did not have, resulting in a "Dong -- " like a clock's chime. The bell's sound pierced the dusk, and birds resting on power cords were frightened away by the noise.

After a while, the door was leisurely opened.

"Ah -- "

Out came a girl who seemed lost. Her beautiful pink hair was adorned with a cute butterfly knot, while her slightly disorderly clothes showed her collarbone.

Did she just get up? The girl looked ahead of her, thinking.

"Ooh..."

Looking closely, the girl made a moaning noise as she mechanically tilted her head.

Seeing that, the girl wearing a giant-eared hat frowned slightly.

"Meat... doll."

"Who is it?"

Suddenly, a tall youth appeared behind the girl.

His handsome appearance was breathtaking. With blond hair and blue eyes, his features seemed to be a work of art. But the dark rings under his eyes diminished his looks, and a short, out-of-place beard had grown.

This haggard-looking man looked out the door with suspicion.

The girl was perplexed and stepped back slightly, and then introduced herself while holding out the bowl.

"I just moved over, and I came to introduce myself. These are superior noodles."

"I see..."

Seeming like he recalled something, the youth calmly received the bowl. He pulled back his hand and put on a shelf an object resembling a pistol, and his expression softened.

"The landlord told us, are you the one who moved to the third floor? I was only cautious because of that name... but she's not that person? No, I still can't be careless."

"Eh?"

As this incompresible monologue confused the girl, the youth sincerely introduced himself. "My name is Sakaki Guryuu, and due to some circumstances I've moved into her -- Usagawa Rinne's home. As you can see, she's a bit sick, and might act a bit strange, but please don't mind her. Hey, your majesty, greet her."

"Greet her."

The girl who was called "your majesty" repeated the words like a child, and imitated a smile. "Hello."

"Say 'Nice to meet you'."

"Nice to meet you -- "

Though she already figured out the truth about the girl from her movements, she pretended not to notice and nodded. "Please take good care of me, Sakaki-san, Rinne."

Then she bowed deeply, and stated her name to them.

Her tail swayed with her body, and her hair also fluttered.

"My name is Saibara Mitsuki.

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_AN|Volume 2, Author's Notes]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol3_Ch1|Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

User talk:Cakemanofdoom

2012-01-27T07:09:02Z

Cakemanofdoom: Blanked the page

Mushi:Vol2 Close

2012-01-27T06:23:41Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Close: Blood-Stained Night''' ==

Nagumo Ame, sixteen years old, Kannonsakazaki Private High School class 1-8, clever, quiet; she wasn't particularly afraid of strangers, and often listened to others speak while giggling. She was about average in terms of studies and athletics, didn't have any particularly noteworthy traits, and as if she floated in and out of the classroom people frequently overlooked her existence.

What made her special was--

"Hehe."

Even though it wasn't really funny, she still forced out a laugh.

"Haha."

Ame-chan laughed unnaturally as she walked with her friends. Five or six uniformed students walking together in a group wasn't particularly rare, and in this inconspicuous group, Ame-chan's existence seemed even less solid as she listened to her classmates talk, looking happy.

"I heard Sakaki-sensei disappeared."

"Usagawa Rinne also disappeared, right? Whoa, doesn't that sound like they eloped? After all, it's ''that'' teacher, feels like he'd say '[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|Finally]]'."

"But Gankyuu's gone, too."

"Oh, Gankyuu, have any of you ever talked to her? I'm way too scared, I just don't dare get close to her."

"Ah. Yeah, that happens. But she's actually mostly normal despite being a bit strange."

"After all, it's the rumored transfer student."

Ahaha, a fit of laughter.

Since Sakaki Guryuu, Usagawa Rinne, and Gankyuu Eguriko suddenly disappeared, it had been about three days. For the ever-diligent Rinne to miss school with no reason, and furthermore for Sakaki and Guriko to also be skipping was truly too strange, so the teachers also felt perplexed. But, the school's teachers were all like Sakaki's servants, so the chaos probably resulted from the master's disappearance.

"Hehe."

Ame chuckled a bit, and without letting her nonsense-spewing friends notice anything weird said,

"Hospital."

Just a noun, and the friends surrounding her probably didn't even know who said it. Even so, those girls who loved to gossiped were influenced by the word, and started chatting.

"Right, right, it also seems that something terrible happened at the hospital--"

"Ah, that thing where all the patients at the hospital disappeared? Details please, I don't know know too much about it."

"My mom also disappeared."

"Ah, sorry, Nagisa-chan."

"It's fine."

"But they disappeared at the same time as Sakaki-sensei? Maybe Sakaki-sensei went to the hospital too, and then some kidnapper took him away. Aren't there weird rumors?"

"What do you mean, some kind of ridiculous kidnapper, really, you..." "Miku, you're really stupid, I like."

"Thanks, wait... do you want to be smacked?"

"Sorry."

"Please don't hit me using an idiot's strength."

"What a weird rumor."

Suddenly, a voice redirected the conversation back on topic.

While laughing "Hehe, Ame stealthy added to the girls' conversation.

[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|The girl]] always called "Idiot" by her friends had a satisfied look on her face.

"That's true. After the disappearing incident, there have been all sorts of weird rumors circulating the hospital. I heard that if your even near the hospital you can hear a moaning, female voice -- Though no one knows who it is."

"You... where'd you hear something like that?"

"Miku, your info's always interesting. Well, let's not worry about that, is that it? I'd like some more details."

"Eh? Nagisa-chan's interesting in this kind of weird talk?"

"That's not it, I just thought I might find some clues about my mom."

"Sorry, Nagisa-chan."

"It's fine."

"Let's get back on topic, Kae, you pressed too many buttons you shouldn't have."

"Basically, it's a weird rumor, but there's actually only this much. It should be behind the hospital. Well, the hospital's sealed off now, so we can't go."

"You went?"

"Miku's really an idiot."

"Because she cares about stuff like this. Well, it seems that there've been a lot of annoying things lately -- there was Long-Armed Demon, and there was this incident, ah, how annoying... Eh? Ame-chan?"

A girl looked all around her, but could fine no trace of Nagumo Ame.

"Did she go back? Although, I don't know where she lives."

"Whatever, let's call out to her and then go."

"Then again, Ame's sort of like... how should I say it, it's like it's comforting just to have her there."

"Sort of like those 'My lucky doll' things?"

"I'm the lucky one! Me, me I tell ya!"

"Shut up, stupid Miku."

Confirming it was at the hospital was enough, the next part was simple. There was no need to wait for nightfall, the policeman guarding it were human, and the people working in the hospital were likely the Sakaki Organization's men, there only to handle the aftermath. So, the back of the building where the kidnapping incidents occured should be empty.

After going up the mountain behind the hospital and climbing the tallest tree there, the hospital that had been the site of the battle two days earlier could be seen. There were about six people working outside -- thankfully, none of them were behind the building, and the rest of the workers were probably inside.

Behind the building, there was an easily-traversible road, and the person who heard the female voice was probably walking through there. Nagumo Ame considered going in through there, but since people passed by it would be dangerous.

It's not like being seen would be incovenient, it's just that she wanted to do things peacefully if possible.

"Let's fly."

Ame muttered to herself, and jumped from the top of the tree without hesitation. She instantly grew dragon wings, which pierced through her uniform. Gliding high up in the air, she wasn't seen by anyone as she landed behind the hospital, and then her wings retracted back into her body.

"It's been so long since I last flew, mmm, that went pretty smoothly."

She talked to herself, and looked around her. The Sakaki Organization's men and the police weren't exactly idiots; they should have investigated this place, though normal people wouldn't be able to see any strange beings. They would only be able to hear them. It was an extremely feeble, seemingly imaginary sound.

After the incident, Nagumo Ame checked whether Sakaki Guryuu, Usagawa Rinne, and Gankyuu Eguriko were alive or dead.

The three of them took some random belongings and were living in Usagawa Rinne's apartment.

Then -- in this hospital that became a graveyard, the thing that remained and cried in anguish was --

Ame used her vision, that unlike a normal person's could detect monsters not part of this world, to check.

Blood, a large amount of blood.

It was spilled over the hospital's outer wall, and flowed through the ground leaving crimson traces.

In the middle of it all, was a woman who lay down and made pained groans.

"Sterilization Disinfection."

Hearing the voice, the woman abruptly looked over.

Her skin and pure white hair were dirtied with mud and blood, and possibly having trouble breathing, even her mask was off. Blood spilling from her chest, and sweating constantly, this woman was called Sterilization Disinfection.

She looked at Ame as if asking, "You can see me?" Ame laughingly said, "[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|So]] the largest fragment of the heart has been pierced. The sensory organ is damaged, and the soul is collapsing -- In fact, you already can't use power on the level of the seven great fragments. Hehe, but... before that you still took away Usagawa Rinne's soul, but it was because at that point the heart -- the sensory organ was already filled, so had no choice but to construct a new sensory organ somewhere else, and also because you hid a fragment and restored a life -- That's right, isn't it? But emergency vessel had a serious reaction, right?"

Ame talked without pause, and then sneered. Mina gritted her teeth while seeming confused, looking at the smile face that seemed to be saying, "Your abilities are only at this level?"

She probably wanted to hide here for a while, and wait for her body to restore to a level suitable for the sensory organ. However --

''Everything ends today, who told you to get found by me."

"Heeheeheehee," Ame laughed.

"Who are you?"

Sterilization Disinfection struggled to force her voice out.

Smiling, Ame placed her hand on her face.

"You don't know? Sterilization Disinfection, you've become weak. I'd heard that you used up all your power in that [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|incident]], but you can't even recognize me? What, if you're down to this level there wasn't a need to be cautious and run off to antagonize Gankyuu Eguriko. Whatever, I only just realized that." Her hand moved down, and her eyes, nose, mouth, and eyebrows all disappeared. Sterilization Disinfection stiffened. Ame who did not have a mouth laughed joyfully, "Heehee. Right, it's me, not anyone else, it's me."

"Ultimate Shield -- You traitor..."

She stood up with lines of blood running over her eyes, shakily glaring at Ame. This body already could not fight, this was something that should have been clearer to Sterilization Disinfection than to anyone else.

Even so, she absolutely must kill Ultimate Shield.

"I thought it was annoying, since only your 'Genocide Justice' and Single Room are dangerous to me. Therefore, I will kill both of you to become a truly weakness-free, shield unparalleled in strength."

Ame stretched out her arms, and said with happiness from the bottom of her heart, "And then I will rule this world. With an existence like this, but still not putting the goal first, now that's idiotic. Hey, my sisters, won't you die for me? Since it's so painful, just let yourselves dissolve and die! You'll never be able to restore the complete body anyways, it's useless, isn't it meaningless to preserve such a life?"

"What kind of joke is this!?"

Sterilization Disinfection clenched her fists, and even though she had already lost the ability to form her spray cay, she still slowly reachered her arm down.

How scary -- Ultimate Shield laughed, and her spread out arms --

Took the form of giant sickles.

"You also regret it, right? Because if you die here, you won't be able to the see my wonderful new world."

"Stop thinking you're God, you blemish!"

That word --

Was one she frequently used to mock herself with in the past.

Ame sneered, and used her sickle arms to cut her down.

Neat and swift.

Saibara Mina's head flew.

Because Sakaki refused to trust the moving company, and instead chose to inconspicuously move into Rinne's home, Guriko helped out until it was dark.

Deep in the night when even the plants slept. Guriko carefully avoided making noise as she exited Rinne's room.

She carried no bags.

She had no destination.

She just felt she couldn't stay at this place.

That was the choice the man with wolf-like eyes had forcefully pointed out to her before her fight with Sterilization Disinfection. To live as a human, or to live as a monster? She who chose to live as a human, received nothing but painful defeat.

That's enough.

That's enough, Guriko thought.

"Sakaki's protecting Rinne's body, so I'm not needed here."

Letting her wolf-like hair that could never blend into the the night flutter in the air, the single-armed girl wearing black looked back at the apartment.

Along with the almost two months of happy laughter with Rinne in this apartment, there were the events from a thousand years ago that she should have forgotten.

''Shining brightly, and ever so lovable, I liked [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|her]].

''So, Rinne.

''I must return her kindness."

''Even if this body is broken to pieces."

Throwing off her reluctance to leave, Guriko turned her back to the building with her head lowered. The right arm that was completely annihilated by Sterilization Disinfection could not be returned even with an Apple's power. For all her numerous years -- those were maddengly long years -- she had lived using both her arms, and with only one left she could not balance herself well.

Rinne and Sakaki were the same. Now, without Rinne, if she stayed here she didn't think she could live properly.

She might as well be alone, without causing problems for others she should just live in the darkness.

"Are you trying to become a monster again?"

Gazing at the uneven road's surface, Guriko felt something cold in the back of her head, was it a gun?

Her intuition told her that, and she silently nodded without turning around.

"Then, for the safety of humans like me, I need to kill the monster in front of me."

The voice held killing intent, and that gun was definitely loaded.

Standing behind her was Sakaki Guryuu, no problem -- Guriko coldly smiled.

"Shoot if you want, kill if you want. Sakaki, that's actually what I want."

Guriko lowered her head, looking at her barely existing single arm.

"I've killed a lot of people, and I've taken so much, the amount's so large that this single life can't take enough punishment. Will you free me from that burden? Are you that kind a man?"

He did not respond to the question.

There was already nothing more to say.

So Guriko closed her eyes and said something insignificant.

"You've gotten good at hiding your presence, compared to when I first met you you're completely unrecognizable; have you been constantly working hard? You must have always been like this. It's not some prodigious talent, or some inherited gene, just constant, hard work that got you to your strength today. You... will definitely become stronger, much stronger than me."

"I--"

Finally, a response.

That voice was filled with sorrow. For that superhuman, such a weak voice was exceedingly rare.

"Am very weak."

"Yup, you're really weak, even though you'll become strong you're still weak right now. I'm also very weak, so I couldn't protect Rinne."

Guriko naturally turned her head, and the gun that had not moved was pointed at her forehead. Stars danced in the night sky, and Sakaki in front of her was covered in hazy shadow while insect cries could be clearly heard from all directions.

She merely looked Sakaki straight in the eyes.

"So Sakaki, become strong! Help me protect Rinne."

Guriko reached into her pocket, and took out a spoon for Sakaki to see. It was an expensive, valuable spoon that Hino and Kio had bought for her. This piece of tableware covered with decorations only reflected the night, dark and faint.

"Hino and Kio -- " She looked at the spoon, and continued, "Maybe they were actually Sterilization Disinfection's Meat Dolls, maybe their real personalities had already completely disintegrated, but they didn't kill me, and that time they even saved me. Plus, Kio and Hino both turned back into humans as they were dying. Meat Dolls, those things must have some kind of secret. Perhaps Rinne will return to how she was before, becoming the Rinne that we love."

The moon that was previously covered by clouds appeared and lit up Sakaki's expression. It was one that majestically shined with spirit, without the slightest weakness.

"I want to search for a way."

She gripped her spoon, and said to Sakaki's face, "Sakaki, you said that to me in the hospital, didn't you? You gave hope to the me who had given up on everything, didn't you? Rinne hasn't died yet, so, Sakaki, help me protect her. Though I don't know how long it will take, I will without doubt find a way to return Rinne to how she was and then come back."

To return Rinne to how she was before.

To bring back the everyday life that Long-Armed Demon and Sterilization Disinfection destroyed.

"And then, let's go to school together, with the three of us."

This was Guriko's resolution. At first she only wanted to escape from this human world with nothing but pain, but now it was different. During the fight with Sterilization Disinfection Sakaki had embraced, and then she felt with even greater conviction that she did not wish to separate from them.

So, for the sake of returning to that period of happiness Guriko would go on a journey. She wouldn't completely revert into a monster, she only needed to search for a way to recover Rinne by herself.

That was something that definitely could not be achieved while staying here to protect Rinne. She would need to go to the outside world, or into an even darker world where Mushi and monsters swarmed in order to find it.

Before she met Rinne, that had been Guriko's world.

Just a return to life two months ago. There would be a day, she would definitely meet Rinne and Sakaki again.

*Creak* The door opened.

Rinne stood there. She who had become a Meat Doll, showed eyes twinkling with firm determination, and sped over to Sakaki who was pointing a gun at Guriko.

"You can't."

Naive and innocent, it was a voice like that of a young child.

"Fight."

That appearance of hers, that expression as she spoke earnestly for some reason.

Sakaki and Guriko simultaneously loosened up, and their expressions became gentle.

"I apologize. Aah, Your Majesty, do not worry, we weren't fighting."

"Right. This guy pointed a gun at me all on his, it's not a fight, it's a one-sided assault."

"You can't, Sensei."

Rinne truly believed that, with hands at her waist while she stuck out her chest, her face completely serious as she stared at Sakaki. There was a time when she made that expression whenever Guriko and Sakaki fought. Right, since it was like this, definitely --

"You must communicate properly!"

After making a slightly angry face, she should scrunch her eyebrows, and not knowing what to do, return to a kind, tender face.

Seeing her like this, Sakaki couldn't hold back his tears. A tear flowed down the cheek of his handsome face.

Guriko forced out an exaggerated laugh, "Haha, Sakaki you idiot, you still cry at that age, how shameful."

"What? Huh, why am I crying? And, Guriko."

Sakaki looked over with a face of incredulity, and said in a low voice, "Why are you also crying?"

Guriko brought up her hand to feel her cheek, and noticed that there was a warm liquid. Tears, these were -- tears, as she realized that, she felt that she couldn't stop --

Guriko silently weeped, and then cried out in frustration. Sakaki was quiet, yet it seemed that his tears could not stop either, and he continued to incredulously tilt his head.

In a rather remote place in Japan, there was a town called Kannonsakazaki. In it lived a girl called Usagawa Rinne. That girl didn't really stand out in anything; normal people like her could be found anywhere, and she just happened to be decent at cooking.

Yet she completely changed the standardized life of Sakaki.

She saved a monster who had been swallowed by darkness for a millenium.

Even though she became a Meat Doll, Rinne would never change, she would like always look hurt whenever Sakaki and Guriko argued with each other, with an expression showing that she hated seeing their tears.

Rinne calmly pulled the two next to her, embracing them; she was extremely weak, and she didn't feel real compared to before, but Sakaki and Guriko couldn't resist as they were pulled to her thin body.

"Don't worry."

Rinne quietly spoke. "Don't worry. Don't worry."

She was also crying as she said that. And so, three people cried together, feeling each others' warmth under the dark, frigid night.

One was the heir to an enormous corporation, a man who had always walked on a pre-programmed route.

One could not find a reason to live, a girl who had thrown herself into the sea.

One gouged out eyeballs, a girl who lived in the darkness as a monster.

The three met by chance, definitely only by chance. In this world where God had broken into fragments, perhaps the things known as miracles had long ceased to exist.

But, Sakaki pledged to always protect Rinne.

Guriko would search for a way to recover Rinne.

And Rinne, would embrace the two of them like this.

So there's no need to worry. Rinne's words were right, though she didn't have anything to base it on, Guriko felt she didn't have to worry.

The night was about to end, and they needed to wake from this nightmare. Because after experiencing the blackest, darkest, desperation, people should be able to have hope for a happier future..

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch5|Final Night: Start of Disinfection ]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_AN|Author's Notes ]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Mushi to Medama

2012-01-22T07:49:57Z

Cakemanofdoom:

[[Image:mtm_main.jpg|200px|thumb|Cover for the 1st novel]]

Sakaki Guryuu is a multi-talented genius who, despite being gifted and wealthy, decides to teach in the countryside to be together with his lover, Usagawa Rinne, who also happens to be his student. Their peaceful lives are shattered one day when Rinne is killed, in front of Sakaki's eyes, by a girl named "Gankyuu Eguriko", who gouged her eyes out with a spoon. Things take an even stranger turn when Rinne suddenly wakes up as if nothing had happened, and something called an "Eden's Apple" is thrown into the mix.

Mushi to Medama won the award for the "Best Newcomer" category in the MF Literary Awards.

== [[MTM:Registration Page|Registration]] ==
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

=== Format Standards ===
*[[Format_guideline|General Format/Style Guideline]]

== Updates ==
*October 17, 2008
** Project Officially Started

*September 8, 2009
** Volume 1 Chapter 3 complete

*May 11, 2010
** Volume 1 Chapter 4 complete

*March 13, 2011
** Volume 1 Chapter 2 complete

*March 26, 2011
**Volume 2 Open complete

*April 14, 2011
**Volume 1 Epilogue complete

*April 22, 2011
**Volume 1 Chapter 5 complete
**Volume 1 complete

*November 27, 2011
**Volume 2 Night 2 complete

*January 15, 2012
**Volume 2 Night 3 complete

*January 19, 2012
**Volume 2 Night 4 complete

*January 20, 2012
**Volume 2 Close, Author's Notes complete

== Project Staff ==

*Project Administrator: [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
*Project Supervisor:

=== Translators ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
Those who wish to contribute are asked to first notify a supervisor beforehand. [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] has Chinese RAWs available for those who wish to help.
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

'''INACTIVE
::*[[User:Cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]]

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]]

=== Editors ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:RoadBuster|RoadBuster]]
::*[[User:Chaos Greyblood|Chaos Greyblood]]
::*[[User:dell19930|dell19930]]
::*[[User:AlfheimWanderer|AlfheimWanderer]]

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:TheGiftedMonkey|TheGiftedMonkey]]

== Mushi to Medama Series by Akira (日日日), Illustrated by Mitsuki Mausu ==

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear '' / 蟲と眼球とテディベア ([[Mushi:Vol1|Full Text]] - [http://www.mediafire.com/?fz7iq8c6zriib36 PDF for e-Reader]) ===
[[Image:Mtm_main.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 1 Cover: Gankyuu Egoriko]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch1|Night 1: Usarin-kakka's Daily Edict]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch2|Night 2: The 15th November Incident]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch3|Night 3: The Girl who died a Thousand years ago]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch4|Night 4: Loneliness ← Kodoku → Insect Poison]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch5|Final Night: "Don't Look"]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Epilogue|Guriko's Offering]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Author's_Notes|Author's Notes]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection '' / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒 ===
[[Image:Mtm2_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 2 Cover: Usagawa Rinne]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Open|Open: Clock of Endless Nights]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch1|Night 1: A Series of Misfortune]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch2|Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch3|Night 3: Boudoir]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch4|Night 4: I can't hear the bells]] (100%)
::*Final Night: Start of Disinfection
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Close|Close: Blood-stained Night]] (100%)
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_AN|Author's Notes]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait '' / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ ===
[[Image:Mtm3_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 3 Cover]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Prologue|Start: Lady with a Helmet]]
::*Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat
::*Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love
::*Night 3: Distancing happiness
::*Night 4: Temporary halt?
::*Night 5: Vomit
::*End: You and Chocolate Sunday
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love '' / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol4_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Overture: 700
::*Symphony 1: Unable to transmit via songs alone
::*Symphony 2: Whom does the Song of Love belong to?
::*Symphony 3: Crybaby Joker
::*Symphony 4: The Adventures of Vegetable Juice and Tomato Juice
::*Final Symphony: Unable to save based on love alone
::*Requiem: 666
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White '' / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol5_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*PROLOGUE 02: The Jealous Queen
::*EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
::*EPILOGUE 06: The Hunter
::*EPILOGUE 09: The Seven Dwarfs
::*EPILOGUE 11: The Witch
::*EPILOGUE 14: Poison & Apple & Kiss
::*EPILOGUE 19: Snow White
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair '' / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol6_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Ragnarok 00: Ruined hair of a place no one knows
::*Ragnarok 01: 19-year-old Useless Repeat-year-student, Hobby is video gaming
::*Ragnarok 02: Marionette of blood and flesh and bone
::*Ragnarok 03: Peaceful, Everyday Heaven
::*Ragnarok 04: 29 year old bachelor, Bored every day
::*Ragnarok 05: Production-orientated Loner
::*Ragnarok 06: Final God Mode: 3000 Worlds
::*Ragnarok xx: The twilight of the aftermath...
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

== Series Overview ==
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear / 蟲と眼球とテディベア　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1273-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1470-7)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ (ISBN 978-4-8401-1532-2)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1593-3)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1765-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア (ISBN 978-4-8401-1858-3)

MTM:Registration Page

2012-01-21T08:04:25Z

Cakemanofdoom:

To re-iterate the registration procedure:

*"First Come, First Served": please register your intended chapters here

*The maximum number of chapters you are recommended to work on is no more then half of any given volume

*Maximum number of Translators per volume is two

*Maximum number of volumes you may be active on is one

*This is not some Binding Contract of "I must do the work I put down here". Choices put down here are negotiable between translators (including their own selves who signed up for it).

*Contact [[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]] if you need Chinese RAWs.

== List ==

== Mushi to Medama Series by Akira (日日日), Illustrated by Mitsuki Mausu ==

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear '' / 蟲と眼球とテディベア ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Night 1: Usarin-sama's Daily Edict - [[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 2: The 15th November Incident - [[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]] - '''Completed''' by [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]]
::*Night 3: The girl who died a thousand years ago - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 4: Loneliness ← Kodoku → Insect Poison - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Final Night: "Don't Look" - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Guriko's Offering - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Author's Notes - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection '' / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒 ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Open: Clock of Endless Nights - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 1: A Series of Misfortune - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed
::*Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-armed ghost - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 3: Boudoir - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 4: I can't hear the bells - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Final Night: Start of Disinfection - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
::*Close: Blood-stained Night - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Author's Notes - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait '' / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Start: Lady with a Helmet - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]]
::*Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat
::*Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love
::*Night 3: Distancing happiness
::*Night 4: Temporary halt?
::*Night 5: Vomit
::*End: You and Chocolate Sunday
::*Author's Notes

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love '' / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌 ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Overture: 700
::*Symphony 1: Unable to transmit via songs alone
::*Symphony 2: Whom does the Song of Love belong to?
::*Symphony 3: Crybaby Joker
::*Symphony 4: The Adventures of Vegetable Juice and Tomato Juice
::*Final Symphony: Unable to save based on love alone
::*Requiem: 666
::*Author's Notes

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White '' / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫 ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*PROLOGUE 02: The Jealous Queen
::*EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
::*EPILOGUE 06: The Hunter
::*EPILOGUE 09: The Seven Dwarfs
::*EPILOGUE 11: The Witch
::*EPILOGUE 14: Poison & Apple & Kiss
::*EPILOGUE 19: Snow White
::*Author's Notes

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Damage Hair '' / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Ragnarok 00: Ruined hair of a place no one knows
::*Ragnarok 01: 19-year-old Useless Repeat-year-student, Hobby is video gaming
::*Ragnarok 02: Marionette of blood and flesh and bone
::*Ragnarok 03: Peaceful, Everyday Heaven
::*Ragnarok 04: 29 year old bachelor, Bored every day
::*Ragnarok 05: Production-orientated Loner
::*Ragnarok 06: Final God Mode: 3000 Worlds
::*Ragnarok xx: The twilight of the aftermath...
::*Author's Notes

[[Category:Registration Page]]

Mushi to Medama

2012-01-21T08:01:35Z

Cakemanofdoom:

[[Image:mtm_main.jpg|200px|thumb|Cover for the 1st novel]]

Sakaki Guryuu is a multi-talented genius who, despite being gifted and wealthy, decides to teach in the countryside to be together with his lover, Usagawa Rinne, who also happens to be his student. Their peaceful lives are shattered one day when Rinne is killed, in front of Sakaki's eyes, by a girl named "Gankyuu Eguriko", who gouged her eyes out with a spoon. Things take an even stranger turn when Rinne suddenly wakes up as if nothing had happened, and something called an "Eden's Apple" is thrown into the mix.

Mushi to Medama won the award for the "Best Newcomer" category in the MF Literary Awards.

== [[MTM:Registration Page|Registration]] ==
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

=== Format Standards ===
*[[Format_guideline|General Format/Style Guideline]]

== Updates ==
*October 17, 2008
** Project Officially Started

*September 8, 2009
** Volume 1 Chapter 3 complete

*May 11, 2010
** Volume 1 Chapter 4 complete

*March 13, 2011
** Volume 1 Chapter 2 complete

*March 26, 2011
**Volume 2 Open complete

*April 14, 2011
**Volume 1 Epilogue complete

*April 22, 2011
**Volume 1 Chapter 5 complete
**Volume 1 complete

*November 27, 2011
**Volume 2 Night 2 complete

*January 15, 2012
**Volume 2 Night 3 complete

*January 19, 2012
**Volume 2 Night 4 complete

*January 20, 2012
**Volume 2 Close, Author's Notes complete

== Project Staff ==

*Project Administrator: [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
*Project Supervisor:

=== Translators ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
Those who wish to contribute are asked to first notify a supervisor beforehand. [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] has Chinese RAWs available for those who wish to help.
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

'''INACTIVE
::*[[User:Cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] (Until I can get myself to stop being so lazy and get back to work. Bugging me on my talk page or forum will help motivation a lot.)

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]]

=== Editors ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:RoadBuster|RoadBuster]]
::*[[User:Chaos Greyblood|Chaos Greyblood]]
::*[[User:dell19930|dell19930]]
::*[[User:AlfheimWanderer|AlfheimWanderer]]

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:TheGiftedMonkey|TheGiftedMonkey]]

== Mushi to Medama Series by Akira (日日日), Illustrated by Mitsuki Mausu ==

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear '' / 蟲と眼球とテディベア ([[Mushi:Vol1|Full Text]] - [http://www.mediafire.com/?fz7iq8c6zriib36 PDF for e-Reader]) ===
[[Image:Mtm_main.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 1 Cover: Gankyuu Egoriko]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch1|Night 1: Usarin-kakka's Daily Edict]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch2|Night 2: The 15th November Incident]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch3|Night 3: The Girl who died a Thousand years ago]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch4|Night 4: Loneliness ← Kodoku → Insect Poison]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch5|Final Night: "Don't Look"]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Epilogue|Guriko's Offering]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Author's_Notes|Author's Notes]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection '' / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒 ===
[[Image:Mtm2_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 2 Cover: Usagawa Rinne]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Open|Open: Clock of Endless Nights]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch1|Night 1: A Series of Misfortune]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch2|Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch3|Night 3: Boudoir]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch4|Night 4: I can't hear the bells]] (100%)
::*Final Night: Start of Disinfection
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Close|Close: Blood-stained Night]] (100%)
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_AN|Author's Notes]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait '' / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ ===
[[Image:Mtm3_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 3 Cover]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Prologue|Start: Lady with a Helmet]]
::*Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat
::*Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love
::*Night 3: Distancing happiness
::*Night 4: Temporary halt?
::*Night 5: Vomit
::*End: You and Chocolate Sunday
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love '' / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol4_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Overture: 700
::*Symphony 1: Unable to transmit via songs alone
::*Symphony 2: Whom does the Song of Love belong to?
::*Symphony 3: Crybaby Joker
::*Symphony 4: The Adventures of Vegetable Juice and Tomato Juice
::*Final Symphony: Unable to save based on love alone
::*Requiem: 666
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White '' / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol5_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*PROLOGUE 02: The Jealous Queen
::*EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
::*EPILOGUE 06: The Hunter
::*EPILOGUE 09: The Seven Dwarfs
::*EPILOGUE 11: The Witch
::*EPILOGUE 14: Poison & Apple & Kiss
::*EPILOGUE 19: Snow White
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair '' / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol6_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Ragnarok 00: Ruined hair of a place no one knows
::*Ragnarok 01: 19-year-old Useless Repeat-year-student, Hobby is video gaming
::*Ragnarok 02: Marionette of blood and flesh and bone
::*Ragnarok 03: Peaceful, Everyday Heaven
::*Ragnarok 04: 29 year old bachelor, Bored every day
::*Ragnarok 05: Production-orientated Loner
::*Ragnarok 06: Final God Mode: 3000 Worlds
::*Ragnarok xx: The twilight of the aftermath...
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

== Series Overview ==
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear / 蟲と眼球とテディベア　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1273-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1470-7)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ (ISBN 978-4-8401-1532-2)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1593-3)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1765-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア (ISBN 978-4-8401-1858-3)

Mushi:Vol2 TLnotes

2012-01-21T07:54:54Z

Cakemanofdoom:

<center>Translator's Notes and References for 
<big>蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒</big> 
Mushi and Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection</center>

== Open ==

=== * ===
There was extra text here: 还是要说是“大家来找茬”里面的“茬”呢. However, I don’t know how to translate it, and it isn’t vital to the plot, so I’m leaving it off for now. If anyone who knows what they're doing can put that in English without it sounding weird, feel free to edit.

=== ** ===
I wasn't actually sure what the text meant (来比手腕长度吧?). I just put something that sounded like it would fit there, and hopefully I didn't ruin the meaning. Someone please fix if your superior Chinese tells you that I'm wrong.

=== Tenaga Oni ===
Lit. Long-armed ghost.

=== *** ===
Original text: 与为了迎新，并祈求消灭妖魔鬼怪而作响的除夕之钟完全相反，那只是暗示加藤克美觉得无聊又打心底热爱的日常生活到此结束，妖魔们将跋扈横行的序夜之钟. This sentence was very confusing to me. Someone needs to check my TL.

=== Sakkin Shoudoku ===
Lit. to sterilize/disinfect. Same characters as the volume title.

== Night 1 ==
=== Black Dragon ===
Kuroki Tatsue's full name is written as 黑木龙惠 in kanji. The first characters of her surname and first name make the word 黑龙, literally meaning 'Black Dragon'. That is how she likes to refer to herself as.

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=== Itsuwara ===
The first kanji in this surname means 'Fake'.

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=== Shichi-Go-San ===
A Japanese childhood ceremony. For more information please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shichi-Go-San

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=== Saibara Mina ===
The name is written as 杀原美名, with the first kanji 'Sai' meaning 'to kill'.

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== Night 2 ==

=== Nageki Kurukiyo ===
The name is written as 叹木狂清 in kanji. 叹 means 'to sigh', while '狂' stands for 'madness'. The author didn't forget to poke fun at Guriko's own 'savage' name while at it.

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=== Zekiguchi Nashinori ===
The name is written as 藉口无法 in kanji. The Kanji for Nashinori '无法' means 'lawless'.

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== Night 4 ==

=== Questionable translations ===
-"Mina easily silenced her": I'm not really sure I got the subject/action right. 竟然能像拂去碍眼灰尘般，轻而易举地让那样的她沉默

-"it spoke unexpectedly in a human voice": 肉偶吓一跳，然后令人意外地用人话回答

-"She selflessly tore...": 忘我地将强盗大卸八块，然后失去意识。

-"The man's face seemed like a monster's": I'm missing something here. 测海让他的脸看起来像怪物一样的男人

-"And so, she prepared to accept that night": 就在她这么想，正准备接受现状的夜晚。

-"she prayed that it was only a bad dream": 好像是梦到过去的画面，拜这个所赐没做恶梦

-"Then he twisted her arms...": 然后反转姬两手，抢走汤匙。脑中一片空白，内心绝望，瓦解的思考回路，缓慢地朝自灭之路开始溶解。

-"This small room was really bad for the environment": 充满烟味的这问小房间实在杀风景

-"After removing her blindfolds": 以治疗用眼罩遮住的眼球，已大致再生完成，视线也回复到清晰状态。/这里是把自己抓来。宛如头发妖怪般的刑警的房间。

-"Even Zekiguchi had never seen this much": 连藉口也没看过的说，这下不就嫁不出去了……

-"singing the theme song of Onitaro": This doesn't make sense to me... 明明是变态又阴森的刑警，唱唱鬼太郎【注：日本动漫，作者为水木茂。】就好啦

-"Long-Armed Demon beat back the perverted detective with her arm stumps": 手长鬼用漂亮的头槌击退变态刑警，自己也痛到呻吟

-"I can't forget it": 很不甘心吧

=== Onitaro ===
According to the Chinese translator, this is a manga/anime by Mizuki Shigeru (not sure on name). Unfortunately, Google didn't give me much on it.

== Close ==

=== Questionable translations ===

-...feels like he'd say 'Finally'. : 毕竟是那个老师嘛，感觉好像会说‘终于做了’

-The girl always called "Idiot by her friends... : 被同伴单方面“笨蛋、笨蛋”骂个不停的女孩，一副了然于心、志得意满的模样。

-Ame's speech to Mina : This entire thing was so confusing... 心脏最大的碎片被贯穿了呐。感受器官毁坏，里面的灵魂掉落——你实际上已经无法使出七大碎片的力量了。嗤嗤，不过……你在那之前已经夺得宇佐川铃音的灵魂，却因当时的心脏——感受器官已经装满，不得已只好在别的地方建构感受器官，也因为藏了碎片而捡回一命——是这样没错吧？可是紧急制作的容器排斥反应很严重吧？

-I'd heard you used up all your power in that incident : 我是听说你在诺皿那件事上用尽全力

-More of Ame's speech : 然后我要支配这个世界。既然这样生存着，却不把目标放在第一，这就叫做笨蛋。喂，我的姐妹，你不愿意为我而死吗？既然那么痛苦，就把自己融化掉，去死啊！反正你永远无法恢复成完全体，没有用的啦，保留那样的生命，也没有意义吧？

-Guriko's thoughts while leaving : I can't tell if it's talking about Rinne or something from a long time ago... 闪闪发亮、惹人疼爱，我好喜欢。所以，铃音。我必须报答她的恩情。

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Mushi:Vol2 Close

2012-01-21T07:54:48Z

Cakemanofdoom: Created page with "== '''Close: Blood-Stained Night''' == Nagumo Ame, sixteen years old, Kannonsakazaki Private High School class 1-8, clever, quiet; she wasn't particularly afraid of strangers, ..."

== '''Close: Blood-Stained Night''' ==

Nagumo Ame, sixteen years old, Kannonsakazaki Private High School class 1-8, clever, quiet; she wasn't particularly afraid of strangers, and often listened to others speak while giggling. She was about average in terms of studies and athletics, didn't have any particularly noteworthy traits, and as if she floated in and out of the classroom people frequently overlooked her existence.

What made her special was--

"Hehe."

Even though it wasn't really funny, she still forced out a laugh.

"Haha."

Ame-chan laughed unnaturally as she walked with her friends. Five or six uniformed students walking together in a group wasn't particularly rare, and in this inconspicuous group, Ame-chan's existence seemed even less solid as she listened to her classmates talk, looking happy.

"I heard Sakaki-sensei disappeared."

"Usagawa Rinne also disappeared, right? Whoa, doesn't that sound like they eloped? After all, it's ''that'' teacher, feels like he'd say '[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|Finally]]'."

"But Gankyuu's gone, too."

"Oh, Gankyuu, have any of you ever talked to her? I'm way too scared, I just don't dare get close to her."

"Ah. Yeah, that happens. But she's actually mostly normal despite being a bit strange."

"After all, it's the rumored transfer student."

Ahaha, a fit of laughter.

Since Sakaki Guryuu, Usagawa Rinne, and Gankyuu Eguriko suddenly disappeared, it had been about three days. For the ever-diligent Rinne to miss school with no reason, and furthermore for Sakaki and Guriko to also be skipping was truly too strange, so the teachers also felt perplexed. But, the school's teachers were all like Sakaki's servants, so the chaos probably resulted from the master's disappearance.

"Hehe."

Ame chuckled a bit, and without letting her nonsense-spewing friends notice anything weird said,

"Hospital."

Just a noun, and the friends surrounding her probably didn't even know who said it. Even so, those girls who loved to gossiped were influenced by the word, and started chatting.

"Right, right, it also seems that something terrible happened at the hospital--"

"Ah, that thing where all the patients at the hospital disappeared? Details please, I don't know know too much about it."

"My mom also disappeared."

"Ah, sorry, Nagisa-chan."

"It's fine."

"But they disappeared at the same time as Sakaki-sensei? Maybe Sakaki-sensei went to the hospital too, and then some kidnapper took him away. Aren't there weird rumors?"

"What do you mean, some kind of ridiculous kidnapper, really, you..." "Miku, you're really stupid, I like."

"Thanks, wait... do you want to be smacked?"

"Sorry."

"Please don't hit me using an idiot's strength."

"What a weird rumor."

Suddenly, a voice redirected the conversation back on topic.

While laughing "Hehe, Ame stealthy added to the girls' conversation.

[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|The girl]] always called "Idiot" by her friends had a satisfied look on her face.

"That's true. After the disappearing incident, there have been all sorts of weird rumors circulating the hospital. I heard that if your even near the hospital you can hear a moaning, female voice -- Though no one knows who it is."

"You... where'd you hear something like that?"

"Miku, your info's always interesting. Well, let's not worry about that, is that it? I'd like some more details."

"Eh? Nagisa-chan's interesting in this kind of weird talk?"

"That's not it, I just thought I might find some clues about my mom."

"Sorry, Nagisa-chan."

"It's fine."

"Let's get back on topic, Kae, you pressed too many buttons you shouldn't have."

"Basically, it's a weird rumor, but there's actually only this much. It should be behind the hospital. Well, the hospital's sealed off now, so we can't go."

"You went?"

"Miku's really an idiot."

"Because she cares about stuff like this. Well, it seems that there've been a lot of annoying things lately -- there was Long-Armed Demon, and there was this incident, ah, how annoying... Eh? Ame-chan?"

A girl looked all around her, but could fine no trace of Nagumo Ame.

"Did she go back? Although, I don't know where she lives."

"Whatever, let's call out to her and then go."

"Then again, Ame's sort of like... how should I say it, it's like it's comforting just to have her there."

"Sort of like those 'My lucky doll' things?"

"I'm the lucky one! Me, me I tell ya!"

"Shut up, stupid Miku."

Confirming it was at the hospital was enough, the next part was simple. There was no need to wait for nightfall, the policeman guarding it were human, and the people working in the hospital were likely the Sakaki Organization's men, there only to handle the aftermath. So, the back of the building where the kidnapping incidents occured should be empty.

After going up the mountain behind the hospital and climbing the tallest tree there, the hospital that had been the site of the battle two days earlier could be seen. There were about six people working outside -- thankfully, none of them were behind the building, and the rest of the workers were probably inside.

Behind the building, there was an easily-traversible road, and the person who heard the female voice was probably walking through there. Nagumo Ame considered going in through there, but since people passed by it would be dangerous.

It's not like being seen would be incovenient, it's just that she wanted to do things peacefully if possible.

"Let's fly."

Ame muttered to herself, and jumped from the top of the tree without hesitation. She instantly grew dragon wings, which pierced through her uniform. Gliding high up in the air, she wasn't seen by anyone as she landed behind the hospital, and then her wings retracted back into her body.

"It's been so long since I last flew, mmm, that went pretty smoothly."

She talked to herself, and looked around her. The Sakaki Organization's men and the police weren't exactly idiots; they should have investigated this place, though normal people wouldn't be able to see any strange beings. They would only be able to hear them. It was an extremely feeble, seemingly imaginary sound.

After the incident, Nagumo Ame checked whether Sakaki Guryuu, Usagawa Rinne, and Gankyuu Eguriko were alive or dead.

The three of them took some random belongings and were living in Usagawa Rinne's apartment.

Then -- in this hospital that became a graveyard, the thing that remained and cried in anguish was --

Ame used her vision, that unlike a normal person's could detect monsters not part of this world, to check.

Blood, a large amount of blood.

It was spilled over the hospital's outer wall, and flowed through the ground leaving crimson traces.

In the middle of it all, was a woman who lay down and made pained groans.

"Sterilization Disinfection."

Hearing the voice, the woman abruptly looked over.

Her skin and pure white hair were dirtied with mud and blood, and possibly having trouble breathing, even her mask was off. Blood spilling from her chest, and sweating constantly, this woman was called Sterilization Disinfection.

She looked at Ame as if asking, "You can see me?" Ame laughingly said, "[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|So]] the largest fragment of the heart has been pierced. The sensory organ is damaged, and the soul is collapsing -- In fact, you already can't use power on the level of the seven great fragments. Hehe, but... before that you still took away Usagawa Rinne's soul, but it was because at that point the heart -- the sensory organ was already filled, so had no choice but to construct a new sensory organ somewhere else, and also because you hid a fragment and restored a life -- That's right, isn't it? But emergency vessel had a serious reaction, right?"

Ame talked without pause, and then sneered. Mina gritted her teeth while seeming confused, looking at the smile face that seemed to be saying, "Your abilities are only at this level?"

She probably wanted to hide here for a while, and wait for her body to restore to a level suitable for the sensory organ. However --

''Everything ends today, who told you to get found by me."

"Heeheeheehee," Ame laughed.

"Who are you?"

Sterilization Disinfection struggled to force her voice out.

Smiling, Ame placed her hand on her face.

"You don't know? Sterilization Disinfection, you've become weak. I'd heard that you used up all your power in that [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|incident]], but you can't even recognize me? What, if you're down to this level there wasn't a need to be cautious and run off to antagonize Gankyuu Eguriko. Whatever, I only just realized that." Her hand moved down, and her eyes, nose, mouth, and eyebrows all disappeared. Sterilization Disinfection stiffened. Ame who did not have a mouth laughed joyfully, "Heehee. Right, it's me, not anyone else, it's me."

"Ultimate Shield -- You traitor..."

She stood up with lines of blood running over her eyes, shakily glaring at Ame. This body already could not fight, this was something that should have been clearer to Sterilization Disinfection than to anyone else.

Even so, she absolutely must kill Ultimate Shield.

"I thought it was annoying, since only your 'Genocide Justice' and Single Room are dangerous to me. Therefore, I will kill both of you to become a truly weakness-free, shield unparalleled in strength."

Ame stretched out her arms, and said with happiness from the bottom of her heart, "And then I will rule this world. With an existence like this, but still not putting the goal first, now that's idiotic. Hey, my sisters, won't you die for me? Since it's so painful, just let yourselves dissolve and die! You'll never be able to restore the complete body anyways, it's useless, isn't it meaningless to preserve such a life?"

"What kind of joke is this!?"

Sterilization Disinfection clenched her fists, and even though she had already lost the ability to form her spray cay, she still slowly reachered her arm down.

How scary -- Ultimate Shield laughed, and her spread out arms --

Took the form of giant sickles.

"You also regret it, right? Because if you die here, you won't be able to the see my wonderful new world."

"Stop thinking you're God, you blemish!"

That word --

Was one she frequently used to mock herself with in the past.

Ame sneered, and used her sickle arms to cut her down.

Neat and swift.

Saibara Mina's head flew.

Because Sakaki refused to trust the moving company, and instead chose to inconspicuously move into Rinne's home, Guriko helped out until it was dark.

Deep in the night when even the plants slept. Guriko carefully avoided making noise as she exited Rinne's room.

She carried no bags.

She had no destination.

She just felt she couldn't stay at this place.

That was the choice the man with wolf-like eyes had forcefully pointed out to her before her fight with Sterilization Disinfection. To live as a human, or to live as a monster? She who chose to live as a human, received nothing but painful defeat.

That's enough.

That's enough, Guriko thought.

"Sakaki's protecting Rinne's body, so I'm not needed here."

Letting her wolf-like hair that could never blend into the the night flutter in the air, the single-armed girl wearing black looked back at the apartment.

Along with the almost two months of happy laughter with Rinne in this apartment, there were the events from a thousand years ago that she should have forgotten.

''Shining brightly, and ever so lovable, I liked [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|her]].

''So, Rinne.

''I must return her kindness."

''Even if this body is broken to pieces."

Throwing off her reluctance to leave, Guriko turned her back to the building with her head lowered. The right arm that was completely annihilated by Sterilization Disinfection could not be returned even with an Apple's power. For all her numerous years -- those were maddengly long years -- she had lived using both her arms, and with only one left she could not balance herself well.

Rinne and Sakaki were the same. Now, without Rinne, if she stayed here she didn't think she could live properly.

She might as well be alone, without causing problems for others she should just live in the darkness.

"Are you trying to become a monster again?"

Gazing at the uneven road's surface, Guriko felt something cold in the back of her head, was it a gun?

Her intuition told her that, and she silently nodded without turning around.

"Then, for the safety of humans like me, I need to kill the monster in front of me."

The voice held killing intent, and that gun was definitely loaded.

Standing behind her was Sakaki Guryuu, no problem -- Guriko coldly smiled.

"Shoot if you want, kill if you want. Sakaki, that's actually what I want."

Guriko lowered her head, looking at her barely existing single arm.

"I've killed a lot of people, and I've taken so much, the amount's so large that this single life can't take enough punishment. Will you free me from that burden? Are you that kind a man?"

He did not respond to the question.

There was already nothing more to say.

So Guriko closed her eyes and said something insignificant.

"You've gotten good at hiding your presence, compared to when I first met you you're completely unrecognizable; have you been constantly working hard? You must have always been like this. It's not some prodigious talent, or some inherited gene, just constant, hard work that got you to your strength today. You... will definitely become stronger, much stronger than me."

"I--"

Finally, a response.

That voice was filled with sorrow. For that superhuman, such a weak voice was exceedingly rare.

"Am very weak."

"Yup, you're really weak, even though you'll become strong you're still weak right now. I'm also very weak, so I couldn't protect Rinne."

Guriko naturally turned her head, and the gun that had not moved was pointed at her forehead. Stars danced in the night sky, and Sakaki in front of her was covered in hazy shadow while insect cries could be clearly heard from all directions.

She merely looked Sakaki straight in the eyes.

"So Sakaki, become strong! Help me protect Rinne."

Guriko reached into her pocket, and took out a spoon for Sakaki to see. It was an expensive, valuable spoon that Hino and Kio had bought for her. This piece of tableware covered with decorations only reflected the night, dark and faint.

"Hino and Kio -- " She looked at the spoon, and continued, "Maybe they were actually Sterilization Disinfection's Meat Dolls, maybe their real personalities had already completely disintegrated, but they didn't kill me, and that time they even saved me. Plus, Kio and Hino both turned back into humans as they were dying. Meat Dolls, those things must have some kind of secret. Perhaps Rinne will return to how she was before, becoming the Rinne that we love."

The moon that was previously covered by clouds appeared and lit up Sakaki's expression. It was one that majestically shined with spirit, without the slightest weakness.

"I want to search for a way."

She gripped her spoon, and said to Sakaki's face, "Sakaki, you said that to me in the hospital, didn't you? You gave hope to the me who had given up on everything, didn't you? Rinne hasn't died yet, so, Sakaki, help me protect her. Though I don't know how long it will take, I will without doubt find a way to return Rinne to how she was and then come back."

To return Rinne to how she was before.

To bring back the everyday life that Long-Armed Demon and Sterilization Disinfection destroyed.

"And then, let's go to school together, with the three of us."

This was Guriko's resolution. At first she only wanted to escape from this human world with nothing but pain, but now it was different. During the fight with Sterilization Disinfection Sakaki had embraced, and then she felt with even greater conviction that she did not wish to separate from them.

So, for the sake of returning to that period of happiness Guriko would go on a journey. She wouldn't completely revert into a monster, she only needed to search for a way to recover Rinne by herself.

That was something that definitely could not be achieved while staying here to protect Rinne. She would need to go to the outside world, or into an even darker world where Mushi and monsters swarmed in order to find it.

Before she met Rinne, that had been Guriko's world.

Just a return to life two months ago. There would be a day, she would definitely meet Rinne and Sakaki again.

*Creak* The door opened.

Rinne stood there. She who had become a Meat Doll, showed eyes twinkling with firm determination, and sped over to Sakaki who was pointing a gun at Guriko.

"You can't."

Naive and innocent, it was a voice like that of a young child.

"Fight."

That appearance of hers, that expression as she spoke earnestly for some reason.

Sakaki and Guriko simultaneously loosened up, and their expressions became gentle.

"I apologize. Aah, Your Majesty, do not worry, we weren't fighting."

"Right. This guy pointed a gun at me all on his, it's not a fight, it's a one-sided assault."

"You can't, Sensei."

Rinne truly believed that, with hands at her waist while she stuck out her chest, her face completely serious as she stared at Sakaki. There was a time when she made that expression whenever Guriko and Sakaki fought. Right, since it was like this, definitely --

"You must communicate properly!"

After making a slightly angry face, she should scrunch her eyebrows, and not knowing what to do, return to a kind, tender face.

Seeing her like this, Sakaki couldn't hold back his tears. A tear flowed down the cheek of his handsome face.

Guriko forced out an exaggerated laugh, "Haha, Sakaki you idiot, you still cry at that age, how shameful."

"What? Huh, why am I crying? And, Guriko."

Sakaki looked over with a face of incredulity, and said in a low voice, "Why are you also crying?"

Guriko brought up her hand to feel her cheek, and noticed that there was a warm liquid. Tears, these were -- tears, as she realized that, she felt that she couldn't stop --

Guriko silently weeped, and then cried out in frustration. Sakaki was quiet, yet it seemed that his tears could not stop either, and he continued to incredulously tilt his head.

In a rather remote place in Japan, there was a town called Kannonsakazaki. In it lived a girl called Usagawa Rinne. That girl didn't really stand out in anything; normal people like her could be found anywhere, and she just happened to be decent at cooking.

Yet she completely changed the standardized life of Sakaki.

She saved a monster who had been swallowed by darkness for a millenium.

Even though she became a Meat Doll, Rinne would never change, she would like always look hurt whenever Sakaki and Guriko argued with each other, with an expression showing that she hated seeing their tears.

Rinne calmly pulled the two next to her, embracing them; she was extremely weak, and she didn't feel real compared to before, but Sakaki and Guriko couldn't resist as they were pulled to her thin body.

"Don't worry."

Rinne quietly spoke. "Don't worry. Don't worry."

She was also crying as she said that. And so, three people cried together, feeling each others' warmth under the dark, frigid night.

One was the heir to an enormous corporation, a man who had always walked on a pre-programmed route.

One could not find a reason to live, a girl who had thrown herself into the sea.

One gouged out eyeballs, a girl who lived in the darkness as a monster.

The three met by chance, definitely only by chance. In this world where God had broken into fragments, perhaps the things known as miracles had long ceased to exist.

But, Sakaki pledged to always protect Rinne.

Guriko would search for a way to recover Rinne.

And Rinne, would embrace the two of them like this.

So there's no need to worry. Rinne's words were right, though she didn't have anything to base it on, Guriko felt she didn't have to worry.

The night was about to end, and they needed to wake from this nightmare. Because after the blackest, darkest, desperation, there should be hope for happy wishes.

<noinclude>
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| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch5|Final Night: Start of Disinfection ]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_AN|Author's Notes ]]
|-
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</noinclude>

Mushi to Medama

2012-01-20T04:28:42Z

Cakemanofdoom:

[[Image:mtm_main.jpg|200px|thumb|Cover for the 1st novel]]

Sakaki Guryuu is a multi-talented genius who, despite being gifted and wealthy, decides to teach in the countryside to be together with his lover, Usagawa Rinne, who also happens to be his student. Their peaceful lives are shattered one day when Rinne is killed, in front of Sakaki's eyes, by a girl named "Gankyuu Eguriko", who gouged her eyes out with a spoon. Things take an even stranger turn when Rinne suddenly wakes up as if nothing had happened, and something called an "Eden's Apple" is thrown into the mix.

Mushi to Medama won the award for the "Best Newcomer" category in the MF Literary Awards.

== [[MTM:Registration Page|Registration]] ==
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

=== Format Standards ===
*[[Format_guideline|General Format/Style Guideline]]

== Updates ==
*October 17, 2008
** Project Officially Started

*September 8, 2009
** Volume 1 Chapter 3 complete

*May 11, 2010
** Volume 1 Chapter 4 complete

*March 13, 2011
** Volume 1 Chapter 2 complete

*March 26, 2011
**Volume 2 Open complete

*April 14, 2011
**Volume 1 Epilogue complete

*April 22, 2011
**Volume 1 Chapter 5 complete
**Volume 1 complete

*November 27, 2011
**Volume 2 Night 2 complete

*January 15, 2012
**Volume 2 Night 3 complete

== Project Staff ==

*Project Administrator: [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
*Project Supervisor:

=== Translators ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
Those who wish to contribute are asked to first notify a supervisor beforehand. [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] has Chinese RAWs available for those who wish to help.
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

'''INACTIVE
::*[[User:Cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] (Until I can get myself to stop being so lazy and get back to work. Bugging me on my talk page or forum will help motivation a lot.)

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]]

=== Editors ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:RoadBuster|RoadBuster]]
::*[[User:Chaos Greyblood|Chaos Greyblood]]
::*[[User:dell19930|dell19930]]
::*[[User:AlfheimWanderer|AlfheimWanderer]]

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:TheGiftedMonkey|TheGiftedMonkey]]

== Mushi to Medama Series by Akira (日日日), Illustrated by Mitsuki Mausu ==

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear '' / 蟲と眼球とテディベア ([[Mushi:Vol1|Full Text]] - [http://www.mediafire.com/?fz7iq8c6zriib36 PDF for e-Reader]) ===
[[Image:Mtm_main.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 1 Cover: Gankyuu Egoriko]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch1|Night 1: Usarin-kakka's Daily Edict]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch2|Night 2: The 15th November Incident]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch3|Night 3: The Girl who died a Thousand years ago]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch4|Night 4: Loneliness ← Kodoku → Insect Poison]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch5|Final Night: "Don't Look"]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Epilogue|Guriko's Offering]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Author's_Notes|Author's Notes]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection '' / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒 ===
[[Image:Mtm2_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 2 Cover: Usagawa Rinne]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Open|Open: Clock of Endless Nights]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch1|Night 1: A Series of Misfortune]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch2|Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch3|Night 3: Boudoir]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch4|Night 4: I can't hear the bells]] (100%)
::*Final Night: Start of Disinfection
::*Close: Blood-stained Night
::*Author's Notes
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait '' / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ ===
[[Image:Mtm3_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 3 Cover]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Prologue|Start: Lady with a Helmet]]
::*Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat
::*Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love
::*Night 3: Distancing happiness
::*Night 4: Temporary halt?
::*Night 5: Vomit
::*End: You and Chocolate Sunday
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love '' / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol4_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Overture: 700
::*Symphony 1: Unable to transmit via songs alone
::*Symphony 2: Whom does the Song of Love belong to?
::*Symphony 3: Crybaby Joker
::*Symphony 4: The Adventures of Vegetable Juice and Tomato Juice
::*Final Symphony: Unable to save based on love alone
::*Requiem: 666
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White '' / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol5_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*PROLOGUE 02: The Jealous Queen
::*EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
::*EPILOGUE 06: The Hunter
::*EPILOGUE 09: The Seven Dwarfs
::*EPILOGUE 11: The Witch
::*EPILOGUE 14: Poison & Apple & Kiss
::*EPILOGUE 19: Snow White
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair '' / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol6_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Ragnarok 00: Ruined hair of a place no one knows
::*Ragnarok 01: 19-year-old Useless Repeat-year-student, Hobby is video gaming
::*Ragnarok 02: Marionette of blood and flesh and bone
::*Ragnarok 03: Peaceful, Everyday Heaven
::*Ragnarok 04: 29 year old bachelor, Bored every day
::*Ragnarok 05: Production-orientated Loner
::*Ragnarok 06: Final God Mode: 3000 Worlds
::*Ragnarok xx: The twilight of the aftermath...
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

== Series Overview ==
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear / 蟲と眼球とテディベア　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1273-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1470-7)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ (ISBN 978-4-8401-1532-2)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1593-3)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1765-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア (ISBN 978-4-8401-1858-3)

Mushi:Vol2 Ch4

2012-01-20T04:27:26Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Night 4: I Can't Hear the Bells ==

It was over quickly.

Even those arms weren't enough, as Mina easily defeated Long-Armed Demon.

Her legs were broken, her shoulders were crushed, and her heart was filled with fear, thanks to that monstrous woman. She wasn't even able to put up anything resembling resistance! No, she wasn't allowed to.

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

Long-Armed Demon likely noticed danger, and struck first against Mina who was preparing to speak to the Meat Doll; she probably planned to use those strong, invisible fists to beat Mina down.

But, her moves were easily foiled.

Mina's expressions was graceful as she turned slightly and dodged the fist, and she pressed the spray can in her hand -- "Shhhh" A silver mist was released.

At that instant, Long-Armed Ghost's expression changed.

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

But there was still no movement.

Mina leisurely walked in front of her, and fiercely stomped on her. Only this much, probably... Only this much.

Her stomach hit with a strong blow, Long-Armed Demon flipped over and fell on the bumpy road where she rolled a few times. Possibly unconscious, she remained like that, not moving.

Long-Armed Demon most definitely was not too weak. She was the Long-Armed Demon who killed ten people, with superhuman abilities; she was practically a monster.

But like wiping dust away, [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|Mina]] easily silenced her.

"Seeing invisible things is something that I'm good at." Only Saibara Mina's eyes were smiling as she spoke coldly, "Ah, what a bad match, Long-Armed Demon. But that isn't important, you didn't pose a threat to me anyways. Actually, I wanted to leave you be for a while while I investigate a few things, but it seems I can't keep doing that."

After she finished saying some incomprehensible things, Mina once again turned toward the Meat Doll.

That cluster of flesh whose gender could not be identified, which was torn apart and destroyed thanks to meeting with Long-Armed Demon, had already completely recovered. Despite facing that hideous visage, Mina's expression did not change, and disregarding Rinne who sat paralyzed and shivering by her feet, she spoke to the Meat Doll, "Alright, Meat Doll, can I hear what you have to say? Why did you disregard my orders and protect Usagawa Rinne? Based on your response, I will--no, haha, you should know even if don't say it, right?"

Who knows how much dread her words must have brought to the Meat Doll;[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations| frightened, it spoke in unexpectedly a human voice]].

"What happened was, since Long-Armed Demon's target also seemed to be Usagawa Rinne's fragment, I believed that if I did not first eliminate Long-Armed Deman, the fragment may have been taken away."

"Oh?" Mina showed surprise. "She was after the fragment? Those kinds of things, there are people besides me who want them? It seems that Long-Armed Demon should have a fragment... But even if she gets more than two fragments, she'd just destroy her sensory organs and die. Then again--maybe she mistook the fragments' function?"

Mina seemed to accept the Meat Doll's words. Perhaps from habit, she once again started talking to herself.

"I thought the Meat Doll malfunctioned, but it seems I was too suspicious. Besides, that thing's just a pile of flesh, how could it possibly have thoughts like protecting others?"

"..."

The Meat Doll was silent. Was she being overly suspicious? She always seemed to see some humanity in its features. There wasn't any energy for thinking, pain had wrecked Rinne's train of thought. She wanted to puke, thanks to the situation she could not understand and the pain that engulfed her body.

And the fear.

The extreme fear held toward the woman in front of her made her nauseous.

"Then." Mina ended her pondering, and looked at Rinne and sneered. "Hello. Thanks for lending me your cell phone. Finding you was really fortunate, but I couldn't see any phones nearby. So.

"Fshuu--" The noise was released every time Mina took a breath.

It's like she's part of another species, Rinne thought. Her body, her thought process, they're all completely different. Even compared to the Meat Doll, she would definitely be the stranger one.

Why didn't she notice this abnormality upon sight?

She's--extremely dangerous.

More dangerous than Snake, more dangerous than Long-Armed Demon, more dangerous than just about anybody.

Saibara Mina smiled and asked Rinne, "I'll ask you. If you answer honestly, you'll live a bit longer."

She definitely wasn't lying, she should able to kill without batting an eye. Even with immortality granted from eating an Apple, Rinne would be easily disposed of.

Mina was without doubt that type of being.

"What is it?"

"Tell me... A month ago," Mina sneered, and asked calmly, "What happened?"

Sakaki, Guriko.

In Rinne's mind flashed the faces of these important people.

Ah. She would never see them again, she couldn't return.

''Even though I found her.''

Aizawa Ume was a girl whose hands weren't skilled.

When she cooked the she would scorch the bottom the pan and cut her finger; when she tried arts and crafts she could never finish properly, making flawed products that would fall apart with a light blow.

What are these fingers doing?!

She was always miserable.

To eliminate that misery, wicked God had given her--

"In--the--clear--night--"

With the singing voice came a robber with abnormal expressions. Just a robber. Even if it made it into the newspaper, it would be forgotten within a week; it was a normal case the likes of which occured all the time. The robber killed Ume's parents, and, possibly addicted to killing, he decided to slowly torture the surviving Ume to death. He pushed her down, and lifted his bloody kitchen knife. He cut, starting from the fingertips, and Ume started losing consciousness.

No matter how she cried, she would not be released. No one came to save her.

In quick succession, her fingers, then hands, then arms were cut off and dropped by her parents' corpses on the ground.

Her arms were cut off from the shoulder.

Ah--

She couldn't remember what happened afterward.

When she came to, she had gained those all-powerful arms.

[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|She]] selflessly tore the robber into pieces, and then fell unconcious.

Upon awakening, an unfamiliar man spoke to her, "Welcome to our world!"

At that moment, she understood beyond doubt.

She could not go back.

"Ah."

When she was fully awake, the sun shone from her side, and crimson sunset dyed the world in bright color. Long-Armed Demon felt pain in her legs and stomach, wondering if she was defeated yet again. As she started to get up--

"Huh?"

She couldn't do it.

How strange, she'll use her arms to pull herself back up.

She felt nothing.

Completely confused, she tried again.

"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, hmm, I need to get up and go back."

Her arms.

"Back to Zeki-kun."

Her arms were gone.

Long-Armed Demon fell silent, and then began whimpering.

"Waahh..."

Tears flooded from her eyes and dripped from her cheeks.

"My arms, my arms, my arms....."

''No, I really don't want this. Arms, I don't have arms, if I don't have those long and powerful arms... I won't be Long-Armed Demon, I'll return to being the weak and clumsy Aizawa Ume.''

And then she would be abandoned by Zekiguchi.

"No! I don't want this!"

With desperation filling her, Long-Armed Demon started sobbing.

"No..."

Zekiguchi, around whom she who had become a monster based her life, who accepted and praised her, who said said "Let's keep living on together", that Zekiguchi Nashinori.

''I wanna go back to him.''

''Go back and be praised by him.''

Until now it had always been like this; it was Long-Armed Demon's sole and greatest joy.

However--

These arms that lost feeling, yet still quietly rejected her.

--Arms.

"My arms are gone."

Long-Armed Demon mumbled vacantly, while the shoddy road streched on above her head.

"Thump", a footstep.

"Zeki-kun?"

Long-Armed Demon's heart almost stopped from fear as she shut her eyes tight.

No.

Nononono.

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-Armed Demon trembled and cried, apologizing like it was the end of the world.

"I'm sorry, I"m sorry, don't abandon me, please don't abandon me."

"This world--"

Suddenly.

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

"Huh?"

Looking at the person, it seemed to be someone she had seen somewhere before. The man's face seemed like a [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|monster's]]. He took out a cell phone and began dialing.

"Really has too many melancholic things."

"You--"

Even though she called out to him, without even giving his name he lazily asked her, "Long-Armed Demon, can you really not use your arms?"

"Ah..."

Struck at her weak point, Long-Armed Demon grit her teeth and pushed back tears. But she couldn't hold them back, and she started sobbing.

Seeing her like this, the man nodded his head as if in understanding, and spoke formally into his phone, "Ah-- Hello, sorry to trouble you. I'm Nageki, Nageki Kurukiyo. Ah, right, right, I'll tell you the place now, so please come quickly. What? For this, we need an ambulance, though it's probably already too late."

Long-Armed Demon understood.

He seemed to be a policeman. She had never felt the slightest fear toward any policemen, and never paid any attention to them. But under the current circumstances, she would definitely be arrested.

So it ends like this, Long-Armed Demon thought.

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

Just as she began to lose spirit, Nageki said as if it were natural, "Eh?" Dead? She wasn't dead yet, so who died?

"Ah, right, dead, one little girl."

"Right, her appearance-- her arms were snapped off, and her shoulders were crushed."

That's--

"She was murdered by by having her heart torn out."

Who?

The night was filled with nightmares, and falling asleep was impossible.

Ever since she started living separately from Rinne, she had been plagued with nightmares. Sometimes it was the faces of those she had killed, sometimes it was the scene of countless eyeballs wriggling about, and though it wasn't certain, it was still so painful.

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

In the home where she lived together with the Itsuwara couple, Gankyuu Eguriko woke up in her dark room. Her bed was soft, and she used a sky-patterend quilt. She glanced at the clock with spoons as hands, which pointed at 2:00.

"......"

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 I lower my guard. I don't know if I can keep considering them my parents. Now that I think about it, even now I don't really understand what parents are.''

''If I ask them, they'll just laugh 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.

As she thought so, she prepared to accept that night[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|.]]

She noticed them speaking softly in the living room.

The voice was filled with sorrow; completely unlike the frenzied excitement from before, it seemed to be pained.

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

That was Hino's voice. Was taking care of her, whose status as monster or human was uncertain, a burden for her after all? Guriko thought it over, and an empty feeling even she could not understand assaulted her heart.

--But...

--I can't kill her.

Hino murmured this, and Kio replied.

--Hino, that won't do. If we refuse to kill her, we will 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 almost like she was crying.

--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 dream, [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|she]] prayed that it was only a bad dream. But those thoughts that would cause nausea 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 conversation mean? Saying things like killing me, or being killed--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 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 problem; really, I'm so weak it's disgusting."

There was a choice before her.

That choice was between the options that the man with wolf-like eyes called Zekiguchi Nashinori outlined.

Keep on living as a human like this?

Or live as a monster?

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

"My being near them will create danger?"

''I know how cruel I am. I'm no different from Long-Armed Demon who killed ten people; in fact, when I triumphed over her, I had a twisted though about destroying her body. My true identity is that of an eyeball-gouging monster.''

''There's no way I talk this through with people like Rinne; if they knew these things, they would hate me and fear me. The number of eyeballs that I've gouged out is probably even greater than what they thought.''

''Rinne.''

"I am a monster."

Guriko crawled out of her bed and leaned her head against the wall, and as if groaning, murmured in a low voice, "Three hundred years ago, because I grew tired of living, I abandoned human restraint and went on a wild massacre. Rinne, in me there's a child your age, plus an infant who couldn't speak, as well as a loving couple. I gouged out that much happiness. Haha, an eyeball-gouging monster..."

From Guriko's eye flowed a single tear.

"How could I deserve any sort of happiness..."

''One month ago, someone had decided to be "the person most important to me"; but, I don't deserve to be with them. On my way here I've taken so much, killed so many, and I don't when I'll go berserk again and target Rinne'es eyeballs.''

"Rinne, Sakaki."

''I'll go on a trip.''

"I like you."

''Somewhere far away, being here is too painful. This happy world is suffocating me. School, home, all this happiness of a normal life--For a monster like me, it's too painful.''

''I can't depend on them.''

''Somewhere far away.''

''Sakaki will definitely protect Rinne, he doesn't need me. If I rely on them I will only bring them misfortune.''

"If only I depart, it'll be fine..." Humans and monsters cannot live together.

She was a monster.

The same as Long-Armed Demon.

"....."

Upon that resolution, she calmed down.

At this moment, Guriko decided in her heart.

From then on, Gankyuu Eguriko would choose that option.

Her only necessities would be spoons, she would once again walk that path. Wandering from place to place, looking for those with Apples, keeping that person far away from "Mushi"--

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

''That would be good, only that would be acceptable, I'm already tired, I wanna become a monster again.''

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 it would hurt them, and she felt apologetic. However, from the start the whole thing was impossible.

Guriko apologized in her heart. Thinking, "To prevent them from worrying, I'll at least leave a note", 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 time Guriko saw her she was still healthy; speechless, she gazed toward the ceiling.

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

"Right, call an ambulance."

''When someone's injured or sick and it's and emergency, just call an ambulance, and they'll take them to the hospital for free. This was something Hino taught me.''

Guriko nodded and headed for the phone.

She desperately dialed, telling herself that this was the last time, that she would say goodbye after this.

Soon after the ambulance arrived, and she went in with Hino.

In the nearby hospital, Guriko heard the worst possible news.

Upon learning of this news, Sakaki had emptied his gun. He destroyed the phone that delivered the news, and then rushed out of the school at a speed above human limits. After using his extraordinary skill to beat up the educational director who tried to stop him from leaving before his work was done, he waved over a car that was passing by. Since his gun was empty, he used the gun itself to knock down the drive and hijack the car before speeding to the hospital that contacted him.

Everything that happened afterward was gone from his memory.

His mind was blank, and the whole world turned white, as and unsuppressable anger emanated from his entire body. If he didn't control himself, he would have indiscriminately knocked down anyone he saw. Ignoring 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 him. In the wide room, by the soft-looking hospital bed, there was no life-preserving equipment. That was to be expected--Sakaki's beloved lying on the bed, the young woman Usagawa Rinne, already had the pale of the deceased. This was a true death.

"Sakaki."

A small voice came from behind him.

As if frozen in place, Sakaki expressionlessly turned around.

There stood a person. In the background, the full moon shone brightly through a window, concealing the person's appearance. But he knew, that was not God, and since it was not God, that person could not save Usagawa Rinne.

"Move."

The shadow spoke curtly.

Sakaki stayed standing by the prone Rinne's feet, not moving, and unable to respond.

The shadow was Guriko, with her face by Sakaki's chest. Sakaki's head was turned, and her head was lowered so that her expression could not be seen.

"Move it."

She spoke with a coarse voice.

With trembling shoulders and also a shaking voice, she--

"I'm sorry, Sakaki, I'm sorry."

--Apologized. For some reason, tears flowed down Guriko's expressionless face.

"Move."

And then said for the third time.

With movement heavy like stone, Sakaki let her pass. In the frosty atmosphere that seemed to belong in a fantasy world, there was no sound.

"I just checked, the Apple that Rinne had has disappeared. It was definitely taken away. I'm afraid that someone might have tortured her to get her to give up the Apple."

After Guriko walked over to Rinne's side, she held out her hand and shut her eyes.

Light, a dull light shone from Rinne's body.

"A month ago."

Guriko spoke in a coarse voice, so quiet that she was almost not heard. As her back was turned to Sakaki, he couldn't tell what kind of expression she had.

"I took two Apples from Snake. One was Snake's own Apple, and the other was the Apple he stole from Rinne. Just now, I put one of those into Rinne's body."

Guriko's shoulders trembled as she touched Rinne's body, her fingertips glowing with dull light.

"Why? Why isn't she reviving?"

The light disappeared in an instant, but Rinne did not wake up.

Even the miraculous Apple could not save Usagawa Rinne.

"Why....."

Guriko stood idly in place, clenching her fists with seemingly enough force to draw blood.

"Why didn't I notice it... Haha, hahaha, I was too busy anguishing over my issues to even notice the danger Rinne was in--"

She laughed out loud, staring for a while at Rinne who did not move at all. Then, she turned to Sakaki showing no emotion on her face. Those deep black eyes like gun barrels, mixed with red, burned with the desire to bring ruin to everything in the world.

"Sakaki, kill me; slash off my limbs, snap my neck, dig out my eyeballs, mush my brain... If I'm still alive then grind my entire body to bits and burn it until there's nothing left; let nothing of this useless body remain in this world!"

Guriko was close to insanity, pointing her tightly gripped spoons at herself. The utensils with cruel luster were directed straight at her eyes.

"Useless things! These eyes that can't see anything, these eyes that couldn't see the danger Rinne was in, I don't want them!"

Facing the girl who seriously wanted to gouge out her own eyeballs, Sakaki said in a low voice, "Stop..."

[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|Then]] he twisted her arms, and snatched the spoons away. Her mind blank, her heart desperate, and unable to collect her thoughts, she slowly lost her will to commit suicide.

Probably annoyed at the interruption, Guriko angrily started at Sakaki.

"Stop."

Seeing Sakaki say that with such an expression, Guriko hung her head in defeat.

Silence surrounded them, covering both their spirits and their bodies, so much that the silence itself seemed deafening. Sakaki wordlessly screamed, and pounded on the wall.

This wouldn't bring redemption, nor would it allow Rinne to return from the dead.

It was even less possible for their mood to improve as a result.

But despite that--

"Let's go look."

Sakaki declared softly.

''Even though I decided to protect her. A year ago at the sea, I decided to protect the girl named Usagawa Rinne. This is just returning to the beginning. I don't need anything, I just wholeheartedly want Rinne to return to the life she had been living.''

With a sharp force in his eyes, Sakaki placed his hand of Guriko's shoulder.

"Let's go look for a way to save Rinne. There should be some way; if we give up here, it will truly be over... God, 'Mushi', Apples of Eden -- this world is filled with incomprehensible things. There must be something that can save Her Majesty..."

Even though it was a faint wish less reliable than a spider's web.

Sakaki could only rely on it. Guriko also nodded, and drew close to him, staring straight into his eyes.

Already, the atmosphere of despair from before had disappeared, replaced with one brimming with hope.

"Also..." With eyes still shining with brilliance, she said something that would never have escaped her lips in the past. "Sensei, thank you--I see a little bit of hope now."

"Don't only call me Sensei during times like this, idiot."

"I apologize. I don't know why, but I suddenly felt like calling you Sensei."

A beautiful smile appeared on Guriko's face.

She suddenly turned her head.

"But Sakaki, don't come."

"Why not?"

Don't come? Sakaki seemed about to burst. Who did she think she was talking to? No matter who or what stood in his way, if it was for Rinne, he would brave any danger; that was Sakaki Guryuu.

There was no way Guriko didn't understand this, but even so, she firmly stared at him.

"Sakaki, please don't make me repeat myself."

She turned around and opened the hospital room's door.

"Don't look. Because from now on I will return to being a monster."

This kind of treatment was excessive.

A leash was place around her neck.

"....."

This small room reeking of tobacco [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|was really bad for the environment]]; with maps and pictures of mountains all over the place, did he have a hobby of mountain climbing? It didn't fit together at all. As Long-Armed Demon thought this, she curled up like an abandoned puppy, staying cautious of her surroundings.

[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|After removing her blindfolds]], she could clearly see her current situation.

She was captured and placed here. As expected of that hair-demon detective's room. 4-tatami sized. Only a bathroom was attached to it, and the kitchen inside the room was stacked full of cleaned dishes. The room was extremely clean, and contrary to appearance, it seemed that detective was actually quite meticulous.

The room's light was on.

The room's occupant was nowhere to be found.

"Zeki-kun..."

Though she tried to break the collar on her, she couldn't feel her arms. Long-Armed Demon sighed; tears appeared in her eyes out of restlessness. Her sole, her entire pride--her arms--were gone. In her sadness, the loss of that which she depended on created a sense of hollowness.

Since she had become like this, Zekiguchi would definitely not need Long-Armed Demon anymore.

She would be discarded.

When she thought that, she felt even more lonely and even more miserable as tears flooded down her cheeks.

After losing to that scary woman who was like both an angel and a demon, her arms were somehow removed and that detective picked up the crying her and brought her here. That detective was obviously a law enforcement agent, but he didn't throw her in jail; instead, after saying some some rather freaky things, he brought Long-Armed Demon to his room--that is, this place, and he bound her with a leash.

The leash was randomly attached to a pillar that was showing, and though it was a restraint only on this poor level, the armless Long-Armed Demon had no way to escape. But this, it seemed even weirder than normal restraints; rather, it seemed as if she were being treated like a dog. In a horrible tempre, Long-Armed Demon cried, moaned, and cursed the detective.

What would happen from now on?

Even if she wasn't in prison, her situation was pretty similar, and possibly even worse. That policemen exuded a melancholic air that even Long-Armed Demon found strange, and she had no idea what he would do to her. Out of fear, Long-Armed Demon faintly called for help.

"Zeki-kun..."

That sound could not have been heard by anyone. After hitting the walls it dissipiated into the air.

Long-Armed Demon fel the tatami's coldness, shuddering constantly while waiting for something to change.

She didn't know how much time had passed.

She finally stopped crying, though her cheeks ached from the tears poured onto them. "Ah man, sorry for coming home so late."

The door suddenly opened, and the odd detective appeared. In his hand was a bag filled with food, clothes, and underwear. Furthermore, the clothes and underwear seemed like they were for Long-Armed Demon to wear; clearly, the detective planned to keep her in captivity for a long time.

Long-Armed Demon paled.

"Aaah, when I, looking like this, go to shop for childrens' clothing, people think I'm a criminal. But when everyone was whispering to each other 'Maybe we should call the police', I managed to buy your underwear and the like."

This person was a pervert.

That's right, this guy was the worst type of pervert, who would definitely do perverted things to her that she couldn't even imagine.

Due to fear, Long-Armed Demon's back stiffened and she groaned like a little dog.

The perverted detective completely ignored her and laughed vulgarly, "Gigigi. Ah, don't be so wary, no matter how cautious you are I'm stronger than you right now. Since that's the case, rather than risk angering me with a defiant attitude, I suggest you act cute to keep me in a good mood."

Yes, the Long-Armed Demon who killed ten people while spreading death and fear throughout Kannonsakazaki Town no longer existed. The one crouching her and trembling was weaker than even an average person. A small child without arms.

Long-Armed Demon understood that, but she refused to surrender, and she bluffed with all her might to her adversary.

"What the hell are you? What are you trying to do to the Long-Armed Demon? D-don't come closer, Long-Armed Demon will definitely not obey you. If you do anything weird, I'll bite you and kick you!"

Facing the Long-Armed Demon who angrily tried to hide her fear, the detective looked back through a gap in his hair with a seemingly joyful expression.

"Gigigi, don't worry, though it's really easy to misunderstand me based on my appearance, I'm actually a normal, honest person. I don't have any particular talents, and when it's time for me to die, I'd die quickly."

He suddenly seemed to remember something, and finally said, "Speaking of which, I still haven't told you my name. I am Nageki Kurukiyo, and I'm a detective, though since I've often hid murderers that I caught in my home instead of turning them in, I'm not really qualified to call myself that."

Long-Armed Demon didn't respond, but she understood. This person truly did not intend to take her to the police station; then, what was he after? She suspiciously glared at the horrifying detective who called himself Nageki.

"What are you planning to do? Kurukiyo."

"Plans? Ahh, I wasn't thinking of doing anything bad. It's just that--this world has too many melancholic things, and I want to reduce that melancholy by a little bit. Aizawa Ume-chan."

Suddenly hearing her real name, Long-Armed Demon's face distorted.

"Why?"

"Aizawa Ume was involved in a robbing incident three years ago, though it was unclear whether she survived or not, and her whereabouts were unknow. If she's still alive, she would turn eleven this year. Her parents died during the incident, and so did the robbers. But since the sole daughter Ume-chan was nowhere to be found, despite an exhaustive search by the police, no one knows what happened to her even to this day."

After that detailed statement, Nageki smiled mysteriously, "By researching that tombstone you slept by, I learned of this melancholic event. I have no proof, but from your reaction it seems that I'm not wrong, Aizawa Ume-chan."

"Don't call me by that name!"

Trembling all the while, Long-Armed Demon forced out those words.

Nageki cheerfully chuckled, "Hehe".

"What? You want me to call you Long-Armed Demon? Using that name for you who has no arms is rather laughable, you know."

"But." Long-Armed Demon lowered her head, tears flowing from her closed eyes. "But I'm Long-Armed Demon, I can't not be Long-Armed Demon..."

Perhaps that face reminded Nageki of something, as he sighed and shook his head, and then began putting the storing the food he bought into the refrigerator. It seemed he cooked for himself; he only bought fresh vegetables and raw meat, without any bentos or prepared dishes. For some reason, he also bought three cardboard packages of café au lait.

"You might need to calm down a bit."

After that, Nageki continued and said, "Go take a bath, you don't bath much with the way you've been living right? Clean yourself up, wipe away your tears and the smell of blood, eat something, and go to sleep early today."

Though it was an unexpected request, Long-Armed Demon sort of agreed with it. Up until then, she could only use tap water in the cemetery to clean off blood and sweat that made her body sticky. Occasionally she would want to soak in hot water, allowing her body to warm up.

Long-Armed Demon felt quite hungry; she had not yet lost her sense of hunger or her ability to feel. According to Zekiguchi, suffering a single fatal injury would make one quickly lose such senses. Since Long-Armed Demon almost died when Gankyuu Eguriko dug out her eyeballs, she should have pretty much been rid of those senses by now.

''Let's not worry about that right now, I wanna take a bath.''

"You'll let Long-Armed Demon take a bath?"

"Yeah, but this room doesn't have a bathtub, so we have to go to a bathhouse. Is that okay?"

"Wha--"

Bathhouse- that is, a public bath. That would rather annoying, since in that sort of place, she who had no arms would receive even more strange looks than usual.

Maybe Long-Armed Demon's timid face made him think of something, as Nageki smiled tenderly, "Don't worry, the owner of the nearby public bath is an old friend of mine. On my way back I stopped by and reserved the place for an hour."

"Ah, even though it's like that." As if pushing newly enspirited Long-Armed demon into an abyss, Nageki smiled. "Yeah, there's no way you can bathe by yourself, right? I'll wash you thoroughly from head to toe. Mmhmm, even if a suspicious detective brings a girl with him to the mens' bath, even if that girl's wearing a leash, no one will care -- gigigi --"

Long-Armed Demon's body instantly stiffened, and she suddenly leaned back making the bells on her leash tinkle, trying to get away from Nageki. The perverted detective joyfully approached Long-Armed Demon, and took hold of her leash.

"Ah."

"Then let's go, Ume-chan. Hopefully no one will see us on our way to the bath. Don't look at me like this, even I adhere to what they call the values of society."

"P-per..." Long-Armed Demon shouted at Nageki who untied her leash and dragged her toward the door. Almost crying, in a voice filled with despair, "Pervert -- You're a pervert!"

"Hey, stop shouting, what's going to happen if a neighbor misundestands?"

"It doesn't matter if there's a misunderstanding, someone please notice us and help me!"

Despite Long-Armed Demon's cries, during the five-minute walk to the bathhouse, no one came to be her hero.

The following half hour was endless torture for Long-Armed Demon. Resistance was useless, and so she was brought to the bathhouse. Its owner was apparently blind, as he did not react at all to the odd pair in front of him, and after a trivial conversation was forcefully dragged into the mens' bath.

She was stripped, wiped, and placed in the hot water.

Long-Armed Demon's entire body shook out of humiliation.

''Wh-when I get my arms back, I'll make sure to kill Nageki first. I'll peel off his skin, tear off his limbs, dig out his heart, I'll mercilessly toss him around until he dies.''

She was seen, everything was seen clearly, and she was even scrubbed. Even Zekiguchi had never [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|seen this much]], wouldn't it be impossible for her to get married now... She started getting dizzy, and couldn't form complete thoughts. She only felt humiliation, frustration, and she wanted to disappear; with a red face, Long-Armed Demon was submerged up to her neck in the steaming water.

"Flavor of Soup" - this place that chose a name sounding like a condiment was an interesting bath house. In this era of super-bath houses that were more like parks, this kind of normal bath was uncommon. Or, perhaps, it would be more accurate to say that the facility was insufficient.

The place wasn't anything special; there only the bath itself which was not particularly large, as well as a sauna to help with aches.

Only the unbelievably high ceiling was different from usual, as one could see steam spiraling upward and upward. The sight was exquisite, and as a result Long-Armed Demon silently watched as if trying to forget her shame.

Nageki, looking as if he did not care, washed himself while shamelessly humming a Beatles song. Though he was obviously a perverted and melancholic detective, [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|singing the theme song of]] [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Onitarō|Onitarō]] made it alright.

As she thought, Long-Armed Demon watched Nageki.

-- He's good looking.

Physically, his tall, sturdy form was excellent, without excess muscle. He was truly handsome; as Long-Armed Demon thought this, she suddenly realized where her thoughts ended up and turned red while hiding under the water.

So warm, the hot water permeated her entire body, and it felt like she was being reborn.

She thought about Zekiguchi, and then about her abduction. That woman who seemed both like an angel and like a demon.

Just thinking about that woman's honey-sweet voice and seemingly kind eyes hiding absolute coldness made the hairs on her back stand up. Such a scary person; as if that person had attacked the public bath, Long-Armed Demon raised her head and gritted her teeth while sighing.

"But, why?"

She seemed similar to Zekiguchi.

The Zekiguchi who had saved her.

The woman who had thrown her into despair.

They were obviously completely different, so why did she feel they were the same type of being? "Ume-chan, if even your neck's underwater it's bad for you!"

"Swoosh--" Nageki nonchalantly creeped next to Long-Armed Demon. "Shhh", Long-Armed Demon rapidly moved away, and shouted, "W-Waah, Kurikiyo! It's way too much if you get any closer to Long-Armed Demon!"

"It's only us here, I can hear you just fine even if you don't scream! Gigi, do you hate me? It always seems like my intimate behavior rubs some people the wrong way, there must be something wrong with their mental structure. This world has far too many melancholic things."

On Nageki Kurukiyo's face appeared an infuriating smile.

Long-Armed Demon saw that face, and couldn't hold back her fear.

"Um--Kurikiyo?"

"Mm? I'm Nageki Kurikiyo. What is it?"

Responding like this, his face--

The hair that always hid his expression was now tied in the back, and the face that was now visible was beautiful enough that Long-Armed Demon was momentarily enchanted.

"No, who are you?" Long-Armed Demon couldn't resist asking.

Nageki, with bewilderment on his face, suddenly thought of something. Sweeping aside the water, he moved closer. "Are you nearsighted? Can you see me?"

"Waah, didn't I tell you to not come closer?!"

Long-Armed Demon beat back the perverted detective [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|with her arm stumps]], though she also took enough pain to moan. She didn't think Nageki who tied back his hair was this good-looking. Since it was her who liked that appearance, she felt a sense of defeat.

After staying underwater for a bit, Nageki lazily sat back up and complained.

"Man, that hurt... I hate violence. I've always that humans are animals that can solve issues by talking them over, isn't that right?"

"If you want to talk, then try thinking about how I feel a little, idiot! I'll be embarrassed!"

Long-Armed Demon screamed, feeling dizzy and having difficulty breathing, and took a deep breath.

"Aah, really. How did it get like this?"

She truly wanted to go back to Zekiguchi. Even though Zekiguchi had never gotten this close to her, and he rarely chatted with her.

Then, has it been years since she last talked openly with someone else? Not as the Long-Armed Demon, but as a human. She thought to herself--and then shook her head, reminding herself that she still could not trust this man. In this world, she could trust herself and Zekiguchi and no one else.

Everyone else was scary, eventually they could bare their fangs at her like the robber who cut off her arms.

Just as Long-Armed Demon thought this, Nageki unbelievably voiced her thoughts.

"Ah--It's been so long since I could relax and chat with someone. But, you still seem to be on guard against me."

The melancholic detective smiled and looked at Long-Armed Demon.

Those eyes that were always covered by overly long hair, tranquil yet brightly forceful, always seemed a bit frightful.

"Okay, then let's chat like humans. Me, I don't just do this kind of thing out of curiosity; if someone found out that I'm hiding the Long-Armed Demon who killed ten people, don't even talk about getting fired, it wouldn't be odd if I were tossed into a dungeon."

That was true; Long-Armed Demon lowered her face, as now was the not the time to be embarrassed about being naked. Why did that man approach her? If this wasn't cleared up she wouldn't be able to be at east.

Long-Armed looked at Nageki, who lightly nodded.

"This world -- has too many melancholic things."

Perhaps it was his catchphrase? He uttered this profound for the who-knows-how-many-th time.

"It's just, should I say it's reminiscing, or is it more like opening up old wounds? Ume-chan, my girlfriend was also restrained by her body."

Nageki looked at her. Unhappy at being seen naked, Long-Armed Demon lowered herself up to her neck into the murky hot water. Due the Apple's power, skin was forecibly regenerated right over the rough wounds where her arms were cut off. Supposedly, with an Apple it would normally be possible to regenerate her cut off arms, but Long-Armed Demon's Apple for some reason refused to restore those two arms.

Instead, she received a pair of invisible arms stronger than just about anyone's.

She finally realized now, after losing that ability, that only with arms could she live life like a normal person. Lacking a body part was incredibly restricting. If one was to measure the utility of hands, it would be about a hundred for skillful people, and even the most clumsy person would score about fifty. But for someone without arms at all, of course it could not be anything but zero. Overcoming such an obstacle would be incredibly difficult.

Looking at her, Nageki showed pain on his face.

"Do you know about that incident a month ago when a gigantic monster wreaked havoc near the town?"

A gigantic monster.

That must have the "Dream World Beast" that Zekiguchi had been talking about. Having taken interest in the event, Zekiguchi investigated and learned Usagawa Rinne's name. Under the pretense of amassing Apples, he ordered Long-Armed Demon to take away her Apple.

In the end, she was defeated.

"My girlfriend was stepped on and killed by that monster."

"....."

Immediately, because she didn't understand Long-Armed Demon looked at Nageki.

"What?"

Nageki, with hollow, vacant eyes, gazed at the steam spiraling up toward the ceiling. "No one could have foreseen something like that, right? Obviously, I couldn't do anything. My girlfriend was flattened by that oversized monster. By the time I noticed and went over, only her crushed, bloody upper body, her paralyzed feet, and her wheelchair were left."

Nageki softly spoke.

"[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|I can't forget it.]]"

Long-Armed Demon couldn't respond; up until now she had repeatedly commited acts no different from those of the Dream World Beast. Like it, she had without reason taken away those who were important to people, people who like him definitely held regret in their hearts, and hated Long-Armed Demon.

With a face full of grief, Nageki ever-so-slightly smiled. "So, to not make others hold the same kinds of regret I do, I want to eliminate unreasonable melancholy -- monsters. That's all, even though I'm just a weak human, when forced into a corner even a mouse killing a cat is possible. I want to show the strength of us weak humans to the monsters out there."

How scary, the melancholic detective's fiercely looked straight at her.

"I'll get to the point. What are you?"

''That's something even I don't know.''

Long-Armed Demon looked downward and said softly, "If you go too deeply into this, you'll die! Kurukiyo."

"Gigigi, I know, but I can't stop now. Aside from that thing with my girlfriend, my subordinate was killed by you. He told me, his most important person was also killed by a monster. I must do his part for him in opposing monsters."

"Subordinate?"

It was that?

"You're talking about -- a policeman?"

"Yeah, he didn't work directly under me, but in terms of rank he was below me. He was my friend, who helped me look for Long-Armed Demon during the night. Though his entire body was annihilated with only his wrists remaining... I believe that you did this, right?

Annihilated.

What does that mean? Long-Armed Demon didn't have an ability like that, and she didn't remember fighting with a policeman. Then, from what she knew, the policeman was killed by a monster that wasn't Long-Armed Demon.

A face appeared in her mind.

"Kurukiyo."

Long-Armed Demon quietly voiced a warning. "Long-Armed Demon didn't do that, it was someone even stranger. It was probably -- that terrifying woman who made Long-Armed Demon's ability disappear..."

Though she didn't remember what her name was, she could remember her overwhelming aura that was like both an angel and a demon.

"That strangeness, she probably wasn't human nor monster. She was something even more abnormal, standing in an even stranger place than the Earth where we stay..."

She definitely wasn't worried for Kurukiyo.

She was just accurately saying what she believed.

"So, Kurukiyo, you can't go near that one. That thing's not a normal being, it's something more alien, something higher. No matter if it's a monster, or a human, as long she wishes it they'll be immediately killed. It's like being mechanically eliminated as flaws -- like, being sterilized and disinfected..."

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| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch3|Night 3: Boudoir ]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch5|Final Night: Start of Disinfection ]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

MTM:Registration Page

2012-01-20T01:25:28Z

Cakemanofdoom:

To re-iterate the registration procedure:

*"First Come, First Served": please register your intended chapters here

*The maximum number of chapters you are recommended to work on is no more then half of any given volume

*Maximum number of Translators per volume is two

*Maximum number of volumes you may be active on is one

*This is not some Binding Contract of "I must do the work I put down here". Choices put down here are negotiable between translators (including their own selves who signed up for it).

*Contact [[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]] if you need Chinese RAWs.

== List ==

== Mushi to Medama Series by Akira (日日日), Illustrated by Mitsuki Mausu ==

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear '' / 蟲と眼球とテディベア ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Night 1: Usarin-sama's Daily Edict - [[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 2: The 15th November Incident - [[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]] - '''Completed''' by [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]]
::*Night 3: The girl who died a thousand years ago - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 4: Loneliness ← Kodoku → Insect Poison - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Final Night: "Don't Look" - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Guriko's Offering - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Author's Notes - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection '' / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒 ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Open: Clock of Endless Nights - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 1: A Series of Misfortune - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed
::*Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-armed ghost - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 3: Boudoir - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] - '''Completed'''
::*Night 4: I can't hear the bells - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] - '''Completed'''
::*Final Night: Start of Disinfection - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
::*Close: Blood-stained Night - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]]
::*Author's Notes - [[User:cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait '' / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Start: Lady with a Helmet
::*Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat
::*Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love
::*Night 3: Distancing happiness
::*Night 4: Temporary halt?
::*Night 5: Vomit
::*End: You and Chocolate Sunday
::*Author's Notes

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love '' / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌 ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Overture: 700
::*Symphony 1: Unable to transmit via songs alone
::*Symphony 2: Whom does the Song of Love belong to?
::*Symphony 3: Crybaby Joker
::*Symphony 4: The Adventures of Vegetable Juice and Tomato Juice
::*Final Symphony: Unable to save based on love alone
::*Requiem: 666
::*Author's Notes

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White '' / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫 ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*PROLOGUE 02: The Jealous Queen
::*EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
::*EPILOGUE 06: The Hunter
::*EPILOGUE 09: The Seven Dwarfs
::*EPILOGUE 11: The Witch
::*EPILOGUE 14: Poison & Apple & Kiss
::*EPILOGUE 19: Snow White
::*Author's Notes

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Damage Hair '' / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア ===
::*Color Illustrations
::*Ragnarok 00: Ruined hair of a place no one knows
::*Ragnarok 01: 19-year-old Useless Repeat-year-student, Hobby is video gaming
::*Ragnarok 02: Marionette of blood and flesh and bone
::*Ragnarok 03: Peaceful, Everyday Heaven
::*Ragnarok 04: 29 year old bachelor, Bored every day
::*Ragnarok 05: Production-orientated Loner
::*Ragnarok 06: Final God Mode: 3000 Worlds
::*Ragnarok xx: The twilight of the aftermath...
::*Author's Notes

[[Category:Registration Page]]

Mushi:Vol2 Ch4

2012-01-20T01:23:45Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Night 4: I Can't Hear the Bells" ==

It was over quickly.

Even those arms weren't enough, as Mina easily defeated Long-Armed Demon.

Her legs were broken, her shoulders were crushed, and her heart was filled with fear, thanks to that monstrous woman. She wasn't even able to put up anything resembling resistance! No, she wasn't allowed to.

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

Long-Armed Demon likely noticed danger, and struck first against Mina who was preparing to speak to the Meat Doll; she probably planned to use those strong, invisible fists to beat Mina down.

But, her moves were easily foiled.

Mina's expressions was graceful as she turned slightly and dodged the fist, and she pressed the spray can in her hand -- "Shhhh" A silver mist was released.

At that instant, Long-Armed Ghost's expression changed.

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

But there was still no movement.

Mina leisurely walked in front of her, and fiercely stomped on her. Only this much, probably... Only this much.

Her stomach hit with a strong blow, Long-Armed Demon flipped over and fell on the bumpy road where she rolled a few times. Possibly unconscious, she remained like that, not moving.

Long-Armed Demon most definitely was not too weak. She was the Long-Armed Demon who killed ten people, with superhuman abilities; she was practically a monster.

But like wiping dust away, [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|Mina]] easily silenced her.

"Seeing invisible things is something that I'm good at." Only Saibara Mina's eyes were smiling as she spoke coldly, "Ah, what a bad match, Long-Armed Demon. But that isn't important, you didn't pose a threat to me anyways. Actually, I wanted to leave you be for a while while I investigate a few things, but it seems I can't keep doing that."

After she finished saying some incomprehensible things, Mina once again turned toward the Meat Doll.

That cluster of flesh whose gender could not be identified, which was torn apart and destroyed thanks to meeting with Long-Armed Demon, had already completely recovered. Despite facing that hideous visage, Mina's expression did not change, and disregarding Rinne who sat paralyzed and shivering by her feet, she spoke to the Meat Doll, "Alright, Meat Doll, can I hear what you have to say? Why did you disregard my orders and protect Usagawa Rinne? Based on your response, I will--no, haha, you should know even if don't say it, right?"

Who knows how much dread her words must have brought to the Meat Doll;[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations| frightened, it spoke in unexpectedly a human voice]].

"What happened was, since Long-Armed Demon's target also seemed to be Usagawa Rinne's fragment, I believed that if I did not first eliminate Long-Armed Deman, the fragment may have been taken away."

"Oh?" Mina showed surprise. "She was after the fragment? Those kinds of things, there are people besides me who want them? It seems that Long-Armed Demon should have a fragment... But even if she gets more than two fragments, she'd just destroy her sensory organs and die. Then again--maybe she mistook the fragments' function?"

Mina seemed to accept the Meat Doll's words. Perhaps from habit, she once again started talking to herself.

"I thought the Meat Doll malfunctioned, but it seems I was too suspicious. Besides, that thing's just a pile of flesh, how could it possibly have thoughts like protecting others?"

"..."

The Meat Doll was silent. Was she being overly suspicious? She always seemed to see some humanity in its features. There wasn't any energy for thinking, pain had wrecked Rinne's train of thought. She wanted to puke, thanks to the situation she could not understand and the pain that engulfed her body.

And the fear.

The extreme fear held toward the woman in front of her made her nauseous.

"Then." Mina ended her pondering, and looked at Rinne and sneered. "Hello. Thanks for lending me your cell phone. Finding you was really fortunate, but I couldn't see any phones nearby. So.

"Fshuu--" The noise was released every time Mina took a breath.

It's like she's part of another species, Rinne thought. Her body, her thought process, they're all completely different. Even compared to the Meat Doll, she would definitely be the stranger one.

Why didn't she notice this abnormality upon sight?

She's--extremely dangerous.

More dangerous than Snake, more dangerous than Long-Armed Demon, more dangerous than just about anybody.

Saibara Mina smiled and asked Rinne, "I'll ask you. If you answer honestly, you'll live a bit longer."

She definitely wasn't lying, she should able to kill without batting an eye. Even with immortality granted from eating an Apple, Rinne would be easily disposed of.

Mina was without doubt that type of being.

"What is it?"

"Tell me... A month ago," Mina sneered, and asked calmly, "What happened?"

Sakaki, Guriko.

In Rinne's mind flashed the faces of these important people.

Ah. She would never see them again, she couldn't return.

''Even though I found her.''

Aizawa Ume was a girl whose hands weren't skilled.

When she cooked the she would scorch the bottom the pan and cut her finger; when she tried arts and crafts she could never finish properly, making flawed products that would fall apart with a light blow.

What are these fingers doing?!

She was always miserable.

To eliminate that misery, wicked God had given her--

"In--the--clear--night--"

With the singing voice came a robber with abnormal expressions. Just a robber. Even if it made it into the newspaper, it would be forgotten within a week; it was a normal case the likes of which occured all the time. The robber killed Ume's parents, and, possibly addicted to killing, he decided to slowly torture the surviving Ume to death. He pushed her down, and lifted his bloody kitchen knife. He cut, starting from the fingertips, and Ume started losing consciousness.

No matter how she cried, she would not be released. No one came to save her.

In quick succession, her fingers, then hands, then arms were cut off and dropped by her parents' corpses on the ground.

Her arms were cut off from the shoulder.

Ah--

She couldn't remember what happened afterward.

When she came to, she had gained those all-powerful arms.

[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|She]] selflessly tore the robber into pieces, and then fell unconcious.

Upon awakening, an unfamiliar man spoke to her, "Welcome to our world!"

At that moment, she understood beyond doubt.

She could not go back.

"Ah."

When she was fully awake, the sun shone from her side, and crimson sunset dyed the world in bright color. Long-Armed Demon felt pain in her legs and stomach, wondering if she was defeated yet again. As she started to get up--

"Huh?"

She couldn't do it.

How strange, she'll use her arms to pull herself back up.

She felt nothing.

Completely confused, she tried again.

"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, hmm, I need to get up and go back."

Her arms.

"Back to Zeki-kun."

Her arms were gone.

Long-Armed Demon fell silent, and then began whimpering.

"Waahh..."

Tears flooded from her eyes and dripped from her cheeks.

"My arms, my arms, my arms....."

''No, I really don't want this. Arms, I don't have arms, if I don't have those long and powerful arms... I won't be Long-Armed Demon, I'll return to being the weak and clumsy Aizawa Ume.''

And then she would be abandoned by Zekiguchi.

"No! I don't want this!"

With desperation filling her, Long-Armed Demon started sobbing.

"No..."

Zekiguchi, around whom she who had become a monster based her life, who accepted and praised her, who said said "Let's keep living on together", that Zekiguchi Nashinori.

''I wanna go back to him.''

''Go back and be praised by him.''

Until now it had always been like this; it was Long-Armed Demon's sole and greatest joy.

However--

These arms that lost feeling, yet still quietly rejected her.

--Arms.

"My arms are gone."

Long-Armed Demon mumbled vacantly, while the shoddy road streched on above her head.

"Thump", a footstep.

"Zeki-kun?"

Long-Armed Demon's heart almost stopped from fear as she shut her eyes tight.

No.

Nononono.

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-Armed Demon trembled and cried, apologizing like it was the end of the world.

"I'm sorry, I"m sorry, don't abandon me, please don't abandon me."

"This world--"

Suddenly.

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

"Huh?"

Looking at the person, it seemed to be someone she had seen somewhere before. The man's face seemed like a [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|monster's]]. He took out a cell phone and began dialing.

"Really has too many melancholic things."

"You--"

Even though she called out to him, without even giving his name he lazily asked her, "Long-Armed Demon, can you really not use your arms?"

"Ah..."

Struck at her weak point, Long-Armed Demon grit her teeth and pushed back tears. But she couldn't hold them back, and she started sobbing.

Seeing her like this, the man nodded his head as if in understanding, and spoke formally into his phone, "Ah-- Hello, sorry to trouble you. I'm Nageki, Nageki Kurukiyo. Ah, right, right, I'll tell you the place now, so please come quickly. What? For this, we need an ambulance, though it's probably already too late."

Long-Armed Demon understood.

He seemed to be a policeman. She had never felt the slightest fear toward any policemen, and never paid any attention to them. But under the current circumstances, she would definitely be arrested.

So it ends like this, Long-Armed Demon thought.

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

Just as she began to lose spirit, Nageki said as if it were natural, "Eh?" Dead? She wasn't dead yet, so who died?

"Ah, right, dead, one little girl."

"Right, her appearance-- her arms were snapped off, and her shoulders were crushed."

That's--

"She was murdered by by having her heart torn out."

Who?

The night was filled with nightmares, and falling asleep was impossible.

Ever since she started living separately from Rinne, she had been plagued with nightmares. Sometimes it was the faces of those she had killed, sometimes it was the scene of countless eyeballs wriggling about, and though it wasn't certain, it was still so painful.

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

In the home where she lived together with the Itsuwara couple, Gankyuu Eguriko woke up in her dark room. Her bed was soft, and she used a sky-patterend quilt. She glanced at the clock with spoons as hands, which pointed at 2:00.

"......"

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 I lower my guard. I don't know if I can keep considering them my parents. Now that I think about it, even now I don't really understand what parents are.''

''If I ask them, they'll just laugh 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.

As she thought so, she prepared to accept that night[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|.]]

She noticed them speaking softly in the living room.

The voice was filled with sorrow; completely unlike the frenzied excitement from before, it seemed to be pained.

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

That was Hino's voice. Was taking care of her, whose status as monster or human was uncertain, a burden for her after all? Guriko thought it over, and an empty feeling even she could not understand assaulted her heart.

--But...

--I can't kill her.

Hino murmured this, and Kio replied.

--Hino, that won't do. If we refuse to kill her, we will 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 almost like she was crying.

--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 dream, [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|she]] prayed that it was only a bad dream. But those thoughts that would cause nausea 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 conversation mean? Saying things like killing me, or being killed--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 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 problem; really, I'm so weak it's disgusting."

There was a choice before her.

That choice was between the options that the man with wolf-like eyes called Zekiguchi Nashinori outlined.

Keep on living as a human like this?

Or live as a monster?

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

"My being near them will create danger?"

''I know how cruel I am. I'm no different from Long-Armed Demon who killed ten people; in fact, when I triumphed over her, I had a twisted though about destroying her body. My true identity is that of an eyeball-gouging monster.''

''There's no way I talk this through with people like Rinne; if they knew these things, they would hate me and fear me. The number of eyeballs that I've gouged out is probably even greater than what they thought.''

''Rinne.''

"I am a monster."

Guriko crawled out of her bed and leaned her head against the wall, and as if groaning, murmured in a low voice, "Three hundred years ago, because I grew tired of living, I abandoned human restraint and went on a wild massacre. Rinne, in me there's a child your age, plus an infant who couldn't speak, as well as a loving couple. I gouged out that much happiness. Haha, an eyeball-gouging monster..."

From Guriko's eye flowed a single tear.

"How could I deserve any sort of happiness..."

''One month ago, someone had decided to be "the person most important to me"; but, I don't deserve to be with them. On my way here I've taken so much, killed so many, and I don't when I'll go berserk again and target Rinne'es eyeballs.''

"Rinne, Sakaki."

''I'll go on a trip.''

"I like you."

''Somewhere far away, being here is too painful. This happy world is suffocating me. School, home, all this happiness of a normal life--For a monster like me, it's too painful.''

''I can't depend on them.''

''Somewhere far away.''

''Sakaki will definitely protect Rinne, he doesn't need me. If I rely on them I will only bring them misfortune.''

"If only I depart, it'll be fine..." Humans and monsters cannot live together.

She was a monster.

The same as Long-Armed Demon.

"....."

Upon that resolution, she calmed down.

At this moment, Guriko decided in her heart.

From then on, Gankyuu Eguriko would choose that option.

Her only necessities would be spoons, she would once again walk that path. Wandering from place to place, looking for those with Apples, keeping that person far away from "Mushi"--

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

''That would be good, only that would be acceptable, I'm already tired, I wanna become a monster again.''

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 it would hurt them, and she felt apologetic. However, from the start the whole thing was impossible.

Guriko apologized in her heart. Thinking, "To prevent them from worrying, I'll at least leave a note", 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 time Guriko saw her she was still healthy; speechless, she gazed toward the ceiling.

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

"Right, call an ambulance."

''When someone's injured or sick and it's and emergency, just call an ambulance, and they'll take them to the hospital for free. This was something Hino taught me.''

Guriko nodded and headed for the phone.

She desperately dialed, telling herself that this was the last time, that she would say goodbye after this.

Soon after the ambulance arrived, and she went in with Hino.

In the nearby hospital, Guriko heard the worst possible news.

Upon learning of this news, Sakaki had emptied his gun. He destroyed the phone that delivered the news, and then rushed out of the school at a speed above human limits. After using his extraordinary skill to beat up the educational director who tried to stop him from leaving before his work was done, he waved over a car that was passing by. Since his gun was empty, he used the gun itself to knock down the drive and hijack the car before speeding to the hospital that contacted him.

Everything that happened afterward was gone from his memory.

His mind was blank, and the whole world turned white, as and unsuppressable anger emanated from his entire body. If he didn't control himself, he would have indiscriminately knocked down anyone he saw. Ignoring 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 him. In the wide room, by the soft-looking hospital bed, there was no life-preserving equipment. That was to be expected--Sakaki's beloved lying on the bed, the young woman Usagawa Rinne, already had the pale of the deceased. This was a true death.

"Sakaki."

A small voice came from behind him.

As if frozen in place, Sakaki expressionlessly turned around.

There stood a person. In the background, the full moon shone brightly through a window, concealing the person's appearance. But he knew, that was not God, and since it was not God, that person could not save Usagawa Rinne.

"Move."

The shadow spoke curtly.

Sakaki stayed standing by the prone Rinne's feet, not moving, and unable to respond.

The shadow was Guriko, with her face by Sakaki's chest. Sakaki's head was turned, and her head was lowered so that her expression could not be seen.

"Move it."

She spoke with a coarse voice.

With trembling shoulders and also a shaking voice, she--

"I'm sorry, Sakaki, I'm sorry."

--Apologized. For some reason, tears flowed down Guriko's expressionless face.

"Move."

And then said for the third time.

With movement heavy like stone, Sakaki let her pass. In the frosty atmosphere that seemed to belong in a fantasy world, there was no sound.

"I just checked, the Apple that Rinne had has disappeared. It was definitely taken away. I'm afraid that someone might have tortured her to get her to give up the Apple."

After Guriko walked over to Rinne's side, she held out her hand and shut her eyes.

Light, a dull light shone from Rinne's body.

"A month ago."

Guriko spoke in a coarse voice, so quiet that she was almost not heard. As her back was turned to Sakaki, he couldn't tell what kind of expression she had.

"I took two Apples from Snake. One was Snake's own Apple, and the other was the Apple he stole from Rinne. Just now, I put one of those into Rinne's body."

Guriko's shoulders trembled as she touched Rinne's body, her fingertips glowing with dull light.

"Why? Why isn't she reviving?"

The light disappeared in an instant, but Rinne did not wake up.

Even the miraculous Apple could not save Usagawa Rinne.

"Why....."

Guriko stood idly in place, clenching her fists with seemingly enough force to draw blood.

"Why didn't I notice it... Haha, hahaha, I was too busy anguishing over my issues to even notice the danger Rinne was in--"

She laughed out loud, staring for a while at Rinne who did not move at all. Then, she turned to Sakaki showing no emotion on her face. Those deep black eyes like gun barrels, mixed with red, burned with the desire to bring ruin to everything in the world.

"Sakaki, kill me; slash off my limbs, snap my neck, dig out my eyeballs, mush my brain... If I'm still alive then grind my entire body to bits and burn it until there's nothing left; let nothing of this useless body remain in this world!"

Guriko was close to insanity, pointing her tightly gripped spoons at herself. The utensils with cruel luster were directed straight at her eyes.

"Useless things! These eyes that can't see anything, these eyes that couldn't see the danger Rinne was in, I don't want them!"

Facing the girl who seriously wanted to gouge out her own eyeballs, Sakaki said in a low voice, "Stop..."

[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|Then]] he twisted her arms, and snatched the spoons away. Her mind blank, her heart desperate, and unable to collect her thoughts, she slowly lost her will to commit suicide.

Probably annoyed at the interruption, Guriko angrily started at Sakaki.

"Stop."

Seeing Sakaki say that with such an expression, Guriko hung her head in defeat.

Silence surrounded them, covering both their spirits and their bodies, so much that the silence itself seemed deafening. Sakaki wordlessly screamed, and pounded on the wall.

This wouldn't bring redemption, nor would it allow Rinne to return from the dead.

It was even less possible for their mood to improve as a result.

But despite that--

"Let's go look."

Sakaki declared softly.

''Even though I decided to protect her. A year ago at the sea, I decided to protect the girl named Usagawa Rinne. This is just returning to the beginning. I don't need anything, I just wholeheartedly want Rinne to return to the life she had been living.''

With a sharp force in his eyes, Sakaki placed his hand of Guriko's shoulder.

"Let's go look for a way to save Rinne. There should be some way; if we give up here, it will truly be over... God, 'Mushi', Apples of Eden -- this world is filled with incomprehensible things. There must be something that can save Her Majesty..."

Even though it was a faint wish less reliable than a spider's web.

Sakaki could only rely on it. Guriko also nodded, and drew close to him, staring straight into his eyes.

Already, the atmosphere of despair from before had disappeared, replaced with one brimming with hope.

"Also..." With eyes still shining with brilliance, she said something that would never have escaped her lips in the past. "Sensei, thank you--I see a little bit of hope now."

"Don't only call me Sensei during times like this, idiot."

"I apologize. I don't know why, but I suddenly felt like calling you Sensei."

A beautiful smile appeared on Guriko's face.

She suddenly turned her head.

"But Sakaki, don't come."

"Why not?"

Don't come? Sakaki seemed about to burst. Who did she think she was talking to? No matter who or what stood in his way, if it was for Rinne, he would brave any danger; that was Sakaki Guryuu.

There was no way Guriko didn't understand this, but even so, she firmly stared at him.

"Sakaki, please don't make me repeat myself."

She turned around and opened the hospital room's door.

"Don't look. Because from now on I will return to being a monster."

This kind of treatment was excessive.

A leash was place around her neck.

"....."

This small room reeking of tobacco [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|was really bad for the environment]]; with maps and pictures of mountains all over the place, did he have a hobby of mountain climbing? It didn't fit together at all. As Long-Armed Demon thought this, she curled up like an abandoned puppy, staying cautious of her surroundings.

[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|After removing her blindfolds]], she could clearly see her current situation.

She was captured and placed here. As expected of that hair-demon detective's room. 4-tatami sized. Only a bathroom was attached to it, and the kitchen inside the room was stacked full of cleaned dishes. The room was extremely clean, and contrary to appearance, it seemed that detective was actually quite meticulous.

The room's light was on.

The room's occupant was nowhere to be found.

"Zeki-kun..."

Though she tried to break the collar on her, she couldn't feel her arms. Long-Armed Demon sighed; tears appeared in her eyes out of restlessness. Her sole, her entire pride--her arms--were gone. In her sadness, the loss of that which she depended on created a sense of hollowness.

Since she had become like this, Zekiguchi would definitely not need Long-Armed Demon anymore.

She would be discarded.

When she thought that, she felt even more lonely and even more miserable as tears flooded down her cheeks.

After losing to that scary woman who was like both an angel and a demon, her arms were somehow removed and that detective picked up the crying her and brought her here. That detective was obviously a law enforcement agent, but he didn't throw her in jail; instead, after saying some some rather freaky things, he brought Long-Armed Demon to his room--that is, this place, and he bound her with a leash.

The leash was randomly attached to a pillar that was showing, and though it was a restraint only on this poor level, the armless Long-Armed Demon had no way to escape. But this, it seemed even weirder than normal restraints; rather, it seemed as if she were being treated like a dog. In a horrible tempre, Long-Armed Demon cried, moaned, and cursed the detective.

What would happen from now on?

Even if she wasn't in prison, her situation was pretty similar, and possibly even worse. That policemen exuded a melancholic air that even Long-Armed Demon found strange, and she had no idea what he would do to her. Out of fear, Long-Armed Demon faintly called for help.

"Zeki-kun..."

That sound could not have been heard by anyone. After hitting the walls it dissipiated into the air.

Long-Armed Demon fel the tatami's coldness, shuddering constantly while waiting for something to change.

She didn't know how much time had passed.

She finally stopped crying, though her cheeks ached from the tears poured onto them. "Ah man, sorry for coming home so late."

The door suddenly opened, and the odd detective appeared. In his hand was a bag filled with food, clothes, and underwear. Furthermore, the clothes and underwear seemed like they were for Long-Armed Demon to wear; clearly, the detective planned to keep her in captivity for a long time.

Long-Armed Demon paled.

"Aaah, when I, looking like this, go to shop for childrens' clothing, people think I'm a criminal. But when everyone was whispering to each other 'Maybe we should call the police', I managed to buy your underwear and the like."

This person was a pervert.

That's right, this guy was the worst type of pervert, who would definitely do perverted things to her that she couldn't even imagine.

Due to fear, Long-Armed Demon's back stiffened and she groaned like a little dog.

The perverted detective completely ignored her and laughed vulgarly, "Gigigi. Ah, don't be so wary, no matter how cautious you are I'm stronger than you right now. Since that's the case, rather than risk angering me with a defiant attitude, I suggest you act cute to keep me in a good mood."

Yes, the Long-Armed Demon who killed ten people while spreading death and fear throughout Kannonsakazaki Town no longer existed. The one crouching her and trembling was weaker than even an average person. A small child without arms.

Long-Armed Demon understood that, but she refused to surrender, and she bluffed with all her might to her adversary.

"What the hell are you? What are you trying to do to the Long-Armed Demon? D-don't come closer, Long-Armed Demon will definitely not obey you. If you do anything weird, I'll bite you and kick you!"

Facing the Long-Armed Demon who angrily tried to hide her fear, the detective looked back through a gap in his hair with a seemingly joyful expression.

"Gigigi, don't worry, though it's really easy to misunderstand me based on my appearance, I'm actually a normal, honest person. I don't have any particular talents, and when it's time for me to die, I'd die quickly."

He suddenly seemed to remember something, and finally said, "Speaking of which, I still haven't told you my name. I am Nageki Kurukiyo, and I'm a detective, though since I've often hid murderers that I caught in my home instead of turning them in, I'm not really qualified to call myself that."

Long-Armed Demon didn't respond, but she understood. This person truly did not intend to take her to the police station; then, what was he after? She suspiciously glared at the horrifying detective who called himself Nageki.

"What are you planning to do? Kurukiyo."

"Plans? Ahh, I wasn't thinking of doing anything bad. It's just that--this world has too many melancholic things, and I want to reduce that melancholy by a little bit. Aizawa Ume-chan."

Suddenly hearing her real name, Long-Armed Demon's face distorted.

"Why?"

"Aizawa Ume was involved in a robbing incident three years ago, though it was unclear whether she survived or not, and her whereabouts were unknow. If she's still alive, she would turn eleven this year. Her parents died during the incident, and so did the robbers. But since the sole daughter Ume-chan was nowhere to be found, despite an exhaustive search by the police, no one knows what happened to her even to this day."

After that detailed statement, Nageki smiled mysteriously, "By researching that tombstone you slept by, I learned of this melancholic event. I have no proof, but from your reaction it seems that I'm not wrong, Aizawa Ume-chan."

"Don't call me by that name!"

Trembling all the while, Long-Armed Demon forced out those words.

Nageki cheerfully chuckled, "Hehe".

"What? You want me to call you Long-Armed Demon? Using that name for you who has no arms is rather laughable, you know."

"But." Long-Armed Demon lowered her head, tears flowing from her closed eyes. "But I'm Long-Armed Demon, I can't not be Long-Armed Demon..."

Perhaps that face reminded Nageki of something, as he sighed and shook his head, and then began putting the storing the food he bought into the refrigerator. It seemed he cooked for himself; he only bought fresh vegetables and raw meat, without any bentos or prepared dishes. For some reason, he also bought three cardboard packages of café au lait.

"You might need to calm down a bit."

After that, Nageki continued and said, "Go take a bath, you don't bath much with the way you've been living right? Clean yourself up, wipe away your tears and the smell of blood, eat something, and go to sleep early today."

Though it was an unexpected request, Long-Armed Demon sort of agreed with it. Up until then, she could only use tap water in the cemetery to clean off blood and sweat that made her body sticky. Occasionally she would want to soak in hot water, allowing her body to warm up.

Long-Armed Demon felt quite hungry; she had not yet lost her sense of hunger or her ability to feel. According to Zekiguchi, suffering a single fatal injury would make one quickly lose such senses. Since Long-Armed Demon almost died when Gankyuu Eguriko dug out her eyeballs, she should have pretty much been rid of those senses by now.

''Let's not worry about that right now, I wanna take a bath.''

"You'll let Long-Armed Demon take a bath?"

"Yeah, but this room doesn't have a bathtub, so we have to go to a bathhouse. Is that okay?"

"Wha--"

Bathhouse- that is, a public bath. That would rather annoying, since in that sort of place, she who had no arms would receive even more strange looks than usual.

Maybe Long-Armed Demon's timid face made him think of something, as Nageki smiled tenderly, "Don't worry, the owner of the nearby public bath is an old friend of mine. On my way back I stopped by and reserved the place for an hour."

"Ah, even though it's like that." As if pushing newly enspirited Long-Armed demon into an abyss, Nageki smiled. "Yeah, there's no way you can bathe by yourself, right? I'll wash you thoroughly from head to toe. Mmhmm, even if a suspicious detective brings a girl with him to the mens' bath, even if that girl's wearing a leash, no one will care -- gigigi --"

Long-Armed Demon's body instantly stiffened, and she suddenly leaned back making the bells on her leash tinkle, trying to get away from Nageki. The perverted detective joyfully approached Long-Armed Demon, and took hold of her leash.

"Ah."

"Then let's go, Ume-chan. Hopefully no one will see us on our way to the bath. Don't look at me like this, even I adhere to what they call the values of society."

"P-per..." Long-Armed Demon shouted at Nageki who untied her leash and dragged her toward the door. Almost crying, in a voice filled with despair, "Pervert -- You're a pervert!"

"Hey, stop shouting, what's going to happen if a neighbor misundestands?"

"It doesn't matter if there's a misunderstanding, someone please notice us and help me!"

Despite Long-Armed Demon's cries, during the five-minute walk to the bathhouse, no one came to be her hero.

The following half hour was endless torture for Long-Armed Demon. Resistance was useless, and so she was brought to the bathhouse. Its owner was apparently blind, as he did not react at all to the odd pair in front of him, and after a trivial conversation was forcefully dragged into the mens' bath.

She was stripped, wiped, and placed in the hot water.

Long-Armed Demon's entire body shook out of humiliation.

''Wh-when I get my arms back, I'll make sure to kill Nageki first. I'll peel off his skin, tear off his limbs, dig out his heart, I'll mercilessly toss him around until he dies.''

She was seen, everything was seen clearly, and she was even scrubbed. Even Zekiguchi had never [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|seen this much]], wouldn't it be impossible for her to get married now... She started getting dizzy, and couldn't form complete thoughts. She only felt humiliation, frustration, and she wanted to disappear; with a red face, Long-Armed Demon was submerged up to her neck in the steaming water.

"Flavor of Soup" - this place that chose a name sounding like a condiment was an interesting bath house. In this era of super-bath houses that were more like parks, this kind of normal bath was uncommon. Or, perhaps, it would be more accurate to say that the facility was insufficient.

The place wasn't anything special; there only the bath itself which was not particularly large, as well as a sauna to help with aches.

Only the unbelievably high ceiling was different from usual, as one could see steam spiraling upward and upward. The sight was exquisite, and as a result Long-Armed Demon silently watched as if trying to forget her shame.

Nageki, looking as if he did not care, washed himself while shamelessly humming a Beatles song. Though he was obviously a perverted and melancholic detective, [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|singing the theme song of]] [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Onitarō|Onitarō]] made it alright.

As she thought, Long-Armed Demon watched Nageki.

-- He's good looking.

Physically, his tall, sturdy form was excellent, without excess muscle. He was truly handsome; as Long-Armed Demon thought this, she suddenly realized where her thoughts ended up and turned red while hiding under the water.

So warm, the hot water permeated her entire body, and it felt like she was being reborn.

She thought about Zekiguchi, and then about her abduction. That woman who seemed both like an angel and like a demon.

Just thinking about that woman's honey-sweet voice and seemingly kind eyes hiding absolute coldness made the hairs on her back stand up. Such a scary person; as if that person had attacked the public bath, Long-Armed Demon raised her head and gritted her teeth while sighing.

"But, why?"

She seemed similar to Zekiguchi.

The Zekiguchi who had saved her.

The woman who had thrown her into despair.

They were obviously completely different, so why did she feel they were the same type of being? "Ume-chan, if even your neck's underwater it's bad for you!"

"Swoosh--" Nageki nonchalantly creeped next to Long-Armed Demon. "Shhh", Long-Armed Demon rapidly moved away, and shouted, "W-Waah, Kurikiyo! It's way too much if you get any closer to Long-Armed Demon!"

"It's only us here, I can hear you just fine even if you don't scream! Gigi, do you hate me? It always seems like my intimate behavior rubs some people the wrong way, there must be something wrong with their mental structure. This world has far too many melancholic things."

On Nageki Kurukiyo's face appeared an infuriating smile.

Long-Armed Demon saw that face, and couldn't hold back her fear.

"Um--Kurikiyo?"

"Mm? I'm Nageki Kurikiyo. What is it?"

Responding like this, his face--

The hair that always hid his expression was now tied in the back, and the face that was now visible was beautiful enough that Long-Armed Demon was momentarily enchanted.

"No, who are you?" Long-Armed Demon couldn't resist asking.

Nageki, with bewilderment on his face, suddenly thought of something. Sweeping aside the water, he moved closer. "Are you nearsighted? Can you see me?"

"Waah, didn't I tell you to not come closer?!"

Long-Armed Demon beat back the perverted detective [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|with her arm stumps]], though she also took enough pain to moan. She didn't think Nageki who tied back his hair was this good-looking. Since it was her who liked that appearance, she felt a sense of defeat.

After staying underwater for a bit, Nageki lazily sat back up and complained.

"Man, that hurt... I hate violence. I've always that humans are animals that can solve issues by talking them over, isn't that right?"

"If you want to talk, then try thinking about how I feel a little, idiot! I'll be embarrassed!"

Long-Armed Demon screamed, feeling dizzy and having difficulty breathing, and took a deep breath.

"Aah, really. How did it get like this?"

She truly wanted to go back to Zekiguchi. Even though Zekiguchi had never gotten this close to her, and he rarely chatted with her.

Then, has it been years since she last talked openly with someone else? Not as the Long-Armed Demon, but as a human. She thought to herself--and then shook her head, reminding herself that she still could not trust this man. In this world, she could trust herself and Zekiguchi and no one else.

Everyone else was scary, eventually they could bare their fangs at her like the robber who cut off her arms.

Just as Long-Armed Demon thought this, Nageki unbelievably voiced her thoughts.

"Ah--It's been so long since I could relax and chat with someone. But, you still seem to be on guard against me."

The melancholic detective smiled and looked at Long-Armed Demon.

Those eyes that were always covered by overly long hair, tranquil yet brightly forceful, always seemed a bit frightful.

"Okay, then let's chat like humans. Me, I don't just do this kind of thing out of curiosity; if someone found out that I'm hiding the Long-Armed Demon who killed ten people, don't even talk about getting fired, it wouldn't be odd if I were tossed into a dungeon."

That was true; Long-Armed Demon lowered her face, as now was the not the time to be embarrassed about being naked. Why did that man approach her? If this wasn't cleared up she wouldn't be able to be at east.

Long-Armed looked at Nageki, who lightly nodded.

"This world -- has too many melancholic things."

Perhaps it was his catchphrase? He uttered this profound for the who-knows-how-many-th time.

"It's just, should I say it's reminiscing, or is it more like opening up old wounds? Ume-chan, my girlfriend was also restrained by her body."

Nageki looked at her. Unhappy at being seen naked, Long-Armed Demon lowered herself up to her neck into the murky hot water. Due the Apple's power, skin was forecibly regenerated right over the rough wounds where her arms were cut off. Supposedly, with an Apple it would normally be possible to regenerate her cut off arms, but Long-Armed Demon's Apple for some reason refused to restore those two arms.

Instead, she received a pair of invisible arms stronger than just about anyone's.

She finally realized now, after losing that ability, that only with arms could she live life like a normal person. Lacking a body part was incredibly restricting. If one was to measure the utility of hands, it would be about a hundred for skillful people, and even the most clumsy person would score about fifty. But for someone without arms at all, of course it could not be anything but zero. Overcoming such an obstacle would be incredibly difficult.

Looking at her, Nageki showed pain on his face.

"Do you know about that incident a month ago when a gigantic monster wreaked havoc near the town?"

A gigantic monster.

That must have the "Dream World Beast" that Zekiguchi had been talking about. Having taken interest in the event, Zekiguchi investigated and learned Usagawa Rinne's name. Under the pretense of amassing Apples, he ordered Long-Armed Demon to take away her Apple.

In the end, she was defeated.

"My girlfriend was stepped on and killed by that monster."

"....."

Immediately, because she didn't understand Long-Armed Demon looked at Nageki.

"What?"

Nageki, with hollow, vacant eyes, gazed at the steam spiraling up toward the ceiling. "No one could have foreseen something like that, right? Obviously, I couldn't do anything. My girlfriend was flattened by that oversized monster. By the time I noticed and went over, only her crushed, bloody upper body, her paralyzed feet, and her wheelchair were left."

Nageki softly spoke.

"[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Questionable translations|I can't forget it.]]"

Long-Armed Demon couldn't respond; up until now she had repeatedly commited acts no different from those of the Dream World Beast. Like it, she had without reason taken away those who were important to people, people who like him definitely held regret in their hearts, and hated Long-Armed Demon.

With a face full of grief, Nageki ever-so-slightly smiled. "So, to not make others hold the same kinds of regret I do, I want to eliminate unreasonable melancholy -- monsters. That's all, even though I'm just a weak human, when forced into a corner even a mouse killing a cat is possible. I want to show the strength of us weak humans to the monsters out there."

How scary, the melancholic detective's fiercely looked straight at her.

"I'll get to the point. What are you?"

''That's something even I don't know.''

Long-Armed Demon looked downward and said softly, "If you go too deeply into this, you'll die! Kurukiyo."

"Gigigi, I know, but I can't stop now. Aside from that thing with my girlfriend, my subordinate was killed by you. He told me, his most important person was also killed by a monster. I must do his part for him in opposing monsters."

"Subordinate?"

It was that?

"You're talking about -- a policeman?"

"Yeah, he didn't work directly under me, but in terms of rank he was below me. He was my friend, who helped me look for Long-Armed Demon during the night. Though his entire body was annihilated with only his wrists remaining... I believe that you did this, right?

Annihilated.

What does that mean? Long-Armed Demon didn't have an ability like that, and she didn't remember fighting with a policeman. Then, from what she knew, the policeman was killed by a monster that wasn't Long-Armed Demon.

A face appeared in her mind.

"Kurukiyo."

Long-Armed Demon quietly voiced a warning. "Long-Armed Demon didn't do that, it was someone even stranger. It was probably -- that terrifying woman who made Long-Armed Demon's ability disappear..."

Though she didn't remember what her name was, she could remember her overwhelming aura that was like both an angel and a demon.

"That strangeness, she probably wasn't human nor monster. She was something even more abnormal, standing in an even stranger place than the Earth where we stay..."

She definitely wasn't worried for Kurukiyo.

She was just accurately saying what she believed.

"So, Kurukiyo, you can't go near that one. That thing's not a normal being, it's something more alien, something higher. No matter if it's a monster, or a human, as long she wishes it they'll be immediately killed. It's like being mechanically eliminated as flaws -- like, being sterilized and disinfected..."

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| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch3|Night 3: Boudoir ]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch5|Final Night: Start of Disinfection ]]
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</noinclude>

Mushi to Medama

2012-01-20T01:22:38Z

Cakemanofdoom:

[[Image:mtm_main.jpg|200px|thumb|Cover for the 1st novel]]

Sakaki Guryuu is a multi-talented genius who, despite being gifted and wealthy, decides to teach in the countryside to be together with his lover, Usagawa Rinne, who also happens to be his student. Their peaceful lives are shattered one day when Rinne is killed, in front of Sakaki's eyes, by a girl named "Gankyuu Eguriko", who gouged her eyes out with a spoon. Things take an even stranger turn when Rinne suddenly wakes up as if nothing had happened, and something called an "Eden's Apple" is thrown into the mix.

Mushi to Medama won the award for the "Best Newcomer" category in the MF Literary Awards.

== [[MTM:Registration Page|Registration]] ==
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

=== Format Standards ===
*[[Format_guideline|General Format/Style Guideline]]

== Updates ==
*October 17, 2008
** Project Officially Started

*September 8, 2009
** Volume 1 Chapter 3 complete

*May 11, 2010
** Volume 1 Chapter 4 complete

*March 13, 2011
** Volume 1 Chapter 2 complete

*March 26, 2011
**Volume 2 Open complete

*April 14, 2011
**Volume 1 Epilogue complete

*April 22, 2011
**Volume 1 Chapter 5 complete
**Volume 1 complete

*November 27, 2011
**Volume 2 Night 2 complete

*January 15, 2012
**Volume 2 Night 3 complete

== Project Staff ==

*Project Administrator: [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
*Project Supervisor:

=== Translators ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
Those who wish to contribute are asked to first notify a supervisor beforehand. [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] has Chinese RAWs available for those who wish to help.
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

'''INACTIVE
::*[[User:Cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] (Until I can get myself to stop being so lazy and get back to work. Bugging me on my talk page or forum will help motivation a lot.)

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]]

=== Editors ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:RoadBuster|RoadBuster]]
::*[[User:Chaos Greyblood|Chaos Greyblood]]
::*[[User:dell19930|dell19930]]
::*[[User:AlfheimWanderer|AlfheimWanderer]]

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:TheGiftedMonkey|TheGiftedMonkey]]

== Mushi to Medama Series by Akira (日日日), Illustrated by Mitsuki Mausu ==

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear '' / 蟲と眼球とテディベア ([[Mushi:Vol1|Full Text]] - [http://www.mediafire.com/?fz7iq8c6zriib36 PDF for e-Reader]) ===
[[Image:Mtm_main.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 1 Cover: Gankyuu Egoriko]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch1|Night 1: Usarin-kakka's Daily Edict]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch2|Night 2: The 15th November Incident]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch3|Night 3: The Girl who died a Thousand years ago]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch4|Night 4: Loneliness ← Kodoku → Insect Poison]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch5|Final Night: "Don't Look"]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Epilogue|Guriko's Offering]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Author's_Notes|Author's Notes]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection '' / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒 ===
[[Image:Mtm2_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 2 Cover: Usagawa Rinne]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Open|Open: Clock of Endless Nights]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch1|Night 1: A Series of Misfortune]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch2|Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch3|Night 3: Boudoir]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch4|Night 4: I can't hear the bells]]
::*Final Night: Start of Disinfection
::*Close: Blood-stained Night
::*Author's Notes
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait '' / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ ===
[[Image:Mtm3_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 3 Cover]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Prologue|Start: Lady with a Helmet]]
::*Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat
::*Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love
::*Night 3: Distancing happiness
::*Night 4: Temporary halt?
::*Night 5: Vomit
::*End: You and Chocolate Sunday
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love '' / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol4_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Overture: 700
::*Symphony 1: Unable to transmit via songs alone
::*Symphony 2: Whom does the Song of Love belong to?
::*Symphony 3: Crybaby Joker
::*Symphony 4: The Adventures of Vegetable Juice and Tomato Juice
::*Final Symphony: Unable to save based on love alone
::*Requiem: 666
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White '' / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol5_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*PROLOGUE 02: The Jealous Queen
::*EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
::*EPILOGUE 06: The Hunter
::*EPILOGUE 09: The Seven Dwarfs
::*EPILOGUE 11: The Witch
::*EPILOGUE 14: Poison & Apple & Kiss
::*EPILOGUE 19: Snow White
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair '' / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol6_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Ragnarok 00: Ruined hair of a place no one knows
::*Ragnarok 01: 19-year-old Useless Repeat-year-student, Hobby is video gaming
::*Ragnarok 02: Marionette of blood and flesh and bone
::*Ragnarok 03: Peaceful, Everyday Heaven
::*Ragnarok 04: 29 year old bachelor, Bored every day
::*Ragnarok 05: Production-orientated Loner
::*Ragnarok 06: Final God Mode: 3000 Worlds
::*Ragnarok xx: The twilight of the aftermath...
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

== Series Overview ==
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear / 蟲と眼球とテディベア　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1273-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1470-7)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ (ISBN 978-4-8401-1532-2)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1593-3)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1765-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア (ISBN 978-4-8401-1858-3)

Mushi:Vol2 Ch4

2012-01-20T01:21:26Z

Cakemanofdoom: Created page with "== '''Night 4: I Can't Hear the Bells" == It was over quickly. Even those arms weren't enough, as Mina easily defeated Long-Armed Demon. Her legs were broken, her should..."

Mushi:Vol2 TLnotes

2012-01-20T01:21:16Z

Cakemanofdoom:

<center>Translator's Notes and References for 
<big>蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒</big> 
Mushi and Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection</center>

== Open ==

=== * ===
There was extra text here: 还是要说是“大家来找茬”里面的“茬”呢. However, I don’t know how to translate it, and it isn’t vital to the plot, so I’m leaving it off for now. If anyone who knows what they're doing can put that in English without it sounding weird, feel free to edit.

=== ** ===
I wasn't actually sure what the text meant (来比手腕长度吧?). I just put something that sounded like it would fit there, and hopefully I didn't ruin the meaning. Someone please fix if your superior Chinese tells you that I'm wrong.

=== Tenaga Oni ===
Lit. Long-armed ghost.

=== *** ===
Original text: 与为了迎新，并祈求消灭妖魔鬼怪而作响的除夕之钟完全相反，那只是暗示加藤克美觉得无聊又打心底热爱的日常生活到此结束，妖魔们将跋扈横行的序夜之钟. This sentence was very confusing to me. Someone needs to check my TL.

=== Sakkin Shoudoku ===
Lit. to sterilize/disinfect. Same characters as the volume title.

== Night 1 ==
=== Black Dragon ===
Kuroki Tatsue's full name is written as 黑木龙惠 in kanji. The first characters of her surname and first name make the word 黑龙, literally meaning 'Black Dragon'. That is how she likes to refer to herself as.

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=== Itsuwara ===
The first kanji in this surname means 'Fake'.

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=== Shichi-Go-San ===
A Japanese childhood ceremony. For more information please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shichi-Go-San

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=== Saibara Mina ===
The name is written as 杀原美名, with the first kanji 'Sai' meaning 'to kill'.

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== Night 2 ==

=== Nageki Kurukiyo ===
The name is written as 叹木狂清 in kanji. 叹 means 'to sigh', while '狂' stands for 'madness'. The author didn't forget to poke fun at Guriko's own 'savage' name while at it.

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=== Zekiguchi Nashinori ===
The name is written as 藉口无法 in kanji. The Kanji for Nashinori '无法' means 'lawless'.

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== Night 4 ==

=== Questionable translations ===
-"Mina easily silenced her": I'm not really sure I got the subject/action right. 竟然能像拂去碍眼灰尘般，轻而易举地让那样的她沉默

-"it spoke unexpectedly in a human voice": 肉偶吓一跳，然后令人意外地用人话回答

-"She selflessly tore...": 忘我地将强盗大卸八块，然后失去意识。

-"The man's face seemed like a monster's": I'm missing something here. 测海让他的脸看起来像怪物一样的男人

-"And so, she prepared to accept that night": 就在她这么想，正准备接受现状的夜晚。

-"she prayed that it was only a bad dream": 好像是梦到过去的画面，拜这个所赐没做恶梦

-"Then he twisted her arms...": 然后反转姬两手，抢走汤匙。脑中一片空白，内心绝望，瓦解的思考回路，缓慢地朝自灭之路开始溶解。

-"This small room was really bad for the environment": 充满烟味的这问小房间实在杀风景

-"After removing her blindfolds": 以治疗用眼罩遮住的眼球，已大致再生完成，视线也回复到清晰状态。/这里是把自己抓来。宛如头发妖怪般的刑警的房间。

-"Even Zekiguchi had never seen this much": 连藉口也没看过的说，这下不就嫁不出去了……

-"singing the theme song of Onitaro": This doesn't make sense to me... 明明是变态又阴森的刑警，唱唱鬼太郎【注：日本动漫，作者为水木茂。】就好啦

-"Long-Armed Demon beat back the perverted detective with her arm stumps": 手长鬼用漂亮的头槌击退变态刑警，自己也痛到呻吟

-"I can't forget it": 很不甘心吧

=== Onitaro ===
According to the Chinese translator, this is a manga/anime by Mizuki Shigeru (not sure on name). Unfortunately, Google didn't give me much on it.

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Mushi to Medama

2012-01-18T23:08:04Z

Cakemanofdoom:

[[Image:mtm_main.jpg|200px|thumb|Cover for the 1st novel]]

Sakaki Guryuu is a multi-talented genius who, despite being gifted and wealthy, decides to teach in the countryside to be together with his lover, Usagawa Rinne, who also happens to be his student. Their peaceful lives are shattered one day when Rinne is killed, in front of Sakaki's eyes, by a girl named "Gankyuu Eguriko", who gouged her eyes out with a spoon. Things take an even stranger turn when Rinne suddenly wakes up as if nothing had happened, and something called an "Eden's Apple" is thrown into the mix.

Mushi to Medama won the award for the "Best Newcomer" category in the MF Literary Awards.

== [[MTM:Registration Page|Registration]] ==
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

=== Format Standards ===
*[[Format_guideline|General Format/Style Guideline]]

== Updates ==
*October 17, 2008
** Project Officially Started

*September 8, 2009
** Volume 1 Chapter 3 complete

*May 11, 2010
** Volume 1 Chapter 4 complete

*March 13, 2011
** Volume 1 Chapter 2 complete

*March 26, 2011
**Volume 2 Open complete

*April 14, 2011
**Volume 1 Epilogue complete

*April 22, 2011
**Volume 1 Chapter 5 complete
**Volume 1 complete

*November 27, 2011
**Volume 2 Night 2 complete

*January 15, 2012
**Volume 2 Night 3 complete

== Project Staff ==

*Project Administrator: [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
*Project Supervisor:

=== Translators ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
Those who wish to contribute are asked to first notify a supervisor beforehand. [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] has Chinese RAWs available for those who wish to help.
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

'''INACTIVE
::*[[User:Cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] (Until I can get myself to stop being so lazy and get back to work. Bugging me on my talk page or forum will help motivation a lot.)

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]]

=== Editors ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:RoadBuster|RoadBuster]]
::*[[User:Chaos Greyblood|Chaos Greyblood]]
::*[[User:dell19930|dell19930]]
::*[[User:AlfheimWanderer|AlfheimWanderer]]

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:TheGiftedMonkey|TheGiftedMonkey]]

== Mushi to Medama Series by Akira (日日日), Illustrated by Mitsuki Mausu ==

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear '' / 蟲と眼球とテディベア ([[Mushi:Vol1|Full Text]] - [http://www.mediafire.com/?fz7iq8c6zriib36 PDF for e-Reader]) ===
[[Image:Mtm_main.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 1 Cover: Gankyuu Egoriko]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch1|Night 1: Usarin-kakka's Daily Edict]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch2|Night 2: The 15th November Incident]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch3|Night 3: The Girl who died a Thousand years ago]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch4|Night 4: Loneliness ← Kodoku → Insect Poison]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch5|Final Night: "Don't Look"]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Epilogue|Guriko's Offering]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Author's_Notes|Author's Notes]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection '' / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒 ===
[[Image:Mtm2_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 2 Cover: Usagawa Rinne]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Open|Open: Clock of Endless Nights]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch1|Night 1: A Series of Misfortune]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch2|Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch3|Night 3: Boudoir]]
::*Night 4: I can't hear the bells
::*Final Night: Start of Disinfection
::*Close: Blood-stained Night
::*Author's Notes
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait '' / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ ===
[[Image:Mtm3_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 3 Cover]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Prologue|Start: Lady with a Helmet]]
::*Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat
::*Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love
::*Night 3: Distancing happiness
::*Night 4: Temporary halt?
::*Night 5: Vomit
::*End: You and Chocolate Sunday
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love '' / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol4_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Overture: 700
::*Symphony 1: Unable to transmit via songs alone
::*Symphony 2: Whom does the Song of Love belong to?
::*Symphony 3: Crybaby Joker
::*Symphony 4: The Adventures of Vegetable Juice and Tomato Juice
::*Final Symphony: Unable to save based on love alone
::*Requiem: 666
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White '' / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol5_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*PROLOGUE 02: The Jealous Queen
::*EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
::*EPILOGUE 06: The Hunter
::*EPILOGUE 09: The Seven Dwarfs
::*EPILOGUE 11: The Witch
::*EPILOGUE 14: Poison & Apple & Kiss
::*EPILOGUE 19: Snow White
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair '' / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol6_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Ragnarok 00: Ruined hair of a place no one knows
::*Ragnarok 01: 19-year-old Useless Repeat-year-student, Hobby is video gaming
::*Ragnarok 02: Marionette of blood and flesh and bone
::*Ragnarok 03: Peaceful, Everyday Heaven
::*Ragnarok 04: 29 year old bachelor, Bored every day
::*Ragnarok 05: Production-orientated Loner
::*Ragnarok 06: Final God Mode: 3000 Worlds
::*Ragnarok xx: The twilight of the aftermath...
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

== Series Overview ==
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear / 蟲と眼球とテディベア　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1273-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1470-7)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ (ISBN 978-4-8401-1532-2)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1593-3)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1765-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア (ISBN 978-4-8401-1858-3)

Mushi:Vol1 Ch1

2012-01-18T23:04:43Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Night 1: Usarin-kakka's Daily Edict''' ==

<pre>From ★ Usarin
To ★ Sensei
Subject ★ Edict
Body ★ Hello, Usarin here. I know that you should be the busiest during after class hours, but, since you said that I could text
you whenever I pleased, that’s what I’m doing now! If I’ve done anything wrong, just lecture me, okay? I’m currently at home. Are
you still in school? If you think it’s too much of a hassle, you could just ignore this message, but, if you’re free, do reply! I’ll
be waiting!</pre>

<pre>From ★ Sensei
To ★ Usarin-kakka
Subject ★ In the middle of a teacher’s conference
Body ★ I’m bored. I have no idea why the job as a teacher is so long-winded. I’m so bored that I’m drinking cup after cup of
coffee… But, that wouldn’t be good for my stomach. Why did you text me, anyway? Is anything up? 'Cause, if there is, I, Sakaki Guryuu,
will hightail out of here right away. It’s not like I’ll be missing much from this kind of meeting, anyway, don’t worry.</pre>

<pre>From ★ Usarin
To ★ Sensei
Subject ★ Edict 2
Body ★ Ehh~ You’re in a meeting, Sensei? I’m sorry, I must have distracted you. I’ll get straight to the point, then: After your
meeting dismisses later, please, come over to my house, Sensei. Do you remember what day it is? November 11th… It’s your birthday!
It’s impossible to hold anything grand at my house, so, I’ve only prepared a cake for you. If you’re free – and I mean really free –
please, come over to my place. Happy birthday, Sensei! I’ll be waiting!</pre>

If words were used to describe Kannonsakazaki Private High School teacher Sakaki Guryuu, they would probably be something along the lines of “talented,” “elegant,” “genius,” “stunning” – you could probably list out every positive adjective you knew and compare them to Sakaki, and none of them would seem out of place, because he was perhaps the most perfect human being in the world, a being bearing the closest resemblance to God. Even “godlike,” “flawless,” and “one-of-a-kind” seemed to match him – the pinnacle of human evolution, Sakaki Guryuu.

Obtaining a doctorate at twelve, skilled in all fields, being hailed as the incarnation of Leonardo Da Vinci – not only was he intellectually gifted, he was physically talented, too. Aikido was meant as a method of passing time, but soon he found his way into the Olympics. His touch of the piano melted hearts, his paintings of the brush shook worlds. The titles “The Best," "The Finest," and "The Greatest,” seemed to perfectly suit him, and, backed by the extremely wealthy Sakaki Organization (he was already picked as the Organization’s heir), it seemed that he had already succeeded in life. Failure was clearly not on the menu.

However, Sakaki had a weakness, no, more of a problem actually. This “problem” was the reason why, when he was nineteen, he went down to the countryside and started teaching in the private high school he used to attend. This was also why he never fully concentrated in literature, arts, or sports. It was a “problem” the large organization was powerless to deal with.

Yes, it was a “problem”, and the cause was known as Usagawa [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#Rinne|Rinne]].

She was a normal high school girl that Sakaki loved, was enamored with, even. In fact, you could even say that Sakaki worshiped her.

It was because of her that Sakaki Guryuu strayed from the path of the elite.

Hoping to spend more time with her, Sakaki decided to become a teacher in her school. All other literary, artistic, and sports matters, which were meant as time-passers in the first place, were put on indefinite hold. All of her living expenses, including her apartment's rent, water and electricity bills, tuition fees and pocket money, were fully sponsored out of Sakaki’s pocket. In short, he was her [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#Daddy-Long-Legs|Daddy-Long-Legs]].

Since there was nothing wrong with that nickname, Sakaki silently acknowledged it.

“What a waste of talent, what the hell is he doing? Resign from being a teacher! Go do something proper instead!” These were words uttered by people who didn’t know Sakaki’s feelings: in other words, pointless words of advice. To Sakaki, there was something more important than producing a thesis which overturned the most fundamental laws of science, securing a gold medal by beating a world champion in the Olympics, or even making a name for himself as one of the most prominent artists in history – and that was spending the day with Usagawa Rinne, doing ordinary stuff, living an ordinary life. That was true happiness to him.

Priorities did, after all, differ from person to person.

And so did happiness.

The head teacher stood up and began making a speech about teenage delinquency and the current state of social safety: about how they were a threat to society, and how, if they were all rounded up and expelled, what a better world we would be living in. From a third person’s point of view, this would seem like anything but a peaceful discussion.

What was he angry about? Was he ''genuinely'' angry about the degeneration of society? That was highly unlikely – the Head Teacher was probably just pissed, that’s all! Pissed at the fact that nobody wished him “Good morning” today, pissed at the students who secretly called him “anteater” behind his back! In order to vent his anger, he was directing his hatred towards all teenagers in general.

“Boring,” Sakaki said softly.

It was indeed boring – everything was. Due to the low birth rate and a new policy to prioritize senior citizens introduced by politicians, the school was becoming poorer by the day. In order to save electricity, lights were not turned on, resulting in the meeting room being extremely dim. Married couples refused to have children, as raising them took too much money, snobbish politicians who prioritized elderly citizens, hoping for a higher voter turnout – even if the school’s fortunes were rapidly declining. Still, it was still no reason to pin it on them. Plus, there was nothing wrong with being poor, Sakaki reasoned. Looking at Usagawa Rinne made him think that way.

Human beings, after all, were only able to gain happiness by fulfilling their own goals. Even if someone owned a lot of property, if he felt that he hadn’t achieved his own goal and was unhappy, then he would, of course, be unhappy! Similarly, even if someone was poor, as long as she felt she was happy, then, of course, she would be happy! “He,” in this case, referring to Sakaki before he met Usagawa Rinne. “She,” in this case, referring to Rinne.

Rinne was extremely poor. Her only hobby was cooking, and even though she had to work hard to make ends meet, she still bravely lived on. She must be happy, and the one who got to meet her – Sakaki, must also be equally happy.

Sakaki, who was previously listening to the meeting in a corner, shifted his attention towards his cell phone upon receiving Rinne’s message.

The Head Teacher was still going on loudly about something. “It must be hard on him, screaming out loud like that in the winter will evidently give him a sore throat,” Sakaki thought, as he withdrew the vibrating cell phone from his pocket, preparing to read his new message. Even though the Head Teacher visibly frowned at this, Sakaki pretended not to notice, as he indifferently began replying to the message while on the long table.

The Head Teacher immediately reprimanded him.

“Sakaki-sensei, please refrain from using your cell phone in a meeting…”

“I apologize.”

Sakaki said softly, while still maintaining a conceited attitude.

“I was previously evaluating which was more important, listening to you ranting or reading my message. I acted according to the order of importance. If I offended you, I hereby apologize.”

Sakaki haughtily – or should we say arrogantly, silenced the Head Teacher. The Head Teacher coughed, as if wanting to display an air of strictness and continued talking.

Not too long after, Sakaki’s phone made a “Rat-Tat-Tat” sound as it vibrated on the table. It seemed as though he had a new message. Sakaki naturally reached for his phone.

The Head Teacher, who was in the middle of another meaningless rant, warned, with spit flying everywhere, “Sakaki-sensei…”

“…I’m sorry, I suddenly have urgent matters to attend to, and need to be going now. Oh yeah, you, the Head Teacher, make sure to send me the minutes by tonight. Only list down the points; there shouldn’t be much anyway seeing how things are going now.” 

“Wha---”

Seeing the Head Teacher’s face darken, Sakaki immediately retorted, “No buts! I have urgent business to settle now. Don’t forget, this school is under the jurisdiction of my Sakaki Organization, and the teacher’s guild is also funded by it, so I think that those who sit down and quietly listen are the bright ones.”

Sakaki stood up after finishing. Full of rage at being humiliated, the Head Teacher’s face was as red as a tomato. Sakaki ignored him and continued to avoid his gaze. Nodding at the other teachers, who were rendered speechless, Sakaki turned and left the meeting room. “Usagawa Rinne is calling me. Why should I waste my time in such a pointless meeting. She should be my main priority,” Sakaki reasoned as his long strides echoed in the empty hallways.

Sakaki’s elegant strides would often make people stop in their tracks. Some girls would even point at him, as if trying to say “unbelievable!”

Be it a guy or girl, all who saw his elegant demeanor would be robbed of the ability to think for a few seconds, stopping in their tracks to marvel at him. Of course, “him” in this context refers to Sakaki Guryuu, who was making his way to Usagawa Rinne’s apartment. Like a wave rippling outwards, Sakaki ignored the stares of the crowd and walked ahead.

His blonde hair, inherited from his American mother, shimmered transparently under the sunlight. This was in addition to a series of proper facial features and a perfectly proportioned body. Disliking outlandish outfits, Sakaki frequently wore a suit, save for occasions where he went to Rinne’s place. Every time he tried to wear something fancy, he would be mistaken as a celebrity though, sometimes accompanied by fans screaming “Give me an autograph! Give me an autograph!!” while dashing towards him. Sakaki often wondered, “What use is it getting a high school teacher’s signature?” Even though he had a celebrity-like name (and signature), it didn’t mean he was a celebrity!

Since this was a countryside town after all, as soon as Sakaki left the main street, the crowd would begin to thin. He began jogging on the long, dark, uneven path, as he made his way to Rinne’s apartment. He could have reached her place faster with a bike or car, but since Sakaki wanted to avoid his perfect hair (which took him great effort to dry and comb every day) getting messed up by the wind, he opted to go on foot. Besides, Rinne’s apartment wasn’t that far anyway. Looking at his new, handpicked clothes, Sakaki wondered, “Do these clothes suit me?” Although he never really felt comfortable wearing clothes marketed to youngsters, Sakaki felt that wearing a suit to a party was simply too ridiculous, and ended up putting up with it. Plus, wearing a suit often gave him a “teacher-ish” aura. Whenever he was alone with Rinne, Sakaki hoped to shed his teacher “shell”, and be himself with her.

It was quite a distance from the nearest station before there were any houses. Large fields were left abandoned without any apparent reason, some with wooden houses erected on them. These wooden houses, some even having tile roofs, gave one a sense of antiquity, as if time had suddenly stopped.

Just as Sakaki was making a couple of pointless observations…

“Hey there, Onii-chan…”

A voice drifted out from somewhere. It sounded like a guy or a low-pitched girl’s voice.

Sakaki turned towards the source of the voice and saw an odd, little stall in the middle of the field.

Could that even pass as a stall? A purple mat was placed on the floor, hammered to the ground with nails. On top of the mat a person, who was clad in a long, robe-like garment, quietly sat there, cross-legged. The person’s face was blocked by a long hood, making it impossible to tell if it was a man or woman under it. There was also a large, crystal ball on the mat, which the person was gently polishing. There was also a small sign placed on the mat, which simply read “Fortune telling, 100 yen”.

“Fortune telling…?”

Why would a fortune teller be in such a place? Shouldn’t they be in a shopping district or something – no wait, what was a fortune teller doing in the countryside anyway? And could one really make a living by a measly 100 yen per fortune telling? Lots of questions surfaced in Sakaki’s mind; this was a suspicious trader indeed.

The mysterious trader lifted both hands. Maybe it was due to the long sleeves on the robe, but this made the trader seem positively inhuman. The trader then said to Sakaki, “Yes, Onii-chan, fortune telling. Would you like to give it a go? I’m very accurate, you know. Your fortune in wealth, in love, or in life… Or perhaps you would like to hit it big? Win a big prize? Look for something long lost? Get rid of something bothering you? I can tell all sorts of fortunes!”

“Sorry, but I’m not interested.”

Sakaki replied shortly, as he quickly turned his back to the fortune teller.

“Wait, wait!!” the fortune teller said and hastily got up. The fortune teller then proceeded to say something that made Sakaki freeze in his steps.

“You won’t lose anything by just getting a reading, Onii-chan! I sense a malicious aura around you, and if you don’t get rid of it soon, it is certain to bring you misfortune! You seem to be a powerful person, who doesn’t really care about what happens to himself. However, this malicious aura may cause misfortune to befall those around you! I know you don’t want that to happen, do you? Sakaki Guryuu…”

“Huh…?”

Sakaki furiously turned his head. There was a crystal ball in the fortune teller’s outstretched hands as the fortune teller mystically continued, “… The one you like, ah, Usagawa Rinne? She will be the first victim, and die a very horrible death. You don’t wish such fate to befall your lover, do you, Onii-chan? A corpse, with a gouged out eyeball…”

“You…”

Sakaki roared as he charged into the empty field, towards the stall. This shady character not only knew his name, but Rinne’s as well! He forcefully grabbed the fortune teller by the collar.

“Ouch! Don’t do that! It hurts!” The fortune teller yelled, somewhat unemotionally. Sakaki ripped open the fortune teller’s hood, revealing the face of a surprisingly young man. His expressionless face, however, gave Sakaki the chills. It was like a bug's, totally void of expression.

The guy’s hair was messy, and his eyes shimmered in a frightening crimson.

Sakaki hollered in a loud voice, “Who the hell are you? How do you know my and Rinne’s names? And what’s this about a corpse? Are you saying Rinne is going to die? What on earth do you mean? Answer me, brat!”

“That’s why…”

The fortune teller wasn’t the least bit shaken. He was also not the slightest bit attracted towards Sakaki, as he looked at him without blinking, his eyes like clear accessories.

“… I told you to come for a fortune reading, didn’t I? That’s what I could tell anyway, I’m a fortune teller after all. You will encounter a series of misfortunes after this, misfortunes which will destroy your normal days, shatter your everyday life, and bring forth pain and suffering! And the overture to this catastrophe, the first victim, will be the one you adore, the girl named Usagawa Rinne…”

The fortune teller said in one-breath. Not pausing to draw a breath, he continued, “… She will be killed by a devil, in a brutal, inhuman way – her eye sockets will be pierced by a spoon, and her eyeballs will be gouged out! She will slowly die, with pain being the last thing registered in her brain! Because it’s such a painful way to die, I bet she’ll even hate you! Compared to being murdered like this, I bet she would wish to have died back then, in that big, blue sea. ‘Ah, it would have been so much easier if I had died in the sea back then~ Why did you have to save me, sensei? I hate you, I’m going to curse you for all eternity…’”

Sakaki whacked his fist into the fortune teller’s face, as if trying to stop that prediction from coming true.

Even after being walloped in the face, the fortune teller’s expression did not change. Since he was being grabbed by the collar, he did not fall, as he said, in that feminine-yet-masculine tone, “That’s what’s going to happen in the future. Punching me isn’t going to change it.”

“What the… You son of a…!”

Sakaki yelled, clearly shocked by the fortune teller’s inhuman response. “Who the hell are you? What is your motive? What are you planning to achieve? Why are you saying such things? You’re saying misfortune is about to befall me? What misfortune? Why must Rinne die?”

Sakaki had no doubt that this fortune teller was a real one now, most likely due to his inhuman reaction and aura. Also, Sakaki was clearly disturbed by his shimmering red eyes. Normal human eyes don’t glitter. This guy was clearly not human.

“We are called ‘Mushi’.”

The shady fortune teller said in the same tone.

“W-We?”

“…… Yes we. We do not have form, we do not have [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#sentience|sentience]]. We only obey orders from our superiors, a collection of individuals who have forsaken individuality. We are known as ‘Mushi’. [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#Mushi and Bugs|Not ‘Bugs’, but rather, ‘Mushi’]].

The ‘Mushi’ said, with ironically bug-like eyes.

The purple mat Sakaki was standing on seemed to shimmer, as if it lacked substance, as if it were ethereal. What’s going on here? Is this really true? Those were the thoughts racing through Sakaki’s head.

“As a ‘Mushi’, my orders are to pass you these warnings from the future. You are to ponder upon my words, think of an appropriate strategy and try to delay the inevitable. Who knows? You might be able to avoid the worst case scenario.”

“Worse case scenario?”

“The coming of the devil.”

The “Mushi” spelled out.

“It could happen anytime – today, tomorrow, 10 years later, maybe even 10 seconds later. However, in the end, that day will still come. The devil will appear before you, murder Usagawa Rinne and cause the worst case scenario.”

“Worst case scenario?”

“I can’t tell you.”

The “Mushi” answered, rejecting Sakaki’s second question just like a faulty calculator failing at the last moment. Does he mean to say that that is not part of his fate?

“Even though I can’t tell you, what I can say is, it’s the worst case scenario.”

“Then to me, the worst case scenario would be Rinne dying. Even if you were to weight the Earth exploding or the Universe imploding on one side of the scale and Rinne dying on the other, the scale would clearly tip towards her favour.”

“That might be it, I guess!”

People, after all, had different priorities. The “Mushi” ambiguously replied, before saying, “In a situation like this, it doesn’t matter what you hold as the worst case scenario. After all, if Usagawa Rinne isn’t murdered by the devil, then the worst case scenario will never occur. So try to keep it that way.”

The “Mushi” brushed Sakaki’s hand away, as he rummaged through a small cardboard box on the mat. A while later, he produced a giant egg and cupped it in both hands.

What kind of egg was that? It was slightly smaller than a human’s skull – around the size of an ostrich’s egg. It had a white base and, as if wanting to look less dull, had red and green patterns on it. However, these patterns seemed genuine, and it certainly didn’t look like something someone had painted on it.

Of course, this was no egg a bird, reptile, amphibian or bug could ever lay.

What was this egg? And why was the fortune teller holding it?

The “Mushi” carefully raised the egg, and handed it to Sakaki.

“This is the egg of a Dream-world beast. It’s not a creature of this world, so don’t bother searching any encyclopedias for it. Don’t forget to hand it to Usagawa Rinne. You don’t have to keep it warm, it will hatch after some time. If you’re lucky, it’ll hatch into a Dream-world beast before the devil arrives. Dream-world beasts are primitive beings, and just like animals, they have [[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#filial imprints|filial imprints]], and will recognize the first thing they see as their mother. So it should theoretically recognize Usagawa Rinne as its mother, even though they are physically different. Since Dream-world beasts are very powerful, they should most likely be able to ward off the devil.”

“Because of its parents?”

“Because its parents are in danger. Dream-world beasts value family ties, and they are the best counter to the devil. Hmm… Before the Dream-world beast hatches, though, you should carry firearms on you, in order to protect Usagawa Rinne, even though they are forbidden!”

The “Mushi” gently prodded Sakaki’s chest, and true enough, a handgun was hidden inside. How could he possibly tell? Sakaki was shocked. He felt as if he was breathing another planet’s air, and the air was composed of different components, causing him to feel very strange and dizzy. It was as if the world had suddenly gone mad.

“Who… What on Earth are you?”

Sakaki yelled, having asked this question for the third time.

For the first time throughout their encounter, the “Mushi” smiled.

“I wonder, what should I answer for you to believe me?”

For some reason, the old apartment looked even more run down than the tile-roofed houses today – the old apartment Usagawa Rinne stayed in, of course. It was a three storey building, with a total of 6 rooms, 3 of which were vacant. The 2nd floor was where the office was situated, and room 1A, on the 1st floor, belonged to Rinne. Room 1B, which happened to be situated next door, by the way, was occupied by a self-claimed musician. According to Rinne, she was either bad at socializing, or she just plain hated humans, since she rarely mixed with anyone at all.

There was also the question as to why an apartment was even built in a place like this. Despite being an apartment, however, the rooms were uncomfortably small and narrow, which in turn caused the rent to be very cheap – so cheap, in fact, that even Rinne could afford it with the money she earned from her part-time job. Also, despite Sakaki’s frequent “Don’t worry about the money, just go get a better house”, Rinne stubbornly refused to listen, replying with a simple “As long as the room is long enough for me to lie down, its all the same to me!” Not only did Rinne turn down Sakaki’s offers, she was also very against receiving any form of cash from him, insisting that she could take care of herself just fine.

Of course, Sakaki had, behind Rinne’s back, given her all forms of help. Like threatening her boss with the prospect of not being able to establish himself in society should he ever fire Rinne, or installing a water purifier in her apartment’s water supply in fear of her getting sick after drinking contaminated water.

Back to the story, by the time Sakaki reached Rinne’s apartment, it was already six. Treading on the old cement floor, he made his way to room 1A and stopped. He took a deep breath; appearances were indeed deceiving, Sakaki was in fact, quite vulnerable to girls, especially when the girl in question was Rinne. He tended to get nervous quite easily, so stopping by the door and taking a deep breath every time he visited this apartment was already a routine of his.

Again for some unknown reason, this run-down apartment had an intercom. Sakaki pressed the door bell, and waited.

Rinne’s clear, chine-like voice quickly came out from the intercom.

“Who is it?”

“Usarin-[[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#kakka|kakka]], its me”

“Hai~~”

Even though he never said who he was, Rinne already knew who it was on the other side of the door. The only person who would address Rinne as “-kakka” would be Sakaki. Rinne immediately let out a squeal, and cut her reply short.

Since the room was small, Rinne literally reached the door in less than two seconds.

Appearing behind the open door was the silhouette of a cute, little girl. Because her clothes were quite dated, she looked somewhat old-fashioned, but ignoring this fact, she was indeed really cute. Clean, straight hair, snow-white skin, a gentle smile on her face, those alone were enough to make her very attractive, but what attracted Sakaki the most was her clear, chime-like voice.

Rinne, who was up to Sakaki’s chest in height, looked up to him and smiled, like a blossoming flower.

“Sensei, you really came!” Rinne said in a transparent, bell-like chime. “I’m so glad you did! Come in, it’s freezing outside!”

Rinne pulled Sakaki’s arm and dragged him into her room. There was only enough space for one to take off his or her shoes (and also store them at the same spot – there wasn’t room for a shoe rack). Sakaki took off his shoes, and let her drag him into her room.

Rinne’s apartment was about 4 tatamis wide, and consisted of her room, a toilet and the kitchen, so the four-and-a-half tatami standard measurement for rooms (including a toilet) actually took up the entirety of Rinne’s apartment unit. There was no bathroom in her unit, so Rinne had to use the bathroom located outside everyday.

Sakaki took off his coat and placed it in a corner, along with the egg.

Most likely due to Rinne’s cooking, there was a strong aroma in the room that wouldn’t disperse. There was a small window in the room that was tightly shut, because of the cold outside. Even if she turned on the kitchen fan, it wouldn’t have helped much. After telling Rinne about his empty stomach, Sakaki snuggled both his legs into the futon beneath the table.

Rinne opened the fridge and withdrew a box and some malt tea. She poured the tea into a cup she withdrew from a sink, and placed it onto a saucer. She then took the box, along with the tea, and went to Sakaki’s side.

“It’s done!”

“Thanks a lot… But why are you sitting next to me? Isn’t it squishy? The table is square anyhow, you don’t have to squeeze beside me, right?”

“You don’t understand?”

Rinne smiled as she leaned on Sakaki.

“It’s because I want to be by your side! Even if its 1 centimeter closer, I still want to be closer to you”

“Happy birthday, Sensei…” Rinne concluded as she looked up at Sakaki.

Sakaki looked as if he was trying very hard to withhold something.

“… Usarin-kakka, if you utter such cute words, I’m afraid I won’t be able to hold myself back. Please don’t be that way, I’ve already promised Usarin-kakka that before you graduate, I won’t hold your hand or anything so please, don’t make me break that promise.”

“Those kind of promises, I won’t mind if you break them. You shouldn’t have to restrain yourself in the first place.”

Rinne said matter-of-factly as she continued to lean on Sakaki.

“This is bad,” Sakaki thought. Rinne was too cute, to the point that Sakaki wanted to hug her on the spot. But he couldn’t. If a teacher did that to a student, it was considered an offense.

Sakaki resisted the notion with an iron-clad will, and steered the topic to a safe direction.

“Speaking of which, Usarin-kakka, it seems that the things in your room have increased yet again?”

“They have?”

“Yeah, like that television for example. I didn’t notice it the last I was here? Did you buy it recently?”

“I wouldn’t be able to afford such a thing! It’s too expensive! You know how the shopping district has these lucky draws once in a while? Like on their 10-year-anniversary or grand sales and such, this was the prize for the runner-up!”

“So you drew the 2nd place lot?”

“Nope, its just that nobody did, and the television became an extra. The uncle who was in charge of the lucky draw said ‘It’s no use keeping it, I guess we’ll just give it to Rinne!’, so that’s how I got it~”

“He’s abusing his authority that way, it’s fairly easy to see what he was after.”

“Yeah! But since he said he would give it to me, there wasn’t any reason for me to refuse him, was there? Actually, I kinda wanted a television myself too, that’s why I accepted it. Oh, and I also took lots of instant noodles back with me.”

In a corner of the room, there was indeed a cardboard box labeled “Kannonsakazaki Shopping District”, and if it was filled with instant noodles, then it would certainly have been a lot of instant noodles. Sakaki warned Rinne, “Don’t make it a habit to accept things from strangers. There have been lots of reports from school about students accepting such things and then being charged with high installments.”

“Okay…”

Rinne smiled bitterly, as she opened the box on the table. There were two slices of cake inside, she was too poor to purchase an entire cake.

Rinne placed the cakes on the saucers, and announced, “I don’t have any forks!” She then stood up, hesitated a while, and stood rooted to the spot, as if thinking of something. After a while, she went to another corner of the room, and took a paper bag.

Her face was flushing red. It was as if she was embarrassed and frustrated at the same time.

“Erm…”

Sakaki more or less guessed what the paper bag meant, and why she was hesitating.

The bag must have contained Sakaki’s birthday present, and Rinne was obviously hesitating whether or not to give it to him. She was probably thinking something along the lines of “Would this be appropriate? Would Sensei like it, and what if he rejected it?”, and thus was hesitant to present Sakaki his present.

Sakaki understood, as he said to Rinne with a benevolent expression never seen by anyone else, “Don’t worry! As long as its something from Usarin-kakka, then I’ll definitely treasure it, no matter what!”

“R-Really? But Sensei, you’re so rich, I bet your previous birthdays were much grander, and the presents must have been extraordinary right? I’m sorry, or maybe I’m ashamed of myself.”

“That’s not true.”

Sakaki answered truthfully: “A present’s value is not measured by how much it cost; a birthday’s worth is not based on how big the modal was. To me, Usarin-kakka, being able to spend the day like today sitting by a warm table and enjoying cake, toasting with malt tea, this is more enjoyable than anything I’ve experienced thus far. This is definitely my best birthday by far, so please, don’t put on such a face.”

“B-b-but…”

“Stop but-buting anymore, I’ve sworn to you that I’m with you not because I pity you but because I really love you, from the depths of my heart. Trust me, you aren’t worthless, I’m not a superior being, and Usarin-kakka, you are more than a match for me, please believe me when I say that you are a special girl to me. I’ve given you my word, am I right?”

“Yeah…”

I’ve given you my word.

Usagawa Rinne shouldn’t have been ashamed in the first place. Who cares if she was poor, as long as she was herself for Sakaki, she would be the one he loved the most. Sakaki had told her this before, when the two of them had first met. Back then, Rinne hadn’t been able to smile naturally, and wasn’t too capable of having long conversations. Compared to then, she had become so cheerful now.

“T-then, at least for today…”

Rinne said as she lowered her head, “Don’t call me ‘Usarin-kakka’.”

She said in a voice that sounded as if she was pouting, yet teasing him at the same time.

This was Rinne’s true desire, expressed half-jokingly.

Sakaki obliged and said, “Usagawa.”

“Call me by my given name.”

“Rinne.”

“Yeah…”

Most likely satisfied, Rinne nodded, as she withdrew his present from the bag.

It was a wool scarf. Rinne’s handwork was good, and the weaving was absolutely fantastic.

“I was going to give you this for Christmas, but since I managed to finish it early, I’m going to give it to you now. I’ll prepare something else for Christmas.”

“Thanks. Wow, this really is some handwork. Did you learn it from anyone?”

“I learned it from one of my friends. I stayed at her place for about three nights, and begged her to teach me her secrets. All I needed to do was master the basics, and it was continuous repetition from then on, which is why it was surprisingly easy once I got the hang of it! Although the wool is of cheap material, its 100% hand-sewn with lots of love!”

“I see, it’s very warm!”

Sakaki smiled in joy. Love – it definitely provided the most warmth!

Rinne held the scarf with both hands, and sat down facing Sakaki.

“I’m going to help you wear it, lower your head a bit.”

“Okay.”

Sakaki obliged and lowered his head. The scarf gently went around his neck.

It was then that Rinne kissed Sakaki.

Time seemed to freeze at that moment, as Sakaki’s face was plastered with shock. Rinne put her hands by his ears, and gently kissed his lips. The scarf, which was gently wrapped around his neck, softly fell to the ground. This sudden act caused Sakaki to blank out, as he felt the warmth emanating from Rinne’s hands, lips and heart.

“Umm…”

Suddenly, her lips parted.

Rinne slowly furrowed her eyebrows, and mumbled, “……I’m sorry Sensei, I broke our promise.”

“Ah…”

Sakaki said at a loss of words. Rinne looked down, and her thick fringe veiled her expression from Sakaki.

“But I’m constantly in pain, wondering what I am to Sensei. I like Sensei, I like Guryuu-san, but since we’re in a teacher-student relationship, and Sensei refuses to hold hands, call me by my name and all, sometimes I feel really scared…”

Rinne said as she shook her head.

“…… I’m very stubborn aren’t I? Sensei treats me so well, yet here I am, asking for more. I wonder, what am I to Sensei? Does Sensei really like me? I believe you when you say you do, but even then… I’m scared, really scared, that’s why I wanted some affirmation…”

Rinne said, as if on the verge of tears. She wasn’t crying; even though her voice was trembling, she wasn’t crying. Sakaki understood – it was because these were her true feelings, that’s why she wasn’t crying. He understood that these weren’t just words uttered at the spur of the moment; these were matters that were troubling her deep in her heart.

Sakaki suddenly felt the urge to curse himself. Rinne mentioned that she was in pain, in fear; fear of being hated, being dumped by Sakaki. She loved him that much!

And just like how Usagawa Rinne loved him, Sakaki Guryuu loved her just as much.

Because the two of them treated each other as important, they were afraid of losing that “importantness”, of losing each other. Just like the two sides of a coin – even though they were totally different, both of them were just as real; even though both of them were technically unrelated, both of them were as tightly bound.

Sakaki caressed Rinne’s silky hair, before bending down and kissing her lightly. Rinne’s hair gently trembled, as she closed her eyes and cried, this time with tears flowing down her cheeks.

Because humans are a fragile species.

That was why we sometimes seek affirmation.

Affirmation of love, feelings, and a few other emotions.

That’s definitely not something bad.

So Rinne, you can stop crying now.

Sakaki Guryuu’s 20th birthday ended, with fond memories etched deep in his skull. By 10 o'clock, he decided to go back home. Even though he wanted to be with Rinne, it was, after all, already 10. Who knows what might happen if he stayed even later! It was best to retreat for now.

Rinne was so cute, Sakaki found it almost impossible to reject her. Since he was a healthy, 20 year old man after all, it was dangerous to continue staying by her side - dangerous in “that” sense, of course. No matter what, Sakaki wanted to avoid crossing the last line of defense, the point of no return.

Sakaki bade farewell to Rinne, with the scarf he received as a present around his neck, and a slice of cake in his hands. In the end, he failed to think of a way to pass the Mushi’s strange egg to Rinne, because the atmosphere certainly didn’t permit it. Plus, upon further thought, the “Mushi” fellow did seem a bit too suspicious.

It was impossible, after all, for a human to predict the future. As for how he knew Sakaki and Rinne’s names, it was possible if one really wanted to investigate. And the glow in his eyes, it was most likely a cheap trick. All that nonsense about Rinne being killed and a worst case scenario, what rubbish! When Sakaki had entered Rinne’s room then, for a while he had actually taken the Mushi’s premonition seriously! After seeing Rinne’s cheerfulness, however, he dismissed the thought entirely. To think that Rinne would be killed, what a joke! Even if one went to hell and back, one wouldn’t be able to find a reason Usagawa Rinne should be killed. What a load of codswallop!

But then…

For some reason, Sakaki still felt a tingle of anxiety. Was what that young man, that “Mushi”, said all a just a big lie? If it was a lie, why did he have to weave such a lie? And if it wasn’t, how in the world did he know in the first place?

Even as Sakaki stopped to think about it using his genius intellect, the conclusion seemed to steer towards a not-so-pleasant direction, which caused Sakaki to dismiss the thoughts straight away. These anxious thoughts, however, seemed to pile up in his brain, casually sinking in like in mud.

Sakaki stood under a lamp post, in the middle of a pitch black street.

He was on the uneven, country-side path. In a few minutes, he would reach the shopping district. He could see the faint neon lights in the distance. The skies were a cloudy gray – there were no stars tonight, and the moon was nowhere to be seen. Sakaki stood still, clutching the odd egg in his hand.

Was what the “Mushi” said really a lie?

What if it wasn’t? What if he had committed an irreversible mistake? That was a scary thought indeed, the though of “what if” terrified Sakaki tremendously.

Go back! Sakaki decided. Even though there was a chance he might be cheated, and maybe even laughed at, he would at least deliver the egg to Rinne, and notify the security guard to secretly protect Rinne. Or maybe he could bring her to his residence before the egg hatched. That would put her far away from harm's reach.

I’ll protect Rinne.

That was what Sakaki thought.

Putting the matter of whether or not she would be killed aside, if there was any threat of impeding danger, the threat had to be neutralized, no matter how subtle the threat may be. Even though there was a possibility of it being no more than a lie. Or a cruel prank. Or something of the sort.

Just as Sakaki made up his mind, and turned around…

A girl, holding a spoon in her right hand, passed by his side.

At the same time…

“Ah!!”

Sakaki yelped in surprise, his heart throbbing furiously.

He looked at the silhouette of the young girl, whose footsteps seemed to be dancing in the shadow. The girl was dressed in old, tattered clothes, like a vagrant. She didn’t have any pants on, and was barefooted. She had long, untamed hair, like a wolf, and perhaps it was due to her not conditioning it, her hair appeared to be in a mess. The spoon in her right hand, however, appeared unusually shiny.

… A spoon.

The Mushi’s words once again flashed through his mind.

“She will be killed by a devil, in a brutal, inhuman way – her eye sockets will be pierced by a spoon, and her eyeballs will be gouged out! She will slowly die, with pain being the last thing registered in her brain...”

That wasn’t a good sign! It wasn’t a good sign at all!!

A strange, young girl appearing in a place like this, at a time like this, with a spoon that was rendered unusually shiny by reflecting the light from the lamp post above – this all coincided with the mysterious fortune teller’s prophecy - the person who Sakaki treasured the most would have her eyes dug out with a spoon, and subsequently killed. This was all Sakaki needed to act.

“Hey you, wait!”

Sakaki hollered, as he ran towards the girl, intending to stop her.

He stretched out his hand to block her path.

“Do you intend to get in my way?”

With a pure, monotonous voice that seemed to carry none of the noise we know as ‘emotion’, this voice came from behind Sakaki’s stiff back. Before Sakaki’s outstretched hands was… No one.

Sakaki immediately turned around.

“Anyone who wishes to stop Guriko, I’ll dig their eyes out. Are you a ‘Mushi’? Even though your eyes don’t glow red, are you a ‘Mushi’? Or are you some unrelated person?”

The girl rasped. From her appearance, she was no more than a high school student. Her voice sounded normal – if it wasn’t for the strange sense of defiance it contained. It was as if even the Sun would freeze after hearing it.

The girl had thick, dark eye shadows, which seemed like black holes sucking in all the spiraling darkness around them. She had a childish face, and slender appendages – yet there was this strange, sinister air about her. She stared at Sakaki with deep, dark eyes. Sakaki felt as if he was peering into a gunbarrel, cold and emotionless, while reeking of death.

He had no idea when she had sneaked behind him, but Sakaki was ready to put up a fight.

The girl’s face contorted.

“If you’re not a Mushi, why do you seek to stop me? Or do you not have any intentions of getting in my way after all? If you have nothing to say, then get out of my way!”

“Why you…!”

“[[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes#Gankyuu Eguriko|Gankyuu Eguriko]].”

Gankyuu Eguriko… Eyeball Gouger?

It was as if she dug people’s eyeballs out!

“I don’t care what you’re called. What do you plan on doing?”

Sakaki had already noticed that this girl wasn’t human. A normal girl wouldn’t be able to move with speed exceeding his jurisdiction.

And… She knew about “Mushi”.

That means…

“If you’re not going to do anything, then buzz off.”

“What do you plan on doing? I don’t think I should let you pass.”

Sakaki calmly said, as he glared at the girl.

“Then so be it.”

Sakaki felt that the girl made no sense.

“If you don’t move…”

The voice came once again from Sakaki’s back…

“Then I’ll make you move.”

Sakaki felt a heavy blow at his neck. His mind wasn’t even aware of what was happening, let alone his body reacting. However, his sharp reflexes allowed him to steady his footing. It would need something more than that to topple Sakaki Guryuu.

From his rapidly distorting vision, Sakaki caught sight of the girl, as she mumbled, “What a stubborn fellow. But you won’t be able to stop me for long.”

Sakaki felt a strong blow being delivered to his stomach. This merciless attacker didn’t give any chance for Sakaki to counter-attack, as she slammed her open palm against Sakaki’s lower jaw.

Sakaki fell down, unable to do anything else.

And the huge egg, which was previously resting in his hands, fell to the ground.

Rinne, Usagawa Rinne – these words flowed continuously within Sakaki’s mind. He was struggling, trying hard not to be swept away by the torrent of thoughts concerning Usagawa Rinne. After being mercilessly beaten back by the waves of Usagawa Rinne thoughts, Sakaki finally came to his senses, as he furiously opened his eyes. He was still under the lamp post, on the uneven path. And the first thing he saw, from the corner of his eye, was a young man cradling a crystal ball.

“Oh, you’ve finally awoken!”

“Ugh…”

The “Mushi”, whom Sakaki had thought to be a part of his dream, appeared right beside him. Sakaki climbed to his feet, ignoring the aching in his body, and grabbed the “Mushi” by the front of his robes.

“Where’s Rinne?”

“Calm down. Shouting isn’t going to do your lower jaw any good, especially since it’s just been palmed, literally.”

“I don’t care what happens to me. Where’s Rinne? And that brat…”

Seeing Sakaki’s anxious face, the Mushi couldn’t help but let out a smile. “Who knows? I just happened to be passing by, and met you here by chance, that’s all!”

“How would some random passerby know I was palmed? You were hiding somewhere here right from the start, weren’t you!”

The Mushi opened his eyes in awe.

“What great deduction! I’m sorry, it’s just that back then, I didn’t think that I would be of much help, that’s why I didn’t step out to save you! Are you sure you’re not hurt?”

“I just said that I don’t care what happens to me! Where’s Rinne? And that brat?”

“And I just said I didn’t know, didn’t I? Instead of asking me, why don’t you just go affirm for yourself, where the devil is headed – Usagawa Rinne’s residence.”

“You said, Rinne’s… Residence.”

Seeing Sakaki’s face grow paler, the Mushi said coldly, “That’s to be expected. Hmm… If you hurry over now, you might be able to stop her! Instead of wasting time talking to me here, why don’t you hurry over there instead?”

“Uh…”

Sakaki immediately pushed the Mushi aside, and sprinted towards Rinne’s house.

“Oh and don’t forget this.”

The Mushi said indifferently, as he placed the egg back in Sakaki’s hands. Sakaki accepted it without much thought.

On the uneven, gravel floor, Sakaki’s involuntary feet carried him forward, as the Mushi’s figure slowly melted into the background, like a shadow disappearing behind his back.

Sakaki ignored him and continued running. Run. Keep running. That was what his brain was commanding his feet. Run like the wind! Along this long, empty road, reminiscent of hell. Sakaki tried to suppress the urge to puke, as he continued clinging on the tiny, almost non-existent sliver of hope, and dashed ahead.

Usagawa Rinne, Usagawa Rinne, Usagawa Rinne.

Her name swirled through his mind, sealing his other thought processes.

What’s happening now? Is this some form of punishment? Since when did the world go wrong? Since when did it go crazy? It was too strange, too bizarre. Sakaki felt like crying – this was totally illogical.

But then – this was reality.

He initially wanted to wait till Rinne had graduated before they got married. Since he was a teacher and Rinne was a student, he had continuously told himself to just cross his fingers and wait. It was nothing but three years – such a short amount of time, it would go by in the blink of an eye. He had firmly believed that his future lay three years ahead of him, even though God was most likely blind in one eye, even though fate was unnecessarily cruel.

“Rinne!!”

He was at the old apartment. Sakaki hammered the old, wooden door, as if trying to break it down by force. All the while, he was yelling her name at the top of his voice. Rinne! Rinne! Rinne!! There was no reply, no reply at all. That was strange, did she go for a shower perhaps? But how was that possible? He was just being overtly hopeful.

“Bang!”

Sakaki withdrew his handgun from his coat, and shot the doorknob without a second thought. He then kicked the door open, as if he didn’t care if he broke it in the first place. True, someone might have heard the gunshot, but Sakaki couldn’t be bothered any more. Shoot first, questions later. Even if this became a criminal case, Sakaki didn’t care.

Rinne was in danger. Usagawa Rinne was in danger,

That left him no choice.

“Ah…”

The door to hell swung open before his eyes.

The worst case scenario unraveled before him.

A girl, whose body was covered in blood.

It was Rinne’s corpse.

Sakaki’s emotions exploded that instant.

“…… So that’s how it is. I know, you hate me don’t you, God?”

There was no need for explanation. Rinne had died, in a locked room. A blood-stained girl was standing next to her. It didn’t take a genius to guess that this was the criminal, Rinne’s murderer.

If that was the case – she should die too.

Go to hell!!

Sakaki relentlessly fired at her on the spot. The girl was taken by surprise, as she took a bullet to the chest, followed by one to the head, and to one of her legs - A total of three bullets. In the dimly lit room, fresh blood splattered everywhere with a sickening “swish”, as crimson red fluid trickled down from the walls. Before the girl had the chance to scream, he head was already against the wall. She was dead. He had killed her – a human.

No, that wasn’t a human. That was Rinne’s murderer – a devil.

That’s why, she deserved to die.

Sakaki mumbled something, as he approached the poor, mutilated corpse of Rinne. She was sitting, with her back against the table, her feet facing outwards. He head lay slumped on the table, and she had an absolutely blank look on her face. One of her usually sparkling eyes was now replaced with a spoon, while the other was laying dully open. Usagawa Rinne had died – just like what the Mushi predicted.

Sakaki pointed the gun barrel at his temple, as he fell to his knees, tears pouring down his cheeks. Looking at Rinne’s dead body, he had only one choice left – taking his own life. Living in a world without Usagawa Rinne, Sakaki didn’t have that strength. There was no happiness in a world without her, just a boring, mundane life, that was why Sakaki decided to follow her, by committing suicide. He cursed God and fate for being so cruel towards him, as he edged towards Rinne and apologized. “I’m sorry Rinne, it hurts doesn’t it? Compared to being murdered like this, wasn’t it better if you had perished in the vast sea then? I’m sorry, I’m really sorry…”

Sakaki mumbled, as his fingers reached for the trigger.

“I love you, Rinne!!”

This was when Usagawa Rinne sat up.

As if waking up from a dream, Rinne slowly stretched her body, and observed her following. Her sight finally fell on Sakaki. The spoon was still stuck in her right eye, her tears were still flowing down her cheeks. Usagawa Rinne looked at Sakaki, and asked, as if nothing was wrong, “Eh? What’s up, Sensei?”

There was an unfathomable expression on Rinne’s face.

“Ah, I can’t see in my right eye!”

That’s strange, Rinne thought as she rubbed her right eye. It was as if something was lodged in her right eye. She stared at Sakaki, as if asking him “Huh? What’s this?” Grabbing the spoon, Rinne pulled it out of her eye socket, as a thick, gooey liquid oozed out from it. Sakaki was speechless. What was this? This was absurd, had the Earth gone crazy after all? Or was he dreaming? Was this a dream! He certainly hoped it was!

Right then, something strange happened again.

“Ugh…”

Rinne’s expression suddenly contorted, as she pressed against her right eye, her face twisting in pain.

“It’s hot! My eye, it feels so hot! It’s burning!”

“R-Rinne…”

Sakaki was unable to move, even though his most treasured person was suffering right in front of him.

“Sensei, my eye feels so hot all of a sudden. What’s happening? It’s burning, it hurts, Sensei…”

She is calling, Usagawa Rinne is calling for me.

I should go and save her then.

Sakaki stood up, and immediately rushed to Rinne’s side. She was still pressing her hand against her eye.

Sakaki shook her shoulders and asked, “Rinne, are you alright? Rinne!”

“Sensei…”

Rinne mumbled in a soft tone, as she removed her hand from her eye.

Sakaki stared at her face, and immediately sensed a shiver travel down his spine.

“It’s too late!”

Usagawa Rinne’s right eye had completely regenerated. It was previously pierced by a spoon, but now there wasn’t a single scar visible. The only thing that remained was a trail of eye-fluid on her cheeks. But Sakaki was sure she had been hurt! He felt his mind go numb – it was unable to catch up with the rapidly crumbling reality.

He placed an arm around Rinne’s shoulders, as his gaze traveled to a corner of the room.

“Even digging her eyeballs out failed to kill her. Its too late, so stop grieving…”

Even though her clothes were stained with blood, the girl continued to look at him with her expressionless, gun-barrel like eyes. There was no trace of emotion on her face, but her voice was surprisingly pure.

This girl, who had previously tried to murder Rinne, was poking her finger into the gunshot wound on her head, as she withdrew the bullet in a casual manner that would certainly freak most people out. She then proceeded to do the same with her wounds on her chest and legs. Wasn’t it painful? No, before that, shouldn’t she be dead? A bullet was planted in her head, a real bullet! Sakaki stared as three blood-stained bullets fell to the floor, as her wounds instantly regenerated, just like Rinne’s eye. What in the world is going on?! I’ve had enough of this! I can’t explain this in the least! Please stop, please give me back my normal life; my normal, ordinary life.

The girl ignored Sakaki and continued staring at Rinne. With a sad – nay, more like a pitiful - expression, as if trying to say that they were in the same boat now, she explained to Rinne the situation she was currently in.

“You have obtained the Apple. It’s now deeply rooted within your heart, so it’s impossible to give up on it now. The Apple won’t even let you die – it’s that deep…”

The girl said, as she headed towards the door.

“You can never live on as a normal human being again.”

The girl suddenly turned back and said, “In order to not be consumed by the Mushi, you better do your best to protect that Apple.”

The girls shadow silently vanished beyond the door. What was she planning to do? What in the world had just happened? In the midst of confusion, the girl had disappeared, leaving behind two very confused individuals.

A blood-stained world. A messed up room. Mushi. An immortal girl.

Sakaki was totally lost here. He abruptly had this urge to grab on to something, so he chose the nearest target – Rinne. He tightly hugged Rinne, much to her surprise, but she merely closed her eyes, and quietly embraced Sakaki.

Rinne felt at peace. The expression on her face suggested that even though she had no idea what was happening, as long as Sakaki was around, everything was fine. It was a face of pure bliss, as if she had entrusted everything to Sakaki. Usagawa Rinne, my most important person.

“Sensei…”

“Yeah?”

Sakaki gently answered Rinne’s call.

“I suddenly recalled that long lost memory, my final memories before I almost died in the sea. That time, as death was fast approaching… I dreamed of an apple. The moment I ate the apple, I came back to life. I think it’s because I ate that apple… That I was able to survive till today. I have this sort of feeling.”

Rinne pressed her palm against her right eye.

“That girl, she could have been here to take back the apple!”

Even if the world was thrust into frenzy, even if the basic laws of nature were broken, life still goes on. The end of today marked the arrival of tomorrow. The first thing that came the next day was the morning dawn. And the morning dawn was synonymous with homeroom. Being the homeroom teacher of Class 1-B, Sakaki Guryuu was required to take attendance, as well as brief the students about their duties and responsibilities.

Yesterday, which was also the day Usagawa Rinne’s eyeball was gouged out by a spoon-wielding girl, Sakaki had brought her to a hospital, just to be on the safe side. The doctors, however, were unable to find anything wrong with her. That’s why she attended school today, being her usual, cheerful self. As Sakaki Guryuu went though the attendance list, though, he noticed, amongst a list of over 40 students, a name which he had never seen before. It wasn’t as though he had never heard the name before. In fact, he had heard it only just recently.

Gankyuu Eguriko.

“…… Eh???”

He had a bad feeling about this.

Sakaki chalked it up to an optical illusion, as he took out a bottle of eye drops, applied it, and looked at the list again.

Gankyuu Eguriko.

He would never mistake such a wild name. Seat number 11. That seat was still occupied by someone else yesterday! For some reason, however, the person in question was assigned to Seat 12. Sakaki had a very bad feeling about this. What was happening? He thought. Just as he was wondering, the classroom door was suddenly ripped open.

“Ah…”

The girl sported a unique, wolf-like haircut, a sailor uniform, white indoor shoes and the same, gunbarrel-like eyes. She looked exactly the same as she had yesterday, and standing in the midst of normal high school students, she surprisingly didn’t seem too out of place. She stepped in the classroom matter-of-factly, and proceeded towards the podium.

Sakaki Guryuu stood stiffly at the podium.

The students shot curious glances at the girl. “What’s happening? Who is she?”

Sakaki thought of what to say to the girl, but his current state of mind was blank. Even as he was thinking of what to say to her, the girl had taken up a piece of chalk, and scribbled on the blackboard.

Transfer Student, Gankyuu Eguriko.

It was the first time the students had heard of a transfer student transferring into their class. They started discussing among themselves, and Gankyuu Eguriko didn’t seem to mind.

With a sharp tone that clearly didn’t sound like what a transfer student should have sounded like, she faced the students and said, “I’m a new transfer student, Gankyuu Eguriko. You can call me Guriko if you want, but if you don’t want to, then you might as well not approach me at all. As long as you mind your own business, I won’t harm you, so try not to mind me too much, or even bother to talk to me. If you anger me, I’ll dig your eyes out, no matter who you are, so if you treasure your own eyeballs, then don’t provoke me. That goes for you busy-bodies, who can’t seem to keep your mouths shut. I don’t think anyone will miss you guys if you died anyway. That is all.”

Guriko said in one breath, as she lifted her head and looked at Sakaki, satisfied.

Because she was called Eguriko, that’s why she requested to be called Guriko? Her sense of naming was actually quite laughable!

Sakaki put up a straight face, and asked her, “What do you plan to do?”

Guriko said to Sakaki in a volume that only he could hear her, “Don’t worry, I won’t kill her.” Her voice was pure, void of any emotion, as usual. There wasn’t a single smile on her face.

“Maybe I should say I can’t kill her. The Apple has already rooted within her, all physical attacks will be useless towards her. Since she has an infinite lifespan, I guess you could call her an immortal. And since she’s immortal, I can’t take away the Apple. And that basically means I have no reason to kill her whatsoever. However…”

“The Mushi… They have many.”

Gankyuu Eguriko looked at the ceiling.

“I have a bad feeling about this, so I’m going to stay here for a while. Don’t worry, I won’t give you any trouble.”

With that said, she moved to her empty seat, which was right next to Usagawa Rinne.

She had used some form of magic, to create a space for herself within this school.

Ignoring Sakaki’s furious stares, Guriko turned and glanced at Usagawa Rinne, who was right next to her. Rinne slightly flinched – it was natural, after all, as according to Sakaki, she was previously murdered by this girl before her, by having her eyeballs gouged out with a spoon, a most brutal method indeed.

Guriko said to Rinne, who was rendered speechless, in a pure, innocent voice, “I’m sorry.”

“Eh?”

“Even though there was no other way, I did indeed try to kill you.”

That was all she said, as Guriko suddenly slumped on the table and began sleeping. The whole class was shocked at the new transfer student’s eccentric behavior – more like, they were shocked by her bravery. She had put on an attitude that clearly stated she had no respect for the teacher whatsoever. The usually quiet classroom suddenly buzzed with activity.

It was, however, too early to get excited.

But of course, the students had no way of knowing that.

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| Return to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol1_Ch2|Night 2: The 15th November incident]]
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Mushi:Vol1 TLnotes

2012-01-18T23:04:39Z

Cakemanofdoom:

<center>Translator's Notes and References for 
<big>蟲と眼球とテディベア</big> 
Mushi and Eyeball and Teddy Bear</center>

== Chapter One ==

=== kakka ===
Literally means "Your Highness" or "Your Excellency". The kanji is "閣下"

=== Rinne ===
Her given name is written with characters roughly meaning "sound of bells".

=== Daddy Long Legs ===
An anonymous benefactor. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daddy-Long-Legs_(novel)

=== Mushi and Bugs ===
Mushi means Bugs in Japanese. However, the kanji used here (and in the series title) is 蟲, as opposed to the one for bug, 虫.

=== Sentience ===
The ability to feel and perceive subjectively. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sentience

... And for some reason, translating this particular portion of text reminded me of the Zerg :\

=== Filial Imprints ===
A phenomena where animals learn or imitate certain characteristics of a stimulus. Its used in this case to descibe animals which treat the first thing they see as its parents. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imprinting_(psychology)

=== Gankyuu Eguriko ===
Literally means Eyeball Gouger - a person that digs out eyeballs. The kanji is "眼球抉子"

== Chapter Two ==

=== Pan An ===

The original compared Sakaki's features to that of Pan An, a legendarily handsome man in ancient China (original reads 貌似潘安). His elegance and beauty had been compared to that of 'a willow of jade swaying in the wind', and is considered to be one of the five most handsome men in Chinese history.

Since this cannot be translated appropriately into English, we've taken the liberty of placing this into the context of popular fantasy, which hopefully relates more to English readers. Surely we all know about Prince Charming xp.

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=== Neptune King ===

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neptuneman. I don’t know anything about this.

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=== Yang Guifei ===

Once again, I have taken the liberty to change the original referrence, which was made to the extraordinarily beautiful Royal Consort Yang of the Tang Dynasty in ancient China, to another equally legendarily beautiful queen that English speakers would know more about.

Despite Mushi to Medama being written by a Japanese, Royal Consort Yang is known in the history of many far-eastern countries and would certainly have been known to the ancient Japanese. Her beauty had caused incest and civil war. At the end, she was condemned to the death since the king finally decided her beauty is a power of evil. The Chinese proverb 'woman is the the source of a flood of evil' stems from her.

Used in this context, it can be considered as an innuendo that Rinne is the key to Sakaki's downfall into sin and purgatory.

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[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch2#Yan Guifei|Return to Text]]
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=== Like pocket bells, personal computers, sexual harassment, or convenience stores ===

The Japanese abbreviate pocket bell into 'pokeberu', personal computer into 'pasokon', sexual harassment into 'sekuhara', and convenience stores into 'konbini'.

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=== Doraemon ===

Robot cat from an old manga/anime. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doraemon

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|[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch2#Doraemon|Return to Text]]
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== Chapter Three ==

=== Nutgall ===

Tumour-like growth of plant tissue caused by infectious agents such as bacteria and fungi. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nutgall

The nutgall mentioned here is a specific type grown on certain poplar trees, extremely poisonous, and used in traditional Chinese medicine. It is also the name of the traditional Japanese story mentioned here.

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=== Obake no Q-tarō ===

This is an old manga/animation involving a little mischievious ghost who's horrified of dogs. It was serialized between 1964-1966 and 1971-1974 as a manga, and was adopted into animation 3 times during the 60s, 70s and 80s.

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== Chapter Five ==

=== Indulgence ===

A form of penance certificate given out by the Catholic Church in the Middle Ages and thought to be able to discount any sins the person had already confessed and been forgiven. Detailed information from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indulgence.

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== Guriko's Offering ==

=== Getter Robo ===

An old manga/animation that had 'New' Getter Robos, which involved improved designs of normal Getter Robos. It is referred here as joke about Guriko's attempt at changing her own name. More information is in the wiki page
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Getter_Robo

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|Return to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
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</noinclude>

Talk:Mushi:Vol2 Ch3

2012-01-18T23:00:25Z

Cakemanofdoom: Created page with "Please read over my edits! Again, some might be based on my faulty understanding of the Chinese, and I get the feeling that at least one change was just a matter of American Engl..."

Please read over my edits! Again, some might be based on my faulty understanding of the Chinese, and I get the feeling that at least one change was just a matter of American English vs. British (or other) English. If you disagree with or don't understand anything I did, please post here to prevent dissatisfaction and edit wars. [[User:Cakemanofdoom|Cakemanofdoom]] 17:00, 18 January 2012 (CST)

Mushi:Vol2 Ch3

2012-01-18T22:58:02Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Night 3: Boudoir''' ==

She was tired and she didn’t know why. Would it be better off if she was angry? Or sad? She didn’t know the answer to that. Her mind was muddled, her was head dizzy, and she wanted to throw up.

Guriko slumped down onto the sofa when she returned home and stared aimlessly at the ceiling. She took out a spoon almost subconsciously, the metal glistening and refracting the lamp's light.

Hino and Kio would probably be upset if they knew she fought Long-Armed Demon today – no, they’d definitely be upset. She had broken that most basic promise of ‘do not harm others’.

“But –”

''What should I have done then?''

She was conflicted. She felt there were two of her, both of which believed in justice.

The Guriko who wanted to protect Rinne, protect the people in the school, and protect those in the town.

And the Guriko who decided not to harm others, who etched that resolve deep into her heart.

''Though those two sides cannot be reconciled, they were nonetheless both my true selves. I had considered whether I still needed to fight, but I thought fighting was the best course of action at the time. There was nothing else I could have done. Besides, I still feel I was the only one who could defeat Long-Armed Demon.''

“So you must choose your future before you meet Sterilization Disinfection. Will you live on as a monster, or as a human?”

The words spoken by the fake priest with feral eyes continued to echo within her mind.

She realized that the monster ‘Gankyuu Egoriko’ did indeed exist within her heart when she fought Long-Armed Demon today. She was truly happy when she fought Long-Armed Demon; she felt excellent when she dug out the other’s eyeballs. But Rinne… she was only standing behind Guriko, yet that was enough to ignite her desire to kill. Though it wasn’t the real Rinne, it looked exactly the same – and should therefore have been the same.

She just happened to realize –

That she was certainly not a human.

She was a monster who lived for a millennium in the darkness, knowing nothing else but digging out eyeballs. Even an inorganic thing can become a demon after a century, so this thousand-year-old ancient husk should have left humanity behind a long time ago.

Even her heart –

Had been that of a monster for a long time.

Guriko now understood that. Feeling depressed, she gazed lazily at the spoon, for its light was the only thing that remained eternally steadfast.

She had always gazed, beseechingly, at this light in her world full of despair, where nothing was ever important to her.

She could only feel alive when she dug out other people’s eyeballs and took their lives. ''A monster that gouges out eyeballs – that is who I am.''

She remembered that. She actually remembered that.

“Urgh.”

''To hell with this common sense and normal societal ethics training.

''What a bore! That’s a training designed for a human.

''Who am I? I am the Eyeball Gouger, a cruel monster who shouldn’t be living other humans. No, I am a creature more akin to that Long-Armed Demon.''

Guriko gritted her teeth so hard that they creaked, and she rose up from the luxurious sofa. Standing in the large uptown apartment situated in the middle of the Kannonsakazaki CBD, she sighed softly in the dark living room with view of the night stars through its ceiling-height glass walls.

''Yono had always been the outsider. I was adopted, and I had no place in the family. A thousand years ago, I managed to keep living under the name of Gankyuu Eguriko, and happened to accidentally find my place in the world thanks to Rinne and Sakaki. Then I just depended on them –''

Countless eyeballs were crawling in the world within Guriko’s mind.

Those were the eyeballs that she gouged out from other people in the past. Those empty eyeballs that lost their light eons ago stared straight at her emotionlessly.

The eyeballs of those she killed before their Apples took root; the eyeballs of those who attacked her in their pursuit for the secret of immortality; the eyeballs of those who only accidentally became her enemy… those were the eyeballs of innumerable humans… and countless ‘Mushi’.

''– I…''

That’s right.

''– I never deserved to obtain happiness.

''I have no such rights. A monster should live like a monster, living in darkness till death. But I left the darkness, and I allowed myself to be surrounded by others’ miraculous gentleness. So, I feel that I am dirty, shameful, detestable. I’d rather die.''

It was the first time she felt like this.

''Ahhh, Rinne isn’t here. She's not here to smile gently at me while scolding me for these foolish thoughts.''

The man with wolf-like eyes had suddenly appeared after she finished fighting and took Long-Armed Demon back. He had left Guriko with her face full of confusion as the only one standing at the battlefield.

Zekiguchi Nashinori – the man who claimed to have killed her a thousand years ago. Though she did not know his true identity, every one of his words left its mark on Guriko’s soul.

''I lost my cool when I saw Rinne. I was lucky. Though I figured out a solution this time, I wouldn’t be so lucky had my opponent been stronger. I became weaker, much weaker than before. Since my physical abilities didn’t change, it wasn’t due to me having fewer Apples.

''However, I still became weaker.''

She gave Nageki’s unconscious body to a passerby and asked the man to call for an ambulance, then she returned straight home because of a sudden bout of annoyance. Now she was home alone. Her ‘parents’, Hino and Kio, had yet to return to this apartment especially prepared for the ‘common sense and normal societal ethics training’.

She had lived with the unnaturally excitable duo for three weeks already.

It’d be a lie to say she wasn’t happy. In fact, Guriko smiled much more often now.

''But this is a fake life, a fake happiness. My true parents gave up their duties of nurturing me as a baby and discarded their child. My step parents didn’t even love me before the ‘Mushi’ killed them. That was all. Now, after so many years, I no longer wish to have parents.''

In the lightless room littered with potted plants, Guriko gazed unblinkingly at the dark and dead TV screen. She felt terrible. She had felt nothing except an uncomfortable guilt and emptiness since her fight with Long-Armed Demon.

“Click”, the light was turned on.

Hino and Kio stood unmoving in the living room like wraiths, their faces devoid of any emotion. Startled and puzzled, Guriko still greeted them in her confusion: “Wel… welcome back. What’s wrong? Why so quiet today?”

“…”

Hino started to move soundlessly. Odd, what was with her doll-like face? Her face, which always blossomed with smiles, was currently looking blankly at Guriko as the older woman slowly raised her head.

Then, as if someone suddenly switched her on: “Wow, Guriko-chan! There you are!”

At the same time, Kio also burst out: “Ahaha, I didn’t notice you at all! Are you hungry, Guriko? I’m cooking dinner today. What do you want to eat? I’ll make it for you!”

They spoke with unnatural light-heartedness.

That was odd. Though they had always acted in a funny manner, something about them just now gave her a worrying impression.

Guriko sighed. She didn’t want to talk to them anyways.

“Be quiet.”

She closed her eyes, crossed her arms, and leaned back into the sofa: “I won’t be eating dinner tonight. I don’t feel like it. Sorry, please just have it between yourselves.”

“Oh my!”

As a result, Hino jumped rather exaggeratedly.

“Are you alright, Guriko-chan? You’re not eating! You’re not eating! Ohh, I’m so surprised that I said it twice! Wha, wha, what’s wrong, are you sick? Are you not feeling well? Aaaah, Guriko-chan! Guriko-chan is going to die?!”

''Shut up.''

Guriko shut her eyes more forcibly, and replied coldly with a displeased expression: “Be quiet. I can have mood swings too.”

She couldn’t talk like this. Her mood wasn’t stable enough.

“So leave me alone.”

“No! If anything happens to Guriko-chan, then Mom will die!”

''Mom?''

“Dad won’t be able to work either! Guriko, are you really really alright? Do you need to see a doctor? Or do you –”

''Dad?

''What’s that? How can a monster like me have parents?!''

She suddenly felt a nameless rage building up inside her, felt an irritation that had no cause. She was probably letting her anger out on them. The duo were genuinely worried about her, but she somehow found their attitudes annoying. With a sharp and sour tone, Guriko rebuked coldly: “Shut up! Stop yelling so loudly!”

“Guriko-chan…”

''Honestly. Please, stop being so nice to such a crass kid.'' Hino showed a worried expression as if she were truly troubled. She approached the cold monster and placed her hand on Guriko’s forehead, saying: “No fever, at least.”

– An action that could really make Guriko believe the illusion that Hino was truly her ‘mother’.

''Stop it!

''That’s enough, stop!

''I don’t have that right. I’ve killed many people, I’ve eliminated many many people. They were someone’s parents, someone’s children.

''A month ago, some people gently accepted this monster – me. They were Usagawa Rinne and Sakaki Guryuu. But I – I – I am obviously a monster, a monster who doesn’t deserve happiness.

''Compared to the Guriko living such an ordinary life, the Guriko who fought fellow monsters in a bloodbath like today’s is much closer to my true self. I am a demon, just like the Long-Armed Demon who had killed ten people.''

“Don’t touch me!”

Guriko screamed and flung away Hino’s hand due to an incomprehensible rage. Shocked, Hino’s face paled and she slowly stepped away. The room was immediately immersed in silence.

“Guriko?”

Hearing Kio’s voice, Guriko put her hands to her face and moaned. She couldn’t take this anymore.

“Stop it. That’s enough, stop it! It hurts to pretend to be a family. It hurts!”

The monster that gouged eyeballs denied all that she now possessed.

''I don’t want to think any more. I’m tired. I’m dizzy. I want to throw up. I want to die.''

Noah’s Ark is a rather famous myth that came from the Bible. Put up your hand if you know about it. Oh, that’s a surprisingly large amount of people. It’s probably not because the Japanese all started to believe in Christianity, but because we knew of it from games or manga. Right. Look closely, girls, the boys with their hands up right now are the fabled otaku who’re into games and anime. Oi, you over there, don’t put your hand down! There’s nothing wrong with being an otaku! I like those things too!

The Age of Gods was an age when even the plants spoke and the existence magic was commonplace. During that time, humans – the descendents of Adam and Eve – fell into unsalvageable corruption. They stopped trusting others, indulged in wanton pleasure, and were content with just satisfying the desires of the flesh – and they even slaughtered each other. They had silently – but undoubtedly – fallen.

Beholding such a scene, God was enraged, and called upon a great flood to eliminate all of humanity. That is the myth of Noah’s Flood. Oh? What’s wrong, Your Majesty? You look like you want to say something. I see. Do you desire so much for me to publically declare my love? Alright, I’ll take a deep breath in and say it out loud. Usarin-kakka, I – love – you!

“Kya~, Sensei, please don’t do this! Why is Sensei so excited today? What happened in the story afterwards?”

No need to be embarrassed.

“Sensei – I would hate you if you do that! Um, Sensei, I have a question. If all humans died in that flood, then we wouldn’t have been born,”

Ahaha, Your Majesty is being too polite. Looks like you’ve put some distance between us. Now I feel lonely. Anyways, God wasn’t that cruel. However, judging from how He decided to mass slaughter humans, we can definitely question whether He has any sense of morality. But you are right, it wasn’t simply a slaughter. Hmm… it’s like a reload in one of those games you otakus are so fond of. Hey, otaku there, don’t space out. Now, God created a mighty boat, the ‘Ark’, which was powerful enough to withstand the flood. He made the most outstanding man on earth – Noah – go on board with his family.

All other animals were supposed to be killed together with humans as well. Perhaps God felt that to be too cruel, so He saved one pair of each animal and sent them on the boat. Therefore, the Ark that carried the husbands and wives that would create a new world set off, and all that was left behind perished in the flood.

In a world that had all its civilizations utterly annihilated, the residents of the Ark began their lives anew after the flood receded– that is the myth of Noah’s Flood. This was probably meant to teach us ‘if we do evil, then God will punish us’. However, if a flood powerful enough to destroy all the races of the world was actually unleashed, then Earth itself would have been eliminated. Without plants, the producers, it would become a dead and grey world. There would have been no food left on the Ark, so carnivorous animals would have begun to devour herbivores. The Ark would then have devolved into a hellish scene of slaughter, bathed in blood –

“Um, Sensei?”

Oh? What’s wrong, Your Majesty?”

“Sensei, does this have anything to do with our class? Right now is Math class…”

There there. All knowledge has something to do with classwork. Yes, it all has something to do with the class of ‘life’. What? What are you guys laughing at? I just said something brilliant!

Having finished all her classes, Usagawa Rinne walked alone on her way home. The strong wind blew her hair in all directions and the gravel of the country road, sharp like bullets, hammered against her exposed flesh.

But Rinne paid no attention to the wind or the gravel. Looking troubled, she only mumbled to herself.

“Should I call? – can I call? – ”

Guriko didn’t come to school today.

She didn’t see Guriko this morning. She didn’t think that person would skip school. However, the girl with the wolf-like haircut didn’t show up even as the final bell rang. Though she acted like a derelict, Guriko never skipped school. A strong sense of unrest had been stirring within Rinne ever since the weird detective spoke to them in that café last night.

With a single ‘wait here’, Gankyuu Egoriko had disappeared.

Rinne waited till midnight for Guriko, but she never returned.

''It’s alright. Guriko is strong.

''I believe she’ll definitely come back.''

But she didn’t even come to school today.

She thought that the worst shouldn’t have happened. She felt that – Guriko wouldn’t have –

Even so, Rinne couldn’t help but think of Katsumi. They had promised a meeting only for Katsumi to be murdered by Long-Armed Demon. Did Guriko… get killed by Long-Armed Demon too, just like Katsumi?

Rinne was extremely anxious, so anxious that she would have gone mad. She wanted to discuss it with Sakaki, but he seemed to be unnaturally busy because of his work at school.

She shouldn’t bother him.

But she was so worried about Guriko.

She could’t depend on Sakaki forever. She must find some way herself. She couldn’t always take advantage of Sakaki and allow him to pamper her. She couldn’t always be content with letting others protect her.

“I’ll make the call.”

Having made up her mind, Rinne walked into a street lined with shops. Taking cover from the wind, Rinne ducked into an alleyway between two shops and took out her cellphone after quietly sitting down.

Rinne was very poor. She shouldn’t be able to afford something like this. In fact, Sakaki bought it for her, and he also covered the phone bills. Embarrassed, Rinne refrained from using it frequently. But now it was different. It wasn’t the time to dally.

Though she didn’t know where Guriko now lived, she did give Rinne her new phone number. Rinne would now have to make a gamble, and pray for Guriko to pick up the phone. Rinne had taught Guriko how to use a phone and how to answer it the last time they were together. Guriko would at least pick it up, right?

Dialling the number that she had saved into her phone, Rinne puffed out gasps of white steam while she waited for the phone to be answered. The air was freezing cold deep in the dark alley. With the frozen blade of the wind cutting into her skin, the sound of the gale roaring through the alley seemed even noisier.

Rinne now regretted making the call before she got home.

But that couldn’t be helped now. She kept waiting and prayed for Guriko to answer.

It went on like this for a long time.

Perhaps no one was home. Just as Rinne was about to give up: “ – hello, this is the Itsuwara household.”

An unfamiliar female voiced answered.

Itsuwara. They should be Guriko’s foster parents who were living with her. She would probably know if Guriko was home or not.

It was a phone call, but Rinne still composed her posture and bowed formally.

“Ah, hi… hello. I’m, um, I’m Guriko’s classmate. My name is Usagawa Rinne. Is Guriko-chan home?”

In just the blink of an eye –

The female voice, which was previously mixed with apprehension, suddenly became excited.

“Woah! Friend? Guriko’s friend? Kio, Guriko’s friend showed up. Ah, he’s not home. His loss. Yes yes! Hello! I’m Guriko’s mom. I’m Itsuwara Hino!”

“Er…”

With the other talking with such an unstoppable vigour, Rinne didn’t know how to respond. Stunned, she sat there for a few seconds, her face blank with shock.

Picking herself up again, she spoke to Hino, who was screaming excitedly on the other end of the phone: “Hello again, um – Guriko-chan today – ?”

“Guriko? Guriko!”

Hino’s voice, saturated with happiness, became even louder with barely a pause.

“Guriko is very cute, isn’t she? She was feeling a little down yesterday for some reason. My yelling made her angry, and we almost had a fight. But she sneaked into my room late last night and gave me a birthday present! It was a kaleidoscope! Isn’t it cute? She didn’t apologize to my face, but she put it on my table. This is such an ingenious idea! She’s so great at making me happy! I would forgive anything she ever did. I love her! GurikoLove! Shortened to GuriLove!”

She went on and on like a rapid-fire cannon, and Rinne ended up being even more confused. Anyways, it seemed whatever Guriko bought yesterday was the gift she gave to Hino. Now that she mentioned it, Guriko did say something about her parent’s birthday.

Guriko bought her present yesterday. Since she gave it to her mother late at night, then it meant she returned home safely.

This, at least, made Rinne breathe a sigh of relief. Keep inquiring after Guriko, she asked Hino: “Then… this means Guriko-chan is safe and sound?”

“Safe and sound? What do you mean safe and sound?”

Hino answered incredulously.

“Usagawa-san, my Guriko is as cute as ever today! The only one with a problem is me, who can’t think straight because of how cute Guriko is!”

That sounded… really impressive.

“Oh? Should I pass the phone to her? Guriko said she doesn’t want to go to school today and stayed in her room without even coming out to eat. But hey, everyone has those moments, right? I used to pretend to be sick and skip school when I was a student, too. The school actually thought I was a weak girl because I did it so often, and the boys even visited me to see how I was doing. Usagawa-san, a physically weak girl will have guys wanting to protect her. That’s a very popular type! You should make it your goal! Tell you what, one of the boys who visited me is now my husband! Ahahahaha!”

“…”

What a high-spirited person. Rinne sighed, and then casually urged Hino with her polite tone.

“I see. Then, can I please speak to Guriko-chan?”

“Sure! Leave it to! Um…”

Half way through her sentence, Hino fell silent as if suddenly deep in thought.

“Um, I didn’t catch it completely. What’s your name again?”

“Usagawa Rinne.”

“Usagawa…”

A pause, as if thinking, but more like she was straining to recall something.

“Rinne. Ah! Ahhhhh! Usawaga Rinne! Right! I was about to say that your name sounds familiar! You are the girl who was in Guryuu-san’s arms, right? Now I remember; you were in the file. Hmm? Since you’re Guryuu-san’s lover, doesn’t that make you the future matriarch of the organization? Oh my, I was so rude. I’ll pass the phone immediately. Duuuuuuu –”

With an odd onomatopoeia, Hino’s voice drifted further and further away.

It was a wireless phone, and the Hold button wasn’t pressed. Rinne could hear the sounds of Hino walking towards Guriko’s room. Hino was loud, and she could even hear a mysterious tune sounding like “Lalalala – lalalala – Guriko Guriko it’s for you!”

Soon, Hino seemed to be at Guriko’s room. Rinne could hear vague conversations and the sound of knocking for a while. Guriko seemed to have genuinely locked herself in her room. But at least she was safe. That was good enough. Rinne was relieved.

She was her savior. She was her important friend.

Guriko.

It was so wonderful that she was alright.

Still wearing her school uniform, Rinne released a long sigh of relief in the alleyway. She still hadn’t lost her sensation of temperature, and sitting on the ground for so long made her feel the chill all the way to her bones.

After a while, she heard the sound of a door opening, and Hino’s incomprehensible yelling.

“… Rinne.”

She finally heard Guriko’s low and deep voice, a voice that she was already missing after one day.

Rinne smiled and replied with a bright and happy tone: “Ah, Guriko. This is great. You’re safe!”

“Yes, I am safe. What’s up? Ah, ah – ” As if she suddenly recalled something, Guriko stuttered: “Sor, sorry. I left you in the café last night… were you worried about me?”

“Of course I am!”

It was a tone full of mock anger. Rinne, however, felt more settled than ever.

“But it’s great that you’re alright, Guriko-chan. What happened yesterday? Why didn’t you come to school today?”

“…”

Guriko was silent.

Then, as if beseeching for help, she said with a lonely voice. “Hey, Rinne.”

It was a weak sound, one that she rarely used. “I’m scared.”

“Scared of what?”

Rinne’s expression also became serious as she listened to Guriko.

“What happened, Guriko-chan?”

“I fought Long-Armed Demon yesterday.”

Emotionlessly, Guriko recited what had happened.

“Although I won, I also realized my own cruelty. I’m a monster. Of course I’m a monster, a monster that gouged eyeballs. Rinne, I realized something. I’m not human. I shouldn’t be going to school. I shouldn’t stay with humans.”

It was a pained sound as if she was forcibly squeezing those words out of her mouth.

“I… I don’t know when I’ll end up like Long-Armed Demon.”

“Guriko-chan?”

Guriko’s voice was distant and wavering as if she was about to disappear. Rinne couldn’t help but reach out her hand. However, there was nothing in front of her. There was only the cold wind blowing along.

So far away.

Guriko was so far away.

“So… Rinne,” Guriko mumbled in a low voice: “Perhaps I won’t see you again. Perhaps it’s best if we never again meet.”

She hung up the phone. The sound of a disconnected line came beeping through.

Rinne screamed in surprise: “Wai, wait! Guriko-chan! Guriko-chan?”

What was that about?

Rinne called out. However, any words would be meaningless for an already disconnected phone call. Rinne’s face paled, and she sank into silence while tightly holding onto the phone.

Guriko called herself a monster.

Just what happened last night? Rinne felt scared, and hugged the phone to her chest. Terrifying. Guriko said she won’t see her again.

''I don’t want that.

''And Guriko isn’t a monster. I like her, and so does Sakaki. And Hino – she also appeared to care for Guriko a lot.

'If she was so cherished by everyone else, how can she be a monster?

''Guriko… Guriko!''

“Hello.”

Suddenly.

“Hello, miss.”

Rinne heard a sound coming from next to her.

“… you’ll catch a cold if you sit here.”

An incredulous person stood there.

She had a mask that completely covered her mouth, but she wore a revealing and feminine outfit incongruous in the winter.

Her hair was in a long braid, and bangles and chains chimed on her arms.

This incredulous woman sniggered, then said with a voice as sweet as honey: “You were screaming just then, weren’t you? You couldn’t reach someone’s heart with your words, right? That person is very important to you, isn’t it? Are you sad…? Or lonely…? But it’s best if you can treasure this emotion. If you start to feel happiness even from experiencing misfortunes, then you’d truly become a monster. That’s what I think.”

Hearing her vague but incredibly touching words, Rinne stood up with surprise written all over her face and turned towards her suspiciously.

Rinne didn’t take well to those with odd appearances.

Though she felt a little scared, she still spoke: “Is there something I can help you with?”

“Oh! Ahaha, right – we haven’t met before. Little wonder that you’re so alarmed.”

The mysterious woman put her hand to her cheek gracefully, and smiled charmingly.

“My name is Saibara Mina. It’s only a small matter that I need your help with. Can I borrow your phone? The spread of cellphones made phone booths disappear one after another, which is inconvenient for people like me who don’t have cellphones. Though I don’t dislike the idea of completely eliminating such useless items – why, I even prefer this idea – but simply destroying these items without reason is not a commendable method either.”

It was as if she deliberately used difficult words. Rinne didn’t understand all of that.

Anyways, it seemed she just wanted to borrow her phone.

Rinne would usually have refused her out of caution. However, though the other was now smiling, Rinne got the feeling her anger would be terrifying indeed. Rinne nodded, and decided to listen to her for now.

She silently handed the phone over – and Mina smiled alluringly.

“Mmm, thanks.”

Then she started dialling out a number without further ado and waited for it to connect.

Rinne felt awkward. Crossing her fingers, she looked at Mina. The other woman was dressed extremely scantily; didn’t she feel cold?

She should be able to feel temperature, right?

“Hey, meat doll?”

Rinne’s thoughts instantly froze with Mina’s utterly incomprehensible sentence.

What did she say? Meat doll?

Rinne stared at Mina. She couldn’t tell whether the other woman noticed this or not with Mina still speaking softly into the phone.

She didn’t tell the person on the other end of the phone her name, either.

“Right – it’s time to get to work. I helped you to find someone. What? I’m at the shopping district now. Me? Hey, I told you my speciality is elimination, not murder. Got it? Besides, if that person happens to run away, it’s best to hide my true identity. Why don’t you think this through with that thick brain of yours? If you end up acting like an idiot, then I won’t hold up my end of the bargain either.”

Mina finished speaking, disconnected, and returned the phone to Rinne with a smile.

What was that about? Rinne felt an uneasy aura.

Scared of digging deeper into this, Rinne hurriedly packed away her phone and nodded softly to Mina: “Er… I’ll get going then.”

“Ahh, I see.” As if pleased, Mina smiled. “Thank you. Take care then!”

She left these words, and gently waved her goodbye.

Rinne’s home was beyond the shopping streets close to the school, and at the end of a bumpy country path.

This apartment building stood alone in a deserted area, surrounded by empty land. Thanks to its incredibly atrocious conditions, the rent was also astonishingly cheap.

Even if she saw other residents, they would not usually communicate with each other. The only one that she had developed any real rapport with was the musician onee-san living next door.

Directly in front of Rinne’s door was an old washing machine that the previous owner didn’t take away.

The neighbor that stood in front of the washing machine tilted her head to one side as she looked up at Rinne. That tilting movement was her habit. Even Rinne, who had gotten used to it, still found it hard to discern whether it meant agreement or disagreement, apologies or gratitude.

“Welcome back, Ring-bell.”

Her voice was low with an odd pronunciation.

Her bleached hair waved in the wind as she stood still in her cheap and dirt-stained dress. She seemed to be of foreign descent, and her irises had a cloudy violet sheen.

“Break-nee, are you doing the laundry?”

“Ring-bell, I’ve been considering it for a while, but Break-nee is just too strange. This washing machine is yours. Sorry for using it without asking your permission.”

Break-nee apologized emotionlessly. She was very shy, introverted, and quiet. Since she rarely changed her expression, it was hard to read her true thoughts.

But Rinne felt she wasn’t a bad person.

Rinne made a small wave with her hand, and lowered her gaze.

“Ahh, no, this washing machine isn’t mine. It belonged to the person who lived here beforehand.”

“Really? That’s good.”

Break-nee tilted her head, and pressed button after button with experienced ease according to the washing machine’s complicated operating system. Then, she abruptly turned and left for her room.

Before she left, she opened her door a crack, and looked over with a tilt of her head, her face full of confusion: “Ring-bell, what happened to that girl Guriko?”

“Huh?”

''Didn’t I tell her?''

Though she felt a bit sad, she replied: “Ah – um, Guriko didn’t have any family, but there are now people who are willing to be her foster parents. She’s now living with them…”

“I see.”

She tilted her head, and frowned as if deep in thought.

“This may be dangerous. I am very weak, and I can’t protect you.”

Break-nee said something incomprehensible.

“Take care, Ring-bell. The world is full of dangers, even today.”

Rinne still didn’t understand. Break, however, had already returned to her room.

“…”

What a mysterious person.

Rinne gazed at the turning washing machine as she thought this. With a sigh, she inserted her key and entered her home.

This tiny room, with the kitchen and the bathroom squeezed in, was packed full with things.

Though Rinne tidied the room almost every day, she couldn’t help with the fact that the room was simply too small.

Rinne turned on the air conditioning to chase away the stuffy air, took off her jacket, and changed from uniform to casual clothes.

She felt so tired.

She found it hard to sleep ever since Katsumi died. She always felt anxious, and even accidentally fell down a slope. She had sunk into a swamp of melancholy.

It couldn’t go on like this.

It was her bad habit to be so pessimistic.

Maybe she would cook to feel better.

What was left in the fridge? As she thought this, Rinne walked to her sink next to the wall to wash her face, then moved to the fridge.

Her fridge was only a quarter as big as a normal one.

Rinne wanted to have some barley tea first, so she took a cup and soothed her throat, which was dry in the cold winter air.

“Haaaa –”

It was very, very tiring.

She shook her head. She ran out of fish and meat; it seemed today’s dinner will be a simple one. Then, feeling that it was too early to cook dinner, she glanced at her watch.

She didn’t have work today, and could afford to rest well.

Though she might get yelled at, she wanted to call Guriko again. It would be too sad to just part ways like that.

Just what was wrong with Guriko?

What happened between her and Long-Armed demon?

She couldn’t reach her answer no matter what, and she paced in her room as her thoughts roiled.

“ – creak.”

It was a very minute sound.

Rinne thought she was hallucinating, and looked at her phone.

“ – Creak, crack.”

Looking up, she glanced all around her. Somehow, an ominous feeling crept up within her. Her face paled, her body stiffened, Rinne called out in a low voice: “Who is it?”

“ – Creak.”

She realized it was the window.

The window next to the sink, which she always found it hard to close.

The window – with a crisp sound – creaked apart on its own.

A crack formed on the glass. The window split into two. Then, the glass surface shattered into fragments and showered down.

“Ahh –”

The paranormal scene made Rinne stumble backward in fear. Turning toward the door, she tried to flee as quickly as possible.

“Found –”

But she heard the low voice of a girl.

“ – You.”

The entire window had disappeared.

The frosted glass, which previously only gave a vague outline of the outside, was completely destroyed. In the space previous occupied by the glass, a girl poked out her head and smiled innocently.

It was a terrifying and inhuman appearance.

One of the girl’s eyes was covered by an eye-patch, while the other was bloodshot red. Despite such a pitiful appearance, she continued smiling innocently: “Haha, haha –”

It was very scary.

“Aaaaaaahhhhhh!”

Screaming, Rinne sprinted towards the door. It wasn’t far from her.

She remembered what happened a month ago.

Demons, ghosts, and monsters were not opponents that Rinne could hope to deal with on her own.

She could only run. Without Guriko or Sakaki beside her, she could only run.

Her shoulder was suddenly clutched by something.

No way – Rinne turned around.

“I won’t let you escape again!”

No one was behind her.

But Rinne’s body was controlled by an incredibly strong force, and she was thrown out of the broken window. She screamed as her sight span. Flying through the window, she landed hard on the tarmac road near the rubbish dump outside of her house.

“Uuuuuhh – ”

She couldn’t breathe.

It was very painful. Rinne had barely lost any of her sense of pain.

Her sight became dizzy due to the impact.

Meanwhile, in her whirling sight –

“How was it? Long-Armed Demon’s two arms are very very long, right?”

– stood Long-Armed Demon.

The name echoed in her ears.

Could it really be –?

“Zeki-kun already told me your name and what you look like. Usagawa Rinne – I won’t make any mistakes again. I won’t let you escape again. I, Long-Armed Demon, must have your Apple.”

An unnaturally cruel and dark will emitted out of that bloodshot eye.

“I won’t get it wrong again, I won’t fail again! Long-Armed Demon will push you into the deepest abyss of hell and take away your Apple. Otherwise, Zeki-kun will abandon me!”

Rinne was terrified of this screaming girl from the bottom of her heart. She tried her best to force her limp legs to stand, and to run.

She mustn’t turn around. She must escape – she must escape.

Otherwise, she’ll be killed.

She’ll definitely be killed.

''She is my opponent, someone who wants to have my Apple and targeted me because of my Apple.

''Like ‘Mushi’ and Snake, she would probably use all she can to take away my Apple.

''No.

''I can’t die here.

''I want to keep living with Sakaki and Guriko.

''I’ve already decided that a month ago on the day that Guriko returned to us.''

“You think you can run away?”

Long-Armed Demon muttered this as ‘something’ erupted out of her body. Fortunately, the unpredictable attack didn’t hit Rinne. Instead, it blew up the tarmac road, and fragments of bitumen scattered everywhere.

If she was hit by such a thing, there was no way she could come out in one piece.

Long-Armed Demon.

Was Katsumi killed by this horrifying force that defiled logic?

Remembering her dead friend, Rinne bit hard on her lips to hold back her anger. With a heavy push against the ground, she started to run again.

She was scared. She was anxious. She didn’t have the battle prowess to avenge Katsumi. The least she could do was to avoid being killed in the same manner.

Having probably heard the ruckus, the door opposite Rinne’s apartment opened and Break poked out her head incredulously.

“What’s this big noise I heard?”

Rinne was running on the uneven road in front of the apartment block. Raising her head, she glared at Break.

“Break! Go hide! And call the police – no, contact Sensei first! He’d call the police!”

“Ring-bell, what’s going on? Police?”

Besides Break-nee, who was looking utterly puzzled, the girl with no arms and an eye-patch quickly caught up.

Though Break-nee was frightened, she still realized Rinne was in some sort of danger, and asked: “What’s wrong?”

“Hmm? You’re gonna stop me?” The demonic girl turned her head.

Damn!

Rinne raised the cellphone she still clenched in her hand, and threw it towards Long-Armed Demon’s face. It hit her. Though Rinne wasn’t good with sports, she managed to hit her –

“Break-nee! Hide!”

“Meow!” As if the phone was sucked towards her, it landed squarely on Long-Armed Demon’s forehead. With a strange sound, she looked towards Rinne: “What? You want to fight me? It doesn’t hurt! So it doesn’t matter!”

But it looked painful.

Long-Armed Demon’s gaze shifted away from Break-nee, instead staring angrily at Rinne and began to run towards her. That was good.

Having perhaps registered Rinne’s serious expression, Break-nee closed her door and retreated back into her room. Done. Now all Rinne needed to do was the escape.

Rinne ran on the uneven dirt road, and the gravel and the bumps in the road made it particularly difficult.

Where should she run to? Her enemy seemed beyond reason. If she ran towards a place with many other people, she may well be endangering other lives.

She couldn’t do that.

Then, where to?

“I said you can’t run anymore!”

She suddenly felt she was floating.

Rinne’s feet became entangled in something, and she fell forward uncontrollably. How – ?

Turning her head, she saw that she was still very far from Long-Armed Demon. There was no way for her to have touched Rinne.

Did she throw something? It didn’t look like it.

Then – what was this –

Neither Snake nor the ‘Mushi’ she faced a month ago possess any special abilities. They were not too different from humans.

But she was different. Long-Armed Demon was different.

She was genuinely supernatural.

“How was it? Long-Armed Demon’s arms are very, very long, right? A puny human like you cannot escape –”

“Snap.”

“Crunch.”

It was an odd sound.

At the same time, an unimaginable pain assaulted Rinne’s legs.

“Urgh!”

They were broken.

“Ugggghhh, uuuuuuuuuhh!”

Rinne held back her tears and screams, and moaned as she knelt on the ground.

Both of her legs were broken –

The incredible pain that roared in her brain made her mind even clearer. No, she couldn’t escape. Both of her legs were broken. She could not escape.

Yet, she couldn't…

Give up.

No, that was not an option.

''I can’t die. That is a promise. I’ll be with Sakaki forever, living together, being happy together.''

But she couldn’t move. With tears in her eyes, Rinne turned her head.

“Why, why are you doing this?”

“Reason? Why are you asking a demon for reasons?” Long-Armed Demon roared, and yelled out incomprehensible things with unstrained rage: “Long-Armed Demon doesn’t know the reasons either! I was almost killed for no reason! My two arms were cut off, and Zeki-kun saved me just as I was about to die! I finally understood then – we don’t need reasons! That man killed my family and took my arms for no reason, too! He didn’t even tell me his reason when I twisted his arms off him and drilled a hole into his stomach! There was no reason. He just felt happy doing it!”

With a heinous expression, Long-Armed demon screamed at Rinne, who lay motionless on the ground.

Rinne felt a sense of pressure, as if her shoulder was held tight by invisible fingers.

Invisible arms – was this Long-Armed Demon’s power? Though Rinne understood it, she was powerless against it. The pain was making her thoughts disjointed.

She felt Long-Armed Demon was just a poor kid.

A little child who had lost her way, and was crying alone.

“There are many such demons in this world! I finally decided what to do after I understood it. I don’t want to be a human that others want to kill. I want to be the one who kills – to become a happy demon! Then it won’t hurt! Then nothing would be taken away from me!”

Her clavicle was instantly snapped with ease.

“I’m Long-Armed Demon. I’m not a creature like a human. So I won’t cry! And I won’t feel pain –”

Both her legs, and her left shoulder –

Were completely devastated. For a moment, Rinne blacked out.

Her snapped bones pierced her skin, peeking out of her flesh. Her clothes were soon dyed crimson with the blood that seeped out.

The beating of her heart mirrored the pulse of her agony, passing spurts of pain throughout her.

''Even so…

''I still don’t want to die.

''And, also –

''For some reason, I feel –

''… She is just a poor girl.

''I don’t know anything about her. I don’t know who she really is, or how she grew up.

''But I can still tell a few things from her words.''

It was as if she was very similar to how Guriko was when Rinne first met her. Though she was strong, she was actually very fragile.

No, she was in danger because of her strength. She would exert her monstrous strength to continue walking along the thorny path that she accidentally set foot upon, until she reached the point of no return.

That would be such a pity.

Rinne wiped the tears she shed due to the pain, and looked at Long-Armed Demon.

“That’s unforgivable. Who made you like this? The pain of having something taken from you, and the pain of taking from others – you should understand that sorrow better than anyone else, right?”

“Huh?”

Long-Armed Demon was startled.

“Huh? Huh? Human… why would a human creature look at Long-Armed Demon with such eyes?”

Her face swathed in confusion, Long-Armed Demon bit on her lower lip hard.

“Don’t look at Long… Long-Armed Demon with those eyes. Long-Armed Demon didn’t do anything wrong! Don’t look at me with such kind eyes!”

Long-Armed Demon was screaming. Her face, however, was becoming more and more fuzzy in Rinne’s eyes.

This hurts. No, she was far too weak.

She couldn’t help anyone. She kept relying on everyone. Then… she would probably be killed here, having accomplished nothing.

Ahhh.

''I don’t want to die.'' Rinne wiped away her tears with her palm. The blood that sprouted out of her shoulder dripped to her fingertips. Traces of sticky blood clang tightly to the skin of her cheek.

Ahhh –

“Bam.”

There was a sound.

“Bam – bam – ”

What was that?

Long-Armed Demon looked in surprise. Lowering her torso, she readied herself for battle.

“What?”

Still kneeling on the ground, it took Rinne a lot of effort to turn her head to look behind her.

There.

Like a lump of meat, and also like a doll.

“Bam – Bam –”

It was a strange existence made of intertwining lumps of black and red meat, something that ordinary humans wouldn’t be able to bring themselves to gaze upon. It glistened with a moist sheen in the gradually darkening light of the dusk, and emitted a revolting scent like that of blood and rotting meat.

There were long, thick strips of meat, twisted and banded together to make a human shape. It was like a doll whose body was made of innumerable ropes of meat. There were bulges on the ropes of meat that were tied together, bulges which then converged into limbs and finally completed the figure.

There were no ears, nose, or mouth on that face. Only a single, giant eyeball existed there. And from that face –

“Nnnnnnnnnnuuuuuuuu.”

– poured out a low sound that crawled towards Rinne.

As if also scared of that sound, Long-Armed Demon maintained her pose, her eyes wide open.

The strange meat doll slowly reached Rinne, then stood unmoving beside her. Call it wishful thinking, but Rinne felt as if it was protecting her.

Long-Armed Demon probably also reached that conclusion. The ends of her lips tilted up, and she declared provocatively: “What? I don’t know what you want. But if you want to stop Long-Armed Demon, then I’ll kill you!”

The meat doll didn’t answer.

Maybe that ruined her mood.

“Hmm.” A heinous expression briefly surfaced on Long-Armed demon’s face as her invisible power exploded out: “Then die!”

It exploded. Unsurprisingly, the head of the meat doll exploded after having been penetrated by an invisible arm.

The red and black pieces of meat that fluttered down from the sky landed one by one on the uneven road in the middle of the wasteland.

''It was over. I’ll be killed.''

However, just as Rinne and Long-Armed Demon both understood the fact that the meat doll was now dead –

“What?”

The meat doll, which had remained docile so far, suddenly stretched out its right arm in lightning speed.

Long-Armed Demon had perhaps let down her guard, and was standing defenselessly. The arm pierced her thigh and emerged out of the other side.

Blood spluttered everywhere.

“Urgh!” Long-Armed Demon finally reacted. Her face twisted as she retaliated: “Ahhhhh, it hurts! I hate pain!!”

Her invisible power exploded again and again.

“Die! Die! Why don’t you die!”

With every blow, more broken fragments of the meat doll flew out into the air. Its arm, feet, and abdomen were all reduced to dust, and showered down on the ground.

But it did not die, and it did not fall.

“What!?”

No, it was more than that. The scattered pieces of flesh crawled slowly on the ground, like ants swarming upon a piece of chocolate, and all returned to the core of the meat doll.

“Ahhh!”

Seeing this terrifying scene, Rinne couldn’t help but scream out. What was that? How was this possible?

Long-Armed Demon didn’t seem to understand, either. Despite knowing it to be useless, she kept using her power over and over.

The meat doll’s torso was torn and blown up into a million pieces, and it would recover instantly.

Immortality.

That was an immortality that even Rinne could not achieve, the ultimate end.

Just what was this meat doll? Why –

“Yes, my question is…”

A voice.

A female voice that was sweet as honey and mixed with some familiarity sounded.

Right beside the continuous battle between Long-Armed Demon and the meat doll, without being noticed by anyone else, leaving no signs of her approach –

“Why are you protecting Usagawa Rinne, meat doll?”

Saibara Mina stood there.

Her hair was tied into a long braid, her mouth covered with a mask.

In her hand, there was a simple spray paint can.

“Who are you?”

Long-Armed Demon’s arms stopped attacking, and she glared at Mina with alarm.

Even Rinne felt the uncanny aura that she seemed to exude. It was an intimidation that she never felt in their first meeting. It was a sense of control that allowed no rebellion or violation, as if the mere acts of breathing or the beating of a heart required her permission.

Saibara Mina’s eyes smiled as she hugged herself.

“Oh, hahaha, wait a second, lovely Long-Armed Demon. For now –” shifting her gaze to the meat doll, she spread her hands: “I have a question I must ask. Meat doll, why did you disobey my command and refrain from killing Usagawa Rinne?”

“Nuuuu –”

Rinne understood then.

Neither Mina nor the meat doll were herores that came to save her.

She understood. It was over.

Guriko was sleeping. Hino had made sure of it.

Her heart was at breaking point, having been burdened with so many thoughts. For such an emotionally unstable child, the best thing to do was to coax her into sleep. Once asleep, the human brain would cure the broken and rotten parts of the mind on its own, and would heal the sick heart.

The only thing Guriko lacked was sleep.

That was what Itsuwara Hino believed.

Therefore, she put Guriko to sleep.

Hino regularly visited the hospital for her own conditions. The doctors had prescribed some effective sedatives for her.

Guriko seemed to have no resistance to modern medicines. With the mattress wrapped tightly around her, she fell asleep hugging the pillow.

“Sorry.”

That muttering voice did not come from Hino’s mouth.

But from the slender girl who shivered as she tightly hugged the pillow.

“Sorry, sorry, I’m still alive, I’m sorry…’

“You don’t need to apologize.”

Hino murmured. She gently caressed Guriko’s head. The messy wolf-like haircut was damp with the cold sweat, feeling slight hot under Hino’s hand.

Gently, Hino bent down and whispered to Guriko: “It – wasn’t your fault.”

“Sorry.”

Of course, Guriko couldn’t hear what she said. She only kept on apologizing with an anguished expression on her face.

Hino sighed and looked at the clock hanging on the wall, which had hands all made up of spoons.

She bought this because Guriko had looked at it with such a rare look of longing.

Why did she love spoons so? Hino knew that Guriko would sometimes space out while staring at a spoon.

Was she a spoon fanatic? Everyone has different hobbies. Hino wouldn’t force her to change, but she somehow felt this to be an unhealthy obsession.

“Kio is so slow. He should be home by now.”

Confused, she muttered to herself while thinking of all the possibilities.

“Did he have to stay behind for work?”

That sounded right. It felt so lonely. Hino would feel anxious whenever he left her side.

She wouldn’t know what to do.

Tears soon welled out of Guriko’s eyes as she mumbled while sobbing in her sleep.

“Kill me… kill me, kill me, kill me.”

It was a sad and anguished sound, a weak voice unimaginable for Guriko to utter during her waking hours.

“Let me die, let me die –”

Hino did not know what pained Guriko so much.

All she knew was that, every night, Guriko would be haunted by her nightmares.

Hino felt so sorry for Guriko, but she couldn’t enter her dream to save her.

As she smoothed Guriko’s hair, she wondered –

''Why would I cherish Guriko so much, when she’s not my child? Is this emotion genuine? For me, who had faked everything, is it still possible to love someone else? This child, this fake child; though I tried my best to pretend to love her –

''Could that emotion be genuine?''

“…”

Hino silently raised her arm.

''If I am to put my hand over Guriko’s neck right now and squeeze –''

“…”

Hino’s fingers touched the skin on Guriko’s neck, but she couldn’t put any strength into her hands.

The blood beneath her fingers was endlessly pulsing along the arteries in Guriko’s neck.

She was alive.

However, contrary to Hino’s stalled actions, Guriko was urging her to commit to the action from the depths of her dreams.

“Kill me.”

“…”

Hino placed her hands around Guriko’s neck, and sank into quiet contemplation.

''Why can’t my fingers tighten?

''Why can’t I do it?''

“Guriko-chan.”

''Why… am I crying?

''I don’t understand, and Kio isn’t beside me.''

“Kill me.”

As Guriko muttered to herself, tears also gleamed in her tightly closed eyes.

The last rays of the setting sun poured in through the curtains, and gently enveloped the stationary duo.

“Don’t cry, Guriko-chan.”

With a sudden feeling of fatigue, Hino let go of her hands on Guriko’s neck as she weptwith Guriko. Almost unconsciously, she muttered the true thoughts in her mind: “Mom is here.”

Was it a coincidence? Guriko sighed with contentment, temporarily left his nightmares, and stared to breathe evenly.

“I – I –”

Hino couldn’t bear it any longer. Putting her hands to her face, she screamed with frustration.

“I… can’t do it!”

Tears welled out without end.

These tears and this emotion were the only truths that the fake Itsuwara Hino could feel.

Silently, the boudoir simply enveloped this pair of fake mother and daughter in its melancholy.

<noinclude>
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|-
| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch2|Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon ]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch4|Night 4: I can't hear the bells]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Mushi to Medama

2011-12-10T22:31:06Z

Cakemanofdoom:

[[Image:mtm_main.jpg|200px|thumb|Cover for the 1st novel]]

Sakaki Guryuu is a multi-talented genius who, despite being gifted and wealthy, decides to teach in the countryside to be together with his lover, Usagawa Rinne, who also happens to be his student. Their peaceful lives are shattered one day when Rinne is killed, in front of Sakaki's eyes, by a girl named "Gankyuu Eguriko", who gouged her eyes out with a spoon. Things take an even stranger turn when Rinne suddenly wakes up as if nothing had happened, and something called an "Eden's Apple" is thrown into the mix.

Mushi to Medama won the award for the "Best Newcomer" category in the MF Literary Awards.

== [[MTM:Registration Page|Registration]] ==
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

=== Format Standards ===
*[[Format_guideline|General Format/Style Guideline]]

== Updates ==
*October 17, 2008
** Project Officially Started

*September 8, 2009
** Volume 1 Chapter 3 complete

*May 11, 2010
** Volume 1 Chapter 4 complete

*March 13, 2011
** Volume 1 Chapter 2 complete

*March 26, 2011
**Volume 2 Open complete

*April 14, 2011
**Volume 1 Epilogue complete

*April 22, 2011
**Volume 1 Chapter 5 complete
**Volume 1 complete

*November 27, 2011
**Volume 2 Night 2 complete

== Project Staff ==

*Project Administrator: [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
*Project Supervisor:

=== Translators ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]]
Those who wish to contribute are asked to first notify a supervisor beforehand. [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] has Chinese RAWs available for those who wish to help.
'''Translators are asked to [[MTM:Registration Page|register]] which chapters they're working on''' (see [[Format_guideline#Translators|the Guideline page]] for usage rules).

'''INACTIVE
::*[[User:Cakemanofdoom|cakemanofdoom]] (Until I can get myself to stop being so lazy and get back to work. Bugging me on my talk page or forum will help motivation a lot.)

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:HolyCow|HolyCow]]

=== Editors ===

'''ACTIVE'''
::*[[User:RoadBuster|RoadBuster]]
::*[[User:Chaos Greyblood|Chaos Greyblood]]
::*[[User:dell19930|dell19930]]

'''MIA'''
::*[[User:TheGiftedMonkey|TheGiftedMonkey]]

== Mushi to Medama Series by Akira (日日日), Illustrated by Mitsuki Mausu ==

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear '' / 蟲と眼球とテディベア ([[Mushi:Vol1|Full Text]] - [http://www.mediafire.com/?fz7iq8c6zriib36 PDF for e-Reader]) ===
[[Image:Mtm_main.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 1 Cover: Gankyuu Egoriko]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch1|Night 1: Usarin-kakka's Daily Edict]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch2|Night 2: The 15th November Incident]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch3|Night 3: The Girl who died a Thousand years ago]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch4|Night 4: Loneliness ← Kodoku → Insect Poison]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Ch5|Final Night: "Don't Look"]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Epilogue|Guriko's Offering]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_Author's_Notes|Author's Notes]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol1_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection '' / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒 ===
[[Image:Mtm2_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 2 Cover: Usagawa Rinne]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Open|Open: Clock of Endless Nights]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch1|Night 1: A Series of Misfortune]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_Ch2|Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon]]
::*Night 3: Boudoir
::*Night 4: I can't hear the bells
::*Final Night: Start of Disinfection
::*Close: Blood-stained Night
::*Author's Notes
::*[[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes|Translator's Notes and References]]

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait '' / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ ===
[[Image:Mtm3_cover.jpg|125px|thumb|Volume 3 Cover]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*[[Mushi:Vol3_Prologue|Start: Lady with a Helmet]]
::*Night 1: Black Dragon Black Snake Black Rat
::*Night 2: Granulated Sugar and a One-sided Love
::*Night 3: Distancing happiness
::*Night 4: Temporary halt?
::*Night 5: Vomit
::*End: You and Chocolate Sunday
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love '' / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol4_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Overture: 700
::*Symphony 1: Unable to transmit via songs alone
::*Symphony 2: Whom does the Song of Love belong to?
::*Symphony 3: Crybaby Joker
::*Symphony 4: The Adventures of Vegetable Juice and Tomato Juice
::*Final Symphony: Unable to save based on love alone
::*Requiem: 666
::*Author's Notes
::*Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White '' / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫 ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol5_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*PROLOGUE 02: The Jealous Queen
::*EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
::*EPILOGUE 06: The Hunter
::*EPILOGUE 09: The Seven Dwarfs
::*EPILOGUE 11: The Witch
::*EPILOGUE 14: Poison & Apple & Kiss
::*EPILOGUE 19: Snow White
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

===''Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair '' / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア ===
::*[[Mushi:Vol6_Illustrations|Novel Illustrations]]
::*Ragnarok 00: Ruined hair of a place no one knows
::*Ragnarok 01: 19-year-old Useless Repeat-year-student, Hobby is video gaming
::*Ragnarok 02: Marionette of blood and flesh and bone
::*Ragnarok 03: Peaceful, Everyday Heaven
::*Ragnarok 04: 29 year old bachelor, Bored every day
::*Ragnarok 05: Production-orientated Loner
::*Ragnarok 06: Final God Mode: 3000 Worlds
::*Ragnarok xx: The twilight of the aftermath...
::*Author's Notes
::* Translator's Notes and References

== Series Overview ==
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Teddy Bear / 蟲と眼球とテディベア　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1273-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Sterile Disinfection / 蟲と眼球と殺菌消毒　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1470-7)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Chocolate Parfait / 蟲と眼球とチョコレートパフェ (ISBN 978-4-8401-1532-2)
* Mushi, Eyeball and a Song of Love / 蟲と眼球と愛の歌　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1593-3)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Snow White / 蟲と眼球と白雪姫　(ISBN 978-4-8401-1765-4)
* Mushi, Eyeball and Damaged Hair / 蟲と眼球とダメージヘア (ISBN 978-4-8401-1858-3)

Mushi:Vol2 Open

2011-12-04T04:53:50Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Open: Clock of Endless Nights''' ==

About this… She was an intriguing girl. Should we say that an aura of discord is condensed upon her, or that she resembled the part that spells 'trouble' when people say the phrase ‘let’s stir up some trouble’? She was about ten years old, or perhaps a bit older, and looked as if she was in elementary school.

She seemed innocent and spoke in a clear voice, how should one describe it...?—It was as though her entire self radiated a joyful light, like any other grade-schooler.

That’s right, she was a grade-schooler.

A grade-schooler missing her two arms.

It was not fate or anything like that.

“Long time no see.”

It was simply a coincidence, an ill-fortuned coincidence.

“It’s been two years! Do you remember me, Rinne?”

They were at the small intersection of the merry market street in a small town.

Kannonsakazaki Private High School’s Usagawa Rinne was called by a girl as she left school.

The girl had perfectly straight long black hair and eyes that shone with determination. Thick, round eyebrows stood above her eyes.

She wore Kannonsakazaki’s school uniform.

“I’m Katou Katsumi, don’t you remember me…? You should remember me, right?”

She smiled with some faint loneliness as the neon light reflected off her skin.

It was in the evening, and the sun was setting. Rinne had finished the cleaning duty that was pushed onto her after everyone else left since she lost a bet, and hurried home because it was late.

A piercing wind came out of the early winter’s cold air.

The girl who called herself Katsumi moved over, her beautiful hair and body seemingly flowing in the darkness.

“Katsumi?”

That was a familiar name that had been carved into her heart.

Since the person in front of her was so much more beautiful than Rinne remembered, she didn’t recognize her at first. However, she did not forget; how could she forget?!

“Do you remember?”

“Eh…”

She was Rinne’s friend in middle school, and the only friend willing to stay by her side.

Of course, that may have simply been Rinne’s wishful thinking, but whenever she thought of her painful time in middle school, she recalled the endless support Katsumi had provided to her.

But Rinne didn’t have the courage to go see her.

Middle school—that was the time when she was fed up with absolutely everything, even breathing. She constantly shut herself in her room, believing that she didn’t have a place in her house or at school. It was when she attempted suicide.

At that time, Rinne repeatedly pushed Katsumi away when she tried to approach her. “Katsumi, do we go to the same school?”

“Mmm, it seems so.” Katsumi replied, smiling all the while.

“You’re really famous in this school, though. I’ve known that you went here for a pretty long time, but I didn’t have an opportunity to talk to you before.”

Rinne’s expression showed a slight uncertainty as she apologetically bowed her head towards Katsumi.

“I’m sorry.”

“Sorry? For what? You didn’t exactly do anything wrong in middle school. Everyone wants to avoid other people from time to time, actually…”

Saying this, Katsumi pointed at a coffee shop on the side of the road.

“Then, wanna sit down and talk for a while? Are you free?”

“Eh? Ah, OK!”

Rinne nodded out of reflex, and followed Katsumi in.

The coffee shop’s pretty hostess greeted the customers with a formal smile.

Soft, sweet music flowed through the coffee shop. Whether it was due to the late hour, or it was always this way, the store had no customers.

Katsumi probably came here often, as she smoothly ordered two cups of coffee while sitting down on a chair.

Then she smiled slightly as she said to Rinne, who was standing there unsure of what to do, “You can sit down. This part of you never changes…”

“What part?”

“The fact that you hold back too much at a lot of things, most of all in your own happiness.”

Saying these words that Rinne couldn’t really understand, Katsumi beckoned at Rinne. No change, she didn’t change at all.

In eighth grade, Rinne pushed this friend away, and even Katsumi eventually gave up. The year after, when they bumped into each other in the hallway, she pretended not to notice.

“Rinne, I~wanted to apologize to you all this time.”

Katsumi still showed that lonely smile.

Rinne sat on the chair and widened her eyes in surprise.

“Eh?”

“I promised to always be good friends with you, but we drifted apart. I’ve felt so regretful over that, and I wanted to apologize.”

Katsumi remorsefully bowed her head as she apologized.

Rinne didn’t know what to do, and only waved her hands denying it with embarrassment.

“No way. The one who should apologize… is me, Katsumi. It was me who ~ hated everything, rejecting and drifting apart from everyone else and shutting myself in my room. You tried to get close to me, even so…”

“Not taking it all the way to the end is meaningless. But, thanks.”

“Clack”, the hostess silently set down the coffee. Katsumi picked one up and raised it to Rinne.

“Then, let’s be friends again. Let’s share the blame. I was wrong, and you were wrong too. We both said sorry, and we forgave each other, so let’s call it even.”

Rinne felt as though the scar in her heart gradually started to disappear.

As expected, Katsumi was still Katsumi, the Katsumi that Rinne liked, this girl who promised to “always be good friends” with her during middle school. Even though she wasn’t particularly special and didn’t attract people immediately, her heart was gentler than anyone else. Rinne’s eyes failed to hold their tears in, and she lowered her head to hide this.

“Ah.”

“Then, cheers! Saying this is pretty weird, but whatever.”

“Clack”, the two lightly tapped their cups together. Then they chatted about all sorts of topics, all of which would be considered trivial, as if they wanted to fill up the gap between the past and present. To talk like this with Katsumi had once been Rinne’s joy back in middle school. She was abandoned by her mother, beaten by her father, and still dragged her tired heart to school to be picked on by other students over her family situation.

And yet, Katsumi was still willing to be with her.

She was a friend more important than almost anyone else.

“Katsumi”, and in words containing all of her heart’s feelings, “Thank you.”

Unsure of what to do, Katsumi tilted her head and said, “Umm, I’m paying for the coffee!” This situation didn’t match her words.

“It’s been so long since we’ve been like this!”

Katsumi continued to talk on her own, ignoring Rinne who blurted, “I’m also paying! I can’t let you pay by yourself!”

What to say now? Rinne had always felt that this kind of personality tends to put her at a disadvantage with people.

But Katsumi still liked this part of her.

“…Then, let’s go home together.”

Outside, it was already dark. The cloudy sky obscuring the moon and stars created a feeling of unease.

A few random lights shone feebly through the cold. “Ugh. But, I’m so happy.”

Rinne smiled, and said seriously, “Let’s ignore that for now, I still need to pay.”

Ah, she’s become a bit hard to deal with. Before, she would easily obey others with just a little bit of suggestion. But it seems Rinne grew up a little too.

Katsumi thought this with a bitter smile as she walked forward, waving her hands.

“Then, how about you treat me next time?”

“Eh?”

“We have to meet up again!”

Katsumi didn’t look at Rinne.

What kind of expression did Rinne, who was standing behind her – the girl she betrayed before – have at the moment? Actually, in 9th grade, she had frequently wanted to start a conversation with Rinne. Every time they bumped into each other in the hallway, she wanted to apologize.

Katsumi’s eyes filled with tears.

“I’m sorry. Though I may not be worthy, can we still be friends forever?”

“……”

After a short silence, Katsumi’s hand felt the grip of Rinne’s warm hand.

“Alright.”

Even though she still couldn’t look Rinne in the eyes till the end.

“Then, see ya later.”

“Mmm, see ya.”

Katsumi swore in her heart to meet with her again.

And so, Katou Katsumi and Usagawa Rinne parted ways. Their paths home differed cruelly and had no chance of intertwining ever again—

After passing through the market street and crossing the road, all signs of people disappeared.

Behind Katsumi, who couldn’t hold back her tears, a sinister shadow who couldn’t possibly understand the two’s friendship approached from nearby.

“Shall we compare the length of our arms?”

Rudely and without cause, an unreasonable shiver shot down Katsumi’s back.

Katsumi reflexively turned around.

That was the turning point.

Unfortunately, for the girl Katou Katsumi, the existence that had cheerfully called out to her was not a resident of the world humans could understand with their logic.

It was an existence not meant to be encountered during a lifetime, and was merely something that one might pass by.

The girl who deviated from the peaceful world of humans just had to meet such a being. To meet the Long-Armed Demon... How would one put it? It would be considered bad luck, misfortune, a tragic fate, or the like. Even I can only think of one thing to say to her. And that would be: Rest in peace. That girl was singing. “In—the—clear—night—”

That girl was extremely innocent and naive, and straightforward to the point where people might question her sanity, but that only makes her scarier. Though her high voice was clearly that of a girl’s, and her appearance was normal, there was the feeling that she lacked some part of humanity. She gave off an impression similar to that of a carnivorous beast.

“The—moon—is—so—beautiful—”

As she sang, she danced an odd dance around Katsumi.

Seeming as if she would fall, she teetered to the right and tottered to the left, casting doubt as to whether she was dancing or simply drunk.

Katsumi simply stood there, silently and rigidly, watching that girl.

“Humans—are—so—annoying—to—see—”

The girl seemed like a grade-schooler. One couldn’t even be sure if she reached up to Katsumi’s chest.

In this cold weather, she only wore a colorful shirt, and even the legs showing under her skirt seemed cold.

Her hair was tied into two rather short pigtails, and because her overly bright smile she revealed a row of white teeth; in addition, her eyes shone incomprehensibly.

She suddenly stopped singing and dancing. “Boom”, she jumped in front of Katsumi.

“Good evening.”

Her voice still overflowed with friendliness, without the tiniest amount of malice.

However.

Katsumi suddenly felt the incongruity of this girl as she noticed this grade-school girl’s peculiarity.

Where, where was this incongruity? What was it? Katsumi watched her, quickly noticed something unbelievable, and screamed.

“My name is Long-Armed Demon. What’s yours, onee-chan? Hehehe, Long-Armed Demon forgot!”

The little girl didn’t have arms. From her shoulders, her entire arms were missing. Only space remained where one should have seen her slender arms.

The arms were actually gone, rather than being hidden somewhere.

This was her only difference from normal people.

But Katsumi felt differently. From the girl’s body constitution to her expression, she was completely different from a human…

She almost seemed like a spirit. No, more like… a demon?

That’s right, she said she was a demon.

“…”

What was going on? This was too ridiculous. Katsumi’s mind was completely fuddled.

“Long-Armed Demon?”

There was no way for Katsumi to understand this, and she could only fearfully step back slightly.

But behind her was a wall, leaving her with no way to escape. Escape? From such a tiny little girl? But she could sense the danger. Her instinct told her to hurriedly leave this girl called Long-Armed Demon.

As she trembled, Katsumi felt fear all the way deep inside her core, and ran as she pushing past the little girl.

“Eh, hey!”

For some reason, she felt unbelievably scared. She wasn’t afraid due to the girl’s appearance, she just felt that the girl… shouldn’t exist in this world.

Katou Katsumi tried to lose the girl as she ran as fast as she could on the empty streets lit by neon lights.

''Escape. I can escape. I can escape from you!''

Otherwise…

“That’s right—since I’m a demon with long arms, I’m called Long-Armed Demon.”

The innocent voice rang in Katsumi’s mind.

Then, Katsumi’s body couldn’t move. Screaming out, not understanding her situation, she opened her eyes wide.

Long-Armed Demon had not moved from her spot, but Katsumi’s body stopped listening to her brain’s commands. She could not move at all.

What was going on? This was some supernatural event! That's impossible! As her mind spun in a frenzy close to its breaking point, she thought of screaming, “Help—”

She couldn’t help but think, “Help me, I’m about to be killed!”

This was the attitude of a human meeting a carnivorous beast.

The innocent little girl sweetly smiled.

“How is it? Long-Armed Demon’s arms are so long, right?”

An immense force grabbed her shoulders.

It felt like a bodybuilder was crushing her shoulders. She could even clearly feel the pressure of five fingers.

The only logical assumption would have been that invisible arms reached over and grabbed her shoulders, holding her in place.

But, how could there be such a thing?

Ghosts, monsters, superpowers; those things were all fictional, fantasy, and should only have existed in cartoons or on T.V.

But Katsumi’s fear of death made her entire body shudder, with her entire world in a hopeless, senseless madness. Like in T.V., her life was now filled with supposedly impossible events. The sole difference was that for her, there would be no rescue.

“You can’t run away. If I let you get away, I’ll be punished by Zeki-kun.”

--The girl’s innocent voice spoke.

Zeki-kun? Katsumi only shuddered without pause.

--Behind her stood the girl who remained innocent looking and kept a happy face.

She was too far away and out of reach even if Katsumi stretched out her hands. She was the terrifying Long-Armed Demon that completely annihilated Katsumi’s ordinary life in the cover of this darkness.

She pouted unhappily, “But still, what exactly is your name? You have an Apple right? I looked forward to this since I thought you’d be pretty strong, but this is boring. Zeki-kun’s a liar, this isn’t fun at all!”

Like a child disappointed with a toy recently bought, she said: “Whatever, I don’t want something this boring. I’ll throw it away.”

Long-Armed Demon innocently, yet cruelly, threw Katsumi against the wall.

Katsumi heard a “Clack” before she understood that it was the sound of her clavicles and her ribs being smashed. The pain was too great to allow her to even scream.

The invisible arms grabbing her shoulders simply and purely inflicted blind destruction upon Katou Katsumi’s body.

In other words, she was slammed onto the wall, smashed into it, beaten up, thrown away, suddenly thrown onto the ground before being picked up again and flung into the air with bones shattered and blood splattering everywhere and she was just being thrown and thrown and thrown...

“Crash----Clang!”

That was the hollow and insubstantial bell of the night of the prologue, a bell that signaled the beginning of this night of sorrows.

Contrary to the New Year’s bell that was sounded to welcome the New Year and to pray for the elimination of malevolent spirits, this was the bell of the night of prologue that suggested the end of Katou Katsumi’s boring and beloved daily life and proclaimed the arrival and rampage of demons.

Her blood splattered everywhere. Her bones were long since crushed to smithereens and mashed together with pieces of flesh—

When Katsumi was smashed against the wall for the last time, Long-Armed Demon squirted out a laugh, “Hee hee”.

“In—the—clear—night—”

She started singing, released her formless arms, and allowed the thing that used to be Katsumi to fall to the ground.

“The—moon—is—so—beautiful—”

Long-Armed Demon’s face did not reveal the slightest guilt at having murdered Katsumi, only showing that same bright expression as she walked up and narrowed her eyes to look closely at the piece of corpse on the ground.

“Humans—are—so—Eh?”

Long-Armed Demon stopped singing and used her invisible fingers to prod Katsumi’s body.

Then she showed confusion—this was the first time Long-Armed Demon revealed a perplexed expression—as she incessantly felt Katsumi’s body, her face turning deadly white.

“Eh, eh eh? Eh eh eh?” That was the expression of the child after a grave error, “N-n-no Apple? Why? How, How? But… but she died? She died but didn’t have an Apple? Eh, eh eh?”

Then, she noticed.

Beside the lump of flesh that used to be Katou Katsumi, there was a book.

It was Kannonsakazaki High School’s student identification documents, but Long-Armed Demon didn’t know that, and only flipped through the blood-stained pages incredulously.

On the first page, there was a picture of her face, her address, her birthday, her name—

“Oh?”

That name was clearly different from the one Long-Armed Demon had been ordered to kill.

She had waited for Katsumi to leave that coffee shop, in which she stayed for oh-such-a-long-time, perched on the coffee shop’s roof… now that she thought about it, she accidentally wasted some time when she got down. By the time she finally got back on her trail, aside from this girl called Katsumi, there was another person.

Since she disappeared into the darkness, Long-Armed Demon didn’t see her clearly and thought she was a random bystander.

Could that person have been..?

Now that she thought of it, that person seemed to be around Katsumi’s age.

Long-Armed Demon’s face turned pale.

“Oops, hehehe. Long-Armed Demon made a little mistake!” Then she realized it was a bad time to laugh. She thought seriously: “Wh-what do I do now. I-i-it’s so troublesome. Zeki-kun will scold me, I’ll be, I’ll be, I’ll be punished. Waah, this sucks, what do I do, what do I do, what do I do?”

Long-Armed Demon felt flustered as she worried. Suddenly, she thought of a wonderful plan and jumped up, “That’s right.” She laughed, “Tee hee”, and used her bright voice to mumble to herself in a harsh tone, “That’s right, it’s alright if I can find that girl from before, she’ll definitely have the right name. What was that name again? And then, and then, I just need to get that person’s Apple before Zeki-kun gets here and I’ll be fine. I'm so smart!”

Then, with a presumptuous expression, “But I don’t really know what she looks like. Oh… ah, that’s right, killing all the girls that in this town that’s of this one’s age should be fine! As long as I kill them it’ll be alright, cos the one who doesn’t die would have the Apple! Yeah!”

With this thought, she believed she might succeed.

And so, Long-Armed Demon did not even look at Katou Katsumi’s corpse as she faded into the darkness.

How many girls of Katsumi’s age did she think there were in this town?! But her steps was both light and full of hope as she walked away.

“In—the—clear—night—”

The thin, small figure disappeared into the dark and gloomy night.

“The—moon—is—so—beautiful—”

Only the song never ceased, pouring into the girl’s miserable corpse.

“Humans—are—so—annoying—to—see—”

The above was the story of the strange girl that I saw.

Haha, what? You’ve got an incredulous expression now. Ah, do you not know why I told you this? This is… to put it to modern terms, this is a gift from the underworld. If you didn’t know one or two interesting things, wouldn’t the trip to Hell be too boring?

Moreover, I want to reflect on this event involving Long-Armed Demon. For that, unloading the facts onto someone else is an effective tool.

Perhaps, for you who are about to be killed, this isn’t something interesting—but how do you feel about it? I wish to hear the opinions of you normal people who live inside the normality of life, unlike existences such as me who live on the other side.

Ah, you think this was nonsense? I guess I can’t blame you for that. Maybe these things are indeed unbelievable for those of you living inside normality.

But this was absolutely true. This is a nightmare that is attacking Kannonsakazaki town as we speak. That’s right. Perhaps your most important person would be attacked by Long-Armed Demon tomorrow.

Oh? Your expression changed. Eyes flaming with determination are so beautiful, and I like that. But that’s not----allowed----because you must die here. My apologies, but that has already been decided.

Ah, haha, your face is full of unwillingness.

Are you annoyed that you can’t protect a certain person? Hahaha, not bad, I wanted to see expressions like that.

You can go and die in such regret, grief, suffering, and die while cursing your own helplessness. Otherwise, the party that does the killing will get bored too.

But, don’t worry, you’re not bad people.

Nor are you germs or poison. You’re simply humans that felt for other people, powerful and impressive humans.

Therefore I will kill you with all of my sincerity rather than indiscriminately slaughter you. I will recognize you as a person as I kill you.

This conversation’s been going on for too long. Then, please die.

What? My name? Hahaha, how can I tell it to people about to die? I can’t handle it if you curse me! You’re so foolish~

But, if it’s my name over on this side, then there’s no harm in telling you. It’s your choice whether or not to believe that it’s my true name. Whether or not you may curse me is also your choice.

Because this is a name that would shine even brighter when cursed.

My name is Sterilization Disinfection. I'm just a digestive organ——

<noinclude>
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|-
| Return to [[Mushi:Vol1_Author's_Notes|Volume 1, Author's Notes]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch1|Night 1: A Series of Misfortune]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Talk:Mushi:Vol2 Open

2011-12-04T04:51:15Z

Cakemanofdoom:

My opinion on edits made here. This has changed since before, if anyone saw it. Realized that many of my comments were based on crappy understanding of the Chinese.

Line 1: Concerning this small event…

-IMO sounded way too formal. Phrase isn't really important, so I think it's better to just toss in a random short phrase.

Rinne had finished the cleaning duty she was assigned to do

-I think this was getting a bit redundant. Cleaning by itself if both a duty and something that you do, so adding both duty and to do is a bit excessive IMO.

Line 51: Rinne’s expression showed a slight uncertainty as she bowed her head in apology towards Katsumi.

-Do we really need to say the bow was in apology when the next line has her saying sorry? Eh my "fix" didn't change much, but I at least think it's less blatant.

Line 119: She was a friend, more important than basically anyone else.

-It feels to me like the comma there implies that Katsumi was important because friends in general are more important than other people. I think, with the comma gone, it means something more like, “Katsumi was really important, and she was also a friend”, which IIRC is more accurate in regards to the Chinese.

Line 191: the existence that had cheerfully called out to her was not a resident of the world humans couldn't understand with their logic.

-Double negative.

Line 213: Her hair was tied into two rather short pigtails, and because her overly bright smile she revealed a row of white teeth, and her eyes shone incomprehensibly.

-I don’t like the two “ands” in the same sentence. Perhaps break it into two sentences after talking about the pigtails? (For the record, even I can’t understand what I was thinking when I typed up my version. It makes no sense to me.)

Line 221: However...

-Let’s keep the single period over the ellipse, which IIRC was how the Chinese had it. It still conveys the same meaning, but the period implies an abruptness which I assume was intended.

Line 295: --Behind her stood the girl who remained innocent looking and had a happy face.

-Changing had to kept would be better I think.

Her blood splattered everywhere. Her bones were long since crushed to smithereens, and were miraculously mashed together with pieces of flesh—

-I think we should take out “miraculously” to avoid implying that bones being mashed with flesh would be a miracle.

Long-Armed Demon’s face did not reveal the slightest guilt at committing Katsumi’s murder

-Pretty sure English doesn't let people say "commit someone's murder". Could be wrong though.

Line 385: I am only the digestive organ

-IMO using "the" before readers know anything about the "body" that the digestive system is in makes it sound like choppy English.

[[User:Cakemanofdoom|Cakemanofdoom]] 17:42, 15 May 2011 (UCT)

Mushi:Vol2 Open

2011-12-04T04:50:49Z

Cakemanofdoom: See talk for explanations, if you care.

== '''Open: Clock of Endless Nights''' ==

About this… She was an intriguing girl. Should we say that an aura of discord is condensed upon her, or that she resembled the part that spells 'trouble' when people say the phrase ‘let’s stir up some trouble’? She was about ten years old, or perhaps a bit older, and looked as if she was in elementary school.

She seemed innocent and spoke in a clear voice, how should one describe it...?—It was as though her entire self radiated a joyful light, like any other grade-schooler.

That’s right, she was a grade-schooler.

A grade-schooler missing her two arms.

It was not fate or anything like that.

“Long time no see.”

It was simply a coincidence, an ill-fortuned coincidence.

“It’s been two years! Do you remember me, Rinne?”

They were at the small intersection of the merry market street in a small town.

Kannonsakazaki Private High School’s Usagawa Rinne was called by a girl as she left school.

The girl had perfectly straight long black hair and eyes that shone with determination. Thick, round eyebrows stood above her eyes.

She wore Kannonsakazaki’s school uniform.

“I’m Katou Katsumi, don’t you remember me…? You should remember me, right?”

She smiled with some faint loneliness as the neon light reflected off her skin.

It was in the evening, and the sun was setting. Rinne had finished the cleaning duty that was pushed onto her after everyone else left since she lost a bet, and hurried home because it was late.

A piercing wind came out of the early winter’s cold air.

The girl who called herself Katsumi moved over, her beautiful hair and body seemingly flowing in the darkness.

“Katsumi?”

That was a familiar name that had been carved into her heart.

Since the person in front of her was so much more beautiful than Rinne remembered, she didn’t recognize her at first. However, she did not forget; how could she forget?!

“Do you remember?”

“Eh…”

She was Rinne’s friend in middle school, and the only friend willing to stay by her side.

Of course, that may have simply been Rinne’s wishful thinking, but whenever she thought of her painful time in middle school, she recalled the endless support Katsumi had provided to her.

But Rinne didn’t have the courage to go see her.

Middle school—that was the time when she was fed up with absolutely everything, even breathing. She constantly shut herself in her room, believing that she didn’t have a place in her house or at school. It was when she attempted suicide.

At that time, Rinne repeatedly pushed Katsumi away when she tried to approach her. “Katsumi, do we go to the same school?”

“Mmm, it seems so.” Katsumi replied, smiling all the while.

“You’re really famous in this school, though. I’ve known that you went here for a pretty long time, but I didn’t have an opportunity to talk to you before.”

Rinne’s expression showed a slight uncertainty as she apologetically bowed her head towards Katsumi.

“I’m sorry.”

“Sorry? For what? You didn’t exactly do anything wrong in middle school. Everyone wants to avoid other people from time to time, actually…”

Saying this, Katsumi pointed at a coffee shop on the side of the road.

“Then, wanna sit down and talk for a while? Are you free?”

“Eh? Ah, OK!”

Rinne nodded out of reflex, and followed Katsumi in.

The coffee shop’s pretty hostess greeted the customers with a formal smile.

Soft, sweet music flowed through the coffee shop. Whether it was due to the late hour, or it was always this way, the store had no customers.

Katsumi probably came here often, as she smoothly ordered two cups of coffee while sitting down on a chair.

Then she smiled slightly as she said to Rinne, who was standing there unsure of what to do, “You can sit down. This part of you never changes…”

“What part?”

“The fact that you hold back too much at a lot of things, most of all in your own happiness.”

Saying these words that Rinne couldn’t really understand, Katsumi beckoned at Rinne. No change, she didn’t change at all.

In eighth grade, Rinne pushed this friend away, and even Katsumi eventually gave up. The year after, when they bumped into each other in the hallway, she pretended not to notice.

“Rinne, I~wanted to apologize to you all this time.”

Katsumi still showed that lonely smile.

Rinne sat on the chair and widened her eyes in surprise.

“Eh?”

“I promised to always be good friends with you, but we drifted apart. I’ve felt so regretful over that, and I wanted to apologize.”

Katsumi remorsefully bowed her head as she apologized.

Rinne didn’t know what to do, and only waved her hands denying it with embarrassment.

“No way. The one who should apologize… is me, Katsumi. It was me who ~ hated everything, rejecting and drifting apart from everyone else and shutting myself in my room. You tried to get close to me, even so…”

“Not taking it all the way to the end is meaningless. But, thanks.”

“Clack”, the hostess silently set down the coffee. Katsumi picked one up and raised it to Rinne.

“Then, let’s be friends again. Let’s share the blame. I was wrong, and you were wrong too. We both said sorry, and we forgave each other, so let’s call it even.”

Rinne felt as though the scar in her heart gradually started to disappear.

As expected, Katsumi was still Katsumi, the Katsumi that Rinne liked, this girl who promised to “always be good friends” with her during middle school. Even though she wasn’t particularly special and didn’t attract people immediately, her heart was gentler than anyone else. Rinne’s eyes failed to hold their tears in, and she lowered her head to hide this.

“Ah.”

“Then, cheers! Saying this is pretty weird, but whatever.”

“Clack”, the two lightly tapped their cups together. Then they chatted about all sorts of topics, all of which would be considered trivial, as if they wanted to fill up the gap between the past and present. To talk like this with Katsumi had once been Rinne’s joy back in middle school. She was abandoned by her mother, beaten by her father, and still dragged her tired heart to school to be picked on by other students over her family situation.

And yet, Katsumi was still willing to be with her.

She was a friend more important than almost anyone else.

“Katsumi”, and in words containing all of her heart’s feelings, “Thank you.”

Unsure of what to do, Katsumi tilted her head and said, “Umm, I’m paying for the coffee!” This situation didn’t match her words.

“It’s been so long since we’ve been like this!”

Katsumi continued to talk on her own, ignoring Rinne who blurted, “I’m also paying! I can’t let you pay by yourself!”

What to say now? Rinne had always felt that this kind of personality tends to put her at a disadvantage with people.

But Katsumi still liked this part of her.

“…Then, let’s go home together.”

Outside, it was already dark. The cloudy sky obscuring the moon and stars created a feeling of unease.

A few random lights shone feebly through the cold. “Ugh. But, I’m so happy.”

Rinne smiled, and said seriously, “Let’s ignore that for now, I still need to pay.”

Ah, she’s become a bit hard to deal with. Before, she would easily obey others with just a little bit of suggestion. But it seems Rinne grew up a little too.

Katsumi thought this with a bitter smile as she walked forward, waving her hands.

“Then, how about you treat me next time?”

“Eh?”

“We have to meet up again!”

Katsumi didn’t look at Rinne.

What kind of expression did Rinne, who was standing behind her – the girl she betrayed before – have at the moment? Actually, in 9th grade, she had frequently wanted to start a conversation with Rinne. Every time they bumped into each other in the hallway, she wanted to apologize.

Katsumi’s eyes filled with tears.

“I’m sorry. Though I may not be worthy, can we still be friends forever?”

“……”

After a short silence, Katsumi’s hand felt the grip of Rinne’s warm hand.

“Alright.”

Even though she still couldn’t look Rinne in the eyes till the end.

“Then, see ya later.”

“Mmm, see ya.”

Katsumi swore in her heart to meet with her again.

And so, Katou Katsumi and Usagawa Rinne parted ways. Their paths home differed cruelly and had no chance of intertwining ever again—

After passing through the market street and crossing the road, all signs of people disappeared.

Behind Katsumi, who couldn’t hold back her tears, a sinister shadow who couldn’t possibly understand the two’s friendship approached from nearby.

“Shall we compare the length of our arms?”

Rudely and without cause, an unreasonable shiver shot down Katsumi’s back.

Katsumi reflexively turned around.

That was the turning point.

Unfortunately, for the girl Katou Katsumi, the existence that had cheerfully called out to her was not a resident of the world humans could understand with their logic.

It was an existence not meant to be encountered during a lifetime, and was merely something that one might pass by.

The girl who deviated from the peaceful world of humans just had to meet such a being. To meet the Long-Armed Demon... How would one put it? It would be considered bad luck, misfortune, a tragic fate, or the like. Even I can only think of one thing to say to her. And that would be: Rest in peace. That girl was singing. “In—the—clear—night—”

That girl was extremely innocent and naive, and straightforward to the point where people might question her sanity, but that only makes her scarier. Though her high voice was clearly that of a girl’s, and her appearance was normal, there was the feeling that she lacked some part of humanity. She gave off an impression similar to that of a carnivorous beast.

“The—moon—is—so—beautiful—”

As she sang, she danced an odd dance around Katsumi.

Seeming as if she would fall, she teetered to the right and tottered to the left, casting doubt as to whether she was dancing or simply drunk.

Katsumi simply stood there, silently and rigidly, watching that girl.

“Humans—are—so—annoying—to—see—”

The girl seemed like a grade-schooler. One couldn’t even be sure if she reached up to Katsumi’s chest.

In this cold weather, she only wore a colorful shirt, and even the legs showing under her skirt seemed cold.

Her hair was tied into two rather short pigtails, and because her overly bright smile she revealed a row of white teeth, and her eyes shone incomprehensibly.

She suddenly stopped singing and dancing. “Boom”, she jumped in front of Katsumi.

“Good evening.”

Her voice still overflowed with friendliness, without the tiniest amount of malice.

However.

Katsumi suddenly felt the incongruity of this girl as she noticed this grade-school girl’s peculiarity.

Where, where was this incongruity? What was it? Katsumi watched her, quickly noticed something unbelievable, and screamed.

“My name is Long-Armed Demon. What’s yours, onee-chan? Hehehe, Long-Armed Demon forgot!”

The little girl didn’t have arms. From her shoulders, her entire arms were missing. Only space remained where one should have seen her slender arms.

The arms were actually gone, rather than being hidden somewhere.

This was her only difference from normal people.

But Katsumi felt differently. From the girl’s body constitution to her expression, she was completely different from a human…

She almost seemed like a spirit. No, more like… a demon?

That’s right, she said she was a demon.

“…”

What was going on? This was too ridiculous. Katsumi’s mind was completely fuddled.

“Long-Armed Demon?”

There was no way for Katsumi to understand this, and she could only fearfully step back slightly.

But behind her was a wall, leaving her with no way to escape. Escape? From such a tiny little girl? But she could sense the danger. Her instinct told her to hurriedly leave this girl called Long-Armed Demon.

As she trembled, Katsumi felt fear all the way deep inside her core, and ran as she pushing past the little girl.

“Eh, hey!”

For some reason, she felt unbelievably scared. She wasn’t afraid due to the girl’s appearance, she just felt that the girl… shouldn’t exist in this world.

Katou Katsumi tried to lose the girl as she ran as fast as she could on the empty streets lit by neon lights.

''Escape. I can escape. I can escape from you!''

Otherwise…

“That’s right—since I’m a demon with long arms, I’m called Long-Armed Demon.”

The innocent voice rang in Katsumi’s mind.

Then, Katsumi’s body couldn’t move. Screaming out, not understanding her situation, she opened her eyes wide.

Long-Armed Demon had not moved from her spot, but Katsumi’s body stopped listening to her brain’s commands. She could not move at all.

What was going on? This was some supernatural event! That's impossible! As her mind spun in a frenzy close to its breaking point, she thought of screaming, “Help—”

She couldn’t help but think, “Help me, I’m about to be killed!”

This was the attitude of a human meeting a carnivorous beast.

The innocent little girl sweetly smiled.

“How is it? Long-Armed Demon’s arms are so long, right?”

An immense force grabbed her shoulders.

It felt like a bodybuilder was crushing her shoulders. She could even clearly feel the pressure of five fingers.

The only logical assumption would have been that invisible arms reached over and grabbed her shoulders, holding her in place.

But, how could there be such a thing?

Ghosts, monsters, superpowers; those things were all fictional, fantasy, and should only have existed in cartoons or on T.V.

But Katsumi’s fear of death made her entire body shudder, with her entire world in a hopeless, senseless madness. Like in T.V., her life was now filled with supposedly impossible events. The sole difference was that for her, there would be no rescue.

“You can’t run away. If I let you get away, I’ll be punished by Zeki-kun.”

--The girl’s innocent voice spoke.

Zeki-kun? Katsumi only shuddered without pause.

--Behind her stood the girl who remained innocent looking and kept a happy face.

She was too far away and out of reach even if Katsumi stretched out her hands. She was the terrifying Long-Armed Demon that completely annihilated Katsumi’s ordinary life in the cover of this darkness.

She pouted unhappily, “But still, what exactly is your name? You have an Apple right? I looked forward to this since I thought you’d be pretty strong, but this is boring. Zeki-kun’s a liar, this isn’t fun at all!”

Like a child disappointed with a toy recently bought, she said: “Whatever, I don’t want something this boring. I’ll throw it away.”

Long-Armed Demon innocently, yet cruelly, threw Katsumi against the wall.

Katsumi heard a “Clack” before she understood that it was the sound of her clavicles and her ribs being smashed. The pain was too great to allow her to even scream.

The invisible arms grabbing her shoulders simply and purely inflicted blind destruction upon Katou Katsumi’s body.

In other words, she was slammed onto the wall, smashed into it, beaten up, thrown away, suddenly thrown onto the ground before being picked up again and flung into the air with bones shattered and blood splattering everywhere and she was just being thrown and thrown and thrown...

“Crash----Clang!”

That was the hollow and insubstantial bell of the night of the prologue, a bell that signaled the beginning of this night of sorrows.

Contrary to the New Year’s bell that was sounded to welcome the New Year and to pray for the elimination of malevolent spirits, this was the bell of the night of prologue that suggested the end of Katou Katsumi’s boring and beloved daily life and proclaimed the arrival and rampage of demons.

Her blood splattered everywhere. Her bones were long since crushed to smithereens and mashed together with pieces of flesh—

When Katsumi was smashed against the wall for the last time, Long-Armed Demon squirted out a laugh, “Hee hee”.

“In—the—clear—night—”

She started singing, released her formless arms, and allowed the thing that used to be Katsumi to fall to the ground.

“The—moon—is—so—beautiful—”

Long-Armed Demon’s face did not reveal the slightest guilt at having murdered Katsumi, only showing that same bright expression as she walked up and narrowed her eyes to look closely at the piece of corpse on the ground.

“Humans—are—so—Eh?”

Long-Armed Demon stopped singing and used her invisible fingers to prod Katsumi’s body.

Then she showed confusion—this was the first time Long-Armed Demon revealed a perplexed expression—as she incessantly felt Katsumi’s body, her face turning deadly white.

“Eh, eh eh? Eh eh eh?” That was the expression of the child after a grave error, “N-n-no Apple? Why? How, How? But… but she died? She died but didn’t have an Apple? Eh, eh eh?”

Then, she noticed.

Beside the lump of flesh that used to be Katou Katsumi, there was a book.

It was Kannonsakazaki High School’s student identification documents, but Long-Armed Demon didn’t know that, and only flipped through the blood-stained pages incredulously.

On the first page, there was a picture of her face, her address, her birthday, her name—

“Oh?”

That name was clearly different from the one Long-Armed Demon had been ordered to kill.

She had waited for Katsumi to leave that coffee shop, in which she stayed for oh-such-a-long-time, perched on the coffee shop’s roof… now that she thought about it, she accidentally wasted some time when she got down. By the time she finally got back on her trail, aside from this girl called Katsumi, there was another person.

Since she disappeared into the darkness, Long-Armed Demon didn’t see her clearly and thought she was a random bystander.

Could that person have been..?

Now that she thought of it, that person seemed to be around Katsumi’s age.

Long-Armed Demon’s face turned pale.

“Oops, hehehe. Long-Armed Demon made a little mistake!” Then she realized it was a bad time to laugh. She thought seriously: “Wh-what do I do now. I-i-it’s so troublesome. Zeki-kun will scold me, I’ll be, I’ll be, I’ll be punished. Waah, this sucks, what do I do, what do I do, what do I do?”

Long-Armed Demon felt flustered as she worried. Suddenly, she thought of a wonderful plan and jumped up, “That’s right.” She laughed, “Tee hee”, and used her bright voice to mumble to herself in a harsh tone, “That’s right, it’s alright if I can find that girl from before, she’ll definitely have the right name. What was that name again? And then, and then, I just need to get that person’s Apple before Zeki-kun gets here and I’ll be fine. I'm so smart!”

Then, with a presumptuous expression, “But I don’t really know what she looks like. Oh… ah, that’s right, killing all the girls that in this town that’s of this one’s age should be fine! As long as I kill them it’ll be alright, cos the one who doesn’t die would have the Apple! Yeah!”

With this thought, she believed she might succeed.

And so, Long-Armed Demon did not even look at Katou Katsumi’s corpse as she faded into the darkness.

How many girls of Katsumi’s age did she think there were in this town?! But her steps was both light and full of hope as she walked away.

“In—the—clear—night—”

The thin, small figure disappeared into the dark and gloomy night.

“The—moon—is—so—beautiful—”

Only the song never ceased, pouring into the girl’s miserable corpse.

“Humans—are—so—annoying—to—see—”

The above was the story of the strange girl that I saw.

Haha, what? You’ve got an incredulous expression now. Ah, do you not know why I told you this? This is… to put it to modern terms, this is a gift from the underworld. If you didn’t know one or two interesting things, wouldn’t the trip to Hell be too boring?

Moreover, I want to reflect on this event involving Long-Armed Demon. For that, unloading the facts onto someone else is an effective tool.

Perhaps, for you who are about to be killed, this isn’t something interesting—but how do you feel about it? I wish to hear the opinions of you normal people who live inside the normality of life, unlike existences such as me who live on the other side.

Ah, you think this was nonsense? I guess I can’t blame you for that. Maybe these things are indeed unbelievable for those of you living inside normality.

But this was absolutely true. This is a nightmare that is attacking Kannonsakazaki town as we speak. That’s right. Perhaps your most important person would be attacked by Long-Armed Demon tomorrow.

Oh? Your expression changed. Eyes flaming with determination are so beautiful, and I like that. But that’s not----allowed----because you must die here. My apologies, but that has already been decided.

Ah, haha, your face is full of unwillingness.

Are you annoyed that you can’t protect a certain person? Hahaha, not bad, I wanted to see expressions like that.

You can go and die in such regret, grief, suffering, and die while cursing your own helplessness. Otherwise, the party that does the killing will get bored too.

But, don’t worry, you’re not bad people.

Nor are you germs or poison. You’re simply humans that felt for other people, powerful and impressive humans.

Therefore I will kill you with all of my sincerity rather than indiscriminately slaughter you. I will recognize you as a person as I kill you.

This conversation’s been going on for too long. Then, please die.

What? My name? Hahaha, how can I tell it to people about to die? I can’t handle it if you curse me! You’re so foolish~

But, if it’s my name over on this side, then there’s no harm in telling you. It’s your choice whether or not to believe that it’s my true name. Whether or not you may curse me is also your choice.

Because this is a name that would shine even brighter when cursed.

My name is Sterilization Disinfection. I'm just a digestive organ——

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Return to [[Mushi:Vol1_Author's_Notes|Volume 1, Author's Notes]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch1|Night 1: A Series of Misfortune]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Talk:Mushi:Vol2 Ch1

2011-12-04T03:53:03Z

Cakemanofdoom:

Nice work, cakeman! I really like how you translated Mina's speech!

Uncertain sentences have been changed. Please compare the versions with the History function - [[User:Brynhilde|Brynhilde]] 1203 GMT 1 Dec 2011

Thanks for the corrections! Anyways most of what I changed were fairly simple mistakes, though I've undone some changes and made some other ones.

-A comma was deleted despite being grammatically correct because IMO it obstructed flow without needing to.

-“Assassinations” instead of “Assassination attempts” implies that the guy’s afraid of being assassinated multiple times. But I think it’s fine to just refer to assassination as a general concept, which doesn’t need plural or an article.

-with, into: I’m probably taking a few liberties with the English language with “into”, but I like it better since it implies how the whole training/education was shoved into him, whereas “with” seems to be more of a cooperative word.

-Demand=>threat: This phrase is about how easly Guriko can gouge out Sakaki’s eyes, right? Rereading the Chinese, I think I prefer “She can easily carry out that little hobby (implying that Guriko loves to frequently gouge out people’s eyes) of hers”, but I’m not certain of my understanding of that line.

-“Arrived”: Past tense doesn’t work since he hasn’t arrived when he typed that up. The rest of the sentence is changed for consistence. And I don’t think Guriko’s assumptions are far back enough to actually use past tense.

-Mina becoming alert: On second thought, using two descriptors for “became” that serve the same purpose is redundant. Instant and quick aren’t commonly used together, and it’s impossible to be instant without being considered quick anyways.

-Also I'm not sure what "traveled 3 '''stages''' by bus" (or something) means. What stages..?
[[User:Cakemanofdoom|Cakemanofdoom]] 18:32, 1 December 2011 (CST)

Shouldnt that be stations? --[[User:Darklor|Darklor]] 02:53, 2 December 2011 (CST)

Thanks for the edits Dell, though I rolled back some of the changes.

-"last month" vs. "previous month": Since the novel is in past tense, not present, "last month" feels incorrect to me since the whole thing takes place some indefinite time ago. Previous month is a month before whatever that indefinite time is. However, I'm not absolutely sure about this; if I'm wrong, please tell me.

-"was easy" vs. "lacked difficulty": Sakaki explicitly states that Tatsue talks pretentiously (I think that line was slightly mistranslated though), so using more "sophisticated language" even when it impedes conversational flow seems appropriate for her.

-Didn't change this one, but what was the point of adding "sort of" in front of inhuman preparation? It doesn't seem to me as if one is better than the other.

-"common sense or beliefs" vs. "common sense or belief" The phrase right before this is "This kind of", which is singular as opposed to "These kinds of", so "beliefs" is incorrect. Also, we're only talking about one belief here: that crime results in punishment.

On the bus thing: The Chinese seemed to be talking about a type of bus that I don't know about. But since "stages" doesn't make any sense to me, I'll go with stations. [[User:Cakemanofdoom|Cakemanofdoom]] 21:53, 3 December 2011 (CST)

Mushi:Vol2 Ch1

2011-12-04T03:52:44Z

Cakemanofdoom:

== '''Night 1: A Series of Misfortune''' ==

<pre>From ★ Usarin
To ★ Sensei
Subject ★ Edict
Body ★ Hello——this is Usarin. Did you think I’d say that? You weirdo, go die! So where are you strolling around now? With your
personality you should’ve already left school to come see Rinne. So we didn’t contact you. Then—we ended up waiting until noon! I
didn’t think you were this half-hearted with your love. You keep proclaiming your love for her. Is that just something you say?
Whatever. Rinne has me, Guriko, to comfort her. You can die somewhere in the street.</pre>

<pre>From ★ Sensei
To ★ Usarin-kakka
Subject ★ Re: Edict
Body ★ Hey—what makes you think you can just use Her Majesty's cell phone like that. No matter how you look at it, it’s best if you
just died. Your harassment will someday give me a heart attack. Stop using her cell phone. Cell phones record phone numbers. So
caller ID identifies that phone as “Usarin”. This crap you’re pulling will make me think Her Majesty suddenly changed. On another note,
since when did you know how to use a cell phone?</pre>

<pre>From ★ Usarin
To ★ Sensei
Subject ★ From Gankyuu Eguriko
Body ★ So much talk. Look. I wrote my name. Does that satisfy your demands? Go die now. Though it’s a bit too much talk, where
are you right now, Sakaki? Rinne’s friend died so she’s depressed. How can you not be at her side at a time like this? There’s
more. You small, unworthy person. I’ve lived fifty times longer than you. Our level of experience can’t be compared. I can learn
something like cell phone operation in an instant. Don’t underestimate me!</pre>

<pre>From ★ Sensei
To ★ Usarin-kakka
Subject ★ Re: From Gankyuu Eguriko
Body ★ Any grade-schooler can learn something like using a cell phone. Ah——my bad, wait a minute. You should know that as soon
as I learned about Her Majesty’s condition I came running over. But even before I arrive, you take what little you know and form conjectures
about me. You idiot.</pre>

<pre>From ★ Usarin
To ★ Sensei
Subject ★ Re: Re: From Gankyuu Eguriko
Body ★ …You're seriously infuriating. Whatever. Just get over here quickly. If you’re slow, I’ll gouge out your eyeballs.</pre>

“…”

The handsome man with gold hair and blue eyes——Sakaki Guryuu, closed his cell phone with a “Thap”. He sighed deeply. This man, humanity’s pinnacle of intelligence, financial resources, appearance and athletic ability, was Usagawa Rinne’s lover as well as her Japanese History teacher at Kannonsakazaki High School.

A year earlier, Sakaki fell in love with Rinne due to a certain incident, and abandoned the giant company controlling Japan from the shadows——the Sakaki Organization. He had forsaken his position as its heir, as well as all his higher education, and became a high school teacher all in order to stay by Usagawa Rinne’s side. He felt that she was the only worthwhile existence in his life. That was the man named Sakaki Guryuu.

Sakaki, unhappiness dominating his face, surveyed his surroundings while watching all four sides surrounding him. People dressed in black were blatantly displaying illegal firearms.

“You see, one of my dear students has threatened me with eyeball gouging. She can easily carry out her threat, so you guys can get lost! I’d like to reject that eyeball gouging——if I don’t hurry to Her Majesty’s home, I’ll lose these blue eyes I inherited from my mother!”

Rinne was absent from school that day. As soon as Sakaki knew this, he immediately stopped his class and ditched the staff meeting to go see her, but he was ambushed. It was around eight o’clock when he rushed out of class, and math shows that he had been fighting for four hours. He kicked aside some of the black-suit flock, but was immediately surrounded again. Fighting them down one by one didn’t tire him out, but it started to frustrate him.

Rinne, he thought of Usagawa Rinne.

The one who gave Sakaki’s life meaning, the most important person in the world, was currently suffering. Yet these people in black suits obstructed his path, which implied suicidal tendencies——but who exactly were these enemies? If this continues blood would probably start to spill.

“Are you ‘Mushi’?”

No response.

“Mushi”, were the mysterious beings searching for the “Apples”——also called “Apples of Eden”, the forbidden fruit which allowed humans who ate them to become immortal——and they attacked humans to do so. Their true objectives remained a riddle, though someone who called himself Snake described them as beings similar to angels or demons.

When Sakaki fought against Snake the previous month, he happened to eat an Apple, and had since met multiple “Mushi” seeking to kill him. Thus, he assumed that this incident was the same, but——

If they were “Mushi”, they should have unhesitatingly tried to kill him as fast as possible. But these black-suited people surrounding him showed no sign of using their guns. The tell-tale sign of the “Mushi”, eyes that shone with red light, could not be verified due to concealment by sunglasses.

“Even when there are guns pointed at you, that cell phone still takes priority, brother?”

Suddenly, he heard a female voice that tried to hide mediocrity with an air of elegance. That was a familiar voice——Sakaki’s patience ended as he turned to the source.

Behind the still wall of black-suited men, a girl stood.

“People that I, the [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes# Black Dragon | Black Dragon]], can stand the least are people like you who act as though everything lacked difficulty.”

From her black dress that was completely incongruous of this street in a small, rural town to the ribbon on her head; all of her clothes were black. Aside from her skin, teeth and the whites of her eyes, it was as if her entire body was buried under black. She was one of the backup step-siblings prepared in case something happened to Sakaki.

"Kuroki----Tatsue? Sakaki mumbled her name as he put his cell phone in his pocket and looked at the black-suited men surrounding him. "So, you're Sakaki Organization's men. How pointless. Bothering me is a waste of time. Hey----I've already memorized your faces. Since you've pointed guns at the heir to the Sakaki Organization and committed the crime of preventing him from going to his destination, you'll all be thrown out into the street."

"Brother, you are still ignoring me?" Tatsue nervously raised her eyebrows as she spoke unhappily, holding onto a scarlet teddy bear that added an alien color to her monochrome look.

Should we say she was still too cautious, or is it more accurate to say that she was simply too petty?

Sakaki shifted his sight away from the black-suited men who didn't know what to do as they lowered their guns, and looked toward his step-sister. "You’re just a safeguard, what did you come find me for? Back to the main topic, it's been a long time, Tatsue. How many years has it been? Nine? You've grown so much. Last time I saw you, you were still crying 'I didn't wet the bed! I didn't!' Ah, good times."

"D-d-do not speak of that!" Tatsue's face turned red. She waved her arms at the whispering black-suited men in front of her as she said this while on the verge of tears, "It's because you're so arrogant and ill-hearted that I cannot stand you."

"Oh, and there's that poser speech pattern you like to use. Don't talk like that, you seem even more pathetic. In fact----"

Sakaki silently watched Tatsue. No, more accurately, he watched the scarlet teddy bear she held. It was something that could be bought anywhere, yet impossible to sell. Rather than looking cute, it horrified people with a blood-stained appearance that made it useless for consolation----

"Father." Sakaki mumbled, crossing his arms as he sternly said, "You're communicating with us like that again. How distrusting of your own son."

"Eh?"

The surprised one was Tatsue. She was frightened enough to almost drop the teddy bear, and quickly tried to steady herself. As cold sweat ran down her face, her cute bluffing expression completely disappeared.

"F-f-father?"

It was the current president of the organization with more power than a nation----Sakaki Ganhou. He likely feared assassination, as not even Sakaki had seen his face before. This led to Sakaki thinking: Is my father even alive?

"......"

The scarlet teddy bear casually made a sound.

"Hey, Gu-kun, it's dad."

A clear, disarming synthetic voice came from the stuffed animal with a unique echo. Then again, with this type of voice, the speaker generally wants to avoid allowing his actual voice to be recognized. Sakaki nodded, and said casually, "What do you mean 'It's dad', you idiot father. What do you want? I need to visit Her Majesty. If it's just some pointless little thing, then just leave!"

"B-b-brother! How could you speak like that to father!"

Sakaki paid no attention to Tatsue's noisy shouting. No matter whose voice came out it, that thing was just a stuffed animal that deserved no respect. Besides, Sakaki never respected his father who forcefully molded him into an ideal heir. With study and training that was practically infused with his blood, this person destroyed Sakaki's childhood.

Without moving, the teddy bear laughed in a poorly synthesized voice.

"Hahaha! You're still so frightening. Your dad's heartbroken! Mmm----actually, there isn't really anything too serious. I just wanted to see my cute son that I haven't seen in a long time."

"Good bye."

Sakaki ignored Tatsue and the teddy bear and walked toward his destination. Running to Rinne's home from there would take about ten minutes. So much time had been wasted!

"Wait up, wait up, wait up, Gu-kun! Tatsue, chase him!"

The teddy bear said so nonchalantly, and Tatsue desperately followed its orders with a pale face. Too bad, it seems like this time she would only be used as a convenient transporter.

As Sakaki thought this, the teddy bear issued a cruel order.

"Ah, what a pain. He's trying to escape. Alright, you goons, shoot him in the thigh! Then he'll stop, right? Don't worry, even if Gu-kun gets injured he'll quickly recover, so there's no need to hold back."

Those words...

Sakaki suddenly turned around, and looked angrily at the teddy bear held by the pale-faced Tatsue.

"Father, where did you find out about that?"

His injuries would recover. In other words, he knew that Sakaki ate an Apple and became immortal, with the superhuman ability to resurrect.

Speaking of that, a monster had wrecked the town a month earlier, and after that Sakaki had asked his father to pretend that nothing happened. The incident was reported to be a result of an earthquake, and eyewitnesses were forced to keep silent. Needless to say, the hidden truth should have gone straight to the man behind the cover-up----the father.

However, only Sakaki, Rinne, and of course the "Mushi" and Snake as well as Guriko should have known about the Apples.

"Who do you think I am?" The teddy bear naturally continued, "Of course I know more than you do! I just don't tell you because I don't want you to sink deeper into this business. All in all there's nothing worthwhile there, and the knowledge would just be disgusting. Do you understand?"

He used an unnerving, emotionless voice to talk to the silent Sakaki.

"Last month." The teddy bear's words still sounded natural. "An immensely large monster----a Dream World Beast rampaged, right? Who do you think killed it? Or... How was it killed? Do you really think a few bombs dropped from a plane would be enough?"

That voice mocked Sakaki rather than questioned him.

"Whether with explosives or firebombs, did you think it was possible to soundlessly kill such a large monster? Not only that----to exterminate a monster with extraordinary life force gained from an Apple, that can easily cause so much destruction? Can a weapon that incredible really exist?"

That was a joyful and delighted voice.

"If you just think about last month's events, so many things don't make sense. Gu-kun, you didn't know anything. You misunderstood the whole situation despite having overcome that conflict. The Apple, the clock, the 'Mushi'! You barely understand any of them! ----But you don't need to understand them either since you're my cute, adorable successor."

These words pierced Sakaki's ears and made his eyebrows furl.

After overcoming that and passing through a period of peace, he finally felt secure----but now, it all became undone. What was going on? He felt horribly uneasy. His doubts suddenly layered up, and he began to feel disgusted by the Apple taking root in his soul.

"You, what are you trying to get at?"

"Ah? I'm just worrying like any normal father over his child's life. Basically, I want you to inherit the Sakaki Organization like a good boy while I do my best to keep you away from danger. Watch out for the names Melodia Noise, Poison, Ultimate Shield, Unpleasant Counter-Current, Single Room, God Insect Emperor, and Sterilization Disinfection. It's just as their names imply. If you involve yourself with them you die.”

Mindlessly saying these unclear words, the head of the Sakaki Organization----Sakaki Ganhou laughed gloomily with his synthesized voice. Tatsue felt very afraid and looked at the stuffed animal in alarm.

Mushi, eyeball, and a teddy bear.

Not showing up in the previous month's events, hiding in the darkness, the third person who stayed out of sight while acting----he was here. Sakaki Ganhou: what did he know, what did he want? The horrifying teddy bear merely spoke cheerfully to Sakaki, yet it seemed accusing.

"Mmm, I need to pick something to say. Since I'm pretty busy, I only wanted to say this one thing, but it got dragged out so long. Ah, that's right, I almost forgot."

The teddy bear suddenly moved and clapped its hands. It probably carried this function. "Waah!" Tatsue made a strange sound.

"Usagawa Rinne is your girlfriend right? These few months----I sent people to thoroughly investigate her. Honestly, I don't know why you like her so much."

Its head tilted.

Sakaki's expression turned cold as he glared at the teddy bear.

"Father, since you insulted Her Majesty, you will pay with your life!"

"How frightening. How frightening. See, even Tatsue's scared.”

Actually, Tatsue was afraid of her father.

"Whatever, let's move on. Me, I don't care who you take as your wife. Your mother actually came from a slum in America, and besides, the organization isn't run by wives. But, as it is now, no one would stay quiet. They'd say the Sakaki family's situation is questionable since the head's wife has questionable status."

"Just eliminate those fools, father!"

"No way, that would be too troublesome. Since most of those idiots are famous, I'd have a lot of problems dealing with the aftermath!"

Hearing these negative words, Tatsue secretly sighed at another direction. Sakaki acted as if he didn't notice and glared at the ground, seeming to be in the mood for a fight.

"So what? You----would have me leave Her Magesty? I'll tell you now, if I have to choose between this company and her, I'd pick her without any hesitation."

"How stupid, to even give up your inheritance for a woman..." Tatsue probably didn't understand what was going on, and took Sakaki's rant as truth, "Th-then, Brother's decision to not inherit the company is exactly what I've wanted!"

"Tatsue, stop acting tough. Your knees are shaking." Sakaki quietly looked downward.

"......Oh."

Tatsue's back was stiff with fear, and she gritted her teeth. The Sakaki Organizaion held enormous power, and inheriting its might would take far more ability and willpower than that possessed by a normal person. Tatsue had only recently turned fifteen. She was only in high school, and definitely did not hold such a level of tolerance or calmness. "Okay, in short". The teddy bear----Ganhou ---- nonchalantly gave his conclusion in the frightening monotonic synthetic voice.

"You say you can only love Usagawa Rinne, and the around me say she's not good enough. Then isn't it easy? Yup. Just make Usagawa mature. Turn her into a woman acceptable as the lady of the Sakaki. For this, I've prepared a lot. And since you two want to marry as soon as she graduates, have her use her time in school to improve in every aspect."

After hearing these words, Sakaki was forced to remember his own hellish upbringing, and frowned.

Forcing Rinne to change like that----that would be exceedingly harsh, and the mere thought of it disgusted Sakaki.

Her close friend just died. She was in an unstable mood; what would happen if she were to suffer even more?

"Father."

Sakaki showed a grave face. He serenely said, "If you subject Her Majesty to that sort of inhuman preparation, I would not hesitate to overthrow you. Do not forget, that moment will be the moment when you and I part ways."

The teddy bear did not respond, possibly having said all that it wanted, and beckoned Tatsue to leave. The men in black followed, saluting Sakaki before disappearing down the road.

Tatsue looked back one last time.

For the first time, she showed a human expression filled with worry. "Brother, be careful."

Sakaki did not respond as he turned toward Rinne's home, walking over the poorly paved road.

"No problem, no problem, Guriko-chan worries too much. It's fine, because I'm really good at cooking and using this knife. Ah... mmmhmm, hahaha."

"Blood! Wait, Rinne, you're slicing your own finger! Blood, blood... Calm down, don't force yourself to try to cook, since Sakaki and I don't need to eat anyway. If you weren't immortal, you'd be in a lot of trouble from cutting off your fingers!"

Guriko was truly at a loss for what to do。

Near Kannonsakazaki Private High School which Rinne and Guriko attended and where Sakaki worked, past the shopping district and a small, bumpy road – stood the apartment building where Rinne lived.

With walls that seemed like they would collapse with a light knock, this shabby building had an extraordinarily cheap rent. She lived in a apartment with – counting the bathroom – 7.5 square meters of space, and next to her lived a self-proclaimed musician, an older girl whose face reflected tough times.

Ever since Katou Katsumi was murdered for unclear reasons, Rinne holed up inside this room without taking a single step outside.

As one would expect, the shadow of a murder grievously damaged her heart. For immortal people, the mind was a place of weakness. When physical harm removes relationships, they would be even more hurt than normal people.

That's right, three days ago, a dreadful murder had occurred for the first time in Kannonsakazaki town. The victim's name was Katou Katsumi. Like Rinne and Guriko, she was a student at Kannonsakazaki Private High School, who had formed an unbreakable bond with Rinne since middle school.

This person. After walking away from Rinne in front of a coffee shop, she was immediately murdered by someone. What's more, the method was quite merciless; she had been violently slammed against a stone wall and ground. Guriko didn't care so much since she was already used to death and corpses. The one who suffered was Rinne. As the last person to have seen Katsumi, she was thoroughly questioned. Over and over again, the fact that Katsumi died was shoved at her.

What kind of feelings did she hold?

Rinne in this state, at first glance, appeared no different from how she was before. She smiled like before, and though her voice trembled a bit it still seemed far from insane. But those were obviously only her attempts at stoicism. Not only were her actions more sluggish, her expression was also fixed at a barely sustainable fake smile. As if insisting there's nothing wrong, she cooked, but only created worthless products of failure that caused problems for Guriko.

People who had eaten an Apple slowly lost their sense of taste. Any sort of feeling from an empty stomach would also disappear. So, Rinne's actions were completely meaningless. But, Guriko thought, this could at least help turn her mood around, and wordlessly accepted the behavior.

And so, Rinne stopped preparing a dish out of her fingers without losing that small smile, but as soon as she began to rest, the doorbell rang.

"Sakaki?"

Guriko mumbled to herself, staying cautious as she walked over to open the door.

"Guriko, is Her Majesty alright?"

As expected, there stood a handsome man with blue eyes and blond hair who seemed more like art. He had grabbed Guriko's shoulders and forcefully shook her, while she sighed with her eyes half closed.

"What do you mean 'Is she alright?', it's not like she'll die. Stop panicking and calm down. And stop shaking me, I feel like throwing up. Really, as soon as anything involves Rinne, you immediately lose all common sense."

Guriko called at Rinne, but when she turned to look, she noticed that Rinne had suddenly collapsed.

"Rinne?" Sakaki's eyes widened, with an expression appropriate for the apocalypse. "Ah, ah----Your Majesty! Her Majesty died!"

"She didn't die, calm down! And, stop shaking me or I'll gouge out your eyes, idiot!"

As Gankyuu Eguriko endured the shaking, she prepared her spoons.

"She's definitely extremely tired."

With a head of her distinguishing wolf-like hair, eyes deep like the barrel of a gun that seemed to tell people off, and with the brutal name "Gankyuu Eguriko", this immortal girl had lived for over a thousand years. Once, due to some random event, she had changed her name to True • Gankyuu Eguriko, but, actually giving the reason that it was too hard to pronounce, she reinstated her original name.

This uncute girl who lived with Rinne for some reason placed the collapsed girl on prepared bedding, and started talking, "If you feel stressed, your body reacts accordingly. You would get a stomach ache, vomit, or get a headache. However, people who have eaten an Apple won't feel those. So, they push themselves to their limit, until they can't take it anymore and collapse. Really, if your friend dies isn't it alright to bawl your eyes out? No one would blame her."

Guriko looked at Sakaki, who just walked in, and silently held the shoulders of the fast-asleep Rinne and gave her to Sakaki. He wasn't sure what to do and just held her, feeling that she powerless form was exceptionally vulnerable.

"Guriko?"

"I don't understand friendship or love."

Guriko showed a pained expression, and she began to clean the blood-splattered simple kitchen. Probably trained by Rinne, Guriko had gained the ability to clean and do laundry. Yet a thousand years' emptiness had, in the end, erased from her any form of emotion or common sense.

As if reciting text, Guriko nonchalantly said, "I don't understand, I forgot. So there's no way I can comfort Rinne, which is frustrating......All I can do is annihilate Rinne's enemies. I definitely can't cure the scars carved in Rinne's heart."

She then turned toward Sakaki with those lonely eyes that, according to Rinne, seemed to be very similar to Sakaki. "So, I'm a bit jealous of you."

Was he really similar to her? Compared to Guriko, who admitted that she could only defeat Rinne's enemies but could not heal her pain, wasn't he only able to comfort Rinne without any way to fend against Rinne's enemies? Sakaki pondered this.

Helpless, Sakaki held Rinne tightly, and Guriko looked at them with concern. Rinne's closed eyes brimmed with tears; was he unable to save her, even in her dreams? Her face looked devoid of blood, and her fingertips were abnormally cold. To warm her up, Sakaki held her even closer.

Sakaki instinctively spat out insults.

"How repulsive, just who was it that killed Katou?!"

"How would I know?"

As she washed the cutting board with dishwashing liquid, Guriko crooked her head and said, "Although, just by looking at the facts, the culprit shouldn't be a normal person. Possibly some super-strong man or an animal. Or it's--"

She turned on the faucet.

"A monster."

Monsters, those things that quietly lived outside the world of people like Sakaki that overstepped the boundary of normality. During the events in the month before, Sakaki encountered quite a few monsters. The most powerful of them was large enough to flatten buildings with a single step.

Katsumi's tragic death truly didn't seem to be caused by humans.

Sakaki's mood deteriorated, but he still said uneasily, "Anyways, it's best to stay cautious; after all, we haven't confirmed the culprit. Hopefully it's some criminal that the police can handle... Guriko?"

He carelessly looked over, and noticed Guriko's grim gaze toward the entrance. Her expression was strange, as if she was shocked, staring at the door with stiff face.

"What is it?"

"Someone's here."

Guriko replied curtly.

Sakaki's eyebrows scrunched together. "Could it be the mailman? Or... the murderer?"

Even though he felt it was unlikely, he couldn't deny the possibility. Guriko firmly gripped her three spoons; whether in the past or now, her weapon of choice had always been spoons.

"I don't know. Don't talk, someone will hear you. Although, I don't think it's a monster."

Possibly listening for activity, Guriko's face turned beastlike, instinctively searching out enemies and avoiding danger. That was the first-rate caution developed over a millennium.

"Humans, two of them."

Guriko was incredulous. Humans; and since there were two, it probably wasn't that self-proclaimed musician woman who lived next door. And it shouldn’t be Rinne’s friends since students had already been instructed to avoid going out without good reason.

And Guriko definitely did not have anything that could be considered even similar to a friend--

As Sakaki thought this, the doorbell rang. After an eye signal from Guriko, he cautiously walked toward the entrance. They planned so that even if Sakaki was knocked down by a surprise attack, Guriko could repel the intruders. That is to say, Sakaki was bait--"living sacrifice" might also be accurate. He tried to put on a calm voice as he asked, "Excuse me, who is this?"

"We're with the Sakaki Group."

"Please leave," Sakaki immediately declared, turning his back to the door as he shrugged his shoulders and sighed to Guriko, "No need to be so careful, they aren't people who matter."

"I see." Guriko naively set down her spoons.

At that moment, the door was suddenly forced open. Saying that, the door wasn't locked to begin with.

The pair standing on the other side of the door solemnly saluted.

"Though it was quite rude, please forgive my rudeness."

"Hino. You're talking weird."

"I'm Itsuwara Hino."

"My name is Itsuwara Kio."

Standing there were--an exceedingly normal man and woman of about forty years of age, wearing a gray suit and a milky white outfit respectively. They were people who don't stand out, people whom one would probably brush past after an hour of walking in the city.

"What do you want?"

Sakaki looked at them with barely-concealed disgust. 'Since they're men of the Sakaki Organization, they must be his father's men. There's no way he can trust them.'

The two people smiled tenderly, to the point of seeming unnatural. "Nice to meet you, Guryuu-san."

"You're in a good mood as always, it seems. Anyway--"

The man calling himself Kio smoothly pointed at Guriko.

"Today we have business with that young lady..."

Guriko was bewildered.

"..."

A wild flurry of colors. In simpler terms, toys with many different colors. For some reason, it seemed like a child's toy with purely primary colors, and it was painfully dazzling. The confusing red, blue, and yellow made one dizzy.

This was the shopping center called Chaos Zen Q -- an underground street where all sorts of specialty shops and peddlers gathered. Probably since it was a holiday, customers were abundant, and Guriko almost got lost multiple times.

She had no interest in shopping, nor did she enjoy it, and she wanted to get as far away from this overcrowded place as possible. Plus, since Rinne had such a low income, she couldn't go shopping often, and had never deliberately taken the bus to come three stations to this shopping center. This place seemed to Guriko like a different, miniature world.

The activity now all seemed like normal, human life, which made Guriko feel like she fit into modern Japanese society. Yet in this "Chaos Zen Q", there were too many things she had never seen. Was it really Japan, just like Kannonsakazaki?

For example, Guriko was standing in "Witch's Torture" for some reason, a specialty toy store with a name sounding like a finishing move, but completely she lacked knowledge on the toys arranged there. She tentatively picked up a nearby teddy bear. "So this is what they call a teddy bear?" And she sighed deeply.

"Ah, Guriko-chan, you like that teddy bear?" "Then everyone in the family can get a teddy bear. Wow, Guriko, you picked a teddy bear that's just as cute as you are. Then I'll pick a teddy bear that looks as serious as I do, and Hino should a torture bear that's like Hino's deformed body!"

"Really, you idiot Kio , that was unnecessary!"

"Hahaha."

"....."

'What's going on now? These people have made enough noise, she really wanted to slaughter them.' The Itsuwara couple, Hino and Kio, smiled gently behind the grimacing Guriko, and one would find the excessive smiling somehow strange. With no reservation, they brightly said to Guriko, "Guriko-chan. You don't have to be so polite, because we'll be your parents. Just tell us if there's anything you want, and talk with us if anything's troubling you."

'’...My worries all stem from you two.''

Facing the stiffened-up Guriko, Kio tried to talk again, "Guriko, girls usually name their teddy bear. Wanna try it out? Since common sense and normal societal ethics develop through things like this."

Common sense and normal societal ethics, huh?

Guriko refused to recognize those things. But, even so...

"A name? Yono."

With a serious face, Guriko looked at a teddy bear that looked like a delinquent acting cool. Hino smiled, saying some meaningless words of praise -- Oh, what an excellent name. Truly worthy of Guriko-chan --

What was going on now? Guriko pondered.

The Itsuwara couple Hino and Kio suddenly appeared, claiming to be sent by the Sakaki Organization. Since they had identification, they probably weren't lying. In this country, if someone tried to con others using the Sakaki Organization's name, he'd suffer more than if he were arrested on the spot. The Sakaki name had that kind of power; conversely, by associating oneself with the Sakaki Organization, one's position in life was as good as guaranteed.

Guriko set the still-unconscious Rinne on the futon and let Hino and Kio sit down.

Even though they claimed to have business with her -- Guriko eyed them suspiciously. She was sure she had never seen them before.

The narrow, 7.5-square-meter room was filled with the scent of food. Since the kitchen was part of the room, it was impossible to eliminate the smell even if air freshener is sprayed every once in a while. Rinne was quite a meticulous and neat person, but it was impossible to deny that the undersized room would easily appear cluttered and messy. Between the wardrobe, T.V., textbooks and the like, and the kotatsu, even walking around was difficult.

"Common sense and normal societal ethics training?" Sakaki was bewildered.

"What did you say?" Guriko didn't understand.

Hino smiled with happiness that almost seemed fake, as if saying "This is really great". With hands folded she continued, "Right, common sense and standard societal ethics training. That's what it's called, it's like someone's trying to act smart by using hard words."

"Yup, though it sounds like a legal term it's actually pretty simple."

Kio forcefully interjected with a cheerful voice. This couple thought quite similarly.

"In simple terms -- no, using the most obvious and clear terms, it's 'Have Guriko-chan understand common sense' or ‘The Sakaki Organization won't be able to help you either if you never live a normal life'. So... That's how it is."

His words made Sakaki's expression change as the teacher disgustedly looked at Guriko.

"Guriko, what the hell did you do?" "No clue."

She really had no idea what they're talking about. After all she had only been living according to her own beliefs.

Plus, with that giant smile, Hino was saying stuff that really shouldn't be said smiling.

"Guriko-chan isn't someone who should be living with Miss Usagawa Rinne."

Hearing this, Guriko's eyebrow twitched a little. She was someone who shouldn't live with Usagawa Rinne?

''I don't need others to tell me some like that, even I know that. From the start we only lived together out of practicality, since I had nowhere else to stay.

But, I don't want some outsider who doesn't understand anything to tell that to me.''

Guriko glared at them. Kio, completely unfazed, looked toward Sakaki.

"Guryuu-san. Ganhou-san believes it is most important to begin fixing Miss Usagawa's surroundings. A person's behavior will be greatly affected by her environment. If the environment is filled with trash, the stench will permeate the person, and if she is surrounded by people using vulgar language, she will inevitably start speaking the same way."

"So we need to clean up her surroundings. By thoroughly fixing the things around Miss Usagawa Rinne's, it will be possible for her to mature in a sound environment." Hino picked up where Kio left off, making it seem as though they planned it in advance.

Sakaki's face stiffened, contemptuously glaring at them. "Basically, Guriko's a hindrance?"

Hino and Kio spoke together. "You are correct, Guryuu-san."

"Why..."

Guriko couldn't ignore this, and banged her fist on the kotatsu with flaming eyes. She made a loud noise, but Guriko still took care not to break it.

The teacups set on the table rattled and fell.

Guriko released the anger she held: "You... How am I a hindrance? Aren't you saying that I'm a bad influence on R-Rinne?"

The words lacked her usual sharpness. Guriko vaguely felt that she had brought Rinne into an abnormal world. Granted, even if she did not appear, Rinne would have eventually noticed her Apple's power. But in the end, it was Guriko who made this happen faster.

But, even so...

''I don't want Rinne to say she doesn't need me or, even worse, think of me as a nuisance.''

Yet Kio naturally said, "Yes, you're quite a hindrance and a poor influence."

Toward this formality that was like defining simple English words, Guriko didn't know whether to feel enraged or hurt. She looked toward Sakaki, whose face showed a rare expression as he remained silent.

"But," Sakaki spoke with weight and earnestness in his deep voice, "Her Majesty was saved thanks to Guriko. You cannot deny that."

"True, we know that."

"But right now, her influence is undesirable in many ways."

Hino shot a glance at Kio, who rapidly set onto the table several documents from a bag. Guriko couldn't resist looking at them, but the convoluted text filled with complicated words made her head spin.

Hino explained with a bitter laugh: "These are the recent records of Guriko-chan causing injuries, breaking things, attempting murder, etc. Mmm, there's really too much. Even though these incidents won't be investigated since Ganhou-san's handling them, if you don't consider the fact that she's a minor, this is truly too terrible."

"Guriko isn't a minor." Guriko nodded in consent with Sakaki's words.

The Itsuwara couple were shocked, looking at each other as if asking "What's going on?"

That's right, Guriko was about a thousand years old. Even though she couldn't remember the exact number, she should probably be the elder of every human on this lump of land. At events like [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes# Shichi-Go-San | Shichi-Go-San]] people would eat thousand-year candies; the makers probably never imagined that someone would actually be that old. Though this isn't relevant to what Hino was saying, it's still true.

Normally, beating someone up or attempting murder would result in punishment; that is justice. It's something that's obvious with a little bit of thought. Yet from the start, one shouldn't expect Guriko, who had wandered for a thousand years, to have this kind of common sense or belief.

Guriko looked at Hino, who nodded her head as if understanding Guriko's feelings.

"Right, developing common sense and normal societal ethics is the goal, so that Guriko-chan will stop doing that kind of stuff and become a normal person. You've been committing crimes for too long. Ganhou-san has decided that living with a person like that will definitely hamper Miss Usagawa's development."

''To be honest, this makes a lot of sense.''

''And if possible, I don't want to trouble Rinne.''

As if to let her relax, Kio gently smiled. "Obviously, you'll be able to return immediately after the training finishes. When you can fit into society without upsetting the sense of normalcy that an average person develops throughout life, and it is decided that you no longer threaten Miss Usagawa's development, the training will end."

"..."

Guriko thought about it: ''So it's like this. I can understand. But the problem is, I want to stay be Rinne's side. I don't want to leave her --Even though I understand the logic.''

Guriko looked at Rinne who was sleeping, curled in the futon.

''I can't make problems for her.''

"Alright, I accept."

Guriko made her resolution; it shouldn't take too long anyway, and time itself isn't limited. There's no rush, nothing's wrong with accepting their common sense and normal societal ethics training! Guriko thought this way.

Astonished, Sakaki turned toward her. "Is that alright? Guriko, if you really don't want to do it, I can think of something."

"You're too nosy. You have nothing to do with this. In short, I don't want to trouble Rinne."

Hino and Kio's faces lightened into unrestrained smiles.

"Wah, thanks. Guriko, I'm really happy!"

"I, I, I'll strive to become a superb mother!"

"I'll also become a dependable father! Let's go, it'll get busy starting today!"

Guriko noticed something weird, looking without understanding at the two people who got incredibly happy on their own.

"Wh-what? What's the meaning of this? What mother, father?"

"What?"

Kio, who was elated to shivers while embracing Hino, spoke of something absurd with an indignant tone: "Common sense and normal societal ethics training consists of Guriko living with us as our daughter! The plan is to slowly teach common sense and ethics through cohabitation!"

"There is much to teach, Guriko-chan! From today onward you are Itsuwara Eguriko! Waahhhh----"

''Isn't it a bit early to decide that?''

Gankyuu Eguriko--correction, Itsuwara Eguriko sighed.

"That said, who is Itsuwara Eguriko?"

Things have gotten crappy; Guriko thought this as she sat in an Italian restaurant on a restaurant-filled street eating spaghetti. In fact, not only did Guriko have no appetite, she didn't even need food, so what she did was meaningless. But to prevent the Itsuwara couple, who knew nothing, from getting suspicious, it was best for the time being to act like she was hungry and let the food flow into her stomach. Back before she became immortal, she never thought stuffing down alien substances could be so disgusting.

"Wah, Hino, this pizza's on the level of national treasures! Call the chef over!"

"That pizza was definitely frozen! But it's so good!"

"Guriko. It's good, right?" "Guriko-chan, don't you also think it's good?"

They were also strange.

Their affection -- strange.

Swallowing it was a bit disgusting.

"..."

''That's right, to me these should meaningless, unrelated people. They're a couple that I didn't know yesterday. Their names are Itsuwara Hino and Itsuwara Kio, but aside from the fact that their personalities are ridiculous and over-the-top, they aren't anything special, just a man and woman that can be found anywhere.''

Guriko agreed to take the common sense and normal societal ethics training with that overly long name, and after entrusting the unconscious Rinne to Sakaki came along with these people. What followed was nothing but a series of new irritants. Was this normalcy? Guriko could not understand.

--It's alright as long only you are unhappy--

Guriko recalled that time when she was still called Yono. A thousand years ago, when Guriko was genuinely human, without anything like immortality.

Guriko had been taken into a household, and received cold treatment from the family members. She thought this was alright, since they gave her food to eat and at night time they helped prepare bedding for her. When her older brother was in a good mood he would even play with her. But she often felt an indescribable loneliness, and when she noticed she was by herself.

Over and over again her parents would say to her, it's alright as long as you are unhappy. Though Guriko felt hurt, she still accepted it completely, and she felt that this was the normal relationship between parent and child. The parental relationships that Guriko knew, that remained in her memory, were dry and without feeling, like the relationships between a pack of beasts.

But--

Guriko lightly stroked the teddy bear on her leg, that one called Yono. ''Rinne seemed to have said before that she wanted a teddy bear. But I never thought the day would come when I would get one.''

Even though she didn't particularly want one.

For some reason, she didn’t want to throw it away either.

Toy stores, clothing stores, stationary stores; they went to every type of store and bought everything they needed. Guriko bought three shirts, shoes, and things which she had always wanted but never thought to buy: high quality spoons that didn't come from a dollar store.

She never expected a day to come when she didn't need to steal and could obtain her own things legally. This teddy bear was Guriko's, and Guriko's alone.

Thinking like this, her mood suddenly improved.

So--

"Ugh."

While suppressing her urge to vomit, Guriko forked down her spaghetti. Giant bite after giant bite, she ate expressionlessly, and then politely said, "It's not bad."

Just this much was enough for them to heartily laugh.

"Wah! Guriko seems to like it too!"

"This restaurant really is the best! Even though it's a chain restaurant!"

"Call the chef over! Call the chef over!"

''Really, why are they so idiotic, I've had enough. I don't accept them as my family. But... This doesn't really feel bad."''

''Can I find a way to treat them as my parents? No, that's impossible. There's no way today, but maybe one day I'll be tricked by this irredeemable, ridiculous kind of atmosphere. I can't be sure if I will one day form some illusions from this.''

"Yono died a thousand years ago."

She stroked the teddy bear as she spoke softly.

"Ever since then, I've always been Gankyuu Eguriko. I... can I already stop using that freakish name? I don't know... Do I want to? I can't figure it out."

Guriko's reflections didn't produce results, so she just decided to leave her worries for tomorrow; her time won't run out, anyways. Back to the present. It's enough to go along with this situation that can only be described as disastrous.

Kio looked at Guriko, whose head was lowered, and his expression was like he stuck gold. "Wah, Guriko! There's sauce stuck on the corner of your mouth! I'll wipe it off for you!"

"That's my job, Kio! Move!"

"--Let's get wiping together!"

And so Guriko ended up in this doubly-being-wiped situation, becoming aware of the peculiarity in the corner of her mouth as her muscles moved a little. Unable to believe it, she pushed aside the napkin pressed to her and placed her fingers on the corner of her lips.

She understood. And as a result felt somewhat surprised.

"I'm... smiling."

Guriko smiled very faintly. Such a rare occurrence, and in front of people she met for the first time today to boot.

Apparently, she actually was enjoying herself.

"Whoa, Guriko smiled! It's so cute, I'm gonna collapse!"

"Same here! Ah--Guriko LOVE, LOVE! Mmmmmmmm...."

After finishing their weird noises the two pretended to faint, causing nervous murmurs from the other customers.

Even though this wasn't her desire at all, Guriko seemed to feel a little joy.

That night.

"Art."

In an empty park.

"Art--Yeah, what is called misery, when taken to the limit will be called beautiful art."

A ball abandoned by children after they finish playing, sad-looking playground equipment that seemed to absorb the silent desolation. A messy sandpit. Inside this slightly small park, the bench in front of the water fountain.

"Obscene, vulgar, base, filthy--this corpse that normal people hate without reason, shines as art. Hahaha. It's true, the beautiful human corpse is beautifully artistic. Lavish and wonderful, miserable and wonderful, cruel and wonderful. Man, what's going on, why is the heartless me unable to suppress my excitement and shuddering body!"

Sitting there was a female.

"How about a toast to this beauteous night? The full moon and stars are all so beautiful, so how about sweet wine? Let’s use death of the highest quality to make people shiver."

Around her were the flesh pieces of humans.

Under the lamppost that struggled to keep shining, without speaking to anyone in particular, the woman weaved words in a honey-sweet voice. Signs of life were completely gone in this playground in the residential area after sundown and no one noticed this bloody, brutal scene. Flesh and blood surrounded the woman on the bench; only these two things were scattered around. Just what kind of flesh was it? It was impossible to tell by looking at the pieces, but that glossy red flesh was still fresh, steaming in the chilly winter air.

With some light from the moon, stars, and lamppost the flesh looked a bit brown, and the blood lying all around had turned completely black while seeping into the ground. This was a scene that lacked a sense of reality, leaving only a ruthless stillness.

As if appreciating a famous painting, the woman merely sat silently, watching.

“I really want to keep –”

She sighed.

"Looking at this--Ah, I made something awesome! No wait, that's too arrogant. The creators of this work are none other than you who have become corpses. I am only the lucky one who can appreciate the art before it rots."

Truly, how many wonders are hidden within this Earth? She can’t see this entire world no matter how long she lives. Simply, this woman loved this wondrous world.

The only things that could be heard were the horn of a distant car, the wind, and the rustling of the leaves on the park's trees. The only thing that could be seen was the darkness-covered world that seemed a bit mysterious.

There was only the shadow of a building, mixing with the park's gravel ground, and a group of moths attracted by the scent of blood.

“Moths -- ah."

The woman sighed again. Every time she did so, a sound would come from her mouth similar to the sound of a teapot releasing steam.

That would be expected, because a mask was covering her mouth. It was not for blocking colds or allergies; rather, the clear purpose was to block dust or toxic gas. The unusually-shaped hard mask seemed especially out of place on her graceful appearance.

Thanks to a mask, it was hard to see her expression, and her age was uncertain though she seemed to be between 25 and 29. Slim yet dangerous, she reminded one of a sharpened blade. Over her thin, tender body, she wore extremely revealing clothes.

A tank top with angel wings printed on the back hid a girl-like body that belied her outer appearance. It was winter now, but her snow white skin was completely free of goosebumps. The only thing barely covering her waist area was a pair of jeans shorts that stopped at her thighs.

A head of flawlessly pure white hair, untainted by anything; it was the color of fresh snow. The waist-length hair was tied into a ponytail. On her wrists she wore all sorts of bracelets and colourful strips of cloth.

This strange looking woman's eyes turned sinister, and she spoke into the darkness as she crossed her legs as if pondering something. She had a habit of speaking out loud to organize her thoughts, feeling that doing this let her sort out important points.

"Mushi... Ah, Mushi. That group of Mushi acted strange last month, and though it quickly became peaceful again I don't know what happened in the first place."

A breeze brushed past her hair.

"It is believed that the one responsible is an Apple holder living in this town. The four confirmed individuals are Usagawa Rinne, Sakaki Guryuu, Gankyuu Eguriko, and--"

As she spoke, she seemed to think about something.

"The one who tried to steal their Apples by pretending to be and manipulating 'Mushi'. Honestly. I didn't think that clan still existed! This is ominous; Adam, Eve, and the Snake. The humans descended from Adam and Eve reproduced far too quickly to eliminate, but if the last descendant of the Snake causes trouble I can exterminate him."

The woman stared forward with a grave expression.

"I'll start by taking Apples away from their owners. If that works, I can ask about what happened at that time. Really, why do I have to do this kind of annoying thing? I'm just a digestive organ. Seeking out truth is God Insect Emperor's job."

The others were just too lazy; it felt like she was doing all the work.

"This is so annoying. I'm going to tremble."

The woman's body shook, and then she hugged herself as if to protect herself. This was something she did without any particular meaning.

With a "Fshuu--Fshuu--" breathing sound coming from the mask, she muttered to herself, "Basically, it doesn't matter which of those four. I'll start by taking the Apples."

Then she looked at the pieces of flesh scattered in front of her, thinking, thinking, and thought through all the main points.

"-Then, I really will need these pieces of flesh. Even though I don't want to use these pieces of art on anything--"

"Wh-Whooa?"

A scream?

The woman's expression instantly became alert as she turned toward the sound. The rapid movement made her hair swish high. In her line of sight was--

"Eh, umm. These are corpses... Waahhh!"

The woman calmly watched this person. He was a blue uniformed police officer, male, without any distinctive features, and didn't seem to be an excellent cop. Shuddering, he pointed at the hands and guts and other body parts on the ground, and screamed before collapsing on the ground as his mouth opened and closed.

Did the police notice? Of course police officers patrolled residential areas. Chances were Long-Armed Demon acted on her own too much, so the police had been especially alert recently.

"Long-Armed Demon, Apple holders, police----" The woman sighed with a "Fshuuu", and seemed to be exhausted as she shrugged her shoulders. "So troublesome."

Then she got up and turned to the policeman sitting paralyzed on the ground. He seemed to have just noticed her, and let out a stiff shout as he scooted backward.

"Don't... Don't tell me! Are you the L-long Armed Demon?"

"Ugh."

The woman scrunched her eyebrows, slowly walking next to the man. "I'm not one of those changed children. Now, my name is [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes# Saibara Mina | Saibara Mina]], I really hate this name because--it's not cute."

After that, she took a spray can from somewhere and pointed it at the policeman. It was an extremely common spray can, simple and unlabeled. On the outside it didn't look different from insecticide or deodorant that gets sold.

"Hmm."

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhh"

The woman shook it while remaining still, shaking in a way that didn't look special.

"If you want address me, please call me Sterilization Disinfection."

With a face like he'd seen a ghost, the police officer screamed loudly and frantically tried to crawl up and escape.

He kneeled, screaming as he tried to get up, but his legs didn't listen to his commands and he collapsed again. He seemed so scared that he couldn't even control himself anymore.

"Fshuu"--Mina sighed in resignation.

"What an unbearable policeman. No courage at all, he's contaminating my field of view."

The policeman could not understand Mina's words, screaming as he stood up.

"S-Senpai! Save me! Nageki-senpai!" Did he have companions? It would be troublesome if he called over too many people.

Mina quickly made her decision.

"Save me! L-Long Armed Demon, she's the Long Armed Demon!" ''I’ve told you I’m not that person. ''

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh" Mina shook her spray can, and slowly turned it to the man.

"Let's sterilize and disinfect."

<noinclude>
{| border="1" cellpadding="5" cellspacing="0" style="margin: 1em 1em 1em 0; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; padding: 0.2em; border-collapse: collapse;"
|-
| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_Open|Open: Clock of Endless Nights]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch2|Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Talk:Mushi:Vol2 Ch2

2011-12-02T02:48:53Z

Cakemanofdoom: Created page with "Made some changes as I read through it. I think most of the changes are self-explanatory, but please ask if anything seems questionable, especially when my edits change meanings,..."

Made some changes as I read through it. I think most of the changes are self-explanatory, but please ask if anything seems questionable, especially when my edits change meanings, since there's a pretty good chance I've misinterpreted the Chinese.
[[User:Cakemanofdoom|Cakemanofdoom]] 20:48, 1 December 2011 (CST)

Talk:Mushi:Vol2 Ch1

2011-12-02T02:39:24Z

Cakemanofdoom:

Mushi:Vol2 Ch2

2011-12-02T02:32:38Z

Cakemanofdoom: Tried to fix some awkwardness, inconsistency, repetitive word choice, redundancy

== '''Night 2: Melancholic Officer and a Long-Armed Demon''' ==

“Let’s compare how long our arms are!”

It was an abandoned building where children who had no place in their families had gathered. The youths of varying age and gender currently present were currently terrified with this sudden abnormality. It was a night that should have been the same as any other. Unable to sleep and irritated at home, they had arrived here tonight to chat and have fun with strangers.

It was their daily life, a life remaining the same day after day that they took for granted.

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-mad, rushed at Long-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 stun guns 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 might have accidentally disappeared into space. She was the abnormality these youths were facing. With her short hair tied up in two ponytails, she was a completely ordinary girl, cute and inconspicuous and wore sandals even in this chilling winter.

Only, she didn’t have arms.

“Urk!”

A muscular boy heaved up a baseball bat with all his strength, but his blow was abnormally stopped mid-air. The boy gave 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 made by five fingers – appeared on the bat. Then, unbelievably, the bat became twisted and crumpled up.

“Hey – ho!”

With invisible fingers, Long-Armed Demon spent a while wringing 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 jaw flew off. His spraying blood and brain matter spattered everywhere, and he died instantly. Stumbling, he fell down while 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 cremated, turning into dust in the blink of an eye. Those illusions of death, mimicked to such detail by video games and movies and manga, made true death no longer feel real. They took away those teenagers’ fear of death.

Therefore, true death was like magic for these teenagers; 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 amongst the teenagers. She finally found a young girl! The townspeople were more on guard nowadays, and Long-Armed Demon had found it hard to discover her target – the girl with the Apple.

She must find her soon.

Long-Armed Demon nodded to herself, and chased after the girl 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 something, 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 smoke; but she didn’t do anything that deserved to be slaughtered, either.

She was simply unfortunate.

She could only lament that her luck ran out. She happened to meet something 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 limbs were grasped 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 movement and could only slightly shift her body. Her pupils were completely dilated with fear, and her teeth cluttered and grinded.

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 family or her friends, but only strangers who happened to have similar experiences as her. How could they possibly want to save her?!

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

“Hel, help me… Dad, Mom…”

Her parents, whom she had thought she no longer cared about and were only bound to her through blood; her annoying parents, whom she had once thought only existed to provide her with three meals a day and pocket money, and whom she thought would be better off without personalities.

“Help me – Dad, Mom!”

She only desired her parents to save her when she reached this helpless end.

“Hehehe, Long-Armed Demon feels a little like having a Dejanew.”

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

“Huh?! No, that’s not it. Dejanew – what was it again? DEIYtop? No… Deja vecu? Whatever – Onee-chan, you’re very similar to how Long-Armed Demon was before.”

Deja vecu wasn’t correct either. A reminiscing expression surfaced on Long-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 small, tearing sound.

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

The girl’s arms were torn off. With the tearing sound, the external force twisted apart the girl’s flesh, bones, fat and veins. Her two arms fell away from her body. The dim deserted building 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-Armed Demon’s expression didn’t change. 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 Demon was such a kid, and probably – no, I definitely did not grow 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-Armed Demon muttered to the girl, who had already died from the pain or the blood loss.

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

Long-Armed Demon discarded the girl’s corpse. “Another miss?” She sighed.

“I hate those weak humans who only know how to wait for God; I hate those pathetic humans who only know how to wait for a hero. I don’t want to be a human. I just want to be a Long-Armed Demon serving beside a fallen angel.”

With an innocent and empty smile, she yelled out loud: “How was that? Aren’t Long-Armed Demon’s arms very very long?”

Kannonsakazaki Private High School was an ordinary school located in a remote township. Thanks to the school culture and traditions, all the students were well-mannered and relaxed and therefore had a good reputation. The four school buildings were loosely scattered across the school grounds, and the inconvenient distance between them was rather annoying. Moreover, as the school was established a long time ago, the remains of ancient graffiti were everywhere in the buildings.

It was a place where a cool breeze often blew past and emenated 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 named Sakaki Guryuu who was very incongruous with this ordinary school. Since the students here always cleaned the rooms diligently, the school buildings did not seem dilapidated despite their age.

It was the time to go home. The afterschool bell was ringing loudly, and Rinne poked Guriko, who was dead asleep.

For some reason, Guriko was always sleeping 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 frequent as before since she started living with Rinne.

Was it because she was tired from that weird ‘training program’? Rinne didn't know a lot about what the training involved. She just felt that Guriko must have worked very hard. At least, she’ll try not to bother Guriko, who was 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 flown away so mercilessly.

According to witness accounts, the murderer labelled ‘Long-Armed Demon’ had killed ten people already, and all of them were girls of Katsumi’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 who were killed, and wished they would catch the criminal soon.

“…”

Then she remembered Katsumi, that girl who was willing to be friends with her. She remembered those youthful memories they created together, and the funeral that left a deep shadow in her heart. Katsumi’s parents were crying, her younger brother was crying, and Rinne also kept crying. The heavy atmosphere, vague 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 seemed Rinne, lost in her thoughts, 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 emotions and did not speak. They were dark as if sucking everything into them. However, now something close to gentleness seemed to have mixed into it.

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

“Ahh, I’m so sleepy… I never seem to get enough 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 same length of time as a normal human.

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

Rinne’s heart jumped a beat with fear when she heard this.

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

“Yep. That person seemed to only act at night, so I go out at night and stroll around a bit. I just haven’t found him yet.”

Rinne paled. It was simply far too dangerous. She knew how powerful Guriko was; Guriko can easily defeat an ordinary Mushi. However, for some reason, she still didn’t want Guriko to do anything 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 those people at school.”

As if she just realized something, Guriko said with a weaker voice and a face full of embarrassment: “Kio and Hino – I probably shouldn’t worry about them. They invade my bed every night, reading bedtime stories and singing lullabies. It’s quite ridiculous, especially when I’m older than them… seriously, do they have no manners, or simply did not understand shame?”

Rinne felt this was quite incredulous, and she tilted her head as she looked like Guriko, who was mumbling to herself.

Guriko startled herself with realization again, and shook her head.

“Ne, never mind. Dammit, I can’t control my emotions…”

Then she rushed out of the classroom. Though Rinne was confused and didn’t know what to do, she still chased after Guriko.

Since Guriko said she wanted to go shopping after school, Rinne went with 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 Katsumi; Rinne was used to relying on others because there were so many people around her who gently protected her. She felt she owed them, and that she needed to grow stronger 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 the murderer that appeared in Kannonsakazaki at the beginning of January. It had already killed ten people in less than a month.

There was only one common thing amongst all victims: they were all young girls.

However, the news pointed out a few days ago that wayward boys and male police officers were also counted amongst the 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 main targets were high-school girls. Girls of Rinne’s age were most scared of the Long-Armed Demon. In fact, apart from Rinne and Guriko, the majority of the girls chose not to go school. They probably thought they might be killed by the Long-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 calm down, and had left for the countryside. After all, the Long-Armed Demon only killed in the township of Kannonsakazaki, and leaving it would be a wise way to stay alive.

The Long-Armed Demon had therefore stirred up a mighty 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 roaming around and taking pictures. Inky bloodstains still remained at the murder scenes that the police didn’t get to clean in time, and officers dressed in their navy blue uniform patrolled those places day and night.

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 much, it was better than being anxious on her own. She kept going to school, not because she was not scared, but because she was immortal. She still felt, more or less, that she would not be killed though 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 that feeling.” Rinne thought to herself. She was weak. 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 emotionlessly towards Rinne, all the time holding on to a small paper bag.

“Ah, right.” Rinne, who was 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 something!”

Did this mean Guriko was beginning to change? The goal of that training seemed to be making Guriko into an ordinary high-school student. If that was the case, then that training was already having some good results, wasn’t it?

However, Guriko pouted when Rinne said this.

“Shut it. It’s because Hino’s birthday is coming 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 this manner. Though Rinne liked Guriko showing her human emotions, Rinne rarely understood the reasons behind it and often felt Guriko was ditching her.

“I know, this – this is really unlike me. But that’s because she was literally telling me with her eyes, telling me to buy something for her. It’s Hino’s fault anyways, suddenly talking about her birthday. I knew what she meant as soon as I heard it. Er – it’s not like I regard 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 amongst the shops, Rinne suddenly had a thought and pulled on Guriko’s clothes to stop her from walking 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 smile: “Let’s go 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’s not exactly correct. However, as long as she understood Guriko’s viewpoint, then Rinne can at least be someone Guriko can talk to when distressed, right? Rinne wanted to help Guriko.

''She saved me a month ago.

''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 them with a run and a big smile, but Rinne couldn’t bring herself to reply to her immediately. That was because a very strange person was sitting on a seat in front of her towards the right.

Rinne was a little startled.

It was a male, and his true height 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 emitting a golden light. He was dressed in a worn-out coat, slowly breathing out the smoke of a cheap cigarette, and wore a pair of sport shoes. For some reason, out of everything that was on him, only those shoes were of the latest fashion.

A hair demon.

Rinne instinctively thought that. His hair was not particularly long, but the unkempt fringe covered his entire face and made his expression invisible, giving out the feeling of a lack of humanity. Moreover, he was sitting in an odd pose. For some reason, he was sitting cross-legged in the chair with his neck cocked to one side as if he was a strange puppet. He maintained that pose, and did not move apart from reaching out his hand to tap the butt of his cigarette 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 anymore due to the presence of the Long-Armed Demon, and all chose to go straight home.

“That customer,” maintaining her smile, the owner said quietly without moving 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 himself. However, as a detective, he was probably looking for the Long-Armed Demon as well. Shouldn’t detectives move about in pairs? Rinne thought of this based on the vague 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 remember the faces of all the guests 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 who was apparently a detective.

Rinne gave him one glance and realized he was gazing at the ceiling with an empty look in his eyes, apparently deep in thought. She decided not to bother him, and moved her eyes to the menu instead. Feeling rather cold, she ordered a cup of hot coffee.

Rinne still retained some feelings toward temperature. Guriko mumbled “hot chocoloate”, then added “to stay awake” as if she was defending herself.

There wasn’t much caffeine in hot chocolate. Rinne knew the truth. Guriko’s sense of taste could only come alive when she was eating or drinking something sweet.

The owner nodded after taking down their orders. Rinne then looked at Guriko, who was 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 something to do with my time. Though I do want to avenge my family, such hatred or spite won’t last for a thousand years. Chances are I’m only killing Mushi to get 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 a millennium. A strong sense of ‘duty’ was required to be continuously committed to something like this, whereas sheer boredom would normally not have kept up.

Guriko lowered her head a little.

“However, I’ve come to dislike those interesting – or rather, tumultuous – days. I began to be afraid that our ordinary lives may be disrupted.”

''I’ve become weaker'' – she said through gritted teath. Rinne didn’t think so. Compared to the person who Guriko was when they first met – that girl who had nothing, sought nothing, and only lived like a machine and a monster – a willpower ten times 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 became weak and began to fear losing those things important to her.

However, she now has a heart, and can seriously consider others.

Did she become such a human –

“The world is too full of melancholic things.”

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 stubbles around his mouth and he was looking at a vague 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 emotionlessly, his shoulders shaking. “Sorry. I’m not some suspect. It’s just how I am.”

The detective then took out his police ID to show them. Despite his gloomy 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 means 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’m a detective – the name is [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes#Nageki Kurukiyo|Nageki Kurukiyo]], specializing in homicides.”

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

He probably wouldn’t want someone called “Eguriko” to say this about his name.

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

“Oh dear, how straightforward.”

“Gigigi,” Nageki laughed loudly with his unnatural laugh. While they talked, the shop owner arrived with coffee and hot cocoa. She looked worriedly at Nageki, but he was unmoved with her gaze, 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 4 people. Startled, Rinne unconsciously shrank away from him. Meanwhile, Guriko glared at Nageki with a look full of hostility: “I said, what do you want with us?”

“Oh my, gigigi, please don’t give me such a scary look. Such a waste of your pretty face. Oh, your expression is getting more and more scary!”

After those completely meaningless words, his expression suddenly became serious: “Anyways, do you know about the killer called Long-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 me annoying? I’m honored. It’s not like I set out to be the good 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 smell too bad and even had some rather pleasant cologne on. It wasn’t uncomfortable sitting next to him. Was his appearance only a fashion trend? Was he actually a keen follower of pioneering fashion tastes?

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

With an incredulous tone, Nageki went on: “Everyone was being so obstinate. Honesty, they’d rather believe senseless guesses such as the criminal being a few giants or having super-powerful weapons, but are willing to ignore the witness’s words about how a little girl was a 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 getting more annoying. Get out.” A murderous light was being emitted from Guriko’s eyes.

“Don’t say that.”

Nageki was unmoved. He must be a pretty tough man to stand his ground 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 from all of them, then she’s probably the criminal, right? The question is – can a grade school student shatter a human body to that degree?”

Practically speaking, it was impossible. Though the victims were often thin high school girls, how could a grade-schooler push them against walls or the ground and kill them thus? There were also victims whose limbs were pulled off their bodies. Even adults would find that hard to accomplish without using tools.

But Rinne knew the truth.

Humans were not the only beings living in this world.

“But I knew it.”

As if he read Rinne’s mind, Nageki said softly: “I saw an enormous monster a month ago. I also saw a human who looked like a girl fighting that monster.”

Guriko’s eyebrows twitched once. She tried her best to keep a nonchalant appearance, trying to hide that expression. She didn’t know if that pretense will work against Nageki, who was certainly a man to be feared. A monster, an enormous monster – that was Guriko’s opponent in the incident a month ago. The girl Nageki saw was definitely Guriko.

She didn’t know whether Nageki discovered this.

“Therefore I was certain the world is too full of melancholic things. There were so many incomprehensible things, enough to make people feel melancholic. I’ve been very melancholic since that day. Once I realized the existence of a world that humans cannot comprehend, I felt the job of a policeman too foolish to be continued. After all, beings that ignore morality, law, and common sense exist with us.”

The melancholic officer smiled ominously. His expression was too profound, and Rinne couldn’t read it. Guriko also remained silent. The low sounds of a jazz rhythm permeated throughout the cafe.

Calmly, Nageki declared: “The information I had personally gathered shows there is a desolate graveyard close to this cafe and next to the shrine. Many rumors indicated a girl looking like the Long-Armed Demon had been seen there. I’m going to go there next. Police usually don’t actively investigate about rumors. However, as long as it is investigated thoroughly, there are bound to be some traces. I may even find the Long-Armed Demon herself.”

Then he plonked a voice recorder on the table and smoothly pressed the ‘stop’ button. Facing the bewildered duo before him, he continued without a pause: “I have recorded everything I’ve just said. I hope you can deliver this to the Kannonsakazaki police station – although it may be problematic for you. If I am killed, it shows I was correct. With this, the other policemen should be able to find out the truth of the matter at once.”

“What are you talking about?”

Guriko was very puzzled, and Rinne’s face turned ashen grey. So that was why Nageki started to chat with them. He wanted to catch the Long-Armed Demon. He wanted everyone to know that the Long-Armed Demon was the girl witnesses spoke of and he wanted, more than everything else, to quickly end this cruel homicide case.

“But I don’t plan to die.”

Nageki stood up gently and walked toward the cashier to pay. Then he wobbled, mindlessly and ominously, and muttered: “Honestly, this world – is too full of melancholic things.”

Guriko soon made up her mind. She gave the bill to Rinne and told her not to follow, then quickly chased after Nageki. Nageki was weird, but he was only a mortal. If that Long-Armed Demon was not a human but a monster, then he may really be killed.

She wasn’t sympathetic to Nageki; he wasn’t even her friend. However, if Nageki’s analysis was correct and the Long-Armed Demon was in the graveyard, then Guriko must face her in battle. As a fellow monster, she was the only one who can defeat her.

Humans cannot win against monsters.

''So I must kill her.''

She walked along the road that was dirtied with mud, dust, and tire marks. She ran into the shrine that never had any visitors. She passed through the gate, went up the stone steps, walked around the donation box. The graveyard lay before her. The dry sand sprayed itself up into the cold wintry air. Guriko arrived deep within the shrine complex, and jumped lightly over the rusty railing. Uneven rows of moss-covered headstones greeted her as she landed.

Insects were flying aimlessly in the air.

“Dong,” the bell in the shrine sounded.

“What are you doing?”

Guriko asked in a low voice. She looked at Nageki, who was crawling between the headstones with his face close to the ground, crawling as if he was an ant that landed on top of an ice cream. His cheap shirt was already dirtied with mud.

She followed him rather quickly and even took shortcuts in the shrine, but he still got here before her. Nageki probably got here on a bicycle or a motorbike. He just has to be problematic at the oddest times. This man would be a hindrance during her fight with the Long-Armed Demon, so she had hoped to get here before him.

Nageki didn’t even look at Guriko, and only stared carefully at the ground: “You’re here. I knew you’d come.”

Nageki’s voice was like a dispassionate whisper. Hearing this, Guriko furrowed her brows.

Damn this guy.

“You were the one who fought the monster in the incident a month ago, right?”

“What then?”

Guriko didn’t hide it and answered it straightaway. Nageki laughed his strange laugh, and slowly crawled along the ground. Guriko approached him slowly, but was immediately warned away by him when she stood next to him.

“Please don’t stand there. You’ll make the tracks disappear.”

“Tracks?”

“Yes, the Long-Armed Demon’s tracks.”

Nageki was silent for a long time, then he slowly stood up. Though he crouched while standing, he was still much taller than Guriko. By the way, Guriko was one of the shorter kids in her class. She can certainly use the Apple’s power to grow taller, but it would be such a foolish waste. Yes, an Apple has the power to twist cause and effect and create miracles. Once she uses the power of the Apples to their greatest potential, Guriko can obtain unimaginable strength in battle.

The Long-Armed Demon’s battle prowess, which murdered humans as if they were toys, can also be something similar. Though Guriko didn’t think so – but could she be another Apple holder? That’s certainly possible. But in all honesty, her way of killing was far too cruel. If she was another Apple holder, then she must be more of a monster than Guriko.

“What did you mean, tracks?”

“Hmm, we can call it – evidence to ascertain the Long-Armed Demon’s current location. In real cases, we can sometimes find fingerprints or hair. But this time I found something simpler!”

He didn’t keep talking, but walked firmly away in one direction. Guriko hurried to follow: “What did you find?”

“Foot prints.” Nageki, whose gait made him look like he had no spine, explained in an even voice: “I found some cute sandal foot prints that looked like they belong to a grade school girl. Witnesses also said the Long-Armed Ghost was wearing sandals. It’s winter right now, so there’s a high chance we’ve hit jackpot. Thankfully, the ground was wet and it was easy to find the foot prints. Speaking of, it was just raining yesterday.”

“…”

Guriko looked silently at Nageki. He kept his neck bent as if he had some anatomical problems, and he seemed gloomy all over. She still couldn’t discern his real motive. However, the reasons for his actions were enough to be considered justice. He didn’t seem to be a useless detective, after all.

However, the Long-Armed Demon had left foot prints, and was seen by many people. It seriously didn’t look like she was avoiding the police. Was it because she was confident of her powers against the police? Or was it simply because she was careless?

Guriko shook her head. That wasn’t important. Right now, a girl – or rather, a monster – who was the culprit of 10 killings was waiting for her. If Guriko let her guard down, she could be the next victim.

It has been a long time since Guriko felt this way.

She had temporarily forgotten the tension before the kill and the dry, barren feeling of battle.

She kept walking forward, keeping her guard up. The two of them soon arrived at their destination.

It was a simple place before a simple headstone. The moss-covered headstone couldn’t be missed. It was a beautifully polished limestone work standing in this graveyard. There was nothing unique about the gravestone, except the words ‘the Aizawa Family’ and a family crest consisting of a plum blossom.

Some wild flowers were placed before the headstone, mingled with dirt. They were flowers that bloomed even in winter, plants that could easily be regarded as weeds. Also, there were somehow cans of beer and red-bean buns, a blanket and –

A little girl with no arms.

“Found you.” Nageki muttered: “Honestly – ”

The girl was sleeping soundly, breathing cutely like a little baby. Her expression was soft and calm, as if she was dreaming sweet dreams. However, the more ordinary she looked, the more incongruous she felt. She was sleeping right before the headstone of a dead man.

“Is she – ”

Was this thin girl –

“ – the Long-Armed Demon?”

The Long-Armed Demon, the murderer who had killed 10 people and spread fear throughout Kannonsakazaki – appeared to be only a little girl without arms.

Of course, she did not look as strong as a terrifying monster.

However –

“Hey, you…”

While Guriko was thinking, Nageki stretched his hands towards the Long-Armed Demon. He probably let down his guard because the opponent looked too harmless. That won’t do; they must tie her up while she’s sleeping. Wait, no, a police officer can’t just do something like that.

Damn, Nageki never planned to kill her. Too naive; he was too naive.

If you do not kill a monster, then you will be killed.

“Bam.”

In the next moment, Long-Armed Demon savagely opened her eyes.

“Who is it? Long-Armed Demon is sleepy!”

Then – up high, up high.

Nageki Kurukiyo was propelled into the air by an invisible force, and literally flew off. It was so powerful that Guriko thought something had exploded. Nageki didn’t even have the chance to scream before he smashed into a few headstones and smacked into the ground.

Guriko switched her brain to battle mode, and glared at Long-Armed Demon who was sleepily rubbing away at her eyes. What just happened? She couldn’t see the source of the attack. It was different from something that was too fast to be seen; instead, Nageki was simply beaten by something invisible.

Long-Armed Demon didn’t even look at Nageki’s direction and just gave a big yawn: “Mmm, mmmmm… Long-Armed Demon works so hard during the night, and gets so tired! At least let me sleep while the day lasts. Honestly – hurry up and say bye-bye!”

The invisible attack moved towards Guriko this time. She originally planned to dodge the attack from the movement of the wind even if she couldn’t see it, but she didn’t detect any shift in the air at all. What was this?

“Urgh!”

Having observed how Nageki was beaten, Guriko judged the opponent would aim at her face and crossed her arms to block Long-Armed Demon’s attack. It was heavy, as if someone just hurled a boulder at her. Right, if such an attack was repeated over and over, the human body would easily be damaged.

No mistake. This was the Long-Armed Demon who killed 10 people!

Listening to the grating of her own bones, Guriko withstood this impact. She leapt up and stood on top of a headstone, then she drew out her spoons from the pocket of her uniform and threw them at Long-Armed Demon with lightning speed.

“Woah?!”

Perhaps instinctively detecting the danger. Long-Armed Demon straightened her sleepy face and jumped up with her legs. She twirled as she leapt backwards, and landed on top of a headstone just like Guriko did. Cold sweat was appearing on her face, and she looked stunned.

Then – the two monsters, Gankyuu Eguriko and Long-Armed Demon, finally stood face to face.

“Huh? Wait, wait a minute.”

With doubt in her voice, Long-Armed Demon asked for a pause. She then put on a solemn expression as if deep in thought: “Eh, eh eh, no way. Um, that’s not how she looks. You’re not who Long-Armed Demon is looking for. Did Long-Armed Demon get it wrong? Did I remember it wrong… I feel like I keep saying this over and over.”

Having completed this senseless soliloquy, Long-Armed Demon asked: “What’s your name?”

“Gankyuu Eguriko.”

Though she considered giving the name ‘Itsuwara Eguriko”, she decided against it. It’s not like that name was any better. Guriko looked at Nageki as she thought of this. Though he suffered a strong impact, it wasn’t fatal. He’ll get by even if she left him alone, but he really did something stupid this time! He woke up the sleeping demon!

“Are you the Long-Armed Demon?” Guriko asked while holding a new spoon.

Long-Armed Demon grinned before replying. “Yep, I am Long-Armed Demon, with long long arms… huh? Gankyuu-san, why are you so strong? Long-Armed Demon is a bit surprised!”

“I don’t need to explain that to you.”

Guriko couldn’t be bothered. Although Long-Armed Demon was smiling, murderous intent was emanating out of her entire body. If she were to disregard that feeling and keep on talking, Guriko would probably be struck down. Long-Armed Demon was undoubtedly an opponent that required all her strength. Guriko tensed, and asked only one question.

“You said you’re looking for someone. Why?”

“Oh, you wanna know?”

Naively, Long-Armed Demon easily told it to Guriko. “Long-Armed Demon must, um… must kill someone called Uzagawa Rine!”

“Who’s that?”

“I can’t find her!”

Long-Armed Demon said disappointedly, then suddenly asked with an intent look in her eyes. “Oh! Hey, Gankyuu-san, could it be you also have an Apple?”

She didn’t mean ordinary apples, but the Apples of Eden that could give a human immortality and power to achieve miracles. Since she knew about the Apple – did that mean she was also an Apple holder? If that was the case, Guriko hoped to avoid mutual slaughter as much as possible. After all, they were sisters who fell into the same hell. Moreover, they couldn’t even die, so there’s nothing to be gained from fighting each other.

There was, however, only one possible solution: to ‘take the other’s Apple’.

The moment the Apple holder gave up on her right to the Apple, she would lose it. Therefore, in order to defeat an Apple holder, one must torture and threaten and use all methods imaginable to take another’s Apple. Someone had slyly used this trick a month ago, and Guriko and Rinne had suffered enough because of it.

Guriko nodded guardedly, and continued to interrogate her: “Yes, I’m an Apple holder, are you also – ?”

“Wow, lucky!” Long-Armed Demon interrupted Guriko, and jumped up and down on top of the headstone: “Then, then please give your Apple to Long-Armed Demon! Zeki-kun wants that Rine person’s Apple, but you can’t tell one Apple apart from another. Even if I give him the Apple I get from you, Zeki-kun would never be able to tell!”

“That’s enough.”

This extremely naive speech rattled Guriko before she got the chance to feel afraid. However, Long-Armed Demon didn’t care. She jumped with a smile, and yelled passionately: “Give it to me! Long-Armed Demon wants it!”

The headstone shattered. Guriko leapt up in the blink of an eye and dodged the invisible arm. The hard rock behind her was smashed into smithereens. Just how powerful was she? If this thing – if it landed squarely on someone’s body, it would be enough to send flesh flying.

Guriko jumped amongst the scattered headstones. Every time she jumped, the headstones around her were smashed with those invisible arms.

“Hey, stop dodging!” Long-Armed Demon puffed out her cheeks, and controlled her invisible arms without moving her body.

“But – you can’t escape from me! What if I do this?”

As she spoke, a few headstones were simultaneously uprooted, and were thrown at Guriko like a judgement from heaven.

It was an overpowering weight that Guriko wouldn’t dream of handling with her spoons, but she kept her composure.

“Enough gloating.”

“Slam!”

She moved with agility.

It was a conglomerate of dust, mud, and dark headstones.

Guriko put strength into her legs and jumped upward. She reached one headstone, then leapt swiftly onto the second one, then the third, using the headstones as stairs, leaping up faster and faster and towards Long-Armed Demon. The beauty of her movements was as enthralling as a dance.

“Wow. You’re so impressive! This is so fun!”

Long-Armed Demon was neither stunned nor afraid. She was actually happy.

“Gankyuu-san is so strong! Long-Armed Demon is excited!”

“You can die excited.”

Guriko throw out her spoon with those cold words. The silver light swiftly sliced through the sky in a straight line.

However, the spoon was deflected by an invisible hand before reaching Long-Armed Demon, and landed with a small clank. Though it handled Mushi, it was far too weak for a monster. Guriko had such thoughts a month ago already.

But it was different.

The merciless personality that could only be restrained with a weapon as fragile as a spoon was released one month ago. Guriko had immediately turned into a terrifying monster. She became a monster who drew pleasures from killing, a monster who belonged to humanity in neither body nor soul.

That event made Guriko’s millennium-old Apple disappear into nothingness. She shouldn’t be able to change into such a monster anymore. However, even though the Apple disappeared, her strength – which should have decreased as well – remained unaltered within Guriko’s body –

She didn’t know what changes occurred in her body.

She didn’t know the truth behind the red monster that she metamorphosed into.

''I think, that was – God – but why did I change into God’s image then?

''I don’t know, because no one can answer this question anywhere.

''Anyways, now I fight to protect the ordinary lives of Sakaki and Rinne, who had freed my heart.''

The girl who died a thousand years ago thus lived on.

“Urgh!”

The invisible arm suddenly attacked from behind her on the left. Guriko didn’t manage to keep her footing. A solid punch landed on her, and she fell down with a spin. She quickly stood up, licked the blood on her cracked lips, and furrowed her brows in thought.

The closer she was to Long-Armed Demon, the worse it became. The invisible attacks were like bullets; it was too late to dodge once they had already been fired. She could only predict them from the opponent’s movements and line of sight before the attack initiates. However, that was very difficult to do in close quarters. The opponent seemed naive, but was actually rather difficult to fight.

Even if she wanted to use ranged attacks, her spoons would just be easily brushed away. If she could at least throw some headstones like what Long-Armed Demon had been doing –

She suddenly realized something.

This should be worth trying.

“Hey hey! I’m gonna kill you if you keep spacing out!”

With a happy expression on her face, Long-Armed Demon stretched her invisible fists toward Guriko. Guriko leapt backwards to dodge it and grabbed a small headstone. Though she was still cautious about using weapons apart from spoons, this was not the time to have such doubts. Guriko stood with her legs apart as she endured the slimy touch of the moss and lichen.

Despite appearances, she was very confident about her upper body strength.

However – aaaah, the headstone didn’t even move an inch. Long-Armed Demon could easily move the headstone, why? As she thought of this, Long-Armed Demon’s attack flew toward her, and Guriko had to move away.

''Am I really physically weaker than Long-Armed Demon?'' But a headstone could be shattered with enough force. Somehow, Guriko was simply unable to uproot it from the ground and throw it.

And there was one more incredulous thing.

Long-Armed Demon was evidently controlling more than 2 arms. She needed at least 2 arms to pull out a headstone, but she was throwing 4 or 5 headstones at once. That meant – there were more than 2 invisible arms attached to Long-Armed Demon. She should probably have at least 10 arms.

Guriko stared at Long-Armed Demon. Missing her arms – if others were fooled by her appearance and thought she only had 2 invisible arms, then defeat would become certain,

Her ability seemed to be more complex than just controlling invisible long arms.

“Let’s test this.”

Guriko muttered as she stood in the middle of the ruined graveyard like a guardian, as if she was provoking Long-Armed Demon. If the shrine’s high priest saw the graveyard in such a messy state, he’d probably hang himself. Guriko then put up a fearless expression, and waved at Long-Armed Demon.

“What’s wrong, weren’t you very proud of those arms? If this is the best you could do, then they’re just invisible. That’s not very impressive!”

Long-Armed Demon’s left eyebrow twitched.

“You are looking down – looking down on me? You are looking down on Long, Long, Long-Armed Demon’s – long arms?”

Long-Armed Demon was shaking. She was easily angered.

“Huh, Gankyuu-san, I won’t be soft on you anymore! Game over! Die!”

A torrential murderous intent rushed towards Guriko together with a scream. That was an aura completely incomparable with what was there beforehand. Guriko turned her torso in the blink of an eye, but she deliberately did not dodge too far away. She moved in small steps, and the rim of her uniform’s skirt blew upwards due to the wind.

Instantly.

“Snap!”

Guriko felt an impact over her entire body the moment Long-Armed Demon gave that command.

“Argh!”

She moaned and frowned as she felt an ominous discomfort around her left foot. She tried to grasp the invisible arm that was holding her. The hand – even if there was no hand and only an arm – should be physically present.

However, Guriko’s fingers passed through the area where the arm was supposed to be. There was only empty air.

“Ahahaha,” Long-Armed Demon laughed shrilly: “You can’t touch Long-Armed Demon’s arms! Long-Armed Demon’s arms are s-p-e-c-i-a-l~~! Gankyuu-san can’t touch it, nor can Zeki-kun, or even Long-Armed Demon herself! They can only touch others! They are such invincible and pretty arms! So now you won’t look down on it, right? You can honestly praise it now!”

Astonished, Guriko dodged behind a large headstone and checked the discomfort of her foot. It turned out the left foot was already fractured. Guriko had long lost the sensation of pain with her immortal body, and that would only be a disadvantage in battle. Pain was a signal to injury. If that signal wasn’t felt, then she wouldn’t know her limits.

If left alone, the power of the Apple should heal her bones. But it was unlikely to reach full recovery during this fight.

Guriko sighed and took off both her shoes and socks, making it easier for her to move about.

In fact, when she still casually called herself ‘Gankyuu Eguriko’, she always went barefoot. That made her steps solid on the ground and agile at the same time, and was best for such fights.

There were some bad swellings around the ends of her left tibia and fibula, which were broken by the Long-Armed Demon. Guriko used her stockings to tightly wrap around the fractured areas, and made some appropriate first-aid measures. But the best she could do was just to hold the broken bones in place.

“You can’t hide!”

The headstone she was leaning against was instantly smashed. Gusts of dirt flew up into the air, and she couldn’t see anything. Guriko shut her eyes to prevent the dirt from going into her eyes, and threw out a few spoons to keep Long-Armed Demon busy as she tried to think.

Though she didn’t understand the basis and logic behind her opponent’s power, she could roughly grasp its effects. But it was a foolish thing to ponder about the basis of a monster’s abilities anyways. She didn’t need academic evidence and she didn’t need scientific theories; all she needed to know was what effect the power would cause.

Strictly speaking, Long-Armed Demon’s ability was not ‘invisible arms’.

If she had to describe it, it would be something like telekinesis – a supernatural power. She was able to create a force field with her thoughts and move objects. Apart from direct attacks such as smashing headstones and beating humans, she should also be able to accomplish ordinary movements – such as putting coins into a vending machine and opening cans – with ease. Seemed like she could do the same movements as a normal human’s two hands.

Guriko thought about her enemy’s tactics as she tried to dodge attacks while hopping on one foot.

The first plan she had was to escape to a distance where Long-Armed Demon couldn’t reach. However, it’d be cruel to simply leave Nageki behind and escape by herself, and it wouldn’t solve the problem. Then, she could only hope to divert the Long-Armed Demon’s attention. She seemed a simple girl; Guriko just needed to make her unable to concentrate on using her arms.

But how?

Ironically, the situation took a worse turn for Guriko as she was thinking these things.

“ – ”

She heard a very small sound.

She couldn’t hear what was said. The sound was very very small.

This sound…

Guriko instinctively looked to its source, and shivered when she saw Usagawa Rinne standing there. She saw her gentle face, thin body, and the lovely ribbon decorating her hair.

“Rinne… why?”

''How did this happen? This is so weird. I told her not to follow me. Rinne isn’t a stupid girl; she should know she would only be problematic for me here. But why?

''Did she become careless because she knew she couldn’t die? – No, no way.

''Rinne, why?''
“Eh?” Long-Armed Demon finally noticed Rinne. Turning her head, she stayed silent for a while, as if planning something. She soon decided carelessly: “I see. Hmm! She’s a bother, so let me kill her.”

Her voice sounded unnatural, but there wasn’t time to think –

“Rinne, run!”

Guriko yelled, and threw three spoons towards Long-Armed Demon. ''Usagawa Rinne must not be in danger. I will protect her –

''I’ll show you that I can protect her, even if I must exchange my life for hers.''

Therefore – although it was only for a moment – Guriko lost her composure in battle.

And Long-Armed Demon turned her head around during this gap – this worst possible moment.

“Shall we start with Gankyuu-san?”

“Squeak.”

Guriko felt something odd around her neck the moment she heard a repulsive sound. It was a pressing feeling. Then she flew off into the sky within an unbelievable force – no, she was lifted up into the air by Long-Armed Demon’s invisible arms.

“Urgh – urgh – !”

Guriko’s neck was being strangled. She hung in the air, unable to move, still clutching her spoons. Damn, Guriko moaned, she was way too careless.

“How is it? Long-Armed Demon’s arms are strong, right? Is it painful? Do you want to die? Or should I say, I want to strangle you until you would rather die.”

She was strangled with a force that was just strong enough not to crush her bones. Her arteries and airway were both pressed by an invisible hand. Guriko screamed senselessly, trying to pull away those intangible arms, and clawed aimlessly at the air.

Guriko sought out Rinne’s figure through her murky sight, barely keeping control over her diminishing consciousness. There. Rinne was standing motionlessly near the fountain at the entrance to the graveyard. She wasn’t running away, nor did she seem scared. Only her shoulders were shaking slightly – shaking with laughter.

''Why?

''Why, Rinne?''

As Guriko thought this – her conscious became dim.

Her conscious disappeared.

“Huh? That’s boring.” Long-Armed Demon lowered her head with boredom and looked at Guriko, whose limbs were hanging powerlessly downwards: “Now you know Long-Armed Demon is very very powerful, right? Because Long-Armed Demon won’t ever lose to anyone apart from Zeki-kun. Hmm, but that was fun, Gankyuu-san. I’ll take my time to torture you until you give up your Apple!”

Guriko didn’t answer.

At the end, even her fingertips fell limp.

Twirling, the spoons fell from the air.

Long-Armed Demon looked satisfactorily at her.

“Ahaha. Honestly, why would you use something like a spoon – ”

“Why do you think?” It was a short and low sound.

That sound came from Guriko, who should have fainted.

“What?”

Long-Armed Demon’s expression changed, but it was already too late.

The spoon fell downwards with a spin and reached Guriko’s bare feet, instantly grasped by her toes. Then, using her intact right foot, she swung forcefully to the right –

And she kicked forward with all her strength at that moment. The spoon flew forward – towards Long-Armed Demon’s location.

“Eh – Ahhhhhhhhhhh?!”

The spoon planted itself accurately into Long-Armed Demon’s right eye before she had the time to react. Long-Armed Demon gave out a sharp cry. She stumbled backward, whether from pain or the impact, and fell struggling on the ground.

“Ahhhh! Woahhhh! It hurts, it hurts!”

Her invisible arms disappeared, perhaps due to her loss of concentration. Guriko was released, and she landed lightly on the ground. Then she instantly and mercilessly rushed up to Long-Armed Demon.

It was as she had thought. Long-Armed Demon lacked battle experience and easily fell for Guriko’s faked death. She was too naive.

Guriko walked forward confidently once she ascertained her victory.

“You ask me why I’m using spoons? Of course that’s to make gorging out eyeballs easier. Why do I want to gorge eyeballs? I have – forgotten that reason long ago.”

“Um… Ahhhh! Ahhhh!” Long-Armed Demon finally stood up. She screamed as sanguineous tears flew down her cheek: “Wahhhh, ahhh! Wai, wait – it hurts, it hurts!”

Guriko grasped Long-Armed Demon’s slender shoulder with her right hand, then her left fist punched powerfully at the spoon that was sticking out of Long-Armed Demon’s eye.

“Squish – ”

“AAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!”

The spoon sank into the eyeball, went through her brains, ame out from the back of her skull and fell on the ground covered with blood. Long-Armed Demon opened her mouth wide, then shut it, and stared incredulously at Guriko.

“ – Uuuuurgh.”

“You can’t die with just one?”

Guriko took out another spoon and sank it into Long-Armed Demon’s remaining left eye. With an experienced hand, she dug out the eyeball, and once again smashed the spoon into the hollow eye socket.

Blood – vitreous liquid – brain matters – and tears all spurted out. Long-Armed Demon lay on the ground motionless.

Holding the freshly-dug eyeball that still dribbled vitreous liquid with her fingertips, Guriko smiled.

It was an unconscious smile, one that was completely immersed in satisfaction.

The smile of a monster.

Tap, a footstep could be heard.

“ – ”

Foot steps? An enemy? Long-Armed Demon’s companion?

Then he must be killed. He must be eliminated. She must kill, or she would be killed.

“ – ”

Like a wild beast, Guriko turned around and prepared to throw a spoon towards the person standing behind her.

“Hehe.”

That laughter, clear as bells, recovered Guriko’s consciousness that had been burnt into ashes with battle fury. Guriko stiffened, and took another look at the person she was prepared to kill.

“Ahh…”

Guriko finally remembered – that Rinne was also here.

Rinne was standing there. She had wished to become ‘the most important person’ for Guriko, and Guriko considered her more important than anyone else.

Did she see – did she see that?

She really didn’t want her monstrous expression to be seen by Rinne. Be it that red appearance a month ago or the way she was gorging out eyeballs now – she just didn’t want Rinne to see that.

“Ah… Ah…” It was the thing she feared the most.

Just not Rinne.

Those things she shouldn’t do and those things that went through her mind.

Pointing at Rinne.

''I pointed my spoons towards Rinne.''

“Hehe.” Rinne was laughing: “Hehe – hm, I saw something nice. No no, I definitely saw something good! If everything else goes smoothly till tonight, then today can be the best day in my career. No – rather, it’d be third best. Order doesn’t matter. Anyways, I saw something good!”

She laughed evilly, a purely evil smile.

Evil?

Then she was not Rinne. Such a person was not Rinne.

“You…”

“What?” Rinne had an expression that seemed she only just discovered Guriko’s presence: “Yo, long time no see.”

She spoke these incomprehensible words. Guriko didn’t know what to do. What did she mean, long time no see? They were just at a cafe moments ago. As Guriko thought this, Rinne laughed happily.

“You’ve changed. That’s why I didn’t recognize you. You’re more beautiful now. Haha, and a mad light is hidden in your eyes. Great. You even seem charming now, excellent. And you’re so cruel it’s simply outstanding – ahaha. You were just a little girl, Yono, so what misfortunes fell upon you to make you like this? Well, though it was I who made these misfortunes happen – but this is an odd feeling, like discovering your bastard child is now a millionaire.”

That name, Yono.

Guriko’s expression changed, and she stared at this existence that had Rinne’s face. She was sure of it. This thing was not Rinne, but some other ominous identity.

“Who are you?”

“Eh? Ahh, you couldn't recognize me because of this appearance?”

As she spoke, Rinne’s body began to change. Her bones, muscles, and all body parts creaked shrilly as they changed and gradually lost their original appearance.

“Urk –”

Guriko couldn’t help but moan as she watched the pitiful scene of her most important person twisting and writhing. Rinne’s body gradually turned into one of a tall male.

The man was extremely tall, maybe even a head taller than Sakaki. However, he was not muscular. His long hair was tied into a complex pattern and hung behind him, and his appearance gave off a priest-like feel of solemnity and holiness. The priest’s eyes, however, shone with a keen light like that of a wild wolf.

“But this isn’t my real appearance either. Please excuse me. The scary Sterilization Disinfection is operating in the dark, so I don’t want to expose my real appearance. Besides, I’ve used this look for the past few hundred years. I’m a bit attached to it.” He walked towards Long-Armed Demon as he chatted: “Hehehe, Ume-chan got defeated. What a waste of the Apple I gave her. Dear little idiot. She forgot how her target looked, so she ended up committing serial murders. But that’s what’s so cute about her, hehe. How about we make your brain exercise as well next time? You’re truly my best toy, my lovely Long-Armed Demon!”

Using a single hand to smoothly carry the motionless Long-Armed Demon on his shoulder, the man with eyes of a wolf turned to Guriko.

Since she owned an Apple, it would mean Long-Armed Demon wasn’t dead. She seemed to have only acquired the Apple recently, so it was understandable for her to still feel pain. As Guriko thought of this, the man began another long soliloquy.

“Right. This girl’s real name is Aizawa Ume. Her entire family was killed by a thief, and she herself had her two arms cut off. As she was about to go mad, her supernatural powers awakened and she killed the thief – I thought it’d be fun, so I used an Apple to solidify her disappearing powers and used her as a mercenary. Seems like I still need to tweak her a little.”

Aizawa. The grave Long-Armed Demon was sleeping in front of had that surname. Then perhaps – no, it would definitely be the grave of her family. She also understood why only this grave was tidied in this moss-covered graveyard.

What she didn’t understand was this man.

Looking at Guriko, who was giving off a battle pose rather than one of caution, he laughed out loud. It was an innocent laughter incongruous to his rough appearances.

“You don’t remember me?”

She didn’t remember. Though she tried to search her memories, she still couldn’t remember.

“I don’t remember at all. Who are you?”

Since she couldn’t remember him, then he should be someone of little importance to her. Guriko didn’t lower her guard, and only asked disinterestedly: “How did you know my real name?”

“You’re asking how?” The man seemed puzzled. Carrying Long-Armed Demon, he spoke to Guriko with a smile: “Well, consider me a mystery person for now. That Sterilization Disinfection is my natural enemy. I plan to keep my head low until that enemy goes away.”

Sterilization Disinfection – what was that?

Turning his head, the man smiled over his shoulder to Guriko, who was frowning.

It was an evil smile, an unsettling evil smile.

“You really don’t remember? My name is [[Mushi:Vol2_TLnotes# Zekiguchi Nashinori | Zekiguchi Nashinori]]. Yono, it was I who killed you a thousand years ago.”

What did that mean?

''I almost died a thousand years ago because I fell into a pool at the bottom of a waterfall – no, I did die. I only got resurrected thanks to the Apple.

''But how come I fell into that pool…? It was a road I passed everyday. There was no way that I would miss my footing.''

“You, you…”

A chill sprang up her spine. The man who killed Yono, the girl who was living normally – the man who sent her into this immortal hell –

“But Yono, I think you’re very dangerous. You’re too ugly. You’re obviously a monster, but you’re living as a human. Such a stain will be hated by Sterilization Disinfection.”

The wolf in a priest’s skin stared at Guriko with his heinous eyes.

“So you must decide your future before you meet Sterilization Disinfection. Will you live on as a monster, or as a human? But remember, you will certainly face Sterilization Disinfection if you choose to live as human. That is the Digestive Organ that can even dissolve God. You can’t win in your current state. Moreover, not just you, even those close to you will also be met with misfortune.”

Zekiguchi left after he said what he wanted to say.

Guriko kept standing in one spot, listening to his words without a single rebuttal. That was the choice which always stood before Guriko. Would she live on as a human, or as a monster?

Would she keep on living without Rinne?

Or would she place Rinne in danger?

“Waaaahhhhh!”

With a feeling of emptiness suddenly invading her heart, Guriko put her hands to her head and screamed.

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| Return to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch1|Night 1: A Series of Misfortune]]
| Back to [[Mushi_to_Medama|Main Page]]
| Forward to [[Mushi:Vol2_Ch3|Night 3: Boudoir]]
|-
|}
</noinclude>

Talk:Mushi:Vol2 Ch1

2011-12-02T01:51:32Z

Cakemanofdoom:

Talk:Mushi:Vol2 Ch1

2011-12-02T00:32:12Z

Cakemanofdoom: