Editing Mushi Uta:Volume 4th Episode 14 (section)

===Part 3===

Going up the stairs, Daisuke sat on the rails.

He crossed his arms, looking to a certain corner of the hall.

"Why do I have to save Mushitsuki? And didn't you consider the possibility I'd kill their Mushi and make them Fallen?"

Daisuke's original job wasn't saving Mushitsuki. It was to capture them, and depending on the case turn them powerless by killing their Mushi.

Arisu should've also known that.

Even so—she told him to save a Mushitsuki. Even if he pretended not to listen to her, she seemed likely to go on a rampage.

He hadn't the slightest of intentions to help anyone.

He'd let Arisu have her way. It was all a bother.

"Oh, but they said those twins can't summon their Mushi unless they're together. Then it'll be difficult to kill it…"

He recalled this along with his anger.

Just like the hostess said, the footage they saw in the hall was real. The things they'd seen were undoubtedly two Mushi and it seemed like the twins were their hosts.

It was of the popular Minion Type that mainly attacked with fangs and claws. The only point of interest was them being exactly the same.

No identical Mushi existed.

Daisuke's assumption had been overturned.

"I'm interested in that Mushi…"

He looked down the stairs.

One of the twins was apparently inside a warehouse.

"…"

He would be lying if he said he wasn't interested in two different Mushitsuki with the exact same Mushi.

But even so, he didn't like Arisu's words. Heading to the warehouse would be following her orders.

"…Tch."

After thinking, Daisuke started going down the stairs.

He couldn't just stand there.

He had to confirm with his own eyes what he was interested in. Heading to the warehouse was for his investigation, not for saving the twins. —He decided to treat it like this.

"There's no way I can save anyone in the first place."

Although he had saved people indirectly due to the flow of events, he'd never been on any mission with saving someone as the goal.

He found a map of the ship in the dance hall down the stairs and memorized it.

The cabins were in floors 5 to 2, and the warehouse was apparently in the lowest floor. He also recalled seeing another entrance for things other than cars when he'd boarded the ''Amenotori''.

"I have to quickly finish this and go back to monitor that woman…"

While muttering to himself, he went down the empty stairs. Feeling someone's presence in the corridor as he reached the first floor, he promptly entered the office kitchenette.

He slightly opened the door to survey the situation just as two large men passed by. They were probably guards employed by the auction's organizers—no, probably bodyguards.

He'd been through infiltration missions to special facilities many times in the past. Mushitsuki running away from the SEPB's pursuit would go into many places. Daisuke would then find these hiding Mushitsuki and turn them into Fallens.

Since bringing his SEPB gear into the party would be suspicious he didn't have it. His pistol was hidden behind his back, but he wanted to avoid using excessive force on civilians.

Exiting the room, he went down the stairs again. A main lobby with a hanging chandelier appeared.

Silencing his footsteps, Daisuke nimbly crossed the lobby. He entered the corridor to the side and kept advancing.

"I'm also worried about Harukiyo vanishing, and it seems better to finish this up as soon as possible and regroup."

This time was also a vain attempt regarding the investigation of Hanashiro Mari.

He had no idea why Harukiyo had invited Arisu there. He was probably up to no good anyway.

"Not to mention Kasuou's defiance… I hate everything that happened here."

Normally he would've fended off Kasuou's abusive language. Yet only today he was unable to say anything back, and so was angry at himself.

When he could see the entrance connecting to the parking area, Daisuke hid himself in the corridor's shadow.

A burly man blocked the entrance. Because of the contents of the auction, even while floating in the middle of the sea they hadn't relaxed their security.

''Now, what to do—''

Daisuke began thinking, but it was all useless effort.

He could hear an impact sound from somewhere in the ship. It felt as if the entire ship trembled.

The guard frantically put the radio to his mouth. After saying something, he passed next to the hidden Daisuke, walking toward the lobby.

"—Those two together can't help but make a ruckus, huh?"

He held his head. One of them probably grew impatient of waiting.

Moving quietly now was silly, so Daisuke just entered the parking area.

Shouts flew around the narrow space packed full of cars. The parking area was connected to the warehouse. The men watching over one of the twins noticed Daisuke.

A green glow alighted down on Daisuke's shoulder.

It was a checkered beetle with long antennae. Immediately after landing on Daisuke, its body morphed, becoming countless tentacles that stabbed into his skin.

A green glowing pattern emerged in addition to Daisuke's mask and tuxedo.

The man leapt at him with no questions asked, so Daisuke's fist struck his chin. Although taller by a head, the man flew through air, and Daisuke's unrelenting kick hit his stomach.

Struck by the man blown away, several other men also crashed against the wall and fainted.

A metallic sound reverberated farther inside the parking place.

The two men blocking the warehouse entrance pulled guns out of their pockets. Compared to dealing with the items sold in the auction, obtaining firearms was probably easy.

Gunfire echoed.

Daisuke kicked the ground, avoiding the trajectory of the bullets. He moved behind cars with superhuman agility. Fusion Type Mushitsuki could merge with their Mushi, thereby enhancing their physical abilities by dozens of times.

Closing the distance in an instant, Daisuke swung his fist toward the worker-use elevator.

His green glowing fist struck it.

Along with a great din, the elevator was blown toward the large men.

It grazed the escaping men and struck the warehouse entrance. The door was destroyed along with the concrete wall, slowly collapsing.

The men hurriedly trying to rouse themselves received Daisuke's kicks. They held their stomachs and collapsed, unable to move.

"…"

The green tentacles left Daisuke's body. The original checkered beetle landed on his shoulder.

Climbing on top of the ruins of the concrete door, he entered the warehouse.

The inside was as large as a basketball court and dark. The lamps hanging from the ceiling illuminated the now-silent warehouse.

"Who is this?"

He heard a shaking voice from the corner of the warehouse.

A dress-wearing girl peeked at him from behind the mountains of cargo.

"Kakkou."

Standing on the rubble, Daisuke used his SEPB name. Although he wasn't wearing his coat and goggles, the fact he hid his face with a mask was unchanged.

"Kakkou…?"

The girl grimaced in fear. From what he saw on video, she was the twin with the softer face. He couldn't tell whether she was Urara or Kirara and which of them was the older sister.

Even in this situation she didn't seem to bring out her Mushi. Apparently the story that they couldn't summon their Mushi unless together was true.

''If she'd brought it here I'd be able to make her a Fallen though—''

Daisuke mentally clicked his tongue. He'd lost his pretext to attack her.

"So I can only save her…"

"…Have you come to save me?"

She probably heard Daisuke's mutter. In contrast to his expectations, her expression sparkled. She tried coming out from behind the shadow of cargo.

"Well, I'll hand you over to the SEPB once we reach the shore, though."

He ended up saying.

"Ehhh?"

The girl's complexion changed, and she once again hid herself.

''Shit'', he regretted. Daisuke held his head, and finally noticed.

"Hey, you. Why'd you know about the SEPB?"

"…"

"Don't answer if you don't want to. The SEPB will catch you no matter what. It won't change that."

He didn't care about what she said or did in the least. Since he'd hand in the twins to the SEPB anyway, as long as they were out on the sea it didn't matter where he took her at all.

''What a farce''. Daisuke turned around, intending to leave.

"W-wait…!"

Yet the girl's voice called to him.

"What about my big sister? What's Urara doing?"

"Another person's saving her right now. —I dunno if she's safe or not, though."

He turned around. Kirara, the dress-wearing girl, was teary-eyed.

"T-take me to Urara…"

"Why should I. I finished off the guards. If you want to, then go alone."

"Take me to Urara… Please…"

When Daisuke acted coldly he caused the girl to break down crying. Seeing her like this made him angrier and angrier.

"You didn't bring out your Mushi even when in danger and you won't even try to escape on your own… Are you actually a Mushitsuki?"

Seeing such a weak Mushitsuki was rare.

But despite his question, Kirara merely repeated ''take me to Urara'' over and over.

"Hey—"

His anger reaching its limits, Daisuke quickly lowered himself to the ground. Approaching the cowering girl, he grabbed her head and dragged her face violently.

"I'm asking if you're actually a Mushitsuki."

Kirara made a pained face, wet with tears. Yet she nodded once.

"How come you've been caught here? How d'you know about the SEPB?"

"…T-they found out about us being Mushitsuki… We were chased by those SEPB people… and saved by this guy called Jit—"

"Saved? You were just caught by the same kind of villains."

These were not rare circumstances for those who became Mushitsuki. He had no intention to sympathize.

But being chased by the SEPB meant that the twins really were Mushitsuki. Knowing this, Daisuke felt his anger well up further and further.

"So you thought you were being saved and just walked away with him? Are you stupid? No matter where you run to, no matter how much you run away, there aren't any guys who'd save us Mushitsuki! You're the only ones who can protect yourselves. Why doesn't everyone throw away this kind of naïve thinking already?!"

Why were they the only ones suffering?

Many Mushitsuki thought this. No, it was probably that almost all Mushitsuki thought so.

He was sick of it already.

The more he met with such Mushitsuki, the more he felt disgusted.

Daisuke was different. He'd never think of such people as his comrades.

"Urara…"

Kirara raised her face and looked at Daisuke.

"Urara's different. Urara only protects me…!"

"Is your sister strong, unlike you?"

As Daisuke asked her calmly, Kirara bit her lips and nodded.

"No. And even if it was so, it's not that she protects you because she's strong."

Asserting this clearly, Daisuke kept walking toward the exit.

"She's strong ''because'' she's protecting you."

If Mushitsuki hadn't a strong conviction to protect their dream until the end, they would end up losing to their own Mushi.

That was the unshakable truth Daisuke had found.

And it wasn't like that just for Mushitsuki.

"You too. You're not running away because you're weak. You're weak because you keep running away."

Turning around, he glanced at Kirara.

"Since you're weak, you aren't able to protect your sister when it counts."

Kirara widened her eyes. She simply stood stock-still, completely speechless.

He had no intention to keep up this silly conversation. He left the warehouse with the intention to meet up with Arisu and Kasuou.

Yet he noticed footsteps coming from behind him. Turning around, he could see Kirara biting her lips and trying to say something while following him.

"Don't come along. You can wait shaking inside until someone comes to rescue you."

He glared at her, but she didn't listen to what he said. She glared back at him with teary eyes.

"I won't save you no matter what happens."

"…"

"If you have something to say then do it. You're annoying."

Even at Daisuke's words, Kirara merely averted her face. Yet when he started walking, she also followed him.

"Shit, they're doing nothing but annoying me…"

Although feeling indignant, Daisuke went with Kirara and left the parking area behind.