Mushi Uta:Volume 1st Episode 01

Episode 01. The Silver Spear of Dream’s Continuation

Even now, she still remembered it very clearly.

That scene from one year ago.

A memory from when her close friend, Hanashiro Mari, was still alive.

“…Yeah, I know it for sure.”

Standing before the hospital room, Arisu heard her voice. Mari was speaking with somebody. However, Arisu couldn’t hear the other party, only Mari talking by herself.

“Because Arisu is kind, even for my request, she will…”

Arisu opened the door to the hospital room.

Blinded by the bright morning sun, she covered her eyes with her arm reflexively.

“Arisu.”

Arisu would probably never forget that scene her entire life.

Silver wings seemed to sprout from the back of the girl lying on the bed. The small wings belonged to an out of season morpho butterfly.

There was not a soul to be seen in the room apart from Mari. This made Arisu wonder for a moment, but it was more important for her to return a smile to Mari. Even for just one more second, even just an instant, she did not want to waste any time with Mari.

“Hey Arisu, listen to me. I am…”

As Mari narrowed her eyes and spoke, the silver morpho butterfly spreaded its wings and took flight.

Part 1

Walking down the road under the relentless morning rays, Ichinokuro Arisu let out a big yawn.

She came to a halt in front of a big puddle. Looking at the mirror-like surface, she saw her figure in the reflection.

A pair of sleepy half-opened eyes stared back at her. Her shoulder-length hair was maintained meticulously by a barber employed by the Ichinokuro house once every three days. Even amongst her peers, she was considered to be quite petite.

Arisu took a big stride, jumping over the puddle which other people would have avoided.

In the direction which Arisu was walking, there were lots of boys and girls wearing the same uniform as her. However, none of them had a sleepy look on their face apart from her. Everybody was walking upright and chatting with each other with a bright smile on their face.

Arisu was presently heading towards Horusu Seijou Academy Middle School. The school was average academically, but its tuition fee was outrageously expensive. In other words, it was a prestigious school for the upper-class. Arisu was fourteen years-old, currently enrolled as a second-year student there.

Seeing two familiar figures ahead, Arisu rushed towards them.

“’Sup, Ena, Takako!”

Arisu leapt between the two girls, coiling her arms around their shoulder and causing them to stumble.

“Hey. Or rather, aren’t you being too energetic in the morning.”

“G-good morning, Arisu-san.”

One of the girl pouted, while the other had a troubled smile.

They are Saionji Ena and Kujou Takako, Arisu’s classmate. Both of them are from influential families, especially Takako who was raised with an abundance of love and care since young. On the other hand, being the third daughter, Ena had an even more coarse personality than Arisu.

Arisu let go of their shoulders, letting out a groan with a, ‘uu…’.

“My energy is at just the right level. After all, I had just been beaten up by the demonic hag since early this morning.”

“Ah, you mean your self-defence practice? I guess it can’t be helped, seeing as how you are the precious only daughter of the Ichinokuro family, much bigger and wealthier than our families. They’re just worried that you might get kidnapped.”

“If that’s the case, they could have just drop me off at school every day. Instead of being strict on discipline in such a way, geez.”

“Maybe hiring a bodyguard would be a good idea.”

At Takako’s words, Arisu revealed an interested look.

“A bodyguard eh… That might be fine too.”

“Eh? Seriously?”

“Since my family has nothing but money, they could at least do this much. This way, I wouldn’t have to undergo all these strict practice.”

“Eeh, but you’d be with stuck with some ominous-looking fellow all the time!”

“That’s not right! Obviously, I’d only pick a pretty boy! Even in school, he will always be by my side, obeying my every command. ‘Ah, my throat is feeling a bit dry.’ ‘Please drink this, my lady.’ ‘Fufu, good boy.’ Ah, why didn’t I think of this earlier!”

“Just who do you think you are… Well, I guess that might not be such a bad idea.”

“But, then…”

Seeing Takako blush, a grin formed on Arisu's face. Looking at Ena, she found the same look on her face as well.

“Eh, did you hear that, Arisu-san?”

“Yup, I heard it loud and clear, Ena-san. ‘But, then…’, wasn't it. It seems like just imagining it was too much for our chaste lady Takako.”

“That’s not it. It’s just that Takako-san already has someone in mind. What was his name again, you know, that childhood friend with a baby face from the Arts club…”

“H-hey, stop picking on me…”

Watching the panicky Takako glance at them back and forth, Arisu and Ena laughed out loud.

But then, Ena’s laughter stopped all of a sudden.

“What’s wrong, Ena?”

“Ah, sorry. Speaking of pick on, I recalled something unpleasant.”

“Something… unpleasant?”

In contrast to the look of question on Arisu and Takako's face, Ena had a frown.

“I heard this from my friend last night over the phone… Yesterday, after class ended, it appeared in our school.”

“It appeared? What is it?”

“Mushi.”

Thump thump—

Arisu’s heartbeat accelerated.

—Hey Arisu, listen to me. I am…

That scene from the past smouldering in the back of her memories came to her in flash. Even now, it seems as if it would disappear any moment, but she recalled the smile of happiness of her former close friend.

“She had also heard it second-handed, so I have no idea if it's true or not.”

Ena continued.

“Somewhere in the school, a bunch of boys were ganging up on someone. Then, suddenly, the Mushi appeared… As a result, a few of them were severely injured… The one who witnessed it was so scared that they did not dare tell anybody what they saw, only to the friend of my friend.”

Mushi—.

Something only mentioned in passing rumours, first heard about ten years ago.

Outlandish organisms with the appearance of insects, the Mushi infests humans and feed on their dream to grow. Despite multiple eyewitness reports from various sources, the government officially deny their existence. But, as eyewitness reports continued, people afflicted by the Mushi, known as Mushitsuki, came to strike fear in the hearts of the populace. Rumours say that the Mushi consumes the dreams of their host up till the day they die.

Along with the issue of the Mushi which has since passed the level of gossips, there were hearsay of a government agency known as the Special Environmental Preservation Bureau. Officially, the bureau is said to handle any issues or complains about the living environments, but…

“Please keep this off the record, ’kay. …Leaving aside Takako, I didn't expect Arisu to be making this kind of face too.”

“Eh…”

At that, Arisu snapped out of her daze. She had been listening with her eyes goggly, similar to Takako, causing Ena to come to the conclusion that she had been frightened.

“There, there, sorry for scaring you. So even Arisu-chan have a girlish side to her, eh… Ow-ow-ow.”

“Ohohoho, that’s right. Somewhere within me, there's a weak and delicate girl.”

While drilling Ena’s temple with both of her fists, Arisu noticed that Takako looked strange.

“E-erm, I…”

“Takako?”

“I saw a suspicious character… That is, inside the school compound…”

““Really?!””

Arisu and Ena both exclaimed. Takako nodded docilely.

“Suspicious you say, in what way?”

“Erm, that is… it was a scary-looking giant… also, he seems middle-aged…”

“Hey, isn’t this bad? What if that person was… a Mushitsuki?”

Takako looked aghast, while Ena's expression turned serious.

Mushitsuki—.

Arisu silently clenched her fist.

“A suspicious character… Mushitsuki…”

During the short homeroom later that morning, they heard directly from the form teacher that a few boys from the same grade had been sent to the hospital due to serious injuries.

Part 2

The chime reverberated in the quiet school building.

The time was just past three in the afternoon. Afternoon classes had just started and would end at six pm.

With a ‘kreen’, the door to the girl’s toilet opened.

“…”

Sticking her head just beyond the door, Arisu spied at the surroundings.

The compound of Horusu Seijou Academy Middle School was separated into several buildings. The central block had a clocktower with a classic western-style exterior, while the special classrooms were located in the east block. On the other side, the staff room and gymnasium was situated in the west block which had a modernism design. In addition, the dojo, pool and many other facilities were housed in detached blocks.

Arisu was currently in the east block. She had already verified that by five pm, the classrooms in the second and third floors would no longer be used. She had feigned illness and sneaked into the toilet since the break.

After making sure that there was no one, she came out to the corridor.

As she let out a ‘fuu’, a butterfly appeared out of nowhere and circled around her.

Shimmering with a brilliant silver lustre from its wings, it was a morpho butterfly. —If one looked closely however, they would realise that it was not a normal butterfly. Arisu did not know of any other butterfly which had four antennas.

The morpho butterfly fluttered towards the stairway.

“I know, Mari. I will definitely find a Mushitsuki…”

Muttering to herself, Arisu renewed her spirit.

As Arisu walked up the stairway, she found the passage obstructed by a tape. On the side of the tape were the words, ‘No Trespassing’, along with the insignia of the Akamaki City Police Department. In addition, a stand bearing the signature of the chairman of the academy with the words, ‘No Entry’, was placed in front of the tape.

“Hup~”

Ignoring the stand, Arisu jumped over the rope. The morpho butterfly had already disappeared somewhere along the third floor.

Since the morning, several police patrol cars could be seen outside the main gate. However, by lunch break, not a single patrol car remained. She had thought that that seemed quite hasty, but perhaps on-site investigations had already been completed last night.

Arisu took a look around the silent third floor.

“…!”

What she saw made her took in a deep breath.

There were signs of wanton destruction all along the corridor. All the windows were smashed, and the floor, ceiling, and the door to the Arts room were all wrecked. She would have thought that an explosion had occurred here, but that wasn't it. There were what seemed to be gigantic claw marks gouged into the concrete.

Arisu gulped. She did not know what had happened here, but Ena’s words about the Mushi came into her mind.

“This… shouldn't be the work of the Film Studies club, right? …I don't think they would be so elaborate.”

The artworks by the Arts club hanging on the side of the corridor were left in miserable shapes. A painting of the sunset fallen on the ground attracted her sight, but there were large slashes on it as expected. The picture frame which was a present from a sister school was pretty much smashed, with the sign bearing the name “Tachibana R.” being all that remained.

Weaving her way around the debris, it was right when Arisu was approaching the Arts room.

“…Yeah, I think that I would be able to find him soon. I already know that he is a member of the Arts club.”

A voice could be heard coming from the ruined Arts room. Arisu immediately stopped and held her breath.

“He can’t escape. I would definitely find him—”

The voice sounded young, belonging to that of a teenage boy. He seemed to be speaking to somebody, but there was no reply from the other party.

Arisu recalled Takako’s witness account of a suspicious character. Suppressing the sound of her footsteps, she turned back towards the locker with the cleaning supplies and opened it.

What she retrieved from within was a mop with a long handle. Holding the stem, she began twisting the pole, silently dismantling the mop.

During class time, just who…?

Arisu nervously approached the Arts room with the pole in hand.

The owner of the voice was still talking to somebody when all of a sudden, his voice stopped.

“—Is someone there?”

I was discovered—the moment Arisu thought so, she moved. Kicking the door open, she sprang into the Arts room.

In the room, a teenage boy was shocked eyes wide open. He was wearing the Horusu Seijou Academy uniform and held a mobile phone in his hand.

“Seyaa~!”

Faced with a horizontal strike across, the boy narrowly dodged under with a look of surprise.

However, seeing the boy flusteredly move backwards to avoid the blow, Arisu dexterously manipulated the pole to sweep at the boy’s feet.

“Uwaa!”

The tip of the pole hit the boy’s knee from the back, causing him to tumble backwards.

—The Ichinokuro house was a pedigree from the Edo period. Using the skills honed since the warring era, Arisu displayed the techniques she was trained in each morning. Ever since she had been aware, she has had various martial arts beaten into her by her strict instructor, varying from Aikido to using a naginata.

“Don’t move!”

Releasing those barbed words, she thrusted the tip of the pole at the boy who had fallen on his rear end.

Dumbfounded, the boy looked up at Arisu.

He looked to be around the same age as Arisu. Stature-wise, he was about the same as the other male students of his age. There was also nothing suspicious about his external appearance. However, there was Takako’s testimonial. As the situation is, she cannot let her guard down in front of any stranger. An uncommon ringtone came from the mobile phone in his hand.

“You, what’s your name?”

“What…”

As if not understanding the situation, the boy tried to stand up.

“I said, don’t move!”

“Ouch!”

Arisu poked his forehead with the pole.

“You understand now? You can only answer my questions. Any movements and you will get it from me.”

Arisu declared her intentions resolutely. Faced with her one-sided demand, the boy lapsed into silence unhappily.

“Name?”

Arisu resumed her interrogation. The boy looked away in disgruntlement, looking like a child at his rebellious age.

“Before asking for the name of others, shouldn’t you give yours first… Ouch!”

“I don’t remember stooping to the level of a suspicious character. Now, talk.”

“I don’t want to.”

“…”

“Ow, ow. Hey, stop that!”

“…Well, fine. It’s not like I'm interested in your name anyway.”

Striking at the boy’s face repeatedly, Arisu changed her question.

“Next question. Who are you? What are you doing at this place when you are supposed to be in class?”

“…Nothing in particular. I was just playing truant, idling around. That’s when you—”

“Are you a student of this school?”

“That’s right. See, I have the student’s handbook.”

The boy took out a student’s handbook from his pocket, opening it for Arisu to see. There was a red access card in the notebook. Due to the strict security of the school, access cards were stringently regulated. Entry to the school requires the scanning of the access card. This applied to both students and teaching staffs, and all movement in and out of the school were recorded.

After examining the handbook, Arisu glared at the boy.

“This is fake!”

“What? That’s not possible!”

“The colour of the authentic card is yellow, while yours is red.”

“Huh?”

Seeing his reaction, Arisu was sure of it. The card was indeed supposed to be red.

“…I knew it, you are not a student of the school.”

Realising that he was tricked, the boy rubbed his head.

‘To think I was fooled by such a childish trick…’, the boy seemed to mutter to himself in dismay.

“Just what are you doing here? Answer me honestly.”

“That has nothing to do with you.”

It appears that he would resist Arisu till the very end. ‘Perhaps I should just beat his head in’, thought Arisu, but she took a deep breath and restrained herself.

“Fine then, one last question for you.”

After taking a short breath, she asked.

“Are you a Mushitsuki?”

“…!”

The boy’s complexion clearly changed.

Seeing his overreaction, Arisu’s heartbeat hastened and her eyes widened.

“R-really…? You really are a Mushitsuki?”

In the next instant, the boy moved.

Taking advantage of the moment while Arisu was stunned, he swatted the pole away. In the moment she muttered, ‘Ah!’, the boy had used the momentum of a back roll to jump onto his feet.

He now stood face to face with Arisu. Hiding her rapidly throbbing heartbeat, Arisu readied her stance.

“Yesterday’s incident, were you responsible for that too?”

Arisu was sure now. From the way he moved, it was evident that he wasn't any ordinary person.

“…”

The boy’s expression changed distinctly. Unlike the rebellious look he had earlier, he was now observing Arisu with cold eyes.

“The witness in yesterday's incident said that they saw a Mushi.”

Not getting caught up in his mood, Arisu shouted out loud.

“Also, my friend said she saw someone suspicious in school. A scary-looking male giant… who was middle-aged… but I don't see anyone like that… huh?”

“Hmph.”

The boy seemed to sneer at Arisu.

“If I was the Mushitsuki, that would mean that I was the one who gravely injured all those students, you know?”

“…!”

“—If I said that, what would you do?”

Arisu gulped.

“Don't tell me that you thought you could take down the evil-doer with one hit from the pole?”

Under the chilly gaze of the boy, Arisu bit her lips.

“T-that's not what I was going to do.”

“Then, what are you going to do?”

“There’s something… that I must know no matter what.”

Narrowing her eyes slightly, Arisu said.

“There's something that I must confirm by meeting with a Mushitsuki. That’s why, I have been searching for a Mushitsuki, ever since one year ago…”

The boy went silent. But, he immediately opened his mouth again and replied her coldly.

“Do you really believe that Mushitsuki exists?”

“They do!”

“If they really exist, that would mean that they would meet their end when their dream is completely consumed by the Mushi. Even if they survive, they would have been taken away by some scary people.”

“Scary people?”

“The Special Environmental Preservation Bureau…”

The boy muttered. Arisu tilted her head in confusion.

The Special Environmental Preservation Bureau. Apart from being the agency that handled cases relating to the Mushi and Mushitsuki, there were no other information about them. However, the rumour-loving Ena once spoke about it.

The Special Environmental Preservation Bureau… the SEPB in short, in fact, they concealed the existence of Mushitsuki from the public. They also used Mushitsuki to hunt for other Mushitsuki and such—.

“Either way.”

At the boy’s words, Arisu came to from her thoughts.

“If you are planning on getting involved with such flippant attitude, you better stop now.”

“What flippant attitude. I absolutely have to meet a Mushitsuki even if I have to risk my life.”

“A spoiled young lady like yourself would probably never understand.”

The boy sneered at her scornfully.

“In this shitty dog-eat-dog world, there are those who would sacrifice anyone if meant their survival. Those who do not want to sacrifice anything, they just run and run away, barely scraping along their lives. …And also, there are plenty of people who would do anything to live, no matter how hated they become or how dirty their hands would get. Those who say that they are fine with dying, have no value even in death.”

As if filled with anger at the whole world, the boy spoke with intense hatred in his voice. Overpowered by his speech, Arisu was dumbstruck. Still sneering, the boy proceeded to leave the venue.

“…You probably don't know of this either.”

Arisu said.

“Wanting to live but is unable to, thus having no choice but to entrust her dream to others… there are people who live like that too.”

“…”

“Those who have been entrusted with that dream have the responsibility to carry it till the bitter end.”

“…I don’t need you to tell me that—”

As if he recalled something, a look of anger formed on the boy's face.

It was right that moment.

A scream came from somewhere.

Part 3

Following the scream, there was the sound of glass breaking.

“…!”

Arisu reflexively dashed out to the corridor. Right after, an announcement echoed through the school. Looking at the central block, she saw the moment the windows on the second floor shattered.

Turning her head, her eyes met the boy’s.

“…”

In contrast to Arisu’s solemn expression, the boy glared back as calm as a cucumber.

Arisu was first to look away. Turning her back to the boy, she ran down the corridor.

The disturbance had come from the second floor of the central block, the same floor as that of Arisu’s classroom. Rushing down the passage, she saw the students and teachers forming a crowd ahead.

Pushing her way through the crowd, what she saw made her speechless.

Several students were collapsed on the floor. The walls of the classroom were riddled with holes, as if something has taken multiple bites out of it. Furthermore, shattered glass littered the floor.

A male student was bleeding profusely from his shoulder. While it did not seem to be life-threatening, his face appeared blank as a teacher propped him up.

“…Mushi…”

One of the student standing around in shock muttered. Hearing that, Arisu’s expression changed.

“Uwaa…! It hurts…!”

“It was a big monster! It must be a Mushi!”

The boy who was injured shouted with a look of pain. Supporting the student, the teacher tried to calm him down. Around them, panicky students just crowded around the teacher.

Mushi… just who—.

All of a sudden, Arisu was assaulted by a fit of coldness.

“…!”

She turned her head around.

There, she found a gaze filled with animosity piercing through her.

Behind her stood the mysterious boy she met at the Arts room earlier. Under his unpleasant cold gaze, a shiver ran down Arisu’s frozen legs.

As I thought, this person knows something—.

She unconsciously exerted more strength into her clenched fist.

“As I thought, you are a Mushitsuki—”

“Two people from this class are in the Arts club. One is collapsed over there while the other is…”

Ignoring her, the boy muttered under his breath. He was not looking at Arisu, his line of sight extending to beyond her.

Arisu pursued his gaze.

“…Eh…”

Arisu unconsciously leaked an utter.

A male student was standing in front of the door to the ruined classroom. Similar to Arisu just now, he was rooted to the spot by the boy’s frosty glare.

“You’re pushing your luck, Harimoto Jun.”

At the boy’s penetratingly cold mutterings, the male student reacted. Visibly flustered, he ran down the corridor as if to escape.

The boy immediately chased after Harimoto Jun.

“Hey… wait…”

Snapping out of her daze, Arisu promptly tried to follow them.

“Arisu!”

For some reason, students from other classes came running down the corridor as well. Ena was calling out to Arisu. However, Takako’s figure was nowhere to be seen.

Ignoring Ena who was calling her, Arisu ran down the corridor where she came from.

“W-wait up! Harimoto-kun too…!”

She shouted at the two whose figures could not be seen already. However, Arisu immediately took in a breath.

The wall right beyond the bottom of the staircase had been reduced to rubble. Beyond the fragmented concrete, the fence could be seen to be broken through forcefully as well.

“Does this mean that… Harimoto-kun is a Mushitsuki as well…?”

She had been wondering whether the mysterious boy was a Mushitsuki or not. And now, there seems to be even more trouble. Arisu had known of the male student called Harimoto Jun since prior. The reason being—.

“…!”

Jumping through the hole into the backyard, Arisu could hear the sound of cloth fluttering.

Looking to her side, she saw a shadowy figure standing in the distance.

It was a person cladded in a jet black long coat that covered till his legs. Just before he put on a large goggles that seemed to cover the entirety of his face, he looked in her direction.

It was the boy whom Arisu suspected to be a Mushitsuki. He glared at Arisu with a look completely different from the one he had previously before hiding his face behind the goggles.

Much to Arisu’s surprise, he jumped over the fence with unimaginable leg strength. His long coat fluttered behind him and his figure quickly disappeared beyond the fence.

“Wha-…”

Out of nowhere, a butterfly landed on Arisu’s shoulder. It was the silver morpho butterfly.

Biting her lips, Arisu broke into a run. However, a voice called her to a stop.

“Arisu-san…”

When Arisu turned around, she was faced with a girl with an agonised look.

Part 4

“There was… a woman. No, I cannot even tell if it was human or not.”

In a taxi going down the street, Kujou Takako looked down as she spoke.

The scene witnessed by Takako was as follows.

—Hey, won’t you please tell me your dream?

The voice seemed to belong to a woman.

The location was at Harimoto Jun’s house. Takako had been passing through a gate to enter the vast premises.

His house grew herbs and poplars, as a result, there was always a pleasant fragrance throughout the air. However, at that moment, the usual fragrance was completely gone. Furthermore, the house was deathly quiet.

Jun was standing stock still in the centre of the courtyard.

As if hiding his figure, a woman with a tall stature was whispering into his ears. Takako saw the side profile of the woman dressed in a bright red coat and wearing round sunglasses.

—You don’t have to suppress your desires anymore. Now, tell me. What do you want to do right now?

She heard her whispering voice.

—I… I want…

A black distortion started to form by the side of the boy. He looked to be suffering, but it soon transformed into ecstasy as he trembled. A portion of the distortion seemed to solidify into the leg of an insect.

Then, the line of sight of the sunglasses wearing woman shifted. She glanced at Takako with a mysterious glint in her eyes.

Horrified, Takako ran away—.

“That was the day before yesterday…”

Said Takako as she trembled in fear.

“Do you think that woman turned Harimoto-kun into a Mushitsuki?”

Sitting next to Takako, Arisu enquired, causing her to shudder. That was probably the reaction to hearing the word, ‘Mushitsuki’.

Harimoto Jun was Takako’s childhood friend; he was like a brotherly figure to her. As their families had long ties with each other and socialised often, they naturally had plenty of chances to interact. Both Arisu and Ena knew that as well.

“At that time, I could not believe what I was seeing… No, that wasn’t it, I just didn't want to believe it.”

“…”

“Listening to what Ena-san said this morning, I was shocked. Although Jun-san did not show it in front of me, I have heard rumours that he was being severely bullied during his club activities. Perhaps—thinking of that, I can't help but want to reach out to him…”

“A suspicious male giant, that was actually a lie, right… I should have realised it from the start. After all, you were always so bad at lying.”

“Jun-san must have been suffering… but he could not ask anyone for help… It must have been tough… And then, of all things, he sought salvation from such a suspicious entity…”

Arisu clenched her fists.

An existence that gives birth to Mushitsuki.

“Because of that thing, there are Mushitsuki…”

The reason behind Arisu’s search for a Mushitsuki.

Just what are Mushitsuki—?

Arisu bit down on her molars; all she had now were more questions. Even if what Takako said true, then who was that boy in the black coat? At least, there were no doubts that he was no ordinary pedestrian.

The Special Environmental Preservation Bureau.

She thought back on what the boy mentioned. Did that have something to do with him?

The taxi stopped.

After paying the fare, the girls alighted.

“Is Harimoto-kun really here?”

“…When the construction work started, the two of us sometimes sneaked out here to play. Before the building is completed, there would definitely be no one that would think to look for us here…”

Looking up, they saw a high-rise building with its back facing the evening rays. It was a building shaped in a ‘コ’ built in the development area close to the coastline. The management of the building belonged to Takako’s father’s company, who had hoped that the building would be the starting point for the city’s new development.

The building, which would open in a few months time, was installed with lightings everywhere which lit up at night. At the space in the middle of the ‘コ’, there was an observation deck with a spherical roof.

The fence made of barbed wires had a portion of it ripped apart, and there were shoe prints left in the brand-new asphalt road.

“Bingo. Let’s go.”

Takako grasped Arisu’s hand just as she was about to move off and she stopped.

“Erm… why are you doing this? Shouldn’t this be… left to the police…”

“Do you want the police to be involved?”

Takako thought about it, then immediately shook her head. Arisu gave her a smile.

“That’s why, leave this to me. I also have a reason to meet him, to confirm something.”

“To confirm… something?”

“Mushitsuki, just what in the world are they?”

Saying so, Arisu grinned at Takako, causing her to stare back in puzzlement.

“The two of you are in the way. Don't move from here.”

The voice came from right next to them. Startled, they turned to face the voice.

“You…!”

The boy cladded in the black coat stood there.

“You won’t get off with just a small injury if you meddle in this unnecessarily.”

Saying so coldly, the boy with his face hidden by the goggles walked past them.

However, Arisu gripped his arm, stopping him.

“You followed us, didn’t you?”

“…”

“What are you going to do to Harimoto-kun? Don’t tell me, you are going to kill—”

At Arisu’s words, Takako visibly paled.

“I won’t kill him. After killing his Mushi, he will just turn into a Fallen.”

“…Fallen?”

“An empty shell devoid of dreams and emotions… still a much better outcome than dying from having his dream completely eaten by his Mushi. After turning into a Fallen, he would be brought to an isolation facility.”

“You… just who are you really?”

Arisu asked, but was only greeted by silence in return. Forcefully shaking her arm off, the boy climbed over the fence.

However, a figure threw itself at the boy from behind. It was Takako. Clinging desperately to the boy, she shouted.

“A-Arisu-san…!”

“Nice one, Takako!”

Taking advantage of the opening, Arisu leapt over the broken fence. Ignoring the boy clicking his tongue in annoyance, she sped towards the building.

Weaving in between the spotlights, Arisu saw that the front entrance of the building was open. She dashed inside without hesitation.

The inside of the building was dark and gloomy. The only light came from the setting sun through the windows, lighting up a section of the floor.

In order for her to speak to Jun, Arisu needed to reach him before the boy did. She surveyed the surroundings, looking for the figure of Jun.

However, she did not feel the presence of anybody within the vicinity.

She started to grow impatient. The building boasted of having a large floor area. If she searched blindly without a plan, the likelihoods of her finding him was low.

The silver morpho butterfly flew into her sight.

“Mari…”

It circled around her head briefly, before flying into the interior of the building.

“…”

Arisu took a deep breath. After calming down, she picked up a pipe lying around the entrance.

Following behind the morpho butterfly, Arisu arrived at the tenth floor.

Catching her breath at the mouth of the staircase, Arisu heard a voice coming from within the floor.

“Who is it…?”

Hearing the voice, Arisu tensed her body.

Walking discreetly along the aisle, what she saw beyond the corner caused her to widen her eyes.

The room had probably been intended to be an office for some enterprise. Amongst the desks placed haphazardly in the room, a boy stood alone. It was Harimoto Jun.

However, when she looked closely, she realised that it wasn’t just Jun. Next to him, a weird looking monster was lying amongst the desks as if that was its nest. It had antennas coming out of its head as well as eight squirming legs. At one glance of the shell shining with a black lustre, one could recognise it as a Rhinoceros beetle. What differed however, was the sheer size of it, as the beetle towered over three times the height of Jun.

That is a Mushi—?

Cold sweat formed on Arisu’s forehead.

“Hello, Harimoto-kun. I am Ichinokuro Arisu. I’m a friend of Takako, have you heard of me?”

“Takako’s friend…?”

Jun said in a low voice. Seeing the cold glare in the boy's side profile lit by the setting sun, Arisu felt a chill down her back.

“What would her friend be doing here…?”

“Obviously, that’s to stop you. I don’t know about your plan to take revenge on those bullying you, but that should have been enough to dispel your anger, no? Also, Takako is worried about you.”

“…Pff.”

The boy broke out into a slight smile, and the Mushi next to him slowly raised its body.

“I don’t want to. There's still three of them remaining.”

“How silly.”

“…What did you say?”

“If you wanted revenge, you should have done so by your own hands. Using that sort of thing to injure others, are you satisfied now? This way, aren’t you just accepting the fact that you’re weak.”

Arisu declared flatly.

“Did you become a Mushitsuki just to undertake such a silly revenge? Being a Mushitsuki, that must mean that you have a dream too, right?”

“Don’t tell me that you thought that all dreams would be something beautiful.”

Jun laughed out loud.

Arisu’s breathing halted. The boy’s laughter oozed with such malice that anyone would be appalled.

This person, is different—.

Arisu unconsciously came to a conclusion.

He is completely different from the Mushitsuki that I knew—.

Arisu met a certain Mushitsuki in the past. That person was the exact opposite of this boy; she always had a gentle smile on her face.

“Kill her.”

Obeying the boy’s command, the Mushi rushed at Arisu.

Snapping out of her daze, Arisu readied the pipe.

Her palms started to sweat. She did not think that the pipe she was holding would be able to damage the gigantic Mushi. She must get past the Mushi somehow and knock Jun unconscious. —Although she has no idea what would happen to the Mushi whose host fainted, she could not think of any other idea.

“Kuu!”

Arisu blocked the leg swung down by the Mushi with the pipe. However, there was no way her small frame could stop the blow and she was sent flying backwards.

Arisu somehow managed to land on her feet, but the Mushi's mandibles reached her instantly.

“Seyaa!”

Rolling to her side to avoid the fangs, Arisu swung down the pipe at the Mushi’s head. It felt as though she had hit a rock, causing her arm to turn numb.

The large eyes of the Mushi glared angrily at Arisu, and it struck out at Arisu with its front leg again. Arisu reflexively jumped forward, rolling on the floor and putting some distance between her and the Mushi.

Making use of the momentum of the forward roll, Arisu jumped up and dashed towards Jun.

“Uu…!”

The boy flinched. But, immediately after, the floor was dominated by the Mushi’s ear-splitting howl.

Along with the thunderous roar, it flung several of the room's furnishings towards Arisu.

“Kyaa—”

Besides shattering the glass windows, a desk crashed into Arisu. Arisu bowled on the floor before slamming into the wall.

“…Uu…u…”

It was a miracle that Arisu was still holding onto the pipe. Her whole body was screaming in pain, and she fell back to her knees after trying to stand on her shivering legs.

The Mushi moved in to attack Arisu who was trying to prop herself up with the pipe.

As if moving in slow-motion, the looming fangs of the Mushi was seared into her eyes.

—Mari—.

What came into Arisu’s mind as she resigned herself to death was the smile of her late friend.

The girl had spoken of her dream joyfully. Sadly, she never had the time to fulfil her dream before she passed away.

Right before she passed away, Mari had said this to Arisu.

—Hey Arisu, listen to me. I am actually…

She displayed no signs of dread or grief at dying as she spoke.

—My dream, can I entrust it to you?

Mari always had a silver-coloured morpho butterfly around her.

She had also been—a Mushitsuki.

“…!”

A silver light descended between Arisu and the Mushi.

With a brilliant pattern on its wings, it was the morpho butterfly. Jun’s Mushi came to a halt, as if it was scared of the morpho butterfly.

The morpho butterfly flew towards Arisu and landed on top of the pipe in her hand.

“!”

The wings of the morpho butterfly distorted, turning into numerous feelers that wrapped and embedded itself into the pipe, becoming one with it.

As Arisu looked on in astonishment, her hands held a silver spear. The antenna of the morpho butterfly entwined around the pipe like ivy, forming an engraved pattern that exuded magnificence. Of the four wings spread out broadly, one of it transformed into a sparkling blade.

“Wha-…”

The Mushi broke out of its stupor and swung down its leg at the speechless Arisu.

“…You this!”

Arisu swung the spear instinctively.

In the next moment, the silver spear sliced through the Mushi’s leg easily.

Furthermore, the spear released a gale of scales which gouged a huge crevice on the ground. The impact sent some of the furniture and glass pieces flying past Jun and out of the building.

“Kuh…!”

Jun’s face twisted in pain and he ran out further down the corridor. His Mushi followed along, hobbling along with its remaining seven legs.

“W-wait up!”

Briefly stunned at the power of the spear, Arisu immediately came to her senses and chased after the boy.

Jun seemed to have ascended the building from a staircase further within the floor. Arisu could hear the sound of footsteps and the Mushi’s groans coming from above. Holding the spear in one hand, she pursued them up the stairs.

“…”

As she ran up the stairs, Arisu examined the spear.

The morpho butterfly that was always around Arisu had been her late friend’s Mushi. Ever since the sickly girl passed away, the morpho butterfly started to appear by her side.

“Mari…”

Arisu called out. However, there was no response from the silver spear. Up till now, no matter how many times Arisu called out to the silver morpho butterfly, it had not responded.

—My dream, can I entrust it to you?

Mari’s last wish. Those words, just what did they mean? Why did the morpho butterfly appear around Arisu’s side? Just what are Mushitsuki? —In order to get an answer, Arisu searched high and low for a Mushitsuki.

However, when she finally found a Mushitsuki after all the trouble, the person in question, Harimoto Jun was far different from Mari. Arisu's anger boiled at the existence that had transformed him in such manner.

A sudden wind breezed through her hair.

At the end of the stairwell, the door there laid in pieces; they had reached the rooftop. Jun and his Mushi presumably went ahead.

The outside was blanketed in the darkness of the night.

The night breeze blew across the bleak rooftop, with the laser-like illumination from below slicing through the sky in arcs.

Jun was standing right at the edge of the rooftop. Arisu walked towards him.

“Harimoto-kun…”

Even though he was cornered, Jun still looked calm. He glared at Arisu with cold eyes burning with spite.

“What is your true wish? Surely that Mushi wasn’t just born from your desire for revenge, right?”

“You speak as if you know of other Mushitsuki. And it seems that the one you knew was a good person.”

Arisu did not respond to Jun’s reply.

“I didn’t think of anything other than revenge…”

Jun’s expression unexpectedly softened. With a smile that could be said to be gentle, he spoke.

“Let’s begin. I am going to thoroughly destroy everything around me…!”

Arisu was shocked wide-eyed. Seeing her reaction, Jun let out a strange laughter.

“‘I can’t believe that there are actually people with this kind of dream’—that’s precisely the look on your face. But you know, Mushitsuki like me are a dime a dozen everywhere. That, I know for sure.”

Looking at the boy, Arisu felt suffocated for some reason. Whether it was out of fear or if it was sadness, she did not know. However—.

“You big idiot…!”

Arisu murmured as she glared at Jun.

“I have some questions for you. The woman that turned you into a Mushitsuki… Just what is it exactly?”

Jun raised his face in surprise. After thinking for a while, he answered in a low voice.

“…She called herself Oogui.”

Oogui.

Arisu burned that name into her memory.

“So it’s her fault that Mushitsuki exists… people like Mari…”

Arisu reaffirmed her target.

“One more thing.”

Arisu pointed the spearhead at Jun.

“Swear right here that you will never do this kind of thing again!”

All expression disappeared from Jun’s face.

“There’s still someone waiting for you… With just that, won’t you please stop.”

At her words, Jun hung his head down. But, when he raised his face again, there was a warped smile.

“I won’t let anyone stop me!”

Jun’s Mushi stabbed its sharp feet into the side of the building. Clutching onto his Mushi, his figure disappeared down the edge of the rooftop.

“Why…!”

Biting back the intense emotion that made her want to shout out loud, Arisu choked out a groan.

The sea breeze blew past. Looking over the edge of the rooftop, Arisu could see Jun's figure atop his Mushi at a height that made one felt dizzy.

Arisu had promised Takako that she would to save Jun, how could she possibly let him escape now?

“I won’t let you… Isn’t that right, Mari?”

Arisu spoke to her late friend who was a Mushitsuki in her heart. She had already decided what she was going to do.

“This way, I really might just die…”

Looking down, Arisu tightened her grip around the silver spear.

“I’m going now, Mari.”

With a ‘ton’, Arisu kicked off the rooftop.

—In the next moment, Arisu was buffeted by violent gales of wind along with the sensation of dropping.

Due to the pressure of the wind and fear, she could barely open her eyes.

Her gaze met with that of Jun who looked like he could not believe what he was seeing.

“Seyaaaa~!”

The moment Arisu passed Jun, she brandished the spear in a flash.

The windows along the building all shattered as if struck by an explosion.

Blade-like silver scales were released from the spear which bisected Jun’s Mushi diagonally. The excess force of the scales carved a deep gash on the side of the building.

The moment the Mushi was sliced into half, all expression disappeared from Jun’s face. His limbs dangled in the air like that of a doll.

Ta-ka-ko—.

In the end, that name seemed to form from his mouth. With that, his body seemed to freeze, ceasing any movement.

Was that what the boy in the black coat mentioned, turning into a ‘Fallen’? —In some part of her mind, Arisu pondered calmly.

“Sei~!”

Turning the spear to its shaft, Arisu smacked Jun’s motionless body. His body was sent flying towards the building, sending him rolling into the building through the broken window.

However, she could not allow herself to meet her end here. Arisu swung the spear around and stabbed it into the side of the building.

—My dream, can I entrust it to you?

She recalled the face of her close friend who wanted to live but could not.

She must not allow herself to die just like that having had Mari's dream entrusted to her.

“Like I'd… die like this!”

The spear dug into the building, absorbing the momentum of her descent. Her arms which bore her entire weight screamed.

However, a shadow washed over Arisu.

It was the leg of the bisected Mushi.

“…Ah…”

The falling body of the Mushi crashed into Arisu, flinging her and the spear away from the building.

Losing the clutch, gravity began pulling Arisu to the ground again.

I’m sorry, Mari—.

With her eyes open, Arisu apologised in her heart.

I couldn’t—.

Right when she was about to lose consciousness, she saw the surface of the building explode.

However, unlike previously, the impact came from within the building this time.

A black figure burst out from within the explosion. She seemed to recognise that familiar-looking black coat and over-sized goggles. One of his hands held an automatic handgun.

“You this idiotic girl…!”

The figure in the coat grabbed onto Arisu, and dexterously pointed his handgun at below.

An unimaginably loud rumble resembling a cannon discharged from the handgun.

The spherical roof of the observation deck in the middle of the ‘コ’ exploded into pieces.

Before she could even raise a scream, Arisu was impacted by a violent collision and a roar that seemed to shatter her eardrum.

Part 5

“…Uuu…”

She could hear some groans of pain by her ears.

Before she realised, Arisu no longer felt the impact. She might have even lost her consciousness for a moment.

She gingerly opened her tightly-shut eyes.

This is the observation deck—she determined.

She had crashed through the roof, scattering glass fragments everywhere as well as destroying some lightings and the telescoping apparatus.

That was when Arisu realised that she was being embraced by somebody. She lifted her head.

Her eyes met with that of a boy with a look of extreme displeasure lying atop her.

It seems that he had been injured from protecting Arisu. His coat laid in tatters and the lens of his goggles had cracked.

“Why did I end up like this… Damn it…”

The pattern running across the boy's face reverted into feelers and withdrew from his body. The feelers all over his body converged, turning into a green Mushi.

As I thought, this guy is a Mushitsuki—.

With this thought, Arisu tried to call out to question him. However, she realised what position they were in.

“How long are you going to embrace me, get away from me right now!”

The boy opened his eyes slightly. He languidly spreaded out his limbs, forming a ‘大’ figure on the ground.

“…Normally, one would've expected at least a, ‘Thank you’, or a ‘Are you alright?’, but you… Aah, I shouldn't have bother saving you. Seriously. Geez.”

At that, the boy stopped moving. His wounds seemed to be quite severe, such that he could not even move.

Meanwhile, Arisu could not move as well. Although she had no external injuries due to the boy covering her, her waist was pinned down. Of course, she couldn't tell him that either.

Lying in that position with their bodies overlaid, the two let out a big sigh.

“That’s the same type of Mushi as mine… but it doesn’t fuse with you, why is that so?”

“That’s because it’s not my Mushi.”

“But, it should be impossible for you to take possession of another's Mushi.”

“That’s because… the original owner of the Mushi is no longer around.”

“…Why are you trying to get involved with Mushitsuki?”

“Because I want to know.”

“Know what?”

Biting her lips, Arisu continued.

“I want to know, what exactly are the Mushitsuki… How do they come about and also… why is it that they can only end up like that…”

“…”

For a while, the two of them remained in silence. As Arisu was right next to the boy’s chest, she could feel his steady heartbeat. She wondered if perhaps her own heartbeat could be felt by the boy.

“Ah-ah…”

The boy muttered lethargically.

“If only it wasn’t someone with such a child-like body, this wouldn’t be such a lousy situation—”

“Arisu punch~!”

“…!”

Being hit in his wound, the boy could only squirm wordlessly.

Part 6

A few days later, it was announced that Harimoto Jun had “transfer school”, bringing the case to an end.

While still in the process of cleaning up after the incident, the school operated as per normal.

However, Ichinokuro Arisu was in an unusually good mood this morning.

“Hey, Arisu.”

It was currently the morning short homeroom. Sitting next to her, Saionji Ena poked at Arisu with her elbow.

“Is it that guy?”

“Oh, yes.”

“Taking a good look at him now, he seems to be a good person.”

Sitting diagonally behind her, Kujou Takako mentioned to Arisu who was nodding approvingly. —Although she looked gloomy the past few days as expected, Takako started to smile like before again more recently.

Having informed her about what happened to Harimoto Jun afterwards, Takako still smiled towards Arisu.

—Thank you very much. Arisu-san was the one who stopped him, right.

And then, she also said this.

—When he comes back, I will tell him, “welcome back”.

It seems that Takako would wait patiently for Jun to return. Arisu knew that beneath the usually meek and gentle side of her friend, there lies an unimaginable strength of will.

In the end, Jun had clearly called out Takako's name. This too showed that Takako took up an irreplaceable place in his heart.

“You can't let his appearance deceive you, Takako. Despite what you see, he’s actually very ferocious underneath. Ufufu, I wonder how shall I discipline him from now on.”

“Discipline, eh…”

Arisu and gang chattered as if the boy standing on the podium in front did not existed.

“I am Kusuriya Daisuke. I hope to be able to get along with everybody else from now on.”

Introducing himself as a transfer student, he lowered his head in a bow.

—It seems that the organisation which Daisuke belonged to had deemed Arisu as a target for observation. Ordinarily, someone like that would be immediately sent to some facility somewhere. However, she was the lone daughter of the Ichinokuro family, one of the leaders of the financial world. As a result of various considerations and dealings, it was decided that someone would be sent to stay by her side as her observer.

The chime signalling the end of short homeroom rang.

Before Kusuriya Daisuke even found his desk, Arisu stood on her chair and yelled in a loud voice.

“Attention, everyone. I would like to make an introduction once again. This is Kusuriya Daisuke-kun, the new attendant hired by the Ichinokuro family due to various circumstances. Feel free to order him around as if he was your servant.”

The attention of the whole class was focused onto Arisu and Daisuke.

With a look of anguish, Daisuke briskly walked by Arisu’s side and whispered.

“Didn’t I say before that the observer and the target must appear unrelated?”

“Ah, my throat is feeling a bit dry.”

Ignoring Daisuke’s whisper, Arisu spoke loudly without care.

“You this…”

“I said, my throat is feeling a bit dry.”

Facing Arisu who was ignoring every single word he says, Daisuke appeared to resign himself in acceptance. With a sigh, he left the classroom.

After a while, Daisuke returned to Arisu’s desk, holding a pack of juice in hand.

“I've bought it, my lady.”

“Uh, good work—”

However, her hand only grasped thin air.

The cold juice pack was instead pressed against her cheeks.

“Fufufu… What do you think you’re doing?”

“Here, drink it.”

“…You this…”

Ena grinned to herself as she watched the chaos ensues. On the other hand, Takako had a troubled look on her face as she looked back and forth between the two.

Beyond the window of the classroom wrapped in a threatening silence, a silver morpho butterfly flapped its wings.

Notes

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