I was stupid.
I'd thought I could make it back to the Guard without trouble.
In my defense, it was the middle-aged gangster's fault for calling it a ‘gang fight.’
There had been so many casualties that I'd assumed the fighting must already be over, but thinking about it now, I should've realized what it meant when there were ‘so many patients the hospital was overflowing.’
When a hospital runs out of room, patients are sent to other hospitals.
That's the standard procedure.
But Gesenna was a large region even by Imperial standards, so there should have been dozens of hospitals like this one. I should've realized that if there were still patients who couldn't fit into all those dozens of hospitals combined—
There had to be at least thousands dead or wounded.
This wasn't some simple gang fight.
It was an internal war.
In other words, it would be more accurate to call it a ‘civil war.’
The fact that I only realized that afterward meant I was stupid.
I limped out of the hospital, only to find the streets deserted.
Bloodstains were smeared across the ground in places, and I could see people collapsed here and there.
The windows of every storefront had been shattered. Their interiors had been picked clean, as though they'd been looted by mobs.
I could even see a building burning in the distance.
Someone appeared to have set it on fire.
Smoke billowed high into the sky.
At this rate, public order had practically ceased to function.
The bus stop connecting one town to another was no different.
It had burned down, leaving nothing but ashes.
“I can't get home like this….”
I was looking around in confusion, trying to find some way back, when I spotted two men in Guard uniforms farther down the street.
‘Oh! The Guard!’
I started toward them happily, but something about their condition seemed strange.
‘…Blood?’
All three of them were bleeding.
Still, they were guards, so I assumed they were on my side.
But the moment one of them saw me, he scowled and shouted.
“Hey! You fucking bastard. You're a gangster, aren't you?”
“Pardon?”
Flustered, I waved my hands.
“Calm down! I'm a guard.”
“A guard dressed like that? That's fucking gangster clothing!”
I looked down at my clothes.
They belonged to the man named Arman.
I'd only put them on because I thought they were a magic tool that would protect me.
It hadn't occurred to me that the clothes themselves might make me look suspicious.
“Hey! Get over here! There's a fucking gangster here!!”
“I'm―”
FWIP―!
Before I could even explain properly, an arrow grazed past my cheek.
I recoiled in horror and turned away.
The other bastard was already loading another arrow.
I ran, limping along with my cane, and the guards started chasing me.
“Stop right there, you criminal bastard!”
I ran with a limp.
They ran with a stagger.
Whether fortunately or unfortunately, they were injured.
One had a wounded leg.
The other had been injured in the abdomen.
They must have gotten into a serious fight nearby.
That was probably why they'd completely lost their heads.
“I-I'm a guard! Gesenna Southern Fifth District…!”
I tried protesting belatedly, but it did not work.
“Shut the fuck up! Surrender or we'll shoot to kill!”
Another arrow flew toward me.
Apparently, it struck my back.
CRACKLE!
The arrow shattered with the sound of sparks.
“What the hell was that?!”
“A magic tool! That bastard's wearing a magic tool!”
But the coat-shaped rain cloak did not protect my entire body.
It only protected the parts it covered.
‘Where do I go….’
Running while limping was getting harder and harder.
I remembered the road I'd come down.
At the dead end branching off from a three-way intersection, there had been a large dumpster.
I hurried over, turned down two alleys, crawled into the open dumpster, and shut the lid.
‘Huff, huff…. Damn it.’
Should I take these clothes off and go out now?
But if the guards were injured, that meant gangsters were nearby too.
And I was afraid to remove the magic-tool clothing that could serve as a shield.
‘Fuck, I should've just stayed at the hospital….’
Regret was washing over me when I suddenly heard footsteps outside the dumpster.
― It's a fork. Where'd that bastard run off to?
― Ah, fuck. If my stomach wasn't messed up, I'd have caught and killed him already.
― Looked like he was pretty high-ranking too, right?
― Yeah.
― He couldn't have gone far. That bastard was crippled. Judging by that expensive magic tool he's wearing, he must be some kind of commander….
I covered my mouth with one hand and held my breath.
BANG!
A heavy rod struck the side of the dumpster.
My body flinched before I could stop it.
― Hey. We absolutely have to catch that bastard.
― Obviously. We need to avenge our comrades.
― That's not what I mean. It's a magic tool. A magic tool. Sell that bastard's coat and that's several years' salary right there.
― Hey, you. Are you seriously….
― Yeah! Let's leave. I joined the Guard so I could eat well and live comfortably, not to put my neck on the line for this shit. Fuck! Stay here and who knows when we'll die. Let's kill that bastard, split the money from the magic tool, and get the hell out of Gesenna.
― Hmm…. Fine. Then stay here for a minute.
― Huh?
― I'll go get something. We've still got a magic-tool detector among the strategic supplies. I'll bring it over.
Oh, shit.
I nearly panicked.
If they brought something like a magic-tool detector, they'd find me for sure.
But when one of them left, the situation changed slightly.
― Naive bastard…. Why the hell would I split it? If I take it alone, that's double.
The guard who'd stayed behind began moving somewhere.
He was looking for me!
I realized this was my only chance.
Once he moved farther away, I carefully climbed out of the dumpster.
Then I headed toward a nearby empty house.
It seemed the citizens of Gesenna had evacuated after the civil war broke out.
There were plenty of houses standing empty with their doors left open.
I entered one at random and hid inside.
‘Damn…. I'm exhausted….’
Maybe it was because I hadn't eaten properly, had spent days unconscious, and then suddenly started running around the moment I woke up.
As soon as I thought I was safe, drowsiness overwhelmed me.
‘I locked the door properly, right?’
Even the windows had been boarded shut.
I should be able to sleep here for a bit.
‘Just a little…. Just a little sleep….’
.
.
.
.
.
Step.
My eyes snapped open.
I could've sworn I'd just heard a footstep.
My heart pounded.
I hurriedly got up and approached the door.
Damn it, there wasn't even a peephole.
Step…. Step, step….
The footsteps came again.
Holding my breath, I moved deeper into the room.
― Is it here?
― Yeah.
Voices!
It was those bastards from before!
I looked for somewhere to hide, but couldn't find anywhere.
The place seemed to have been looted several times already, and all the furniture was strewn around in a chaotic mess.
With no other choice, I rushed into the bathroom and locked the door.
Then I gripped my cane tightly.
‘Come on.’
If someone opened the bathroom door, I'd attack.
The area around the handle of my cane was heavy.
If I landed a clean hit, it could strike someone's head like a hammer.
I swallowed dryly and repeated to myself.
‘Come on! Fuck!’
I'd barely slept, so my head felt battered and muddled, yet my mind was alert to an almost insane degree.
My mouth went completely dry.
I could taste sweetness on my tongue.
Had I waited like that for about ten minutes?
‘…What?’
It was strangely quiet outside.
Were they coming?
Their voices had sounded extremely close earlier.
They weren't going to set the house on fire or something, were they?
――.
“……!”
Just now.
I heard something.
A sort of thump.
And what sounded like a faint groan too.
“Mm….”
Had they put down some kind of Guard backpack?
Were they taking a collapsible weapon out of it?
Come to think of it, Guard field equipment did include tools for opening locked doors….
I wiped the sweat from my hand against the fabric over my thigh and held my breath.
‘What is it? What the hell is going on?’
Not knowing what was happening outside was driving me insane.
…But….
Nothing happened.
The surroundings were silent.
I wondered if they were moving around nearby, so I closed my eyes, pressed myself against the wall, and focused on sound.
Still nothing.
“…….”
What the hell?
What is this?
Why isn't anything happening?
The sudden silence only made me more anxious.
Another five minutes passed.
Still no response.
No, it wasn't merely that there was no response.
Outside was unnaturally quiet.
Were they trying to lure me out?
Did they already know I was inside and wanted to scare me?
But that wasn't rational.
This wasn't some horror movie.
If they'd come to catch me, they had the numerical advantage.
They could just pick the lock and come in.
“…….”
A trap?
Or not?
I carefully stepped outside the bathroom and approached the door.
I couldn't stand the uncertainty anymore.
I decided to slowly open the door and take one look through the gap.
That was when—
FLING―
The door abruptly opened from the other side.
I nearly jumped out of my skin, but for the moment, I only took one step back.
Then a woman's head suddenly poked through the doorway and looked up at me.
“…….”
Our eyes met.
For a moment, I thought my heart might stop.
“…….”
Long, jet-black hair.
A pale face with bright golden eyes.
And reddish discoloration around her eyes.
Beneath an oversized gray hoodie, I could see pale legs.
Below those, one foot wearing a slipper.
“Who are you?”
She spoke to me.
Her voice sounded slightly listless.
“Pardon?”
“Who are you? Where'd you get those clothes?”
“…….”
Who are you?
Why are you here?
More importantly, are you alone?
There had definitely been more than one set of footsteps earlier.
“I-I found them at the hospital. The original owner was a man named Arman, but he died….”
“If you're lying, you might die.”
“I-It's true.”
Immediately afterward, she raised a hand and grabbed me by the collar.
Then she yanked me toward her with dizzying strength.
My upper body folded straight down.
Once our faces were only a handspan apart, her golden eyes peered into mine.
She even frowned and tilted her head as she examined them.
As though there was something inside my eyes.
As though she were inspecting every last bit of it.
“Why are you….”
At the same time, my mind raced desperately.
Who was this person?
Fortunately, I had a tool for exactly that.
I froze solid.
Sitri of Diablo???
I knew that name.
A member of ‘Diablo,’ the asymmetric forces of the Republic of Evil, ‘Eden’!
If I remembered the wording correctly, the wanted notice had said—
― Serial Killer, Sitri
My heart froze.
Time stretched like taffy.
Am I dreaming right now?
Why is she here?
I couldn't make sense of the situation, and confusion filled my head.
Then Sitri opened the door a little farther and leaned out.
The side of her body that had been hidden came into view.
From around the left side of her chest, down her arm, all the way to her hand and foot—
her gray hoodie was soaked in scarlet with blood.
And behind her—
I saw the bodies of guards strewn across the floor.
For some reason, the number of guards had increased to three.
Every one of them lay on the floor, surrounded by spreading pools of red blood.
The metallic stench of blood stabbed into my nose.
Only then did I realize what that faint groan earlier had been.
“Hmm. Doesn't seem like you're lying.”
Sitri released my collar.
“Can you read minds?”
“No.”
“Then what did you look at….”
“Just a feeling….”
“…….”
“But those clothes. They're important. You shouldn't wear them carelessly.”
“I-I'll give them back….”
That was when it happened.
One of the three fallen bodies stirred.
He'd been stabbed somewhere, but he was still alive.
Without realizing it, I glanced at Sitri.
Half a beat later, Sitri noticed the guard too.
“Wait a second.”
She turned around.
Then she walked toward him.
‘No.’
No.
No, no.
Don't.
Seriously.
“Tenacious, aren't you? More than I thought.”
No, no, no.
You can't.
Don't.
Don't.
Please….
My feelings had nothing to do with the fact that they'd tried to catch me and beat the hell out of me.
This wasn't about one individual and another.
It was simply the desire of one living thing for what was about to happen to another living thing not to happen.
It was painfully obvious what was about to occur.
But I did not want to see it with my own eyes.
My wish was ignored.
As if it were the most natural thing in the world, the killer before me drew a blood-red knife from somewhere inside her loose hoodie.
Then—
she bent down.
With a movement neither particularly fast nor particularly slow—
she casually drove it into the guard's throat.
SQUELCH―!
Apparently that wasn't enough.
She twisted her wrist and wrenched the blade sideways.
CRUNCH―
Reality seemed to float away from me.
I'd watched it happen with my own eyes, yet I couldn't believe it.
The twitching guard went completely still.
What?
Did someone just get murdered?
That easily…?
Amid that surreal scene—
“Don't be scared.”
Sitri spoke to me while holding the knife between her index and middle fingers and slowly wiping the blood from the blade.
“I usually only kill guards.”