Chapter 24

“Ouch?! Akari, have you ever bandaged someone before?!”

Akari’s hands were so clumsy while wrapping the bandage that it made me think I’d be better off doing it myself.

“No, I haven’t. But at least it’s wrapped tightly, right?”

“…Yeah.”

There’s a limit to being shameless.

Of course, her behavior made the concept of the Apocalypse I had in mind blur, so I didn’t feel too bad about it. In fact, I even liked it—

—Just as I thought that, Akari’s face suddenly frowned as if she had seen something unpleasant.

“You’re not doing this on purpose to hurt me, are you?”

“I don’t have a hobby of making already hurt people feel worse, you know!”

“Ugh…?!”

It’s obvious she’s doing it on purpose.

Akari tightened the bandage with a sharp tug, and I felt a stinging pain.

“So, what’s going on?”

“…Huh?”

“What happened to make your expression so bad?”

“…Nothing happened.”

The conversation started going in circles.

Akari kept pressing me about what happened, and I kept insisting nothing was wrong. But Akari wasn’t convinced and kept digging, making it harder for me to keep my expression in check.

‘What are you doing now…?!’

‘What if that monster was a monster pretending to be human?’

‘But—’

‘There’s no “but.” If you make exceptions for monsters, who knows what could happen?’

A pair of cold eyes suddenly flashed in my mind.

A magical girl like me. Her name was Garnet.

One of the two magical girls protecting this city, I think.

Her overall color resembled Ruby’s, but her aura was much darker and colder.

“…Should a being that’s half-human and half-monster be considered human or a monster?”

“…”

Akari fell silent at my weak question.

Like someone who had just heard an uncomfortable truth.

“…I’m sorry, Akari.”

“No, it’s fine. Midori’s thoughts are reasonable—”

“I wasn’t talking about you, Akari! I was just wondering, what if someone like that existed…”

It was something I shouldn’t have said in front of Akari.

What was I thinking, saying something like that to someone who had gone through such a terrible experience at the doctor’s lab?

I felt so guilty I couldn’t even look at Akari.

“Well… I guess it depends on how Midori sees it. If Midori thinks they’re human, then they’re human. If Midori thinks they’re a monster, then they’re a monster.”

“…”

It depends on your perspective.

I half-convinced myself with Garnet’s words, but what I saw at the end was closer to a human than a monster.

No, anyone who saw those eyes would have thought they were human.

“Midori.”

“…Yes, yes?”

“What do you think I am? Human? Or a monster?”

I felt a chill run down my spine as Akari tilted her head and looked at me.

The sense of crisis ringing in my heart made all my previous thoughts seem meaningless.

If I answer wrong, it’s over.

The despair hidden within hope whispered to me.

‘But…’

The answer was already decided.

Since I came back to the past, Akari wasn’t the Apocalypse.

Akari was just Akari.

“You seem human.”

“…Is that so?”

Akari giggled at my answer, looking like a normal girl her age.

No, she was a girl her age.

***

Ahahahahaha!!!

That, that Emerald thinks I’m human? Really?!

I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of the situation.

“This is really funny, Midori.”

Did something change in her heart during this monster hunt?

Even though she had opened up to me, the suspicious glances she used to give me were completely gone now.

It was like a wild beast that used to be wary of strangers had turned into a gentle lamb.

‘What if that trust turns into betrayal…’

Betraying someone who trusted me probably wouldn’t feel good, but—

Honestly, this time it’s just Emerald misunderstanding, right?

If I were human now, it might be different.

Unfortunately, what’s here isn’t human Akari but the monster Apocalypse.

‘It feels a bit different, but fundamentally, it’s the same.’

Maybe it’s the difference between an Apocalypse that’s eaten too much despair and one that hasn’t eaten much.

The original Apocalypse wasn’t on a despair diet like me, after all.

If you think about it, it was more like despair gluttony, despair obesity, no, despair super-obesity.

They say obesity is the root of the three major adult diseases, so maybe the Apocalypse was a bit messed up because of despair obesity.

‘…Maybe I should control how much I eat from now on.’

If you eat too much at once, you’ll get sick, and if I overeat despair, I might end up like the Apocalypse.

I kind of felt that when I went exploring the underground world.

I hadn’t eaten much, but I suddenly felt like breaking human limbs, you know?

If I had eaten more despair in that state, I might have caused a big accident.

“Anyway, am I going to be discharged before you?”

“Huh?”

“Oh, if that happens, give me the house key.”

“Huh?”

What’s wrong, is she broken? Why is she giving the same answer to different questions?

I tilted my head, looking at Emerald, who was staring at me with wide eyes.

I really don’t know what she’s so surprised about.

“Weren’t you the one feeding me?”

“Ah, no… well, what…”

“If you brought me here and fed me, you should take responsibility till the end.”

It was a bit of a thief’s mentality, but since I brought a wild monster here and tamed it, I should at least take responsibility.

Well, it’s kind of like picking up a stray cat.

If monsters are tigers, then I’m more like a stray cat.

“Are you not going to take responsibility?”

“Huh, huh?”

“Then I’ll get crooked.”

I subtly spread a bit of despair, and Emerald’s expression froze.

Hmm, was that too much?

Teasing Emerald is just too fun…

“I’ll take responsibility.”

“Really?”

“Yes, since I brought you here, I’ll take responsibility.”

Yay, lucky~

Does that mean I don’t have to worry about despair from now on?

Taming a magical girl was this easy?

And Emerald even knew about the Apocalypse.

“Then I’ll be in your care from now on, Emerald.”

I smiled softly at Emerald, who had a determined expression.

I’ll stick close and scrape the bottom of the barrel.

***

“Aya, are you okay? Huh?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. What about you, Mom? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

I hugged my trembling daughter, hiding my own shaking hands.

I was already fed up with the constant calls from the superiors, and now I think I’ll have to submit my resignation.

‘They said they’d notify us before bringing in monsters…!’

Even in the shelter, a monster broke through the 5th-floor door.

It was a place they assured us monsters would never attack.

If I hadn’t been lucky, I might have lost Aya.

If that had happened, I would have—

“Mom?”

“…Sorry, Aya. I think I haven’t been paying enough attention to you lately.”

“It’s okay. I know you’re busy! I’m an adult now!”

I closed my eyes tightly as my daughter smiled brightly.

If I kept my eyes open, tears would have started flowing.

Ding dong—

“Ah, Mom, a guest is here!”

“Wait, Aya—”

Suddenly, the doorbell rang.

The ominous tone mixed with the mechanical sound made me try to grab my daughter, but she slipped out of my grasp and ran to the front door.

No.

As I tried to chase after her, filled with anxiety—

“Hello, Aya. You’re as cute as ever today.”

“Hello, Doctor!”

“Ugh…!”

The pure malice hidden beneath his kindness.

Only someone who knew him would feel the black intent behind his actions.

Why is he here all of a sudden?

As if he knew I was about to quit, he showed up out of nowhere.

“Hello, Lina. Did I come too suddenly?”

“…It’s fine.”

“Ah, you seem a bit tense because of me.”

The devil wearing a mask of kindness patted Aya’s head as if to show off.

A gesture as if to say, “Can’t you see your child’s head in my hands?”

Seeing that, even the rebellious spirit that had just risen was extinguished.

‘There’s no escape.’

From my sins, absolutely not.

The screams of the people forcibly fused with monsters by my hands still haunt me.

He must have sensed my thoughts and came here, that man.

“How about it, Aya? If you’re uncomfortable, I’ll leave now.”

“It’s okay! I like the doctor!”

“See, Lina.”

I had no choice but to bow my head at my daughter’s bright smile mixed with his disgusting aura.

There’s no escape.

From that man’s— from the malice he carries, there’s absolutely no escape.

If I try to escape, I’ll surely meet a terrible end.

Just like the test subjects who died by my hands, miserably.