Why help Touka to a point that could be considered so extreme?
Knowing the world's destined to face the zombie apocalypse in a few years, knowing all this normalcy is going to hell eventually, and that when that happens, whether she's known as a ghoul or not really won't matter anyway.
Everyone will be too busy trying not to get eaten by zombies to worry about the existence of ghouls.
Going through all this effort. Infiltrating the CCG through the All-Seeing Eye, erasing her from their databases, and eliminating everyone who knew about her.
All that, isn't it completely pointless in the end? Isn't it a waste of time and energy?
No.
Not to me.
Because even though I know that in the apocalyptic future whether she's a ghoul or not probably won't mean shit when zombies are eating people in the streets, I care about the present.
I care about now.
That Touka can see her human friend tomorrow without fear, that she can walk the streets without constantly looking over her shoulder, and that she can live the normal life she wants to keep having even if just for a while longer.
That's more than enough motivation to do everything I did tonight.
I don't need any other reason more complicated or deeper than that.
If it's for the people I consider important to me, I do whatever's necessary because I want to.
My life philosophy is that simple.
"How... how did you get this?"
Especially seeing her expression not believing what her eyes have read, I feel the effort was worth it.
With an official stamp at the bottom of the white sheet, and with the name Subject 2714. No doubt. This sheet was brought directly from the 20th Ward branch.
Touka realizes this and quickly raises her gaze to me.
I'm looking at her with a huge smile on my face.
"The CCG had all your data in their database. That means you couldn't live peacefully knowing they could come for you at any moment, right? So I kindly visited them tonight and had them delete you from their systems."
I pause while massaging my neck, before continuing with a serious face.
"And the people who knew about your existence unfortunately committed suicide with seven bullets in the back. Very tragic."
Touka's eyes widen like saucers. She seems unable to process the words that came out of my mouth.
"You expect me to believe that 'suicide with seven bullets in the back' bullshit?"
"Yep."
A vein throbs in Touka's forehead as she looks at me with exasperation.
"You're an idiot! Nobody commits suicide with seven bullets in the back!"
As expected of Touka, she wouldn't be Touka if she didn't hit my shoulder.
I laugh at her reaction.
"Fine. I killed them and erased all trace of their bodies. Happy now with the truth?"
She lets out a heavy sigh, and her serious eyes turn to me.
"Arata... what the hell did you actually do? Tell me everything without your stupid jokes."
I sit on the bed next to her and start explaining everything in detail.
As I speak, Touka listens silently with an increasingly complicated expression.
When I finish explaining, she stays quiet for a long moment.
"You really are an idiot."
"You've told me that like five times tonight."
Sometimes I wonder if Touka still lacks the vocabulary for her tongue to be sharper.
"Because it's true. You did something so dangerous and stupid just for me."
She looks at the paper in her hands. With a shine in her eyes, her body trembles. From her emotional frequency, I know her thoughts are chaotic.
From when she thought her life in the human world was over, from when she thought she'd never see her human friend again, from when she thought she could no longer go out on the street. Until this moment when those problems were grabbed by a claw and dragged far away from her.
Noticing Touka suddenly relating the reality before her as a dream, I raise my hand and hit her on the head.
She exclaims in pain.
Good! You're not in a dream.
"It wasn't dangerous."
Throwing me a furious look, she snorts.
"You could've been discovered. Then they would've made minced vampire meat out of you."
Why do I feel like she's holding some kind of grudge?
"But none of that happened. I'm fine, you're safe, and the CCG has no idea who you really are. That's what matters in the end."
She stares at me for a moment before sighing in defeat.
"I can't win arguing with you, can I?"
"Nope."
She shakes her head making her short dark blue hair flutter. On her face, a very small but sincere smile forms.
"Thank you, Arata. I-I... how am I supposed to repay you for everything you've done for me?"
"You don't need to repay me anything. That's what friends are for."
I ruffle her hair, and when I see her cheeks gradually turn pink, I add with a bright smile.
"But you can let me drink your blood!"
She swats my hand away with a snort.
"In your dreams!"
Despite those words being very sharp, she maintains her smile. She seems pretty happy.
"Arata."
"Yeah?"
"Don't disappear like that again..."
"Okay."
That night, we both sleep at the hotel.
Me in one bed and Touka in the other, though she insisted on keeping a lamp on because according to her "I don't trust you won't do something weird while I'm sleeping."
As if I'd do something.
I'm a gentleman.
×××
The next day, neither she nor I go to school.
Touka because she wants to rest after everything that happened yesterday, and me because I have more important things to do.
Around ten in the morning, I arrive at the Takagi mansion. Saya already left for school, so the house is quiet and silent.
Mrs. Yuriko hasn't hired butlers or maids again to serve the mansion.
As a consequence, from time to time, Saya and I take turns cleaning the inside and outside of the mansion. With Saya doing most of the work most of the time because I was busy visiting the 24th Ward.
But since I finished my business there, that little pink-pigtailed devil started leaving me all the work while she acted like an ojou-sama, giving me orders from behind.
Tsk, tsk! When you grow up I'll kick your ass.
—Click!
I open the door and find Mrs. Yuriko in her personal room arranging various papers on her desk. She's wearing an elegant black business suit and a white shirt underneath. Oh? Her black pants also look very good on her.
"Mrs. Yuriko."
She looks up from her papers and looks at me. Then she crosses her arms under her generous chest, making the button suffer miserably.
"How did we agree you'd call me?"
At her flat and serious face, I feel embarrassed remembering our past conversation.
"Mom."
'Mommy!'
Ahem! I mean, she told me to call her mom, though I prefer calling her Mommy in my dark thoughts.
She seems satisfied with my response and her expression softens.
"Much better. Now, what do you need, Arata?"
I scratch the back of my neck.
"Is that offer about me being able to have a separate place to live still on the table?"
She slowly narrows her eyes, and an ironic smile forms on her purple painted lips.
"After everything we've done for you, you're not happy with your current life with us?"
"No, it's not that at all."
She sighs while leaning back in her chair.
"It must be normal that you want independence, right? After all, I don't spend much time at home to keep either Saya or you company. I must be a terrible mother."
The aura escaping from her is melancholic.
"Mom, you're very busy with your work, so you shouldn't blame yourself for that. I understand perfectly."
She gives me a smile.
"Thank you for being so understanding, Arata. So tell me, why do you want to leave? And I want the truth."
Not really knowing where to look, I turn my face away.
"Some things have happened recently, and I need a house for... well, for some complicated situations that have come up."
But before I can elaborate further...
Mrs. Yuriko quickly types some things on her laptop on the desk, and then turns it toward where I'm standing.
On the screen plays a blurry video showing a ghoul with dark tentacles fighting ferociously and destroying entire buildings.
It's yesterday's viral video.
My body instantly tenses, and avoiding showing it on my face, I speak in a confused tone.
"What's that? Why are you showing me this?"
Mrs. Yuriko's lips curve upward. That simple action accompanied by her purple lipstick makes her look quite charming and elegant.
But what she says next throws my heart into the core of Antarctica.
"That's you in the video, isn't it? Arata."
×××
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