"My, my! Back again, are we?"
"..."
I wasn't quite sure how to react to hearing those words from a hospital nurse. It wasn't like this was my favorite neighborhood coffee shop.
The tally so far: once when I nearly died at the hands of a ghoul as a child; once when my father thrashed me for trying to raise Eto; once when that police-ghoul almost ended me; once when I had a major accident involving my cat, Totto, who decided to burrow into my underwear while I was napping and scratch my most vital regions; and finally, today.
This was my fifth time being admitted to this same hospital. At this point, when I'm wheeled in, the doctors don't even look surprised. Their expressions just scream, 'Ah, him again.'
If I were someone like a Ghoul Investigator whose job was inherently dangerous, I could understand the frequency. But for a man who appears perfectly ordinary to be admitted this often, rumors are bound to start. I've even heard whispers among the hospital staff that I might be possessed by some kind of malevolent spirit.
Does raising a ghoul girl count as being possessed?
"Well, at least we're still breathing. That's something."
"You can say that again."
Hitokawa, lying in the bed next to mine, echoed my sentiment. To be honest, he was so covered in bandages that if it weren't for his voice, I wouldn't have recognized him. While my injuries were severe, Hitokawa had truly straddled the line between life and death. I heard his heart actually stopped once during surgery due to hemorrhagic shock. The fact that we were sitting here talking was nothing short of a miracle.
"It's a hell of a job, isn't it? Being a Ghoul Investigator."
"Is it any harder than being a 'Ghoul Papa'?"
We traded jests, chuckling despite the pain racking our bodies. Inwardly, I felt a profound sense of relief. When Hitokawa first discovered Eto's true identity, I had prepared myself for the possibility that we could never go back to being friends. But here we were. It was a blessing.
As we were sharing a laugh, the door swung open and someone marched in.
"Hitokawa-kun! I heard you were awake!"
Startle!
We both flinched simultaneously. The man who had entered was Shinichi HashimotoโHitokawa's superior and a seasoned Ghoul Investigator.
'๐๐ฉ๐ช๐ต, ๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฅ๐ฏ'๐ต ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ข๐ณ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ต "๐๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ญ ๐๐ข๐ฑ๐ข" ๐ซ๐ฐ๐ฌ๐ฆ, ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฅ ๐ฉ๐ฆ?'
Given the timing, he almost certainly hadn't, but a lingering anxiety remained. Was I going to have to fight this man over Eto next?
"Hitokawa-kun! Your performance in this operation was nothing short of magnificent! Not only did you dismantle a small ghoul organization and rescue Koma Takaki, but you even neutralized a Rate S ghoul like The Artist! Even the legendary anecdotes of the Special Class investigators in their youth rarely boast such a feat! Your promotion next year is practically guaranteed!"
"Ah, noโฆ it was only possible because Koma was there to helpโฆ."
"Oh! Takaki-kun! Truly, you are the son of Senior Investigator Takaki! To contribute so much to the suppression of ghouls as a mere civilian! You have the natural aptitude of an investigator. Won't you consider joining our ranks? I would be more than happy to prepare a letter of recommendation!"
"Ah, hahahaโฆ. Thank you, but I'll have to pass."
Faced with Mr. Hashimoto's overwhelming enthusiasm, we both avoided eye contact, shifting our gazes elsewhere. He would never dream that a certain ghoul had played the most pivotal role in this victory.
After Hitokawa had collapsed, I had requested help from the nearest police box while sending Eto home first. If people found out a child had been at that horrific scene, the questions would never end. In terms of sheer contribution, Etoโwho incapacitated two ghouls and paved the way for The Artist's defeatโdeserved the most credit, but since we couldn't reveal her existence, it appeared as though we were the ones taking all the glory.
I looked at Hitokawa, my eyes speaking for me:
'๐ ๐ฐ๐ถ'๐ฅ ๐ฃ๐ฆ๐ต๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ฃ๐ถ๐บ ๐๐ต๐ฐ ๐ด๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฏ๐ช๐ค๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ข๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ.'
Hitokawa replied with his own gaze:
'๐๐ช๐ต๐ฉ ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ข๐ต? ๐๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ญ๐ฅ ๐ ๐ง๐ช๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ข ๐ค๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฑ๐ด๐ฆ?'
'๐๐ฎ๐ฎ. ๐๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ข๐ฃ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ต ๐ต๐ข๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ถ๐ด ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ข ๐ท๐ข๐ค๐ข๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ธ๐ช๐ต๐ฉ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ณ ๐ด๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ณ๐บ?'
'๐ ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฌ๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ข๐ฏ ๐ช๐ฏ๐ท๐ฆ๐ด๐ต๐ช๐จ๐ข๐ต๐ฐ๐ณ'๐ด ๐ฑ๐ข๐บ ๐ช๐ด ๐ค๐ณ๐ข๐ฑ ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ค๐ฆ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ ๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ฅ๐ถ๐ค๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ด๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ง๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ด, ๐ณ๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐ต?'
While we were exchanging looks, Mr. Hashimoto continued.
"Ah, that reminds me, regarding Minami Sinaoto, whom you mentioned earlier."
At those words, our attention snapped back to him. His face darkened slightly.
"We searched the second basement as you described, but there was no one there. We found only severed bandages and broken vials. Her current whereabouts are unknown."
"So she ran after allโฆ."
Hitokawa sighed, as if he had expected as much. I felt the same. There had been signs of her escape while we were fighting The Artist. Though, the fact that her final actsโproviding Eto with flesh and dropping acid on The Artistโwere helpful to us remained a point of confusion.
"Why do you think she helped us?"
"Who knows. Maybe she was so moved by your words that she decided to turn over a new leaf and start a new life?"
I thought about that for a moment before answering.
"...I can't even imagine it."
"...Yeah. Me neither. The 'lunatic' impression she left is just too strong."
During our conversation, Mr. Hashimoto checked his watch. It seemed he had other business to attend to.
"Well then, Hitokawa-kun, Takaki-kun. Please get plenty of rest and recover quickly."
"Yes. Thank you for visiting."
I watched his back as he moved to leave the room. Just as he opened the door, he came face-to-face with a small figure about to enter.
"Oh."
"My apologies, I didn't mean to startle you. I hope the door didn't hit you?"
"No. I'm okay."
It was Eto's voice. She had come to visit.
Hearing her, Hitokawa sucked in a breath, his body tensing visibly. I looked back and forth between the door and Hitokawa and realized the cause of his anxiety. Now that he knew her secret, even a mundane conversation between an adult and a child felt fraught with danger to him. After all, one was a Dove, and the other was a Ghoul.
"Have you come to visit someone?"
"Yes."
"Well then, have a nice time."
"Yes. Goodbye."
Only after Eto politely bowed and saw Mr. Hashimoto off did Hitokawa let out a held breath. He turned to me.
"Is this how you felt every time I talked to Eto?"
"Yeah. Well, you'll get used to it soon enough."
"Getting used to it feels like it might compromise my identity as an investigatorโฆ."
I suppose that's true.
Eto closed the door and stepped into the room. The moment she saw me, a smile like radiant sunshine spread across her face.
"Papa!"
"Hey there, Eto. You've been eating well even with me gone, right?"
"Yes! And I've been making sure Totto is fed, too!"
"That's my girl!"
I stroked Eto's hair as she approached. Hitokawa watched us as if he were witnessing some impossible anomaly.
"What now?"
"From the outside, you look like a perfectly normal, loving father and daughterโฆ. But the context of your conversation feels very different now."
"Oh, don't worry. Eto's food is just a little bit of flesh I scavenge from suicide victims."
"Don't just come out and say that!! I've accepted you two, but give me some time to process it slowly!!"
"I told you, you'll get used to it."
"I don't ๐ธ๐ข๐ฏ๐ต to get used to it that quicklyโฆ!! ๐๐ฐ๐ถ๐จ๐ฉ, ๐ค๐ฐ๐ถ๐จ๐ฉ!"
It seemed he had overexerted himself in his weakened state. After a brief coughing fit, Hitokawa slumped back onto his pillow.
"Mr. Hitokawa. You should really work on that temper of yours. It's not good for your health."
"Shut up. Who do you think caused thisโฆ?"
"Ah, that's right. I bought some apples as a gift. Should I peel one for you?"
Lightly brushing off Hitokawa's grumbling, Eto pulled an apple and a paring knife from a paper bag.
"Can you handle the knife?"
"Yes! I've been practicing at home."
With a confident nod, Eto pulled up a chair and began to peel. The steady, rhythmic sound of the blade against the fruitโฆ the soft hum of Eto's voiceโฆ
It filled the hospital room, which had been saturated with the scent of alcohol and bandages, with a lingering warmth. I closed my eyes, letting the atmosphere wash over me, before glancing at Hitokawa.
"Fighting for the sake of the people is all well and good, but this isn't so bad once in a while, is it?"
"I suppose so. ...I'd better get married and have a kid soon. I'm going to die of envy at this rate."
Hitokawa, seemingly feeling the same warmth, accepted my words with a quiet smile.
It felt like I had reclaimed a sight I thought was lost forever.
For the record, the apple Eto peeled was delicious.