Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818093094088809262/episodes/16818622170662811086
When I knocked that scum awake, his face contorted with fright when he woke up.
Sweat beads on his forehead, and his bound limbs begin to tremble.
“I-I….I’m not at fault ! Forgive me ! I was threatened ! By that detective…!”
As if coming to his senses, his usual excuses pour out of his mouth.
His voice is hoarse, and his eyes dart about as he looks alternately at Soichi and me.
“….Answer the question. What were you going to do with Yua chan after you got her back?”
“Of course, I will ask for forgiveness ! From now on, I’ll be gentle…!”
The words were spoken so quickly that the mouth trembled.
“…..Then why aren’t you working right now? You don’t even do anything with the house. How are you going to make Yua chan happy with that?”
“I’m…um…thinking about doing…things…from now…”
He looks away, sweat dripping down his forehead to his chin.
“….Saito san. What do you think?”
Saito san steps out from the corner of the warehouse.
Tall and expressionless, he is a professional debt collector.
Shaking his head lightly with his arms crossed, he snickers, “Do you even need to ask?”
Sharp eyes glance at the scraps, and a cold air hangs in the air.
“W-what is it…what are you saying? Hey…d-do you think it’s okay to kill someone !>”
The sound of the rope creaking echoes as the bum wriggles in his chair, tied to it.
“…Yua chan was as good as dead at that time. Don’t play innocent.” I replied, and his eyes widened even more.
“I-if you kill me…that detective won’t let it slide ! He’ll definitely…get you !”
“….You’re right. But it’ll only be 10 years at most. If I kill you, we’ll have a feast tonight. We’ll drink, we’ll laugh, we’ll make merry…the whole neighborhood will be happy to see you go. Your wife…will now have a peaceful life. And in ten years, no one will remember you.”
At these words, the scum’s body begins to rattle and shake violently.
His face turns blue, and he’s all teary and snotty.
“I’m sorry…please…forgive me ! I’m sorry, I’m sorry ! I’m sorry ! Please forgive me ! Please forgive me ! I beg you !” He cried out, and lashed out so violently that his chair shook.
“…Did you help Yua chan when she asked for help?”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”
Until the moment of his death, he thinks only of himself.
He doesn’t care what happens to others or what he was like.
…It won’t be good for anyone if we let him live.
“….Do you really want to do this on your own?”
Soichi asks quietly next to me.
The light of the dark warehouse casts a shadow on his face, and his serious eyes look at me.
“….Yes. This one thing…I have to do it.”
“Don’t…stop ! ! ! !”
The scum’s scream echoes through the warehouse, causing the dust to flutter slightly.
◇ ◇
Soichi drove me home.
My hands are still shaking as I sit in the passenger seat.
The trees on the mountain road outside the window are blurred and the low roar of the engine echoes in my ears.
The smell of blood lingers in my nose, and the sweat on my clothes feels cold.
“…So much for acting tough, and this is what happened. Even someone like him…I wonder if you feel at least a little guilty about killing him.”
Soichi glances at me as he grips the steering wheel.
His voice is light, but his eyes are serious.
“….Human beings are creatures that can think. We dream of a world in which we would not have made the choice if we had. For example, that old man will change his mind, and will make up with Yua chan…in the world of fantasy, we can imagine as much happiness as we want. If you’re going to fantasize about happiness in a world you didn’t choose, let’s make a reality that’s better than that fantasy.”
I couldn’t help but smile at Soichi’s unusually serious profile.
The corner of his eyes are slightly wrinkled, and the setting sun is dyeing his hair red.
“….Don’t laugh at me. I can be serious sometimes lol.” Soichi shrugs.
“No, it doesn’t suit you. But thank you. I’ll….do my best.”
After a short run, Soichi suddenly opened his mouth.
“….Oh. Well, I…have a dream.”
“What is it, suddenly? What kind of dream?”
“I was thinking of becoming a lawyer. Like a volunteer lawyer who helps people?”
His eyes from the passenger seat seemed to be looking somewhere far away. “…You can be a lawyer.”
“….Why aren’t you laughing? A lawyer, y’know?”
“I don’t think it’s unreasonable. Good luck.”
“…..Oh.”
I see…you’re a lawyer.
◇
When I got home, the room was dark.
The shoes at the door were all lined up, and the silence sounded heavy.
I looked at the clock and saw that it was 7:00 p.m.
It was still too early to go to bed.
Don’t tell me…it’s that detective !?
My heart leaps and I rush into Yua chan’s room.
I open the door with a start and see a small shadow lying on the bed.
Yua chan is wrapped in a blanket, breathing peacefully and sleeping soundly.
[Illustration]
https://kakuyomu.jp/users/tanakamatao01/news/16818622170699703586
Thank goodness…but it’s rare to see her sleeping at this hour.
In a moment of relief, today’s events flash back into my mind.
The smell of blood, the screams of that scum, shaking hands…. My stomach tightens and a sick feeling comes over me.
I rush to the bathroom and cling to the sink, gagging.
Spit caught in my throat and I couldn’t stop nausea. I thought I had thick nerves….
This is not good.
The detective would easily notice.
He’ll find out soon enough that he’s disappeared.
And he will suspect me first.
If I’m in this state, it’s as if I’m confessing that I did it.
I covered my face with water and washed it, cold drops running down my neck.
I leave the bathroom and head for the living room, where I find a piece of paper on the table.
…What is it? When I turn on the light, I see Yua chan’s slightly distorted letters lined up on the white paper.
[Thank you for everything. I really appreciate it. I want you to stay with me from now on. Please warm up the food before eating.]
She must have written them in her sleep.
The drowsy handwriting is filled with warmth.
“…..Yeah. I’ll always…be with you.” I murmur, tracing the letters with my finger.
Maybe because it was a rough day, I had nightmares that night for a long time.
◇
When I was a child, my favorite phrase was “I’m sorry.”
My father was a doctor and my mother a lawyer.
I was born into a wealthy and strict family, and my parents and others had high expectations of me.
In the spacious living room, bookshelves lined with my father’s medical books and my mother’s law books sat intimidatingly.
But I was not smart at all.
In fact, I was one of the stupid ones.
I was slow to learn languages, had no talent for slurring words with friends, and had no athletic ability.
I was just an inadequate child.
By the time I could remember, my parents had stopped expecting anything from me.
They still forced me to be “like other people.” and forced me to study when I cried and screamed and didn’t want to.
“You’re an idiot.” my mother used to say. Her cold voice echoed in the dining room, and my hand trembled as I held my pencil.
In elementary school, I managed to get good grades thanks to private tutoring, but my life took a turn for the worse when I was just barely accepted into a private junior high school.
Studying in junior high school was more difficult, and I was quickly left behind, scoring around 50 on all subjects on my first big test.
I’ll never forget the day I crushed my answer sheet and plopped down at my desk.
That was when my parents completely gave up on me.
At home, I was ignored and verbally abused. There was no physical punishment, but the verbal abuse was relentless.
“I wish I had never had you.” my father used to say.
His low voice came from the study, and I fell to my knees in a corner of the room.
In the final exam of my junior year, I got a score of 70 in all subjects for the first time.
I was so happy that I went to show my father that I could do it, too.
Holding the test in his hand, my father snickered, tore it to shreds in front of my eyes, and threw it in the trash.
He then spat out, “I wish you had never been born.”
His words pierced my heart and tears welled up in my eyes.
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