Chapter 509:
Shift
The shaking became nearly uncontrollable for me as it started to rattle the game board. At first, she didn’t seem to pick up on my body’s reaction, but now it was impossible for her not to notice. It didn’t take someone with intelligence to tell that I was affected by her words. Though I wasn’t sure how it translated, if I looked angry like I was or possibly nervous.
She probably didn’t even know what was wrong. The inquisitive look on her face made it clear that she wanted to know. That much didn’t surprise me at all. Having been around her enough, she viewed everything as an opportunity to learn. It didn’t matter the detail or importance, she wanted to know everything. Anything that she could use in her schemes and plots. I found her to be a surprisingly dark person for a child.
I guess this was the answer to why.
Chapter 509 – A General Fact
Attempts to analyze me for an answer gave her little, no surprise considering my reaction wouldn’t be something that she should know. It wasn’t like she used that as a tip off. My experience so far had indicated nothing in these worlds recognized anything beyond as being out of place and none of them exhibit qualities of being self-aware of the fake world or engineered scenario. Effort to do so probably would be pointless.
Aya leaned forward, no longer interested in the game. “After months of silence from you, you ask me to repeat myself. That’s rather ironic coming from you.” An entertained smile came over her as she dug her attention on me. I wasn’t really sure what I expected to happen after I said that. Truthfully, I hadn’t even given it a thought when I spoke. For the entire time that I kept my mute status, they tried to bait me into reacting and failed. The fact that I ended up falling for that in the end hurt more than I wished and only more so because it wasn’t even a trap.
My first position was to just return to my silence, but that wasn’t going to be an option. Not because of her wanting it. No, the shaking in my hand wouldn’t stop. She managed to play the single card that I didn’t even know she possessed to make me move.
I ground my teeth together as I couldn’t hide my emotions. This was the same woman, I knew with all certainty. It didn’t matter that she was a child right now. I understood enough of how things worked in this world of my sister. Making it even more clear who it was that I was facing.
Splintering wood echoed in my ear as my hand that rested on the box containing the removed pieces finally started to buckle under the stress. Only a shred of reason held me back at this point from completely allowing me free. And I could see it in her fingers like a string on a koto, a traditional Japanese string instrument, prepared to play a melody of chaos and control.
It almost felt like I’d be giving into her taunts and losing. I think that was the only reason I didn’t jump immediately, though I didn’t know if that would hold me back that whole time. “You’re no child,” I growled, bending to some of her wishes.
“That’s an interesting expression. You’re showing me so much today, Norio Hirohata.”
“I’m not your entertainment.”
Aya leaned further in, nearly looking like she’d have to brace against the game board to even stay up right, but managed to do it. “Perhaps you’re much more than that.”
“I don’t care.”
“No, you do. Why won’t you kill me?” I didn’t even say anything to her, but she kept going as if she did. “But you want to.” My continued shock and ‘What?’ face stared at her. Somehow she could see all that by just looking at me. But she certainly wasn’t wrong either. I wasn’t even completely sure why I didn’t act out on it immediately. This was only a fake world and killing her would make the consequences that I would face worth it.
It’s rather frustrating, if I was being controlled. More accurately, it annoyed the hell out of me.
“I didn’t…didn’t make any such indication.”
“You did. Your eyes and your body. The tone in your voice.”
I couldn’t disagree with her. And I knew I wasn’t doing a very good job of hiding my emotions. Having seen her again, I think it’s pretty understandable why I couldn’t. Though picking up on my killing intent, she shouldn’t have been able to do that. Not as a child, she wouldn’t have that sort of understanding. “What are you?”
“I say you want to kill and that’s your question. I’m definitely going to make you mine.” I swear the grin on her face went straight through in that moment. I didn’t know what she was anymore. There was no child that I knew that acted like this. “You going to do it?” she asked further, taunting me.
At this point, I sort of feel like doing anything was just going to play into her further. If I was alone, I’d probably have screamed out my inability to do anything. The wood snapped, finishing off the container. It was all I could do and it hardly felt like a relief.
Only a single action remained. I made my move on the shoji board. Flexing out my fingers from the strain, I started to breathe to control my mind and emotions. A plan of my own started to come together as we continued to play. ‘Killing her would be too simple in the end. After what she’s done, I’m going to crush her first…you will taste defeat the same as you delivered to me and admit the lies of your words to me before the end!’
Resolve. Determination.
They replaced the apathy that I had felt for so long. It was a strange, yet still familiar feeling, but a long missed one. I finally had a purpose, something that I could sharpen and focus myself towards.
I won’t keep losing.
Though that was what happened with the rest of our games. But she noticed obviously, I’d be disappointed if she hadn’t. After she placed the lid on her container of pieces, she looked over at me. “I like you better like this. You were mostly boring, but had something curious about you that I wanted to see. Now I can see it. Keep that rage in you. I want to see you from now on.”
I turned my eyes over to her in a glare. “You’re endlessly frustrating and obnoxious. I’m going to enjoy tearing down your confidence.” A bit of a smirk came over me, bleeding out some of my emotions.
“See that you do.” Aya departed looking happier than I’ve ever seen her since the first day I had the unfortunate pleasure. That only made me even more angry. She didn’t take me seriously, but I would change that. She can be certain of that.
Looking down at the broken container of mine, I knew what had to happen. “Damnit!”
“What did you say?” questioned Nerine, in an expected and understandably confused manner. I did just show up out of nowhere.
“Why is she here again?”
“Because I want her here.”
“Nice, you get to bring along your girlfriend.”
“She’s not.”
“Keep lying to yourself then.”
“You’ve become even more of an asshole now that you decided to talk again.”
“Thanks, but can we get back to the subject.” I sat down on the porch outside of the dojo of the Lord’s mansion. They were in the middle of some sort of training, from what I could tell. “I’m saying that all of your annoying nagging finally worked. I’m agreeing to with you.” This should make it go a little smoother knowing Seiji.
“Great! Having you help us look for the rest of our friends will make it even better!” He agreed easily as I figured. It’s not like Seiji really cared too much about reason or cause, so long as things were genuine. That was probably the most annoying thing about him. He might be an idiot, but he wasn’t stupid. The boy had an annoying ability to know when people weren’t being honest. Don’t know how someone was like that for being so muscle headed.
Nerine however, as I expected, had problems. “You’ve been silent for a year and now you just suddenly decide this? And after a visit. What happened?”
“Your girlfriend’s quite suspicious.”
“Usually for good reason and stop that.”
Oh he’s going to side with her? He’s changed more than I expected. “You make it seem like I’m trying to hide things from you.”
“You haven’t told us what’s going on.”
“You’re assuming that I won’t.”
“We don’t know what your motives are, besides your sister.”
“Hasn’t changed. I’m consistent like that.”
“Yes, you are, but something new is motivating you to act when you were inclined to remain stagnant.”
I sighed as Nerine had annoyingly sharp observational skills. It was that damned Atlantean training that made her so frustrating and difficult to deal with. She forced me to play things out of order and made me lose my control of the situation. A power struggle between us didn’t seem like I would end up as the victor. I did come to them because I knew I needed them.
There was one thing that I learned about this world as there seemed to be a theme based on observations of the previous. Power was important and not the sort that Seiji trusted. And if it was going to be that sort of world, I couldn’t see my own personal victory alone, as difficult as that was to accept. I swallowed my pride to be here in front of them. The least she could do was appreciate that.
“You’re moving too quickly.”
“You’ve got a plan. I could tell the moment that I saw you interrupt his practice. If you want my help, then you’re going to need to explain yourself. Because as you said, you’re motivated to find your sister, not everyone else. You’re single minded in that goal. Our goals might overlap, but that wasn’t enough to convince you before. You’ve got something in mind. I’m not even sure we’ve got the same goals right now.”
Rubbing my hands through my hair, he couldn’t help but show my emotions now. “Damn you’re too observant for your own good.”
“You want to help us, what’s going on Yori?” asked Seiji, realizing that even though he saw an honest answer from me, Nerine wasn’t wrong either. He could tell something was up. They were both against me. Even though I knew that after I told them, they’ll be on my side for this. That was the only reason I knew that I could do this and accept what it would mean.
“Damnit, fine, the truth. I found her. The one that my sister is looking for in this world.”
“Like Masa?”
“That’s right. It’s Aya Izumi, that girl that’s taken an interest in me. She’s the one that’s the third personality.”
Please sign in to leave a comment.