Chapter 3: The Best Place at School to Have a Private Conversation is Always the Roof!

Daisuke was surprised that the bite marks on his neck had completely faded away by the time he woke up in the morning. Having passed out not long after Ueda-san left, he had thought that he might bleed out. Horrific images of her monstrous true form that had caused him to wake up screaming in bed, drenched in a cold sweat.

For a brief, glorious second Daisuke thought that it was all just a dream. He had just imagined Ueda-san as some hideous, man-eating monstrosity, and that he would go to school and she would just be her normal, angelic self, a radiant beauty untouched by such ugliness.

The dried blood smeared across his sheets quickly put an end to that blissful dream.

It was all real. Daisuke’s blood went cold and he scooted away from the red stains, his face pale. Kuua Ueda-san was a monster, and she had nearly eaten him alive last night. She had walked through his home, spoken with his family, and in the end had threatened to devour them all.

And she was the girl who he was going to meet on the rooftop today to eat lunch with. Because she wanted to talk to him.

Or maybe she was too lazy to order takeout, and HE was the lunch.

Daisuke didn’t want to go to school. But he knew that if he didn’t, then Ueda-san would come to his home again. And that was something he wanted to avoid even more.

Why did he have to put up with this crap?! He was just a normal high schooler! He didn’t want anything to do with this insanity, monsters, “famineans”, turning Japan into some sort of slaughterhouse?!

“Daisuke, are you up?! Mom’s getting impatient!” Sakura slammed the door open and stomped into his room. His sister had clearly begun the day in a foul mood. At least her snappish tone had done the job of bringing Daisuke out of his crippling fear.

“Sorry sister, tell mom I’m getting dressed,” Daisuke said. Then he noticed that Sakura wasn’t leaving. He glanced at his little sister and saw that she was standing in the doorway with her mouth open in shock, staring at him.

Daisuke’s hand show up to his neck to confirm what he’d felt that morning, no, he didn’t have any open wounds. Maybe Ueda-san’s bite had left markings of some kind? Wait, no, now that he took a closer look, he noticed that she wasn’t staring at him, she was staring past him.

At the bloodstains on his sheets. Daisuke went pale, his head jerking up as his sister met his eyes. Her face slowly turned red.

“W-Wait, Sakura, this isn’t what it-“

“MOOOOOOOOOM!” Sakura shouted at the top of her lungs, hiding her embarrassed face in her hands. “DAISUKE’S SHEETS HAVE BLOOD ON THEM!”

Daisuke felt sick to his stomach. He dreaded meeting with Ueda-san, but right now the bigger worry was the awkward breakfast he was about to have with his family.

…

Daisuke wasn’t normally the kind of student who buttoned his collar all the way up, but this time he made a special exception. A glance in the mirror while changing this morning had confirmed his fears. Certainly there were no open wounds on his throat, but all around where Ueda-san had sunk her fangs into him he could see dark red splotches that had a very distinctive mark.

His sister had already given his family the wrong idea about what had happened between him and Ueda-san the night before, he didn’t want anyone catching the sigh of the markings and coming to another awkward conclusion.

I just wanted to live a normal life, Daisuke moaned internally. Why do I have to put up with hardship like this? It’s just not fair…

The fact that he’d had to lug Rika’s baseball bad was also an inconvenience. Luckily he’d spotted it in his frantic search for ways to clean up his room. There had been a good chance he’d forgotten in the chaos that had ensued the night before, but he was grateful that he hadn’t.

If he had, well…

One girl out for his blood was bad enough, Daisuke didn’t need to add his childhood friend to that short list.

The school day was a blur. Daisuke had not made friends with any of his classmates since school had begun, and his only previous friend, Rika, was in another class. Until today, the days had just flown by, and he’d passed his time basking in Ueda-san’s glow. Now, though, he couldn’t bear to even look her way.

Ueda-san was the same as always. Her sweet smile, like the countenance of an angel, accompanied by her melodic laugh that rang like the bells of a heavenly chorus. If Daisuke let his guard down, how easy would it be to forget about Ueda-san’s true face?

But no. That was no angel ahead of him. But a monster with an angel’s face, a wolf snuck in amongst the fold.

Maybe she’s forgotten. Maybe she won’t even care about me… come on, I’m just a normal guy, there’s no reason to say or do anything to somebody like me, right? Daisuke’s attempts to convince himself that everything would be fine got more and more desperate as the clock ticked closer to lunchtime. Searching around desperately for an escape, his eyes landed on something that could only be considered a gift from a real goddess.

Rika’s baseball bat, right where he had left it in the back of the classroom! It was the perfect excuse! He would tell Ueda-san that he couldn’t eat lunch with her, because he had to return Rika’s bat! No, better yet, he wouldn’t even mention it to Ueda-san at all, he would simply take it and flee the classroom the moment he had the opportunity. It was the perfect plan! Then, after returning Rika’s bat, he would run off and hide until the lunch period was over. It wasn’t like he had any appetite, after last night the idea of eating made him feel sick to his stomach.

The bell rang and the teacher dismissed the class. Daisuke sprung from his seat and ran to retrieve his salvation. But as he turned towards the exit, his hopes were cruelly smashed before his eyes.

“Kara- *ahem* Oishi-san!” Ueda-san greeted him, her smile bright enough to light up Tokyo Tower. In her hands she held a lunch box. Daisuke could actually see the sparkles coming off of her, much to his disbelief. “Shall we go eat lunch together?”

Gasps of shock and whispered voices rang through the classroom as everyone stared at Daisuke in shock and confusion. Daisuke could imagine what they were thinking. And if he did not know Ueda-san’s true face, he would be right there with them in disbelief of why a “goddess” like her wanted to eat lunch with some nobody like him.

“Uh… um… oh! U-Ueda-san, yes, lunch, um… Actually, I… I have to go bring Rika her baseball bat, so, um…” Daisuke fumbled for words, terrified of what would happen if he directly said that he didn’t want to eat lunch with her. If Ueda-san got angry at him…

Daisuke gulped.

“You… don’t want to eat lunch with me?” Ueda-san asked, staring up at him with the purest most sparkling puppy-dog eyes in the world.

The Daisuke of yesterday would have been convinced, but this just made his cold sweat even colder.

It was the murmurs of discontent swirling up that finally convinced him.

“The nerve of that guy, rejecting an offer to eat with someone like Ueda-san!” He heard one guy grumble.

“Ueda-san, don’t eat with that guy! Have lunch with me, instead!” Another guy called.

“Poor Ueda-san, it must have taken a lot of courage to ask a boy to eat with her like that,” a voice Daisuke recognized belonging to Ushigome-san sighed.

Daisuke couldn’t deal with this pressure. Especially not the way Ueda-san’s mouth seemed to stretch, revealing her perfect teeth. Wait… were they looking a little sharper, all of a sudden?

Eventually, he had to relent.

“I… I would love to eat lunch with you, Ueda-san…” Daisuke said, hanging his head in resignation.

“Wonderful! Let’s go, Kara- err, Oishi-san!” Ueda-san cheered, her face brightening as Daisuke’s paled. She turned and headed out the door, Daisuke reluctantly trudging along after her, dragging Rika’s bat behind him as he went.

…

Upon the roof, Ueda-san’s true face revealed itself once again. She opened her lunchbox to reveal a main dish of meat over rice with some side dishes. She leaned against the railing of the roof and looked out over the sports field below.

“It’s always fascinating to observe humans from high up,” Ueda-san murmured, absentmindedly popping a piece of meat that Daisuke was far too terrified to identify into her mouth. “It’s like looking upon free-range food in its natural habitat… quite an interesting experience. Look at them, scurrying around, interacting with one another…”

She didn’t finish that thought. She pinched her chopsticks and flung another meat shred into her mouth, swallowing it noisily. In the classroom, Ueda-san ate with perfect poise, but apparently in front of Daisuke respectable conduct was unnecessary.

Daisuke, on the other hand, was being nothing but respectable. He knelt before Ueda-san, ready to drop into a dogeza at the first twitch of Ueda-san’s eye. If he could keep up a polite air and keep his head down, then Ueda-san might be merciful enough to spare his miserable, puny little human existence without devouring him whole.

He hoped.

Daisuke could smell Ueda-san’s lunch, and the fact that it had such a delicious aroma filled him with worrying disgust. He really, really hoped that wasn’t human meat he was smelling right now, but if it was…

“Um… excuse me, Ueda-san?” Daisuke mumbled, looking hopefully up at her, praying that his question wouldn’t upset her. “May I ask you something?”

“Yeah, yeah, what is it?” Ueda-san angrily snapped, turning in his direction. Her eyes were not the pure, sparkling orbs of her false angelic guise, but instead they formed the cold and intimidating glare that he had seen before in his room.

“Um, that lunch of yours…” Daisuke gulped. He was afraid of the answer to his question, and so he lowered his head. “Never… never mind.”

“It’s not human, if that’s what you’re asking,” she smirked, setting it on the ground. “I was just messing with you.”

Daisuke sighed with relief. That had scared him. But… no, there was no way that Ueda-san would bring human meat in her lunch to school.

“Please excuse me, Ueda-san,” Daisuke laughed awkwardly. “I thought for a moment that you would be eating human here.”

“I pack it in my lunch sometimes,” Ueda-san said automatically, Daisuke’s face going pale. “But I ate a lot last evening so I’ll be good for another month at least.”

Is… is that how it works? Daisuke didn’t know about faminean metabolism, and honestly, he didn’t want to know.

“So… that means you were just eating normal food?” Daisuke asked.

“’Normal’ food? That’s offensive,” Ueda-san snapped. She kicked the lunchbox over to him. “Have it if you want. It’s karaage. I thought it would be fitting.”

“Um…” Daisuke wasn’t sure if he should take it. “It really isn’t human, right?”

“Of course not, you think I’d waste human meat on you?” Ueda-san scowled. “What part of ‘humans are an endangered species’ was unclear last night?”

“Um… the all of it, everything,” Daisuke replied. He didn’t want to think of the idea that humans were endangered, either. He was realizing that there were a lot of things Ueda-san was talking about that he didn’t want to think too strongly on. He decided to change the subject. “Um, can I really… have this? It smells really good…”

“Yeah, I’m not eating that garbage,” Ueda-san said, making a face. Did she really cook a whole lunch just to make me nervous? Daisuke wondered. That seemed a little… excessive.

“Um, then, thank you for the food,” Daisuke said, peeling off the lid of the lunch and taking the chopsticks.

…

Ueda-san’s used chopsticks.

It was shameful to admit, but not long ago Daisuke would have seriously considered digging through garbage cans for Ueda-san’s chopsticks. And now they were right here in front of him, and he was no longer so enthused.

Chopsticks that had touched Ueda-san’s lips.

Chopsticks that had touched Ueda-san’s lips, which had been devouring human flesh just the night before.

Chopsticks that may have been used by Ueda-san to eat human flesh.

Daisuke found himself not as hungry as he thought he was. But it did smell so delicious…

His rumbling stomach was getting the better of him. Now that there was such delicious-looking food sitting in front of him, he realized that he had barely eaten anything since he’d discovered Ueda-san’s secret. And the karaage smelled so delicious…

Daisuke felt himself start to drool. No! No! Remember! This is Ueda-san’s lunch! Ueda-san, who eats people, this is her lunch! Ueda-san’s… hand-cooked lunch.

An image of Ueda-san’s smiling face crossed his mind. The goddess Ueda-san… he pictured her dressed in an apron and smiling like an angel. “Daisuke! I cooked this just for you! I hope you enjoy it!” His vision of loveliness smiled at him, presenting him with a beautiful hand-crafted box lunch.

No, don’t fool yourself! That Ueda-san isn’t real! The real Ueda-san is the demon standing before me! Daisuke reminded himself, slapping himself across the face. He raised his head and glared at Ueda-san. “Ueda-san! Before I listen to anything you have to say, apologize!”

“Who do you think you’re talking to?” Ueda-san snarled, narrowing her eyes. But Daisuke wasn’t going to be daunted by her intimidating glare, even if she could devour him like the karaage in his hands. “Oh, you want to be an entrée? Is that it?” She asked, licking her lips, her mouth curling up into a sickening smile.

“Apologize for your deceit until now!” Daisuke demanded, pointing an accusing finger at Ueda-san. “Apologize to the memory of my angel Ueda-san!”

“Like hell I’m going to do that! I hate that bitch! Do you know how much of a pain in the ass it is to act all sweet and cutesy?!” Ueda-san exclaimed, her brow furrowing with irritation as she stomped on the ground. “The hell is wrong with you humans, wanting your women to be such generic moe blobs?! Aaagh, just acting like that makes me wanna barf! Who in their right mind would want to act like such a prey animal?!”

Ueda-san was practically screaming. Daisuke wisely chose to shut his mouth and begin eating the karaage. He decided the best thing to do was to flip the chopsticks over.

“…Wow, this is actually delicious!” Daisuke gasped. The fried chicken was truly divine. It was like the negativity flood through him from their frustrating conversation moments prior had all been blown away. It was the best karaage he’d ever had. “You say that you made this? Wow!”

“Of course I made it,” Ueda-san said smugly. “I may not be able to eat karaage or any of that other stuff, but when it comes to skill at preparing meat, I’m one of the best you’ll ever meet!” Daisuke didn’t like the way her eyes flashed when she said that, and he definitely didn’t like the way her tongue glided across her lips.

“It just feels so weird, if you can make food so delicious, why would you give it to me?” Daisuke asked suspiciously. He had the sinking sensation that she was fattening him up like a pig. All of a sudden, the delicious meal he had half-devoured wasn’t looking so delicious.

“Oh, don’t look so worried,” Ueda-san scoffed, rolling her eyes. “If I was planning to eat you then I would have done so back on your bed. Please, I have plans for you, Karaage-san.”

“Can you please stop calling me that?” Daisuke dryly asked. “I don’t find being compared to a food dish that enjoyable.”

Ueda-san shrugged her shoulders. “Like I said, don’t worry about the lunch. I just make them so I can eat them in front of you humans. It’s all just for show. If I go around without lunch too many days in a row then people might start asking questions, and that would be inconvenient.”

“So wait, you would really just go without eating?” Daisuke said, surprised. “I didn’t think that you would go that far. I know you eat people, but you don’t eat normal food?”

“There’s that word again, ‘normal’ food. Like your food is in any way normal. Eating plants? Bleghck,” Ueda-san said, making a face. “But stuff like that? Chicken meat? Cow meat? Fish, vegetables, fruits, fucking rice? It’s like eating sand.”

“That’s… kind of depressing,” Daisuke said. He could hardly believe it, but he honestly felt a little bad for Ueda-san. She could make such delicious food, but she wasn’t able to enjoy any of it. “There’s so much delicious stuff you can’t eat… you can’t even go to restaurants or cafes or order takeout… that must be really hard for you.”

Ueda-san blinked. “…Not really!” She chirped. “After all, there are actually lots of underground restaurants in Japan run by famineans where you can purchase authentic human meat!”

“I DON’T WANT TO HEAR STUFF LIKE THAT!” Daisuke exclaimed, his face going pale. Ueda-san rolled her eyes.

“It’s okay, we famineans have an excellent ongoing food supply,” she said. Her tone of voice sounded like it was supposed to be reassuring. But what part of that sentence was supposed to make him feel better?! Daisuke stared at Ueda-san like she was insane. “There are several farms where we breed and raise humans in captivity for distribution, it’s actually quite an efficient system. We just have to keep population levels up, and the system will easily be able to sustain itself.”

“I said I don’t want to hear about that sort of stuff!” Daisuke snapped, more out of tense fear than anger or frustration. “You monsters breed people like farm animals?! That’s sick and wrong! And how do you even-?! NO! No, I don’t want to know where they come from, never mind!”

Ueda-san rolled her eyes and plugged her ears. “Yeah, yeah, I get it,” she groaned, shaking her head. “Not a fan of the people farms, sure, whatever. I’ll drop it.”

“Good,” Daisuke said, relaxing a hair before returning to devouring what was left of Ueda-san’s astonishingly delicious lunch. It was entirely likely that this could end up being his last meal, and if that was the case he was going to enjoy it to the fullest. “I don’t want to think about the idea that you monsters are just breeding us for food, thank you very much.”

Ueda-san smirked.

“Did you know that roughly 80,000 people go missing in Japan each year?” Ueda-san purred. “Just in case you were wondering where we were getting people to fill those farms-“

“I SAID I DON’T WANT TO HEAR ABOUT THAT!” Daisuke wailed.

“You’re a real buzzkill, you know that,” Ueda-san groaned. “Fine, fine, since you’re not in the mood for small talk, let’s get down to business and talk about why I brought you here. This should just about cover it.”

She reached into her bag and took out a notebook, throwing it into Daisuke’s lap. Daisuke picked it up and glanced at the cover. WAIT, WHAT?! That couldn’t be right. He had to have read that wrong. He took another look, and what he confirmed made dozens of questions rush through his mind.

Questions he wasn’t sure he wanted the answers to.

Written on the front of the notebook were the words “DAISUKE OISHI BREEDING PROJECT” in big, bold letters.