A Point of View

 
December 31st, the tenth year of the war

Eleven o'clock in the morning

Among the passages of that abandoned place, in that long, quiet alley, the sounds of light water drops echoed, mixed with the sound of that cold winter wind, making the silence between them all the more tense and sharp. While Yol stood at the start of that passage, what awaited him at its end was an unexpected meeting. And the moment each of them realised this encounter, their gazes met sharply and with full wariness, followed by a long silence with no near end in sight. Until what had been on his mind occurred to Yol, and he said, "Do you have time? If so, I want you to come with me for a while."

Then Yol carried on his way quickly, passing Hiro before hearing the answer to his question. Several seconds passed without Hiro even blinking. Then that anger gradually surfaced on his face. "Damn it!!"

That single word was enough to explain the reason for his intense anger. For despite the grudge he held against him, he found no reason to refuse his request. With quiet steps he followed Yol, who had already disappeared.

When he caught up with him, he found him hiding behind a decayed wall full of holes, and with sharp eyes he was looking through one of the holes in that wall, which left Hiro in greater confusion. He stood beside him, looking over the wall, and said, "What are you looking at with those ugly features on your face?"

"Keep your head down before they notice you," Yol answered him without moving his eyes from that place.

Then Hiro noticed the presence of Itsuki, standing with another person writhing in pain. "Is that Itsu..."

Yol grabbed Hiro's hand and yanked it hard towards the ground to force him to lower his head. Then he said, "Shut up for a moment."

Hiro shot him a hostile look, but the other showed no interest at all in what he felt or thought. He let out an irritated sound from his lips, then turned his gaze towards one of the holes and said, "What exactly is happening here? Who's that person with Itsuki?"

"You really are irritating. Were you always this talkative?"

"I've always been like this. It's just that I didn't want to talk to a person like you at that time."

"I see that."

Then silence fell between them when Itsuki began to speak. They listened to his words with all their senses, though they didn't even grasp what was happening. They took in every word he said. Neither of them made any movement or reaction, until Itsuki cut off that man's head. Hiro was terrified, while Yol was in a state of severe shock, his eyes wide, unable even to utter a letter. Then Itsuki turned his gaze towards that wall, and in a raised voice addressed them. "If this person's affairs matter to you, then do him a favour and bury him."

While Yol was trying to steady himself and stand, Hiro was clutching his chest, panting hard, sweat pouring from all over his trembling body.

What is this, exactly? What is all this pain? I can feel it from where they are, but I can't tell where all this pain is coming from. Is this the suffering of a person when they die?

He sank onto his hand, bowing his head towards the ground, tears running from his eyes.

Why, why... why must I bear a thing like this? What do I have to do with this matter? I never realised death was frightening to this degree. I feel my chest will burst. My limbs will freeze and my insides will be severed. My ears hear nothing. My eyes see nothing. My soul is no longer in its place. It won't return to its place. When will this end? When? When... when? When... whe...

...

In a single moment, all those feelings and pains vanished. Hiro realised at once that the man had finally died.

Everything vanished in a single moment. But it left the fear carved in the depths of my chest.

He held his trembling arm as he shut his eyes from the intensity of the fear. It wasn't long before he felt an immense heat boiling in his chest, devouring his feelings until it reached his eyes.

"This anger..."

He looked quickly to his side, to see Yol's grim face as he said in a calm voice, "I'm going to talk to him."

Before he could get to his feet, Hiro grabbed him hard by the collar and dragged him into that abandoned alley. The instant he arrived, with all the strength he could muster he punched Yol in the face, throwing him to the ground. In great anger he shouted at him, "You scoundrel. A little while ago, you were thinking of killing Itsuki, weren't you?"

Yol raised his body off the ground slowly, and with his left hand wiped the blood coming from his nose. He answered him, that anger that had shown on his face now gone. "Just as I expected, it was wise of me to ask you to come with me."

"Don't get the wrong idea. If I'd let you go, your head would probably be rolling on the ground. Honestly, it wouldn't have even bothered me. But the thought that it crossed your mind to do such a thing to someone who saved our lives makes me unable to keep my temper. So explain it. What's happening here? Depending on your answer, I might be the one to tear off your head."

Yol laughed at his reaction and answered with a smile that carried sorrow on it. "You. You've changed a lot since that day."

"Huh!!"

"That person Itsuki killed. He's an old friend of mine. I don't remember the number of times he saved my life. And not only me. Thanks to him, our army managed to win several battles despite the difference in strength. Thanks to him, a great many people have been able to live in peace to this day."

Hiro watched in silence, with no thought of interrupting him.

"What happened here is because of us. A small child we accused of theft. Miral took measures against him, and in the end he died. I think Itsuki learned of it somehow and did what he did. Miral is at fault this time, and I think he overstepped his limits. But the ones who caused it were us. Because of us, that innocent boy died..."

Hiro sighed hard and cut off his talk as he said, "You think that person's life is far more important than that boy's, don't you?"

"That isn't what I meant..."

"Yes, it is. You see Itsuki as being in the wrong for what he did. That's why you bring up things like values and achievements and personal feelings, and push them towards Itsuki to prove you're right. 'Miral didn't try to kill the boy on purpose. Itsuki should have thought about the consequences before killing him.' You think about things like that. Are you serious? An innocent child died because of your foolishness. Why should anyone think it over?"

While he held him by the collar and shouted in his face, Yol was unable to answer his words. "I see Itsuki as being right in what he did. And if I were in his place, I wouldn't hesitate to kill that person."

With a sorrowful smile he answered him calmly, "Even if it were Itsuki?"

Hearing that word made him fall silent at once. And while he was lost in his thoughts, he let go of Yol's shirt quietly, so the other could carry on. "You really have changed. It's the same for me. However much I think, I can't choose the right answer. In a moment like this, how can I choose? But..."

While he clenched his fist and lowered his head. "But he never hesitated at all. Even though he knew Miral from before. No, he knew him before I even knew him. And even so, he didn't hesitate to do it. How can a person be this strong? How can he make a decision like that so easily... What kind of heart does he carry?"

After seeing Yol's face, the feelings of sorrow and anger that had been pouring out of him loosened and blended with his own feelings, leaving him to think a little and say, "I'm probably like you. You say I've changed, but I haven't changed even a little. It never crossed my mind that I'd advanced even a single step."

"That isn't..."

"But this won't go on any longer. I won't accept staying like this anymore. I'll become a better person, for certain. I'll help whoever needs help, and become someone that everyone who sees him looks up to. For the sake of this life I saved, I'll become one of the good."

Hearing that speech full of enthusiasm, Yol laughed out loud until he held his stomach from the pain, and answered him. "One of the good... what does that even mean? Are you really that irritating Hayami from that time?"

"I don't mind you laughing. But you, more than anyone, know that you're laughing at your own state. Isn't that right?"

Without removing that smile, he turned his gaze towards the sky as he said, "I really do envy you. You can be whatever you want. You can say things like that with complete confidence. You can achieve them... While I'm stuck before this door. Who am I? Why am I this empty? A simple question like that, and I still haven't been able to get past it."

Then Hiro turned his gaze in turn towards that sky, and said, "You've changed a lot since that day."

And in a moment of calm between them, that quiet blue sky, in the blink of an eye, a golden colour blazed across it and lit the sky. It was followed by a strong tremor that planted terror in the hearts of the people of that city.

December 31st

Nine o'clock in the morning

In the main building of the King's castle, in the front courtyard of the building, before the green shrubs and the stream of fresh water, the First King stood in formal dress before a fruiting apple tree. While he examined its fruit, someone stood near him who had been walking in a hurry. Without a greeting or any trace of respect, he called out to him, saying, "My patience has run out already. I won't let you run away this time. Leith, you're coming with me."

The King looked at him from the corner of his eye, then answered him. "Oh, Hiroshi, what is it this time..."