Interlude: God May Forgive, But I Won't

While Naomi settled into a comfortable seat in the medical center's dedicated resting area, Eiji saw this as the perfect moment to make the most of their downtime. As theyawaited Honoka's return from her mother's bedside, the young man found the courage to visit a loved one of his own.

With cautious steps, Eiji approached the receptionist, a woman clad in the sterile garb of a nurse, and cleared his throat.

“I would like… to see Kanzaki Setsuko. My name is Kanzaki Eiji.”

“Kanzaki Eiji? Are you her son?”

Eiji nodded, as the woman behind the counter seemed to give a small smile before turning to the register. After a few formalities were handled, another staff member guided Eiji to the wing where his mother was staying.

The ordeal with Honoka and her mom had stirred memories of his own mother's predicament—an unsettling realization that he had been avoiding.

The door to her room slid open smoothly, the fluorescent lamps casting a cold, clean light upon the interior.

“Take your time, it’s been a while since Kanzaki-san saw you, Eiji-kun.” The nurse smiled, closing the door behind her, and leaving mother and son in solitude.

Eiji swallowed hard, edging closer to the bed. There she lay, his mother, encumbered by tubes running up her arms and wires connecting her to various machines. Her eyes remained fixed on the window, where the rain softly pattered against the glass, serving as the backdrop of an otherwise quiet room. Almost too quiet, Eiji always thought when he visited.

His mother was incapable of comprehending her surroundings, never mind speaking. She just drifted in and out of consciousness. Always looking around, but always lost somewhere between life and the dream world. The day she learned of the news regarding the daughter she loved so much, it was like the chord connecting her to the world thinned beyond repair, and now she only existed in a perpetual in-between.

It was true that Eiji never visited regularly. And he felt… guilty. There was no way he didn’t. But he also…

Blamed himself.

He could never do anything for her or her sister. His father left them when he was born. Maybe… just maybe if it wasn’t for him—

Eiji gulped, and ceased those thoughts.

He shuffled closer, and settled beside her. His mother's gaze remained fixed on the rain-swept night beyond the window. The rain grew heavier.

His mother. The woman that gave him life.

“Mom…” Eiji muttered, stiff. The gnawing guilt in his heart remained a constant presence. He couldn’t bear to see her like that. Nevertheless, he slid his hand atop hers, and squeezed with his thumb.

Finally, her head turned, and her dark, hazy eyes met his.

Eiji couldn't recall much about his time with his mother, but one thing he could never forget were her eyes. People often remarked on the uncanny resemblance between his eyes and hers, but the eyes that now met his were nothing like his own.

His mother’s eyes were bloodshot, devoid of all life, empty. Like endless pools of darkness. Like the void her soul seemed to be lost into. Like a decaying old, picture. A withering bouquet of memories. A snapshot of life that once was.

Eiji's expression froze, and his grip on his mother's hand tightened involuntarily.

If only he were more capable… If only that day never came to pass…

If only the one responsible for all this sorrow, all this pain… could finally pay…

Eiji clenched his jaw, his eyes smoldering with rage.

“Don’t worry, mother.” He breathed, “I will find them… I swear I will.”

A/N:

Psst... Pssst, you! Character visuals for the female cast of volume 1 have just been uploaded tothe showcase!