Vol 3 Chapter 22 – The Hero Comes Late (【The Exonerator of the Maritime Nation】Arc)

“I… I killed someone…”

In the pouring rain, a girl in a red outfit sat on a park bench.

Her wet clothes clung to her skin, but she didn’t mind much.

She just didn’t want to go home.

The events of a few hours earlier resurfaced, filling her with nausea.

“Ugh… puke.”

Her dearest younger brother was killed by our father, and I killed that father.

And I…

“Don’t puke…”

For that brief moment, I was like a completely different person.

My body moved on its own.

And without a care, I dealt with my father and my brother—————

At that time, I had a smile on my face.

“What am I going to do now…? Should I turn myself in…?”

I don’t want to get caught.

The very thoughts any criminal would have naturally surfaced in my mind.

My hands trembled uncontrollably.

I felt my body temperature dropping as the rain soaked me.

“It’s cold…”

I had come all this way leaving all my belongings at home.

Now, I have nothing.

Slowly, I stood up.

“I have to go… I have to apologize…”

With unsteady steps, I began walking toward my destination.

On the midnight road, perhaps due to the rain, there were no pedestrians, and only one or two cars passed by.

“There…”

A pedestrian bridge began to come into view before me.

Before I knew it, I was running in a frenzy.

I sprinted up the stairs and paused to catch my breath.

My heart pounded wildly—was it from excitement or the grip of anxiety?

“…I’m coming to see you right now.”

Grasping the handrail, I climbed over it.

That was when it happened.

“You’ll regret it if you die.”

“…Huh?”

A man’s voice came from behind.

When I turned around, I saw a shady man wearing a mask, offering an umbrella.

“You’re soaking wet. At this rate, you’ll catch a cold.”

“…”

I couldn’t help but gasp.

My body… wouldn’t move the way I wanted.

“Who are you…? If you’re a suspicious person, I’ll call the police.”

“You can call the police if you like, but… that outfit. Won’t you get caught too?”

He pointed at my bloodstained clothes.

I felt as if I were about to burst into tears.

The man, whose face I couldn’t even make out, suddenly tugged at my hand, and before I knew it, he was holding me tightly.

“…?!”

I instinctively tensed my body.

Still, he did not loosen his grip.

“Let go!”

I finally managed to cry out.

“That outfit, drenched in blood. I do think it’s admirable—the courage to end one’s own life when there seems to be no escape—but how about living with me instead?”

Even as he held me close, he said,

“I need you.”

What is this man after…?

He surely can’t understand my worth.

Even with him, I’m utterly helpless.

“If you need me, do as you please…”

After all, I was planning to die anyway.

“…Well then, if you don’t mind doing as you please… please live. That’s the condition.”

His grip didn’t weaken as he stroked my back.

I pushed him away, trying to break free.

With a trembling voice, I asked,

“Um… your name…?”

“Oh, come to think of it, I haven’t introduced myself yet…

———My name is Sakata. I look forward to working with you.”

A hand was extended before me.

I reached out my right hand——————

—————————————————

“—————Meido!”

Kuzuryuu’s shout echoed throughout the cave. His words did not reach Arisu.

“Ah… eh…?”

Her mind couldn’t keep up.
A flash of pain.
A mysterious pool of blood pooled at her feet.
A sensation of losing her balance.
Something that had been there moments before was gone.
Her “right arm” —————————————

“Kyah… hahahahaha!!”

A shrill, almost childlike laugh filled the air—as if a delighted child had just discovered something wonderful. Yet, that laughter barely registered.

“Ouch… it hurts…”

Her consciousness grew hazy. Her thoughts couldn’t keep up.

Arisu collapsed onto her back right there.
Her vision darkened.
Then, her consciousness faded.
At the same time, Kuroko sprang up as if she had been revived.

“Tch…”

Seeing the tragedy before him, Kuzuryuu clicked his tongue.
Arisu—who had lost her right arm and fallen unconscious from massive blood loss—lay before him.
Amidst it all, Kuroko’s awareness returned as she instantaneously severed Arisu’s remaining arm.
For him, nothing could have been worse.

“In this situation, there’s no way to escape, is there?”
“Ha ha, ah ha, hahahahahahaha!”

With an eerie laugh, Kuroko lunged at Kuzuryuu.
A single blow from her fan would mean the end—his body would be split in two, unable to retain any semblance of human form.

In an instant, Kuzuryuu was overpowered.
Then, the fan was swung.

“…! That was close!”

He dodged the attack by swerving sharply at the last moment. Simultaneously, he fired his handgun—but his shot was deflected.
In the blink of an eye, Kuroko launched a follow-up assault.
There was no way to avoid any longer.
The word “death” loomed before his eyes.

Then, in that moment…
Her attack failed to hit Kuzuryuu.
The Kuzuryuu who had been right before her was gone.

“Ah…?”

Had he dodged?
No—if he had evaded, he wouldn’t have vanished from sight in an instant.
A question arose in her mind.
Moments later, she understood—along with the tremendous impact that slammed her body against the wall.

—————————————————

“…That was close, really close. Kuzuryuu-san almost got killed.”

With those words, a girl in a jet-black one-piece dress appeared.
Where Kuroko had been standing just moments before now loomed a hulking brute, bare-chested.

“You’re late…”

Kuzuryuu let out a deep, weary sigh. Seeing his state, the newcomer said,

“Ha ha ha! I’m sorry. But—”
“————Because the hero always arrives late.”

The girl in the jet-black dress beamed a full smile.