Vol 1 Chapter 3 – It might be even worse than the moment I died—【Volume 1 – God and the Post-Mortem Debrief Session】

He was dressed head-to-toe in black, his hat pulled low over his face. A mask hid his mouth, so I couldn’t read his expression, but his eyes—his eyes were locked in so hard it was like he was on something illegal. Even the business bag slung across his chest was a deep, inky black, so from any angle, he was nothing but a walking “suspicious person” sign. From his build, I could tell he was a man. He looked just a bit taller than me, so… not quite 5’7″? Hard to be precise when the footage was scaled down to half-size, but what mattered right now was the kitchen knife clenched in his hand.

So… I really am going to get stabbed by this guy and die… I understood it the instant it hit me. Maybe… it’s just that my mind refused to remember, but my soul remembered perfectly well.

“I-I—Big Sis… let’s go.”

From the sound of her voice, I could tell Sakuya had switched to calling me that again. So I wouldn’t get asked my name, maybe? My little sister really is sharp about things like that. But, I mean… Sakuya and I had been talking loudly enough that we definitely weren’t blending into the shopping street crowd… loud enough that people were turning to look at us. So, like… what if that’s why I got targeted? The kind of random knife attacker who thinks “anyone is fine” might’ve remembered the noisy sisters. If so, does that make this—on some level—my own fault? …No way. Right?

“S-Yeah…”

Letting Sakuya pull me by the hand, I quickened my pace. Idiot! In a situation like this, I should’ve just looked forward and run—get out of there already!! The me in the footage keeps flicking her eyes back in confusion, so the distance keeps closing. Ah, seriously! Zero sense of danger!! I’m supposed to grab Sakuya’s hand and bolt like my life depends on it! And because I don’t—

I die, okay!?

The man raised the knife low at his waist, then braced it with both hands. And like that, he charged straight at me. That move—I’d seen it in dramas all the time, the kind yakuza pull. Hard to dodge, and I’ve heard the weight behind it makes it sink in deep.

I can tell the me who glanced back widens her eyes in shock. She tries to run, but it’s too late. When the moment finally arrives, it’s in slow motion—so vividly clear it hurts.

“—!”

No, stop, stop—stopstopstop, no no no no!!

The tip of the knife sinks into my exposed, defenseless side, and the blade slides in without resistance. And then—unbelievably—he twists it, both hands still gripping the handle. Not straight from behind, but from a rear diagonal angle. At that angle, he had to be tearing through multiple blood vessels and organs inside me.

“EEEEYAAAHHHHH!!!”

Was I doing vocal warm-ups or something? It was a scream so sharp it tore through the street noise and made my ears ring. The moment people realized I’d been stabbed, the area erupted into instant panic.

“Big Sis!! You—! Don’t screw with me!!!”

Sakuya stops at my scream and spins around. The second she grasps what’s happening, she tackles the man and sends him flying. I crumple to the ground with the knife still stuck in me, and the blood loss is horrible. In no time, the color drains from my face, and I’m gulping down ragged breaths. Tears spill from my eyes, unfocused—maybe I’m not even seeing properly anymore. Like it’s pure reflex, I fumble for the handle, trying to pull the knife out, but my body won’t cooperate through the pain, and my hand drops into the pool of blood with a nasty wet smack. I hear it—splat—no, that can’t be right. With all the screaming and shouting around us, there’s no way I should be able to hear a tiny sound like that. That noise just now… isn’t from the scene. It’s a memory still left inside me…

“Ah… u…”

I’m desperately trying to tell Sakuya something, but it’s not turning into words. What I wanted to tell her back then, and what I want to tell her now as I watch, is probably the same thing.

“Sakuya, run!”

“Don’t talk! Don’t move—don’t move at all!! I’m calling an ambulance right now!!”

Sakuya drops to her knees beside the spreading pool of blood, her face paper-white as she yanks out her phone. Her fingers are shaking so badly she can barely work it, but she’s trying to call an ambulance—and behind her, the man is closing in. From his business bag, he pulls out a second knife. She doesn’t notice. Or maybe she does notice, but she’s only thinking about saving me.

“Gah?!”

The blade swings down and skims across Sakuya’s back, carving a deep wound, and bright red blood spills from the torn blouse. Somehow, that was more shocking than the moment I got stabbed. Like he didn’t like the result, the man stabs into Sakuya’s back again. Sakuya collapses over me—and I can’t take my eyes off the knife still lodged in her back.

“Noooooo—!!?!?!?”

No, no, this is a joke, right!? No no no!! This has to be a lie!! Sakuya too—together with me!? It should’ve been just me!!!

“—”

“B-Big Sis… i-it’s okay, okay? You’ll be fine… You’ll make it… Our first live show might get postponed, but… you worked so hard in lessons, didn’t you? …For all of that to end like this… it’s just too cruel…”

“—”

Under Sakuya, I’ve already closed my eyes at some point, completely limp. So… I’m already unconscious… I can’t tell about my breathing—my chest—Sakuya’s on top of me, so I can’t see… And Sakuya’s words feel like they’re less for me than for herself, like she’s trying to convince her own heart. Because… no matter how I look at it… I’m bleeding way too much… Compared to Sakuya, the rate the blood is pouring out is completely different. Sakuya might have a chance, but me? No way… and in reality, I didn’t make it—because that’s why I’m here now, watching this with God.

The man who stabbed me and Sakuya doesn’t run. He just stands there, looking down at us. In his hand—unbelievably—he’s holding a third knife. It looks like he’s about to finish us off. There are so many people around. Someone could help. I’m too far gone, but at least Sakuya—! I can’t help thinking that. But that wish doesn’t come true. Everyone runs, keeping their distance and only watching from afar. A few people are on their phones—probably calling the police or an ambulance, so fine. But the ones filming? I hope they die.

“Yep, that’s how it went. You went through something painful, but unlike your life before last—and the one before that—you didn’t have to suffer for long before you passed on. So, shall we talk about your next life together with your little sister?”

God’s voice sounds like it’s trying to be considerate, but it also feels weirdly bright—was that… kindness? But there’s also a big problem.

“…You said ‘my little sister too’?”

“I did, yep. Unfortunately, you sisters both died.”

“…I see.”

Sakuya too… So she didn’t make it. Hearing that hurts more than being told I was dead.

“Sakuya could’ve moved if she really wanted to. She realized there was a way for her alone to survive, but she didn’t move because she was trying to protect you—who were already unconscious. I’m sure it was all for one thing: so you wouldn’t feel any more pain than you already had, so you wouldn’t get any more wounds. You’re truly loved.”

“…Sakuya…”

My chest fills with guilt. If I’d just run properly, maybe it never would’ve happened. I really can’t stand myself.

“Sakuya endured being stabbed over and over without even letting out a scream, and she stayed there to the very end to see you off… and after that… well, it was something.”

Huh? Isn’t this kind of taking a weird turn? Or is that just me?

“With the last of her strength, she snatched the knife and killed the attacker. And in the process, she got stabbed in the stomach and even the chest—those wounds are what killed her.”

“Huh? Wait—this is not what I thought you were going to say?!”

No way—did God stop the holo footage because he didn’t want to show me that part? Was that kindness, so I wouldn’t have to watch my sister get stabbed again and again…? Or was it consideration, so I wouldn’t have to watch my sister kill someone…? Which is it, exactly…?

“Yeah, that’s the reaction you’d have. So, with that said, let’s have the three of us start a little consultation meeting for your next life.”

Me, Sakuya, and God… I mean, us sisters, sure, but… is it really okay to count God as one of the “people”…?

“Big Sis♡”

A clingy, sweet voice—then, from behind God, a pitch-black orb of light appears. It looks like it could curse me or something—why is it so scary!?