My Girlfriend is a Death Row Inmate

Chapter 27 – Reflections of Inverted Shadows in the Glass

Upon reflection, whenever Shizuku displayed displeasure, it always involved Kusune Rinbara. As a death row convict, it’s hard to say why she becomes tolerant of others, but without Kusune’s interference, Shizuku is incredibly gentle. If that’s truly the case, would she ever have become a death row convict?

Well, be that as it may.

Now, Shizuku was provoking hostility and murderous intent. Face-to-face with justiholic Mitsuru Aikura—no, Kusune Rinbara—she expressed her frustration.

“It’s truly exasperating. There’s no difference between you and me, yet you are welcomed by society while I am rejected. You are liked by everyone, while I am despised by all. When you walk down the street, you might feel like a celebrity, but when I do, it’s grounds for suspicion… Honestly, I envy you.”

Just as she had restrained my confession with her hand earlier, Shizuku was likely protecting me from bearing any guilt. This statement of hers suggests as much. By admitting her loneliness, she absorbs all the hatred directed at her. While it’s true that I actively cooperated with her, if she says it’s different from her perspective, then it’s different.

“And so, now. Is it really an act of justice for you to try to take everything from me, starting with him? Well, whatever. Either way, it’s troublesome to be followed around. So, I’ll kill you here.”

“That’s acceptable, but… how do you plan to kill me when you don’t even know my real name? It’s just a pseudonym.”

She would likely kill her directly. While one might focus on Shizuku’s special abilities, as demonstrated in the park, her physical prowess is no joke. However… no, wait. Isn’t choosing to do so right now a bad idea?

The place where she would kill her would most likely be somewhere people rarely enter, or better yet, a place that’s normally off-limits. But this is a relatively frequented abandoned building. Directly killing her would be risky. Shizuku, having heard Mitsuru’s name, and seemingly planning to kill with her abilities from the start, must have had her reasons.

“…Ryuma-kun.”

(e/n: will be changing how Mitsuru addresses him from here on to ‘Ryuma-kun’)

“Eh. Why are you saying my name… I mean, it’s her fault… …”

“Ahh. With this, the contract is broken. As an apology, I will let you see another power I’ve kept hidden from you.”

…Eh?

“I’m sorry, but you need to understand. I kept this hidden because I had no plans to use it. You might not care, but this ability isn’t something I can freely use.”

Shizuku slammed her hand onto the ground. Unlike when she revealed her name, there was a distinct preparatory motion. Mitsuru… Kusune seemed to have no idea what was happening and stood frozen, tilting her head in confusion.

“Wh, wha, what’s happening? Are you kidding me?”

“If you’re not going to challenge me and want to get rid of that oppressive ‘presence’ right now, I can overlook it, but…”

“———Eh? Huh? Eh?”

At the moment Shizuku delivered her final ultimatum, Mitsuru’s previously eerie and vacant demeanor visibly changed. It’s difficult to accurately describe this conceptual shift, but if forced to put it into words, one might say she ‘returned to normal.’

“Hold on, what’s… Oh no, what is this—eh? Eh? Ehh?”

The ‘Mitsuru’ who was unaware of the situation seemed to be experiencing memory confusion, frantically trying to figure out how she ended up there. Five minutes had passed since Shizuku touched her. The questions Mitsuru managed to squeeze out were far too late.

“Who, who are you?”

“…Shizuku-san. Kusune is no longer here…!”

“Do you really think they’re that gullible? The police wouldn’t just accept a criminal’s demands so easily. They might pretend to go along with it for now, but in the end, they won’t keep their promises.”

“Wh, what are you talking about? Eh, what is…? Where is this place? Who are you people?”

Shizuku’s stubborn attitude showed no signs of breaking. As ‘Mitsuru,’ who had begun to treat us with suspicion, finally stepped back in fear, she appeared to have shrunk in height.

No, that wasn’t the case. Her height hadn’t diminished; her legs were sinking into the ground—into her shadow. And as is natural, the smaller the object blocking the light, the smaller the shadow becomes. The moment her shadow disappeared, she was completely absorbed by the ground, and science and the laws of physics offered no effective means to counter this unreal phenomenon.

‘Mitsuru’ frantically tried to grab nearby objects, but the shaded areas had all turned into quicksand, and once something sank in, it couldn’t escape. The moment her wrists sank in, she was left with no choice but to await her demise.

“Wh, what’s happening! What is this! Help me! I haven’t done anything wrong!”

“You just had bad luck.”

Such a heartless action, completely at odds with her reputation for kindness. Just as I was about to rush out to help her, Shizuku’s empty hand pulled me back.

“Do you want to die?”

She had no intention of killing me. If her words were taken literally, the shadow might also harm those other than the intended target. Or perhaps, if I were a true virtuous person, I would have reached out to help her despite the risks. But for someone like me, who is content to be a hypocrite, such intervention would only lead to my own downfall.

While I wouldn’t go so far as to say that my life is more important than someone else’s, the truth is, I don’t want to die.

For a brief moment, as this thought crossed my mind, my movements ceased completely.

“Stop it, please! Someone help me! Mommy, help me! Why do I have to face this?! Help me, Mommy!”

Half of her body had sunk into the shadow. At that point, there was nothing more I could do to save her. Unless I possessed the foolish strength needed to lift a person with one hand, which is unreasonable to expect from an ordinary high school student. If I had known this would happen, I might have acted differently.

Finally, ‘Mitsuru”s struggles came to a complete halt. Not that the rate of absorption had slowed down. She had accepted her fate and stopped moving altogether.

　―――Nii.

With a smug smile, Mitsuru Aikura allowed herself to be absorbed by her own shadow. There was no one left in this space. From the beginning, there had been nothing at all.

——————————

There was no corpse, no bloodshed. In that sense, one might say that everything was resolved peacefully this time. However, considering the harsh truth that a person was killed without understanding why they were treated poorly from the start, this incident cannot be described as anything less than a brutal murder.

“Could you explain in detail?”

“Huh?”

Pocketing his hands, the man close to Shizuku questioned her, changing the subject. The movie viewing was canceled. The mood for a date had dissipated, and now they were on their way home. Shizuku had invited him to hold hands several times, but he declined. An awkward atmosphere hung between them.

“Regarding the murders up to this point, I… I don’t have the heart to press charges. I was saved from bullying, and I was almost killed. But that… I don’t understand the meaning of it. I don’t understand your perceived ‘presence’ of Kusune, or how she appeared. Please explain.”

“Even if you ask me to explain…”

“If you don’t, I don’t know who I can trust anymore!”

Although it didn’t make sense from the perspective that she was being manipulated by Kusune (Shizuku had no intention of hiding that), if things continued as they were, the story would be comprehensible. However, it was clear that Mitsuru Aikura had regained her senses at one point, and except for the moments before her death when she was trapped in the shadow, she was an innocent victim.

It’s ridiculous to lecture a death row convict about ethics, but she has no reason to commit murder without cause. For someone who tries to avoid encounters with Kusune more than anything, causing trouble only increases the risk of running into her.

Strictly speaking, I’ve been explaining the motives and reasoning since earlier. However, without the same level of prior knowledge that Shizuku has, it’s unclear what exactly is going on. Such fragmented explanations only make sense when one has the necessary background information.

“…Well, if you want an explanation, I’ll give you one. Now, what do you want to know?”

“What is this ‘presence’ you mention? How does it differ from the scent that follows me?”

“The scent is marking, while the ‘presence’ is targeting. I don’t know how, but it seems that Kusune possesses powers similar to mine.”

“But she returned to normal, didn’t she?”

“Rather than returning to normal… it’s more accurate to say she temporarily stopped controlling. That’s why I said it before. Both Kusune and I are essentially the same—undesirable existences that should not be welcomed by society.”

“…Couldn’t you have helped her? If it’s Shizuku-san, couldn’t you have thought of something?”

“A plan… If only there were a plan. There is no plan, but I understand why she was targeted by Kusune.”

I had vaguely noticed it myself, but I didn’t want to think about it. The idea that pure, well-intentioned actions could be exploited for malicious purposes was unsettling.

“…It’s because I helped her at the restaurant.”

“You understand, don’t you?”

When she first approached me in the park, I had felt some unease, but now it made sense. She must have encountered Kusune shortly after being helped by me. Because she was being manipulated like Shizuku, she felt that unease.

…However, pinning everything on Kusune leaves several points of doubt.

“Let’s be straightforward about this. Your fate depends on your answer. Why do I sense Kusune’s presence in you?”

“You’re referring to the person who told me Ryuma-kun’s name, right? ‘Sense’? What do you mean?”

If she had been manipulated, would she have spoken such words? It’s clear that Shizuku, who can sense the scent and ‘presence,’ would understand, but why reveal the existence of Kusune? If she were the one controlling things, it would be all the more unpalatable. Cutting off the tail to save the body makes no sense.

“…If Kusune really was controlling her, why would she inform me about the presence and deliberately tell me your name?”

“Well, that’s something I can’t explain either. And if you’re looking for points of doubt, there are others.”

“Eh?”

“If she knew you were an accomplice, she could have come to see you herself. Why bother sticking to someone else and manipulating them? I think that while manipulation might be possible, information sharing isn’t. That’s why she stuck close to you, planning to meet up later to gather information… It’s as if she wanted to make you work as an impromptu detective for free.”

“…So that’s why she left no traces behind when she disappeared?”

“Good deduction. Without a body, it’s a missing person case. There would be no murder investigation, and the police wouldn’t even start a conversation about suspects. Saying someone died after being absorbed by a shadow is just too ridiculous.”

As I walked her home, Shizuku turned around at my doorstep and stood there like a guardian deity.

“Also, from now on, don’t call me by my name.”

“Why not?”

“Because I want to be trusted by you.”