Chapter 12 - Kibou: Hope

1

“Let’s run.”

Hiroshi’s words snapped Shun back to reality. When he turned around, he saw Hiroshi already trying to push the desk out from in front of the door.

That’s right. We can’t give up yet.

Shun stood next to Hiroshi and pushed against the desk with all his might. Once they cleared a gap wide enough for a person to slip through, Hiroshi quickly picked Mika up off the floor and put her on his back. While he was doing that, Shun unlocked the door. The monster was still busy chewing on Takuro’s head and didn’t seem to notice them making a move.

It’s okay. We can escape.

Shun opened the door, let Hiroshi and Mika through, and then exited into the hall himself. He turned around and looked at Takuro. How many times had he wished for him to disappear from this world? But now that his wish had come true, he didn’t feel happy in the slightest. Instead, guilt surged over him like a wave. He closed the door and chased after Hiroshi with Mika on his back.

“How could you do that?”

Anna’s words resurfaced in his mind. She hadn’t been wrong. Shun had given birth to that monster. He’d killed Takuro in his game to vent his daily frustrations. He was no different than Takuro who committed heinous acts of violence under the guise of “experiments.” No, he was worse. His monster had also killed poor Anna who had been nothing but kind to him.

By the time they reached the top of the stairs, the door to the study burst open and the monster stepped forth. It was chewing on Takuro’s arm as if it were a piece of fried chicken. Shun cursed himself for not locking the door behind him, but it was spilt milk now.

The monster turned to them and, licking its lips, began to move. It was still hungry. Though it appeared to be a leisurely gait, it gave chase at frightening speed.

What do we do?

Shun desperately tried to think things through. If this was the game world he’d created, they should find the exit if they just played things out. There was no time to hesitate.

“Hiroshi, this way!”

Shun put his left hand on Mika’s waist, pulled on Hiroshi’s arm with his right, and rushed down the stairs with them as fast as he could. They were moving at top speed, but the monster was slowly closing in. Hiroshi and Shun could have moved faster if they ditched Mika, but that wasn’t an option. Shun couldn’t let there be another victim.

Upon reaching the first floor, Shun guided the others past the headless suit of armor and into the Japanese-style room. The monster looked around, shook its shoulders wildly, and then slunk after them. It seemed like it could catch up to them at any time, but it wasn’t really trying for some reason. It was as if it was enjoying this game of hide and seek.

“...Is the basement through here?” Hiroshi, who had been silent until now, said in a low voice as they stepped onto the tatami mats. He must have realized it as well.

“That’s right. We’re in my game. I don’t know how this happened, but if we follow the game’s route...”

They crossed the room and opened the sliding door on the far wall to reveal the dreary stairway to the basement. The chill air stroked Shun’s skin, but he didn’t flinch. He simply proceeded down the stairs.

The basement was pitch dark and he couldn’t see anything, but Shun already knew exactly where the light switch would be. After descending the stairs, he felt along the right wall until his fingertips touched the slide-style switch. He flipped it.

Hiroshi’s shadow wobbled from side to side in the light of the naked bulb hanging from the ceiling. Broken furniture, appliances, and other garbage littered the place. Next to an old tube television were the cardboard boxes Takuro had brought in, unceremoniously dumped there.

“Now this way.”

Slipping narrowly between things in the cluttered room, they proceeded further into the basement. Following Shun’s lead, they were quickly putting distance between them and the monster. Here, their small size gave them a huge advantage. The giant monster would have to clear a way through the room before it could come after them.

Upon reaching the far back of the basement, they discovered an area about the size of a small room enclosed by iron bars, just as Shun had predicted. The underground cell. This was where, in Shun’s game, the girl who became the monster was confined. Blackish-red stains still clung to the concrete walls. The words “HELP ME” had also been repeatedly scratched into the walls with someone’s fingernails.

But most importantly, there was something glimmering in the corner of the cell. It was a new key marked with “φ,” the Greek letter phi. If things continued to follow the game, it would get them into the parlor on the second floor.

“Let’s hurry.”

Pulling on Hiroshi’s hand, Shun stepped with him into the cell. Before picking up the key, he closed the cell and bolted the cell door. If he didn’t follow the game to the letter, it would be game over. Hiroshi spread his uniform jacket out on the cold floor and gently laid Mika on top of it. A considerable amount of blood was seeping through the shirt he’d used as an emergency bandage from all the running around.

“...Where are we?” Mika asked weakly, looking around.

“Shh... You shouldn’t talk right now,” Hiroshi said, putting his pointer finger to his lips.

“What happened... to Takuro?”

“We can talk when we escape from this mansion—”

“Please tell me. Where is Takuro?” Mika stretched her arm out with a pained sigh.

“...He was attacked and killed by the monster,” Hiroshi answered flatly.

“So... he’s dead...”

Was she relieved or grieving? Her expression was a difficult one, as if she herself couldn’t decide. Most likely even she didn’t know her true feelings.

“I’m a fool. I believed him, even if it was just for a second. I know his true nature better than anyone—”

She was cut off by a bestial howl coming from elsewhere in the room. It was enough to make all three of them shudder. A tower of plastic cases stacked atop each other toppled over as the monster smashed them out of its way. It had finally caught up to them. It approached, grabbed the bars with both hands, and leaned its face in. The bars kept it outside, but it was only a single meter away from them. It was so close that they could feel its rapid breathing.

Frustrated that its prey was so close yet so far, the monster bared its fangs and let out a low growl. A pungent smell escaped its mouth. There was no disguising the stench of human flesh. Shun nearly barfed. The monster opened its huge eyes even wider in anger and began shaking the iron bars. Shun, Mika, and Hiroshi stood shoulder to shoulder with Mika in the middle. They all thought they were going to die. The monster was so strong that the iron bars were visibly warping as it yanked on them.

“This is bad,” Hiroshi said with a furrowed brow.

He was right. It was only a matter of time before the bars broke. At this rate, they’d all end up monster food.

“I’m sorry. This is my fault.” Shun hung his head and bit his lip. “I’m the one who brought us down here...”

Shun cursed himself for being so foolish. In the game, you only had to hide here for a while before the monster would give up and withdraw. But now it was clear not everything worked the same way it did in the game. Thinking back on it, there were a few other discrepancies too. Maybe someone had secretly altered the game behind Shun’s back.

The iron bar in the monster’s left hand weakened and started to twist like a piece of rubber. Now it was all over. Shun closed his eyes and said his prayers.

“I’ll distract it,” Mika suddenly said. “While I’m doing that, you run.”

“I don’t follow,” Hiroshi said with a frown.

Shun felt the same way.

“This might surprise you, but I was on the track team in my first year of middle school. I’m pretty confident in these legs.” Slapping her thighs, Mika slowly stood up. “And I’m small, so I can easily slip back out through all that clutter.”

“Do you understand what you’re saying? You’re injured.”

“I’m fine now. I barely feel the pain.”

“It’s just a surge of adrenaline that’s making you feel that way.”

“This is nothing. In fact, I’d say it’s a perfect handicap. It’d be boring if I just ran circles around that monster, right?”

She was clearly putting on a brave front. Her right cheek was spasming as she forced a smile and her knees were knocking together as her legs trembled.

The iron bars bent even more. Licking its lips, the monster began pushing its head through the gap.

“There’s no time to hesitate. See you later!” Mika said with a wave of her hand and bright smile.

“Please reconsider. Mika!”

Brushing off his attempt to stop her, she quickly slid open the cell door and bolted.

2

“Over here, monster! Follow me!” Mika shouted, waving her arms.

The monster opened its left eye freakishly wide and slowly turned its giant face toward Mika. It let out a low growl that would serve as the starter pistol for their footrace. Mika kicked off the concrete floor and dashed off. She heard Hiroshi calling from inside the cell trying to stop her, but she had other things to focus on.

Avoiding the mountains of junk, Mika made her way through the basement storeroom. She snuck a peek behind her. The monster was chasing her, just as planned.

It felt good to run all out again. A smile crept onto her face. The pain in her abdomen didn’t even bother her anymore as she fondly recalled her second grade sports festival. That was where she’d won her first race.

“Good job! You’re amazing, Mika!”

Her dad had jumped for joy cheering for her, not caring one bit about who was staring.

“Congratulations. You worked really hard.”

Mika could still remember her mother’s warmth as she hugged her tight.

That pleasure of running around the track faster than everyone else. It was a strange sensation. Almost like she’d become the wind itself. And then there were the smiles on her parents’ faces. Those were the reasons she’d become so enraptured by track and field.

But things went awry after she quit running because she couldn’t get the times she wanted. To make things worse, her parents started treating her like one would a swollen sore. In turn, she became irritated with them and turned defiant.

Why didn’t I see it?

Mika bit her lip as she ran.

Mommy and daddy didn’t stop loving me. I just started ignoring their love.

Mika realized the truth, but it was too late. When she was being so rebellious, how were her parents supposed to know how to interact with her?

I wonder how they would react if I said I wanted to run again. I’ve got my high school entrance exams this year. Would they fuss at me and tell me not to do something so stupid? Or would they encourage me and tell me to do my best? It doesn’t matter which. If they support me, I’ll do my best to meet their expectations. And if they disagree, I’ll just talk to them about it until they come around. I know they’ll understand.

Mika sprinted up the stairs two at a time. Despite her injury, her body felt light. It was as if wings had sprouted from her back.

I have to get home quickly. Mommy and daddy must be worried.

Wiping the sweat forming on her brow, Mika continued to run and run.

This feels good. It’s like I’m flying. But... Man, I’m hungry. I miss mommy’s curry. I wish I had some right now. Would she make it for me if I asked? Jeez, I thought I’d reach the top of the stairs by now... Just how long is this staircase?

3

Shun and Hiroshi quickly chased after Mika, and subsequently the monster. But they were both too fast and soon out of sight. Furthermore, the walls of trash the monster knocked over in its wake obstructed their path forward. When they finally reached the Japanese-style room, it had already been a few minutes since they’d last seen Mika.

“Mika! Where are you?!”

No one responded.

Flecks of blood stained the tatami mats. They were wet and sticky to the touch—still fresh. Most likely they were from the wound in Mika’s abdomen. Following the trail of blood, Hiroshi and Shun cut through the room. They followed it into the hall and to the staircase. At the foot of it was more blood.

“This is bad.”

Hiroshi grimaced and looked to the second floor. The carpet covering the staircase was already red, making it hard to follow the trail of fresh blood much further. But from here, there was only one way she could have gone: upstairs.

Shun followed Hiroshi as he climbed the stairs. There was no obvious blood in the second-floor hallway. Had she run to the third floor? Hiroshi seemed to think the same thing, and they walked over to the next flight of stairs together.

Whud.

They then heard a low thud, like something heavy dropping to the floor. It made the floorboards underneath them shake.

Whud. Whud.

The noise continued, and with each thud came the rattling of the floor.

Whud. Whud. Whud.

As they made their way up the stairs, the noise got louder and the shaking got stronger.

“...What is that?”

Intense unease clouded in Shun’s heart. Something bad was awaiting them. It was all he could to do steady his rapid breathing.

Whud. Whud. Whud. Whud.

Upon reaching the third floor, Hiroshi froze.

“What’s the matter?” Shun asked.

Following Hiroshi’s gaze, Shun gulped. Bright red blood stained the hall. But unlike the spot in the entrance hall, here there was one long, thick trail. It was easy to imagine the monster grabbing Mika by the collar and dragging her along. The trail went down the hall opposite of the study where Takuro had been killed.

Whud. Whud. Whud. Whud. Whud.

The creepy sounds were coming from the same direction.

“...Mika?” Shun called sheepishly down the hall.

The noise could just be her stuck in a room, banging on the door trying to get out. If that was the case, they had to go help her. Hiroshi had been walking in front so far, but now Shun took the lead. If he’d just acted more promptly before, he might have been able to save Anna too.

I don’t want anyone else to die. I don’t want to regret any more.

The line of Mika’s blood ended in front of the door marked with “τ” or tau. Shun put one ear to the door and listened closely.

Whud!

He could hear the same noise but even louder now. Mika had to be in there. He tried the door. It wasn’t locked.

Whud!

“Mika—”

He opened the door and burst in only to be silenced by a horrible sight. The blue monster was facing away from him and doing jumping squats. It landed with a dull thud every time, shaking the whole room. There was a bright red rug at the monster’s feet. When it hit the ground, sticky liquid splashed up. No, it wasn’t a carpet. Upon closer inspection, it resembled a human figure.

Whud!

Little bits of flesh flew about as the monster stomped down. The blackish-red skin as thin as stretched leather was no longer identifiable. Shun could only guess that it might have been Mika from the long, brown hair trailing from the otherwise indiscernible figure. Shun closed the door slowly so as not to alert the monster, then distanced himself from the room.

I couldn’t save her either.

Shun ground his teeth hard. He was starting to hate himself for being so powerless. But there was no time to be depressed. He could beat himself up after they escaped.

“Hiroshi,” Shun called.

But Hiroshi just stared blankly at the closed door, as if seeing Mika’s remains had traumatized him.

“Hey, Hiroshi!”

Hiroshi still didn’t respond, so Shun shook his shoulder roughly.

“...What is going on here? This is no longer anything I can explain with science. Is it a bad dream? Am I merely having a nightmare?” Hiroshi asked, still staring at the door.

Certainly, science couldn’t explain it. But surely Hiroshi had realized it by now. They might as well be inside Shun’s game.

“I don’t know why this is happening either. But if this really is just like the game, then all we need to do is keep going in order to escape.” Shun tried to explain, but Hiroshi just continued to shake his head in denial. “The key we found in the underground cell should open the parlor—”

Shun stopped when he realized he’d left the key in the basement.

“Sorry. I’ll go get it right now, so will you wait for me on the second floor? Please be careful of the monster.”

Shun hurried back down to the first floor, crossed the Japanese-style room, and entered the basement again. Grabbing the key and Hiroshi’s jacket that were lying on the cold floor of the cell, he then turned to head back. As he was leaving, he spotted the cardboard boxes Takuro had brought in out of the corner of his eye. What was in there?

Shun stopped and peered inside the top-most box. It was full of stuffed household trash bags. The black plastic kind that were a rare sight nowadays. Shun touched one. It seemed to be holding something soft. Shun opened the bag and a foul smell came out. He peered inside it.

“...!”

A voiceless scream escaped him. It was such a shock that he felt like he might faint.

“Wh-What is... this?”

Inside the bag was a chopped-up human body. But that wasn’t what disturbed him.

The severed head’s empty eyes stared up at him. He knew that face. The mole on the right earlobe. The compact, almost nonexistent nose. The front teeth, slightly broken where Takuro had punched him. The round eyes that looked like a shiba inu’s when he smiled.

“...It’s me?” Shun’s raspy voice echoed off the walls.

That can’t be. It’s just impossible.

He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand and looked inside the bag again. There was no doubt about it. That head, hatefully looking up at him, was definitely his.

“No way...”

Shun slumped to the floor. The cardboard boxes Takuro had brought in contained Shun’s dismembered corpse.