You’re a Zombie?
You’re a Zombie?
You’re a Zombie?
I sat in the shade at the edge of the field, watching the girls play volleyball. They looked so full of life, and they were having a lot of fun.
Well, to be precise, I was really just watching Tomonori smile out there.
“Aikawa, check out those boobs. They’re the best, right? I could just bury my face in them.”
“You probably shouldn’t say stuff like that out loud.”
“What? But I’m a mammal.”
Well, I could see where he was coming from.
Orito stood beside me, giving me completely useless information about which girl had the best body parts. Since I always ended up collapsing if I stayed in the sun too long, I usually watched P.E. from the shade.
Orito was called into the match, leaving me alone. I lay back on the grass.
Big Teach had been taken, and I couldn’t do anything to stop them. If Kyouko really got her hands on a so‑called Magiclad Weapon, what would she do?
All I’d ever been able to do was deal with whatever happened after the fact. Was that really enough? Was just brushing away the sparks that landed on me really all I should be doing?
Someone peered into my face. “Aikawa, what’re you doing?”
I pulled myself back. “Tomonori… what about your volleyball match?”
“Won it, obviously. I’m the type who doesn’t hold back even against humans.”
“Yeah, but using Vampire Ninja powers is kind of cheating, no?”
“Vampire Ninja powers, huh. Hey, do you think I’m really a Vampire Ninja?”
Tomonori sat beside me, knees up, chin resting on them. Her chest squished slightly against her thighs, making me suddenly aware that even zombies were still mammals.
“I always thought I was a Vampire Ninja who could make fireballs. But there’s no such ninja, right?”
“Yeah. Never heard of one.”
“Hm… thinking about it now, I really like oil. And I never get hungry. What if… I’m actually a robot?”
“Apparently, you’re a Magiclad Weapon. Not exactly a robot, more like a cyborg. Maybe even an onmyoji[1] or summoner type.”
“So I’m not a ninja after all.” She let out a sad sigh.
I scratched the back of my head. “Why not just be whatever you believe you are?”
“Huh?”
“I think of myself as a zombie. Honestly, I don’t know what the proper term for someone like me is, but I’ve decided I’m a zombie. So no matter what anyone says, I’m a zombie.”
“What in the world are you on about? You’re making zero sense.” Tomonori threw her head back and laughed.
“That’s all a regular high schooler like me can say.”
“Well, fine. If my husband says so, guess I have to go with it.”
“Drop the husband thing already. Just call me your friend.”
“By the way.”
“Yeah?”
“You’re a zombie?”
You didn’t know that?
She flashed a full-toothed grin, and I couldn’t help but grin back.
After school, I sat alone watching the sunset when Eu came over.
So, it was her turn to pick me up today? Was picking me up becoming some kind of quiet trend?
“Eu, what’s up? You alone?”
She gave a small nod and handed me a note. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“Because of me, everyone has gotten into trouble.”
She was still worrying about that? That was one of her bad habits.
“That’s not true. Trouble always finds us. It’s nothing new. At least this time, it’s not your fault.”
“Aikawa, let’s walk home together.”
Tomonori showed up, fresh from club activities. Eu hid behind my back, putting distance between herself and Tomonori.
“Oh? Is that Eucliwood? Whoa, first time I’ve seen her. She’s crazy cute.”
“She’s scared, can’t you tell? Stay away. And you’ve actually met her before.”
“What? You make it sound like I’m some kind of a wild animal.”
“Ayumu! Let’s hit the arcade!”
Haruna. You too? I guess the arcade was a double‑edged sword.
“You’re going to the arcade?” Tomonori said. “I’m not that good at games. I’m more into physical stuff.”
“A Vampire Ninja must master all sorts of skill,” Sera said as she appeared.
What was going on today? Oh. Maybe Eu came to get me, so Sera followed, and since Haruna hated being alone, she tagged along too?
“Fine. We’ll go to the arcade again.”
“Yay!” Haruna cheered, while Sera gave a weary look.
And Eu, wearing a very lonely expression, held a note that read…
“I…”
The note ended there. At this point, I didn’t know what thoughts she had been unable to put into words.
I came home late and went straight upstairs. Haruna, hoarse from having so much fun, went to the bathroom. Sera headed for the bath. Eu was probably in the living room, like always.
Still in my uniform, I flopped onto my bed. Even though I’d slept plenty, exhaustion dragged me under again, and I didn’t have the strength to fight it.
I closed my eyes.
“Ayumu!”
Haruna’s shout shattered the drowsiness in an instant. I jerked upright and squinted at her through bleary eyes. She held a note.
“What is it?”
“Goodbye.”
I shot out of bed, shoved past Haruna, and bolted out of my room. I flew down the stairs and rushed into the living room.
On the table sat a photo booth sticker from that day, the one I’d given Eu. It was mostly me in the frame, caught floundering after being kicked.
In the trash lay the envelope the rabbit Megalo had been carrying.
Could it have been addressed to Eu? Megalo and Eu both came from the same place, the Underworld. That made it entirely possible.
But if I remembered right, the paper inside had been blank. Maybe something was written on it. Maybe it had a hidden use.
Then it hit me. The glasses. If I looked at the blank paper with the X-ray specs, maybe something would show up. Maybe it would even explain why Eu had disappeared.
I ran back to my room and put them on. Sure enough, words appeared.
In short, it said this: “The King of the Night creating fake Megalo, the Vampire Ninjas moving in force. It’s all my fault.”
Why the hell would she keep blaming herself?!
Did she leave because of this? It wasn’t her fault.
I grabbed the photo and ran to the front door. Kicking my shoes halfway on, I burst outside.
The rest of the note read: “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. If not for me, this town would never have ended up like this.”
“Eu!” I shouted, but of course there was no answer. “God damn it!” I cursed, scanning the area.
Where? Where did she go?
“Sera, Haruna, Ayumu. You have always spoken to me with kindness. It made me so happy. But I leaned on that kindness too much.”
I searched the convenience store, the cemetery, the school. Nothing. No Eu.
Did she really leave this world?
“I’m not supposed to be here. It’s all my fault. I’m sorry.”
No, she wasn’t the one at fault.
I was. I was the one who’d made empty promises, saying I’d do anything for her, then left her wearing that lonely look.
“I’m sorry for always causing trouble. If I stay by your side, someday… someone else will end up sad again.”
Eu’s face had always been devoid of emotion, but sometimes she would look sad, and I did nothing for her.
Idiot. I’m a fucking idiot. I was lucky to live with these girls, and yet I hadn’t done a damn thing to preserve this small blessing.
“I am a harbinger of death.”
I lifted my head and saw a giant bamboo branch on the balcony, still covered in decorations.
Haruna still hadn’t put it away. I looked back down at the note Eu had left.
“So this is goodbye.”
The last stroke of the last word was slightly smudged.
Damn it. Self-centered. Worse than Haruna.
She could have told me. If she were hurting, if she were struggling, she could have just fucking told me!
I ran upstairs to Sera’s room, stepped out onto the balcony, and took one of the wish strips from the branch.
“Ah.” The sound that left my lips was pitiful, even to me.
Haruna’s strip read: “Give me snow. Big enough for everyone here to see together. If it’s small, I’ll kill you.”
Sera’s strip read: “May my cooking skills improve twofold. May my cooking keep everyone here smiling. May my cooking skills improve another twofold.”
Eu’s strip read: “May I always be with Ayumu and the girls.”
And mine read: “May none of the wishes come true.”
Why… Why mine? Why was my wish the only one that came true?
I wiped away the stupid tears running down my cheek, tore my own strip from the bamboo, and crushed it in my hand. I realized that I had crushed the photo booth sticker along with it.
I opened my hand and smoothed it out. The photo Eu had insisted on keeping all to herself instead of sharing. Looking closely, Eu’s tiny figure in the corner was smiling happily.
My legs gave out. Regret washed over me like a wave, drowning my vision in darkness.
“Ayumu!”
Haruna’s voice barely reached me.
Eu. Eu. Eucliw…
A sudden knee strike sent me toppling sideways.
“What the hell, Haruna?! I bit my tongue!”
“Quit moping around, you idiot!”
“She’s right, Ayumu. This isn’t a permanent farewell,” Sera said from behind me, standing with her arms crossed, wrapped in a bath towel.
“Let’s go get that negamancer back! Big Teach too!”
“But Eu left on her own. We can’t just—”
“I don’t care! I said we’re getting her back!”
As always, Haruna couldn’t care less about what anyone thinks.
I was always the pawn being tossed around. But this time, I’d be the player.
1. Onmyōji was one of the official positions belonging to the Bureau of Onmyō of the Ministry of the Center under the ritsuryō system in ancient Japan, and was assigned as a technical officer in charge of divination and geomorphology based on the theory of the yin-and-yang five phases. In the Middle Ages and early modern period, the term was used to refer to those who performed prayers and divination in the private sector, and some of them were regarded as a kind of clergy.