3 bar menu

V7 Story II – Part 02

Painful drops of rain. A blue parasol. Fresh blood. Steaming uterus. Rooftop under a blue sky.

Various scenes and objects flashed back. It felt like the world was breaking.

When I came to my senses, I was standing alone. There was nothing around me, only gray darkness. My stomach slowly began to ache. Warm blood ran down my skin. I stroked the painful wound, feeling the sticky sensation on my palm. My ears were ringing, and a distant voice echoed in my ear.

“…dagiri…kun …O…ri…kun…”

I couldn’t quite make the words out, as if I were underwater. I found it too much trouble to follow the voice, so I ignored it, allowing myself to slip back deeper into my subconscious.

“…Odagiri-kun!”

“Gah!”

I was kicked hard in my wounded stomach. My eyes widened as I doubled over, gasping for breath. Mayuzumi’s leg, wrapped in black stockings, was outstretched.

I found myself standing in front of the couch. Mayuzumi wiped her blood-stained toes with a disgusted expression, Yusuke looked astounded, while Hirugao stared at me with concern. Discombobulated, I tried desperately to catch my breath, wiping the drool off my chin.

What happened to me just now?

“S-Sorry,” I said. “My mind was somewhere else.”

“Pathetic. Have you forgotten what you said?”

Mayuzumi shrugged, the casual gesture belying her foul mood.

She gave me a vexed, condescending look. “You chose not to kill the fox. You said you wouldn’t kill him, fully knowing that you would regret it. I don’t expect anything from you, but I don’t want to be disappointed either. I thought you were going to live each day to the fullest anyway?” Her voice was terribly cold.

I gritted my teeth, trying to recall the decision I made back in the spirit world.

In that womb-like space, I decided not to kill the fox. I talked big about not being able to kill the person I despised, and chose to bring him home. I was determined to take responsibility for my actions.

I declared that I would give my entire life to keep him in check.

But now, confusion gnawed at me. I couldn’t afford to regret the decision I made. I balled my fist, feeling the snug fit of my leather gloves. I shut my eyes tight and opened them.

My vision cleared in an instant. Checking the shallow wound on my stomach, I let out a breath.

“I haven’t forgotten, Mayu-san,” I said. “I’m sorry, I’m fine now. Please give me the specifics.”

“Took you long enough. Very well, let’s talk.” Mayuzumi’s lips twisted into a smirk.

I waited for her to speak, but her next words left me speechless.

“Actually, Odagiri-kun, the fox woke up a few weeks ago.”

“…What?” I blurted out in disbelief.

Mayuzumi nodded grandly.

I tried to recall the past few weeks, struggling to make sense of her words. We met Hirugao at the beginning of November. Had the fox awakened before that? While I was enjoying a relatively peaceful life?

Mayuzumi’s voice broke through my daze. “When he woke up, he was debilitated. Discussions with the main family on what to do with him began immediately. You couldn’t see each other, so why bother telling you? Whether he was awake or asleep, it was irrelevant to you. As long as you remained unaware, the fox would always be asleep in your mind.”

She was right. I thought the fox was asleep this whole time.

Even if I had known about his awakening, nothing would have changed, except my mental state worsening. In fact, I was out of it just moments ago. But still, I couldn’t calm myself down. I was the one who trapped him in the spirit world, and I was the one who brought him back. I had the right and the obligation to know if he was awake.

“It is relevant to me. Why didn’t you tell me?!” I exclaimed. “You knew I was afraid of him waking up. Why would you complain about being bored when something so grave was happening behind the scenes?”

“What are you saying? Asato’s situation is boring, is it not?” She replied without a shred of hesitation.

Mayuzumi reached for a piece of chocolate from the desk, a clown with exquisite craftsmanship. Made to resemble a puppet, its limbs had weird joints.

“Your awareness will not change the outcome,” she added. “It is all a matter of understanding the situation. Why do I have to consider your feelings? I will not entertain any objections. The present is what matters.”

Mayuzumi readily dismissed my rage. She bit into the clown’s right leg.

“The fox is imprisoned in the Mayuzumi clan’s cell. Chihana mentioned it before. It’s the place where the former head, who intended to reform the Mayuzumi family, confined the First. The fox is presently there.”

I cast my mind back to Mayuzumi Chihana’s story. An old tale about Mayuzumi Azaka.

Once upon a time, the Mayuzumi clan was governed by two rulers, a male head and a female living god. However, with modernization taking over society, the male head decided to reform the clan, and the living god at the time, Azaka, was imprisoned in a cell. The head died under suspicious circumstances as though he was cursed, and the Mayuzumi clan came to be ruled by the living god instead. Since then, the name Azaka had been passed down to girls with supernatural abilities to this day.

The fox was locked up in the same cell where the first Azaka was confined. The thought made my heart pound faster. He had been bound by the name Azaka from his birth. Why would they sentence him to confinement in a place associated with that name? A dull ache pulsed through me, but I diverted my attention away from it.

“His ability doesn’t work without the desires of others,” Mayuzumi explained. “He’s powerless if he doesn’t come into contact with other people. I think it’s the appropriate treatment. And a desirable outcome for you as well.”

“I don’t think Asato is just going to stay put in the cell. How is he doing now?” I managed to ask, unable to find any other words.

I told myself that locking him up was the right course of action. That the fox was a dangerous creature.

Mayuzumi smiled faintly, and snapped the left leg of the clown. “Well, you see, Odagiri-kun. Apparently, he chose to be locked up in the cell.”

“…What?”

The revelation threw me into a state of disarray. The fox had willingly entered the cage. I couldn’t make sense of it. I couldn’t even imagine it. Mayuzumi ate her chocolate with grace, folding the legs, arms, neck, and body and putting them in her mouth.

“And now he wants to see you. It’s like he’s completely exhausted. Maybe he feels like he wants to be locked up inside a coffin. Now then, Odagiri-kun…”

Mayuzumi spread her arms and assumed the same posture as the clown, grinning impishly.

“He says he wants to see you, but won’t mind if you refuse. I can’t discern the fox’s true intentions. Would he seek to harm you, spew venom, or place a curse upon you?” Her voice held a melodious tone.

My belly squirmed. I pictured the fox casting a terrifying curse. The baby cried in response to my surging emotions, and I stroked my stomach gently to calm her down.

“So, what will you do? Will you see the fox or not?”

Mayuzumi held her hands up as if weighing scales. Yusuke and Hirugao, sitting on the floor, exchanged glances. I bit my lip hard, my stomach twisting in knots. The wound on my palm throbbed painfully underneath my leather gloves.

And then, I gave my answer.