Return of the Fallen Volume 2 Chapter 33
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Author: Blue_Rat
ch33
Mei’s words sent a ripple through everyone. Even Mei’s mother Tsura was taken aback.
“Mei, what do you mean, dear? You felt nothing after you killed those adventurers, what are you saying?”
Mei tilted her head to one side.
“I don’t know, I just didn’t feel anything. Mommy, is that bad?”
Tsura’s mind spun. Slowly she looked at Kazuki, her thoughts filled with worry.
“Mei, did you not feel guilt or anger? Maybe some joy, anything at all?”
Kazuki continued to press with his questions and seemed as though her first answer wasn’t deemed a negative or a positive. In truth, for Kazuki at least, he felt nothing when he killed and understood why someone would feel this way. To Kazuki, there was no longer a concept of black or white, only gray.
Because of this, Kazuki couldn’t see someone as fully good or evil. Sure, some would commit deeds that were mostly good or mostly bad throughout one’s life and others would determine whether they were just this or just that based on that, but not Kazuki. Well, at least not when it came to a child.
Children were highly influenced by their surroundings. They learn behavior from what’s around them and usually behave in accordance with those teachings. Some would say this is simply a survival instinct, while others might call it a form of brainwashing from birth. Either way, in most cases a young child could be molded in such a way that harming others would be wrong and would, therefore, feel wrong to do.
Kazuki could see that Mei was not evil but was instead a product of her environment and her own power. Right now he was trying to determine if Mei was under control by her mother outside of the forest if that would be best for Mei herself. Another option was to remain in the forest under Atoh’s guidance.
Atoh is afraid of Mei taking control of his people the way she is now, but would be for it if he could help guide her and change her ways. His other fear is what would happen were she to leave and she attracted unwanted attention, causing the village to be exposed leading to his people being wiped from the face of the planet.
Tsura, on the other hand, wanted her daughter to be completely free from this place and not be imprisoned and bound to this place for all her life.
To decide what is best for Mei and the world around her was a pressure that most would not be comfortable with but Kazuki felt he had another option that would be agreeable.
Mei’s next answer cut through the tense atmosphere like a knife through butter.
“Um, why would I feel guilty? Those people that attacked me and the other villagers were really really bad. If I didn’t stop them, they would have kept hurting everyone. At the same time, I didn’t feel good either. Every time I hit those bad people or killed another one of them, all I could think about was that I’m protecting all the aunties and uncles in the village and that it had to be done. I didn’t want to kill them but those bad people really wouldn’t stop. Did I do something wrong?”
Tsura wanted to cry hearing this. Hugging Mei, she almost choked up.
“No baby, you did nothing wrong.”
Asuna and Kimi felt their hearts soften witnessing this scene.
“Mei, were someone to try and attack you again, would you kill them?”
Kazuki’s question ruined the mother-daughter moment and all the ladies stared oddly at him.
Mei nodded.
“I would.”
Tsura looked Mei in the eyes and noticed some form of determination.
“If someone were trying to hurt your mommy would you hurt them too.”
“Yes.”
“What about one of the villagers? If someone were trying to harm them, would you protect the villagers?”
Without hesitation, Mei again nodded.
“Yes.”
For some reason after every answer she gave Mei felt more and more confident but Kazuki’s next question threw her for a moment.
“OK then, what would you do if instead of some stranger attacking your mom, it was one of the villagers trying to do her harm?”
“Eh!?”
“Yes, what would you do then?”
“Eh eh…why would…”
“You’ve already experienced it last night right. The chief himself and a handful of villagers attacked your mother. Hit her over the head with a rock, knocking her unconscious. Tell me, if we didn’t show up last night, would you have killed them?”
“Eh, I kill them…I…I wouldn’t. I mean…I…I couldn’t.”
“Are you sure? I mean, if we didn’t turn up that night you would have transformed, right?”
Mei was becoming flustered from these questions and everyone could tell. Tsura stepped in front of her daughter and faced Kazuki.
“That’s enough!”
Kazuki though wasn’t finished.
“What about me, little Mei, we’re basically strangers, right? What would you do if I were to kill your mother?”
“Big bro, you wouldn’t.”
Kazuki’s eyes flashed for a moment.
“You’re wrong.”
Before anyone comprehended Kazuki’s words, his body blurred temporarily and an afterimage along with two, inch deep foot imprints in the ground were left behind. Using his powerful body and strengthening his legs further with ki, Kazuki’s had accelerated at a deafening speed. Arriving right behind Tsura, with his left arm he wrapped entirely around her body. His right hand grasping a sword, its blade resting on her neck.
“In order to protect those I care about, I would kill your mother in a heartbeat.”
“Ryuta, what are you doing!”
Asuna couldn’t sit still and rushed forward but Kazuki barked at her.
“Stay back! This is not your concern. This is between me and little Mei right here.”
Mei couldn’t understand what was happening anymore.
“Big bro, why?”
Kazuki shook his head.
“To your question, all I can say is that sometimes life is shit and you’re faced with impossible situations. Right now, would you kill me to save your mother, yes or no?”
Tears began to well up in the corner of Mei’s eyes. She didn’t know what to do and began to cry.
“Mei, don’t worry about me. If you make me transform then I’ll be fine just hurry up and…”
Kazuki pressed the blade against Tsura’s neck and a line of blood ran down. Tsura went silent seeing that Kazuki was serious.
“Mei, if I were you I would not make her transform. Although she would change in less than a second, with my arm wrapped around her body like this, my strength would crush her chest mid-transformation. Give it a try and she’ll be dead on the spot.”
Kazuki added a bit of strength in his arms just to show he wasn’t playing. With his strength on Tsura’s body which still had the Limiter tattoo, her current form was as weak as a human. With a slight squeeze, he could feel her bones begin to creak as her breath was forced out of her. Tsura’s face twisted in pain and yet she couldn’t even release the faintest sound of anguish from this torture due to lack of breath.
“No, mommy!”
Kazuki grinned before loosening his grip a bit.
With a large gasp of air, Tsura inhaled deeply and began coughing in misery.
*Uhk cough cough huff*
She wanted to try and fight back or protest but she felt her body was completely under Kazuki’s control and knew she couldn’t even move an inch.
Kazuki yelled ferociously like a devil.
“Mei, are you just going to stand there and watch me murder her!?”
“Why are you doing this? Please, big bro, stop!”
Kazuki squeezed the air from Tsura once more and loosened his grip after a few seconds this time. Tsura’s knees became weak and her body started to go limp.
Asuna, Sam, Kimi, and Danny all urged Kazuki to stop but he wouldn’t listen no matter what they said.
Mei grabbed Kimi and Danny by the back of their necks and a pained expression quickly filled their faces.
Kazuki, though, laughed.
“Hahaha, you cannot threaten me with them. Kill them if you want to but the only way you’ll save your mother is if you save her personally.”
Kazuki once more squeezed Tsura around her body and felt the air drain from her instantly. This time he held her in place.
“How much longer does your mom have? I guess she’ll have to die.”
“No, don’t!”
Kazuki didn’t listen and continued to hold her tightly, Tsura’s body became limp in his arm and he could tell with a little more force he could kill her on the spot.
Mei’s hands trembled on Kimi and Danny. Her mom was suffering immensely and she had to do something. Even now though she didn’t exert her strength and snap Danny and Kimi’s necks.
“Hmm, guess this is it.”
Asuna could take it no more and prepared to knock Kazuki out if she had to. Sam as well ran forward, ready to break Kazuki’s arms.
Mei’s hands at this moment stopped trembling.
With power in her arms, she threw Kimi and Danny behind her and her body transformed on the spot.
Within a second, her muscles folded and cracked before expanding outward, reshaping her chest. Her neck extended like a tree and her head elongated a bit. Row after row of razor-sharp teeth grew instantly and her human teeth were forced out of her mouth. Her skin peeled away like melted butter and was replaced with metal-like black feathers.
5 feet, 10, all the way to 20 feet her body grew.
*SCREEeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee*
Mei released a thundering screech but Kazuki felt no transformation coming from Tsura. Loosening his grip, he allowed fresh air into Tsura’s lungs. Tsura who was on the verge of passing out once again began to hack and cough violently. After a moment her head cleared and she saw her daughter’s Mangshi form in front of her.
“Mei!”
Mei flapped her wings and a gush of air threatened to throw almost everyone off of the ledge to their deaths down below. Danny and Kimi who were already at the wall of the cliff were simply pushed into it and didn’t suffer but Asuna was another story. With her light body, she could feel the weight leaving her legs and her feet rose off of the ground. Sam grabbed Asuna’s ankle with one hand and with armor covering his other hand, he punched into the surface of the rock around him and held himself and Asuna in place. Kazuki as well took the blade away from Tsura’s neck and stabbed it down into the ground, anchoring himself and Tsura in place.
Mei opened her large mouth and exposed her dagger-like teeth, ready to chomp down on Kazuki at a moment’s notice.
Still, once she saw Kazuki’s grip loosen and her mother breathing again, she paused.
Kazuki wasn’t slow and noticed right away. With a glare that could kill, Kazuki’s tone was cold.
“Mei, will you attack me, yes or no?”
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