They slowly made their way forward. The morning sunlight gently warmed their skin, and the cool summer wind blew against their faces. Estella walked briskly, as if she wanted to avoid contact with them. It was strange, but Kimoko didn’t want to think about it - her thoughts were still circling Kigami. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. Every step he took was careful, every movement deliberate so as not to aggravate her wound even more.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMDYFy5onmr
Since that night, neither of them had spoken. Kimoko wasn’t sure if it was because of what she had learned about Kigami or because he still felt awful. And yet, even that didn’t explain Estella’s strange behavior.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpc79w1xhvO
She looked at the goddess. Their gazes met - Estella’s large, pleading eyes spoke for themselves.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZKrtCNt7ve
“Kimoko, can you come over?” Kimoko hesitated. She didn’t want to leave Kigami alone, but she felt that Estella had something important to say.
Kigami noticed her internal conflict and placed a hand on her shoulder.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ35L6J7at0u
“You know you don’t have to watch over me. I’m not a child, I can handle myself.” Kimoko sighed. She didn’t feel like arguing with him, especially when she heard the certainty in his voice. Without further ado, she approached Estella.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ10NEGOl81q
“What’s the matter?” she asked.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4XfoaFDiKG
“Quiet, or he’ll hear us,” Estella whispered.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKcq7KEq01J
“Who?” The goddess glanced over her shoulder. Kimoko followed her gaze and felt her face pale.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR5nvVj7SEW
Something twisted in Kimoko’s stomach.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG5SPoxmFTI
“So… it’s him after all.”
Estella turned to her again.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF3b7IWRfkE
“I heard your conversation yesterday. I don’t know about you, but I didn’t trust him from the start. Why are you holding on to him? Why didn’t you leave him in Amoria back then?” Kimoko’s throat tightened painfully. She couldn’t get the words out. She felt anger and… disappointment growing inside her.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡREz9YVVQ4Z
“If she treated her brother the same way, then I’m not surprised he left her.”
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGXlxHJW0gO
“Why should I leave him? Just because he’s a demon?” she asked quietly, though her voice trembled with anger.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd7gRuQDEf4
Estella nodded.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk5SbJ8SBOk
Something inside Kimoko snapped. All the pent-up anger, fear, desperation – everything exploded.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡllMhUiONCs
“Let’s start with the fact that if you could handle Amoria on your own, we wouldn’t have to save you!” she hissed, tears of anger streaming down her cheeks. Her fists clenched so hard that her nails dug into her skin, but she didn’t pay attention to it.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLGpEaanINd
Kigami stepped closer, his face expressing a mixture of shock and worry.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ76QHdNkqu6
“Are you okay?” he asked quietly.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJvC2AoQLEN
Estella nodded, but Kimoko couldn’t pretend she was okay any longer.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd1aT5iLFjo
“Please, Estella. Tell him that to his face. Tell him that you don’t think he deserves to live…
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEin7Qm2IUh
The wind blew harder, tearing at their clothes and hair.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDMEuMhTrSE
Kimoko saw how those words hit Kigami. How his face paled even more, how pain and disbelief mingled in his gaze.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbvnL9YRisZ
The first tear rolled down his cheek.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa15YVtUvKB
“It’s not like that…” Estella began.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBLLsutVN7O
But Kigami didn’t let her finish.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOmgMqXUi3i
“And how, you fucking rabbit?” he growled. “Is this how you repay me for helping you? For solving your fucking problems that you yourself have screwed up, that you can’t fucking deal with?! If it weren’t for me and Kimoko, you would be done for! But no, instead of a simple “thank you”, you would rather see me dead because I was born a fucking demon!” He took a step towards her and Estella cowered in front of him, but Kimoko wasn’t going to stop him. She didn’t care what he did.
Kigami stopped and looked at her. There was something in his eyes that made Kimoko’s heart stop.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmxtDB1AAAD
“Do I really not deserve to live? Would the world be better without me?”
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuJf0xy5xrq
She swallowed hard. Her throat was still tight.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdxHC9Ex6a8
She gently placed her hand on his cheek.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡouVFy3GUF3
“No…” she whispered, her voice breaking.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV7eaorJ0Hj
Kigami shuddered.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZQIzMNsDJq
And then he burst into tears like a child.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrrzX1L3b8w
“I’m sorry… for my existence…” he replied with a shaky voice.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsCJIt0jgXu
Kimoko felt her own heart break.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVzfPcGT8OT
“Kigami, it’s not like that, you didn’t…” Estella began.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAqCPUklT58
But Kimoko interrupted her.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkZ2ZCVRxxg
“What else did you mean? Why does everyone immediately assume he’s evil?”
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXdGVQFTCSS
“Because I’ve dealt with many people like him!” the goddess snorted. Her voice trembled with anger.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDfXSccum1X
Kimoko should have bitten her tongue. She should run away from this argument. But she wasn’t going to do that.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfg7Mv4Hy9q
“Maybe that’s why you’re like them,” she whispered. “Maybe that’s why you’re no better than them.” Estella held her breath and Kimoko looked her straight in the eye, Silence fell.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Rm4BojbLe
Only the wind whispered between the trees.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjVHPmYXfmS
Estella didn’t take her eyes off Kimoko. Her hands clenched into fists, and the tension between them seemed almost tangible.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9KWG1gqlNM
“You know nothing about me…” the goddess hissed, and there was more than just anger in her voice.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7YzlsiDpZ2
“And you know nothing about him,” Kimoko replied sharply, taking a step closer to her. “You treat him like a monster, even though he saved your life. What else does he have to do to make you stop looking at him through the prism of what he is, and not who he is?!”
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvsb5sx4Xv4
“It’s not about what he did,” Estella clenched her jaw, fighting her emotions. “It’s about what he can do.” Kimoko she gasped.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWprWVe4P3x
“Yes… because you’ve never done anything wrong, have you?” Estella opened her mouth, but couldn’t find an answer.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzRwKAu8abn
Kigami stood still, as if he hadn’t heard their argument. He stared at the ground, his breath ragged, his shoulders shaking. Kimoko knew the words were still ringing in his head.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0tz3NAw9th
He didn’t deserve to live.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0gAMGipprp
The world would be better without him.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGbgF7E7A9y
She didn’t care whether Estella had thought it through or not. The fact was, she had said what she had thought. And now Kigami was breaking down.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdSl299AhxS
Kimoko pressed her lips together.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwq7SfjYPwS
“I don’t want anything to do with you, Estella,” she said finally. Her voice was icy. “Not until you realize how wrong you are.”
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd1qGRUUCCC
She turned on her heel and walked over to Kigami.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXqejpKLvaP
“Let’s go.” Kigami didn’t answer. He still stood there, as if he hadn’t heard her words.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgipZn4gnF
“Kigami?
She touched his hand, and he finally looked at her. There was emptiness in his eyes.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxf0E9GrIMq
“Let’s just… go,” she whispered.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT1pcrwGyEW
Kigami nodded slowly and followed her.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzGP8oGnq1s
Estella stayed behind. She didn’t say a word.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfNxY0ZzHZD
The wind blew again, colder this time. As if a summer morning was giving way to an approaching storm.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVri4Dj0ieM
They walked in silence.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQfYgLpLeuT
Every step seemed heavier, and the air between them was thick with unspoken words. Kimoko felt like she should say something, anything to snap Kigami out of his stupor. But when she looked at his face, at his slumped shoulders and empty gaze, all the words caught in her throat.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ2epweJZ6L
She couldn’t stand the way he looked at herself.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9E4UTwifwi
As if he really believed what Estella had said.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnsbU9HOWYn
She walked closer to him, her arm almost brushing his, as if to let him know he wasn’t alone.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB2qVIBMX4H
After a moment, she heard a quiet whisper.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxS5LnLGcIL
“…What if she’s right?”
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdarhUVyAOG
She stopped, as if someone had suddenly ripped her heart out of her chest.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIVnLcjrTBd
Kigami stopped too, but didn’t look at her. He was looking somewhere in the distance, into the emptiness in front of him.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ766SML3inh
“Kigami…”
“What if I really shouldn’t exist? If the world… if you… would be better off without me?”
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbakF4bUrEb
Kimoko felt something squeeze inside her.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡArpe1KJCKI
“Don’t say that,” she said quietly but firmly.
“But it’s true.”
“It’s not true!” Her voice came out sharper than she intended.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtwxHWAbsBy
Kigami finally looked at her, and in his eyes she saw something that terrified her.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXA2k3yQF7b
It wasn’t anger.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfi2QDWcpu0
It was despair.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLOUi1SsBH0
Kimoko felt she had to do something, anything, before that shadow in his eyes swallowed him completely.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ65VONYVLp3
Without thinking, she grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly. “Kigami, I won’t let you think that way. Do you understand?”
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFeqdLJfo1u
He didn’t answer.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd5LGw9u9tJ
“ You’re not a monster. You’re not someone who deserves to die. And you’re definitely not someone the world should get rid of.”
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡelPcryhwSq
He looked at her silently, as if he was trying to believe her, but something inside him was stopping him from doing so.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU4YFBTvwiD
Kimoko clenched her teeth.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg1DihlWLhl
“ If you can’t believe it yourself… then I will believe it for you.”
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtDCh8Ta7JD
Something stirred in his gaze.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrR1HrWDtTV
Gently, carefully, he squeezed her hand.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy8FfWqY9gi
And then he moved on, not letting go of her hand.
And although he didn’t say another word, Kimoko felt that this one moment meant more than any conversation.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡimyRoYb6Uq
Estella walked a few steps behind them, silent. She felt the weight of her own words, their echoes echoing in her head like an unwanted melody.
Did she really want this?
She looked at Kimoko and Kigami, at their clasped hands, at the way the girl tried to steady him, at how his usually unyielding posture now seemed… broken.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdjEhpCWBZV
She pressed her lips together.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqYVsZEGfZ5
She had been dealing with demons. She had seen their betrayals, their lies, the death they brought. So why couldn’t she feel the same certainty now, looking at Kigami?
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqclzu00Oj5
A doubt was rising in her heart.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2jYjwMYt2N
“I… I can’t…”
But she couldn’t drown it out. Estella watched them from a distance.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9lYfdwmNAM
She couldn’t hear their conversation, but she could see the way Kimoko looked at Kigami. She saw how gently he held her hand, how his posture, though still tired, seemed a little lighter when she was with him.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡALZWPNr11w
She clenched her fingers in her dress.
She didn’t understand it.
She didn’t understand her.
Kimoko was naive. Too trusting.
But was that really a bad thing?
Her brother had been the same way once.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJroiEobUbV
And how had it ended? for him? for her?
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYCa9IDpJ0V
Estella looked away and bit her lip.
44Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPr6xwAtKAR
“You’re stupid, Kimoko,” she whispered to herself. “But maybe… maybe I am too.”
ns216.73.216.65da2
