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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpRpLDK5OX8
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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbfnpiD1BzE
She looked at the goddess. Their gazes met - Estella’s large, pleading eyes spoke for themselves.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsTrfcy0KRO
“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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ84JnhuiHc1
“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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZBzAjaMUSq
“What’s the matter?” she asked.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNRBazHJt6h
“Quiet, or he’ll hear us,” Estella whispered.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyOL8ZJzJkL
“Who?” The goddess glanced over her shoulder. Kimoko followed her gaze and felt her face pale.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY3JYUqTM8P
Something twisted in Kimoko’s stomach.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXJQeAJALBn
“So… it’s him after all.”
Estella turned to her again.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt6ie0FYu9M
“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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡefbqDDAL1B
“If she treated her brother the same way, then I’m not surprised he left her.”
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡntbi1bwCBc
“Why should I leave him? Just because he’s a demon?” she asked quietly, though her voice trembled with anger.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg0Z9i8Op9G
Estella nodded.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvpmmSBiIg1
Something inside Kimoko snapped. All the pent-up anger, fear, desperation – everything exploded.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBvvAzfEa2I
“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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0fJDHBwdhY
Kigami stepped closer, his face expressing a mixture of shock and worry.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8s6JqMPno0
“Are you okay?” he asked quietly.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl3axwCRybt
Estella nodded, but Kimoko couldn’t pretend she was okay any longer.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy6strMmL7H
“Please, Estella. Tell him that to his face. Tell him that you don’t think he deserves to live…
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbCP14T5GXa
The wind blew harder, tearing at their clothes and hair.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi3OJNDdIVB
Kimoko saw how those words hit Kigami. How his face paled even more, how pain and disbelief mingled in his gaze.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe3MmFXjgat
The first tear rolled down his cheek.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2oi1vylMfn
“It’s not like that…” Estella began.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8tbVHERIOC
But Kigami didn’t let her finish.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGTYEFPwiEc
“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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUkCgLN2MZE
“Do I really not deserve to live? Would the world be better without me?”
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIPk0ZZu70k
She swallowed hard. Her throat was still tight.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOcdi2DhiZa
She gently placed her hand on his cheek.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH64W0Ka6w4
“No…” she whispered, her voice breaking.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh9uZKQcepQ
Kigami shuddered.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoQlREh7vOg
And then he burst into tears like a child.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjKlZXBneRA
“I’m sorry… for my existence…” he replied with a shaky voice.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqD9JiD0M80
Kimoko felt her own heart break.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy9tVsogry0
“Kigami, it’s not like that, you didn’t…” Estella began.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1A3kcJ1UxL
But Kimoko interrupted her.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ04Gn9Pj0D3
“What else did you mean? Why does everyone immediately assume he’s evil?”
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBANSxPEZxO
“Because I’ve dealt with many people like him!” the goddess snorted. Her voice trembled with anger.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgNMbLUsPwK
Kimoko should have bitten her tongue. She should run away from this argument. But she wasn’t going to do that.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1sMAMHD2sO
“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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOoim6fYKae
Only the wind whispered between the trees.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7g68KB1sa4
Estella didn’t take her eyes off Kimoko. Her hands clenched into fists, and the tension between them seemed almost tangible.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDxmh8V22SX
“You know nothing about me…” the goddess hissed, and there was more than just anger in her voice.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7srcHrEV5T
“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?!”
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe2bdTUa66y
“It’s not about what he did,” Estella clenched her jaw, fighting her emotions. “It’s about what he can do.” Kimoko she gasped.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnu4AluRn7b
“Yes… because you’ve never done anything wrong, have you?” Estella opened her mouth, but couldn’t find an answer.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc8JEpQtH4G
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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm2q68YUBBR
He didn’t deserve to live.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHdwYbkUiGZ
The world would be better without him.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzIwRxCN1ux
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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2qxPuDv0Ch
Kimoko pressed her lips together.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0UbpCIu5rk
“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.”
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ288qi7kP3j
She turned on her heel and walked over to Kigami.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv70sLjVLaf
“Let’s go.” Kigami didn’t answer. He still stood there, as if he hadn’t heard her words.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxj0LO0MkR6
“Kigami?
She touched his hand, and he finally looked at her. There was emptiness in his eyes.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF7rErC3JR6
“Let’s just… go,” she whispered.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY8exWrdWwC
Kigami nodded slowly and followed her.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ72j2l63w8w
Estella stayed behind. She didn’t say a word.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWtsU9avv1C
The wind blew again, colder this time. As if a summer morning was giving way to an approaching storm.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpB6upIoZI5
They walked in silence.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDwwSSmOXe1
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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlQYCGXH3JV
She couldn’t stand the way he looked at herself.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHDdRekBrRS
As if he really believed what Estella had said.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBf12JxS2HC
She walked closer to him, her arm almost brushing his, as if to let him know he wasn’t alone.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhOXnFXoH4b
After a moment, she heard a quiet whisper.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH06qF3sBEE
“…What if she’s right?”
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHTBMbXxJrk
She stopped, as if someone had suddenly ripped her heart out of her chest.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡim4IBeWkdM
Kigami stopped too, but didn’t look at her. He was looking somewhere in the distance, into the emptiness in front of him.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmpvLCJBlcr
“Kigami…”
“What if I really shouldn’t exist? If the world… if you… would be better off without me?”
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgc0pa8a9Co
Kimoko felt something squeeze inside her.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡja8eO4aEDW
“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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkm94PgkYuG
Kigami finally looked at her, and in his eyes she saw something that terrified her.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkWxllOi1Jh
It wasn’t anger.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg1B9E4LtUh
It was despair.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA3xIhNOC2a
Kimoko felt she had to do something, anything, before that shadow in his eyes swallowed him completely.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkDHURxhBS2
Without thinking, she grabbed his hand and squeezed it tightly. “Kigami, I won’t let you think that way. Do you understand?”
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtqc30mBqex
He didn’t answer.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdrgFlj2M01
“ 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.”
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQd9Nh2HQ5v
He looked at her silently, as if he was trying to believe her, but something inside him was stopping him from doing so.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSa9l5rPmuj
Kimoko clenched her teeth.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSpciZvFa9h
“ If you can’t believe it yourself… then I will believe it for you.”
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIopNByzH0O
Something stirred in his gaze.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBWhGTohQfp
Gently, carefully, he squeezed her hand.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3dVTMGoaIw
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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg8AB65Hhpz
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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOnOKEXtRYe
She pressed her lips together.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW6BtxRPUOM
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?
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFsPsyFtm3B
A doubt was rising in her heart.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKTGdKd9nV6
“I… I can’t…”
But she couldn’t drown it out. Estella watched them from a distance.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnO6PUkZa4c
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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEmtZ9EH2XY
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.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHm11B7WsQQ
And how had it ended? for him? for her?
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvraitOjhWm
Estella looked away and bit her lip.
74Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1pN0UtibM7
“You’re stupid, Kimoko,” she whispered to herself. “But maybe… maybe I am too.”
ns216.73.216.251da2
