Anzu clung to her brother's arm, her eyes moistening with tears. "Please don't bully Anzu."
A small semblance of conscience that I had left felt attacked. My heart felt like it was being torn apart.
Kids can be truly terrifying.
"Look, I don't want you to think of me as some scumbag who messes around with human dignity and life. It was just a hypothetical question, okay? Please don't take it too seriously." I sincerely apologized.
"Ah, I'm sorry," Kouta replied, bowing slightly. As expected, Anzu didn't bow.
"It's your fault for asking such a thing in the first place," Anzu muttered, her voice suppressed. I wanted to say that doing something is worse than just talking about it, but I didn't. I didn't feel like continuing the conversation. Not because it was fruitless, but because my conscience might kill me before I saw any useful outcome.
Both of them must have been really hungry because they began to silently munch on the crumbled bread that Anzu had meticulously inspected (or, from my perspective, damaged). Despite the lack of conversation, the scene of them eating together felt precious, something I hadn't seen outside of school.
I relaxed my posture, crossing my legs and resting my elbows on my knees as I watched them. Kouta Ikeda, a fourth-grader, had a slender physique and his long bangs covered his eyebrows, reminiscent of Kitaro. Although he was two years older than his sister, he seemed very concerned about her mood. Not out of fear, but an overly protective demeanor. He was indeed a good big brother.
Anzu Ikeda, a second-grader, also had a noticeable tan to her skin. Her hair, which reached her shoulders, seemed wavy or curly and had a lively bounce. Her demeanor was mature and she appeared to be a determined and stubborn character.
Despite looking more worn out than their photos in newspapers and on the news, their under-eye bags seemed lighter.
"What are you staring at?" Anzu asked, stuffing her mouth with bread, her cheeks puffed out. Her stare combined with her squirrel-like cheeks transformed her glare into a more endearing expression.
"Well, I was just thinking that having a little sister is calming," I replied.
Of course, instead of blushing and looking away, she just gave me a cold stare.
"You shouldn't even ask such things," she retorted, while Kouta tried to smooth things over.
"Alright, now that you're somewhat settled, can we discuss something serious?"
"We're even hungrier now," Anzu replied defiantly. After Kouta cautioned her, she finally seemed ready to listen. After observing their expressions, I began to speak.
"I have a favor to ask of you," I prefaced, then went on to explain my request.
"I want you to say that I was the one who kidnapped you. The lady who brought you here has nothing to do with this, and I want you to keep her existence a secret. If you can promise me that, then that's all I ask."
And with that promise, I will release you soon.
I lied.
To be honest, expecting them to keep such a verbal promise is naive. Anyone who trusts people that much is asking to be deceived by some scam. So, I'll probably end up killing these kids when the time is right.
To create a dead person who cannot speak. Just like the rumored murderer in the streets.
"Um," Kouta timidly raised his hand. "Yes, Mr. Ikeda?" I said, slightly pompously, prompting him to speak.
"By 'release,' do you mean... letting us out of here?"
"Yes, that's right. More like letting you escape."
"I see... Thank you..."
It's strangely passive. It's as if he doesn't want to leave. Even when I look at Anzu, they exchange glances, both with a gloomy expression. Surely they didn't want to be kidnapped.
Kidnapping is, in a sense, a more wicked crime than murder.
Murder ends with the death of the victim, but the aftermath of kidnapping lingers.
The victims must continue their distorted lives.
Even when there's no way to rectify it.
Even though it overlaps with a path leading to death.
They have to keep living.
Being forced to keep living.
While being enslaved to what's considered "normal" by others, which they can no longer understand.
Ah, this isn't good. I need to clear my head.
"By the way, how did you two end up being kidnapped?"
The words I spat out with malice were, in contrast, uttered with a light tone.
"We were playing outside, and that lady appeared, and then we were brought here..."
Kouta's hesitant response. He briefly glanced at his sister. Anzu looked away, but her hand was placed on top of Kouta's. While I pretended to understand their sibling dynamics with a nod, internally, I was pointing a finger of objection.
Playing outside carefreely in this grim era? That's a dubious claim. The news reported that they disappeared in the evening, so they must have been outside their house. But would their parents allow that, given the circumstances? Hmm. As I pondered, feeling something was off but not wanting to dwell on it too much,
"Why are you here?"
The door burst open with a bang, and a cold voice echoed. Turning around, Mayu was standing upright, holding the handle of a frying pan, looking as composed as she would in a classroom. The childish regression from 15 minutes ago seemed like a mirage, and she looked her age, 17.
A sense of wonder painted on her face, she tried to enter the room but nearly tripped over the threshold. I quickly reached out to support her. "Thanks," she said dryly. "You're welcome," I replied, trying to act gentlemanly, then checked the contents of the frying pan.
"It's yakisoba."
Whether it was her specialty or her favorite food, Mayu offered the pan with a confident smile. The appetizing aroma of the sauce mixed with the room's stench, suppressing my appetite.
"We need something to place under this..."
My words didn't seem to register, and Mayu placed the frying pan directly on the tatami mat. The sizzling sound and the smell of burning grass filled the air. The room's atmosphere was quickly turning unpleasant.
"We should eat in the kitchen."
Mayu tugged at the sleeve of my shirt. I gently declined her suggestion.
"Let's eat here."
"Why?"
"Well, you made this for them too, right?"
Mayu's lips began to form another objection, but she took a short breath instead. With a heavily dishappy demeanor and tone, she sat down, saying, "Fine."
I received bamboo chopsticks from Mayu. With a gesture, she rather carelessly handed disposable chopsticks to the siblings. Both blinked several times as they took the chopsticks, but that moment was brief. The hungry siblings, after seeking my approval with a glance, reached into the frying pan. "Be careful, it's hot..."
Both of them, without waiting to listen to the conversation, eagerly slurped the soba from the frying pan. They ate without hesitation, even if the meal might have been poisoned. I didn't even get a chance to join in.
"It's delicious!"
"Yes, it's really good!"
Even Anzu praised the dish while munching down even the cores of the cabbage, greedily pushing it into her stomach. Most chefs would be overjoyed with such a response, but Mayu isn't like most people. She was clearly irritated, watching the yakisoba vanish into their mouths. Grinding her teeth and digging her nails into her arm, I was worried that Mayu might explode in anger. But it didn't come to that. Mayu wasn't that docile.
Mayu leisurely picked up her chopsticks. But what she did next made my vision blur.
She raised her chopsticks, aiming to strike Anzu's head with them.
"Idiot!"
Reacting instantly, I reached out with my right hand to stop her. Mayu's colorful chopsticks pierced into the base of my middle finger, breaking the skin.
"Feels like... an alien emerging from my hand..."
"...Mii-kun?"
Mayu tilted her head in confusion at the chopstick embedded diagonally in my hand. Kouta and Anzu, without pausing their meal, stared at my hand. These kids are tough. Their appetite is insatiable.
As blood oozed from my hand, Mayu finally reacted.
"I'll get some bandages."
She stood up nonchalantly. Feeling neither guilt nor remorse.