Flames. I can only see flames so far. I am running. I can only see flames so far. Fire. Fire. Fire. Everywhere as far as my eyes can see, everything is burning. I can hear crying. People are dying as I hear their cries. The cries for help. I ran away. I am a bastard who ran away. I didn't even care about my parents as I was running straight without care.
I can feel the flames despite running away from them. The heat of those flames are so hot that it is burning my skin. I am having difficulty breathing. My head is feeling dizzy.
I am running for several minutes like a crazy person. Ignoring everyone as caring about myself. I just don't understand why they are not running like me?! Why are they asking for help?! I can't understand!
I can't breathe. It feels so hard to breathe. I grab my chest. My speed started to slow down. My steps slipped. I can't breathe. My heart feels so heavy. I looked above the sky. Sky is glowing orange and due to the reflected light of fire. Normally, you can see the stars in the sky during night time from this town so clearly but there are dark thick clouds that are blocking my view. Ash and embers are floating.
I will die. Is this my end? Is this how I will die? Then what? What would happen after my death? Has anyone seen what happens after death? I heard that good people go to heaven and bad people go to hell? Buddha(God) judges them. What about Buddha(God)? Who judged him? If this place was some shady place then people would call this destruction a judgement of Buddha(God). Is this work of evil? We are humans. I can't understand. I want to——
I woke up. It was just a dream. My face is not sweaty from this dream because it is a dream not a nightmare. Whenever I heard that voice.....the voice of the Russian person I met in the house of Bessmertny whose voice matched that voice which I heard in a nightmare.
I follow my usual daily routine. Brushing my teeth, changing clothes and cleaning my room.
It looks like senpai hasn't come yet. Did I wake up early?
I don't think so. She should have come at 7:00 AM but it was already 7:30 AM and I find it funny that I didn't hear a sound yet. Weird. Also, where did my pervert brother go?
I was thinking about all the possibilities. Maybe senpai got a fever. This is why she wasn't able to come. What about my older brother? Maybe, he died somewhere when he went to some pub to bang a girl. Endless possibilities exist with him.
I went to the hall where the TV was. Maybe, I should watch something.
At this time, I think Mizamashi is going on. Let's watch.
I open the TV.
"Yo! Kazuya!"
I look behind me.
No! Not again! I saw my brother with senpai but this time was different. He is wearing a yellow long brush type wig. He is wearing black style chef or you can say gentlemen type clothes. He is cosplaying as Sanji.
"No way! Why?! Why do you have to do those things?"
I am annoyed but love his weird things.
He put his hand on his pocket.
"Don't even try to think. No smoking in house"
"Okay, my little brother. Don't worry I will not smoke or anything"
I smell something tasty.
"I didn't see anyone cooking and I am sure you cannot cook a meal, brother"
He gave me a smirk as Senpai came with a plate of food. No way! What is today?
"What is today?"
I asked them.
I looked at the dishes.
Yudofu(hot heated tofu) which she poured mirin on. Mirin is your Japanese sweet rice wine. It tastes better with it than soy sauce.
Also, there is sweet white rice made with mochi. If we are getting mochi for breakfast then something is special. Rice cake. Wait.....it is matcha flavored mochi!
There were some boxes. Those boxes contain mitarashi dango. I open my box. It comes in three group sets. Glassy glaze and burnt fragrance. They are dipped in sweet soy sauce.
"What is special today?!"
I can't hold my excitement as we are having breakfast like at festivals.
"Kazuya, today is Hanatouro festival"
"Yeah. The festival that is used to attract foreigners here to show them beauty of our country"
It doesn't matter what the government does or not. But at least, we are going to have great food from this day to 20th December.
"But, isn't this festival mostly celebrated and Kyoto being an attractive beauty thing?"
Sakura smiled.
"This is the reason. We also celebrate to show that we are great. We all want our city to look more beautiful. To make this place a great place!"
We sit together as we start to eat our meal. Thanks for everything!
I notice something weird about Senpai. She is wearing an apron. I don't mind that she is wearing that as it is the manner of a chef to wear this when cooking. But the thing which is bothering me is that.....this apron shouldn't be worn. If she is wearing this then only possible answer is——
"Brother, did you give that apron to Senpai?"
He looks at Sakura and then looks at me. He smirked like a devil. Please! Don't spill the secret!
He looks at Sakura.
"Hey! Isn't this the same apron which was your favorite?!"
"Don't speak, you idiot!"
She looked at us.
"Kazuya loves this apron?"
I tried to stop from speaking but as usual, he somehow escaped from all of my tries.
"Yes! This apron has its own history. I remember in one lucky draw, I won this girly apron and I put it back somewhere. I always thought about giving this apron to the girl who will marry my little brat!"
I blush. Not only me but Senpai also blush. We both looked at each other but didn't speak. My face is heating up! I can't understand what is happening to my body. My whole body feels like it's on fire.
I look at Senpai.
Her eyes are magnificent to show her innocence and shyness. Her long white hair just adds to her beauty. Her smile can melt anyone's heart.
I look away. Wake up! She is in front of you! She is your senpai, you idiot!
We ate our food in peace. There is still some time left. Me and Senpai pick the plates, bowls and cups and take them to the kitchen to wash them. We normally wash them after coming from school. So, yeah. We are just letting them sink and do our work later.
I saw senpai just standing. I mean, it is not wrong to stand or I have objection to this but senpai rarely do this. It looks like she is in deep thinking. Is she still thinking about that apron thing?
"Senpai? Senpai!"
I called out to her. She is not listening. It is not about the apron. She is thinking about something else.
I touch her shoulder. It looks like she is in some sort of sleep mode with open eyes.
"Senpai! Senpai!"
She snapped out of her depth.
"What? Something happened, Kazuya?"
"No. But, it looks like you were some sort of thought. What were you thinking about?"
She looked at me. I can see sweat forming on her forehead. Is she okay? I don't think so.
"Senpai, are you okay? Something happened? Did you forget something? Tell me. I can help you"
I want to know her problem. Is she being troubled by someone or is she having some difficulty in her task or other other works? I want to know her problem. Maybe I can help her out. If not me then my brother.
She looked at me again and then looked away.
Something is wrong.
"Well, Kazuya.....I forgot my textbooks and.....today is my exam"
"Huh?!"
You are telling me that she is worried about her exams!! What type of person is she?! Who cares about exams?
"I thought that you had some problem, Senpai. It looks like you are okay. You are just over tensing yourself. You are already good in academics and I don't think anyone would care. Also, I think based on your performance being top, you can skip the exam itself"
Yes. Our school is racist.
Main law of this school is that you are unbound to the rules of schools and everything. If you are good in academics or sports and if you are good in both things then your authority is on the same level as the teacher.
"You are an idiot for a reason. You can't see the heart of a lady. For me, everything should be good. I can't skip my exams"
"Oh okay. I think we should go to your home and take your textbooks. We will goes to school as school and your house are on same route"
I can't see the heart of Lady? Weird. Maybe there are still things that I didn't understand. How can I judge someone's heart? The same heart which holds many emotions and love. Until they died, no one knew the worth of that heart. Especially the heart of a human. Humanity is a contradictory creature.
If it was my brother, he would see the breast of a lady and then the night season. This is his way of seeing the heart. I never saw him doing those things in the house. I mean, he smoked and drank but never saw him doing any of those things. My brother is something else.
"No!"
She suddenly shouted.
"What?"
"I mean! I have to leave. If we leave together then.....I will be late and will not get any time to revise for my exam"
Senpai is worrying about this exam so much. She never had worried about exams. No, she never cared to even open the books to prepare for exams. I never saw that much worry.
She quickly took her bag and left my house.
She is surely in a hurry for something.
"Okay, help me in cleaning, brother!"
No answer. It looks like just after eating. It is his usual habit. I cannot do anything about them. I will wash it after coming from school.
——
My earliest sweet memory was ten years ago when I was just a child.
A person who is standing in front of me.
He is tall and strong. He is my older brother. His black hair is shining like a shadow of three that gives you a relaxing feeling. He is the same for me.
"Why are we in Japan? Tell me! You told me that you will take me some fantastic place"
He kneels down in front of me with a smile.
"Beatrice, you love Pokémon so much. Remember Pikachu? He is from Japan"
"Really?!"
He nodded to me.
I can't believe that I am going to meet Pikachu.
"Will I see Mario too? I heard that he is also from Japan!"
"Yes. You will meet him too, princess"
That was exciting. My best memories were those where I was with my father. I didn't see him after those events. I wasn't able to see his dead body.
I was just a child back then. I didn't know that he was taking my attention away from something important. Something which will change my destiny.
A war.....it was not an ordinary war. A war to decide the fate of the universe. A game of carnage and destruction. It is a game created by above(God). The universe itself is promoting this killing. Universe is running towards its own death.
The events that my father experienced are going to happen to me. These events that I will never forget——
Something is ringing.
"Hmm"
It is my clock. Shutting it off my clock. I decided to get out of bed.
My clock is pointing at 7:45 AM. I woke up late. Yesterday.....I can't forget that time. That damn bastard who tries to kill me. He is the biggest bastard I ever saw in my life. That damn bastard was able to beat me. I wasn't able to capture it. This is why I wasn't able to take my beauty night.
I went to wash my face in the sink. After brushing my hair and tying my ribbons. I am all ready.
Yes! I am not going to school today but to find that godkiller. If he is really that expert then I have to form an alliance with him in order to survive.
I open the TV. Maybe I can get some hints on that person by looking through the news.
"Let's see how far you can find, godkiller"
News is on spot—
"Breaking News: Yesterday in the night, an explosive fight was held where several types of explosions were used. Police are still trying to find the culprit behind the scenes. Police are speculating that it is some sort of local gang work. Also, by using the surveillance cameras, we find a blur image of this person who was seen riding at full"
A picture was shown. It is a worse image but due to my memories, I can still clearly imagine him. He is the same person. He is a godkiller. Wait! Number plate can be seen. I can't believe that despite the weird blur image, the number is shown. Now, I can find unless Police find him first.
"It is found that the bike was stolen. This bike originally belongs to a kindergarten school English teacher"
It shows a dark skinned person who is probably a foreigner. Why? Why always black people? Japan is a friendly racist country.
So, he really didn't leave any proof behind. How will I be able to find him?
I switch off the TV.
I went to my bedroom. I hate this feeling. I want to take revenge on him!
A call started coming on my phone.
I took the phone.
"Hello, Beatrice. I hope you are okay. Why didn't you come to visit the Church?"
"Because it is none of your business, Wolfram"
"Oh, I see. I think you are still in your aggressive mode after your crushing defeat against that candidate yesterday"
No mercy. Who in the world made him priest of the church of this city?
"I will deal with him in my own way. Don't put your nose in our matters"
"If you want to leave this stage then you can but remember that you will not be able to escape from destiny. The curse of being a candidate of god is that wherever you go, war will start. It is inevitable"
I hung up my phone. This priest is crazy.
"Did you talk enough?"
I jumped back in surprise.
The one who was in front of me.
He has sharp light colored eyes with a confident smirk. His sparky orange-blonde hair is wild and slightly unkempt.
He wears a sleeveless red vest with silver buckle straps. His white shirt underneath is tight fitting. A bracelet on his left wrist.
His left arm is covered in tattoos. Left one got most and the right one got less.
He puts a cigarette in his mouth and starts to smoke.
He is——
"Godkiller!"
I can't believe that he straight up came to assassinate me.
"Why did you come here?!"
He took out a cigarette from his mouth.
"I just came to talk here. Just personal things"
He sat on the sofa.
"It is so fluffy. If I put you here and rail your part with my part then it would be fun!"
He is a pervert.
"Say what you want to say"
He looked at me with a smirk.
"I want an alliance because you got good boob size"
"What——?"
I wasn't able to understand what he just said. He came for alliance. It is the same reason why I am trying to find him. But.....this reason is something that I didn't understand. You got what?!
My face got on fire. It is a common thing! It is a common thing! I am just a 15 year old teenage girl. It is okay that my hormones will kick up! I have to control them. Also, he existed from my father's era. That means he is an old man with a young appearance because he is also a candidate. He is an expert.
"Don't worry sweetie! It's okay to feel wet when you are in front of me. I am sexy for sure. What's your age? Same as mine? I am sure because I had seen you fighting. You got experience"
I look at him with a blush. He is a bastard!
"I am just 15 years old! You stupid old man! I am far younger than you"
I yelled at him.
His expression from being flirty turned into a shocked one.
"Then I should terminate you!"
"What?!"
He laughed.
"I am just joking. I just came here to make an alliance with you. I am sure you want to survive this war. This war will be big one as several candidates had entered into the city"
His face is now serious.
"Why did you choose me then?"
He looked at me.
I want to know his answer. I want to make an alliance with him in order to survive in this war but. What about him? He is a godkiller. Or is he not? Is he a faker?
"It looks like you were not lying about your age. Experience really comes from soul and age. Well, we know that we are candidates to become god but we all know that there can only be one candidate. There are two types of candidates. One is a prodigy who is perfect as their soul quality is greatest compared to other candidates. Second one is genius, those are not perfect. They rebuild themselves from zero to being heroes. They are all about hardwork and using different methods. If prodigy is pure strength then genius is pure technique"
I got it. People were telling the truth when they said that old people gave you words of wisdom. I thought that they all just said bullshit.
"Then what are you? What about me? Is this related to our alliance?"
He nodded.
"Yes. It is related. I am a prodigy and you are a genius. The weakness of both type is that if a prodigy get rusted or he let himself sink in his peaceful life then he will be ruined and get weaker whereas compare to genius, genius are weak in general as they have path of hell to reach level of prodigy but once they reached that realm then they don't hold weakness. I got rusty and you are a genius. This is why I want to make an alliance with you"
So, he got weaker. This is why he came to me for help. Rather, he comes to just use me as a shield in order to become strong again.
His explanation raised another question in my heart.
"Why didn't you make an alliance with other prodigious candidates like you?"
"The battle of ego"
He answered this without looking at me as he sipped another of his cigarettes.
"Battle of ego?"
"Yes. It would be a battle of ego. It is common science. Like charges repel each other and unlike charges attract each other. It is fundamental explanation"
"What do you mean?"
He smiled at me with a weird expression.
"Let's say genius is submission and prodigy is dominant, okay? Dominant people want to be top during sexual activity. If both are dominant then they would fight over who will be at top which means no coordination. Same in submission type, if both are bottom then it doesn't make sense"
He is giving me a weird explanation. What a creepy person. Why do most dangerous people always turn out to be harmless weird perverts?
"Now, relate this with our situation. I am a prodigy which equals being dominant and you are a genius which equals being submission. You will be on bottom and I will ride. Perfect combo"
I blushed. This bastard! Shameless pervert!
I threw a punch at him but he dodge it.
That's my life. The start of our alliance to survive in this war. A pervert and perfect student duo——
Who is writing this weird story?!