Black Bullet - Volume 2 - Chapter Ep

EPILOGUE THE PLACE I CALL HOME

A while after the last bell rang, students left in twos and threes from the Magata High School gate. In the midst of them, there was also a mummified Rentaro Satomi, who had bandages wrapped around his head and various other places on his body. Rentaro put his bag on his back and hunched his shoulders as he walked out the gate and headed toward the shopping district following the highway, turning twice on the street in front of the supermarket and continuing on the narrow path of the shortcut.

He suddenly stopped walking and tilted his head. Sunlight filtered diagonally through the leaves on the tip of the branch of the beech tree on the other side of the fence as they blinked, rustling in the wind.

Sighing, he started walking again. As Rentaro walked, he went over all the things that had happened to him in succession recently.

It had been a week since everything had happened. The other day, there was an official notice from the IISO that publicly raised Rentaro’s and Enju’s rank to 300. Since there was no flashy ceremony to confer his rank like there had been for the Kagetane Hiruko terrorist incident, only those close to them knew about their rise. He gave his access key to Sumire, so she would probably dredge up the information afforded a Level 5 for him soon.

Sumire said, stunned, “I can’t believe you had the nerve to do something as idiotic as defeat a Rank 98 by yourself.” Miori also had a similar reaction, but she was even more stubborn in that she was already seriously considering putting him to use in a Shiba Heavy Weapons billboard.

Even more surprising was the Seitenshi, who really did leave her conference with Saitake to come rushing to Rentaro’s side. Apparently, Saitake had left in a fit of anger and returned to Osaka Area in a huff.

In the end, there was no material evidence linking Saitake to Rand. According to Kisara, when there is an order for this kind of assassination, there are usually a number of people in between, and even if the end of the chain is caught, that does not always lead to the original client. If what she said was true, then even if they squeezed Tina for answers, the chances that it would lead them to Saitake were very low.

It was like when someone wanted to do something malicious on the Internet, they would use a decoy server as a springboard until they were found out. Then, they would cut their ties with that server. Tina was the springboard. And like a lizard getting rid of its tail, she was immediately cut off and thrown away.

Even though he knew who the culprit was, he couldn’t do anything about it. He’d gotten a taste of this during the terrorist incident before, when he faced off against Kikunojo Tendo.

Kikunojo Tendo—

When Rentaro thought about that man, it always brought up conflicted emotions. Kikunojo loved and respected the Seitenshi and acted as her capable aide. At the same time, he also acted on his extreme prejudice against the Gastrea. Those two souls lived in one body at the same time.

People say that humans are basically good or evil. However, in the end, humans were not good or evil. Based on their positions and values those two could interchange dizzyingly within one person.

So for a moment, imagine the absence of good. How would one define the evil that should be defeated? Where would one draw the line between good and evil?

Rentaro thrust both hands in his pockets as he tilted his head to look at the sky. The only thing that was clear was that Rentaro was definitely not of the same minds as Saitake or Kikunojo, who justified the means with their goals. He would probably have to go up against them again sometime. When that time came, if he could not decide what stance to take, that would likely become a chink in his armor.

It was about time he also solidified his position.

Even though Rentaro didn’t remember where he walked or how he got there, before he knew it, he was standing in front of the Tendo Civil Security Agency. Habit was a fearsome thing.

The dear old edifice, Happy Building, had undergone a big change. Thanks to Tina and Kisara going wild, there were pieces breaking off here and there, and the second-floor cabaret seemed to still be open, covered with waterproof blue sheets.

Aimlessly climbing the stairs, Rentaro suddenly wondered if Tina was doing okay.

Tina had survived after her operation. In an unprecedented measure, she had been given over to the Seitenshi’s personal care, and was under house arrest at the Seitenshi’s palace undergoing an investigation. He hoped that the sentence she received would be generous.

He lightened his mood as he went through the door of the office and was greeted with “Oh, Satomi” and “Rentaro!”—the voices of the recovered Kisara and Enju.

With the anesthetic out of her system, Enju was more or less completely healed, and now that she was out of the hospital, she was back to her usual self. Suddenly, the doctor’s words in the hospital room came back to his mind. “There is one thing we must tell you, Satomi. About your Initiator’s body’s corrosion rate…”

In front of him, Enju looked at him puzzled with her wide eyes. “What is the matter, Rentaro? Is there something on my face?”

Rentaro looked at her in silence, finally saying, “No, I was just thinking that the atmosphere of the office is completely different when you’re here, compared to when you’re not.”

Enju looked surprised for a moment, and then laughed. “I see, I see.”

Rentaro shook his head to clear it. As he plunked down on the sofa to receive clients and stretched, he heard his bones and joints popping and creaking.

Time to do some more profitless work today again!

“Rentaro, here’s some water.”

“Oh, thanks. That’s thoughtful of you, Tina.” He took a gulp of water before he realized what had happened, and the next instant, he spurted water magnificently from his mouth and nose.

The girl gave a scream as she covered just her face with the tray to protect it from the water. Moving the tray aside a little, she looked up at him.

Blond, with slightly sleepy eyes. It was Tina. There was no mistaking it.

“What are you doing?” she asked.

“Why are you here?” Rentaro said. He had copied her tone of voice without thinking.

Kisara was all smiles as she went to stand behind Tina and put her hands on the girl’s shoulders, looking at him. “I hired her,” she said in a singsong voice, laughing.

“What do you mean, you hired her…”

If he remembered correctly, Kisara had been half-riddled with holes with a Gatling gun, and Enju had had a hole blown out of her stomach from an antitank rifle. Rentaro had had antitank bullets grazing him at a close distance. Honestly, he was about to cry. Were the girls’ memories so bad that they forgot so quickly about almost getting killed? Or did Kisara and Enju get hit in the head so much by Tina without his knowledge that there was now a problem with their brains? The poor things.

“Hey, Satomi!” Kisara said. “What’s with that look? After Tina was discharged, she had no home to go back to. Don’t you feel bad for her?”

“But…she’s a professional killer,” said Rentaro.

“I do not mind it!” Enju was all smiles as she waved and put her hand on her hip, puffing out her chest. “I finally have a junior. You can call me Miss Enju.”

Kisara followed suit, proudly puffing out her chest, closing her eyes, and putting a hand on her chest. “The gangster, Al Capone, also hired the person trying to kill him as a bodyguard, didn’t he? I think I have the capacity to do that, as well.”

Rentaro froze with his mouth gaping slightly open. Then, the girl who had almost killed everyone in the agency stepped forward bashfully. “I will be in the care of the Tendo Civil Security Agency starting today. I look forward to working with you, Rentaro.”

She bowed once happily.

Rentaro leaned back on the sofa in disgust and exhaustion until the sofa almost tipped over. Looking at the ceiling, he sighed deeply. It was a strange twist of fate, and there was the saying that even chance meetings were preordained—

But don’t blame me if anything happens, Rentaro complained to himself.

At any rate, it looked like the office was going to get noisy.

• Enju Aihara Gastrea virus corrosion rate: 43.0 percent

• Estimated time to functional collapse: 560 days