Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 10 - Chapter 7

What the Necklace Meant

After dashing out of the parking lot of the abandoned building, Koutarou headed straight to the site of the accident where his mother would meet her tragic end. He paid no attention to his surroundings as he went. He ignored traffic lights, and he bumped into people left and right, but he simply pressed forward. The time was already 7 PM, so if Koutarou remembered correctly, the accident would happen just after the turn of the hour. Since he wasn’t sure of the exact time, he wasn’t sure if he’d make it or not. But he still had to try. He was banking everything on that small chance she was still alive.

That corner! It’s just around that corner!

Koutarou was now only a little bit away from the site of the accident. His heart was pumping as fast as it could manage, his lungs were screaming for oxygen, and his legs were slowing down from exhaustion. The pounding of his pulse was so loud that he could barely hear anything else. But Koutarou ignored all of it and forced himself forward. His mother was about to die in an accident just around the corner. Now wasn’t the time to be worried about his body.

All right, I just turn here!

Koutarou slowed down a little to turn the last corner. As he did, he could hear the loud screech of a siren blaring behind him. The large, white van approached and passed him as it turned the same corner. The side of it read: “Harukaze City Fire Department.” There was a red warning light flashing on top of it too. There was no doubt about it. It was an ambulance.

There was a large crowd of people in the direction the ambulance was heading. The people were gathered around something. It looked like there was a stopped car that had slammed into the guardrail in the middle of the crowd. And right next to that guardrail was a lone boy, sitting on the road and embracing a half-knit sweater. Scattered on the ground around him were the remains of a bamboo basket and the various knitting tools it had been holding. Then there was the woman collapsed in front of the boy. She looked as if she were floating as she lay motionless in a pool of red liquid.

“Ah...”

The moment Koutarou saw it, he stopped in his tracks. Strength left his body and he froze on the spot. Koutarou simply stood there and watched how things developed. The emergency responders rushed past the boy to get to the fallen woman. The crowd continued growing, eventually keeping Koutarou from seeing the boy, the woman, or the emergency personnel.

“Veltlion...”

A woman wearing glasses and a long dress appeared next to Koutarou.

“I am so sorry... By the time I found the place, it was already...”

Clan had an apologetic look on her face. After she had guided Koutarou to the abandoned building where Kii was, she’d done her best to follow the brief directions he’d given her to the scene of the accident. It wasn’t easy, however, and by the time she finally found the right place, it was already too late.

It was almost as if Clan’s calm and sympathetic voice was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Koutarou lost all strength in his legs and slumped down where he was standing. He looked no different than the boy who was embracing the half-knit sweater.

“Onii-chan! Onee-chan!”

That was when Kii caught up. Koutarou had left her with Clan’s reconnaissance craft and rushed on ahead. That was why she was running a bit behind him in getting there.

“What happened to your mom?!”

Kii still didn’t know what had happened, but she had a bad feeling when she saw Koutarou sitting on the ground. She just didn’t want to believe it was true.

“We didn’t make it in time...” Clan said in a sorrowful voice and shook her head.

“No! Then did Onii-chan’s mom die?!”

Kii screamed out as tears flooded her eyes. She didn’t want to accept that Koutarou’s mother had died any more than he did.

I didn’t make it... Mom... died again...

Kii’s screams carved the reality of the situation into Koutarou’s frozen heart. It was like the pain burst some kind of emotional dam. Memories of the days after his mother had died rushed over him all at once.

Koutarou’s mother had left behind only a half-knit sweater. Like Kii, Koutarou had searched for her repeatedly after losing her. His father took to alcohol to drown out his own sorrows. Their relationship steadily grew worse, and it took a long time to repair the damage that had been done. Things were fine between them now, but Koutarou had had to grow up a good deal before that was possible.

One could say that Koutarou’s childhood had been lonely. Once he got home from school, he was always alone. And being all alone in a house full of memories of his mother was hard. His father always came home from work late, and they didn’t see eye to eye on things anyway. Really, they were both just having a hard time adjusting to their loss, but they took it out on each other. It took a long time for them to be able to reconcile because of that. Before time and friends could heal his heart, Koutarou would spend a long time alone. That was also one of the reasons he’d devoted himself so utterly to baseball.

Reflecting on all of that, Koutarou was overcome with deep loneliness and an intense sense of defeat. Now he’d lost his mother not once, but twice.

“Damn it, I couldn’t save her! I couldn’t save mom!”

Koutarou slammed his fist into the hard concrete pavement. The strong blow shredded the skin on his knuckles, and blood poured freely from the wound almost like it was meant as a substitute for his tears.

“I was almost there... I was almost there!”

Koutarou continued pounding his fist into the concrete without a single care for the bloodstain he was leaving. It was just something he had to do. If he didn’t, he felt like his heart would break into pieces. The pain of his knuckles meeting the pavement felt like it was the only thing keeping him sane.

“Even if you call me a knight, I can’t save anyone! I couldn’t change anything! History is still repeating itself! God damn it!”

Koutarou screamed. The sight of his mother dying in front of him a second time was more painful than he could have ever imagined. It was crushing. He couldn’t save anyone. He couldn’t even help anyone. Everything was proceeding as if according to some script or preplanned history. And he was powerless to do anything about it. Overcome with despair, solitude, and grief, Koutarou looked like he would shatter if he was so much as touched.

“I’m sorry! I’m so sorry, Onii-chan!”

But there was one person still intent on protecting the fragile Koutarou. It was Kii, who had desperately chased after Koutarou all the way here. Not caring in the least about bloodying her own clothes, she grabbed Koutarou’s fist and embraced it, holding it to her chest with all her might. It was if she was trying to transfer the emotions of his clenched fist to herself.

“It’s... It’s all Kii’s fault! If Kii hadn’t run away from home, Onii-chan’s mom...! Onii-chan’s mom would still...!”

Kii couldn’t help herself now. Her soul was screaming out. She felt responsible. Koutarou had lost his mother because she had gotten captured by Maya. And looking back at it, she’d only been captured because she ran away from home. Kii’s selfish actions had deeply hurt Koutarou, and that broke her heart.

Kii also understood Koutarou’s feelings better than anyone. He was feeling now just like she had before she found her mother’s star. She had felt that same despair. That same weighty sense of loss.

More than anything, however, Kii loved Koutarou. Her desperation to help him was really the pleading innocence of a young girl’s first love. Her heart was crying, telling her that she couldn’t leave him. That she had to save him.

“I promise you, Onii-chan! Kii will never let you feel lonely! Kii will always be by your side! So, so...!”

Just like Koutarou had healed her heart, Kii believed that it was now her turn to heal his. She wanted to be the one to do it because she loved him more than anyone else. She would always stay by his side so he wouldn’t feel lonely. She would learn how to cook. She would do the cleaning and washing. She would do all of the things a mother might do for him. She wanted to shower him with warmth and get through to his broken heart. She believed that together, they could save each other from the emptiness inside.

“So please don’t cry! You’re not alone! Kii is right here! Kii will always protect you, Onii-chan!”

Tears scattered from Kii’s eyes as she screamed out her true feelings. It was like her warm, gentle feelings jumped straight from her chest to his, and they began to wrap themselves around his wounded heart like a bandage.

“Kii-chan...”

Kii’s desperate cries called Koutarou back to the brink. She gave him something to hold on to, and that kept him from breaking completely. Thanks to her, he managed to calm down a little. It wasn’t like the sorrow of losing his mother had vanished, but he managed to recover from the shock of losing her for a second time.

Kii’s shirt was stained red with his blood. Her cheeks were wet with tears. Her body shook and her voice was desperate. All of that told Koutarou he wasn’t alone in this grief. He seized that feeling and turned it into the power he needed to be able to stand up again.

“...Thank you, Kii-chan. I feel a little better... thanks to you.”

Koutarou somehow managed a smile for her.

“Onii-chan...”

After showing a concerned expression for a brief moment, Kii smiled too.

“I-I’m so glad... I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, Onii-chan... I am really, really sorry...”

Kii reached out and touched Koutarou’s cheek, gently wiping his tears away. Relieved to hear Koutarou finally say something, she now cried tears of relief. Koutarou reached out to wipe her tears away too.

“You don’t need to apologize. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“But, but...!”

“It’s okay. Thank you, Kii-chan.”

“Onii-chan! Hnnngh... Waaaaaaaah!”

Deeply moved, Kii threw herself at Koutarou and hugged him tightly.

She’s crying for my sake...

Koutarou embraced Kii’s trembling body and gently patted her back while feeling grateful that she had cried for him. It was only because she’d shed the first tears that he’d somehow managed to choke back his own.

Exhausted from crying and overcome with relief, Kii feel asleep while still hugging Koutarou. Picking her up like that, he was now carrying her back to the Cradle.

“She really is a child. Just look at how soundly she’s sleeping...”

“It’s better if she has a childish side to her like that. She’s too good of a child, really.”

“That’s true. Besides, if she were always awake, I would lose my turn to console you.”

“You’re awfully childish in your own weird way.”

“Shut it!”

By now, Koutarou had managed to collect himself. The grief hadn’t vanished, but he was on his feet again with the support of Kii and Clan. He could act like his usual self again thanks to them.

I really am grateful, Clan. I’m so glad we’re together...

Thinking about what it would have been like to go through all of this alone, Koutarou was overcome with gratitude for Clan. He just couldn’t bring himself to tell her how he really felt because there was still a certain distance between them. He was a little too embarrassed to tell Clan his honest feelings.

And speaking of Clan, this might be for the best for her...

If he had saved his mother, Clan would have lost her ability to return home. That fact alone helped ease his grief. She was an important friend to him, so even though he lamented the loss of his mother, he was satisfied knowing that Clan would now get her life back.

“By the way, Clan, what do we do now?”

“I’ve finished my calculations, but I’d like to wait a little for our departure.”

“Why?”

“This girl knows where the Cradle is, right? After we get her home, I’d like to relocate it.”

“Okay, I’ll leave that to you. I should practice my acting too, so no hurry, I guess.”

“Oh yeah, there was that thing too.”

As Koutarou and Clan discussed their plans, they reached the mountain where the Cradle was buried. Since they would be walking on a paved path for a while yet, the terrain was easy and smooth. Kii still hadn’t woken up, even being carried.

As Koutarou and Clan had made it about halfway up the mountain, the bracelet on Clan’s right arm sounded off an alarm.

“Warning. An unidentified group is approaching from ten o’clock. Four units. Threat of weaponry is low. Energy reactions are also low. Maintaining threat level one.”

“Veltlion, someone is coming.”

“Looks like it.”

Though slower than the Cradle, Koutarou had also noticed.

They don’t seem to be very hostile, but...

Koutarou’s spiritual energy senses were growing weaker, but he could feel the presence of four people approaching.

“Maybe we should wake the girl up.”

“Yeah.”

A mysterious group was approaching them from the left. There was no path in that direction, only an abundance of trees and bushes. It was hard to imagine it was just someone gathering mushrooms and plants at this hour, so they decided to stay on guard.

“Kii-chan. Wake up, Kii-chan.”

“Hmm... Mmmh...”

Koutarou gently shook Kii while calling out to her, and she soon began moving. She moved her arms that were around Koutarou’s neck and rubbed her eyes.

“Good morning, Onii-chan... What is it?”

“Some strange people are coming. They don’t seem like enemies, but we thought it would be best to wake you up.”

“Okay.”

Kii seemed satisfied with this explanation, as she nodded and got off of Koutarou’s back without further ado. Rubbing her drowsy eyes, she followed Clan’s glance and looked off to the left. A bush in front of her shook and four men appeared from it. There was an elderly man in the front with three other men behind him, and all of them were wearing expensive-looking suits. Based on their formation, it looked like the three men were the elderly man’s guards.

“Uncle?!”

“My lady!”

When the men stepped on to the asphalt road, Kii and the elderly man called out to each other. Not a moment later, the elderly man rushed over towards Koutarou and the two girls.

“I finally found you, my lady!”

Upon seeing Kii, the elderly man smiled broadly and teared up. He ran as fast as he could to her. He didn’t even seem to care who Koutarou and Clan were at all.

“Kouma-sama, please wait! We don’t know who the others are yet!”

“As if I care! My lady!”

The three men behind the elderly man seemed cautious about Koutarou and Clan, so they hurriedly tried to stop him. The elderly man, however, completely ignored their warnings. The three men then exchanged glances and reluctantly chased after him.

“Kii-chan, do you know them?”

Based on the elderly man and Kii’s reactions to each other, Koutarou could tell they weren’t enemies. But since someone had come for Kii’s life just earlier today, he decided it would be best to keep his guard up.

“Yes. That’s Uncle Kouma. He works in my house.”

“Like I thought, she seems to be the daughter of an influential family.”

As Kii started to explain the situation to Koutarou and Clan, the elderly man—Kouma—finally reached them. He squatted down in front of Kii to match her eye level.

They seem okay...

Seeing such a polite and affectionate gesture, Koutarou figured these men weren’t anything to be worried about. The tension in his shoulders finally relaxed.

“Just where have you been these three days?! I was worried sick and looking all over for you!”

“I’m sorry, uncle...”

Kii apologized to Kouma, who was in tears. She now had a better understanding of the trouble her selfishness had caused.

“Of course, the master also worried for you. I had to stop him personally when he said that he would go look for you himself, and that’s why I’m here in his stead.”

“Dad said that...?”

“The master heard that someone was after your life, and he had to use everything at his disposal to keep his enemies at bay. He was deathly concerned about you.”

Kii’s father had realized his political adversaries would try to use the fact that Kii had run away from home to sway public opinion. As the mastermind, Tayuma, had hired Maya, Kii’s father hadn’t been able to locate the culprit, but he used everything in his power to keep his political adversaries in check. Only those doing dealings under the table, like Tayuma and Maya, had been able to make a move. As a result, Kii’s father was in something of a political deadlock and couldn’t actually leave to go look for his daughter. In his stead he’d sent Kouma, his trusted vassal. Really, he’d done everything in his power to try and bring her back safely.

“Um, about that...”

Koutarou, who had been watching over the two of them, finally spoke up. There was something he had to tell Kouma.

“Kii-chan here was just attacked by some stranger, so please take her somewhere safe as fast as possible.”

“Onii-chan!”

Kii’s eyes opened wide at what Koutarou said, but Kouma’s reaction was even more exaggerated.

“I-Is that true?! We can’t stay here! Men, secure our surroundings! And contact the master!”

“Understood!”

Kouma gave out orders and the men behind him, who sprung into action at once. One of them used some kind of device to survey the surroundings, and another pulled out a small gun. The third used a communications device to contact somebody. They were preparing for an ambush while planning their retreat.

“We somehow managed to keep her safe, but the attacker might come back again... so please hurry.”

Koutarou and Clan didn’t know who Maya was. All they could imagine was that she was an assassin Kii’s father’s enemies had sent. They didn’t know what was going on behind the scenes either, and as far as they knew, they might still be under pursuit. There was a limit to how well Koutarou and Clan could protect Kii by themselves, so they wanted her to be taken somewhere safe as soon as possible.

“I see... Normally I would like to formally thank you, but since this is an urgent matter, we will be taking our leave at once. Please excuse the rudeness.”

Kouma politely bowed his head to Koutarou. Koutarou nodded in acknowledgement.

“I think that’s for the best, so please don’t think anything of it.”

Koutarou only vaguely knew what was going on, but he knew there could still be danger afoot, so he agreed with Kouma’s actions. They should get Kii somewhere safe immediately.

“I am most grateful.”

Hearing Koutarou’s words, Kouma deeply bowed once more. It was the most gratitude that he was able to express in the moment.

“My lady, let us go.”

“No! I won’t go back!”

Despite Koutarou and Kouma having come to an understanding, Kii herself was for some reason fiercely protesting. That surprised both of them.

“What’s the matter, Kii-chan? Didn’t you say you’d go home before?”

“M-My lady, why?!”

Koutarou tilted his head in confusion and Kouma grabbed Kii’s shoulders in concern. Both of them were quite surprised. Since Kii had told Koutarou that she was willing to go home not long ago, he had no idea what had made her change her mind all of a sudden.

“I made a promise to Onii-chan! That I would be with you! That Kii will protect you so that you won’t feel lonely!”

“Kii-chan...”

Kii had changed her mind for Koutarou’s sake. When he’d lost his mother, she’d promised to stay with him to keep him from being sad. And she wanted to keep that promise, so she wanted to stay with him even now.

“...It’s okay, Kii-chan.”

Koutarou squatted down next to Kii and put his hand on her shoulder. Seeing that, Kouma decided to leave the convincing to Koutarou and stepped away for the moment.

“It’s not okay! Onii-chan did so much for me, so now it’s Kii’s turn!”

Even with Koutarou, she fiercely shook her head and began tearing up.

“Kii promised to protect you! I definitely won’t go home!”

“Kii-chan, you’ve already protected me enough. You can tell, can’t you? The only reason I’m able to cheerfully talk like this is thanks to you.”

Koutarou had lost his mother twice over, and Kii had been the one to ease that pain. It was because she’d lost her own mother that her feelings were able to reach him. That’s why Koutarou could confidently say that she’d done more than enough for him. The tears she’d already shed for him were still protecting him.

“That’s why it’s okay. Thank you, Kii-chan. I am really grateful.”

“Onii-chan...” she said in a soft voice.

Since Kii was clever and sensitive to the feelings of others, she understood Koutarou. She knew he wasn’t just lying to her to make her feel better. He wasn’t just saying all this to get her to go home. And knowing that, her argument lost its momentum. She understood that it was time for the two of them to part ways.

“I will never forget that you cried for my sake. And as long as I don’t, I won’t be alone. Right?”

“Yeah...”

Kii would return home, and Koutarou would do the same. But the bond the two of them had formed wouldn’t be severed so easily. As long as they remembered the time they had spent together, neither Koutarou nor Kii would ever be alone. They would both always know that there was someone out there that understood them, and with that, they would be able to walk confidently down their respective paths.

Though for the other party to be a six year old girl in my case might be just like me...

While amazed with himself for being so encouraged by a six year old girl, Koutarou was undeniably grateful that he’d met her. It meant there would be a special sadness in their parting, so he closed his eyes for a moment and prayed for her future to be bright.

“Take care, Kii-chan.”

“Yeah... You too, Onii-chan.”

“Yeah... I’ll be okay.”

“That’s a lie. Kii knows that you’re weak, Onii-chan.”

“And as long as you know that, I will be okay.”

“Ahaha, this is almost like a confession.”

“It’s pretty similar. I’m exposing my weakness, after all.”

“That’s true.”

A smile finally reappeared on Kii’s lips. She had accepted that it was time to part ways. Sensing that, Kouma—who had been patiently watching from the sidelines—spoke up.

“My lady, it’s about time...”

“I know. But just wait a little.”

The time to say goodbye was upon them. Kii knew it all too well. She had no more intentions of being selfish, but she had one more thing she had to do.

“Onii-chan, take this.”

Kii tugged lightly on the collar of her shirt and pulled out a necklace. The necklace was of polished jewels and fangs strung together by a colorful string. It had a unique charm quite different from modern jewelry. It had a simple, profound beauty to it, and it suited Kii very well.

“I want you to hold on to this, Onii-chan.”

Kii took off the necklace and presented it to Koutarou.

“My lady, that’s...”

Kouma instinctively tried to stop Kii. He knew just what this gesture meant to her.

“I know. That’s why.”

“...If you are aware, then I will not interfere.”

“Thank you, uncle.”

Kii smiled and nodded at Kouma, then handed the necklace to Koutarou.

“Here, Onii-chan. Think of this as a special present from Kii and take good care of it.”

“Are you sure? Isn’t this something precious to you?”

Judging from Kouma’s reaction and the look of the necklace, Koutarou imagined it was something valuable. And he wasn’t wrong. If Koutarou had heard what it was worth, he definitely would have tried to give it back to Kii.

“Yes, Kii is sure! This is my thanks for the card! From today on, this will protect you instead of Kii! And... I would be happy if you looked at it from time to time and thought of Kii,” she said with a smile.

There was a certain custom in Kii’s hometown. Couples who pledged to marry one another would exchange items they regularly wore or carried as proof of their engagement. Koutarou had given Kii his card, so Kii decided to give Koutarou her necklace—a keepsake of her mother’s. Kii had been able to find her mother’s star and even see her mother again, so she no longer needed the necklace as a memento. She thought that it would be better if she gave the necklace to Koutarou so her mother would protect him. So really, the gift of the necklace had two meanings to Kii.

However, Kii had no intention of telling Koutarou that. Since he lived somewhere else, he didn’t need to understand the meaning of her gift. She also knew it would be a long time before she could see him again, so she didn’t want to push her feelings on him. She had learned what kind of trouble selfish actions could cause.

She was planning on telling him about it one day, but not until they met again. When that day came, she hoped that he would remember her and accept her feelings. Until then, she would keep them to herself. Koutarou only needed to think of the necklace as a charm.

“I understand. Thank you, Kii-chan.”

“Yeah! Make sure you take care of it!”

Kii had now done everything she wanted. Satisfied with that, she smiled. It was such a graceful, mature smile that it was hard to think of her as a six year old girl in that moment. During the past three days, she had grown immensely, and it seemed she was now about to enter the beginnings of adulthood.

“Okay, I’m going now.”

Kii kept smiling like that and waved her hand. She looked a bit lonely, but not sad. It was important to her to say goodbye with a smile.

“Yeah. See you.”

“Take care, young lady.”

Koutarou and Clan saw Kii off with smiles themselves. Kouma bowed to Koutarou and Clan once more, and the other three men did the same. This would be their formal farewell.

“Bye-bye, Onii-chan! Onee-chan!”

Kouma held Kii’s hand and led her back the way he and the other men had come from. Kii continued waving at Koutarou and Clan until she could no longer see them.

“See you!”

“Goodbye! Let’s meet again!”

There was no guarantee that they would ever see Kii again. If anything, it seemed highly unlikely. Clan and Koutarou would now be returning to the future. Even if they ever encountered each other again, she probably wouldn’t recognize them when she saw them. But there was no need to bring any of that up.

“Wait for me! When Kii grows up, I will definitely come back to you, Onii-chan! So wait for me, Onii-chan! I love you!”

However, as Koutarou watched Kii, something told him that they might indeed cross paths again in the future. He couldn’t help feeling that way seeing her bright, hopeful smile.