Chapter 13: Remember The Ending (6)

“Whew…”

I’m finally going to live.

I slowly took a deep breath, inhaling the despair I felt as soon as I arrived at the hospital.

Of course, this didn’t fill my stomach or anything, but it was enough to wash away my palate that was so dirty from Emerald’s hope.

“Please hurry and go to the hospital room.

So, um.

Akari.”

“It’s the first time you’re calling me by my name.”

Emerald’s face hardened slightly as I spoke in an ambiguous tone that seemed both sarcastic and non-sarcastic.

What, you weren’t thinking of shooting a mapo just now or anything, were you?

“By the way, you worked so hard to dress me up, but I guess you’ll be sad that you have to change into a patient gown.”

However, it was hard to stop a cubic wave once it had burst.

If you hadn’t given me hope, I wouldn’t have said this.

He turned around with a “huh” and started walking toward the hospital room.

So, I guess I won’t be seeing you for a while.

“Wait a minute.”

“Why are you doing this again…”

But there was a voice that stopped me.

I sighed and turned my head, and Emerald, with a somewhat determined expression, was staring at me intently.

“If you need anything, just let me know.”

“Yes, well.”

I wouldn’t give it to you just like that, even if you asked me to give you your despair.

As I grumbled and walked, a nurse came toward me.

“Patient, I’ll show you to your hospital room.”

“Yes, thank you.”

There were quite a few injured people, perhaps because of the monster that had appeared this time.

Some of them were on the verge of death, and the despair they were giving off gave me a similar feeling of pleasure as when I trampled ants when I was young.

Just looking at it was pleasing to the eye.

‘No matter how much I think about it, I can’t live a normal life.

He wasn’t normal when he first opened his eyes in Apocalypse’s body, but seeing that sight and not feeling pitiful or in pain made me think that his ethics must have been quite distorted.

Back in school, he was a proper citizen who got first grade in life and ethics.

Well, I don’t think it really matters anymore since I’m not going to take the college entrance exam again.

“Am I alone in the hospital room?”

That would be a little boring.

The closer you get to feeling human despair, the better, right?

“No. Your friend will be with you.”

“A friend?”

Did I have a friend?

Or maybe that guy, was he captured?

I blinked blankly, recalling the monster that disappeared after becoming the doctor’s shadow submarine.

As expected, this hospital seems to be a place where they capture monsters and study them.

The doctor also seemed a little crazy.

“Um, her name is—Tamako.”

…I’m hearing that name for the first time?

Who on earth is that?

“Midori-sama admitted you with the patient…”

I see.

That, what is that?

That magical girl whose eyes glowed rainbow colors.

The despair energy she exuded looked really delicious, so I really wanted to try it someday if I had the chance.

‘Oh, come to think of it, isn’t this the perfect opportunity?”

I wondered if I could just trick her and drain her of her despair energy.

After thanking the nurse who brought me in, I carefully went into the hospital room.

By the way, two people are sharing such a large hospital room…I guess.

“Ugh.”

“Oh.”

Did I come in at such a good moment?

A small groan was heard from the mouth of Tamako, the magical girl who had been lying there as if dead.

Was it because her body hurt, or was she having a nightmare?

“No, I can’t… I don’t want to…”

“I like it, so please do more.”

She muttered something while sweating profusely, but the more she muttered, the more negative emotions piled up.

Yeah, that’s it.

Just a little more.

Just a little more!

Woof—

“Huh…”

And finally, at the moment when Tamako’s emotions reached their peak, the despair circuit inside my body began to work little by little.

It felt like I was starting up a new machine for the first time.

As the despair circuit began to rotate with a creaking sound, I felt my mind gradually clearing up.

“Johaaaa… uhh.”

I crouched down, letting out a squeaky sound from my mouth.

T-this is the despair of a magical girl?

As if what I had eaten at the shelter was just a taste, a thick despair was creeping up my whole body.

‘Just a little more, just a little more… indulged, indulged, and indulged again.

I approached the place where I could physically eat Tamako’s face and slowly inhaled.

Ugh, this is so addictive.

How delicious would the extract made by extracting all this despair taste?

Thump, thump, thump—

I raised my head in surprise at my heart beating violently.

It felt like my heartbeat had finally returned to a normal person’s.

However, there was one problem—

woooooow—

“I only ate a little, and yet I’m like this.”

Something floated above my head.

To be exact, a halo.

The dark hospital room was dyed in a soft red, spinning around as if it was telling me to fill it with more despair.

Thinking about it, I felt something was missing.

If it was Apocalypse, then the twintails and the halo on top of his head were his identity.

“Whew… Calm down, calm down…”

I slowly exhaled and collected the despair that filled my despair circuit.

If I kept going like this, I could really get hit by a magic bullet, so yeah.

Woof…

I guess it’s okay to spread despair all over my body.

If it was the original Apocalypse, I would have killed humans with this despair and created the despair of magical girls, but I didn’t really have any intention of fighting magical girls.

More importantly, if I fought in this state, I would have been killed by Emerald.

‘Well, I just thought of Halo all of a sudden, but I just quietly let it go—’

Boom!!!!!

“I was surprised, right?”

“I didn’t mean to startle you, I’m sorry.”

There was no way I could just quietly let it go.

I clearly saw him leave the hospital, but he sensed the energy of despair and ran over?

He lowered his eyes and looked around, worried that he might have been caught.

Anyone could tell that he was anxious, but it seemed like he couldn’t properly perceive it because the room was dark.

I can see this side just fine, though.

His expression was frozen hard.

His breathing was rapid.

And his gaze was sharp.

“It seems like he’s having a nightmare.”

“That’s right.”

Feeling that Emerald’s eyes were only focused on me, I decided to change the subject.

Look, the magical girl you saved is having nightmares and suffering.

She even went so far as to be experimented on by that evil and vicious monster doctor?

Focus your attention on her instead of me.

Hurry up. Hurry up!

“Akari, by any chance… anything strange has happened?”

“Something strange? What kind of strange thing?”

“No, nothing.”

As I asked innocently, tilting my head as if I didn’t know anything, Emerald sighed and turned her head away.

…Everyone was suspicious.

My heart pounded at Emerald’s momentum, who seemed like she was going to shout “Transform!” at any moment.

“More importantly, weren’t you going to go back?”

“I’m going to stay here today. I’m just feeling uneasy.”

Her eyes seemed to say, “That uneasy factor is you.”

No, no matter what, I’m not someone who goes around killing random people.

If it had been the original Apocalypse, he would have been a walking sledgehammer and chopped everyone up, but I was a much more delicate, pure, and even gentle monster than Emerald had thought.

I’m not lying; there really were no casualties at all.

“Akari must be having a hard time, so go to sleep.”

“I’m not particularly tired.”

If it had been before I ate Tamako’s despair, then it would have been different, but after putting a little bit of despair in my mouth, all my fatigue disappeared.

I could run wild now!

That feeling.

And to be honest, I couldn’t sleep at all because I thought I’d get hit by a magic wand if I fell asleep like that.

They stayed like that for a long time without saying a word to each other.

When I started to regret not having just laid down and pretended to be asleep, Emerald slowly spoke up.

“Akari, are you okay right now?”

“Is there a reason you wouldn’t be okay?”

If Emerald had shot me with a magic bullet, it wouldn’t have been okay at all, but there was no way that a situation where a magical girl wasn’t shooting me with a magic bullet and I could even feel a little bit of despair wasn’t okay.

It felt like I was living the life of a Fire Tribe member.

A despair fountain that spews despair while I’m sleeping—that’s the best.

I want to take this with me after I get discharged…

If only Tamako was by my side, I could live my entire life without worrying about despair.

I looked at Tamako with longing eyes, gently brushing away the hair that was drenched in sweat and hanging down from her face.

Since I’m your lifesaver, I can at least give you a despair shuttle for the rest of your life, okay?

They say that a lifesaver is a lifelong savior, after all.

But that won’t work, since I have that guy as my guardian.

“…If you don’t expect anything and give up from the beginning, there’s no such thing as disappointment.”

I muttered quietly in a half-released voice, cursing Emerald inwardly.

You’re betrayed because you have expectations, Apocalypse.

You’re destined to live the rest of your life picking up the despair of ordinary people.

Like the monsters that roam the streets.