Chapter 18: Malice (3)

The battle between Peridot and the monster ended more blandly than expected.

He gathered the power of hope from the people around him and fired a magic cannon, causing a fatal wound.

The monster, whose body was like a donut with holes in it, let out a groan of pain.

Grrrrrrrr…

“I can understand that feeling, right?”

It was obvious that it would be painful to be hit directly by that level of hope.

That’s why I don’t want to face the magical girl.

Why would you just quietly suck up despair and expose your body to get hit by the magic cannon?

I internally clicked my tongue at the monster’s immature actions.

“Wow, Peridot!!”

“Thank you, Peridot!”

“I believed in you! You’re our hero!”

Was that all?

I’m sure I saw an article that criticized Peridot a while ago.

I couldn’t hide my laughter at the image of a certain ninja village that suddenly came to mind.

Well, I should be grateful that you saved my life.

Yeah, that’s right.

‘Then should I go back soon…

I felt like I’d suffocate from the hope energy if I stayed here any longer.

A monster suffocating to death?

That’s no joke.

That was the moment I sighed deeply and got up from my seat.

“…Ah.”

“Ugh, I saw it here!”

Maybe it was because I was sitting so close, but my eyes met Peridot’s as soon as I got up.

Until just before, Peridot’s mental state was still a bit hazy, so I was able to get through it somehow, but Peridot was in a very healthy state right now.

She was even leaking out a lot of hope energy.

“Hold on a sec!

Hold on a sec…!!”

It’s the 36th plan, the 36th plan!

Peridot hurriedly walked while taking advantage of the gap between them and the people around her.

Ah, if only I had the ability to dive into the shadows like the other monsters.

But anyway, Peridot couldn’t keep up, so it didn’t matter.

‘Ah, this is the moment when I want to eat Tamako’s fresh despair…

If you ask which despair was the most delicious, Emerald’s despair was the most delicious.

And Peridot was next.

But the problem with those two was that they would suddenly pour hope while I was eating despair.

Rather than having tar pouring out while eating a fancy steak, I’d rather eat a mediocre kimchi stew, right?

“Then, the direction to the hospital—”

Where was it?

I turned my head to the right, then to the left.

Then I tilted my head.

… Where did I come from?

I didn’t follow the road, but rather followed the smell of despair, so I had no idea where I was.

If I had a cell phone, it would be different.

Hmm, I drooled, but then thought, “Whatever—” and slowly walked.

“It’s not that big of a city anyway, so if I just walk roughly, I’ll get there eventually.”

Even if Tamako hadn’t been there, I don’t think I would have gone back to the hospital.

Originally, the most dangerous thing is to have your stomach taken hostage.

I was in the same situation.

How can you endure such delicious despair that bubbles up every day?

Just imagining it made my mouth water.

“Oh, you’re a weird sister!”

“You’re…”

That kid I saw at the shelter?

The world is so small.

Sometimes I see you again like this.

I blinked at the child who was looking at me with a happy expression.

“You’re not wearing weird clothes today, are you?”

“I think it’s because your mom didn’t pick them out for you.”

“T-Truthfully, your clothes last time were cool too!”

To know that you’re telling a white lie at that age?

Kids these days learn quickly.

But the clothes last time were definitely weird, just like the child said.

Even if you’re a test subject, those tattered clothes are a bit…

“Oh, now that I think about it, Mom said she wanted to do something to thank you.”

“A thank you?”

I don’t remember doing anything to receive something in return.

Even though I tilted my head at the child’s words, I walked as if I was half-dragged by the hand that was pulling my sleeve.

It was as if he knew the way well.

Oh, right.

I guess I could ask this kid how to get to the hospital.

“Excuse me, do you know how to get to the hospital?”

“Hospital? Which hospital?”

“Uh, well… um, I don’t really know.”

“Hehe, if you don’t know, then I don’t either!”

Come to think of it, I didn’t even know the name of the hospital.

There was no way I, who only searched for despair, would know the name of the hospital.

If I had been so full of despair, I would have been able to care about even the smallest things.

Yes, it was the doctor’s fault for not filling my hungry stomach when I was a newborn.

“Oh, by the way, where is this place…”

“…Are you Mia too?”

“I was just lost for a moment!”

The world decided to call her Mia.

I thought she was a well-educated child, but now that I look at it, it doesn’t seem like that’s necessarily the case.

The savior who would lead me to the hospital was actually Mia, who was in the same situation.

“But I guess she’s better at finding directions than you, sister?”

“I’ll believe you.”

“Even if you say it with a completely disbelieving expression, it’s not convincing.”

Can you believe it with common sense?

Somehow, she was alone without her mother by her side.

It was as if she had suddenly become obsessed with Mia the human.

“So, where was the last place you separated from your mother?”

“Hmm… I think it was inside the mart!”

Inside the mart, inside the mart…

“We separated inside the mart, so why did you come out?”

“I searched the entire mart, but my mother wasn’t there, so I came out because I thought she might be outside.”

“Is that so?”

“That’s right!”

I had heard that if Mia gets lost, it’s easier to find her if she stays still.

It wasn’t too late, so maybe it would be better to take her back to the mart.

Honestly, I had no intention of helping her, but since we had a connection at the shelter, I decided to lend a hand just this once.

“Do you remember the way back to the mart?”

“Yeah, I do!”

It’s good that I know that much.

Anyway, we walked for a while, holding hands with the child.

The letters ‘M Mart’ were visible in the distance, calling out to us to hurry and come here.

“Is it there?”

“Yeah, that’s right!”

The child nodded and shouted.

Then, I’ll look for it for a while, and if I can’t find it, I’ll leave it at the mart customer service center or something.

I’ll also ask for directions back to the hospital while I’m at it.

“By the way, isn’t there a separate underground parking lot here?”

It’s the first time I’ve seen a large mart with only above-ground parking lots.

Well, it’s not a world I know, so I shouldn’t be too prejudiced or anything.

Anyway, maybe because the parking lot was so big, it took a while to walk to the main entrance of the mart.

“Where did you break up?”

“Uh, so… the place where they sell fish?”

If they sell fish, it’s underground…

Usually, all the places that sell ingredients are underground.

With that thought in mind, I turned my head to look at the sign, and the words ‘Food Corner’ written on the second floor caught my eye.

What, it’s not underground?

No, there’s no underground at all.

“Do the people of this world have a disease that causes them to die if they do anything underground?”

Now that I think about it, the shelter was built above ground, not underground.

It could be that the ground here is weaker than I thought.

Well, that’s something humans should worry about, so there’s no need to worry about it.

The monster only cared about the despair of humans.

“First, go to the second floor, and if you still can’t find your mother there, go to the customer center.”

“Yeah, I understand!”

Was it good to be with me, or was it because she was relieved that she was back?

The smile on the child’s face was quite nice to see.

Aren’t children prettier when they smile?

Of course, from the monster’s perspective, the crying one was much more delicious.

“Especially the moment when a smiling face distorts into despair— No, no no no.

Let’s calm down.

We didn’t come here to see that right now, did we?”

I sighed inwardly at the child who was looking up at me with an innocent expression.

I’m sure she’d be full of hope when she met her mother.

“How is she? Do you think she’s here?”

“Uh… no!”

After that, it was the beginning of the child’s journey to find her mother.

From the grocery section on the second floor, to the clothing section on the third floor, and the home appliance section on the fourth floor.

I looked all the way to the first floor just in case, but I couldn’t find her mother.

“Where on earth did she go…?”

Even when she was in the shelter, she left her child alone.

Tsk.

On the outside, they looked like a good mother and daughter, but I wondered if there was some kind of situation.

“Oh, sis. Do you want ice cream? I’ll buy it for you!”

“No, I don’t really—”

“I’ll buy it for you!”

“… Yes, well. If you say so.”

She must have been asking to go because she wanted to eat it.

To be honest, I didn’t really want to eat it.

To monsters, the food that humans eat is like weeds growing on the street.

“Still, I think it’s okay to know what it feels like.

Since I can feel both hot and cold, I thought eating ice cream would feel like eating something cold.

I walked slowly, imagining what ice cream would feel like.

In a way, it was also a kind of fun to check if the feeling I imagined was the same as the feeling I actually had when I ate it.