Chapter 82: Blanks I don't want to fill
1656 Words
In the room where Hanayuki is captive.
The ceiling burst open, calling down from the hole a female holding a huge scythe on her back.
“Teaming up with the revolutionary group is the right choice of mine… With their help, I’m able to gather information about you, Aster.”
“Good evening, you never told me you'd be visiting. I should at least make some tea for you…”
“Enough with that plastic face of yours… Your act is already exposed. As one of the powers, I’ll hereby dismantle you with your position.”
“Just who do you think you are to do that?”
Aster gets her sword and charges forward to Asuna.
Asuna blocked her every s***h and thrust the handle of the scythe into Aster’s stomach. She then swings down the back of the scythe to knock Aster’s head.
“Meteor sword…”
“Are you nuts?”
The whole room turned white. Followed by a giant explosion. The room was destroyed. Because of the explosion, Hanayuki’s body was free from the ties, but at the same time, her whole body suffers from a terminal degree of burns, including half of her face.
The sound of an explosion from one of the rooms pulled attention to the servants working for Aster.
The workers knew the twisted hobby of their master, they didn’t speak anything, afraid that their lives might get caught with her insanity.
“Lady Aster’s experimental room.”
One of the maids muttered.
“I hate to do this, but not standing up to the crime you saw means you’re also guilty. The world does not need people like you.”
Behind the maid, a knife cuts her throat open. The one speaking was one of the assassins deployed by the revolutionary group. One by one, the servants in the mansion are getting killed. By a mysterious group of people lurking in the shadows.
“Assassins… There is no way you’ll win against me the master assassin.”
Hermes said and pulled his Katana, but from the shadows. The one approaching him was a girl familiar with him and fond of him.
“Hermes… You have aged a lot since the last time I saw you…”
A very sweet voice and face.
“K-Kirie… Kirie… Master Kirie… How is this possible?”
“Because I’m a vampire… I pretended to be an old hag and die to escape my responsibility in the family. I hate recognition and just what a normal life where I can eat potato chips while enjoying a novel in the afternoon.”
“At last…”
“Yeah…”
The girl walked passed Hermes. Hermes's body was petrified and his head fell to the floor with a smile.
“I hate playing this role… But this body sure is very sexy. I’ll use this face for a while and have fun with it…”
She turned her glance back to the old man’s head.
This old man sure loved the owner of this face. Falling on my cheap imitation easily.
“The job is going to be done soon. I’ll make Ren fall for me with this appearance when I meet him… I’m sure he’ll turn into a savage wolf. Pushing me to a soft bed and stripping my clothes… Gosh! I can’t wait.”
The unknown girl giggled while she walked away.
Asuna and Aster continue to deliver a heavy attack on each other. Aster doesn’t even care if the whole mansion will be destroyed as a result of their battle. Their standing is almost similar. Their strengths are on par with each other.
Hanayuki was on the ground coughing blood. She struggled to breathe and her skin burned. The wounds from the explosion string so much that she can’t think straight. The pain she’s feeling is unimaginable.
She shouted but no voice was ever released from her mouth.
“Just give up Aster… You’re already surrounded by us.”
“You team up with a revolutionary group, you traitor!”
“Don’t flip the situation, the things your doing are wrong. You can’t use other people as your plaything.”
Asuna swung her scythes. It was then intercepted by Aster’s sword.
“I save lots of people…Taking one or two won’t hurt… My party members should thank me. Because of my doing. I saved them from this curse called aging. They won’t age, they will stay young and cute forever. They won’t suffer, they won’t deal with problems in the world… They are saved. Saved by my love.”
After being told of Aster’s twisted logic, Asuna was a little stunned by the craziness. All she could do was shed tears while remembering her time with Aster.
“Is that what you think you’re doing?”
“I love them. I want them to stay with me… I don’t want them to leave. I want to save them from this evil world.”
In everyone's eyes, Aster was indeed a good person. Strong, pure, and beautiful.
Asuna gets curious about why she never saw Aster’s party members. She goes into investigation and it leads her to the dark truth.
The real Aster likes preserving the people she loves. She was so in love with them she didn’t want them to leave her. Traumatized by her past, she doesn’t want to be left alone ever again.
Asuna knows everything about her after the investigation. But she doesn’t wish to kill Aster. Because the Aster she wants to remember is not this insane aster in front of her right now.
Behind Aster, a bullet was shot. Aster’s body was shocked. Then, fell. From the soil face down.
“Eh?”
Asuna turned her eyes and saw a man covered with black attire.
“Glenn…”
“I didn’t kill her, the bullet I used simply put her asleep. The decision is yours now. If you want to kill that insane girl or let her continue to suffer. Everything that happened here is under your name after all.”
“It's fine… I have nothing to lose after all.”
Asuna replied.
♦♦♦♦♦
It burns… What is this feeling? Aster…
“Aster!”
I shouted as I woke up. I sat up in surprise. Breathing so hard and my hand on my chest tightly.
I remember everything that happened. Aster tried to kill me but somebody saved me at the last moment. An explosion occurred, burning my body.
“My body isn’t burned… My body is perfectly flawless again.”
I said while looking at my reflection in the mirror.
The door opened.
“At last, you're finally awake… Hanayuki, isn’t it? I’m so worried about you and thought you were not going to wake up.”
“What happened to Aster?”
Asuna was dejected and she turned her body silently with a nod. Saying to me that I should follow her.
She took me to another room.
“Aster is here.”
“She’s alive…”
Asuna opened the door. Inside, Aster is playing with dolls. Laying on the floor with a childish smile on her face.
“This is my adventuring party… This is my mother… My father… My friends… They won’t leave me forever and ever.”
“What happened to her?”
“She lost it completely… Her mind becomes a child and, in her imagination, she believes that this doll is her family and friends.”
Asuna said, looking at Aster sadly.
“Hanayuki give me a bear… She is the cutest. I’ll take care of you forever and ever.”
She hugs a doll that looks like me. Plushies that she made by herself.
I gulped my saliva and approached her.
“Aster…”
“Who are you? Why did you know my name? Sorry, but my mother told me not to talk to strangers…”
I hugged Aster tightly. She tried to get off, but I wouldn’t let her go.
Her mind is already broken. This is a punishment worse than death.
“Same as you, Hanayuki… I don’t want to remember her like this. It hurts me just thinking that she is insane.”
“Why are you crying, big sister?” Aster asked me.
“Nothing… Nothing…”
I replied.
After seeing Aster's current condition, I decided to leave. After the destruction of the Aster mansion, my belongings are magically retrieved. I’m glad I have them all back.
The attack was under Asuna’s name and she is not labeled as a terrorist.
“How about your family, Asuna? You have a child and a husband, right?”
“Nope, that is a lie… I don’t have a family. I’m 23 years old. Your guess is correct… Right now, my goal is to take care of Aster. And in the future, I don’t know what will happen. But don’t worry, I’ll handle it… There is a station in the city if you walk north from here. From that station, you could ride back to the Royal capital.”
“How’d you know I'd be back in the royal capital?”
“I accidentally read two folded papers in your belongings… Be careful on your next journey. I pray for your safety.”
For Aster, she indeed turned into a child-like mind. Right now she is playing with her dolls. Ignoring me as I leave.
There are lots of questions I wanted to ask. Especially to Asuna. Asuna, like Zenon, gives me a discomforting feeling. Something sinister, I could not explain.
I have a theory in my mind about what she did to Aster. But I don’t want any confirmation about it.
Honestly, I don’t want to know about it.
I’m a traveler. I should not create a meaningful bond with anyone. Creating meaningful bonds will only lead me to sadness.
As a traveler, I must keep going… I must move forward to my next destination.
- Writer
