Requiem for a Goodbye, page 9
part #3 of Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles Series
“Let’s get going,” Gon said in an impatient tone.
About an hour ago, he had sent one of his underlings to scope out the village chief’s house in advance. The underling had reported hearing someone in the garden, so they had waited on standby until now.
Thanks to that, restlessness was pent up within him. Unable to withstand those hasty feelings any longer, Gon jumped to his feet and left the cabin with several other men.
Although their vision was impaired by the darkness, they quietly and carefully made their way to the village chief’s house. Not a single villager was awake at this time of night, making silence dominate the air surrounding the village.
When they arrived before the village chief’s house, with practiced movements, Gon made his way around the side of the house and removed the wooden sliding window attached to the side of a particular room. He had visited Yuba’s house numerous times before while accompanying his parents, so he knew where Ruri’s room was located. He also knew that the sliding door was the easiest point of entry.
The wooden sliding door was supported by a stick on the inside, but that stick had no effect if the entire door was removed, though there was nothing he could do about the moderately-loud clunking sound that it made.
Gon handed the removed sliding door to one of his followers and swiftly snuck into the room. Barely a minute had passed since they entered the property.
Hm? There’s two of them?
He froze at the sight of two girls sleeping on two mats spread out before him.
Tch, why are there two of them? Ruri and... Who’s this? I’ve seen this face somewh— Ooh, it’s Shin’s sister!
The unexpected turn of events made Gon click his tongue. He approached the two figures to get a better look at their faces in the dark. He immediately identified one of them as his target, Ruri, and belatedly realized that the other one was Sayo. A wide grin spread across Gon’s face.
“Mm... Is someone there?” Ruri stirred from where she lay next to Sayo. She had probably been awakened by the sounds from before, and the presence of someone in the room.
“Tch,” Gon clicked his tongue again. He leaned over her body and smothered her mouth.
“Mmgh?!”
Naturally, that anomaly made Ruri’s eyes snap open.
“Quiet. If you make a fuss, I’ll make you regret it,” Gon threatened right in Ruri’s face. With those words, she realized who the intruder was.
Gon.
“Mmm! Mm, mmrgh!” Unwilling to yield to Gon’s demand, Ruri started to kick and struggle.
“Hey, I told you not to move—” Gon tried to threaten her further, but this time, Sayo woke up.
“...Ruri? Huh? U-Umm, wha—”
Shit— With that spur-of-the-moment thought, Gon brought his fist down next to Ruri’s pinned face with great force. Thump. It made a blunt noise that echoed, making Ruri and Sayo flinch with their entire bodies.
“Listen up!”
Gon spoke to them in a quiet but intimidating whisper. He grabbed Ruri by the collar and swung his fist at her face, stopping moments before it made contact.
“If you keep fussing, the next one goes to your face. Got it?” he continued.
Overwhelmed by his intensity, Ruri stopped resisting.
“Hmph,” Gon huffed in satisfaction. “And that goes for you, too,” he said, grabbing Sayo closer by the collar.
“A-Ah... Uh...”
“Do you hear me? Nod your heads.” The violent approach had Sayo in tears as Gon continued to pressure them menacingly. Sayo almost reflexively nodded her head, but...
“W-Wha— You— Gah?!”
The yells of one of Gon’s followers could be heard from outside the sliding door. At the same time, the sound of something heavy being thrown rang out.
“What is happening, Lord Rio?! Wha— You there, what do you think you are doing?!”
Hayate’s voice could be heard further away, which meant that the one who defeated Gon’s follower just now was probably Rio. He had detected an abnormality in the spirit stone core of the sorcery barrier and came running.
“Shit, we gotta run!” the voices of the men outside were saying. Everything had become noisy all at once.
“Hold it! You will not escape!”
Hayate chased after the man who fled into the night.
“Fuck, they found us! How— Gwah?!” Gon was visibly aggravated at the turn of events, when a dazzling light shone into the room from outside, making everything before him turn to a pure white.
Rio had blinded Gon’s vision, having stuck his left hand out and shone a light into the room with spirit arts. Once he saw the sight of Gon clutching Sayo by the collar and Ruri’s disorderly clothes, he spoke to Gon in an icy cold voice.
“...What are you doing?” he asked.
“Kuh, fuck you!” Gon hurriedly released his grip on Sayo’s collar and broke into a run toward the door outside. He intended on forcibly knocking Rio away from where he stood before the doorway, but...
“Gah! Hah?!”
Rio easily sent him flying, his back hitting the ground with a loud slam. He didn’t even have time to brace himself for the landing, placing a huge amount of pressure on his chest and knocking the breath out of his lungs.
“...Why are you running? I asked what you were doing. Answer me.”
Rio’s face was completely void of expression as he looked down at Gon, who was gasping for breath. “Hah... Hah... Hh...”
“What’s wrong? Answer me. What were you trying to do?”
“Hahn... Hh...” Gon wheezed through his mouth, desperately seeking oxygen.
“Oi, hurry up and answer me. You want to breathe, don’t you?” Rio roughly grabbed Gon by the collar. Tightening his grip around his neck, Rio intentionally made it even harder for Gon to breathe.
“Hah... Ahh... Night... crawling... R-Rape...”
In a desperate attempt to be saved, Gon unthinkingly gasped out the words “night crawling” and “rape.” His voice was so strained, it was difficult to make out the sounds clearly, but that hardly mattered. Rio knew the answer before he even asked.
“Oh, really.” He nodded noncommittally, then swung at Gon’s face with all his strength.
“Gah! Agh!” Gon groaned in pain.
“...I’m not done yet.” Rio’s fist drove into Gon’s face once more.
He didn’t hesitate for a moment; there was even some killing intent behind his punch. It was hard to believe these were the actions of someone who once felt a sense of reluctance about killing someone who had tried to kill him first. The moment Rio laid his eyes on the scene of Gon assaulting both Ruri and Sayo, his head was filled with a flashback of the last time he saw his mother.
He would never forget it.
The sight of Ayame being toyed with by men in order to protect her powerless 5-year-old son...
Before he knew it, Rio was taking out his emotions on Gon, his body moving of its own accord.
There was no holding back the endless hatred flowing out of him. Something had snapped inside of him — he had completely lost his mind.
“...Ah, ah, ah...”
Gon pleaded for his life through wheezing gasps, but Rio didn’t let up on his punches for even a second.
He wouldn’t let him fall unconscious.
He wouldn’t give him an easy death.
He would never forgive him, no matter what.
Only after hurting him to the limits of pain that his body could endure would he kill him.
That was the only thing in Rio’s mind as he moved his fist with just the right amount of control. He couldn’t see anything else around himself, but his rage that bordered on insanity engulfed those watching on.
Ruri’s body simply trembled, whereas Sayo cried for Rio to stop. Hayate stood stock still in a daze.
“What’s going on?!” Awakened by the commotion, Yuba and Hayate’s aides came running out of the front door with torches in hand. Thanks to that, Hayate finally snapped out of his stupor.
“N-No! Enough, Lord Rio! He will die if you hit him any more!” he said, trying to stop Rio in a panic.
He’ll die?
Of course he would, Rio was trying to kill him, after all. Spurred on by Hayate’s words, Rio straddled Gon’s body and moved to punch him even more, but Hayate grabbed Rio’s fist before it made contact. He glanced at Ruri and Sayo huddling together.
“Wait, Lord Rio! I understand how you feel, but you are frightening the girls. This man will face retribution in due time, but we must hear his testimony too. So, please. Won’t you stay your hand?” he pleaded strongly.
Rio finally came to his senses and looked at the two inside the room. His eyes made contact with Ruri, who immediately turned her face away, while Sayo was looking at Rio with terrible sadness in her eyes. That was when Rio finally let his fist fall limp.
Still, an indescribable rage continued to swirl around inside his chest. He couldn’t bear to look at Gon’s face any longer, otherwise he really would kill him.
“Gah... Hah... Hah...”
Rio let go of Gon’s collar and slammed the back of his head against the ground — hard. Gon’s face was so swollen already that he couldn’t feel any more pain from the impact. His breath came out in ragged gasps, and it was difficult to tell whether he was still conscious or not.
Rio let out a heavy sigh filled with all his irritation toward Gon; he didn’t feel even a shred of guilt looking at his state. He calmly wondered if he was such a cold-hearted person, as if he were a third-party spectator looking in on the situation.
“Is that... Gon?” Yuba approached fearfully, hovering the torch in her hand over to clearly reveal Gon’s face.
“Yes. He was caught red-handed trying to assault Lady Ruri and Lady Sayo. Please take care of them.”
Hayate gave Yuba a brief explanation before directing her toward the girls.
“...I understand.” Yuba nodded with a solemn expression and went over to the girls inside the room.
“All of you, split up. One group will go and apprehend the accomplices that have been knocked out outside, while the other group will head to the cabin where their fellow travelers are staying and investigate the situation there,” Hayate directed his attendants, who nodded and swiftly followed their orders.
Next, Hayate began to cast a healing spirit art on Gon’s wounded face. He summoned a faint healing light in his hand and brought it close to Gon’s face. The rate of recovery was clearly slow, though; Hayate perhaps did not specialize in healing spirit arts, or he could have been weakening the healing effect on purpose. Rio was capable of performing a much stronger level of healing spirit art, but he chose to stand there and watch in silence.
Eventually, Gon recovered up to a certain point, and groaned. “Uh, uugh...”
“Hey, are you awake?” Hayate said to Gon.
“I-It... Ith hur... hurths... Help... me...” Gon was moving his mouth desperately.
“...Lord Hayate. Allow me to handle the healing. I specialize in healing spirit arts, so I can heal him until he can speak properly.”
No one knew what Rio was thinking as he made such an offer to Hayate. Without waiting for Hayate’s agreement, he came right up to them and placed a hand against Gon’s face to cast the spirit art.
“Oh... This is...” Hayate muttered, seeing the swelling on Gon’s face fade away.
For a moment, he feared Rio would kill Gon on the spot, but seeing the healing being carried out exactly as stated made him give Rio the benefit of the doubt. Roughly ten seconds passed until Gon’s face had recovered enough for him to open his eyes. Rio stopped his healing spirit arts and gave Gon a direct order.
“Hey, wake up. You can speak now, right?”
“E-Eek! You!” Gon peeled open his swollen eyes, only to spot Rio’s face and react in shock. He tried to gather his strength and yell, but the pain made his face pull into a tight grimace.
“Watch how you speak. Who do you think healed you? Do you want me to undo what I just did?” Rio said coldly, making Gon gulp in pure fear. His hostility toward Rio had completely quieted and his gaze wandered in search of help.
“Lord Rio...” Unable to meet Gon’s eyes, Hayate called Rio’s name.
“Lord Hayate. How will this be dealt with?” Rio inquired with a cold voice.
“...Though it was unsuccessful, attempted rape is still a felony. He was caught in the act with myself, a government official, as witness. No one would complain if he was cut down right here and now. Or, you could seek punishment from the kingdom, in which case he would either be sentenced to the death penalty, or forced into penal slavery. He does have ties to this village, though, so the final decision is up to the affected parties or Lady Yuba,” Hayate replied, looking at Ruri and Sayo.
“Is that so...” Rio responded with a frown, but immediately took on the emotionless mask on his face as he looked down at Gon with an icy glare.
“That’s how it is. You’ll behave until everything is settled, won’t you?”
“Eek...” Gon trembled with a start.
“Answer me.”
“I-I got it! Ah, n-no, I understand! I’ll behave!” Rio’s faint irritation made Gon answer in fear.
It seems like the hypnosis is working. Rio turned an examining gaze toward Gon.
He had cast a spirit art of hypnosis on Gon as he was healing him before. While the effects of hypnosis arts weren’t permanent, they were often used for immoral purposes, so the spirit folk village had treated them as forbidden arts, depending on the intention of the use and the matter of the suggestion.
This time, the hypnosis Rio had cast leaned toward those forbidden arts. He had planted the suggestion that Gon should fear him.
Rio had never cast any hypnosis arts until now, but he didn’t hesitate to use it on Gon. Even if it went against his own morals, he wanted to thoroughly crush Gon’s mind.
Gon had taken a severe beating at Rio’s hands already, so the effects of the hypnosis took hold easily. It was even possible for the effects to linger after the hypnosis wore off.
Rio’s face twisted with a sour expression as he tore his gaze away from Gon. Then, he looked around at everyone standing and offered a word of apology.
“...Please accept my deepest apologies for losing my composure so dreadfully. It must have been quite unsightly, especially for Ruri and Sayo...”
“N-No, not at all. It’s all right.”
“T-Thank you very much, Sir Rio!”
Ruri shook her head hesitantly while Sayo thanked Rio in a shrill voice.
“...No, I have done nothing to be thanked for. I did something that hurt you two even more than you were already.”
“It’s okay, Rio. We’re fine, really...” Ruri answered worriedly because of the regretful expression on Rio’s face. She really wanted to ask how he was doing himself, but for some reason, she felt as though she shouldn’t.
“Sorry, I’m feeling a little tired. May I leave the rest to you?” Rio averted his gaze from Ruri and Sayo guiltily, turning toward Yuba and Hayate instead. He felt as though he shouldn’t remain at the scene any longer.
“Sure, we can talk properly later. Leave this to us for now. Thank you.” Yuba nodded with a gentle smile. Hayate also met Rio’s eyes and nodded with force.
“...Thank you very much. Then, if you’d please excuse me.” With those words, Rio turned on his heel. He went around to the front and entered the house.
“Ah...” Sayo was about to follow after Rio when Ruri’s hand stopped her. Her shoulders slumped as she wondered in a daze if it was really okay to leave things like this, but Ruri simply shook her head. There was no way to know the answer to that.
Rio returned to his room and lay on his sleeping mat, looking up at the ceiling. His face twisted on the verge of tears as he reflected on himself and how shameful his actions really were.
After behaving so violently — as though he had been the victim — and making the scene more chaotic, then scaring Ruri and Sayo, he was the first to run away.
He probably had a terrible image now, having made them accommodate his needs. In the end, he had most likely caused a huge amount of trouble.
“How pathetic,” Rio muttered to himself, then gritted his teeth and came to a decision.
Tomorrow would be the start of a new day. He might never return to his old self, but he would endeavor toward doing just that — on the outside, at least. That way, they would be able to return to those peaceful days once more.
For the whole night, Rio remained curled up on his futon, body trembling from his self-loathing.
Chapter 4: Parting
The next morning, the village women witnessed an odd sight at the daily food trade.
Gon and his followers were tied up in the pillory as criminals in the village square. Hayate’s subordinates stood next to them as guards, watching over them as they explained the reason why Gon’s group was being restrained.
In a little under an hour, the events that had happened the previous night had spread throughout the village.
The story being told went something like this: Gon’s group had tried to go night crawling and attacked Ruri and Sayo. However, Rio immediately noticed their intrusion and paid them back with a fight. As a result, Rio had thoroughly beaten up the ringleader, Gon. Rio left him out in the bone-chilling cold autumn air all night in only his underwear as a punishment.
The villagers had been filled with rage when they heard about the night crawling, but once they saw Gon’s horribly swollen face and shivering body, their anger was quelled by his well-deserved treatment.
And so, last night’s incident became the talk of the village from early morning onward. When Rio went out that morning to trade for ingredients, the villagers praised his achievement with welcoming smiles.
Rio had already reflected on his actions last night and felt rather uncomfortable with their praise, but he did his best to not let that show on the outside, and went about his day as usual. The same went for when he was around Yuba, Ruri, Sayo, and Hayate.
Hayate’s closest aides and subordinates had all gone out on business supervising and interrogating Gon’s gang, leaving only Yuba, Ruri, Rio, Sayo, and Hayate left in the village chief’s house.
