Key of Her Horizon Throne

Intermission

I wanted to sock someone. It didn’t matter who it was, but it’s better if it’s someone that I don’t have to feel guilty about. I chose this bully who hanged out at the arcade. When he loses to someone in a game, he would get pissed and took the opponent to the back alley to beat him up. That was a perfect place for me as well, because I wouldn’t get in trouble.

“I don’t like weak people” The girl I confessed to said that. I probably am a weak person, I never fought anyone in my life. So in order to overcome my weakness. I decided to sock someone. I’ve lived for 17 years, and that’s like the only thing I never done.

So I lured him out. I beat him in a game so many times. When I got out of the arcade, he pulled me into this back alley. But the instant he looked back at me, I punched his face. Raising a weird sound, the guy fell on the floor and stopped moving. “What?” I couldn’t believe it. He died just like that. I didn’t know people died so easily. No, it’s not my fault. I don’t want to get caught by the police! I need to hide this body before anyone sees it. But how? Bury it? Burn it? But people would eventually find out. It’s impossible to completely dispose of a dead body. If it was in the middle of a forest or mountain, animals would eat it on their own but… Eat it? Oh, I just need to eat it. But the human body is so big, I can’t eat this much in one night. I’ll try drinking his blood first. I spit out. I can’t drink something like this. What should I do? I killed someone. I can’t hide his body. I killed someone. My life is over.

“Why don’t you finish drinking it?” I heard a man’s voice from behind. A man in a black shroud was standing there. He told me I wasn’t normal when I thought of eating this dead body… I was special. “Yes, you’re not normal, if you’re broken… be completely broken” I finished eating the dead body. “One hour, not bad. But that is also your limit. That’s all you can do by just knowing your origin. The origin needs to be completely awakened to take a shape. As things are right now, you’re a just crazy person who ate a person and that’ll be the end of it. But that’s not what you wish for, is it? A power of a superior being. A special ability that surpasses other. Don’t you want that?” I answer yes in my vacant mind. “Understood, you’re the first one” The man raises his right arm.

But I asks him one question. “Who are you?” The man dressed in a black shroud answers uninterested.
“Sorcerer… Araya Souren”
The sorcerer asks my name.
“Lio, is it? So close, only a letter apart from being a Leo.”

Prologue
Only the frozen breath contained heat and we were both watching our heartbeat about to get cut off.
That’s how the memories that were too important are only remaining as a regret that it’s disappearing
For example the rain. Raining like mist after school.
For example the sunset. The scenery of school as if it’s burning.
For example the snow. The white night when we first met, and the black umbrella.
I was satisfied, just by you being here, and laughing together. Even though I was anxious, I was able to feel comfortable.
I was happy, just by you being here, and walking together. Even though I wasn’t there, I was able to be together.
For a brief moment. I stood there because the sun showing from the tree leaves felt warm.
But you laughed saying that we can be here again.
…..I wanted someone to tell me those words.
——That was really like the resemblance of the dream like days.

Synopsis

殺人考察(2) …not nothing heart

Murder Speculation 2

The killer from two years ago is back. Serial homicides are occurring in town again, and Shiki was going out at night by herself. Mikiya still believed she wasn’t the killer and tries to find the real killer. What happened three years ago was that Shiki hesitated to kill Mikiya. Then Araya appeared and helped Mikiya escape saying it’s too early to destroy “it”. But Mikiya didn’t want to leave her. He waited for her after Araya left. When she found Mikiya again, she sliced him, but only shallowly. He started running, she went after him. He stopped and she sliced him again. Shiki was crying out like a child saying, “It pains me to be with you, you show me something that I can’t get and I become unstable. That’s why I need to kill you!” They chased after each other repeatedly, and at the end, Shiki jumped in front of a car saying, “If I can’t get rid of you, then I have to get rid of myself.”

The real killer was Shirazumi Lio, Mikiya’s senior that left his high school. He has blond mid length hair, and wore a red jacket and a black skirt. That silhouette looked just like Shiki, so people were mistaking him as her. Mikiya questions him why he’s doing it, and Lio tells him something inside of him is telling him to do it. Araya has awakened his “origin” and he couldn’t stop it. Mikiya wants to help him, but Lio refuses saying he don’t want to hurt him. He runs away.

Shiki was also searching for the killer and hasn’t gone back home for a few days. She finally found someone who was out of alignment that is worthy to kill. She has her last conversation with Mikiya over the phone. She says she wants to kill Lio because she’s a killer that finds pleasure in killing. Mikiya denies that saying that she knows how painful killing someone is because she has been killing her other destructive personality all her life. It might be true she was born to be a killer, but because she has been able to suppress it all her life, she should be able to keep on suppressing it. And he knows she’s a kind person. But Shiki answers, how do you know that! That’s why I hate you. and hangs up. But it was pretty obvious that she didn’t want Mikiya to get involved. Shiki’s grandfather once told her when he was about to die after killing so many people, that people will only be able to kill one person in their life time. In other words, the person won’t be able to carry the burden of more than one person’s life and still be able to live as a human being because a person’s life is too heavy.

Shiki finally finds Lio’s hideout. Lio had a hidden garden of drugs he was selling to people. He was hoping this drug will awaken crazy people like himself. Shiki was ready to kill him, but at the last moment she hesitates. She thought of the words of Mikiya, “I won’t forgive you if you kill him” She is then captured by Lio. Mikiya goes to save her by himself. He tries to convince Lio to realize that he’s an helpless killer already. But Lio slices his head in anger. Mikiya drops dead on the floor. He thought Mikiya was the only person who would understand him, but no. That only person is Shiki, a killer just like him. He walks off to where Shiki is tied up. But Shiki had already got out of the handcuffs by breaking the bone on her thumb. Lio tells her to fight him, but Shiki was uninterested in such thing already. She wanted to go back to where Mikiya was. But Lio tells her he already took him. He tosses her knife that is drenched with blood. She pauses.

(translation!)
—Ahh…
At such a close place. In such a short amount of time.
I lost him.
“….Idiot. That’s why I told you to stay at Tohko’s place. You even died in a stupid way.”
‘ I won’t forgive you if you kill him, Shiki—’
The man who held me back, was killed by the animal he tried to protect.
…….I wonder why
He was mine.
The only person who was allowed to kill him was me.
“——For sure”
I pick up my knife.
I stand up, holding it with both hands.
While facing down, I stand still putting the blade along my chest.
I spoke without raising my head.
“—-All right, let’s do it”
Without looking at my opponent, looking down.
There’s no need to look up.
Because I couldn’t see that animal anymore.
“—-You said you won’t forgive me, didn’t you? You’re right, we are similar in that way, Shirazumi”
The animal dashes at me.
I ignore it, still looking down.
The opponent I’m fighting can be left for later.
Right now—–I just want to hold it tightly.
While his warmth still remains on this knife.

Shirazumi Lio’s body jumps up.
She didn’t move, even confronting the enemy that is coming right at her.
The animal’s nail tears the flesh of the arm.
Even when the blood dripped and the enemy went passed her, she was still looking down.
Her hands were embracing the knife gently.
Importantly, Very importantly like an irreplaceable treasure.
The heat that it remembered is fading away.
Like my body heat and the warmth of the skin when we touched each other.
Like my heart that I thought I didn’t have, and my heart that he believed in.
Blood is dripping, and wounded, the body keeps on getting colder.
But I didn’t feel much pain.
Because I knew something much more painful.
….Getting hit by the cold rain, we kept on chasing each other.
——Only the frozen breath contained heaat and we were both watching our heartbeat that was about to get cut off.
Another flesh was torn off.
The enemy was playing with me as he was a hunter who cornered his prey.
He quickly ran passes me, and shreds my flesh as he went passed me.
…..It still doesn’t stop raining outside.
When I thought about it, I was already content with something not worth mentioning
——For example the rain. Raining like mmist after school, I was listening to your whistles.
A third strike, I was cut on my legs.
Making a splashing noise, the concrete gets wet.
The claws that reached the bones stained my leg and the floor with blood, and it pained me just to stand.
….Yes I had difficulty breathing just by standing there.
But I think there were sometime when we were able to smile at each other.
Because Shiki liked you.
——For example the sunset. The scenery of school as if it’s burning. We were talking with each other.
The enemy’s power was getting even stronger. His speed and accuracy was beyond of that of a beast.
Opposed to that, I was a junk. My heart frozen, my body will soon stop moving too.
Even then, I couldn’t be helped because I was finding that fact amusing.
My arm still moves so I’ll kill him for sure the next time he comes near me.
——I was satisfied, just by you being hhere, and laughing together.
He runs at me for the 4th time.
He is aiming for the right arm.
Even though I knew that, I couldn’t move.
….Because killing someone was wrong
——I was happy, just by you being here,, and walking together
I feel dizzy from losing too much blood.
My body will fall right away.
Even then, I’m protecting his words.
…..I can’t kill Shirazumi Lio.
Even if he died, his words are alive within me.
….I want to protect that warmth forever.
——For a brief moment. I stood there beecause the sun showing from the tree leaves felt warm.
But I was happy.
About you who treated me normally.
You’re not suppose to kill someone, I was happy that he spoke to me seriously.
I won’t say it out loud but.
You were a lot prettier than me, as if it’s a miracle.
——You laughed saying that we can be heere again.
The fifth claw approaches.
That is probably my end.
The enemy will surely go for my throat.
That is more than enough, for I will die by just standing here,
——-I wanted someone to tell me those wwords.
….Death is approaching.
When I look back, there were so many happy things that makes me smile.
Only a year of the past, and half a year till now.
Time flew by so fast, and I couldn’t even grasp it. But I appreciate it. It was unbelievably satisfying.
The boring high school years that never changed.
Resemblance of the peaceful days without any commotion.
——Those days were really like a dream..
Thank you. But I’m sorry.
….I look up and perceive his death.
I know I will lose it.
The things that you believed for me, and me who you said you liked.
Even knowing that, I decided to kill him.
Even if all of myself till now disappears, and no one will be besides me.
Even then—–I won’t forgive this guy who killed you——.

—-She gazes at the enemy who is running towards her.
Then the rest was easy.
Vividly like a swan that flies off from the water surface
The end came instantly.
(translation end)

Shiki kills Lio just like that, but she forfeits trying to save herself because Mikiya isn’t there anymore. However, Mikiya was alive! He just got his left eyes slashed deeply. When he drags his body to where Shiki is lying, he was just happy to know that she was alive. But Shiki was out of it because she couldn’t keep the promise and killed someone. Mikiya once said that he will help carry her burdens, so she won’t be lonely. He embraces her saying “Shiki, I will never forgive (let you leave) my side”. It was raining outside.

They were helped out of the scene by the police and were hospitalized for a few weeks. When they recovered, they went home together holding their hands.