Spook 34 | The truth

───────────────

Reminder:

From this chapter, scenes from manga will be added so for those who haven't read the manga, you might want to shower yourself with spoilers if you keep reading :)

୨ ─────── ஓ๑ ❀ ๑ஓ ─────── ୧

"Ah Kou, the little brother of bitc— Teru Minamoto."The supernatural gave the blonde a coy smile, offering him a small wave while making a beeline to where he is standing.

And slapped him across the face.

"Ow! What was that for—?!"Hand flew up to cover the red mark on his cheek, grabbing the apparition by his collar but the permanent smile remained on his lips.

"Don't blame me for hating someone who looks exactly like you right now lololololol. I just had a sudden urge to hit you but I couldn't stop myself before I could."He let out a monotonous nonchalant laugh, slipping out from his grip without breaking a sweat and before Kou could do anything, he swiftly exchanged his position with the teen, chained both his wrists on his back with his hands and shoved him to Kako,

"Kako-san, can you turn this unmannered young man back to normal? I'm afraid I might chomp his head off from his neck."

"If you say so, Shinto-san."

A crinkled palm of his was placed on the top of Kou's head, watching how his own body shrunk back to normal in awe.

"Woah!"

"And take this kid away too."He picked up the small supernatural off from his head and handed her to him when she giggled behind her palm,

"You smell like Ukiyo-nee-chan."

"That's because I'm her brother, duh."

"[Y/N]-nee have a brother?"

Facing the young boy, Aishi scrunched his face and sighed in disappointment after hearing those words coming out from his mouth,

"Forget my existence just because I rarely show up. How nice of you."He sneered and look over to the soulless body of a girl rested against the wall, sparing a glance to the shorter black-haired supernatural,

"Anywho, No. 7, when is this girl going to die?"

Kou halted his movements, except the grip he had around his raiteijou loosened a slight yet gripping it rather tightly while fuming in anger after hearing a laid-back answer coming from the representative Mystery Number 7 himself,

"Hmm, within the next year?"He hummed out but was cut off when the boy knocked him back with his staff, causing the supernatural to collided his behind against the wall.

"What do you mean by that . . . ?!"

Even the Secret Mystery himself was surprised with this sudden turned out event but making no effort to stop him,

"I wouldn't allow anything to happen to senpai!"

Though his words caused the certain apparition's face darkened when he recalled through his memories. Walking closer to the two, he crouched down next to the blonde and painting a glee smile on his lips,

"I like how you are totally different from your brother. That gave me a reason to be kind to you somehow."Aishi chuckled dryly and tap Kou's forehead with his index and middle fingers tips when the smile soon vanished and was substituted with a scowl,

"But there's something I need to ask you since you're the only one who could answer it . . honestly."

For a moment, Kou's mind went blank before he was forced back to return to reality after hearing two questions coming from his lips, malevolence emits in each of his locutions,

"I . . c-couldn't mo-. . move."

"How about my sister? Can you save her too?"

Cold gaze fixated on the anxious lad, probably feeling trepidation about something that may happen if he ever misworded his answer. His trembling figure only worsening the situation, when the eyes narrowed to slits seeing his body in tremor.

"You couldn't answer it? Then, I'm going to make this simple, "He leaned away and threw his gaze over to the unconscious body, the younger Minamoto could only follow his gaze in silence. He slowly released his clutch around Hanako, letting his hands fell dangling next to his sides,

"She still has time to live but my sister—"His eyes then soon were casted back to Kou, something that couldn't be recognize flickered in those hues of his while emphasized those words,

"—is already dead. Whether you save that girl or not, it won't make any difference for my sister.

Everything was set from the beginning, your fate, your lifespan, your soulmate, your death— something like that. You can't change that when that's how this world works— and must not be changed no matter what.

Like someone's death . . . What you could only do is to accept it.

And you know that there's nothing you could do."

Taking a deep breath after his long speech that he has been holding back for a while, feeling himself in ease as if his body has just released a good amount of endorphins.

He turned his head back to the boy who has his face covered by his bangs and the shadow of the night,

"So I reckon for you to take back your promise to protect her when even I couldn't do so. She is dead but by that time, you still didn't know about that so you shouldn't blame yourself, kid—"

"Don't give me that crap! Like hell I would just stay still and do nothing!"

". . . you . . "

"I will save senpai no matter what and just because [Y/N]-nee is dead, that won't change my promise that I made with her!"

The tone of his voice keeps rising, to the point that he's now screaming his lungs out. Now panting, he lifted his gaze so how now locking his eyes with the apparition and continued his incomplete sentences,

"I'm not planning on breaking it either."

How thrilling, that's what Aishi's thought after seeing the look that the so naïve boy could make, widening the grin on his face when the chills runs down on his spine.

' Say whatever you want. I wouldn't say I don't want to see you struggling to keep that impossible promise. 'The thought of his was left unspoken and craned his head slight to the—

"Clock keepers, No. 1 representative— Kako. Turn the school's time to this morning, back before Mirai ran away."

His gaze seemingly never leave the anxious voice, amused how he masked it by putting up a brave look,

"And so this boy could forget everything."

He watched how his face twisted from adamant look to a horror. Well, that's it until an annoying voice, to him at least, piped in to his dismay,

"He won't if I offer my help."

"Damn you. Just when I'm acting all this cool and you had to ruin it."He groaned, gritting his teeth in anger to prevent himself from lashing out to the smug looking character.

"Well sorry for that, sucker. It wasn't like I want to have my revenge for you to hit me with a kokeshi doll."

"You were molesting my sister!"

"I'm not! I shall remain loyal to Ao-chan and have no slight interest in a granny—Ow!"

"My sister did a telepathic call and told me to hit you."

"Why you—"

"Now, now, you two. I suppose it's about time for me to turn everything back."The older supernatural reckoned, trying to ease the tension air between the two supernaturals— but you could say Akane is only a half-supernatural.

"Tch, then I would like to excuse myself."

"Look who is going to run away and act like there's nothing happened."Akane mocked the retreating supernatural, watching how he stopped dead in his tracks before snapped his head around to give him a harsh glare, which he didn't hesitate to return the gesture after hearing his next sentence,

"You better watch out for your head or you will found yourself in the infirmary once again."

"Damn you bastard, I knew it was you all along."

───────────────

"So what are we going to do, No. 8?"

Hands tucked inside his pocket, floating in the air with the male next to him sitting on one of the stone pillars between the rails.

"As much as I hate it, I must rely on him. Though it was taboo for me to do so."

"Ooohhh~ You mean him?"

"The prodigious exorcist. That Teru Minamoto himself. But about his little brother— Kou was it? Honestly, I don't want him to get disappointed at the end but look how stubborn he is."

"I know he couldn't save her at the end unless No. 6 make a move. He could save Yashiro at least . . ."

Those dark oceanic hues glanced over to the gloomy apparition with his head hung down low. Nothing except a sigh coming from him as he placed his palm against his back in assurance and threw his gaze to the radiant yet magnetic sight of the moon, somehow melancholy was detected in his timbre,

". . . Don't forget, Amane. We're in the far shore. There's no point in doing anything."

❀┊ End of the Clock Keepers Arc┊❀

୧ ─────── ஓ๑ ❀ ๑ஓ ─────── ୨

To be continued . . .