“Wait! Whoopsie, I got myself mixed up. Tomorrow’s open after all!”
“Oh, really?!” Aoba exclaimed, beaming innocently. That threw Mikado for a loop.
Wait…he’s happy about that?
So he really was just teasing Sonohara?
“But only during the day. All kinds of people come out at night when school’s out, and it gets dangerous after that.”
“Yeah, sure thing,” the boy said, his intentions still unreadable to Mikado.
And so it was that he made unexpected plans for the afternoon of the fourth. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that the plans were made for him.
Once again, Mikado would find himself stepping into the extraordinary—without knowing whether this was a product of simple coincidence or the intentions of someone else.
Perhaps he had been stepping across that line ever since the moment he founded the Dollars. He just didn’t realize it.
Mikado Ryuugamine’s ordinary life was coming to a quiet, unheralded end.
Near Kawagoe Highway, apartment building
Shizuo sat on a sofa in the living room, drinking tea from a steel cup. He wondered, “So, Shinra…you even wear the lab coat at home?”
It was a perfectly natural question. Shinra puffed out his chest in mysterious pride and boasted, “Yes, because Celty’s always dressed in her black riding suit, of course. The stark contrast makes us look like light and shadow, right? Light and shadow are polar opposites but always attached—a hot couple, just like us! When they talk about the forces of darkness in comics and movies, it’s all just because the dark side is playing hard to get. Or maybe I’m just being possessive. To be honest, I wouldn’t mind being possessed by Cel-twah!”
“Shut up.”
Shizuo merely flicked Shinra’s forehead with his finger, but the doctor flew backward as though a blunt weapon had struck him.
“I don’t like your insinuation that you’re on the side of light. You’re way deeper on the dark side than Celty is.”
“If you want to be peaceful like your name suggests, try limiting your feedback to words alone.”
Meanwhile, Tom revealed his initial impression of the doctor under his breath. “Yeah, this guy really is a freak…”
“Hey! What do you mean, ‘really is’? What kind of awful slander has Shizuo been spreading around the workplace about me?! Well…either way, I don’t care. If talking about my love for Celty makes me a pervert, then a pervert I shall be. There’s a thin line between perversion and love!” Shinra boasted, holding his swollen, reddening forehead. He slowed down to gather his breath and asked, “Anyway, would you mind explaining about her already?”
He looked over at the little girl curled up in the corner with her arms around her knees.
“You hushed me up earlier when you brought her in, but you realize I can’t just ignore this, right? She looks scared out of her mind.”
Shinra let out a very long, deep sigh and fixed his old friend with a stern gaze.
“Why did you kidnap her?”
“We didn’t!” stated Tom.
He must have sensed that Shizuo was ready to snap and stepped in to deny it before anything happened. Sure enough, there was a vein bulging on Shizuo’s face, but it was in the process of easing as the blood flow returned.
Tom shot the relieved Shinra a glance to warn him not to utter any more provocation before explaining the situation.
Thirty minutes earlier, Sunshine, Sixtieth Floor Street
“Drop dead.”
Huh?
Shizuo was on the tall side, so at first he couldn’t be certain of what the little girl said when she leaped onto him.
If anything, Tom heard her better than Shizuo did, his expression one of disbelief as he rushed to catch up. But Tom’s ears were working perfectly.
The girl thrust what she was holding against Shizuo’s waist, never letting her smile fade away.
Tom saw a pale-blue spark leap from the tool to Shizuo’s side, accompanied by a loud crackling sound.
“Yeow!” Shizuo yelped, instinctually brushing the girl’s hand away.
“Ah!” she cried, as a boxy tool that looked like a transceiver fell from her grip.
Shizuo hadn’t realized what had happened, and because he didn’t process it, he also didn’t instantly lose his temper like he usually did. Instead, he reached down to pick up what the girl dropped and examined it.
The black rectangular object looked like a walkie-talkie or a flashlight.
“…Damn, that hurt… What’s going on? What is this?”
There was a switch on the device, so he pressed it.
It crackled and burst, and a blue spark leaped from the metallic part at the end of the device.
“What’s this? A stun gun?”
He stood there in disbelief, his brain unable to process the combination of young girl and stun gun, when over his shoulder, Tom’s voice caused him to come to his senses.
“Hey, Shizuo…”
All around them, pedestrians stopped in their tracks, looking over to see what was happening.
A grown man holding a stun gun.
A little girl on her knees next to him.
Right as he was able to process how the scene looked to an objective onlooker, one of those very people from the crowd started running over to a police officer stationed outside of the arcade.
“Oh, crap. It’s the cop who came to arrest that shoplifter,” Tom said and grabbed Shizuo’s shoulder.
“We gotta go. You can’t talk yourself out of this situation.”
No sooner were the words out of his mouth than Tom began to utilize the sprinting power he’d gained since he started working with Shizuo.
“…Wh-whaa—?”
Shizuo had no choice but to follow his coworker, the opportunity to fly into a rage completely gone now.
They should have gotten away, and the police should’ve found the strange girl and taken her into custody.
Instead, Shizuo realized that he felt heavier than usual as he was running. He turned back and noticed a bob of flapping hair out of the corner of his eye.
Shizuo’s monstrous strength was such that he never even noticed that the girl from a moment ago was clinging to his belt, dangling from his waist as he ran away from the scene.
“Can’t run…away… Die…just…die…!” the little girl grunted as she clung to Shizuo.
He didn’t understand what she was saying. He simply couldn’t imagine a scenario in which a little girl would be trying to kill him.
One time after having been shot, he remained calm until he belatedly realized the attack was intentionally malicious. This was similar to that situation.
“So what should we do about her, Tom?” he asked as they ran. Tom glanced over, saw the girl on Shizuo’s back, and shouted, “Arrgh, this is a nightmare!”
A moment later, he regained his cool and asked, “Do you know anyone who lives around here?! We’re gonna stick out like a sore thumb on the street!”
“Our office?”
“No, we can’t get our workplace involved! Oh, how about your brother’s place?!”
“He’s always getting staked out by reporters and tabloids.”
Eventually, a single face popped into Shizuo’s mind.
“…If you don’t mind a black market doctor, there’s one we can drag into this.”
“All right, I understand the situation now… For starters, I just have one thing to say,” Shinra said calmly after they finished telling the story. He fixed Shizuo with a level gaze.
“Why did you kidnap her?!”
Krunkl.
Shinra looked over to see the source of the odd noise and saw Shizuo’s clenched fist. Oddly, the steel cup that he’d been holding had vanished.
But the question was answered as quickly as it popped into his head. Shizuo opened his hand to reveal the object that had previously been a cup, crumpled into a ball like aluminum foil.
“Sorry. I’ll p
ay you back.”
“…No worries. I was just thinking about getting a new set.”
“No, I feel sorry for the manufacturers who made this cup.”
“Ah, if only you held the same regret in your heart for the poor guardrails and streetlights that you so frequently destroy—and as I’m saying that, I apologize for bringing that up—I’m so sorry. Of course you wouldn’t kidnap her. If you were going to stoop to that level for money, it’d be a lot quicker to just pry open a bank safe with your bare hands.”
Shinra looked over at the corner of the room with sweat trickling down his back. He noticed that the motionless little girl was trembling now.
“And you haven’t gotten any info out of her?”
“That’s the thing—she just keeps trembling like that. I know she was playing a dirty prank with this toy, but it still seems cruel to press her for answers,” Shizuo replied, tossing the stun gun to Shinra.
He caught the tool and muttered in relief, “I’m glad to know you at least have some human sentiment in your heart. It would be completely indefensible to beat a poor little child like this.”
The doctor walked over to the girl and crouched down to his knees to meet her eye level. “Are you all right? You’re safe now. It must have been hard, being dragged around by those big, scary guys. You can relax; I’m a man of love and peace, not like that weapon in human form.”
In the background, Tom was muttering to Shizuo, “Take it easy. The kid’s watching, okay? Okay?”
Meanwhile, Shinra favored the girl with a disarming smile.
“…”
But she was totally silent, glaring back at him in distrust. She put up a brave front, but the trembling was quite severe. In fact, for having told him to “drop dead” and not once attempting to run away, the girl seemed remarkably passive.
“…”
Sensing something odd about her reaction, Shinra reached out to touch the girl’s forehead. Instantly, the doctor’s expression tightened, and he ordered the two men, “Go into the closet in that room over there and pull out the guest blankets!”
“?”
“She’s burning up! We need to boil some water!”
With that, the apartment suddenly got very lively.
Whatever this change of heart in Shinra did to the girl, it caused her brittle tension to snap all at once, and she slumped over, completely unconscious.
Thirty minutes later
With the girl slumbering away on a bed in the back, Shinra finally sighed in relief.
He didn’t detect any signs of disease and came to the conclusion that it was probably just extreme tension and exhaustion, but you couldn’t be too careful.
He stood in front of a hidden cabinet and pored over a selection of prescription-only medications before noticing the presence of a weight in his pocket. He pulled out the stun gun that Shizuo had tossed to him during the earlier scene.
Shinra switched it on again, causing another bolt of electricity and loud crackle. The sight of the clearly altered stun gun’s effects brought the story of its use back to his mind.
“This thing’s clearly been upgraded to boost its output…”
“…And he took a shot from it and only said, ‘Yeow’? The guy really is turning into a monster.”
May 3, night, on the streets of Ikebukuro
Ahh, geez, Celty Sturluson lamented, trying to collect her thoughts. I took on a real pain of a job this time.
Celty was uncharacteristically gloomy in the midst of whatever job it was Shiki had given her. She was waiting at a stoplight on her lightless motorcycle, which emitted an engine roar that sounded oddly like whinnying.
Thanks, Shooter.
She stroked her partner’s handlebars, grinning inwardly.
…If this doesn’t go just right, I might not be home for several days. Maybe I should get in touch with Shinra now, while I have the chance. Either that or go home briefly to explain in person…
She noticed the signal for the cross street turn red. Celty waited on the left side of the two-lane road for the light to turn green, ready to send Shooter forward—but before the light changed, she sensed another motorcycle stop behind her.
Celty froze momentarily, terrified that it might be the usual cop, but when she trained her sense of vision backward, she saw that it was just an ordinary bike.
The rider had a full helmet like Celty’s and wore a black riding suit. It was the prototypical outfit of a high-speed biker, and Celty did not think anything of it—until her visual senses picked up something odd.
…?
Before she could process what was wrong, the light turned green, and she automatically started driving.
“Good evening, Halloween Knight,” the rear rider abruptly muttered.
Celty only heard it because of her heightened senses. It was probably meant for no ears but the speaker’s.
She picked up speed, not knowing what to make of the comment.
“Playtime is over. Too bad, very sad.”
Celty heard something resembling that coming from behind, and right at that moment—
A fierce shock ran through Celty’s torso.
She felt her body slam onto the road but had no idea what was happening.
“This is a bodyguard job.”
Through the dull pain, Celty heard what Shiki had told her earlier in the day.
“We don’t know where the target is now…”
“But in short, we need you to find and protect a certain target in secret.”
She’d had a bad feeling about it. Why ask her for protection?
But she couldn’t turn down the job.
“…Her life might be targeted right now. I’m afraid I can’t tell you much more than that…”
“I just want you to protect the person in this photograph.”
He showed her a picture. It was of a little girl, maybe ten years old at best.
Her expression was gloomy, but she was putting on a happy face for the camera.
“Her name is Akane Awakusu.”
“…She’s the granddaughter of our ‘company president.’”
“She’s currently running away from home. She doesn’t seem to approve of our ‘business model.’”
It’s not as if I like it, either, Celty thought. The pain came after a delay, bringing with it the confirmation that her bad feeling about this was correct.
She still couldn’t tell what had happened to her.
But clearly something had, and that was all she needed to know.
She had confirmed two very crucial facts.
Number one—the shock of the impact had knocked her helmet high into the air.
Number two—she was getting herself into some very bad business.
And so it was that Celty, the most unrealistic of beings, was forcibly entangled with the reality of humankind.
May 3, night, chat room
TarouTanaka has entered the chat.
TarouTanaka: Good evening.
TarouTanaka: Nobody’s around, looks like. Maybe they’re all out?
TarouTanaka: I know I showed up late, but if even Setton isn’t here…
Kuru has entered the chat.
Mai has entered the chat.
Mai: Good evening.
Kuru: And a most pleasant night to you, Tarou. Jumping right to the chat room on the first night of a vacation seems rather lonely to me, but on the other hand, the cyberspace realm knows no concepts such as vacations, holidays, day, or night. No one will condemn you here. But if you wish to be condemned, I can most certainly fulfill that role for you. The time has come to test whether you are the S or the M in S and M!
TarouTanaka: Oh, good evening.
TarouTanaka: Looks like you’re still the same.
Kuru: The time has come to be tested!
TarouTanaka: Why did you say that twice?
Mai: Sorry.
TarouTanaka: And why are you apologizing?
Saika has entered the chat.
TarouTanaka: Ah, good evening.
Mai: Good evening.
Kuru: Well, well, another wandering traveler on a day off. Spending your vacation all at home will prove to be fatal. It is a superstition that a rabbit will die of loneliness, but it really does happen to people.
Saika: i’m sorry
TarouTanaka: Why are you apologizing, Saika? lol
Kuru: …I don’t know how to respond to that.
TarouTanaka: No wonder, because you’ve done nothing to require an apology.
Saika: i’m sorry
TarouTanaka: Again?!
TarouTanaka: And what does this say about you, Kuru?
TarouTanaka: You’re here, too, aren’t you?
Kuru: No need to worry. Mai and I ventured out into the streets of Ikebukuro to savor the heady taste of life. After first destroying all the gyoza at Namja Town’s Gyoza Stadium, we enjoyed some shopping at World Import Mart and the Alpa mall, followed by the sight of a dashing gentleman stopping a robber along Sixtieth Floor Street.
Mai: The gyoza was yummy.
TarouTanaka: A robber? That sounds like quite a scene.
TarouTanaka: …If it was on Sixtieth Floor Street, was it either a black man advertising for a sushi shop or a man in a bartender’s outfit?
Kuru: Oh.
Mai: Shizuo.
TarouTanaka: Wait, you know Shizuo?
Kuru: Please pardon my brevity. Based on your chat messages alone, I would have taken you for a saint who could not kill a fly, Tarou, but you must have a wider social net than I realized if you know Shizuo as well. Perhaps if I were to meet you in person, you would turn out to be a great brute of a man, covered in tattoos and scars. Or a merchant of illicit pharmaceutical wares.
Saika: you mean shizuo heiwajima?
TarouTanaka: Sorry, there’s so much to say about that, I can’t even start.
TarouTanaka: Wait, you know him, too, Saika?
Saika: a bit
Saika: i’m sorry
TarouTanaka: Why are you apologizing? lol
Kuru: But sadly, it was not Shizuo whom we witnessed today. It was rather a playboy whose head was wrapped in bandages and an eyepatch. He was not a gentle fellow, but rather a finely muscled and sensual man.
Durarara!!, Vol. 5 Page 6