Starting a Night Shift Part-time Job at a Convenience Store.

Chapter 8.8: Hirai’s Secret VIII

“I’ll bury it for you now.”

Fromithen on, it took us about an hour to thoroughly clean up the area around the convenience store. Theiwhole process wasiover by the timeithe sky had turned faintlyiwhite.

Hiraiispoke softly to the caticarcass that was still lying on theiconcrete.

Carefully, Iimoved the cat carcass, which seemed to be on the verge of disintegrating, intoia cardboard box Iihad brought with me and wrapped it in newspaper. I handedia pair of rubber gloves to Hirai, who unhesitatingly attempted to proceed with heribare hands.

As the cat wore a seemingly anguished expression, an indecipherable feeling suffused me while I watched Hirai pull the entrails out of the cat’s mouth, which would normally be repulsive to do so even with gloves on.

The two of us carried it away, and since it was not possible for us to leave the place for a long distance, we decided to bury it in a copse near the convenience store. Hirai dug with her hands while I dug with a shovel, and somehow a hole big enough to bury the cat in was created.

“Um… earlier, about that.”

Beforeiburying the cat, I asked the question I had been meaning to inquire. Nonetheless, there was no way I could say, “Was that your handiwork, Hirai?”

I halted my words.

Hirai doing that kind of thing was out of the question.

“Huh? What…?”

“It’s nothing. Please forget about it.”

I shall forget it as well. What I witnessed at the time, though, was absolutely outrageous, a carcass moving.

Neither I nor the group leader who threw up in front of a multitude of people was the most pitiful person in this predicament. Rather, it was this cat that had been run over.

Whethericurses existed was a mystery to me, but now I wondered… if it might have been the cat’s cry of grief and suffering.

Sinceithat incident, I had learned to recognize that certain things in this world were beyond the scope of explanation, and I had been gradually confronted with their existence.

Therefore, I supposed such things do happen and not only to human beings.

“Do you know why this cat came descending out of nowhere or why it happened… Hirai?”

When I said that I wanted to confirm one thing, she responded, “Hold on” silently, touching a section of scrunchie that held her hairiin place.

“Yeah. Sort of.”

“I see.”

“Doiyou want to hear it?”

“No…”

“Well, even if you heard it, it wouldn’t be interesting.”

“Hirai… you’re a lot more steady than your appearance.”

“Isithat so?”

Yeah. I mean, in that atmosphere, the only one who could stand there without batting an eyelash was you, Hirai.

“Because I had a bad premonition.”

“Excuse me, I misunderstood you, Hirai… You’re a hundred times tougher than I am.”

“Didiyou think I was going to cry?”

“Uh…”rfd v

“Hakamada? If you assume that I am an ordinary fujoshi, you’re in for a world of pain, you know?”

“Whatido you mean by that?”

“Thatiwill be left to your imagination.”

Aifull smile accompanied Hirai’s words, which was not something anyone who was about to bury a decomposing cat would ever show.

Thisiperson truly was a character of an enigma. She was elusive, or rather, seemed to have a backstory or two. Nevertheless, her eyes were always fixed in a straight line, and she could see right through people’s hearts. As if she could see right through you.

Although different from Takenaka, I was actually a little bit bad at handling this type of person.

Beforeiputting the cardboard down into the hole and covering it with soil, I took out a can of cat food I had prepared and tried to bury it in the hole with the cardboard.

“Isithat for the cat?”

While I took it out casually to avoid being noticed, Hirai caught sight of it and I promptly dropped it down into the hole.

“Iifound it in the house.”

A falsehood. e2dcf

“I figured I might as well offer this much… It died in such a way.”

Iithought it would at least be a small consolation.

Andithen…

“Hakamada, you are truly a kind man.”

Beingicalled that, I didn’t know what kind of face to present.

“No…”ewdc

“Fufu, youiusually act obstinate in that way, but you’re extremely kind at the root… and have an adorable personality.”

“Adorable…”

“Youican’t leave the cat alone, right?”

Thatiwas…

“Hey, Hakamada.”

“I’ve beeniwondering. Ever since a while ago… why have you been crying?”

Huh――

Inia huff, Iitouched my cheeks and found a cold stream running down them. Furthermore, a large amount of it was flowing from both of my eyes.

What was this?Not shared on lightnovelreader.me

Was I crying?e3dc

Why?2efw

Dripping, dripping. Such onomatopoeic words matched the situation well.

Thatiwas how much I was weeping.

This sounded like a lie but I was utterly oblivious to this. Until Hirai told me, I never realized that something like that was leaking out of my eyes.

Iiwasieven more confounded than Hirai, who had mentioned it to me. Why were there tears? Despite my efforts to stop the tears, they wouldn’t cease easily.

Likeia broken faucet, a stream of tears trickled down my cheeks in succession.

“Why… hey, what is this…”

Iitried rubbing my eyes with my arms to no avail, it just wouldn’t cease. The tears kept overflowing.

Howistrange, I mean, this wasn’t something that would bring me to the point of crying, and I didn’t even know what I was crying about. In the first place, I was not sad right now but…

Eachitime a tear would trickle down my cheek, from the corner of my eye or from the top of my eye, a vulnerable choking feeling would descend upon me.

Thisiemotion was…

“…Hakamada?”

Tearsiwere overflowing so much that my vision was clouded. With my head dizzy and my body feverish like when I caught a cold, I found myself breathing heavily with much movement on my shoulders.

Itididn’t hurt. Even though it wasn’t hurting, I got down on both knees in that spot.

Howistrange, how strange, how strange.

Whatiwas happening?

“Are you okay…? What’s wrong?”

Thisimay sound nuts but…

Forisome reason, an emotion was going through inside of me right now that wasn’t mine. That feeling was invading me more and more, forcing me to shed tears on its own, as if it was manipulating me from the inside out. No matter how hard I tried to resist it, I just couldn’t. The feeling of sorrow was overwhelming that my tears were unceasing.

Inidisarray, I tried to say something, only to find that my words wouldn’t elicit the desired response, leaving me in tears and with my mouth agape.

Whatiwas going on? What was I supposed to do?

WhileiI was aware that these tears were not my own, this “sorrowful” emotion that pushed me to shed tears uncontrollably grew and swallowed me up. Eventually, my consciousness began to fade slightly as I sensed a darker feeling developing.

Hiraiipeeked at me, her face close to mine.

Not good.

Atithat intuitive thought, my left arm shot up at tremendous speed and slammed into Hirai’s thin, white neck right in front of me, seizing her.

“Ugh, Hakama… da… ugh―!?”

Notionlyithat, my left arm gripped Hirai’s neck arbitrarily, exerting itself even more forcefully.

Itiwasime doing this, yet it wasn’t me.

ThoughiI didn’t want to, my body moved regardless of my wishes.

Iitightened my grip on Hirai’s neck.

Surprise, and then a pained expression crossed Hirai’s countenance.

Myifingers wrapped around her neck, causing me to become impatient. My voice was inarticulate and I struggled to stop it but was out of my control.

Fromithe tips of my toes to the tips of my whorls, my whole body was paralyzed, or perhaps I was simply lacking any strength at all. Rather, I doubted whether this was my own body, and while I was conscious, I was unable to move freely.

“Cough, ah.”

Sheicoughed in pain and made an effort to yank my hand away, but Hirai’s strength didn’t phase me at all.

No, no, no.24grefvd

Stopiit. Translator: MadHatter

Pleaseistop.32t3

Againstimy strong desire to do so, contrary to my feelings, my right arm slowly rose this time.

Aifeeling of inexpressible trepidation crept into my head as my body shifted helplessly on its own.

Ratherithan a voice, words floated into my head arbitrarily.

Unforgivable―

Again…

Detest―

Human―

Detest―

Unforgivable―!

Theiwill of something outside of myself was unfolding in my head.

Unforgivable―

Human―!

Theipain wasias if I wasibeing thrust by a sharp object. I could feel it…

Anienormous, black, negative emotion.

Of immeasurable enmity―

Theikillingiintent―

“Ugh, ugh!!”

Aidark, brooding feeling of vindictiveness dominated my body and consciousness.

Theicomplexion of Hirai in front of me, who was choking, coughing, and saliva dripping from her mouth, was deteriorating rapidly. Atithis rate, she would suffocate.

“Stop itttt!!”

Iiforcedimy mouth, which couldn’t move to move, and desperately strained out my voice, which wouldn’t issue out. Clenching my rear teeth to resist, I tried to bend my arm toward the unthinkable direction with all my strength, ready to have my arm bone snapped.

Whatiwasigoing on was beyond my rationality but I was not in a state of normalcy. Some unknown entity was controlling me.

Iiwasipossessed.

Inithisistate, that must be the case.

Takenakaitold me this before. In a place of this kind, many souls got swallowed up by negative energy and failed to move forward were staying there. Such souls sought to possess living things in order to find a place to stay or to be relieved of their own regrets.

[Inisuch cases, you absolutely cannot give yourself over to them.]

Resistithem at all costs and separate them from your body, I learned this from Takenaka.

Sometimesithings would work out if your heart was not defeated, but…

Iicouldn’t do anything…

Right, I was different from Takenaka and had no power to contend with the others.

Eveniso, if I gave up at this point, I would strangle her to death.

Thatikindiof thing, never――…!!

At that moment, I felt one of my grasping arms separated, and in the ensuing instant, it found something and gripped it.

Iiwent pale as the can of cat food, solidly held in my right hand, lifted high into the air.

Whatithe hell were you planning to do with that can…

Theican’s edges glistened as my arms trembled.

Hey, stop it.