…This is the worst…
Apparently, he’d been shot. Possibly multiple times.
Sousei was lying on his back with his legs on the staircase and his head pointed toward the entrance, where people would take off their shoes. Someone had shot at him from the top of the stairs. Sousei had probably died instantly, then fallen backward.
I probably lost my earpiece. Did it fall out, or break…?
That didn’t matter right now.
Sousei had died once, been resurrected, and was now playing dead.
Above him. He’d been shot from above. Above? Sousei had been going up the stairs. Above the stairs.
Sousei’s pistol was in his hand, his finger lodged between the trigger and the back of the trigger guard.
It was dark. There was no way. Even if he opened his eyes, it was too dark for him to see anything.
How about sounds? He wasn’t sure. He couldn’t really hear anything.
…Or, no?
He didn’t know if it was a sound or not. It was hard to tell, but something was moving. He could sense it.
Something was there.
It was on…the staircase wall?
The right side of the wall facing him? Something was stuck there.
NGS…
No Gravity System.
Sousei hadn’t been able to keep up with Anthony Takeda’s gravity-defying movements. Even knowing what it was, that would still be difficult. Sousei’s eyes weren’t used to it, and his brain and body just wouldn’t follow it. Someone with good instincts might be able to handle NGS, but Sousei was, unfortunately, just an ordinary guy with a cheat.
Really, I’m way too mediocre…
The organization suspected that Riamu Kinoshita might be a member of NGS just like Anthony Takeda. If Kinoshita had killed three people as a hired killer for the NGS and another eight as a murderer, then Sousei would eliminate him. That was his job this time. If Kinoshita really was with NGS, any surface in the house would be like flat ground to him. He’d easily be able to walk on the walls and stand on the ceiling. Naturally, Sousei would have to account for that.
But Sis said that Kinoshita had left the house…
It was strange. Right. Kinoshita shouldn’t be in the house.
It wasn’t him. It had to be someone else. An accomplice. Was that it?
The person sticking to the right-hand wall moved, going from the wall to the stairs. They started coming down the stairs, then stopped and looked down at Sousei.
They lightly kicked Sousei’s left leg. Were they watching for a reaction?
Not to brag, but I’m pretty good at playing dead…
He continued pretending to be a corpse.
There’s an animal that does that, isn’t there? The opossum, right? That marsupial that lives in America…
They kicked Sousei again, harder than before.
That’s twice now.
Immediately after, he was kicked a third, then a fourth time.
They’re really going to town…
The person finally seemed satisfied after kicking Sousei’s left leg six times. Sousei thought they’d jump over him, but instead, they slid smoothly along the wall above him. Those movements characteristic of the NGS reminded him of Anthony Takeda.
Sousei’s head didn’t move, but his eyes were open. He didn’t know what the person looked like, but they didn’t seem to have a large build. It could be a man or a woman. They were wearing pants and probably didn’t have long hair.
…Kinoshita?
They had a similar build.
…It couldn’t be, right…?
The presumed member of NGS wasn’t heading to the front entrance, but to the hallway. Were they going into the living room? Before they got there, they turned back and looked in Sousei’s direction.
But they definitely…look similar…
That silhouette. They were wearing baggy clothes, which was pretty common, but they also had that hairstyle. A mushroom cut.
The mushroom-haired person went into the living room. They didn’t close the door behind them. Sousei cautiously moved his legs, which were still on the stairs.
The steps weren’t stable. They made a sound, ever so slightly.
It was only a small noise, so he’d be all right. He wouldn’t be noticed.
That wasn’t how Sousei thought.
He instantly jumped to his feet and charged into the living room. The mushroom-haired person was in front of the sofa. Sousei saw a muzzle flash and heard the bang of a gunshot. Almost at the exact same time, Sousei dove to the floor.
It’s got to be Kinoshita…!
He hadn’t been able to get a good look, but Sousei was certain. He fired back from the prone position, shooting over and over. The person he thought could only be Kinoshita returned fire, letting loose a stream of bullets as he moved. The glass door. The living room had a sliding glass door which Kinoshita rammed into with his body, smashing through it and going outside.
Sousei stood up and tried to follow Kinoshita.
If he’s NGS…
Sousei decided not to go outside the same way. Instead, he went back to the hallway and left through the front door. He went around to the side of the house with the sliding glass door and saw Kinoshita crouching on the outer wall of the second floor. Presumably, he’d been planning to shoot Sousei from above as soon as he emerged through the sliding glass door.
He noticed Sousei. As Sousei tried to shoot, Kinoshita ran up the outside wall, getting onto the roof in a heartbeat and disappearing from sight.
If he takes up position on the roof…
That would be bad. He’d have free rein to target Sousei from up there.
Should I go into the house or use the perimeter wall as cover?
Kinoshita immediately started shooting from the roof, robbing Sousei of his options. If Sousei ran to the perimeter wall, he’d be exposed until he got there. He had no choice but to escape into the house.
No sooner was he through the front door than the shooting stopped.
…What do I do?
His magazine wasn’t completely empty, but he only had two rounds left. Sousei knelt on one knee in the entryway and swapped out the magazine, then loaded the almost empty one with loose ammunition.
No matter how many abandoned houses are in this area, I’m sure all this shooting’s been reported to the police. I’ve got a suppressor on my gun, but he definitely doesn’t…
Sooner or later, the police would arrive. He had to be prepared for that as well.
…This house has a corpse in it. Two, even… And there might be more. There’s a bloodstain from when I was shot dead as well. This is bad, for so many reasons…
Sousei figured Kinoshita would come to attack him.
He’s killed me once. Does he think he missed and that the shot wasn’t lethal, or is he coming up with other possibilities? I’m way too healthy for someone who narrowly survived. Surely he won’t be careless if he feels something’s off, right? Or is that just wishful thinking…?
It was only in situations like these that Sousei found himself without his earpiece.