Chapter 49 The Alley (9) Meanwhile, further ahead...
Meanwhile, the fat man, the thin man, and the girl with glasses, who were further ahead, also felt the suffocating and terrifying fluctuations behind them.
"The commotion behind us is even more terrifying!" The fat man, carrying Ishishita Taro who was still twitching slightly and muttering incoherently, said with a hint of irritability and unease, "Could it be those faceless kids catching up?! Damn it."
"It doesn't look like it." The skinny man glanced behind him and saw something huge wriggling at the far end. His unease grew stronger: "Something's wrong. I feel like it's something even more dangerous... Run! Run after the bell!"
The bell that had been guiding them suddenly became unusually urgent, carrying a warning tone. The three dared not linger for a moment, and ran with all their might in the direction indicated by the bell.
Finally, they arrived at a vast and indescribable space.
This place felt like the bottom layer of a maze, a huge, empty nest. The dome was a dark red sky, high and distant, like a child's clumsy doodle with compressed image quality. In that sky, a fake sun with a grinning face hung high in the center.
But at this moment, the sun's expression seemed a little off; its smile appeared forced, revealing a chilling pain and ferocity.
At the center of the space is a constantly writhing and changing cocoon formed by countless fragmented memories, some old toy remnants, and colorful shadows.
The cocoon seemed to connect to the dark red sky in space. It resembled an ugly heart on the verge of exploding, emitting a heavy and slow throbbing sound similar to a heartbeat.
But everyone present could feel the negative emotions in the space: regret, sadness, anger, despair... These emotions became tangible in this space, making it hard for them to breathe. With each pulsation of the cocoon, the negative emotions they felt became even stronger, and even began to affect them.
"What, what is this?" The girl with glasses was pale. The negative emotions reminded her of some bad memories, and she almost vomited.
"What should we do?" The fat man looked at the enormous, sanity-draining thing and felt that if they stayed there, they would be affected by it until they had a mental breakdown.
But the bell had stopped ringing, and the three of them were somewhat bewildered.
Just then, the gentle voice in their minds rang out again, but this time, it was filled with an undisguised weariness and a sense of relief as if a certain decision had been made.
"This is the heart of this place..."
"Waiting for...the key..."
"What key?" the skinny man asked loudly, but the voice disappeared, leaving only his echo in the space.
"Damn it." The skinny man was a little annoyed. He couldn't figure out the mysterious man's motives at all, and he only said half of what he meant.
They didn't explain the key information, or why we were made to wait here.
"Hey, skinny!" the fat man shouted.
Just as the skinny man was about to ask what was wrong, he saw a flash of light at the entrance to this space, and a group of people rushed in.
"Hey, hey, hey—!" The three were startled by the sudden appearance of strangers and huddled together. The fat man looked at the panting group in front of him and said warily, "You scared me! Wait... wait, don't come any closer! Who are you?"
"Taro!" The moment Ishishita Kenichi entered, he saw the fat man's son on his back and excitedly wanted to rush over, but Kunikida Doppo held him back tightly.
"Mr. Ishishita, look there!" Kunikida Doppo pointed to the huge [cocoon] in the center.
Kenichi Ishishita followed the gaze, and when he sensed the terrifying aura emanating from it, he was struck dumb, frozen in place.
"Do you know this child?" the fat man asked them suspiciously.
"Um, um, don't you guys think he looks like the man in the previous video?" the girl with glasses said cautiously.
“That thing…” Kenichi Ishishita looked at the enormous object in the center, his lips trembling slightly. He could feel the connection between this thing and him. It contained all his unbearable past, a projection of the dark side of his heart.
He glanced again at the unconscious Ishishita Taro behind the fat man. Ishishita Kenichi broke free from Kunikida Doppo's grasp, staggered forward a few steps, and wept bitterly at the object in front of him: "It's me, it's all me! Please, let Taro go! Come at me with whatever you want, tear me apart, devour me! Let my son go—!"
His cries were like the final key, completely inserted into the lock.
Boom—!!!
The entire space shook violently.
The surface of the enormous cocoon in the middle cracked open with countless fissures, and a huge, twisted, colorful shadow struggled to rise from the cocoon, accompanied by countless cries, roars, and howls from all directions.
It was an indescribable monster with a roughly human-shaped outline, but it was composed of countless fragments of negative memories and huge colored shadows. Its face kept changing, sometimes it was the ferocious face of Kenichi Ishishita when he was drunk, sometimes it became the face of Taro Ishishita crying in fear, and sometimes it transformed into countless blurry child faces full of resentment.
It roared, and its massive, shadowy arm slammed down first on Kenichi Ishishita, who was closest to it and had the strongest emotions.
"Watch out!" Atsushi Nakajima instantly transformed into a tiger and pounced towards the opponent, pushing Kenichi Ishishita away.
The giant, shadowy hand slammed into the ground, leaving a deep crater. The flying debris and impact sent the unsuspecting fat man, skinny man, and bespectacled girl flying. The children also fell to the ground, but fortunately, the skinny man and fat man shielded the children's heads with their hands, and they groaned in pain.
"Dun!" Izumi Kyoka drew her short sword, and Yasha Shirayuki appeared behind her. Her figure was as fast as lightning as she slashed at the monster's arm that was trying to chase after her. The blade sliced through the shadow, but only left a shallow mark, which was instantly filled by more shadowy matter.
“Physical attacks have limited effectiveness,” Izumi Kyoka calmly reported.
Atsushi Nakajima and Kyoka Izumi used their agility to dodge and evade the monsters, but they were in grave danger. The three fat men, despite their pain, scrambled and crawled, desperately dodging attacks while also protecting the unconscious child.
"If this continues, we'll all die here!" the skinny man cried out in despair.
Edogawa Ranpo stood in a slightly safer position, his emerald green eyes rapidly scanning the monster and the entire space. His brain worked at lightning speed, analyzing the situation. Then he shouted, "Its weakness and core are not in the physical form of the shadow! It's in emotions! It's Mr. Ishishita's unresolved regret, and, and, all the fear and sorrow of the other children it absorbed!"
"Only by resolving attachments can we truly destroy or weaken them!"
"Weaknesses are such abstract concepts, damn it," the fat man cursed as he pulled the children to a safe place.
"Resolve it? How can I resolve it?!" Kenichi Ishishita collapsed to the ground, staring at the monster that represented the dark side of his heart, his face filled with despair: "I, someone like me... doesn't deserve the forgiveness of my children and wife... Is it just that if I die..."
"It's not right for you to beg for forgiveness!" Edogawa Ranpo said sharply, interrupting the other's dangerous thoughts: "Even if you die, this thing won't disappear. You will truly become its nourishment or parasite, and you and your son will be trapped here forever. The solution is for you to face it, to truly face it! Not to wallow in self-blame, but to admit your mistakes, then choose to make amends, and turn your regret into the determination and action to save your son! Use your love for your son to fight against it."
Kenichi Ishishita opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn't know what to say.
Love... is it...?
Just then, perhaps stimulated by the fierce battle outside and his father's cries, Ishishita Taro, who had been unconscious, slowly awoke. The first thing he saw upon opening his eyes was the terrifying monster whose face kept changing into a hideous mask. Ishishita Taro was terrified, his face turning deathly pale, and he burst into tears: "Daddy...monster! Daddy turning into a monster is so boring... Waaah—!"
"Taro!"
His son's cries pierced Ishishita Kenichi's last defenses like a sharp knife. Looking into his son's terrified eyes, and at the grotesque face that resembled his own on the monster's body, he finally realized that when he treated his son that day, he must have appeared just as terrifying and monstrous in his child's eyes.
An unprecedented surge of courage welled up from the bottom of my heart.
He stopped slumped over and struggled to his feet, wiping away his tears, his eyes hardening.
He no longer looked at the terrifying monster, but instead focused all his attention and energy on his weeping son.
He pushed aside Atsushi Nakajima, who was protecting him, and walked steadily toward Taro Ishishita, ignoring the danger around him and the monster's attacks, while Atsushi Nakajima looked on in astonishment.
"Taro!" His voice, no longer trembling, carried a steady strength that could pierce through all noise: "Look at your father!"
Attracted by his father's voice, Ishishita Taro raised his teary eyes.
“I’m sorry, Taro.” Kenichi Ishishita’s voice echoed in the chaotic space: “Dad did many wrong things in the past, neglected you, and hurt you.”
“Dad… was a terrible father.” His voice choked with emotion as he dodged the monster’s attacks, his steps quickening without faltering.
“But Dad loves you. I really, really love you.” His eyes glistened with tears: “Dad swears that he will never do that again. Dad will go to the park with you, listen to your stories about school, cook delicious food for you, and be a father who is worthy of calling you his son.”
"So, don't be afraid!" He finally walked up to his son, slowly squatted down, ignored the raging shadows around him, opened his arms, and hugged his trembling son tightly in his arms: "Daddy is here, Daddy will protect you, and will never let you go again."
The moment he embraced his son, a white light emanated from the boy's body, spreading throughout the space with indescribable power.
The monster touched by the light let out a painful howl. The struggling face belonging to Kenichi Ishishita on its body began to blur, and the shadowy substances that made up its body began to gradually dissolve.
Ishishita Taro felt the solid and reliable warmth in his father's arms, and his crying gradually stopped. His little hands slowly wrapped around his father's neck.
However, just when victory seemed imminent...
"No!" Dazai Osamu's face showed a rare hint of panic. The shadowy substance of the monster continued to rise and pounced on Ishishita Kenichi, who was holding his son. Before anyone could react, it swallowed Ishishita Kenichi whole.
Ishishita Taro raised his head blankly, only to hear the sound of the shadowy substance chewing and swallowing. In his slightly widened pupils of fear, a few drops of warm blood fell on Ishishita Taro's face. Then, with a "splash," chewed limb fragments and warm liquid continued to fall onto Ishishita Taro's body.
"Ah..." Ishishita Taro stared blankly at the scene.
"Aa ...
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