I Am The Killer...
"Minami…Ms. Shinjō…"
I slowly stood up.
I looked behind me and saw that the rest of the clones, who should have been right there a moment ago, had disappeared.
Why didn’t they kill me.
But I cannot think further than that.
I stood on the edge of the rooftop with heavy steps and looked down.
The ochre-colored school grounds stretching far into the distance were stained with the blood of many people, and that blood was also being trampled and scraped by living people. And around them were always scattered corpses of lifeless clones and humans.
But what caught my eye was the still brand new splatter bloodstain that was spreading right under this school building. That one, unlike the others, is evidence of a fall from somewhere high up.
Minami and Ms. Shinjō were both lying in a sea of reddish blood. From above them, a single clone with outstretched arms was ruthlessly crushing their slender bodies.
"I…"
With my own hands…
"Here is the status report. Number of death in Team Reaper are four humans and three clones. Team Demon's casualties are zero humans and three clones."
The speaker's voice rang in my ears.
"Damn…"
Is this really it for me?
"I’ve killed four people. Shōta, Okisada, Minami, and Ms. Shinjō."
"Hey, Shūhei!"
It was only when my name was called that I realized I was in the first floor cafeteria. I have no memory of how I got here from the rooftop.
"Hiroyuki, Tsutomu and Mr. Nabeshima. I’m glad you are alive."
"Yes. But it seems like…"
"The other four died. You’ve heard the announcement, right?"
"Okisada too?"
"Yes."
I answered in a thin, yet clear voice.
"I’m very sorry about Ms. Shinjō. I told her to hide in the classroom to get some rest since I'd been letting her run all day."
Mr. Nabeshima's face was filled with guilt.
"No…"
I could not say that I killed Minami and Ms. Shinjō.
"We did our best to defeat one of the clones."
Hiroyuki gave a smile to me, perhaps trying to cheer me up.
"I see."
But I didn't know whether to simply rejoice or not.
"I did kill one clone myself. I didn't know who it was, but…"
"You don’t know who it was?"
"No, I just pushed him off from behind, so I didn't see his face. I know I said I wouldn't kill anyone, but I'm a murderer after all."
"No, the opponent is a clone, not human."
Mr. Nabeshima defended me wholeheartedly as I was overcome with guilt. However, his defense was only a comfort.
"Yeah, that’s right..."
"More importantly, the clone that Shūhei killed is…"
Tsutomu suddenly raised his voice.
"'He looked like a yakuza with an all-back. Was there ever a guy like that among the living?"
At that moment, Tsutomu and Hiroyuki's faces scrunched up.
"That guy is…"
"It’s us, right?"
All eyes were on the entrance to the cafeteria.
"You are…"
