Oomi
Aochi-san called me over, and I climbed the ladder.
This is bad—I might actually die. That was my first honest thought.The ladder turned out to be way longer than I’d expected.If I fell into the sea, would Aochi-san jump in after me?He probably would.Thinking that, I moved slowly, carefully.
“If you’re scared, hurry the hell up! You’re shaking the damn thing ‘cause you’re so slow!”
His voice echoed from another world, distant and warped.
I wanted to look his way, but my eyes stayed glued to my feet.The waves below lapped like tongues waiting for me to fall.I couldn’t stop trembling.
“Hey… help me out, will ya?”
This time, Aochi-san’s voice rang clear in my ears.Strangely enough, that did more to fire me up than some empty “You got this!”
I leapt to the neighboring ship in one breath.Just before I lost my balance, Aochi-san caught me.
“You okay, Aochi-san?”
“I should be asking you that! You nearly gave me a heart attack, walking that tightrope like you did.”
Right behind Aochi-san, the Harvester was grinning.Somehow, I felt like even if I fell, he would’ve jumped in to save me too.
The real problem was the guy next to him—the one who looked way too carefree.
“Nice to meet you, I’m—”
As he reached out a hand, I instinctively stepped back.At the same time, Aochi-san stepped in front of me,and the Harvester grabbed the guy’s arm—all at once.
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“Don’t touch my guest without permission.This glasses kid does nothing but annoy me—but a guest’s a guest.Last time, he left me to die.This time, he threw up a ladder without asking...He never does anything decent.”
“The ladder was a coincidence.”
Apparently, the Harvester doesn’t believe in letting things slide.
But what I cared about now was something else—
“Why did you kill those people?”
“Wow, you’re sharp.Your friend who helped me out—he’s all about justice. This could go either way.”
From the other ship, I’d seen them.Three corpses lying on the deck.They rose, heads hanging low, pointing at this smirking man.
The sight chilled me—it had been a while since I’d seen something so wrong.
Since I met the Harvester, I’ve had experiences like this again and again.I’ve always been scared of the dead—but not this time.This time, it was him that chilled me.What scared me was the way he grinned—even as the dead pointed at him and called him out.
“That doesn’t answer my question.”
“Right, sorry.Like I said earlier—I make decisions fast.How much has your Harvester told you?We can’t take everyone to the destination.So if we’re going to reduce the numbers, it’s better to do it before anyone forms attachments.”
“Then… then you shouldn’t let them on board in the first place.Not being able to take everyone—is that a reason to kill?”
His voice was bright, but his eyes were the same as the Harvester’s—gray and cold.But unlike the Harvester’s, his reminded me of snow blackened by exhaust.Still, I had to know.Because what happened on this ship could happen on ours too.
“I’ll explain later.Right now, I need you two to search the ship.See if anyone else is aboard.”
The Harvester’s request left no room for argument.
“Got it.But once we’re back, I want you to tell us everything. All of us.”
“I will.I’ll even explain it to the tall one over there.This ship’s layout is almost identical to mine, though the interior’s totally different.If you find anyone, bring them here.”
I nodded firmly and headed toward the bridge door with Aochi-san.
That’s when I saw her—a woman surrounded by corpses on deck, staring at the waves with a blade still in hand.Her brown, shoulder-length curls swayed gently.
I couldn’t see her face clearly, buried between her knees,but her skin looked deathly pale—either naturally or from blood loss, I couldn’t tell.
The blade in her left hand gleamed clearer than before.
It looked like it could cut from any angle.That impossible sheen matched the ladder we’d just crossed—a shining silver that looked too perfect to be real.
And the hilt… it still didn’t seem to exist.Why wasn’t her hand injured?
“Oomi, hurry up.”
“Right, sorry.That woman staring at the waves—will she be okay?”
I asked, walking right behind Aochi-san.
“She’ll be fine.Our Harvester’s with her.Let’s finish checking the ship and get back quickly.”