I had placed the ghoul's dead body in a black bag before carrying it on my shoulders through the streets.
It's not as heavy as I thought. Or maybe I'm stronger than I thought.
Although I chose to walk where the light from the houses or streetlights didn't reach.
The shadows are my friends tonight.
I carried it far away. I walked and walked until my legs led me to a large trash can in a dark alley.
And I threw it in there.
—Crash!
The sound of the body falling into the container echoes in the alley.
I wipe my hands, quite satisfied with that.
Now I just have to clean the house, and when I say that, I mean clean up the blood. There's a lot of blood. On the walls, on the floor, and on the ceiling.
When I pulled out the ghoul's wings, his blood had splattered everywhere, so my house is now a mess.
That said, it's not just the blood, as there are still many holes in the ceiling and walls from the ghoul's attacks.
"Ugh... that's going to be a problem..."
I need to get some wood or something to cover them up.
Maybe I can borrow some materials from a nearby construction site.
×××
The next day arrives.
The sun is shining brightly when I leave my house.
After borrowing a piece of meat from a butcher shop and being chased by a lady with a broom shouting "Thief! Thief!"
—Gomu! Gomu!
I hide in an alley and stuff the raw meat into my mouth, tearing it apart with my teeth.
That should be enough to stave off hunger until nightfall.
But the meat tastes a little worse now, or rather, I can even say it tastes much worse.
Is it because it's old meat? Or is it because the butcher doesn't know how to cook... wait, it's not cooked.
I don't know, it just tastes bad.
It felt like my body was rejecting it.
"How strange..."
I walk through the city looking for ghouls.
I want to hunt them down and devour the organs that come out of their backs. Those disgusting wings of flesh.
If I gain enough regeneration, I probably wouldn't be any different from a human, right?
That thought motivates me.
I ignore the adults who hide their children from me when I walk down the street.
"Mom, that kid looks weird!"
"Shh! Don't look at him!"
I see that kind of scene every day, so I don't care anymore.
That's a lie.
I do care, but I pretend I don't.
The afternoon arrives, and I go to yesterday's square.
"..."
Rei is already waiting for me. She is sitting on the swing, swinging her legs.
When she sees me, her eyes light up.
"Arata!"
She runs towards me with a big smile.
"You're late!"
"I've been busy."
Rei then notices the adhesive bandages on my face, causing her expression to change to one of concern.
"D-did you hurt yourself? Does it hurt?!"
"I hurt myself a little. But it doesn't hurt at all."
Since I haven't fully regenerated yet, I covered up the visible wounds because the flesh under my skin is a little darker than that humans.
Rei frowns and her cheeks puff up.
"It was other bad kids, right?! Don't worry, Arata! I'll protect you!"
Seeing her put her hands on her hips, I laugh.
She's too cute.
"W-What? What's so funny?"
Rei is embarrassed.
I raise my hand and move it toward her head.
But then my hand freezes before touching her.
I remember that these hands were stained. I had killed someone. Well, a ghoul. But still.
I don't want to touch Rei's head with these hands.
"It's nothing. I'm just amused by your angry face."
I lower my hand.
In fact, I felt happy when Rei showed concern for me. When she said she would protect me.
Although I know it's not possible. She's a normal human after all, plus she's a six or seven-year-old girl.
In any case, I would be the one to protect her if she ever needed help.
After all, there are ghouls out there.
"Why did you stop? Weren't you going to touch my head?"
Rei tilts her head and looks dissatisfied for a few seconds. Then she smiles and takes my hand before pulling me toward the seesaw.
"Come on! Let's play!"
We play for about five hours.
The games are quite different as there is the seesaw, the slide, the bars, and the swings.
Rei laughs all the time.
I laugh too, although my laughter sounds a little strange.
The sun is no longer as hot as it was at noon as it is setting.
After Rei gets tired, we sit on the swing and rest.
"Why are you biting your finger?"
Rei asks me suddenly.
"..."
I feel quite disgusted at that moment, because when I look at my friend, I feel hungry.
That thought scares me. To be honest, it's the biggest scare I've had in my two lives.
I bite my finger to make the hunger go away.
That didn't happen before when I looked at humans. They just made me feel indifferent.
Is it possible that devouring parts of ghouls has made me hungry for human flesh?
I remember then that this morning the meat tasted much worse than usual.
And I think that's why.
Ghouls can only eat human flesh.
Am I turning into a ghoul?
"Arata! Are you feeling sick?"
Rei is concerned when she sees my anxious face and comes closer to look at me.
I have the urge to push her away to protect her, but then I restrain myself and put on a smile.
"I'm just tired."
Rei nods. She reaches out and touches my face gently.
"Your skin is quite cold, you know? And besides, your smile is always stiff."
Then she molds my face with her small hands. Stretching my cheeks upward.
"There! You have to smile like this!"
All of this only makes my hunger grow more and more with every passing second.
—Grumble!
My stomach growls so loudly that even Rei hears it.
She is surprised and then laughs.
"Hahaha! You must eat, Arata!"
"Yeah... I'm hungry..."
Then she puts on a sad expression.
"I had a lot of fun today. But tomorrow is Monday and I can't come. Classes start again."
"I see..."
"What school do you go to, Arata?"
"... None."
"Huh?!"
Rei opens her red eyes wide.
"Not studying is bad! You should study! Why don't you study?"
I feel a little embarrassed, so I rub the back of my head. I don't know how to answer that question.
"My situation is complicated, and I can't study right now."
Rei looks me up and down.
"Is it because of your appearance?"
She looks at me carefully.
"You are a little strange, actually. Is it because of bullying? Hmph! Those silly kids. You don't have to worry about them, Arata. Because to me, you're cute."
"Haah? Cute? Me?"
Rei blushes intensely.
"Y-Yes! And when we're adults, I wouldn't mind marrying you!"
"..."
I'm speechless.
Rei realizes what she just said and her face turns even redder.
"A-Ah! I-I won't be able to see you until Sunday!"
She says quickly before jumping away from me and starting to run.
I watch her fleeing back...
But I see her running back.
"Ah! My house is on the corner of 15th Street! That way we could see each other more often!"
Then she runs away again, embarrassed.
As I watch her disappear from the park, I feel even more guilty inside for being hungry when I look at her.
I slap my cheeks hard.
"I can't... I can't think about eating her..."