It looked like the others were bullying her.
Come on, grow up, stupid girls.
The bullies left her sitting in the river, mocking her as they walked away. Naota sighed at this intense scene; then, he froze when he caught a better look at the girl slowly standing up in the middle of the river.
It can't be.
She wore the familiar uniform of Mabase Shinda High School. The girl in the river was, without a doubt, Mamimi.
The person being bullied in front of me was Mamimi.
Mamimi silently wrung out her soaked skirt.
Stunned, Naota watched the scene unfold. He thought back to the other day, when Mamimi had called him because her shoes were missing. She had told him the shoes had been washed away while she was playing with Takkun.
When she'd said it, Mamimi had given her typical giggle. Seeing her smile, Naota had thought spitefully how nice it must be for a high school girl with nothing to worry about.
Last night, when Mamimi had walked away, Haruko had asked if it was okay to leave her like that. "Why not?" Naota had answered. "Nothing bothers her, anyway."
The person being bullied in front of me was Mamimi.
Standing in the riverbed, Mamimi looked in his direction. When she spotted Naota standing on the bridge, she stopped. Halting in the midst of wringing her wet skirt, she didn't move.
For a short time, the girl and the boy simply stood there, staring at each other.
Chapter 3
How much time passed?
The two of them perched on top of the bridge. The town soon was covered in a thin darkness, and the cold air chilled their skin.
"My skirt dries quicker this way," Mamimi had said, sitting down on the bridge. Naota couldn't do anything but silently sit next to her.
The headlights of cars passed over them.
This bridge was smaller than Mabase Bridge, where he and Mamimi usually met. There weren't as many cars, and there were fewer streetlamps.
Naota felt like he was in a fleeting dream. If someone had painted this scene, it definitely would be a gloomy picture. Since Mamimi had sat down, she hadn't uttered a single word. Cigarette in her mouth, she silently played her handheld game.
I should say something, Naota thought. He couldn't think of anything to say, though, so the blips from the game continued softly.
She was like a robot that had been programmed to play a game. The cigarette between her lips glowed red, and that was the only way he knew she still was breathing. Mamimi…
Naota felt as though his heart had been ripped out.
Last night, Mamimi had come over, carrying her photos of Lord Canti, greeting him with a cheerful smile. It seemed so long ago.
Naota felt as if hundreds or thousands of years had passed. Whether something had happened in the ancient past or just yesterday, once the moment ended, it became a part of the inseparable past. "A long time ago" referred to something in the past that would be impossible to experience again. That was why Mamimi's innocent expression was nothing more than a distant memory to Naota now.
She smashed out her cigarette and stood up.
"Is your skirt dry?"
As soon as he asked, he regretted it so much that he felt like dying. Could he have said anything worse? At that moment, he was the most terrible person in the world.
Mamimi gave him a cold, sidelong glance, as if she didn't know him. Remaining silent, she dropped her game next to Naota. It was exactly the same gesture she'd used to discard her cigarette butt.
Naota picked it up and pressed the start button. He felt he wouldn't be able to stand the silence without it. Of course, the handheld contained the game Mamimi always played: Fire Starter. Naota, too, had played it when it first had come out, but he'd given up after a few times. It wasn't just Naota—most of the kids who'd bought it had given up on it almost immediately. It hadn't sold well, either. Fire Starter was a really weird game.
Welcome to Endsville, the devil town.
It is a dark town, a city of devils.
An invisible darkness has infected people's hearts. It eats away at the world and continues to spread. It won't stop until Endsville has consumed everything.
This town makes real the previously unattainable desire for world conquest. Finally, all the world shall be like Endsville, and all the people in the world will be like Endsville's residents. Governments, businesses, and churches will become affiliated with Endsville, and all schools will become like Endsville schools, as well.
Pride, obsessions pretending to be love, weak morals, distorted equality—this town is full of easy prey for the devils. It's packed with low-hanging fruit.
Stop Endsville from further consumption!
As apostle to the God of the Black Flame, Lord Cantido, you must stop the growth of Endsville, which knows not how to stop alone.
Take care! If you relax for a moment, then the devil town will enlarge.
The single weapon you have been given to halt this expansion is fire—the sacred, purging flame: matches, lighters, firebombs, explosives, and cigarettes. If it burns, you can use it. The devil town's weakness is fire.
Obtain the items, avoid the police, deceive the firefighters, and burn down the devil town.
Now, go forth and unleash the purifying flame!
However…
There is one thing you mustn't forget—one thing you cannot do. Despite the powerful flames at your control, you can't burn down everything at once. After all, if you burn down the entire town, you'll be left with nowhere to live.
And so, your battle can't be won. Over and over again, without end, you will burn the heartless town.
That is your mission, chosen one.
Go with the blessing of Lord Cantido, God of the Black Flames.
"Mamimi?"
Naota took his eyes off the screen to look around. While his attention had been diverted by the game, Mamimi had disappeared.
That…
Where could she have gone without her shoes?
Panicking, Naota stood up and ran after her, the portable game player still clutched in his hand.
I don't need a game anymore. I know where I am right now. This is the devil town of Endsville.
In the evening, the shops in front of the train station were busy. On their way home from work, businessmen and office ladies hurried to make their purchases. Naturally, they were devil businessmen and office ladies, who'd been spit out by a devil company.
Once touched by Endsville, people could do nothing but live as part of Endsville. They could breathe only the air of Endsville, and they could eat only Endsville's food.
Devils wearing ties and devils wearing thick makeup; devils who didn't realize they were wearing masks; devils handing out leaflets; devils passing out election flyers; devils talking loudly; devils with fake faces, flipping burgers; devils selling cosmetics; devils crouched down outside the convenience store; fat devils; old devils; and baby devils, pushed in baby carriages—all of them were devils.
Mamimi started feeling sick, so she ran down a deserted alley.
I know.
I'm not an exception. I was born in Endsville, so the curse is in my body too.
However, I am different from the others. The other devils, they don't realize they're devils. They don't know they're in Endsville. Unwittingly, they spread Endsville across the world. That's how we're different: I'm the person who will stop the spread of Endsville, the one who will cleanse this town with holy flame and save the world. I've protected this worldy day after day, with that power.