Mob Yandere

[Part 4/4]

That's really clownish behavior....

"...Kaya"

"What?"

"Thanks."

"What?!"

Hana felt a little grateful that her comrades were still spouting nonsense at this point.

A brethrens who have been lost for various purposes.

Hana secretly thinks it was a good thing that she was the one who joined the rest.

And that's why....

"Let's do our best"

Because that's her job.

Because she was waiting for it.

Because that's the promise.

The time when she and her people should fulfill their purpose in existence was steadily approaching....

* * *

"Why?!"

The voice was familiar, yet it felt strangely unfamiliar.

To be precise, it was the first time she had ever heard that voice echo with such intensity.

"What's wrong, Mari-san? Is something funny?"

On the night that a group from the Onitsuki family arrived at the inn set up in Takemika family's territory.

Suzune, the caretaker, immediately sensed something was off when she visited Mari.

Suzune had come to practice the koto as promised the day before, but she was trembling with anxiety and worry, seeing Mari scream in distress.

"Y-yes. It's been strange for a little while now. She keeps saying things that don't make any sense... I'm not sure if she's just half asleep, but what's going on?"

Answering Suzune's doubts was her older brother, Magoroku.

He tilted his head in confusion, looking perplexed.

"Brother, no way...!!"

Shocked by her brother's words, Mari showed a pained expression.

Clinging to Suzune, she began to plead.

"Suzune-sama, everyone is acting strange!! I don't know what's going on... it's like they've completely forgotten about Tomobe-sama!"

Mari didn't understand what was happening.

When did things start getting so strange?

She had been talking normally with him until the morning.

After he had left during the day, now that it was after sunset, she realized everyone had forgot about him.

It was as if his existence had been erased, like it had been rewritten.

As if he had become invisible, they had forgotten.

"Tomobe...sama?"

"Yes! Both I and my brother have been taking care of Tomobe-sama... No, I've been taken care of by others... But suddenly, everyone is calling me Tamaki-sama's caretaker!! On the contrary, everyone is shaking their heads when they even mention Tomobe-sama's name...!"

It was terrifying.

It felt as though he had suddenly changed, as if his very existence had vanished.

In that moment, it seemed like she was the only one left behind.

Mari sank into total despair, unable to grasp the fact that even her trusted brother could act this way. Her appeal to Suzune was her last shred of hope.

"Tomobe...um, who is that?"

...Mari's fleeting hopes are cruelly shattered.

"Suzune...sama?"

With her lifeless eyes wide open, her pupils trembling, Mari freezes in shock.

For a moment, her consciousness slips away, and she feels as if the ground beneath her is crumbling, leaving her with a crushing sense of loss.

An unbearable, bottomless void swallows her whole...

"This is how it's been all along. Uttering a name I don't recognize..."

"Have you been tricked by a fox or a tanuki? Maybe you should see a doctor. I'll ask young lady about it..."

The conversation between her brother and Suzune fades away.

Mari slumps down, her body relaxed and weak.

Overcome by a feeling of powerlessness, she sighs.

She covers her face with both hands.

Tears keep flowing even though she can't see anything.

Mari begins to fade into confusion.

Who has truly lost their sanity?

Could it be that she really have gone crazy?

Mari starts to doubt herself.

But still... she definitely remembers that feeling.

The days spent with that person.

The touch of their hand, their body, their warmth.

Even now, it's clear as day.

She can't believe this is a lie... yet, reality is harsh.

The two important people in her life are talking about getting her to see a doctor without her consent.

"Please! Listen to me! Believe me! Remember Tomobe-san!!"

"Mari, calm down. I don't know what happened, but it's not good. For now, just rest!"

"Big brother!"

Magoroku tries to get his sister to sleep, away from Suzune.

Mari tries to resist, but she senses her brother's kindness in his hands, and so her strong desire to resist disappears.

No matter what happened, Mari could not take revenge on her brother who had been so kind to her.

"Mari-san has come this far... something is strange after all. Is she possessed by some kind of spirit? I must tell the young lady right away...!"

Suzune and the others also sense something unusual about Mari's unusual behavior, but that is not the reaction Mari wanted.

Suzune gently releases Mari's fingers as she clings to her, and stands up to make a request to her master.

She turn around and turn away when she hears Mari scream.

"Suzune-sama! Please stop...!! "

"Kyaa!? Whaaat, Mari-san!!?"

With a cry close to a sob, Mari jumped up.

As she jumped up, her weak legs easily gave way and collapsed.

Even while falling, she grabbed Suzune's leg to try to stop her from leaving.

"Mari-san, are you okay!? Mari-san!!?"

"Mari!? Are you hurt!? Hey, are you okay!!?"

For an ordinary person, it might be okay, but for the frail and sickly Mari, this action was a matter of life and death.

Suzune and Magoroku rushed to Mari, their faces pale.

Mari herself was gasping for breath, but she pushed through to keep pleading.

"No... it's not that... please, listen to me. Believe me..."

"Mari-san, why...?"

Desperation, pleading, begging—her actions were full of panic, but instead of helping, they only confused the two of them more.

What on earth is going on?

What could drive this girl to such lengths?

No matter how much they thought about it, they couldn't make sense of it, leaving them only bewildered.

"Anyway! Mari, we need to get you to bed! We have to check if you're hurt!"

"I'll help too!"

For a moment, there was confusion.

But Magoroku quickly snapped into action, doing what any brother would do, and Suzune followed right behind him.

This was truly love, compassion, and friendship.

Unfortunately, that makes Mari's heart ache even more.

"Oh no!!"

With tears and a runny nose, flushed cheeks and swollen eyes, Mari looks ugly, but she still tries to resist.

If words didn't work, the only thing left to do was to prove her feelings with actions.

She was prepared to give up her reputation, her trust, and even her own peace of mind for that person.

And....

"What are you guys doing?"

Everyone in the room stopped moving when the wolf girl appeared, roughly pulling open the shouji paper door.

"Sister..."

"Iruka?" n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Magoroku and Suzune mutter the name of a familiar face who has broken in.

Mari looks up at Iruka with a miserable expression.

Iruka scratched her head in annoyance.

"Iruka, sama..."

"Huh... This is getting pretty tricky, isn't it?"

Mari calls out to her with a deep sigh.

And the wolf girl continues speaking.

"Everyone, just stay there for a bit. ...Is it convenient in a way? We can use it to convince Tamaki."

"Iruka? What are you talking about...?"

Suzune's question to her friend, who was turning to leave the room.

Not understanding what was going on, Iruka turned her head and grinned mischievously.

"Oh, it's nothing much. ...Just asking for a raise that matches the work I'm doing, that's all?"

The usual carefree expression of the wolf girl.

However, Suzune sensed a fierce passion hidden deep in her eyes.

It was a wild, beast-like anger at having loved ones harmed...