I open my eyes suddenly.
Shit!
I grab my stomach and the pain shoots through me as if a hand were twisting my guts.
—Grunnnn...
"Agh... no, not now..."
Then it happens.
The world loses its color and, as a result everything turns black and white.
I look through the wall of my guest room and see red, glowing ,pulsating silhouettes. They look like masses of flesh and blood, which makes them look delicious.
To enter Ghoul Mode, I need to have my mind filled with dark feelings and emotions.
'So I automatically entered my Ghoul Mode because I dreamed of Saya and Rei being devoured by me'.
My eyes are fixed on two silhouettes in particular. One in a large room and one in a smaller one.
Mrs. Yuriko and Saya...
"No..."
I slap myself hard.
—Claf!
"Control yourself, damn it!"
—Claf!
Again.
—Grunnnn! Grunnnn!
But my stomach won't listen, and the pain intensifies as my mind clouds over with thoughts of tearing their flesh apart and devouring it.
I feel saliva pooling in my mouth, and it scares the shit out of me.
"They're not food. They're people. Saya is my friend. Mrs. Yuriko took me into her home."
But my body doesn't understand that.
I look around with what I call Ghoul Vision and see more red silhouettes everywhere. They are the guards patrolling the surroundings.
"I have to get out of here before I do something stupid..."
I stagger out of bed and approach the window. I open it carefully so as not to make any noise.
Then I deactivate my Ghoul Vision, bringing color back to the world.
Even so, as a zombie and now in my Ghoul Mode, I can see quite well at night when my senses are this amplified, and I observe the outside thoroughly. I identify all the exact points where the security cameras are installed and recording. There are seven in total covering different angles of the garden.
I memorize their locations and viewing angles.
—Grunnnn!
My stomach protests again.
"Come on, Arata. Get out of here."
Then I climb out the window, propelling myself upward with my enhanced legs.
I disappear into the dark night, moving specifically through the blind spots where the cameras cannot record my escape.
Once I am far enough away from the Takagi mansion, I reactivate my ghoul vision.
I start jumping from roof to roof, and as I listen to the sound of the wind, I realize something.
'I am much better at controlling my strength now.'
The last time I entered Ghoul Mode, I had to be very careful not to destroy everything.
But now I can jump more than 15 meters effortlessly, and I can land exactly where I want.
—Grunnnn! Grunnnn!
The pain intensifies.
"Agh..."
I stop on a rooftop, clutching my stomach.
'I need a human heart...'
That's the truth. Normal human flesh doesn't work because when I tried it, I realized it tastes awful and my body will surely reject it.
But a human heart, my body recognizes it as the only thing that can satisfy this hunger.
'I guess I'll just kill criminals.'
Unlike when exactly the same thing happened to me last time, this time my mind is considerably clearer. I can think more coherently despite the hunger. Maybe it's because I've experienced this before and my body is adapting.
From that rooftop, I scan the area with my Ghoul Vision.
I see literally hundreds of red silhouettes, whether they are people sleeping in their homes, walking down the streets, or working. Hey, wait. I also see people having sex!
I shake my head, and then my nose picks up a scent. It's the smell of fresh blood.
My nose moves toward the source, and my eyes fix on a house about three blocks away.
I see two silhouettes inside.
The silhouette on the right has its arm extended forward. And it looks like that hand brutally pierced the other person's chest, as I can see the hand sticking out of the other silhouette's back. I see drops falling to the floor.
'What the hell...'
But then I notice that the first silhouette has a purple object on its back.
That purple object...
'I've seen it before.'
Touka also had it when I looked at her with Ghoul Vision.
That means this person is actually a ghoul. And the silhouette that was pierced is just red without that purple object. In other words, it's a normal human.
A question pops into my mind.
'If I eat a ghoul's special organ instead of a human heart... will it work?'
It's a gamble, but it's worth a try, isn't it?
Thinking about that possibility, I head straight for that house as I jump.
After a moment I arrive at the building next door.
The windows of one room are open, so I use my enhanced hearing to concentrate.
I hear a man's voice
"W-Why...? Why did you do this...? I... I loved you..."
Then I hear a woman's laughter that sounds cruel and cold.
"Hahaha! You're the easiest prey I've had so far! You really fell in love with me from the internet without even meeting me in person? Ridiculous!"
She laughs even louder.
"Now I'll use the internet to lure more pathetic simps like you so I can eat them! Hahaha! It's too easy!"
Then, in that black and white world, I see the ghoul violently pull her hand away from the man's chest.
—Splurt!
Blood splatters explosively from the body of the second silhouette before it collapses.
'Well...'
Falling in love on the internet... huh. I guess there are all kinds of people in the world.
'But at least he was lucky that the person he fell in love with was actually a woman and not a forty-year-old man dressed up as a woman, right? That would have been even more pathetic.'
I shrug at my own thoughts.
Deactivating my ghoul vision, I push off from the rooftop and fly through the air.
—Fwoosh!
I enter through the window and land with no intention of hiding my presence.
I see the guy lying in a pool of blood with a hole in his chest, his lifeless eyes staring at the ceiling.
The female ghoul with black sclera and bright red irises abruptly turns her head toward me. She gives me an alarmed and surprised look at my unexpected presence.
I smile in a friendly manner and give a small bow.
"Apologies for the sudden intrusion."
As I say that politely, I look more closely at the ghoul woman in front of me.
"Ekk, a toad!"
I get scared and take a few steps back.
Hearing my honest comment, the ghoul woman, no, the ghoul toad immediately shows a cold face full of rage. Her already ugly expression becomes even more unpleasant, twisted by hatred.
She kicks the dead body of the man as if it were trash while turning completely toward me with hostile intentions.
It was at that precise moment that she notices my eyes.
"Oh! Are you a ghoul too?"
She says with surprise in her voice. But then she sniffs the air, and shortly after, her expression changes to confusion.
"No... you're not really a ghoul. I don't know what the hell you are exactly."
Her tongue comes out and she licks her lips. Ugh...
"But you smell delicious. I've never committed cannibalism, but I guess this time will be an exception. Ah! Wait, you can't really be a ghoul, right? You seem to be a walking dead, so it's okay if I eat you. It won't count as cannibalism!"
She flashes a horrible predatory smile. Sharp white teeth are visible on her toad-like face.
I spit on the ground in disgust.
"Yuck."
I put on an expression of deep revulsion before looking at the dead man on the ground with pity.
"This guy must have had an unbreakable will and truly blind love to be able to romantically love an ugly toad like you. It's a real shame he died in such a pathetic way. May he rest in peace."
The smile slowly disappears from the toad's face, leaving only an expression of hatred.
"You insolent little brat! You'll pay dearly for those insults!"
Toad shouts furiously.
—Splorch!
A wet, disgusting sound occurs.
A pulsating mass of crimson flesh explodes from her back. Unlike the ghoul I faced when I was six, which had something resembling wings, this thing only has a mass of flesh protruding from the right side of her body.
It actually looks more like a long, thick tail since it sticks out right above her butt.
She points her finger at me while her tail swishes behind her.
"Today I'll taste your delicious flesh, okay? It's your fault for breaking into my house. Hehehe!"
She laughs with that ugly toad face.
—Grunnnn! Grunnnn!
My stomach growls again, but I realize that this time it's because it has found a source of energy.
I found my dinner.
"Perfect."
I smile as I crack my knuckles.
"Because I'm very hungry too."
×××
20 advanced chapters on Pa-treon.
pa-treon.com/OlwinMoriarty