After three days of recovery, Abe finally returned home.
---
CLICK
The door creaked open, and a cold draft slipped into the house. Abe stepped inside with an empty expression.
"I'm... home."
Silence.
No one greeted him. No sound came from the kitchen. His mother was gone.
The house was dark and eerily quiet. His gaze landed on the floor—where dried streaks of blood remained, untouched, a grotesque reminder of the past.
Abe sighed. "Ah… I forgot to clean it up… Whatever, I'll do it later."
His heart felt heavy, suffocated by an invisible weight. He wanted to cry but couldn't. Even after losing everything, his tears remained frozen.
Without another word, he headed to the bathroom. Cold water cascaded over his body, numbing his skin. He closed his eyes, letting his thoughts drift.
"Mom..."
Her face, her voice, her warmth… It was all still etched into his mind.
"No… Forget it, forget it!"
But no matter how much he tried, he couldn't.
---
An Unexpected Knock
DING-DONG!
DING-DONG!
The doorbell rang, shattering the silence.
"Abe! Are you inside?!"
A male voice called from outside.
Still in the middle of getting dressed, Abe quickly put on his shirt and walked to the door. When he opened it, a blue-haired teenager stood before him.
"Yo, Abe-kun."
Renji.
"Renji? What are you doing here?"** Abe asked flatly.
Renji smirked. "Oi-oi, is that how you greet a guest? At least invite me in first."
Abe sighed. "Fine… Come in."
He wasn't sure why Renji had come, but he needed to stay on guard.
---
A Conversation That Reveals the Truth
They both sat on the living room sofa. Renji appeared relaxed, while Abe remained cautious.
"Abe-kun, why haven't you been at school for five days?"
Abe didn't answer right away. "That's my business. Just get to the point—why are you here?"
Renji chuckled. "Straight to the point, huh? Alright then… I came to tell you my purpose in this school and everything I know."
Abe narrowed his eyes. "...What?"
Renji leaned forward. "Do you want to know the truth or not?"
"Of course I do!"
Renji nodded. "Alright. Let's start with this school… or rather, this experiment."
"Experiment?"
"Yeah. It has been running since 2003. But not once has it succeeded. And this year… is the final attempt."
"...The final year?"
"Yes. And the one leading this experiment is David Havin. The government also funds this project."
Abe's eyes widened. "What?! I thought the government had nothing to do with this!"
Renji sighed. "Sigh… Abe-kun, in this world, nothing is impossible, right?"
Abe fell silent. He has a point… But is he telling the truth?
"And the one managing this year's experiment is… Murase."
Abe clenched his fists.
"But every year, the one overseeing the experiment changes."
"...Then, what's your goal in this school?"
Renji's gaze darkened. "I have two goals. First, to kill Murase. Second… to find my younger sibling."
Abe flinched. "Kill Murase? A younger sibling?"
"Yeah."
A strange feeling crept into Abe's chest. "Why do you want to kill Murase?"
Renji was silent for a moment before answering.
"Because he's my uncle."
Abe's eyes widened. "What?!"
"I used to live in a peaceful village with my mother and younger sibling. But one day, my uncle visited and took me away by force."
"And that uncle… was Murase."
Abe's heartbeat quickened.
"He forced me to go through psychological conditioning, torture, and relentless training to be perfect."
"Then, when I was 12, he told me he would bring my younger sibling to this school."
"...And you believed him?"
Renji nodded. "Yes. I believed him."
"Why?"
"I don't know… But I could tell he was serious."
"Then why haven't you found them yet?"
Renji shook his head. "I'm still searching."
"...What are your mother's and sibling's names?"
Renji hesitated. Then, with a confused look, he said:
"I… don't remember."
Abe froze. "...What?"
"I don't even remember their faces."
Abe let out a long sigh. "Then how the hell do you plan on finding them, idiot?"
Renji chuckled. "No idea."
Abe's mind started racing. Did the school erase his memories?
---
The Mysterious Envelope
"By the way, what's that envelope on the table?"
Abe turned to look at it. That envelope… he received it from a former student council president.
"...Alright, I'll tell you something too."
Renji smirked. "Oh? What is it?"
Abe took a deep breath.
"First, this leg of mine… isn't mine. It belongs to Yoshida-san."
"Oh."
"Second, I killed Murase during the five days I was missing."
Renji's expression changed. "Eh?! I appreciate you fulfilling my goal, but… how did you kill Murase when he was always surrounded by bodyguards?"
Abe smiled faintly. "It wasn't easy. There were sacrifices."
"And about this envelope… I got it from a former student council president."
"What's inside?"
Abe hesitated. If he opened it, would he be ready for what he might find?
"Just trust me, Abe."
Abe nodded and opened the envelope.
Inside, there was a photograph.
In it, a young Renji stood—beside a baby.
Abe froze. The baby in the picture… was him.
Beside them was Abe's mother… and a much younger Murase.
His body stiffened.
"W-What… is this supposed to mean?"
Suddenly, Renji hugged him tightly, tears falling onto Abe's shoulder.
"My little brother… You must be my little brother!"
At that moment, memories flooded Abe's mind.
Everything.
"…Big brother."
In the stillness of the night, the two long-lost siblings reunited at last.
But… this was only the beginning.
---
(To Be Continued…)