Kurusu Kimihito has lived this day before—and he has watched everyone he loves die.
When he wakes on the morning of April seventh, trembling and drenched in sweat, he knows what's coming. Miia's arrival. The red rain. The Glow. The night that, decades from now, will still haunt his every waking moment. He survived it once, carrying nothing but regret for the girls he couldn't save. Then he died.
And then he woke up. Six in the morning. The same date circled in red pen on his calendar. A second
Monster Musume: Rewriting the Fates of Despair - At the End of the Red Rain: The Battle That Has Just Begun
The red rain was weakening.
The droplets that had stung his skin thinned into mist. The blood-red color that had blanketed the sky slowly faded.
In front of the purification facility. A mountain of rubble. A broken fence. A crumpled car.
The Alteration swarm was gone.
The last one dissolved into black mist and melted into the sky. Its red eyes had glared at Kimihito until the very last moment before vanishing. Then the eyes were gone.
Silence. Only the rain remained—drip, drip.
Kurusu Kimihito was on his knees.
His breath came ragged. His shoulders heaved. The iron pipe in his right hand trembled violently. His clothes were torn, his skin covered in cuts. Blood ran from his left arm, dripped from his fingertips to the ground, and dissolved into a red puddle. His vision blurred.
Even so—he was alive.
"Master!"
He raised his head. Papi stood atop the rubble, wings folded. Her amber eyes looked straight at him.
"Master, are you okay?"
"...Yeah."
His voice cracked.
"Are you hurt, Papi?"
"Papi's fine—just a little scorched on the wing!"
Papi spread her wings to show him. The tip of her right wing was slightly blackened.
"...I see."
"Master."
Cerea's voice. He turned. Her silver hair clung to her forehead, soaked by the rain. Her white horse body was caked in mud, and the horseshoe on her right foreleg was bent. Still, she stood.
"Are you unharmed?"
"Of course. This is barely a scratch."
Cerea puffed out her chest. The sword in her hand had a chipped blade.
"Darling!"
Red hair dropped softly beside Kimihito. Her serpent lower body slid across the wet ground.
"Darling, you're bleeding!"
Miia's hand touched his left arm.
"It's fine, this much—"
"It's not fine! This much...!"
Miia's golden eyes welled up.
"...I'm really fine. More importantly, everyone's safe."
"Of course we are. Because you protected us, darling."
Miia smiled. That smile looked somehow exhausted.
—Clap. Clap. Clap.
The sound of applause. Slow. Three times.
All four turned toward the sound at once.
The entrance of the purification facility. From the shadow of the half-collapsed gate, a man appeared. Black coat. Black gloves. A slender frame.
The Director of the Amagasa Guardian Bureau—Sumisu.
"Well done, Kimihito-kun."
Sumisu was smiling. Only his lips, thinly. His eyes were not smiling. A chill ran down Kimihito's spine.
"Sumisu-san..."
"Honestly, I was surprised. To think you'd repel that many Alterations with just four people."
Sumisu stepped over the rubble, approaching slowly. His leather shoes splashed through puddles.
"...Where were you watching from?"
Kimihito's voice dropped low.
"The whole time. From the very beginning, all of it."
"...What do you want?"
"Want? Nothing in particular. I just wanted to confirm how you fight."
"You watched us nearly die just for that?"
He regripped the iron pipe. His hand tightened.
"Now, don't be so angry. I never thought you'd die. Though that level of opponent would be impossible for you, I suppose."
"...What are you trying to say?"
"What am I trying to say? Nothing. I'm just praising you. Well done."
Sumisu stopped. Three steps between him and Kimihito.
"What do you know?"
Kimihito looked straight at Sumisu.
"About the Alterations, about the red rain—you know something, don't you?"
Sumisu didn't answer. He just smiled.
"Answer me!"
Kimihito shouted.
"You—aren't you the one creating the Glow? That monster!"
Silence. Only the rain. Miia gasped. Cerea regripped her sword. Papi tilted her head.
Sumisu stared at Kimihito for a while. Then he let out a soft laugh.
"I can't tell you yet."
"...What?"
"Not yet. But let me say one thing."
Sumisu stepped forward.
"Your way of fighting is correct. The future can be changed."
Kimihito's heart jumped. The future—Sumisu had said it.
"...So you really are—"
"Come to the Bureau tomorrow. Let's talk about the future."
That was all Sumisu said before turning his back.
"Wait! We're not done—"
He tried to chase. His legs wouldn't move. From exhaustion, or from the weight of Sumisu's words pressing down on him.
"Wait! You haven't said anything yet—"
"I'll be waiting tomorrow."
He didn't look back. The back of his black coat disappeared into the rain.
"Sumisu-san!"
His voice echoed emptily.
Kimihito stood frozen. Rain struck his shoulders. Cold.
"Darling..."
Miia's hand gently touched his.
"Are you okay?"
"...Yeah."
Kimihito squeezed her hand back.
"Let's go home. All of us."
"Yeah."
"Okay!"
"As you wish."
—
The Kurusu house. When he opened the front door, warm air pushed out to meet them.
The four collapsed into the living room.
"I'm exhausted..."
He stared up at the ceiling. His body ached. But strangely, his heart felt light.
(I made it back alive.) (Everyone's alive.)
"Hey, Master—"
Papi peered into his face.
"I'm hungry!"
"...Yeah. I'll make something."
He tried to get up. His body wouldn't obey.
"Darling, don't push yourself!"
Miia pushed him back down.
"I'll make it!"
"Eh."
His face froze. Charred pancakes. Omelets turned to charcoal. Soup that melted the pot.
"No, Miia, you should rest—"
"You're injured, darling, so you have to rest! I'll make you something delicious!"
Miia headed to the kitchen happily. Her serpent lower body slid across the floor.
"W-wait! Miia! I'm really fine! I'll do it!"
He crawled after her.
"Master, Papi will help too!"
Papi spread her wings toward the cupboard. Her fingers touched a plate, and it slipped.
"Ah."
Crash!
The plate hit the floor and shattered.
"...Sorry."
Papi folded her wings dejectedly.
"You two, both of you sit down."
Cerea sighed in exasperation.
"Don't make the injured push themselves. I will prepare the meal."
"Cerea..."
"Master, you sit too. You're the most badly hurt."
With that, Cerea stood in the kitchen. Her white horse body barely fit in the narrow space.
"...Sorry, and thanks."
He sat down on the living room floor.
"Darling, should I help too?"
"No need. When you stand in the kitchen, the house catches fire."
"Mou! How rude! I can at least boil an egg!"
"Then boil an egg. But I will check that you've turned off the flame."
"Why?!"
"I've heard about your cooking from the Master."
"Darling! What did you tell her?!"
Miia glared at Kimihito.
"No, I, uh... I didn't say anything."
He looked away.
—
In the end, Cerea made vegetable soup, and Kimihito made a simple egg dish. Miia made boiled eggs. About half the shells were stuck to the whites. Papi quietly hid the broken plate with her wing.
The four sat around the table. Steaming soup. Yellow rolled omelet. And lumpy boiled eggs.
"Let's eat."
"Let's eat!"
"Let's eat."
"Let's eat!"
Their voices overlapped.
Papi scooped soup with her spoon.
"...Master, it's delicious!"
Papi smiled. An innocent smile. Her amber eyes sparkled.
Seeing that smile, Kimihito let out a soft laugh. Naturally. Something tight inside him came loose.
"...Yeah. It's delicious."
"Yeah! Papi loves Master's cooking!"
"Papi, you're spilling soup."
"Ah, sorry!"
"Honestly, Papi. Here, let me wipe it."
Miia wiped Papi's mouth with a napkin.
"Ehehe!"
Warm. This moment was warm.
Kimihito took a sip of soup. The sweetness of the vegetables seeped into him.
(I'm alive.) (Everyone's alive.) (Different from the future.)
—
After the meal, Cerea offered to clean up. Kimihito sat in the living room, wrapping a bandage around the wound on his left arm.
"Master."
Cerea poked her head out from the kitchen.
"That man called Sumisu—who is he?"
Her voice was serious.
"Why did he appear there? Why does he speak as though he knows you?"
"...Sumisu-san is the Director of the Amagasa Guardian Bureau."
His hands stopped wrapping.
"The Guardian Bureau... the head of the Guardians who fight the Glow?"
"Yeah. And it seems he's been looking into me as well."
"Why?"
"...I don't know."
He said it honestly.
"I don't know. What that man is thinking, what he knows—I have no idea."
"Darling."
Miia sat directly in front of Kimihito. Her golden eyes stared at him.
"You're hiding something, aren't you."
"...Eh?"
"I've thought so for a while now. Darling, there are things you can't tell us, right?"
Miia's voice was serious.
"That Sumisu person seems to know something about you too. And it seems like he's said something to you as well."
"Miia..."
"Tell me. What are you hiding, darling?"
Miia gripped Kimihito's hand. A warm hand. But it was trembling slightly.
Kimihito hesitated.
Should he talk about the memories of the future? What would happen if he did?
You all die in the future. Killed by the monsters of the red rain. I know that.
—There's no way he could say that. He didn't even know if they'd believe him. And if they knew, they'd be terrified. No one could stay calm knowing the future in which they die.
"...Sorry."
Kimihito looked away.
"I can't tell you. Not yet."
"Darling..."
"But there will definitely come a time when I can."
"...Really?"
"Really. I promise."
He looked straight into Miia's eyes.
Miia looked dissatisfied. But she didn't ask any further.
"If the Master says he cannot speak of it, there must be a reason."
Cerea said quietly.
"But don't carry it alone. You are no longer alone, Master."
"Cerea..."
"Master!"
Papi clung to Kimihito's back.
"Papi doesn't really get it, but if Master's in trouble, Papi will help!"
"...Thanks, Papi."
He gently stroked Papi's head.
(I won't carry it alone anymore.) (I've decided.) (Together with everyone.)
—
Night. Kimihito was in his room, looking at the mirror. Bruises on his right shoulder. Lacerations on his back. Cuts on his left arm. Bandages all over his body. The face in the mirror was a wreck.
"...Pathetic."
He muttered. In the memories of the future, he should have been stronger. Right now, he was still weak.
—Buzz.
His phone vibrated. He looked at the screen. The sender was Sumisu.
"Come to the Bureau tomorrow. Let's talk about the future."
He read that one line over and over. Talk about the future. How much did Sumisu know about the future? Why was he making contact with him?
—If Sumisu is involved in the emergence of the Glow.
An unpleasant thought surfaced. But at the same time, there was hope. If Sumisu knew about the future—maybe he also knew how to change it.
Fear and hope. The two emotions swirled in his chest.
—Knock, knock.
A knock at the door.
"Darling, are you still awake?"
"...Yeah, I'm up."
He hid his phone under the pillow.
"Can I come in?"
"Sure."
The door opened. Miia came in. Her red hair was translucent in the moonlight.
"What's wrong, at this hour?"
"...Darling, you saved me today, didn't you."
Miia sat beside Kimihito. Her serpent lower body coiled on the floor.
"Saved you—we all fought together."
"No. You stood in front of me. You protected me from that monster."
She looked into his eyes.
"So I'm alive right now, aren't I."
His chest tightened. Cold rain. Miia, collapsed. Red hair, motionless.
"...Miia."
"Thank you, darling."
Miia smiled.
"Because you saved me, darling, I'm alive."
"..."
He couldn't find words.
"Darling, you're making that face again."
Miia reached for his cheek.
"I'm stronger than you think, darling."
Her hand gripped his. Warm. A certain warmth.
"If you protect me, darling, then I'll protect you too. So don't carry it alone."
"Miia..."
Kimihito squeezed her hand back.
(Yeah, that's right.) (Miia is here, right now.) (Different from the future.) (This warmth is real.)
—
Late night. Northern Amagasa City. The Observatory.
In a small room, machine lights blinked. An observer stared intently at the screen.
"...Hey, look at this."
His colleague beside him looked up.
"What is it?"
"The atmospheric pressure in the north is abnormal. Signs of red rain."
"Again? It just poured today."
"I don't know. But this is unmistakable."
The observer
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