gasp!
She quickly jolted from the bed. Still wearing the clothes Haruki bought for her but now torn and stained with blood due to the arson incident.
"Oh thank goodness, you're awake!"
A voice said from her Hori's side, It was a female hataki with blue eyes, she was feeding an elderly pudding.
"...wait, your awake?!"
She parroted but this time in shock.
"....hello, there"
Hori said with a smile.
She glanced around the room she found herself in, it was an ordinary hospital ward.
Other patients were laid on the beds at her left and right, heavily bruised and bandaged.
"Don't 'hello there' me! we haven't treated you yet, how are you awake?!'
She said with a confused face, however hataki wear caps and nose masks.
"That is true, I recall having a huge hole at my abdomen... how am I even alive?"
She wondered, confused about her quick and unrealistic regeneration.
The Hataki as well began reasoning.
"Should I tell the higher ups about this? maybe she's a priest?, that must explain the healing"
She was contemplating whilst feeding an elderly man.
"ehm... excuse me, am I at SHO?"
Narrator - SHO stands for Sin Hunting Organization, they are tasked with the eradication of sins and sinners.
Narrator - A member of SHO is called a priest.
"Ah, Narrator!"
Hori yelled with a relieved face leaving the Hataki to look confused.
Narrator - She can't hear you, she can't hear you-
"But I can!"
Hori said confused.
Ahem!
The Hataki cleared her throat to get Hori's attention.
"This isn't SHO"
She kept the empty bowl of pudding on a table.
"Were simply at the treatment center, well it's technically still a branch of SHO but it's called the med-bay, wait where are you going?!"
She said referring to Hori, seeing as she was leaving.
"oh, I wouldn't want to impose any further. I am fully healed so I best be on my way"
She said approaching the door.
"What a polite girl!"
She thought in her mind.
"bye-bye~"
Waving at the hataki, Hori left the med-bay.
"...ehm...Should I really allow her to leave?"
She thought, wanting to report an untreated patient suddenly getting healed.
Hori on the other hand was walking towards the entrance door of the hospital complex to leave.
"The real reason I left is to go look for Haruki-san's body. He's relatives who ever they are deserve to bury him"
She thought sadly, aware that Haruki was dead.
Hori walked quickly to the hot springs, the med-bay she had just left seemed to be quite close.
Of course that was just a branch for Fukui prefecture.
The road was quiet.
Time - 4:36
Narrator - Ahem! Hori-san, let's say you can hear me, you don't plan on telling anyone right?
"Oh, just Hori is fine Narrator, it's not even my real name"
She answered casually.
Narrator - Oh my God, she can really hear me.
"Don't worry, I don't plan on telling anyone, they'll just think I'm crazy.... except from Haruki-san...."
"Why is all this happening? I finally get some help then he dies on the same day?"
Tears falling from her eyes, almost as if all this was happening on purpose.
"But I've learned something, Haruki-san's death will not be in-vain"
"If I need achievements to speak with my father, I'll just kill the biggest and baddest sins!"
Hori remembered Haruki's advice from the hot springs.
"Apart from that...."
She remembered what that Hataki said during all the commotion at the sin of Arsons attack.
"People die all the time because of sins! so don't go mopping around because of one guy!!!"
"he's words were quite insensitive, but I think he said that to snap me back so we could escape alive"
She thought remembering the moment.
"Narrator.... I've made a decision!"
Narrator - And what's that?
"I'm going to join SHO!"
She said clenching her fist!
She had arrived at where the sin of Arson attacked.
Matsumoto springs, the local hot springs but now a demolished structure, ashes were easily notable and yellow tapes dragged around the area.
"oh goodness, it's all burnt down...."
Narrator - You want to become a priest?
Narrator asked continuing their conversation.
"If it means preventing something like this from happening, then absolutely!"
Hori heads inside the blemished hot springs, bending over the yellow tapes. wandering around searching for Haruki's corpse.
She looks desperately for the body, throwing rubble and kicking stones.
"Where is he?!"
She sits down on a block, feeling guilty for not being able to recover his corpse.
Her stomach growled completely ruining the atmosphere
sigh
"I eat too much"
Not true, Hori hadn't eaten throughout today, the time being 4:40
Bending her head, she sat there for some time before snapping back from a sudden sound.
Thunk!
A piece of wood fell from the entrance as figures stepped in.
"Woah, so a sin was here?!"
A male voice could be clearly heard.
gasp!
"someone's coming! wait am I even meant to be here?"
She panicked thinking of what to do.
"Yeah! I think it was arson"
A second voice replied the firsts earlier statement.
Hori rushes to hide behind a wall.
"Woooooah this is so rad! people died here!"
A different voice, a girl about 17 years old.
"Ha! sucks to be them!"
"Fucking wusses couldn't survive a sin!"
"Yeah, I heard it was a weak one!"
The delinquents all mocked the incident.
Hori stood behind her hiding spot in silence.
"Ehm....you shouldn't speak so rudely about the dead"
Her voice afraid but audible, Hori spoke her mind.
"What the? Who said that?!"
No reply.
She comes out of her hiding spot, facing the 4 delinquents.
"Who are you?! A hobo?"
He was referring to Hori's dirty clothes.
"yeah, and is that blood?!"
One asked approaching Hori.
"P—please apologize!, my friend died here today, so apologize for what you said!"
She said with slight tears remembering Haruki's sudden death.
"First of all, what the you even doin here?!"
The female snickered hiding behind the 3 goons.
One of the men walks even closer to Hori.
"Or what?"
The main delinquent asked trying to provoke Hori.
"c'mon it's not fucking worth it, let's just go"
"Yeah dude she's a kid, and didn't you say you'll soon turn?
Narrator - "turn" is referring to triggering the curse. As already explained when a person sins too much they trigger the curse.
Narrator - Turning them into a sinner. So that sinner of sloth Hori saw as her first time.
Narrator - Was once a man that lazed around too much, triggering the curse and turning him into a sinner of sloth.
"and I heard sinners of violence are crazy strong soooo~"
Narrator - The thug that's now threatening Hori is likely to soon trigger the curse and turn into a sinner of violence.
"Everyone shut the fuck up!"
He's voice silenced his companions suggestions to drop the topic.
"c'mon kid, I asked you a question, what you gonna do?'
Leaning towards Hori, his bad breath irritating her nose trills.
"...apologize....or I'll break your nose!"
She clenched her fist.
"...pfft! What the fuck! y'all hearing this bitch?!"
He faced his friends.
"My girl got balls, I like that!"
They joked seeing the height difference between Hori and the man, landing a punch alone would be impressive.
Dark Frame
The backgrounds saturation reduces to zero leaving only Hori and the thug with color.
Narrator - As I explained earlier, A "Dark Frame" happens when a character is about to perform something impressive.
"Holy shit,a dark frame?'
She shouted seeing as their color had reduced to zero.
'shits about to get real now!"
The delinquents anticipated, seeing as the scenery held promise.
"What a load of-
Bam!
Hori's fist was in his face! his entire nose caved in.
The 6 feet man fell on the floor covering his nose to prevent blood from gushing out.
"What the fuck?!"
blurgh~!
The female delinquent threw up seeing his disfigured face.
"The dark frame was because of her?!, a brat like that?!"
The thugs yelled as their color returned.
"I simply abore violence!, so please apologize to prevent me from going further!"
She said squatting down and holding the bleeding man's collar, Hori was going to punch him again.
"His fucking nose caved in!"
"Stop standing there you pussies! go fuck her up!"
The 2 remaining men were about to rush towards Hori.
"heyyoooo what's all the commotion?!!"
A voice interrupted before they began fighting.
"....Haruki-san?!"
Hori yelled.
"Hori?!"
Haruki yelled.
"Your alive?!!"
They both jinxed, shocked at seeing each other.
Haruki was wearing a big black plain sweater and grey jeans with red and white shoes.
"oi Haru!, come help us with something!"
Hori rushes and hugs Haruki.
"woah, I miss you too, wait.... how are you alive?!"
"Haru you know this kid?"
He asked helping man 1 stand up.
"c'mon, were almost the same age, "kid" is a little bit too much"
He answered feeling unsure what to do, seeing Hori hug him so tightly.
She didn't say anything, still clinging on to Haruki.
"fuck, seems like they know each other. Just carry him let's go"
He said referring to the man Hori had punched, he was unconscious.
"Thanks for nothing haru!"
They dissed.
"yeah, I'll see you guys later"
He answered still looking at the clingy Hori.
The NPCs carry the man and they left.
"Thank goodness you're alive"
She released Haruki from her grip.
"but how tho, I checked your pulse and it wasn't there"
She asked with a perplexed face.
"oh that's normal, sins don't have a pulse"
He casually answered.
"oh I forgot, Haruki-san is a sin!"
She replied.
They both stood there for some time, the area brooding in silence as the 2 of them were left alone.
"This is awkward!"
Haruki thought not knowing what to say.
"....my....deepest condolences towards Matsumoto-san"
She bowed her head.
Hori was talking about the owner of the hot springs who was Haruki's friend.
"oh.... Who's matsumoto?"
He thought to himself.