Kasuka suddenly stood tall, showing that she was barely a couple centimeters shorter than Atsuko.
Due to this, in order to look into the eyes of the other person, Kasuka needed to tilt her head slightly upwards.
...Since Atsuko was already the shortest in the group before she arrived, that means she now takes the crown as the most dwarven student in Arius Squad.
'Wait, am I shorter or taller than Azusa?'
She forgot to check, perhaps the crown wouldn't fall on her head, instead it should've gone to the white haired angel?
If more things landed on her head, there's no doubt that she'd become shorter, that wouldn't be ideal!
Atsuko and Kasuka faced each other, one face determined, one face confused.
Atsuko looked at Kasuka's determined face and thought to herself, 'You don't have to think too hard about it... But I would appreciate it if you were honest.'
Why didn't she say this out loud?
Well, Kasuka's eyes seemed like it was... burning? No, how could she call that burning? It's simply empty.
How can the expressions and emotions be so different even while being expressed at the same time?
Somehow, she mistook such eyes as someone with hope, but in the end, even her eyes was already filled with darkness.
"..."
Atsuko became speechless.
Even if she did try to talk, it felt like there's a silent pressure pressing against her lips, preventing her from making a sound.
And it wasn't just her, all the other hidden member of the Arius Squad felt the same pressure.
Gun cocking sound could be heard in the background, but nobody paid it any mind.
Not that they were ignoring it, but even the threat of being shot doesn't feel as chilling as this pressure.
"I think... No. I believe." Kasuka paused for a moment, as if hesitating on her own words. "I truly believed, with all my heart, there's no happiness to be found in this place."
"..."
"Miracle? What kind of miracle needed to happen to stop this madness? The world would've been turned inside out if there's a hope for us. Perhaps, a bigger threat would need to appear before we could be saved."
"..."
"I didn't think anybody would hold any hope in this place. I've meet many other students, all their eyes are similar, not a single person have ever thought about what they wanted."
"..."
"They simply followed what the others showed. They followed orders, afraid of punishment, afraid of what might happen if they were abandoned by the source of power that is the president."
"..."
"And it was then, I felt it. You know what it is that I felt? Did you know what I saw?" Kasuka turned around, hiding her face from the only spectator capable of looking at her closely.
Shaping her finger into a gun, she pointed forward, towards a ruined building which seemed to be the general direction of the Arius District Headquarter.
"I saw the light at the end of a tunnel."
Then, "Bang." She mimed, her hand moving upwards following the recoil a normal gun would've had.
Nothing happened.
It's only natural, there's no such coincidence in this world that would've made the headquarter explode suddenly.
If there were, then none of the suffering the children had to go through would happen.
Instead, more people would've wished the explosion was bigger.
"I felt determination. I felt a will to live."
"4... no, 5 faint desire to live. My instincts told me that these 5 could be saved."
"I couldn't believe it."
"There's absolutely no way I could've known, there were children strong enough to desire freedom."
"Especially not in this place."
"Did you know? My body is actually super weak."
"I catch illnesses easily. A single cut could cost me an entire week of resting."
"A single bullet on the head could cause me to faint."
"Perhaps just by being pinched, a red bruise would stay for an entire month."
"Exaggeration? I hope so too."
"But, haven't you noticed it?"
"My skin had became paler, don't you think?"
Hearing this, Atsuko frowned and moved closer. She pulled on Kasuka's arm from the back a bit forcefully, but not enough to cause pain or injury.
And she scrutinized the skin.
'...She's right.' Indeed, the skin was no doubt paler than last week.
Kasuka pulled her hand back and turned around, once again facing the Princess of Arius.
But now, gone was the empty gaze with a determined expression.
Replacing it, a gaze that seemed to be hoping for a brighter future, and a small smile that had subconsciously appeared on her face.
Did Kasuka notice?
Perhaps not.
But everyone else did.
"I never knew the feeling of 'Hope' had such an addicting flavor."
And a single tear escaped those black eyes, dripping from her eye glans and onto the tough ground.
"I'm weak. I know that. But that doesn't stop me from trying. No, I wanted to try."
For a moment, Kasuka choked on her own words, causing her flow to be interrupted.
Of course, she didn't waver, she kept on continuing her explanation.
Kasuka's hand landed on her head, right above her wound that was covered in bandages.
"...This will probably leave a lasting scar. But I don't think I'd hate it."
Atsuko bit her lips. She can't deny the fact that such deep wounds would probably leave behind an awful scar for the future.
"Instead, it'll be the proof. There's no such thing as a black room without an exit."
"It's merely hidden inside the darkness, only waiting to be lit upon for the people to go through."
"Saori, Misa, Hiyori, Azusa, Atsuko-hime."
"You're all the beacon of hope inside this place."
"As for me, I'm merely a spectator. I don't deserve to be next to all of you."
"Even so, I am a selfish person."
"I want to be next to you."
"But I also know. Being next to me would only lead everyone to an even worse future."
"So. Use me. I don't care how tough the road may seem, I don't care what kind of suffering I have to go through. If it lead to you achieving freedom, the one feeling you all so desire... Then, I wouldn't mind going through hell a couple of times."
"Only by doing so would you avoid an even bigger tragedy."
Atsuko closed her eyes shut. She doesn't want to hear anymore but if she were to make it obvious, it'll most definitely hurt the girl's feeling.
Her hands gripped tightly against itself, wishing for this rant to end.
Does she regret it? Does she regret asking the question?
Perhaps a little bit.
She didn't know someone's mind could be so corrupted to the point of hopelessness like this.
In fact, did Kasuka even show everything?
The tone in which Kasuka conveyed her thoughts had been very monotonous, making it seem like she herself doesn't see anything wrong with her thoughts.
'...No. Don't think like that, Atsuko. Just by thinking about it, it's as if I'm wishing for there to be an even deeper hole.'
"Kasuka... I'm sorry." She doesn't know what else to say. Although she never forced Kasuka to talk so much about herself, she's practically the catalyst that allowed such dark thoughts to resurface once again.
Perhaps Kasuka never really wanted to talk about herself... but seeing her, seeing Atsuko, one of the few with a will for 'freedom', did she feel compelled to answer?
"Sorry? Why should you be?" Kasuka tilted her head.
Seeing this, Atsuko's heart felt like it was being gripped tightly.
'She's younger than me but she's seen more than me. She had experienced this hell longer than me. She never had anyone to rely on. She never had a companion she could lean herself to.'
'...Saori. Perhaps, if only you were faster... she wouldn't have fallen this far.'
"Don't worry. We'll experience it together. I'm sure, by the end of this, we'll be happily together, away from the suffering, away from the taste of pain."
Kasuka's eyes widened slightly. Following that, she smiled, a bright smile that looked almost as if she was ridiculing herself, a wide smile that seemed fake but also seemed to convey every emotion she wanted to let out.
"...Mm!" Her face seemed clueless, even though she had experienced more than them.
'...It should've been you saying that to me, not the other way around.' Atsuko's eyes became downturned.
After all, this whole week, Kasuka was the one filled with the most amount of energy when compared to all of them. Perhaps, she's even more energetic than all of them combined.
And yet, now, she was the one that seemed the most miserable out of everyone.
"..."
It appears that she might've accidentally opened a Pandora's Box.
...one filled with pain and suffering.
Thud
"...Kasuka!"