The Young Princess Kills Everyone: Re
Mitis and Ceres met Vent’s little sister, Aura.
Aura sat between them and told them her story.
“When my big bro started going to this school, things were normal at first. He called me every day and came home on weekends……”
“He didn’t seem like it, but I guess he has a sister complex.”
Aura blushed when Ceres pointed that out.
“R-Rather…… I’m just really spoiled. We have only one parent. So I think that’s why we’re closer than other siblings. Yup.”
“So he’s trying to make your family wealthy.”
“I think that’s why he wanted to come here, yes. I told him he could go to a school in our home town too, though.”
“But things must have changed if you’re here to ask for our help.”
“He was so excited when he told me that he got elected as a god candidate…… but he kinda slowly turned into someone else after that. He said things like ‘I’m not Vent.’ Sometimes, it looked like…… he didn’t like it when I called him ‘bro’……”
Just remembering that made Aura sad.
Mitis embarrassedly scratched her head.
She knew about Vent.
They used to be in the same class, so Vent often hung out with the other god candidates Luno or Nix.
So Mitis did not think much highly of him.
It was probably the same for Ceres too.
They shared a look, which made it clear that Ceres was perplexed too.
“Are the others like that too?”
“There are some individual differences, but yeah.”
“Can’t…… Can’t I even say goodbye to my bro?”
“He’s not just gonna go back to normal, so you should say it before he’s completely gone.”
“……Huh? Aura, didn’t you ask us for help because you knew a way to do that?”
Aura shook her head.
“I thought maybe we could think of a way together. Mhm.”
It was also Mitis and Ceres’s fault for expecting anything else, but it seemed that things would be difficult.
Then, Ceres remembered something.
“Right. I said there are some individual differences, right? I think I know the person with the slowest rate of progress.”
“Who is that, Ceres?”
“Mani Claudy. God name Emperor!”
For some reason, Ceres boastfully put her index finger up.
♢♢♢
Mani was in a dark deserted spot behind the school building.
“She’s hiding her eyes with her bangs. She seems like a really quiet person.”
“Emperor means she’s one of the god candidates, right? Why is she eating lunch here all by herself, I wonder?”
“She used to hang out with Hermes.”
“Hermes…… Magician, right?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“……So that person was left behind too.”
Aura sounded sad.
Mitis also sympathized with Mani’s background and worried about her.
Then, she stood right in front of Mani and bowed before speaking up.
“Hello, Miss. Mani.”
“Who are you……?”
“I’m Mitis, a reserve candidate.”
“Ooh, you’re that…… H-Hello.”
“And I’m Ceres. This girl is-”
“Yo, I’m big bro’s…… Vent Tempestus’s little sister, Aura.”
“R-Right, hello. Why is Wheel of Fortune’s little sister here?”
“Umm, that’s not my big bro’s name!”
Aura slightly clenched her fists and startled Mani.
“Ah…… Sorry.”
Aura’s shoulders dropped.
Mani spoke kindly.
“Nu-uh, you just surprised me a little. Yeah, it’s better to call family by name. Better than those weird names, at least……”
Mani’s words were plenty enough to make the others believe that she would help them.
Ceres and Mitis sat down on two sides of Mani.
Then, Aura leaned down in front of her.
Mani nervously looked at the others.
“Aura here wants to turn Vent back to the human he used to be. And we all want to turn Luno back to normal. Right, Ceres?”
“……Mhm. If it’s possible.”
“Mani, I heard that you’re close with Hermes. Don’t you want that person to go back to normal?”
“I do, but……”
“Then let’s do it together. We don’t know how yet, so maybe a candidate like you can help us!”
“Oh……”
Aura grabbed Mani’s hands and spoke passionately.
Mani was taken aback by her pressure.
“I want your help too.”
“I don’t think there’s a way to do that.”
“You’re getting treated in some weird machine so that you can turn into a god, right? Don’t you know any details about the machine?”
“I can’t change the device on my own. And I don’t know how they work……”
“Then what if we break the device? If we destroy the world they’re supposed to create, then those gods will be released from their duties, right?”
“That’s…… I don’t know. But it’s not possible.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Hermes, Vent, everyone else…… They all seem to want this. If this makes them happy, I can’t be the one to stop it……”
“Is Hermes fine with making you suffer in order to be happy?”
“……No. They’ll just be happy to become gods.”
“But you don’t look so happy to me lately, you know. I’m sure Hermes would notice that.”
“Still, I’m the one who’s in the wrong.”
“Wait!”
“!……”
Mitis’s hand got shaken off.
Then Mani rolled up her sleeves with a sad look on her face.
A small part of her uniform transformed and turned into a cold, hard object resembling armor.
“We can’t go back now.”
“You haven’t completely changed yet!”
“It’s not just our bodies, it’s our minds too. You can’t turn something back once it changes. Do you know why they give us names?”
“To encourage you to see yourselves as gods, right?”
“No. To help us abandon our human names.”
“Isn’t that the same thing?”
Mani shook her head in response to Aura’s question.
“Names are kinda like souls, so changing them changes your mind too. So it doesn’t matter what name we get. The important thing is that we get a ‘different’ name. I’m making slow progress, but I’ll be just like the others soon.”
“So you’re fine with it if it lets you be with Hermes?”
“I just have to be a little patient. Hermes just went ahead a little before me.”
“You’re turning into different people. If you get together as gods, that means tearing apart the humans named Mani and Hermes!”
“It’s not us who decides whether that’s a good or a bad thing.”
“Things like good and evil are-”
“Very important. I’m sure your parents are looking forward to the moment Luno becomes a god too, you know.”
“That’s…… That’s what I’m saying is wrong!”
Mani had to be thinking the same thing.
Aura and Ceres also knew that this was wrong.
But the general public decided what was just.
These four could not change that.
“I heard the teachers hold a meeting when they decide the names of the gods. They talk about which myth to use, what genders and personality they should use as motifs, etc. They really look forward to it.”
“……Sounds like a horrible scene.”
“That’s like having fun making murder plans.”
“Like I said, everyone ‘analyzes’ it differently. Some people say Fool and World are special names and should be left out, some say they should be used for reserve personnel. Then, they said they should be given to control systems. It can’t just be random, I’m sure that the teachers decide the ‘setting’ in meetings and stuff. They don’t have any bad intentions. They’re really just innocently roleplaying as servants of the gods.”
“That’s insane.”
“We’re the crazy ones for thinking that’s insane.”
“Why is that? Everyone has gone crazy! They always say you should value your life and your family, so how does that instantly change when gods are involved? It’s completely insane!”
There was not a single answer for Aura as she yelled with teary eyes.
Because that’s how humans were.
The humanity of this world were made as creators for other worlds, so it was only natural to put maximum priority on that.
It was a virtue to suppress one’s emotions for the sake of their great cause.
The people who opposed that with emotional arguments were in the wrong.
That was a part of common sense, like murder being a bad thing.
“I should go, lunch break is over soon. Hermes will get mad if I’m late.”
Mani tidied up her lunch box and quietly left.
Aura firmly clasped her fist as she looked on, then looked over at Mitis with a brave look on her face.
She shook her head.
Aura’s fighting spirit immediately faded, and the group watched Mani leave.
“She got a bit loud, but she compromised as much as she could in her own way.”
“How?”
“……She told us that their names are important.”
Ceres finally spoke up.
If asked, she was on the side of giving up and living her life together with Mitis.
So she had decided to let Mitis be the one to talk to Mani.
“We can’t do anything about their physical changes. The most efficient way we can use is to call them by their names.”
“Will you help us with that?”
“Our mission is to turn Luno back to normal. If things go well with Vent, things might go well with Luno too.”
“Thank you so much! I’ll keep in contact too, even if bro gets mad at me!”
Aura deeply bowed.
Ceres embarrassedly scratched her cheek, but she was not sure that things would be so easy.
♢♢♢
Aura left the academy before any teachers saw her.
Mitis and Ceres commenced with their plans after that day’s classes.
They waited for the candidates to leave their cradles.
The teachers carefully glared at everyone and watched their moves.
Mitis paid no attention to that, of course, and spotted Luno and the others after a while.
Ceres raised her hand and loudly shouted their names.
“Heeey, Luno! Vent! Nix!”
Vent and Nix rarely ever heard their names said out loud.
They suspiciously looked at Ceres.
Then, after what happened before, Luno seemed troubled by hearing her name called out with such a cheerful voice.
Then, Mitis made a move.
“Welcome, Luno. Oh, you two look really scary.”
“What are you trying to do?”
“Don’t be mean, I’m just talking to you. That’s why you have so few friends, you know.”
“You bitch!”
“Stop it, Judgment.”
“But!”
“You seem pretty calm, Vent.”
“It’s Wheel of Fortune.”
“Sorry, that’s too long to remember.”
Ceres walked up to Vent, put her hands together and stuck her tongue out.
“I guess I gotta shorten it, then. What about Wheetune?”
“Grr…… Just call me Vent.”
“Oh, really? Great. Mitis, I got permission.”
“Good job.”
“Yaaay!”
Mitis and Ceres snapped their fingers.
Nix was still suspicious, but he looked at them and figured that they were just idiots.
He scornfully snorted at them, then left.
Vent was about to follow him, but Mitis suddenly grabbed his arm.
“Wait a bit, Vent. Why don’t you talk to us now and then?”
“Conversations with humans are just noise.”
“How kind of you to not say no. Thanks.”
Vent frowned at how pushy Mitis was acting.
In the end, the four lined up and walked back to the dormitory together.
“Why…… are you two……”
Luno was especially confused when Ceres crossed arms with her.
“Don’t look so down. That doesn’t suit you, Luno. Hnnh!”
Saying that, she poked Luno’s cheek.
She was just pretending.
Luno also knew that.
Until the previous day, though, they did not even have the energy to pretend like this.
In fact, Ceres was pushing herself really hard.
She was just clinging on to the hope that Luno might still come back somehow, and forcing her body to move.
Meanwhile, Mitis continued her awkward conversation with Vent.
“Hey, the weather is really nice today. Right, Vent?”
“Yeah.”
“How is the world creation going? How much of a god are you now, I wonder?”
“I don’t know. I’m trying to progress faster than the others.”
Vent touched his abdomen.
Something angular and hard was visible under his uniform.
“Ooh, that part of your body looks different, Vent. How are you gonna look when you completely transform, I wonder?”
“I don’t think you people will get a chance to see that.”
“That’s mean, I know we’re just reserve personnel but I still wish we had that right. Hey Vent, don’t you think so too?”
“As long as something unplanned doesn’t happen, you’re just a normal student.”
“Then what do you think would have to happen for us to be god candidates, Vent?”
The unpleasant conversation continued as Vent had an expressionless look on his face, while Mitis forced a smile.
This went on until they returned to the dorms.
Having chosen to stay in a different room, Luno parted with the others at the entrance.
Mitis hugged her almost by force, then whispered: ‘See you tomorrow.’
Luno looked down and never responded.
♢♢♢
Mitis and Ceres continued this tactic the next day as well.
They used any opportunity they found to visit the cradles during break time.
Of course, whether they got to see Luno or Vent depended on their luck, but even if they were not there, they spoke to Nix, Mani, or Hermes if they saw them as well.
Perhaps it was thanks to that, but Luno and Vent seemed to stay the same for the next week.
Mitis gave Aura reports of the process many times during this time.
She also seemed to be in contact with Vent, and while things did not improve, she said that things did not deteriorate either.
“I feel like we’re having a tug of war.”
Aura spoke on the phone.
There was a phone in a room of the dormitory. Mitis replied while holding the old-fashioned receiver over her ear.
“What do you mean by that?”
“God and my brother are fighting against each other. Right now, I think it’s a close fight thanks to your help.”
“I see…… But a close fight isn’t good enough. Maybe we need one more push.”
“Umm, about that.”
“What?”
“Actually it’s big bro’s birthday soon. I really want to give him a present face to face.”
“Aah…… That’s a great idea. Isn’t he going back home?”
“He came back last year, but no. Even though we decided to celebrate his birthday as a family……”
“Okay, I’ll help. You just need me to lure Vent out, right?”
“Thank you!”
Lure Vent out. That would not be so easy for Mitis, since they were not even close friends.
How would she lure him on that day at the planned hour?
Mitis leaned back on a wall and thought about it as she looked up at the ceiling.
♢♢♢
A few days after that, it was Vent’s birthday.
It would be too difficult for Mitis to lure him outside the academy.
So she handed him a letter asking him to go behind the school building.
……Under Mani’s name.
Mani helped out a few times since they first talked, and had become more cooperative over time.
Vent could not flatly reject an invitation from another god candidate.
“Ah, there!”
“All according to plan, for now.”
Mitis and Ceres hid nearby and watched.
Behind them, Aura was nervously holding her present.
“The rest is up to you, Aura.”
“Good luck!”
“Yep, let’s do this!”
Aura clenched her fists and fired herself up, then jumped out.
She ran up to Vent and spoke up as her cheeks went completely red.
“You-”
“Long time no see, bro.”
Mitis and Ceres reflexively muttered to each other as they watched.
“I never heard Aura’s voice sound like that.”
“So it’s a hyper sister complex……”
Aura cherished Vent a hundred times more than the other two thought.
So much so that she bought the academy’s uniform at an auction and snuck in.
“Why are you here? You’re not old enough to enter the academy yet, are you?”
“I’m here because you’re not coming home.”
“I’m busy.”
“Even though it’s your birthday?”
“I have no need for such things as a god.”
“I need it! You’re so insensitive…… Here, take it!”
Vent looked at the pink bag shoved in his face.
“What’s this?”
“Your birthday present! I give you one every year, don’t I?”
“I told you I don’t need it.”
“Where’s my bro who used to be so happy to get these?”
“Dead.”
“……”
Aura’s body shivered in the face of that cold word.
Mitis reflexively almost jumped out of hiding, but Ceres stopped her.
“……Nu-uh, you’re wrong. I know my big bro Vent is still in there.”
Aura squeezed her words out with a shaky voice.
But Vent shoved the present back in her face.
“I can’t take something from a trespasser, take it back.”
“No.”
“You pretended to be Emperor and asked me to come here, that’s not gonna go well for you if they find out.”
“No!”
“You’re being unreasonable-”
“You’re the one being unreasonable, idiot!”
Vent faintly recoiled after his little sister glared at him with teary eyes.
“Alright, that’s perfect!”
“Push! Push!”
Mitis and Ceres quietly cheered on.
They watched Aura push the present back to Vent.
“You must be happy to get a present from your little sister, right? C’mon, take it. I’m begging you……”
“……”
“And, just once, I want you to say my name.”
Vent awkwardly averted his eyes and thought for a moment.
Then, he loudly sighed, and muttered:
“……Thanks, Aura.”
Aura’s tear glands surged.
Tears dripped down her cheeks, but she smiled when she spoke.
“Happy birthday, big bro Vent.”
Aura seemed just a little happier to Mitis and Ceres.
♢♢♢
Aura came back to Mitis and Ceres after that.
“……Sniff!”
“Here, wipe your face.”
“Thank you!”
Aura wiped her tears with the handkerchief Mitis gave her.
“Seriously…… Thank you…… so much!…… My brother went back to normal just a little bit thanks to you two……!”
“That’s what it looked like to me too. Right, Ceres?”
“Mhm, I think we shouldn’t give up on Luno now.”
“I…… I’m going to do everything I can. I’m gonna save my big bro from going away!”
“Yes, we’ll keep helping you as well.”
“Let us know if you need anything, okay?”
“Okay!”
Aura smiled with her whole face.
♢♢♢
That night.
Mitis and Ceres were walking back through the corridor to their room after finishing their dinner.
Mitis felt thirsty and stopped in front of a vending machine.
She spotted a big trash can next to it in the corner of her eye.
She felt like she remembered the pink color.
Mitis’s heart jumped.
Ceres saw Mitis standing frozen in front of the vending machine without pressing any buttons.
“Mitis, are you feeling unwell?”
Mitis’s face was completely pale.
She closed her eyes and took a slow breath.
She then calmed herself down, and looked at the trash can again.
Ceres also looked at it.
“Ah……”
She sounded frail.
She lost control of her legs and fell on her knees.
Meanwhile, Mitis grinded her teeth hard, reached into the trash can and pulled the bag out.
“This is just……. Aggh, this is just…… Fuuuuuck!”
She smashed her face against the vending machine.
Over and over again, enough for her head to swell up.
“Uuugggh……!”
She fell into a fit of crying.
There were two boxes in the bag.
They looked like they were crushed underfoot. The one containing the handkerchief was still intact, but the one with Aura’s handmade sweets was-
“It didn’t work. We can’t do anything. We should give up on Luno, and……”
“Ceres……”
“I don’t want to get hurt any more! Every time we get hopeful, we just get disappointed!”
Mitis could not say anything.
She squeezed some words out and tried to change the topic somehow.
“Ceres, let’s eat Aura’s sweets in our room.”
“Huh……?”
“She won’t get hurt if she doesn’t know anything. That’s all we can do now.”
They knew it was pointless self-satisfaction
However, throwing Aura’s loving present away was the one thing they could not accept.
“Yeah…… I bet they’re delicious. Because they’re so full of love.”
Ceres forced a smile after she spoke.
♢♢♢
A few days later, after school.
Mitis was walking back to her room as usual when she noticed an envelope in her shoe rack.
Ceres also noticed it.
“A love letter?”
“I hope not, because I already gave my heart to someone else.”
“Ewww~ Embarrassing~”
Ceres wriggled her body.
Mitis exploded into laughter when she saw this.
But there was no spirit in their voices.
The mood got better for just a moment, and Mitis checked the envelope.
She found a photo.
“What’s that? A landscape photo?”
Indeed, it was the trash can that Aura’s present was thrown into.
In other words, someone took a photo of it before Mitis and Ceres were there.
“W-What? What’s the meaning of this……?”
Ceres felt confused.
Because she was kind.
But since Mitis had lived through so much malice, she understood what this meant.
“……This is so depraved. They’re no gods!”
“Ah, Mitis!?”
She suddenly stood up and ran out of the classroom, leaving Ceres behind.
She passed by Nix, who had an evil grin on his face, but Mitis had no time to waste on him.
She ran full speed to the dormitory and went to the phone.
She called Aura’s house.
“Ahh…… Ahh…… Answer, answer, please. Please-”
She muttered, almost as if praying, and heard a voice.
“……Hello?”
It was the voice of a weak woman.
“My name is Mitis. I’m Miss. Aura’s friend. Err, is she there!?”
“Aura’s friend……Aura’s…… Aaah, that girl…… that girl is……”
Surely, the woman was Aura’s mother.
She barely spoke in a shaky quiet voice, and told Mitis:
“She just got a call from the police……. and jumped…… uh, uuggh, aaaaaarrrgggh……!”
The phone slid out of Mitis’s hand.
Sadly, she could still hear the woman’s crying and shouting coming from the phone.
♢♢♢
“Veeeeeent!”
A short while after that, Mitis angrily grabbed at Vent after he came out of his cradle.
“What the hell did you do!? She’s your sister!! Don’t you care about her!?”
“What are you talking about?”
“You threw her present away, didn’t you!?”
“Yeah, because I didn’t need it.”
Vent sounded calm.
“My body no longer requires the food that humans do.”
“Stop saying things like that. You know what I mean. You have to know!”
“Why are you angry? I only did what was natural.”
Then, Ceres finally caught up with Mitis.
Luno also left her cradle at that moment.
“Mitis, what are you doing?”
“Ahh, ahh…… Mitis, what happened!?”
“This guy threw it away…… this guy threw away Aura’s present and sent a photo of it! So she, she…… She jumped. She killed herself!”
“Wha-!?”
Ceres was the only one who looked shocked.
Vent said a single word.
“Oh.”
“That’s it?”
“Yeah.”
“Even though she’s your sister?”
“She’s not my sister. Most importantly, my name is not Vent.”
“What? You think you’re a god? You’re a piece of trash who trampled over someone’s kindness!”
“I just did what was normal. Your human logic does not matter.”
“What the hell are you talking about!?”
Mitis’s anger climaxed and she raised her fist.
Then, someone grabbed her from behind.
“Ugh!?”
Then, they squeezed Mitis’s hand tight and turned her elbow into the opposite direction.
“Gah, ah, ugh, aaaaaagggh!”
Mitis fell to the ground and screamed.
Her eyes opened wide as sweat dripped down her forehead, and she writhed in the pain coming from his broken right arm.
“Ah…… Nooo! Mitiiis!”
Ceres immediately rushed over to her.
But Nix stopped her and shoved her away with one hand.
“Aaah!……”
Ceres fell on her backside.
She glared at Nix.
“Move. Out of my way!”
“This woman is a fiend who raised her hand to a god. So I judged her as Judgment.”
“I don’t care about that! I have to help Mitis!”
“I will not allow that.”
“It’s not up to you!”
“No, it is. Because I am something above human beings – I am a god. Besides…… Look.”
Nix wiggled his chin to point behind Ceres.
There was a crowd of teachers running over to them.
“They taught me that only villains oppose a god. I am enough divine punishment, but a human’s crimes must be judged by other humans. If you oppose me now, you will both be punished-”
A clap resounded.
Ceres, whose face was wet with tears, had struck Nix on the cheek.
“If that’s your justice, then you’re free to just kill us.”
Ceres spoke with strong eyes.
Nix laughed, and fixed his glasses.
“Aah, you arrived just in time, teachers.”
“What happened here, Judgment?”
Veteran teachers were acting like servants to Judgment.
“I want you to deal with these two. They’re a great nuisance for world creation.”
“We always thought they would cause problems eventually. To think that they could not even fulfill their duties as spare personnel. Stand up!”
“Uuuh…… Ugh……”
“Don’t act like you’re sad, I told you to stand up!”
He grabbed Mitis’s arm and forced her up.
Her face twisted in pain even more.
Then, Luno yelled:
“Please stop!”
“……What are you talking about, Death God?”
“Those two…… Those two didn’t do anything. So it’s unnecessary to deal with them.”
“Haha, ahahaha! That’s just not gonna work for us. Isn’t that right, Wheel of Fortune?”
“Yeah, it’s true that this Mitis bitch tried to hit me.”
“Maybe…… That’s because there was a good enough reason to hit you!”
“Death God!”
Nix was furious.
He put his face right in front of Luno’s.
“There is no reason in this world good enough to hit a god for. You should be aware of that, shouldn’t you?”
“You’re the one…… You’re the one who is not worthy to be a god, not with that malice!”
“What?”
“Should a god have fun toying with a human’s life with evil intentions?”
“Death God…… You……”
Nix’s arm swelled up under his uniform.
It completely lost its normal shape and turned into a materialization of his urge to kill, and its tip sharpened to a point.
“Stop.”
Vent stopped them.
With a completely blank look on his face, he dispassionately spoke to the teachers.
“I want you to go easy on Mitis. Pain is unnecessary, do not dirty the cradles with blood. Ceres may leave.”
“You’re too soft, Wheel of Fortune!”
“This is enough to display our position as gods. I’m counting on you, disciples.”
“Y-Yes! Understood!”
Calling them ‘disciples’ made the teachers really happy.
They carried out God’s order with sincere delight.
They held Mitis up and took her somewhere else.
Ceres screamed and tried to go after her, but the other teachers held her down.
Nix seemed sour, while there was no expression on Vent’s face, but Luno sadly cast her eyes down as they all left.