mygo, but Cthulhu

"Don't worry, Miss Xin. We will catch her in less than a week, and she will pay the price for this."

"Don't rush to make promises. If you don't complete the task by then, the punishment will be more severe."

At this moment, a voice that was very familiar to Xian Juanxin suddenly sounded. She opened her eyes wide and looked at the man who walked into the hospital bed. For a moment, she felt that the indescribable depression in her heart was relieved a lot, and she quickly stood up and hugged him.

"Dad... do you have any idea how to fix this? I don't want anything to happen to Misaki and the others... We can continue with our daily lives, right?"

"Of course, Xin, this will just be an accident. Your life won't change."

Xian Juan'an smiled, glanced at the black-clad people who were silent as a cicada, and waved to them.

"Go out first, I have something to talk to you about."

"Yes,"

They nodded quickly, and soon only Xianjuan and Xin were left in the ward. He gently stroked her hair, his voice full of meaning.

"Xin, I can indeed handle this... but I need to explain to you in advance that if I handle it, innocent people might be harmed. Can you accept this?"

"What does it mean to harm the innocent?"

"Perhaps in order to eliminate the danger, some people need to be sacrificed. For example, right now, there are many children like you who are caught up in the chaos and disputes. They are suffering and tormented...Are you willing to eliminate them to ensure the complete safety of Misaki and the others?"

"...Does this mean killing them?"

He was stunned for a moment, frowned and thought for a long time before he spoke tentatively, and Xian Juanan nodded slightly.

"That's right, Xin. After what happened, you should understand that this world is actually very dangerous... I tried my best to immerse you in the dream, and I also hoped that you would never wake up. But the bullet that lodged in your friend's chest has clearly torn some of your illusions. The broken corner of the beautiful dream has finally shattered. You can choose whether to give up on it beforehand."

"I don't understand... Dad... What do you mean? Have all my efforts been wrong? Is it impossible for this world... to be filled with smiles?"

Xianjuanxin looked at him blankly, hesitated for a long time, and shook her head in confusion. If it was before this incident, she would not have understood these complicated words at all, but the scarlet on Misaki's chest was still frozen in her memory... and it also made her gradually realize the cruelty of this world.

She didn't want to deny all the efforts, and she still remembered those laughters, but... Misaki, who was still lying on the hospital bed, constantly reminded her how fragile human life was.

...She could no longer smile at this moment, and she didn't know what to do. She only felt an increasingly violent surge of unfamiliar pain engulfing her, making it difficult for her to think.

"No, your efforts are certainly not wrong, it's just that the world is often not as tolerant as we imagine."

Just when Xin felt her vision becoming blurry, Xian Juan'an gently wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, his voice soft and calm.

"If you can't decide, don't think about it. Leave it to me, your father. I will do my best to achieve a result that you can accept."

"Thank you dad..."

Xin nodded silently, and Xianjuan'an smiled and said goodbye to her softly. He stood up and left the room. When he saw Hanane and the others who had just woken up and hurried over, he raised his hand and greeted them.

"You must be Kokoro's friends, right? Thank you so much for your concern... Kokoro and Misaki are inside, go in and keep them company."

"Thank you uncle,"

Hanane nodded nervously, and when she was about to say something, she unexpectedly saw the information handed to her by Genjukunigishi.

"Ms. Matsubara, since you are my friends, I can tell you directly that this attack is not a simple matter. It involves murder, evil cults, and horrors beyond human imagination."

"Although I can probably guess your choice, I still want to ask you, do you want to take the risk to learn more about this and continue to help Xin, or do you just want to be ordinary friends with her and not learn more?"

"...You probably know what our response will be, right? There's no need to hesitate."

After a moment of silence, Hanane took a deep breath and looked up at her firmly. Xianjuan An also smiled without surprise and put the information in her hands.

"Then take a closer look. It contains content you've never imagined. If you can still muster up the courage after reading this, then you can protect your heart."

"By the way, the recent abnormalities at your school, Popipa, are also related to this... If you want to help them, please prepare as much as possible. I will provide you with the necessary weapons and equipment."

Chapter 188 Questioning

In the pitch-black room, Junda Sosuke silently looked at the casualty data in his hand, the expression on his face became more depressed in the darkness.

Today, he and his colleagues witnessed the tragic situation in Yuezhisen... The once famous Miss Academy had now turned into a bloody slaughterhouse. The well-dressed parents who had rushed over were either wailing or screaming, desperately trying to escape.

Cursing them to vent the pain.

...By now, Sosuke Junda should have gotten used to all this. He should have gotten used to the deaths of these innocent people, and he should have gotten used to the committee's order to disguise this incident as a terrorist attack.

The whole of Tokyo was shaken by this terrible incident, but Sosuke Junda knew that it was only because the casualties were exposed and difficult to cover up... This is a huge city, and he has seen many more innocent people killed by the committee, who were ignored just because of their ordinary family background and were drowned in the neon lights of Tokyo.

Yes, he thought that if he continued to endure this, he could continue to convince himself... However, his only reason to continue to endure it also changed. Since the last time he saw Mana, he found that her whereabouts became more and more strange. He wanted to deceive himself, but in the end he couldn't do it.

"Boom,"

Just as Junda Sosuke sighed, the door suddenly opened. Mana was stunned when she saw the figure in the dark living room. She frowned, turned on the light, and met Sosuke's complicated eyes. She realized something and pursed her lips. After thinking about it, she habitually raised a smile.

"Ah, Dad, why did you come here so suddenly? You didn't even tell me. I was almost scared just now."

"...Mana, you don't have to keep acting. You're at home now, not in front of the camera."

After a moment of silence, Sosuke slowly spoke, and Mana paused. She frowned, and finally just smiled and shook her head.

"I don't understand what you're saying, Dad. Are you too tired? Do you need some donuts?"

"It wasn't a coincidence that you were there, was it?"

Sosuke ignored her smile and continued speaking coldly, watching her gradually solidified expression with indifference.

"You've been communicating with the committee for a long time. When Mitsuka Hatsuka disappeared, you also disappeared for a short time... You went looking for her, right? She's the one who kidnapped Toyokawa Shoko, and you were so concerned about her that you didn't bother to pretend, which is why I noticed your abnormality."

"...That alone doesn't mean anything, right? Maybe it's just a coincidence?"

"There are too many coincidences. I can't do anything about the situation involving the committee, but I have caught a few murderers before, and their excuses were exactly the same as yours now."

Junda Sosuke sneered with a look of sarcasm and pain, then took out a small box of old toys and pushed it in front of Mana.

"But even though your whereabouts are so strange, I still don't want to doubt you... It's these things that really make me understand everything."

"These are... the toys I played with as a child?"

"Yes, I still remember what you looked like when you were a child. Every detail is crystal clear... I remember every toy you liked, including their production dates and models, but when I looked through these things, they didn't match my memory at all."

"I'm a police officer, Mana. What I'm most proud of is my memory. My brain has never made a mistake, let alone every detail is wrong... So there is only one possibility, either I'm senile or you are not my daughter... I would rather it's the former, but judging from your expression, the truth is the latter."

"...Why do you have to delve so deeply? You could have continued to treat me as your daughter."

After a moment of silence, Mana sighed slowly, and seeing that she finally admitted it, Sosuke couldn't help but grit his teeth, stood up suddenly and stared at her.

"But you're not! My daughter, she's never lied to me in my memory. She's a kind person. I promised her before her mother died that I would raise Mana to be that kind of person, and I should have done it... Tell me, who are you, and where is Mana?"

"Do you really want me to tell you the truth? Since you're so perceptive, you should have figured it all out, right?"

Mana sighed softly, and Sosuke, who confirmed the ominous premonition in his heart, couldn't help but feel dazed. He fell to the ground weakly. Although the fruit knife prepared in advance was placed on the table, he had no strength to pick it up. His mind felt empty.

"Your daughter never existed, Mr. Juntian. You should have sensed this, but you just don't want to admit it."

Mana walked slowly in front of him and stared at him calmly.

"After your wife passed away, you devoted all your energy to your work. You are an excellent police officer, and you have always been dissatisfied with the committee system... The committee discovered this, and out of my personal sympathy, I chose you to play my father, so that you would not have to go against them and could continue to live."

"You think... I want to live like this?"

Sosuke gritted his teeth and looked at her, while Mana sighed.

"The Metropolitan Police Department already has many tax thieves. Your death would be a loss for Tokyo. You've caught many criminals so far. Why dwell on those innocent people? You've already done enough."

"...Are all your memories fabricated?"

After a long silence, Sosuke spoke slowly and weakly, and Mana nodded slightly.

"Yes, in fact, I've only been with you for a year. Although it's not a long time, I still think you are a good father... I feel sorry for the current situation. You can obviously continue to pretend that you didn't notice."

"Oh... I'm sorry, the thing I'm worst at is pretending to be confused."

Junda Sosuke sneered. He looked at the familiar yet unfamiliar face in front of him and hesitated for a moment whether to attack violently, but in the end he could only sigh deeply and tilted his head tiredly to gesture to the fruit knife beside him.

"Now that I've discovered all this, please kill me. I've had enough."

"...You were just about to take action, what made you give up?"

Mana stared at him, thought for a moment, and then spoke softly, but Sosuke just pulled the corner of his mouth.

"It's stupid. I know those memories are fake, but I can't do anything to you...Okay, stop talking nonsense and kill me quickly."

"..."

Mana looked at him silently, but after a moment she just turned and walked towards the door. Sosuke didn't react for a moment, and was stunned for a moment before he couldn't understand and asked hurriedly,

"Wait, where are you going?"

"Find somewhere else to live."

"You're not going to do anything? You're not a member of the committee?"

"If there's one thing I inherited from you, it's stupidity... I don't want to kill you. Leave this country so you can survive."

Mana shook her head, opened the door and left without hesitation. Junda Sosuke looked at the closed door blankly. After a while, he realized that she had let him go. He couldn't help but clench his teeth with a complicated feeling in his heart.

"Damn it...what's the point of me living!"

He angrily threw everything on the table to the ground, kicked over the old toys with force, and after venting his anger, he sat down on the ground leaning tiredly against the sofa.

"Boom, boom,"

But just as he lowered his head silently, there was a knock on the door.

"Excuse me, is this Officer Junta? I'm Takamatsu Yuji, and you took care of me a long time ago... I have something I want to discuss with you. May I come in now?"

Chapter 189 Parents' Concerns

"Come in,"

After recalling for a while, Juntian Sosuke remembered this name. He seemed to be

This person whom I helped once before... I didn't expect him to come to me suddenly now, and I don't know what happened.

After the door opened, Takamatsu Yuji was stunned to see him slumped on the ground. After seeing the remaining fatigue and sadness on Juntian Sosuke's face, he thought for a moment and asked softly,

"Officer Junda, did you have a fight with your daughter?"

"……How did you know?"

Unexpectedly, he would directly tell the story. Juntian Sosuke was stunned for a moment and couldn't help but frown. He reached back and grabbed the fruit knife without leaving any trace. At this time, a woman in a suit with a tired expression suddenly spoke, her voice still suppressed.

"Because we've actually been having some trouble communicating with our daughter lately... Officer Junda, we were originally going to ask you for help, but it seems you're also deeply troubled, right?"

"Since that's the case... then let's go in first."

After thinking for a moment, Sosuke pursed his lips and nodded. Takamatsu Yuji walked in with the woman and another couple. Sosuke found that their expressions were full of sadness and worry. Combined with what he had just heard, he had some guesses in his heart.

"So... could you please introduce yourselves? I don't know who everyone else is besides Mr. Takamatsu."

"Excuse me, officer...I am Nagasaki Miyu, and these two are Mr. Chihaya Hiroshi and Ms. Chihaya Megumi."

The woman in the suit introduced herself softly, and her last name reminded Sosuke Junta of a female student who had disappeared during the Tsuki no Mori Massacre.

"Shigasaki...you are Shigasaki Suyo's mother, right?"

"Yes, I'm really happy that Su Shi is back this time, but seeing her like this, I'm also extremely painful... Her eyes were gouged out, officer, can you understand this feeling?"

Nagasaki Miyu tried to suppress the pain and whispered, and Sosuke also sighed.

"Sorry, this is all our fault."

"No, it's not your fault. In fact, you're the only one we can count on now."

Takamatsu Yuji sighed lightly, thought for a moment, and then spoke slowly.

"A few days ago, my daughter hanged herself in her room, but she didn't die. Her friends took her away, and when she finally came back, she didn't explain much to us... Even though we repeatedly asked her, she just told us awkwardly that it was safer for us not to know."

"But obviously, as parents, we couldn't just give up the pursuit. We wanted to call the police, but my daughter showed an unusually serious attitude towards it. She said calling the police would bring danger... Out of trust in her, we didn't do it."

Takamatsu Yuji explained calmly and softly, while Juntian Sosuke listened to his story carefully and roughly guessed the purpose of their visit.

"and then?"

"Then, we began to investigate her situation without her knowing... We wouldn't have pried into her privacy, but we really had no other choice. After looking through her notebook, we learned that her band, Mygo, was also facing this danger, and they seemed to have gone quite deep into it."

"Yes, it wasn't until Mr. Takamatsu found me that I realized Su Shi's experience this time was not that simple... And Su Shi and her friends haven't reported it to the police yet, which shows that they don't believe the police system is trustworthy, or that it can't provide help."

Nagasaki Miyu continued softly, clenching her fists in anxiety.

"However, there isn't much information in that notebook. We don't dare call the police or push our daughters too hard, for fear they might notice something's wrong... We can only come to you, Officer Junda. Mr. Takamatsu said you're a good person and can be trusted... Please, tell us what's going on!"

"...Before I tell you, I also hope that you can understand that your daughter has a reason for hiding this from you. Knowing this will indeed put you in danger."

After a moment's silence, Junda Sosuke sighed and tried to persuade him softly, but it did not surprise him. Takamatsu Yuji and the others just nodded vigorously without hesitation, obviously having made up their minds.

"We understand... but as parents, we can't just keep suffering like this, fearing that our daughter will die at any moment, while being unable to do anything... Please tell us, we are willing to face any danger."

"Okay, then I'll tell you everything I know... In fact, I've been wanting to do this for a long time."