NOVEL NEXT Chapter 8
Chapter 8. Birth of Calamity
“Hurry up and spit it out, you little…!”
A cop shouts. He slams the desk, clearly trying to intimidate me.
Right now, there’s a collar-like device around my neck. Apparently, it’s meant to suppress a person’s abilities. My body feels a bit sluggish, but it might be my imagination, since there’s barely any noticeable difference.
“I’ve told you many times, I didn’t steal anything.”
“We’ve got proof, you hear me?! Proof!”
The real problem is these crazy cops. They’ve been repeating the same thing over and over. No matter how much I protest, they’re hell-bent on framing me as the culprit.
At this point, there’s no doubt in my mind. These guys are almost definitely in cahoots with Mr. Party-Boy. And the smirk they’ve been wearing this whole time makes that clear.
Honestly, I can’t fathom what’s so entertaining about setting someone up. I can’t help but feel for the combat units risking their lives daily fighting monsters for people like these.
“Hey, say something, why don’t you?!”
The cop keeps hurling insults. The urge to punch him is strong, but if I did, there wouldn’t be a trace of him left. Their deaths wouldn’t bother me, but making their families suffer feels wrong, so I hold back.
“Look, kid, it’d be better if you just confessed. Otherwise, when you finally spill it, your punishment will be even harsher.”
Another cop speaks, as if trying to soothe me. His tone is like talking to a tantrum-throwing child, making me furrow my brow.
…
When the police’s “interrogation” was over, I was thrown into a cell.
I didn’t expect to end up in a cell… well, not this soon anyway.
Bored out of my mind after a few minutes, I sensed someone approaching. Looking up, I saw none other than Party-Boy himself, grinning in a way that made me want to punch him.
“Yo, trash. This suits you, doesn’t it?! Hahaha!”
He laughs hysterically. I ignore him, not in the mood to talk, which seems to annoy him. He pulls out a club-like weapon and calls over the cops to unlock my cell. Who even are you?! I want to shout, but I suppress it.
“Listen up! My daddy’s the chief of police. So no matter what I do, I’m untouchable!”
With this “helpful” info, he starts swinging his club, hitting me with wild shrieks.
“Gah!”
Even I can’t take this, collapsing to my knees. After a few more swings, he seems satisfied and leaves, saying, “See you around!” That’s the last thing I remember before I black out.
◇
I wake up on the hard floor, pain coursing through my body.
“Damn… it hurts.”
My mouth tastes like blood. My body is covered in bruises; even small movements send stabbing pain. Maybe I’ve got fractures.
…This is what life as a “zero” looks like. The weak get crushed by the strong. I’m denied even a semblance of a normal life and treated as a punching bag for their stress relief.
They’ll probably come up with excuses to keep hurting me whenever they feel like it. If they really try to kill me, I’ll use my abilities, but I hope it won’t come to that. I don’t want to burden my family. I can’t have Ao’s life ruined because her brother was a criminal before she even married.
Sigh
I can only sigh. If this is what the rest of my life looks like, it’s bleak, but I’ll have to accept it.
Humans are fragile creatures. Living in a world like this, where death could come any moment, they need to see others suffer to keep going.
◇
The sunsets, and darkness cover the city. In an empty alley, a crack about two meters wide appears.
Through this crack, a grotesque monster emerges. It looks eerily human, but its arms are sword-shaped, and its entire body is cloaked in black mist, clearly marking it as inhuman.
The monster begins to walk. Emerging from the alley, it faces a group of rough-looking thugs.
“The hell?”
One of the thugs turns around, noticing the creature, and speaks with a menacing tone. When he realizes it isn’t human, fear flashes in his eyes, and he tries to step back.
“What the h—”
Before he can finish his sentence, the monster swings its sword arm, slicing him in two. In a flash, it cuts down the rest of the thugs, leaving bodies scattered.
“Aaaahhh!!!”
A scream echoes in the night.
Calamity has arrived. This monster, which can devastate regions or even multiple states, is classified as an A-rank threat.
Its name is Ritter, also known as the ‘Demon of 500,000 Deaths’.