*Kiyoko Sasaki's POV*
//July 17, 2040//Tuesday//
The three of us were shocked at Kei's suggestion, and I was immediately against his idea.
"We don't need to kill him. We just need to stop him. How can you even think of killing someone?"
"I tried to kill him earlier."
I looked at Kei's eyes who were staring at me, and I got intimidated. The eyes of a murderer. I remembered that Kei said that he has killed people in the past. But what are these deep crimson eyes that he has with that gaze of his? How many people has he killed in the past?
"I tried slitting his throat with a knife earlier when he attacked me, but he just snapped the blade with his bare hands."
"With his bare hands?" Megumin shockingly asked.
When we couldn't believe that Hyakuzawa snapped a blade with his hands, Kei looked at Kanade and asked her a question.
"You have noticed it right?" Kei asked.
Kanade looked terrified and nodded. The three of us do not know what they were talking about, and I asked Kei about it.
"What do you mean?"
"You haven't noticed since you were so focused on me when you entered the Arts Room. But if you look closely at Hyakuzawa, you might also notice it."
"Is there something wrong with Hyakuzawa?" Megumin asked.
"Hyakuzawa has stimulants all over his body, and that's what made him like that."
We were surprised at what Kei said. Kind to think about it, I could hear Hyakuzawa breathing rapidly from earlier when I entered the room, and his sudden behavior was terrifying.
"I looked at Hyakuzawa earlier. Dilated pupils, fast breathing, and his sudden change in behavior. That's proof that someone is taking stimulants. When Machida mentioned that Hyakuzawa snapped the blade with his hands it made more sense since when you are taking stimulants, your body is less likely to feel pain, and you will have a great rush of adrenaline."
"In addition to what Kanade said, when Hyakuzawa choked me earlier his body was heating up, and that is why he is overdosed with the stimulant that he put inside his body."
"No way…" Megumin said.
As we listened to what Kanade and Kei said, Ichika's body was shaking, and she was clenching her fists.
"Asahi…"
She was worried for Asahi. I am worried for them as well. Can't I really do anything for them? Should I just sit here, and wait for a miracle to happen? Damn it!
"I know what you are thinking, Kiyoko. But just like what I said earlier, the only way to stop Hyakuzawa is to kill him."
"But-!"
"I agree with Machida as well, Big Sister."
"Kanade…"
I couldn't believe that those words came from Kanade's mouth. I thought that we all agreed that we will find a way to get out of here without killing anyone. So why?
"I agree with Kanade."
"Ichika, why?!" I yelled.
"Do you have any other ideas, Kiyoko? If we let Hyakuzawa run free in here then we are just like prey that are waiting for our lives to get taken care of. We are the ones who will die if we don't kill that monster."
"But, Kei!"
"I'm sorry Sasaki. But I don't want Asahi, and Raku to die."
"I'm also sorry, big sister…"
"Megumin?! Help me convince them! Please tell them that there is another way aside from killing Hyakuzawa."
As I look at Megumin whose hands were trembling I can see her fear. The fear of death.
"I don't know Sasaki… I don't know…"
As I looked at everyone, their faces are exactly the same ones when we are in front of death's door when Ichi got mad at us, and when he almost killed Kanade. Damn it! Will I do nothing again?
"I'm going to go there."
"Like what I said, Kiyoko. If you will go there you need to prepare yourself. You need to kill Hyakuzawa."
"No, I will not kill him. I will save the three of them."
"What you are saying is impossible!"
"Machida, I told you not to move too much." Kanade said.
Not only do I want to save Raku, and Asahi's lives, but I want to save Hyakuzawa as well because I remembered what Kei said to me.
"Asahi and Raku's lives are in danger. That is why I need to save them. But that also applies to Hyakuzawa who was suffering as well. Kei, if we are going to kill him then how are we different from the people who put Hyakuzawa in his hellish life? We are not giving him the second chance he should have."
"Damn it, are you talking about those things that I said to you last month?"
"Last month?" Megumin asked.
When I asked Kei about the past lives of some students here who were experiencing hell in the outside world. The first one I learned about was Ichika's past, but there was another one who experienced a past that is comparable to how bad Ichika's life is.
And that was Hyakuzawa's past life.
"Kei, because of what you said, I decided to save them. If Ichika was given a chance to redeem herself, that also applies to Hyakuzawa as well, right? That's why I'm going to save the three of them."
"DON'T BE ABSURD, KIYOKO!!!"
"THIS IS MY CHOICE!!!"
*COUGH* *COUGH*
"Machida! Please calm down…"
I watched Kei who was coughing up blood once again while we are arguing with each other. I stood up from my seat, and when I was walking towards the exit, Kei stopped me when he said something that made me think about the decision that I will be making.
"If you want to save someone, you need to sacrifice the other. That's how the world works, Kiyoko. If we kill Hyakuzawa then we are saved from that monster."
"I told you! I'm not going to kill anyone!"
"But if you wish to save Hyakuzawa, not only you will risk your life, but ours as well. If you failed to save him just like what you want to do, then all of us will die. You have the brains, Kiyoko, but you are not strong enough in terms of strength. That is why I said that the best option is to kill him."
"But still-!"
"The decision is yours, Kiyoko. I don't want to argue with you any longer. We don't even know if we will live another day because of the situation. But let me ask you this, and decide."
When I looked back, our eyes met, and Kei made me decide something that will cost the life of someone depending on the choice that I will make.
"If you kill Hyakuzawa then you are going to save our lives. But if you want to save Hyakuzawa, you are risking everybody's lives on the line. To save is to sacrifice. So let me ask you."
Kei pointed his finger at me, and with a serious tone in his voice, he said…
"Who will you save, and who will you sacrifice, Kiyoko?"
I clenched my fists and gritted my teeth. I know what Machida is saying is the harsh truth that I need to face. Is it really impossible to save them? I need to decide fast or else Asahi and Raku are going to die. What can I do? What is the right decision in this kind of situation?
Who should I save?
******** TO BE CONTINUED ********