𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐲・𝐭𝐡𝐞・𝐊𝐢𝐝 ④ -𝐋𝐞𝐟𝐭 𝐇𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐚𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐝-
The village had become a hellish place.
Burning houses, crumbling homes, fallen people, dead individuals.
The familiar village was no longer there.
Kid stood in shock for a moment━━then suddenly started running.
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“Dad, Mom. . . . . .!!”
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Many adults lay fallen.
Next to the corpses were scattered guns and bullet casings, indicating they had fought against that 『unfathomable woman』. The result was evident.
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“Grandpa, grandma…!!”
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Kid runs.
It was still early in the morning. Perhaps his father went to fight, and his mother fled with his grandparents.
Kid feels fear.
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“Sara━━!!”
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Kid’s younger sister.
I wonder if Sara is safe.
They were siblings known to be close. They had their fights, but they always made up and went shopping in town.
He loved to nap leaning against Sara’s summoned beast, Mehmeh. Billy also liked Sara, and Sara was the only one he would perch on other than Kid.
Kid wondered, where did my family go?
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“The hill behind━━”
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Suddenly, he thought.
If it were my father, he would lead them to the mountainside.
Thinking so, Kid started running towards the path that led to the mountainside.
And then, he realized. The village was in ruins. . . . . .there was no one left.
Adults, children, even livestock, and summoned beasts had been killed.
Who is that mysterious woman? Kid gritted his teeth and touched the pistol at his waist.
When the time came, he was prepared to fight.
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“Damn it!! That guy, I won’t forgive her.” ” Oh, yeah♪.”
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The next moment, Kid’s body was sent flying and smashed into the wall of a house.
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“Gah?! Cough?!”
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Without time to react to the sudden impact, Kid spat out blood and rolled on the ground.
And standing before him was. . . . . .a woman in white holding a large scythe.
For some reason, she had a smile plastered on her face as she looked down at Kid.
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“Well. . . . . .congratulations! After checking all the villagers, it turns out you’re the most handsome one~♪.”
“What?. . . . . .gah.”
“Let’s get started then, shall we♪.”
“Gah, ah. . . . . .hah, hah.”
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Kid tried to get up, moving sluggishly to grip his gun. His usual quick draw was impossible. Several bones were broken, and his mouth tasted only of blood.
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“Come forth━━Billy!!”
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Billy was summoned, soaring in the sky.
The woman in front of him just said, “Oh?” looking up at the sky. Kid aimed his gun.
The woman continued gazing up.
Kid targeted the woman’s head and heart and fired.
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“Fufu♪.”
“━━What?!”
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But the bullets seemed to disintegrate before they could touch the woman. They just vanished without making contact.
Kid didn’t understand. As he tried to fire again. . . . . .
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“Take this♪.”
“Arghhhhhhh?!”
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The arm holding the gun was kicked, and the bones shattered.
The impact was so strong that bones protruded. It was a miracle the arm wasn’t severed.
Kid clutched his left arm. The gun was smashed to pieces.
His right hand was still intact, but all he could do was hold his injured left arm. Kid’s will to fight was completely broken.
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“Fufu♪ Such a cute face, isn’t it? You’re terrified now, but soon you’ll hate me.”
“. . . . . .ah, g. . . . . .”
“Come, come. I have something nice to show you♪.”
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The woman dragged Kid to a nearby house.
Upon entering the house, what he saw inside was. . . . . .
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“Wha. . . . . .Dad, Mom!! Grandpa, grandma. . . . . .Sara!!”
“Kid!!”
“Big brother!!”
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The ones there were Kid’s family.
Kid was made to sit on a chair. When the woman snapped her fingers, black centipedes restrained his limbs.
First, turning to the frightened grandparents, she said to Kid:
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“I’m going to kill your family now♪ First up. . . . . .Grandpa, and grandma♪.”
“Wha.”
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With a swift motion, the woman’s large sickle decapitated the grandparents.
Blood sprayed out. Heads rolled. Bodies fell. . . . . .Sara screamed.
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“No, nooooo!! Grandpa, grandma!! Nooooo!!”
“Ah, ahh. . . . . .why, why.”
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Sara and their mother were in a state of panic.
Father Clint gritted his teeth in anger so hard they broke.
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“You, bastard!!”
“Ooo, scary, scary. Hey you, upset? Do you hate me?”
“. . . . . .Damn you!!”
“Yes! That’s the look! Hate me more, even more!”
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Kid glared at the woman. His teeth grinding to the point they seemed like they would shatter.
And then, he turned his eyes to his mother.
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“Fufu. Ready, Mom?”
“Eek. . . . . .”
“Stop. . . . . .stop it!! If you’re going to do it, do it to me! Why are you doing this?!”
“Isn’t it obvious? I want you to hate me. . . . . .right?”
“Stop━━”
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The woman, holding the mother’s neck from behind, squeezed it.
With immense strength, the bones in her neck broke, leaving it hanging by just a thin layer of skin.
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“You bastard━━!! I’ll kill you, I swear I’ll kill you!!”
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Clint snapped.
His eyes were bleeding from the rage of having his wife killed. With tears of blood, he glared at the woman.
But the woman just smirked seductively.
Sara had passed out. Her mother and grandparents were killed.
Kid was speechless. He then shouted at the woman.
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“You!! I’ll kill you, I swear I’ll kill you!! Fight me, fight me!!”
“Aww, how cute. But I need you to hate me more. . . . . .right, Dad?”
“!. . . . . .Kid, listen.”
“Dad!! Fight, Dad!! Sara. . . . . .”
“Protect Sara, Kid.”
“Ah━━.”
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In the next moment━━Clint’s head flew off.
Until the very end, more than the anger of having his wife killed, he was concerned about his remaining son and daughter.
Kid trembled, tears flowing.
And then━━he finally broke.
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“Please. . . . . .”
“Hm?”
“Just spare Sara!! I’ll do anything. If you want my life, I’ll give it. Whatever I can do, I’ll do it!! Just spare my sister.”
“Anything?”
“Yes, anything!! Even if I have to kill, even if I have to kill the king of this country!! So please, just my sister. . . . . .I beg you!!”
“Okay, okay. You’re such a good boy. . . . . .So, let’s do this.”
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The woman picked up Sara and caressed her cheek. Then Sara woke up.
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“Uh. . . . . .”
“Sara-chan. Sara-chan~!”
“Eek. . . . . .”
“Fufu. Your Onii-chan wants to save you. But to save you. . . . . .he needs to sacrifice your left arm.”
“What. . . . . .?”
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The woman made black centipedes crawl on Kid’s body.
Bound by the centipedes, Kid was forcibly made to stand, and his right hand was placed on a gun.
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“What are you. . . . . .”
“Kid-kun. Use that gun to shoot Sara-chan’s left hand. Then I’ll let her go♪.”
“Wha. . . . . .”
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His right arm raises.
Clutching the gun, Sarah’s left arm is forcibly raised.
The target is Sarah’s left arm.
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“S, Stop, don’t.”
“You’ll do anything, right? Then. . . . . .you can shoot through your cute little sister’s arm, can’t you?”
“O, Onii-chan…”
“Sarah. . . . . .Ah, aah. . . . . .Sa, Sarah.”
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A woman’s scythe is placed against Sarah’s neck.
Kid’s hand is trembling. For some reason, only the finger on the trigger was free.
If he shoots, they’ll be saved. If he doesn’t, they’ll die. But the target is his own sister.
He can’t shoot. Kid starts crying.
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“Come on, hurry up. . . . . .three, two. . . . . .one. . . . . .”
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The woman’s scythe slowly touches Sarah’s neck.
With trembling hands, Kid places his finger on the trigger━━
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『SCREEEEEEEECH!!』
“Huh?!”
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From the window, Billy flies towards the woman’s face.
Billy’s claws grazed the woman’s cheek, and a bit of green blood flows.
The centipede’s restraint is undone, Kid and Sarah are free.
Taking advantage of the brief opportunity, Kid grabs Sarah’s arm and pulls her close.
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“Sarah!”
“Onii-chan!”
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But that’s as far as they got.
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“━━Stupid brats.”
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The woman, her face twisted in anger, swings her scythe with one hand.
With one hand, she crushes Billy and bisects Kid and Sarah.
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“Ah. . . . . .”
“Guh. . . . . .”
“Oh dear, I did it. . . . . .Oh well, time to go.”
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The woman, seemingly losing interest, glances at the fallen siblings and mutters.
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“Such a pity. You could have been this Florentia’s cute 『boyfriend』.”
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With that, she vanished like smoke.
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◇◇◇◇◇◇
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In and out of consciousness, Kid was holding Sarah.
To be precise, the upper half of Sarah. The lower half had been severed from the waist. While Kid wasn’t cut in half, he was deeply slashed by the scythe and the bleeding wouldn’t stop.
In her fading consciousness, Sarah whispered.
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“Onii-chan. . . . . .”
“. . . . . .Mm.”
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Kid, using all his remaining strength, strokes Sarah’s head.
Both Kid and Sarah were crying.
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“I love you so much.”
“Yeah, me. . . . . .too. . . . . .”
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Then, Billy, bisected and with wings severed, crawled over to Kid’s side.
Strangely enough, Kid felt content━━
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◇◇◇◇◇◇
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『━━Id』
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◇◇◇◇◇◇
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“. . . . . .Huh?”
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Kid was alive.
His injuries were gone.
And he noticed.
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“What’s this. . . . . .”
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His left arm had transformed into a material that looked studded with jade.
And so, Kid lost everything.
All that he gained was the grotesque left arm. . . . . .the 『Headsman』.
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