Chapter Three: Murder Weapon
Backup's first night here was dull, long and boring. And from the first day, L didn't allow him to enter the kitchen.
"Then I..." What should I eat?
Fortunately, L was not cruel enough to let him starve to death in Freedom House. The black-haired boy took out a donut from the refrigerator - very heartbroken about this - replaced the one covered with cocoa butter with the original one, put it in a paper towel and handed it to him.
B looked at him critically.
"I don't want to eat sweets."
Without saying a word, L poured a thick layer of red jam on top. "Strawberry flavor."
Does this guy have a grudge against strawberry flavor...? ! "It tastes sour."
L's tongue must have been desensitized to a certain extent before he could taste sourness from pure sugar juice. Backup clicked his tongue and accepted it.
Better than nothing. Sugar is also necessary to maintain brain function. After you take a bite, just throw it away quietly.
"You can also eat with other children." L commented. Backup raised his eyebrows dramatically. "They're in the living room. If you ask nicely, you might be able to get some food. Of course, Backup—stealing and robbing are prohibited. Attacks of any kind are also not allowed."
"So strict." L now spoke like a real nanny. Be obedient and don't break the rules. Your mother will come to pick you up soon... B smiled mischievously. "But why should I ask!?"
"I will kick you out. Before that, I will beat you until you can't get up and walk." L's tone was still so calm.
Backup shouted loudly: "Wow - I'm so scared!" He was not frightened by the threat, but was eager to try, "You want to hit me again? Why not just hit me in front of them! I guarantee that I will scream loudly. Loud, acting like a punch bag, and then passing out. They must have cried harder than me because—"
They are more afraid of L than me.
Before B finished speaking, L raised his index finger and flicked it to the center of his nose.
Backup howled, holding his nose and retreating. "You, you - devil!"
"Go ahead." L just said softly.
Glancing at him with vicious red eyes, the boy left. His left hand was still holding the donut covered with strawberry jam.
L closed the refrigerator door as if nothing had happened and wiped his hands with the tablecloth hanging next to it.
He finally began to enjoy his breakfast in the empty restaurant.
The pain in my nose dissipated as I left. The same goes for the upper body that was hit by L yesterday. Fortunately, Backup has not been sensitive to pain since he was a child. The hand that was stroking his nose slowly moved to his cheek. It was more humiliating than painful. Because no one could hurt him.
Above Backup's tender, fleshy little hands are a pair of red eyes that look at everything coldly. It makes the world bright red and reflects people's vision.
Fear, surprise, contempt, disgust.
He polluted them, polluted L, and eventually himself became dirty with the same hand. The strange thing is that L's attitude did not change even after being provoked by him. I don't know whether it was because of his slow nature or lack of emotion.
There was no fear in L's eyes when he looked at him, that was the only thing Backup could confirm.
He stood leaning against the wooden door of the living room, almost contented to realize that he had been baptized by that fearful sight again. There is no need to speak, no violence, just the color of the eyes to get such enthusiastic responses from the people around you, it is really hard to refuse.
"Ha!" B kicked the door hard, causing it to shake. Now the children looked at him with frightened eyes. Not enough, not enough. He held the door with both hands, and then—Bang! Hit him with his head.
boom! boom! The bell-like sound echoed through the room—which was now dead silent—clear and loud. boom! boom!
alright. Backup turned around again and found that their eyes had become more frightened, surprised, and more astonished than looking at an incomprehensible madman. He grinned broadly.
Without violence... He walked over, towards the child who looked most frightened. The freckled boy's lips were trembling and his teeth were chattering. No need for violence...he reminded himself all the time. The kid looked like he was going to faint. Is B really that terrible? No need for violence...
Ask nicely.
"You," Backup leaned over and leaned over. As soon as he reached the sofa, the children fell back like crooked reeds as if they were facing an enemy. "You," Backup could have just called him by his name, but after thinking about it he decided not to. He has succeeded in creating a satanic first impression. "Can you please share some food with me?" Backup pointed his finger at the glass jar he was holding on his chest and smiled.
When he smiled, the freckled boy seemed about to scream, but immediately bit his lip to suppress the sound.
"Huh?" The attention of the people around him made B very happy. He always enjoyed the feeling of being the center of attention. "What about you? What do you have for breakfast?" He asked casually, "Can you share some with me?"
...No one answered.
"I'm hungry."
The dead silence lasted for a while longer, and the child stretched out his hand tremblingly.
"Here, here you go. Take all this away. They haven't eaten yet, so they can't give you any more."
"Thanks."
Backup grabbed the jar unceremoniously and was a little disappointed when he found that it was filled with cookies and candies. "Tsk, why do you people from the Freedom House eat these every day?"
"..."
"I'm asking you something." B suddenly approached, which obviously threatened them, causing several people on both sides of the sofa to stand up. "Are you deaf?" The children's expressions changed, and they entered a vigilant posture of preparation, as if they were about to be swarmed at any time. The atmosphere was tense to the extreme, and at this moment—
B grinned.
"I want to know why you are so afraid of me." He said lowly and quickly. "I'm not planning to fight with you, I'm just curious. So why? Because I'm following L?"
The children all looked nervous.
Is the answer correct? B's smile deepened and he continued to ask:
"Then why are you afraid of L? Like a monster, will he stick out his red pointed tongue, show his fangs, and suck people's blood? Will he make the tentacles in his body dance? Or will he, as a human being, beat you? Did you sneak into the monster's lair?"
The remark was bizarre and ridiculous, and Backup laughed at its humor, but the children had no intention of laughing.
"You guys are talking. Is 'Freedom House' a shelter for deaf-mute children?"
"L..." After a long time, B thought they would not reply, the freckled boy timidly said, "L... is scary. He is very good, but everyone is afraid of him. You "Yes," he was surprisingly honest at this time. "You're... just as weird as him." He stared into B's eyes.
B blinked. "What's weird?"
"I don't know...if I have to say...it's weird everywhere."
B burst out laughing. Apparently I wasn't the only one who found him strange. Just as weird, that's good. If L is a weirdo, then Backup must be the weirdo above him. B snorted coldly.
"You, uh, are you L's guest?"
"What?"
"...No, it's nothing. I'm sorry...because, because I saw you entering his room..."
Backup raised his eyebrows strangely, but the other person had no intention of continuing and crossed his arms tightly, as if he was afraid of something.
Really, there are no normal people left in the entire Freedom House... Well, hey, hey! Kahaha! How normal this thing is. Changes and extraordinary things happen normally... This is the nature of the world, isn't it?
B hummed, stuffed the candies and cookies into his pocket, and skipped away. He doesn't mind others looking at him like a monster. As for the jam-covered donut L gave him, he only tasted it before throwing it away. Backup hates sweetness, even strawberry flavor is not immune.
L was so gentle and reliable when he moved out the medical box, wiped away the blood, and applied medicine to him. At that time, he even gave people the illusion that they could be relied on, but B knew the real L, the L who could kick someone at the first sight and frightened the children in the whole house, the L who was arrogant and had no human emotions. L, who can launch surprise attacks and feed poison disguised as sleeping pills into his mouth...
It's so unusual and so interesting.
Then let's go. Before the time limit comes. Run, escape. Before the monster catches up.
Three, two, one... "Let's start."
There is a small hill behind L's red brick house, and the slope is so steep that it is difficult to climb on foot and difficult to climb on a bicycle. Backup is amazed by its existence. The slope was lush with greenery, and there was a refreshing fragrance of green grass. The dew shone in the sun, and there was no garbage on the ground. This place is simply a paradise.
Just a slope separates the ruins of the world. A street separates the bustling city center from the slums.
It took about ten minutes to walk here from the backyard. The only light on the road was the faint morning light, the distant chirping of birds, and the patter of L's footsteps. Fortunately, the boy wore shoes this time. White sneakers with white laces. L took his shoes out of the washing machine and they were as good as new (what kind of blood detergent did L use? There was not even a trace of fishy smell, only a light fragrance, which smelled more like winter than flowers and grass) pine wood.)
L directed him like a coach blowing the whistle at a race. He did not carry a whistle, nor did he blow a whistle, nor did he have a signal gun. He simply raised his arm and pointed his index finger at the highest point of the hillock.
Backup ran out.
Breaking through the air, we headed towards the end of the slope that blocked half of the morning sun. The wind picked up his flaxen hair and pierced his sleeves. He stepped on the shoes that had been washed by L and became spotless, and ran all the way.
Yes, it's still a race...loser, be left to your own devices. If left here, L would be beaten. Backup had no idea why L changed all his instinctive actions into punching or raising his legs. His attacks were irrespective of the target and the situation. It had the same meaning as saying "Hello" or "It's a nice day" and just kicking him.
L gave him three seconds.
"Because there is a three-year age difference, we have to give up three seconds." This is illogical, because Backup's thin arms, shorter legs, and underdeveloped muscles make him essentially the same as older children. The physical strength of the leap is poor, but L is never unreasonable.
Backup ran like crazy, tired—and confused. He imagined that he was similar to the red-eyed devil, a monster that only chased people. The child behind him is even more terrifying: he is a monster, a devil, a beast...
L caught up with lightning speed, as if there were electric motors in those shoes. L's whole body might be electric, and his human qualities were getting weaker and weaker at the unusual running speed, and he was hunching over like a cheetah.
"Ha...ha..." If you are overtaken, overtaken...!
Backup, I was out of breath and dizzy when I reached the halfway point of the mountain. After all, what he is good at is agility and explosiveness, not such long-term running. The lack of oxygen made his vision blurred, his legs heavy, and he could fall down at any time due to the uneven road.
He stumbled, then managed to maintain his balance. At this time, L had made up for the gap and came behind him.
He pushed B's back. But it didn't go beyond that.
L...are you letting him again?
No. No, no, no. The boy's eyes turned red, as red as the delicate flowers. His body gained strength again from nowhere, and his veins were filled with a steady stream of violent blood. His arms began to swing wildly again and he rushed towards the rising sun. L was directly behind him in the vacuum of air flow that he had broken.
Backup still lost. In the end, L broke out easily and surpassed him naturally, as if the long race was just a tease. His face turned dark, he was half sitting on the ground, his eyes were pierced by the sun. At some point, the chirping stopped, the fragrance of the grass disappeared, and the world became L's pair of vast, empty black pupils.
"...Why are you running?"
"Because," L said calmly, "for you, instead of practicing how to steal now, it is better to learn how to escape when you are about to be caught."
"Caught." Backup raised his lips. "By whom?"
L continued as if he didn't hear the question. "You don't want to be taken away, do you? I don't know the reason why you have to stay. In short, Backup, it is necessary to exercise your physical fitness - this is the way you can become useful to me."
"Huh..." He could have thought of a more harsh retort, but he still found L's meaning and concluded, "Do you mean surpassing you in running?"
"You can say that."
Backup wiped the sweat from his temples while his smile faded. He stood up on his tired legs. What does running have to do with what L said about becoming useful... Maybe L just enjoys the feeling of being ahead, the pleasure of bullying others with his superior age.
"Then do it again."
They headed back to the bottom of the hill to let the game begin again.
"I said L," Backup asked casually, "What's the reward if I win?"
L actually thought about it for a while. "I don't know," he said. "What do you want?"
"Call me B." Backup was serious.
...Judging from L's expression, this request is surprising and even weird. His droopy eyelids were slightly raised, and he said monotonously: "It doesn't matter. If you can win."
L...is serious too. Each turn he adds one second to his starting delay. At every turn, the slope of less than 100 meters was endless and insurmountable for Backup, full of dazzling sunlight, stumbling pebbles and road surfaces that pulled him backwards.
The most frustrating thing is that L always surpasses him at the last moment. He left nine-tenths of his hope on the long slope and then crushed it at the finish. Only at the end was the boy able to witness the tall and thin figure, the messy hair and the inhuman speed.
"It's not fair." In the end, B, who had lost and was lying on the ground panting, finally decided to take advantage of his age and asked. "It's not fair!" He raised his voice and yelled through gritted teeth: "I can't run away from you because you are much older than me. And," this was far-fetched, "and the broken pills you gave me made me weak! "
"Oh?" L squatted down, looking innocent. "But I gave you half a ride."
"Then...what does the pill do?"
"..."
here we go again. When L didn't want to answer or was too lazy to answer, he would stare at him with his clear black eyes, as if to say, "You should know."
"Come on, Backup." The boy pointed to the top of the hill again. "Keep working out."
"I don't want to compete." B said, shaking his head and smiling sarcastically. "We can't win anyway."
"How do you know? Aren't you almost there every time?"
L put his fingertips against his lips, then put it into his mouth and bit it lightly. He looked more arrogant and mocking than ever. Because he obviously did it on purpose... Backup smiled, his eye muscles twitching slightly with anger, and the corners of his mouth twisted into a vicious sneer.
"Ah. I didn't notice you were running out of energy," L said softly. The taunting shows no signs of abating, "Can't you stand up, Backup? We've just completed five rounds. Look, the sun hasn't even reached the center of the sky yet."
He looked up at the sky.
"If you really want to motivate me, how about hitting me?"
L stared at him for a long time, smiling in surprise.
"But the current Backup is not worth a beating. I don't want to waste my precious energy on people like you."
You...waste, stinking garbage, irrelevant bugs, unloved freaks. Backup's eyes narrowed a little bit, and anger burst out. When he got up, he hid all the filth and madness under his cold face.
Silence. It seems to be spreading and noisy to fill the space. L's dark eyes blinked slowly.
At this moment, Backup jumped up from the ground and punched the unpunchable face. He used all his strength - this was the strength he secretly accumulated during the five rounds - B ensured that the attack would be fast and violent, and he should be able to hit the target.
...that's right.
Half a minute later, he was lying on the ground with L on his back. L grabbed his arms and twisted them back, bending his fingers at impossible angles.
"It's awkward, it's awkward!" Backup groaned. The pain caused him to lose control of his expression, causing his face against the hot ground to smile foolishly and at the same time let out a high-pitched cry. "It's awkward—! I was wrong, I was wrong, I shouldn't have attacked you, ah—"
L held his fingers in his hand. His skin was so cold that it seemed as if it had no human temperature, but a moist heat came from the close contact. L wasn't sweating, but Backup was dripping with sweat as he begged for mercy. If L hadn't thrown him away in disgust, B might have been nailed to the ground forever.
Backup's whole body was wrapped in moist heat. No, it's not the sun that's fully risen. It's definitely not because of what L did, or what was done to him. The heat comes from the heart, as slimy and soft as earthworms in a mud hole. Once touched, it is unforgettable.
L let him get up with difficulty, like a puddle of mud.
"Next time we attack," L's hand didn't leave even though he let go. Or maybe it wasn't L's hand, but the phantom's feeling that was still gripping his arms. Backup heard him continue, "Don't be empty-handed."
"...Why don't you get the tools?" L stood behind him, and the voice came over him like a ghost, ethereal and ethereal. "You know there are many different kinds of knives in my room. There is always one that Backup can use, one that these hands can lift." No - not Phantom. L did still hold his hand. "It can be stabbed from behind and definitely cut the skin." He trembled. "Can stab someone, even a bigger, stronger person."
Backup turned around and saw in L's eyes the weirdness and madness carved from the same mold as his own. A deep, pure black that dances like a ghost. L's eyes were even darker, as if even the most natural reflections were not there. They were elusive and unreadable.
"I have to go now."
said the boy. Above them, the sun was still below midday.
"Where are you going?" But it was hot and bright enough to drive away half of the autumn chill.
"Backup stay at Freedom House. I'll be back at the old time."
Yesterday, L left around this time. B was begging for food from the children in the living room. L had already finished breakfast and was making plans to go out. They returned to the room, and L changed out of his monotonous outfit for the first time (actually, he just added a dark woolen coat over his white shirt. The old-fashioned style reminded him of a cigar-blowing, hooded detective) , combed his hair (it's unbelievable, L's disheveled style was still messy after combing, like the spikes of a sea urchin, with the roots sticking up), took his document bag and set off.
L locked him in the room before leaving.
Therefore, B spent his afternoon reading books and studying the ingredients in bottles and jars.
"7 o'clock in the evening." Why do you need to specify the time? That would be like tying a person in a cage and stating exactly, "I'll be back in nine hours." The boy curled his lips and smiled humorlessly - this explanation was purely to make him focus on the waiting time and keep looking at the clock while reading and analyzing the chemical composition.
L has evil intentions.
"If you dare to be late," Backup then wiped his sweaty and sticky hands on L's pants and threatened. "I'll destroy your room."
L didn't blame him or hit him. Anyway, these pants will be replaced soon.