Chapter 146: A Hero’s Story, Part 2

Once upon a time, there was a man.

The man was a Sleeper who had come from a time long, long ago.

He had no past.

He had no memories.

The people of this age treated him like a slave.

They made him do dangerous work.

Again and again, he nearly died.

Even so, he survived.

Because he had Monoz.

After surviving, he found people like himself—especially children—being bullied.

He was kind, and he could not allow that.

So he decided to fight for those children.

He took on far more dangerous work than before.

And so, far more often than before, he nearly died.

Even so, he did not give up.

Just a little.

Only a little, he was more of an “older brother” than those children were.

They relied on him, so he worked hard.

Before long, many, many people appeared, all asking him to save them.

He tried his hardest to save every one of them.

Among them were people who had treated him like a slave.

Even so, he did not mind.

He defeated many bad people.

He defeated many Bubbles.

He defeated many Insectum.

At some point, people began to call him a hero.

Then, one day, a great war began.

He went to war for everyone’s sake.

He was a strong mercenary.

But it was a great, great war.

A war so vast that even he would lose.

Surrounded by many Monoz, and by enemies even more numerous than that, he gave up.

That was when it happened.

An ally’s attack came from behind.

It was a single bullet.

That bullet shot dead an enemy that had been about to attack him.

Someone was trying to save him.

That someone was a mercenary from the same unit as him.

A Sleeper, just like him.

A mercenary who, just like him, could fight for someone—and now, for him.

In that moment, he realized.

He was not the only hero.

The man died.

Even so, he thought it would be all right.

Because there were still heroes.

Even if he was gone, someone else would be there.

Even if that someone died, another someone would be there.

There would always be someone who fought for someone else.

The man died.

And the someone who tried to save him died too, after all.

Even so.

Somewhere in this world, there is still a kind someone who fights for someone else.

***

“—The end.”

At night, with only the bedside lamp casting its thin light through the room, the golden-haired woman closed the picture book with a soft pat.

Then, very slowly, she turned to the side.

There, just as slowly, a little girl turned to look back at her.

Kitten-like eyes, so very much like hers.

There was not the faintest trace of sleepiness in them. They were wide open.

“…”

“…”

For a while, mother and daughter stared at one another.

The daughter spoke first.

“Ma.”

“Don’t call me Ma. Call me Mama.”

“I’m not sleepy.”

“…Yeah. Looks that way.”

I know, the woman muttered.

Why? 

Why will she not sleep?

Tonight, just tonight, she needed her to sleep early. That was why she had made all four of her children run around all day, fed them a huge dinner, warmed them up in the bath, and thrown them into their futons.

So why was this daughter the only one still awake?

No.

The reason was obvious.

Unlike her siblings, this child had taken a nap after all that running around.

Why did children run at full power? Why did they play until their batteries were on the verge of dying? And why had she, no matter how cute the sleeping face had been, failed to wake her up with a proper, “You won’t sleep tonight”?

Questions rose.

No answers came.

Her child, who could not even read yet but still looked through picture books and said, “I see,” imitating her father, had completely wrecked her body clock.

She had the awful feeling this one would be awake until well past midnight.

“Come ooon! Why won’t you sleep? You promised you’d sleep after the picture book!”

“But I’m not sleepy. I’m not sleepy, so it can’t be helped.”

“It absolutely can be helped!”

Tonight.

Just tonight.

I wanted you to sleep early!

“Ma, there’s a rattly sound from the room downstairs. Maybe it’s a burglar.”

“Hm? That’s Ham playing.”

“Rocky… Rocky gets to be awake?”

“He’s a hamster.”

“That’s not fair, Rocky… Ma! Scold him properly! Scold Rocky properly too!”

“Yeah, yeah. Tomorrow morning.”

Giving a suitably vague answer, she isolated her daughter, who had begun to thrash around, from the other children. As a last resort, she pulled the futon over her and tried patting her soothingly while checking the clock.

Currently, 10 p.m.

Normally, he came home around midnight, so two hours remained.

I will make her sleep.

I will absolutely, absolutely make her sleep.

Because she was burning with that resolve, she was late to react.

Click.

A small sound, but one that carried through the whole house.

The front door opening.

“Mm! Intruder!”

The little missile heard it, rolled out of bed, and shot off at full speed. The bedroom door was left wide open; she must have turned on the lights, because the hallway light spilled in.

“—”

One of the sleeping children frowned in annoyance, so she hurriedly shut the door.

No more.

No more of them could be allowed to wake.

From the room below, she could already hear excited squealing, so perhaps it was too late.

Still.

Still, I will not give up!

Tonight!

She clenched her fist with fierce determination.

“Welcome home.”

“…I’m home.”

When she entered the room, her husband was frozen there in a half-crouch, and their child was clinging to the dog.

He had probably meant to hug his adorable daughter as she ran toward him with a smile.

Unfortunately, their child’s goal was not her work-worn papa, sweaty and stubbled after the job.

It was the cute family dog.

The dog, with the scar over one eye, wagged its tail as if pleased by the rough welcome, at least.

“Ma, can I put him in my futon?”

“…”

Absolutely not.

What do you think corgi shedding is?

That thought flashed through her mind, but in the next instant, she made herself smile.

“If I let you, will you sleep properly?”

“I’ll sleep properly!”

“Really?”

“Really!”

“Then fine!”

At her words, the little girl ran off, dragging the long-bodied, short-legged dog with her, shouting, “Yay!” and “Whee!” as she went.

“…Um, technically, this is also my first time seeing you in over a month?”

Her husband, who was apparently checking whether she could see him, was still stuck in that half-crouch.

“Well, compared to you, the dog is cuter.”

“…I find that unsatisfying on several levels.”

His left leg was mechanical.

His left eye was mechanical too.

The part of his left arm past the elbow was a slightly different color from the rest of his skin. Probably an effect of the regeneration.

For the moment, she kicked that husband of hers in the waist, adjusted his height for her personal use, and threw herself into his chest.

“Welcome home.”

“I heard that already.”

“That just means I’m that happy. You should be kinder to me. Otherwise—”

“Otherwise?”

“I’ll bully you again for about a year.”

What she remembered was before their marriage.

The memory of making selfish demands of this man and troubling him before his injuries had even fully healed.

Because honestly, what else could she do?

He had done something awful to her.

So that had been unavoidable.

“That would be troubling.”

Unlike her, who remembered it with a certain sweetness, to him it seemed to be a purely bitter memory. His voice sounded genuinely displeased, and he held her tightly so that “that” would not happen.

“How long do you think you can stay home this time?”

She wanted him to stay, if she could.

But she understood what he was doing.

For his friends.

For the heroes.

Even now, he continued to stand on the front line.

“…It took five years to push the front forward.”

“Hm?”

“And then another five years from there to search for the cores.”

“…”

“It’s been ten years since you and he saw each other too.”

When he shifted one step aside, a small Monoz rolled out from behind him.

Behind it were eleven more Monoz: large, medium, and small.

The Monoz that had rolled forward stopped at her feet and blinked, as if saying, Long time no see.

“It took a while, but the usual crazy gang is finally all here. I’ll still have to go out, but—I think I can make a little more time now.”