Ch.94Welcome home!

#094

“Rather, just… kill me…!”

Even in the 21st century, the absolute, unchanging truth of torture in a damp basement under the light of an old-fashioned incandescent bulb remains constant.

The battered Twin Claw Demon hung from iron chains, generously dripping his blood onto the cement floor.

And before him stood a man with his hands behind his back, holding a small remote control.

“I believed you were the master of the Evil Path, but your actions have been utterly disappointing. To begin with, are you truly the master of the Evil Path?”

The man clicked his tongue as he spoke.

“Kuh, not only is it not my body… but giving me just half a day to control the body, *cough*. What is there to be proud of?”

The Twin Claw Demon had plenty to say as well.

There were clear limitations to remote control.

Especially, he hadn’t expected that the accumulated attacks from Dexter would create an opening to break down the Abomination’s body.

Even babies crawl before they walk, so the Twin Claw Demon had his own defense against being berated for not being able to control an unfamiliar Abomination.

“Did I not say… that the preparation period was too short? *cough*. Even for someone well-versed in martial arts… unless they’re an unparalleled genius… such a task is not easy.”

“I see you don’t know that excuses are sins.”

As the man pressed the remote control in his hand, the Twin Claw Demon chained to the iron shackles let out a painful scream.

“Kuaaargh…!”

The man torturing the Twin Claw Demon also had a bitter taste in his mouth.

‘There was far too little time.’

According to the man’s plan, they should have trained for at least two weeks to get accustomed to the Abomination’s body.

But due to ‘that person’s’ urging, they had started earlier than usual.

They wasted time looking for someone who fights with long nails as requested by that person, and then wasted more time making the Abomination’s attack method focused on hardened nails.

‘That’s not how the Abomination was meant to be used.’

An Abomination fighting with nails? Fighting well is important, but shouldn’t it also be visually impressive?

And following that person’s instructions had led to complete failure.

‘Of course, that Dexter guy is the biggest problem, but damn it.’

What the hell is that guy’s identity?

He just shows up everywhere, regardless of whether he should be there or not.

Especially whenever Dexter moves, at least one project gets completely destroyed.

The casino that was responsible for a large portion of their funding became connected to Dexter, and all the project managers involved were captured. Even the professor they brought from the Succubus planet at great expense had to be killed to maintain secrecy.

And he never expected Dexter to bring an enhanced nuclear fission rocket.

‘Where on earth does that Earthling get such things?’

Not knowing about the connection between Eliya and Dexter, the man could only feel a headache.

“If I hadn’t been… so desperate for money… I wouldn’t have made such a choice…”

The Twin Claw Demon, seeing the man standing blankly, spoke in a weak voice.

Even a master of the Evil Path was no different from a dead man in front of vast amounts of gold, and the man knew how to exploit such money-hungry individuals.

Looking at the Twin Claw Demon suffering in chains, the man felt not a shred of pity and simply turned his back.

Anyway, that person wanted a severe punishment for the Twin Claw Demon’s failure.

‘I’ll torture him moderately, show him to the Master, then destroy his energy center and dispose of him.’

The man pressed the remote control again.

“Kuhuaaaargh! Just, just kill meeee!”

“Keep screaming.”

‘Atone for your failure with your screams.’

The cold-eyed man looked at the Twin Claw Demon and answered mercilessly.

* * *

“Haah… finally homeeee.”

Himena arrived home in the early morning hours when even Renata, the housekeeper, was away.

Though Dexter, who had fought with his fists, must have been the most tired, this was also Himena’s first experience being chased by an alien experimental creature like the Abomination.

As soon as she arrived home, the tension drained from Himena’s body, and she collapsed onto the sofa, feeling completely depleted.

“I need to remove my makeup… take a shower… so many things to do…”

It was incredibly bothersome.

As Himena rolled around on the sofa, she noticed a brown box she hadn’t seen before on the coffee table in front of her, along with a small card.

“…Was this here before?”

When Himena picked up the white card on top of the box, she saw familiar handwriting.

[Enjoy. – D]

“…Does he think I’ll like anything as long as it’s food?”

From the chocolate chip cookies he first gave her to the message on this card, it seemed there was something to eat inside.

When she opened the brown box, she found a palm-sized teddy bear along with what appeared to be somewhat expensive chocolates.

‘I shouldn’t eat at this hour…’

But unable to resist, Himena eventually picked up one chocolate and ate it.

“Mmm…”

As she lay on the sofa enjoying the chocolate that melted in her mouth with an artificial sweetness spreading throughout, Himena began to notice a taste that shouldn’t be in chocolate.

‘…Why is it spicy?’

It wasn’t insanely spicy, but a tingling heat wrapped around her tongue.

Of course, for Himena who enjoyed spicy food, it was a level of spiciness she could easily handle.

“Did he really?”

Looking inside the box, she saw the chocolate’s wrapper lining the bottom.

Himena picked up the wrapper to examine it closely and couldn’t help but chuckle in disbelief.

[Chili Flavored Chocolate]

‘I do like spicy things and sweet things, but who in the world would mix them together like this?’

She wondered if it was really necessary for him to go to the trouble of finding such chili-flavored chocolate at this late hour, carefully unwrapping it, and placing it in the box.

“He really loves playing pranks, doesn’t he?”

Still, the chocolate wasn’t bad, and the more she ate out of curiosity about the unique flavor, the more she found it appealed to her taste.

Himena took out her phone and enlarged a photo of Dexter from her gallery.

In the photo, Dexter was looking at the camera with an awkward expression.

A few days ago, after they had eaten together, Himena had complained that she didn’t have any photos of Dexter on her phone, and he had reluctantly allowed her to take one, looking somewhat embarrassed.

While there was no rule against agents dating each other, Himena felt too shy to set Dexter’s face as her wallpaper.

‘You were really cool today too, weren’t you?’

Fighting with that Twin Claw Demon person wasn’t particularly impressive, but having someone who would rush to her side when she was in danger was incredibly appealing.

Himena took another bite of chocolate as she got up from the sofa.

‘Having someone who cares for you is the best.’

But due to the fatigue that hadn’t yet subsided, Himena found herself fiddling with Dexter’s face on her phone screen before trudging into the bathroom.

* * *

“……”

The salty, fishy scent characteristic of sea breeze could be felt on his face.

“After putting it off again and again, I finally came…”

With his hands in his pockets, he walked out of the airport with an expression he never showed to others.

Dexter was at Logan International Airport in Boston, Massachusetts.

After boarding a taxi waiting outside the terminal, Dexter looked out the window and said:

“Franklin Park, please. Oh, is there a flower shop nearby?”

Dexter asked the taxi driver in a cheerful voice, erasing his subtle expression from earlier.

“Of course. Should we stop at the flower shop first?”

“That would be great.”

Since the distance from the airport to the flower shop near Franklin Park was considerable, Dexter took a brief nap until they arrived.

“We’ve arrived.”

Leaving the taxi parked outside, Dexter entered the flower shop and looked around at the abundant flowers before speaking to the approaching shop owner.

“A bouquet of carnations, please.”

“A bouquet?”

“It’s for a grave.”

“Ah… I understand. Just a moment.”

Shortly after, when the shop owner returned with a bouquet of carnations, Dexter promptly paid and got back into the taxi.

The taxi driver, who had observed this, nodded and said in a small voice to Dexter:

“Today was Mother’s Day, wasn’t it?”

“…Yes, it was.”

There was a bitterness in Dexter’s voice.

The taxi driver, who had initially thought Dexter, neatly dressed, was going to Franklin Park for a date, changed his mind upon hearing that tone.

While Franklin Park is considered a picnic spot for locals due to its small zoo, the driver realized there was also a cemetery nearby.

Soon, as they approached Franklin Park and Dexter prepared to get out, the taxi driver who had been watching him through the rearview mirror carefully spoke:

“I offer my condolences.”

“Ah, no. It’s been a long time since they passed away. But thank you anyway.”

As soon as Dexter got out of the taxi, he took a deep breath through his nose.

The air was distinctly different from Las Vegas, filled with the scent of vegetation and heavy with moisture.

‘And the smell I breathed until I was 15.’

The area around Franklin Park hadn’t changed much in 15 years.

Unlike other cities, Boston was a place with little change.

As Dexter walked along the outer path of Franklin Park, many thoughts came to mind.

Was the house still there as it was?

Were those kind foster parents still in Back Bay?

His sighs grew longer each time issues he had deliberately buried began to surface.

Eventually, after passing through Franklin Park and entering the cemetery, Dexter stood before a gravestone.

Despite not being visited by Dexter, the only person to care for it, for 15 years, the gravestone and its surroundings were surprisingly clean.

Though this was somewhat strange, Dexter poured water from a bottle he had brought to wash away the dirt and fallen leaves stuck to the gravestone, then wiped away the moisture with a dry handkerchief he had prepared.

Now looking at the clean gravestone, Dexter carefully opened his mouth.

“…Have you been well? Mom, Dad?”

The words felt very awkward, as he hadn’t spoken them aloud since being forced to leave Earth.

Dexter’s parents were ordinary parents like any others.

From a young age, Dexter was always playing pranks, so much so that his parents were called to school about once a month.

After being scolded by the school principal, he would be scolded again by his parents at home.

But just as Dexter was weak to affection, his parents, Sarah and Grant, were also soft-hearted.

His father was caring, comforting his son late at night and promising to play fewer pranks while buying him ice cream, and his mother was thoughtful, paying for both their ice creams.

Dexter loved his parents too.

At that time, he had his rebellious moments as his head grew bigger, and sometimes didn’t listen, but he wasn’t enough to cause them real worry.

But the traffic accident at 7 PM on January 3, 2000, took away everything from Dexter.

A truck carrying cargo hit the two of them as they were returning from a cozy dinner, and after that, Dexter could no longer see them.

Placed in foster care, Dexter wandered.

His foster parents were good people and treated Dexter well, but the grief of losing his parents was still fresh.

So Dexter liked to spend time alone on a bench in front of the Charles River, which was in front of his foster home.

‘And then I picked up that damn structural beacon.’

Unable to get angry in front of the grave, Dexter placed the bouquet of carnations before the gravestone with an awkward face, then sat down heavily, staring at the stone as he spoke.

“Today is Mother’s Day, I found out. Being busy is just an excuse… honestly, I was afraid I’d burst into tears as soon as I came. I’m thirty now, you know.”

He had always thought he should visit someday, but felt a ticklish feeling in the center of his heart.

He felt ashamed and sorry for not having visited until now.

And he had deliberately avoided it because he feared the emotions would well up due to the longing for his parents that remained in a corner of his heart.

Dexter swept the grass in front of the gravestone with his palm.

“For 15 years, I’ve done all sorts of things that you wouldn’t believe if I told you. Working odd jobs on a merchant ship, meeting fucking—I mean, terrible space pirates… and somehow surviving that…”

As Dexter recounted what had happened, his head gradually drooped.

“It was really, really hard, but fuck… I couldn’t tell anyone.”

Dexter had felt extremely wronged at that time.

“If there is a fucking god, I want to ask why he took my parents away, threw me into this shitty universe, and made me suffer so much. Why, why the fuck did I have to go through all that…”

Dexter remained still for a while with his head bowed.

He still feels unjustly treated, both then and now.

Sometimes, while sleeping soundly, he dreams of his first day abandoned on the space merchant ship.

A middle school boy who had lost his parents not long ago is summoned to a merchant ship millions of miles away from Earth.

The boy, who knew no one, not even an Earthling who could explain the situation, had nothing.

No one could possibly imagine the mindset with which this penniless boy has lived until now.

“But I’ve returned. Healthy. Even healthier than when I left Earth. I still have a lot of debt, but I have my own spaceship, and though you might not like it, I have a job too.”

Thinking of his workplace, Honeygood Correctional Facility, Dexter was reminded of Jesse, who would soon be up for parole.

“Girlfriend? Should I call her that. I also have someone I like. At least four… wow, I sound like a total player when I put it that way.”

Counting on his fingers, Dexter thought of Jesse, Emily, Judy, and Himena, and chuckled.

Finding himself laughing involuntarily, Dexter felt it would be better to show his parents that he was living happily rather than complaining to them.

So, instead of pouring out complaints about what he had been through, he decided to say only good things.

“Anyway, I’m doing well.”

Dexter raised his head to look at the gravestone.

He wanted to add more, but the words wouldn’t come easily.

As the feeling of not having been able to be with his parents in their final moments gradually rose, he carefully spoke the words he should have said on the day of the funeral.

“Mom, Dad, I hope you’re doing well too, wherever you are.”

It was better to send them off with a smile than with tears.

The 15-year-old Dexter hadn’t known that.

‘A stupid kid who only caused worry to those around him.’

Cursing at his 15-year-old self, Dexter stood up, dusted off his backside, and lightly brushed the gravestone with his hand as he said:

“See you later.”

Dexter smiled faintly and headed out of the cemetery.

The carnation petals placed in front of the gravestone fluttered gently in the wind.