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CHAPTER 81 - Saik vs. The Narco. Part 3.
(Saik's POV, 14 years old.)
Hmm... Ah, I never thought I'd need another secret identity.
I haven't used my Shadow form in years, mainly because I haven't needed to. I haven't used it since I was 8, so...
"You've got a good point."
I was about to do something stupid. If Shadow shows up in the same place and time where Saik, a kid with a history of having "imaginary friends," was on vacation, they'll think I'm suspicious and investigate me. And if they investigate me, I'll have to come up with plans to keep them from suspecting me further, and just thinking about that makes me incredibly lazy.
Ugh, I'm such an idiot. Thanks for the heads-up, Number 31.
I'll change my clothes in a more discreet place. I don't want to waste more energy than necessary staying invisible for too long.
Let's see... That place looks like a dump. Perfect.
I slipped into an abandoned house.
... Ugh, what a hassle.
"Poor thing," said Number 31, looking at the kid.
Oh, it's not abandoned. There's a family living here, and judging by their clothes, they're homeless. A father, a mother, and a son. At least it seems like they only have one kid. It'd be ridiculous if they had more than one, considering the state of the country and their situation in general. I mean, if it's already hard for one person to survive on their own, it's way more complicated to support a family.
From what I researched before coming here, there's no law in this country, so the main jobs for men are thieves, assassins, and farmers. That last one is the most peaceful and normal job there is. Even criminals need to eat.
As for women: prostitution and... well, "sex slaves" for the men most capable of protecting them. In other words, at least in this country, men officially rule over women, who are only seen as sex toys.
The normal, safer jobs, like farming, are all taken, condemning everyone else to be homeless.
Man, I really thought that whole "lawless country" thing was an exaggeration, but now I see it's the truth.
"What are you thinking about, Saik?" Number 31 asked me.
Such a savage country. Seriously, Dad, why did you bring me to this shithole? I hope my legendary ghosts are protecting my mom really well. For now, they've already reported 23 attempts to take pictures of her in the bathroom, so that's 23 fewer scumbags in the world.
""Come despacio, Cristobal. Disfruta la comida." (Eat slowly, Cristobal. Enjoy your food,)" the mother said, stroking her son's head.
A little kid, maybe around 5 years old. He's eating a plate full of beans and a glass of water, while his parents share a plate with very little food.
The kid doesn't look malnourished, unlike his parents, who are very thin.
Well, well... I don't know what to think about this, so I'll just ignore them.
Now, then...
"What should I wear?"
I deactivated my Shadow form. They can't see me, so it's fine.
"A fashion tip, huh? Leave it to me, darling!"
•
•
*(Saik 2's POV.)*
I wonder what the original Saik is doing. It's been 25 minutes since he left, and I haven't gotten any updates on what's happened. I'll assume nothing bad has happened, for the sake of my mission as Saik 2. My duty is to be the usual, normal Saik, so I'll focus on not going crazy in this dump.
"Wow, it's huge!" said the smelly girl.
Well, I'll admit the building is nice. Is this our hotel? Knowing my dad's personality, I thought we'd stay in some crappy hotel to keep me from getting comfortable, but now I see he took pity on me. Thanks, Dad. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to play video games.
""Bienve—". ("Welco—)"
I threw my suitcases at the employee, and he dodged them. Idiot, the suitcases opened, and now my stuff is all over the floor. More work for you, moron.
"Saik!"
It's his fault, Dad, for being useless. Is it really that hard to catch a couple of suitcases? You should be used to it. Get a job as a janitor, idiot.
""Llévame videojuegos y pollo frito a mi habitación. Y te apuras." (Bring me video games and fried chicken to my room. And hurry up,)" I said, snapping my fingers.
Tomorrow's going to be a long day, so I'd better make the most of my time to... Huh?
That's not my stuff. Why is my suitcase full of food?
"Where's my clothes?"
"Oh, didn't I tell you earlier? Oops, my bad, son, I forgot to mention a small detail."
I see food, a little money, and some keys... No...
"No, don't you dare," I said to my dad, who just smiled at me.
Please, don't do this to me.
"Miss Pérez, are you ready?"
She nodded and stood by his side. This is a joke, right? No father would do this to his son, especially not someone like you. Don't trust the so-called security of criminals, much less the security of the useless people following us—I've escaped them several times.
""Enséñale todo lo que sabes, Fernanda". (Teach him everything you know, Fernanda.)"
"¡"Confía en mí, madre"! (Trust me, Mom!)"
The smelly girl grabbed my hand and tried to run, but I stood firm, stopping her from dragging me along, while I just stared at my dad.
We're in a country where rape and murder happen everywhere, at any moment. While we were walking, I sensed exactly 16 women being raped (I didn't count the prostitutes, but if I did, it'd be 43), 4 people murdered, 5 people dying in agony, and one "suicide," though it could've been a murder too. And you know what's worse? People were walking around like it was normal, because this is a quiet day for them.
In other words, we're in a lawless city. Do you really want to leave your son to fend for himself?
"Wow, you're so strong, Saik! Hmmmh! Wow, I can't move you an inch!" said the smelly girl, trying to move me with her body, hugging me, pulling, and pushing me.
"They're going to kill me, or worse, I'll wake up with my ass torn open if you leave me to my fate in this shithole. Are you really okay with doing that to your own son?"
"Ah, desperate times call for desperate measures. You need to learn to value what you have, son."
I already saved the world once. Don't you think I deserve to live a comfortable life after the hell I went through? If only I could tell you everything I had to endure. Everything I did. Everything I suffered.
"You're exaggerating, Dad, and by a lot."
He raised a finger and winked at me.
"One week. Just one week. If you manage to survive without my help for a week, I'll let you do whatever you want for the rest of your life. But if you give up, I'll kick you out of the house when you turn 18, and you'll live without our financial support. Are you willing to fight to protect your lifestyle?"
"... I see."
In short, you think I'm a useless kid who can't take care of himself? If only you knew that money is the last thing I need from you. I mean, what good was money to me in the past? Just to buy video games. I stole food from the streets, and... Ugh, whatever, I'll think about the past later.
But fine, if you insist...
"Let's go, María."
"My name's Fernanda."
"Too long. I'll call you Fer."
"Works for me. Let's go! Oh, but first, let's pick up the food."
I grabbed her hand. Wow, it feels like a man's hand, hard and calloused. That's curious.
"I said let's go."
He said I have to do this without his help, so I'll do it without his help.
I started running, getting away from my dad.
"Hey, son, don't go yet! You forgot the money!"
You want me to survive without you? I'll survive without you. I don't need your money.
Besides, I know you. You'll regret this in 4 minutes. I won't give you time to stop me.
"W-Wait, please!" said Fer.
Hmm. Her voice sounds hoarse, without energy. Did she get tired of running that fast? Ugh, what a hassle.
I stopped and crouched down.
"Get on. I don't want to waste any more time. We need to find shelter."
"Hehe. What, you want to feel my thighs that bad? ¡"Qué pervertido eres, picarón"! (You naughty boy!)"
You're so skinny that even pedophiles wouldn't find you attractive. All bones.
"Just get on."
"Hehe. Alright, but I only give you permission to enjoy it a little, not too much. Oh, aren't I just so kind? Where's my monument for my huge heart?!"
"I'll leave you behind."
"It was a joke!"
She jumped onto my back.
"Don't leave me alone!"
Flat, flat, flat. Feels like a man's chest. And I'm a weird kid with hair covering my eyes. At least we'll be safe from perverts—that'll save me some trouble and hassle.
I kept running, escaping the bodyguards trying to catch me. What? Did you regret it that fast, Dad? Or maybe you already realized I removed the tracker you put in my clothes. I don't like being followed.
I thought the tracker was in case I got kidnapped, but now I see it was for this. Good thing I took it off on the boat. I removed it because I knew I'd have to kill criminals in this country, and it'd be suspicious if I moved at high speed and...
"Young Norsai, stop, please! Your father canceled everything!"
He canceled it? Wow, that was fast. I thought it'd take him two more minutes.
But you know what, Dad? This surviving-on-my-own-for-a-week thing is interesting. The city's big, but not big enough. I need to hide somewhere farther away.
"S-Saik, I think we should—"
"How long would it take to get to the next city?"
"Huh? W-Well... I think about an hour by bus."
An hour. That works. But I don't want to go by bus—my dad could easily stop it. Let's see...
Oh, well, well. That'll do.
A man and a woman on a motorcycle, with ghosts around them. Vengeful or cursed ghosts, the kind that can't reason or rest because of the deep hatred they feel toward certain people.
And from what I can see, the naked women were raped and murdered, and the men were killed by high heels. Their heads were crushed with heels. What a gruesome way to die. Number 4 has done that a few times, so I know about it.
They're with other people, chatting. They also have ghosts around them, but not as many as these two. Yeah, I'll steal from them.
Let's see... 7 people with weapons. It'd be too suspicious if someone like me took them down, and the bodyguards... Well, they could handle them, but I'd rather avoid deaths—that'd slow me down.
Let's see, if I do this...
I took control of the ghosts. Done. I put them inside their bodies and...
Perfect. Now they're beating each other up. A street fight.
I stood next to the motorcycle.
"What are you doing?! Let's get out of here!"
"Worried they'll pull out their guns and kill each other? Then get on."
I took her arms off my neck and set her down.
I got on the motorcycle.
"G-Get off, they'll kill you!"
I started it. Good.
"I'm leaving with or without you. You have two seconds."
"N-No, you can't steal from—!"
"Time's up."
"Kya, don't leave me!"
She quickly jumped on, and I took off. It's been a while since I rode a motorcycle, and this one's pretty nice. I kind of want to keep it.
Oh, yeah, I almost forgot.
... Done. They'll kill each other once we're out of the city.
"Saik, this is too much! ¡"Le robaste una moto a gente muy peligrosa"! ¡"Vendrán por nosotros y nos matarán"! (You stole a motorcycle from really dangerous people! They'll come after us and kill us!)"
"I'll buy them a new one later."
"N-No, you don't get it! They're from "Los cuervos de la muerte!"
Oh, the criminal group that extorted my dad? I see. I was planning to kill them later anyway, so it's not a problem.
"So what?"
"So what?! ¡"Nos matarán"! (They'll kill us!)"
Yeah, sure, a bunch of mere humans will kill me. I'm so scared.
"You can get off here if you want."
"No, don't leave me alone!"
"Then stop complaining."
I have a feeling I'll have trouble with them soon. Oh well, I'll just use the ghosts they have around them, and that's that. Problem solved. Nothing to worry about.
•
•
Lalo Montoya, the leader, along with his father, watched Saik escape from his family's bodyguards, who were chasing him in vans, but thanks to the shortcuts he took, he was getting farther and farther away.
Sitting at his desk, Lalo watched all the action on his computer. He kept Saik under surveillance thanks to his own satellite.
Lalo remained serious as always, while his father smiled and laughed, watching the actions of a crazy teenager. What he respects most in a person is rebelliousness, and Saik was a clear example of the kind of person he enjoys having as a subordinate.
"Hahahahaha! ¡"Ese chico no es cualquier niño rico"! ¡"Tiene más huevos que tú, cabrón"! "Hasta me dieron ganas de adoptarlo". (That kid's not just any rich boy! He's got more balls than you, you bastard! I even feel like adopting him.)"
"¿"Qué hago ahora, padre"? (What do I do now, Father?)"
"Hehe. "Esas acciones no son de un chico común y corriente". "Había escuchado rumores sobre la familia de su padre, pero creí que eran simples mitos". (Those actions aren't those of an ordinary kid. I'd heard rumors about his father's family, but I thought they were just myths.)"
"¿"De su padre"? (His father?)"
""Vamos a comprobarlo" (Let's find out,)" he said with a big smile.