Mrs. Nishi started and said: « We're going to go back six years. Back then, Maku was 25 years old and had just joined Monster Prison. » She continued: « He became a guard at the same time as Jiro Takahashi. »
Me: « Who is this Jiro Takahashi? »
In a sad tone, she said: « He was Maku's friend. »
Me: « What do you mean "was"? »
Mrs. Nishi: « Wait, we're skipping steps. We need to start from the beginning. »
Mrs. Nishi: « They became guards at the same time. Their dorms were next to each other, so they quickly became friends. They did everything together and were assigned to the same Block. »
Curious, I asked: « Which Block were they assigned to? »
Mrs. Nishi replied: « Block B—your current Block. At that time, Maku wasn't cold, but serious. »
Me: « What's the difference between cold and serious? »
Mrs. Nishi replied: « Being cold is when you rarely show your emotions. But being serious means you focus fully on something while still showing your emotions. »
Wow—I had thought it was the same thing.
Me: « What about Takahashi? What was his personality like? »
Mrs. Nishi thought for a moment and said: « He was kind, childlike, and a little mischievous. »
After talking about Takahashi's personality, Mrs. Nishi said: « Now I'm going to tell you about the dark part. One day, Maku and Takahashi were inspecting the cells in Block B. But Takahashi forgot to lock one of the cells. And when they were about to leave, the prisoner took advantage and decapitated Takahashi from behind. When Maku turned around, he saw the prisoner's machete covered in blood and Takahashi's head on the ground. Maku's eyes widened—he was shocked and angry.
At that time, Maku hadn't yet learned martial arts. He used his raw strength unpredictably. The prisoner was about to decapitate him, but Maku managed to grab the prisoner's arm and crush it with his hand. The prisoner screamed in pain before Maku delivered a powerful kick to his stomach. The prisoner was sent flying more than 5 meters. The prisoner was unconscious on the ground, and Maku took advantage of that, striking him in the face again and again with powerful blows. The prisoner eventually died. »
I murmured: « The old Maku was really terrifying. »
Me: « And what happened after that? »
Mrs. Nishi: « After that, Maku became depressed and locked himself in his dorm for two weeks. And when he came out, he had become cold and had a dark look in his eyes. He did his tasks with terrifying efficiency. Everyone was afraid of him. »
Me: « Sorry to interrupt, but I have a question. How does someone become a special guard? »
Mrs. Nishi smiled and said: « Either you kill a prisoner from Block A, survive in Block S for a week, or defeat a special guard in a duel. »
I thought: That's suicidal—the tasks you have to accomplish to become a special guard are insane.
Mrs. Nishi continued: « One day, a special guard named Hiro Nishiro jokingly decided to challenge him to a duel. If Nishiro won, Maku would have to stop being depressed. The duel began, and Nishiro was humiliated. By the end of the fight, he had multiple broken bones and ended up in the hospital. »
Surprised, I asked: « If he beat a special guard, why didn't he become one? »
Mrs. Nishi: « Maku doesn't care about titles. All he wants is to kill criminals. That's why people call him the "abnormal guard" or the most powerful regular guard." »
As Mrs. Nishi was about to leave, I stopped her and asked: « Why did he start learning martial arts if he was already so powerful? »
Mrs. Nishi paused for several seconds, thinking. When she opened her mouth, I expected an answer—but she said she didn't know.
Well, that was a false hope. But at least I learned a lot about Nishi.