I walked along a quiet road. It was already late, and the moon was slowly climbing into the sky.
However, that didn't mean the day was over.
I arrived at a run-down lodging house, kicked the door open, and dragged the guy playing games inside out by the collar.
"…WHAT THE HELL AGAIN!?"
Lunas, who was a head taller and bigger than me, was thrown all the way to the entrance of the building—like an owner tossing out a disobedient dog.
"CHH! You lunatic!"
"Get your ass up and go buy some things. You don't remember what tomorrow is?"
"Tomorrow?"
Only then did Lunas check the date on his wrist device. After that, he shot me a glare.
"You went out all day and didn't prepare anything? And you came back empty-handed too?"
I didn't answer. I simply lifted my coat, revealing a wound that looked fairly deep.
"CHH! Always getting into fights…"
Lunas nagged like a father—no, like a mother scolding her child. I didn't really care.
I grabbed a white medicine bottle from the cabinet, popped a few pills into my mouth, chewing them like candy. By then, Lunas had already left.
I stood in front of the bathroom mirror and took off my shirt, revealing a thin, frail body—one that looked like it could be blown away by a strong wind. Scars and old wounds covered it, yet they still felt as fresh as yesterday.
Around my abdomen, dried blood clung from my stomach down to my legs. After wiping it away, part of my intestines was visibly protruding.
"…This is something you never get used to."
Who could ever get used to seeing their own organs spilling out?
I pushed the intestines back in with my hand and wrapped the wound with bandages. Then I took out a cigarette pack and lit one.
…
"…"
"You seriously think wearing that to a birthday celebration is fine?"
"Why not?"
I was wearing shorts, a long-sleeved black shirt with a pizza printed on it, and carrying a cake box.
Lunas looked at me like I was a lunatic who had just crawled out of the ground—or maybe a country bumpkin visiting the city for the first time.
"Suit yourself."
Knock knock—
Without waiting for the homeowner to respond, we barged in like it was our own place.
"Old man! Are you home!?"
"We've got a surprise!"
We shouted loudly, casually opened the cabinet, grabbed some of his stored beers, and started drinking. Then we burst into the bedroom—where the old man grabbed a pillow and threw it straight at my face.
I dodged in time. The pillow smacked into Lunas instead, making the beer bottle in his hand fall to the floor.
"Damn you brats! Are you going to let this old man sleep or not!?"
"Happy birthday, Old Man Haller! Happy 60th!"
I cheerfully brought the cake closer to the bed—only for another pillow to fly at me, hitting my hand and smashing the cake into my face.
"Ugh—"
"Hmph! Serves you right! You dare disturb my afternoon nap! Who the hell throws a party at noon!?"
"Tch. Who has time to do it at night?"
That wasn't me—it was Lunas. The red-black-haired guy laughed, stuck two candles shaped like 6 and 0 onto my head, and lit them.
"Hey, show some respect, little brother."
I wiped the cake off my face while putting out the candles, though it seemed the wax had already stuck to my hair.
"Disgusting."
Lunas laughed like a madman and popped open another beer—
Pshhh—
"Pft—!"
…
While I went to take a shower to wash off the wax and cake, Lunas talked with Haller while cleaning the floor.
"…That kid got into trouble again, didn't he?"
"Huh? You figured it out?"
Haller spoke first—rare, since we were usually the ones causing trouble and starting conversations.
"You idiots wouldn't notice, but I've lived long enough in this damned world to recognize the smell of fresh blood."
"…Please don't sniff people like a guard dog."
"You—INSOLENT!"
Another pillow flew at Lunas, but he caught it easily. For such a small bed, Old Man Haller sure had a lot of pillows in that room.
"Tch! Drop the broom and come over here. Massage my legs."
He said it loudly, but there was no sense of command or authority—just the tone of a father speaking to his child. Lunas obediently put down the broom and approached him.
He lifted the blanket, revealing Old Man Haller's severed legs. He then skillfully massaged the old, wrinkled limbs, causing Haller's face to relax.
"Hey, Lunas. What do you think that kid is planning to do? His body's getting worse by the day."
"Huh? Oh, uh… I think he already told you, didn't he?"
"As if you brats would ever bother telling me anything."
"Alright, alright… basically, there are only a few hours left…"
…