Sokudo: Villains Always Win (ᴠᴏʟᴜᴍᴇ ᴛᴡᴏ)

Chapter two│let me help

"...Minji?" Appearing into the room literally into thin air, slowly fading into the room like a ghost, Satou glanced around the first floor. Which was nothing, nobody was there, and Minji definitely wasn't there. Or at least, not on this floor.

He was about to fade away and disappear again, his body becoming invisible, when he was abruptly stopped. The hand on his shoulder appearing on his shoulder had immediately shaken him to the core. His eyes widened and he flinched, reacting quickly.

Grabbing the hand on his shoulder, he easily threw the person over him, and straight onto the ground. Though, his eyes widened in shock and his breath hitched when he saw who it was, immediately letting go. In surprise, his body faded in and out of existence, parts of his body visible while other parts were completely see through and transparent.

"Taichi..." Letting out a pained groan, the shorter black and white haired male had avoided hitting his head in the fall, or attack. He quickly got up from the floor, seemingly unaffected as he brushed down his clothes, then lifting his head to look directly into Satou's eyes with a piercing gaze.

"I finally caught you. You do know how annoying your ability is, right?"

─

"Hey mom, I'm home!"

Pushing the door open, Chieko walked inside and closed the door behind her. She had to get her stuff ready for school tomorrow, which she honestly wasn't looking forward to as much as her mother assumed. She thought her daughter was happy to be reunited with her school friends, even when she hadn't mentioned them all throughout the holiday.

Sometimes her mother was a little oblivious, but that made things easier to hide. "Mooom?" Chieko called out again when she didn't receive an answer, a little confused as to why. She walked through her house, looking around for her mother and where she could be.

It was only five, her mom almost never left the house alone. With no job, she mostly spent her time doing work around the house, or as she used to, keep Chieko company. With Minji's training, just ever since she encountered Taichi and came across the warehouse ─ she had a little less time to spend with her mother. She still had plenty, of course, and she loved every moment that was spent with her selfless, caring mother.

When she still didn't receive any reply when she called out for her mother a third time, she started to worry. She rushed into the other rooms, searching every corner for her mother ─ or some indication for where she was. After she had officially joined Minji, her worries increased by a ton, even if she hadn't encountered any "villains" after Nyx. Had... Something happened to her mother...?

Running back to the living room, Chieko was breathing heavily as her worried eyes glanced around the room. There was no sign of her mother within the entire house, she wasn't here. So then where was she...?

Dropping to her knees, Chieko could only think of one possible solution. She shook her head, trying to tell herself that she had just gone out to get some groceries, buy some extra supplies, she had left the house in her own will.

But still, she rarely did any of that, and when she did go out, for shopping or whatever it was ─ it was always when Chieko was around, who then accompanied her. They went shopping not too long ago, what reason was there for her going out again...?

Panic only growing larger, Chieko remained on her knees, deathly pale gaze on the floor. She was both frozen and silent, mind filled with thoughts racing through her head, searching for answers.

And then, there was a click. Head shooting up, the small click had come from the front door. Racing to her feet, the doorknob on the door slowly turned... The door slowly pushed forward, opening to reveal none other than the person who she wanted to see so dearly.