Thud, thud!
The sound of footsteps on the floor, someone quickly approaching down the corridor toward the room.
Though her chest was about to explode with anger, she had to contain it, lest she accidentally blow the whole house away.
She mentally prepared herself before opening the door.
Her thoughts were on those adulterous couple daring to sneak around without her permission and that they'd soon be chopped into appropriate pieces.
Bang——forcefully opening the door with no regard for whether the door material could withstand her strength, as the door swung open, a terrifying crack appeared on the door frame.
Due to Ruri's aggressive movement when entering, the two people in the room were also startled.
Yet the imagined unsavory scene did not manifest; the two were rather decent and proper within the room.
Ayane was just sitting on a chair beside the bed, not even on the bed, clothes neatly worn without any sign of disarray.
She held a spoon, feeding hot rice porridge to Haku, appearing to carefully nurse the sick.
There was nothing evident on Ruri's face; more than being angry, she was using her presence to intimidate those in the room.
"I just remembered Hakushi-kun was home alone, so I came over to deliver some lunch. But I didn't do anything… Are you angry?"
Ayane put down the spoon and the bowl of hot rice porridge, speaking calmly to Ruri.
"No. I just wish you'd let me know ahead of time before you come over. And feeding doesn't require so much time."
Ruri replied with the same tone.
Though it was mere common interaction, Hakushi could sense the dense smell of gunpowder in the air.
"About that, truly Hakushi-kun was so hospitable, he kept holding onto me not letting me leave. It's quite distressing for me too, so I stayed a bit longer."
Ayane laughed as she said this.
"Weren't you the shameless one refusing to leave?"
"Did that happen? Hakushi-kun, men shouldn't lie to women."
Ayane tilted her head, showing a puzzled expression, completely unaware of what Hakushi was saying.
"Enough, Ruri, nothing really happened. Why don't you take her out, I just want some peace and quiet."
Hakushi rubbed his temples, feeling the headache from the tense atmosphere.
The more Ayane described, the worse the conclusion felt.
This woman could skillfully reverse black and white without a change of expression.
Anyone with some shame wouldn't have a single truth from her mouth.
Moreover, now that he finally had a cold he could get a restful day, he didn't want to be disturbed by such tension all day long.
Before coming, just consider me, the wounded. Hakushi gave Ayane a look of reproach.
Rather than making Ruri angry, it was as if deliberately preventing him from resting well.
And the source of this resentment, Hakushi could probably understand.
Thus, a sense of guilt welled up in his heart.
Just as Hakushi was pondering these matters, over there Ruri took a deep breath and said, "It's okay for you to continue talking alone here, I'm not that petty yet."
Leaving this sentence behind, she walked out of the room, with the usual cold demeanor.
But about ten seconds after Ruri left the room, boom——
The entire room, no, the whole house built on the ground, including its foundation, was hit by an incredibly terrifying shock.
Amidst panicked screams, the whole house tilted thirty degrees; as the wounded, Hakushi awkwardly rolled out of bed, landing on the ground on all fours.
"What the hell—"
Before he finished speaking, a vibrating sound came from above.
Hakushi sensed trouble and looked up towards the ceiling.
The ceiling cracked open, stones falling from above.
The entire house turned to rubble.
Hakushi and Ayane were directly buried by the large volume of stones.
A passing old man walking his dog turned his head to look at the collapsed house, then calmly continued walking the dog.
The dog barked twice.
◎
After a whole afternoon of cold wind, moving into a new solitary villa at night, Hakushi felt his cold worsen considerably.
The plan to use the cold for a good rest was ruined, but after the afternoon commotion, finally some peace could be had in the evening.
Might as well take another rest tomorrow, to make up for the regret of not resting well today.
It was only when going to bed at night that Hakushi found Ruri was staring at him without blinking beside the pillow.
Her eyes like deep lakes had a chilling color that made Hakushi's back turn cold.
"Ruri, what's wrong?"
Hakushi felt a little uneasy inside.
Due to his worsened cold, his speech carried a heavy nasal tone.
"I'm considering whether to strangle you with my hands right now."
Ruri said in a cold tone.
Don't say such scary stuff late at night. Hakushi felt even colder inside, as if icy snow had melted into his bones, that bone-chilling sensation.
Just as Hakushi was about to respond, his waist suddenly got fiercely twisted.
"It hurts!"
Hakushi couldn't help but shout, suppressing the sound.
Though he only touched his waist where it was twisted painfully, Hakushi could feel it turn blue and purple.
She meant business.
Just when Hakushi was about to say something, Ruri began to move, sitting atop Hakushi, her fingernails deeply embedded into Hakushi's throat.