We spend the rest of the day touring the surroundings of the 20th Ward.
For Rize, who's been locked up in Sunlit Garden for almost her entire life, everything she can see is new.
"Oh! Is that a stuffed animal shop? You told me about it before, didn't you?"
"Umu."
"Let's go in!"
Before I can say anything, she's already dragging me inside. Ten minutes later, we come out. Rize has a satisfied smile, and I have three bags full of stuffed animals in my arms.
"Why am I the one carrying everything?"
"Because you're a gentleman~"
"Huh? I don't remember saying I'm a gentleman."
"But you'll act like one anyway."
This girl... isn't she acting like a princess? Or rather, like a tyrant?
Then we enter a bookstore. Apparently Rize likes to read. I already knew that from having observed her for two years through Yuki-chan, where I'd see her read the same five books they gave her, most of them about the ghoul world.
She spends almost an hour checking the shelves. Whether romance novels, mystery, history, fantasy, and even some cookbooks, though I don't understand why she wants them. Ghouls can't eat normal food.
In the end, I leave with two more bags.
Finally, we stop at a park that's not too far away and sit on a wooden bench under a tree. Rize is hugging a white teddy bear while watching the children play.
Suddenly, she elbows me. I raise an eyebrow and follow her gaze to the other side of the lawn. A woman with a loving look at the man beside her raises her hand and pulls out a strand of his hair.
The people around seeing this action stop and look at the scene with curiosity.
"What are they doing? Pulling out hair... Is that a show of affection from humans?"
Rize's question is full of confusion.
"It's a test."
"A test?"
"Yes. To know if he's a parasite."
Rize frowns, turning her gaze from the scene to me.
"Parasites? I heard that bitch mention them before."
"That's right."
I lean back on the bench, crossing my arms behind my head.
I tell her about the parasites.
This isn't anything new to humanity, since people started becoming aware of their existence about two years ago.
And in many cases, parasites started being feared more than ghouls themselves.
"That... In Sunlit Garden they never mentioned anything about that. In fact, not even about vampires, and they only taught us about ghouls and investigators."
"Well, they might only teach what suits them. But people here know. And one of the simplest ways to identify a parasite is that hair test."
"And how does it work?"
"Parasites can copy human form almost perfectly, but can't replicate it completely. When they take control of a part of the body, for example the head, which is their main target, they eat it and replace it, using the original appearance, the skin, hair, and eyes. All that looks the same. But inside, it's not anymore. They've replaced the brain and nervous system of that area. And that's the problem. They can imitate the appearance."
The smiling woman on the lawn puts the hair in her palm while joking with the man who looks at her attentively and silently.
Rize and I watch from a distance.
Through my Vampire Vision, I already know the answer.
"If you pull out a hair from a normal person, it falls off. But if you pull out a hair from a parasite... watch."
While the hair is in the woman's hand, it suddenly starts writhing.
Seeing this, the woman's smile fades.
The hairs, which were dark and shiny before, lose their color, turning gray and brittle. They dry out in an instant, and without making a sound, crumble, turning into powder that the wind carries away.
Beside her the man observes the departing dust. Then he looks at the woman, who has a paralyzed and horrified expression.
And starts laughing.
"Hehehe... Kuhuhuhuhu!"
A laugh that comes from somewhere deep and cold.
The people around, who were also watching curiously, are shocked.
Generally, humans were afraid to perform this hair test.
What if the hair writhes and dries? Doesn't that mean the person I love is a parasite? My son or daughter has been replaced? Or my parents have already been possessed?
Those thoughts stop them.
Even knowing that person they love and who accompanies them all day might be a parasite, they're not willing to take that step.
They prefer to live happily in ignorance.
"T-Tatsuya... What... what's wrong?"
The man's laughter stops suddenly, and his face that previously emulated completely the mask of someone who deeply loves his girlfriend now transforms into an indifferent face.
"I've been discovered, huh? I wonder what I did wrong? Nothing. Yes, nothing. This girl is simply stupid."
The man's head bulges and opens, splitting like a watermelon. There's no blood or brain inside his head. In reality, they're just tentacle-shaped appendages full of blades.
The woman is stunned, and couldn't react when the parasite's mouth full of teeth descends from above.
—Scriiiip! Spluuurrt!
The parasite's mouth closes and its teeth split the woman in two. Her upper part is consumed instantly, and the lower part falls to the ground.
Blood stains the green lawn, at the same time screams run through the park.
"Help!"
"It's a parasite!"
People start fleeing the place while screaming. Some take out their phones to call for help.
The parasite doesn't pay them attention. Instead, it looks around. Its eyes stop on us.
It stares at me.
A huge smile spreads across my face.
Will it attack me?
Getting excited about that, I crack my knuckles.
The man's legs twist and elongate, becoming thin, white claws.
In the past, parasites had normal human bodies. But as Mrs. Kiriko said, they've managed to evolve thanks to a single factor, which is the RC Cells found in humans and ghouls.
This evolution allows parasites to gradually spread through the rest of the body and thus strengthen themselves, becoming powerful predators, no less strong than ghouls.
It crouches and with a thrust, jumps toward the sky, landing on a branch of a tall tree.
From there, it looks at me again.
Then it jumps from tree to tree, disappearing among the ward's buildings.
So it fled?
Boring.
"So that was a parasite, huh..."
Rize looks at the direction the parasite disappeared, then toward the bloodied body on the lawn.
"They used to be easier to detect."
I get up from the bench and stretch.
"Oh, yeah?"
"Years ago, when they started appearing, they were pretty clumsy. Though they imitated human form, their behavior was strange. With simple stimulation, they'd lose control. They wanted to kill instantly, and didn't even know how to disguise themselves."
While carrying the shopping bags, we leave the park and I keep talking to Rize, who seems interested in the topic.
"That's why parasites were discovered so quickly."
But they realized that if they continued like that, they'd be exterminated. Especially when organizations like Hellsing and the CCG started hunting them. So they changed their strategy.
First, they adapted completely. They learned to imitate not just appearance, tone of voice and gestures the host has, but also emotions.
That way, they became more intelligent.
To survive, they needed to go unnoticed.
So now, you can't differentiate a parasite from a human with the naked eye.
You need a test, like the hair one. Other methods include more advanced blood tests or certain types of technology, similar to the RC cell detection gates the CCG uses to identify ghouls based on the number of RC Cells in their bodies. In this case, however, parasites are identified based on their frequencies.
Chemicals were also used to identify them. If you threw them in their face, the chemical causes facial distortion that produces blisters. But that's already useless.
Therefore, for the average citizen, the hair test is the simplest and most effective, though few dare to do it.
They think that even if the person they trust is a parasite, they can keep living normally with them if they don't do that test.
And maybe that's true.
In some cases, current parasites in the 20th Ward don't cause as much chaos as in the past, and don't kill the person living with them.
Unless it's parasites living in other wards, where they're much more dangerous, since they even live in groups.
"Mm... I see."
Rize nods when I finish explaining.
Through my All-Seeing Eye that I left in the area, I see some agents dressed in blue and black arrive at the park to inspect the place and get information from witnesses.
Special Parasite Division.
That's what they're publicly known as.
And though it's secret, I know behind them is the CCG, who've financed trained police to deal with parasites.
×××
When we return to Anteiku, it's already late. The sun is setting and the white clouds in the sky have orange and pink edges.
Yoshimura receives us with a slight smile.
"I see you had fun."
"Mm. Something like that."
I put the bags on the floor and rub my arms. Rize sits in a chair with crossed legs and hands on her thighs.
"Arata-kun, about the house..."
"Ah, yes. Is it ready?"
"Yes. I can take you now if you want."
"That would be great. Thanks, grandpa."
Yoshimura nods and guides us out of the café. We walk through a few streets.
After about fifteen minutes, we arrive at a quiet neighborhood.
Wait.
This place looks familiar.
"Grandpa... where exactly is the house?"
"Right here."
Yoshimura points to a single-story house made with white walls. And though it's a small house, maybe intended for one person, it looks pretty good and in good condition.
It's right next to the house where Touka lives.
"..."
I look at Yoshimura, who turns his smiling face with closed eyes toward me.
"Is something wrong, Arata-kun?"
"No, nothing..."
This old man... did he do it on purpose? Does he want one of them to decapitate me or stab me in the back while I sleep?
Putting Rize in the same neighborhood as Touka. That's inviting disaster to the door. Considering the attitude Rize showed during the time we're together, added to Touka's attitude, who's no less intense than Rize.
Well, it's too late to change things. The house is ready and I have no other option.
"Thanks, Yoshi. It's perfect."
"I'm glad. Ah... Yoshi?"
"Yeah, it's a new nickname I came up with for you."
"...I see."
Your eyes are closed, Yoshi. You can't see
Yoshimura gives us the keys and says goodbye.
Rize looks around with curiosity.
"So this is where I'll live..."
"Yes. Do you like it?"
"Mm. Having my own house, huh? I guess I like it. But I'd like it more if you lived with me, Arata."
She smiles while taking the keys, and I can only sigh at her words.
"Ah, right, Arata..."
"What?"
"That Touka your master mentioned, does she live nearby?"
"...I don't know."
Rize looks at me with narrowed eyes not believing me.
"Well, I guess I'll find out~"
I have a feeling things are going to get complicated soon.
×××
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