Vol. 1 Chapter 0 - Prologue

“Hum hum hum~”

 

In a room within a certain house, I swung a hatchet down.

 

A while ago, it was shrieking loudly, but now it’s just twitching and convulsing, not making a sound.

 

As I calmly dismember the body, I lick the blood spatter from my skin.

 

“Peh. This one’s for real, man.”

 

The first time I killed someone was a month ago.

 

I don’t remember my parents ever doing anything parental. If I opened my mouth, there were only curses.

 

Violence was a given, and they were toxic parents who told me to steal dinner for them from my schoolmates.

 

Still, I endured. I endured it all.

 

Until my only ally, Granny, passed away.

 

Granny had terminal cancer and was hospitalized.

 

The toxic parents never paid for her medical bills. They depleted her pension, so I worked multiple part-time jobs during my three years of high school to cover her treatment costs.

 

I crossed some dangerous bridges at times, but I somehow survived and managed to make it until Granny’s last day.

 

“Thank you for everything until now. It’s okay now. From here on, live as you like, ×××-chan.”

 

The day after she said this, Granny died.

 

I took care of all the funeral arrangements and, finally, things began to settle down.

 

“You finally kicked the bucket, you damn hag. You lived on so pathetically. Hey! ×××! You better hand over all the money you earned, got it?”

 

“It works out well for me. There’s a bag I want. You’ve earned quite a bit, right?”

 

Something in me made a snapping sound.

 

I went to the kitchen in silence, grabbed a knife, and swung it down on my father’s neck from behind.

 

Even though my clothes were getting soaked with blood, I didn’t mind and stabbed over and over again.

 

Perhaps he was already dead after the first blow, as there was no more sound, but my mother was still whimpering.

 

I found her irritating, so I stopped the hand that was stabbing and used duct tape to seal her mouth shut and secure her limbs, preventing her from escaping.

 

It was then that I unconsciously licked some blood spatter.

 

“Huh? Tastes good. Did blood always taste this good?”

 

Certainly, I hadn’t always eaten high-quality food, but I had never been so desperate for sustenance that I found blood delicious.

 

My own blood when I was beaten wasn’t tasty either.

 

Afterward, I stabbed and killed my mother and tried licking the blood.

 

“It’s… It varies from person to person, I guess? Well, whatever.”

 

After killing the two of them and some time had passed, when I reflected on myself, I felt no guilt for having killed people.

 

Perhaps I had always possessed the potential of a psychopath, or maybe my mind had broken somewhere.

 

“It doesn’t really matter. Sorry, Granny. I’ve become a criminal.”

 

Well, it’s not like I hadn’t broken the law before.

 

“What should I do now?”

 

Apart from earning money for medical bills, I’ve never wanted to do anything for myself.

 

Because I was constantly suppressed by my parents since I was a child, I had a brake on taking any actions myself.

 

If I had to say something I liked doing, it would be reading books alone at the library.

 

It was like a refuge that didn’t cost money.

 

“Oh, but when I was stabbing them, there was this sort of euphoria.”

 

I initially thought my mood was just elevated from my first kill, but looking back now, I’ve never felt that anything was enjoyable. However, I was happily stabbing while intoxicated by the pleasure.

 

“I see. I guess I like killing people.”

 

Something like a psychopath?

 

I’m not sure if that’s the right term.

 

Breaking things, taking things. Just imagining it is sweet.

 

“All the people who pissed me off in my life. I’ll just kill them all.”

 

And then, a month passed.

 

People who approached me like bullies throughout elementary, middle, and high school.

 

Teachers who turned a blind eye.

 

My boss who falsely accused me at my part-time job.

 

I killed everyone who had made my life unpleasant as far as I could remember.

 

“The last kill is done.”

 

And after killing the last person.

 

I found myself on the rooftop of a mixed-use building.

 

“It was fun. I must really be messed up. Who would have thought killing people would be this enjoyable? I wish I could have killed more.”

 

Honestly, I don’t have the intention to harm innocent civilians.

 

Among those I killed were people who are generally considered good by society.

 

They weren’t good to me, so I killed them.

 

But in my shallow relationships, I’ve hit a dead end.

 

“If there’s a next life, let’s hope for an environment where I can kill more people. I’ve killed so many already. Even if I did have a chance, I doubt I could lead a normal life.”

 

I’m sorry, Granny.

 

Murmuring that, I jumped off the rooftop of the building.