Homura Akemi had been intrigued by the pink-haired girl from the first moment she saw her.
Having been frail and sickly since childhood, she had spent her life in hospital rooms, seeing mostly middle-aged and elderly people. She rarely saw children, let alone anyone her own age.
While the outpatient clinic had its share of kids, she wouldn't have left her ward to go there if it hadn't been for the dispute with her father two days ago.
This was partly due to her reclusive and self-deprecating nature, and partly because she didn't want to trouble the medical staff.
In her current state, where every meal was a handout from others, how could she dare to run around?
What if the nurses couldn't find her when they were looking for her? Would they get angry? Would they start ignoring her?
These were things a normal person wouldn't have to worry about, but for someone whose lifeline was in the hands of others, they were essential considerations.
As a child from the countryside, she already had low self-esteem. In Japan's cultural climate, she was even more terrified of causing the slightest inconvenience to others.
Beyond that, she harbored another fervent hope, one she couldn't even voice.
What if, one day, her father found a way to pay off his debts and came to take her away, but couldn't find her?
The thought was laughably naive. If her father truly had that much love in him, he wouldn't have abandoned her here for so long without a visit.
But a cub's dependence on its parents is a law of nature, and humans are no exception.
No matter how one is treated, no matter how well one knows their parents' character, it's hard not to hope for the day they might turn over a new leaf.
This self-deception peaked when she met Madoka.
What drew her to Madoka wasn't her simple, cute, round face, but the air of happiness she exuded—the look of a child who had been wonderfully protected by her parents.
With a single glance, Homura knew they were not the same kind of person. But she didn't feel jealousy, only a slight envy. She especially yearned for the easy way Madoka spoke with her father.
If my father earned enough money one day, or was lucky enough to escape his predicament, would he stop being so hysterical and be more like that girl's father?
After all, even after leaving her in the hospital for months, he did still come to see her, didn't he?
With this thought in her mind, after exchanging a glance with Madoka, she had hastily lowered her head and followed her father. At that time, she still held onto a final shred of hope for him.
That hope remained in her heart... until now.
"Father..."
Under everyone's gaze, the quiet, introverted girl with black braids spoke. She tore her eyes away from the pink-haired girl who had nothing to do with her and looked down at her frail father kneeling on the floor.
What a pathetic face it was. Filled with panic, fear, guilt, and hysteria.
As a father, he wanted to sell his own daughter to a cult to solve his debts—an undeniably bestial act.
As a beast, he hadn't completely shed his morals. He knew what he was doing, which was why he didn't dare to scold her with righteous indignation, but instead knelt to beg her to accept this unreasonable request.
This is probably self-deception, she thought. If I agree to this myself, instead of being forced, he'll have an excuse for himself later. After all, it was his daughter's choice.
As an adult, he knew the people around him were right, yet he chose to borrow the might of others, to strong-arm people with benefits, forcing them into his camp and creating the psychological impression that they were all accomplices.
He deceived others on the outside, and deceived himself on the inside.
Many people think children can't see through these adult charades, but that's a mistake. They often forget that when they were children, their senses were sharper than anyone's.
Especially for a child like Homura, who had long been dependent on others, her perception of emotions was even clearer.
She knew with perfect clarity that the man before her was no longer her father, but a beast that had completely lost its humanity.
He just couldn't admit it to himself, so he had to use every means possible to pretend he wasn't a beast.
The love and salvation she had hoped for simply did not exist.
Should she expose him? Even with her clumsy words, Homura could easily reveal his monstrous nature in front of everyone.
But would that be enough? After driving him away, she would still be alone, still have to trouble others, still have to suck everyone's blood just to survive.
Besides, if Homura remembered correctly, when she was first diagnosed and her mother was still alive, the man before her had indeed promised, as a father, that he would do whatever it took to keep her alive.
She believed that at that time, he had been sincere.
Although the twists and turns of time had long since eroded that sincerity, it had, at least, once existed.
And now, she could feel the sincerity of the medical staff just as strongly.
That was why she also understood that if she continued like this, continued to be a burden on others... even the kind nurses of today would eventually go down the same path as her father.
Because she was a burden, a burden that only consumed the sincerity of others.
She knew that if she agreed to her father's request, she would very likely fall into an abyss from which there was no return. But even if she refused his request, she was already in that abyss.
So, Father, if this is your wish...
"If I join the church, you'll be able to pay back the hospital and won't have to hide anymore?" the girl asked in an incredibly cold voice.
"..."
Hearing this, the man was stunned for a moment. His eyes flew wide open, then a look of ecstasy spread across his face. "Y-Yes! That's right! As long as you agree, our family will have money! I'll buy you delicious food then!"
Even now, he still thought Homura was clueless, still cooing at her as if she were a child.
But the more perceptive people noticed that the two things Homura mentioned were only about clearing her debts... she hadn't mentioned, or even asked about, her own future.
This was a sign of someone who had lost the will to live.
"Homura, wait! Calm down, don't believe this man's lies!" The nurses couldn't let a child this young fall into the clutches of a cult.
But at that moment, Homura's words had given the cultists all the confidence they needed. The boisterous men used their brawny bodies to block everyone else.
Familiar with the law, they didn't resort to direct violence, instead using various methods to skirt the edges of the rules.
In this kind of confrontation, ordinary citizens and medical staff were no match for them.
"No! The child hasn't verbally agreed yet!" Even in the face of such threats, someone still argued based on reason. "Homura, don't do something foolish! Don't agree to them!"
Hearing this, the yakuza paused, then shot a threatening look at Homura's father. They were holding a voice recorder.
It went without saying that Homura's father understood they needed concrete proof of Homura's consent. With that proof, any subsequent trouble would be handled by their lawyers.
So, he knelt down again, looking up at his daughter, and coaxed her in an urgent tone. "Homura, were you just about to say that you, of your own free will, wish to join the church and become one of its members?"
Hearing such shameless leading, everyone around was filled with indignation.
Only the girl herself remained calm, as if she had heard nothing at all, and looked up at the blue sky outside the window. What beautiful clouds.
"Homura, say it! Just say it!" Seeing the girl's clear, glass-like eyes, the man subconsciously lowered his head, not daring to meet her gaze, but his urging was still anxious and fierce.
Under the man's urging, the medical staff's worry, and the yakuza's gleeful gazes... in the silence, Homura slowly nodded.
"I agree to jo—"
*CLINK!*
The girl's words had just begun when they were cut off by a crisp sound—the clear ring of metal hitting the floor.
Homura was taken aback and looked towards the source of the sound. If she wasn't mistaken, it came from the direction of the pink-haired girl named Madoka.
"Bastard, who is it?!" Just as the recorder was about to capture the definitive evidence, they were interrupted.
The man and the cultist yakuza immediately spun around viciously, their gazes, along with everyone else's, landing on the source of the sound.
In that direction, a pink-haired girl, looking no older than twelve or thirteen, was glaring at them furiously. The man dismissed her non-threatening gaze instantly.
The black-haired, black-eyed young man standing beside the girl was also subconsciously ignored.
At this moment, all their eyes were fixed on the floor, on a golden ring that was bouncing and rolling. That must have been the culprit that made the sound.
To the ordinary medical staff and the onlooking patients, it was a common gold ring. Judging by its size and weight, it was probably worth no more than a million yen.
But in the eyes of the man and the cultists, the ring exuded an irresistible allure. It even made them momentarily forget about Homura, their breathing growing ragged.
As the few of them panted heavily, their eyes faintly red with madness, the previously unnoticed black-haired, black-eyed young man stepped forward and planted his foot on the golden ring.
He cut off their scorching gazes and drew their heated stares to himself.
"You—"
The man and the cultists were about to say something, but Su Mo spoke first.
"The Gold of the Nibelungs. Possess it, and you shall possess power and wealth."
The introduction seemed baseless, yet the men before him believed it completely, without a shred of doubt.
"This is for you," Su Mo said again, speaking words they couldn't believe. Then, he turned his gaze to the plain-looking girl with the black braids.
"The child is mine."