One Above All

Chapter 13: The beginning of a dark path.

Hiro was not at all happy at this moment; Kishibe's words had dug very deep into his mind and lingered there as a constant reminder.

For once, he wanted to help someone. For once, he wanted to prove that he was capable of aiding people, even if they weren't human to begin with; Makima could have been the perfect example to start with, but Hiro wasn't allowed to be within 5 meters of her. What was the problem in the first place? Makima was a devil, Hiro could be okay with that as long as she didn't try anything that would threaten his life, though so far she had proven to be very...docile. That word didn't sound right, but he would find another word later to describe Makima's behavior towards him.

But anyway, there shouldn't be any problem with him associating with Makima. So, why then was Kishibe doing everything in his power to keep him away from her? What was so special about that girl that it caused Kishibe to become so angry?

Hiro didn't understand, and he hated not understanding something, but he hated it even more when no one made an effort to help him understand.

What a morning it had been, filled with so many things in just a few hours, and the day was far from over. It was probably only 11 in the morning, but Hiro felt as if it were closer to 10 at night; being in those facilities felt like an eternity, yet he didn't regret the trip.

Perhaps what he did regret a little was not saying goodbye to Makima properly, what an embarrassing way to part ways. Hiro also considered that Kishibe couldn't be the only person in the world who could give him the answers he sought. He had Quanxi too, but that also depended on how willing she would be to provide those answers. Of course, Quanxi was one of those people who didn't communicate much, but somehow said a lot with a few words, or at least that's how Hiro saw it.

He also wasn't too sure if Quanxi would have the time to talk to him; it was rare to see her at the apartment, and sometimes she would just come to drop off Kishibe's drunken body, then she would leave and return at most two months later. There was no time to talk to her besides saying a simple hello or giving her a small hug.

Another person, but now the most unlikely, was Makima herself; only she could possibly answer the doubts he had about her, but now those possibilities seemed very limited. Hiro also knew it was his fault that Kishibe was in his current state, he had disobeyed his orders and went on a strange adventure with a demon girl or whatever Makima was.

But they didn't have to screw him over like that, after all, he made it out alive from all that. Makima had also shown to be someone who desperately needed a person with whom to express her emotions, she needed a friend, a family, Hiro could be that person. But now they wouldn't even let him get close to her. He hated this.

Gradually, Hiro began to feel his eyelids heavy, so much thinking, frustration, and crying had exhausted him to the point where he felt he should take the rest of the day off.

Hiro spent almost the entire afternoon sleeping.

0O0O

"Is he crying because you didn't buy him his favorite toy?" Quanxi tried to make a joke among all the tension that had been unleashed in the place. She tried to give Kishibe a smile that would even make him faint, but to his bewilderment the hunter didn't seem to pay that much attention as he just looked at his glass of whiskey in his hand. Her fake smile gradually died until she returned to her typical cold face.

"No, it's more complicated than that" Kishibe told him "Besides the boy got rid of his toys a year ago, he became more interested in literature"

"That explains the stack of books he has in his room"

Kishibe nodded "Do you know how hard it is to get a copy of the Divine Comedy in Japanese? I almost ran out of the prefecture, but it was something the boy wanted for his birthday"