Chapter 67 - Bonus : Axel's Third Mission

The sun had greeted the world with its warm light, kindly giving the Livedam city a taste of sunshine.

Axel could not sleep a wink last night. Everything was overwhelming, confusing, and scary.

He was scared about what had happened to him. Had he imagined all of that? Had he dreamed? Was it all just his hallucinations? Had he gone mad? It all felt so real.

Or was it?

The bodies were real. Axel had killed twenty people last night. But he still felt like it was only a dream.

Kiaran wasn't letting him rest until three in the morning. He had to train to be a better murderer—a better brother.

Axel just did not know anymore. He did not know why everything was happening so fast; everything was spinning. He felt like the world was consuming him slowly, and he could not breathe, he couldn't-

"Axel! Wake up already. We're going to be late!" Yelled his brother. Kiaran's voice had managed to bring Axel back to reality.

Right, it's Monday. The weekend was over. He should prepare for school.

Axel found himself stumbled across his room. He managed to glance toward his window. The boy couldn't help but notice how the weather was fighting with the forests as the trees were trying to stand despite the wind's rage.

Maybe this was for the best. He needed to do it for his brother. Axel was just overreacting. Maybe he was too tired that day. Everything would be fine, and yesterday was just one of those bad days. He should relax.

He opened the door and found Kiaran sitting on the dining chair with a disapproving look. His brother stared at him with his hands crossed over his chest, a sardonic smile stayed on his face.

"Took you long enough," Kiaran commented. A glass of coffee in his hand was almost empty. Two plates of scrambled eggs were on the table, untouched.

"Sorry." Axel choked. The wan boy dragged his feet to the dining table. He was completely out of it. He took a seat and ignored the third and fourth chairs as always. He sighed as he began to eat his food slowly.

Kiaran raised one of his eyebrows upon seeing his brother's state. He took a mouthful spoon off his plate, eyes still locked on his little brother. "You alright?" He finally asked.

Axel did not answer though. His eyes were fixated on his breakfast. An absent look was adorning his face.

Kiaran wrinkled his eyebrows at that as his blue eyes calculated the boy in front of him. The mercenary shrugged in the end and decided to leave the boy alone.

After eating their breakfast with uncanny silence surrounding them, they started to walk to their school together just like they usually did.

They passed several familiar buildings. The traffic sounds wafted through the air while people were busy going to their own destination. Axel couldn't help but ignore everything. His head was still pounding from the lack of sleep he was having.

When they passed a certain familiar amusement park with police lines surrounding it, Axel felt a dread eating his stomach away, remembering how he had been the one who did it all.

"It's tragic, isn't it? A fun place that turned out to be a misery." Kiaran commented, and Axel only listened like he always did.

Time passed by so fast as they suddenly arrived at school. Axel quickly lumbered to the building. His eyes were heavy, and his right shoulder was itching. He deafened his surrounding, ignoring how every student clumped together in groups.

When he reached the class, he went to the seat on the second row near the window and threw his bag at the table. He slumped in the seat and stared outside. Sun was glaring at him, yet he didn't care.

Rune was not here today. She was on a trip with her father, the president. Axel was kind of glad she wasn't here. He could not bear the guilt on how he had been a murderer and let her be friends with a criminal.

"Alright, everyone, get back to your seat." A man with a fancy suit went inside his class. It was the principal, of course. He loved showing how wealthy he was.

Axel looked over at the principal, deciding to stop his eyes from burning for looking at the sun too long. He tilted his head slightly at the woman beside the principal with emptiness. It was the new teacher.

"Good morning, everyone. I am here to announce our new history teacher who's going to be your new homeroom teacher too." Declared the principal.

Chatters rang across the class. Everyone was talking in a hushed whisper. Axel felt his curiosity building up and tried to listen to what his classmates' were talking about.

"I heard mister David got into an accident yesterday." A girl with a ponytail that Axel did not remember the name said. The other girl in front of her turned her body slightly to her friend. "What? Really? So the school is replacing him already?"

"Yeah, I don't know the full story, but I heard that he died." The girl continued. A terrified look was showing on her face.

"I bet it was the hitman. He's been haunting the city once in a while. We're lucky we are not living near the forest. Most people died there." Commented a boy beside the ponytail girl. The girl's eyes went wide at that.

A playful smirk bloomed on the boy's face. "Who knows, it's just a matter of time before-" He slowly put his hands on the girl's shoulder and whispered, "-he kills you too."

The girl let out a shriek and punched the boy lightly. "Stop it! You're scaring me!" The girl cried. The boy laughed at the girl.

"Father?" Axel mumbled to himself, frowning. So his father killed his homeroom teacher? What a coincidence.

"Attention, please, everyone!" Beckoned the principal almost angrily. Axel was startled at the sudden yell. The whole class went silent afterwards.

The principal cleared his voice and fixed his tie. "Miss Mallory, you can introduce yourself to the class now. I'll take my leave." He nodded to Miss Mallory and left the room. The sound of his footsteps could be heard echoing in the hallway.

Everyone's eyes were gawking at the new teacher now. Her red hair went well with her sapphire eyes. She gave a nice friendly smile and inspected the room. Her eyes caught with Axel for a second, and the boy could feel the warmth radiating from her look.

A warmth like a mother's eyes.

Axel wondered if his mother's eyes were this warm too.

"Right." The teacher cleared her voice before making her smile even bigger. "Hello everyone, my name is Leila Mallory. You can call me Miss Leila or Miss Mallory. It's up to you!" She exclaimed excitedly.

"Miss Leila, how old are you?" Someone on the back row asked. Everyone's eyes seemed to stay on the teacher, waiting for an answer.

Miss Leila giggled, "Oh my, have I looked that old already?"

"No! You look so young. That's why we want to know!" Someone in the class yelled, and sounds of agreement filled the class.

"Oh, I'm blushing." She darted, her straight hair bounced as she spoke, "I'm not that young actually. I'm supposed to be 31 now." She admitted. Everyone in the class gaped at her.

"Besides, age is not important, you know." She walked around the class. Her pale skin shined brightly as the sun brushed her skin from the window. "You know what's important? History." She hummed, causing everyone to groan at her statement.

"Everyone remembers the kingdom that used to stand in here? The kingdom fell in the year 1842 as the result of the big massacre." She explained. Axel found it hard to keep focus as the throbbing in his head became worse.

"Because of that big massacre, this city was called the city of tragedy from the outsiders." She continued. Sapphire eyes glimmered as she told the story.

Axel could have sworn Miss Leila was still talking, yet he could not hear anything. Everything was moving so fast. His shoulder was burning again. It got worst every time he tried to move.

His mind was ringing. Cold sweats were forming on his forehead. The world was all blurry and he could not see anything.

His breath was ragged. He could feel his own laboured breaths. The pain ricocheted through him, and he could not take it anymore.

He could faintly hear Miss Leila scream as he fell.

✵✵✵✵✵✵

Axel groaned in pain as he woke up. His eyes squinted as he opened them, trying to adjust with the light. His head was absolutely killing him. His right shoulder had just gotten worse now. He could feel the pain spreading to his neck.

Maybe he should have used his left hand for shooting instead of using his right hand only. Kiaran was right. He needed to train more.

"Oh, you're awake!" A soft voice sang beside him. He turned his head slowly and spotted a familiar red hair.

He almost thought it was Rune if it wasn't for the loss of ponytail adorning the red hair or the height.

"Miss Leila?" He vaguely asked, squinting his blue eyes at the woman.

"Yes, it's me." the said woman smiled. "You've been out for two hours. You really make me panic on my first day you know." She teased while helping Axel get up.

"Sorry." He choked. He depended on miss Leila who was helping him to sit on the bed.

The woman was startled by the 12-year-old's answer. "Oh no, no, I'm just teasing you, don't be sorry for something you didn't do." She tried to justify softly.

"Axel, right?" She pointed out, and the Vergessene slowly nodded. "Okay, do you want a drink?" She continued, and the boy nodded again.

She quickly rushed to get a glass of water before handing it out to Axel.

Axel drank all of it in one go, gulping every single liquid that went inside his throat. He quietly whispered a little thank you to Miss Leila as he finished.

"Don't worry about it, you're my student after all." She addressed and ruffled his hair fondly.

Axel blinked at the sudden physical touch and watched her as she brought out her phone from her pocket.

"Is there anyone I can contact right now? It's better if you stay home for the current time since you need more rest." She asked, a kind etched smile staying on her face without a single waver.

"Uh, my brother's at school right now. I can just wait in here? He will pick me up after school." Axel answered. He smiled at her politely.

She nodded in understatement. "Do you have any parents I can contact besides your brother? Or any relative?"

Axel contemplated his answer for a moment. His thought went over his father and Adreanna, who was still not coming home.

He bit his lips nervously and answered, "no, I don't have any parents or relatives."

Guilt flashed over Miss Leila's eyes. "Oh no, I'm sorry." She uttered apologetically.

She stood up, her hands brushing her clothes as she adjusted them. "How about I drive you home?" The woman offered kindly, looking at him with two warm sapphire rubies that adorned her eyes.

Axel stuttered at the offer. "Don't you have any class right now?"

Her hands waved in dismissal. "No, this is my first day, I was supposed to introduce myself to your class and look around the school, nothing more." She explained, trying to pick her words thoroughly as if Axel was some kind of a wounded animal.

"I could ask the principal to send you home." She added. Her words were sweet like caramel.

Though it was a shame, really.

"That's great then," Axel exclaimed bitterly with a sweet voice that tried to cover the bitterness.

The mute murderer's face morphed into ice. The boy shoved down the emotions in his heart as he stared at the kind woman.

As he stared at a person that might be the first one to worry about him just like Rune did.

"I'm sorry, miss."

It was a shame, really.

Axel wondered in between his hands that were choking her. Maybe that was how it felt to have someone worry about you. Like a mother that he never had.

Her sapphire eyes slowly turned red from the lack of air she got. The boy held her neck tight, refusing to let it go as he just stayed silent at the dying woman.

It was a shame, really.

When the woman slowly went limp on his hold, Axel did not tremble a lot like he did last night.

It was a shame, really.

When Kiaran told him to kill a new teacher that would arrive at the school today, and yet the older trained him all night, causing him to get sick in the middle of learning.

But this must have been his brother's plan. So he could kill her easily when no one was around.

It was a shame, really.

The woman was too kind, but Axel learned how to shove down the guilt in his heart and just stayed silent.

He was supposed to be mute anyway.

And so the boy finished his third mission with Kiaran that was clapping his hands in the doorway. Axel looked over to his brother to see a grin full of insanity and mock.

"You finished your training today, you may go to sleep now." Kiaran closed the door slowly, walked away and disappeared from the hallway.

Was it a shame, really?