JSWGAS Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Chapter 17.

It wasn’t until a pair of hands grabbed Kokonoe Hikohito by the collar and dragged him up from the wreckage that he stopped groaning in pain, forced to lean his upper body back by the force.

The other party didn’t hold back, clutching his collar tightly, as if choking his neck. A sharp pain shot through his ribs from the brutal kick, and shards that had pierced his back poked through the fabric of his clothes and into his flesh, causing him such agony that he almost lost consciousness.

Only then did he feel the weight of his body, the excessive tension, and the burden of his sins pressing down on him all at once. He felt his collar become soaked, and the intense smell of blood dominated his nostrils. Kokonoe Taka forcefully twisted his head, looking down at him with a savage gaze that seemed ready to devour his flesh and flay his skin.

Kokonoe Hikohito blinked rapidly, his eyes darting around uneasily.

“Don’t be like this…” he said guiltily, blinking even faster, “It hurts—!”

Kokonoe Taka expressionlessly punched him in the stomach, and Kokonoe Hikohito cried out in pain, almost vomiting, and began to beg for mercy.

“I didn’t do it on purpose!” he kept saying, “It was just an accident!”

Even a priest in a church wouldn’t forgive him on behalf of God for what he did. Thinking this, Kokonoe Taka grabbed him even harder, clenching his right hand. The slightly congealed wound instantly tore open again, and he used his fist to viciously strike Kokonoe Hikohito’s handsome, righteous face.

His blood stuck to Kokonoe Hikohito’s cheek. His face was knocked askew, and with a muffled thud, Kokonoe Hikohito uncontrollably spat out a tooth covered in blood and saliva.

The pain made his anger burn uncontrollably. Kokonoe Hikohito struggled, trying to pry off his son’s hand, almost tearing the flesh off his left arm. His fingernails left a series of shocking scratches on the back of Kokonoe Taka’s hand. But that hand was like the talons of a true hawk, unmoving with irresistible force.

“Let go of me! You little bastard!” he yelled, the filthy words he spewed encompassing the limits of human imagination, cursing everyone from the boy in front of him to his unconscious wife not far away, using increasingly unbearable and vulgar language.

Kokonoe Taka listened to every word he said, determined to forever remember the face in front of him, twisted with fear like a demon. He smiled coldly, his eyes devoid of any affection for his blood relative. Then, he raised his fist again and swung it down heavily. Blood gushed from his fingers, splattering both of them.

But Kokonoe Hikohito was, after all, an adult man. He overturned his son and reached out to strangle him. The latter twisted his arm with one hand and kicked forcefully towards Kokonoe Hikohito’s pressing body with both legs.

Kokonoe Hikohito had to let go. At the same time, he punched Kokonoe Taka in the cheek without yielding. Kokonoe Taka deftly tilted his head, and the punch missed his eye but bruised his cheekbone.

The two separated, glaring at each other like two fierce beasts. Kokonoe Hikohito could no longer find a trace of the obedient child he once knew. He spat out a mouthful of bloody phlegm and laughed hysterically as he glanced at his wife.

“You dare hit me,” he said.

Kokonoe Taka also laughed.

“I fucking hit you because you deserved it.”

Both of their faces, though not similar, now carried an astonishingly fierce malice.

“You wanted to kill my mom.” He clenched his fists, and an astonishing fire of anger burned deep in his pupils.

Kokonoe Hikohito defended himself: “It was a fucking accident!” he said resentfully, “Your mom wants a divorce, why should she?”

“Because you’re scum.” Kokonoe Taka mocked, “Any dog you drag in from outside has more humanity than you.”

“I’m your dad, and she’s my wife! I won’t allow you to leave—”

“Who wants to escape?”

It was like grinding off sharp beaks, pulling off claws, and tearing off the feathers of wings, “You can’t hurt her again.”

“Relying on you, this little brat?”

Kokonoe Taka stopped talking. He lunged at Kokonoe Hikohito, swinging his fist with a desperate ferocity. Kokonoe Hikohito refused to be outdone, and the two wrestled together. At first, the adult had the upper hand, but Kokonoe Taka showed an amazing tolerance for pain and finally found an opportunity to knock him down onto the glass coffee table.

The coffee table couldn’t bear the weight of the two people and shattered with a crash, the sound echoing in the air. Kokonoe Hikohito couldn’t control the trembling of his hands, his tense nerves snapped, and his whole body trembled with stabbing pains. Cold sweat slid down his spine, mixing with blood.

He screamed in agony, rolling around on the broken glass.

Kokonoe Taka backed away, panting. He was no less disheveled than Kokonoe Hikohito, even more miserable. Blood stained his body, and he felt as if he had been run over. His mouth was full of the taste of blood, his neck was bruised, and his skin was covered with red marks and swelling.

He looked down at the cursing man.

It was hard to imagine that a boy of only a dozen years old could gain the upper hand in a fight with an adult. His eyes were silently saying, “Do you dare continue?” His spine seemed to support the heavens and the earth, and no amount of torment could bend it.

Kokonoe Hikohito flinched. He gasped for breath, curling up his hands and feet, showing a clear state of passivity.

After everything had settled down, the door of the Kokonoe house was finally pushed open by the adults who had arrived late. Haisaki Daisuke and Oikawa Ryūsei from next door took the lead, followed closely by Iwaizumi Lady and Oikawa Miwako.

The commotion at the Kokonoe house was enough to turn the usually quiet street upside down. Haisaki Daisuke and Iwaizumi Lady collided with the Oikawa couple, who had hurriedly come out to see what was happening, at the door of the Kokonoe house. The locked gate blocked their way, and Haisaki Daisuke finally kicked it down decisively, allowing the group to move forward.

The door was almost torn off its frame. They passed through it with trepidation, almost thinking that the Kokonoe house had been broken into by ruthless thugs and that the residents had met with misfortune.

But after passing through the corridor and seeing the living room in disarray as if a storm had passed through, Kokonoe Sumiko lying unconscious on the sofa, Kokonoe Hikohito rolling on the broken glass and moaning softly, and Kokonoe Taka, the only one standing, covered in blood and wounds, all their previous thoughts were overturned and replaced with gaping shock.

Haisaki Daisuke, who had experienced all kinds of storms, was the first to recover. He ran to Kokonoe Taka’s side. They had only been apart for a brief fifteen minutes, but the boy looked completely different from before.

“Where are you hurt…” As soon as he asked, Haisaki Daisuke immediately realized it was a pointless question. He knelt down in frustration, put his arms around the boy who was standing straight, and pried open his right hand—”Damn it.” He couldn’t help but curse.

It was a bloody mess, but the only fortunate thing was that it looked terrifying. In reality, the wound was not too deep and had not damaged the nerves or bones. But Haisaki Daisuke grimaced, feeling the pain as if it were his own.

Iwaizumi Lady and Mrs. Oikawa carefully bypassed the mess and knelt beside the sofa to check on Kokonoe Sumiko. “She’s alive.” Iwaizumi Lady breathed a sigh of relief, took out her phone neatly, and began to call for an ambulance and the police.

Mrs. Oikawa looked at her friend and couldn’t help but redden her eyes. She gently checked her breath, and then tears welled up in her eyes. Iwaizumi Lady squeezed her hand, her own eyes slightly red as well. When the call connected, she stood up, walked to the side, and explained the situation in a deep voice.

The last remaining man was left to deal with Mr. Oikawa. He struggled to drag Kokonoe Hikohito out of the debris, and the latter almost immediately fainted.

Kokonoe Taka watched expressionlessly as his father was carefully placed on the smoother ground and then looked towards his unconscious mother.

Haisaki Daisuke followed his gaze. He easily noticed the hatred and malice in the boy’s eyes when he looked at his father, and only worry when he looked at his mother. He immediately made a judgment about the current situation.

“What happened?” he asked softly.

Gray eyes briefly looked at him.

“Kokonoe Hikohito wanted to kill my mother,” he stated, his voice extremely hoarse, like sandpaper grinding against a surface. Haisaki Daisuke noticed the terrifying ring of purple handprints on his neck.

“Damn it.” He cursed again, stood up, and bent down to pick up the boy. The boy didn’t struggle, just watched his movements.

He asked, “Haisaki, can you take me to the landline?”

Haisaki Daisuke didn’t correct his address and obediently carried him over.

Kokonoe Taka reached out his right hand, but after seeing the blood, he switched to his left. The landline had been knocked over, but it still worked. With a surprising calmness, he dialed his grandfather’s phone number and told him everything that had happened at the Kokonoe house in the span of a few short hours. Except for his hoarse voice, it was as if the injuries on his body didn’t exist.

Haisaki Daisuke also said a few words through the microphone, proving that adults were already on the scene and would take over the chaotic situation. After Kokonoe Taka told his grandfather not to rush and to be careful on the road, he hung up the phone and called his maternal grandparents in Hyōgo Prefecture.

After doing everything, the sirens of police cars and ambulances came from outside the window, putting an end to the night’s turmoil.

The street became noisy in the chaos. Residents who had been awakened in the middle of the night opened their doors to complain but were attracted by curiosity and couldn’t help but peek out to watch the excitement.

Kokonoe Sumiko was carried into the ambulance on a stretcher, and Mrs. Oikawa, not bothering to go home and explain, hurriedly sat in the car with her friend and headed to the hospital. The second to appear was the disheveled Kokonoe Hikohito, also unconscious and carried up. Mr. Oikawa took advantage of this time to go home, send the hesitant Oikawa Tōru back, and lock the door before getting into the car like Mrs. Oikawa, acting as a temporary caretaker.

As the only conscious and aware person involved, Kokonoe Taka refused Haisaki Daisuke’s help and got into the ambulance with the police. Iwaizumi Lady stayed on the scene, explaining what she knew to the police who were collecting evidence and driving away the neighbors who were gathering around the Kokonoe house.

Haisaki Daisuke knew that he actually had nothing to do with the whole thing. But he still went to the hospital with Kokonoe Taka. He really couldn’t let go of the boy he had brought home and even felt that he needed to take some responsibility for what had happened.

The long day finally came to an end!