Chapter 26

Dropping my backpack into my room, I quickly tied up my hair into a small bun and changed into a tightly wrapped shirt, making sure that everything was neat and bunched up. Sprinting outside the house after briefly telling my mom I was going to visit a sick friend, I checked my watch.

5:30 pm.

I'll get there by 6 pm if I'm early. I grunted and paced myself faster, this time breaking my record for running.

-(Gore. If you do not like, skip to the next line break. Basically she just tortures)

"So these two are your family members, huh?" I eyed the two trembling women who were screaming just moments ago before I entered. Seriously, their shrieks of anger could be heard throughout the entire house, which was a good thing that Shinori was quite rich and that his house was in a fairly spaced neighbourhood.

"Gagged their mouths, Shinori, Tsubame." I barked as the two followed my orders nonchalantly, shoving some balled up sock into their mouths. When the younger girl spat it out, I picked up the sock, flickering my gaze at her before turning to touch her saliva on the round part of the material.

"Who are you?! Did you order-"

I shoved the piece of sock roughly into her mouth, grabbing a fistful of her hair before slamming her face into the basement floor. I stepped onto her face as her muffled screams sounded through the cloth. I grinded a bit on her until she teared up.

"Listen," I yanked her hair to turn her black eyes at me. "You do not question me, or I will make your death so painful that even if you beg me to kill you, I will not."

"Understood?" My voice was cautious yet harsh, forcing her watery eyes to lower onto the ground in a sob.

I flung her body away from me, kicking the chair with my boots. Thank goodness I wore boots, good lord, that kick would have made my foot hurt.

"Shinori, do you have nose pliers?" I asked innocently as he nodded. "Well, what are you waiting for? Bring it over!"

Shinori hurried over with his toolbox and pulled the pliers out with his trembling hands. I turned to Tsubame and ordered her to stay where she was and keep quiet.

"Alright, let's try Tokyo Ghoul style. Shinori! Pull all the toenails from your wife with that plier!"

Shinori moved immediately as the wife's eyes widened, kicking her feet at her husband's stomach before Shinori grabbed her left foot. Sensing danger, the woman flailed her legs even more, successfully kicking him backwards onto the ground. Tears streamed from her face as I grunted from his slow-wittedness.

"Shinori, tie her legs together."

I watched him struggle a bit with the ropes before successfully tying her limbs down, binding her with a garden rope found somewhere in the basement drawers.

"Pull them out."

"Stop! Please!" I heard Shinori's cry before he ripped his wife's big toenail out, sending splatters of blood onto the ground as the woman howled through her eyes, the gag was soaked with her saliva. In the corner of my eye, the daughter stared at her father with pure horror, then at me, before shrieking through her mouth. Too bad nothing came out of it. Only muffles and tears.

"Oh? You can talk?" I raised my eyebrows as I watched Shinori's finger clench the pliers, yanking out another nail from his wife. The woman's body spasmed from the loss of two of her nails, blood dripping in between her toes. Something inside me cringed painfully.

"Stop this- Stop!" Shinori screamed and broke his voice. "I beg you-stop!"

"Oh, that's right!" I gasped in fake shock. "I forgot to silence you!"

"Aha, so the victim will still be able to speak their thoughts if I don't order them to be silenced." I nodded as I watched him pull out another nail with sharp apologies. My heart hammered in pain.

"Shinori, no talking, no crying!" I sang out as his voice instantly disappeared.

I watched as the two struggled over each other, one desperately trying to tell the other to stop, the other desperately trying to stop.

It was futile though.

My own insides lurched at the scene, gagging a bit of vomit into my mouth before I swallowed it back down. Something inside me moved, trying to get me to stop him.

I wanted to bark orders to stop, but instead, another callous voice came out from my mouth.

"After you're done with the nails, move onto her fingernails. If she faints, wake her up with cold water."

It was like something unstoppable.

One moment I was talking about how interested I was in dissection, but to actually see a person get lively tortured...

Shinori's hand pulled out several nails at the same time, ripping her skin from her whole toe.

This time, I actually threw up.

Food started spewing from my mouth as I felt the stench, tasted the bile, and the acidic lurching that rammed into my stomach.

My eyes watered at the scene, banging my fist onto the wall.

Stop- Stop him!

My insides shrieked as I leaned my body against the wall, gasping as dribbles of foul rolled down my mouth.

No.

Watch this.

You have to be crueller.

The woman's screeching could be heard inside my mind even with the gag. I dry hurled again, thick mucus sliding out of my mouth.

Girl, stop this.

The voices inside me hissed at my reckless decision.

No. I have to be crueller. I have to learn. I have to-

You. Will. Lose. Your. Sanity.

I've lost it ages ago!

I forced my eyes at the bloody scene before turning away, noticing the woman's sweat mix in with the blood that was coating the white gag.

You do not want to be a second Light Yagami, now stop this nonsense!

I wanted to. I desperately wanted to.

But- but-

Doing things like this will not make you stronger. It will only mess you up.

The voice rasped with razor-edged tones.

You do not want to end like Macbeth.

You will not dirty your hands.

You must win without losing your sanity!

I shrieked.

"Stop! Stop! Stop it!"

Everything went deathly silent.

Shinori's wide eyes turned back at me in desperate relief, the sweat rolled off his neck as he hyperventilated in the bloody air.

I was breathing hard. Very hard.

"Torture-" I gasped before accidentally stepping into my pile of vomit. But I couldn't care about it anymore.

"Torture is not for me." I shook my head as my trembling hands flew towards my mouth, sobbing from the stress. It was laughable.

The whole time I was bluffing about being able to gorge out someone's eyes and intestines, but I couldn't even take this. It was so laughable because I felt like I was selecting my university major, so sure that the major was suited for me, but after actually taking the classes, I instantly regretted it.

In the past, I killed because of anger and hatred. I hated my parents, loathed them.

Wanted their deaths.

I could kill from a distance, I could order someone to wrench out their own guts. But to actually see- and smell- and knowing that I could've stopped it-

Bile started to rise, causing me to slouch over onto the cold concrete ground.

My vision blurred.

They were innocent! I had no reason to cause pain to someone who didn't hurt me!

I couldn't torture them.

And the method that I used-

Using their loved one-

How could I be so cruel? I knew that it was soul-wrenching when someone you trusted-

I gagged.

This was my weakness. I hated it.

But it was something I needed to have in order to keep my sanity.

My past. I hated it.

I hated how my past created my twisted mind that also forced me to sympathize with people similar to my situation.

But this was to keep my sanity.

If I had thrown away my last bits of sympathy...

It was the only way to win.

It was like the ironic journey of Voldemort.

He craved immortality and power, but he went too far and lost his mind.

Killing off emotions was the key to victory, yes, but going too far would force me to lose the game.

A player could not play a character if the character had too many debuffs.

I heaved in another breath before grabbing a kitchen knife that laid on the table and stalked towards the woman, squatting down to her eye level. Without blinking, I smoothly slit her throat, forcing all her blood veins to burst from her neck, spraying my whole face in fresh blood.

It smelled so foul.

"I'm sorry-" I hiccupped. "I'm sorry, I'll end all your pain quickly."

I turned towards the daughter who lay on the ground, shaky staring back at me with lifeless eyes.

"I'm sorry-" I lowered my head in apology, slamming it repeatedly onto the ground until my own blood poured out. "I should have ended you guys quicker."

It hurt. It really did.

But that was nothing compared to her mom.

I closed my eyes and plunged the knife into her throat, twisting it as I felt her body struggle in pain from under me. A moment passed before she finally dulled and gave up.

"I'm sorry, I really am." My tears dropped repeatedly from my face as I stumbled towards the man who was quaking on his knees. I dropped down, exhausted.

"But I ended them correctly," I gasped out before turning to Tsubame who had her pale white face frozen.

"Tsubame," I croaked and beckoned with my hand. "Come here."

She stiffly did as I peered into her horrified eyes, seeing my own gorey image reflected in her orbs. I was covered with blood, from head to toe. Red painted my entire face like I was sprayed with paint. It honestly terrified me that this was what I reflected in her eyes.

But a job was a job.

This was my mistake that I had to bear. It was a mistake that I could learn from.

Torture was definitely not my thing. Even if it was, I should not have done this so messily. This should never happen again. I gulped down my saliva and looked around.

This was a terrible mistake. But I'm glad I ended up ending things the right way.

I breathed in a deep sigh, trying to recall what just happened.

I will not forget. I will only accept.

Everyone makes mistakes. Do not fret.

A wave of calmness flooded over me before I stabilized the washing emotions, breathing in the boxed formation.

Breathe, hold. Exhale, hold. Repeat.

I cracked open my eyes.

"Tsubame, forget everything that happened here," I ordered as she stared at me blankly.

"Now, tell me what happened." I pronounced slowly, trying not to trip over my own words.

"You ordered Shinori to pull out the woman's toenails," Tsubame's voice came out trembling as I raised my eyebrows.

Okay, so a memory wipe is not possible.

I turned back to Shinori who was heaving motionlessly, staring dreadfully at the dead bodies of his child and wife.

The conscious will also remain.

I faced Tsubame.

"The memory from the time you entered this house, you will not be able to resurface it back into your mind."

Tsubame's eyes went completely blank.

"Tell me what happened," I commanded.

"I..." Tsubame scrunched up her face before turning to look at me with confusion. "I don't remember."

Ah, so my powers depended on how I asked them.

By physically commanding her to block the memory from her mind, she would not be able to think about it. I nodded at my new discovery.

"Tsubame, you will now go to the living room. Whenever you try to recall the memory that happened at Shinori's house, nothing but blankness will come to your mind."

Her steps disappeared out of the basement as I turned to look at Shinori.

"You will lead me to your bathroom and take a shower yourself. Drop Tsubame and me a block away from our houses, and go back home. Wait until 2 am at night. Burn this house down along with yourself."

I closed my eyes.

Never again. I repeated.

Never again.

Author's note:

This will probably be the last gore scene of the fanfic. Other than that, it will only be straight-up murdering.

If you want to know the psychology in OC's brain...I made a reference as torture being like the wrong choice of major. OC knows it's wrong, but instead of being traumatized, she just thinks it was a mistake that she could learn from.

The killing was normal to her.

Other than that, the reason why she repeatedly apologized and sympathized with the mom of her pain, was because in her past life she was in their position. Constantly being ordered around, helpless and hopeless for the future.

Honestly, this was one of the biggest risks I took with this character. Initially, I wanted to go forwards and have her torture the family to the end, but while writing the fanfic, I realized that OC has changed from the beginning. If she never felt the need to be attached to family or people, she would have continued on.

But being Sayu, she found a family better than her first one. She found Light interesting and had something to look forward to since her trip to the Mafia showed her people similar to herself.

Ambitious, greedy, and self-centred.

That's why she's beginning to feel accepted. She started to feel more humane.

But that's also why, instead of ordering Shinori or Tsubame to kill, she did it herself to prove that she was a threat to people. She could kill, harm, and end people if she wanted to.

The acceptance did not weaken her.

It only showed her a broader view of the world and her own limits. Also i should note: everyone makes mistakes. Whether you take this chapter as a good sign that she stopped or bad that she stopped, the world is not a pretty place in the beginning. (at least thats just my point of view.)

Anyhow,

Have a good day! Hope I didn't scare you away.

Also, a spoiler ahead, but she will torture people later on.