Chapter 1 — The boundary line, the marriage between a girl and a wolf. Part 1
Because my lifespan was spent, I died.
Because I was afflicted with a strong illness, I died.
Because I was run over by a car, I died.
Because I drank poison, I died.
Because my neck was twisted, I died.
There are endless ways to die.
And yet, there isn"t a single way to live.
Just how unfair is that.
Surely, whoever created life and death is looking down at us from high above, jeering:
— Each and every one of you should all just die—
I too should just die.
Because I was eaten by a wolf, I died.
Goodbye. Even though I have no one to say my farewell to.
~~~
Just earlier, I was walking through the gorge between the vast forest and the city as a chilly September air enveloped the place.
On my right, there were fences of houses while on my left was a pitch black forest, which the houses faced away from.
The forest, having existed for far longer than the city, was as dark as the thousand nights that had pa.s.sed through this road, so quiet that it seemed to repel people, so dark that nothing could be seen within.
I had never ventured into that forest for I had been told to never go inside it. I was just someone who lived in the city.
A small shadow stretched out behind me on the asphalt. Compared to the darkness of the forest, the man-made city lights seemed a bit unreliable.
Maybe due to the new moon, the narrow road seemed even more vacant than usual in this quiet and cold night.
It was then that a silver wolf appeared in the distance, not at all disturbing the tranquility with those footsteps which were as silent as that of a shadow.
A truly beautiful, yet lone wolf it was. Pure white fur that shone slightly from within the darkness, black eyes so dark they seemed to pull me in at only a glance, and a st.u.r.dy body slightly greater in size than that of a fully grown large breed dog.
If the wolf was white, then I had to be black.
My bangs that hung down to my eyes, my long hair which fell down to my hips, my big eyes, as well as the outdated sailor uniform and even the stockings I wore were all black. If anything, only my skin was a sickly white, or to put it nicely, pure white like the first snowfall.
Black and white, two contrasting layers. Even though they are composed of the same colors, they are perceived on the spectrum as two opposing sets of colors.
The only exception to that was my lips. They were the shade of a slight, lukewarm red.
The red stood out so much that I could clearly sense the wolf gazing at my lips.
The color red could easily be a.s.sociated with blood, flesh---food.
My tongue traced my lips as if applying some sort of lipstick on them while I imagined the taste of blood.
I was just like a ripe fruit, a fruit comprised of blood and meat.
In the end, the wolf must be simply thinking of eating me.
Or maybe…I"m inviting him to do so.
Even if I tried to think of a way to escape, I wouldn"t be able to come up with a single one. I was fully aware that anything I did would be useless.
The wolf took one step forward, shrinking the distance between us even more.
I will die here.
I thought, calmly and coldly. I tried to think of someone, but no one came to mind. Even though I was slightly hesitant to die, I also had no attachment to life whatsoever. I couldn"t think of anyone, friends or family, that I wouldn"t want to be separated from.
All there was, was emptiness.
"What a boring end."
The sound of my muttered words was even colder than the nocturnal wind.
And probably, the wolf hadn"t been able to hear it.