Chapter 22

"So."

"Soo.."

"We had sex."

"Yes, we did."

Hagakure and I were sitting on a bench in the campus after the romp in the shower. Suffice to say, we needed to have a talk.

"Uhmm... are.. Are your legs fine?"

"Uhh.. I f-feel a little w-weak, but, yeah! A little sore.. uhm.. there."

We sat in awkward silence for a moment before I asked, "Where do we.. you know, go from here?"

Hagakure fidgeted and replied, "T-Tozen-kun, I was overwhelmed and.. I'm not like that. I don't know what came over me."

'I know exactly what happened to you. But, I can't tell you that, can I? It'll ruin our friendship, forever.'

"I-It's fine, Hagakure. Let's just, not change the dynamic between us and label this as.. A one time thing?"

She sighed in relief and replied, "Yeah. A one time thing. I really don't want anything to ruin our friendship. Thank you, really."

We talked about things that didn't involve the sex, all the while a single thought kept reverberating in my mind, 'You are absolute scum, and a coward, Tozen.'

(APIBNHA)

I went to a bar that night.

Hiding my face and a pair of goggles covering my eyes, I drank as I wallowed in self-hate. I had a allowed a girl to think that everything that happened was her fault. I was a coward who wouldn't face the reality.

I returned to my appartment late in the night, drunk from all the whiskey I had chugged. As soon as I opened the door, I rushed to the washroom and vomited everything out.

The Savages man was wide awake when I entered the room. He wasn't in any pain and he had been healed by me because I didn't want him to die by my hands.

"Back again to take your frustrations out on me, huh?"

I was not wearing the mask of Michael Myers and he could see my face.

"I can't believe a brat like you could get the better of me."

I ignored him and slumped against the wall.

"You are one sadistic motherfucker. You'll be right at home with us 'Savages'.

"I'm not a monster like you."

He laughed and said, "Oooh but you are. The way you tortured me... Hmmm.. It wasn't your first, was it? I know you can do a lot worse. I can see it in your eyes. You 'want' to listen to my screams, right? Come on, tell me, have you done other, savage things? Have you raped anyone, yet? Let me tell you, it's the best. When you have a noisy little shit pinned down by its throat and you are ploughing inside it with all of your strength, there's nothing more arousing than its choking sobs. And the finish... oh, the finish. It will tighen around your cock when it's about to die. It's the greatest felling. A shame you can't sell its meat at a higher price. Rich people want their meat 'unsullied'."

Hate overwhelmed my mind. Hate for myself, hate for the monster in front of me and hate for the 'Savages'. I bludgeoned his face with fists until it was unrecognizable. Yelling from rage, screaming and crying, I came to stop when the man was left barely breathing.

'This world... It is too dark. Living with my morals intact, it's going to be impossible. My mind, my will, it's not strong enough. I feel the responsibility to save those who can't save themselves. I feel the responsibility as someone with powers to do the right thing and stop people like this from harming others. But, I can't do it without becoming one of them. Batman never killed and it brought suffering to thousands of people who died at the hands of the villains. Time and again, they would escape and kill, only to be thrown in an asylum. I cannot be like Batman. This world doesn't need a 'Batman'. It needs someone else. Something... worse.'

It was inevitable.

For better or worse, I was beginning to change.

(APIBNHA)

Sunao was away for a week long trip to a film studio. It was organized by her university. She called me to congratulate me for my win and promised to celebrate it after she returned.

Her being away was good as I was an unstable emotional wreck.

I healed the savage back using 'Life dew' and he was back in his chair, tied and gagged so that he couldn't speak. I wasn't confident in myself to not snap his neck if he went on another of his reminiscing of the brutality of his gang.

I roamed the streets at night wearing a black hoodie and 'the mask' while using 'Camouflage' to hide from any heroes. Musutafu was in no way a safe city. The number of missing persons in Musutafu and the surrounding cities was baffling.

'How the fuck did they manage to stay under the radar?! How incompetent or corrupt does the law inforcement has to be for things to escalate to this level?! And, right under the nose of U.A.?! If this blows up, the reporters will lynch all the staff at U.A. for being so incompetent.'

Every city in the world was a Gotham of its own.

'If I don't calm down, I'll end up losing my mind and will have to be put down by the heroes. I need to be away from this filth before it corrupts me beyond which there's no return.'

I spent the next day at Dagobah beach, swimming in the ocean, away from the horrors of the world. The sea managed to numb down the hate festering inside me. But, I feared getting out and returning to the bleak reality of the world.

There was only one solution left. Only one thing that could save me from spiraling further into the abyss.

'I need to get a pet.'

(APIBNHA)

A/N: So... a pet. MC needs a companion with whom he can share his thoughts without them judging him. A pet is perfect for him. It's not stupid, pets help people, a lot. They are the best.