A Book Can't Be Judged By The Cover

Chapter 131: Nightmarish Dream

Hajime’s ears rang in shock as his entire face absorbed the slap. Ricardo had big hands, and his fingers dug into Hajime’s cheeks as if he was being slapped by metal bars. Blood spurted out of his mouth as the slap went across, and the same red substance dripped out of his ears as he coughed.

It was just one slap, yet he felt like life was sucked out of him. Even the guards, who were holding him still, flinched at the sheer power of the slap.

Even though Ricardo mentioned something about Hajime enjoying himself, it was he who was actually enjoying himself. His first slap didn’t end there. He delivered another slap on Hajime’s face using his left hand, sending him straight to oblivion and back. For a moment, Hajime felt like his consciousness drifted away and returned in an instant.

He could’ve sworn he saw the bright light at the end of the tunnel when he was slapped a second time. And then when the third slap came... well, he didn’t feel anything anymore.

Oddly enough, he began feeling numb, thanks to his adrenaline doing all the work for him. There’s still his consciousness on the verge of leaving him behind, but aside from that, the slap felt like nothing. As his face swelled in incredible proportions, Ricardo continued slapping the living daylights out of him.

"Um, boss... isn’t this— " One of the guards who was holding Hajime felt like he had to step in. However, after seeing Ricardo’s trigger-happy expression, he cut himself short and pursed his lips instead.

With every slap, the guards flinched. Hajime’s head swung back and forth as silence filled the air. The only thing that could be heard was the occasional slapping sound from yours truly.

Well, there was one other sound in the room, but no one paid attention to it— or rather, no one wanted to pay attention to it.

"STOP IT! PLEASE~ STOP!" Megumi repeatedly screamed while she tried to get out of her binds. A moment ago, she had given up on any thoughts of escape, but seeing Hajime suffer a one-sided beating in front of her gave her the push she needed to struggle again.

However, her screams just fueled Ricardo’s inner rage even more. His slaps got even stronger, and for every scream, a slap and a groan were heard. It’s already obvious where the groan was coming from— Hajime.

"HAJIME! PLEASE~" Megumi’s voice cracked as tears continuously streamed down her cheeks. She was furious, scared, but she didn’t want Hajime to die. "I’ll— negotiate with my dad! With his connections, he should be able to get you out of the country without any problems. My dad has a personal plane, you can take it! Just, please... stop this..."

Another blow was coming right at Hajime’s face, but Ricardo stopped halfway upon hearing Megumi’s suggestion. It was definitely tempting, and for a moment, he considered doing it.

A devilish grin appeared on Ricardo’s face again before he kicked Hajime down on the ground, toppling the guards holding him in place. Hajime didn’t even feel his ribs crack because he was already numb to pain. It was beyond doubt that he broke a couple of ribs though since he started spitting blood.

"I’ll consider it." Ricardo adjusted his knuckles before walking towards Megumi. With his pudgy hands, he touched Megumi’s hair and kissed her on the cheek. "You know, no one will know what happens here, right?" He whispered.

SLAM!

As Hajime’s consciousness dwindled, he heard the door to the warehouse slam open, and three familiar faces entered.

.....

Where am I?

What is this?

Hajime couldn’t tell whether he had been dreaming or not. Everything was so fuzzy, so hazy as if his entire surrounding was filled with thick mist. When his vision cleared, however, he saw a familiar face peering down at him.

Akiko wore an impish smile on her face while holding a marker in her hand. She didn’t even notice that her brother was already awake— or rather, she noticed it, but she decided to continue writing on her brother’s face with a permanent marker. An ’X’ and an ’O’ were squiggly written on both his eyes, and dots that resembled moles littered his cheeks.

"Gah~ Akiko?! What are you doing?!" Hajime grabbed the pillow on her head and slammed it at Akiko’s face without hesitation.

But Akiko was quick on her feet. Before the pillow even grazed her, she was already out of the room, hopping out of the door and heading straight to the kitchen. She gleefully tugged at her mom, who was contemplating whether to cut the sandwiches diagonally or vertically. frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓

"MOM!" Hajime screamed as he bolted upright and dashed out of his room. There, he saw his dad in the living room, sipping a cup of coffee while watching something on television.

The moment he saw Hajime’s face, he sprayed coffee out of his mouth as he started chuckling. "What did you do to your face? Are you sick in the head, son?" Sasajima Seiji uncontrollably chuckled.

"What? Me?! It was Akiko." Hajime called out, pointing a finger at Akiko before he approached her with malice.

Akiko continued wearing her radiant smile while she hugged her mom from the front. She figured that using her mom as a shield would discourage her older brother from bullying her.

It didn’t deter Hajime; he reached his hand to pinch his younger sister by the cheeks before going to the bathroom to wash the marks on his face.

Somehow, Hajime felt like he was forgetting something important that flew right past his mind, even though he should’ve stuck to it. While it may seem that way, Hajime still decided not to think too much about what he had forgotten and instead focused on the long-awaited trip before him.

After months of working overseas, his parents finally had the leisure of a day off, and they were going to the sea. It had been so long since they’d been to the sea, that’s why Hajime was looking forward to it— a special trip that should’ve been uneventful, but it ended in a tragedy.

Hajime was washing his face mere moments ago, but the next thing he knew, he was already out of the house, all dressed up and ready to go. He exclaimed under his breath, surprised that time skipped for him for some reason.

"What are you waiting for, Hajime? Get in," Seiji called out from behind the wheel while her sister peeked her head out from the backseat windows.