《G O O D B Y E 》GOJO S. x READER [BOOK 3]

《O N E》

“Uh,” The man stood up, pulling the child up as well. “I’m not sure. I...I don’t think anyone has been in there since...since Neoma-nee passed.”

She looked at her brother for a moment. “I’m going to go inside.”

“Y/n, I don’t think that’s a good idea,” He frowned. “That’s going to smell bad. Plus...you know Okaasan didn’t want you going in there.”

“Neoma was my sister too, Shota,” She said, rubbing the back of her neck. “Though, I didn’t know her for very long.”

“Just...be careful,” Shota warned, shifting the child to his hip. “There might be a curse sealed inside of there. I’m pretty sure that’s why we weren’t allowed there when we’d come to visit Sobo,”

“Yeah, I know,” She said. 

Moving towards the door, she paused. A shudder ran down her spine when she grabbed the knob. Brushing it to the side, the woman opened the door, walking inside of the room. She frowned as she felt around for a light, though she found nothing. 

Snapping her fingers, the room became illuminated by a flame that sparked near the ceiling. Immediately, her eyes fell upon the curse. It was curled up in the corner of the room, cooing and sniffling softly. Its eyes were shut, fat tears rolling down its cheeks. Its body didn’t look human...but it wasn’t like anything she’d ever seen before. One side of it seemed to be human, with smooth, porcelain pale skin, and delicate-looking hands. The other side looked decayed, flesh rotting and falling off to reveal the skeleton beneath it. 

“N-No, H-H-Haiyaku-sama!” It cooed. “N-Not m-my f-f-f-f-fault! I-I-I di-didn’t do it. S-S-Swear! S-S-Swear! It wa-wasn’t me!”

She frowned, her eyebrows furrowing together. This curse wasn’t hostile. It seemed...frightened. 

And that’s when she saw it. The stone covering was moved to the side, revealing the empty space within it. Looking down, she read the tag. 

Haiyaku Neoma.

Her eyes widened. 

“W-W-W-Wasn’t me!” The curse said, shaking its head. “I-I would n-never lie t-t-to you, H-Haiyaku-sama!”

Her eyes shifted towards it. “What are you?”

Slowly it stood up. It had the resemblance of a boy. Curly black hair, and a milky purple eye. If she didn’t know any better, she would have thought she was looking at a normal boy. However, half of his body was gone. The left side of his head, eye, and cheek were missing, only having the skull to show. Parts of his arm were missing as well, along with his fingers, and some of his leg. He raised his hands up, fumbling with his fingers. 

“I-I am the g-guardian for the H-Haiyaku-sama graves,” It said. “I keep the b-bad spirits away, and protect those w-who’ve passed.”

Suddenly, it began to weep again. 

“O-Oh! B-But I’ve failed!” It said, shoulders shaking with its tears. “Neoma-sama! I-It wasn’t me! I swear, Haiyaku-sama!”

“Where is Neoma’s body?” She asked. 

“Oh, I-I’ve never seen it b-before,” It said, wiping its cheeks. “In all m-my years! My 651 years of p-protecting! I’ve n-never seen a body rise!”

“Rise?” She echoed quickly. “What do you mean, rise?”

“I-I was tending to J-Juno-sama,” It sniffled. “When I heard s-something. When I come back, I-I saw the stone moving on its own! Oh, p-please! Sp-Spare me, Y/n-sama! I d-didn’t do it!”

She ignored that it knew her name. “Shut up, I’m not killing you. Go on.”

“N-Neoma-sama...she just s-stood up! S-She walked right past me, she did! W-Walked right out!” It exclaimed. “I-I called to her, b-but she ac-acted like I w-wasn’t there!”

“When did this happen?”

“Why..i-it was t-two days ago, it was,” It nodded, confirming itself. 

“Your given name as the guardian deity,” She said. “What is it?”

“A-Athanasios, m’lady,” It bowed to her. 

“Can you leave the family spot, Athanasios?” She asked, opening the door. 

“W-Well, y-yes, b-b-but--!”

“No buts,” She said. “You’re coming with me.”

“I-I...o-of course, Y/n-sama,” It said, nervously trailing after her. 

“You can take a human appearance?” She asked. 

“Y-yes…”

She glanced back, watching its flesh heal over the spots where it had decayed. His eyes shifted from a milky tint to a shimmering shade of amethysts. 

“Y/n? What’s going on?” Shota asked as she walked towards him. “Who’s that?”

“Apparently,” She said, raking a hand through her hair. 

“The dead just can’t fucking stay dead.”

《CHAPTER ONE: END》
《IMAGE NOT MINE》