“Halloween is almost here.”

As October was about to end, I went out to buy several things for the upcoming Halloween.

You might be wondering what I do in my sophomore year of high school, but I don't plan on doing anything remarkable. I just go get ready and eat with my friends.

“Lightsaber and pumpkin headdress… Perfect.”

I have a friend who likes to cosplay, and he said he would prepare an elaborate costume for this Halloween, but for someone like me, this should be enough.

“…Huh?”

I was on my way home, having been satisfied with my purchase, when my eyes fell upon a particular house.

"Shinjo-san's house?"

The Shinjo sisters, two beautiful sisters in the same year at the same high school I attend. They are both stunning and have a style that no idol could rival. They have received countless declarations of love, but they were so firm that they rejected them all.

Note: If you don't understand what "firm" means, it refers to being strict, cautious, or something like that.

My house is right at the end of the street, so it wasn't unusual for me to run into the brothers and say hello on my way to school.

"Good day."

"Good day."

That's the kind of relationship we have as neighbors; I don't mind them greeting me, even if it's just a little.

It's a past thing, since they're both very pretty girls. Of course, we never went to school together or talked.

in class, but I was sure we knew each other.

“Well, they are truly beautiful. And of course, their mother is very pretty too… Anyway, why do they have the front door open like that?”

It was past 3 p.m. when I went shopping. It was already quite dark because I had been busy for a while before heading home.

I saw that the front door wasn't lit and was wide open, and I had a bad feeling.

“…It can’t be a robbery or anything like that, right?”

I laughed and tried to continue on my way, but I was still curious. I approached the house with a carefree attitude, thinking I should apologize if they got angry, but what I heard as I got closer was the voice of a man I had never heard before.

“Kukuk, I don’t care about money anymore, here are a bunch of nice women. Hey, you brats! If you don’t want your mother killed, take off your clothes.”

"Smell-"

It seems I've stumbled upon a situation that's about to get drastically worse.

I managed to peek out, very careful not to be seen. Then I saw a huge man holding Shinjo-san's mother in his arms, squeezing her breasts and telling the sisters to undress quickly.

The mother is crying and seems unable to speak for fear, while the two sisters, on the other hand, obey the man's order even though they should already be able to run away and scream for help. I heard their father died young, but the family was very close, so they managed.

I suppose the sisters are trying to help their mother in some way, since she's the only one they have left.

“……………”

I decided to call the police for the time being and checked my belongings.

The only things I had on hand were a lightsaber and a pumpkin helmet I had bought to dress up for Halloween.

The sisters are already in their underwear, and if this continues, it will surely fulfill his disgusting fantasies.

"…Shit."

I muttered under my breath and put the pumpkin helmet on my head.

I've always been able to demonstrate my skill better when I cover my face like this. That's also why I managed to win a national kendo tournament when I was in high school.

“Okay, here I come.”

I don't usually like to interfere in other people's business, but I can't ignore something like this.

Here I come, Hayato Doumoto, second-year student at Akagi High School!

*Point of view changed

“……………”

“Nee-san…”

How could that be?

I never thought I would be the one to go through this…

It was late October, near Halloween, when I returned home with my sister as usual. The door was unusually open, which made me uneasy, but we went inside without thinking much of it.

It seemed to me that there was a dreadful silence and I had no idea that a man was strangling my mother.

My mother, who was being held by the thick arms of that man whose body seemed much stronger than ours as women, seemed to be struggling to break free from his grasp.

When the man saw us arrive home, he pointed a knife at my mother and threatened to kill her if we moved. I was terrified; I wanted to run away, I wanted to scream and call for help, but I was afraid that if I did, he really would kill my mother.

“…Are you really going to release her?”

"If you do what I say, then yes."

……

If I could save my mother's life by undressing, it would be a small price to pay. So I took off my clothes, and my sister followed suit. The man demanded we undress, and although it was terrifying to think about what would happen next… I wanted to save my mother somehow. But I also wanted my sister to escape somehow.

"If he escapes, that'll be a problem. Hey, tie his arms and legs."

The man then handed the rope to my sister.

My mother is also tied up at the wrists and feet, so I guess she doesn't plan on letting us escape easily. Her malicious smile, as she watches my sister tie me up, makes me want to throw up. I feel sorry for my sister, who is terrified and on the verge of tears as she does it.

that he orders him to.

“That’s why all men are like that…”

It has always been this way. Men are nothing more than savage, vulgar, and vile creatures.

The only man I ever wanted by my side was my father, who married my mother. He loved my mother until the very last moment of her life and loved us like his own daughters.

"Kukuk, okay, that's fine. Let's have some fun then!"

It seems the man chose my sister as his first victim when he saw that I was tied up.

"Wait! Don't you dare touch my sister!"

"I'll deal with you later, so shut up!"

The man yelled at me and slammed his knife against the wall.

My mother and sister let out a small cry when the blade pierced them deeply with a dull thud. I can't scream loudly, what if it hurts them?

I was about to cry… No, I was already crying.

Ultimately, that's how we always end up being irrational. The accident that caused my father's death was also a consequence of that irrationality.

“…Fuck… fuck fuck fuck!”

I clenched my fists tightly and dug my nails into them.

I clench my teeth so hard my tongue feels like it's going to cut me… my sister is about to be raped by a man right in front of me, and I can't do a thing. Faced with such absurdity, tears begin to well up in my eyes.

"…… aid."

It was a faint murmur.

It was at that moment that I wished that if anyone is here, please help us, please help us…

Something made a noise and rolled toward the center of the room. It was a tennis ball that must have been left in the entrance.

“One? A tennis ball?”

The man watched it roll past and tried to pick it up.

But then, someone burst into the room with great force, not missing the moment when the man's attention was completely turned away from my sister.

"That…?"

Faster than the man could react, a stick-like object glowing red fell on his shoulder. The man dropped the sheet he was holding, feeling the pain, and was immediately struck again.

"Cough... Who the hell are you...?"

“……!?”

"…… Pumpkin?"

That person looked at the man who was writhing in pain; he was wearing a pumpkin helmet.

He was probably a man because of his physique, but why was he wearing a pumpkin helmet?

That question kept running through my head, even though just a moment ago I was terrified.

“I don’t know if you’re a thief or a rapist, but for now, you’re done here.”

Just as the pumpkin man said this, the sound of sirens echoed in the distance. He tightly bound her hands and feet so she couldn't move, and he also untied the ropes that bound my mother and me.

"Fuck you... Let me go!"

“Of course you don’t like it. But criminals should be held accountable.”

The piercing gaze that peeped out from the gouged-out eyes was sharp and enough to demoralize the man.

“Here, get dressed. Everything is fine now.”

“Ah.”

"Everything's fine now," he said, and I was already losing patience.

Forgetting to get dressed, I crouched down there and screamed. My sister cried as she followed me, and my mother hugged us and cried too.

“The blanket is in just the right place.”

Then, he covered us with a blanket.

Although I had a close relationship with him at that time, I never felt disgust.

that I have always felt for men.

“Thank God. Truly.”

“……”

Those words, which seemed to be uttered without realizing it, seemed to be filled with a certain sweetness.

I felt my cheeks getting hot quickly... and so did my sister.

During this incident, the man was arrested and we all escaped unharmed. And the one who saved us from this horrible situation was a man wearing a pumpkin helmet.

What can I say? It couldn't have been more fateful, I felt... no, we all felt the same.