Collapse Iron: Cosplaying the Near-Death Star, but with a full destiny.

Xing's face turned red again.

She discovered that she couldn't have a normal conversation with Hoshino at all.

This person has an incredibly thick skin.

It's as thick as a city wall.

"and."

Mohoshi's voice suddenly softened.

The playful tone subsided somewhat, replaced by something deeper.

"Weren't you staring at the hole in my chest?"

Xing's movements stopped.

"I saw it."

"Itohoshi continued."

"Your face turned very pale when you touched that mark just now."

"You're scared."

"I'm afraid I'll end up like me."

"I'm afraid that a hole like this will be dug into my chest too."

Xing didn't speak.

Her hand was still on Hoshino's shoulder, but the pressure had loosened.

The water rippled gently between the two people, making a soft, rustling sound.

"You want to get closer."

Hoshino's voice was soft, with a peculiar gentleness.

"You want to see clearly what this hole is."

"You want to know... what it feels like to be consumed by nothingness."

"Right?"

Xing's Adam's apple bobbed.

She wanted to deny it, but the words stuck in her throat, and she couldn't say them no matter what.

Because what Hoshino said is true.

She had been thinking about it ever since she first saw that black mark.

What exactly is that thing?

What would it feel like to be corroded by it?

What if one day, a hole like this appeared on my chest...

Can I... still laugh like Hoshino?

"You don't need to be afraid."

"That's what Hoshi said."

"I won't let you become like that."

"I know."

Xing finally spoke.

"You already said that."

"So what are you struggling with?"

Hoshi tilted his head.

"You've already pinned me down here, what are you still hesitating for?"

Xing looked down at her.

The moisture blurred the air between the two people.

As Hoshi lay in the water, the dark mark was faintly visible under the light.

Her eyes were bright, and her face wore that smile that would never fade.

Despite having such a large defect in his body, despite having such a terrifying hole in his chest.

She looked so... vibrant.

So full of life.

Xing suddenly thought of something.

As Hoshi once said, that illusory mark sometimes made her feel "empty".

It's not an emptiness in the body.

It's psychological.

It is the kind of emptiness where a part of existence has been removed.

That feeling is hard to describe.

It's like... you're standing in the middle of a crowd, but you feel like there's an invisible wall separating you from everyone else.

You can see them, you can hear them, but you can never touch them.

You are alive, but you always feel like you could disappear at any moment.

That feeling must be really unpleasant.

You must be very... lonely.

"Noriboshi".

Xing's voice became very soft.

Do you... sometimes feel a sense of 'emptiness'?

Shihoshi's expression changed slightly.

The change was very subtle, fleeting.

If the two hadn't been standing so close, Xing wouldn't have noticed at all.

"Occasionally."

"That's what Hoshi said."

"But it's not a big problem."

"As long as there are people around, as long as I can feel the warmth, that feeling will be much less intense."

"temperature?"

Xing repeated the word.

"yes."

A smile crept onto Hoshino's lips.

"The concept of nothingness, to put it simply, is 'nothingness'."

"So as long as there is 'something' to fill in, it won't be so arrogant."

"For example, eating delicious food, watching beautiful videos, and so on..."

She paused deliberately, glancing down at him.

"I was pinned down in the bathtub by a pretty girl."

The two of them felt that the other was their younger sister.

"..."

Xing was speechless.

Can't this person speak properly?

"I'm serious."

Mohoshi's expression became more serious.

"That guy Ahab said that 'pleasure' and 'nothingness' are natural enemies."

"The happier the experience, the more it can suppress the influence of nihilism."

"So that's why I'm always grinning and joking?"

"It's because I have to stay happy."

"Otherwise, this hole will keep getting bigger and bigger, and it will swallow me whole."

Xing's heart clenched suddenly.

She suddenly realized something.

Doboshi's cheerfulness, Doboshi's carefree nature, Doboshi's playful smile...

Those things may not be entirely innate personality traits.

That was her way of surviving in this world.

Hoshino: Hahahaha, just kidding! It's fucking natural!

Xing: ? How come you're more like me than I am?

It was her weapon against the black hole in her chest.

It was a mask she had to wear to avoid being swallowed by nothingness.

wrong.

It can't be called a mask.

Because of that cheerfulness, that enthusiasm, that love for life...

They are real.

They were simply exaggerated.

"so."

Hoshi's voice pulled Hoshi back to reality.

"I'm actually quite happy that you've pinned me here."

"The water is warm, and your hands are so soft."

"The nothingness is probably trembling in a corner right now."

As she spoke, she deliberately scooted closer to the stars.

The left hand emerged from the water and gently rested on Xing's wrist.

"Your hands are so cold."

"That's what Hoshi said."

"Did you get caught in the air conditioning when you ran past the bathroom door?"

Xing looked down at the hand resting on her wrist.

The fingers are long and slender, with a thin layer of calluses on the fingertips.

Those are marks left from years of holding a baseball bat.

It's such a slender hand, yet it has done so much.

Wielding a baseball bat, he killed countless enemies.

Pressed onto the ground, it gave birth to the divine tree that sheltered the entire galaxy.

And just now...

She rubbed her chest.

Thinking of this, Xing's face flushed again.

"you……"

She spoke, her voice a little hoarse.

Are you really okay?

"What?"

Hoshi blinked.

"That...hole."

Hoshi's gaze fell on Hoshi's chest.

Below the water's surface, that dark area was faintly visible.

"Will it... really not make you feel uncomfortable?"

Mohoshi remained silent for a while.

Then she smiled.

That smile was different from any of the previous ones.

He's lost some of his cynicism and gained more sincerity.

Yes.

she says.

Of course.

"Sometimes when I wake up in the middle of the night, I suddenly feel like my whole body is empty."

"My mind is blank, my heart is blank, I can't even remember 'who I am'."

"That feeling was terrifying."

"It's like... being erased."

Xing's breathing stopped.

"but."

The tone of the voice changed.

"As long as I can feel 'something' there, the emptiness will subside."

"For example, the feel of the bed sheets, the hum of the air conditioner, and the vibration of the train engine outside the window."

"As long as there is evidence of my 'existence,' nothingness cannot completely control me."

As she spoke, she gently placed her fingers on Xing's wrist.

The movement was very light, as if afraid of scaring something away.

"Now."

Hoshi looked up and gazed into Hoshi's eyes.

"Hold me down."

"I can feel your hand, your body temperature, your weight."

"All these things are telling me—I'm still alive."

"I'm still here."

"I haven't disappeared yet."