Crossover anime, starting with Hachiman Hikigaya replacing Subaru Natsuki!

"Even someone as strong as Anastasia ultimately succumbed to the rage and tears of this blonde little girl... because she clearly realized that, regardless of who was at fault, Beatrice needed an outlet for her anger."

"...Hachiman Hikigaya hesitated outside the hall, about to turn and leave, when Beatrice instantly detected him due to the connection between contractors."

"With a tearful cry of 'Hachiman,' Beatrice threw herself into his arms and burst into tears."

"Beatrice has a cute face, a pleasant voice, and great skin. Hachiman Hikigaya is at a loss, but his bewilderment has nothing to do with Beatrice's virtues."

"British...Tracy?"

"The sound of calling out the name she had heard from Emilia, a sound filled with unfamiliar emotions, froze Beatrice, turning her face pale and causing her arms to fall limply to her sides."

Startled by Beatrice's reaction, Hachiman Hikigaya scanned the hall with pleading eyes, but everyone who had just been reprimanded by Beatrice avoided his gaze, unable to offer any help. He was the only one qualified to speak to Beatrice now.

Hachiman Hikigaya hesitated for a moment, then tentatively said, "I'm sorry...?"

"No, no, it's not like that—you idiot, you big idiot, you big idiot!" Beatrice choked up, managing to utter the accusation haltingly. "Why, why did you have to be alone? With the magic crystal, you could have woken Betty up immediately."

"Betty is...Betty is yours...You can't even protect your own contractor...Hachiman, you fool, you untrustworthy liar! Do you think Betty will be happy if you lose your memory? Can Betty still find happiness? --Liar, big liar!"

"Betty would absolutely—"

"Crying and sobbing, she spoke of a promise that only the two of them could understand, but suddenly, Beatrice realized that this promise was now only understood by herself."

She looked up at her contractor with sorrow.

"This liar who once promised to run towards happiness with her now looks visibly confused and helpless. He stammers, as if he's thinking about how to respond and how to comfort her."

"—Like this, like this…Betty, Betty…Ah, ooh, ahh…"

Beatrice was stunned at first, then she trembled, her body went cold, and she felt as if a knife was cutting into her heart. She gritted her teeth and lowered her head, wanting to say countless things, but unable to say anything.

"Only trembling tears kept dripping."

"Hachiman Hikigaya then knew what he had to do... He sighed softly, embraced Beatrice, and gently patted her back, letting the girl lean against him. "Cry, cry it all out, Beatrice, but don't be afraid, don't worry... The Hachiman Hikigaya you know will definitely come back, those memories will definitely return one day."

"If it were Emilia or Crusch, Hachiman Hikigaya doesn't think he would do that."

"But Beatrice is just a little child... He doesn't have any desires, he doesn't feel inferior, he doesn't have any thoughts of avoiding suspicion, he just... simply treats Beatrice like a little sister and does his best to comfort her."

"Just like we treated Rumi Tsurumi."

"No, that's not true!"

"Beatles, choking back tears, raised her head again, her eyes red as she retorted, 'The promise I made with Betty, the days we spent together are important, that's true... but whether my memories can come back, Betty didn't care about that as much as you do... It's you, you idiot, Hachiman, you idiot, you've lost your memories, you're bound to overthink things!'"

"He'll overthink things, become suspicious, distrust others, and secretly grieve... Betty doesn't want to see Hachiman become like that!"

She shook her head, gritted her teeth, and sobbed, "Saying that the Hachiman Betty knows will definitely come back, Betty knew that Hachiman would think that way. If it were Hachiman, he would never accept these feelings."

"Hachiman Hikigaya froze, stunned. He stared blankly at Beatrice, and finally understood how profound the meaning was of what Miss Emilia had said earlier: that Beatrice was the one he had spent the most time with and knew the most deeply about."

"The person who understands Hachiman Hikigaya the most in this other world isn't Julius, isn't Emilia, isn't Crusch... it's Beatrice!"

"But Hachiman is Hachiman, Hachiman is right here. You are the Hachiman that Betty knows, you are the Hachiman that Betty made a contract with. No matter what kind of Hachiman you are, Hachiman is Hachiman. It has absolutely nothing to do with whether you are the Hachiman before you lost your memory or not. You are the Hachiman that Betty loves!"

"While crying, Betty lifted Hachiman Hikigaya's right hand, holding his right hand in her own, one hand in front of the other, to give him warmth."

"You have to accept it, you can't run away—it's too late to abandon Betty, to abandon Betty and your feelings for her, you idiot! You've already made a pact with Betty, no matter how much you overthink, you can't abandon her, you can't do that, you stupid Hachiman!"

"Beatrice's outbursts and angry outbursts at Emilia and the others were never because she was afraid that the promise would be forgotten or that it could not be kept."

"What she was worried about from beginning to end was Hachiman's own sentimental thoughts, which caused him to be mentally conflicted, anxious, and even hurt himself. If it were Hachiman, he would definitely do the same, Beatrice knew that."

"Because she's Hachiman's contracted spirit, Beatrice, with whom he spends every day!"

"...I can feel the contract with Beatrice, the connection between our souls."

"Hachiman Hikigaya knew that the situation had reversed. It wasn't him comforting Beatrice, but Beatrice comforting him."

353. Suspicious Points: The Fallen Crusch

"Although Emilia and the others tried their best to reassure Hachiman Hikigaya, they also tried their best to prove to him that he was the same person before and after his amnesia, and that he had never changed much, so there was nothing to be afraid of. The Hachiman Hikigaya they valued was him."

"So far, only Beatrice has said that no matter what happens to Hachiman Hikigaya, she will always stand by his side."

"Their intentions may be equal, but for the suspicious Hachiman Hikigaya, Beatrice's approach undoubtedly puts him at ease."

"...Therefore, Beatrice quickly replaced Crusch as the number one otherworld in Hachiman Hikigaya's heart."

"This is partly because of Beatrice's unique way of speaking, but also because Beatrice is a young girl, so Hachiman Hikigaya won't feel any pressure when he's with her."

"Curly's beauty and figure are undoubtedly the most attractive to men. Hachiman Hikigaya, after returning to his original state, is ultimately not able to stay with such a beautiful girl for long; he would feel pressured."

"For this reason, Crusch isn't actually the second one... the second one is Julius. Being with someone of the same sex is very easy for Hachiman Hikigaya, and Julius's possessions, which are similar to Hayama's, also make him feel relaxed."

"If Julius weren't Anastasia's subordinate, and there weren't separate factions, Hachiman Hikigaya would actually be happy to put him in first place."

At the Karlsten mansion, Crusch waved her hand. Having experienced so many ups and downs, she was now more able to accept falling again.

At least we didn't lose to Anastasia, which is good.

"Losing to Beatrice, who has a contract, isn't a loss. Anyway, she and I don't want the same identity. As for Julius..."

Crusch held her head high, puffing out her moderately sized chest, and said with a wry smile, "At least it's not Anastasia. If it's just Julius, then we should be secretly happy."

Phyllis, standing to one side, had a strange expression on her face. She had witnessed firsthand how Lord Crusch went from being ambitious to having increasingly lower and more humble demands, until finally reaching the pitiful state where he could be happy for half a day just by gnawing on someone else's scraps.

"On the way back to Roswaal's mansion in the dragon carriage, Hachiman Hikigaya basically spent time with Beatrice, Julius, and Emilia in turns."

"From these three people, he heard their descriptions of Hachiman Hikigaya from their own perspectives, and thus gained a general understanding of his actions after coming into this world."

"Hachiman Hikigaya felt that the most time-consuming thing was listening to Julius talk. He basically didn't hear any objective evaluation from Julius. From beginning to end, Julius was just praising him on his own."

"First, he would talk about one of his actions, and then Julius would explain the benefits of that action from all aspects, such as how noble his character is, etc., which made Hachiman Hikigaya speechless—he felt that this guy might have something in common with Hayama."

"Back when the Service Department received the confession request from the Ministry of Revenue, Hayama also openly and secretly asked him to help. While asking, he also subtly praised him, implying that 'Hayama is not as good as Hikigaya' and 'I am not good enough. You can do things that I cannot do.'"

"That nauseating feeling has inevitably resurfaced now, thanks to Rieus's flattery."

"Hey…"

Inside the karaoke bar and the Hexin Trading Company, both Hayato Hayama and Julius wore expressions of pride. These were their heartfelt words; only Hachiman Hikigaya in the entire world would think they were exaggerating.

"The most useless one is Beatrice. It seems that because she only got involved in the later stages, she didn't participate in many things at all and only heard about them afterward."

"All Beatrice could say was about her experiences with Hachiman Hikigaya over the past year, including those habits and details... which were somewhat useful, as these incredibly familiar habits and details made Hachiman Hikigaya even more certain that the person he was before his amnesia was indeed himself."

"Well…"

Beatrice puffed out her cheeks in anger. She only joined the group much later, and now she was filled with regret. So, she wouldn't make the same mistake this time.

"Emilia also wanted to praise her knight, but in order to satisfy Hachiman's desire to know the past, she had to hold back and tell him everything that happened after meeting Hachiman, and how Hachiman dealt with it."

"She hardly interfered with any of her own ideas throughout the process... because that would have taken too much time."

"Hachiman Hikigaya thought about each point carefully, and while listening, he couldn't help but nod in agreement."

"The actions he took until entering the Sanctuary were the same measures he would have taken, and he would have done the same even now. He wouldn't have stood by and watched someone die... but there are still many doubts."

"From a hindsight perspective, how could Hachiman Hikigaya have predicted the location to intercept Emilia for the transaction, how could he have known the specific details of the White Whale, and how could he have known the effects of Petritch's powers?"

"Where did these messages come from? That's a big mystery."

To Hachiman Hikigaya's questions, Emilia replied matter-of-factly, "I don't know."

"Hachiman Hikigaya felt a headache coming on. 'Didn't you even ask?'"

"No, it's only natural that Hachiman would know, since he's so amazing, right?" Emilia tilted her head innocently as she answered. "Hmm... I remember now, Otto did ask me about it later."

Hachiman Hikigaya's eyes lit up. He had gained a preliminary understanding of the administrator Emilia had mentioned. It seemed that Emilia's camp did have some shrewd individuals: "Does 'I' have an answer?"

"Hachiman said it was a secret, and Garfiel's eyes widened with excitement. He thought it was so cool."

Emilia gestured, but her answer was unsatisfactory. Hachiman Hikigaya could clearly see that before his amnesia, he must have been hiding secrets from Emilia and the others.

"But that secret has become untraceable due to his amnesia, just like that Rem."

"...Yes, Rem."

"According to Emilia, Hachiman was actually quite insecure before he lost his memory. His confidence only emerged after the White Whale Extermination Campaign."

"Considering Hachiman's posture after learning that Rem had been attacked and was unconscious after defeating the Bishop of Sloth, it's easy to deduce that Rem must have confessed her feelings to him before or during the battle against the White Whale."

"Only a woman's heartfelt encouragement and love, her sincere confession, could cause such a huge change in Hachiman Hikigaya."

"Hachiman Hikigaya understands this."

"Because he was rejected when he confessed his feelings in junior high school, he could only get rid of his inferiority complex by being sincerely confessed to. He would never be confident if he didn't get back up from where he fell."

"Hachiman Hikigaya, that's exactly the kind of person he is!"

354. Probably not.

"So, he's very curious."

"Hachiman Hikigaya felt that even if he fell completely in love with Yukinoshita, or was subtly confessed to by Yukinoshita, given his personality, it would be difficult for him to immediately feel confident."

"Thinking about it this way, I can guess just how passionate Rem's confession to him must have been to achieve this effect... It's something Hachiman Hikigaya couldn't even imagine."

"Yes, when it comes to the intensity of her confession, Miss Rem's confession is truly unmatched."

At the Hexin Chamber of Commerce, Anastasia readily agreed, "In this respect, I really can't compare to her. After all, I value endurance more. Someone like Miss Rem... perhaps only she can achieve that."

Even if someone could see the future, they would never be able to imitate it.

"But it doesn't matter—even if my words can't compare to your fervor, my feelings for the Prime Minister are definitely second to none!"

Patting her chest, which was much flatter than Rem's, Anastasia smiled confidently and proudly.

Mimi originally wanted to clench her fist and shout "Yay!" to support the young lady, but when she saw the young lady puffing out her chest, she suddenly felt that although her heart wouldn't lose, her figure would.

Before curiously seeking out Rem, upon returning to the Roswaal mansion, Hachiman Hikigaya was greeted with a warm welcome from his older sister, Ram.

"What exactly is amnesia?"

"Bang!"

"At first, Ram didn't believe that Hachiman Hikigaya had lost his memory, but after she met him at the gate of the mansion and questioned him, she finally gave up and had to accept the reality."

"From this point on, Ram's eyes turned bloodshot, his teeth clenched so tightly he almost choked Hachiman Hikigaya by the collar, grabbed him and slammed him against the wall, 'Say it again! You dare say you have amnesia? You dare say you've forgotten Rem!?'"

"Don't do this, Ram!"

"The amnesia is absolutely not Lord Hachiman's fault. Don't act impulsively and take your anger out on him!"