Crossover anime, starting with Hachiman Hikigaya replacing Subaru Natsuki!

"In that case, big brother can split himself into a completely new soul, and then we can enjoy him again!"

"—We were originally planning to use this method, hehe!"

389. Emilia: Hachiman, who is he? (Part 1)

""so what?""

Helpless within this corridor of memories, Hachiman Hikigaya could only forcefully maintain his pitiful dignity. He retorted sarcastically, "Because I don't need to split to eat, you're so happy that you're telling me your original plan? Unbelievable, how could there be such a fool as you in the world?"

"Of course not!"

"Louie wasn't angry; she was extremely forgiving. 'It's part of the plan, hehe.'"

"But it's all thanks to you, big brother, that you're special. Of course, compared to you, it should be said that Echidna is special. Anyway, it's so good that we don't have to split, because that kind of thing is simply impossible, impossible!"

She gestured wildly, her voice becoming somewhat slurred from drooling, "Someone like you, big brother, has such a firm will and opinions, they can't be swayed at all, you're stubborn to the extreme! You don't even realize that losing your memory makes you two different people! You wouldn't listen to such a stupid, disconnected thing, big brother!"

"Thank goodness, now! -- Ahh, no, I can't take it anymore, I can't take it anymore, I want to go first, I want to go first, hee hee hee, Rui is going to start! --"

"There was no time to dodge, or rather, it was impossible to dodge at all."

"The instant Rui's voice fell, Hachiman Hikigaya felt as if he had been stuffed into a stomach, into complete darkness, where he could see all sorts of strange things—memories, other people's memories, memories that were being swallowed, chewed, and stored."

"But besides memories, there are also some things that are hard to explain."

"It's like..."

"Click-clack."

"I could hear the sound of teeth grinding. I don't know how much time had passed, it felt like a long time but also like only two seconds had passed. Suddenly, my eyes were bright. Hachiman Hikigaya opened his eyes wide and found himself still in the memory corridor, and it seemed that nothing had changed."

"His memories weren't eaten this time."

"Ta-da! I'm very satisfied! Thank you for the treat!"

"She clasped her hands together with a snap, then patted her stomach as if she had eaten too much, and a satisfied Louise even let out a burp."

Hachiman Hikigaya's mind flashed through the known victims of gluttony, finally settling on the sleeping Rem. "You...ate my very existence?!"

"I've already enjoyed your memory once, and although I still crave it, for the sake of the plan, this time I must preserve your memory, big brother!"

"Louie spread her arms wide, her face filled with ecstasy, lost in her grand plan."

"It's pitiful to forget the past! It's even more pitiful to be forgotten by others! Forgetting the past leads to confusion! Being forgotten by others leads to even greater confusion!"

"Then! Caught between a rock and a hard place, my older brother will one day lose his composure! He'll have an emotional breakdown! Then, I can! Again! Finally—assimilate with my older brother, deceive Satella, and gain the power of returning from death."

"Death! Death ...

Hachiman Hikigaya frowned, more concerned about another piece of information: "You... can freely discuss Return of Death?"

"Of course! This is Oed, the center, origin, and end of the world. Satella, sealed away, can't reach here." Rui proudly shook her head. "This is an abnormal place, big brother. Don't even think about discussing this outside; you might accidentally destroy the world."

"Compared to the feeling of dying—a death we've never tasted before—we can start over countless times and reshape the future into our favorite version!"

"Let's applaud this great plan, big brother! What do you think?"

"Hachiman Hikigaya showed no fear. He stared at the deranged Rui and coldly raised four fingers. 'You, and all of you, can only do it four more times at most.'"

"Of course we know! Big brother, you definitely won't be fooled into splitting up after we've used up our four chances. But! Four times! That's enough!"

"Louis grinned, her expression brimming with malice. 'When you, big brother, have finally managed to reconnect with others, we'll devour you again! As long as you can still hold on, we'll come back!'"

"The reason I didn't eat your memories, but instead told you all this, was to make you suffer, to make you oppress yourself, and to exacerbate your breakdown! That's it!"

"Hachiman Hikigaya had his left hand behind his back, and this hand hidden behind his back was clenched into a fist, where all his negative emotions were squeezed out."

"When he saw Louise's expression, he hid all his horror and pain, not even resentment, because perhaps this was what Louise wanted to see."

"I won't be foolish enough to come back here—if you, and all of you, manage to take my existence away from me in reality again, I'll be waiting for you."

"This isn't just empty talk. Hachiman Hikigaya knows that if he ever has a chance to reclaim his existence and memories, it will be when the Bishop of Gluttony comes to him in reality."

"At least in reality, I have the opportunity to set a trap to defeat the Bishop of Gluttony and pry out what he has eaten from his stomach. I am not as helpless and isolated as I am in the Memory Corridor, where I cannot even commit suicide."

"You won't eat any of the remaining four times. I won't give you that chance, and I absolutely won't—"

"You're so stubborn, big brother." Louise gave a meaningful, mocking smile. "Having tasted your delicious food, we know perfectly well how important the real thing is to you—especially the real thing that you've gained and then lost, hehe!"

She rested her chin on her hand and sneered, "Besides, some things, even death and return can't change, big brother, that's something that can't be changed."

"The Memory Corridor is in Oder, the origin, end, and center of this world. We think that what's lost in such a place, Satella probably can't retrieve, right? Haha!"

"And finally, I have some information to give you, big brother."

Rui leaned forward, banishing Hachiman Hikigaya from the memory corridor and returning his soul to his body, saying, "Normal people, their memories and existence are eaten away, they become vegetative. But, but, because big brother is special, don't worry, that's all, bye-bye~"

"In that case, I'll be waiting for you to come."

"On his deathbed, unable to do anything but utter such declarations of war. Hachiman Hikigaya... utterly defeated."

A silence.

Two worlds, utterly silent.

"Plop..."

It was so quiet that even the slightest sound of a throat moving on the street could be clearly heard.

"No way..."

Their teeth were chattering, their legs were trembling, they were trembling. It was unavoidable; almost everyone was terrified by Hachiman Hikigaya's fate and the Gluttony Bishop's wickedness.

"No way..."

One of the most vocal and reacting people was Horikita Suzune, who knelt on the ground, groaning in pain.

Hachiman Hikigaya suffered a crushing defeat... If that's the case, doesn't it mean that she, who was already inferior to others, is even more inferior now?

Unable to bear the thought of her excellence being trampled upon again and again, Horikita Suzune looked at Ayanokoji Kiyotaka with a mournful cry.

"Say something... You said Hachiman Hikigaya didn't lose, you said it, Kiyotaka Ayanokouji!?"

390. Emilia: Hachiman, who is he? (Next)

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji glanced at the extremely unwilling Horikita Suzune and sneered, "Don't deceive yourself. A loss is a loss. Even if I admire Hachiman Hikigaya, I will face the fact that he caused this defeat."

"But!" Horikita Suzune gritted her teeth and slammed her fist on the table. "No matter what happened before, at least we never lost this badly. But this time, my memories have been devoured, my existence has been taken away, and even my return from death may be nullified."

"How can you remain so calm after such an outcome?!"

“You’re so stupid, Horikita.” Ayanokouji Kiyotaka sat calmly in his chair, completely unfazed, showing none of the panic or astonishment of the others. He even had the leisure to give Horikita Suzune another lecture.

"Hachiman lost, which does mean that you are even worse than him. But even if he successfully makes a comeback and defeats the Gluttony siblings, it doesn't mean that you can rise to the top and show off your high IQ."

"He's not tied to you, so don't try to glorify yourself."

Boom!

Having been repeatedly humiliated, Horikita Suzune could no longer bear it and originally wanted to ask for a compromise, but Ayanokouji Kiyotaka refused to even offer that. Her eyes were bloodshot as she glared fiercely at Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, this robot.

"So what if I can't do it? But what's there to be proud of? You yourself said that Hachiman Hikigaya is in the most desperate situation in history. In this situation, you, who voluntarily bound yourself to him, are also incompetent and useless, aren't you?"

Horikita Suzune changed her mindset. Since she couldn't possibly reach his level, she should celebrate Hikigaya Hachiman's complete defeat.

"You can go to the hell of despair with this Hachiman Hikigaya. You have no right to be so arrogant!"

Horikita Suzune was prepared to be beaten for uttering such sarcasm, but to her surprise, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka glanced at her and nodded slightly with a hint of relief.

"Not bad. It seems my judgment wasn't completely wrong after all. At least you still have the courage to confront me head-on after being hit repeatedly. Not bad, not bad at all."

He mechanically raised the corners of his mouth, clapped his hands, and said, "However, I never said that Hachiman Hikigaya had already entered hell. I already have a clue how to fight against authority and regain my memories and existence."

"That method is pure conjecture. It's very simple and unreliable, but it won't hurt to try it. It's better than having no ideas at all... I believe that Hachiman Hikigaya, who has experienced it once, must have thought of that too."

"Quiet down, wait and see, and enjoy with me what may be the final act of Hachiman Hikigaya."

Kiyotaka Ayanokoji's attitude became much more lenient, but Suzune Horikita took advantage of this and snorted coldly, showing no appreciation: "He may be finished soon, and you can still be so nonchalant?"

"Calm and breezy?"

Upon being described in this way, Kiyotaka Ayanokoji laughed heartily, "Wrong, Horikita, I'm incredibly excited right now—without Return by Death, without memories and a sense of existence, how will Hachiman Hikigaya clear the game in one life under the desperate situation that surpasses the Sanctuary?"

"Or he might fail and be replaced by Gluttony. Human strength has its limits. Even a wise demon like Zhuge Liang, whose wisdom is unmatched, has things that he cannot do, let alone Hachiman Hikigaya."

"But whether he succeeds or fails, the point is not the result, but his performance along the way."

"I'm completely captivated by this, utterly mesmerized."

“My ‘love’ for him is this kind of ‘love’, not the superficial love of Emilia or Crusch. You who don’t understand anything, just watch.”

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji brushed his hair back from his bangs with his left hand, looking refreshed and content. He raised his index finger with his right hand, signaling not only to Suzune Horikita but to the entire class to be quiet.

"So, I'm going to appreciate this amazing scene with all my heart—but don't make a sound during this time, okay? Otherwise, I'll kill you all."

He smiled and spoke his last words in a soft voice, so softly it didn't sound like a threat.

Because it wasn't a threat to begin with, it was a notification.

Since the great battle in Water Gate City ended and the four bishops were defeated, Kiyotaka Ayanokoji has been feeling bored. Since then, there has been no more situation where Hachiman Hikigaya has shown his wisdom, stepped into a desperate situation and then made a comeback, which has failed to excite him.

Even though he was killed by Ram in the sand cave, it was a similar scene to when he was killed by Rem, and he had experienced it enough.

Kiyotaka Ayanokouji wasn't some kind of demon; he only wanted Hachiman Hikigaya to die and fall into a desperate situation. He simply had no interest in the safety of Emilia, Crusch, Anastasia, and the others.

In the end, when it comes to all this talk of love, which of these people's "love" is as deep and ingrained as Hachiman Kijima's?

So, these stinky women are really boring.

Now that they've forgotten about Hachiman Hikigaya, he should thank Rui properly. If he ever has the chance to go to this other world, he'll repay her.

He repaid in his unique way.

Looking at him, at this man who is both crazy and rational, with unique values, and who is both stubborn and normal.

Everyone, including Horikita Suzune and Kogenji Rokusuke, the two biggest troublemakers, instantly fell silent. At this moment, they could finally empathize with Hikigaya Hachiman.

One can truly feel the immense terror that Hachiman Hikigaya felt when facing Bishop Petritchius and other great sin bishops—the current Kiyotaka Ayanokoji is just like that great sin bishop, a rational yet unpredictable madman.

"Senior Hachiman... As expected, we shouldn't just listen to the Bishop of Gluttony's one-sided story. We should try Return by Death and see if we can reclaim our existence by turning back time, right?"

At the Shirogane residence, Shirogane Kei, his teeth chattering with fear, trembled and muttered to himself, trying to reassure himself: "Senpai will definitely be able to reclaim his existence this way, yes, definitely!"

"That's impossible, Xiao Gui."