An ordinary profession creates the world's strongest

The hooligans made a very reasonable rebuttal, but before they could finish their words -

“I’m so sorry!”

The apology burst out loudly, a sincere and full-throated apology, accompanied by kneeling.

"Shut up! Let's go somewhere else—"

“Please let them go of this 10 million in compensation! This will cost them their lives!”

"Wait! No one of us mentioned a thousand—"

“Please, please forgive them! Please have mercy!”

"It's so noisy! Stop—"

“Please, please spare them.”

To stop the outburst of rage, shouting, and kneeling apologies, the thugs kicked the boy and pulled his hair, trying to get him to stand. Some even spat on him, trying every possible means (?) to get him to stand, but he seemed to be firmly glued to the ground, refusing to stop kneeling and apologizing repeatedly, which only made the thugs increasingly agitated.

Perhaps it was the pressure of the surrounding gazes that pushed their shame levels to their limit. The mother-in-law covered her face, trembling all over, and the shame levels of both parties were raised to a critical point.

My feeling seems to be correct.

"Damn it! Who can stay in this kind of place? I want to go home!"

The man in jeans yelled, and ran off angrily. The other two shouted, "Xiu, Xiu hyung!? Wait a minute!" and hurriedly chased after him.

An indescribable eerie atmosphere permeated the scene. Everyone expected the boy to be paralyzed with shame, but he slowly stood up. Under everyone's gaze, he picked up the wallet he had dropped and said, "Give it back to you," handing it back to his mother-in-law.

"Thank you, thank you." The mother-in-law's expression twitched a little, but she still smiled and thanked him.

"Don't say that. I'm sorry," the boy apologized again for some reason. Then, with a whoosh sound effect, he said, "I can't stay in a place like this any longer! I'm going home! Bye!" "Ah!" the mother-in-law exclaimed, stretching out her hand. But by then, the boy had vanished.

"...What a fierce person."

The crowd around me dispersed one after another, and I was the only one who stood still, staring at the direction he left, holding my heart tightly, feeling dizzy.

"And then, Shizuku-chan, that person disappeared right after that... Shizuku-chan, were you even listening to me? You haven't been responding since a while..."

"...I'm listening. This is the tenth time I've heard your story about the "super-powerful boy who kneels down."

"No, Shizuku-chan, it's 'the super tough boy who kneels'! The way you put it makes it sound like he's really good at kneeling."

"Oh, really, I'm sorry. But, Kaori, we'll meet at school tomorrow, and we'll tell the same story ten times until two in the morning. Can you please be considerate of my feelings?"

"Eh? ...No way, it's already this late!? S-Sorry, Shizuku-chan."

I was jolted back to reality by the sleepy voice of my childhood playmate and best friend, Yaegashi Shizuku. I desperately wanted to share my day's events and my euphoric mood with someone, so I called her at 10 p.m., and we chatted for a full four hours.

I felt bad for letting her chat with me so late.

"Well, it's okay. I don't want to hear the same story again... but this is very important to you, right? Haha, I never thought that there would be a day when I would hear about the boy I liked from Kaori... After you carelessly cut off the boy who confessed to you, your spring has finally come. "

What is Shizuku talking about? Why does she sound so happy? I can almost see Shizuku laughing on the other end of the phone.

"Shizuku-chan? What are you talking about? I'm not a swordsman like you, so I can't kill anyone. Besides, it's winter now."

"...Kaori, thank you for your innocent advice. I do know swordsmanship, but I won't use it to kill people! You naive bombshell speaker!?"

Shizuku is angry...so what does she want to say?

"Ah, I see. This is a situation where you're not aware of it. As far as I know, this is the first time you've encountered something like this... and you might still be in the stage of 'caring about the other person'... Normally, you should be able to notice this on your own, but how could Kaori, who is so slow to react to such things, possibly notice it on her own? After all, the person involved is 'Kaori'. In that case, is it time for me, your good friend, to lend a helping hand? But..."

Xiao Shizuku kept muttering on the other end of the phone, and I always felt like she seemed to have said something rude.

"Um, um~Shizuku-chan?"

"Ah!? Sorry, where were you?"

Shizuku finally returned to the conversation, and I decided to tell her another reason for calling. It was incredibly embarrassing to share this. Ugh, my face was burning. Why was this happening?

"Actually, I hope you can go somewhere with me..."

"Oh, why are you so serious? It's really awkward to be so polite to me."

This sentence pushed me forward, and I made the following request:

"Thank you, Shizuku-chan. Honestly, I'd like you to accompany me to that boy's school."

"What did you say?"

I don't know how Shizuku turned into a foreigner.

"What I mean is, I want you to go to his school with me. Um, well... I want to talk to him... I, I want to make friends with him if possible~"

No, my face is burning. My cheeks are inexplicably hot. My legs are swinging for no reason. I really want to wrap my whole body in a blanket and fall to the ground. As I was busy with these thoughts and was dizzy, I heard Shizuku's somewhat stiff voice:

"Wait a minute, Kaori saw that boy today, right?"

"Yeah, we didn't talk either."

"...Then how do you know which school he is from?"

"Of course I did the research. I simply found all the junior high schools within walking distance at that time and researched the uniform styles of each school. It's a simple task, isn't it?"

"..."

This really didn't seem like a question from Shizuku, who always spoke to the point. Plus, she didn't respond for some reason. She must have been sleepy.

"Hey, Shizuku-chan~ Sorry, you want to sleep, right?"

"Ah, that's not the case. I'm sorry. I just felt like I saw a terrifying side of my best friend..."

There was a dry cough and a throat clearing sound from the other end of the line.

"It's alright for me to go with you. I'm used to your sudden attacks anyway. But you don't know his name, do you? What are you going to do?"

"I don't want to bother him by searching everywhere... So I plan to wait for him to come out from where I can see the school gates and then quietly check on him. Otherwise, I'll ambush him where we met today."

"...This sounds a bit like stalking...but since I don't know the name, this is the only way."

The term "stalker" was a bit too much, but it was hard to argue with after thinking about it. I spoke a little faster to get past the topic.

"Yeah, yeah. If I had known earlier, I would have secretly taken a picture of him... If I see him again next time, I definitely won't forget to take a picture."

"Don't do that."

For some reason, Shizuku-chan stopped me in a stern tone. "Oh no! My friend is so naive!" I thought I could hear her personality shattering muttering on the phone. Could it be that Shizuku-chan was tired? Is she okay? It was about time to hang up.

"Anyway, I'm going to rush over to his school after school tomorrow. I'm definitely going to find him and become friends with him. Then we'll talk a lot, spend time together on weekends or after school, or go to his house... Hehe, Shizuku-chan, I'll do my best!"

"My friend's delusion can't be stopped... Kneeling stranger boy, I'm sorry, I can't help you."

Shizuku's confession reached my ears. Shizuku was acting a little strangely today. Perhaps she's tired from staying up so late with me? I'm sorry, Shizuku.

A year has passed since I saw that unknown boy kneeling in public.

During this period, as usual, I was involved in the commotion caused by Guanghui and his classmates, or I got involved in the mess myself, or Guanghui and his classmates were involved in the commotion caused by me... In short, the commotion kept coming and going, and this is how I spent my last year of junior high school.

In order to find him, I ambushed, wandered around, ambushed, wandered around...but in the end I never saw him again.

I don't know why I care about him so much, but when I think about that first and last time I saw him, my chest aches. Since I can't forget him, there's nothing I can do.

Why didn't I call him at that time? I regret it very much. I should have at least taken a picture. What a fool I was.

Shizuku-chan was always by my side during my ambushes and wanderings. "I wonder what might happen if I leave Kaori, always in her assault-girl mode," she said, her eyes always thoughtful. She advised me that telling Kouki-san and the others about this might get me into trouble, so it was best not to let them know. Thus, finding that boy became a secret between Shizuku-chan and me.

A year has passed since the secret search operation ended without any results, and a new spring has arrived.

I became a high school student and today is the high school entrance ceremony.

The cherry blossoms were in full bloom, their heart-shaped pink petals dancing in the wind, a truly lovely sight. As a brand new student life began, my heart was filled with a sense of emptiness, a sense of missing someone, and a sense of excitement and anticipation for all things to come.

"Kaori, what are you doing? If we don't get to the gymnasium soon, the entrance ceremony will start."

"Shizuku-chan. Hehe, I was so lost in gazing at the cherry blossoms that I felt like I was floating in the air."

"Haha, I understand how you feel, because I'm excited too."

Shizuku stood beside me and looked up at the cherry trees with me.

A gentle breeze blew, and Shizuku's signature ponytail flowed in the air. Her round, narrow eyes, and the way she tucked her hair behind her ear, made her look quite mature. I had thought the transition from junior high to high school wouldn't be a big change, but my proud friend seemed to have matured so much in a flash.

"……What a nice view."

I couldn't help but murmur. "Yes, it is beautiful." Shizuku, gazing up at the cherry tree, agreed. Seeing her completely oblivious, I couldn't help but chuckle.

"No, I mean you. You look like a cherry blossom tree goddess."

"W-What are you talking about all of a sudden?"

Shizuku turned her head away, her cheeks red all the way to her ears. She was shy, huh? How cute!

But I'm a little worried. Such a cute and beautiful little Shizuku has never talked about "that kind of thing." She's known Guanghui-kun longer than I have. I wonder if she has any feelings for him? I've thought so before, but it seems that it's not the case...

After entering high school, Shizuku matured quickly, and it would be terrible if she was deceived by a bad man. As her friend, I decided it would be best to warn Shizuku, who lacks self-awareness.

"Listen carefully, Shizuku-chan, you have to listen carefully."

"Kaori, are you imitating someone?"

"Honestly, listen to me! Shizuku-chan is so cute and pretty, so those boys won't let you go easily. But, my dad also said that boys are wolves. In order to avoid being deceived by wild wolves, you should be more aware of your cuteness as a girl! Got it? If a boy approaches, you must be alert."

"...Kaori, do you know anything about boomerangs?"

While I was reprimanding her, Shizuku brought up a strange topic for some reason.

"Is it something that flies back after being thrown out?"

"That's right. It's something that will come back to you. What Kaori is saying now is like a boomerang."

Why are Shizuku's eyes so gentle? She glanced around, and I followed her gaze. I realized a crowd had gathered around us—not just freshmen but also some seniors, mostly boys. When they caught my eye, they immediately looked away in panic, looking away.

"That's how you were when I called you. Even if you're defenseless, there's a limit, you unconscious woman."

Shizuku said, pinching my cheek.

"Oh, it hurts, Shizuku-chan, let me go~"

"I can't stand this limp-cheeked alien. I thought the ceremony was almost over, but there were only two or three kittens in the gym. When I came out, I saw exactly what I thought. Look at me, look at me!"

Ryuutarou ran out to find us with a look of astonishment on his face, but before that, my cheeks had already been ravaged by Shizuku's claws.

...Later, I heard that many students had nosebleeds and were sent to the infirmary. Strangely, despite the nosebleeds, they had expressions of immense happiness on their faces for some reason.

The entrance ceremony began. Shizuku, Ryuutarou, and I were all in the same class, and the three of us sat together happily. Kouki, the first-year student representative, was standing on the podium, not with us.

"Will Guanghui-san be nervous?"

"Don't worry, brilliance and tension have nothing to do with each other."

"That's true. He's had this experience in junior high, so it should be smooth sailing."

Shizuku and Ryuutarou both dismissed my trivial concerns. Indeed, I find it hard to imagine Kouki-san frozen in nervousness on stage. He's always confident, a natural leader who leads everyone forward. In junior high, he was incredibly popular with the girls, and Kouki-san was truly impressive when he displayed such confidence in front of a crowd.

The principal, clearly wearing a "something you can't point out" sign, finished his speech, and it was finally Guanghui's turn to take the podium. At that moment, the gymnasium erupted in an earthquake... The girls' loud cheers almost gave the illusion of an earthquake.

"Although, I expected this...but this is a bit too much."

Shizuku looked around, her face twitching. I agreed with her. This scene was like an idol concert, and those girls shouting Kouki-san's name looked a little scary.

In this situation, Guanghui-san still shone brightly, smiled and waved to everyone, without any sign of hesitation or fear. It was really amazing.

Guanghui-san's representative speech began. The girls clasped their hands together, displaying an uncanny, "I won't miss a single word!" aura that reminded me of a dangerous new religion.

At this moment, the voices of several boys, both surprised and admiring, reached my ears——

"This guy actually fell asleep, and he slept so soundly."

"It's fine that he fell asleep during the entrance ceremony, but even the commotion just now couldn't wake him up... Is this guy completely insane?"

From what they were saying, it sounded like someone had fallen asleep in this situation. I turned my head with some concern. The boy sitting directly behind me was shaking with fear, his cheeks flushed slightly, and his eyes darted around. I smiled at him, saying, "Sorry for turning around so suddenly and startling you," but his eyes started spinning wildly... So human eyes can do that.

I felt a little bit of admiration, then ignored the boy who was performing stunts for some reason and looked at the seat behind him. Then——

"!"

I seemed to be able to hear the sound of my own heart beating.

The boy crossed his arms, leaned back in his chair, lowered his head and closed his eyes quietly.

“…It’s him.”

As if drawn by a magnet, I gazed at his sleeping form. The person I had wanted to see and talk to for the past year was right behind me.

Ah, my heartbeat thumped in my ears, like the pounding of a taiko drum. So loud. Guanghui's voice from the podium faded away, and the surrounding landscape was stained white. Only that person remained in my sight. The voice faded, the crowd vanished, and in the pure white world of silence, only I, turning my head, and him, sleeping.

"Kaori, Kaori, stop daydreaming!"