The azure sea, but a lonely, fulfilled life.

After recovering from his panic, he felt a little tired but had no other discomfort. He hadn't expected to twist his ankle from the strenuous activity at all.

Don't force yourself.

Lying underwater is a serious matter, and overcoming fear is not something that can be done overnight; there is a long way to go.

[OK. ]

Although he agreed, he stubbornly followed Chisa's figure, slowly swimming forward.

Chisa felt the fluctuations in the water behind her and breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed she had worried too much; everything was still moving in a positive direction.

Having put aside her worries about Hachiman, she began to immerse herself in the enjoyment of the diving experience. Since she finally had this opportunity, she was determined to make him enjoy the feeling as well.

With this in mind, Chisa searched for things that were different between the sea and the land. During her underwater swimming, she pointed to various creatures, including fish, starfish, crabs, and octopuses lying on the sand.

Witnessing the underwater ecosystem for the first time, Hachiman was captivated. When he saw Chisa lift up a resting turtle, he felt an unprecedented sense of relaxation.

Yes, didn't he already get used to the sea when he was very young? In a familiar environment, this is the attitude he should have.

Actually, there's nothing to be afraid of, isn't there? Hachiman Hikigaya, in the past, whenever you encountered any problem, you were able to maintain rationality as your primary guarantee, and then think deeply to find the key to solve the problem. This time it's simpler than the previous times, because there's only one problem, which is to overcome the so-called fear.

That's simple, right?

He smiled easily, preparing to step forward and get a closer look with Chisa at the still-sleepy, bewildered sea turtle—it would be a great souvenir.

"Unnie, chan—"

Chapter Sixty-Eight Inner Demons

"Unnie, chan—"

Gazing at the girl in the distance, her limbs thrashing about in the seawater, her lovely face pale from choking on water, she kept calling out to her blood relatives.

Unconsciously holding his breath, at this moment, he seemed to have forgotten how to breathe. The eyelids of his eyes were red, and the weakness and numbness caused by lack of oxygen spread throughout his body. After losing contact with his brain, he sank to the bottom of the sea.

--split line--

"I'm going to buy some drinks. You're in charge of watching these two and making sure they don't run around."

In my memory, my mother's young face appears on a beach, wearing a conservative light-colored skirt-style swimsuit, with a swim ring around my father's neck.

The father always smiled carefree, gladly accepting the gift from his wife. After watching her walk away, he picked up Komachi, who was playing in the sand, and carried her on his body.

"Did you hear me, Komachi? You absolutely mustn't run around like that. Don't be like your brother, whose mind always wanders off."

"Where can I have it?"

At the age of nine, he had become half-dead with dead fish eyes due to the rejection from his elementary school classmates. He piled the unfinished sandcastle that Komachi had built onto the city wall and argued with his father without even raising his head.

"Of course I heard! You wrote really sweet greeting cards for the girls in your class," the father teased. "It's a shame you didn't inherit even a fraction of my girl-chasing skills, otherwise, how could you have gotten dumped!"

"Where's the sweetness? It was just a bit of small talk."

I thought I had talked to him and paid him some attention, but I didn't even remember his name. As a result, I wrote down some jokes that only friends would make to each other, even though I thought we were fairly familiar with each other.

Honestly, don't be so gentle, it makes people overthink things, doesn't it? I guess I just hate gentle people.

"Your eyes are dead. I never knew you, at such a young age, could have eyes more rotten than an old woman's. Don't you agree, Komachi?"

Her father lifted Komachi high, and she laughed happily.

"Onii-chan, you're rotting."

"I'm a little unhappy to hear that, Komachi."

The right to be close to the youngest sister in the family has always been a prize fought over by the two men: "Say sorry to your brother, and your brother will build you a big and beautiful castle, how about that?"

"castle!"

Komachi's eyes lit up, and she struggled to get down. Seeing his little darling so eager to run to his shady cotton-padded jacket, her father immediately became unhappy: "Apologize? What are you apologizing for? Komachi will never do anything wrong. We won't apologize. When we get back, Dad will buy you a Jenny doll."

Wow! Jenny!

Komachi's expression became hesitant; she wanted to play with her brother, but she also wanted the doll.

"Didn't you already hand over all your salary to Mom? Or are you hiding some money from her?"

He squinted at his shameless father, never expecting that even with his mother's meticulous daily cleaning of the room, he could still find a place to hide money.

"A man should always have a way out for himself."

The father smiled, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Hiding money in secret as a backup plan is such a lame idea."

Working is a tough and humble job for men. He decided that he would become a stay-at-home dad who could single-handedly support the family, so that he could collect money from others.

"You're still young, it's normal that you don't understand!" the father waved his hand dismissively. "When you start to get excited when you see these swimsuit-clad beauties, that's when you'll have grown up!"

"That's just lust."

Listening to his father's boastful words, he helplessly glanced at the woman whose gaze had already wandered to him, got up and walked away. He didn't want to be seen as someone who was with this lecherous man.

He walked towards the sea, following his father's gaze. He felt a pleasant sensation as the water washed over his feet, and he wanted to try it again. So he approached the sea and dipped his feet into the water.

The seawater, after being exposed to the sun, was not cold but warm. The warm sun and the comforting temperature of the seawater made him feel incredibly satisfied at that moment.

If you can feel this way with just a part of your body, what would it feel like if your whole body were inside?

He looked down at the ebb and flow of the tide, and without much hesitation, he bent down and plunged into the sea.

The water flowed and wiped his eyes, and the scenery beneath the sea surface appeared before his eyes for the first time: all kinds of corals, fish, and his ears were carefully enveloped by the seawater, quiet and serene.

So beautiful! I never knew the seabed looked like this.

He swam following the swaying of the fish's skirts, and accelerated with the jets of the sea turtles, imagining himself as a glider. Guided by the coral, he found a stone that looked like a star. He wanted to take this stone up with him; perhaps Komachi would like it.

[Thump!]

A child has drowned!

The shouts of others sank beneath the surface of the sea through the sound of the water. Hachiman turned his head to look at the very clear sound of the splashing water. The icy seawater washed over his eyes, and pain followed.

"Onii-chan!"

--split line--

"Hachiman! Hachiman!"

My vision was blurry, as if someone was calling me.

Where the sea meets the sky, the twilight near the equator is a melancholy crimson, with wisps of silver light interspersed among the clouds, and the blazing sun losing its halo and gradually disappearing into the dust.

Hachiman Hikigaya stared blankly at Chisa, who looked worried, then turned his gaze to the people behind her. He wanted to say something, but a wave of nausea forced him to open his mouth, and salty seawater gushed out.

Chisa looked at the haggard-looking boy and gently patted his back.

"What's wrong with me?"

After vomiting most of the water, Hachiman gagged a few times and asked questions.

"You fainted in the sea."

He's passed out?

He had no recollection of it, but he thought he saw Komachi.

"Does anyone have a phone? Could I borrow it?"

His tone was hurried, and his voice trembled.

Iori handed him the phone, hurriedly said thank you, and then Hachiman pressed the number he would never forget and dialed the number.

After a busy signal, the call was answered.

"Hello, this is Komachi Hikigaya. How can I help you?"

"...Komachi, it's me."

"Dude? You got a new phone?"

"No, I borrowed someone else's phone."

"Oh, what's the matter?"

"Nothing? I just missed you."

"Huh? Didn't we just meet a couple of days ago? When did you become so affectionate, bro?"

"This is a right that only the older brother has."

"Those are disgusting words, but they get a high rating from Komachi. I'll find another chance to come see you again, brother. Until then, please bear with me."

"it is good……"

After hanging up the phone, Hachiman Hikigaya stood up, looked at everyone, and bowed very seriously: "I'm sorry, I messed up this diving activity."

“It’s nothing,” Shinji Tokita said, scratching the back of his head. “And it went smoothly this time, but…”

"But you shouldn't force yourself like that."

Iori picked up on his words, saying, "This is too outrageous."

If Chisa hadn't found them in time, she wouldn't have been able to carry an unconscious person ashore by herself, and the consequences would have been unimaginable.

"Feel sorry."

"Well, diving is an activity that inherently involves risks, but it would be better to do it as a group next time," Juryujiro said to Hachiman.

“Yes, not everyone succeeds on their first dive. There are many failures, so don’t worry about it. Just try again next time,” Nana said with a smile.

"I'm really sorry." Although he knew everyone was being considerate of his feelings, he couldn't accept their kindness in a straightforward manner.

“If anyone’s going to apologize, it’s me too,” Chisa said, looking at Hachiman with a firm tone. “As your companion, it’s my duty to carefully observe your condition.”

"No, the main problem lies with me."

If he hadn't fallen into delusion, everything might have unfolded according to the original plan, resulting in a perfect diving training session.

"No, I'm the one who's more at fault." Chisa shook her head. As a seasoned diver with plenty of experience, it was simply wrong of her to let a novice get into danger by being so careless.

"No, mine..."

"Alright, is this some kind of spot-the-mistake game?"

Iori interrupted their blame game: "No one can predict what will happen in the sea next. If it happens, just change it. Why bother about who's at fault?"

Iori: "If we really have to divide things up, then let's just put all the blame on Kohei."

Kohei, who was listening nearby, looked completely bewildered: "What does this have to do with me?"

"It's none of your business, I just think it'll be better this way, after all, aren't you the professional scapegoat?"

"Are you itchy?"

"Wow, you're quite arrogant."

Amidst their bickering, Hachiman wearily wiped the sweat from his brow. It seemed he would need a considerable amount of time to completely overcome this challenge.

Chapter Sixty-Nine: No matter how high the mountain peak, we must strive forward.

"Could I have another plate?"

At the dining table, everyone stared in disbelief at Hachiman, who had asked for more noodles. After a few seconds of hesitation, Nanaka took his plate away and ordered another serving of fried noodles.

Iori poked at today's mixed fried noodles with her fork in disbelief, then rolled it into a stick shape and took a bite. It tasted similar to usual, except the pepper flavor was a bit more pronounced.

That's it? There wasn't any advanced technology or anything particularly challenging!

Chisa watched as Hachiman took the plate and wolfed down the noodles, oil residue staining his slightly pale lips until they shone. After hesitating for a long time, she finally spoke.

"Are you OK?"

"Hmm? You're asking me? I'm fine."

Hachiman chewed his noodles, looking innocently at Chisa. His eyes didn't show the gloom she had imagined; on the contrary, they were very calm.

"What's wrong with you guys? You look so strange."

He asked in return, and before he knew it, everyone except him put down their utensils and stared at him with serious expressions. He looked back at them, a little confused. Why were they staring at him instead of eating during mealtime?

Although I really don't want to be narcissistic, could he possibly look even more appetizing than this side? The thought is rather terrifying.

"Kouhei, where did you put the salt you used last time?"