The story we started

[The figures of the two people disappeared at an extremely fast speed in their pupils and the gradually setting sun until they were no longer visible.]

【“Wait! I don’t even know your…name…”】

[Although she accidentally learned Zaimokuza's true identity and address, Akiyama Mio still wanted to know his name, and subconsciously reached out in the direction where they had already gone. ]

[But as she spoke, the faint golden light reflected from her sleeves in the sun caused her pupils to shrink slightly, and the sound she made became weaker and weaker until it disappeared.]

【“…”】

[Akiyama Mio retracted her outstretched right wrist, rolled up the windbreaker on her wrist, and looked at the line of golden embroidery with a dazed look.]

[The line of words embroidered is:]

【Yoshiki of Zaimokuza. 】

[“Zaimokuza…Yoshiteru? Is this the…real name of number four?”]

[“Ah, ah, ah? This matter is finally over. I always feel that today has passed so slowly... I really hope that I will not encounter cases related to these unidentified life forms in the future. Once is enough for me to experience this!”]

[Taizhong Ritsu came over and rubbed his forehead. He looked at the direction where the two people were going away and said with a headache.]

[“It was scary, but… it seems that today wasn’t all about those scary things. I also got to know two very powerful people!”]

[Hirazawa Yui, holding a GO helmet, also walked to the side of Akiyama Mio and nodded seriously with a round face. ]

[“Ritsu-chan, Mio, what you mean is that the person who carried the police officer away was actually…!?”]

[Qinfuki? After listening to her friends' words and seeing their performances, she was quick-witted and immediately guessed something. She said with a look of disbelief.]

[“This? It’s a secret!”]

[“Xiao Lu, you are bullying me!”]

[Nakano Azusa: "???"]

[As the only junior in the light music club, Azusa Nakano looked at the seniors playing together and suddenly felt that she had missed a lot, as if others were already charging on the track, but she hadn't even reached the entrance.]

——[bgm:changemyfuture]

……

[“Are you ready?”]

【Kousaka Daisuke's calm voice came from behind, and Kousaka Kyosuke, with a band-aid on his face, took a deep breath and called out in a childish voice.】

"I'm ready, Dad!"

【“——Also, Dad.”】

[His voice suddenly weakened, and he turned back cautiously from his bicycle to look at his stern-faced father and asked in a low voice.]

[“Dad, don’t push me off the ramp like you did at the beginning of practice.”]

[“If there wasn’t a grocery store with wooden barrels stacked up below to cushion the impact, I almost thought I was going to die!”]

【“…Don’t worry, I’m here this time.”】

【Kousaka Daisuke was silent for a while, then spoke calmly.】

[But this made Kousaka Kyosuke feel surprised and confused. When did his father become so easy to talk to? You know, when he first started to practice riding a bicycle, this guy was always by his side watching him fall down repeatedly, and even when he was crying from the fall, he didn't rush to make tea for him! ]

[“Uh… Dad, what’s wrong with you? Are you suddenly feeling unwell? Do you want to see a doctor?”]

[Kousaka Kyosuke swallowed his saliva and asked quietly, while secretly looking at his father's face, as if he wanted to confirm whether he had been replaced without his knowledge? Otherwise, how could he suddenly change his nature and become so gentle. ]

【“…”】

【Based on what Kousaka Kyosuke knew about his father, he should have been scolded by his father with a stern face, "What nonsense are you talking about!", but Kousaka Daisuke's actions were completely beyond his expectations. 】

[A rough big hand reached out and covered his head, stroking his hair gently, causing Kousaka Kyosuke to stare at his father with wide eyes.]

【“Kyosuke.”】

[Kousaka Daisuke squatted down, looked at his son, whose height had not yet reached his waist, and spoke in a calm tone.]

[“Don’t worry, just keep riding. Dad will hold your wheel and won’t let go.”]

[“You have to practice well. One day, you won’t need me to hold you up to ride the bike steadily. Then you will be the one to teach your sister. Do you understand?”]

[“Don’t worry, I’ll be by your side watching you until you can ride a bike by yourself.”]

[“…Oh, I understand.”]

[Although he didn't know why his father suddenly said that, Kousaka Kyosuke nodded without thinking too much and remembered what Kousaka Daisuke said. ]

[“So, are you ready?”]

[Kousaka Daisuke held Kousaka Kyousuke's back with one hand and held the handlebars of the bicycle with the other hand, and spoke in a low voice.]

[“Okay! I’m ready!”]

[Kousaka Kyousuke nodded vigorously, and shouted with a serious expression on his face.]

[Crack, crack, crack—]

[The wheels of the bicycle began to turn on the muddy ground, carrying Kousaka Kyousuke forward.]

[Kousaka Kyosuke held the handlebars tightly with both hands. Having fallen countless times, he inevitably had a psychological shadow at first about continuing to ride the bike, but when he felt the warmth behind him and his father's rough big hand on the handlebars, he gritted his teeth and continued to pedal.]

[Gradually, the speed of the bicycle became faster and faster, and the wind blew past Kousaka Kyousuke, brushing away his overly long bangs, revealing his serious eyes and expression.]

[His feet pedaled more and more rhythmically, and the bicycle wheel gradually became stable, which made Kousaka Kyosuke feel that he should be able to continue to speed up. ]

[“Are you ready? I’m going to let go.”]

【“……Okay, let go, Daddy!”】

[Hearing his father's serious voice, Kousaka Kyosuke hesitated for a moment, but the thought of not wanting to disappoint Kousaka Daisuke overwhelmed his fear of falling, and he gritted his teeth and said.]

【“——”】

【And Kousaka Daisuke really did what he said, and he let go of his hand the second after Kousaka Kyosuke said it.】

[The sudden feeling of imbalance made Kousaka Kyosuke close his eyes subconsciously, and pedaled the wheels quickly. ]

[This time, he waited for a long time but did not feel the shock and pain he had experienced countless times before.]

【"?"】

[He slowly opened his eyes and looked at the scene in front of him anxiously, then his eyes suddenly widened.]

[The road ahead is vast and boundless, and land is constantly passing by under my feet. A breeze blows from the front, as if I have turned into a flying bird, riding on the breeze to fly far away.]

[Kousaka Kyosuke lowered his head and looked down at his feet. The wheel of the bicycle was still turning, but it was no longer tilted or unstable.]

[A huge surprise welled up in his eyes. I learned to ride a bicycle! I won’t fall down again! ]

[He immediately wanted to share this joy with his father who was watching him from behind, and turned around and shouted happily.]

[“Look! Dad, I learned how to ride… a bicycle?”]

[——I don’t know since when, there is no one behind Kousaka Kyousuke.]

[Kousaka Daisuke once said that he would never let go and would always be by her side until she learned how to ride a bicycle. He turned out to be a man who kept his promises. As expected, he never let go until she learned how to ride a bicycle.]

[But after Kousaka Kyosuke learned it, he also did so decisively, choosing to leave without hesitation, without even leaving his back to his son.]

[Kousaka Kyosuke stared blankly at the road behind him that was getting farther and farther away from his sight. That was the road his father had walked along when he practiced cycling, and it was just like that, disappearing from his current world.]

[A huge palpitation suddenly emerged from his heart, and Kousaka Kyosuke shouted subconsciously. 】

[“Daddy!!!”]

……

[Kousaka Kyosuke opened his eyes in confusion, and what came into view was the scenery on both sides of the road that kept disappearing into the distance.]

[“What am I doing——huh!?”]

[Kousaka Kyosuke subconsciously tried to move his body, but the next moment, the severe pain that came with the movement caught him off guard and he groaned.]

[“You’re awake!? Mr. Kosaka!”]

[Zaimokuza, who was driving the motorcycle, noticed the movement behind him, looked sideways and saw that Kousaka Kyousuke had woken up, and said happily. ]

[“Zaimokuza? I’m… right!”]

[Kousaka Kyousuke turned his head in doubt and looked at Zaimokuza's profile, frowning as he thought about what had happened, and then his eyes suddenly widened.]

【"Caimu Seat! No.——"】

[“No. 23 has been defeated. We won, Mr. Kosaka.”]

[Zaimokuza anticipated what he was going to say and spoke first, holding back the question that Kousaka Kyousuke was about to ask.]

【"Yeah?"】

[Kousaka Kyosuke couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief upon hearing the news of victory, but then frowned again and asked in confusion.]

[“Zaimokuza, where are we going?”]

[“What? We are going to the hospital now. It’s a place we always go to.”]

[“You lied to me. The Kanto Medical University Hospital we always go to doesn’t take this road. And there is no other road in the whole of Tokyo with so many trees.”]

[Kousaka Kyousuke retorted expressionlessly. He felt so painful that he couldn't move. He thought he might be seriously injured this time, so he simply turned a blind eye and leaned on Zaimokuza's back.]

[“Mr. Kosaka, you wronged me! We are indeed going to the hospital. I didn’t lie to you about that.”]

[Zaimokuza said this in a wronged voice, and the next sentence startled Kousaka Kyousuke so much that he turned his head to look at him in astonishment.]

【“But we are going to the hospital where your mother is staying, Mr. Kousaka.”】

【"you--!?"】

[Kousaka Kyosuke felt as if his throat was blocked by something, and he wanted to say something but couldn't. ]

[After a long while, he managed to utter a word from his throat.]

[“…Why did you do this?”]

[“Hmm? There shouldn’t be any reason for this, right? I just wanted to send you, Mr. Kousaka, to see your mother.”]

[“That’s not what I’m talking about! Don’t beat around the bush!”]

[Kousaka Kyosuke's voice suddenly became low, he stared closely at Zaimokuza's face whose burns had healed about halfway, and said indifferently.]

[“Why would you do such a thing? What’s the point?”]

[“I’ve told you before that this is a choice I made on my own. I don’t need anyone else to sympathize with me, and I don’t need anyone else to do anything for me. No matter how my mother and sister will scold me later, I don’t regret it, because it was indeed me—”]

[“Don’t talk about big principles anymore, Mr. Kosaka.”]

【Zaimokuza also spoke in a tone that was unusually calm, once again holding back Kousaka Kyousuke's words, which made him feel somewhat surprised, and at the same time somewhat furious.】

[When did this damn rabbit dare to talk back to me? ]

[“I know, Mr. Kosaka, what you said is actually right, and what you did was absolutely correct. I believe that no one who knows the choice you made will blame you.”]

[“But I don’t agree with this fact, Mr. Kousaka.”]

【“…”】

[Kousaka Kyosuke was unusually speechless, his pale lips moved and he uttered a word.]

[“So…what do you want to do?”]

[“I want to send you to meet your family, Mr. Kousaka.”]

[Zaimokuza's tone became lighter, and the profile in Kousaka Kyousuke's eyes gradually drew an arc from the corner of his mouth.]

[“I believe that no matter how much pain you feel, when you see your family, you will be able to smile again.”]

[“Because although what you did was right, Mr. Kosaka, I can see that you are not actually happy and are in great pain. The evidence is that after you knew your mother was hospitalized, you never smiled again.”]

[“And I’ve told you this before, right? Mr. Kosaka?”]

[“My wish is to protect everyone’s smiles, to protect that beauty… and you, Mr. Kosaka, are naturally on the list of “everyone”.”]

【"you……"】

[After hearing the reason for Zaimokuza's action, Kousaka Kyousuke couldn't help but widen his eyes and stare at him blankly. ]

[“This is why I do this. It’s not for some great truth, nor for the reasons like ‘one’ and ‘many’ that you mentioned, Mr. Kosaka. What I want to do is very simple.”]

【Zaimokuza turned his head and grinned at Kousaka Kyousuke with his white teeth.】

[The dim light shone down from the setting sun in the sky, shining on half of his face, making half of Zaimokuza's face blend into the light. His white hair was crystal clear in the light, with a pure whiteness without a trace of impurities.]