My youth story cannot be a knight war

[“Okay, Wei, you can go on stage now.”]

[Just when Kousaka Kyosuke was in doubt, Zaimokuza withdrew the finger that was on Hirasawa Yui's forehead, touched her fluffy short hair and said.]

[“Eh? Huh!?”]

[Hirazawa Yui looked at him with some confusion, but when the finger was removed from her forehead, she suddenly opened her eyes wide in surprise.]

[“Strange, I suddenly don’t feel dizzy anymore!?”]

[Hirasawa Yui slapped her face in disbelief, then shouted in surprise.]

[“Huh? Wei, what are you talking about? You clearly—wait! Why is your forehead not hot anymore?”]

[Taizhong Ritsu raised her eyebrows, and half-doubtfully reached out to touch Hirasawa Yui's forehead. When she felt the normal body temperature, she also opened her eyes wide in astonishment.]

【"Really!?"】

[After hearing this, the other girls stepped forward and touched the forehead of the giggling Hirasawa Yui one by one, and then they were all stunned by this change. ]

[“This——Zaimokuza-san! How on earth did you——”]

【Manabe tried three times in a row, and after confirming that Hirasawa Yui's condition had indeed returned to normal, she looked at the smiling Zaimokuza in disbelief, and the other party raised his index finger and shook it.】

[“This is a secret. Oh, now, can Wei go on stage?”]

[“Hehe!”]

[Hirasawa Yui looked at her childhood sweetheart nervously, Manabe Kazu was still a little hesitant, but after meeting those big watery eyes, his heart softened.]

[“Ah… I understand. I allow you to perform, but if you feel unwell, you must—wait! Don’t hug me suddenly!”]

[“That’s great! Thank you, He He!”]

[Manabe Kazuo gave her instructions in a serious manner, but Hirasawa Yui rushed over and hugged her and rubbed her face wildly, forcing her to stretch out her hands to stop him helplessly.]

[“Senior! That’s great!”]

[Nakano Azusa rushed over crying with joy, and the girls hugged each other, while Zaimokuza just stood with his hands behind his back, smiling as he watched everything in front of him, his eyes curved into crescent shapes.]

【“…Hey, Zaimokuza.”】

【Kousaka Kyosuke walked up to him and looked at Zaimokuza with strange eyes.】

[“Did you just use the red elemental power?”]

[“Hmm? Mr. Kosaka, how did you know that?”]

[After hearing this, Zaimokuza turned around and looked at Kousaka Kyosuke in surprise, and after hearing this answer, Kousaka Kyosuke suddenly felt heavy in his heart. ]

[“When did you… manage to do this? You were able to use Kuuga’s power without transforming, and you were able to do it with such precision. You couldn’t do it before.”]

[“Well, if you put it that way, let me think about it——that’s right!”]

【After hearing this, Zaimokuza scratched his head in annoyance, then clapped his hands and said.】

[“It should be something that happened after I dealt with No. 30 last time! Recently, I suddenly felt that I seemed to have become much more proficient in controlling my strength, so last time I was cooking in the store and the gas stove was out of gas, I tried it, and it turned out that I really lit the gas stove just by thinking.”]

【"……Yeah?"】

[Kousaka Kyosuke pursed his lips after hearing this answer, and Zaimokuza asked curiously when he saw his thoughtful expression.]

["What's wrong? Mr. Kosaka, is there any problem with this?"]

[“No, I just suddenly felt in my heart…”]

[Kousaka Kyosuke's expression was a little complicated at this moment, and he relaxed his fingers and finally said.]

[“…Perhaps, the day when you and I part ways and go on to pursue our adventures will come sooner rather than later.”]

【"?"】

[This last sentence was so low that even Zaimokuza, who was standing nearby, couldn't hear it clearly and tilted his head in confusion.]

[“Yihui-nii! Thank you!”]

【“Xiao Wei.”】

[Just when Zaimokuza was about to ask something, Hirasawa Yui jumped into his arms with cheers, rubbing her face against his chest, and seeing this, Kousaka Kyosuke walked away a few steps.]

[After eating a while, Hirasawa Yui looked up and said with a happy smile. ]

「In this way, I can be with everyone──」

[Her expression of joy at recovering from the disease suddenly froze, her eyes widened, like a little golden retriever with fate strangled by the scruff of its neck.]

[“——It’s over, it’s over!”]

[Hirasawa Yui suddenly let go of Zaimokuza and screamed loudly, scaring the other girls who were still happy. Akiyama Mio asked with concern.]

[“What’s wrong? Wei, is there anything else?”]

【“I—I forgot Jita at home!”】

[She said this with tears in her eyes, and the expressions of the girls in the light music club froze after hearing this. Yamanaka Sawako even held her forehead with her hand in silence.]

[“As expected of you, I knew this would happen, so—Ding Ding!”]

[She took out a white guitar from behind her, while Zaimokuza looked at her in astonishment, "Where on earth did you get this from!?", and handed it to the panicked Hirasawa Yui.]

[“This is my precious guitar that I used when I was in the light music club. I’ll lend it to you, Yui!”]

[“But I can’t play any other guitar except Jita!”]

[Hirasawa Yui took the guitar with tears in her eyes, played it a few times and found that she couldn't find the sound at all, then she lowered her head and said with a pale face.]

[“Well, then I’ll have to run back to get it, but as for the time—”]

[Taizhong Ritsu looked at the alarm clock on the wall in distress. The hour hand had already passed halfway past twelve o'clock, and their performance time was probably a little after one o'clock.]

[“Anyway, I’ll arrange for you to go to the auditorium to prepare first.”]

【Manabe Kazuya held his forehead in silence, and Zaimokuza beside him suddenly raised his hand and said.】

[“Don’t bother, Wei. Can you lend me the key to your house? Tell me the address, and I’ll definitely get your guitar back before you go on stage!”]

[“Hey! Are you…”]

[“Hehehe~”]

【Kousaka Kyosuke's eyes twitched at this sentence, and Zaimokuza gave him a thumbs up and a smile in response.】

[Looking at this smile, Kousaka Kyosuke suddenly felt his stomach twitch. ]

……

[A pair of eyes from a long distance watched Zaimokuza take the key from Hirasawa Yui and run out the door through the open window of the light music club.]

[The eyes then moved around the building, as if they were chasing a target through the wall, and finally came to the building's exit. The next moment, a white figure in a windbreaker ran out.]

[I watched this figure enter a corner of the school where no one would see it, and then a blurry blue figure leaped up from there and quickly went away into the distance.]

[When the blue figure completely disappeared from sight, the pair of eyes turned back to the window of the light music club, just in time to see Kousaka Kyosuke sticking his head out of the window and looking around with a speechless expression.]

【“～”】

[A cold arc blooms from the corner of the mouth of the owner of these eyes. ]

4. The Last Smile (10K)

[“Really, that little idiot Wei…”]

Manabe Kazu walked down the hallway of the school building, clutching her notebook. As a member of the festival's executive committee and also the student council president, she had a ton of things to coordinate. The school's operations throughout the festival were completely dependent on her.

So, despite wanting to stay and watch the light music club, especially his childhood friend, Manabe, with a strong sense of responsibility, chose to leave after leading the light music club to the back of the auditorium to prepare. He was now on his way to notify the next student group to perform.

"She's always so forgetful. I'm really worried she might forget to wear her wedding dress and go to the wedding one day. But..."

Manabe sighed softly, helplessly reaching out to hold his forehead, but a hint of a smile quietly blossomed at the corner of his mouth.

"Only a heartless and stubborn little fool like her could have so many people genuinely care about her, right? The saying 'fools have their luck' is true, that idiot..."

[——"On my wedding day, I must have you as my bridesmaid!"]

[Recalling the time when they were in kindergarten together, Hirasawa had that one day with that chubby face of his, pretending to be serious, and then cupping his hands and saying something, Manabe Kazuchi couldn't help but smile and shook his head.]

"That idiot, back then, probably didn't even understand what marriage meant. A girl only marries the groom, so where does the bride come from? If anyone could be a bride, they could only be your bridesmaid, right?"

"But now that I think about it, I suddenly want to see Wei in a wedding dress. I wonder what this silly girl would look like in one?"

"Should you continue to look like a fool, or will you become as beautiful as the clown duck that turns into a swan in the fairy tale, so beautiful that even I can't see it?"

【--Bang.】

【"ah!?"】

Manabe turned to look at the white clouds in the sky. She was momentarily lost in thought, forgetting to look at the road ahead. As a result, she accidentally felt a hard yet soft collision in front of her.

She subconsciously screamed and took several steps back, the files in her arms scattering to the ground, making a crisp sound in the silent corridor.

"I'm sorry! It was my fault! Are you okay?"

Realizing he had bumped into someone out of distraction, Manabe Kazu couldn't even bother picking up the fallen documents. He immediately bowed in trepidation, his bangs obscured by his short hair, leaving only a pair of feet in white shorts and canvas sneakers in front of him.

"It's okay, don't worry about it."

"Thank you for your understanding. I'm truly sorry."

A relieved voice came from the other side. Hearing the other side's understanding, Manabe breathed a sigh of relief and immediately squatted down to pick up the various documents scattered on the ground. At this time, the other side also squatted down and helped her to collect the documents.

"Thank you so much for your help!"

Before Manabe could react, the person had already picked up the remaining documents for her, folded them together, and handed them to her. This act of help made her look up at the person gratefully, and she saw that the person was also looking at her with a smile, which made Manabe blush slightly.

"Here you go, take good care of your things~"

“Okay, thank you—”

"By the way, I have something for you too."

【"well?"】

Manabe looked up in astonishment, the red-rimmed glasses on his nose reflecting a flicker of cold light before his eyes—

……

"There are only ten minutes left before I go on stage! What should I do?"

"Jita! I'm going to die without Jita! Wuwuwu——"

"Senior Wei, you're exaggerating!"

Hirasawa Yui was so anxious she was like an ant on a hot pot, crying and running around with her head in her hands. Nakano Azusa frantically raised her hands to comfort her, while the others looked helpless.

"Ah, ah, ah~ At this point, if Zaimokuza-san can't catch up, I'll just have to use Sawa-chan's guitar. I hope Yui can perform normally like usual... maybe."

“Well, after all, Yui came here with a seriously ill body, so it’s normal for her to forget for a moment… Sigh~”

[Taizhong Ritsu put his hand to his forehead and said this silently, while Akiyama Mio smiled bitterly and tried to persuade him, but at the end she couldn't help but sigh.]

"Don't worry, that guy always keeps his word. Since Zaimokuza said he'd deliver the guitar before the show, he definitely won't be late."

"That's right! We need to have faith in Zaimokuza-san, just like Kousaka-san said!"

[Kousaka Kyosuke, who had also been dragged backstage, sat in a chair, his head hanging low as he spoke weakly. Beside him, Kotobuki, one hand held his left arm, puffed up her cheeks, and raised her other fist to cheer everyone on.]

"Kyosuke-nii, why do you say you trust Yoshiki-nii, but you act so dejected?"

[Kousaka Kyosuke's strange behavior, which didn't match his words, caught the attention of Tianzhong Ritsu, who leaned over and asked curiously.]

[“…Because, while I believe that guy won’t break his promise, this also means I believe that he’ll definitely do something weird again.”]

【"What's the meaning?"】

Kousaka Kyosuke covered his face with a headache, his eyes darting through his fingers. He answered the other person's question with a twitch of his mouth. This irrelevant answer made Taichu Ritsu tilt his head in confusion.

【"Please don't say "You are lazy"だって本道はcrazy～"】

A pleasant sound suddenly rang out from Hirasawa Yui's pocket. This ringtone was one of the songs composed by the light music club, and it was also her favorite, so she set it as her ringtone.

"Huh? Dad? Why now?"

With two big tears in her eyes, Hirasawa Yui pulled out her phone and tilted her head when she saw "Dad" listed as the caller's name on the screen, but she still answered the call and put it to her ear.