My youth story cannot be a knight war

"My only enemy."

"!"

A snowflake drifted down from his eyes, obscuring his vision for a moment, and when it fell the next moment, Zaimokuza's eyes widened involuntarily.

The words were still lingering in the air, but the figure had already disappeared, leaving behind only the ruins and the silent him.

The belt dissipated in Zaimokuza's silence, and the strange images on his arms and face also disappeared. He raised his head and looked up at the dark sky, without saying a word for a long time.

Until the roar sounded again and another person's hurried words were heard.

"Zaimokuza!"

The heavy special motorcycle broke through the rain and snow, and stopped suddenly with a drift. Kyosuke Kousaka took off his helmet and quickly scanned the surrounding scene. The scene of police corpses lying all over the ground made a trace of pity and sadness flash in his eyes.

It was not until he saw the familiar figure standing quietly in the rain without saying a word that he felt relieved. He quickly got off the motorcycle and ran towards the other person.

"Zaimokuza! Where's Zero? Where did that guy go?"

"...Mr. Kosaka."

Turning his head to look at Kousaka who was jogging towards him, Zaimokuza pursed his lips and spoke softly.

"That guy... should have gone to Nagano Prefecture, near the ruins."

"Is that the tower? It seems He wants to fight you there."

Kosaka's eyes were stern, and a thick haze passed through his heart. He always had an inexplicable ominous feeling in his heart about the giant tower that appeared out of nowhere.

This feeling is hard to describe in words, but it made Kousaka feel uneasy from the bottom of his heart, as if something terrible was waiting for him in that tower.

“Yes, He is waiting for me there, so I must go.”

"...I won't ask you if you've made up your mind, so I'll just ask one thing."

After a long silence, Kousaka spoke.

"Are you going now?"

"...Before that, could you please let me go see someone first? It will be right away."

Zaimokuza lowered his eyes slightly and smiled.

"Soon, it will be fine."

……

When she received the message from Kyosuke Kousaka and hurried downstairs to open the door, Yukinoshita Yukino saw that man. He was soaked all over and standing in the heavy rain, smiling and raising his right hand to wave to herself.

"...ha~"

Sighing silently, Yukinoshita reached for the umbrella by the door, opened it, and walked towards Zaimokuza in the rain.

"Hello~ Minister."

"It's been a long time since I've heard such a greeting, Zaimokuza-san."

He came to a stop not far from Zaimokuza, and Yukinoshita's clear navy blue eyes looked at him, but it was as if she saw another boy through a long time.

But whether it was that boy or the man in front of him, they were both the same person, Zaimokuza Yoshiki.

Only this smiling face has never changed.

"...I won't ask you where you've been these past few days, but couldn't you have brought an umbrella with you?"

She tilted her umbrella halfway towards the zaimokuza and said helplessly.

"You've always been like this, always so careless."

"Sorry, sorry~ I promise, this is the last time."

Zaimokuza said with a smile, his eyes flickering as he looked at the beautiful woman in front of him, and his words immediately made Yukinoshita fall into silence.

"One last...time?"

As she muttered these words, Yukinoshita's whole body seemed to relax as if a heavy burden had been lifted, and there was a different kind of emotion in her eyes as she looked at Zaimokuza.

"...It seems like you're finally planning on going on your journey, right?"

"Hmm~ So, I thought I had to come and talk to you, Minister, and by the way, ask you what kind of specialties you like."

"No thanks! You've already brought back enough weird stuff. If you bring any more, the office won't be able to hold them all."

She said this in a somewhat unpleasant tone, but her palm secretly increased the strength of gripping the umbrella handle, and Yukinoshita whispered.

"You don't have to bring your stuff with you, but next time you come back... remember to call me first."

"Well~ Isn't this the way I always want to give you a surprise, Buchou?"

Rubbing her hands, Zaimokuza looked up at Jonan University behind her, and her eyes suddenly brightened when she saw the window of the teaching building that was still open.

"After all, an unannounced reunion is a real surprise, isn't it?"

"...Indeed, I never thought you would say something so philosophical."

With a light laugh, Yukinoshita continued.

"Also, the book you wrote this time is finally up to standard. Although the content is boring and clichéd...it is indeed an interesting story, and I will remember it."

"That's good. After hearing your evaluation, Minister, I can finally rest assured."

After hearing this, Zaimokuza smiled. He looked quietly at Yukinoshita in front of him, and she looked at him without flinching. The connection between their eyes contained countless memories and past events witnessed by each other.

"That……"

"Goodbye, Minister."

Yukinoshita placed one hand on her forehead and closed her eyes, sighing helplessly once again.

"I think you need some further training in language arrangement. Remember, we never say 'goodbye' to those who haven't left."

She opened her eyes, looked at the smiling Zaimokuza, and spoke softly.

"It's not 'goodbye', it's 'see you next time'. I'll keep the window for you... You must come back alive."

"So, will you come back?"

"Of course - yes, I will definitely come back~"

Zaimokuza said with a smile.

"It's a promise. I'll come back to see you."

"...Then you must remember what you said, Zaimokuza-kun."

Yukinoshita spoke calmly, her slender fingers holding the umbrella had turned white, and the joints of her fingers were clearly visible through the pale skin.

"Question: What are the final rules of the Service Club?"

Zaimokuza's expression instantly grew serious, he gave a mock military salute and spoke in a tone like he was reciting in class.

"The final rule of the Service Club: Promises made must be kept. Those who break them must eat the cookies made by Yuigahama and then confess their love to Hiratsuka-sensei!"

"Good, you did remember."

Nodding, Yukinoshita turned around and spoke with her back to Zaimokuza.

"Go ahead, but remember to go early and come back early, don't make me wait too long."

"Don't worry~ Then, I'm leaving."

After ending this ridiculous conversation, Zaimokuza put down his hand and looked at Yukinoshita who had her back to him. The colors in his eyes were as bright as a rainbow.

"See you next time, Minister."

When these words fell, there was no more sound behind him.

"..."

Looking back silently, seeing the empty and deserted street behind her, Yukinoshita's hand holding the umbrella slowly dropped.

The heavy rain poured down, soon soaking her entire body without any shelter. Her long black hair fell on her cheeks, and the rain slid down the wet hair along the beautiful curve of her cheeks, and dripped along the pointed curve of her jaw.

I couldn't tell if it was rain or something else.

The words have been said, the person has left, and the memories and time of the past have been taken away with him.

But something remained forever, in Yukinoshita's heart.

“…I didn’t lie to you.”

She raised her head and looked directly at the heavy rain, her bangs parted on both sides of her cheeks, revealing her navy blue eyes.

"The story you wrote this time is indeed very interesting. I will remember it."

"Zaimokuza-san."

25. The Eve of Creation (5K)

Already, it's about to start, right?

This, the final battle...

Folding her umbrella and sitting in her own seat, Yukinoshita looked at the office she had taken over for a year, but her heart felt empty as if there was a hole at the bottom.

When was the last time you felt this way?

This thought flashed through Yukinoshita's mind, and she came up with the answer the next moment.

That was many years ago, but as the memory awakens, it is still as clear as the lines on the palm of your hand, including the images and sadness contained in those lines.

That was the first time Yukinoshita realized how weak and powerless her stubborn resistance was in the face of this world.

At that time, she watched helplessly as the club that once gathered all her friends fell apart before her eyes due to the cruel reality. At that moment, the knowledge she had mastered, the firm beliefs she firmly believed in, the achievements and abilities she was proud of were all irretrievable. What Yukinoshita felt was exactly the same emotion as she feels now.

The former service club was like a beautiful dream, which held the stubborn dreams and innocent wishes of a group of boys and girls. But when the dream was broken, those boys and girls grew up overnight.

And only at that moment in her life, Yukinoshita tried her best to resist her own growth, and even cried secretly and weakly because of it. That was also the first time in her life that she shed tears for the disappearance of something.

Even when she was young and was targeted, despised and excluded by everyone around her, she was always so proud that she seemed to stand tall and fight off all the darkness that was rushing towards her on her own.

But when the beauty and warmth that she felt for the first time in the world other than her family left her, the proud girl who once stood tall and proud was also taken away, leaving behind a girl who had transformed from being stubborn and obstinate into a perfect and mature Yukinoshita Yukino.

But whether she was that proud girl or the mature girl now, she hates and feels so painful for the powerlessness and emptiness that devours her heart.

People always have to grow up...but why do those who once grew up with us leave us one after another in the end?

She reached out and took the photo frame on the table. Her delicate fingers stroked the photo inside through the glass, stroking the smiles and helplessness of the four boys and girls. Yukinoshita's closed eyes trembled slightly.

Is this what growing up is like? How cruel! This pain of having your heart torn apart is something you can never get used to, no matter how many times you experience it. It can only heal slowly with the passage of time.

And all the beauty and laughter of the past can only be swallowed up by time, without leaving even a trace...?

Yukinoshita opened her eyes, put down the photo frame in her hand, and stared blankly at the display cabinet in the office.

On the top shelf of the cabinet, there was only a yellowed manuscript paper lying quietly, like a treasure buried in time, waiting for those who had returned to this memory to find it.

Click.

She opened the cabinet door, reached out to take the manuscript paper, and looked at the signature "Zaimokuza Yoshiki" on the top cover. Yukinoshita's eyes were blank for a moment.

Why would she forget? It was clearly there, a piece of evidence that proved those times and people had not completely left her.

Why did I forget this precious memory? And why did I only remember it now?

"I hadn't finished reading that story yet."

Sitting back in her seat, Yukinoshita, holding the stack of manuscript paper, looked back at the scenery outside the window. It was just as dark and depressing as before.

So, perhaps we can find some of the warmth we once had from this proof left over from the past?

Thinking of this, she turned over the first page of the manuscript paper.

"—"

But when she saw the preface on the second page, Yukinoshita's movements suddenly stopped, and her pupils slowly contracted as they reflected the several lines of words written on the manuscript paper.

[This is a fate that was already determined in the distant past, and it is also a story that will begin in the present and the future. 】

[In the darkness of the ancient times, the terrifying evil is about to awaken, and boundless darkness is about to cover everything. ]

【The story will have a grand opening. 】