My youth story cannot be a knight war

In response to Hoshino's teasing, Ye Shan just looked up and responded with a look of hostility and indifference. He did not forget the fact that this man almost killed him before.

Although both sides seem to have no reason to fight now, the grudges between them will not be easily eliminated. Ye Shan is indeed generous, but he is not so generous that he will not feel negative emotions even if someone intends to murder him.

"Sure, after all, we agreed on this before, and..."

Grabbing the hem of her skirt at her knees, Hikigaya Komachi looked up at Hayama and said with a smile, but anyone could see the slight reluctance in her smile.

"All of this is actually related to what I asked you, Senior."

"?"

"Let me start with the first thing. There are some things I don't quite understand, but there is one thing I do know."

Looking down at the card box held in Hayama's hand, Hikigaya Komachi said softly:

"Senior Hayama, the card box you are using now... was made by my brother, Hikigaya Hachiman."

"--What!?"

10. The Coming of the Son (7K)

As soon as the words came out, everyone was shocked.

This is how people all over the world feel right now.

"well???"

"elder brother?"

"...!"

Yuigahama Yui opened her eyes wide and looked behind her in astonishment, while Hayama Hayato next to her also turned his head suddenly, with an incredible light in his eyes.

As the object of the two people's gaze, Hikigaya Hachiman also had a suspicious expression on his face. He looked at the words spoken by his "sister" on the curtain in front of him, as well as the overlapping questions from the other end of the phone, and muttered to himself.

"That card box that can transform... was made by me?"

"This is impossible."

The first to make the judgment was Yukinoshita Yukino, who spoke with a look of conviction:

"I'm quite familiar with Hikigaya-san's abilities. His only strong score is in the liberal arts. In science, he's on the same level as Zaimokuza-san. Both of them race against the bell to pass the exam."

"As for this brand-new cartridge system, while I can't claim to be more knowledgeable in science than Ebina-san, I can tell that its technological content surpasses modern human understanding of science. Even if Hikigaya-san switched to science and devoted his entire life to researching it, he'd never be able to create something like this."

"...Can I understand this as your trust in me, Yukinoshita?"

Yukinoshita's overly assertive tone made Hikigaya's eyes twitch. What made him even more upset was that his sister on the other end of the line also heard what he said and expressed her agreement.

"That's right! Although my brother is good at liberal arts, his grades in science are terrible. It can't be him who did this~"

"...For that sentence, Komachi's score will be deducted to zero."

After being double-denied by his friend and sister (key point), Hikigaya remained expressionless, but a clear tear flowed from the edge of his rotten dead fish eye filled with DHA.

"I also think that it's impossible for Hikigaya-san to create such an item now."

After thinking for a while, Ye Shan said.

"But what if it's Hikigaya-san from a different parallel world?"

“…That’s the problem.”

Lowering his gaze, Yukinoshita's navy blue eyes were covered with an indescribable darkness.

"This Sobu High School is truly filled with talented people."

In the student council room of Shuchiin, Ishigami Yuu complained while rubbing his temple with his index finger.

"Before, there was Zaimokuza-san, who transformed into a super-ancient warrior; there was Yukino Yukinoshita, a super-ancient scholar; there was Himena Ebina, who created weapons that transcended her time; and now there's a new transformation system that can create weapons that are just as powerful... no, it should be said that it far surpasses the latter."

Having said that, a hint of hesitation appeared in the depths of his eyes.

"But from the intelligence we know, if he really had already created such a weapon that was ahead of its time... why wasn't there any news about this card box weapon when those Gurongi were wreaking havoc?"

"It's understandable that Hikigaya died at that time, but it's not like all these things were buried after his death, right? There should be some paper materials left behind."

"But I think the place we should focus on right now is not here, Ishigami-kun."

Holding a pen, looking at the notebook with information written on it spread out on the table, Baiyin Yuxing bit the cap of the pen, and there was a solemn look in his eyes, which looked a little haggard due to staying up late.

He held the pen and drew a thick black circle around the three words "Mirror World" on the notebook.

"Mirror World, as the name suggests, should be the world within the mirror..."

Shirogane Miyuki looked at the other side of the table in front of him, where there was a round mirror with a pink frame. When Fujiwara Chika went traveling during the summer vacation, she carelessly left her makeup mirror here.

Looking at his own reflection in the mirror, Baiyin Yuxing felt a deep chill slowly rising from the soles of his feet for some reason.

In our daily lives, in the mirror that we can always see...is there really such a world that has never been discovered by anyone?

In that mirror, will there be——

"Isn't this ridiculous? What was I thinking?"

Stopping this thought, Baiyin Yuxing put down his pen, rubbed his nose, closed his eyes and let out a bitter laugh. He felt that he was really tired recently, otherwise his mind would not be so confused.

But even though he comforted himself in this way, the subtle uneasiness in his heart did not subside and still lingered in his mind.

"—"

His cold gaze fixed on Shirogane Miyuki, who was kneading his nose with his head down. The figure reflected in the makeup mirror, now free from the constraints of his movements in reality, looked at him silently.

"Ok?"

[Click.]

Putting the coffee cup back on the table, the black-haired young man grabbed the windbreaker on the back of the chair and draped it over his shoulders. He reached out to pick up the black backpack on another chair and stood up.

"Huh? Are you leaving so soon?"

Hikigaya Komachi, who had just come out of the kitchen, was holding a tray of fried food in her hands wearing heat-insulating gloves. She happened to see the other person picking up the object and preparing to leave, so she quickly put down the tray and walked over.

"Well, I have a lot of things to do, so I have to go quickly."

"Really? Can't you just finish eating first? It's rare that you came to see me, brother. I even made your favorite shrimp tempura!"

After putting on his windbreaker, the black-haired young man turned around and looked at Hikigaya Komachi, who was dressed in a simple waiter outfit, with a glimmer flickering in his deep black eyes.

"Komachi...are you getting used to life here?"

"Don't worry, brother, I'm not the little girl I used to be~"

Hikigaya Komachi had a dashing smile on her face. She raised her hands and made a Hercules pose, then said with a smile.

"Everyone is really nice and takes great care of me. I've gotten used to living here!"

"Really? That's good. My parents are working abroad, and I have to go somewhere else for work, so I'm worried that you might not be used to it if I leave you here alone."

"Mo~ I'm already so old! Can you please stop touching my head like you did when we were little?"

The white palm was placed on the top of Hikigaya Komachi's head, rubbing her soft long hair. The warmth from the palm made her squint her eyes comfortably. Although she said some complaining words, the expression on her face was as soft as a cat whose chin was stroked.

"Heh~ You're right, my sister has indeed grown up. I'm very pleased as a brother."

Looking at his sister's cute expression which was exactly the same as when she was a child, the young man raised the corners of his mouth slightly and spoke softly.

"Now that you've grown up, I can rest assured."

She put down her hands, and Hikigaya Komachi opened her slightly closed eyes and watched quietly as the young man turned around, picked up the backpack and walked out, but the smile on her face gradually disappeared.

"Hey, brother."

As the young man grasped the door handle of the cafe, Hikigaya Komachi, who was watching his back, suddenly spoke.

When the other person turned around, her face was covered with the same smile as before, and she asked in a lively tone.

"When are you planning to come next time? Remember to call me when you come, and I'll make you a delicious welcome dinner. It'll be so delicious you'll cry!"

"Then I'll have to try my sister's cooking."

Carrying a backpack, Hikigaya Hachiman looked at his graceful sister. His face, which had rarely shown any expression, showed a genuine smile. His eyelashes were reflected in the sunlight shining in from the window, and the reflection gave the smile a hazy tone like a colorful montage.

"Don't worry, I will come back to see you when I'm done with my work."

"I promise you that."

pat-

The sound of the door closing that day echoed in Hikigaya Komachi's ears at this moment. Sitting at the table, she looked down at the coffee cup she was holding with both hands, and a dark color filled with worry passed through her eyes.

"...Since that day, I have never seen my brother again."

Putting down the cup, she recalled everything that happened on the day the brother and sister last met.

"A long time passed after that. During this time, I tried to contact my brother, but all the calls were unsuccessful. Other contact methods were also useless. Even when I called the workplace that my brother told me about, the staff there told me that my brother had never worked there."

"And my brother...he just disappeared from my life like that."

As her fingers stroked the rabbit pattern on the coffee cup, Hikigaya Komachi's eyes were dim and full of longing.

"Then how did you know that this card box was made by your brother? Did Hikigaya-san tell you before he left?"

After hearing the whole story, Hayato Hayama raised the card box between his fingers, with an expression full of unsolvable doubts.

His original clothes were no longer wearable due to blood stains and damage, so he was now wearing a black shirt and matching trousers provided by Hikigaya Komachi.

As the real provider of the clothes, Hoshino Aikyuu and Aikai, under the gaze of Hikigaya Komachi, tried hard to swallow the word starting with the "F" sound that was about to come out of their mouths and then smiled.

"No, Senior, at first I didn't know that this card box was made by my brother."

Putting down the coffee cup, Hikigaya Komachi shook her head.

At this moment, she raised her eyes and looked forward, and Ye Shan followed her gaze and met a pair of blue eyes.

"~"

Hoshino and the other man, who were standing against the wall, looked over, smiled, raised their hands and shook them in greeting.

When he saw him, Ye Shan couldn't help but twitch his eyes, and turned his eyes away with a depressed look on his face. He felt that he and this man were completely incompatible.

It was not only because the other party had seriously injured and almost killed him before, but also because he felt that the two of them were born to be incompatible. Although he had always been kind to others, he always felt an inexplicable discomfort in his heart when he saw Hoshino.

"…Aqua told me."

Looking at Hoshino with a complicated look, Hikigaya Komachi said softly.

"It was Aqua who found me, who knew nothing at the time. He showed me the Knight Card Box made by my brother and told me about the existence of the Mirror World and the monsters that lurked there and preyed on humans, and—"

When she said this, Hikigaya Komachi grasped the hem of her skirt with her slender white hands and lowered her head in disappointment.

"...It was only then that I finally understood what the job my brother was talking about was."

"What exactly are those? That so-called mirror world, and those monsters that attack humans within it, what are they?"

In fact, Yeshan was not very concerned about the main content of what Hikigaya Komachi was talking about now. What he cared about was the mirror world she mentioned before, and the monsters hidden inside that attacked humans.

He can ignore everything else, but he must know these two things.

A scene of burning flames emerged in his mind. In that scene, a giant red dragon raised its head and let out a long roar that tore through the sky, and a red figure appeared in the flames... Ye Shan's eyes seemed to be ignited by the flames in his memory, and the fingers holding the card box unconsciously increased their strength.

What happened on the day he got the card box was an unforgettable memory and nightmare for him.

He wanted to know what had caused what he had witnessed that day.

"The mirror world...just like I said, it's a world hidden inside the mirror, but this world is generally not observable by ordinary people...except at a certain time."

Hikigaya Komachi slowly turned her head and looked directly into Hayama's serious eyes, her tone inexplicably strange.

"That's when the mirror monsters prey on humans."

"...!"

Ye Shan's breath was choked and his eyes couldn't help but widen.

"Mirror monsters are a group of monsters that live within the Mirror World. Just like the Mirror World itself, we know nothing about them. We don't know why they and the Mirror World exist... But we do know that they have a habit of preying on humans."

"Preying on... humans?"

As he chewed on these words, Ye Shan realized for the first time that his voice could become so hoarse.

"That's right. They can rush out from the mirror world and drag humans into it to devour them. Those who are preyed upon by the mirror monsters will completely disappear from this world, and not even their corpses will remain."