My youth story cannot be a knight war

"elder brother!"

“…Komachi?”

A junior high school in Chiba Prefecture.

"Huh? Brother?"

Hikigaya Komachi, who was watching a video intently with her classmates, suddenly heard a familiar voice coming from behind her. She turned around subconsciously and spoke the voice, only to see a boy with a bewildered expression. The boy saw that the girl he had been secretly peeping at suddenly looked at him, and his face was panicked and he didn't know what to do.

"?"

She tilted her head in confusion, and the ahoge on top of her head slid to one side with the movement, which was so adorable that it made people's nose bleed.

【A museum in Tokyo. 】

【A few hours ago.】

【Snapped! 】

With a sharp thud, Gooma was slapped once again by the frosty-faced Baruba and thrown into the trash can, struggling with his hands.

[“It’s more likely to cause trouble than to help!”]

Baruba coldly looked at Gooma, who was struggling in the trash can, and turned to Badjisu, who was standing behind him with a gloomy expression.

[“Unfortunately, since your counting bracelet is lost, you can only start over.”]

After saying this, she pulled out a black bracelet and handed it to him. Badjisu didn't dispute her decision, but took it indifferently and walked out the door. But halfway through, he stopped, turned around, and raised the bracelet on his wrist and said.

[“Killing ordinary Lindo counts as this.”]

[It moved a magatama on the bracelet and continued.]

"If I kill Kuuga, I'll count it towards this number... okay?"

Badjisu once again moved the bracelet down the column, this time directly moving three magatama, and looked at Baruba with some anticipation.

This is why it didn't kill Zaimokuza at the amusement park. It wasn't because it couldn't kill him, but because it had to use him as leverage. It was also a helpless move. After all, losing the bracelet completely negates all previous kills, but time can't be reset. Once the energy Baruba injected into the Badjisu belt reaches the predetermined time, if it completes the game, it will strengthen itself and advance to a higher level. But if it fails, it will self-destruct.

[Since the previous number of people was invalid, Badjisu could only come up with this method. ]

The Gurongi don't use the modern decimal system. Instead, they employ a more primitive system called the multiplication-accumulation system, using base 9. For the Gurongi, 9 is considered a whole number. Therefore, the targets set in their killing games are usually multiples of , though they aren't strictly limited. For example, the Badjisu target is people.

[The bracelet it wears has each magatama on the top row representing a number one, and each magatama on the bottom row representing a number nine. If Badjisu flips three magatama, killing Zaimokuza will be enough to kill twenty-seven players.]

【“Okay, I’ll do as you say.”】

Baruba looked at the number of magatama it was moving and nodded in agreement. Upon receiving the response, Badjisu smiled, a smile that was extremely cold.

"Just hearing your words is enough. I guarantee that Kuuga won't live to see the sun set!"

[After saying this, it immediately began to change its form. Furthermore, as its body twisted, an emerald light began to glow from its waist. Badjisu had actually transformed into a strengthened form!]

【"drink!"】

[After the transformation, it spread its six wings behind it, and flew up into the sky with a loud roar, directly crashing through the glass on the top of the museum and flying out. The broken glass fell sparsely at the feet of the remaining Gurongi inside, breaking into smaller pieces.]

"...Kuuga's power seems to have brought about a significant change in this "Kikiru." The rules of the game "GO" will likely undergo a major overhaul."

Baruba lowered his head, looking up, and walked forward with an indifferent expression. In front of him, Gooma had just taken the trash can off his head and stood up with a head full of vegetable leaves and leftovers. Baruba frowned in disgust when he saw this and slapped him again.

[“Ah!”]

After the sound of slaps and screams, Gooma was thrown onto the broken glass again. The sharp glass fragments tore into many cracks on his clothes.

[“Disgusting guy, find your place well.”]

Baruba said this and headed for the gate without looking back. The Gurongi following him all smirked at this scene, some even kicking Gooma as he tried to stand. Then, with their hands behind their backs and whistling, they followed the rear of the group.

【“——!!!”】

Kicked down again, Gooma lowered his head, his untidy hair obscuring his eyes. His gaze fixed intently on the retreating Gurongi. His black-gloved hand tightly grasped a piece of glass. The glass pierced through the leather glove and pierced into his flesh. As his palm exerted pressure, blood, so bright red it was almost pitch black, flowed from his palm along the shards of glass.

["Ba——ru——ba!"]

[Gooma's resentful growl echoed in the empty museum, the hatred in his voice like the roar of a demon.]

"Obviously I shouldn't laugh...but why can't I help but laugh every time I see number three being bullied? Hahaha!"

After finally getting out of his depressed state, Tobe Sho couldn't help laughing with his eyes open after watching the helpless and furious Gooma in the video. His laughter became louder and louder, and his laughter was like a barbell, showing that he was a very healthy person.

"Although it looks pitiful, as a teacher I don't approve of bullying...but monsters are another matter. It can be said that every evil spirit has its own way of dealing with evil spirits."

Shizuka Hiratsuka couldn't help laughing as she watched Batman being bullied in the video, her shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter.

"You can't get away, KUUGA!"

Thousands of meters above, Badjisu's enhanced green compound eyes scanned the surroundings. His enhanced senses took in every sound from the entire city. This action, which would have been a significant strain on Zaimokuza's brain, had little effect on him. Nothing escaped his gaze.

Badjisu watched and listened to everything that happened in Asia's largest city. In a house, a wife had her neck twisted by her enraged husband, her son squatting at the top of the stairs, watching in horror. A boy on a bicycle caught a falling beret on a slope, turning his head to look up, and a girl on the slope. A woman, naked except for her apron, endured her husband's boss groping her from behind while she cooked with a spoon while her husband worked. A terrified man was pressed against a vending machine and forcefully kissed by a strong man. There was also a fat boy in a classroom being stepped on and mocked by three girls dressed in bold clothes. There was also a secretary in a company office, with her hands pressed against the door, gasping for breath as the boss scolded her from behind. There was also a man riding a motorcycle towards the outside of the city -

[“Found it! It’s him!”]

Badjisu suddenly looked at the figure on the motorcycle heading out of the city. The color of the person's body was completely different from the other blues. Like a burning flame, it radiated an orange-red glow in all directions, which was extremely dazzling.

It flapped its wings and rushed towards Zaimokuza, where the Triangle Chaser 2000 was driving on the road far away!

……

[“What on earth are you doing? Zaimokuza!”]

[Kousaka Kyosuke, who had just rescued a mother and daughter from No. 14, released his finger on the communication button again and drove the police car down the road with a frown on his face.]

[The Triangle Tracker 2000 was parked on the roadside above the coastline. The communication device on it kept ringing, but the person who answered the call was no longer there.]

[“Notice to all vehicles, we have just captured the ultrasonic wave of the unidentified life form No. 14. Its route shows that it is heading to Chiba Prefecture. Please ask the police cars and nearby police officers who received the call to provide support immediately. I repeat, what we just did——”]

【"Could it be that!?"】

[Kousaka Kyosuke opened his eyes wide when he heard the in-car broadcast. He turned on the in-car display screen to show the location of Zaimokuza Triangle Tracker 2000. The location shown was Futtsu Kaigan, which was in Chiba Prefecture! ]

[Kousaka Kyosuke turned his head to look at the ultrasonic capture device that Ebina Hime had given him before. There was a signal source on it that was heading towards Chiba Prefecture at an extremely fast speed. The speed was no different from that of a space shuttle. In a blink of an eye, it crossed a large area of ​​the map and rushed straight towards the direction of the triangle tracker shown on the display on the other side! ]

[“Damn it! Number 14’s target is Zaimokuza after all!”]

[Kousaka Kyosuke immediately stepped on the accelerator, and the speed of the police car soared to about 100 miles per hour in an instant. The car body was like a black and blue phantom speeding on the road, leaving all the passing vehicles behind.]

[“This is my personal request. Please, Mr. Kousaka, if it is possible…”]

[“…Please do your best to protect Yoshiki.”]

【Thinking of the sincere words that Ebina Hime said to him before leaving the Metropolitan Police Department, Kousaka Kyosuke was pushed back on the chair at an extremely fast speed, and the speed of the police car continued to increase. The scenery passing by the windows on both sides had turned into lines of various colors.】

[“Don’t worry, Ms. Ebina, I will.”]

[Kousaka Kyosuke touched the gun hanging on the lining of his windbreaker, clenched his teeth, and his calm face could not hide his anxiety.]

[——I rarely make promises to others, so please don’t die before I arrive! Zaimokuza!]

"...Hina, what is the relationship between you and Zaimokuza in the future? Why are you so nice to him?"

Looking at what Kyosuke Kousaka was thinking in the video, Yumiko Miura couldn't suppress the doubts in her heart, and asked Ebina Hina who was sitting next to her. Her mouth was still narrowed into an ω shape, and her glasses reflected the image of the mobile phone video.

"Hey~ I don't know either. Maybe it's the future Zaimokuza who won my heart. After all, the future Zaimokuza is really handsome~"

This is a lie.

Miura Yumiko, who was already familiar with Ebina Hina, could tell at a glance that she was lying. She must have been hiding something from her.

Even Zaimokuza couldn't help but secretly look at Himena Ebina. He has been a solitary warrior since he was born SOLO. If nothing unexpected happens, he may even become a great magician. Unexpectedly, he knew directly from this video that he had a girlfriend in the future and broke up with her. What's even more embarrassing is that the "ex-girlfriend" in the video is standing here now. This is simply a super double public execution. Therefore, after knowing his future relationship with Himena Ebina, he has never dared to look at her.

"~?"

After noticing Zaimokuza's gaze, Ebina Hina waved at him with a smile, causing Zaimokuza to turn back in embarrassment.

【Chiba Prefecture, Futtsu Coast. 】

【Now. 】

【"Yihui, why are you here, and your eyes!?"】

[“This… is just a minor injury. It will be healed by tomorrow. Don’t worry.”]

【Tsurumi Rumi was a little surprised at first why Zaimokuza was here. When she saw his bandaged eye with blood oozing out, she couldn't help but ask worriedly, but Zaimokuza just smiled and waved his hand.】

【"……Who are you?"】

[Natsume Mika looked at the handsome white-haired young man in front of her and couldn't help but hold the backpack tightly in her arms and took a few steps back nervously. Even though she knew from the reaction of Tsurumi Rumi behind her that it was an acquaintance of her cousin, her fear did not subside.]

[“Don’t be afraid, I’m not a bad person. You can ask Liu Mei-chan about this.”]

【"……Um."】

[Natsume Mika turned her gaze to Tsurumi Rumi, and after seeing her cousin nod silently, she relaxed her tense body slightly. However, her next words suddenly made her body stiffen again.]

[“Although Yoshiki is not a normal person, he is not a bad person either, so don’t be afraid, Mika.”]

【“!”】

[The girl's eyes became alert again, and she took another step back.]

[“Hey, hey, hey, don’t tarnish my image in front of someone you just met for the first time, Rumi-chan~”]

[Zaimokuza smiled bitterly and scratched his hair, speaking to the suddenly expressionless Tsurumi Rumi, looking at the alert Natsume Mika and sighing, then a gentle smile appeared on his face again.]

[“Actually, this wasn’t our first meeting. You might not have remembered me at that time, but I always remember the way you ran out crying after your father’s funeral, Shijia.”]

【"you……!?"】

【Suddenly Zaimokuza told her the thing that was hidden deep in her heart, Natsume Mika was stunned, and her red eyes opened wide.】

[“Like I said before, it’s not that everyone doesn’t care about your father’s affairs. On the contrary, everyone is so busy trying not to let your father’s tragedy happen again, so please don’t think that everyone is so heartless.”]

[“So come back with me and Rumi, return to your mother, and leave the rest to me—”]

[“——You make it sound so simple!”]

[But facing Zaimokuza's persuasion, Natsume Mika did not appreciate it. Instead, the pain that had been accumulated in her heart for the past month was directly triggered by his words. Tears flowed from her eyes again. She hugged her backpack and shouted at the top of her lungs. The sadness in her voice was like a baby bird crying blood because its parents were taken away by hunters. The angry voice echoed on this beach with only three people.]

[“That’s my dad! My dad was killed by No. 0 just like that! Do you know how my mom and I felt when we received that phone call that day!? Do you know how my family has been living for the past month? Every day, every day, every day, I hope to hear the news that No. 0 was shot dead by the police, but it never happened. It seems that my dad has been forgotten by everyone!”]

[“I didn’t even get to see my father for the last time. Everyone forbade my mother and me to see the body in the coffin, saying they were worried that we would faint from the shock... Do you know how I felt at that time?”]

[“That’s my dad! The person closest to me in this world! Do you know how it feels to lose the person closest to you—!?”]

[Just when Natsume Mika was about to continue speaking, a warm palm suddenly covered her hair. The warmth from the palm and the gentle eyes of the young man in front of her blocked all the remaining words she wanted to say.]

[“I understand, I understand your feelings.”]

【Zaimokuza gently stroked her long hair, his smile still as gentle as water, but a gray color gradually crept up from his clear eyes.】

[Natsume Mika is not unfamiliar with that color, because for more than a month, she can see this color in her eyes every day when she looks in the mirror. ]

[“I really understand what you said, Shika. Losing someone important to you in this world... is really painful.”]

[“When you heard the news, you must have felt as if there was a huge sound in your ears, and all the sounds in the world gradually left you. Even the temperature began to disappear from the soles of your feet. All your physical strength escaped from your body along with the temperature, and the colors in front of your eyes began to dim. Then... you must have cried very loudly, right?”]

[“Why… did you…”]

【Seeing Zaimokuza easily express all his reactions and feelings when he received the news of his father's death that day, Natsume Mika could only stare at him blankly, his voice constantly ringing in his ears.】

[“You didn’t do anything wrong, Shijia. Likewise, we didn’t do anything wrong. It is because we know how unforgettable the pain is that we can learn to understand each other. And because we don’t want anyone to feel this kind of pain again, we have been working hard. Everything we do is to protect more people from the hands of unconfirmed life forms.”]

[“Whether it’s me, the Minister, or Mr. Kosaka…everything we are doing now is to protect everyone’s smiles, so that no one will shed tears because of unconfirmed life forms.”]

[“But life is like this. It can’t always be smooth sailing. Sometimes we will encounter setbacks, fall, and even lose the things that are most precious to us.”]

[“But no matter how painful or confused we are, we must learn to stand up from where we fell, and keep going with the expectations of those who have passed away, until we reach the last step of our lives. I think this is what all the deceased expect of their loved ones... just like your father.”]

[“Your father certainly doesn’t want to see your tears, but he wants to see a smile on your face again, to see you continue to move on after he leaves, to live well, and to live with your mother with his hopes and blessings.”]

【“——Isn’t it, Shika?”】

[This last sentence completely broke Natsume Mika's defenses. She stared blankly at Zaimokuza's smiling face, tears flowing uncontrollably from her big eyes. Each tear was like a pearl shining in the sea, falling silently onto the wet sand at her feet along with the backpack that slipped out of her arms.]

[…Umm…Dad…]

[My father's face reappeared before my eyes, which were blurred by tears. He was indeed smiling, and his smile was exactly the same as in my memory.]

[That smile was so vivid, like a beam of light that illuminated the darkened heart caused by the pain of loss at that moment.]

[The petite girl who was still in junior high school held her clothes in front of her chest and sobbed quietly, until Tsurumi Rumi behind her gently reached out and hugged her to her chest. She could no longer bear it and finally burst into tears, her sobs filled with long-accumulated sadness and pain. ]

[“Yihui, you’ve become very good at comforting people.”]

[Tsurumi Rumi gently stroked the hair of her cousin who was crying on her chest, looked up at Zaimokuza and spoke softly, with a faint and touching arc at the corner of her mouth. ]

[“Isn’t that natural? I’m a man who has made comforting people one of my two thousand skills!”]