Chapter 13: Prologue M -ZERO-
<Protagonist's Side>
Morning had come, as it always did.
It was a morning that had continued to arrive even after I possessed this body.
How much time had passed since I woke up at Sky City General Hospital, where everything felt both unfamiliar and strangely familiar?
I had been working hard, juggling various part-time jobs with my studies, when meeting one girl made me realize where I was.
"Who are you?"
Put differently, if I had not met that white-haired, blue-eyed girl who pointed a pistol at the back of my head, I might never have thought this place belonged to that universe.
The girl I met while evacuating people from a place where Honkai Beasts had happened to appear was named Kiana Kaslana.
She was one of the protagonists of the Honkai Impact 3rd universe.
After she realized I was helping people, we worked together and became acquainted. When we found out that we would be attending the same school and even be in the same class starting this year, perhaps that familiarity brought us closer quickly.
There were times when my occasional mistakes got me beaten up and labeled a pervert, but those were entirely my fault, so I had no room to make excuses.
Still, true to her role as a protagonist in the original story, Kiana had gotten caught up in all sorts of things even before the original plot began.
It was quite by chance that I ran into her while we had been going our separate ways for a while.
One of my light bulbs had burned out, so I had stopped by a lighting store to buy one and was doing some grocery shopping afterward.
That was when I saw a female student watching a convenience store from a café.
She was being discreet enough that no one around her would notice.
Wondering why she was watching the convenience store like that, I observed her for a while and noticed that she was only keeping track of certain things.
She was not observing at set intervals, nor was she simply watching people buy things.
She was only keeping track of people who bought cigarettes.
On the off chance it meant something, I continued watching her.
But although she watched people buying cigarettes, she did not buy or smoke any herself.
Then, by chance, our eyes met... and at that moment, a memory of that female student suddenly surfaced in my mind.
"...Raiden Mei?"
One of the three protagonists from the Honkai game I used to play came to mind.
Just like before.
So I watched a little longer, but before much time had passed, Raiden Mei simply left.
I was suspicious of why she had been watching the convenience store—specifically, people buying cigarettes—but since it was nearly time to eat, I went home as well.
"Hm?"
I saw Raiden Mei again near the convenience store in front of my house.
Just as she had the day before, she sat in the least conspicuous seat in a café, pretending to study naturally while keeping track of only the people buying cigarettes.
No, it seemed like she really was studying.
I could see her looking at an open book beside her while taking notes on a tablet.
But she would immediately make a note whenever she spotted someone coming to buy cigarettes, which was incredibly suspicious.
She was even clever enough to periodically order drinks from the café so the owner would not get suspicious.
Raiden Mei watched the area around the convenience store for a while, then headed home once it began to get dark.
"Huh?"
The next day, I saw Raiden Mei at yet another convenience store.
I had lost a bet and gone to the convenience store near my house to buy ice cream. But they did not have the flavor he wanted, so I called him.
He said he absolutely had to have that ice cream, which brought me all the way to another convenience store—and there was Raiden Mei in the café across the street.
Fortunately—or unfortunately—she did not seem to notice me.
But Raiden Mei was still keeping track of the people who bought cigarettes and left.
If this had been the Republic of Korea where I lived before possessing this body, it would not have been strange for me to report Raiden Mei.
But no one besides me seemed to have noticed, and I did not think anything serious would happen, so that day I just bought the ice cream and hurried home.
"Hmm."
Then, some time later, I saw her again while working a day job.
A friend I had made after possessing this body had asked if I could fill in because they were short-staffed, so I took the job.
The day job I was assigned was wearing a mascot costume.
The character I was playing was the Homu Sword Saint, a new character from the currently popular Homu series.
Not much was known about him yet, so unlike the other mascots, I was not harassed by children as often and had plenty of time to look around.
Thanks to that, I happened to spot Raiden Mei.
But unlike how I had seen her before, she was dressed with such mature elegance that she looked like a pretty college student, and I got a bad feeling.
So when my shift ended, after being told to do a good job tomorrow as well, I put on the Homu Sword Saint mascot head I had been given to wear and watched the convenience store.
I could feel people's eyes gathering on me, but perhaps they assumed it was part of an event, because everyone quietly passed by.
It was probably because I had just been working the Homu event.
In any case, after that, I watched Raiden Mei come out after buying cigarettes and was able to piece together what had been happening.
'What should I do?'
Frankly, she was a stranger. No one would blame me if I pretended not to know.
But she was one of the protagonists of a game I had played for a long time, one of the three protagonists I had grown rather attached to.
And since teenage delinquency might not seem like much at the time but could come back to haunt someone terribly later, after some deliberation, I decided to meddle.
It was not even an incident mentioned in the original story, so I figured there would not be much of a problem even if I stepped in.
Of course, I thought that if someone her age tried to stop her, she might simply scoff and dismiss them.
But right now, I was the Homu Sword Saint.
And then I found a sketchbook that had been left behind, perhaps by a child who had been playing with it.
As luck would have it, I also had a ballpoint pen in my pocket.
'With this...'
I intended to talk to Raiden Mei using the sketchbook.
But I never expected her to act so recklessly, as though she did not care even after all that.
In the end, I had no choice but to knock her out.
At the same time, I could not help being genuinely shocked when men in black suits surrounded me and tried to restrain me.
Well, still...
For all that, perhaps because this possessed body was top-class in every way, I subdued them all without much difficulty.
And thanks to that, I got in touch with Raiden Ryoma, Raiden Mei's father, and ended up going this far.
"Whew, it's hot."
After leaving Raiden Mei in one room and entering another, I slumped down against the wall, took off the mascot head, and set it beside me.
Heat was radiating off me, and my underwear was already soaked through. I wiped the sweat running down my face while fanning myself with my other hand.
Then I took my phone from inside my costume, and seeing that it still showed the call as ongoing, I spoke.
"I never expected you to choke on your drink at that moment, Mr. Raiden."
[Ahem! I did not expect to choke on my drink at that moment either.]
"It nearly caused a major problem, though."
With those words, I sighed and set my phone beside me.
It was on speakerphone anyway, so my voice would carry just fine even if I put it down.
"So... what do you think, after hearing her out?"
[...I never imagined my daughter had been pushed so close to her limit. A child who had never gone through even an ordinary rebellious phase at that age, doing something like this...]
"Personally, I find it more surprising that she did not rebel until now."
[That is because my daughter is far too kind.]
"...You doting fool."
For all he proudly declared that, this man was practically guilty of neglect.
For well over a decade, at that.
[To be honest, I thought she hated me.]
"Hated you?"
To me, it seemed more like Raiden Mei was starved for affection.
Even judging by what she had done so far, I got the sense that Raiden Mei wanted her father's attention, not that she hated him.
"So what are you planning to do from now on?"
A brief silence followed my question.
Then, before long, Raiden Ryoma spoke in a voice that sounded somehow more at ease.
[Time that has already passed cannot be brought back. But the future... we can change it, can we not?]
I smiled at those words.
"Well, do your best."
As an outsider, there was nothing more I could do.
The rest was for the family to gather, talk things through, and resolve the resentment that remained between them.
Still, if he was someone capable of reflecting on his mistakes like this, then surely things would work out.
'The first time will be hard... but once you get past that first time, the second will be easier.'
[So who exactly are you?]
"Just a passing Homu Sword Saint. You do not need to remember me."
[I see... Very well, Homu Sword Saint. I will repay this debt someday.]
The call ended with those words. I stared at my phone in disbelief and sighed.
Because I understood the hidden meaning behind them.
Saying he would repay the debt someday meant that he already knew who I was.
"The CEO of a company really is terrifying."
In other words, he had already finished looking into me.
What a sly old fox. He had asked even though he already knew who I was.
I had no intention of getting involved with the original story anymore, so there would be no more incidents related to this either.
<Fly away, let me fly away~ Never hide in dark~ Head on, start a riot~>
The sudden sound of my phone ringing startled me. I looked at the screen, then froze.
No, more accurately, I broke out in a cold sweat.
The moment I saw the caller's name on the screen and the current time above it, I belatedly realized that I had an appointment this evening.
But I was even more afraid of what kind of fallout would come if I did not answer, so I picked up with a trembling hand.
"H-hello—"
[What time is it?]
The subzero voice that cut me off made me unconsciously snap to attention.
The person calling me had instincts sharp enough to see through any excuse, so I knew very well that excuses would not work even over the phone.
'Well, it was not as though I had any intention of making excuses in the first place.'
Either way, it was my fault for making plans and then leaving the other person waiting for over thirty minutes without so much as a message.
I finally managed to calm her down by promising to buy the dinner she wanted, along with the limited-edition shaved ice available this time, and to spend time with her until late. Then I ended the call with a sigh of relief.
I had bought myself thirty minutes, so I needed to hurry home, shower, change clothes, and head back out.
*
[Thanks. See you later, then.]
Watching the call end with those words, the girl puffed out both cheeks.
The girl with snow-white hair braided into childish twin braids could make a rough guess from what he had told her.
Once again, he had stepped in because he could not leave someone in trouble alone.
Remembering that incorrigible nature of his, the girl let the air out of her cheeks and sighed.
As though there was nothing to be done about it.
Because he was that sort of person, because he had shown her that side of himself, the girl had been drawn to him too.
Truthfully, she wished he would be like that only with her.
If she asked him, he would smile as if troubled, yet still grant her request.
But that was not what either he or she wanted.
When a situation arose where he could clearly help, if he could do nothing, he would blame himself—though he would not show it to her.
That was why the girl—Kiana—could not really scold him too harshly about it.
She only...
"Even so, don't forget to at least call me, idiot."
Even so, because she wanted to be the most important person to someone precious to her, she was only allowing herself to complain as much as she pleased.
Comments (0)
Please log in to leave a comment. Login or Register