Perhaps she had thought about it for a long time before deciding to use this method to get Hakuto to play shogi with her.
Or maybe she was just afraid that Hakuto would refuse—her worried expression was impossible to hide.
For some reason, whenever Hakuto thought of the expression on Ginko's face at that time, he couldn't help but want to laugh...
Maybe it was because he missed it? Or maybe he was laughing at how Ginko looked back then.
"At the very least… I should take responsibility… right..." Hakuto murmured to himself as he gazed at the bright moon in the sky.
"But… Being a responsible person doesn't seem so easy..." Hakuto now had some understanding of what those fake harem protagonists must feel like.
One? Several?
It didn't really matter. Hakuto didn't care about that sort of thing, or perhaps he was just indifferent to it all.
He simply didn't want to see those who truly liked him, those who treated him sincerely, end up heartbroken.
What was this? A contradiction of a teenager going through puberty? Or was it a boy paying the price for his previous immaturity?
Perhaps it was both...
Did Hakuto even have a choice? Not really... it wasn't about caring what outsiders thought, he just cared about the feelings of those around him.
...
"I'm home~" Returning home, Hakuto took out his key and slowly opened the door.
By now, keys to his house weren't anything special—almost everyone had one.
Even those without keys had found various ways to get into his home.
Prying the door, climbing windows… they used every method imaginable…
Looking at the empty room, Hakuto smiled faintly.
He somewhat missed those days living at the base, when Nao used to sit at the door waiting for him to come home from school.
But in the next second, the door to his room slowly opened, and a blue-haired girl walked out.
"Why are you back so late?" It was none other than Ginko, who had said she would come over tonight.
She was wearing stockings, barefoot, holding a folding fan in her hand—same as always.
"Ginko, you really are here." Hakuto smiled, then slowly walked toward her.
"Mm..." Ginko nodded. She had been here for a while, but figured Hakuto might have a lot to deal with after just getting home, so she didn't disturb him.
Just as she was about to say something, Hakuto suddenly crouched slightly and gently embraced her.
"Hakuto?" Feeling Hakuto's scent, Ginko softly called out.
"Ginko, it's been so long… let me hold you for a bit..."
"Okay..."
Ginko didn't react—perhaps because she hadn't expected this from him.
But she didn't overthink it either. After all, it really had been a while, and missing each other was only natural.
"Ginko..." Hakuto leaned toward her ear and whispered, "There's so much I want to tell you… so, so much..."
"I have time..."
Ginko didn't ask what he wanted to say. She just let him know that she had time to listen.
"Mm… Let me think where to begin…" Hakuto thought for a moment. "But before I say anything, I think I should apologize first."
"Why? Did you do something to hurt me?"
Hakuto smiled and shook his head. "After I finish, if you're willing to forgive me, then I'll say the rest..."
Ginko frowned slightly. She seemed to have an idea of what Hakuto wanted to say.
"Who's that woman?" Her eyes suddenly filled with a hint of killing intent, and the folding fan in her hand creaked loudly as she squeezed it.
"Uh… Let's save that topic for later. Right now, I want to tell you a story caused by a comet named Charlotte."
"Huh? Charlotte wha—" Before she could finish, Ginko found that Hakuto had vanished into thin air—completely gone!
Her pupils contracted sharply as she leapt to her feet and instinctively looked around.
"I'm behind you..."
Hearing his voice, Ginko turned her head in disbelief—and saw that Hakuto was really standing right behind her!
"How... did you do that?"
Ginko was certain she hadn't blinked, and even if she had, Hakuto couldn't possibly have silently appeared behind her in an instant!
Instinctively, she grabbed his hand. If it weren't for the warmth, she might've thought he was a ghost or something.
"Ginko, aren't you scared? Me disappearing like that..."
"Why would I be scared of the person I love most?"
"Ginko, I didn't mean to keep this from you, it's just that… this really isn't something ordinary people should know. But now, everything's over..."
After that, Hakuto told her everything—how Nao had come looking for him, that he had superpowers, how he transferred to Hoshino Umi Academy.
He didn't hide anything. He even explained the powers of Otosaka Yuu and Shunsuke.
Naturally, he also told her that he had already died once.
"Ginko, do you remember that dream I told you about?"
"I do… you said you became a Dragon King in it..."
"That wasn't a dream. It really happened..."
"A memory leap?"
"Yes. If it weren't for that ability, I'd already be past my seventh-day memorial service."
Hakuto spoke lightly, but Ginko did not take it lightly. She couldn't even imagine the scene of his death.
Not because she couldn't picture it—but because she didn't dare to.
"Why... why didn't you discuss something so dangerous with me..."
"Ginko, I couldn't drag you into this. It was too dangerous..."
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