The night in Tengu City had no noise, no clamor. Only silence spread through the streets.
The autumn wind blew gently, rustling the scattered leaves on the ground. Giving people a refreshing chill.
Yutsuki and Shido walked shoulder to shoulder on the street illuminated only by flickering streetlights.
"How should I say... it's been a long ti since we walked on the street together like this."
Shido sighed with nostalgia. Although in the real world, it was only a few days ago that they went to the shopping district together to buy dinner ingredients for everyone. But after returning from the computer world, Shido felt like that was sothing that happened a very long ti ago.
"Well, doing this occasionally is nice too."
Yutsuki smiled.
"Is there anywhere you want to go, Yutsuki?"
Shido asked Yutsuki.
"Well... I don't have anywhere I particularly want to go."
Yutsuki shook her head with a bitter smile. At this ti, whether it was bookstores or arcades, they were all closed. If she was alone, she would absolutely not choose to go out. As an otaku, is there a better paradise than inside one's own ho?
"Actually, this is pretty good too..."
Stepping on the quiet street, Yutsuki felt a comforting sense of tranquility. Although the daily life of living together with everyone normally was also very happy tis, this ti spent alone together made her feel a small feel of happiness in her heart.
"If we have to set a destination for this date, it should be a place Shido wants to go to."
"The place I want to go to... would be very boring, right?"
"That won't happen." Yutsuki gently shook her head and showed a confident smile, "A place where Shido feels he can relax. I can also relax."
Then, as if thinking of sothing else, Yutsuki added seriously.
"Of course, a Love Hotel is a no-go."
"Of course we wouldn't go to that kind of place!"
Shido denied it, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
A place I want to go, huh... After hesitating for a mont, Shido proposed.
"Then... let's go to the park."
"That's really ordinary."
Yutsuki couldn't help but complain.
"It can't be helped. Even if you ask to decide on the spot, I don't know where I want to go either."
Shido said embarrassedly. It was already so late, asking Shido to decide himself, he could only think of this place.
"There, there, I didn't say ordinary is bad."
Yutsuki naturally knew. Shido's personal daily schedule was the typical high school boy plus househusband route: ho - school - shopping district - ho. Normal dates prioritize the Spirits' preferences and moods, treating the other's happiness as his own happiness. If asked about places he himself likes, it's no wonder he couldn't co up with an answer imdiately.
"Then, is the park okay?"
"Of course. Didn't I say it? If Shido feels he can relax there, I don't mind. Hehe~"
Under Shido's puzzled expression, Yutsuki laughed happily and set off with light steps.
Arriving inside the park, it was completely empty right now. Only the streetlights emitted a faint cold glow, adding a touch of subtle beauty to this silent place. Honestly, Yutsuki didn't hate this kind of place.
"Yutsuki, do you want coffee or juice?"
Shido went to the vending machine and asked Yutsuki.
"Hah—Coffee, please make it a bit stronger."
The girl yawned slightly, rubbed her eyes, and said sowhat tiredly.
"OK, then I'll have the sa."
After buying two bottles of hot coffee, Shido and Yutsuki walked to the raised platform in the park.
Gulp, gulp—The bitter taste of coffee spread in their mouths, and the slight heat coming from their hands woke up their tired minds.
"We're back..."
"Yeah... we're back."
They couldn't help but let out such a sigh.
"Even though we were just going to try out the new ga Reine ntioned before dinner, as a result, we suddenly couldn't get out after going in."
"Then we were also called into the ga world by Maria. To help her understand love, everyone went on all sorts of extraordinary dates."
"It was already baffling from that point. Towards the end, Marina suddenly appeared and seized Maria's permissions, saying she was going to destroy us all for DEM."
"And then the original romantic cody ga suddenly turned into an AI hacking battle between two major global corporations."
"In the end, we even risked our lives."
"It really was..."
"It really was..."
Recalling the things that happened in this short day, the two looked at each other and said in unison.
""—completely baffling!""
...Pfft!
"What is this, why are even you completely confused, Yutsuki? hahahahaha!"
"Aren't you the exact sa, Shido, hahahaha!"
Then, for so reason, the two clutched their stomachs and laughed heartily in this empty and deserted place.
Finally, when they laughed until tears ca out, Shido slowly caught his breath and asked Yutsuki.
"Even though everything was so baffling, it's precisely because we couldn't let go of those two sisters that we chose to save them, right."
"Well, who knows?" Yutsuki shrugged, a mischievous smile on the corners of her mouth, "I'm not a nice guy like you, Shido. I just thought if both Maria and Marina beca AIs on our phones, we could use them as a couple pairing. I thought it sounded pretty nice, so I acted."
"If Marina heard that, she'd be angry, you know."
Hearing Yutsuki's words, Shido couldn't help but get black lines on his forehead.
"I know, it was just a joke."
Yutsuki waved her hand, a peaceful and happy smile on her face.
Taking a few steps forward, the girl leaned against the railing, took a light sip of coffee, and gazed at the scenery of Tengu City in the distance.
It was already late at night. Most families had entered sleep ti. There were only the lights from so 24-hour convenience stores and the streetlights on the streets. In the pitch-black city, a bright crescent moon began to appear. Through the gaps in the clouds, the moonlight slowly scattered on the streets, laying a faint silver sheen on the houses, making the city look sowhat hazy and dreamy.
Even though it was the sa scene seen in the virtual world, Yutsuki could clearly feel the difference between reality and the virtual world.
Vision, hearing, touch, temperature, environntal—no matter how much the current virtual world tries to replicate it, there is still an obvious gap in the amount of information. Yutsuki could sowhat understand why Marina was so obsessed with the real world.
However, even so, there were indeed things worth cherishing in that virtual world.
The beautiful mories everyone built together, the feelings of mutually cherishing each other, are an inseparable precious treasure.
Yutsuki wanted to convey this to Marina.
"Hey, Shido..."
"What is it?"
Yutsuki slightly opened her mouth, wanting to share the feelings in her heart with the other person. However, thinking that the other person didn't have these mories, her chest felt slightly tight.
Biting her lip tightly, Yutsuki turned her back to Shido, not wanting him to notice her distressed expression. The words she wanted to say got stuck when they reached her throat.
"I'm sorry, not only making Shido suffer that kind of pain, but also making everyone worry about ... Making you guys act recklessly for my selfishness, I am really very sorry..."
"..."
A peaceful silence made Yutsuki feel a bit surprised. Normally, given the other person's personality, he would naturally co to comfort her.
"Shido?"
Turning her head in surprise, Yutsuki saw the boy tightly gripping the coffee can, his face full of self-bla.
"...Really, if I just pretend nothing happened, I would be hopelessly scum guy..."
Shido let out a self-deprecating laugh. If one didn't know beforehand, probably no one would believe that Yutsuki was actually telling a lie right now.
Downing the remaining coffee in one gulp, although it wasn't alcohol, it still gave Shido courage.
"Yutsuki! I have sothing to tell you!"
"Yes..."
Although sowhat puzzled, Yutsuki still nodded. After all, suddenly inviting soone out for a date in the middle of the night like this, if there wasn't any vulgar thought, it must be because he had sothing he wanted to say to her alone.
Taking a deep breath, Shido suddenly bent down and gave a 90-degree bow to Yutsuki.
"First of all—I am very sorry!!!!"
"Eh, eh, eh, eh?!"
To Shido's sudden action, Yutsuki showed a very troubled expression. She hurriedly stepped forward wanting to help Shido up.
"Wh-What's wrong? You haven't done anything wrong, Shido! If anything, I'm the one who should be apologizing. Because of my selfishness, I put everyone in danger, and made everyone worry about ..."
"That's not true!" Shido shouted loudly. Clenching his fists, the bitterness spreading in his mouth made him unconsciously grit his teeth, "It was clearly , saying irresponsible things, that made Yutsuki choose the most dangerous option. It was clearly my selfishness... that made Yutsuki choose to endure that kind of pain."
"Shido... what are you saying? Could it be..."
Yutsuki seed to understand sothing, widening her eyes in shock.
As if confirming Yutsuki's guess, Shido slowly nodded.
"When I was being attacked by Marina... I rembered everything... Whether it was the dates with everyone... or the selfish request I made to Yutsuki back then... and the reason why Yutsuki got drunk on the street back then..."
He made a choice, and then selfishly forgot all of it, ultimately committing an act that could be called betrayal. Even though there were irresistible reasons for this, it was still undeniable that Itsuka Shido had done the scummiest thing.
Even knowing this isn't a problem that can be solved just by apologizing, but Itsuka Shido absolutely would not allow himself to treat this matter as if nothing had happened.
Drip—!
Hearing a concerning sound, Shido couldn't help but look up. What he saw was the girl's face, trying desperately to endure, yet her tear seemingly collapsing, continuously shedding teardrops.
Like the final mask being taken off, a fragile and powerless face.
Subsequently, a strong impact ca, and Shido suddenly felt the world spinning.
Looking at the crescent moon slowly peeking out in the sky, realizing he had been tackled to the ground by Yutsuki, Shido felt his lapel gradually getting wet.
I should have just done a dogeza directly. This thought couldn't help but surface in Shido's mind.
"...Why, why did you have to rember... I clearly had already... already pretended like... nothing had happened..."
"I'm sorry."
"...Even though it was a ga... do you know how much resolve it took for to accept your confession?! ...Yet, suddenly one day it beca as if nothing happened... do you know how much ti I spent to accept this reality...?"
"I'm sorry."
"...I clearly had every reason to get angry or jealous... Yet seeing everyone and you looking so happy... I couldn't bear to break that kind of future... Besides... the next person would suffer the sa fate as ... Shido wasn't at fault either... I couldn't be jealous... I couldn't get angry..."
"I'm sorry."
"...Whether it was happy mories... or sad feelings... all of it seed to be treated as if it never happened... It was almost like I was having a nightmare myself..."
"I'm sorry."
"...Because we promised... absolutely had to rescue Maria and Marina... So I told myself not to care too much about these things... kept enduring it..."
"I'm sorry."
"Uwaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh... apologize to ... Not just to , but to Tohka, to Origami, to Yoshino, to Kurumi, Kotori, Kaguya, Yuzuru, Miku, everyone... Apologize to our feelings... our mories..."
In the end, Yutsuki could only hold tightly onto Shido, continuously letting out small sobs, releasing the pressure that had been building up in her heart.
Faint blue and white lightning erged from the girl's body. Her Spirit power started to flow in reverse due to the girl's emotional state. Despite this, Shido didn't regret it. If he didn't let Yutsuki vent these dissatisfactions, the result wouldn't be as simple as this slight reverse flow of Spirit power.
The numbing sensation of the electric shock seed to be articulating the distress in the girl's heart on behalf of the girl who was already sobbing uncontrollably, making Shido feel a piercing pain in his heart as if pierced by sharp thorns.
"I'm sorry..."
In the end, all Shido could do was gently stroke the girl's soft long hair, continuously repeating this simple sentence until Yutsuki cald down.
User Comments
0 comments from readers