Ryuu Kusari no Ori -Kokoro no Uchi no “Kokoro”-

Chapter 6.25

Translator : PolterGlast

Voices could be heard in the already darkened streets. Two young girls were walking side by side out of the library.

Somiliana Francilt, a girl with black hair as lustrous as the darkness of the night, was doing research in the library with her friend Lansa until late at night.

"Sorry, it's getting this late."

"It's alright. Instead, I'll get you to treat me to Willoppe's sweets next time."

Somia smiled bitterly at her friend, who had a pleasant expression on her face. Seeing the drool dripping from her smiling mouth, she must be thinking of the sweets lined up all over the table.

By the way, Willoppe is a famous pastry shop in the commercial district.

It was originally a bakery, but while baking bread as its main business, it also made various kinds of new bread prototypes with its leftover ingredients and various sweets with pastes made from boiled down fruits and sugar.

The store is especially popular with women of the city, and the most popular ones were sold out every day.

"You've been working really hard. But lately, you've been doing it even harder, haven't you?"

"I-Is that so?"

The two of them were talking as they were walking home, then Lansa suddenly asked Somia as if she remembered something.

Somia was shyly scratching her cheek due to Lansa's words.

"Yes, it is. Is it because of that man that Somia is working so hard?

"Who do you mean by that man?

"You know, the senior who had a combat training with Jihad-sensei at the Martial Arts Garden the other day!"

There was only one person who came to mind when she was told so much. Nozomu Bountis, the man who had saved her life.

Somia was a little tired by Lansa's excited tone. Lansa was a good friend to Somia, but she was a bit of a gossip person and sometimes caused a ruckus by spreading unnecessary rumors here and there.

For this reason, Lansa was often warned by her homeroom teacher, but each time she responded with various reasons and tried to cover it up.

"It was so amazing! He was able to fight against that Jihad-sensei so well!"

"Yeah, that's true."

The way Nozomu looked when he was fighting against Jihad reminded Somia of the way he looked when he was confronting the vampire who tried to take her soul away.

The way he looked straight ahead without hesitation and confronted such a strong enemy in front of him was the same way he looked when he saved her from being taken away.

"Hey, can you introduce me? Everyone in the class seems to be curious about him."

"Let's see......"

Somia slurred her words in response to Lansa's demand as if she was troubled.

To tell the truth, Somia had been asked about Nozomu many times by her classmates since the end of the combat training at the Martial Arts Garden. If he had fought well against one of the heroes of the continent, it was only natural that he would attract the attention of pure children.

Moreover, Somia had cheered loudly for Nozomu during the combat training. It was already a well-known fact that she had a close relationship with Nozomu.

"Why not? There's no harm in it."

That might be true, but Somia felt a tinge of anxiety and shame if Lansa and Nozomu were to meet. To be honest, she couldn't predict what the gossipy Lansa would say.

Somia's pondering seemed to indicate that Lansa was unlikely to get a good answer, so she leaned forward.

"It'll be alright! I won't take him away from you!"

"What do you mean by not taking him away..."

Lansa, who seemed to tend to be attracted to this kind of love story, approached Somia and asked her a series of questions about Nozomu Bountis. In fact, she knew all the romantic relationships among her classmates, which was terrifying. She knew who liked who, who kissed who, and where. To be honest, she was a bit dangerous.

Somia didn't like the idea of hiding things from her friends, but even considering her friend's slightly troubling personality, Nozomu has many unusual circumstances.

There was the fact that he had mastered the Eastern Katana Techniques, which was almost unheard of on this continent, but more than anything, there was an extraordinary power inhabiting his body.

The power of a dragon that resided inside Nozomu, which she had glimpsed of its power only a few months ago. His power, which had somehow stabilized in a precarious balance, had once nearly gone out of control.

It was clear that this was not an easy thing to talk about.

"A-alright, if I had the chance ..."

Somia had no choice but to answer Lansa's demand with a vague reply.

(Should I talk to Nozomu-san or Ane-sama about this?)

While thinking that it might be a good idea to at least talk about it, listening to Lansa's words reminded Somia of her previous date with Nozomu.

The two of them went out to the city side by side, doing fortune telling together, making candy together .......

An older man who was willing to go along with her while smiling bitterly as she pulled him around. She had so much fun that she lost track of time.

He also listened to her problems, which she could not tell even to her sister, whom she respected.

It wasn't Nozomu who asked her to talk about it, but Somia herself, and in the end, he made her realize that she love her sister.

Somia smiled a little happily, wondering if it would have been like that if she had an older brother.

In the end, she kissed him on the cheek as a thank you, which caused a lot of commotion afterward...

"Ehehe ..."

Somia stroked her lips with her own fingers. That way, the feeling seemed to come back to her when she kissed him.

Somia was lost in thought as she felt her heart warm up.

(Come to think of it, Sh?na-san had kissed Nozomu-san. I wonder what a real kiss is like?)

Sh?na kissed Nozomu in front of everyone, even though it was to save him. When she tried to ask her about it, Mimuru stirred things up too much and Sh?na went off the rails, so she never got to hear what she wanted to know.

(How about Ane-sama ...?)

Nozomu and Irisdina. From Somia's point of view, they were a perfect match, but there was no progress in their relationship. As punishment for stalking her date, Somia tried to get her sister to organize a party with Nozomu for the upcoming special training, but there the training was canceled midway.

Somia thought it might be nice to enjoy the holiday while walking around the city with Nozomu and her sister.

Even as her cheeks relaxed at the sight of such happiness, Somia felt her heart go a little faster.

"Ah~ !!"

At that moment, Lansa huffed and looked at Somia with an implied smile on her face for some reason.

Before Somia could ask what was going on, Lansa walked up behind her and pushed her forward.

"Look, he comes to pick you up."

"Eh?"

As Lansa pushed her forward, she saw the man she had been thinking about earlier. It was Nozomu, dressed in Solminati Academy uniform.

"Yaa, Somia-chan"

When Nozomu smiled and waved at her, Somia hurriedly raised her hand to wave back.

But when she caught a clear glimpse of Nozomu standing in front of her, Somia felt an inexplicable, strange feeling in her head. The hand that had been raised became stiff and immobile, and then lost its strength and was dropped down.

"Nozomu ...-san?"

"Somia, what's wrong?"

The voice that came out of Somia's mouth was one that could not hide her confusion. Lansa, who had been pushing her back, tilted her head to the side as if she had noticed Somia's strange behavior.

"I was just passing by."

"…………"

Unaware of their situation, Nozomu in front of them spoke to Somia and Lansa. Without a doubt, his face and voice belonged to Somia's beloved benefactor. However, Somia felt an inexplicable sense of unease.

"Even so, you worked so hard until this late at night. Iris must be very proud of you."

"A..."

The more Nozomu in front of her spoke, the greater the sense of discomfort became.

The moment Somia saw Nozomu's eyes staring at her, she instinctively say the following words.

"Umm... who are you?"

"……Eh!?"

"…………"

The air around them froze as if time had stopped.

Lansa's, who was behind Somia, repeatedly gazed back and forth between Nozomu and Somia in confusion, while Nozomu in front of her opened his eyes in surprise.

"You are not Nozomu-san, aren't you? Your atmosphere is completely different, and also, Nozomu-san doesn't have those kinds of eyes. Who are you?"

With her words, Somia had already discerned the true nature of the uncomfortable feeling stuck in her chest.

Even though he looked exactly the same, there was an inexplicable murkiness in the eyes of Nozomu in front of her. It was exactly the same as those she had seen in aristocratic social circles. He had the same characteristics as those human beings who hid unfathomable desires and terrifying negative emotions behind their glittering appearance.

"…………"

Silence flowed between them.

The two faced each other in silence, but as time passed, Somia felt a numbing chill run down her spine. A crawling chill went around her whole body, and she gradually began to lose the feeling in her limbs.

Even though the sun had set and it was still summer, the chill that assaulted her whole body dulled the sensation in her limbs as if she were buried in snow.

Eventually, the Nozomu in front of her shrugged his shoulders as if he had given up.

"... I'm surprised, I thought I had completely transformed my appearance."

He let out a sigh and his mouth distorted. His appearance was the complete opposite of her impression of the calm Nozomu.

It made her convinced that the Nozomu in front of her was a completely different person.

"As I thought, you're not Nozomu-san. You're Ken Notis-san, aren't you?..."

Ken's eyes squinted as he got caught that he wasn't Nozomu and that she had figured out who he was.

This was completely not in his plan. The current Somia didn't have the innocent face she usually had when she was with Nozomu, but the face of a dignified woman.

Somia's body was trembling slightly as if she was being pressured by Ken's unusual presence.

However, her eyes stare straight back at Ken, desperately trying to resist his intimidating gaze. Those were not the kind of eyes that a girl around ten years old could pull off.

"I was planning to finish it with some injuries, but since I got caught, I guess I have no other choice..."

The sense of intimidation that had been hitting them swelled all at once and attacked Somia and Lansa. Immediately, Somia grabbed Lansa's trembling hand to escape.

"Lansa-chan! Run!"

Ken quickly drew a magic formation in the air. The formation fizzled with light, and then an icicle the size of an adult's arm formed in the air and shot out.

Somia grabbed Lansa's trembling hand and tried to let her friend run away, but Ken's icicle was much faster than Somia and Lansa could escape.

Somia and Lansa stopped in their tracks as an icicle pierced the ground near their feet with a high-pitched sound.

"Sorry, but I won't let you go. For Lisa's sake, now that you know, I have to make you silent."

Ken's gaze and his negative emotions crawl around their whole body.

His jealousy and hatred of Nozomu, whose mask had been removed and who was now exposed, was too intense for such young girls.

"... I-ss it really for Lisa-san's sake?"

Her voice trembled and her tongue was hard to move.

Even so, Somia struggled to keep her trembling legs from collapsing at any moment and turned to face Ken, who was still disguising himself as Nozomu in front of her. She naturally extended her left hand to the arm ornament on her right arm.

It was the armlet with a bell attached that Nozomu had given her as a birthday present. The moment she grasped it, the clinking sound of the bell echoed in Somia's ears.

"Aa……"

*Ching - ching* …….

Every time the terrified Somia's arms trembled, the precious gift given by her loved one continued to ring as if to cheer her up, and the sound melted Somia's frozen body.

When she noticed ...... her trembling had subsided.

"Yeah, that's right. Because I'm the only one who can protect Lisa..."

"That's not true"

"Wha~"

"No. At least not for you."

Clearly, Somia denied Ken.

She had heard the story from Nozomu. His past, when he had separated from his lover.

Even though she knew that it might be a bad idea to provoke Ken in this place where there was no one around, Somia couldn't stop her mouth once it was moved.

"Have you conveyed your feelings properly? Have you properly express your feelings to her? I'm sure you haven't. Because all you've done is tear the people you love apart."

"~ !!"

Somia's words pierced Ken's heart with a crushing blow.

Yes, Ken had never expressed his feelings to Lisa in a tangible way. The only thing he chose to do was to bring down his rival.

Since his choice to kick Nozomu out, Ken had never looked after his own actions, nor on Lisa's feelings. He just blindly misunderstood that Lisa was his, and he was soaked in pleasure. As Lisa clung to Ken, she was also heartbroken and couldn't let go of Nozomu.

What Ken did was like playing with blocks by himself.

The little girl in front of him saw through this and confronted him.

"You can't expect her to like you without you conveying your feelings to her properly."

The sound of gnashing teeth could be heard inside Ken's mouth.

"You never looked at anyone besides yourself. The only person you care about is yourself. Such a person is ......"

"You're a young lady who talks a lot!"

Ken, whose face was bright red, reached for the longsword at his waist.

Somia's eyes widened and Lansa, with her face drawn in fear, let out a small scream.

But the next moment, something rushed past them at a high speed.

"Tch!"

"Eh?"

Ken clicked his tongue and stepped back. At the same time, the cobblestones under Ken's feet flew apart with an explosive sound.

Then a large shadow intervened between the two.

"Y-you are ..."

"Run!"

Camila, who broke in between them, confronted Ken while urging Somia and Lansa to escape.

Camilla glared at Ken as she lowered her hips and took a stance. Her eyes glinted with the obvious hostility towards Ken that she had been holding back until now.

"Good grief. What do you think you're doing? This is the only way to protect Lisa..."

"Shut up! I can't go along with your delusions anymore!

Camilla was disgusted by Ken's behavior, and she no longer had a piece of companionship with Ken. She interrupted Ken as if to say that she didn't need or oblige to listen to him.

"Is that so, then it can't be helped."

Ken let out a sigh of disappointment. But he immediately looked up and smiled as if to say, "It doesn't matter".

"Those Ecross students... As long as they know about my abilities, as well as you, Camilla, I can't just leave you guys alone..."

"~ !? Y-you ..."

Even a friend who had known him for two years was immediately judged as enemies and need to be eliminated. There was no hesitation or conflict in Ken's attitude.

Camilla, who had been exposed to the true nature of a person who had lost his way and gone out of control, just stared at the "enemy" in front of her while trembling in anger.

"Sorry Camilla, this is for Lisa's sake too..."

Ken said the words that should have made him feel guilty in a flat and without intonation tone and pulled out the long sword at his waist.

The brilliance of iron that shines dully in the moonlight looked like the Grim Reaper's scythe to Camilla, Somia, and Lansa.

Then Ken, in the form of Nozomu, stepped toward the prey in front of him.

"Uuu……"

"It'll be alright..."

With the lives of two frightened children behind her back, Camilla clutched her staff in a tight grip. She gave a whisper to her trembling arms and let the magic in her body intensified.

Then, she began to chant. She built up a magic formula, releasing the magic power into the air, and created a mass of fire about the size of a human head.

"For Lisa? It's all about your self-satisfaction and your selfish obsession!

Camilla shouted loudly and threw the mass of flame in her hand. As if to embody her anger, the flaming mass flew towards Ken with fierce force.

However, Ken quickly poured magic power into the longsword body and swung it up.

"Fuh!"

A flash of blue magic light dispelled the flaming mass, and the flaming mass disappeared into the dark night sky.

Furthermore, before Camilla could prepare her next technique, Ken activated his body-strengthening magic and leaped at Camilla in a single movement.

Ken shortened the distance between him and Camilla like a gust of wind. He overturned the longsword at his waist and swung it down at Camilla.

However, Camilla was also an excellent student, belonging to the first class of the third year. She quickly strengthened her own body and caught Ken's longsword with her staff, which was filled with magic power.

"Kuh!"

"It's useless. Do you think you, a rearguard, can beat me at this distance?"

The sound of the cane creaking echoed in the air as Camilla let out a cry of anguish.

As Ken said, contrary to her personality, Camilla was originally good at supporting her allies from the back. When she first entered the school, she was unable to blend in with her surroundings, but she was able to help Lisa by showing her a sense of duty.

Due to her strong personality, Camilla could handle close combat with her staff. However, her skills were not nearly as good as Ken's, who was one of only five students in his year to reach A rank.

"What are you two doing, hurry up and run!"

And Camilla was well aware of this fact. That was why she raised her voice to at least let Somia and Lansa who were involved in this incident escape.

"Ah~... but ..."

"Hurry up! Protect your friend!"

Camilla's voice trembled with tension, but she held her ground and tried to protect Somia and Lansa.

Perhaps inspired by her courage, Somia and Lansa, who were watching Camilla and Ken fight while stunned, finally turned on their heels and started running as if they had been hit by a bullet.

They struggled to move their legs, which were shaking with fear, to get away from that place.

"Do you think I'm going to let you go?"

However, Ken had no intention of letting the girls escape from this place. He launched a kick towards Camilla's stomach, who was in front of him.

"Gaha~!"

Camilla screamed in agony as she was blown backward by Ken's kick.

While glancing sideways at Camilla's fallen body on the ground, Ken activated his technique once again. The target was Somia and Lansa who were trying to escape from this place.

The target was Somia and Lansa who had turned their backs and were trying to escape from this place. Ken's fingers swept through the air like a command rod, and the tip of the icicle was pointed at Somia's back.

"~! Stop it!"

Camilla screamed in pain as her vision distorted from the pain when her body hit the ground.

However, Ken's finger was swung down mercilessly. In the next moment, an icicle flew towards the defenseless Somia like an arrow.

"Kuh~ ... move!"

Camilla whipped her aching body and ran while releasing all her magic power without thinking about the outcome. The body-strengthening technique that had been activated raised its effectiveness at once.

As the icicles flew at high speed, slowly approaching Somia and Lansa's defenseless backs, Camilla rushed to them without losing any of her momentum and threw herself down to embrace them.

The next moment, an unpleasant tearing sound echoed in her ears. The next thing she knew, a shock ran through her entire body.

"...~!"

Camilla, who had fallen to the ground, looked into her arms to find Somia and Lanza looking dumbfounded.

They seemed surprised that they were suddenly held in her arms, but they did not seem to be injured.

"I'm relieve- ... Kua~!"

Just as Camilla relaxed in relief, she felt a sharp pain in her right foot.

When she looked down at her feet, she saw that a reddish icicle had pierced her right foot deeply.

And from the edge of Camilla's vision, she could see the figure of Ken moving towards her slowly.

"Kuu~! Ooh~!"

Camilla was unable to concentrate due to the intense pain running through her right leg, and was unable to cast any proper magic. Even if she could cast a magi, it was doubtful that it would work against Ken, who was a superior opponent.

But even so, she couldn't back down. Camilla released all her remaining magic power.

It was a torrent of magic power without any techniques. The magic power she had just released couldn't stop Ken, the only thing she could do was to slow down his steps a little bit.

The next moment, however, something happened to Ken's body in the form of Nozomu. Suddenly, Ken's figure distorted as if his figure was seen through a lens. Then, with a splashing sound, the layer of water covering Ken peeled off, revealing the image of Ken that Camilla was familiar with.

"Tch~..."

Ken clicked his tongue at the fact that [Reflective Water Surface of the Heart Mask] had been released.

[Reflective Water Surface of the Heart Mask] is an ability that allows the user to freely change their appearance by attaching water that has been imbued with magic to their entire body and controlling it. However, if the user were hit by powerful magic, it will react with the water's magic power on the user's body and the disguise will come off.

Ken's gaze pierced Camilla as if he wanted to kill her. Camilla's mouth smiled in triumph. But with her right leg crushed, she couldn't run anymore. It would be difficult for her to even walk. It would be impossible for her to protect Somia and Lansa as she did before.

She couldn't stop Ken by herself. While thinking so, Camilla released her arms from Somia and Lansa, and gently pushed them out of the way as if to tell them to leave.

However, contrary to Camilla's feelings, Somia did not try to escape.

While trembling in fear, Somia fought back the tears that were about to spill and began to cast a healing spell on Camilla's leg.

"What... are you doing ..."

"I'll heal your wounds ..."

The lips she bit down on in an attempt to stifle her fear were painful, and behind the girl, a Grim Reaper was approaching step by step.

"Hurry up, run..."

Despite hearing Camilla's voice urging her to run away, Somia refused to stop the healing. Eventually, Lansa followed her lead and began to heal Camilla's leg too.

Ken was already very close to them. Ken raised his longsword with a distorted smile on his face.

"What's going on here..."

However, at that time, the voice of someone that should not have been there echoed in Camilla and Ken's ears.

Camilla and Ken froze due to that voice. Somia and Lansa were also at a loss for words at the intruder who had appeared in that place.

She had long crimson hair and a well-developed figure. She had a beautiful face that made everyone look back at her with a friendly smile, but now her face was tinged with confusion.

"Why does Ken look like Nozomu... and why did Ken attack Camilla..."

The incomprehensible scene caused Lisa Hounds' mind to stop thinking for a moment, and she stood there like a scarecrow.

But her eyes clearly saw Ken's appearance when the [Reflective Water Surface of the Heart Mask] unraveled.

She saw Ken as if he were taking off his disguise, and her best friend lying injured on the ground while protecting two young girls.

Ken, too, was stunned and his expression was pale, unable to understand why Lisa was here.

However, Ken's presence in the form of Nozomu showed Lisa, who had been trapped in an impasse of thought, a straight path. It was something she had never noticed before. Something she had unconsciously not tried to understand.

(The scene of betrayal I saw two years ago was a fake one that Ken showed me.)

The contradictory behaviors of Nozomu that had been confusing Lisa until now were becoming clearer and her jumbled thoughts were quickly unraveled and connected as a single line.

"T-then, at that time ..."

The image of Nozomu's betrayal that she had witnessed two years ago was replaced by the image of Ken.

The reality that she had believed in until now began to fall apart.

"N-no, it's not like what you think, Lisa... Th-this is..."

Ken, with a pale expression, tried to explain, but his words and behavior only further destroyed the "two-year deception" that he had instilled in Lisa.

Every time Ken tried to explain, Lisa stepped back step by step.

"Then ... I was..."

At the same time, she realized that all the hatred and anger she had directed at Nozomu all along was directed at someone innocent and that it was all misplaced. At last, she understood.

(A traitor who trampled on my feelings.)

(The worst human who ran off to another girl.)

So, who exactly was meant by that?

The world that she had believed in until now was turned inside out, and all the words of anger and hatred that she had directed at Nozomu were reversed and pressed down on Lisa's heart own at once.

Her body was trembling as if to express her screaming heart.

"Lisa, let me explain ..."

Ken reached out to Lisa as if to ask for help, but it's no use crying over spilled milk.

The chains that had bound her for two years had been completely shattered, by none other than Ken himself.

"N-no!!"

"...~!"

Reflexively, Lisa rejected Ken's outstretched hand. A slapping sound echoed, and a stabbing pain ran through both of their palms.

It was a decisive moment. Despite the silence, the distance between the two of them was rapidly growing apart.

No, the two of them had never been one. It was a broken relationship, to begin with. Either way, it was only a matter of time.

However, the distortion that had accumulated over the past two years exploded as a violent quake.

Ken and Lisa were at a loss for words and their composure.

At that moment, Lisa's eyes widened at the sight that came into her eyes. Her heart was beating wildly as if it had been grabbed, and her breathing became heavy as if she had sunk to the bottom of the water.

Beyond her line of sight, she saw the figure of Nozomu Bountis rushing towards her.

===============================

Nozomu frowned when he saw the devastation in front of him.

Camilla was lying on the ground with blood pouring from her legs, and Somia and Lansa were by her side. And what caught Nozomu's attention the most was the sight of Lisa and Ken standing face to face with each other with their faces pale.

(I wonder why Lisa is here?)

Such a question flashed through Nozomu's mind, but in front of him lay Camilla, her leg pierced by an icicle.

He couldn't quite understand the situation, but the ground was covered in a carpet of red blood. He couldn't just leave the injured Camilla alone.

Putting his doubts aside for the time being, Nozomu rushed over to Camilla and the others.

"Somia-chan, Camilla, are you alright !?"

"No-Nozomu-san ..."

Somia and Lansa were crying, maybe they were so scared.

Camilla looked up at Nozomu with a pale expression. Her lips were also losing color. She was probably bleeding quite a lot.

"H-how did you get here ...?"

In a hoarse voice, Camilla asked how Nozomu noticed Ken was here.

Camilla had assumed that the communication network was still broken, and this was neither the Ecross school building nor the student dormitory. It was no wonder that she wondered how Nozomu was able to find this exact location.

"I was heading towards Ecross school building after I heard your voice through the communication network, and on the way, I saw fireworks launching into the sky."

As he listened to Camilla's question, Nozomu shredded the hem of his clothes into a strip and began to slowly pull out the icicle that was stuck in Camilla's leg.

"~!"

Camilla frowned due to the pain running through her leg.

After pulling out the icicle while being careful not to injure any arteries or muscles, Nozomu wrapped the wound with the shredded clothes and tightened it.

While Nozomu continued to stop Camilla's bleeding, Nozomu remembered how he had gotten here.

After hearing Camilla's voice through communication magic stone, Nozomu ran out of the dormitory and rushed towards the Ecross school building. He thought that Somia might still be in the school building because he had heard from Irisdina that she had recently started to work harder at her studies.

At that moment, Nozomu saw a light flying toward the sky. Yes, it was the mass of flames that Camilla had shot at Ken and had been blown away.

It was obvious that something was going on in a place where such attack magic was used. That was the reason why Nozomu was able to come to this place.

Camilla frowned at the pain that ran down her leg when Nozomu tried to stop the bleeding. Certainly, the amount of blood that was flowing out was decreasing considerably.

Nozomu breathed out a sigh of relief, but eventually, he slowly stood up and raised his face.

"... Barozza-san. Please take care of Camilla, Somia-chan, and her friend."

Nozomu stepped forward step by step. Camilla was watching his back.

Barozza shrugged his shoulders as if he had no choice but to put his hand on the hilt of the sword at his waist, while Somia and Lansa looked over at Nozomu with somewhat worried eyes.

And Camilla kept her face down apologetically.

Does she regret not being able to stop Ken? Or does she regret involving Lisa?

Nozomu couldn't fully understand what was going through Camilla's mind, but he still had something he wanted to tell her.

"Camilla ..."

"… ?"

"Thank you, for protecting Somia-chan and her friend ..."

Nozomu gave her words of gratitude. For him, Somia was also an important, irreplaceable companion, friend, and an important girl who had accepted him. Nozomu expressed his heartfelt relief and gratitude to Camilla for protecting such a person.

"*Hick ... please"

While sniffing, Camilla begged Nozomu for something.

Camilla couldn't say exactly what she wanted him to do, but Nozomu gave her a small nod.

As if pushed by her words, Nozomu made his way to the childhood friends in front of him.

"Ken, Lisa ..."

"Aa……"

When Nozomu approached Lisa, she looked frightened. Her eyes were filled with deep regret.

Her attitude was clearly different from what he had seen in the past. At this moment, the true relationship between the three of them was completely exposed to the outside world.

"No-zomu ...!"

Ken, noticing Nozomu's presence, glared at him as if he were looking for a fight. A chill runs down Nozomu's spine, and his keen senses ring an alarm bell. It was a hostile intent. Ken could have attacked him at any moment.

"Ken, it's no use. It's all over."

Yes, Lisa was already fully aware of Ken's deception. When she believed that Nozomu had betrayed her, Lisa had relied on Ken so much, but now she was completely frightened of him.

No matter how much Ken tried to mend the situation, there was nothing he could do.

Once something is broken, it can't be put back together again. It is impossible even for spirits to turn back time.

"You, if only you weren't here ......!"

However, some people still clung to the past even when they know it would never return to the way it was before. And they sought an outlet for their uncontrollable resentment.

Ken, mumbling to himself, pointed the tip of his longsword at Nozomu.

His words and actions no longer had any sense of reality. He just assumed that Nozomu was the cause of everything and clung to his own delusion.

He was as empty as a demon, and with a dangerous madness, Ken stepped towards Nozomu in a single dash.

With a rushing momentum like a gale, he swung his longsword downward with a force aimed at destroying Nozomu's body.

There was no hesitation in his attack.

"... ~!"

Nozomu's reflexes kicked in before he could even think about Ken's instantaneous attack.

He quickly lowered his body, grabbed the hilt of his [Mumei], and strengthened his body with his instantly raised Qi. He twisted his torso and pulled out the katana blade.

In the next moment, the two blades collided, scattering sparks.