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Chapter 124

Side: Lute McLane

The facility was referred to as the Ark by Moses and the others.

It’s a self-sustaining city shelter in the Vatican that endured the end-of-the-world nuclear war… Well, it looks like a dome, but that part is fine.

We were camping, setting up tents before the final battle.

Tomorrow, the Dragon King will also join us, and we’ll launch a surprise attack.

Originally, we had a non-aggression pact until each other’s preparations were complete, but now that our tasks are done, there’s no need to faithfully keep that promise.

They’re probably gathering ancient civilization weapons like Excalibur and Hinokagutsuchi to strengthen their forces, but… well, if we crush the Ark, their plans will all go up in smoke.

At this point, with both enemies and allies being reincarnators, even heroes are not useful as regular forces.

It’s more like a showdown of elite fighters, with each side having only a handful of decisive combatants.

If even one or two of the enemy’s reincarnators are out of action, we can pick them off one by one, which is the current situation.

However, since the Dragon King is absent and our forces are dispersed, there’s also the possibility of us being picked off individually, so we are taking turns keeping watch.

「Hey, Cordelia?」

So, at 2 AM, I spoke to Cordelia, who was sitting near the firewood.

「Hmm? Time for a shift change?」

「No, that’s not it. I just wanted to talk to you for a bit.」

「Talk… to me?」

「Yeah, about reincarnators and death… remember? I died once in front of you, as a powerless villager…」

Thinking for a moment, Cordelia looked up at the sky.

「The stars… they’re beautiful, aren’t they?」

「Yeah, there’s no light nearby. All that’s spreading out is just a vast wilderness.」

「The activities of people… without the lights of the night… the sky is this beautiful…」

「Yeah… or rather, at the last moment, population control wasn’t wrong after all… or, please spare me the irony.」

「No, that’s not what I meant. It’s a beautiful night with the stars. It might be the last, so I thought I’d brace myself.」

「Hmm? Brace yourself?」

When I tilted my head, Cordelia shrugged incredulously.

「Oh well. So, what did you want to talk about?」

「Hey, I wonder… have I become stronger?」

At my words, Cordelia burst out laughing.

「Of course, you’ve become stronger. You’ve surpassed me and gone further ahead… now I’m the one chasing after your back.」

「Then, have I been able to protect you?」

「You have. In addition… because I kept chasing after your back, I became the strongest among the heroes.」

「…I see.」

「At first, when I received the oracle of the hero, I was scared and wanted to run away… even so, I decided to face forward and walk. And so, although it was a bloody life of a hero, unexpectedly, now… I don’t think my path until now was bad. That and that… yes… all of that… it’s all thanks to you.」

「Good, then. It wasn’t unnecessary meddling after all.」

「I’m saying this in a formal setting, but I wouldn’t say such things under normal circumstances… Thank you.」

Being told that, it feels like everything up to now has been worth it.

There were many ups and downs… but yeah, I wasn’t wrong.

Seeing Cordelia, blushing and embarrassed but intact, I nodded vigorously.

「The story ends there. I’m going to bed now—」

As I stood up, Cordelia grabbed my right hand.

「Hey, Lute?」

「What?」

「This conversation isn’t over yet. So, in the end? Why do you care about me?」

「Because, last time, you were my childhood friend, and—」

「Hey, wait a minute. Just being childhood friends isn’t a reason, right? I mean, just because we grew up next door, there’s no way someone would go to such lengths. If it were feelings of love, I could understand, but that’s impossible, and I know it.」

「What are you trying to say?」

「I’ve been thinking about it for a while now. But, no matter how I look at it, I just can’t understand that part.」

With that, I sat down again and sighed.

「It’s going to be a little… lengthy.」

***

Back when I was in Japan, I had a sister.

She was tomboyish, spirited, shy, and not straightforward.

We fought a lot, but I think we were close siblings.

It happened when I was a third-year high school student and she was a first-year.

We were walking at the Shibuya Scramble Crossing when it happened.

A daytime serial stabbing incident.

A giant in his 30s brandishing a survival knife in the crowd.

A sudden turn of events.

Blood, a large amount of it, and people falling one after another.

Amidst the chaos, my sister got caught in the crowd and sprained her ankle.

—And she couldn’t escape.

Crawling on the ground like a caterpillar, trying to escape, my sister.

The giant walked slowly towards her.

All I could do was watch from a distance.

Karate.

Judo.

Or kendo.

There are many ways to become strong.

But at that time, I didn’t possess any of those skills.

As a result, all I could do was shout from a distance, like a loser—telling the giant who was stabbing my sister, lying on the ground, to stop.

And time passed, and I also ended my life in Japan.

Before me was the goddess of reincarnation.

She said to choose skills to live in another world.

I heard that I would be born in a private house and the optimal occupation would be a villager.

There were various skills, such as internal affairs, production, people’s control… and many other skills useful for making money.

The occupation of a villager was clearly not suitable for combat, and the goddess also recommended skills for making money.

So, I thought I would do that—

—But for some reason, my sister’s face flashed in my mind.

So I chose a way of life in another world along with the skills.

I didn’t want to feel the same way even after being reborn.

—I will never lose anything important again. No matter what happens, I will protect it with these hands.

That’s what I, Iijima Ryuuto, decided at that time.

***

「You looked alike. From appearance to personality, everything. You seemed so much like someone I knew.」

「Really… It was just a fragment of a chance, but maybe… I thought that way, but still… Yeah. And, of all things, it was your sister…」

Cordelia’s expression saddened for a moment, then she slapped her cheeks with both palms.

Then, she put on her usual spirited expression.

「Hey, Lute?」

Cordelia stood up and struck a defiant pose in front of me.

Then, she enveloped both of my cheeks with her palms and knelt down.

「Hey, let me borrow your face for a moment.」

With that, she pulled my face closer to hers.

‘Man, this girl has long eyelashes… No, her face is so perfectly put together, it’s almost scary.’

I thought absentmindedly, unable to analyze the situation at all in the spur of the moment, as I casually had such thoughts—

—And then our lips gently touched.

Cordelia blushed deeply and pulled away from me.

「Um, listen? Th-this… might be the last chance, so I’ll say it,」
She said, taking a deep breath, her cheeks flushed like apples, but her gaze was as determined as ever.

「I… I like you. I really, really do. I didn’t want to die without telling you… I like you that much.」

「Hey, Cordelia…?」

「Lute. Thank you for always protecting me. Thank you for saving me. I’m grateful. If you weren’t there, I don’t know what would have happened to me. At least, I wouldn’t be here, able to laugh over trivial things, putting myself on the battlefield, wearing myself out… That much is certain.」

「But, I protected you because you reminded me of my sister…」

Cordelia shook her head vigorously.

「It’s okay if it’s because I reminded you of your sister. The reason doesn’t matter. It’s a fact that your affection was directed towards me, and I fell in love with you because of that. As long as that fact remains… it’s fine.」

「Cordelia…?」

「But you know, Lute? Me, being protected by you, it’s over now.」

「…」

「Treating me like a sister, it’s over. Now, at this moment, it’s over.」

With that, Cordelia clenched her fists tightly in front of her chest as if convincing herself.

「Hey? Can I ask you something?」

「What is it?」

「Not as childhood friends, not as siblings, but as a man and a woman… When I come back… I want to start a love story with you from scratch.」

With that, Cordelia innocently smiled.

「Ah! That feels so much better! I’ve been hiding these feelings for over ten years, you know! It’s not something light… It’s not something simple. So—keep a positive attitude about it, okay?」

「…」

With that, I said, 「I’m going to bed now.」and stood up.

「Hey, are you just going to sleep without giving me an answer? What kind of attitude is that? That’s unacceptable!」

Isn’t confessing about considering the other person’s feelings more important than your own?

This girl’s attitude hasn’t changed at all since way back when. With a chuckle, I patted Cordelia’s head lightly, and then—

「At least, now I have one more reason to survive.」

「But what about your feelings towards me?」

With that, I burst into laughter.

「You can’t expect an answer to something like that out of the blue.」

「Even though I mustered up a lot of courage to say it?」

「We don’t know the future—That’s what makes it interesting, right? Don’t worry, I’ve received your feelings. Whether I can meet your expectations or not, I’ll give you an answer… if we both survive.」

Cordelia looked dissatisfied and then, as if she realized something, she gasped.

「That’s right. Haha, hahaha! Oh, yeah, that’s right. That’s what it means. I definitely can’t die now…」

「Ah, you’ll survive just to hear the answer, won’t you?」

「Thank you. Until the very end… you want to protect me no matter what, don’t you?」

「That’s right.」

「I’ll… protect you too. If I’m the only one left, I won’t be able to hear the answer, so…」

「Yeah, that would help.」

With that, we extended our right hands to each other and firmly shook hands.