I, Who Was Reincarnated as an Evil Character With Cheat-Level Stats in an Eroge, Will Live Freely in This Life
After walking for a while, I calmed down somewhat.
When I thought about it calmly, I realized that I hadn’t even thanked Kisaragi yet.
“Hey, Kisaragi… Do you have a moment?”
“I do…”
“Okay. Then let’s talk on that bench over there, shall we?”
I pointed to the bench there.
“Sure…”
Kisaragi and I sat down on the same bench.
There was about a person’s width of space between us, but normally I would never sit on the same bench as a man.
And today, after what happened, my discomfort around men had increased even more…
But at the same time, I understood him a little better.
He… Kisaragi is a good person, just like Kana said.
Listening to his interactions with the police, I could tell he was genuinely concerned about the victims, and above all, he was truly angry at the perpetrators.
He was so angry that I got angry too, but seeing that actually helped me calm down.
If that was an act, it was a pretty convincing one, but there’s no point in doing something like that.
Seeing Kisaragi like that, I realized that I definitely had a favorable impression of him.
If I had had a man with his sense of justice around me since long ago, I might not have felt this way about men…
Of course, it’s not that I like him, but I think I can trust him… At least to that extent… At least now, I don’t feel any aversion to men when I’m around Kisaragi, and I don’t feel any fear when I get close to him.
Perhaps one of the reasons for this is that Kana trusts him so much.
“So, what did you want to talk about?”
“First of all, thank you… Even though it was just a coincidence, you saved Kana and me…”
“It really was just a coincidence, so there’s no need to thank me.”
“I know… But please at least accept my gratitude.”
“Well, I guess I’ll take it.”
“Please do…”
Then Kisaragi asked me with concern.
“Are you okay now?”
“Nothing happened to me, so I’m fine…”
You prevented it from happening this time, so I’m really fine.
I’m really grateful to Kisaragi for saving Kana and me.
“By the way, you said you came back because you thought something was wrong, but what did you think was happening?”
“I didn’t know anything specific was going on. But thinking about it normally, it was easy to imagine that such a small child would be taken advantage of if she said something like that… And I’ll apologize in advance. I’m sorry. I thought you might be up to something because you showed up at such a good time. Maybe you were connected to the person who took advantage of that child? I thought that too.”
I told him honestly.
I thought it would be wrong to lie to him here.
“So you turned back after that…”
“Yes… I thought I had to stop whatever bad thing they were planning ahead… And also because Kana became friends with you.”
When I said that, he said something unexpected.
“But that’s a little careless… You should think more before you act.”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“Suzukaze, you have good grades, but you’re pretty stupid…”
“Stupid!?”
Stupid! Even if he helped me, I couldn’t let that go.
It’s true that I’ve never beaten Kisaragi in a test, but I’m still second in my class!
Kisaragi said that’s what I was thinking.
“If you don’t understand what I’m saying, then you’re stupid. If you came back because you were worried about what Suzukaze said, then you shouldn’t have come alone. If I were one of them, I would definitely have been in danger, right?”
“Well, that’s… right.”
When he said that, I knew he was right.
I have to do something! I realized that I hadn’t even considered that possibility.
If I had gone there alone, there was nothing I could have done. If I had thought about it calmly, I should have known that.
“So, if there was a child in danger, what would Suzuka do?”
“Of course I would help them.”
“Alone, like this time? Even though you could ask someone else for help?”
“…”
Those words pierced me deeply.
I understand what Kisaragi is saying, I understand, but my heart denies it.
Rely on someone else? If that’s the case, it’s safer to do it alone.
Ever since I was betrayed by the teacher I trusted the most at school, I stopped relying on anyone.
Because there’s a possibility that I’ll be betrayed again, just like that time…
If I don’t rely on anyone, I won’t be betrayed!
Because of him, I’m still afraid of men, and sometimes I even see them in my dreams!
I never want to feel that way again!
“…”
“Did you say something?”
“What do you know about it?!”
Thinking that, I shouted at him.
I know I’m venting my unjust anger again.
But my heart was in so much pain that I couldn’t bear it without saying something.
“I don’t understand anything. There’s no way I could understand.”
“Then just shut up!”
It was wrong to be angry at Kisaragi, but when he said that, I couldn’t stay calm.
It’s scary to be betrayed by someone you trusted so much.
“Can I tell you something?”
“…”
He said that and started talking.
“First of all, I don’t have parents…”
“Eh…”
He suddenly said that, so my anger and fear from earlier turned into surprise.
“They died in an accident when I was little. And what do you think happened? Normally, someone would take me in, right? But I was alone the whole time… There were no relatives, but there were also many people who had been helped by my parents, so they talked about who would take me in in front of me. But everyone who said they owed my parents a debt of gratitude started treating me like a nuisance as soon as they heard my parents had died. Even though I was still young, I realized then. From now on, I’ll live without trusting anyone… So, in the end, I had no one to rely on.”
Unlike me, he had lost trust in people as a whole, not just men, and I was surprised. And that was since elementary school…
“But you know, I’ve been thinking lately. Maybe it’s not so bad to get along with people… to trust them… And I think I could confide in that person if I had any worries…”
“Wait, I’m not saying I don’t have anyone I trust!!!”
“Of course I know that. But you can’t confide in them, can you?”
“Why… Why do you know that…”
I have people I trust, like my family, Kana, Saki, and even Tsubasa, who isn’t very reliable.
Especially Kana and Saki, who I’ve been with since childhood, I’m so determined to protect them that I’d even say I’ll do anything to keep them safe.
There’s no way I wouldn’t trust them… There’s no way… But…
“It’s not that I know, it’s because you’re similar to me in the past…”
Then how did Kisaragi…
“You… How did you…”
“Suzukaze… You’re afraid to rely on anyone, aren’t you?”
“!!!”
How could Kisaragi know something that even Kana, Saki, and my family didn’t know?
“Even if you trust them, you are afraid of being betrayed. If that’s the case, you rather solve everything yourself. Is that how you feel?”
Hearing him say that, as if to add insult to injury, I realized that there was no point in hiding it.
That’s certainly true.
Kana and Saki wouldn’t betray me… Even though I think that, I can’t help but remember what happened back then, and those feelings come flooding back.
From now on, I’ll solve everything on my own without relying on anyone… That’s the kind of fear and anger that made me think that way when I was in the first year of middle school.
“Yeah… That’s not all, but it’s pretty much like that… You see right through everything, don’t you…”
I admitted as much.
“I told you, didn’t I? You’re just like me used to be.”
“So how did you get over it, Kisaragi?”
“Rather than saying I got over it, it might be more accurate to say that someone came along who made me feel that way. To be honest, it was Kana. Talking to Kana somehow warms my heart…”
“Yes, I understand that.”
Kana certainly has that quality.
Both Saki and I have been helped by Kana’s qualities many times.
So it was Kana who made Kisaragi feel that way… I thought, but I also thought that it was certainly possible for Kana.
“Besides, I’ve come to think that it’s okay if asking someone for help or advice doesn’t solve anything. Asking someone for help or advice makes you feel better, and isn’t it nice to have someone think about things for you? Even if it doesn’t lead to a solution.”
I was surprised.
I never expected Kisaragi to say something like that.
And he wasn’t saying anything wrong, and above all, he was smiling so happily as he said it.
When was the last time I laughed like that… I thought keeping things to myself was the right thing to do, but maybe I was wrong…
Now that I think about it, maybe I haven’t laughed from the bottom of my heart since I was in the first year of middle school…
I found myself spacing out, but I quickly snapped back to reality and said,
“You smile too… It’s a little scary.”
“What do you think of me…?”
“I’m joking. Anyway… Will you listen to my story? Actually…”
It’s strange… I never thought I would talk about this to Kisaragi, whom I had just met today.
I don’t even know what kind of change has happened inside me.
But even though he has a similar past to mine, I felt like I could talk to him because he can laugh so beautifully.
I felt like I could talk to him because he cares so much about the victim.
◇
“That’s what happened… That must have been tough…”
When I finished talking, Kisaragi said that.
“What is that? Don’t you have anything else to say?”
“I’m sorry… I couldn’t think of the right words…”
I understand that.
I’m not seriously complaining.
It’s natural to be confused when someone suddenly tells you about their past like this.
But strangely, I felt lighter, and I was able to make such a joke.
“It’s a joke. But I see… It’s true that talking to you won’t solve anything, but it did make me feel a little better… Now that I think about it, I couldn’t talk to my parents or teachers about what happened back then… Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to share my worries with someone.”
At the time, it felt like a curse to me, so I had already sealed it away, and of course, my parents never brought it up either.
But maybe that was counterproductive… being too afraid to talk to anyone.
Maybe that’s why it kept growing inside me, I started to think.
If I had talked to Saki or Kana back then, they would have definitely been there for me.
If that had happened, maybe I wouldn’t have thought I had to do everything on my own, and maybe I wouldn’t have kept it all bottled up.
Well, there’s no point in talking about what might have been…
“That would have been nice. But… you didn’t have to say that talking to me wouldn’t have solved anything…”
“Hehe… that was a joke.”
“You’ve been joking around this whole time, haven’t you?”
“Shut up. Let’s just go home already.”
“…I’ll walk you home.”
With that, we started walking, and even though we didn’t talk much, I felt strangely good.
I keep saying “strange” over and over, but I don’t know the reason myself, so that’s all I can say.
Even so, I yelled at him many times today even though he helped me… Yet Kisaragi was calm toward me the whole time, so rumors really can’t be trusted.
◇
Before I knew it, we had arrived at my house.
“This is my house, so it’s okay now. Thank you.”
“Oh, well then, see you.”
“Can you wait a minute?”
I called out to Kisaragi, who was about to leave.
“I want to ask for your LINU…”
It was quite embarrassing to say that again.
“Um… Why is that?”
“You’re the one who said it’s important to talk to people… And you’re the first person I talked to… Please let me talk to you again in the future…”
After listening to Kisaragi, I felt better! Of course, I’m not completely cured yet.
Naturally, I’m still afraid of men and not good with them.
It’s still not easy for me to ask people for help, but just knowing that I have someone I can talk to casually makes me feel better.
Besides, if it’s Kisaragi, who I had that conversation with, I think I can tell him anything…
“I see. That’s a good trend. Take it slow, but keep up the good work… Well, I don’t have my smartphone right now.”
“Oh…”
“I’m planning to pick it up at the police station tomorrow morning, so is it okay if I do it after that?”
“Of course it’s okay! I’m not in a hurry or anything! Well, I want to take a bath, so I’ll go home now!”
“Alright, see you tomorrow.”
“See you tomorrow… and thanks.”
I said that and went inside, muttering to myself.
“I should tell Saki and Kana everything soon…”
Today, I felt like I had been freed from the weight that had been weighing on my heart, even if it was just a little.
Maiban