When Katia and I were reunited, we were both deeply relieved.
Being reborn in a parallel world for unknown reasons and forced to start life over from babyhood was a lonely and distressing experience.
Meeting your best friend from your previous life in the middle of all that was a big deal.
Katia and I were able to support each other, finding reassurance from the fact that we weren't alone. She was living proof that my memories of Earth were real, not just my imagination.
And at the same time, our reunion gave me the courage to commit to living my second life to the fullest.
After that, I met others, like Fei, Ms. Oka, Yuri, and Hugo, and got to experience those bonds from Earth again.
My former classmates were here in this world. In that case, Kyouya must have been here somewhere, too. Surely we would get to meet again someday. I often dreamed of the day we'd be reunited with Kyouya.
We would reflect on our memories from back on Earth and talk about how our lives in this world had been so far. But the scene in front of me says that that's not going to happen.
"Cool, so you do remember me. I thought you might not recognize me, since I look a little different now." Kyouya's tone is perfectly friendly.
However, Tagawa and Kushitani are lying at his feet.
If what Kyouya said is true, then they're not dead, but that doesn't change what he did and what it means. Kyouya is our enemy.
"Kyouya…is that really you?" I ask, despite knowing the answer.
"Yep. Kyouya Sasajima, in the flesh. It's been a while, Shun, Kanata." I don't want it to be true, but it is.
Even if he hadn't answered, I would have known. My gut instinct already told me that this can't be anyone but Kyouya. His gentle tone and even his face haven't changed from our old lives. All of it brings memories flooding back.
He's not a fake or an illusion. His face looks exactly like it did back on Earth. And the reason is right there on his forehead.
Two horns.
Two devil-like horns growing from his forehead. Most likely, he's not a human or a demon but a monster that looks humanoid.
If Fei's example is any indication, when a reincarnation who's a monster turns into human form, they seem to take on the same face they had in their past lives. Of course, he doesn't look exactly the same.
Back in our old world, Kyouya was short, but now he's considerably taller, with tight muscles like hardened steel. He's slender, but somehow he reminds me of a blade. A blade that never breaks and cuts in two anything that touches it.
"Why?" Again, another pointless question escapes my lips.
"Hrm? I thought that was obvious. To destroy the elves."
"What?!" Kyouya's answer catches me off guard.
I don't know what I was expecting him to say to my vague question. But I can't help being surprised, even though I should have known.
"If anything, I'm the one who's stumped as to why you guys are helping the elves in the first place. I guess they must've suckered you into it."
"What do you mean?" I ask another question despite myself. It's not as if I never had my doubts. Katia has always voiced her distrust of Ms. Oka, and Sophia has made similar hints, too.
But I still can't forgive Hugo for what he's done, and since Sophia and her comrades have been manipulating him behind the scenes, that means I can't trust them, either. But the person in front of me now was my best friend in our old lives. Should I listen to what he has to say?
"You know the elves cause nothing but harm to this world, right? You must be crazy to protect them. It's not too late to—"
"Don't let him fool you!" Ms. Oka sharply interrupts Kyouya.
"I don't know what the administrators are planning, but it can't be anything good! Shun, you mustn't forget what they did to your kingdom!" She has a good point.
They're the ones who used Hugo to overthrow my kingdom. What gives them the right to say the elves are the ones causing harm, after what they did? "That was—"
"Besides!" Kyouya starts to speak, but Ms. Oka isn't finished.
"It was the demon army who killed Julius the Hero! Isn't that right?! Eighth Army Commander Wrath!" Ms. Oka points right at Kyouya. He's one of the leaders of the demon army? And his name is Wrath…? The information hits me like a blow to the stomach. I shouldn't be that surprised, since Sophia is part of the demon army, too, but it's different when it's about Kyouya. The demon army killed my brother Julius. My best friend is a part of that. I'm so dizzy I can barely stand. "Doesn't look like I'm gonna get through to you," Kyouya says unhappily. "It's just like Master said. Our little teacher here has them totally fooled, so they won't listen to us." A fresh wave of suspicion toward the elves starts to rise in my mind.
As Sophia speaks, Ms. Oka's eyes widen, too. I sense some slight hesitation from her. Does Ms. Oka not completely trust the elves, either? Next to her, Anna seems at a loss, while Katia and Hyrince are keeping a careful eye on Kyouya, Sophia, and even Ms. Oka. Fei's back is turned toward me, so I can't see her expression. What should we do? What's the right move here? But before I can make a decision, the situation progresses on its own. Light Magic shoots down from the sky, swallowing up Kyouya and the others.
"What was that?!" I look up to search for the source. There, I see some elves floating in the sky. "Sir Hero! Return to the village at once!" one of them shouts. "Hey, you! What do you think you're doing?!" Katia yells back up at them.
Tagawa and Kushitani were lying right near Kyouya. Katia was relatively close to them, too, so she nearly got caught up in the elves' attack herself. There's no way the elves didn't realize that before they attacked.
"Sir Hero, the Demon Lord is approaching the village! Since you have the Hero title, you're the only one who can oppose the Demon Lord!" The elves ignore Katia's accusations and continue to address me directly. The Demon Lord is heading toward the elf village? The reincarnations who are still in the village come to mind immediately.
"Leave this area to us, and hurry there at once!"
I don't know whether to obey the elves or not. All kinds of thoughts whirl around my mind, making it hard to figure out what to do.
"Hero, come with me. I can use teleportation." A single elf approaches me, holding out his hand, as I hesitate.
"That's not gonna happen." Suddenly, there's a blade protruding from the elf's chest. He collapses dead before my eyes. Behind him I see Kyouya, who threw the sword.
Tagawa and Kushitani are still lying at his feet, but I'm relieved to see them stirring a little. However, I'm in shock that Kyouya killed an elf without hesitation.
"All units, attack!" Behind Ms. Oka and Anna, a group of elves arrives in perfect formation. They send magic and arrows flying toward Kyouya and Sophia. "Don't interrupt us." Sophia swings her arm. The elves' attacks are all blown away at once, and a red liquid spews from her arm, scattering through the air.
The liquid moves as if it has a mind of its own, shooting toward the elves. By the time I even move to stop it, it's too late. All the elves the liquid has touched begin to dissolve, emitting a horrible sound and stench.
"Geh?!" Turning around, I see Hyrince, who's blocked some of the liquid with his shield.
The red liquid seems to be trying to coil around his shield, attempting to cover it completely. Behind him are Anna and Ms. Oka. The elves in the sky attempt to attack Kyouya with magic and arrows of their own.
"Back off." His attack reaches them before they can even fire. Swords. An immense amount of swords appear out of nowhere, piercing the elves like skewers.
Looking closely, I can see that the swords are manifesting around Kyouya, then shooting upward at a high speed to attack the elves. He must be bringing them out of another dimension with Spatial Magic. And my guess is he's using the Expel skill to send them flying so quickly. But the most frightening part is the blades themselves.
Once they pierce through the elves, they explode. The explosion injures even the surrounding elves who haven't been stabbed. Though they look like swords, they're more like missiles. It's the same kind of swords that Kusama used to blow up the teleport points.
These dangerous exploding swords are flying around everywhere. The elves have no way of dealing with such powerful anti-air fire.
"Stop!" Without thinking, I swing my sword toward Kyouya. It wasn't my intention. My body just moved on its own.
"Yeah right. You really think you can cut anyone with such a crummy sword?" Kyouya repels my blade easily. Above us, the barrage of sword missiles continues. On the ground, Sophia's red liquid engulfs the elves, melting them into nothing.
Somehow, Fei has removed the red liquid from Hyrince's shield. But there's no time to be relieved. The battlefield around us has turned into a hellscape.
"Sorry, Shun, but I need you to go to sleep for a bit." The sword in Kyouya's hand sweeps toward me. In that moment, I feel like everything's happening in slow motion. "Shun!" I hear Katia cry out. But I don't have time to avoid Kyouya's sword. I grit my teeth, preparing for the imminent pain. But instead, someone slips in front of me. Blood whirls through the air. Someone else's body weighs down on mine. The body of Anna, who took Kyouya's blade in my place. "A…Anna?" I catch her falling body, covered in blood. She doesn't answer. "C'mon, I wasn't going to kill you. If she didn't cover you like that, she wouldn't have died." Kyouya's cool voice falls empty on my ears. She's dead. Anna's dead. She died to protect me. The second I realize that, I invoke my Mercy skill without a moment's hesitation. I'm not letting Anna die like this! She came all the way here with us out of guilt over being brainwashed by Hugo. Maybe this is atonement for her, but it's the last thing I want!
As soon as I revive Anna, something floods into my mind.
"Gaaaaaaah?!"
My head throbs with pain. I feel like it's going to split in two, but it doesn't. I writhe around on the ground as it flows into me mercilessly. Katia runs up to me.
"Shun! Stay with me!"
She performs Healing Magic on me.
But there's no point. This isn't the kind of pain that Healing Magic can do anything about.
"You! What did you do to Shun?!" Fei glares at Kyouya and Sophia, but they both just look confused. Of course they would. They have nothing to do with my current state. This is my punishment for maxing out the Taboo skill.
"Diiie!" But time isn't going to stop while I process this transformation. While Sophia looks at me in bewilderment, one man sees a perfect opportunity. It's Hugo, finally pulling himself up off the ground after I beat him down. He's been holding his breath, waiting for his chance to deliver a vengeful blow to Sophia for betraying him. But his blade never reaches her. Sophia blocks it easily with her broadsword and flicks it back, sending him flying.
"Dammit! Go to hell! You're still just stupid Rihoko!"
"Hmm?" The moment Hugo utters that name, seething rage seeps from Sophia's body. When she was Shouko Negishi, this was the nickname people used to mock her behind her back.
"Real Horror Girl," or "Rihoko" for short.
She was given this nickname because she was bony and thin and always had a dark expression on her face. That name hardly applies to Sophia in this world, who has a totally different appearance and aura from the old Shouko Negishi. This seems to be a sore spot for her, because now she's radiating murderous rage toward Hugo. Even though it's not directed at me, I still have to stop myself from trembling.
However, she herself doesn't attack Hugo physically. Instead, a slim white hand suddenly grabs Hugo by the back of the head. In the next moment, something wriggles out of Hugo's ears and disappears into the hand of the person standing behind him.
Hugo crumples like a puppet whose strings have been cut.
The person who did it stands quietly above him. Her eyes are closed, and she makes no further movements. I have no idea how long she's been here.
"Master, would you mind not interfering like that?" If there's one word to describe the person Sophia calls Master, it would be "white." A white little girl. There's no other way to describe this girl but "white." White hair. White skin. White clothes.
There's almost no color anywhere on her but white. Seeing the girl, Hyrince's eyes widen. I recognize her, too. There's no mistaking her from Hyrince's description.
The last person Julius fought. The person who killed him. But I know her for another reason, too. Fei is also staring at her, at a loss for words. I understand why. We were told this girl was dead, after all. Ms. Oka, the one who originally gave Katia that information, looks even more shocked than Fei. It seems Ms. Oka herself had no doubt that she was dead.
"But…how?" Ms. Oka whispers in disbelief.
In response, the white girl bows her head.
"It's been a long time, Ms. Oka." The white girl, my brother's enemy. I've seen her face before, though the colors were different then.
Even with her eyes closed, there's no mistaking it. I saw her face often in my previous life. In our class, there were a few people who particularly stood out.
Kengo Natsume, who was the leader of the boys. Mirei Shinohara, the leader of the girls. Shouko Negishi, who stood out in a negative way as Rihoko.
But there was one person alone who stood out more than them. The boys all admired her for her beautiful looks, while the girls watched her from afar. Aside from Mirei Shinohara, who harassed her, everyone else had a hard time ever talking to her because she seemed so unapproachable.
"Wakaba…"
The person before us is none other than Hiiro Wakaba, a reincarnation who was supposedly dead.