Eiji noticed Kosaki's chest rising and falling, her breath irregular, beads of sweat streaming down her forehead, and her steps unsteady.
"Are you tired? Want me to carry you?"
"Thank you, but no. I can still walk."
"Onee-chan, don't push yourself."
Lying on Eiji's back, Haru also noticed her older sister's exhaustion.
"I'm fine. Compared to me, the life and death of others are still unknown. It's nothing."
Kosaki glanced back and forced a smile.
"Onee-chan, why are you so stubborn... Is that guy really that important in your heart?" Haru muttered softly.
"Be careful, there's a hole ahead. Turn left."
"Um."
Following Eiji's advice, Kosaki turned left.
The three of them continued to explore Bonyari City for half an hour. Besides corpses, they hadn't encountered any survivors.
"There's someone alive!"
The loud shout echoed in the deserted Bonyari City.
Upon hearing the voice, Kosaki ran towards the source of the sound, followed by Eiji behind her.
However, she was disappointed to find that the person they encountered was not a resident of Bonyari City, but a government-sent evacuation team.
The evacuation team mistook them for survivors of the disaster. So, they were taken to a temporary shelter.
Eiji and the others didn't object; perhaps they would meet other survivors.
With such an idea, Kosaki and Haru were full of anticipation as they looked around the evacuation camp.
Only Eiji seemed indifferent because he already knew there were no survivors in the evacuation camp.
How did he know that before arriving at the location?
It was because he saw the refugee camp in the distance through the Six Eyes.
"Don't hope too much."
"???"
Kosaki didn't understand why Eiji said that.
They were escorted by the evacuation team to the shelter.
The two girls turned pale when they saw that there were only rows of corpses neatly lined up on the ground, with none of the refugees they had hoped for.
"The evacuation team has been searching Bonyari City for over 12 hours, and you three are the first survivors we've found. As you can see, there are only dead people here. Rest assured, the medical team will check on your condition."
The middle-aged man from the evacuation team said sadly and continued his task of searching for possible survivors.
"No, it can't be..."
Ignoring the medical team urging her to enter the tent, Kosaki ran to one of the corpses.
"Ichijo-kun..."
Tears streamed from her eyes, her knees touched the ground, and she began to cry in the embrace of the man's corpse in front of her.
"Onee-chan..."
Haru wanted to comfort her older sister but didn't know what to say.
(Hmmm... It seems that plot armor isn't absolute. Even protagonists can die due to external factors beyond the plot)
Eiji's curiosity was answered by seeing the protagonist's corpse, Ichijo Raku.
Compared to ordinary high school students, Raku was clearly different and special.
Ignoring how popular Raku was among beautiful women, he himself was quite strong compared to ordinary people. For example, he was able to dodge the bullets fired by Tsugumi Seishirō when they first met.
As the son of a yakuza, how could he never have received any training?
"Ichijo-kun, I'm sorry... I apologize for hiding it from you all this time... If only I were braver..."
With red eyes from crying too much, Kosaki reached for the key that was made into a necklace around her neck.
"In fact, I'm the girl who made a promise with you when we were kids... I'm sorry, I should have said this sooner."
Because of her cowardly attitude, she didn't dare to admit that she was the one Raku was always looking for. Now, all that was left was regret.
Kosaki regretted not telling the truth.
"Give her some time alone."
Eiji said to Haru and the medical team watching from the side. After that, he walked away.
"Don't do anything foolish, Onee-chan."
Leaving those words so her older sister wouldn't commit suicide or something similar, Haru followed Eiji.
"Fuu!"
She was shocked to find her best friend's corpse. Without hesitation, she approached it and cried near it.
"..."
Eiji didn't like seeing women cry. So, he decided to turn around and walk away.
"Watanabe Saori... Why did she commit indiscriminate massacre?"
He had also massacred everyone in the Capital of the Lydia Kingdom. Eiji never considered himself a saint, that's why he didn't judge Saori's brutal actions.
However, there was a reason behind his actions. He wanted to know why the other party did this.
"Because she is a native of this world, it is certain that she is a Transmigrator. That's the only explanation for her obtaining the Gura Gura no Mi power."
Considering his body was prepared for the vessel of a Reincarnator named Lin Fan, with Six Eyes (Rikugan) and Heavenly Restrictions blessing superhuman physical, which was his golden finger. Eiji speculated that the existence of Irregulars like Reincarnator and Transmigrator would have a golden finger as a beginner package.
Saori's existence verified Eiji's speculation.
"Gura Gura no Mi, huh... That's one of the nemeses of Limitless Technique."
Although not directly confronted, Eiji had been bothered by the effects of Gura Gura no Mi. For example, to stop a tsunami wave, it required the use of Cyan with maximum output.
"Gura Gura no Mi is a Paramecia type Devil Fruit. This fruit is famous for being able to destroy the world and is considered the strongest Paramecia Devil Fruit. It seems that it's not just mere rumors."
"Perhaps fighting her to the death could help me awaken the Six Eyes."
Touching his eyes, Eiji always thought about methods to awaken the Six Eyes.
And dying like his cousin was the best way!
Eiji felt Haru's head leaning against his back and asked, "Finished saying your farewell?"
"Un."
"In that case, let's go meet Kosaki-san. Since our business is finished, let's go home."
"Un."
"...?"
Eiji glanced at her, who suddenly grabbed his hand and held it.
Without commenting, he and Haru went to meet Kosaki, who was still mourning Raku.
"Let's go home."
"..."
"Sorry for making you wait."
After a moment of silence, Kosaki stood up, wiping her eyes. Unlike before, she didn't hesitate to hold Eiji's hand.
"Goodbye, Raku. Hopefully in the next life, we'll meet again and be together."
"I like you..."
Waiting for her to finish her farewell, Eiji teleported away with the two girls.