By the time Seiji regained his senses, he discovered that he was already hugging the girl.
'How could I do such a thing!?'
He was astonished as well.
Only now did he realize that he was more worried about her than he had thought.
Shika Kagura …
Once again, he recalled the last words she had left before loading … in pure white.
Before her death, she had never complained about her sufferings.
She had the right to complain. She had the right to hate. This was a cruel world that was unreasonable to her.
But she didn't.
She only smiled.
She said goodbye to his only friend in the world.
Such a … such a girl … such a way of death … how could he accept it!?
Seiji couldn't accept it.
Thus, seeing her alive and in front of him again, he couldn't help but … feel excited.
He went forward, knelt down, and hugged her.
'She must be confused by this.
'Maybe … I'll be sent flying.'
Seiji smiled wryly to himself.
But he didn't let go.
'That's great.' He said.
'You're fine …' He wanted to say, but changed it to, 'You're here.'
'You're here, you're fine, you're here, that's great …'
Seiji wanted to convey this feeling.
At the same time, he was prepared to be kicked away by her.
However …
He didn't receive any punches or kicks, or any other blows.
Shika Kagura didn't resist at all.
Instead, she reached out and hugged him!
"Brother …"
'Brother?'
Seiji's heart skipped a beat when he heard her whisper.
Last time, before she died, she said … 'Brother' had come to pick me up. '
'Brother … this was a rather important person in Shika Kagura's heart, but she was probably no longer in this world.
'She mistook me for brother?
Could it be that her injuries were too severe? ' Seiji's heart trembled.
'No, it can't be! When she came down, she was standing … half-kneeling, and she was still doing the same now! This meant that she still had some strength left!
'It's just that … she might have suffered some injuries, and was temporarily … delirious … something like that.
'Yes, that's it.
'That's why I wasn't sent flying.
'She even mistook me for brother.
Seiji was certain.
"Big Brother … Big Brother …" A soft voice called out in a very weak voice.
Seiji blinked.
"Yes … Big Brother … is here."
He decided to impersonate.
Even if it was just a momentary illusion, it was good enough to let this girl feel the warmth of family.
It must have been a long time since she had one.
"It's fine … it'll be fine."
"Big brother … has always been with you … has always been by your side."
"You … are not alone."
Seiji hugged the girl and said with his deepest gentleness.
Hopefully, this voice would be able to comfort her lonely heart.
"Brother … Wu wu … Brother … Wu wu wu …"
A soft sobbing sound rang out.
"Wuwuwu … Ahhh … Ahhhhh —"
Then it got bigger.
Shika Kagura hugged the warm and sturdy body in front of him tightly and cried loudly.
It was the cry of the soul.
My brother is here.
My brother found me.
My brother will always be with me.
I … am not alone anymore …
A huge warmth that seemed to come from the whole world gradually filled her body and mind.
It squeezed out all the cold, lonely, and indifferent things that she had originally felt.
It turned into sobs.
Into tears.
Endless …
What kind of cry was this?
Seiji's heart trembled as he listened to it.
Just how deep were the ice-cold, dark emotions that were being vented …?
Had she always been burdened with these things?
Alone.
Alone.
Calmly.
She suppressed them … and got used to it.
Seiji felt terrible just thinking about it.
All he could do now was to hug her tightly and bear with her crying.
Even if … it was just a temporary fake.
Rain fell from the sky.
The girl's tears flowed down.
It was cold.
Warm.
Melted together.
…
The crying continued for a long time.
Then, it slowly died down.
Shika Kagura's hand also slowly fell down.
Seiji became nervous.
He hurriedly let go and looked at the girl's face.
What he saw was a calm and slightly pale face with closed eyes, but there was no doubt that there was still blood on it.
"Relax … she's just fainted."
A voice said.
Seiji turned around.
He saw the red-haired girl standing there.
"Shuho-san …"
Shuho Hitaka's appearance was similar to the last time.
The only difference was that there were no veins protruding from her face, and her eyes were golden. She had a calm expression, and she wasn't holding any weapons.
She didn't go crazy, nor did she lose control.
"I learned from Grand Mistress … It's all thanks to you, Harano … Haruta-kun."
She walked over to him as she spoke.
"It was your speculation that prevented … something bad from happening."
The red-haired girl's voice contained a hint of lingering fear.
Based on the speculation of the boy before her, she was warned to hold back during the battle. On the other hand, Grand Mistress had forced the Reaper's Curse to withdraw from school so that she would no longer be a Genhana student. This prevented her from being punished for violating her duty as a guardian, as well as preventing the school's teachers and students from getting involved.
That was why even though she … Hitaka Shuho would still directly harm the "Reaper's Curse" and meet with misfortune, it was still much better than falling into the worst case scenario of falling into a trap.
"Shika Kagura … just as you suspected, she's the enemy's Spirit-branded Retainer, and her bonded spirit is also a Snow Girl.
But she's not the Snow Girl Spirit-branded Retainer that prepared for the enemy, because Grand Mistress confirmed that when the enemy Spirit-branded Retainer was active outside, she was in the school.
That's why … we were careless.
We eliminated Shika Kagura as a suspect, but we didn't expect her to really be a Spirit-branded Retainer, and a Snow Girl at that! "
Hitaka sighed.
"I … Grand Mistress and I both fell into the enemy's trap … if it wasn't for you …
Right now … I'm afraid … "
The red-haired girl lowered her head.
Then, she quickly raised her head again.
She lowered her head again … and bowed.
"Thank you so much, Haruta-kun."
'I owe you my life.' She said in her heart.
Seiji smiled as he looked at her.
"No need to be so polite, Shuho-san.
I'm so happy … to see that you're alright. "
Hitaka slowly raised her head and straightened her back when she heard these sincere words of gratitude. Something flashed in her eyes.
She walked up to Seiji and made a strange gesture with one hand … which was probably a "hand seal". She then muttered something.
Seiji instantly felt a warm current envelop his entire body, and the chill from the rain instantly vanished.
His wet clothes also evaporated … along with Shika Kagura's clothes.
"Thank you."
"No need."
The two of them exchanged glances and remained silent for a while.
Hitaka's gaze shifted towards Shika Kagura.
"You … seem to care a lot about her."
"Yeah … I'm surprised myself as well."
Seiji answered honestly.
"You're … not familiar with her, are you?"
"That's right. This is only our third meeting, and we haven't even talked much."
"Then … just why?" The red-haired girl didn't understand.
"I don't know either!" Seiji forcefully raised his voice and said, "But it's like this … even I feel that it's strange, but that's the situation, as you can see!"
Hitaka was rendered speechless.
"If I really have to say it, it's that … I think that Shika Kagura is a good girl, and shouldn't … be like this …" Seiji forced himself to explain when he saw Hitaka's strange expression.
"Oh …" Hitaka still didn't understand.
But there was something strange about this.
How should she describe this feeling? Hmm …
She tilted her head in thought for a moment. Then, an idea flashed in her mind, and she thought of a more appropriate term.
This term could be used to describe a man who was unusually caring and gentle towards a beautiful girl that he hadn't known for long in order to achieve an indescribable goal …
"Pervert."
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