Chapter 11: The Unchanging Alliance

Watanabe Hayato wasn’t joking; he was speaking with utmost seriousness.

‘Strange? This is truly strange. Why did things turn out this way?’

I had clearly wanted to maintain my previous relationship with Hayato, yet everything had spiraled in the opposite direction.

While it was true that good friends helped each other, it was more accurate to say that precisely because they were friends, they were willing to lend a hand.

In this situation, the intense “sympathy” Hayato displayed struck my heart like a heavy hammer.

‘Don’t worry, I’ll definitely find a cute girl to kiss.’

Faced with Hayato’s solemn gaze, I found myself utterly unable to utter such a jest.

He had taken this absurd premise seriously.

‘Was it my fault? Had I shown Hayato too many strange fantasy works?’

Yet, I could never have imagined the current predicament, no matter what.

It was perfectly normal for friends to share things they enjoyed with each other.

“But fighting against monsters is very dangerous!”

I fled frantically through a labyrinth of reason, losing my way.

‘Did Hayato truly know what he was saying? We were best friends, after all.’

“That’s precisely why I can’t rest easy…”

The hands resting on my shoulders gradually lessened their pressure, and he seemed to have calmed down.

‘I had seen that look before.’

Hayato rarely showed such a desolate expression.

At school, Hayato was the one others relied on; in front of Aunt Chinatsu and Uncle Watanabe, he was a child who caused no worries.

His actions and demeanor were as precisely calculated as numbers, always perfectly reading the atmosphere, cracking jokes, and laughing—ever moderate, excellent, and accurate.

Like a machine part that could mesh with any other, I had gradually noticed that Hayato had changed a great deal, able to effortlessly integrate into any environment.

As for me, I was like a hedgehog stripped of all its quills, choosing to curl up in a cave and avoid contact with others to prevent harm.

‘A hedgehog without its weapons—wasn’t it just a timid creature?’

I followed closely behind Hayato, like a dog relying on its master’s power, or a fox borrowing the tiger’s might—

‘Aoyama Ren? Who’s that? Oh, the guy who always follows Watanabe-kun.’

‘Because he had such a good relationship with Watanabe-kun, he wasn’t someone you could just bully.’

I had consciously exploited this point, then forgotten it, day after day, contentedly maintaining my friendship with Hayato.

‘That kiss was unacceptable.’

Not only would it destroy this relationship, but it would also plunge me into an unknown maelstrom.

If I could, I didn’t want to alter any social relationships that sustained my existence.

Just like when Aunt Chinatsu once told me I could call her ‘Mom,’ I was utterly incapable of doing so.

An apple was an apple.

Familial love was familial love.

Friendship was friendship.

For my entire life, forever, I had meticulously maintained this balance.

‘The feelings of “that me” for Hayato would affect the environment I had constructed.’

‘The “Forever Best Friends, Unchanging Alliance” plan.’

The key words were “forever” and “unchanging.”

Therefore, my strategy was to make Aoyama Ren and Magical Girl Sakura Tsui separate entities in Hayato’s mind once more.

Magical Girl Sakura Tsui’s actions had absolutely no connection to Aoyama Ren.

Aoyama Ren was Watanabe Hayato’s best friend.

Magical Girl Sakura Tsui was a kiss fanatic.

Thus, such a kiss carried no emotional connection and certainly did not involve Aoyama Ren’s will.

“Then why did Ren become a Magical Girl? As you said, fighting monsters is very dangerous.”

Receiving no reply from me, Hayato inquired softly.

“…”

‘That question was too easy to answer.’

Every individual who became a Magical Girl made a wish to a fairy.

That wish was the most fundamental and direct reason.

‘I doubt anyone would forget the wish they made back then.’

Wishes made during festivals or when shooting stars streaked across the sky never came true.

Those were benevolent lies adults told to deceive children.

Magical Girls were different; theirs was the power of miracles, so it was bound to become reality.

Ordinary people caught in the battles between Magical Girls and monsters faced near-certain death.

Therefore, to protect Hayato now, I could resort to anything.

“Aren’t Magical Girls very powerful? So I was wondering if I could do something with a Magical Girl’s power.”

Scratching my cheek, my gaze drifted as I gave Hayato a muddled, unclear answer.

“For Aunt Ayako?”

An unexpected guess.

That was my mother’s name, Aoyama Ayako.

My eyes widened, yet this only seemed to confirm Hayato’s suspicion.

The scene of that twilight evening resurfaced in my mind, but this time, the images before my eyes seemed somewhat blurred.

A sudden explosion.

And the trajectory of a meteor streaking down from the sky.

Blood and rubble, my mother’s cries.

‘Strange, had I experienced all of this before?’

‘My mother, shielding me, shouldn’t her body have been larger than mine?’

That sensation didn’t feel at all like a woman in her thirties; rather, it was somewhat like an older sister.

I looked at my own hands, and that sensation seemed to travel across time, returning before me.

‘I had forgotten something.’

‘Something I absolutely must not forget.’

Yet, the moment I began to recall, that memory inexplicably started to fade.

Like waking from a dream, the more I tried to remember, the more muddled my mind became.

“Ren…”

Hayato stepped forward and embraced me without warning.

‘What are you doing, you idiot?’

‘This was too strange; friends absolutely shouldn’t act like this.’

Nevertheless, everything before my eyes inexplicably blurred, and tears welled up and spilled from my eyes without my realizing.

No matter how much I tried to stop them, my body refused to obey, and tears streamed down my cheeks, one after another.

“I’m sorry…”

Hayato murmured into my ear.

‘This wasn’t the time for such things; there was still an unseen audience here.’

I had made a fool of myself in front of the little black cat I had only met today; though I didn’t deliberately look at it, I could already imagine its tail swaying.

‘This isn’t fair.’

‘It’s utterly unfair.’

I quickly pushed Hayato away, pulled out several tissues, and wiped away my tears.

Glancing at the bedside table from the corner of my eye, Lingling was intently drinking yogurt.

Its focused expression was like that of a student encountering a difficult problem during an exam.

‘Hey, aren’t you a fairy? How did you suddenly master this trick!’

However, I had to admit that crying was incredibly effective; the chaotic feelings of anxiety had suddenly vanished at this moment.

“In any case, no matter when or where, if Ren encounters a problem, you can always rely on me.”

Hayato’s lowered hands were clasped together, his gaze fixed on the desk.

‘I knew that a man’s friendship should be built on bloodshed, not tears.’

‘Seeing a comrade’s weak side—among boys, offering comfort was often the wrong choice.’

Hayato’s feeling of guilt lingered like bitter, high-purity dark chocolate.

After he left the room, that scent lingered, yet I felt a sense of relief because of it.

‘This was for the best; my feelings for Hayato hadn’t changed, so our way of interacting wouldn’t change either.’

“Little Ren, you were just crying.”

The little black cat’s voice sounded like a child’s, and the yogurt carton was empty.

“You watched the whole thing.”

I threw myself onto the bed in despair.

‘School started, I made a fool of myself, Magical Girl, first kiss, friendship, Shiraishi-san…’

A single day’s events had surpassed everything I experienced last semester.

Faintly, I heard Aunt Chinatsu and Hayato talking outside; she was bringing some fruit up to the second floor.

Thankfully, Aunt Chinatsu hadn’t opened the door just now; if she had seen that scene, I would have definitely dug a hole and escaped.

‘I’d have to run away for at least an hour.’

“Magical Girls often have tea parties, you know.”

Lingling tilted its head.

“Helping each other, comforting each other, encouraging each other—suddenly crying, suddenly laughing, that happens often too.”

“Well, I’m not a girl…”

I turned over, my back to the little black cat.

“Feelings between men aren’t expressed through words, but through actions.”

“Hayato promised to make me part of his family, and later, without parents, I truly moved into the Watanabe household.”

“Back then, too, when Hayato was captured by a monster and was in danger, I decided to protect him.”

“This is the friendship I cherish.”

“I… don’t want to change that.”

“Is Little Ren very sad right now?” the little black cat asked.

“Not really…”

After crying, my mood had instantly calmed down.

I had initially worried about not being able to sleep tonight, but now, around ten o’clock, I was already feeling a little drowsy.

“Then, let’s move forward.”

The little black cat jumped onto my pillow, facing me.

“This is what the girl who gave me the name ‘Lingling’ told me. Once, she was the strongest Magical Girl in the world.”

‘The strongest Magical Girl?’

‘That sounded so appealing.’

Before charging my phone, I glanced at the notification bar again; Shiraishi-san had replied an hour ago.

–Aoyama-kun, are you feeling alright?

–Thank you, I’m completely fine now.

I forced myself to type out the message, pushing past my weariness.

Once I relaxed, weariness relentlessly tugged at my eyelids.

–Mhm mhm!

Shiraishi-san sent a nodding cat emoji.

Attached below was a group invitation link for a chat group named “Nagakawa City Part-time Magical Girl Agency.”

–Shiori-chan and Otowa said that once we’re back from the school trip, everyone absolutely has to have a tea party.

–But it’s already very late now, Aoyama-kun, please make sure to rest.

Shiraishi-san was truly too considerate; I expressed my gratitude to her.

Turning off the light, I tossed and turned.

‘Should I meet other Magical Girls as Aoyama Ren?’

I began to miss the days when I simply followed behind Hayato, without having to think about anything at all.

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