I could feel my mind clearing up.

The painful chorus that was shouting so loudly just moments ago had quieted down, and now the only thought in Subaru’s head was the determination to face his father sitting right in front of him.

“I have a crush on someone. Just like you.”

Repeating the answer to the question once more, Subaru became aware that his heart had begun to take steps forward.

In front of him, Kenichi blinked a few times, realizing that this was an unexpected turn in their conversation as he listened to Subaru’s words quietly.

“…Is that so.”

His calm voice leaned in to listen to Subaru’s words.

I felt saved by such an attitude. I should have known that he was the kind of person who would listen like that, yet I had remained silent until now.

That’s why, I thought it was time to put an end to that silence.

—Because someone had pushed me from behind to do so.

“That’s right. I’m no longer just a kid huddling small in my room.”

I couldn’t even tell how much I had changed.

Even if I claimed I was no longer a kid, deep down, I recognized my childishness.

I had been avoiding the courage to lift my head, the resolution to face my own weaknesses, and the resolve to escape from unpleasantness.

The me who was less than a kid had finally just recognized that I was still a kid.

It wasn’t something I could accept alone.

A silver shadow floating in my mind sweetly tickled my chest.

It was the light that brought warmth to the stagnant coldness of Subaru.

Silver—normally, this color would evoke a sense of coldness, but now it sent endless warmth into Subaru, fueling him with the strength to step forward. Carried by that warmth,

“I remembered why I was scared, why I had been shrinking back… No, I had known all along. I was aware of it and pretending not to see… while someone else… ”

There was no way to dodge the truth of who it had been. I knew who it was.

“I wanted you and Mom to confront me about it.”

“—”

“I wanted you two to hit me with the truth—that I was small, lacking, a selfish fool—and make me give up.”

Kenichi’s unwavering gaze was fixed on Subaru.

In those twin eyes, colored like my own, I could see my reflection. The sharp edges of my eyes, often misunderstood as displeasure by others, now bore an unresolvable weakness as they drooped hopelessly.

—Pathetic, I thought.

“I used to be deft and capable of handling anything pretty well. I was decent at running, studying too… because I could do things that my friends had a harder time with, I found it strange that they couldn’t.”

It might be called the arrogance of youth, a cute sense of omnipotence, perhaps.

When he was young, Subaru was a child who quickly surpassed others in both athletics and academics. He easily outran those around him and was academically sharper than his peers, naturally becoming the center of attention—

“After all, you’re that person’s child.”

Adults and neighbors often said that whenever they spoke about Subaru.

Knowing that “that person” referred to my father, it felt like pride for the little Subaru to be recognized as his son.

My father—Kenichi Natsuki, the father of Subaru—was indeed a charming figure even in his son’s eyes.

He laughed a lot, talked a lot, cried a lot, got angry a lot, moved a lot, and worked a lot.

Without hesitation, he would express his love for Subaru and his mother, surrounded by people who adored him. His father was always at the center of many smiles.

That father was Subaru’s greatest pride, and knowing that this father treasured his family—myself and my mother—prompted an overwhelming sense of superiority within me.

—I want to be like my father. I want to be like him.

To young Subaru, the size of his father’s back represented the size of the world itself; the world was something seen only from atop that back.

That’s why, on a daily basis, Subaru could live amidst happiness, constantly seeking more happiness.

But,

“I wonder when it started… I don’t really remember, but I think I lost a race to someone. From that point, the things I used to excel at began to fade away. People started to appear who could run faster than I could, solve problems more quickly than I did. I realized one by one that my ‘best’ was slowly but surely diminishing, and I started thinking that this felt strange.”

The more stubbornly I clung to that feeling, the more the stars that had once sparkled in Subaru’s heart receded.

Even reaching out, even running underneath the sky, those stars that glimmered around Subaru vanished, and the darkness and silence of the night surrounding him only grew.

Even amidst that incomprehensible sense of impatience,

“After all, you’re that person’s child.”

Only that phrase continued to be Subaru’s salvation and a thread of hope he clung onto.

Even if I lost in speed, even if I couldn’t be the smartest, those words supported Subaru’s youthful dignity.

Instead of training to run, rather than tackling homework earnestly, I found myself leading others into thoughtless antics.

Sneaking into the school at night with friends, pulling lines across the town, chasing off the notoriously dangerous stray dogs from everyone’s hangout—by making sure everyone stayed entertained, I tried to protect the dwindling stars surrounding me.

“Putting in effort towards studying is just foolish. What worth is being fast? It’s much cooler to be doing this, laughing with everyone, and far stronger.”

To safeguard that misjudged pride, I had to keep running.

I chose to take the lead in confronting what everyone feared, to bravely face what others hated, to protect this place that was mine, no matter what.

“But by trying to defend myself that way, I quickly saw that I had to do something even bigger next. I couldn’t do something lesser than what I had done before. If I did something little like that, people would think I was pathetic, and that’d be a big deal.”

So, Subaru’s actions had no choice but to grow increasingly extreme.

If asked why I did such things, I could simply respond that it was because I am Natsuki Subaru.

—Yes, it had to be Natsuki Subaru.

Natsuki Subaru had to be braver, more open-minded, freer than anyone, and continue to be the kind of person everyone admires.

Thus, I kept tense and wound up, hiding that tension and not even realizing it, convincing myself that I could keep going, that I could do even more.

Because I am Natsuki Subaru, the son of Kenichi Natsuki.

“I thought I could do anything. I convinced myself I would do everything, only to find myself becoming foolish, without any real thought, only making noise…”

Just like a bug drawn to the flame, I didn’t even notice that I was yearning for the heat that could burn me.

If I had been truly a bug, since I’d been lured by the fire until I burned out, the end would have been near for me.

But I wasn’t a bug, and those friends surrounding me were much more human than I was.

—Although, I didn’t think there was a specific trigger for it.

When Subaru proposed a reckless idea, other troublemakers with similar faces gathered around.

The number of those friends began to dwindle, as if teeth were falling out of a comb.

“I thought those fools were just that; they could only enjoy something that exciting when they were with me. They could waste their time regretting or whatever; I was the one looking for something higher.”

If I continued searching for the stars, I could keep sight of the stars overhead.

The stars that once filled the sky had disappeared, and what remained for Subaru was the single twinkling star, which he continued to gaze upon as he ran—when suddenly he turned his gaze down from the starlit sky to the ground,

“There was only me left around.”

It was, after all, predictable.

Ignoring everything around me while endlessly chasing stars invisible to everyone else, even those friends who had initially found it amusing couldn’t keep up with the escalated recklessness.

Unaware of that reality, mocking those who distanced themselves, Subaru began to feel anxious and doubtful about his own way of thinking.

Then one by one, friends vanished from Subaru’s side until he found himself alone beneath the starry sky.

Furious and frustrated with this, I looked up at the sky, feeling as though I had forgotten something—

“All those stars that had been shining above me could no longer be found.”

Losing the light of those stars, losing friends who had been around him, left Subaru utterly alone in the night’s darkness; at that moment, he finally realized.

—I was nothing special.

“After all, you’re that person’s child.”

That magical phrase which had filled little Subaru with pride, that invigorated his heart now turned into a curse.

“When I venture outside and wander through the town, I realize that wherever I go and wherever I look, my father’s traces remain. …That’s only natural.”

Subaru’s narrow world indeed mirrored the same scenery he had seen atop his father’s back.

In seeking the same perspective as his father, he felt the remnants of his father in every inch of the cramped world he could see.

As time passed, the world began to change into something horrifying for Subaru.

Simultaneously, eating away at his heart was the realization of his own ordinariness, the shame at unduly wanting to hide that ordinariness from his parents and those who knew them.

Loved by everyone, relied upon by all, set upon with smiles from all sides.

That Natsuki Kenichi’s son, Natsuki Subaru, couldn’t allow himself to appear cowardly, shyly shrinking away in fear of the world’s vastness.

His bad reputation would be an insult to his father, who claimed to love him, leading to disappointment from that towering presence. For Subaru, that was the most terrifying prospect.

Throughout elementary and middle school, Subaru concentrated solely on making sure he didn’t stand out.

Those classmates who knew the little Subaru of earlier years would sometimes tilt their heads in confusion at his sudden quietness—young children in their formative years were oblivious to the shadows in their peers, living their days healthily and forgetting trivial matters.

Amidst the process of being swallowed by time, Subaru cleverly managed to play the obedient son with his family while becoming like a quiet weed in the school.

Though he had withered into a shadow-like presence among his classmates, at home, he’d completely regained his former wild self, acting like a different person.

The tales of bravado he shared when returning from school always brought smiles to his mother, who worked with household chores, and lifted his tired father who came home after work.

—Did his parents notice that all of this was just Subaru’s fabrication?

Subaru spent his school years plastered in lies, crafting the illusion of Natsuki Subaru.

As everyone forgot about his past mischiefs, he was recognized only as a classmate whose name they knew, an existence lacking depth.

Although he felt a hint of sadness at their shallow relationship, what reigned over Subaru’s heart was fear—a reverence towards the kind of power associated with his surname.

“Looking back now, my days were pretty dark. But despite that, I was somehow able to get through elementary and middle school. Then I made it to high school… and despite being a local school, it still had educational standards. Most of my classmates didn’t end up attending the same school…”

Subaru had developed a habit of thinking negatively, but he still retained a sliver of courage to view the drastic change in his environment as an opportunity.

With that scant courage, Subaru clenched his teeth and raised his eyes.

Entering high school, a new environment. Building relationships with unfamiliar faces.

In this place, no one would see him as “Kenichi Natsuki’s son.” And there, perhaps he could once again catch a glimpse of the starry sky he’d lost.

That ambition ultimately led Subaru to the decisive moment where his feet stepped off the path.

“I think I made quite the blunder with my high school debut. Well, it’s no surprise. A guy like me who hadn’t properly developed any relationships in elementary and middle school tries to brazenly stomp around among complete strangers, so the outcome was predictable, even a fool could guess.”

Because he hadn’t even realized that was a foolish notion, he reflected on the fact that he wasn’t even a fool.

He didn’t particularly want to discuss the details. You can guess what the outcome was.

For Subaru, who didn’t have anyone as a better role model for dealing with people than his father, there was simply no alternative but to look to him when trying to build relationships in this unfamiliar environment.

—While certain actions could have been a source of humor in childhood, they were dangerously inappropriate when performing them around peers blossoming into their teenage years.

“It was poison. A deadly one, too. The kind that looks like it’s a white mushroom with red spots, instantly recognizable as ‘poisonous, eat this and you’d suffer and die.'”

How could such a person expect to get along well?

As Subaru sought to move in this new environment, he stepped off from the very first step, falling into the abyss from which he established a reputation as the clueless, incomprehensible one, and how he spent time in isolation until one morning he thought:

—I really don’t want to go to school today.

“I think it was one of those mornings when both my dad and mom were out on some errand. Just feeling that way, I remained lying flat during the usual time I’d wake up… and when I hurriedly got up, surprised to find it was already past noon, my mind raced to get dressed.”

Subaru noticed that his heart and body felt utterly relaxed.

As he attended school, sitting alone by the window, pretending to sleep in silence, his heart was constantly haunted by anxiety and terror.

From the very moment he arrived at school, all he could think about was how to get back home. No, he had actually been preoccupied with thoughts of escaping since the moment he woke.

He wasn’t bullied, nor was he ignored.

Subaru was simply the one making walls around him. He was afraid of touching someone else’s kindness and harboring hopes. He couldn’t bear to think that if he caught sight of twinkling stars again, he wouldn’t feel at ease.

One single day he didn’t have to endure that painful time. The sense of liberation, relief, and the exhaustion he felt took over Subaru’s feet, leading him progressively further away from school.

“The weekly skips turned into three-day skips, and eventually to skipping two days out of three… It didn’t take two months for me to completely stop going.”

There was no need to elaborate on the ensuing days.

With Subaru no longer attending school, a sense of relief filled his heart. It was liberating to distance himself from the school experience that required enduring painful time, but it was even more deeply rooted in a kind of resignation and acceptance.

With no particular reason behind it, Subaru stubbornly clung to his own tangled self, becoming a hikikomori.

No one would think of him as “you’re just like that person,” and more than anything—if only his parents would be let down by his pathetic state, they would inevitably cease to “love” him.

A trivial evaluation for a son they didn’t love wouldn’t mean anything to either of them.

If a son they loved were chastised for being pointless, they would surely grow angry. They would feel sad. Those around them would pity them and look down upon them all the more.

The more tenuous the relationship between Subaru and his parents became, the less worry he would have for them.

So, Natsuki Subaru—

“I hope you hate me. I hope you say you hate me. I wish you would throw me away. I wanted to be made to give up.”

Hoping in vain for a nonexistent star, looking up at the sky with fleeting hopes.

That pathetic and spineless Subaru, who wasn’t worthy of being called the son of Kenichi Natsuki, wanted to be freed from that existence.

—That was the truth of what lay within Subaru that even he hadn’t realized.

Revealing his heart, Subaru faced that truth and only then understood the ugliness of his own heart. Disavowing his own weaknesses and foolishness, he was left feeling nauseated as he tried to push even those responsibilities onto someone else.

Yet, Subaru could still manage to refrain from forsaking himself because he had support.

“Rem loves you, Subaru-kun.”

Along with the image of the silver shadow flickering behind his eyelids, this time the soft, pale blue glow overlapped.

It gently breathed a serene wind into Subaru’s heart and filled the coldness of his limbs with warmth.

“Let’s start from here. From one… No, from zero!”

With that, she encouraged Subaru, who was supposed to have already ended.

She lifted Subaru’s gaze, who had been looking down, took his hand, embraced him, kissed his forehead, and filled him with courage.

Drawn in by the silver light that warmed him, urged on by the blue warmth, Subaru began to walk forward, starting again from zero.

Since he realized that and remembered it, he decided to walk out from zero—he absolutely had to settle the past that had been minus before zero.

After finishing Subaru’s long monologue, Kenichi closed his eyes, as if deep in thought. In front of that father, Subaru desperately suppressed the disgrace he felt towards his own weaknesses that seemed to squeeze from deep within his throat.

Having been granted the grace to reflect, it was only because he felt slightly changed that he could comprehend the ugliness of his true feelings.

In the end, Subaru had always wanted to push off the aftermath of his actions onto another.

Lacking the courage to turn his back on himself, not wanting to be the worst villain in his own world, wishing to remain the protagonist of a tragic tale, he quietly continued to wait without speaking for someone to step up and take on the role of the villain.

Not attending school, wasting the days away in laziness, continued to think that if he just stayed foolish like this—one day Kenichi would break down the door and end his world.

Deep in his subconscious, he had been secretly hoping for such an end to those lazy days.

This impasse led him to a different world. Even in that kind of situation, Subaru began to act self-centeredly, and finally—

“—Subaru.”

Kenichi’s eyes snapped open, calling out Subaru’s name.

Subaru, engrossed in thought, was pulled back from the sea of his musings, suddenly snapped back from his recollections to reality, and was confronted right in front of him by his father’s face.

“Father Head!”

“Ow!?”

A tremendous shock hit his forehead, and Subaru screamed while sparks danced around. Clutching at his forehead due to the sharp pain, he backed up to see Kenichi towering over him from the bench.

“Look, Subaru. That was my ‘Father Head,’ infused with my affection—a strike of anger.”

“Calling it a ‘head’ and pulling it instead of a heel! You pulled that feint so close to my face; talk about finesse!”

“It was possible because you were sitting while I was standing. No, I really am getting stiff. I can’t move the same way I used to. I’ve been slacking on my stretches after bathing.”

Kenichi began to stretch, his face seeming odd. Subaru, cradling his head from the shock, was at a loss for how to react, especially since he had anticipated a different response.

“However, Subaru. You know… you’re pretty foolish.”

“Whoa!”

Slapped hard with a blunt observation, Subaru found himself choking back a sob-like sound.

Kenichi looked down at Subaru, exhaling through his nose while crossing his arms.

“What’s with all this worrying… what made you inherit such a passive attitude from your mother? That attitude of yours is entirely the result of your mom’s brother’s genes. You know, that little bald chubby one who always looks like he’s lost in worry?”

“That’s too much… Well, I definitely set my life goals on not being bald or fat thanks to that uncle.”

Both father and son exchanged merciless remarks about relatives, neither realizing they were making the man’s honor suffer in silence.

While somewhere else under the same sky, Kenichi, glaring with irritation, continued,

“There are a lot of things I find unsatisfactory, but the most is that you seem to think I’ll hate you while acting so passive. Hiding away and not going to school, falling into a lethargy syndrome; you’re expecting me to spaz out and yell at you eventually. …You idiot. Wanting to be scolded makes you sound like some confused girl crying for attention. After all that time hugging it out with me in the morning, that’s still not enough?”

“That’s a choice of words fraught with misunderstandings but painfully true, and I can’t argue back…”

“Well, if you’re looking to be abandoned, you ought to be more active about it. Who’d dump a kid just because he crawled back into his shell? If you really want to be hated, then you should go and indiscriminately massacre about half of humanity. Then I’d hate you.”

“Not even the worst villains in manga do stuff that crazy! What kind of nonsense is that?”

“The kind of nonsense you said that sounds like the same degree of craziness to me.”

With that sharp retort, Subaru was left momentarily speechless.

Kenichi, bending down to meet Subaru’s gaze, called out, “Listen well,”

“No matter how much of a sluggish snail you are or the lowest of the low, even if you act as a moron doing self-harm scandals just to show off online…”

“I’m not that much of a moron or slow on the uptake…”

“Even if you’re that moronic, I won’t hate you or abandon you. That goes without saying, right? I’m your father, and you’re my son.”

With an exasperated sigh, Kenichi said it as he straightened his posture. Looking up at the now-standing father, Subaru met his father’s gaze.

“That said, just how much do you regard me like a superhero? Going by the way you’re talking, it feels like you’re treating me like some hypertechnological, super-awesome perfect hero.”

“Too many overlapping meanings.”

“You might not realize, but I too have had all sorts of worries, regrets, failures, tears, and tantrums—though, not too many tantrums. I got by on my looks. You didn’t get my charm, though.”

“Ha, overconfident much?”

“When I was your age, I was still immature. Sure, I have somewhat of a name, but I wasn’t anything special. Just some kid who could stop time.”

“Use that right after getting hit by a car last year!”

That was a well-structured three-step joke.

With the clear slapstick completed, Kenichi offered his hand, and Subaru, with no choice, high-fived him. Just then, Kenichi firmly gripped the hand he had struck.

“I could just twist your wrist and throw you out here since you’re a pain in the neck… ”

“Ouch! That’s too tight! Hey, my wrist is going to snap… it hurts!”

“—It seems there’s no need to go to that extent because you’re already folded and bent back after being brought to the ground.”

The twist around his wrist was released, allowing Subaru to wave his painful hand while standing up. Kenichi squinted at him with a single eye, producing a faint snicker.

“I thought so in the morning, but you suddenly changed again just now. What’s with that look on your face?”

“…I told you. I have a crush on someone.”

The silver glow guided Natsuki Subaru’s hand.

“And, there’s a girl who said she likes someone like me.”

The warm, blue light gently pushed Natsuki Subaru onward.

“Those girls don’t know that I’m Kenichi Natsuki’s son. Before them, I’m just Natsuki Subaru. …No.”

Shaking his head, Subaru focused on his father standing before him.

“Before anyone, I’m Natsuki Subaru. It was just me who felt I was burdened by some strange label, and I crumbled beneath a weight that didn’t even exist. Only now have I realized that.”

“Way late, huh? I’m the breadwinner around here. Not like you took over the family crest or anything, yet you’re getting in trouble with your own delusions about sharing the burden. I won’t go easy.”

“Well, I just had my share of pain, so you don’t have to remind me of the beating!”

Complaining about the past and its excessiveness, Subaru vented his frustration, and Kenichi chuckled.

“Still, taking this into account, the burden’s a bit lighter. It can’t be helped what happened in the past, and what’s done is done—that takes us to here now.”

“Yeah, um, I’m sorry for causing you trouble…”

“If you feel sorry for it, then properly take your time to repay the favor. In the future, make sure to support me and your mom, okay? The eldest son.”

—So when those words were spoken, Subaru was instantly unable to move.

“—”

He had prepared himself to apologize for his past conversations and confess his current feelings.

To achieve this properly and finally smooth over the long-held grievances, he thought he would face his parents with a heart full of clarity.

He was ready to lay everything about himself on the table—

“—Guh.”

So—when the talk shifted to “from now on,” what flooded Subaru’s entire being was,

“…I-I’m sorry.”

“Subaru?”

“I’m s-sorry… I’m really sorry… I’m s-sorry, I’m s-sorry… I’m… I’m sorry…”

His father’s perplexed voice came from directly ahead. Yet, he couldn’t see his face.

The tears that gushed forth blurred Subaru’s vision, muddying the shape of the world. He pressed his hands against his face, desperately wiping away the tears. But no matter how much he wiped, the tears just kept gushing out, unceasingly. It wouldn’t stop. It wouldn’t let up.

“I’m so sorry… I… I… I can’t… I’m so s-sorry… I’m so sorry…”

—He knew.

Deep within his heart, Subaru had known it long ago.

From that moment when he had basked in sunlight in the summoned other world, squinting at the bright scene, it felt like he had received an enlightening revelation:

—Surely, I couldn’t return to my original world anymore.

Now, having communicated his heart to his father, confessing the dark feelings bottled up within him, ultimately he had earned forgiveness, reinforcing his resolve to step forward. He had been raised just to this extent.

“But despite that, I… can’t give anything back to you… I probably… won’t ever be able to meet you again… I’m sorry. I’m s-sorry. …At this moment, I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

Continually as tears flowed unendingly, a storm of emotion was about to seize him in that moment.

Yet, it was because there was a body that continued to hold Subaru, allowing him to stand firm without collapsing.

That was a strong, large hand, firmly holding onto his now nearly matched stature with Subaru, gently patting the back of his sobbing son as if to soothe him.

“—You’ll always be a handful, won’t you? What a pain.”

Saying so, he continued to cradle the sobbing Subaru, lovingly holding him tightly, never letting go.

※※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※　※

“Are you calmed down?”

“—Yeah. Sorry. I truly caused so much trouble…”

“Indeed. Just look at my shirt. Already caked with snot and tears around the chest area. I can’t even walk properly around the neighborhood now without embarrassment.”

Kenichi flicked Subaru’s forehead with his finger, laughing in a manner unbecomingly loud.

Subaru stared at that laughing face with tear-stained cheeks. His eyes filled with sadness and remorse brought out a sigh from Kenichi.

“I don’t get why you cried out like that, but it’s embarrassing, so I won’t say a word. Just make sure to express gratitude to me.”

“…Ah. I am grateful. Truly, from the bottom of my heart, more than anyone in this world.”

“To be told that much, I’m honestly blushing.”

With a sheepish grin, Kenichi scratched his cheek. Unable to look at that face for long, Subaru instinctively averted his gaze.

Seeing Subaru’s reaction, Kenichi shrugged, brushing him off as if he were a bug.

“Come on, crybaby, go on home. I feel like taking a stroll a bit longer, so I’ll be taking the long way back. Walking home with a sniveling kid like you is bound to raise eyebrows.”

“…It’d raise questions like ‘what are those grown adults doing?'”

“Indeed. It’d be embarrassing to go back home with you now and have friends gossip about it afterward.”

“That kind of phrase could be lethal based on who hears it, so do be mindful of how you use it.”

When Subaru reflexively shot back at his father’s remark, a wave of nostalgia hit him deep. He forced it down, turning his head away, and finally managed to utter,

“I’m heading back now. Be careful not to get questioned by the police.”

“Sorry to disappoint, but all the local officers are familiar faces. Even if I was preemptively warned, I wouldn’t have much to say.”

“That’s not preemptive.”

Kenichi’s unchanged attitude relieved Subaru, warming his heart with a renewed sense of support. How long would he continue to lean on others for protection? How intolerably stubborn.

He didn’t want to show any more weakness in front of Kenichi.

With a deep breath, Subaru steeled himself. Turning back, he stepped forward, breaking into a brisk walk to hasten his departure.

“—Hey, Subaru.”

That voice from Kenichi caused Subaru’s feet to freeze.

“There’s plenty going on in your life right now, I’m sure. So, I’ll say just one thing.”

“—”

“Hang in there. I’m counting on you, son.”

Being counted on frightened Subaru, filled with trepidation at disappointing expectations.

He had always feared betraying his father’s trust; anxieties had clutched at him without giving him respite. For Subaru, expectations meant fear itself—

“—Yeah, leave it to me, Dad.”

Without turning around, Subaru pointed a finger skyward.

“My name is Natsuki Subaru. The son of Kenichi Natsuki. —So, I can do anything, and I will do everything. Your son is amazing, you know!”

“Yeah, I know. After all, I’m half of what made you!”

Kenichi’s boisterous laughter echoed down Subaru’s back.

Hearing that, a smile unexpectedly surfaced on Subaru’s face.

Turning away, he started to walk.

His knees wouldn’t shake. His heart wouldn’t tremble. He just focused clearly ahead and began to stride forth.

—from now on, walking while being watched by the owner of that back he had always admired.

Thinking that simply granted him so much strength,

Subaru continued to walk on without stopping.