Chapter 385: A Segment of a Life |
He could see her!
Shirayanagi Ayaha realized this instantly.
Moreover, this boy was clearly a miniature version of the altered A-Gen she had found on the rooftop earlier with Carole's help!
Of course, Shirayanagi Ayaha knew exactly what Hoshino Gen really looked like as a child! After all, they had known each other since primary school. Although she had no idea why the "A-Gen" standing before her looked like a miniature version of his altered self from today, this had to be A-Gen, right? It definitely was! Since Carole had confirmed that the teenager was an altered A-Gen, this smaller version must be him too!
Besides, whether it was the teenager version or this shota version, the feeling he gave off was exactly the same as the A-Gen in her memory, so...
But before she could sort out her thoughts, something suddenly exploded in her mind.
It was not just the thoughts in her mind that shattered, but her physical form in this moment as well.
In the black-and-white world, Shirayanagi Ayaha's silhouette dissolved into motes of light and vanished.
Yet in another, far more abstract space, Shirayanagi Ayaha drifted in a muddled and confused state, seemingly witnessing a person's entire life.
She watched helplessly as this unfamiliar boy—who nonetheless gave her a sense of infinite familiarity—grew from a child to a teenager, into a young man, until his death... and then, his subsequent birth.
Everything was deeply etched into her mind.
—
She had discovered the greatest secret of Hoshino Gen... the boy she had loved ever since she was a little girl.
'This is called... reincarnation, right?'
Shirayanagi Ayaha felt she should be surprised, that she should be shocked beyond measure. Yet, now that she was faced with it, she could not tell if it was because her current state was somewhat abnormal, or if her subconscious believed this was the only logical explanation. It was the only way to explain why A-Gen had such a personality as a child, and why he was so incredibly powerful...
Ultimately, she was shocked, but not nearly as much as she had expected.
—The boy she had loved since childhood was a legendary reincarnator.
—There was actually a group of people in the world who could soar through the skies, burrow into the earth, and wield all sorts of unimaginable superpowers.
It was truly hard to say which of these two facts was harder to accept for a girl who had grown up in normal society. However, Shirayanagi Ayaha had genuinely and completely accepted the latter a year ago.
So it was only natural that she could easily accept the former now, right?
Alright, she could not, or at least not easily in such a short amount of time.
Her muddled and confused state gradually faded. With a sudden shiver, Shirayanagi Ayaha regained consciousness like a burst bubble from a dream.
She found herself back in that bizarre, black-and-white world.
But now she knew where she was. This was the place where her childhood friend had lived during his past life as a child.
Shirayanagi Ayaha was no longer in the classroom where she had been before her mind shattered, but in the courtyard of the orphanage.
Time had also shifted. As for how she could tell, it was simply because she could see the sky above had changed from its previous sickly pale hue to a deep pitch-black. The only remaining white was a shape resembling the moon, hanging on the horizon.
Aside from the black sky and the white moon, what drew Shirayanagi Ayaha's gaze even more was a tiny figure lying on the roof tiles, resting his head on his arms as he stared at the sky and the moon.
Shirayanagi Ayaha's expression grew somewhat complex. Although the segment of a life she had just witnessed was brief and sketchy—often skipping months or even years in a single blur—she could still confidently say she knew everything there was to know about the boy on the roof.
She found it incredibly difficult to imagine that Hoshino Gen, her mysterious and seemingly omnipotent childhood friend, had such a past.
"..."
Spotting a ladder leaning against the wall of the building, Shirayanagi Ayaha took a deep breath, walked over, and climbed up to the roof.
Whether it was because her inability to physically interact with "reality" rendered her movements completely silent, or because the boy was too deeply mesmerized by the night sky, he remained completely unaware of her presence even though Shirayanagi Ayaha was now standing right behind him.
It was not until Shirayanagi Ayaha stepped to his side, gathered her skirt with her hands, and sat down that the boy suddenly realized someone else was there.
Yet despite being "startled," the boy did not overreact. He merely tilted his head to look at Shirayanagi Ayaha with a highly surprised expression, then sat up and scooted away to put a little distance between them.
Shirayanagi Ayaha's lips twitched. 'This guy really has been exactly like this since he was a kid!'
Fortunately, before she could say anything, the boy spoke first. "You are the one from the classroom this afternoon..."
Shirayanagi Ayaha blinked, and her heart skipped a beat. A wide smile broke across her face as she asked with eager anticipation, "The one what?"
'Big sister? Or pretty big sister?'
'If A-Gen actually called me that, even as a kid—even a kid from his past life... Oh!' Just thinking about it sent a thrilling jolt of electricity through Shirayanagi Ayaha's body. Her gaze toward the boy burned with even more fervent anticipation—
The boy silently scooted a bit further away from Shirayanagi Ayaha before continuing, "...The one who walked in and then suddenly disappeared."
Shirayanagi Ayaha's face immediately fell in disappointment. But she quickly pulled herself together, glaring at the boy as she lectured him in the tone of an older senior, "How rude! You should call me big sister!"
The boy tilted his head, meeting her gaze in silence.
His eyes were so clear, lacking the intense pressure she remembered from her memories, yet she still surrendered immediately. Embarrassed, she averted her eyes and muttered with a slight pout, "Fine, do not call me that then..."
But the moment her voice trailed off, the boy spoke again. "Big sister, why can you disappear into thin air? I have never seen you before, and back in the classroom, it seemed like no one else could see you. Are you a human or a ghost?"
Shirayanagi Ayaha's eyes widened, shining as bright as the stars. She completely filtered out his barrage of questions, her mind endlessly looping that single "big sister"...
'It keeps looping! Oh no, I can't hold back my laughter!'
'Ehehe, A-Gen called me big sister... He really said it... ehehe.'
Shirayanagi Ayaha stared blankly, as if in a daze.
It was not until the boy called out "big sister" one more time that she snapped out of it. Her pretty face, beautiful enough to brighten the night, was completely flushed with excitement—in fact, excitement was an understatement; it was pure euphoria. "Ah... huh? What did you say?"
"..." The boy fell into a brief silence. He completely failed to understand why this older girl, whether human or ghost, was grinning so foolishly. Was being called big sister truly such a joyful thing?