Chapter 94: Surely That Requires No Explanation
I used sheer willpower to set aside the anti-hallucination arguments heating up inside me again and quietly considered the final sentence.
Recommended Skill: Human Heart (Average)…
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“Kuwajima Taeko”
Supplement: Inside the mental world, you must also confront her with your true feelings. Assume lying is impossible.
In Other Words: Choose your personnel carefully.
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I see, I thought as I glanced at Taketsuru.
“What is it? What did it say?”
I quietly shook my head, then looked at Meiko.
“What’s that look supposed to mean? What did it say?”
I shook my head again, passed over Kikkōryū Hōtoku, and looked at Niwashita-san.
She was still dozing, but appeared to have regained consciousness.
We gazed into each other’s calm, sleepy eyes for a moment.
I gave a deep, solemn nod.
“Niwashita Sumire-san, it appears we need a human heart to save Kuwajima after she was seduced by supernatural power. Would you lend us your assistance?”
“O-Oh?”
“Hey, Kirishiro! Is that what those looks meant?”
“What is ‘that’ supposed to mean!?”
The two of them had apparently deduced the meaning of my gaze from my words and protested simultaneously.
If they could read that much, why question that particular part?
I shook my head conspicuously in exasperation.
“Do I need to start from the beginning? Must I explain everything from the beginning?”
“At the very least, I refuse to accept being judged unqualified by you.”
“Yeah, yeah! I’m a human being!”
I didn’t particularly need to convince them, but it was understandable that people disliked being evaluated behind their backs.
Reluctantly, I explained why I’d excluded them from consideration.
“Listen. We’re going to persuade Kuwajima. First, recall what kind of creature she is. Correct: despite her brave words, her true nature is cowardly and lazy. She’s vulnerable to temptation, lacks self-control, is restless, possesses neither special abilities nor latent potential, and looks down on life itself.”
“I have done nothing to deserve being stabbed with a blade that sharp!”
The useless beauty with the impressive figure said something, but I ignored her for now.
“Only by standing beside Kuwajima from her own perspective can someone truly demonstrate a ‘human heart.’ In other words, before even considering human empathy, the criterion is whether you can sincerely relate to Kuwajima. But what about you two?”
“What about us…?”
“One of you is a hero who saved another world, and the other is a kunoichi living in modern society. Even if you can just barely pass for ordinary people in the modern world, from Kuwajima’s perspective, you possess special abilities and special values. How could you see things from her level? Your perspectives on life are completely different.”
“Put that way, it’s strangely difficult to argue.”
Exactly. It wasn’t that I wanted to claim they lacked human hearts.
Their positions were simply too unusual to relate to Kuwajima.
It would be difficult to unravel the heart of Kuwajima, who’d lived peacefully in the modern world, using a hero’s battle-stained otherworldly values or a modern kunoichi’s values that shrugged off violence.
At the very least, that was the explanation I decided upon.
Honestly, describing my “childhood friend” and “best friend” as unusual people didn’t please me, but this was an emergency.
They should reflect and strive to become as ordinary as possible.
“B-But I’ve properly related to all sorts of people and built relationships at university. You could say I’m good at seeing things from other people’s perspectives…”
Unlike Taketsuru, who accepted my words, Meiko cited her university life and argued that she could put herself in another person’s position.
That was probably true in the real world. It was practically an essential skill for a modern ninja, so she had every reason to be confident.
But what about inside a mental world, where only true feelings existed?
“Meiko, apparently, to persuade Kuwajima’s true self, we must also confront her with our true feelings…”
“And?”
“Can you look at Kuwajima’s body and still sincerely relate to her? Aren’t you the one who can’t stand on the same playing field?”
“Urgh.”
At my words, Meiko glanced at Kuwajima’s chest and groaned bitterly.
Yes. Kuwajima lacked nearly everything overall, but judging by one particular standard, the positions of haves and have-nots reversed between Kuwajima and Meiko.
They could still build a friendship, but that noise would be difficult to ignore when sincerely relating to her.
Kuwajima shouted, “Th-That’s sexual harassment!” but I ignored her for the moment.
So “sexual harassment” was also “sexual harassment” in the Kumamoto dialect.
Finally came the other person I’d excluded.
“As for the remaining candidate—me—frankly, I don’t believe I possess the heart required to relate to Kuwajima. Surely that requires no explanation for anyone with ordinary comprehension.”
“That’s true.”
“The fact that you can analyze yourself like that is classic Gouto-kun.”
“Flattery won’t get you anything.”
Naturally, I was among the candidates.
But I was me.
I prided myself on being an ordinary university student you could find anywhere, but when asked whether I could truly remain an ordinary student from the bottom of my heart, that was difficult.
If I were genuinely ordinary, there would be no problem, but since part of me consciously performed the role, I was insufficient.
I wouldn’t say I couldn’t understand what troubled Kuwajima, but I was confident I couldn’t understand why it troubled her at all.
Therefore, this job didn’t suit me.
The path of ordinariness was steep.
“By elimination, that leaves only Niwashita-san to persuade Kuwajima. Do you understand now?”
Taketsuru and Meiko had no choice but to fall silent at that conclusion.
There was a faint concern regarding Niwashita-san’s tastes—her fondness for older-woman/younger-boy relationships—but as an ordinary human being with a human heart, nobody here suited the role better.
Though I’d only watched their brief interactions, she also seemed to have built a reasonably good relationship with Kuwajima despite their recent meeting.
That was why I’d asked Niwashita-san to persuade her.
Not only the three of us, but even Kuwajima, who’d overheard from the sidelines, seemed convinced by the choice and muttered, “Indeed…”
Everything now depended on Niwashita-san’s feelings.
“Um, if I’m truly the only person who can do it, I don’t mind taking the role.”
“Do you have a concern?”
“Isn’t something like this normally where a ‘boy who’s close to her’ works hard and gets his big moment?”
“…Hmm.”
In terms of an ordinary summer event, she meant that I, Kuwajima’s “best friend,” should fill the role.
Niwashita-san’s words had merit.
They did, but I checked the time.
“That would be correct if we intended to spend time persuading her… But here, even if we must sacrifice some consideration for Kuwajima’s circumstances, I would prefer to save time.”
“Are you trying to clear summer vacation at Any% speed, Gouto-kun? You’re saying something that wouldn’t be tolerated in ordinary human relationships.”
“But if we finish this quickly and then enjoy summer without lingering worries, everyone should be happier in the end. There’s no need for me to go persuade Kuwajima and hurt her unnecessarily.”
“It’s classic Gouto-kun that you’re naturally certain you’ll hurt Tae-chan.”
After various disputes, Kuwajima herself said, “W-Well, it is perhaps true that allowing Minion Number One to tread with muddy shoes into the pure realm of my psyche presents certain problems…” That probably counted as permission, so the matter was settled.
I sent a mental transmission to the auditory hallucination, who had surely listened to our discussion.
We’re going to persuade Kuwajima inside her mental world. Can you connect Kuwajima’s mind to Niwashita-san’s?
“…What?”
Hmm?
What did she mean by “What?”
“…No. I’m connected only to Kirishiro, remember? If Kirishiro were entering someone else’s mind, my power could probably reach, but connecting two completely unrelated people is beyond me. Or outside my scope… I’m basically a community-focused local deity whose only notable skill is babysitting… Oh, when you do it, make sure you’re properly asleep. It won’t work unless you’re dreaming or something similar.”
…
To think that I, of all people, had overestimated the auditory hallucination’s power and unconsciously misunderstood the prerequisites.
But it couldn’t be helped.
Who would’ve guessed from the description that I was the only possible target?
What had “choose your personnel carefully” been supposed to mean?
If there was no choice from the beginning, it shouldn’t have listed a recommended skill.
That sentence had simply been harassment.
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Comment: “I never said there was a choice. (Laughs)”
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Hallucination, you wretch. Were you still angry?
No matter what you felt inside, once you’d forgiven someone, don’t allow it to affect business.
I’ll perform brain surgery and remove the diseased part of you.
Setting aside the hallucination’s worthless harassment, I sighed and explained the situation to everyone.
“…Forget everything we’ve discussed. Apparently, I was the only person capable of entering Kuwajima’s mental world from the beginning. It can’t be helped, so I’ll go and hope for the best.”
“…”
“…”
“It can’t be helped, then.”
The two people we’d exhausted pointlessly with the discussion remained silent, while the easygoing Niwashita-san smiled.
“T-To tread with muddy shoes into a maiden’s world! Shame on you! Have you no shame!?”
Only Kuwajima, whose Kumamoto dialect now differed hardly at all from standard Japanese, complained despite being the party responsible.
This all started because you stole a piece of watermelon. You should be ashamed.