The Greatest Night Sky

　The battle was over and the quietness of the night had returned to the city.
　Akira's eyes widened as he looked at the screen that had appeared before him.

(――――A unique skill for Nao-san, huh?　And even a lot of points……!)

　He checked its contents many times to make sure that it was not a mistake.
　And so, finally. Akira realized what kind of power the scenario given to him with his Return from Hell would have in this world.


(This means…… I can give anyone unique skills and a large number of points if I can cause a scenario to be generated with that person…… Right? )


　In other words, a companion-strengthening event.
　Akira let out a small exhale as these words popped into his head.


(……Quite an amazing power. With this power, anyone can face this world. No, I can create the opportunity to do so. ……Thanks to things like the world reversal rate, monsters get stronger over time, but with this power, I might even be able to get more people like Nao-san to fight with me.)

　Akira thought about this, and suddenly a plan popped into his head.

(――Which means that if I take advantage of this scenario…… Maybe I can create the best possible team who can fight the monsters that have appeared in the world…………)

　Akira shook his head at such an outlandish plan.
　At the same time, however, it did not seem impossible to achieve this goal, provided that Akira did his best.
　I alone cannot kill all the bosses that have emerged in this world.
　But if there were people who would fight shoulder to shoulder with me, no matter what monsters might appear in the future. Together, we might be able to survive in this world.
　Such thoughts welled up in Akira's mind.


(……That's right.  I might try to do that eventually, once things settle down.)

　Akira thought about this and decided to put the plan that had popped into his head on hold.


"Fuuー…………"


　Slowly, Akira let out a breath.
　If he was not careful, the pain that assaulted his entire body would take his consciousness away.
　Coughing, the taste of blood spread into his mouth, and the blood flowing from his lacerated side soaked the ground bright red.
　The Auto Regen skill was slowly beginning to heal Akira's body, but the wounds would not disappear immediately.
　The loss of blood and the relaxation of his mind took Akira's strength in one fell swoop.

"――――"

　Staggering, Akira's body swayed and he collapsed in place.
　Nao, who had been at some distance from Akira, must have seen this and rushed to Akira's side, as if in a panic.


"Ichijou!! "

　Akira lifted his right hand to wave it as if to show that he was safe, as his name was called out.


"I'm fine. But, I'm just…… a bit tired."

　At those words, Nao let out a sigh of relief and smiled.


"……I see. I guess so."

　Nao sat down gently next to Akira.

"Good work."
"You too, Nao-san."

　Akira said this and raised one hand with a faint smile.
　At the sight of this, Nao's eyes widened. Then, just like Akira, she raised one hand with a smile on her face.

　――Slap.

　The sound of their high-five echoed quietly through the night.
　Looking at each other's faces, both of them smiled again.
　Then, Akira suddenly looked serious and asked Nao a question.


"Are you okay now? "

　Without even thinking about it, Nao understood the meaning of those words.

"……Yeah. I'm fine now."

　Murmuring, Nao slowly breathed out.
　Then, as if to protect her broken left arm, she held it in place with her right hand and spoke in a low voice.

"I'm sorry for the trouble I've caused."
"I wouldn't say you were a bother…… Anyone would be traumatized by dying in such a way."
"…………Maybe so."

　Nao smiled slightly at Akira's words.
　Then, as if deep in thought, she turned her eyes to Akira.

"……Hey, there's one thing. Can I ask you something? "
"What is it? "

　Akira also stared at Nao's face.


　Nao seemed to be lost in thought for a moment.
　Almost as if she was asking herself whether it was okay to ask this question.
　After opening and closing her mouth several times with an expression suggesting that she wanted to say something, she eventually gathered up her resolve and asked Akira the question.


"Just because I told you to not give up…… Are you going to take on these battles again and again, knowing you might die? "


　Akira stared at Nao with a dumbfounded expression.
　Then, after letting out a small puff of air, he started laughing out loud.
　But then, as if the laughter had hurt him, he began to look pained.
　However, Akira's expression soon changed to a smile again, and this time he was smiling broadly.

"Wh-what's so funny?"

　She probably never imagined that he would laugh even though he was in pain.
　Nao stared at Akira in confusion.
　While smiling, Akira spoke to Nao.

"It was certainly your words, Nao-san, that got me started, but…… The reason why I'm fighting is different."
"Different?　Then, why……"
"Don't you understand? "


　When he said this, Akira grinned.


"In this shitty world, I'm going to grab the best future I can with my own two hands. ……And that is the greatest feeling, that's why I fight. I'm sure you can understand that now, right, Nao-san? "


　Nao stared at Akira, taken aback by the unexpected words.
　Then, as if a burden had been lifted, she breathed out a long sigh and, with a smile on her face, began to speak.


"…………Yeah. That's right. I can certainly understand the meaning of those words."


　Together with Ichijou Akira, she fought and survived in this world.
　That future that she once held in her hands, but eventually gave up on.
　This time, she had certainly grasped it with her hands.

"…………"

　Nanase Nao slowly turned her gaze towards the sky.
　There, she saw the same crescent moon floating in the sky as when she first returned from the dead.

　――It's so beautiful.
　Nao found herself thinking about such a trivial thing, which was out of character for her.

　Perhaps because Nao was looking up at the sky.
　Akira also shifted his gaze to the crescent moon floating in the night sky, and let out a sigh before speaking.


"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

　At those words, Nao couldn't help but glance at Akira.
　It was probably just a careless remark.
　Maybe there was no deeper meaning.
　Akira simply gazed vacantly at the moon, which illuminated the town where the boss had now disappeared, with a calm expression on his face.
　Nao smiled at Akira and then looked up at the night sky again and murmured.


"I guess so. This is the best night I've ever had in my life."


　After that, their conversation came to an end.
　The two of them continued to stare silently at the night sky.

　At the moment. This moment.

　While feeling how important the warmth of the person next to them was in this world.
　They were certainly alive in that world today.

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 ToC    

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