Chapter 31: The Tenth Playthrough (2)

After a few seconds of silence, Furuya Rei suddenly laughed and relaxed completely, falling into his childhood friend's arms.

He rested his head on the other's shoulder and chuckled softly, saying helplessly, "Seriously, Hiro, that's too much of a cheat..."

Rei Furuya closed his eyes, sighed silently, utterly defeated.

"W-What? I was telling the truth. Doesn't Zero believe me?" Morofushi Kagemitsu realized he had said a lot of cheesy things, and his face turned a little red, but he didn't regret it at all.

“I believe you, of course I believe Hiro, but…” Furuya Rei paused, seemingly unsure whether to continue.

Morofushi Kagemitsu sat under the tree, holding his childhood friend in his arms. He held him firmly on the back with one hand, while gently stroking the soft, golden head on his shoulder with the other.

"But what? Is there some reason you absolutely cannot tell me?" His voice was very gentle yet incredibly firm. "If there is such a reason, if you absolutely cannot let me know, if there is something that forbids you from saying it, then I... I don't need to know, but Zero, you must give me a reason."

“I really can’t accept being completely excluded like last time without even giving a reason, Zero,” he said.

"sorry……"

“If Zero realizes his mistake and won’t repeat it, then I will forgive you.” Morofushi Kagemitsu interrupted him, his voice tinged with a smile, indicating that he wasn’t really angry enough to refuse to forgive.

Rei Furuya remained silent for a few seconds before finally giving in completely.

He looked up helplessly at his childhood friend, whose eyes were crinkling with laughter: "Hiro, you know perfectly well that I would never lie to you."

“But hiding it won’t do either, I’ll be very worried about you.” Morifushi Kagemitsu softened his expression, his tense nerves finally relaxing a little.

"But Hiro himself always hides things he thinks are dangerous or troublesome from me, so I don't know or get involved, doesn't he?" Furuya Rei protested.

"I admit my mistake. I know I was wrong now. I will never hide anything from Zero and do dangerous things by myself again, so we're even." Morofushi Hiromitsu smiled and tilted his head.

"Really..." Furuya Rei couldn't help but smile along with him, revealing a relaxed and happy smile.

He stood up, changed his posture, turned around and sat down close to his childhood friend's warm body. He leaned against the blue-eyed youth who had come closer with practiced ease, and then naturally rested his head on the other's shoulder, together with him, leaning against the big tree and looking at the cliff and the moon opposite.

At that moment, neither of them spoke. They simply sat close together in the cold night, feeling the mountain breeze on their faces and enjoying the tranquility.

Even without saying a word, the atmosphere was warmer than ever before, and even the world in sight seemed to become more beautiful, with all kinds of colorful flowers blooming all over the mountains and fields, growing and blossoming so beautifully and vibrantly.

Spring, yes, it's spring.

Rei Furuya relaxed more than ever before, and the smile on his face made Kagemitsu Morofushi turn his head to look at him and couldn't help but smile as well, reaching out to touch the short, golden hair sticking up on his cheek.

Looking at his gentle smile, Rei Furuya's eyes suddenly felt a little hot.

Only after he uncovered the mastermind and basically figured out everything did he feel reassured. Only after he was caught off guard and had to grit his teeth and go through ten cycles of death and reincarnation, only now did he seem to truly realize for the first time that he had been reborn. Only now did he fully realize that Hiro had returned to his side.

This absolute trust and sense of security, this feeling that he could turn to his childhood friend no matter what happened, and that as long as his childhood friend was still by his side, he would have nothing to fear or worry about, had been gone for a very long time, as if it were something from a past life.

Well, it was something from a past life anyway.

Yes, he was never a smooth talker who could perfectly solve everything on his own and never confide in anyone or reveal his true self. He was originally a very willful and self-centered person who couldn't stand the slightest provocation and liked to rely on his childhood friend in matters of the heart. Whenever he encountered some unbearable pain, he would always think of that person first. As long as he thought of that person's existence and was comforted by them, he would immediately be fully revived... It wasn't until he lost all the people he could rely on and confide in that he slowly became like that.

Even though he knew everything perfectly well in his heart, and could even perfectly act it out, strangely enough, he only now truly realized this.

Perhaps it's because he really lost this person for far too long, because the loss was so sudden and hard to accept.

From elementary school, middle school, high school, university, police academy, and even later when they went undercover, they were always together. The other's presence had become so natural that it was taken for granted that they were an integral part of each other's lives, as natural as the sun rising the next day.

That's why it was so unbelievable when the day the sun fell, and that's why every day afterward, walking alone in the darkness, was so sad, long, and painful.

Time cannot erase this scar. Even at 29, he still cannot accept it. But even when he cannot accept it, he still has to keep moving forward, which is why he has been able to persevere until now, to the point that he has become so accustomed to it that he is no longer aware of it.

And now, he suddenly realizes that he is no longer a person.

Hiro was right beside him.

Hiro has always been watching him, caring for him, worrying about him, waiting for him, and trusting him.

No matter what the reason, he couldn't betray this relationship.

“Okay,” he said. “I’ll tell you everything, and I promise you, I won’t commit suicide over this kind of thing again.”

Rei Furuya is scared.

He suddenly became afraid; he dared not die carelessly again.

What if Hiro retains his memories in the future?

How could he continue to aggravate Hiro's nightmares?

He couldn't even imagine how painful it must be for Hiro to have these five cycles of memories.

It's okay. No matter how difficult it is, he will find a way to walk with Hiro. He will never let Hiro go through something like this again.

“This is a rather long and incredible story,” Rei Furuya said.

"Yes, I'll listen carefully." Morofushi Kagemitsu and he snuggled together, leaning on each other, quietly listening to their childhood friend's outpouring.

This is a story that is far more terrifying, painful, and cruel than he imagined.

Moreover, the blond youth didn't explain many details, and may even have concealed many things, but simply listing the important key points was enough to make the listener feel uncomfortable and suffocated.

Morofushi Kagemitsu's expression turned uncontrollably sorrowful.

Fortunately, the childhood friend couldn't see it, because the blond youth changed his position and lay on his lap while talking, so Morofushi Hiromitsu could only see the back of his head.

Is Zero crying? What kind of expression does he have right now?

Morofushi Kagemitsu was unaware of this, and neither would he ask nor look into it.

He simply reached out and gently stroked the golden head lying on his lap, patiently and tenderly combing through the smooth yet somewhat stubborn short golden hair again and again.

"It's been such a tough journey so far." Morofushi Kagemitsu sighed softly. "You've worked so hard all this time, Zero. You've done a really great job. You're truly amazing. You're worthy of being called Zero."

"...Hiro said that to me before too." Rei Furuya seemed to smile slightly.

“Is that so… I wish I had all my memories.” Morofushi Kagemitsu lowered his eyes. “But no matter how many times I forget, I will still keep talking.”

“Zero, don’t bear it all alone anymore.” He said earnestly, “Let me share your troubles, let me fight against fate with you. Don’t carry everything alone, it’s too tiring to be alone.”

Rei Furuya was silent for two seconds, then softly hummed in agreement.

Time had passed by unnoticed, and it was probably almost dawn. So the last darkness before dawn was even thicker, and even the things around us were completely invisible. Only the presence of the people around us remained clear.

"Do you feel very tired?" Morofushi Kagemitsu suddenly asked softly.

A gust of wind blew, making the blond youth's hair fly wildly. Morofushi Kagemitsu reached out and gently tidied it for him, quietly waiting for the other's reply.

“…Hmm.” Finally, Rei Furuya spoke in a low voice.

"I'm very tired," he said.

"Will it be very painful?" asked Morofushi Kagemitsu.

“It’s very painful,” Furuya Rei said.

"Are you scared?" Morofushi Kagemitsu asked.

“I’m terrified,” Rei Furuya said.

"It's alright, it's alright now, I'm here." Morofushi Kagemitsu sighed silently, bent down and hugged the blond youth curled up on his lap, gently opening and closing the tightly clenched fist.

“But it’s all worth it, so I will never give up.” Rei Furuya gripped his hand tightly, his tone this time incredibly firm.

"Yeah, I know, because Zero has always been such a strong and capable person." Morofushi Hiromitsu smiled, shaking his hand as he said, "But even if Zero becomes the world's most perfect superman, I'll still worry about him. Because I know all of Zero's dark history, I've seen all of Zero's different sides, um... that's probably what happens when you're childhood friends, right?"

“So, don’t make me worry like this next time. If anything happens, tell me first. I won’t act rashly on my own. Let’s work together to find a solution, okay?” he said.

“…Okay.” Furuya Rei agreed.

"So, is it okay if I do something a bit outrageous?" He straightened up and looked seriously into his childhood friend's eyes. "Like installing tracking devices on you or something."

“It’s okay,” Morofushi Kagemitsu said with a smile. “I mean, I don’t care at all, if that will put Zero at ease.”

The black-haired youth with upturned blue cat eyes even winked at him playfully, and said shyly, "Because, actually, I also really want to put a locator on Zero."

Rei Furuya choked.

"Looking back now, we've been through so many years together, experienced so much together, and overcome every difficulty we've faced. So I believe we can definitely continue to walk together to the end. Whether it's the organization or the system, we will definitely be able to defeat them." Morofushi Kagemitsu's tone was actually quite gentle, but no one doubted his determination.

“Of course.” Furuya Rei laughed, his eyes bright and firm. “That’s the only thing I’ve never doubted or wavered about.”

The sky had begun to lighten, and finally, the sunlight pierced through the darkness, illuminating the world in an instant.

The mountaintop where they were located was high enough to see the entire sunrise process and watch the sun gradually illuminate the world.

It was as if hope had finally triumphed over despair, and light enveloped the entire world.

The warm golden sunlight shone on the two people who were leaning on each other watching the sunrise, gradually dispelling the cold and gloom that had lingered in the darkness.

“The sun has risen again,” Rei Furuya suddenly said.

This is the sun that rises again in his world, the sun that Hiro on the rooftop that night could not see, and the sun that he could not see when he finally died in the darkness before dawn.

“Yes, the sun will always rise.” Morofushi Kagemitsu stood up, turned his back to the sunlight, bent down and reached out his hand to the blond youth on the ground, smiling, “Let’s go back together, Zero.”

He doesn't need to look at the sun, because his childhood friend with dazzling blond hair has been his sun ever since he was a child, laughing and pulling him out of the darkness.

He will definitely protect this sun and will never let it fall again.