Chapter 166 Nighttime.
Avoiding guard duty during the school curfew was not a difficult task for Tsukino, Chiya, and Ohma Kokichi.
Tsukino and Chiya easily evaded the patrolling guards and the school's surveillance cameras, and returned to their dormitory.
He went to check first... Hinata hadn't returned yet.
Is she still with Junko Enoshima?
Although they were responsible for dealing with the supernatural beings and dealing with potential interference from Junko Enoshima, Tsukino and Chiya still knew some of the arrangements made by Hajime Hinata.
Tsukino and Chiya weren't particularly worried about Hinata Hajime's safety.
Kamukura Izuru… although a product of inhumane experiments, he had to admit that this artificial hope did indeed inspire trust in times like these. Similarly, knowing the future developments of the story, Hinata Hajime could effectively restrain the two desperate sisters. As for the Ultimate Luck who accompanied Hinata…
I'm worried about the safety of the Ultimate Lucky Guy? Really?
But... tomorrow...
Tsukino and Chiya thought to themselves, things are indeed not truly settled yet. But, it will be soon.
Although some preparations have been made, who knows what will actually happen when that time comes? There are always all sorts of unexpected events in this world, and the probability of powerful doll-like monsters bringing some variables is even greater.
If...if...
Even Hyuga would probably have a headache then. After all, dealing with despair and the supernatural at the same time wouldn't be easy even for the Ultimate Hope, right? Or did I underestimate Kamukura Izuru's abilities?
But is it really a good idea to make assumptions about these things now?
Tsukino and Chiya shook their heads, thinking that perhaps they should be more confident.
Tsukino and Chiya sat in chairs and reached into their backpacks.
It was filled with things he thought would be useful in solving strange occurrences along the way, even if some of them seemed far-fetched to outsiders. But it turned out that carrying some oddities was actually quite useful, and the things in the backpack helped a lot in dealing with the strange events along the way.
However, these things are probably of no use to Aurora.
The truly useful thing... the arrow that the doll itself said could indeed seal it, has already been given to the doll.
Is this the end of the road? In that doll's eyes, this is probably how it is now, isn't it? Even if it still has the means to deal with the doll, it has to consider the premise that "Oma Shokichi is currently relying on the doll's power to survive in this world"... If it were to take action, would it be disregarding Oma Shokichi's safety?
Surprisingly, in the doll's eyes, Tsukino and Chiya were actually quite loyal and affectionate...
But in fact...
Tsukino and Chiya recalled the scene they witnessed earlier that day, the reenactment of the past, and the final moment of Ohma Kokichi's life.
Thinking about it this way, this isn't the first time there's been a choice that puts Ouma Shokichi's life on one side of the scales. On one occasion, Ouma Shokichi himself chose to give up his own life.
This time, it's once again a matter of life and death for Ohma Kokichi, but the ones making the choice are now Tsukino and Chiya. What decision should he make...?
Knock knock knock.
A sudden knock on the door interrupted Tsukino and Chiya's thoughts as they were packing their bags.
Why are you knocking at this time?
Tsukino and Chiya were slightly taken aback, then placed their backpacks on the table. At this hour, the only person who would come looking for him was probably Hinata Hajime. He's back? To exchange information?
The knocking only started at the beginning, and then there was no more sound. The person outside seemed very certain that Tsukino and Chiya were in the dormitory and that they had definitely heard the knocking.
Tsukino and Chiya opened the door.
Just as he expected, the person who knocked on the door did not leave, but stood quietly in place.
But... the person who came wasn't Hyuga Hajime. Instead—
Good evening, Kazuo Kozuki.
Although he greeted them politely, the purple-haired boy standing in front of the door squeezed in nimbly before Tsukino and Chiya could make way for him as soon as the door opened.
"We meet again!"
...
So how did things get to this point?
Lying on the bed, Tsukino and Chiya stared at the ceiling, their faces expressionless as they thought to themselves.
What kind of development is this?
"How was it? Were you surprised?"
Not long ago, the purple-haired boy suddenly visited Tsukino and Chiya's dormitory shortly after they parted ways. Tsukino and Chiya closed the door in surprise, staring at the figure who walked confidently to the chair and sat down, waiting for him to explain his purpose.
But after waiting for a while, all he heard were casual remarks that sounded like everyday conversation.
As Tsukino and Chiya continued the conversation naturally, they gradually came to understand something... So he didn't ask Ouma Kokichi why he had suddenly come over, or what he was thinking.
Because some things simply don't have answers. Perhaps even Ouma Kokichi wouldn't know why he suddenly chose to come at this particular time, even after actually asking. Although for Ouma Kokichi... giving a believable reason would be very easy.
Even someone like Wang Ma Xiaoji, who seems to act recklessly and arbitrarily but is actually very rational, can have impulsive moments.
It's likely that it will happen.
Tsukino and Chiya recalled the various behaviors of the boy they had recently witnessed in Ouma Kokichi's past. Reason versus emotion... In truth, there were times when he was ruled by his emotions.
Even at the very end... when he chose to gamble with his life, did reason prevail over the thought that "this is the best way," or did emotion prevail over the thought that "it's time to end all this"?
Perhaps, similarly, even he himself cannot explain it clearly.
But who in this world hasn't done a few things that might seem inexplicable or unlike what they would normally do?
Although Tsukino and Chiya were staying in single rooms, the beds weren't very big. While neither Tsukino, Chiya, nor Ohma Kokichi were particularly large, it was still quite uncomfortable for them to be squeezed together.
Coincidentally, there happened to be a hammock in Tsukino and Chiya's dormitory.
Now there's no need to worry about assigning beds, because Ouma Kokichi seems to really like the hammock. After Tsukino and Chiya, as the owners of the room, set up the hammock, they quickly lay down on it, looking very relaxed and happy.
It was already late when they left the old school building. Now it's even later.
Tsukino and Chiya turned off the lights.
The dormitory was unusually quiet at night. Wangma Xiaoji seemed tired and quickly fell asleep... or maybe he was just like Tsukino and Chiya, not making a sound but still awake.
Neither of them said anything more.
But inexplicably, after noticing the presence of that person not far away, Tsukino and Chiya felt a strange sense of security. It was as if, after tonight, tomorrow, and every day thereafter, that familiar presence would still be there beside them.
He thought that Aurora was right; perhaps in some ways he should thank her for bringing Wangma here by sheer coincidence.
He wondered if Wang Ma was asleep or not, and whether he should say something.
he……
But gradually, he stopped thinking about it.
Tsukino and Chiya had an urge to stay awake and keep the person not far away company until dawn, but in the end, perhaps because of this sense of security, he fell asleep.
*******
After that, everything returned to normal.
The new day began, and everything was normal except that the two of them started from Tsukino and Chiya's dormitory.
The normal routine of going to school, leaving school, having lunch, and then continuing with afternoon classes.
There was no one next to him. Hajime Hinata had taken leave for the past few days and hadn't returned yet.
Mimi Higashigo has confirmed that the supernatural phenomenon is not very useful to her, but she will still stay here to be her teacher. After all, she has already promised to complete something and has no intention of going back on her word for the time being.
Wangma Xiaoji should be taking classes at the undergraduate level. Professor Yukizome at the undergraduate level is indeed a very good teacher, and even Wangma agreed to attend classes consecutively... Although he would occasionally try to sneak out and then be caught by the teacher, Wangma obviously enjoyed it and treated it like a game.
Meanwhile, Tsukino and Chiya continued to listen attentively and take notes in class.
Everything is as usual.
Yesterday felt like a dream, as if nothing had happened and nothing had affected him. It seemed that all that awaited him next was simply going home from school, returning to his dorm, and worrying about his homework.
But time continues to pass.
After a while, the school bell rang to signal the end of the school term.
After some time, it gradually got dark.
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Author's Note: Oops, I forgot to set a time limit for saving drafts... I'm late!!
I'll be busy tomorrow and the day after and won't have time to write. I'll have to ask for leave then.
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