Chapter 18: Third Playthrough (6)
The events of that day ultimately ended in a satisfactory conclusion.
The child went out to play with his parents on Children's Day, but because he was playful and active, he got separated from his parents in a crowded place and ran to this remote place. He cried and accidentally fell into the water.
When his parents arrived, they wept and bowed to thank Kenji Hagiwara and Rei Furuya for saving their child. A few days later, they even sent a banner to the police academy. The two refused to hang it in their dormitory, but Instructor Onizuka hung it in his office instead.
Although he gave the two rascals a good scolding for doing something dangerous again, their act of saving lives was still praiseworthy. He was very proud and pleased, even though he didn't say it, and his eyebrows shot up even higher in front of the other instructors.
Rei Furuya and Kenji Hagiwara didn't have it so easy.
First, Kenji Hagiwara was surrounded and severely reprimanded by the group of people who were still shaken. They only let him off the hook after he admitted his mistake in a sorry state and promised to inform them immediately if anything happened next time.
Then came Furuya Zero...
"How dare you talk about Hagiwara! After you found the person, you didn't tell us and just rushed over to rescue them all by yourself!?" Date Kouichi said, "Don't you guys value your own lives too little? What did I tell you before? Even police officers only have one life! Do you really understand what that means?!"
Jianggu Ling: "..."
No, the reason he left everyone behind was because he didn't want them to be in danger.
But this time, even his childhood friend Hiro wasn't on his side, and he frowned at him angrily along with everyone else.
"I'm sorry, I won't do it again next time." Rei Furuya obediently admitted his mistake.
The others felt a little soft-hearted when they saw the baby-faced blond youth obediently admitting his mistake with his clear, droopy eyes, but they didn't know that he felt no remorse at all and was even thinking about how to cause trouble.
Anyway, I do have more than one life, he thought.
*
Late at night, in the police academy dormitory.
It was 3:30 a.m., and Furuya Rei was still awake.
A pile of gun parts were neatly arranged on the table. The blond youth lowered his eyes and carefully took care of all the parts before reassembling them.
"Snap—"
The silver pistol was gripped by those dark hands, and the black muzzle was suddenly pointed at the calendar on the wall.
Friday, June 13.
13 represents misfortune and the devil, and Black Friday represents terror.
According to Gin, it really is a suitable time to mark the anniversary of his death.
Today was also originally Hagi's most dangerous day.
No, not just Hagi, but everyone could have been in danger in that car accident this afternoon.
This time, the danger is second only to the armed robbery gang from the last time.
Whether or not to change the course of the car accident has become the most agonizing issue for Rei Furuya recently.
To change or not to change?
Making changes in advance is not difficult, but if this major event is disrupted from the beginning, the subsequent impact is immeasurable.
Although many things have changed, the most important fundamental structures have not been affected... except for Hagi's drowning on the night of June 1st.
Even though butterflies are being born one by one and gradually surrounding him completely, so far there haven't been any particularly large butterflies, so he's still relatively safe. Apart from Hagi's drowning incident, nothing else has happened.
He was immediately on edge after rescuing Hagi, even calling the three people scattered in other places to confirm their safety, and he didn't relax for a moment for the next ten days or so... but nothing happened.
Does this mean that as long as there aren't too many or too big butterflies, and they don't change everything like in the last time around, the situation is still within his control? And he won't encounter any unpredictable and terrible crises?
Thinking of this, Furuya Rei picked up his phone and checked the four locations again. He was relieved to find that they were all safely in their dorm rooms.
However, the others in the group didn't seem to be so lucky.
Subaru Natsuki was also doing very well, almost unbelievably so, just like Rei Furuya.
However, after finally defeating the enemy who had driven him to the brink of madness several times, and while everyone was relaxing and happily celebrating their victory, he was suddenly possessed by the already dead enemy.
Yes, that enemy can possess a person and control their body to kill those they care about.
Natsuki Subaru had no choice but to ask the person who had just become his best friend to kill him with a sword.
And so, he died alongside the enemy within his body amidst the abrupt end of the celebratory cheers after the victory, at the hands of his trembling, pained friend.
The hard-won victory instantly turned into a tragedy that others could neither believe nor accept.
Almost exactly like the last week, one person after another in the group got into trouble.
Now, only Rei Furuya is left.
The world's malice is already visible to the naked eye.
And today is the most crucial day.
Rei Furuya took a deep breath, concealed the gun on his person, and got up to leave.
But he suddenly stopped halfway through, turned around, opened the drawer, and took out a slip of paper.
Even though the fortune slips were made of special material, they were a bit wrinkled from being soaked in water. Hagi gave them to him that night, and the other three people each received one as well. They were all very lucky.
The young man with medium-length black hair smiled and winked at them, saying that Hagi-chan specially asked for this for everyone, so they should cherish it.
And Furuya Zero...
【Great Fortune: Good fortune favors the virtuous; you are unlikely to perish. In the unlikely event of any misfortune, I will take care of everything; I will not fail in my trust.】*
Rei Furuya stared at that sentence for a full minute before putting it in his pocket, taking it with him, and leaving.
*
"Cough cough..." Kenji Hagiwara turned around, supporting himself with a broom, and coughed softly.
"What's wrong? Hagi, is your cold still not better?" Furuya Rei immediately turned around.
"Huh? No, no, my cold is all better now. I just got choked by dust." Kenji Hagiwara looked helplessly at the nervous blond youth.
He caught a cold more than ten days ago, and it wasn't serious. Now he only has a slightly sore throat, which doesn't bother him at all.
"Where's your hand? Is your hand really alright?" Furuya Rei grabbed his right hand and examined it.
Hagihara Kenji: "..."
Kenji Hagiwara winked at the three people watching the show behind him.
Ida Kou seemed to be deep in thought.
Morofushi Kagemitsu smiled helplessly and shrugged.
Matsuda Jinpei made an exaggerated mocking expression.
Kenji Hagiwara could only try his best to comfort Rei Furuya, saying with a wry smile, "It's really okay, Furuya. Even the doctor said I'm recovering very well, and the instructors have let me resume normal training. How could anything be wrong?"
He drowned on the night of June 1st, injuring his right hand and catching a cold afterwards. Kofuruya was so nervous that the other three cornered him and interrogated him about what had happened between them.
But Kenji Hagiwara himself is also confused! It can't be that Furuya actually likes him, right?!
That doesn't make sense either. Even if Kofuruya really liked someone, she would never react like that! So where exactly did things go wrong?
Kenji Hagiwara felt that things couldn't go on like this, and secretly decided to have a serious talk with the other three after school this afternoon.
Since Kofuruya won't tell them, then they'll have to investigate secretly themselves. They can't just leave him working so hard all the time without doing anything about it.
Originally, he planned to investigate Hiromitsu's situation with everyone first, but now it seems that Kofuruya's situation needs to be addressed more first.
Kenji Hagiwara's train of thought was suddenly interrupted by a white car that slowly pulled up at the school gate.
"Wow! It's a Mazda RX-7FD3S!! It's that fighter jet with the title 'Zero Fighter Spirit'!!!" Kenji Hagiwara rushed forward instantly, his eyes shining. "As expected of Instructor Onizuka! Amazing! He can even drive my favorite car! So awesome!!!"
Kenji Hagiwara happily took the keys and slipped into the car. He was in an ecstatic mood. Even though it was just helping to park the car, it was a Mazda!
His good mood ended when he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his hand during heavy equipment training in the afternoon.
Kenji Hagiwara concealed the truth without letting anyone else notice.
It's nothing, just a slight soreness, it's not a big problem, but if Furuya finds out, it will be a disaster.
You see, when the blond youth saw him put on the riot gear and holding the riot shield, he paused for a moment, then suddenly and inexplicably earnestly told him that if he ever became a riot police officer, he should definitely wear the riot gear properly...
Oh dear, what a sweet dilemma! My new friend is so worried about Hagi-chan, it's a little troubling for me too.
Kenji Hagiwara's mood improved again.
*
"Furuya, come with me for a second." Onizuka Hachizo called out to Furuya Rei after school.
Rei Furuya paused, then followed him to the office.
There was already one person in the office.
The man in the suit, with a serious expression, pushed up his glasses and asked Furuya Rei directly, "Furuya Rei, are you interested in joining the Public Security Bureau?"
*
It's been over two months since the police academy started, and we can already see some things coming out.
Although most departments recruit from police academies during the three months in the middle or the last month, some outstanding talents who attract the attention of higher-ups as soon as they enroll must be recruited as early as possible.
Rei Furuya, the top student at the police academy, received a recruitment offer from the National Police Agency, which oversees the entire police system.
Matsuda Jinpei and Hagiwara Kenji, who were particularly skilled in bomb disposal, were also recruited by the Metropolitan Police Department's Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit.
They all agreed.
"Hagi, aren't you afraid of death?" Rei Furuya leaned on the railing, turning to look at the half-long-haired youth leaning against the wall. "That's the explosive ordnance disposal unit. They deal with bombs all the time. It's the most dangerous department and the easiest to die in the line of duty."
"Haha, Furuya, that's a great question!" Kenji Hagiwara gave him a thumbs up, winked, and laughed, "I just asked Jinpei the same question!"
“Actually, I was hesitant before.” Kenji Hagiwara walked over and leaned against the railing of the third-floor corridor with him.
It's a beautiful day, the sunset is gorgeous, and the breeze is so pleasant.
Looking down at the campus bathed in the fiery red sunlight of the setting sun, Kenji Hagiwara smiled and said, "As you know, Furuya, my family used to own a car factory. We were so prosperous that we even opened a branch and could let Jin dismantle a Porsche for fun. But we suddenly went bankrupt at the peak of our success."
The long-haired young man, who usually had a somewhat cynical and playboy-like demeanor, gradually became serious, appearing worried and heavy-hearted.
He said, "So ever since then, I often think that when everything around me is going more and more smoothly, it might already be a warning that danger is approaching. It's like something in the dark is warning me that maybe there's a cliff ahead, and it's time to hit the brakes."
"But do you know what Kojinpei said?"
Kenji Hagiwara turned to the blond, dark-skinned youth and gave him a bright smile.
He said, "All I ever did was use the accelerator."
Rei Furuya looked at him without saying a word.
"Haha, that's true. Jinpei is the type who only knows how to step on the gas, so I thought it wouldn't be a problem if he stepped on the gas hard sometimes." The black-haired youth smiled as he faced the golden-red sunset, his eyes full of anticipation and fearlessness for the future.
Knowing it's impossible yet still doing it, fully aware of the danger yet continuing to advance into the darkness, unafraid of despair yet never giving up hope, willing to sacrifice oneself to protect the public interest, and even facing death with a smile.
That's why heroes are called heroes.
*
"Furuya, can't you just tell me what happened?" On the way back to the dorm together, Kenji Hagiwara tried to find out what was going on again.
"Sorry, Hagi, please wait a little longer. I'll tell you everything once I've confirmed a few more things," Rei Furuya said. "So, you won't be secretly investigating on your own until then, right?"
Hagihara Kenji: "..."
Kenji Hagiwara scratched his head and chuckled sheepishly, "Haha, have I been found out?"
He sighed and looked helplessly at the blond youth: "Because Kofuruya, like Komorofushi, has been hiding something important and dangerous from us, and has been working hard on his own all by himself. It's really worrying."
Kenji Hagiwara's keen insight is truly terrifying, and he seems to have an innate ability to manipulate other people's emotions with ease.
After what happened that night, Rei Furuya, knowing he had exposed too much, was no longer trying so hard to hide from him, but he still couldn't tell him everything.
The consequences of being honest with everyone...
Rei Furuya's heart clenched suddenly, but a phone call interrupted his suffocating breath.
"What? A car accident?!"
*
Morofushi Kagemitsu and Date Wataru suddenly called to say that they had encountered a car accident on the street. Although they had called the police and firefighters, neither of them would arrive quickly. Since the police academy was closer, they asked them to go and ask the instructor to drive his Mazda over and think of a solution.
But that Mazda is currently having problems and is being repaired by Matsuda Jinpei.
Kenji Hagiwara and Rei Furuya rushed to the parking lot, but did not find the curly-haired youth.
Kenji Hagiwara was still looking around in confusion when he saw Rei Furuya open the trunk of the car.
Then, a curly head popped out from inside, still sleepy and yawning, as if it had been woken up.
Kenji Hagiwara was startled, but it was Rei Furuya who was shocked.
"Kurutani, it's amazing you were able to spot Jinpei!"
Matsuda Jinpei has been found, the car has been repaired, but the instructor cannot be contacted. So... isn't the answer quite simple?
What? Police academy students aren't allowed to drive on the streets? Oh dear, the wind's too strong, I can't hear you at all!
Kenji Hagiwara goes crazy whenever he sees a car. He laughed and stepped on the gas, driving the two people in the car towards the accident site.
Once they arrived at the location, they exchanged information with Morofushi Kagemitsu and Date Koichi, who were riding a motorcycle behind the wrecked vehicle. They then roughly knew what to do.
"First, we need to find a way to stop the car," Rei Furuya pondered.
Kenji Hagiwara grinned maliciously and jerked the steering wheel: "Isn't this simple? Just crash into it and it'll physically stop!!!"
"Bang--"
"Oh dear, almost there." Kenji Hagiwara laughed. "After all, Mazda's design isn't very robust in collisions, so it really can't handle those big trucks."
“Then let’s use that method.” Matsuda Jinpei suddenly grinned excitedly, grabbing Furuya Rei’s collar. “Hey, Zero, don’t bite your tongue!”
"Alright! Absolutely no problem!!!" Kenji Hagiwara's smile became even more insane and terrifying.
Then, Rei Furuya experienced the "backflip" he had never been able to learn before.
The white Mazda suddenly took off and did a backflip. In the instant the angle completely reversed, Matsuda Jinpei seized the opportunity to grab Furuya Rei and pull him out of the car. The two of them fell onto the roof of the car below and grabbed the sunroof.
Meanwhile, Kenji Hagiwara, with his white Mazda, did a somersault and landed safely before continuing the chase.
Morofushi Kagemitsu and Date Wataru, who were riding motorcycles behind, were stunned.
Working together, Matsuda Jinpei helped the cars behind, while Furuya Rei climbed onto the large trucks in front, letting out a long breath and regaining his resolve.
Great, so far everything is going smoothly, just like before.
So, what's next is...
Rei Furuya successfully jumped through the window into the driver's seat, moved the unconscious driver to the side, and sat down, only to find that the brakes were indeed faulty.
He glanced at the end of the road ahead, looking at the seemingly distant road on the other side of the cliff, and then turned around and loudly told the others about it.
Looking out the window, he could see a white car following them. Furuya Rei glanced at Kenji Hagiwara inside and unconsciously gripped the steering wheel tighter.
This is the last chance.
To change or not to change?
There are already enough butterfly effects, and those red butterflies have long since completely surrounded him. So, is it really okay to continue to be fixated on this point and ignore the original danger?
Change? Don't change? Change? Don't change? Change? Don't change?
"The accelerator! The only thing left is the accelerator!" Kenji Hagiwara suddenly yelled at him forcefully, "Zero! Step on the accelerator!!!"
Accelerator? Brake? Accelerator? Brake? Accelerator? Brake? Accelerator?
Reiichi Furuya gritted his teeth and shouted back, "Fine! I'll step on the gas! You step on the brake! Hagi, stop right now! I can get there by myself! You don't need to come with me! I can manage on my own!!!"
Kenji Hagiwara paused for a moment, then hesitated before slowly stepping on the brakes after meeting his gaze.
As the white Mazda gradually slowed down, Furuya Rei finally felt completely relieved and turned to focus all his attention on the cliff in front of him.
He glanced at the unconscious driver beside him, smiled, and whispered, "It's alright, I'm a person with [Great Fortune]."
"Wish us luck," he said, then slammed on the gas.
With a deafening, beast-like roar, the truck accelerated and sped off the cliff.
The people behind stopped in front of the cliff, their eyes wide and their breaths held, watching the car slowly speeding through the sky with tension and fear.
Time seemed to stretch out and slow down at this moment, making people forget to breathe. Their eyes and brains worked at their maximum capacity, just to see everything clearly.
Rei Furuya sat in the driver's seat, his hands on the steering wheel stiffening for a moment, staring blankly at the cliff in front of him.
He realized that he might not be able to successfully cross over to the safe shore this time.
Although the last time was very close, this time it seems like we really can't get through it.
Rei Furuya suddenly remembered a sentence.
That sentence roughly means that people often brush past death many times in their lives, and some things may seem obvious, making people belatedly realize and be glad that they escaped.
Some things are not obvious, and may even go unnoticed.
But if you could really experience it all over again, those deaths you once avoided might not be spared again.
Rei Furuya relaxed his hand slightly.
So, is it his turn this time?
That's true, he's not someone who's truly immortal.
But this time, he was the one who died, and everyone else is still alive, which is wonderful.
Although he was about to die, Rei Furuya felt more relaxed than ever before at this moment.
A smile even appeared on his face as he thought it was great that Hagi hadn't come along.
"Bang--"
The sudden, loud thud from the vehicle collision brought Rei Furuya back to his senses in an instant.
His heart skipped a beat, and he turned around abruptly.
Inside the vehicle that was suddenly propelled forward by an external force, the blond youth opened his trembling, purplish-gray eyes wide as he watched a white Mazda slowly and helplessly plummet from the sky, his whole body feeling icy cold.
"Hagiwara!!!!!!!!"
Rei Furuya heard Jinpei Matsuda's terrified and desperate scream.
With a loud crash, the truck successfully reached the road on the other side of the cliff, lost its balance, overturned, and slid for a long distance.
Rei Furuya struggled to his feet from the shattered glass, ignoring the lucky fortune slip lying on the ground, and staggered toward the cliff.
"Boom—" A deafening explosion came from below, the ground even trembled, followed by screams from the crowd.
【Hagihara Kenji is dead】
The demon's voice chuckled softly in his mind.
[Side ending unlocked: Cherry Blossoms Fall - Kenji Hagiwara's Death]
Rei Furuya's mind went blank. He knelt on the edge of the cliff, almost leaning half his body out, desperately looking down.
So tall.
It was really high up, and the ground was hard concrete. All I could see were charred car wrecks and blinding flames. It was impossible for anyone inside to survive; they would have been killed without even a complete corpse.
Rei Furuya seemed to see countless scarlet butterflies flying up from the cliff, covering the sky and turning everything crimson.
"It failed..."
It failed, it failed, it failed, it failed...
Ultimately, it failed.
Moreover, Hagi died trying to save him.
Just like last time, it was because of his influence that Hagi was able to realize he was in danger and rush up to ram the back of his car to save him, because he told Hagi to brake and stop behind him instead of jumping off the cliff with him.
His quick and decisive reaction might be partly due to the fact that he had saved the other person's life earlier.
"An unavoidable...butterfly effect..." the blond youth murmured, head bowed.
But all that could be heard was a ghost that had just floated up from below.
"What? What butterfly effect?" Kenji Hagiwara circled around him, then breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, "That's great, it's so good that Furuya is alright~"
Having put aside his worries, Kenji Hagiwara finally had time to experience the fact that he had died and become a ghost.
"Well, there's nothing we can do about it. It's good that Furuya survived. Consider it repayment for saving my life last time!" Kenji Hagiwara patted Rei Furuya's shoulder with a smile, then curiously reached out to touch the other's wind-blown blond hair.
"But I never thought people would really become ghosts after they die?" The ghost with medium-length black hair tried to float towards the three people on the other side of the bridge. "Oh, I'm sorry, Jinpei. Ahaha, I guess I broke my promise. I'm sorry, I can't keep our agreement..."
"Zero?!"
"You bastard, what do you want to do???"
"Furuya! It's dangerous there!! Get back immediately!!!"
Kenji Hagiwara was startled by the three people's terrified expressions. He paused for a second before suddenly turning around.
He saw the blond youth standing on the edge of a dangerous cliff, looking up at him with a faint smile, then falling down without saying a word.
"Wait? Xiaojiang Gu?!"
Kenji Hagiwara rushed over like a madman, trying to grab Rei Furuya who was falling downwards.
But the black, shoulder-length-haired ghost reached out and grabbed nothing; his eyes widened in shock.
"Bang--"
Kenji Hagiwara was completely stunned.
Right in front of him, the blond youth's body slammed heavily onto the ground.
The terrifying crimson color that burst forth even stained the wreckage of the white Mazda not far away.
*
You are dead.
[End of third playthrough]
[Result in a Bad Ending: The Dragon Soars Without Regret]
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